Welcome to Momon and Ros'!

Hey guys, just want to share with you our new home!

It's a bi-level condo unit in Quezon City, located near the very active streets of Tomas Morato and Quezon Avenue.

The turnover was a bare unit. The interiors were designed and constructed by our best friend Architect Vincent! The ideas were a consolidated effort between Momon, myself, Vincent, Rhea and Ben. Thank you Mom and Dad for helping us get our own home!

So here are some before and after photos, chronicling the construction from December to February. 

We moved in around mid-April with help from so many friends, so of course, the house doesn't look like this anymore. Watch out for more entries about our evolving home in the coming weeks. More stories on furnishing, decorating and so many other stuff soon! :-)

LIVING AREA



KITCHEN
This is my favorite space!


 




There is a weird tint to the photo above. It's not supposed to be this color. :-)
Anyway, there was a major debate about the backsplash tiles, which I lost 4-1!

The gas range and the ref were still not in place at this point. But if you can imagine with me, the ref is on the left and the gas range is on the right, just below the range hood.

DINING AREA
So, I guess from this photo you can start to see the position of the spaces relative to each other.

STAIRS
Look! There's our kitchen with much better light!
Vincent also included some mirrors. To make the space feel bigger, as it obviously needs.

 

BEDROOM AREA

We decided not to close the 2nd floor but open it like a loft.

We painted it light blue, a bit inspired by the interiors of White Hat. The paint meeting was conducted there with some yummy yogurt.

 

CLOSET

Loving the color scheme here!

 

SERVICE AREA

This is the space just right outside the bathroom, sort of like an extended bathroom. For other unit owners, maybe this is where they have their washing machine, etc.

Notice my pretty floor tiles?

  

BATHROOM

And here is the bathroom! It's quite difficult to take a photo of the space since it's not so big.
But I love how it feels open with the blue and dark brown tiles.

  

Needless to say, we love our home! Come by and visit!

Happy 28th!

It's my birthday month! Like always, I claim the whole month of August as my chance to celebrate my birthday. So, what are we waiting for?

SATURDAY DINNER with PADUAS

Padua family came over to Sofia Saturday night.

It's their first time to visit the house after the construction and after we moved in. :-)

SUNDAY LUNCH with HUNNIES

Birthdays would not be complete without a celebration with Compassion 5.
Kaso nga lang tinulugan kami ni Ben! OK lang Koko!

Buti na lang we have a special guest... Cheska!

BIRTHDAY DINNER with MOMON

Momon and I celebrated my birthday at Cerchio Restuarant at Sct. Limbaga, just a few blocks away from our house. It's so convenient to live just a few blocks from Tomas Morato row of restaurants!

For appetizer, we ordered Grilled Shrimp and Pomelo Salad and Singaporean Crispy Squid Heads.

The salad was a little overdressed for my taste, but it was really good.  But the clear winner among all those we ordered was the crispy squid. I NEED to get a recipe of this squid heads!

For the entrees, we had some difficulty choosing because most the dishes are best eaten with rice. The grilled kare-kare was very enticing, but we'd miss rice too much if we ordered it. We also wanted to try the baked crispy pata but it was too much for two. Maybe next time when we come back with friends, we'll have them.

So we decided on Grilled Liempo with Mango Salsa and Pork Sisig. Both were so good, especially the pork sisig. But I realized, it's too much pork!

After dinner, Momon stood up on the premise of checking the dessert bar but came back with these!

 

Thank you Mymie! Mahaba pa ang birthday month ko!

Save the Date: October 2!

Yahoo! Finally we are ready to release our Save the Date cards.

Thank you very much to our dear friends who helped us accomplish this task. We couldn't have done it without you. Grabe, para tayong bumalik sa mga project natin nung high school!

Photos by Ben. Styling by Rhea. Expressions-coaching by Ben and Rhea. Letterings by Vincent. Layout facilitated by Hanna. Cuteness by Cello.

Thank you again! Mwah!

ARCHITECT VINCENT

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PRC January 2009 Architects (Architecture) Licensure (Board) Examination Results

The result of the Philippine Architects (Architecture) Licensure (board) Examination which was held in Manila on January 16 & 18, 2009 has been released by the PRC. See below for the full list of passers:

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announces that 372 out of 942 passed the Architect Licensure Examination (ALE) given by the Board of Architecture headed by its Chairman, Arch. Armando N. Alli with two other members, Arch. Angeline T. Chua Chiaco and Arch. Marietta B. Segovia. The results of examination with respect to two (2) examinees were withheld pending final determination of their liabilities under the rules and regulations governing licensure examinations. The results were released in twenty-two (22) working days after the last day of examination.

January 2009 Architects Board Exam Topnotchers:

1. CERISE ANNE ABENOJA MINA, MAPUA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 80.20
2. ANGELLO CUBOL ADRIANO, MAPUA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 79.30
3. VANGIE CHERYL CIMAFRANCA ULILA, UNIVERSITY OF SAN CARLOS 78.60
4. VINCENT JO BAGAY HIPOLITO, UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN 78.10
5. ARSENIO BAGARES WAJE JR., COLUMBAN COLLEGE-OLONGAPO CITY 77.80
6. ALEXANDER ZAMUDIO ADIOVA, FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY MANILA 77.60
7. KAREN ANNE URBANO NAGUIT, UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS 77.40
8. CRIS JAN MUTIA BANAAG, UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN 77.20
9. MARC LAWRENCE PATONGAN AQUINO, SAINT LOUIS COLLEGE OF SAN FERNANDO 77.00
9. DIANE FAYE ATIENZA GAPAS, UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINESDILIMAN 77.00
10. NHEIL TUMULAK CRISOSTOMO, UNIVERSITY OF SAN CARLOS 76.80
10. JADE RAFALLO OCOT, SAINT JOSEPH INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 76.80
10. JUAN CRISOSTOMO RAVAGO OLIVEROS, UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN 76.80

Ben's Valentine Greeting

Happy 14th of Feb to the two dearest couples I hold close to my heart: the Mymies and the Hunnies. Thanks for showing me what love is everytime we're together. I hope it won't be long til you meet the new couple... the Brownies. Hehe. Joke lang! Happy hearts day!

- Ben

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We love you Ben!

Birthday Celebrations

It's August... and it's my birthday month!
Ahahaha! Talagang month talaga ang inangkin! Feeling game show host na kapag birthday ay buong week ang mga kaibigan ang naglalaro!

So far, masaya naman ang mga naging celebrations ng birthday ko. :)

July 31
Lunch at Bagoong Club with PMFI family
Ate Yas, Tita Nancy and Danz joined me for a sumptuous lunch at Bagoong Club (Scout Area). We had sinigang na salmon sa miso, pork inasal, kare-kareng gulay and bagoong rice. Sarap! We also had 4 different desserts which we shared.

Karaoke Dreams
After lunch we went to Crossroad 77 to watch a play called "Karaoke Dreams". It's a production of PETA sponsored by The International Organization for Migration. Syempre free lang ang tickets kasi partner din namin ang IOM sa ibang projects nila.

August 1
Circles Buffet with family
We spent the evening of my actual birthday at Makati Shangri-La trying to conquer the Circles Buffet. Yes, kainan talaga to! Nag-team up pa kami ni Momon para matikman namin lahat (ng gusto namin) without stuffing ourselves too much!

Hmmm... though we must say that we enjoyed Spiral Buffet better, nagenjoy pa rin kami sa Circles. We liked the duck, japanese dishes and super creamy vanilla ice cream and our favorite crepes!

Syempre masaya kasi may bouquet pang bigay sakin si Momon. :)

August 3
Although hindi naman talaga to celebration... aangkinin ko na rin.

Lung Center Sunday Market
Ben, Rhea, Vincent, Momon and I visited the Lung Center Sunday market. Kain kaliwa't kanan. If you've been to these market, you know what I'm talking about. If you haven't, naku pumunta na kayo. Super daming pwedeng kainin, na gusto namin lahat. Madami ring pwedeng bilhin--halaman, fresh goods, damit, aso, furniture, etc, etc!

Unfortunate lang kasi medyo umuulan-ulan kaya kailangan naming magpayong habang kumakain, at maputik ng onti ang daanan. Kumain kami ng tuna belly, binagoongan, palabok, ilocos empanada, sisg, crispy crablets, stuffed crab, pancit habhab at buko-lychee sherbet.

Trinoma
Duoma! Although napaka-ordinary na para sa kanilang tatlo, super baguhan talaga kami ni Momon sa Trinoma. Wala pa kong 10 times nakakapunta dun, for sure. Naglibot-libot lang, bought some things for myself and my camera. Then went home to rest.


Upcoming Events:
Aug 10 - ASAP '08 guesting
Aug 14 to 18 - Hong Kong Trip with Momon and Ben
Aug 19 onwards - pulubi mode

Snow World for Rhea's 24th Birthday!

We celebrated Rhea's birthday at Snow World, Star City last June 14.

Umeffort talaga ako dito. E sabi kasi -15 degrees! So, ako naman, ang worst kong naranasan e -6 degrees. Sabi ko, naku, haggard ito. Kailangan maghanda otherwise masasayang lang ang money at baka mag-give up kami agad sa lamig.

Nasad din kami nung una na di pwedeng magdala ng camera, pero ok na rin pala kasi mada-damage ang camera sa super lamig.

So... come Saturday... ang dami kong dala!
3 bonnets, 3 sets of gloves, 2 scarves, sweatshirt, extra pants, North Face waterproof shoes, toes socks, and 2 winter jackets for me and Momon.

Pinagtawanan nila ko! Pero sabi ko, "Ako ang tatawa sa inyo pag nanlamig na kayo sa loob! Hahaha!"

Si Bennet, super excited, sa ticket booth pa lang naka-full attire na. Mukha tuloy kaming mangho-holdap, with red gloves! Alam na alam tuloy ng mga tao na sa Snow World kami pupunta. Sa sobrang excited din ni Ben, pumasok sya sa closet, akala nya yun na ang entrance.

Brr! Pumasok na kami! Malamig, duh! Pero it's more of ICE World than Snow World, really. Feel ko di naman yun -15. May mga ice sculptures pero pasira na at madumi na.

Ang pinakamasayang part ay ang slides na paikot. Kukuha ka ng board at magsa-slide ka. Nakakagulat sa una, muntik akong mapa-slide na walang board kasi ang dulas. Aray! At pagnagre-race kami nila Momon and Ben, ako laging talo. Si Momon may technique na hindi ko alam kahit na saan slot sya mag-slide, sya pa rin nauuna. Tinulak na nga ako ng ng isang staff gamit ang walis kasi sa bandang end ng slide e natitigil ako.

May isa pang slide na diretso lang at uupuan mo lang ang jacket. Corny to, pero naging nakakatawa kasi hindi kami umaandar ni Momon. Nakakahiya tuloy.

Isa lang photo namin kasi P100 per photo, yak! Tinulungan ko pa ang photographer magframe. Ok ba ang kinalabasan?

Nakapag-batuhan din naman kami ng snow, kasi kuniha namin yung mga naipong 'snow' sa mga puno. Ginaya kami ng mga bata, pero sila ang napagalitan. Hahaha!

All in all, masaya sya. Mainly because kasama ko ang C5 (naks!). Medyo matagal kami sa loob, mga 1 hour at masasabing kong nasulit namin. Punta rin kayo!

Happy birthday Rhea!

Ben's 23rd Bday

Celebrated the night at Moomba (Roces Avenue). The ambiance and architecture was superb , but the food was a major so-so. At least we can proudly say that we have already tried ostrich meat!

The band also granted my request, and played "The Last Time" by Eric Benet.

We couldn't give Ben his 1 bottle of Jose Cuervo Tequila, so he had to settle for Cuervo filled chocolate instead. Not bad, actually. Happy birthday Ben!


Some random photos...

Birthday Celebrations

24th! Syempre ako pinakamatanda sa Compassion 5, kaya nadiin na naman ang age!

Kebs! I'm still young, and I'm loving every minute of being 24. Especially the multiple celebrations.

KNN and PMFI with Susie's Cuisine
My birthday was a Wednesday, a perfect fit for KNN Manila reporters. Ang daming tao sa office, ang saya. Ate Tin, Ate Grace--na saktong may viewing. Angelo, Joseph, Nicai and Ate Astrid, Tita Nancy, Ate Lorna and Ate Josie. Ate Yas had to leave early, though.

We ate the extraordinary palabok of Susie's Cuisine! As in the Pampango original. We also had Tibok-tibok, their version of Majablanca; and Danz' recommended kakanin--Moche. As in super busog!

Padua Family at Cajun
We had dinner at Cajun restaurant along Retiro. It's the restaurant of the Chef Tony (of Popcorn fame). I first ate in this resto during one of my stints in HTVS. I was craving for their Creole Chicken pasta, that's why we went there. Muntik pa kaming maligaw. Ang dilim kasi e.

We also bought loads of Chef Tony's Popcorn! How can you resist?! I had one small tumbler of White Chocolate and Walnut popcorn to myself.

Sorry , wala akong pictures. Hehehe. ON TO MORE CELEBRATIONS!

Compassion 5 at Butter Diner
I chose Butter Diner in Cubao for my birthday dinner with the Compassion 5. It's similar to the 50's Diner in Baguio which Momon and I really enjoyed. I'm not so sure what to say about the food here. It's not really extraordinary, but it's worth a try.

Ayan, may pictures na...

Vincent and Momon, behind them is the comic mural (?) of Butter Diner's history.

This is mine! All American Burger! Super juicy!


Ewan ko ba kung bakit namin ginawa 'to!

After dinner, we proceeded to Pier One for drinks. Aside from the usual drinks we have, we each got 1 tequila shot. Ang saya, nagtoast kami sa isa't isa. Di lang ako ang may wishes, bawat isa, magbibigay ng wish sa apat. Rhea ordered Shirley Temple, ang dumating samin, tempura... go figure.

Mymies at Spiral Buffet, Sofitel
Sunday night, Momon and I conquered the Spiral Buffet of Sofitel Philippine Plaza. It was a 4-hour culinary experience, that we will not soon forget!

We enjoyed a buffet of Japanese, Italian, Spanish, Indian, Chinese and Koren cuisines. Super na-test dito ang pagiging adventurous namin sa food, at ang galing namin sa pagpe-pace ng appetite namin. I had the chance to try some things I normally just see on Lifestyle Network--smoked salmon, mango chutney, green tea pannacota, gratin, lamb, prosciutto and many more.

It's so hard to describe here what we ate-- even more, how much we ate! I took sips of hot tea each time we completed a cuisine to help me digest, tsaka para wag maumay. By the end of it all, we had to burp ourselves several times and take long deep breaths in between spoons of creme brulee.

Whew, what an eventful birthday week, not to mention a very fattening one! BURP!

Avilon Zoo, part 2

More pics from Avilon Zoo!
Andito na ang mga birds na favorite ni Dyan. Hehe.


Ros and Ben with the Cassowary. This time nag-cooperate s'ya.


The Jaguar! Medyo boring s'ya, walang interaction.
Nyark... ano bang interaction ang iniisip ko?



The Birds! Philippine Lawin and Philippine Owl.


Miniature Horse, na hanggang 12 years old lang daw ang pwedeng sumakay.
Ang cute!


Ben and the Tortoise (Ahhhh... ano ba plural ng tortoise?)
May 58-year old turtle din na covered in lumot. Madami din ibang kinds of turtles.


Mga iba pang nakita...

• Malaki pala ang hyaena.
• Merong sun bear na rumampa lang tapos nag-tago na ulit. Mainit daw e. Haahaha!
• Favorite ni Ben, Momon at Vin ang Malayan Tapir... bakit kaya? Research!
• Nakakita kami ng Canadian Finch! Super ganda.
• May video pa kami ng mga malalaking Arapaima na nagtatalunan, next time na lang.
• Super cute ng mga MARMOSET!!!
  

Avilon Zoo

Para kaming bumalik sa pagkabata! Big eyes, open mouths, nimble legs, crazy smiles!
Our trip to Avilon Zoo was well worth the wait.

Here we are at the entrance pavilion trying to contain our excitement.


Momon with the uncooperative Cassowary, otherwise known as the most dangerous bird. Kasi daw may mala-knife syang contraption sa ulo n'ya, at super talas ng kanyang claw.

First time ko makahawak ng ahas! Si Ben, di talaga kinaya. Para pala syang isang malaking muscle. At talagang gumagalawa sya habang nagpi-picture kami.


Ito naman ang mga super gandang mga ibon. Kay Momon, parrot; sakin, kay Ben at Rhea, cockatoo; tapos kay Vincent, Hornbill. Yung kay Momon kinakain nya yung hat, tapos yung sakin naman, kinagat yung button ko sa shirt. Basta, super cute at mababait sila.


Nagfeeding program pa ako sa mga pato, pero deadma sila sakin! Isa lang ang lumapit. Huhuhu.


Dami pang ibang pics, sa next entry na lang



Coming Soon:
Arapaima , Lawin and Owls, Tiger, Malayan Tapir
Madami pa!

Paintball!!!

It was such a rush! 66 bullets is not enough.

Super protected.

Mga super gagad! Green Team panalo! Ubos ang bala!

Black team, panay pasa. Yak!!! Arouch!