Mamapalooza

So after lots of work-y time, gots to get some Mommy-time in. I took Thus off of work solely to witness the wonder that was our first elementary school concert. First up - Kindergarteners. Their beatnik poet version of 50 Below Zero was breathtaking.

Even more moving? My son's courageous decision to stand in the middle of the stage with a scarf over his face following the performance. Stage fright or one man's touching interpretation of Pearl Jam's Force of Nature (one man stands alone)? You be the judge.

5 hours later* - 1st graders! Expressive movement set to orchestral pieces of Camille Saint Saens’ Carnival of Animals. No shit. J was an awesomely bitchy lion.

All the performances were moving in their own right, but the coolest part of the show? Two words. Live. Streaming. International school is so freaking cool!

*I admit - we took a break to get brunch and go grocery shopping.

B-Traveled

Sorry for the lack of posting lately, it's been a bit busy around the Pu house..or outside of it as the case may be. In a nutshell, we went on vacation to Boracay.*

Then I ran back off to Baguio** for a silent auction to benefit an anti-violence against women non-profit, SAVE Our Women. I've been planning this auction for months, and the last few weeks have been as stressful as any project I've ever headed, so I was thrilled to see its successful conclusion. Thanks to some high-powered friends, we were able to score some huge donations for the cause. With over PhP 1 million raised, I think SAVE is well on their way towards their goal of setting up a half-way house for women and children fleeing their abusers and founding an employment program to help these women learn how to make a living outside of the home. It was a most incredible experience, and I am overwhelmed to have been a part of it.

Now I just have to get through the Mission Holiday Party (co-chairing with my girl K of Adventures in Serendipity fame), and I will be massive project-free!

In between my trips, I managed to squeeze in some quality Mommy time by watching J's first dance recital (they were butterflies, which, coincidentally, was also what I played in my first dance recital - big sis MR was a flower - oh the memories!).

*Awesome beach, great snorkeling/scuba diving, but way to many other people and waaaaaay too many Greenhills-like vendors up in your face trying to sell shit every two steps. My advice, try one of the Philippines many other gorgeous beaches - we go to Palawan next!

**By far my favorite place in the Philippines!

The Sad Thing Is...

I would actually buy some of this shit. #IthinkImayactuallyownpumpkinbowls

And this is why we don't take art majors seriously, AinA.

Oh, almost forgot, GO BILLS!!!!! Now we just need to knock out the rest of our games and we'll be in the playoffs!!!

Happy Veteran's Day

How sad is it that I don't have any digital photos of myself in uniform?

We celebrated the weekend by watching the new Bond movie* with our friends G&P and taking a day trip to Tagaytay with the kids. We ate at Antonio's and hit up the lake and spent a small fortune on flowers and produce thanks to all of the stands along the road.** Antonio's is a great deal. By far the best meal we've had in the Philippines, and we only spent about $120USD for 5 people to eat lunch with drinks. The location is also gorgeous. It's basically a big, plantation like house that was converted into a restaurant, and you can walk the grounds between courses, which was a welcome break for the kids. There's also a big koi pond, which was a great kid draw, and they accepted A's order of "yummy egg, please" without hesitation, even though it was 1pm and there was no kids menu. Can't beat that!

*Pu review: very Bond-y

**Even outside Manila traffic is piss poor thanks to lack of infrastructure, so what should be a 20min drive turns into a 2hr drive and you end up buying things just to pass the time!

Happy Election Day!!!!

So it's a wee bit late to be posting that, but I was proud to do my civic duty many weeks ago when I mailed my vote in. It's kinda cool to be a voter in a state like Florida versus the last few presidential elections when I was a resident of Washington.

Husband and I were watching the election results trickle in on AFN during our lunchtime gym jaunt at the Embassy, and I marveled that the thing that struck me most about watching all those crowds of happy Obama and Romney-supporters was how much freaking personal space they all had!!!! It's the little things, people, the little things that you miss the most. While I love me some Asia, there's almost nothing I wouldn't give for some Western-concept of personal space/alone time.

Manila Shopping: Salcedo Market

So I wrote a bit about the Legazpi market a while back, but really it's the Salcedo market that's most well known. Salcedo is larger and has more diverse vendors. You can find everything from Cuban food to Vegan mushroom burgers. Salcedo has way more food vendors than Legazpi, and I think their meat, seafood, and organic produce selection is far superior. But while I like to explore Salcedo to dig out fresh new vendors, buy organic produce, and get fresh seafood, but I prefer Legazpi for its smaller crowds. After you've been living in a city where 13% of the country's population lives (oh, and that's just Metro Manila, not including Greater Manila)...well, you're always grateful for places with smaller crowds.