Lilypie Fifth Birthday tickers Lilypie Third Birthday tickers Lilypie First Birthday tickers Daisypath Anniversary Years Ticker

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Happy 9 Year Anniversary!

Yes, we are one of those couples who celebrate their "dating" anniversary. Call us cheesy or losers but we like to remember the day that we started to officially go out! It was April 27, 1997, the night of our junior prom, when Mike casually asked me "So, you wanna go out?". And I, the ever shy and modest girl said "Sure!" (In reality, I was really quietly squealing with joy inside). I can't believe that we are now in Denver, Colorado eagerly anticipating the arrival of our first child!








Wild and crazy kids circa 1999

Monday, April 24, 2006

My Trip

It's been a couple of weeks since I've been back in good ol' Denver and I thought I'd post a few pictures and thoughts about my recent trip to the Philippines. As most of you know, I spent about a total of 10 years of my childhood there. My Dad worked as an expat that required him to work in the Philippines and Korea two to four years at a time. I left the Philippines when I was eight years old, lived in Korea for four years, and then moved back to the Philippines for another 2 years. By the age of 14, we permanently moved to the United States. My childhood in the Philippines is marked with wonderful memories. There were picnics in the park, rollerskating in Camp John Hay, bicyling through Burnham, playing with my cousins, eating ice cream in Session Road...and these are only a few of the many memories that reinforces that the Philippines is my true home. I was very anxious to return after a 12 year absence. I was excited to see the changes but more excited to see what had not. After a torturous 30+ hour trip, we were finally in Baguio City, the city where I was born. It is about 6 hours from Manila, a beautiful city nestled in the highlands of the Philippines, surrounded by pine trees and sunflowers. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines" because of its mild weather. It is much cooler than the hot and humid Manila or the lowland provinces. Although the city is now overrun by houses literally built on top of each other, there are still some beautiful views of the mountains and the rice terraces that inhabit them. I was in shock by the amount of people that walk the streets and the number of cars on the roads (which by the way lacks any form of traffic signals or laws). Riding in a car required lots of prayers and gasps as we narrowly avoided oncoming cars left and right. I was able to visit many familiar places such as the churches I once attended, the grottoes that I once visited, the parks, the restaurants, and many other landmarks. Being pregnant, I did not hesitate to each every morsel of food that I had not tasted in years! That included many of the fruits such as star apples and chiccos or the vegetables---ararusit, zayote, cigarillas (sp?), and many others. I also enjoyed the roasted corn, siopao, and halo-halo. Nevertheless, Mike was VERY jealous. Aside from the food and the places I visited, I was also able to spend some time with my family. I am the only "girl" cousin who resides in the States so it was very important for me to spend time with my girl cousins in the Philippines. I grew up with them and always considered them my best friends. It was nice to reconnect and I already miss them terribly. The trip only reinforced my love for my country and the traditions that I hope to pass on to my children. Family, faith, and community are such integral parts of the Pilipino culture. I hope Mike will be able to join me on my next trip to the Philippines, no doubt he will enjoy it!


I'm very amused by the unsupervised cows strolling the street!




At the local market.




Yummy veggies!




Local delicacies- fish and ararusit!






My elementary school at a distance.

Monday, April 10, 2006

Nursery Painted!

As Mike has previously posted, he has been busily working on the nursery while I was away. Yes, he spent many anights (particulary last weekend) till 2 or 3 in the morning taping, priming, stapling, caulking, and painting. It was well worth the effort because it turned out beautiful! Since our little baby will be a surprise, we chose gender neutral colors like greens and yellows as the primary colors of the nursery. Mike also did a great job matching the colors of the bedding to the paint. I am so proud of him! He also managed to buy a few miscellaneous items such as diapers, wipes, and a cute little Microsoft teeshirt to accent the room! He bought the stroller even though my mom had already had dibs on that purchase. Needless to say we are counting down the days until we see our little one and put the room into use!














Saturday, April 08, 2006

Blogging from L.A

Wow, Mike and I are jetsetters. Him blogging from Seattle and me in L.A. Nothing beats home though which I have been immensely missing since being gone for one month. Don't get me wrong, it's been an incredible experience going back home to the Philippines (a trip of which I will go into greater detail when I get back to Denver) but I miss the normal routine of life. Waking up in the morning to let Noodles out, fixing my bagel and coffee before heading out to work...(not missing work too much so we can skip that)...going home, watching Jeopardy, playing with Noodles, and especially hanging out with Mike. It may seem mundane to most people but I do miss it a lot. Check back with me in a couple of weeks to see if I still feel the same! As for my babe-in-the-oven update, the little one has definitely been very active. Just like my nightowl of a husband Mike, the baby likes to kick away at night while sleeping the day away. I'm definitely much much bigger than when I left, thanks to the delicious food the Philippines offered to me! No regrets though, just a few rounds in the elliptical machine and some aerobics should get me back on track (or so I hope!). Alright, bedtime for myself and the baby!

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Blogging from Seattle

I'm just about to hop on a plane and return to home sweet home. I've been in Seattle since Monday, attending a kickoff for a new Microsoft product. It's been quite beautiful out here. I think Seattle keeps trying to trick me because every time I fly to Redmond it's clear and sunny!

It has been a very intense week, so I'm glad to get back to Denver. The team putting on the product launch was nice enough to take everyone to a Seattle Mariners game on Tuesday night. "We" played the Angels and really whooped their you-know-what. Our seats were in the Microsoft suite which helped shelter us from the cold breeze.

Poor Noodles has been all alone this week since Genevieve is still gone. She landed in LA on Tuesday and will fly into Denver Sunday night. It will be great to see her again.....but this also means I have a lot of work Friday night and Saturday to finish off the nursery. Pics to come!