Wednesday Dinner

Salad Nicoise!  That's our dinner last night.  It's a healthy and complete meal; or if you're extra hungry, this can be paired with a chicken or a beef dish.  In our case, we had the salad as the main dish and had some grilled sweet corn (smothered with butter and parmesan cheese on the side!).

So next time you're pressed for time and need a hassle-free and healthy recipe for your hungry brood, think of Salad Nicoise!  

Ingredients:  romaine lettuce, beans,tomatoes, hard-boiled egg, olives (I wrapped them in anchovies to give that extra salty flavor!), seared tuna and baby potatoes.

Dressing:  white wine vinegar, olive oil, pepper, salt and my (secret!) ingredient...a dash of nutmeg!  Another option would be to add dijon mustard, if you like it creamier.

Toss the romaine in the dressing, then arrange all other ingredients on top of the lettuce.  Sprinkle more dressing upon serving.

I'm sorry I can't give you exact measurements, I cook according to taste.  :-)  Enjoy and I would be pleased if you can also share some of your favorite salad recipes!

I would love to hear your thoughts!

A Bit of Styling: Drawer Liners

As I was checking my linen closet, I realized I am a hoarder of pillow cases!  Wow!  I just have too many for the number of pillows I have around.  So I picked three and proceeded to do a bit of styling with my bathroom drawers.  These are the ones I chose.  I think I used them for the kids' room when they were babies.

This is how my drawers look like.

In just a few minutes and without any cost, the drawers were "prettified"!

I'm loving it and what's another plus?...It's washable and I can change it with another pillow case anytime!

What are you waiting for?  Check out your own closets and see if there's anything you can use as drawer liners.  A pretty tea towel is another option.  'Til the next styling!

I would love to hear your thoughts!

My (Little) Prince Charming

I've noticed of late, I have not been blogging on Mondays.  I always have a weekend hangover and it would take me the whole Monday (sometimes 'til Tuesday!) to get back to the groove.  Anyways, I have this post in draft for the longest time and thought today would be a good day to share with you one of my family's (minus the hubby!) all time favorite book! I'm sure most of you have read or at least heard of THE LITTLE PRINCE by Antoine De Saint-Exupery.

We actually own three versions of this book.  The first one is a mini board book which I bought for Bianca when she was 5 years old. (Then passed on to Rapha.)  It does not really tell the whole story, but sort of an introduction of the characters.  It's a set of 4 mini board books with beautiful illustrations that will definitely catch the attention of toddlers. (Yes, this is recommended, for kids as young as 3 years old.)  This is a great set if you want your children to start knowing and liking The Little Prince!

And when my kids turn 9 years old, I let them read the full text version.  (To initiate, I read the first few chapters to them.)  I knew they will not understand it the first time, but it's ok, (because I didn't also..haha!) at least they were already familiar with the characters from the board book so it was an easier shift to the "real" thing.   

And here is our newest copy.  My most favorite of them all!  TADAAA!!!!  Meet The Little Prince in POP-UP VERSION!!  The moment Bianca and I saw it, we didn't let go of it and we inspected each copy to make sure each page is in perfect condition.   Another good thing about this version is, it is UNABRIDGED!  You will not lose interest reading this version because of the wonderfully created pages.  The beautiful illustrations plus the carefully-made cut-outs bring the story to a higher level of enjoyment! 

Here are more of the pop-up pages that are so impressive!  Each page has a unique cut work.  Some would require you to flip, pull, slide, dial or simply turn the page and wait for  "boababs" to pop up!  Kudos to the paper engineers!

the majestic little prince

the boababs

the flower (rose)

the high mountains

the little prince's planet

the little prince raking one of his 3 volcanoes

This is the type of book you would want to read over and over again and a must have in your home library.  The story is profound, especially for young children, but you get a dose of wisdom on life and love through the eyes of the little prince...What are you waiting for?  I hope my little prince has worked his charm on you.  Grab yourself a copy now, if you don't have one yet. :-)

The Little Prince deluxe pop-up book (unabridged text)

is available at Fully Booked, Fort Global City and amazon.com.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Friday Love

Photo from here

For Valentine, I want these flower pom poms around my home!  They are pretty, simple and very easy to make.  Last night, I made some, and they turned out like these. 

Not bad huh?  I used white, creme, pink and purple Japanese paper; and floral wire to tie it up.  If you want to make some, you can check the tutorial here.  Believe me, it's soo easy and you'll get hooked on it.  I'll get  nylon strings tomorrow and hang them above our dining table.  For the meantime, they're around Bianca's room and my study.  Have a pretty Friday!  

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Mama Moment: To (F)Be or not to (F)Be

As of the moment, I only know personally, two people who do not have an FB account.  Needless to say, FB is the biggest social media network today.  Even my 10 year old boy has been asking to get an account since he was 9.  And of course, the evil mother says NO!  He'd say..."Everyone in class has an account already Mom!"  And I would always reply that each family/home has their own set of rules.  And in our home, 10 year olds are not allowed to get an FB account.  I think he got tired of asking and figured out that he'll never win anyway, so he stopped. (I'm hoping he'll forget about it altogether, even when he's 13 already!) 

I do realize the advantages of keeping an FB account, but not for the children under 13.  No offense meant to other parents who have allowed their children to get an account.  This is just my personal opinion and conviction.  There is a minimum age requirement (13 yo) to get an account, so we as parents are responsible in making our kids understand this policy.  

I realized that saying no to FB is actually a simple way of teaching our children:

HONESTY (telling your real age when you sign-in for an account), 

OBEDIENCE (following the rules and recognizing authority; there is a minimum age requirement for a reason, right?), 

DELAYED GRATIFICATION and SELF CONTROL (Isn't it sweeter when you get something that you really like, at the right time?  Never mind if everyone else got ahead of you.)

CREATIVITY (Yes!  Time spent away from the computer means more chances of time spent on books, crafts and the outdoors!  And maybe the lost art of letter writing will be revived, instead of sending e-cards and FB wall greetings!)

Of course, I am not saying that a child who got an FB before 13 does not possess the values I mentioned above.  It's just that when kids are young, it's either black or white, gray can sometimes lead to confusion.

So there, co-parents, what do you think?  Am I being bad or unreasonable as a mom?  In this tough world of parenting, we just have to be very vigilant in guarding and practicing our values and beliefs and be ready to stand by it...even when everybody else is doing otherwise.  My apologies if this post sounds too preachy but I just felt a strong urge to share with you my stand on FB for young children.     So, to (F)B or not to (F)B..that is the question!

I would love to hear your thoughts!

Man's Best Friend

Are you a dog lover?

I'm not!  

I do not do "doggie-baby talk."

I don't like touching their body.

I don't like feeling their bones and everything else inside.

I don't like hair on my clothes, nor on my couch, not even on my floor!

I don't like it when they stare at you and bark,

Like you're a runaway thief!

I don't like them licking me

All the more playing pretend bite.

I don't do fetch.

I just don't like anything to do with them!

But for the past 5 days, I became a convert.  

(Yes miracles do happen!)

This dog named CHIQUI..

Made me do doggie-baby talk

She's actually talking to me on the photo above!

And one time I even called her Raphael! (my son's name)

Now it doesn't feel yucky anymore to caress her body, 

do a bit of massage and even carry her around! 

It's been 5 days only since she came

But it feels she's been part of the family ever since

Now we're all gaga over her!

O CHIQUI!  What did you do to me?

I thought it will be short and easy to dog sit

Now I am hooked on you!

There's nothing we can do but return you

To your rightful owner.  

Please come and visit more often!

Note:  Chiqui is my sister's pet.  The whole family went out of town and Chiqui was left to our care.  She will be fetched today :-(  If I feel sad, Bianca will be depressed.  Chiqui slept with her every night! :-(  Yikes!  I can already hear her saying "Ma, can we borrow Chiqui?"  or maybe, "Let's get our own Chiqui. Please?  Pretty please?"

It took me this long to understand and experience why dogs are called man's best friend.  Can't argue more!

I would love to hear your thoughts!