juls random thoughts

Tet wants to know...

What I love about being pregnant

Me while 5 1/2 months pregnant:

Me while 8 months pregnant:

Hubby and I five days before giving birth:


Blooming ako when I was pregnant that's why most of them thought I'm carrying a girl.

SHOPPING, SHOPPING, SHOPPING!!! a great excuse to splurge on my hobby

I look good on preggy clothes

I am super spoiled with hubby that I can eat anything that I want

The thought that someone is growing inside my tummy

That my having a BIG tummy is normal! LOL!

And since having a big tummy is normal, I had the guts to wear two-piece swimsuit! LOL!

The frequent ultrasounds with my OB

:::::Start::::Rule:1. Copy from ::Start:: through ::End::.2. Add your blog to the list.3. Tag your friends. You don’t need to be tagged in order to join. Feel free to join the fun.4. Don’t forget to let me know your blog’s name and url by leaving me a comment HERE so I can add you to the Pretty Momma LIST.5. Come back regularly to update your master list! You never know? This might help improve your ranking!Pretty Preggy Momma’s1.FunFierceFabulous 2.Me,Myself+2 3.Confessions of a Supermodel Wannabe 4. Momiespace 5.Bits and Pieces 6. Juls Random Thoughts 7. YOUR LINK HERE

:::::End::::

I'm tagging Jane, Jody and Pat!

Kasalanan ng blogging, or rather thanks sa bloghopping ko kasi I went to sleep late at nahirapan akong gumising kanina. The effect, I was not able to go to office. For some weird reason, medyo masakit din tummy ko sa talagang di ako makakapasok.

I was supposed to go to office late when I felt better na but decided to go with the little boy to school instead to get updates.

Teacher told me that I have to supplement the little boy's studying at home. He showed me the little boy's workbook and there I saw what the teacher was saying. Wala syang tiyaga to color, he knows the right color but he doesn't color the shape completely, paano ko ba ituturo sa kanya yun?

They are also currently studying LEFT, RIGHT, UP and DOWN to which the little boy was good naman. He was asked to recite in front of the class and he answered correctly. He was asked to identify which among the two chairs drawn on the board is facing left and he was able to encircle the right answer.

Next was their individual identification of colors. Teacher showed a board colored with the following colors: RED, BLUE, GREEN, ORANGE, YELLOW unfortunately, the little boy answered color YELLOW as GREEN so he did not get a star but a happy face stamped on his arm instead.

It has been actually our problem na talaga kasi may pagkasutil the little boy, he has the tendency not to take you seriously when asked for a color kaso even if ako ang magtanong nagkakamali pa rin sya and no matter how I explain how to properly color mali pa rin. Hay naku... though sabi naman ng cousin nya na 7 yrs. old na and boy rin is until now daw lagpas-lagpas pa rin sya mag-color. Sabi rin ni MIL, baka ganun talaga kasi boy, hindi masinsin mag-color.

I decided to go to NBS in my attempt to supplement his studies. I bought art papers of various colors and attached this to an illustration board so he can review, I also bought a wallchart of colors so sana naman in the next few days eh maging clear na ang yellow at green sa kanya.

On a positive note, I am so thankful that he is so well behaved in the school, hindi sya kasama sa mga tinatawagan ng teacher ng attention - ang suki si Joaquin and Matthew. Katakot pala if for preschool eh traditional school - parang naawa ako sa mga bata pag pinagsasabihan sila but I guess they have to learn discipline. Paano ba pag progressive? hindi ba pinapagalitan ang students? Masyado lang ba akong protective for my little boy? para kasing di ko matanggap na baka dumating ang time na si kurt eh papagalitan din.

Continuation of this post

WARNING: Photo overload, goes to show that I so love Summer Palace.

Summer Palace (UNESCO world heritage site) – I so love this place, I actually even liked this better than the Forbidden City, only the pictures can explain why. Summer Palace is the emperor’s vacation house, basta ganda-ganda ng place. And as if hindi kami napagod sa pag-akyat sa Great Wall and Ming tombs, we even went up pa the Yu Feng Pagoda on top of the hill. Grabe talaga! Pero we’re so enticed with the beautiful structures and surroundings na kahit super pagod na, go pa rin kami ng go.
















To be continued... too much photos already

Continuation of the Beijing kwento...

Ming tombs (UNESCO world heritage site) – we went to Ding Ling, the only tomb that have been excavated. Ming tombs is composed of 13 tombs of the 17 emperors of the Ming dynasty, instead of building pyramids, they create an underground palace on hills and that serve as the emperor’s mausoleum. We passed by cherry farm so we bought na rin.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_Dynasty_Tombs ; http://www.mingtombs.com.cn/ ; http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1004
Bridge entrance:

Ano raw?



Going to Underground Palace where the tombs are buried:

Inside the underground palace, behind us is the emperor's throne and some of his possessions:

A replica of the emperor's, empress', concubines tombs and their kept treasures:

Finally, up and out!

Last in ou itinerary for the day was Summer Palace.

To be continued...

Friday last week, I was surprised when I got home from work as the yaya told me that Kurt has homework. Wow! only on second week in school and he's got homework already and to think he's only a nursery. When I checked his assignment notebook, I found four assignments! so while the little boy is still excited in doing his homework, we answered it that friday night. I completely forgot to take pictures then but since its a friday today, new set of assignments again! I took pictures already of his assignment last week.

First, the task was to color the two pictures with their natural color. So I asked the little boy the color of apple and sun. Here what he did:

Second, put a check mark if the drawings are alike, then put an x if not. Well, the little boy know the answer, the problem is in putting the check mark and x. As in we practiced first before actually doing it, unfortunately, the little boy's check mark was not clear, nagmumukhang x so i told him to just put a diagonal straight line instead. Too bad however that the teacher did not give points to those drawings that he wrote his version of check mark, malabo kasi kaya he only got 2 out of 4 correct. Kainis!! gusto ko sana ireklamo sa teacher kaso sabi ni hubby wag na.

Third, to put an x on the drawing that differs with the rest. on this, the little boy got everything correct so he was given a star.

And lastly, the hardest of them all, he's asked to draw the missing parts of the face. The little boy knows that the drawing misses two eyes, one nose, one mouth and two ears but to draw it! that's another thing. I'm just so proud of the little boy that he did not give up until he's satisfied - he keeps on erasing until he likes what he did. And here's the funny face that he draw:

He's got four new homework again and a note from the teacher. Apparently, he'll always have a homework on fridays. I'll be posting the second homework next week - with the teacher's marks.

Wow! I really have a schoolboy now.

Saturday, May 31, our agenda: Great Wall of China, Ming Tombs and Summer Palace.

First part of the trip - Great Wall (UNESCO world heritage site) – we went to the Badaling side, which is the part of the wall nearest to Beijing, we left early kasi since it’s a weekend, madami daw tao. I was so in awe of the place when I saw it, parang I can’t believe that I am actually there. Fortunately, nakayanan ko akyatin yung tallest tower, fourth tower, which has total of 888 steep steps, some parang stairs, others as in steep road lang. grabe talaga experience! Pagod! Pero so worth it, I can’t actually describe how it feels, basta kakaiba. Had lunch in Starbucks, yes, there is starbucks in great wall = ) then off we go to Ming tombs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badaling; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_wall_of_china

Ticket booth:


Group picture at the entrance:


Roel, me and My with the awesome background of One World One Dream (theme for the olympics) and the wall that we will climb, it'll take us 888 steep steps, some stairs some just steep road, to rich that top in the background and that'll be the fourth tower.

Now, we're the same level as the olympics theme:

Few more steps, three towers past:

Finally! on top! but once we got on top, that's when we saw more of the wall at the back and I am so at awe of those people who continued on walking to think I am so dead tired when we got to the top. As obvious in the photo, only five of us survived the climb to the top, others gave up midway. I almost did actually but seeing that I'm a few steps to the top made me decide to go for it.

One of the unexplored side of the very looooonnnngggg wall:

Window in one of the towers on our way back down:

A photo on the other side:

Next day, Thursday, May 29, symposium the whole day then we had a firm sponsored dinner at China Club. Tourist bus picked us up from the hotel and the tour guide provided us some background about the club. We were informed that it is a posh exclusive club serving szechuan food, that the place was built for an emperor (forgot who) and that the cook were from the province of Sichuan pa talaga. According to the guide, it’s hard to get a slot on this place kasi mahal and exclusive nga and that the place actually used to be a prince’s palace. Got to the place, colder than the previous day and gulat kami kasi daming walls, enclosed talaga yung place (they say to protect the prince before) and we’re happier to see an old Chinese man waiting for us to have our names written in Chinese calligraphy using authentic rice paper. Had cocktails again then had Chinese lauriat. Was not totally happy with the food, according to some officemates from Malaysia and Indonesia, must have been that the Chinese food that we all love has been customized already to local taste kaya di naman ma-appreciate yun authentic, even the Peking duck did not excite me, mas gusto ko pa peking duck from Gloria Maris dito. There was a Chinese dance pa na nagpapalit-palit ng mask to entertain us. Went back to hotel late na so no more gimik, natulog na kami.




Friday, May 30, this time the symposium will end at 3pm so we’ll have time to go around. Our agenda for the day is shopping so our first stop was the silk market, two officemates had their Chinese name carved so they can use it for stamping. We did not do much shopping as most of us want to buy souvenirs from the Olympics store so we just looked around the place then left and took the taxi hoping to go straight to the Olympics stadium, unfortunately, the taxi driver cannot understand us so we have no choice but to go back to the hotel. The hotels provide a calling card with Chinese character and they can even write for you your planned destination in Chinese character kaya bumalik kami ng hotel. We were advised to take the subway to go there. WARNING: super crowded ang subway pag rush hour, parang MRT natin and what’s worse, the guards will even push the people inside to fit the people trying to enter, fortunate for us, di namin na experience yung tinutulak ng guard. We then took a taxi from the subway station to the Olympics stadium, we saw the bird’s nest and the water cube, had pictures taken but we can’t get really near kasi di pa tapos ang construction for the Olympics. Took the subway again then went to Oriental Plaza (mall) for dinner. We’re supposed to have shabu-shabu but since they can’t understand us and we can’t understand them, we decided to eat na lang in the food court kasi at least yun ituturo na lang. Pathetic! After dinner, pasyal-pasyal again in Wangfujing, got back to the hotel really late and super tired! Nagbabad ako sa bath tub with hot water just to relax.

MRT station where we ride to go to the Olympics Stadium:


The view while walking on the walkway going to the Olympics Stadium:


At the Olympics Stadium, layo lang kasi bawal pa lumapit, dami pa construction, rush for the olympics: