Inconsiderate People

Sigh, today was not so good day for me... Its not just about being physically stressed but more of the emotional stress that I went through. its weird how some people coud affect our feelings even if we don't really know them.. I just hate inconsiderate people and for me today its a lady driver of a 770 bus. here's a short summary,

julian and i woke up early this morning to go catch our bus to his doctor's appointment all the way in Cesar Chavez which is around a bus, 13 train stops and another bus ride away from where we live. anyway, i loaded our tap card (its like an atm card that's reloadable to put in the fare) for a day pass which was $5 -- it was supposed to be good for al our traveling needs for the day. but lo and behold, when i validated the thing on the machines found at the station, it said that $1.25 has been deducted SO my day pass wasn't $5 anymore therefore instead of unlimited public transporation use, i'll be limited to just 4 including the one going away from the red line station. there was a customer service desk with some personnel there so i approached them, told them waht happened and showed them my receipts. there were nice enough to give me a strip pf paper which was mta's anyway with punches of the day's date and that it was for a day pass. they told me that i shouldn't have a problem then. so off me & julian went to the doctor's. unfotunately, they couldn't see him much earlier than 2 but since i have to work at 3, i called james and we agreed to meet at the universal city station so he could take julian back to his appointment since he'll be off to work by 12 anyway and i could then go to work. julian and i waited for the 770 bus at the stop to union station once again. the bus finally came 10 mins after BUT when i showed the driver the paper that was given to me for my fare, she said that it's "trash to me" and proceeded to throw the thhing in her plastic bag. i tried explaining to her the whole thing and that i didn't really have any other money but the fare that i paid for the DAY PASS... i also asked her if i could have the paper back so that i may talk to the customer service desk of the mta at the union station. she arrogantly told me that she shouldn't be even be letting me on the bus, that again "its trash to me" (the paper ticket) and that i could get her bus number and badge number. i was so upset that time and was really close to tears -- i mean, its now as if i'm trying to evade paying fare or whatever, i have the receipts to prove it and how could i have gotten that mta punched paper even if it weren't given by somebody from their company. i can't believe how people can be so inconsiderate -- even not for me but to think that i was with julian and that lady didn't even care how we could go home or something. anyway, of course i got the bus' number and the lady's badge number and made sure that i REPORTED her when i got to the customer service -- i'm a pretty tolerant person but i really think that people who work closely supposedly with and for other people should at least have a heart and a little compassion for others. the lady who took my complaint was really nice and she even gave me and julian some tokens in replacement of the fare we paid but pretty much never got to use.

thank you to the kind customer service people at the office and to the lady bus driver, i wish when my compalint for you comes up, may it make you treat your passengers next time more kindly. i bet that your job can be stressful driving a bus all day, dealing with people all day but its the job that you chose and your passengers shouldn't be the ones suffering because of whatever it is you're feeling.

i really strongly believe that if just treat each other with compassion and respect, the world will be so much nicer to live in -- don't you think?

First Day of School

julian & i went to our first mommy & class today at the LA VAlley College Family Resource Center. the classes are every Monday at 10-11am. we got up pretty early this morning pretty excited about julian meeting new friends & being able to attend some sort of classes especically simce it has always been just me & him together for most part of the day eversince he was born. so anyway, he decided that he was going to wear his new hand-me down hawaiian shirt from Ms. Malky and that he was going to bring his batman backpack with him... we caught the bus arounf 930 & then just walked a tiny bit afterwards to the place.

there were mostly adults today, the mommies, teachers & students... he met some new friends, Jordan, Jaden, Elaine & Monty... julian mainly engaged in parallel play (just playing alongside the other kid/s), i guess he's just so used to playing by himself but as expected, he was still very friendly to everyone, saying hi & waving at them. the teacher commended that julian has a pretty advanced language development for he would answer and talk combining words to from a sentence :) it was pretty funny when the teacher, ms grace was trying to engage julian in a conversation by asking him what the different animals were saying while he was playing with the animal figurines -- for example, the tiger says roar -- anyway, julian loves watching cartoons now and i think it was pretty evident when he answered his teacher, "he talks a lot!" when she asked what does he think the jaguar was saying... hehehe :P

julian was a tiny bit shy though to join the group singing because instead of joining the big circle, he went to the art table and told everyone, "I need to paint" and then looking down to just concentrate on his paper...

time went so fast though and before you know it, our first day of school was over... julian told his teacher that he'll be coming back next week though so that's good... it seems like he really enjoyed himself.

to top our first day of school, julian & i met daddy at Midori sushi for our long-awaited, long-postponed EAT-ALL-YOU-CAN Sushi lunch... it was mmm-mmm-mmm delish! what's nice too is that while we were walking towards my work, my bakery manager called to request me to take the day off today instead of my wednesday since he really needs me to close that day... so instead of working, mommy & julian just went for a treat at baskin&robbins -- daddy wasn't there because he had to meet his boss quickly for a little meeting...

all i can say is that it was a pretty GREAT day! :)

julian's bday bbq

i got an email today from one of our good friends annie & she sent some pictures taken last saturday which was julian's bday bbq. it was just a simple get together of friends & loved-ones to celebrate julian's turning 2 years! we had a simple fare of hotdogs, burgers, potato salad & cake & ice cream (i even made the cake & cupcakes myself :) it was really nice that a lot of people came to celebrate with us. and it seems like people enjoyed themselves which is very important... julian was oh so happy being with his friends. he kept on laughing out loud when it was his turn to strike the pinata... it actually was so heavy that it broke from the string where it was hanging even before we got to the hitting part & julian's grandma ended up shaking the pinata for no one was able to break it. maya, who's james' officemate was our entertainment for the kids with her clown costume & tricks, facepainting & tattoo printing. there were some mishaps along the way like me running to the store at the last minute for gas & ice and the grill bursting into flames but all in all it was a successful fun-filled day. julian was down before the party was completely over but he got to blow his candle already by then & have a piece of his cake... we opened his wonderful presents sunday... thank you so much to all those who came & celebrated with us. we love you all so much!

1 more day!!!

one more day & my baby julian will be 2years old already... waaahhhhh!!!! actually, it feels kind of bittersweet kasi of course i'm happy that my baby's growing but at the same time, i'm a little bit sad for the same reason. hindi na baby si baby. but then again, i'm mommy so i'm entitled to him being my baby FOREVER... hehehe. julian has just grown so much.
right now, he
* pretty much recognizes all the letters of the alphabet both upper & lower case letters
* sings & dances along with the music he hears on the radio or tv -- so funny kasi last sunday he was belting out a song with the radio ala american idol :); he took his grandma's hands too to dance to the tune of another song & just started dancing with her & then, after awhile went through her legs ala dancing with the stars :)
* plays the guitar & piano
* can say quite a lot of words now & puts 2-3 words together
* he runs a lot & is pretty good in climbing the apparatuses at the playground designed for kids much older than he is (think 5-12 years of age)

sigh, marami pa & of course, he's still a very helpful boy to mommy & daddy... he never forgets to grab the sponge or the 'bu' (broom) whenever we're trying to clean up. nauutusan na rin...

to our baby julian, hope you continue to grow up to be the already handsome & good boy that you are. and of course, WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

Happy To Be Back!!!

i'm so happy to be back! back to blogging i mean :) nakakamiss rin pala mag-blog escpecially if you have things to write down & no way to access your blog kasi your internet service is encountering some problems just like what happened mga 1-2 weeks ago.

my very good friend jhoey who's a flight stewardess at emirates got to come here in LA for a visit last week til this Tuesday & i am just so happy & thankful to her & to the Lord for giving me the opportunity to spend some precious time with her during her visit. last nov 13 which was a thursday, julian & i visited jhoey at her tita's house in van nuys... we stayed there the whole afternoon talking & playing with the kids that her tita takes care of at their family daycare. julian had a lot of fun playing choo-choo (thomas trains) with coy-coy, evan, andy, & kenzie. and of course, there wasn't even an ounce of difficulty for me, jhoey or tita trying to convince julian to eat with his new friends... actually he was the only one who would automatically ask for 'more' servings of mashed potatoes, rice, ground beef & pot roast & f course mandarin oranges & he really ate so well for his age kasi he can eat by himself :) siyempre proud mama... hehehe. late afternoon jhoey, julian & i were dropped off at the fashion square near hazeltine & riverside for some more bonding time for mommy & tita jhoey & shopping for jhoey's friends. before we left for home, we had some picture taken in front of the christmas tree display right smack in the middle of the mall :) it was around 10pm already when we got home... james didn't mind though, he's just happy that i was able to spend time with my good friend :) (love you & thank you diddy!!!) sayang friendship was not able to come kasi she was nursing an asthma attack then but come Monday, the 17th. jhoey, friendship, julian & i went out for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory down in sherman oaks mall & of course, before we head for home, it would't be complete without us having to take tons of picture right in front of the colorful christmas tree adorned with mickey & other disney characters :)

jhoey's now back in dubai at work but hopefully real soon she can be back here again for more wonderful dinner/s & bonding kwentuhan :)

Preggy Tag

Another tag from Twin! Thanks so much Twin -- sobrang I enjoy being 'IT' :) have to still learn how to link though...

Moms Who Played Along: Mai / Yen /Eds / Vannie / Fun.Fierce.Fab / Bojoy / bonz / Pinaymama / Sheng / Carol / Cee / Jacque / cOncON / Rhea / You

Preggy Facts:

1. Who did you first inform about your pregnancy and how?
My husband James of course. Right after I got the 'yes' from peeing on the stick I told him... He was happy... Me, I was both happy & nervous :)

2. Maximum weight?
Ahhh... I really couldn't remember kasi yan yung mga bagay na hindi na dapat inaalala... hehehe... As far as I can remember though around 165!

3. Cravings?
I ate everything but I CRAVED for sushi... we wanted to be safe kasi so we tried to avoid eating anything raw during my pregnancy -- poor James for he had to suffer with me na NO SUSHI for 9 months!

4. Aversions?
Yes. Amoy ng perfume... I didn't spray even yung bath & body na body splash when I was pregnant.

5. Morning Sickness?
My morning sickness was actually during the late afternoons til the next morning up until I would have to get up & go to work -- it lasted during my first trimester.


D Day Facts:

1. Number of Kids/Deliveries?
One

2. NSD or CS?
NSD

3. Girl or Boy?
Boy

4. AOG (age of gestation) on Birth?
40 weeks

5. How long in labor?
I would say almost 24 hours kasi I started having labor pains late Sunday afternoon but tried to bear it until almost midnight before surrendering & telling James that I don't think I can last 'til 7am the next morning (scheduled na kasi ako for induction) -- anyway, at the hospital, 7 or 8 cm na ko -- buti na lang umabot pa ko for Epidural -- yahoo!!! Julian decided to finally come out 5:33pm Monday (Dec 4)


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Share your pregnancy and birthing story Ms Tin!

Blog Award

Thank you to my Twin... (www.naprhea.blogspot.com) -- sobrang ngayon lang ako nabigyan ng award lalo na for blogging... hehehe... Pasensiya na at hanggang ngayon eh hindi pa rin ako marunong mag-link :(

Rules of this award are:

1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

Sigh, kinda pathetic but unfortunately i don't really know that many people who blog so I can't even come up with 7 names... for sure though if this award didn't come from my twin, she'll be the first on the list. For being the very best twin anyone can ever have & for being the best at everything she has heart into :)

Jhoey - for being a great confidant & for following your dreams & seeing the world
Josh - for being there with the group even when it was super late at night or super early in the morning
Moncheeks - for being a good listener & for having that great talent of writing so well
Ms Tin - my fave Citi interviewer & great friend, not just a boss... btw, i love your scrapbook/s

Laurel Neighborhood Party

i just woke up from taking a nap after a fun day today attending our neighborhood party which was held conveniently on the street right in front of our house :) earlier today, julian & i bought some cupcakes at the supermarket so that we have something to share... on our way back home, those who were in charge were already setting up the tents, tables & chairs & once we stepped into the house, julian kept on pointing to his daddy what was happening right in front of our doorstep. needless to say that james, julian & i came to the party almost exactly at 1pm which is the very start & of course, we were one of the last ones to leave helping out put away stuff. the party was really nice. it was nice to see some of the neighbors that we already know, like mama gina, erin, mako & erin & mako's daughter sena & of course meeting new ones as well. there were lots of free food -- hotdogs, burgers, cake/s, fresh fruit cut-ups, salads and most importantly, there were nice activities for the kids. julian just LOVED the reptiles that were brought in by the animal guy & julian was just so relaxed with a little smile on his face when he touched frogs, lizards & even a boa which was around 8 feet long! he actually wanted to join the little boys to hold the boa altogether but he didn't really have anything to hold onto the boa that's why he just touched it right on its head, not just once but 3 times :) he even had a corn snake placed on his shoulders and neck too! julian loved painting his pet rocks -- one he even created with 3 eyes & he also love putting the pasta into a string for a necklace which he wore after he finished making it. a number of times i placed julian on top of our neighbor's tree along with the other neigborhood kids & boy, did he loved that... he enjoyed sitting on the trunk & just listening & watching the other kids climb & play around him. the party ended at 5 & though we didn't get to win a prize at the raffle, being at the party was enough prize in itself :) oh, we got to bring home the little cardboard 70's buggy that they had at the party... its big enough to take pictures in (of course i took julian's picture on it.. hehehe) & james & i are planning to use it for julian's bday in december...