TOPAZ HORIZON

Hello from Ascott Makati! Well, these photos are from our staycation there recently, and what a fun time my family had! Super fun and happy we were. My kids are still talking about our Ascott stay, and they keep asking me when we'll move there. Yes, they want to live there! I'll tell you why in a bit, but first, here we are checking in:
The reception lobby of Ascott Makati is at the 6th floor. The entrance to the hotel itself is a discreet door just right of Glorietta 4's main entry. Elevators in the tiny hall zip you up to the 6th floor, where you step out into the reception boasting high ceilings and massive windows. Pretty cool. Check in was super quick and then off we went to our two-bedroom deluxe suite!

Come in! Come in!
Here's our cozy living room. I love that accent chair with the bold print. I love that the neutrals are broken up by teal and patterns. I'm allergic to hotels that are all beige and brown. So blah. Ascott's newly revamped apartments don't suffer that boring decor. In fact, our suite reminded us of our own home. Even the layout! It's almost exactly our house!

Here's a view of the dining area and the small but impressively efficient kitchen. That kitchen was amazing. Vince and I wanted to renovate our large kitchen because of Ascott's small kitchen! It was that well designed!

My boys watching TV and feeling right at home. Each suite is now equipped with a home entertainment system. In our own suite, multiply that by three!

My boys being all cute and making my heart go all fuzzy wuzzy.

Here's the boys' bedroom! They love that queen-size bed soooo much. My goodness, they STILL keep talking about that bed. They won't leave me alone. They want to move in to Ascott because of that bed!

They also marveled at their walk-in closet. They thought it was another room hahahaha. My darling boys! But yeah... we all wanted a walk-in closet after our stay at Ascott. Their walk-in closets aren't even that big. But they were built well so that there's an efficient use of space.

That's Vito's homework on their sidetable. Yep, we brought homework. And he had lots of fun doing homework in our home away from home!

The boys' bedroom has its own bathroom. It's a cozy room with a shower and a small sink. But it was more than big enough for three little wriggly boys who loved all the little L'Occitane accoutrements.

Now here's our bedroom! The master's bedroom is huge. That is a king-size bed. I want a king-size bed. All five of us can fit in it!

We have our own small TV, too, and a padded bench with a little desk at the foot of the bed. There's also a generously sized work desk to the left of the TV.

I love this installation on the desk...

... and beside the master's bed. Very nifty and very useful! Business people, writers, those who work remotely, and bloggers will love these helpful tools and the fact that there's WiFi in the whole hotel.

The master's bathroom is a small room but the space is well designed. Those large mirrors hide cabinets, there's a roomy cabinet hidden under the sink, and...

... there's a tub! My kids enjoyed their bubble bath here. We have dozens of cute photos of them in bubbly joy! Vince and I enjoyed that tub later in the night, too!

Another thing we grownups liked is that our room in Ascott is a small home in itself. There's that efficient kitchen with its own stove, oven and microwave oven so you can cook. The sink even has dish soap and sponge so if you cook or order room service, you can wash your dishes.

The kitchen cupboards have everything you'll need for a proper meal—plates, bowls, serving dishes, drinking glasses, wine glasses, cups and saucers, cutlery, pots and pans, and cooking utensils. Even table mats!

In the entry hall, two large closets hide the laundry appliances. This one is really clever. It really truly is just a closet but behind it is a washing machine, shelves and large cabinets. There's even laundry detergent! Across this closet is another roomy closet where you can hang and iron clothes, and store other things like boots, coats, umbrellas and the like. I really love how clever the design of the apartment is!

I just want to point out, should this be a concern, that the windows look out onto the construction (or destruction, rather) site of the former Intercontinental Hotel. If you're worried that there will be all this noise, well, don't worry. We didn't hear a thing! We felt cocooned in our luxury apartment!

Our apartment also has a view of the pool. The pool is newly renovated, too, but there's still construction going on around it because the hotel is opening a new restaurant there. Myron's!!! Steak!!! Myron's should be opening this month so let's all go!

Where we did go when we were at Ascott was to Glorietta. Ascott is literally sitting on top of the huge mall. So we went shopping! So fun to shop knowing we didn't have to fight for parking space, we didn't have to beat rush hour traffic, and we can rest in our comfy and luxurious suite just a few steps away from the stores. Happiness!

After a day of shopping, eating and eating and eating, playing, wrestling, and a loooooong warm bubble bath in the tub, the little boys all jumped into bed and watched TV in their room.

And soon fell fast asleep in their home away from home.

We had so much fun at our lovely staycation at Ascott Makati. The hotel caters to business executives and their families for long stays, hence the fully equipped everything. But you don't need to have a business excuse to book a stay. For example, my family stayed there because we wanted to shop at Glorietta and to just have a different scenery for one weekend. We've been so busy this year that we haven't had time to go anywhere. We still don't! So a staycation at a wonderful hotel nearby was the perfect getaway.

I highly recommend it for families who are looking for somewhere to go this upcoming sem break. Or for OFWs who want to be ensconced in luxury (not relatives haha) while they vacation here. Ascott Makati has a lot to offer. I'll do another post on its amenities and food. Oh, the food! Yum de tum tum!

To book a stay at Ascott Makati, click here. For promos and contests, like their Facebook page.

To be very honest, meals—especially dinner—are just the worst time for me as a parent. I tried my hardest to serve healthy meals, spent a few hours over the stove cooking, and then eating time arrives and it's a disaster! Either someone will complain about the food not being their favorite, or that they're not hungry, or that the food is yucky without even tasting it, or insist they'll just eat a few bites before asking for ice cream or for me to cook something else.

Then there's the fact that as parents, we have to not just feed them, we also have to teach them good manners like don't talk when your mouth is full, chew with your mouth closed, sit properly, don't spit, use your napkin, use your spoon and fork, don't climb on the table, stop walking around, don't eat from your brother's plate, stop killing each other!!! You know, stuff like that.

I have lost my temper many times. You don't tell someone who cooked good food to cook something else. My husband has also gotten angry at the kids. If my issue is the food, his issue is the manners. Meal times became a battleground and we just weren't enjoying eating together anymore.

I don't think there's a good parent anywhere who enjoys getting mad at their kids. Vince and I hate getting mad at our kids, especially at meal times, when we should be savoring our blessings of food and family! So Vince and I had many talks on how we can improve meal times. We tried this, we did that, we had to tweak rules, throw out what didn't work, and added new ideas we picked from other parents. Now, meal times are so much better. We are enjoying our meals again. Vince and I are more relaxed, the kids are happier, too. Best of all, everyone's eating!

Here are our 10 tips for making meal times easy for the family:
1. Serve everyone's favorite food.
Not every day, of course, but what's wrong with giving everyone something they like now and then? What we did is we listed down everything everyone liked. Tinolang manok, nilagang baboy, pansit, pork chops, tocino, hotdogs, fish fingers, chicken nuggets, spaghetti, rellenong bangus, scrambled eggs, pizza, and fried chicken. Then we create a meal plan based on that list.


2. Let them do the grocery with you.
I don't like doing the grocery with my kids because stuff like chocolates, chips and candy find their way in the cart. But I also found that the kids get excited about food when they see them before they become ulam. When they help pick out the vegetables, for example, they're more willing to eat it because they feel like they picked it so they have an obligation to eat it hahaha.

3. Serve dessert at snack time.
I used to offer dessert after every meal. It was my prize for finishing their food or eating their veggies. The problem is what happens when one child doesn't finish his food? He gets really upset because his brothers get to eat dessert. The whole thing just dissolves into a terrible tantrum. So no dessert after meals! I found that merienda time is the best time for sweets, cakes, ice cream and chips. They get to enjoy their sweets and snacks, and there's no stressful contests at meal times.

4. Cook in big batches.
Big batches save time, money and mommy's sanity. Do it. When I cook every meal, I'm more stressed out and rushed and definitely exhausted and hungry when it's time to eat. I do not have patience for any whining at the table when I feel like that. So I cook a lot then reheat.


5. Be creative with leftovers.
The problem nga lang with big batches of food is nakakasawa siya. So you recook them in a different way. Leftover spaghetti sauce is tomorrow's pizza pan de sal sauce. Adobong wala ng sabaw becomes crispy adobo flakes-silog. Chopsuey veggies will taste great in pansit!

6. Let the kids cook.
Oh yes, the easiest way to make them eat their dinner is to let them cook it! They get excited and they prepare it just the way they want it, and then they gobble it all up!


7. Try canned and frozen food.
This is for your sanity. Once in a while, you'll need to go for convenience. Instead of making your own spaghetti sauce, try opening a can. Instead of washing, removing stems, and slicing mushrooms, use a can of sliced ones. Instead of peeling and cutting fresh fruit for dessert, try a can of chilled peaches or lychees. All are delicious, easy to prepare, saves you time, and makes you relaxed!


8. Give the kids small servings.
I got this tip from a mommy nutritionist. Kids get overwhelmed daw when they see a full plate. They go, "I can't eat all of that! I'm not hungry!" What's best is to give them a little bit of everything, tell them just have a taste of this and that, no pressure. If they want more, then you can just keep adding food. But if they don't want more, then no food is wasted.


9. Give them healthy choices.
My kids' favorite food is always fried and oily. Their pediatrician says that's okay because my kids are naturally skinny and super likot so they can afford to eat lotsa fatty food. Still, it's good to add veggies or soup as a side dish to their fried food!


10. Always make meals a fun time.
Easier said than done but we try by talking about their day, sharing jokes. We try not to talk about serious stuff at the table. And we also really try not to lose our temper when drinks get spilled, food falls on the floor, and feet find their way on the table. We try! And we've improved a lot! Hooray!

I hope our suggestions helped! If you have more ideas, please do share in the comments below. We parents need to help each other in this great adventure of raising happy, healthy kids!

For more cooking tips and delicious recipes, like Jolly's Facebook page, Jolly Eats.

I wanted to do a Frances Finds series for the longest time because I get so many products. Thanks, everyone, for your generosity! A lot of them find their way on my Instagram, and I thought that was enough. But some of the brands that I'm friendly with said Instagram is not Google-able. So even though IG and Snapchat are hotter than blogs these days, the content featured there can't be Googled so... may silbi pa pala ang blogs hahaha.

So let's do Frances Finds every month. Maybe even twice or thrice a month since I really get a lot of goodies. For this month, I'll tell you all about our breakfasts.

Kopiko Kopiccino
If you follow me on Instagram or if you've reading this blog for a while, you'd know I like instant coffee a lot. I like brewed coffee a lot, too, but gone are the days when mornings were meditative moments of freshly ground coffee beans percolating in the coffee maker. With three little kids up starting at the crack of dawn, I need my coffee instant! Hence, Kopiko Kopiccino.

I've been drinking this for 3 years na yata. I've tried other brands but I keep coming back to this one. Masarap siya, guys. Creamy, sweet, foamy, with a touch of bittersweet chocolate. It's sooo good!

Napansin yata ng Kopiko na love ko 'tong kape nila because they sent me a big box of sachets. Like, a year's supply! I'm so happy! Thank you, Kopiko! A mother needs all the help she can get to survive the day and you just sent me hundreds of days!

Quaker Oats
Our favorite is the Instant Oatmeal with Milk. Yes, instant again! Until you've walked a mile in my... er, with my barefoot feet, don't judge. I love instant everything! I do slow cooking every day anyway (fast food on weekends, though) so for the other aspects of homemaking that's been made more efficient by technology, I welcome them with loving and grateful arms. Quaker Oats Instant Oatmeal with Milk, we love you!


Quaker Oats sent us their other instant variants—oatmeal with fruit and nuts, with chocolate, and the old-fashioned, you-have-to-cook-it whole grain rolled oats.

I've tried them and food is food and all food is good, but I still prefer the milk one. It's perfect. These new ones, I'm still trying to understand. Anyone tried them? They're actually okay naman. I guess hindi pa ako sanay sa lasa nila. Who has a different experience?

Tang
I grew up on Tang. I love Tang orange juice so much that when I finally became rich enough to buy real freshly-squeezed orange juice, grabe, hindi pala masarap ang freshly-squeezed OJ! Ang asim! At may konti pang pakla na aftertaste. Yack. But now, kaya ko na siyang inumin. In the words of the mayayaman kong friends, my taste has become sophisticated. Hindi ko lang maamin na mas gusto ko pa rin ang instant orange juice! Tang forever!


I especially love it that Tang has lots of new flavors now. There's mango, pineapple, calamansi, grape, strawberry, lemon and melon. Our family favorite is mango. Super good! We also like dalandan. Para siyang orange juice but mas malumanay ang flavor. Very good. My own favorite is the melon flavor. Kulang na lang grated melon and it tastes just like real melon juice served on a hot summer day in a plastic bag! I love all the flavors actually because they all taste like the real thing... but better.

I also like the commercial of Tang, the one that advocates for no judging of parents.



Judgmental people is one of the reasons mommy blogging lost its appeal to me. I got so much hate because I posted a photo of my kids getting NIDO milk or eating chocolate or enjoying McDo. At first, I didn't mind. Hindi naman kayo ang nagpapakain ng mga anak ko so wag niyo pakialaman ang kinakain nila. But after a while, it gets to you. I know I'm a good mom. I'll never win Mom of the Year, but no mother in all the world can love my boys as much as I do, and that makes me the best mommy in the world to them. That's good enough for me!

And that's my first Frances Finds! Breakfast food! How about you? What grocery goodies do you love for breakfast? Please share para ma-try namin ng kids ko. Thanks!

I'm so thrilled about this month's Topaz Talks because I get to share with you, my dear Loyal Readers, two of the most hardworking mothers I know. Meet Stacey Lato and Nichole Mercado, sisters, stylistas, and the women behind the brand for all things cute and chic, Honeycomb Children's Clothing.


Honeycomb is all about fun and stylish clothes for kids 9 months to 7 years old. The styles are inspired by Nikki and Stacey's own kids, their love for fashion, and the shopping they do all over the world. But the clothes aren't just all about looking good, they feel good, too. Comfortable and durable, these outfits will be enjoyed by kids whether at playtime or at fancy affairs.

Today, I have a little chat with Nikki and Stacey so we can get a little peek into their lives as moms in fashion retail. Although Nikki is my good friend, we hardly ever talk about work! For example, although I celebrated Nikki's business venture last year, I actually didn't know why she did it. I just simply accepted it as part of the amazing things my amazing friend does. I really ought to set aside time from my crazy kids and spend an afternoon with my friends again! Our lives are passing by so fast and I'm not fully aware of what's happening in their lives!

Anyway, here's my little chat with these inspiring women. Listen in!
What I love about being a working mom is the life balance. I have time with my child and my adult time, too. I find that working allows me to maintain and nurture my sense of self.

"Ask Frances" is a monthly blog series where I will answer questions from my readers. The chosen question will receive a prize. This month's prize is the Avon Anew Retroactive line because our letter sender is a bride.

The Anew Retroactive products are the latest innovation in Avon's multi-awarded anti-aging skincare brand. It repairs visible and invisible damage with its patented Focus Repair Technology that uses the power of ocean pearls. It also prevents future damage with its antioxidant ingredient that provides up to eight times skin protection. You can see results in just seven days!

Anew Retroactive Youth Extending Cleanser, P399 for 125g; Anew Retroctive Youth Extending Toner, P399 for 100ml; Anew Retroctive Youth Extending Day Cream SPF 20/PA++, P699 for 50g; Anew Retroctive Youth Extending Night Cream, P699 for 50g

Our question this month is very long and detailed so please read carefully. I feel ill-equipped to answer her question so if you have better advice (preferably legal advice!), please leave your advice in the comments. Thanks! Anyway, here is our question...

• You have not needed those properties all these years so this isn't an urgent issue. If you've waited for so long, what's a few more years?
• Your relatives are the ones making you kulit about the issue. Why? I'm concerned that you said, "They could easily hire someone to fix the titles and change it to THEIR names." Why their names? Why not yours kung sa iyo naman yung mga ari-arian? 

* * * * * * *

If you have a question for me, send an email to frances@topazhorizon.com with "Ask Frances" on the subject.

Everywhere! Especially me because I have three little boys and tons of errands. With the terrible traffic, I don't like using our car. I commute and walk, even run, everywhere. That's why I've ditched my heels a long time ago for comfy but chic footwear. Any moms here traded in their six-inch heels for flats and sneakers? High five, right? Haha.

I chose Skechers because they're the No. 1 sneakers brand in the U.S.

So where do you go walking? I walk around the city a lot. I may not be visiting the gym lately but I feel like all the walking I do helps keep me trim. Here's a peek at where I've been walking around this week:

Going out with the family. I'm learning how to wear color on my feet again. My husband, Vince, says that because most of my clothes are either black or white, I should have more fun with my shoes and bags. So I'm trying it out with my new purple Skechers GOwalk! I love the material and the print—almost like a Missoni print!

Shopping. Oooh, I love wearing my Skechers GOwalk when we shop. It's so lightweight that my feet never feel tired or painful even after hours of walking around the mall and chasing after little boys!

Fetching kids from school. Because the traffic jams are horrible around my son's school, I usually tell Vince to drop me off a block or two from the school gate and then I just walk to school. Many days, when the traffic is especially bad and we're late, I make a mad dash! Never a problem because my sneakers have these things called Goga Pillars that make me bounce with every step.

Running errands for work and home. I'm a working mommy so I'm always out and about, paying bills, doing the grocery, bringing my kids to the pedia, attending meetings and events, collecting checks. I seriously wish I had an assistant who can do all these things for me! Since I don't, I'm just grateful that I have comfortable shoes to carry me through the day. I love the Goga Mat insoles of my Skechers GOwalk because I feel like I'm walking on pillows all day long.

My latest GOwalk shoes (yes, this is my second pair!) are purple. Like I said, I'm learning to wear color on my feet again. My kids picked them out for me. I usually pick just neutrals for my footwear but my husband teased me about that, you know, like how I should add more color to my mommy life. Because all I wear now is really black, white and gray! And navy. And red. Well, there you go—I still wear color!

The Skechers GOwalk collection comes in many colors. And in many styles for men and women, too, like slip-ons, lace-ups and sandals! Check them out:

I should be blogging about our recent staycation at the beautiful and wonderful Ascott Makati. And I should be blogging about my cooking and mealtime and dining tips because of my blog sponsor, Jolly. And I should be getting my Ask Frances post up and ready for publishing tomorrow... but I'm not. I can't. Because Angelina and Brad are no more!!!

To most of you who have been following this blog, you'd know that in my past life, I was the editor-in-chief of OK! magazine. My stint in OK! began during the wildest days of Hollywood—Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey's reality TV marriage, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes's whirlwind romance, and the never-ending Brad Pitt-Angelina Jolie-Jen Aniston saga. My goodness. Some of the very best days in my life!

So I just can't remove myself from all the gossip sites this week because Angelina just divorced Brad! And in the most ruthless and shocking way, too—just like what Katie did to Tom.

If Angelina does it like Katie, Brad will never see those kids again (Although he'll fight for custody, says TMZ). Yes, didn't you know? Katie annihilated Tom in such blitzkrieg fashion that he agreed to all her terms of the divorce within a few weeks and now he hasn't seen Suri in years. Years. His only biological daughter. And we used to say Katie was a brainless zombie.

I'm pretty sure Angelina will demolish Brad, too. She's doing it now in the media. Master manipulator Angelina Jolie is one of the very few who came out of a lurid affair splashed all over the tabloids as a saint. Remember her moniker in the height of her mistress days? Santa Angelina. However does a mistress become a Santa Angelina??? Easy. Befriend media, send gifts, always be available for calls and clarifications, but always have a story about your charity, UN work, movie work, dying/dead mother, and beautiful kids. Change the story. I know this because I was in the thick of it in an international OK! conference, where the editors of the other OK! franchises were stunned at how Angelina always made the story about her goodness, not about the affair. And all those millions upon millions she and Brad made whenever they got pregnant, gave birth, and adopted! Brilliant!

I don't hate Angelina, okay (even though I'm Team Aniston all the way!). I have utmost respect for her. In fact, I think of her whenever Taylor Swift flounders about controlling her image. I always think, "Learn from Angelina, Tay!" The only person I can think of these days who is master at manipulating media, controlling her image, and milking said image for millions of dollars is Kim Kardashian West.

And Angelina's doing it now again. She released news of her divorce on a Tuesday, so all the print media have gone to bed and now can't really come out with the story till next week. So again she gets to control the narrative. Brad is left reeling and angry, upset that her wanting to have sole physical custody and then insinuating that Brad has a nasty temper and uses drugs implies to all that he is a danger to their kids. Wow! What a nasty reason to end a marriage, if true! And no, it's not because he allegedly cheated on her (not true at all!), but it's fascinating that the cheating news came out almost exactly the same time Angelina allowed TMZ to break news of her divorce. Hmmm.

It's getting ugly. And that makes me sad. There are kids involved. Six beautiful kids. And didn't this story start in such a—er, breaking up the Aniston-Pitt marriage aside—didn't this love story start in such a beautiful way? Two gorgeous and sexy people meet and fall in love, do charity work together, and raise a family together, while traveling the world as possibly the coolest family ever.

Woah. All this Brangelina news is seriously giving me intense Throwback Thursday feels. It's also making me terribly sad because while I wasn't a fan, those kids and their obvious affection won me over. I love a love story. Don't you?

My takeaway from this (and from every Hollywood divorce) is this: Don't forget your love story, don't forget why you fell in love in the first place (the past), don't forget the plans you made together (the future). Marriage is hard. I know. I'm married! Vince and I have gone through struggles. We're changing, our life is changing. It's so easy to drift apart. That's why you have to commit every day. Sometimes, I refuse to commit. That's when I complain, I bitch, I refuse to serve him. Sometimes he doesn't commit by doing the same thing. It happens. No one's perfect! But when we both fail to commit every day for days and days, then that's when real trouble sets in. And we have to guard our marriage against that. Let's make a stand to protect our marriages!

There's this beautiful poem by Abi Oborne of the blog Like Real Life going around the mommy circles and I'm reposting part of it below. Please read the rest of it on Abi's blog!

It's made me cry because I've felt that sometimes, that nobody sees me—the mama who is awake in the middle of the night, checking if her kids are cold, patting them softly back to sleep when they wake from nightmares, praying over them, breastfeeding, working in the dark so the kids won't wake up, crying and praying when the clients don't pay and the bills are here, chatting with the kid who wakes up and asks questions about life at 3 a.m., rising again when another kid asks for water, and basically not sleeping at all.

My nights are always chaotic but sweet.

But I also know that people do see me, the mommy me. Because I go on Facebook or Instagram in the dead of night and I post a status or share a photo and guess who likes and comments? Mommies, too. Yes, all of us moms awake in the wee hours of the morning. We silly, wonderful, exhausted, tireless, blessed mommies!

I see you. Thanks for seeing me, too. If only on Facebook! If only here on my blog. Thank you, fellow mommy.


(continued here)


Good night, dear mommies! Try to get some sleep. God bless us all!

I'm finally doing it, Loyal Readers! I'm doing a blog workshop again! This will be so much fun because I'm going to be so madaldal and I'll tell you everything I know about blogging. And when you've been blogging for 10 years like I have, you'll know plenty! And I want to share it all!

So let's do the Topaz Horizon Blog Biz: Blogging Chika Workshop!!!

Here's what you'll get:

• Tips on how to start a blog and create content that clicks with readers.
• Tried-and-tested ways to grow your blog. After this session, you have no excuse to say that no one reads your blog!
• How to make your blog make money. I'll teach you how to make a media kit, pitch to brands, and work with brands.
• Blogger etiquette on the blog, at events, and while working with brands.
• Style and beauty tips to look like a professional blogger, not like someone who never leaves her computer!
• Free facials from Flawless because you want to polish up your look!

What a fun afternoon we'll have! I'll be revealing secrets and we'll do a bit of chika and I'll also raffle off some freebies which I get all the time as a blogger!

Regular fee is P750 but from today till Sept 25, you can use this discount code to pay just P600: THBLOGFUN.

Just email me between now and Sept 25 with the discount code and pay via BDO or PayPal on or before Sept 30, to reserve a seat. Slots are limited! I like to keep the class small so we can really talk.

Sign up now! Email me at frances@topazhorizon.com and let's have fun learning how to make blogging money!!!

Thanks so much to FLAWLESS Face & Body Clinic for generously providing us their own office to host my workshop.