Monday, April 11, 2022

The kids are vaccinated!

My boys are finally vaccinated from COVID! They got their first dose of the COVID vaccine last month and they're scheduled to get their second dose next week. This means that in May, we can start venturing out into the world! It's been 2 years and 2 months in quarantine, save for a weekend in the mountains, and while we loved staying indoors, even introverted me knew my boys needed to interact with other people. And when they're fully vaxxed, they finally can!

Here are photos from their first dose:


There are more steps with the kids vs when I got vaxxed. When it was the adults, we registered, got interviewed by the doctor, then got vaxxed. So I'll make kwento the steps my kids went through.


Step 1: Register. I have 3 kids. So sumakit kamay ko filling out all the forms hehe. Bring their birth certificates and then your ID. And then xerox copy rin ng mga documents na ito as proof na ikaw ang parent. Kung taga-Mandaluyong ka, you need the household code of your Mandavax registration (register here).


Step 2: Kids get interviewed, part 1. Tatanungin lang sila kung sino kasama nila and if aware sila na magpapabakuna sila. Then they get weighed and have their height measured. 

Step 3: Kids get interviewed, part 2. This time, it's a doctor who checks their fact sheet and confirms the details there (may hika? may sipon? may ubo? etc). Again, tatlo anak ko so isa-isa sila because ako talaga ang ini-interview. So mas nakakatagal yung process kasi kahit na tatlo or apat yung doctors na available, we still went one by one. But di naman issue kasi mabilis yung process plus may TV to entertain the kids. 


Step 4: Here we go! Bakuna time! Super efficient, super bait, super fast! I truly appreciate all the care the medical staff poured on the kids. Thank you so much for taking care of my boys!

Hindi raw masakit. He was just obeying what they told him to do, "Close your eyes, baby!"

We are SO HAPPY they got their first dose! Mas nakahinga ako nang maayos. Hindi pa sila tapos, of course. One more jab soon and then relief. I've been highly strung about COVID for 2 years now and then my husband and eldest boy got infected despite our precautions! Mukhang wala talaga tayong escape. Kaloka.

A vaccine doesn't prevent a COVID infection but it does drastically increase their chance to fight the virus. They will likely not get seriously sick, be hospitalized, or die. As I keep saying, all we need is a fighting chance and now we have it!


Step 5: Waiting time. Fifteen minutes just to make sure the kids are near emergency services in case they have an adverse reaction to the vaccine. See that area in the back of the room screened off? That's where the emergency care is, just in case. Thankfully, wala namang nangyari. So the kids were kinda bored waiting. May TV din dito pero they were showing local government stuff so obviously hindi interesado ang mga bata.
 

Step 6: Talk with the doctor. This is just a quick chat where the doctor asks how they feel and tells them what to expect. Really fast. 


And that was it! We were done in less than 2 hours. If isa lang anak mo, malamang mas mabilis pa. It was a very pleasant experience. Thanks so much to Podium Mall for making the COVID vaccination of our kids a great time. 

Of course, even though we as a family will be fully vaxxed, we'll still be careful. We'll wear our masks and practice social distancing. 

Get your kids vaxxed, too! Hopefully, the pandemic will end soon and a fully vaxxed population is the best way to get there. We're looking forward to joining the world again! Have a great week everyone. Stay safe!

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Friday, April 01, 2022

Obsessed with Honeyjubu's apron and tea strainer


Quickly popping in to share my new obsession, Honeyjubu's YouTube channel! It's just total domestic bliss, her life. That's never been my dream. I never saw myself as happy at home, making a happy home. 

Yet here we are! More than two years in quarantine, it's finally dawned on me that maybe I should make an effort and clean up and buy nice things like a butter plate, a creamer and sugar set, placemats and charger plates, plush rugs, fresh flowers in vases ... basically things that make a house a home. 

So I've been obsessively watching Honeyjubu's channel and I was seized by this ridiculous belief that if I wear an apron like she does, I'll be transformed into a total domestic goddess. She has many aprons, some for cooking, some for cleaning, most plain and simple, some have ruffles and prints. It's so quaint and I've fallen in love with it. Aprons!

Check out these aprons in my Lazada cart. Look and choose for me! Or maybe get them all?

Gray, P283
Apricot, P429
Pink, P1,035
Black, P684
Green, P529


And then one of Honeyjubu's videos shows how they drink their breakfast tea. And it's so elegant and beautiful! Just look at that tea strainer!


And of course I found the exact one on Shopee! I am soooo delighted! I literally danced for joy when I saw the listing haha Honeyjubu breakfast tea ceremony, here I come!

Leaf tea strainer, P86

Anyway, I guess I'm cleaning this weekend. My husband will think that's my April Fool's joke haha But I do clean and keep house well enough. It just looks like I don't because the house isn't as spotless and orderly as, well, as Honeyjubu's house. That's not what I aspire for (to thine own self be true!) but I am inspired! Must buy an apron first!

Happy weekend, mamas!


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Sunday, March 20, 2022

We tried the Sunnies Studios Home Optical

Pandemic-caused services review time! Today, I'll share with you our experience with Sunnies Studios Home Optical. It's the home service that Sunnies Studios created during quarantine. And I am SO GLAD for this service!

 
Kwento muna. I was a sickly child so I stayed indoors most of my childhood. When I was around 10, my grades started dipping. Pinagalitan ako ng parents ko, then they eventually decided mahina lang siguro utak ko. But when I was 12, I had a classmate who said, "You know, you're a really smart person even if your grades aren't that high. I think you can't see the blackboard because you always squint and you take down what the teacher says but you don't copy what's on the board." Then she told me to borrow her glasses and I was amazed because I could see every leaf on the trees! 

I told my parents what happened, we went to an optical shop in Cubao, and the optometrist checked my eyes and said I was really near-sighted. He also said being indoors a lot possibly made me myopic. As Optimax explains, "Studies have found that children who spend more time indoors are more likely to be short-sighted than those who played outside regularly... [Research suggests] that 'exposure to bright light helps the eyeball stay round,' preventing it from elongating in a manner which brings on myopia. Other scientists think it might be because when you’re outside, you’re typically focusing on objects in the distance, encouraging your eyes to rely on distance vision. When we’re inside, we don’t often look at objects further than a few feet away."

So when quarantine was imposed in 2020, I worried about my kids' eyesight. I would tell them to look outside our condo every day, focus on buildings, on cars, on anything far away. But last year, I could tell my eldest boy couldn't see well anymore. But there was no way we could go to the mall for a checkup. So when I heard from our neighbors that Sunnies had a home service, book ako agad!

Here's my review:

The home service is a van fitted out like a small optical clinic. It's very comfortable and efficient. They can accept 3 patients per appointment pero syempre one patient in the van at a time. 

Yung photo medyo mukhang mausok sa loob, diba? That's because they disinfect the whole thing after every patient. Actually, that's what makes the appointment matagal kasi kada consultation, pauusukan nila yung van and maghihintay ka sa labas.  

Ayan, daming alcohol at disinfecting spray. Pati foot mat, disinfecting din!

Okay, so super safe na! That's when the patients finally go in to get their eyes checked. 

Kumpleto ang gamit. Mabait ang optometrist. Okay siya mag-explain ng steps, what your eye condition is, and what your treatment options are. 


So now na alam mo na grado ng mata mo, pili ka na ng frames. There are about a hundred frames you can choose from (disinfected after each appointment!). Maraming styles but syempre hindi kasing daming options kung sa store ka pupunta.

Also, if you have frames na, like gusto mo lang palitan yung lente, hindi sila papayag. The reason is if they accidentally break your frames, ang maipapalit lang nila is a Sunnies frame. Yun ang balak ko sana for me. I have frames na kasi. I just wanted new lenses but my frames are expensive and Sunnies frames aren't.

I'm not being mayabang, ha. I really invest in my glasses because:

1. I'm legally blind so I rely heavily on my glasses to see a foot from my face. So I need glasses that are strong. So I bought titanium frames a few years ago. Titanium is the 4th strongest metal. And my frames literally have been sat on, stepped on, fallen from a height, etc and they don't break! 

2. My glasses are part of my face. My face looks incomplete without them! So syempre kailangan maganda glasses ko.


The great thing about Sunnies frames is they come in many styles and colors and are inexpensive. Very budget-friendly talaga. Basta may required P4,000 purchase. 

So was our bill cheap? No hehe. Diba I said the optometrist will tell you your treatment options? Kasama dun yung lens options mo. The more features you want, the pricier it gets. For example yung mga lente ko, I always choose ultra-thin, scratch-proof, impact-resistant, UV coated, and anti-reflective. Dami, diba??? I used to have photochromic lenses, too, but di ko na afford! 

So after you choose your frame, Sunnies will ask what kind of lenses you want. Vince and Vito wanted the cheapest ones but, like I said, eyeglasses are an essential device. Impaired eyesight is a disability! You can't do much if you can't see! So investment talaga siya.

Umabot ako ng halos 20K for their glasses *faint*! I asked for the same features and chose progressive also for Vince. Hindi na ako kumuha for me kasi sumobra na sa budget hehehehe 


Pero hindi naman mahal lahat! And again I reiterate - since Sunnies frames are affordable, mura actually na ang glasses nila. I was expecting to pay almost 30K for their glasses but nakatipid ako sa lagay. The frames are inexpensive (mga P795 to P1000 lang) and you can choose simple lenses naman. Just tell them what your budget is and they will work with it. Sobrang bait nila! No judgment! Very helpful. 

In fact, ngayong nakaipon na ako ulit, I will book Sunnies Home Optical again for me and the two little boys naman. Pa-check up ko na rin mata nila. After all, dapat annual ang eye checkup, especially now that quarantine is affecting our eyesight.

When you book online, you need to pay a P500 reservation fee that's deductible when you pay. Don't forget to remind them to deduct it!!! You can find more in the FAQs of their site. 

So that's my review! Highly recommended! They accept cash, Gcash, credit card and debit card. I paid via Gcash. So convenient! 

Book Sunnies Studios Home Optical now.



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Sunday, March 13, 2022

Frances Finds: Concrete modern house in Antipolo

Okay, back to virtual house viewing! May reader kasi na nagsabi sa akin na gusto niya yung mga houses na nahahanap ko sa YouTube so game, share ako again. Anyway, to the new ones on the blog, I used to share house viewings because of quarantine since March 2020, diba, and hindi lang pala ako ang nahilig sa mga home tours. I've been watching house videos a lot because I imagine what life is with a garden or I'm researching for renovation ideas, ganyan. I'm subscribed to Bryce Langston's Living Big in a Tiny House, Jenna's Tiny House, Giant Journey, Levi Kelly's Airbnb weekly tours, and Never Too Small. I watch their videos when I wash the dishes!

But last year, I discovered local real estate videos. I like the Jas & Mr. Hi Guys! husband-and-wife team kahit na hingal na hingal lagi si misis. I watch practically all their videos. And if naghahanap kayo ng bahay sa east (Antipolo, Cainta, Taytay), check niyo videos nila.

Okay, so this is my favorite house so far. 


You might be surprised na gusto ko siya kasi Loyal Readers know I love midcentury-modern styles. Yung huge walls of windows, wood floors, space, space, space! And yes I love that but I also love concrete. Yes, concrete! Lately lang, mga a few years ago when my husband and I watched "The World's Most Extraordinary Homes" on Netflix (and I blogged about how you know your life is complete) and saw some really nice houses that were made of simple gray concrete.

And this is one concrete house I found locally that I really like!

Watch, watch:


Love the big windows! Love the little room sa ground floor which will be my husband's office. I like the small but efficient kitchen. I like the big rooms. I have 3 kids but they like sleeping in one room so I think the big room in front will be their bedroom and the smaller room at the back will be their study room. And I love the master bedroom, too! The only thing I don't like is the fact that the bathrooms don't have windows. So if I buy this (I won't hehe), bubutasin ko yung bathroom walls para may sunlight and ventilation.

Anyway, this house is in Mission Hills, Antipolo. Malayo ba yun sa NCR? I heard maganda raw dun, like super. So now I'm interested to go visit that area!

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Thursday, March 10, 2022

Why do people hate her?

At lunch yesterday, Liz Lanuzo of Project Vanity said she can't understand why people are so angry at the woman in the photo below.

(I edited this blog post to remove her name and will replace it with MM because anyone defending this woman gets so much hate! And I don't want that shit on my blog or in my headspace. So if you know who she is, you know her name. If you don't know her, that's okay!) 

Here is my explanation, which I wrote on Facebook but decided to put here instead because Facebook instantly flags as racist and hate speech many of the words in my explanation below (and that tells you all you need to know about the people who hate MM!):

Reasons why people hate MM

1. She and Prince H are in an equal and loving marriage and people don't like that. A woman who is respected by her husband, who doesn't know her place, a woman who has her own voice (vs the husband speaking for her), and her own money "diminishes" the man.

They also can't believe H would choose his wife over his original family. 🙄🙄🙄 So they think MM is making H her puppet simply because he loves her. 

2. People think that MM is not worthy to belong to the upper crust of society. She's a foreigner, not an aristocrat, a woman who works, a divorcee, and - shocker! - a Black woman. In imperial UK, they see MM as a descendant of slaves. They think she pollutes the blue blood of the royal family. 

3. Despite being "unqualified" to marry a prince, MM did marry into that family and, unlike her middle-class sister-in-law Kate who kept her head down in acknowledgement of her unworthiness, MM spoke out, fought back, and left. To their eyes, she was ungrateful.

4. And last and worst of all, you never go against the family. You never reveal the secrets. You never cut off the relationship. You always respect and obey your parents, even when you're already married. No matter how much they abuse you, you're supposed to take it (as a sign of loyalty) and be quiet (as a sign of gratitude). Any protest, every negative story is automatically labeled as a lie. H and MM did the unforgivable by setting boundaries and when those were crossed, they left. 


And that's why people hate MM. She is a powerful, intelligent, rich woman who will not tolerate bullshit, who will not be silent when abused, who will fight back, who is happy, and - worst of all - she has a husband who loves her. The love and loyalty of a man (and a beloved prince, too!) validate and legitimize her existence and her decisions. To society, women like MM are a threat to old traditional values. And that's why they hate her.

Aaaaand that's how I know hindi pa tapos ang laban para sa mga babae! Silence always helps the abuser (families are the worst abusers of all). Discrimination and biases are still working against women, even if those women are our very own mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters. Sarili kong magulang kept putting me down kasi "babae ka lang, wag kang mayabang, wag kang ambisyosa."

Stop this! Women are people, too. We deserve love and respect, too. I have it now from my husband and sons, all of them feminists I am so proud to say. They are so secure and confident in their masculinity that a strong woman in their midst is not a threat at all. 

We need to change the world, people. A world that values women will be a better world not just for women, but for all of us - yes, even men and families everywhere, too ❤️❤️❤️

One day, I truly hope we no longer need an International Women's Day because honoring, respecting, and appreciating women will be so commonplace that we do it every day. Till then, HAPPY WOMEN'S MONTH! 


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