My first 3K

Yes, I joined a marathon and had my first 3km race and now, I am officially a running mommy :)
We went to Mckinley hill this morning to join the Earth Run with H, Cel & Ivan. We just met up with Sandra and her folks at the site. It was our first race and we are all so unprepared. The race should start at 5:30AM and we arrive at that same time (assembly time is 5AM) but good thing the start time was delayed for some reasons or maybe because of the rain. It was then rescheduled at 6AM, lucky us! So we still had time to register, get our singlet and take our one and only picture in the field.

Originally, we registered for 5k but at the time we registered, the 5k category was already filled up so we had to choose between 3k and 16k. And since we're not yet out of our minds, we chose the 3k :) It was a good thing that we got the 3k category as it was our first time to run. We didn't even have some training before joining the race. My plan was to really finish the run even if I would be the last in line. I was exhausting when I reached the first half but when we got to the water station I was instantly energized. We all finished the run and all 3k finishers got some giveaways: a bottled water, healthy tea, sachet of lotion, pouch and a certificate.

It was so nice to finish a race. H really enjoyed it (the running while it's raining) and wanted to do it again next Sunday but we can't since we have a baptism to attend on. We will definitely join next time, maybe on June 14.

And of course, we had a post-run breakfast at Mcdo with the gang.

Dentist day

Yesterday was Jared's second visit to his dentist and he had the same reaction as to his first. The dentist checked his teeth very quickly and applied fluoride varnish in all his teeth. She said that there are 4 more teeth to come out at his age now and the next set will pop out on his 6th year.

But before that moment, we spent some time in the playroom while waiting for his turn. That moment was the one he really enjoyed. He played on the little slide, the shape sorter and browsed some books. But he still didn't know the concept of sharing. When another kid came, he would drag all the toys at his side so that he can play with it alone. He would cry if someone touches "his" toys. I hope he learns to share soon..

Dinner with gurlfriends

Last night, my friends and I had dinner at Krocodile Grill in Trinoma. It was my first time to dine there and I enjoyed it. We had seafood soup, inihaw na tahong and the yummy salted spicy squid - seafoods galore! It was wonderful to see them both. Haven't seen them for months. Looking forward to our next night out.. Sands, don't forget the P&P receipts.. :)

Jared is 2!

Jared turned 2 yesterday. We had a simple celebration in H's parents' house. Too bad my sisters were not able to come since they have work/school. Initially, we just planned to buy him a cake since we had already celebrated it last Sunday but later then decided to prepare a little party for him. Since Jared was so into Spongebob, we decided to have it as his theme. We started preparing the food and decorations at around 5 in the afternoon and finished at dinner time.


The highlight of the party is the cake ceremony. It was also Jared's favorite part. He loves blowing cakes even without the candles haha! And this time he blew off the two candles only by himself. Good job baby!

We all enjoyed our little party. I can't believe my baby is now 2 years old. Maybe I should stop calling him a baby. He's now my little boy. How fast time flies!

A heartfelt and sincere thanks to our family who made the night memorable and gave Jared so much happiness. You guys are the best! :)

Celebrations

We went to Amana waterpark (13 waves) in Pandi Bulacan yesterday to celebrate (in advance) Jared's 2nd birthday and also Mane's bday and Mother's day, all in courtesy of my PIL. :)

We arrived at the waterpark at around 10am. The place was so crowded and we had a hard time getting tickets for entrance and cottage... looks like Willie of Wowowee has promoted the place so well (and we're one of the victims haha!)

Entrance for day swimming is 250 for adults and 200 for children (4ft and below). We got the Executive cottage worth 1,500 - 2 storey cottage good for 10-15 persons. The cottage is fairly nice but goodluck on going up to the 2nd floor, you will surely have a hard time climbing the 'modern' stairs.

We all got disappointed when we learned that there were only 2 pools, the wave pool and the kiddie pool. They're boasting of the biggest wave pool in the country but I was not able to notice it. Maybe a sq.m. larger than the 2nd biggest pool? The wave pool was so crowded you can't even swim or do some floating and you will always hear "excuse me" everytime you move, as complained by my folks.
I was so objecting about Jared swimming in that pool because of all the dirt the pool has accumulated. I assumed most people took a dip into the pool without even taking a shower as there were no open shower areas near the pool.

I've noticed too that the shower area and toilets are not in proportion to the number of guests that the resort can accommodate. What's worse is most of the shower rooms are not working or there was no more water coming out of it so we settled for bathing Jared in the toilet where there's a faucet and a pail of water.

Overall, we were all UNimpressed with the place. In fact. I heard so many "we-should-have-gone-to-this-and-that-resort-instead" comments. It was really disappointing. I think they should have opened at a later time when everything is built and completed.

OK, enough of this ranting.. inspite of all those I mentioned we still enjoyed the day. Personally, it's because of so many food we had (takaw talaga) We had shrimps, calamares, spag, inihaw na liempo, hotdogs, caldereta, fried chicken. And ofcourse, H's and my family were all there so enjoy pa rin diba!

Carrot Cupcake

These are the very first cupcakes that I baked and it turned out very nice. These cuppies are moist and delicious, full with the flavors of carrots and ground cinnamon with the smooth and tangy taste of the cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 cup sunflower oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. of baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cup grated carrots (about 2 large carrots)
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Before preparing, preheat oven at 350 F/180 C.

1. Peel & grate the carrots.Set aside
2. Chop the nuts. Set aside.
3. Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt & cinnamon.. mix well. Set aside your flour mix.
4. Beat eggs until frothy.
5. Add sugar. Beat until it thickens.
6. Gradually add sunflower oil in a steady stream. Beat well.
7. Add vanilla extract.
8. Add the flour mix, gradually. Blend well.
9. Fold in grated carrots & nuts using a spatula/scraper.
10. In a muffin pan, place cupcake liners.
11. Fill about 3/4 of it using a spoon or laddle.
12. Bake for 20-30 minutes. Check after 20mins with a toothpick. If it comes out clean then it is done..
13. Let it cool on a wire rack.

makes about 10 pcs