Michi Photostory

Since I was not born with a silver spoon, I grew up using public transportation if I need to go to school, work, and even travel. I have no problem with commuting so even when I’m already earning, I have no plan to buy a car.

But things change when I got married and pregnant, my husband wanted to purchase a car for our family. At first, I don’t like the idea because I know that a car is not an investment, it is an additional expense because we have to spend money on gas, toll, parking, insurance, and car maintenance.


A car may not be an investment but there are so many reasons why we need to purchase a family car. First, we live in a province so it is not easy to commute, there is no taxi, Uber, or Grab here so you have no choice but to ride a tricycle, jeep, or bus. Having a car saves us time in commuting so no more waiting time. If you ride a jeepney, the driver will not leave the terminal if there are still vacant seats so you have no choice but to wait.

Next, we don’t need to worry if we have medical emergencies because we can go straight to the hospital. And of course, we can use the car for our travel trips, our family loves to travel and it is convenient to travel if you have your own car.

But buying a car is not as easy as 1,2, 3, there are so many things that you need to consider before buying your family car. I will share with you some of the things that we consider in choosing a car.

Budget

Money is a very important factor in buying a car because this will affect your decision. The first thing that you need to ask yourself is "How much can you afford?"Are you going to buy a used car or a new car? I still remember, 10 years ago we only purchased used cars because our budget is limited. Fortunately, we were able to use that car for more than a year before we replaced it with a new one.

If you have old, broken, or damaged care, consider selling to a site like this or trading them for cash. Yes, turn your junk into cash, it would be an additional budget for your new car.

Needs vs Wants 

There are so many beautiful cars on the market just like a sports car but of course, you need to consider the needs of your family. If you have a small family, the sedan would be nice but if you have a growing family, vans, AUV or SUV is a good choice.

Research 

Now that you know your budget and needs, it is time for you to do some research. Cars are not cheap so it is significant to do your own homework. Take time to research, ask friends or families for suggestions or feedback and check for videos and reviews. The Internet would be your friend because there are tons of sites that offer reviews just like Cars.com. Whether you are looking for used cars or new cars, this site will help you in giving testimonies, reviews, or videos.

Visit Car Dealer 

After doing your research, it is best to visit a car dealer so you can see the different models of the car, you can check the interior and exterior and if you are lucky, you can also do test driving. We did this last month because my husband can’t decide on his car. So we went to the car dealer and check the model. It is best to see the car models up close, sometimes photos are not enough. The visit helped my husband in making his decision so we have to say goodbye soon to our present car.

Features 

My husband also considers some features like size, performance, fuel efficiency, trunk space, safety, and other features that will make our ride comfortable. Size is important because we have limited parking space at home. Performance, fuel efficiency, trunk space, and safety are significant, especially since our family loves to travel. We need to make sure of our protection and safety on the road.

Buying your first family car is exciting but don’t let your emotions control you. Do not rush in purchasing, just take your time because the car is expensive. Sometimes it takes weeks or months before you can have your car because they need to order it, especially if the color that you want is not available.

For the past few months, we’ve been planning to have a get-together but for some reason, hindi kami matuloy-tuloy so I suggested magbreakfast meal na lang kami and dun na kami magplan ng alis. So last month, we went to our friend’s house for our breakfast meeting.

It is not easy to schedule a trip since we have to consider the schedule of our husbands and kids. In addition, hindi rin pare-pareho ng school ang kids namin so different dismissal time. Of course, we need to be home before our kids' school services arrive. 


I can’t remember yung last na alis namin but I know that it’s been a long time since we had our “Mom’s Day Out”. We all tried Yakimix and Vikings so I suggested Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot in Southmall for a change. My friend called to reserve a table.  


We arrived in SM Southmall, a few minutes before the opening. We immediately went to Four Seasons Restaurant so we can confirm our reservation and the staff gave us a number. 11AM is the opening time so nag-ikot-ikot muna kami, looking for SALE. 

Then we went back to the restaurant, the staff ushered us to a round table good for 5 persons. But there is only one cooking stove so I requested if they can transfer us to a bigger table and I’m glad they granted my request. 


We mentioned that it was our friend’s birthday that day so we could avail of the birthday promo. One of my friends told the staff na meron pa isa birthday celebrant so the staff asked for my ID. I told him, na kulang kami para sa isa pa promo but the staff told me that they would give me a complimentary cake.  On the Day Birthday promo 1 + 1 FREE and Birthday Month promo 3 + 1 FREE.

I was surprised because two years ago, I celebrated my birthday at Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot City MOA but I did not receive any complimentary cake. In the same year, we went to Vikings SM BF, they were aware that there were two celebrants but they only gave one cake. But this time, they really gave me a complimentary birthday cake. So kahit malayo pa birthday ko, nakapagblow ako ng candle. Kudos to the staff or Southmall branch. The birthday greeting is the same with Vikings, isahan na lang, and picture per table. 




Anyway, before checking the buffet spread we ordered our soup and we all chose Sate for our broth. If you still remember, my family just ate here last March so you can read my review here. The only thing that I noticed is, that there are more meat selections during weekends and mas konti na yung sliced meat servings nila, as in 4 slices na lang per tray. Hehehe! Five months ago, mas ok yung serving nila.

The service is good, the staff even advised us that we could order a Green Mango Shake and it is included in the fee. Yey! Forgive me for the limited photos because we were busy eating and talking. Thanks to my friend’s treat. Next time, ibang buffet restaurant naman ang i-try namin. I hope there will be more buffet restaurants for South peeps. The rate is still the same, check below. 

Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot City Rate  

Adult 

Weekday Lunch: P688  
Weekday Dinner: P888  
Holiday and Weekends Lunch and Dinner P888

Kids below 3ft: FREE  

Kids 3ft -4ft  

Weekday Lunch P188  
Weekday Dinner P288  
Holiday and Weekend Lunch and Dinner P288 

Kids 4ft - 6ft  

Weekday Lunch P388  
Weekday Dinner P588 
Holiday and Weekend Lunch and Dinner P588  

Prices are subject to 5% service charge  

Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot City Branches  

SM Southmall  
SM MOA by the Bay  
Cubao

One disadvantage of living in the province is, there are stores, supermarkets or restaurants that we want to visit but we can’t because it is not available in our area. We have to travel all the way to Alabang so we can see more shops, restaurants, and supermarkets. Last year, I saw that they are building Landmark beside Festival Mall, I felt excited because finally magkakalandmark na rin sa Alabang.



After several months of waiting, Landmark Supermarket is finally open. They started their operation last July 28, 2017 but it was only last Saturday that we were able to visit it. We’re supposed to go to S&R but we dropped by at Festival Mall for my two boys haircut. Since nasa Festival na rin kami, we decided to check the supermarket.



It was lunch time so we ate at the Food Center, there are still stores that are not yet open. We ate at Baliwag pero mas mahaba pila sa Ilonggo Grill, when I checked their meals, mas mura pala sa kanila. 




After our meal, we went to the supermarket and I felt happy seeing the veggies, fruits and other products, ang dami ko ng choices. 








I saw Buy 1 Get 1 promo of Ariel so I took advantage of it, bumili na ko ng for 3 months supply. Minsan ko lang maabutan yan promo na yan. Nagkaubusan dati sa S&R niyan. 



And because of that, hindi na ko pumunta sa S&R dito ko na binili lahat ng nasa list ko though mas mura yung Nutella sa S&R. My husband likes yogurt and we were surprised when we saw his yogurt, P38+ lang, kabibili ko lang nito sa Walter few days ago and P43+ ang isa, Waah! Ang laki ng difference ng price.



I also noticed that they have so many staffs, someone even put our groceries sa cashier and hinatid pa kami hanggang parking. They don’t accept tip pa, sana hindi lang sa umpisa ito. My husband was teasing me, “May bago na naman daw ko papasyalan”. Oh yes, happy place ng mga mommies ang supermarket.

Free parking in the basement for 3 hours, just don't forget to validate your receipt. 

Landmark Supermarket Alabang
9AM to 9PM

It’s been a week of not updating this blog, I’ve been preoccupied with so many things and I have no time to finish my backlogs. But I was able to upload two new videos on my YouTube channel. Since I haven’t blogged about our Iceland Trip, you can check the videos here. Hopefully, I can upload more. 



So what happened this past week? 

Swimming 

My father-in-law went back to the Philippines. It’s been several years already since he went to the USA so this was the first time that his grandchildren in the Philippines would meet him.


My husband took a leave to fetch him at the airport and we had an overnight swimming at JMJ resort, a private resort in Biñan Laguna. Though my family did not sleep there because my husband and son do not want to be absent in school and work. 

House Improvement 

I mentioned in my previous post that I have a new refrigerator. I’ve been meaning to replace our fridge but my husband does not like the idea because our fridge is still working fine. But I told him that I needed a bigger one, ang hirap pagkasyahin ng food sa maliit na ref and I also want to have a cabinet under the stairs. It is better to replace the fridge before the cabinet para nakasukat na. 

Sayang ang space under the stairs, I know that we can maximize the space and it will help me to declutter our home. He agreed with me, so after 11 years, we bought a new refrigerator, I made a draft of my cabinet design and contacted the contractor. We bought pull-out baskets and dripping pans and gave it to the contractor. 



After two weeks of waiting, they already installed the cabinet and I’m glad that they finished everything in two days. So these past few days, I was busy removing our stuff under the stairs and then putting our stuff again in our new cabinet. 

This is the reason why I opted for clothes rack for my son’s clothes because I no longer have the budget for the built-in cabinet.

Birthday Celebration at Four Seasons Hotpot and Buffet City

My friend celebrated her birthday at Four Seasons Hotpot and Buffet City, so I had my “Me time” yesterday. The advantage of having a grade school kid, mas mahaba ang oras sa school so nakakatakas paminsan-minsan. I will share it in a separate post. 

Approaching Periodical Exam 

Next week is my son’s periodical exam so I’m busy making reviewers and worksheets for him. Good thing that I only have one child, I can’t imagine the stress kung ang dami ko anak, lahat gagawan ko ng reviewer and worksheet. Waah!

I have this chocolate chips in the fridge that I haven’t used because I don’t have an oven yet. It’s been several months simula ng nasira yung thermostat nung oven namin and until now, I have no plans to fix or replace it yet.

The service company was asking for 7k just to fix the thermostat and I find it expensive, pwede na ko bumili ng small electric oven nun e. My husband already looked for an oven but I told him, saka na lang kami bumili, mas gusto ko new refrigerator.


Wish granted, I have a new fridge but no oven. Hehehe! Anyway, before the chocolate expires, I decided to use it but the problem is, pang Christmas yung chocolate molder ko, ayaw ko pa gamitin. So I asked my husband to buy me an ice cube tray when he went to Singapore last week. Isinama ko na sa IKEA shopping list ko.

So last Sunday, my son and I made chocolate candy. I put the chocolate chips in a bowl and put it in the microwave oven for 2 minutes and stir. Repeat the process until I get the right consistency.

Papakin ang leftover chocolate. :)

But I noticed that my chocolate mixture is too thick, hindi siya liquid like nung nakikita ko sa cooking show. Then I read an article in wikiHow, “Do not use chocolate chips, baking chocolate or store bought chocolate bars because of the fluidity”.


So that is the reason why my chocolate mixture is not a syrup type. But I still continued my chocolate candy. I put chopped walnuts in the ice cube tray, yung iba wala because my son like a plain chocolate. Then I covered it with plastic cling wrap and put it in the fridge.


Then I unmold it, voila! We now have chocolate candy and my son likes it. Though hindi perfect yung shape nung chocolate, pwede na rin. It will melt in our mouth. hehehe!

How to Mold Chocolate Candy 

1. Melt your chocolate in double boiler or microwave oven
2. Spoon the mixture in the molder
3. Put the mold in the fridge
4. Unmold it and serve.

Vitamin D is very important to our health, not a lot of people pay too much attention to this until they find out that they have vitamin D deficiency. 

Importance of Vitamin D are 

• Vitamin D fights serious diseases by keeping vital organs like hearts, lungs, brain, and bones functioning healthily.
• Vitamin D is needed for calcium absorption among infants for stronger bones and teeth. 
• Vitamin D increase fertility, prevent breast cancer, and avoid PCOS for women. 

Do you know that 7 out of 10 Filipinos are Vitamin D deficient? It is so surprising because we live in a tropical country, we are getting enough sunlight compared to other countries. Vitamin D deficiency can happen to you and your family so check the following ways to avoid it. 



4 Ways to Avoid Vitamin D Deficiency

1. Sun Exposure 

Vitamin D is also known as Sunshine Vitamin because our body produces vitamin D when our skin is exposed to direct sunlight. Even kids know that we can get Vitamin D from the sunlight, in fact, it is one of my son’s lessons in their Health subject. 

Sometimes when my son and I walk, he tells me to bring an umbrella because it is hot but I will not bring one because I know that we need the sunlight. Though sunlight is a very good source of sunshine vitamin, too much sun is not good for our skin. You cannot stay under the sun for so long because it will hurt and burn your skin. 

2. Eat food with Vitamin D 

There are only few foods that contain vitamin D and some of these foods are fortified so make sure to include these foods in your diet. You can get vitamin D by eating salmon, tuna, sardines, mushrooms, beef liver, shrimp, egg yolks, cod liver oil, fortified cereal, and fortified yogurt. Drink fortified milk and fortified orange juice. 

3. Ultraviolet Lamps and Bulbs 

Some people are having a hard time in getting sufficient amount of vitamin D. There are a lot of factors that may affect them such as the latitude where they live, color of the skin, air pollution, weight, age, spending more time indoors, and even the use of sunscreen. 

So sometimes, doctors recommend the use of ultraviolet lamps and bulbs. Two years ago, I suffered from severe psoriasis and I had phototheraphy session for few months to clear my lesions. This is very expensive and it takes so much time because you need to go to the hospital two to three times a week.

4. Vitamin D Supplement

It is difficult to obtain enough vitamin D from sun exposure, food alone and it is expensive to undergo phototherapy so the easiest way to get vitamin D is through food supplements. Two years ago, when I suffered from severe psoriasis, I also took Vitamin D food supplements because vitamin D is good for controlling psoriasis. I forgot the price of one bottle. Anyway, I just recently learned that Unilab has a vitamin D supplement. 

Forti-D Vitamin D Supplement 

Generic: Colecalciferol/Cholecafiferol 800 IU Vitamin D3 
Launched: February 2014 
Price: P6.50 per capsule 
Adult Dose: One soft gel capsule once per day 

Signs that you have vitamin D Deficiency 

1. Tiredness or Fatigue 
2. Muscle and joint weakness or pain 
3. Stress fractures 

Whether you have these signs or not, it is very significant to get enough vitamin D. Prevention is better than cure so start serious protection today with Forti-D.

Our Day 26 in Norway is quite busy, we spent our day in Nursing Home where we played Bingo but unfortunately we did not win that day. My son also played bowling with the grannies and grandads. After my mom’s work, off we went to Europris and Coop because my mom will buy prizes for Bingo and for their event. 


When we went home, my mom took a nap while I was busy editing photos and videos. At that time, my mom was preparing for an event and I volunteered that I will make her presentation. Though I’m no expert in editing photos or videos, I can make a simple video so grandparents can reminisce about their past indoor and outdoor activities in Nursing Home. 

After a few hours, off we went to my aunt’s house for a quick visit. We stayed on the balcony, it was sunny but still cold so we were still wearing jackets. My aunt has a nice view of the sea too, in fact, nakakita pa ko ng cruise ship na nagdadaan dun during our last visit.



We ate dinner and then my aunt invited us for a walk. If my mom has Bruholmen, my aunt has Svartholberget for their recreation in Garten. Norwegians are lucky because they always have a recreation area near their homes. They can do biking, fishing, walking, and even a picnic for free.  

Watch the video here 






It was already night time but Norway is known as the Land of the Midnight Sun so the sun is still visible at night. It was Spring season, the sun sets so late, so mga 10PM na dumidilim. During our walk, I saw the moon and the sun at the same time. Amazing! 

Though it was tiring, we enjoyed our walk. Sayang lang, we did not see any moose. My aunt said, minsan makakasabay mo pa daw sila maglakad. Hehehe! There is no moose but we saw a slug.

Netherlands is on my bucket list, I’ve been meaning to visit this place and see the tulips, windmills and other tourist spots that I usually see on movies. I was planning to have a sidetrip here when we we’re planning to visit Norway but after we got our Schengen visa, KLM airfare already increased. It is so expensive for my budget so we bought our plane ticket to a different airline. 

Read: How to Apply for Schengen Visa

On our way to Norway, my mom and aunt took KLM flight so they had layover in Netherlands. She always buy pasalubong in Amsterdam Airport and because we were in Norway, I was able to try these chocolates, waffle and cheese. 



Lindt 



I guess Lindt chocolate is everywhere, I always see this brand in the airport. We prefer the milk chocolate flavor. 

Godiva 

My mom gave me this Godiva chocolate, she said she got it for FREE. The KLM staff informed her that she has expiring miles/points so she exchanged her points to chocolates. The heart shaped chocolates are so cute, parang ayaw ko pa kainin nung una. Hehehe! 

Read: Godiva, Ghirardelli and Lindt Chocolates 

Kinder Chocolate 

If you have kids, you are familiar with Kinder Chocolate brand. It is one of my son’s favorite chocolate. Kinder is a German word which means “children”. It was developed and produced since 1967. 



Even I’m adult, I also like Kinder Chocolate. My son and I love Kinder Bueno and Kinder Chocolate. My mom gave him an Egg Stuffed toy with Kinder Chocolate.

Droste 

Droste is a well-known global chocolate which started by Gerardus Johannes Droste in Holland in the year 1863. Ang tagal na pala but it was my first time to taste Droste chocolate. 




I was able to try the Droste Assortis and Droste Tulips, the gift boxes contained different kind of chocolates, so you can taste white, milk and dark chocolate. 

Original Honingwafels

It is a waffle with honey filling. My mom likes this but it is too sweet for my taste.



Netherlands is also known for cheese so my mom also bought some cheese which I don’t have a photo.

Davao is the first province that I’ve visited in Mindanao so I was a little bit excited when we went there. It’s been a decade already since the last time I’ve been there and it is one of the places that I wanted to revisit because I know that there are more tourist spots that I haven’t seen and experienced.

A few months ago, my husband mentioned to me that he will have a business trip in Davao so I was a little bit excited because I have the opportunity to go back but when April came, his Davao trip was moved to another date. Then May came, Martial law was implemented so Davao trip was totally canceled. 


Well, I hope the Marawi issue will be resolved soon and I’m praying for peace. Aside from Davao, there are more places that I wanted to visit in Mindanao. But for now, let me just reminisce about our 3 days trip to Davao.