Michi Photostory

And because of that, I started exploring Korean movies. The first two Korean movies that I watched are “A Moment to Remember” and Miracle in Cell No. 7, these were already old movies. As far as I know, I am not addicted to kdrama yet when I watched these movies. Both movies are tear-jerkers and they are worth watching. 

When I started watching the drama series, I watched the “Fabricated City” movie because I learned that Ji Chang Wook is part of this movie. Then just this year, I finished watching Space Sweepers, Extreme Jobs and My Girlfriend is an Agent. I’m still searching for good movies but some are not available on Netflix.

1. A Moment to Remember 

2. Miracle in Cell No. 7 

3. Fabricated City 

4. 200 Pounds Beauty

5. Okja

6. Space Sweepers 

7. Extreme Jobs 

8. My Girlfriend is an Agent 

9. Tune in for Love

10. The Bros

11. Pandora

12. One Day

13. Sweet and Sour 

14. Crazy Romance

15. On Your Wedding Day

16. Always

17. Be With You

18. Love + Sling

19. Luck - Key

20. Flu

21. My New Sassy Girl

22. Finding Mr. Destiny

23. The Princess and the Matchmaker

24. Kim Ji Young Born 1982

25. Whatcha Wearin?

26. Hit and Run Squad

27. Tunnel

28. Mr. Handy, Mr. Hong

29. Collectors

So let us see if I will hit 100 Korean Movies too. Care to share your favorite Korean Movies? 

Even though my blog and social media accounts have few followers, I continue blogging because I didn’t start my blog for fame but for myself. Even I have an audience of ONE which is myself, I still go on. Blogging is my creative outlet to keep my mind and life productive. 

I love seeing and reading my old blog posts because it is a testament to my improvement as a wife, mother, and person. I discovered how my hobby changed from cooking to baking, sewing, crocheting, designing, and now crafting with my Cricut Maker. I witnessed how my body size keeps on growing as the years go by because of food trips. Slowly, I'm crossing out my bucket list and the list goes on.

Today, I’m celebrating my ten years milestone and as of this writing, I have 1,640 blog posts and 8,167,086 pageviews. If you have stumbled on my blog, thank you for being part of my 8 million views. Sharing some of my favorites quotes that keep me going and doing what I do. 

Two years ago, I received a succulent plant as a souvenir so I was happy because this type of plant is perfect for a non-green thumb like me. But I felt sad because, after few months, we went to Norway for a vacation so I already expected that my plant will die because no one will water it. Surprisingly, it survived for almost one month. When my husband went back to the Philippines, he took care of it. 

One year had passed, my succulent keeps on growing so one pot became three pots and then five pots. When my husband repotted my succulent plants, the plants slowly died hanggang sa walang natira. Huhuhu! I don’t know why, is it because of the soil that we used or nasobrahan ba ng dilig? 

Anyway, after several months, my husband bought me a new succulent plant so I was happy na may kapalit na yung nawala sa akin. My husband was so shocked with my reaction, iba daw kasi yung smile ko sa plants compared sa flowers na binibigay niya dati. Now, he finally understood na ayaw ko talaga ng bulaklak talaga. Hehehe! Well, he already stopped giving me flowers since year 2012.  

On the same day, I immediately searched Shopee for ceramic pots. I don’t want to use the old plastic pots at baka mamatay ulit sila. Hehehe Sinisi ko na ngayon ang paso. I ordered from two different stores and I’m glad that my pots arrived in good condition, may free pebbles pa. 

Then using my Cricut Maker, I made some decals stickers. I can’t do this with my old pots kasi hindi sila smooth so ngayon pwede na. I used glossy black and frosted glitter vinyl stickers pero hindi maganda kinalabasan sa frosted glitter so I will remake this project if I have extra time. 

Love grows here 

Please don’t die 

Plant, grow, bloom 

Plant your dreams 

Bloom where you planted 

And dahil halaman naman daw pala magpapasaya sa akin, my husband bought succulent plants again. OMG, I only ordered 5 pots so I have no choice but to use the plastic pots sa dalawa, hehehe! Next time na ulit ako oorder kapag naggrow and bloom na sila. I do hope humaba na ang buhay nila. I’ve made some research on how to take care the succulent plants. 

How to Care Your Succulent Plants 

1. Choose the right soil. A mix of gardening soil, sand, and perlite or pumice. 

2. Make sure they get enough sunlight. 

3. Water the soil directly not spray. 

4. Choose a container with a hole or drainage. 

5. Keep succulent leaves clean. 

6. Fertilize 

I asked my husband kung ano name nila, hindi daw niya alam so ireresearch ko pa. Waah! Checking the plants parang I have Echeveria and Jade, correct me if I am wrong.

Sharing the links where I bought my succulent pots. 

Yesterday, I shared about the homemade mojos potato and now let me share the Great Earth Potato Wedges. I just realized na same brand ito ng California Blend that I previously blogged. Anyway, last weekend, I cooked fried chicken and I remembered the potato wedges that I bought last December at Landers. One pack is 2 lbs for P179.75. 

I checked the packaging for cooking instructions and this potato wedges pala is good for baking. But I did not follow it, nag-fry na ko ng chicken so nagfry na rin ako ng potato wedges. I just fry 1/3 of the pack for 6-8 minutes. 

The taste of the potato wedges is quite similar to KFC fries, medyo oily because I deep fried it so it was not a hit. Next time I will follow the cooking instructions kung magbabago ang lasa. Pero may lasa na siya kahit wala pa seasoning or dahil prinito ko siya kung saan ko prinito yung chicken na may Crispy Fry. hehehe!

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Light grease a large baking sheet and set it aside. 

2. Place potato wedges in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. In a small bowl, whisk together salt, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Sprinkle potato wedges with the shredded cheese, tossing to coat, then sprinkle with the seasoning mixture. 

3. Place potato wedges on a prepared baking sheet in a single layer with skin-sides down. Bake for 25-35 minutes until potatoes are fork-tender and golden. Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and dressing for dipping. 

But because we are still under community quarantine, eating outside is not that easy so I was happy when some restaurants offer “Ready-to-Cook” meals like the Shakey’s Mojos Potato. One pack is P375, pero sobrang dami niya talaga na napuno agad freezer namin nung binili yun ni hubby. Unfortunately, the pack does not include the breading mix but there is nothing to worry about because they also shared the recipe on how to cook mojos potato at home. 

1. Wash - Rinse mojos for a few seconds and drain. 

2. Coat - Coat evenly using your preferred breading mix, or this recipe. 

1 tbsp garlic powder 

2 cups all-purpose flour 

1/2 tsp ground black pepper 

2 tbsp iodized or table salt 

1 tsp paprika 

1/2 tsp thyme 

Mix ingredients together in a bowl. Carefully toss mojos in a bowl with the breading mix to prevent them from breaking. (Breaking mix can approximately cost 1.5kg of mojos) 

3. Fry - Heat cooking oil in a frying pan. Place coated mojos individually. Deep fry until golden brown and desired crispness is achieved. Choose good quality cooking oil for frying and reuse up to 2 times only to ensure crisp and tasty Mojos. 

I did not bother to make a homemade breading mix because we are already okay with Crispy Fry. Since 2012, ito na gamit ko para wala ng measure-measure pa. I use it kahit anong food pa, you can check my post here.  

For my fried chicken, I always precook this, boil it for 30-40 minutes with seasoning. If nugget-sized yung chicken, I don’t precook na, diretso fry. After boiling, coat the fried chicken and mojos then deep fry in oil for 6-8 minutes. Voila, we have our own version of Chicken n’ Mojos. As years pass by, improving na ang mojos ko compared sa first try ko. hehehe 

Hindi rin lahat ng nasa Bahay Kubo song kinakain ko so mabibilang lang na vegetables dishes ang niluluto ko. If my husband wants to eat more veggies, yung tipong nagdadiet siya, siya na bahala magprepare ng salad niya. Sa samgyeopsal lang ako kumakain ng lettuce. Hehehe! 

Last December, I saw this Great Earth California Blend Frozen Vegetables at Landers. Most of the time, corn + carrots + peas ang nakikita ko na frozen vegetables so when I saw carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower, napabili ko. It is only P164.75 for 2lbs so feeling ko mura na kasi ang mahal kaya ng broccoli.

I planned to pair this with our Lechon Belly de Cebu pero hindi natuloy so last month I cooked this. It just so happened that we have leftover beef bulgogi after namin magsamgyeopsal so para hindi kami maumay at puro meat na kami, may sidedish kami na vegetables.  

I just followed the cooking instructions at the back of the packaging 

1. Heat 2 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp butter on high.

2. Add frozen vegetables to the hot pan. 

3. Stir frequently, add separate carrot clusters, adjust heat, as needed to reduce browning. 

4. Cook for 10 minutes (2 lbs) 

The taste of the vegetables is bland so I seasoned it with salt and pepper. Maybe next time, I will add chicken powder or cubes. For a family of 3, 2 lbs is a big serving so after I cooked it, I divided it into 3 portions. May sidedish kami ng ilang kainan. Hehehe! I will buy this again on my next visit.

I already acknowledged the fact that COVID19 is not easy to deal with but I am hoping and praying that this won’t be the new normal because I really miss the old times. Since I don’t feel really safe going to the mall, I also accepted the fact that online shopping is the best option for now. 

I’m not really into online shopping because I’m impatient. As much as possible, gusto ko nakikita ko ng personal yung item and kapag binili ko, maiuuwi ko na. Maski nga food delivery, hindi ko rin bet. I hate waiting for my delivery kasi minsan kapag gusto ko umalis, no choice ako kundi maghintay sa delivery man. But now that I’m stuck at home, I have all the time to wait for my order. 

For the longest time, I stayed away from Lazada and Shopee because I don’t want to get addicted to online shopping. But after trying it, I finally understood why people love these two e-commerce sites. I appreciated Lazada and Shopee especially last holiday because I was able to buy Christmas gifts without going to the mall. 

1. I can’t stop myself from tracking my order, I always check updates, and if mag-weekend na at hindi pa rin dumarating, it means I can’t go out. 

2. I hate waiting for my order. There are two bad experiences that I can’t forget. First, when we transferred to our new home, we ordered a gas range and we were advised about the delivery date and time. It was weekend but we decided to stay home kasi sabi nila after lunch daw darating. Pero wala dumating after lunch and wala rin dumating after dinner so we were very disappointed because we just wasted our day. Past 11PM, nagising na lang kami at may pumarada na delivery van with security guard pa. OMG, ganun ka-late ang delivery so after that incident hindi na kami nag-order sa SM Home Appliances (if may delivery). (hindi pala online shopping to, hehehe)

Second. was way back in 2019, I received a message as early as 6:42AM that my order will be delivered. I’ve waited and waited so before 5PM, I sent a message to Black Arrow Express because I want to know their delivery time. They kept on saying na “Please anticipate arrival or rider” and “Please wait for the arrival of the rider”. Natapos na kami magdinner at patulog na kami tapos bigla may tatawag sa akin (past 8PM) “Ma’m sarado po bahay niyo kaya hindi ko po nadeliver”. OMG, I reviewed the CCTV and may white van na pumarada, binuksan ang van window, kinunan ang bahay namin at umalis. So hindi man lang niya ko tinext or tinawagan nung nasa tapat pa siya ng bahay namin. To make the long story short, pinabalik ko siya at nareceived ko order ko before 9PM. After that incident, I stopped ordering at Althea Korea, natrauma ko, buti na lang marami na ko stock ng Korean products. I hope next time na order ko, iba na partner courier nila. 

3. I received an incomplete order. I’ve read a lot of horror stories about online shopping and this is one of the reasons why I avoid it. I also have a fair share of incomplete orders but I’m thankful that those three stores, refunded the missing items. Some stores send the missing items. 

4. I received the wrong item. Last month, I ordered a gadget pouch and this store sent me a sweat belt. I informed the store pero deadma lang siya. I know that I have the option to return the product but when I read the process, huwag na lang. I won’t stress myself going out just to return the package. Good thing, mura lang yung item na nabili ko. Sana lang yung sweat belt, effective at lumiit tiyan ko. lol

5. Expectations vs Reality. As I’ve said before, mas gusto ko na nakikita yung item because most of the time, maganda yung item sa picture pero iba sa personal. Nakakadisappoint lalo na kung ang layo ng picture sa personal and yung item description hindi naman nasunod. I experienced this when I ordered Christmas Ornaments and Round Wood Blanks. Hindi ko na rin nareturn kasi nga hassle. 

6. I don't like the mess, because the seller wants to deliver the package in good condition, too much packaging naman nangyayari. So there are so many plastics, bubble wrap, and shredded paper. I reuse the plastic for trash bins, yung boxes may kumukuha (mga nagbebenta sa junkshop), shredded paper for the garden but I don't know how to reuse or recycle the bubble wrap. 

7. I received a defective item. When I received my package, it was well-packed and arrived in good condition. Good thing I tested the product first and I was a little bit disappointed because it doesn't work so I immediately informed the seller and I was advised to return the product so they can refund. Since this is PHP600 worth, nag-effort na ko magrefund. The return process is easy, effort lang sa pagdrop ng package. 

But one seller did not refund or replace the damaged item that I received. 

8. I received a damaged item. I've been buying fragile items online and the majority of my orders arrived in good condition. But I also experienced receiving a damaged items, yung pag-abot pa lang ng rider, kinabahan ka na kasi bakit tumutunog. So I took a video while unboxing and as expected, basag yung oil bottles ko. I messaged the seller about it but no reply so I just file for a refund. Hindi maganda packaging so talagang mababasag, may manipis na bubble wrap lang.  

1. I can shop in the comfort of my home. Now that we are experiencing community quarantine, I love online shopping because I can shop without going out. No more traffic and hindi pa ako napagod maglakad. 

2. Shipping fee is not that expensive. The shipping fee is an additional cost to my order so it is one of the reasons why I avoid online shopping. Feeling ko, bibilhin ko na lang sa mall para isang gastos lang kaysa shipping fee per order. But after trying Shopee and Lazada, may mura naman pala na shipping fee. I was able to purchase products from China, Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea, and the starting delivery fee is around P40. Mura compared sa mga binayaran ko sa ibang online shops sa Pinas. 

3. Free shipping. I love free shipping vouchers or free shipping promo of stores. As much as possible, I buy from these stores para tipid. Sometimes, I use Shopee Pay just to get the free shipping coupons. :)

4. Since I live in the province, ang dami ko gusto bilhin na wala dito. But now I am happy na nabibili ko na siya. Thanks to Shopee, Lazada, and other online craft stores because I’m back to crafting again.

5. Cash on Delivery is available. Before, whenever I order, I used to pay using Paypal or Credit Card so nastress ako kapag ang tagal dumating. Takot ako sa missing packages kasi, I experienced that before, buti na lang Giveaways Prizes yung mga na lost packages ko so hindi ko naman bayad. Unfortunately, hindi ko nga lang nareceived prizes ko. 

Now, I choose Cash on Delivery if available. So hindi na ko nastress kung hindi matagal dumating o hindi dumating order ko kasi hindi pa bayad. And I can also budget my money kapag COD, so hindi oorder kung wala pambayad. Hehehe! 

6. Rewards. Now  I understand why people like Shopee, lagi ko nababasa ang "Thank You Shopee", yun pala ang dami pala rewards na pwede makuha like FREE shipping vouchers, Shopee Coins, Discount Vouchers and Cashback. I like the 8%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% and if you are lucky may 50% pa na cashback or vouchers, ito yung hinihintay ko para mas tipid. If I need to unwind, I play their games to earn coins or discount vouchers. :)

7. I can buy things that are not available in the Philippines. If you can't buy it locally, check if you can buy it abroad. Sometimes I save money if I will order abroad even you include the shipping fee just like my experience in Amazon USA. 

Here are some of the online shops that I have tried. 

But of course, my passion for baking did not last, I ended up using instant mixes for cookies, cupcakes, and bread. I want to bake but what I don’t like is ang daming preparation, tamad ako magmeasure at maghugas ng marami. Hehehe! So instead of buying a lot of baking ingredients, I will just buy ready mixes or baked goodies. 

Anyway, one of the videos that I’ve been seeing is from Chef RV Manabat so out of curiosity, napaclick ako. I just watched one video and after that sold na ko and I started following his Facebook page. Since then I want to try his cakes kaso we have no reason naman to buy cakes at tapos na mga birthdays namin. 

Fast forward to December, my husband and I decided to celebrate our wedding anniversary. For your information, twice kasi kami kinasal ni hubby pero hindi naman namin cinecelebrate na yung pangalawa. But it became an excuse to buy cake and pasta so even though we don’t really celebrate our second wedding anniversary, napacelebrate kami. 

I checked their page and browsed their menu. According to their page, call daw for orders or inquiries so my husband called but ended up visiting the cafe para doon mag-order and bayad. It was so easy to locate kasi may Waze naman. Since we are still under community quarantine, they don’t accept dine-in customers, only take out orders. My husband waited for his turn, so may social distancing sa Cafe, one customer at a time. 

I already gave my list to my husband so he bought Sausage and Mushroom P260, Homestyle Meatsauce P250 and Classic Sampler P1360. All pasta orders have homemade Focaccia bread. Between the two pastas, mas prefer ko yung Sausage and Mushroom and because of this, nagluto ko niyan nung Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, hindi ko nakuha yung lasa nung pasta. 

Since first-time namin matitikman cake nila, yung sampler na pinili ko and according to their page, ito yung flavors. Oreo Cheesecake, Wild Blueberry Cheesecake, Carrot Walnut Cheesecake, Chocolate Dulce De Leche Cake, Chocolate Blackout Cheesecake, Belgian Chocolate Cake, Pistachio Sansrival, Belgian Brownie Cheesecake, Real Ube Cheesecake, and Biñan Best Queso de Bola Cake 

But when I opened the box, hindi siya same sa nakalist, meron wala. So hindi ko natikman yung Pistachio Sansrival, nareplace siya ng Red velvet Cheesecake. Maybe it depends din kung available yung cake. Anyway, we enjoyed all the flavors of the cakes except for the Chocolate Blackout Cheesecake. Our personal favorite is Belgian Brownie Cheesecake. It took us 4 days to finish the cake, naumay na kami kahit sweet tooth kami. Pero present pa rin ito nung Pasko sa get-together namin, potluck ng brother-in-law ko. 

I’ve made some research, Chef RV Manabat Cafe started in the year 2017, OMG, ngayon ko lang nadiscover kung kailan pandemic. His cafe pala was inspired by Calea, kaya pala ang dami niya cheesecake na choices. If you’ve been following my blog since 2011, you know for sure that I love Calea kaso nga lang nasa Bacolod sila. So I’m glad that I discovered Chef RV Manabat Cafe. Though their price is not cheap pero worth it naman sa lasa. Alam mo na hindi tinipid sa ingredients. 

We always celebrate our wedding anniversary with my son so as early as January, we were searching for a restaurant or resort that will allow kids. Unfortunately, all the restaurants that we have called are not accepting kids so my husband and I celebrated Valentine’s Day in advance without my son at Alba Restaurante Espaňol. But hubby was able to book a resort in Calatagan, Batangas that accepts kids but our plan did not push through, And because of that we just went to Chef RV Manabat Cafe to take out some meals and cakes to celebrate our wedding anniversary at home. You can read here the reason why our trip was canceled.

We have already tried 10 cakes of Chef RV so I did not buy a whole cake anymore. I remember that we had a hard time finishing the cake sampler before. So I just order our favorites and I added Pistachio Sansrival. Wala kasi ito sa choices ng cake sampler. This sanrival was added to our favorite. 

Pistachio Sansrival P150 per slice 

Brownie Cheesecake P140 per slice 

Blueberry Cheesecake P140 per slice 

Carrot Cheesecake P150 per slice 

Belgian Chocolate Cake P140 per slice 

Chocolate Dulce de Leche P140 per slice

We bought a pack of Ube Cheese Pandesal for PHP180 (9 Pieces), we immediately ate this bread on our way home. The bread is soft but we cannot taste the ube maybe color lang na ube. Hehehe! But we like this Cheese Pandesal, actually nakakabusog na nga yung isang piraso. Next time, I will buy more packs para hindi bitin. 

Since I did not cook, I also order hot meals so medyo matagal ang waiting time namin. I ordered Aligue Cream PHP250, Beef Tenderloin Steak Strips P310 and Pork BBQ with Peanut Sauce PHP280. The serving is good for 1 person pero in our case, nahirapan kami ubusin. 

It was our first time eating Aligue Cream Pasta, medyo maasim siya because of the lemon, kahit konti lang ng lemon. It was not a hit for us but I like my Beef Tenderloin Strips and my son enjoyed his Pork BBQ with Java Rice, pinatira pa talaga niya at breakfast daw niya yung leftover niya.

Chef RV has recipe books too so I also bought his books online "Baking Secrets" and More Baking Secrets, I chose the bundle books so I can save money. I hope ganahan na ulit ako magbake or cook from scratch. 

• Take-out only. No face mask & face shield, no entry. 

• All cakes are available in 9-INCH whole OR slices 

• Cash only & NO DELIVERY for now. 

• For Laguna delivery, try Angkas Padala 24/7, Lalamove, or Grab. You will arrange for cash payment and pickup. 

• Shelflife of cakes 3-7 days in the fridge after purchase (depending on the handling). 

• Cakes must be kept in the fridge, and hot meals must be consumed immediately. Bread will last at room temp for up to 3 days, or 1 week in the fridge. 

Business Hours: Tuesday- Sunday 10:000AM- 6:00PM (Closed on Mondays) 

Contact Nos: (0919) 067 0906 and (0939) 905 5316  (between 10:00 am - 6:00pm)

Address: 172 Manabat St. San Antonio Biñan Laguna. (Chef RV on waze / google maps)