when the dust settles

so amidst all the excitement and the flurry of activities of the past week, i managed to complete one lo for the scrapdragon challenge (yes, you can see where my priorities are). anyway, thank you for all the messages you left, i will go through them after i get out of my sleepy-lazy-couch-potato mode.

and i couldn't help myself after all. and you know what sealed the deal for me? the stamps.

and this is the generous rak from iris for the prima challenge. have a great weekend ahead everyone.

haberdei boipren!

happy birthday boipren! :)


p.s. yes, we are officially engaged. :)

and the answer is yes!

i attended the ps eb last saturday and i had so much fun. cabbie did a session on atc and atc tin can and au shared some photoshop tricks. i promise to upload pictures soon. during the past week, i was able to complete some lo's as well for the memory lane store and scrap sister challenge. finally, i can put the europe project to rest. :)

journalling: I want to go back here some day. I feel I have so much to see and so much to do.

journalling: who knew...that they could talk about anything to each other? that they would have the occasional brunch or dinner, just the two of them? that he'd finally have the courage to tell her how he felt? that she'd make the best decision in her life when she said yes? not two bad for two people who started out as...just friends.

in other news, here are the newest additions to our ever-growing family, err, zoo. have a nice week ahead everyone. :)

one more to go

this is a layout i completed for the sisterhood of scrap challenge. i have to create an lo using brown and pastels. i liked how it turned out even if the pictures are not so good. anyway, let me know what you think. i'm looking forward to the long weekend, it means more scrapping time. how about you, any fun plans for the weekend?

i won!i won!

this is the announcement over at the design experiment blog. i am so happy! i wanted to buy the label tulip july kit but because i already exceeded my scrapbook budget, i couldn't. it's a good thing i won. can't wait to play with this. yey!

paying my dues

so i've put quite a dent on my savings with all my purchases last month. aside from my absolument stamps that i pre-ordered months ago, there were no new purchases. but i managed to finish two cards and one lo for the hero arts challenge and the design experiment challenge 21. i almost didn't want to cute the heather bailey papers so i decided to give it a quick snip and i couldn't stop!
this is just a quick post as boipren is on his way to pick me up. anyway, let me know what you think. have a great weekend everyone! :)

a perpetual student

so you think that after graduating, you can say goodbye to studying and learning? thankfully, for me, that is not the case. if i were so proud to think that i know everything i need to know, i would be in serious danger with such a myopic view of the world. but i believe college has given me about 10% of what i need to know to go along my life, the 90% i would still have to learn. what's with the long-winded intro (yes, this is a post with no lo to show so i am trying to divert your attention)? the past week has been a week of learning for me.
last tuesday and wednesday, i was fortunate to be able to attend the sap summit in shang for free (thanks to hewlett-pachard as the tag read). for my non-it friends, sap is the technology i am working with right now and the event is a gathering of all the movers and shakers of the it industry in the country, particularly for sap. i felt really smart listening to the speakers in the plenary and breakout sessions. being around the smart-looking people was also a plus! during the time we weren't in sessions, my friends and i would go around the various booths to join raffles and get the signatures for the big draw. no, all i have to show is one bag and almost half a dozen pens.
then, on thursday and friday, i attended the john maxwell training, developing the leader within you. this is the second time i attended a soft skill seminar, the first one was stephen covey's 7 habits a year ago. the points maxwell made were really practical and as some would say common sense (which is ironic because we realize common sense is not so common after all) but it was laid out more articulately and illustrated in a more organized manner. i had a major breakthrough which i will probably share when i feel the time is right (may ganun!).
yesterday, boipren and i attended a seminar on managing our finances organized by inquirer and citibank at aim. for 300 bucks, it was more than worth it to hear queena lee-chua (she used to be my ma22 teacher in ateneo which i passed!), chinkee tan (i actually couldn't believe he used to be a 70's star until he started cracking the jokes) and francis kong (he's really funny and insightful too). i thanked boipren for encouraging me to go (i was hesitant at first, these days my only inclinations are related to scrapbooking), he really has enriched my life by gently coaxing me to open up to fresh opportunities like this. yikes, cheesy.
then finally today, boipren and i had our first session with elder peping and tita liway. the purpose of the session will reveal itself in due time. naks, may ganun. it was a very interesting first meeting and well worth going to gcf at 1030 in the morning.
so that's about it for me. i hope i can get a decent break this week so i can take some time to scrap. i have so many new goodies i am excited to play with. have a great week ahead everyone.:)

when it rains, it pours

so i finally got my studio calico kit yesterday! yey for me. :) isn't it lovely? i know i said this is a one-time thinking but i am tempted to get the august main kit as well.on monday, i got my studio azul kit.

on tuesday, i got all the stuff i ordered from ebay!

i am so happy, i felt like a kid getting all her gifts on christmas day. i only have one lo to share but i promise to do more.

and lastly, i am sharing a picture of the two newest kids on the block which we picked up from zamboanga. aren't they cute? they're named goya and ginger. i will do an lo about them one day. :)

still pining for my sc kit

where could my sc kit be?it's been 3 weeks and still no news of my sc kit...i've been checking my mailbox and bugging the guard almost everyday but still no sighting of my kit. i hope it gets here next week.:(

one more before i go

i started this album for my friends benj and masang after attending rekindled moments' anniversary last saturday. the very talented cookie was teaching us about making a mini-album. i wasn't able to start during the actual session but i promised to start at home. they got married last january and i really liked the pictures from their prenup. i hope they like it. :) anyway, i'm still waiting for my sc kit to arrive, i hope it gets here soon. i'm off to helen's for some shopping and then dark knight in imax as per boipren's request. have a great weekend everyone.

one last thing before i go, my idol cabbie tagged me and here are my answers. :)

1. what age was your best birthday (so far) & why?my 25th birthday this year! it was my first birthday with boipren and he surprised me with a jollibee kiddie party!yes, i love jollibee.

2. what was the worst? i don't remember. eversince my last birthday, all the bad things in the past are forgotten.

3. what is the best present you have ever received?a bag filled with scrapbook loot from my friends at work. scrapbook geek all the way.

4. what was the weirdest? i don't remember. i think i have a boring life.

5. where would you most like to spend your birthday? in paris with boipren.

6. what is your zodiac sign? aquarius.

7. chinese year? pig.oink oink.

another update

just another quick update while trying to get a break from work. i finished the lo below last week and entered it in a contest which i did not win but i had fun nonetheless. so now that the contest is over, i can post it already. let me know what you think. enjoy the rest of the week. :)

a quick post and a mini album

a quick post before i get abck to the grind. as promised, this is the mini-album i made for boipren for our first anniversary. you can also view the slide show below. let me know what you think. :)

whirlwind weekend

so much to say, so little time. boipren and i celebrated our first year anniversary last wednesday, or as we like to call it world penguin day. long story for another post. i finally got my threading water punch and loving it (check the lo below) and 3 of the new prima essentials, pictures to follow. i also managed to finish the mini album i did for boipren as a gift for world penguin day (he took me to heat for dinner and got me a microwave), pictures to follow as well. he was so touched by the gift, which wasn't really fair because i enjoyed the entire process of making the album so it was like a gift to myself as well - the time to scrap. yesterday, we had buffet at cabalen and ate for two whole hours, yes we've gained a couple of pounds this week.

it has also been a very productive week, aside from the album, i managed to finish two los. i can't post the other one here yet as i entered it for a contest. crossing my fingers that i win. but i can share this one that i made from the may sa kit. i love the kit so much that i managed to finish this one in less than 2 hours - which is fast by my standard. that's about it for me. have a great week ahead everyone.

broke but happy

after months of lurking at the studio calico site, i finally ordered my first kit. i got the main kit for july, via airmail and two add-on kits, venice and stockholm. i was also thinking of getting tokyo but i stopped myself and closed the browser. i will be broke next month but don't you think these beauties are worth it? i just hope it won't go through the post office. i'm worried they might have additional custom charges. anyone have a suggestion how to get past this?

last week, after checking my mailbox almost everyday and pestering the lobby guard, the paper lot i won from ebay finalyy arrived. i actually woke up early to pick up the package from the post office. there were some duplicate sheets, some designs i didn't like and were old. but all in all, it was good mix of papers and i think it was a good buy - almost 75% less than the cost of papers here.

and as if that wasn't enough, i got 3 scrapbook magazines in booksale in moa for a 100 bucks each. these are 2-3 months old so i think i got a good deal. then, the other day, i got a black notebook (i don't have any idea what to do with it yet) and some pastel gel pens from this new store in megamall. ooh, this should stop.

beverly todd is having a countdwon for forty days until her 40th birthday celebration. and for the next 40 days, she will be having some fun games and giveaways. you might want to join in the celebration here.
finally, i came from church today and heard a wonderful sermon. our pastor shared an email encouraging one woman who was discouraged at work. anyway, one of the lines that struck me was about how we have been given shoulders and burdens. we should be praying not for lighter burdens but stronger shoulders. have a great week ahead everyone.

injured and a new fan club

yesterday, i sustained a horrible wound on my right leg while walking near shang. i actually didn't notice that the wound was so big at first, i just felt a persistent stinging sensation. when a looked down, that's when i realized that it actually ran an entire 3-inch length. i told boipren it was no big deal but he insisted on taking me to the hospital to get it treated. we rushed to the nearest mercury drugstore where he bought some stuff to dress my wound. it was sweet actually, but i felt too queasy about the blood that i wanted to vomit. so after four hours, boipren running around the ortigas business district to buy the medicines and 3 injections later (i felt like a pin cushion afterwards), i was safe from tetanus for 20 months. 2 more shots in the next 2 months will make me immune for the next 5 years according to the doctor.
anyway, while we were looking at appliances yesterday, i caught a video they were showing in one of the tv's on display. i was so taken by the penguin that i googled him and with the power of technology, i am now a pororo convert. he is so adorable, 100% korean and totally unintelligible to me but i love him. :)i am getting my order of 300 pieces of paper tomorrow from the post office, i am so excited. night. :)

after the storm

i woke up today with the wind howling outside and the raindrops pelting on my window. i thought it would be a perfect day to stay under the covers, pig out and have a series marathon. that is until i find out that there was a brownout which was confirmed after a phone call to the lobby guard who tells me that they don't know what time the power would be back. great. so i go back to sleep but only for a few more hours and i wake up, hungry but with nothing but junk food in my cupboard, the rain was getting harder and no one was delivering. i was being held hostage.
i decide to scrap and start working on my anniversary gift for boipren. i am nearly halfway done and will post pictures once i've completed it.
the power came back a little after lunch and i immediately launched an satc marathon while working on the gift. it was only after going online did i find out that there was a storm and that a lot of people were killed, injured or lost. i do hope that things will settle and be better in the next few days and that as the storm ceases, the damage it has wrecked in its wake will be repaired.
but being held captive at home has also made me productive, i have managed to finish the lo below for the teamgroovie challenge.
i still can't get good pictures of my los and boipren was being supportive and offered to take the picture below for me. i also managed to get a shot of the rak from miss marian which i got last week through her niece mav who happened to be one of my friends at work. i was so touched when i got the package because aside from the stazon ink pad and a lovely set of papers, it came in a personalized package with my initial on it and a card from miss marian.
the lighting is also bad with this picture, it doesn't do justice to how lovely the stuff are. i will try to take better pictures, hopefully without resorting to buying an expensive camera. scrapbooking is an expensive hobby as it is, i don't want to get started on photography. anyway, i'm off to bed. i hope you have a lovely week. :)

lo's and raks

so my blog has been dormant for a while, things have been hectic at work. but the weekend is here and i have some new lo's and news to share. the first two are a continuation of my attempt to document my europe trip, this time it's amsterdam and luxembourg. the last one is my entry to the scrapdragon challenge #18. mine was based on vee's layout from challenge 4.

also, i finally got my rak from miss marj and miss lee. it felt like christmas when i came in for work last friday and saw all the goodies on my desk. my officemate's husband picked them up for me and i was laughing when my friend told me that it took him a while to tell her got the stuff. she said he tried to describe each one but in the end, he just said, "got the goodies". anyway, thanks miss marj and miss lee for the rak. i hope i can make something great out of them.

lastly, boipren's boss who was into quilling asked me one day about scrapbooking stores because everyone at work knew that i was so into scrapbooking. i gave her a list of all the stores and some blogs for inspiration. a few days later, her friend handed me a book on miniature quilling. i thought at first she was lending it to me but later i find out she was giving it to me. yes, the chocolate on the cover was made from paper quilling. this has been such an exhausting but great week and i have been blessed with so many people's generosity. anyway, enough with the stories and on to more scrapping. :)