No Such Thing As Supermom

Or superkids either.

Grabe ka competitive ang buhay ngayon. There's natural parenting. Homeschooling. Breastfeeding beyond 2yo. Baby wearing. Cloth diapering. Madami pa actually. Sometimes I think some parenting police is out to get me because there are days when I let Eli watch something as mundane and nonsense as Spongebob. When I let Sammy eat ice cream. When the kids stay up too late. Etc. etc.

Any moment now I feel the judging stares of the supermoms out there. And then it hit me. Sino ba ang perpektong magulang?

At our core (struggling good parents I mean) we all just want the same basic things for our children. That they find contentment on the kind of person that they chose to be.

I cannot promise to raise the most talented or smartest kids there are. However, I promise to love them unconditionally and accept them for who they are. Super cliche ba? Yes well, I just need to remind myself that.

Hindi importante kung ako ba ang pinaka magaling na nanay there is. Hindi importante na una sa lahat ng bagay ang mga anak ko. But when it comes to compassion, becoming a positive person and self-reliant while respecting others dyan sila mgangunguna.

Dito ako masaya sa pagiging imperfect kong nanay. Because everyday I am learning. Everyday there's a sense of wonder. And everyday I am ever so thankful that hubby and I were blessed with the children that we have.

:-)

Yedang: underrated and awesome

I have become lazy. So lazy that I cannot even get up from my bed and type on my laptop anymore. Smartphones and tablets further perpetuated this cycle of sloth (wake up, check fone, feel sleepy, sleep, repeat step 1).

Anyhoo, why am I blogging again? 2 reasons completely unrrelated.

1) A friend asked me via facebook why I wasn't blogging anymore. And my thought bubble was like: "Really? Someone reads my blog?" So now I am sure I have 3 readership ha! (Hello husband, sister, and friend. Hee hee) Sure it is fun to write. But knowing that someone reads my nonsensical thoughts gives me "kilig" to no end. Lols.

2) I realized I can blog using my iPhone. That means no need to get up from the bed anymore just to blog. Yey! What did I tell you? Lazy. Lazy. Lazy.

With that I officially end my blogging break. Fireworks. None? K. Fine. :-)

So last Friday was a special day because it was Kyle's 1st birthday (my friend Mae's baby boy). We spent the afternoon with the kids at Virlanie foundation. I baked about ten thousand chocolate cupcakes see below (of course I exaggerate  haha it was around 50pcs). 

I gained raving fans again for my heavenly cupcakes (I like to toot my own horn - obviously). But seriously, though my chocolate cupcakes have some kind of a cult following already. By cult I mean a group of random kids somewhere across the metro raving that my cupcakes are the best they've tasted. Haha!

Okay, so where was I? It was a super fun and tiring day. So the hubby and I decided to go on a date. I suggested Yedang because it's been a long time since we last ate there. For me it is one of the most underrated but good resto around town. And cheap too. Also, I think another reason why their meat tastes good after cooking is that they use good old uling. For some reason mas masarap ang bbq na cooked through charcoal kesa electric grills. Agree? Tapos you can bet that is authentic because its owner is Korean.

But again the food. The food and service are both excellent. Each table has its own exhaust (para di ka amoy bbq after heehee). Let me show you pictures.

Free appetizers. (Dito palang solve na ehehe)

This was my favorite among the 8 or 9 free appetizers which was served. This, and the kimchi of course. ;-)

Someone will assist you in cooking the meat. 

Once cooked you wrap the meat in a lettuce (it was fresh and crisp) put some chilli sauce and spiced olive oil some onions and garlic then, viola! One of the most enjoyable food I've ever eaten. (I mean you know you're eating meat but then again it is wrapped in lettuce so that kind of takes away the guilt right? Right?)

And this OMG. Their beef soup. Is. To. Die. For.

Yey, and there's a free pineapple for dessert.

Our meal was around P900 only. Sulit. Plus I loved their pandan water. 

Yedang Korean BBQ Restaurant

88 Meralco Ave., Pasig City

telephone: 636-1461

PS: Sorry for the poor quality of pictures. Or maybe not. I'm not sure whether they are okay or awful.  I want to put a #nofilter on every photo just to explain haha. I am still a bit rusty trying out this blogging thing from my phone. Cheers. Till my next post! :-)

Samuelle's Baptismal Day Kwento and Supplier's Feedback

In my past life I used to be a blogger. I used to be able to share my feeling openly as I did here, and share random stuff much like here, or maybe even make someone laugh by sharing mundane stuff like here.

But I have become too preoccupied with life, a toddler, the baby, breastfeeding, and being a wife to ever have time to sit down and chatter away. I find that sad though as writing used to be such an outlet for me. And not being able to write could be a sign of a tired and weary soul. Or maybe just pure laziness or whatever.

Looking back, the ever highly popular posts are stories about the parties I've organized for my baby boy. His rockstar themed party here, and the all time high in traffic count would be his Jollibee kiddie party (click here to read that). I'd like to believe I am helping a mom or two out there looking for some ideas and feedback for a supplier that they are thinking of getting. I should know, because I spent my first post partum days lurking at so many mommy blogs reading away their stories about their own events.

It's a bonus factor too that I can easily just look back and read my entry and be reminded of how lovely the day was. And that is what March 10, 2013 was all about. Love. Love overflowing.

Let me tell you about the day through pictures. Also, I'll try to be as detailed as I can to help out mommies out there trying to research about the suppliers below.

1) Newborn Photography: Nice Print

Got this via ensogo deal. Package I think is originally 4k but only paid about 1.5k. It includes numerous prints. There was even one large print with frame. They also gave us all the soft copies on the spot and the edited pictures three days later. Eli our first born had his newborn pictures taken by Stork Studio. I can tell you now that there's a difference given that newborn photography naman talaga ang specialty ng Stork Studio. Truly, there's a reason why almost triple the price ang Stork Studio. So for me, to compare Nice Print sa Stork Studio would be unfair. Ibang league sila e. Although, I am fairly satisfied naman with Nice Print. I did not expect ng sobrang bongga and I got what I paid for. Plus, cute naman si baby so carry na. Haha! So advice lang, if gusto nyo talaga ng truly bongga and willing naman mag shell out ng extra bucks go for Stork Studio. However, if you just want a simple picture, no frills, with decent editing and prints okay na ang Nice Print.

2) Baptismal Ceremony Venue: Sta. Clara de Montefalco

Initially I was having reservations if I will book this church because they do not offer special baptism. I tried and tried to convince the persons on the booking department to allow us to have a special baptism but di gumana ang aking convincing powers. I really wanted to have the baptism at this church because this is our parish church, this is where we hear mass every Sunday, plus it's only 5 minutes away from our condo's clubhouse where we will have our reception. So goodbye na sa kaartehan and we decided to just book to have our baptismal rites here. The seminar started at around 10:10am and ended an hour after. It was held sa basement ng simbahan. Super init! So make sure you bring pamaypay, or electric fan kung carry nyo haha. After that, the baptismal rites were held na at the actual church. Although there were 19 babies na bibinyagan (ang dami!), the entire service did not last very long. The cost is just very minimal (sorry I forgot na how much) and I liked that there was a free white over garment na and candles for the parents and godparents. The candles are huge ha. So overall I am quite happy we decided to have the ceremony here instead. For one, di na kami lumayo and the church was lovely. See below.

3) Reception Venue: Riverfront Residences Clubhouse Function Hall

No brainer ang decision na ito because for one we live here hehe. It was so convenient for us to choose this as our venue. I decided against this being our venue for Eli's rockstar party because I figured it is hard to dress up the venue to suit the theme. However now, since it is just a baptism party theres not much tweaking needed for the venue. The function hall is quite spacious, has a lot of natural light, and cozy enough to make our guests feel comfortable. Super sakto lang sya for the occasion and our number of guests (about 120). Anything more than 150 siguro would be masikip na. There might be a different cost if you are not a resident. If you are considering this to be your venue, just call our PMO to inquire. I did not even dress up the venue anymore but overall it still looked great. :)

3) Catering: Verleo

One's food provider will make or break an event. That's why super na OC ako sa paghahanap ng caterer with good feedback but is still affordable. There were many positive feedbacks kay Verleo so I decided to give them a try. I had my menu custom made: Japanese fried rice, Korean chapchae, ox tongue steak, fish fillet with asparagus & XO sauce, mixed vegetables, sushi bar, and a halo halo station. For the kids: baked spaghetti, chicken lollipops, and plain rice. I shall not reveal the price however, I can tell you now that it was very, very reasonable. Tasted the food myself  (liked the rice, chapchae, and baked spag the most) and also based sa feedback ng guests they told me that the food was great. Although for me the mixed vegetables was a bit bland so I suggest get another viand for your veggies instead. We also bought additional food: laing and lechon. There was no corkage fee. The waiters (especially the head waiter) were very attentive to the guests needs. Also ang galing nila ha, imagine I only paid for 100 heads and more than 130 guests came (wala ng nag a-R-SVP iilan lang! okay, moving on. happy naman talaga ako that many people came) plus the crew pa of my other suppliers and everyone was still able to eat. There were some leftovers pa which they packed. They rightfully deserve the positive buzz they are getting. Kudos Verleo! (Tip lang: wag mag rely sa RSVP, in our case kahit in the end may leftovers pa medyo stress parin na baka maubusan ng food. In my opinion, mas okay na sobra kesa kulang. Buti nalang we had jumbo lechon and laing. If not for those baka nagkulang na food. You can also bring extra 1.5 softdrinks which they will serve on top of the ones that is included sa package. Bumili kme ng extra cases of variety of softdrinks kaso we forgot ibaba sa kotse. Fail. Amp! Hehe.)

4) Souvenirs for godparents: St. Paul's

I decided to buy simple trinklets for the godparents. I gave crystal rosaries for ninangs, and 3D Mother Mary frame for the ninongs. Just a little something to let them know that we truly appreciate them for being part of our lives. The wrapping was lovingly made by yours truly. #andamingoras :D

5) Souvenirs for guests: Flowers of Hope for Jewelyn

I decided to get my souvenir from tatay Rolando after reading mommy Neva's blog post. This made the souvenirs extra special in my opinion. Read up about Jewelyn and I hope her story will inspire you as well.

6) Mobile Studio: Picture!

Ayan masyadong direct to the point ang kanilang company name: Picture! Mobile Studio. Hehe. We originally booked another supplier for our photobooth. However, we attended a friend's wedding last Feb 09. Kakaiba ang set up may kama at higa higa factor. Also we liked the quality of the printed pictures (walang pores!). After much consideration (and me pleading to the husband na pumayag sya), I decided to blow off the deposit I originally made for another photobooth and book these guys instead. I made the right call! :D Effort naman talaga, imagine they brought so many props (bed, crib, a granny chair plus many more). And in fairness it was something fairly new. Every party I've been to has photobooth na (medyo may umay factor na ng slight: sorry no offense meant). I'm sure mauuso na rin itong mobile studio eventually so I'm happy our guests got to experience it while medyo bago-bago pa sya. I highly recommend them super for a different kind of experience. Charina is very professional and easy to talk to. She's very receptive of my ideas and suggestions while giving also her expert opinion. They really captured the look I was going for based on the peg that I sent them. Good job to this team!

7) Candy Buffet: SweetyKs

Tita Kate made Sam's candy buffet. It was so lovingly made. The details were quite awesome. She followed my color scheme to a T. Everyone kept coming back for the sweet stuff. Kate is just starting with her business but I am sure she will go a long way judging by how great she delivered during Sam's baptism.

8) Sound System: Bluehive Lights and Sounds

I realized I had no picture of these guys. Very reasonable price. Equipments and song selections were up to date. Jason was a little bit missing in action the day before as he failed to reply to my texts. Understandable naman because they had an event pala the night before. Medyo makulit lang talaga ako when it comes to reminding my suppliers. I suggest there's no harm in triple checking your suppliers (it pays to be OC and makulit).

9) Cake: Estrel's Caramel Cakes

This cake was ninong Keith and tita Cookie's gift to Sammy. Estrel's happens to be one of my favorite cakes in the whole wide world. It's not so sweet. For me eto ang parang J.Co ng cakes hehe. Yun nga lang they only do pre-order and pick up. During holidays (Christmas, Mother's Day, etc.) I suggest order at least a week or two in advance. Sometimes they don't accept orders na pag sobrang dami na ang naka order plus always busy ang kanilang phonelines (sila na ang mabenta). Notice nyo rin sa ASAP tuwing meron artistang may birthday sure yun meron Estrel's. Tee hee. Sila na! :)

9) 2nd Cake: 16th Heaven

Our second cake is also a gift, this time from tita Yeda. She makes delicious, beautiful, and most importantly affordable theme cakes. Check out her FB site.

10) Invitations and Thank You Card: Storybook.ph

Initially I contacted SirioPrints because they were the ones that printed Eli's invitations before. It is so easy to transact with them. When I texted the number of SirioPrints I have, they said na Storybook.Ph na sila. Eto subok ko na talaga to. Even though, they are a bit more expensive than other suppliers I canvassed I decided to go for them kasi konti lang naman difference plus sure ko na di glossy yung paper na gagamitin nila. The paper is sturdy. Printing quality is great also. All communication was done via email lang, so very convenient.

11) Co-organizers, ushers, hosts, etc.: Team Sammy

To get rid of my initial post partum blues, I immersed myself in planning Sam's baptismal party. I gave birth Dec 29 and by 2nd week of January I have booked almost all my suppliers already (excited much). Last minute into the preparation, I realized I wanted it to be more organized as in with seating arrangement, programs, the works. Everything would not be as smooth if not for my friend Dianne, Kate, and the friends of my sister (they call themselves Magic4, artista ata sila. chos). Ninong Keith and tita Cookie were the hosts. Ethel was in charge of our reception. Tin and Cha were the ushers, and they were also in charge of the mobile studio and buffet queuing. Kate, aside from supplying the candy buffet, was also overseeing the set up. Dianne was in charge of the overall program and the details that I might have overlooked. Love ko sila, they really helped a lot.

Tip: It really pays to be OC. Hire trusted suppliers. Read up feedback from blogs, forums, etc. Be very clear what you want out of your suppliers. I decided to print coloring pages for the kids so they have something to do as it could get pretty boring for them. Kahit masakit sa ulo it pays to have a general seating arrangement so that hindi magulo for the guests. Lastly and most importantly, be nice to your providers especially the waiters. If you asikaso them they will asikaso your guests back. I ordered Jollibee breakfast for them since 7:30am pang nag se-set up na sila for our lunch reception. Make sure you have extra water/beverages for them. Give them tips if they did a good job.

I am happy with how everything turned out. We are super touched by everyone who came. Until now more than a week after I can't help but still smile when I look back.

Welcome to the Christian world to our dear Sammy! We love you very very much our sweet sweet baby. :)

Just wanted to say...

that you Jp, are the love of my life. Nothing in this world can ever change that. Take comfort in knowing that in this lifetime you have been truly and honestly loved. Thank you for  choosing to forgive me during times I should have said sorry first but I didn't. Thank you for embracing me tighter during times you realized you have married an imperfect woman filled with insecurities and fears.

May you never forget how much we make each other laugh. May we never let complacency make our relationship dull. Most importantly may we never ever make pride get the best of us.

What a beautiful life we have for together we are complete.

This day, I realized I should always strive to be kinder to you more than to anyone else. And if sometimes I fail, please love me and I'll realize it soon enough, I promise.

Loving you is as natural as everyday. And there is nothing in this world that I look forward to than spending the rest of my days with you.

Your wife,
Love

Guest Post: Why you should consider investing first, then work on that business idea next

Below is my husband's second installment on his series of entries on personal finance. I tell you, I have never seen anyone as passionate as him when it comes to spreading the benefits of investing and securing one's future. He says it's his personal advocacy. He gets nothing out of it but he takes pleasure in knowing that he can possibly influence at least one person out there to be more financially savvy. We are not yet 100% financially secure but I must say our family is on our way there by having my husband as our leader. I admire his tenacity and passion beyond words. And I am willing to follow him to the ends of the world (insert cheesy Valentines song here haha). Okay enough of my nonsense and let's get on with pure logic and genius. Go ahead, I promise it will be worth you time.

Note: to read his first entry on stock investing click here.

Guest Post:

Pursuing a side income entails a lot of time and effort.  Of course capital is also needed, but if you have a regular job then that should no longer be an issue.  Anyway, I know of one which only entails time.  That is by investing.  But more on that later.

As you may have known already, side income can be obtained ultimately in three ways

• Working extra

• Putting up a business

• Investing

By working extra, you can work overtime, put up an online store, get into real estate and connect buyers to sellers, provide service to others, etc.  What is common among these examples is that the extra income comes only if you provide extra time and extra effort.

By putting up a business, you painstakingly setup, fine-tune, and run a system of business processes.  After some time, even if you do not provide extra time and effort, the side income still comes.  That is because after all the initial hard work you have done to set the business up, it is now self-sustaining.  

By investing, you only need a capital.  You only need to set aside a portion of your income and put that portion in an investment vehicle.

Now here is the kicker: which one among the three above-mentioned items can you setup right away with the least amount of effort?  If today is a Friday, which one can have you all set by Monday?

Say you decide to put up an online store.  You will have to setup the website, procure the items that you will sell, and market your product.  That’s it and you are done.  But afterwards, you will still have to spend extra time and exert extra effort in dealing with buyer queries, settlement of payments, and logistics solutions to deliver your product.  There is a constant additional time and effort involved.

Setting up a self-sustaining business is similar to the example above, but on a much grander scale. It will entail a lot of toil initially, but if you stick to it and put your focus on it, the harvest will be abundant.  It will run and sell itself on its own even with only minimal supervision.  I think only a select few people who are gifted with business savvy or are gifted with good selling skills can pull this through.   

Investing is easier.  You will just have to go to an investment company, fill out a form, submit the filled-out form with the requirements, and then deposit the initial investment.  That’s it.  No extra work after that.  You will just need to wait it out and monitor your investments every once in a while.

Working extra or putting up a business requires a lot of selling while investing requires no selling but a lot of time.  According to one newsletter from my subscription to Bo Sanchez' Truly Rich Club (link here), investing will make you richer later (like in ten years), but selling will make you richer sooner than later (five years).

In my opinion, you can get started now with investing.  Like, RIGHT ABOUT NOW.  It is the basic-level in securing your future.  Can you set-up a business as fast as that?  I hope you won't, as you need to carefully plan it.


Running a business is intermediate level.  So I think it is important to first have the basics in place.  Getting an insurance is a form of investment.  You can also invest in the stock market (How?  Click here).  With that already set-up, that is when you can think of other ways how to earn by working on that business idea you may have been cultivating in your mind all this time.  

Lessons on Breastfeeding

I have a draft on how I celebrated my 31st birthday. But who really cares about a 30 something mother turning another year older right? So it's still in my drafts. Let me just tell you that I love birthdays. I love celebrations. Heck, I love anything that would allow me to celebrate. But just to sum it all up. I am happy that it was my birthday and I am glad I was able to celebrate it with the people that truly matters to me.

So let me just talk about what I have been up to lately -- I gave birth! To a beautiful, perfect, sweet, little baby girl we named Sam. Oh she is such a sweetheart. And so I am spending about 70% of my day now breastfeeding her. And since my newsfeed (in facebook) is now filled with friends who just gave birth or who are just about to, I decided to do this piece instead.

I just thought it would be nice to share my thoughts on this as I have done here (<--click) initially. Being a second time breasfteeding mama, I am more mature now. There's less drama this time. You will not believe how such of a drama queen I was during the first time. I even called my Pedia, weeping in the middle of the night.

Which brings me to now. Doing this for the second time, I will definitely not declare that I am an expert on this. I am not a formula hater as well. I will never look down on a mom who decided to bottle feed their kids. Nor will I declare that breastfeeding is for everyone. It is still your body, your life, and your child. Ultimately, you will know what will be best for your kids. Let no one take that feeling away from you.

So who am I? I am just a mother who is very, very determined to breastfeed her children. I will not enumerate the health benefits of breastfeeding anymore plus all other numerous advantages (I mean it's free, is there anything cheaper than that?!). I am here to tell you the things that helped me stay committed to my decision.

1) Breastfeeding is something you learn. I took all three breastfeeding classes offered by Medela Moms. I bought books, browsed the internet, read tons of mommy blogs for inspiration, attended a La Leche League meeting, even went to the classes offered by The Medical City. The more you know the less likely you will give up when you hit a roadblock.

2) Arm yourself with the right tools. As it will hurt (extremely - for me at least) during the first week, get a good nipple cream. I used Lansinoh. I also bought Avent Breast Shells. Good pairs of nursing bras. A nursing cover so you can continue to breastfeed even if you have visitors. That's basically all there is to it. (Note - especially to first time moms: try to limit your visitors in the hospital. As you are still trying to learn the ropes of breastfeeding and you might be more self conscious ask your well meaning friends to visit you about two weeks after giving birth already so you're sure you've already mastered breastfeeding by that time.)

3) Educate everyone that is close to you on your decision. Get their support and buy in. The last thing you need is a voice discouraging you. Although, since it is not a perfect world you will always have people telling you things you do not need to hear. During these times, just smile and ask them to get you a glass of water. :)

4) DO NOT BUY FEEDING BOTTLES (yet). Lest you be tempted, stay away from these until you are a few weeks away from returning to work.

5) Don't be insecure with your milk supply. Size does not matter. Never compare yourself to other moms. Keep telling yourself that you have more than enough for your baby.

6) Just to reiterate. It will hurt. I just squeeze and break my husbands fingers whenever it hurts extremely  to just release some of the anger 'energy'. Do believe that in a few days it will go away. (Also, this would be a good time to go back and read all the wonderful benefits of breastfeeding just to push yourself. 90% of the time it hurts because of an incorrect latch. So have the patience to teach yourself and the new baby the proper technique. In a few days, it's going to be smooth sailing believe me.)

7) Do not forget yourself. Eat! (Breastfeeding moms burn approximately 500 calories just by breastfeeding). By eat, meaning a proper balanced nutrition. Drink plenty of fluids. I was eating plenty of galactagouges (foods that help increase milk supply) like oatmeal, halaan, warm soup, malunggay leaves, and the like. Oh, and also indulge every now then (go eat that sundae you've been craving). :)

8) Breastfeed on demand. Nurse as frequently as you can. Both Eli and Sammy are forever attached to me during their first weeks. It's okay. They like to nurse for plenty of reasons and it's NOT because they are not getting enough.

9) Finally, so you can also get that much needed sleep during the night: master the side lying feeding position. :) Believe me, this will save your life!

Okay what else? I am pretty sure there might be a couple of things I might be forgetting but those above are pretty much the most important things that I can remember. Oh, and here are the sites that I frequent to the most: Kellymom, Dr. Sears, La Leche League International. Also some blogs: Chronicles of a Nursing Mom and The Leaky Boob. And there's plenty more, numerous forums and website all dedicated to this. Just have the patience and determination to stick by with your decision. And hey, take it one day at a time to enjoy this period of your life to the fullest.

Cheers mommies!

My 31st filled with my favorite things

**Found this lying on my drafts. Now I could never remember why I did not bother publishing this. Oh well, here we go. This is more than 8 moths delayed though. But the message of the post still counts. :-)**

This post is a week old delayed. I lost my mojo in blogging. Somehow sharing my nonsensical thoughts didn't have as much appeal as it had a few months back. Too bad because 2012 was a pretty impressive year for me. A lot of ups and downs. Hard decisions, sudden changes, weight loss journey, some welcome surprises, and abundance of blessing. I wish I was not as lazy as I was in documenting my year because it was a pretty fun year for me and my little family.

But enough about that. So, I turned 31 last Friday. I am repeating that number in my head right now and it is not making any sense. I mean it is just a number. Same old me. In my head I am forever stuck at the age of 19. I am the same forever giddy, excitable, highly emotional same old me. 

Physically, I like the look of the older me. That and plus I like the fact that my favorite things in life still has not changed. The smell of a newly opened paperback. The smell of leaves when it's raining. The look in my husband's eyes when I cooked something. And now add the laughter of my children. Family. Still nothing beats the love of a family. That is perhaps the reason why I shall remain forever young.

So speaking of birthdays, I went that morning in the office to surprise a teammate. I gave him a pillow (because he loves to sleep and I have scolded him several times for sleeping hehe - hello Lei, I miss you to bits). Only to be surprised back by my team with a chockfull box of baking supplies! I immediately used them the very next day! Thank you guys that was so sweet.

And then I went home to prepare for my simple birthday dinner which I filled with all my favorite foods.

Maki, Sushi, Sashimi platter (I still believe I am a Japanese at heart)

Sabroso Lechon

World's Best Laing (by me - self proclaimed)

Pancit Canton (because no birthday is complete without)

Nathaniel's Buco Pandan (simply because it is THE BEST buco pandan there is)

I was supposed to get Estrel's cake but they are closed from Jan 1 - 16 (what gives?!). So we settled for Quatro Leche by Cake to Go. (Thank you sister!)

My lovely guests. My heart soars because I just love them very much.

That's all there is to it. Baking. Food. Family. Laughter. I am a very contented 19 year old. :D