#HoarderDiaries | Quick Trip to S&R!

I took a quick solo trip to S&R in the middle of the week. But you know S&R, trips to the giant warehouse is nothing but quick. I tried to hurry down the aisles, but would get distracted. I swear, the buyers of S&R utilize a smart strategy of getting new items on their shelves every week. If you see something you like, make sure to get it because chances are, it will fly off the shelf and you may not find it on your next visit - well until they get new shipments in.

So yes, where was I? I took a not-so-quick shopping trip. Hehe.

STARTING THE YEAR RIGHT
My friends are all trying to get a little bit more fiber in their diet. I suppose it comes with the age as our metabolism isn't as snappy. The kids and I have been having green juice the past couple of years, and although that has helped, eating the actual veggies and fruits have more benefits. So this year, we shall try to incorporate salads into our meals, and eat more fruit for snacks. After the fast I did for the first week of January, I felt good physically and realized how it trickled down to my whole being. So yes, we are starting the year right.

So that trip to S&R was to scout for things to help us with our renewed resolve to diet. These are some of the things I found!

DELICHEF SLOW JUICER | SALE P5,999.95
This DeliChef Slow Juicer is a great deal!
It is currently on sale at S&R from its regular price of  P9,989.95! That's P4,000 off!

OSTER MYBLEND PERSONAL BLENDER | SALE P1,499.95
Personally, I prefer the blender to the juicer, but only because all the fiber gets retained.

ACRYLIC MASTERS SALAD BOWL WITH MIXER | SALE P799.95
Yes, we are talking salads every day, kids!

ROVE 6PC CHILL N CARRY | SALE P899.95
This is such a cool serving tray (excuse the pun)! Perfect for movie night veggie stick snacking.
  

RED WASHINGTON APPLES | P20 OFF PER PACK
I haven't had Red Washington Apples in months. My little boy loves them!
I usually go for the Fuji or Granny Smith ones as they are tart and perfect for juicing.

HONEY PEARS | P20 OFF PER PACK
We love pears! 

So aside from these, I was so happy to see these in-store! S&R recently brought in some of Raley's home brand food. Raley's is a supermarket chain in CA and NV. We love Raley's because they come out with great food for their in-house brand. They are also affordable compared to big brands. I hope S&R brings more of Raley's in.

RALEY'S MAPLE & BROWN SUGAR INSTANT OATMEAL, 10s | SRP P122.95 

RALEY'S OLD-FASHIONED OATS | SRP P172.95

RALEY'S COCO KRUNCH AND FROSTED FRUITS WHIRLS | SRP P252.95

Aside from these, S&R carries a bunch of Raley's Frozen Food. Check out the Frozen section for more choices. I love their frozen fruit (they have dark sweet cherries!) which are perfect for smoothies.

The thing with diets is, you can't do a quick crash diet while working full time. The nanny and I have been staying up late (as in late-late, way-into-the-morning kind of late) because of BentoMommas catering orders. So I realize I need carbs and a little fat in my diet as well in order to stay awake and alive enough to get myself to work the next day. I guess it all boils down to healthy eating. And getting enough rest. Digestion works double time in our sleep. So it is a must to get at least 6 hours in to burn food.

After all the hard work, a good massage sounds like the perfect reward. While I try to get my weekly massage (a treat to myself for all my hard work, LOL) on Tuesdays, I found this nice massage cushion on sale at S&R that could help me relax throughout the week.

HOMEDICS TRIPLE SHIATSU MASSAGE CUSHION WITH HEAT | SALE P9,799.95
This looks so inviting!

This was calling out to my back the whole time I was checking the package out! 

Ah yes, you had me at "Comforts..." LOL!

Guess we all know where this week's catering money is going...

I LOVE S&R!

S&R MEMBERSHIP SHOPPING

9AM - 9PM 

Bonifacio Global City | Congressional | Alabang | Aseana-Baclaran | Shaw 
Cebu | Pampanga | Davao | Imus | Nuvali 

| snrshopping.com 
| FB: S&R Membership (Official)

#GuessWhat | A BIG SURPRISE!

I have been wanting to write about this since I first got the news. Itching. Eager. And all the synonyms you can think of to mean such. But I didn't get the go-ahead from the campaign manager until last week, so I had to keep this piece of news all to myself. Well, myself and a few good friends. Hehe. But first, let me give you a brief background.

A few days after the New Year, I decided to join this year's Prayer and Fasting. Not because I wanted something from God, but because I knew I needed to work on my prayer life this year. I have not been so faithful - you get lost amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life. I have been so busy, and although I know it is not an excuse, I have been lacking and missing-in-action in my daily quiet time with God. I know, bad. But such was life in 2015. I have no excuse, really.

So on Day 1 of Prayer and Fasting, I was particularly giddy. At the office, I was telling my assistant how I wanted to transform our office and how I planned to shell out the money for it. When asked how I was going to pay for everything, I declared out loud, "Mayaman ako, anak ako ng Diyos!" ("I am rich, I am God's child!") That evening, as I was going through the questions in my guide book, I came across this particular Q: "How has God been faithful to you in the past year?" As I reflected on this, I couldn't help but feel grateful because God has been more than faithful. I recalled a post that came up on Facebook Memories back in December, and it was this Christmas Wish List I wrote about 5 years ago. And it's funny, because I appeared to be so needy back then. But anyway, that post made me even more grateful as I reflected on God's goodness, because compared to back then, today, I have everything I need. So yes, back to my reflection on 2015... I was feeling a tad overwhelmed because God provided - He gave me even the things I didn't ask for.

As I reflected on the next question on my faith goal for 2016, I didn't know what else to put. I kept thinking about work so I decided that my faith goal for 2016, aside from financial breakthrough, would be a successful 2016 for work (sidenote: we have been struggling, so yes, work needs a major turn-around, a miracle to get us out of the red). As I prayed to cap the day, I asked the Lord for this specifically. Because I knew that was the burden He placed in my heart. I knew it was a burden for a reason. And for my personal goals for 2016, I negotiated, "Lord, I know You will take care of me. I will not ask for anything else but breakthrough for (insert place of work here)." That evening, I went to sleep at peace.

Backtrack a bit to December.

Every year, Judy and Benji of itsjudyslife hold a fundraiser for various charities. They call it #Dancember. Their main charity for 2015 is Convoy of Hope - a group that works to end hunger for children across the globe. All throughout the month of December, whenever they reach a specific milestone amount, Judy, Benji and their friends dance on their vlogs. They also hold a 24-hour live broadcast around the third week and showcase other vloggers and social media personalities. Overall, for #Dancember, they raised a whopping amount of P228,000! So during the live broadcast, I decided I was going to contribute to their good cause. I donated!

Now, this particular #Dancember is special because Judy and Benji worked with a campaign manager, Prizeo - they were actually giving out a prize! Each $5 donation earned a participant one raffle ticket. They were giving away a trip + VIP experience to VidCon2016!

So back to Day 2 in January... 

I woke up to an email from Prizeo telling me I had won that trip to VidCon! Not just for me, but also for my nominated friend. I had nominated KY since we both watch itsjudyslife religiously. There I was, staring at the screen for a good 5 minutes, filled with unbelief. Thousands had contributed to their cause. Out of thousands, only one would win, and that person was me. A random pick, but God chose me!

Let me just say that although a trip like this wasn't part of my faith goals for 2016, I was believing in God's provision - trusting He knows the desires of my heart. The cool thing is - this was part of KY's faith goal! She had prayed for this because she recently started her own YouTube channel. KY was, needless to say, ecstatic. Beyond ecstatic!

He gives you even the things you do not ask for. Truly, the Lord holds nothing back. He is our Heavenly Father who loves us more than anyone else would. What more if you make your prayers known?

Do you believe in breakthroughs? Prayer is a powerful tool, and it comes free. The Lord is faithful, and I am humbled by His goodness.


“Ask, and God will give to you. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will open for you." Matthew 7:7 NCV

#DareToBelieve

Happy New Year!

So 2015 was a blur. Seriously, last year, right after the holidays, I was promising a recap on that family cruise we took. Now, here I am, in the year 2016, and I haven't even written much on what went on the past year.

2016. Feels like the future is here.

Photo from Star Wars

So we spent the holidays with family. I spent it cooking, baking, and taking A out on quality momma and daughter bonding dates - something we both really, really need.

Bonding over good Xiao Long Bao at Din Tai Fung.

And I didn't bother much about seeing other people, except for Mish, Mia, Candy and Shar for Holiday Tea on the 23rd.

Holiday Tea-ing with the girls.
Incidentally, Mish will be selling these really pretty table linen for #MotherWhoBrunch.
Check them out on Instagram at @motherswhobrunch

After getting myself stuck in traffic for three hours driving home, I decided I was going to shut down my phone and spend my Christmas and New Year incommunicado.  So I am sorry if you were trying to reach me. I had my phone on DND - really needed a little peace and quiet.

So no, I didn't even bother going to class reunions (oops), and I didn't see any of my girls (nope, not the BentoMommas, not the Chinese Mafia Moms, none of the SoMoms, or the So-so-Moms, hehe - nada).

For Christmas, we spent the evening at my parents' place. I prepped Tri-Noodle and Russian Salad, while my brother cooked Bistek. We didn't have the usual, as the helper was out for Christmas, so we cooked what the kids and the folks wanted to eat.

My raclette cheese plate from Christmas Eve dinner.

Tri-Noodle!

Russian Salad with ManMade Matcha Finishing Salt. 

In between Christmas and New Year, RL spent the whole time with KY, so A and I got to bond some more. For the New Year Countdown, we got to stay at Marriott.

RL ready to attack his fresh mangoes at the lounge on the first morning of the New Year.

It was a good break from the hustle and bustle. And a great chance to separate myself from all the negativity and stress. I am thankful beyond words for the year that has passed.

But yes, I am ready for 2016. I say, bring it on!

#RILEYunboxes | Snoopy Happy Meal!

RL spent most of the Christmas holidays at my mom's place. Now because KY has been vlogging, this has inspired RL to make more videos. When we got our complete Snoopy Happy Meal set, he was adamant that we film an unboxing video. He also made me promise to edit and post right when we finished filming. Now because my net connection at home has been intermittent (I swear, Globe must think it is amusing that their connection is in theme with the holidays - on and off like blinking Christmas lights!), I had to wait 5 hours to get this uploaded to YouTube.

Anyway... the Peanuts Movie starts showing in Metro Manila theaters today. While I promised RL we will watch, I am not sure where to fit that right in. My schedule for the weekend is packed! What with three parties, plus the kids' exams coming up. Oh well.

Over the Christmas holidays, McDonald's started selling their Snoopy Happy Meal - something that got all of us excited because we are Snoopy lovers. There are ten toys in this Happy Meal! In the following video, RL describes and demonstrates each toy. Don't forget to hit "Like" and subscribe!

Catch #SnoopyHappyMeal at McDonald's while you can! Get one toy with every Happy Meal you buy!

You know you want it.

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