The Craziness that is Christmas!

Where do I even begin? Finally, I found the time to blog. Ever since the 2nd half of December started rolling the word “BUSY” could not suffice for what I went through. Between December 15 to 19 I had 5 scripts to submit – one for a concert and 4 others for a sales conference that’s slated in early January 2009. Of course on top of everything else let us not forget that ‘tis the season to be in mad Christmas rush. In between strapping thy self to my home office chair and click-clacking away these work projects, I also had to go to year-end business meetings, last minute client calls, and of course I had a gift list to complete, grocery shopping to do for the Noche Buena, bills to pay, Christmas parties to go to, etc, etc… aaaccckkk!!!! I told myself earlier this last quarter that I would not in any way take part of the holiday frenzy but here I am smack in the middle of the war zone.

Anyway it’s finally December 25 so let me say MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Now I can finally kick back, relax and just sleep all day… well at least ‘til the preparations for New Year’s Eve start kicking in. So technically beginning today I have about 4 days of peace and quiet.

So here were some of the highlights…

After I have submitted my scripts last week, I had one day free while waiting for the inputs of my director. Not wasting any time, I finally had the chance to dispose the box full of “pre-loved” clothes that we have sorted out of our closet. I was able to join the last leg of the bazaar at church. I earned enough to buy groceries for the party I was slated to host three days after.

During the weekend, I had some work to do – the last one for this year. I wrote the continuity spiels for the concert “Ogie Sings with the Idols” at the Aliw Theater, featuring American Idol 2008 Finalist Ramiele Malubay. Hey, here’s some trivia: Magkasing-tangkad or should I say magkasing-liit lang kami ni Ramiele. Hehe. :-) Too bad I was so busy that night. I forgot to take a photo with her just to prove the height similarity. Hahaha.

The concert had 2 runs – Saturday and Sunday – and on each day, my schedule was as jam-packed as the other. On December 20, Saturday before running to the concert, I had to whip up a dinner for four. My husband thought of inviting his COC mates over to our house for their pre-Christmas fellowship/prayer meeting so he lovingly requested his wife (that would be me) to cook for them.

Here are the before and after shots of the dining table.



For recipes of the food prepared that night, click the name of the dish below:

• ChiNoy Maki
• No-Recipe Asian Noodles
• Chicken in Rum & Garlic w/ Mango Salsa
• Ham & Cheese Mini-Rolls

And then on December 21, Sunday afternoon, my church CCBC had a Family Christmas Party. It was fun. There were games and even a raffle draw. My husband and I facilitated the game “You & Me Against the World” We had a lot of laughs.

And then the following day, I had meetings in the morning and had another Iron Chef moment in the afternoon as I cooked for my SSEAYP friends (the very few ones left here in Manila). We had a small get together because one of our batch mates Vlad, who’s now based in London came home for the Holidays.


Roy - Best Costume Awardee for the Night!
Haha. Kinarir!

It was supposed to be a ‘60s costume party ‘cos I needed a reason to wear my brand new Kate Torralba Leg Love stockings! Remember my Christmas Wish List? Yes, I finally got two – the violet and the hot pink one. There were so many colors and prints to choose from. When I saw the display at SM Department Store, I just felt like a kid in a candy store. I wanted to buy them all but the question is where am I going to wear them? Hahaha. :-) Anyway for now I’m okay with two.


Can u believe it? All my friends are GIANTS!
It's so ironic. :-)

The following day, it was time for my husband’s company Christmas Party. In the afternoon, I made jars of my homemade pesto sauce as Joseph's presents for his office mates. The party turned out to be much better than last year’s. And what even made it more special was the announcement that he got promoted. Praise God! I’m so proud of my baby. And did I mention that I'm madly (and sanely) in love with him? :-) Hehe.



And finally, it’s Christmas Eve. It’s our first Christmas as Mr. and Mrs. Palarca so we decided to skip all the family frenzy and stayed in Manila. I got my husband a Bluetooth headset for his cellphone which he badly needs when he’s driving, while he got me not just one but two items from my Christmas Wish List which I posted here on my blog.



My husband got me a good quality set of chef’s knives in red color. How romantic and sinister! Hahaha. And just when I thought I already had my gift, he went upstairs and brought down a big paper bag from the store Dimensione. I know what I wanted from that store so I shrieked as soon as I saw him coming down with the bag. It was my much-coveted (expensive) chopping board in hot fuschia color.



We had a simple Noche Buena – just chocolate fondue, white wine, ham and a few leftovers from the parties we hosted a couple of days earlier. December is almost over. The year is coming to an end. 2008 was great! We can’t thank the Lord God enough for his faithfulness, generosity, and LOVE!