JANUARY 8, 2009
I had a long break before and after Christmas season and I never had the chance to post our Christmas celebration. My kids and nieces are rallying and demanding me to post the Christmas photos and other activities so this would be a long post guys đ
Filipinos usually starts welcoming Christmas at the knock of “Ber” months. As early as September, you will hear Christmas songs played on the radios and I myself started to decorate our house with Christmas Tree last October.
Of course my daughters did all the decorating stuff while I was pre-occupied with a lot of work and issues here and now as am staring at my blog, I realized that I never post a single article about Christmas [sigh đŚ ]
But it’s better late than never, so I have to post all the activities we had before Christmas time and after New year.
Dec 16 – Misa de Gallo
We’re off to church for the Misa de Gallo where we have to attend the early mass at 4am. Morning masses lasted for 9 days and it is believed and also part of Filipino traditions that a person who completed 9 days mass will have their wishes.
Some church celebrates mass before the break of dawn at 4 o’ clock in the morning while other celebrates mass at 7, 8 or 9 o’ clock in the evening.
It is also a common tradition for Pinoys to buy native Filipino foods such as malagkit, suman, bibingka, ibos, puto etc… after the morning mass.
Belenismo – The art of making Belen
It’s one of the project of our present local officials. This was conceptualized by Tarlac Heritage Foundation President Isabel Cojuangco-Suntay aiming to make the province of Tarlac as  âBelen capitalâ of the Philippines. It was launched in 2007 and since then, it becomes a yearly activity for Tarlaquenos which is actively participated by different Barangays, municipalities, institutions and local organization from different sectors and local businesess of Tarlac.
16 Belens won from different categories out of 78 entries. Categories includes personal, grand, monumental, municipal and diorama.
Tarlac Police Office Belen of Barangay Salapungan received the first award followed by Asiaten Hotel and Coconut Grill as third. Winners were personally awarded by Senator Loren Legarda
Zone ABC DEMOLITION CAMPAIGN
The Nolcom authorities temporarily stopped their daily demolition rounds campaign, maybe for the sake of Christmas but nailed this poster at our Barangay main entrance. At present, they never resume the usual rounds of military jeep anouncing demolition. The last update was prior to Christmas, Zone President announced that we will expect the release of Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on January 27, 2009 and we are hopeful that it would be released earlier.
There were many activities in the city. Barangay Basketball league, was participated by different basketball teams from different Barangays. Hub coaches one of the basketball team. The overall winner was Barangay Texas.
Carolers were everywhere, kids, teens, adults & beggars. Some houses who don’t have an extra money for carolers will just put off their lights early. But since I am running a gaming homebiz (PC & Video), and most of my customers are children and teens, I have to allocate coins for them but the good thing about it is that it would go back in my pocket as they would be back playing the next day.
Prior to Christmas time, my kids were busy preparing for their school Christmas party and exchange gifts so as a mom, I have so many things to do which makes me so busy such as buying clothes, gifts, school projects etc… etc… not to mention my printing jobs which requires most of my time.
Dec 24, 2008 – Christmas Eve
Merry Christmas!!
My day starts and ends at the kitchen lolz!
I have to cook for our Noche Buena. Macaroni Salad, Spaghetti, Crispy Pata, hotdogs, pan bread with cheese and a lot of candies for the kids. Gift giving… And a lot of Christmas Photos …
December 25
Mano po Ninong/Ninang!!
Kids visited their Ninongs & Ninangs (Godparents) to ask for blessings and gifts. We call it “pagmamano”, another Filipino tradition where kids and teens are visiting their Godparents, these were the people who sponsored our children during baptism and acts as second parents to our kids. They usually prepare gifts or money for their Godchildren. My kids want to extend their sincere thanks to Ninong Atty. Jojo Batalla, Ninang Ressie Reyes, Ninang Myrna Sapasap, Ninong Edgar Uy, Ninong Bong Gallo, Ninang Luz Corpuz, Tita Sally & Ate Cherry for the money and gifts. And I also want to thank my daughters for their gifts for us. I love  you Jek, Sab, Ish, nonoy & ate den…
Dec 27, 2008 – Happy Christening Baby Jed!!
Jed’s Christening
Location: San Miguel Church Time: 11:00 a.m. Reception: Max’s Restaurant
Cherry’s firstborn was finally baptized before new year. We were all invited at the reception but we can’t leave the house so I stayed home to entertain some expected visitors while my entire family attended baby Jed’s christening. Welcome to the Christian World baby Jed đ I hope you grow up to be a God-fearing boy with wisdom and kindness đ
December 31 – New Year Celebration đ
Once again, our day starts and ends at the kitchen but this time Hub did most of the cooking đ Another Filipino tradition, we have to prepare 12 fruits on our table, 1 bowl of rice, salt and water and malagkit with egg on top. My mother in-law is doing this yearly and now that she’s gone, we decided to follow her tradition. We were roaming the market to complete the list of fruits. We had grapes, apple, watermelon, melon fruit, oranges, kaimito, pineapple, banana, pears, chico, ponkan and buko (young coconut). Hub added garlic and onions this time.
For safety, we never use any firecracker this year. It’s also part of saving our budget so instead of firecrackers, we played Christmas songs and videoke. Childrens are playing videos till dawn and we gave it for free until the next day.
The magic of “Ber” has passed and now we’re welcoming the New year with hope & gladness in our hearts. Happy New Year to all of you guys. May this year brings more blessings to all of us. Cheers!!
Juliet & Family đ
At this time can only pray, my brothers, who both tertimpah natural tragedy in Palestine and the Earthquake Disaster in Manokwari, a concerned
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Yes, Aglaonemaku, the only thing that we can do now is to pray for our brothers in the midst of war, economic turmoil and natural disasters… This is just a repercussion of mans’ greed and environmental abuse…. we shall reap what we sow
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wow, saya saya naman ng pasko at new year nyo
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wala nang sasaya pa sa kumpletong pamilya đ me mga trade off talaga, kumpleto kau, walang pera, malayo ka, marami namang pera hehe
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Thanks, for dropping me a line.
I am giving your blog this Butterfly Award please click the link http://maalamat.blogspot.com/2009/01/butterfly-award.html.
Cheers
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you’re welcome Ice and thank you for the award, I really appreciate it, I had 2 tags and 1 award this January… hmmm.. not bad đ a good luck I hope
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Yay! You’re back na po! đ
The cathedral looks super bonggacious in that picture! đ I miss attending the Misa de Gallo although I’ve never completed the 9 mornings. đ I also miss the smell (and taste) of bibingka and the noise of the new year.
It was snowing in our area on Christmas and New Year’s eve so we did not get the chance to go outside and watch some fireworks downtown. It was a very quiet new year for me. :p Parang wala lang pong nangyari nung new year. -_-
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Hi Grace, Bonggacious din ang bakasyon ko hehe đ dami ko gawa at halos di makaahon kahit nga ngayun dami ko pa din tinatapos na deadline pero baka lumutin na tong blog ko kaya need nang isingit.
White Christmas ka pala jan, you remind me of my days in Japan. I had a white Christmas too in 1990, sobrang lungkot grabe pagtawag ko pa lang sa pinas at narinig ko yung kahol ng mga aso at karoling sa labas e halos di ako makahinga sa sobrang lungkot at iyak nyehehe đ sunod-sunod pa din ang celebration d2 kc malapit na ang fiesta ng Tarlac at today ay swimsuit competition ng Mutya at yung anak ko nagpapraktis para sa mala-tarlak
Sana lang ay maging maayos ang 2009 para sa ating lahat đ
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muztah na sis…medyo na overextend and aking holidays leave. hard to shake off that holidays hangover..lol.
it’s great to see that the kids were all geared up for the holidays at ikaw talagang palaban in red.
and not the least thankx for the tip at blog catalog, really helps.
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Oii Bro, uu nga mukang sobrang nag enjoy ka sa bakasyon panay siguro ang date mo nyehehe đ
uu nga, me mga ads ka na din sa blog mo ha, pa burger ka naman đ
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wow ate that is a long posts u got there. pretty interesting. u got good looking kids too. kamukha mo sila hehehe. kahit papano masaya naman pasko nyo kahit my problema. thanks for sharing it. Have a great day po!
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uu nga Ria, dami ko kc backlog, kulang pa nga yan, kaya lang baka maging nobela na hehe đ siyempre san pa magmamana kundi sa nanay nyak đ basta kasama ko pamilya, wala ng sasaya pa dun…
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Hi Juliet,
Well, it’s worth the little wait. You gave us one hell of a post. We could not ask for more. Your post gave details about Christmas, New Year and baptismal celebrations in the Philippines. It is as if Filipinos eat a lot and enjoy a lot. He,he,he. But who’s complaining if we radiate an aura of festive celebration always? Thanks for the wonderful and encompassing post. God bless you always.
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Hi Mel,
Haha, a novel indeed đ actually, it’s the shortest I can do, I removed the other topics coz I can post it next time. My last post was Dec 10 so it’s almost a month. I had busy days and spent most of my days in fieldwork. One of Filipino traditions, we will never stare and let the occasion pass without celebrating it. At the least kahit pansit at puto, we’ll always have something on our table where the whole family can talk and eat together..
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This is a wonderful post, I like the pictures of you and family, the food looked yummy. Thanks for sharing your family Christmas with us. Thank you for coming by and I hope your new year has been going good so far.
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Hi Margaret, I’m glad you like my family pics đ that was choreographed by my daughter lolz. We had a wonderful Christmas. No Christmas would be more merrier than having your loved ones beside you. I hope you had a great Christmas too with your hub and 2 sons. I was touched by your recent post….
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Wow. I love seeing a happy family spending time together. I’m glad all of you had a lot of fun. I love the pics too!
(Sigh)Gotta miss those times where I had my family for Christmas.
This is a really nice post. May 09 give more and more blessings!
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Hi Arfel, Thanks for the visit and the good words đ
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burger lng, sis, kahit meal pa..ha ha. still playing with the placements, determining the effective ads placement.
btw, tama sila sis, it’s a long post, but full of spirit. i have to scroll down 18 times to reach the comment space..lol. pero sulit naman.
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aba, mas ayos pag meal di ko tatanggihan yan đ
uu nga, dati nga 6 posts ang naka appear sa index page ko pero dahil nga it’s a long post, ginawa ko na lang dalawa đ
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oh my gaz! late again?? dang!…sorry na sorry na…huhuhuhu ano ba to oh..kelan lang ba napost to kasi nung last thursday ata last visit ko dito eh..grrr..anyway, mukhang masaya ata bakasyon mo ate julz, and medyo na extend pa ata hehehe i thought noong 5 ka bumalik, nagtaka nga kami ni warshock kasi parang d ka gumagalaw hehehe
xa nga pala, i have an online campaign, hope you and your pals would take a part of it. Gusto ko rin matulungan yung mga babaeng naaapi ng Sex scandals.. just read my new post for more ate c ya!
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Hi Ading Wolf, nung Jan 8 ko na post to, actually me tinatapos ko kc yung isang blog about Mount Pinatubo Trekking, alam mo na due to public demand, gumawa ako ng blog na Mount Pinatubo lang,it’s almost finished but I don’t mention it here yet, if you want to make a peep here is the URL http://pinatubotrek.blogspot.com/
Okay, I’ll visit your blog and see what we can do about it đ
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Hi Juliet, How are you doing? I am so happy to see you blogging again, nice to see all your family photos..it really show how lovely your family are. You are the great mother and great wife!
Btw, i hope that everything going fine for you and your family.
God bless!
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Hi Dan, I was extra busy for the past weeks so had to stop blogging for a while, I just have two hands, I wish I had 6 like Shiva đ it has something to do with my homebiz, I had so many deadlines to beat before christmas time.
Thank you for that wonderful comment đ it really make my day. Bout the demolition issue here, there were an announcement yesterday that we will have a general meeting today at 3pm. This meeting shall be attended by several public officials including the mayor and congressman. I just hope that this meeting will be for the purpose of settling the issue and not just a traditional political scheme for media projection. Anyways, I want to give them the benefit of the doubt, I’ll just post the result here.
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ako rin sis, may bagong blog in the making sa wordpress. but the Grand Opening is a long way off due to some construction problems.
don’t worry, sis, ikaw ang mg cut ng ribbon sa opening… he he..
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Hi bro, thanks for visiting my new blog đ ang lakas ng pang-amoy mo hehe. Actually I was using blogger platform for quite sometime na, even this blog has started at blogger in June 2008 and I just moved it here on August 2008. here is the link at pinaykeypoint.blogspot.
one of my oldest site is running since 2003, julietscreations pero ngayun lang talaga ako nagseryoso sa sustained blogging. Actually I have more than a hundred blogs/sites running in different networks đ kaya lang napabayaan ko na ang mga yun. Ping me na lang pag ribbon cutting na, it would be my pleasure to cut it đ
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Your children are lovely! đ
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Hi Erato, thanks for the complement đ should I say mana sa nanay? har har đ
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aba niseperate mo nlang? hehehe mabuti yan para may independent blog na para sa Mt. Pinatubo. Yaan mo ate i lilink ko din yung pinatubotrek.
Btw, salamat sa pag complement sa campaign. We are hoping for a porn-free philippine inter-telecommunication. At di na sana masira yung imahe natin sa mga dayuhan. A simple step to let them trust us again, even in this field of technology.
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Yep, I need to separate it na, mawawala ang balance nitong site pag puro Pinatubo trek updates na lang hehe, top visited post kc ang mount pinatubo topic ko at marami akong natatanggap na email inquiry requesting for a detailed info kya i have to create a new spot for it na yun lang talaga ang laman. Yun ang first achievement nitong glimpse to the pearl, readers are enjoying the richness of Philippine scenery.
Regarding your campaign, it’s a good move, sometimes we have to stand for a cause and push it on, I commend you for that ading đ
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salamat ate, i know u’ll also comply to this one.
anyway, pang pinatubo lang ba talaga? i mean wala bang pang Underground River? yung top notcher sa national wonder voting..
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Hi ading wolf đ In as much as I want to feature it, I need to prioritize the tourist attraction in my area. Siguro sa mga susunod na posts I’ll consider other places, gusto ko kc sarili ko yung mga pics na gagamitin đ
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In Indonesia there is no rain at all how the your country
Salam
Aglaonemaku
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Hmmm, its flooding in some places my friend, but here in the place where we live, it’s windy and cold. You have to wear thick jackets especially in the evening đ It’s colder this year.
Thanks for coming by đ
Juliet
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hello juliet.. sayang nga di tau nagkita! anyways, sa house nila Jolina Mendoza ako dumalaw nun, i’m not sure kung kilala mo siya,just beside Esplana’s Residence lng sila.
don’t worry next time i’ll let u know pag dalaw ulet ako.
So is it really up to the end of this month nalang ba kau dyan?
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Hi Bhang,
diko kilala si Jolina but I’ll try to ask Hub about her, alam mo na di talaga ako taga rito đ
Yesterday ay may meeting sa may covered court beside Camp Aquino entrance. Marami ang dumalo, may representation ang mayor’s office & governor’s office kaya lang hindi rin naging maayos ang flow ng meeting mjo nagkagulo pa nga. Malabo pa din tlaga and status, we’re just waiting for the TRO pero I’m looking for a new place na somewhere in Capas đ
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salamat ate…xa nga pala, naka pag comment ako dun hehehe sana’y d ako late đ alam mo naman ako medyo u know..n_n but better late than never dba? n_n God bless u and ur family ate! lalo na si hubby mo ksi medyo risky yung pagiging guide nya, nako nkita ko kaya yung post mo…for me nga siguro yung title nun “the adventure of wisnu on pinatubo” wahhaa…anyway basta risky…have my regards to him and i’d be grateful to know him
cheers
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Hi Ading, thank you for visiting my new blog đ actually they proceed pa sa Baguio after that Pinatubo Trek. Oks lang yun, sanay na si Hub sa risky adventures. mas marami pa kaming pinuntahang mas risky kesa Mt. Pinatubo Trek. Ganun daw talaga, we have to live our life to the fullest kc we’ll just pass in this world once so let’s savor it to the max đ
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You have a great family and those food look delicious as well đ
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Hi Hubby,
Welcome to Pinaykeypoint blog đ Thanks for adding me in your BC list. I enjoyed browsing your site too đ
Juliet
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thanks ate for visit. have a blessed weekend din po.
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Hi Ria, thank you for returning the visit đ
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wow Juliet,
all this while, I’m looking for a typical filipino family to share typical filipino food resepies n traditions and i think i’ve stumble with one already….
all this x’mas n NY pix refreshed a lot of childhood memoirs and i missed my mamang(she’s gone since i’m 9…)
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Hi Kyrun,
Welcome to pinaykeypoint blog đ and thanks for the good comment. I am glad that my blog became a tool to refresh your happy memories of the past. Wherever your mamang is, I know she’s in peace now and silently watching over you all this years đ do you have a blog? please leave a link so I can return your visit and comments. Keep in touch!!
Juliet
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lalong malakas ang pang amoy ko lalo na may masarap na burger with double cheese..lol.
btw, thanks sa reply mo sa BC.
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haha! bat baligtad ata, diba dapat kaw ang magpapaburger sakin? đ
YW sa BC
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Dear Fellow Member of Filipinos Unite!!!,
We enjoin you to please copy and paste the Prayer Tag and Link For The Philippines and The Filipinos and post it at your own blog. You can add your other blog/s at the end of the link or if you have only one blog and are already included in the link, you may repeat your blogâs name at the end of the link. Be sure to utter the prayer for 9 consecutive days or as often as you can. Tag as many bloggers as you can, preferably Filipino bloggers. But only bona fide Filipinos will be included in the official registry of all Filipino bloggers. As a service to our fellow members, may we request you to please visit at least 10 members a day- 5 members that you know and 5 members that you do not know so that we can help each other improve our page rankings. Please copy the whole post from the picture to the end of copy sign.
Thank you very much for your wholehearted support of this project. God bless you and your family always.
Very respectfully,
Mel Alarilla of Filipinos Unite!!!
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Hi Mel, sorry for the late response, I was extra busy this week because we are covering a lot of occasions (hanapbuhay muna hehe) Ok, I’ll post this here. Thank you!
Juliet
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Hi again Juliet,
tnx for the visits at my blog..
http:/kyrunrestonquiamco.blogspot.com
you know what…I’m planning to serve filipino style this coming Hari Raya 2009 on my table(pohon)thanks to you…hehehe
hoping my children to get to know their inheritance…
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Hi Kyrun,
I am glad I inspired you to cook Pinoy food for your upcoming Hari Raya celebration. It is always best to teach the children of their roots and culture đ keep in touch!!
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hallo2…
then Juliet, I’ll be looking forward for u to share me your Pinoy resepi đ
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Hi Kyrun, yea, no problem đ what particular pinoy recipe? is it for a full meal as in main course (ulam)? or dessert and native food as in “malagkit” & delicacies?
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Hello Juliet, eto nahanap ko na ang comments. Nalito lang pala ako sa mga posts mo. I mean, in one post, marami kang titles and different topics , so hinahanap ko yung comment section sa isang post na akala ko yun ang entire post dahil may title eh. So each post has a lot of titles…..hehehe, nahanap ko na rin.
You’ve got a wonderful family. I love viewing the pics. You really enjoyed your holidays. Wish u the best and God bless u dear.
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Hi Bing,
sensya ka na, pakyawan yung post ko kc it’s almost a month bago uli ako nakapagpost d2 sa blog kya minsanan na lang lahat ng naging activity namin for the entire Christmas season.
Thanks for dropping by, malapit ka na ding maging mommy and the next thing you’ll see ay ang makukulit na araw with them :)These are the most precious days of my life kc I know 1 day, they will rear their own family kya habang andito pa cla, I want them to remember that there’s no place like home. Happy Chinese New year nga pala sau đ
Juliet
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