i haven’t been up-to-date with my posts. i have failed to cover the grammy red carpet (which is my favorite of the year!) and haven’t written anything about the past four cities in the a.i. audition tour. i don’t mean to neglect the blog, it’s just been a very rummage and search and learn week. i didn’t even imagine i’d be up to my armpits with things to contemplate on in a place like this. but hey, them’s the breaks.

fortunately, my husband decided to surprise me with a weekend at an island resort for our anniversary last saturday. fortunately, my mother-in-law slipped and let the surprise out the day before that. because i don’t like surprises. but i do love resort stays very much.

we spent two days and one night in sonaisali island resort. it’s the same resort where our cousin celebrated her wedding.

we were able to score a marvelous deal on the accommodations and an even more incredible deal on the meals. we stayed in a bure with a huge room that included a king size bed and a large wicker sofa set. we also had a terrace and an entry porch overlooking the waters that separate sonaisali island from the mainland. activities like paintball, beach volleyball, billiards and jungle cruise were available apart from the usual water sports and recreation.

i’m not posting this entry to review or write about the experience. i relaxed, loosened up and willed myself to do nothing at all, i didn’t even bother making a mental rate of the resort. all i know is that i like the place a lot and i love the food so much, i’d probably go there another time just to eat.

i just want to share the sundresses i scored from ukay-ukay and wore to the beach.

even the espadrilles i wore were from ukay.

that’s watching the wellington rugby 7s with my husband (which fiji won). he took a few seconds off the game to snap this photo. i think the whole of fiji was at a standstill that night, the way the philippines is during pacquiao fights. i hope i made my thrill palpable enough. i really don’t know how i could appreciate rugby, perhaps i should just stop trying. no use feigning interest, right?

that’s how determined i was not to be bothered by anything.

when we got home, the family surprised us with a cake. we didn’t touch it during the night because we were stuffed from the complimentary meals in the resort. we had it for breakfast the next day though. and since our wedding last year was severely simple (meaning we just gave our oath, signed the docs and ate lunch), we decided to prop the camera on the kitchen rack, grabbed the opportunity to snap a photo of us cutting a cake together. with a kitchen knife.

happy anniversary to us!

le baiser by french neoclassic artist auguste toulmouche.

happy new decade, everyone!

christmas has never tarnished its childlike charm to me. and i always go into the season with the same feeling of wonder and excitement as when i was just waist-high and struggling to read the gift cards. now that i have been participating in the actual buying of gifts (and have been doing so for over ten years), it is even double the merriment that i am able to both open my gifts and watch people open the gifts i wrapped.

some females choose to post their wishlist online probably hoping some of them will materialize (meaning some friends and family will read the entry and buy the stuff) like a bridal registry. i have done it myself before here, and none of the things happened to cross my hands (well, i did get a pair of stella lunas after i wrote the entry, but they’re a different pair. so that doesn’t count). of course, i may have been shooting over my head there even with just three hundred thousand pesos (php300,000.00), but i could have at least bought robyn more books for her leap pad.

today, i am still hankering for a trip to japan and rimowa luggages to travel there with, but i’ll take my return ticket to the philippines and my cheap ass generic brand luggage if it means i can visit home and eat danggit again. nevertheless, i came into the christmas season with a mental wishlist much simpler, more tailor-fit to my current situation and more accessible than my imagination would warrant. but they by all means give the same sense of satisfaction, coupled with the warm fuzzy feeling that comes with being able to take part in another season of exchanging gifts. cheesy? you bet.

i chose not to post any sort of wishlist, despite my fascination with assembling lists. however, i will post some of the stuff i received. because these are some of the things that make up my wishlist and i’m happy-dappy like a little kid.

my favorite scent, 2008′s most awarded fragrance, daisy by marc jacobs. moderately old in designer fragrance years, but still my favorite. too bad i missed the limited edition edp (which strangely cost the same as the edt) by about three days from the when the last bottle was sold, but i’m very happy with it no less. i know fragrance is such a cliche gift, but i don’t think i will ever get tired of receiving them.

a woven raffia roxy fedora with shell, grosgrain ribbon and chain embellishments and…

…a black pinstripe quiksilver “mob” fedora with embroidered crest and same-fabric sash. i started to regain my thing for hats when we had to wait in the sydney airport for nearly seven hours en route to nadi last september. my husband bought me a white-and-black hat that looks like eva longoria‘s and then i remembered how i once really liked hats but the philippines just isn’t a country that exactly embraces the accessory whole-heartedly (unless you are a musician or an artist. which i neither am). now i’m back to liking and collecting them.

coincidentally, i wrote “toothbrush” in our grocery list, and look what i found under the tree! we’ve always meant to buy the oral b electronic toothbrush but thought it too expensive to clean teeth with, so i’m happy someone gave me and my husband a pair of these things.

books from two of my favorite humorists. when you are engulfed in flames by david sedaris and mere anarchy by woody allen. i believe all the hype. yes, they are all that.

ok, i don’t have the least liking for robert greene’s machiavellian laws on leadership and how many of my previous managers so full of themselves live by his books like religious fanatics, but i admit that i read them all the time. yeah, i do, so kill me for being cliche yet again. the very same way i read so many other political philosophies i heavily disagreed with but intensely admired for the thinking behind them (like hitler’s, for instance). collaborating with 50 cent, greene comes up with another set of leadership principles in the 50th law for me to read with intense pleasure then disagree with during discussions. because i’m silly like i just enjoy insecure guys defend their peer-pressured beliefs like they are defending themselves against murder.

the advanced 32-stitch electronic singer sewing machine! with a users guide that reads more like a computer textbook than a home ec training manual. while trying to prioritize things and making ends meet, my husband and i started talking about getting one and we’ve been playing around with figures like how much we have to pay every week or how much we should negotiate for a second-hand one (especially since all of a sudden one day i found that we have to pay every week for a new tv and stereo system on top of basic needs and utilities from a single-income household with an applying immigrant who hates cooking… me, in other words). then lo! i get a sewing machine as a christmas present from the folks! doesn’t the world just work in mysterious ways?

reviews on some of the items later.

hope everybody had a wonderful christmas!

ironic for the first christmas post of this blog, here is last christmas by 19-year-old dutch artist emerald de leeuw.

a very merry christmas everybody!

continuation to this.

placecard holders: miniature-ized well-loved trimmings

white snowflakes look great with iridescent table confetti. gold wire christmas pines are classic.

small poinsettia and christmas balls add whimsy and would make great conversation pieces.

from bridal people.

centerpiece: gather the tree trimmings and put the lights on

one of the easiest things to do is make centerpieces during the christmas season, with the abundance of decorating items. you can gather balls into a bowl or candles on a plate and voila!

from superweddings.

the wedding cake: ribbons, poinsettia and edible winter

adorn your cake with a silver or gold ribbon; instead of the usual roses, how about fondant poinsettia instead?

check this out, sprays of snowflakes as if they burst off the cake!

from wedding flowers and reception ideas and perfect wedding day.

wedding favors: christmas decorations

decorations like this snowflake candle holder and this crystal tree trimming make the best favors. your guests can put them up in their homes and be reminded of you every christmas season!

you can even put the favors in gift boxes! how about a personalized christmas ball?

from bridal people, cool party favors and stylehive.

the reception area: lots of lights and all things that glitter

like i said, i love holiday weddings because you get the opportunity to go crazy with the lights!

from wedding53.

set the atmosphere with a string quartet that plays christmas carols.

set up a space like this where you and your guests can pose for photos. this one sure beats the hell out of a printed tarp background.

from venus ensembles.

continuation to this entry.

the bouquet: berries and crystals

deep colored blooms like red roses and burgundy lilies add to the richness of the season's theme. adorned with berries, they give you the idea of a mistletoe.

from kaboodle and wedding flowers and reception ideas.

i am very partial towards crystals in just about anything, so i'm all for bridal flowers bedazzled with swarovski crystals. especially during christmas!

from pink frosting and silk wedding designs.

bind the stem with luxurious fabrics or ribbons in christmas colors; if it's a winter wedding, instead of a traditional bouquet, warm your hands in a muff of flowers!

from wedding flowers and reception ideas.

ring bearer pillow and flower girl basket: lots of bows and twigs with moss or pine needles

overload the pillow and basket with satin and gossamer ribbons. they will take on the appearance of christmas presents.

from eliza fig.

not precisely what i imagined, but very good representations of what i had in mind nonetheless: twigs and moss or pine needles with mistletoe, berries, pinecones and flowers to make the pillow look like a wreath and the basket look like a goodie stash.

from etsy and inspired occasions.

candles: bright and cheery candle holders

bright and shiny colors lend a festive feel to these otherwise austere decors, and the rustic pinecone candle holders add flair.

from bridal people.

sendoff from church: snowflakes, stars and sleigh-bells

instead of rice, have the guests toss snowflakes and star confetti at the bride and groom.

from chico party.

let the guests jingle gold and silver sleigh bells as they toss confetti to the newlyweds. and these double as wedding favors too!

from bisman weddings and eliza fig.