The Joy of Being a Mother

I have been contemplating for days if I want to publish this blog. I wasn't really sure because this is too personal for me. I am a little hesitant to share about my life as a single mother. I spent a long time writing, then editing, to the point where I mistakenly deleted the whole thing. I had to rewrite everything from memory.

For those who know me will tell you that I couldn't make a conversation without mentioning Sophie. I mean, I couldn't help it. I talk about her all the time!! Hahaha. Sometimes I would analyze myself and wonder why I do it. Surely because she is my only child. And I love her so. It's like my life revolves around her.

I still remember the first time I laid eyes on her. She was born on a Mother's Day, what a perfect timing. At first I didn't hear her cry and asked the nurses that attended to her if there's something wrong. They didn't say anything. Until finally she cried, and they told me she was alright. I couldn't take my eyes off her. I felt she was the most beautiful baby. All mothers would say that about their child. I couldn't believe I have the perfect child.

Its fascinating to watch her grow. And a little painful when she starts to be a little independent. I was the one who cried on her first day of preschool. Lol. I remember her first walk, first word, the first time she cried. I always share to everyone all the little achievements she made. I didn't care if some says I'm  bragging too much. Lol.

I think our bond is stronger because its just her and me. She grew up with just me by her side. And like all children of divorced parents, there's a part of her that wishes that she has a mom and dad. I told her there are kids with the same situation. And that it doesn't mean she is less fortunate. That my love for her is more than enough for two parents.

Raising a child is sometimes challenging, especially if you are a single parent.  You can't be a spoiler and disciplinarian at the same time. Sometimes I feel guilty of being too strict, and sometimes when I spoil too much. Like I don't know where to draw the line. But when people tell me what a wonderful daughter she is. I would tell myself I must be doing it right.

I would end this by quoting Ms. India, Sushmita Sen, on her answer in the Q&A portion of Miss Universe 1994, which was held in Manila, Philippines. Her answer earned her the crown. The question was " What is the essence of being a woman?". I couldn't forget her answer. Part of it was "The origin of a child is a mother, a woman".

To all the kids out there, your moms love you unconditionally. To all the moms, "Cheers to us!!!".

Adobo:Philippine National Dish

It took me a couple of days to decide on what to write next. I was debating on two different topics but then I thought I should focus more on adobo, which is unofficially the national dish of the Philippines.

Filipinos, no matter where we are in different parts of the world, will always find ways to cook adobo.. we would use different brands of soy sauce and vinegar, just to be able to eat our famous dish. I mean who can live without adobo? Why is it a more famous dish, compared to menudo, afritada, sinigang, paksiw or tinola ( the dish that was mentioned in Noli me Tangere)?.

I searched as usual on wikipedia.. (it has been my bff, I could always count on it whenever I needed to know about something).. I wasn't surprise to learn that adobo is actually a Spanish dish.  I mean our country was colonized for more than 300 years by the Spaniards, so naturally, everything has Spanish influence on it... even our veins, has Spanish blood flowing on it.

Adobo, is from a Spanish word adobar, which means to marinate, sauce or seasoning..it is a way of cooking, and not really the name of the dish.. the real name of the dish is long forgotten. Pre-hispanic Filipinos probably cook adobo, they used vinegar to preserve food. There are a lot of ways to cook adobo, some use just vinegar and salt. This is called "adobong puti". A more common one, is using vinegar and soy sauce. This is called "adobong itim". Some add coconut milk, which is called "adobo sa gata". Basic ingredients include oil, vinegar, soy sauce, bay leaf, garlic and peppercorn. But some would add turmeric, ginger, spices, potatoes, boiled egg, sugar. Some prefer adobo with sauce, some wants it dry, by frying the meat or let the adobo cook longer for the sauce to dry up. Different meat and veggies can be used for adobo.. most popular is pork or chicken,.or a combination of both.. but beef can also be used, as well as fish,.shrimp or pusit. For vegetables, we use kangkong, eggplant, sitaw (long beans) or kamote tops. And as usual, we eat adobo with rice..

I remember cooking adobo when I was 10 or 11. I think I convinced my mother that I am capable of cooking our dinner. I overcooked it, leaving the pork dry, like it was fried. She said I burned it. Haha.. but my aunt and cousin said it was good.. they probably prefer dry adobo, as opposed to my mother who likes it with sauce. Lol..

There was also a time when me and elementary friends experimented on cooking adobong kangkong and adobong sitaw at one of the classmate's house. It turned out good.  We had fun cooking that night..

Here in Chicagoland, I read that there is a yearly Adobo Fest. Its a fundraising event. You could either taste or join the adobo cooking contest. The best tasting adobo will win some prizes. This year it was held last September 19.  If you wanna know more about it, visit their website at www.adobofest.org.

Most cooking shows feature adobo recipes.. I remember Del Monte Kitchenomics, which used to be a segment on noon time show Eat Bulaga. Sandy Daza, the chef and segment host, used pineapple juice instead of vinegar,.and he topped it off with pineapple tidbits...yummy.. I sometimes use pineapple juice,and on some days when I felt like experimenting, I substitute orange juice instead of pineapple. It turned out good,.although my friend told me it tasted more like hamonado rather than adobo...oh well..

Kris TV, one of my favorite shows, featured adobo many times. One version of adobo that I haven't tried is the one cooked by Pokwang, a famous Filipina actress.  She added cream cheese at the end..hmmm..wonder what it tastes like. Another is Darren Espanto's mom's version, she fried the chicken first before she marinate and simmer it with sauce. She said it made the cooking faster..

Adobo is not only popular to Filipino chefs.  Giada de Laurentiis, chef and host of Everyday Italian and Giada at Home on The Food Network also cooked chicken adobo.. I was flipping through different channels when I saw Giada's show was on at that time. She is one of my favorite chefs to watch. That time she was cooking chicken and the way she cooked it was so familiar.. I even thought that time that it is so similar to adobo. Then when she served it to her husband and his friends, they asked her what it is, she then said its Filipino adobo.. OMG! I wonder why she decided to cook adobo and feature it in her show. Does she have Filipino friends? If not, I could be one if she ever needs me. Hahaha.

So what's your dinner tonight? Are you gonna cook adobo? Is it gonna be chicken or pork? Saucy or dry? Enjoy cooking and have a good night!

My love for reading

Hello, I'm back. First, I want to thank you all who found time to read my first blog.  I had 68 views. Not bad for a first time blogger?  I recently posted an article about bento lunches and another subject kept popping on my head. Contrary to my blog address, i will not be limiting myself to articles about kitchen, cooking or food recipes.. i want to talk about everything I'm interested in.. there's a lot of things to talk about. Or write about.

For those of you who are my friends in Facebook, you must have seen my posts of books I have been reading. Yes.. I just love to read. I don't know why and I can't remember when I started reading books. I just love it.  I could spend days not going anywhere as long as I have books lined up for me to read.  I'm not sure if this counts but I have a vivid memory of me when I was barely six years old, I was in a classroom and the teacher was asking me to read something on the green board.. I was a transferee from another school. I think she was testing me if I should stay in kindergarten or move to first grade.. back home first graders were supposed to be 7 years old.. then she said I read good and was admitted to first grade..

During elementary days I was into Mills and Boon and Silhoette. These are publishers of books written by different authors, mostly fictional love stories. Then I started Nancy Drew series.  High school was when I started having favorite authors.. I love to read books written by Jude Deveraux and Johanna Lindsey ...both of them used to write romance novels about fictional royalties...but I prefer Jude Deveraux more. I used to daydream a lot about her characters. Like I am them..Haha. Typical teenager dreaming of being a princess and meeting her Prince Charming. I remember reading past midnight, sometimes until the break of dawn...now I seldom read Jude Deveraux. I probably outgrew her books.  And besides , she doesn't write about princesses and duchesses anymore... but mostly about descendants of characters from her previous novels... then I read Danielle Steel and Judith Krantz. Danielle Steel books makes me feel sad after reading them, I kept telling myself I should stop reading her books, but I couldn't... I read them all. The recent one was a few weeks ago.. regarding Judith Krantz, I really love her characters, especially Princess Daisy...She didn't write a lot of books. Too bad because I think she is a  great author. College days was when I started reading suspense/thriller/gothic books....I read Sidney Sheldon and John Grisham. And who could forget Anne Rice and her vampire chronicles? The first book, Interview with a Vampire, has movie adaptation. We all fell in love with Louis and Lestat, and of course the child vampire, Claudia with her famous line "I want some more!".

Then Harry Potter came! I must say this is the best book ever written. Just my opinion. but I know a lot of people would agree with me. I couldn't wait for J K Rowling to publish the rest of her books.. The characters are so lively. Who wouldn't fall in love with Harry, Ron and Hermione? When I finished all the 7 books, I got so worried, because for a long time no other book was interesting anymore.. J K Rowling wrote more books, even under a pen name Robert Galbraith.. but these books are nothing compared to Harry Potter.. I bet even JK would agree. In fact, she has written another Harry Potter story, not as an 8th book,...but as a play. Which will premier next summer in London.

Of course I wouldn't forget about the Lord of the Rings.. and The Hobbit. Although I must say the movies are better than the books.

I also read all of Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series.. I found out about them because they became a TV show Legend of the Seeker..

Twilight series came.. and Hunger Games, Fifty Shades of Grey and Divergent series. But still not as great as Harry Potter.. a lot of people love James Patterson. I got curious why and read one of his books...that was months ago.. let's just say I don't get him.. Before that, I found out about Lee Child because of Tom Cruise's movie Jack Reacher.. I found out that its a series...I read them all. Jack Reacher is better than Alex Cross. haha.

Nowadays I check New York Times Bestseller list to find out what books to read.. i like Chevy Stevens. and Gillian Flynn, the Gone Girl author. FYI, she lives in Chicago! I wish I could meet her. I wonder where she hangs out? I could bump into her!  I have also read a lot of Young Adult books, which are mostly about vampires, angels, wolves, witches and other mythical creatures.. I got tired of it... can't they write something else? Lol..

Since last week I'm reading Nancy Drew series.. I was gonna introduce them to Sophie but end up reading them again..

Who knows what I'm gonna read next. Right now, I have no idea. I still have to search for more interesting books.. but one thing is for sure.. I will continue to read. For reading is something I can't do without...

Bento lunches

Hello, first of all thank you for visiting my blog...I have wanted to create one and I'm excited to share it with you. For my first article I would be talking about bento lunches, something I love to do nowadays, aside from reading of course.

I recently saw an episode of Kris TV, a lifestyle show in the Philippines, about bento lunches. Judy Ann Santos, a famous actress, wife, mom of two kids and now an author of a cookbook, was the guest of the show and she talks about the bento lunches she makes for her kids. And it got me thinking, here is a very busy actress and she still finds time to make these bento lunches for her two kids...if she can squeeze it in her hectic schedule, then I don't have an excuse not to do it myself.. I don't have any artistic skills. I'm not into drawing and designing. The only thing I love to do is read and cook...and in my wildest dream...to be able to write a book... so i guess making my own blog is a start...

Now for someone who doesn't know about bento, here is what wikipedia says about it. Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. Yes, bento is a Japanese word.. similar to Filipino 'baon'. Now, I'm not going into details about bento, if you wanna know more, check out wikipedia..

So I made a plan.. how do I start making bento lunches.. I started by searching for designs. I really have no idea how to start and so I decided to look up for bento designs for sandwiches and rice meals.. and then it got me thinking, I need some tools... amazon.com has a wide variety of stuff you can buy to help you make bento boxes, but I don't wanna wait.. when I decided to do something, I wanna do it right away.. so I went to local stores near me... I found some tools I need at Five Below and Dollar Tree!..And the next day, Sophie went home from school smiling.. so excited to tell me about the lunch I prepared.. I didn't tell her about her surprise bento lunch...and she gave me a letter afterwards.. telling me how she can't wait for more of my 'picture lunches'...Now that made all my efforts worth it.

For all my Facebook friends, you have seen my posts about the breakfasts and lunches I made for Sophie these past weeks. I plan to continue making bento lunches and will be posting them all!! I hope I inspire some of you to create your own bento lunches for your kids.. it makes eating more fun for them..

Thank you for reading...enjoy the rest of your day!