Weddings with Josiah's Catering

June is a very romantic month because aside from December, this is the marry-est month in the calendar. There were no such things as wedding coordinators during my time so I basically had to do my own research, canvassing and preparations when I got married. Now, with a proliferation of wedding planners, brides now have an easier time than I did before.

So, it was very exciting to check out what modern wedding receptions look like nowadays. 1 Esplanade played host to a wedding themed affair prepared by one of the top caterers in town, Josiah's Catering. "Seasons of Love: A Wedding Banquet Expo" featured Four Seasons set-up, one of many packages that well-known Filipino event designer, Ms. Beth Amat, designed especially for Josiah's Catering. No matter what month of the year you plan to get married, there is a theme just for you.

If you're planning your own wedding, you may want to check out the Four Seasons themes: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. Each theme is attended to with utmost detail.  Everything from the presidential/guest tables, centerpieces, flower blooms, decor, color schemes, to the wedding cake are all matched to the season selected by the couple-to-be. I asked Chef Jasper Versoza about the menu and he told me that even the choices of food can be tailored to the season. 

Take a look at the different themes:

For more information, please visit www.josiahcatering.com or call 934-2163, 941-7032 or 942-5738.

Ipanema Launches its "Colorful Sea" Collection

I have several pairs of Ipanema flipflops and each one is just so comfortable and pliant. I can do a ballet pointe and the flipflops would just follow the curve of my pointed foot.

For 2010, Ipanema is once again launching its latest GB collection, which it dubbed "Colorful Sea". The GB line (GB which stands for Gisele Bundchen, a Brazilian and the world's most successful supermodel who endorses Ipanema GB) is known for its hip design, unmatched style and high quality as well as for being an important medium for eco-awareness.

A devoted environmentalist, Gisele Bündchen actively adheres to her role as UN ambassador by using each GB collection to raise funds and awareness for specific eco-causes. The 2010 “Colorful Sea” collection supports the preservation of Brazil’s turtle population as well as the welfare of our own local marine life.

The "Colorful Sea" collection is ocean-inspired so most of the flipflops have bright, cool, vibrant colors that remind you always of beach and sunshine.

Take a look at their 2010 collection. I'm sure that you'll find a few pairs that you'd want to own and wear.

How Do You Teach Your Kids How to Beat Procrastination? (updated)

After reviewing the comments posted, I wish I could award the watch to everyone who participated because the tips were really useful but I had to choose 3 tips only. So here goes. The winners are:

1. Suzanne de los Santos
2. Pearlie Uy
3. Dante Ward Jr.

An email will be sent out to the winners with further instructions.

Thank you all. I hope to host another contest sometime.

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Growing up, my parents taught me not to procrastinate. Of course, that was not always easy. It's easier to push work to the last minute before cramming. But I did learn the hard way, at times, that doing this meant a finished product that was not as good as I would have wanted it to be.

As my own kids are now in school, I try to teach them how NOT to procrastinate. I think it's a lot more difficult to do so in this day and age. There are just too many distractions. Unlike before when my Mom just had to turn the TV off, now I have to deal with the internet, video games, and even when I send them to bed, there is the PSP or iPod Touch under the blanket. My kids are in high school and college and by this time, they have also learned the hard way what it means to cram things at the last minute. I'm glad that in high school, they have planners that they were taught to fill in so that they could monitor project and homework deadlines and improve their time management.

Showing your children that getting important things done right away is an essential skill that they need to grow up into responsible adults. Studies show that people with poor time management skills often face difficulties at school and at work. One study from Australia’s Victoria University cited poor time management as the cause of some students feeling pressured at school –the result of which is that they either drop out or experience health or mental problems.

Arm your kids with the proper tools against procrastination with these tips and advice from child psychologists and teachers.

1. Time your children’s tasks. It’s good to have a clock in your child’s bedroom so he knows how long certain tasks take. You can also give your child his own watch, so he can monitor how long it takes to do different activities. You can even make a pie chart so your child can visualize how much time he spends doing homework and how much time is left for TV. This will make him understand that the more he procrastinates on an urgent task, the less time he has for more enjoyable activities.
2. Help your child break down tasks into simpler ones. Sometimes, children put off homework or a project because they think that these are too difficult, so they become scared to tackle these tasks right away. Teach your child how to break these hard tasks into easier, simpler ones so they don’t feel overwhelmed. If your child has homework for several subjects, for instance, you can help him tackle one subject at a time.
3. Set habits or rituals. This is especially effective for younger kids or preschoolers. Setting a certain time for specific activities help your children develop good habits and time management skills. For example, you can set 5pm as homework hour and 7pm as free time for your kids to do whatever they want.

Have you used any strategies to effectively help your kids beat procrastination? Then this is for you.

I'm running a very easy contest to see what your own ideas are on how to teach kids to beat procrastination. My partner in this contest is none other than Kids Watch Central (KWC), a favorite place to go to for timepieces just right for your kids. With watches of their own, it's a lot easier for your kids to manage time and develop good habits and time management skills.

KWC's colorful timepieces feature many different popular cartoon characters, such as Hello Kitty, Ben10, Transformers and Barbie. Their various designs can inspire your child to finish important tasks and activities right away.

Now, here are the contest mechanics:

1. Just answer this question by posting a comment below:

How Important is Teaching Time Management to Kids and what’s the best tip that you can share with other moms regarding teaching your child time management?

2. You can join several times over the contest's duration but you can only comment once a day. If a commenter submits multiple entries in a day, only the first entry will count.

3. Commenters must include the following info: Your Name & Email Address. Anonymous commenters or those without email addresses will not be considered qualified.

4. Promo runs from June 9 to July 9, 2010. I will select the top 3 answers (an email address can win only once). The 3 winners will be announced on this blog on July 11, 2010. Choice of winners is final. Each winner gets a KWC timepiece.

5. Winners need to present an email of acknowledgment from me and can claim their prizes from Cathy Muncal at 6F Cambridge Center Building, 108 Tordesillas cor. Gallardo Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City or at Urban Time Boutique at SM North Edsa Annex. Prizes of any provincial winners will be sent via courier. Sorry, but this contest is limited only to residents within the Philippines as we cannot send prizes abroad.

6. The watches that will be given to the winners are not necessarily those shown on this blog post (the photos are samples of KWC timepieces).

Do You Have the Toughest Job? (winners announed)

I think the toughest job in the Philippines is being a MOM.

Why?

1. Being a Mom starts with PAIN - during childbirth. And even for those who are Moms by adoption, pain can come in the form of sacrifices and problems.
2. You're on duty 24/7
3. Your job description requires multiple skills and duties: caregiver, nanny, tutor, cook, driver, motivator, disciplinarian, financier
4. Once you get the job, there is absolutely no resignation. You're in this for the long haul - like it or not.
5. There is no financial compensation. You need to do all these absolutely FREE OF CHARGE.

Do you think your job is tough too? Then come join Alaxan FR and DOLE's Search for the Toughest Jobs in the Philippines Campaign.

Different people may give different answers; but for the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Manny Pacquiao and Alaxan FR, no job is too small or too easy. Because it is in how one performs the job – whether he rises above the pain and the challenge—that determines whether a job is tough or so-so.

With this in mind, the DOLE and the People’s Champ,  together with top pain relief brand Alaxan FR, launches the “Search for the Toughest Jobs in the Philippines” – a groundbreaking initiative that seeks to honor Filipino men and women who face the challenges of their day-to-day jobs with pride, resiliency and most of all toughness.

“In the case of Manny Pacquiao, it’s the pain of training for a boxing title; for the promodizer, it’s the long commute to be able to give service to grocery shoppers; for the teacher, it’s the leg cramps after long hours of standing to be able to impart knowledge to students. Really, pain is a badge of honor. It’s one sign that you’ve exerted enough effort and commitment to do your job well.,” asserts Sheila Rono, Alaxan Brand Representative..

My blog is offering a contest for the toughest job. 3 winners will be chosen by me. 

To join, here are mechanics:

1. Just post a comment at the end of this article stating what is your toughest job. Please include your NAME and OCCUPATION.

2. Your comment entry is also automatically an entry to www.toughjobsphilippines.com for the national contest which runs till Aug. 21, 2010 (see mechanics for the national contest there). You are required to submit the same entry in my blog, but this time with a PHOTO of your tough job, to alaxantoughjobs@gmail.com (Alaxan FR's PR people will be the ones to upload your entry on the website). The entry that gets the most number of votes online will win the competition and will bring home a trophy and a cash prize of P20,000.  

3. Deadline for entries to my blog contest: July 15, 2010

4. For my blog contest, there will be 3 winners chosen by me. My blog winners will win tough jobs T-shirts, cellphone cleaners and Alaxan FR’s sample packs. 

5. Winners can claim their prizes at GeiserMaclang Office – 6F Cambridge Center Building, 108 Tordesillas cor Gallardo Streets, Salcedo Village, Makati City.

Alaxan FR contains Ibuprofen (200mg) and Paracetamol (325mg), two of the most widely used and trusted pain relievers by doctors worldwide. It is used for the relief of mild to moderately severe pain of musculoskeletal origin such as myalgia, arthritis, rheumatism, sprain, strain, bursitis, tendonitis, backache and stiff neck, as well as tension headache, dysmenorrhea, toothache and pain after tooth extraction and minor surgical operations and for the reduction of fever. Alaxan FR is available at leading drugstores and supermarkets.


UPDATE:


Here are my winners for Alaxan FR gift packs:

1. May Ann Saturno - her description of her job as transcriptionist-editor really tugged at my heart. I agree that it's a very tough job to have.

2. Jennifer Aspacio - 12 blogs? No yaya? Homeschooling teacher? Waaaahhhh, that's tough!

3. Julie Fuertes - dealing with kids can be a handful. Julie's work with special education children is a challenge! Plus, she has all this online work on top of having no househelp. Makes my life look like a breeze.

Congrats Ann, Jennie and Julie. I'll be emailing you soon. Please note though that the promo was extended to Aug. 15, 2010 AFTER I had closed the contest. So please be patient because your prizes will be available beginning Aug. 15 only.

TGI Friday's Shareable Platters & Party Pitchers

Friends and family, there is more reason now to visit TGI Friday's and spend wonderful bonding time without racking up a fortune in food bills. They now have platters that are completely shareable, with party pitchers to boot, good for 3-4 persons! And take it from me and my friend, Chats, who were lucky enough to sit down to taste test these platters, they are scrumptious!

Chats and I, after a yummy TGIF dinner

The night we ate there, we got to try two of their platters: the Triple Chicken Sampler and the Seafood Platter.

Triple Chicken Sampler (Buffalo wings complete with celery sticks and bleu cheese dressing; Sesame Jack Chicken strips with Jack Daniel's sauce and Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Quesadillas drizzled with balsamic glaze and served with marinara sauce). Cost: P925

Seafood Platter (crispy medley of fresh Calamari, deep fried white Fish Fillet and crispy jumbo Shrimp, served with Friday's signature sauces of Southwestern sour cream, cocktail sauce and tartar sauce. Cost: P945

Of course, our meal came with one of their party pitchers, the Strawberry Lemonade Slush, which is probably good for 4 people - just right for a barkada meet-up. Cost: P345

The other platters that I am bent on trying next time I'm there are:

Filipino Platter - Friday's famous Filipino Pork Liempo basted with sweet and sour sauce, Pork Adobo and Slow Roasted Half Chicken all in one platter and served with Friday's ensalada. Cost: P1,225

Friday's Three for All - features a trio of Friday's most famous appetizers: Loaded Potato Skins, Fried Mozzarella and spicy Buffalo Wings, complete with sour cream and green onions, marinara sauce, and celery sticks with Bleu Cheese dressing.

Jack Daniel's Sampler - crispy golden-fried shrimps, juice Sesame Jack Chicken Strips and tender baby back pork ribs with the mouthwatering Jack Daniel's sauce. Cost: P1,285

And if you purchase a shareable platter from 5pm onwards, your pitcher is on TGI Fridays - FREE!

Blue Water Day Spa Debuts in Tomas Morato

I love spas. After my yoga practice, I sometimes feel long neglected muscles come alive (read my lips: sore muscles). A body massage does the job to take away the aches and pains, soothe and detox the body. Or after a long day away from home attending blogger events or running errands as a busy mom, it just feels so good to settle down to a great foot massage.

Today, Blue Water Day Spa opens its doors in Tomas Morato. It's the second Blue Water spa that comes with a spa theater. The first one, along Ortigas Ave., could seat over 20 people in the theater. This one in Tomas Morato seats 16.

I got a personalized tour when I arrived there. We started out with the rooms. They have couple rooms where you can have a body massage or scrub. It has its own bathroom and changing area so that you need not leave the room to wash and change.

For simple body massages, there is a room each for ladies and men, tastefully decorated too to calm the spirit.

(Ladies' massage room)

(Men's massage room)

The theater area is cozy enough to hold intimate spa parties. Families and good friends would love the pampering while watching a good movie together. I got a good back massage while in a lazy boy chair and that was a very relaxing experience while a movie was being shown.

Today, they had a demo of the Tibetan Meridian Fire Therapy (a 45-minute treatment that starts with hard massage, setting fire to the area that needs slimming down, then another hard massage round). Setting you on fire is safe, mind you, as in the picture below, because they saran wrap you first, then wrap the area in towels before lighting up. It is a slimming massage that also eliminates excess fat cells, water and toxins in the body.

(That's the abdomen of the "guinea pig" set on fire. He actually lost some centimeters after the treatment.)

Will I try it? Uhhhhmmmm, not sure. But I will definitely try the traditional Filipino massage (hilot) that they are offering. I love hilot because it brings out the trapped air in muscles which cause pain. I have some achy muscles right now that need ironing out. The Brazilian Crystal Massage looks good too!

Aside from massages, Blue Water Day Spa offers body scrubs, foot treatments, facial skin care treatments, waxing hair removal and spa packages.

Visit Blue Water Day Spa's newest location at 238 Sct. Bayoran, Tomas Morato, Quezon City. They are open Mon-Sun from 1pm-12mn. Tel 486-5584 or mobile 0923-718-7101.