A Man of Surprises

A few weeks before our wedding anniversary, I've been telling Mark not to get me anything fancy or anything at all for that matter. The move is getting closer and with PCS comes a great deal of expenses along the way. So I told him a simple dinner with him and Chlo is more than enough to celebrate and be thankful for. He agreed and said he'll take us out to dinner to my favorite restaurant.

And so came the day of our anniversary. I woke up wondering where he was for he was not in bed and it's still so early. I was about to get up and look for him when he came in and said "Good morning, baby! Breakfast is ready!" This would have not been that big of a surprise because he's been doing it even on ordinary days just to make me feel special. But that day, it was planned that I'll be the one making a good breakfast for him. And when we went downstairs a beautiful arrangement of my favorite flowers is waiting for me along with my favorite omelet, spam and a good cup of coffee :)

I was really looking forward to our dinner date that night. We were about to leave when he said he's not taking me to The Cheesecake Factory. And I said, "Huh?" with a puzzled look. He smiled and said that he's taking us to The Melting Pot and it's a beautiful, romantic place. 

Romantic indeed. We were warmly welcomed when we got there. They greeted us "Happy Anniversary!" and made us feel very special even when we were just waiting for our table. The manager even went to us and congratulated us for four wonderful years of marriage. I thought this is a very nice place! Our table was ready in no time. I was in awe as I walk towards our table for even from a few feet away, I saw the red roses, the card, the sumptuous chocolate-covered strawberries, and a fine-looking bottle of champagne. I looked at him and he gave me that smile. I wanted to hug him, and kiss him, and cry tears of joy, and say thank you. But I smiled and thank him for being a wonderful husband and father. 

Dinner was really great. The cheese fondue and Pacific Rim entree are delectable. And the s'mores chocolate fondue and the champagne are to die for! We had a very lovely evening. And Chlo's very well-behaved the whole three hours we were there. Everything is just wonderful. Perfect. I'm so blessed. Four amazing years of being married to my best friend, my soulmate, and the love of my life. 

Here are a few photos from that lovely night. 

-xo

- C ♥

The Abrupt Hiatus | The Move | Leave Period

"I know. I know. It's been a while. Okay, a long while..."

The past few weeks has been a little crazier than usual and at the end of each day I find myself dozing off the moment Chlo falls asleep. The move, paperworks, and my husband's leave period has taken it's toll on my blog and I apologize for the abrupt hiatus. And with everything that's going on in the household right now, I'll do my best to post on this blog at least once a week. :)

THE MOVE.  Permanent Change of Station (PCS). Yes. It is happening. As serious at it sounds, it is scary just thinking about moving to a new state, leaving all our families and friends behind; starting from scratch again. This move is getting closer and closer everyday. Faster than I ever imagined, if that's even possible. But on a lighter note, I am excited as well. I wouldn't mind a tabula rasa. A blank slate, a fresh start. And I think I'm up for that.

Mark got new orders, he'll be stationed in IL and we're going with him. Basically that's what's been keeping us busy the past few weeks, on top of the everyday grind of running the house, looking after Chlo, and hustling to make it to all our appointments. Plus all the other to-do's that we want to accomplish before the big move (and before our vacay trip to PI on Christmas, hopefully). We also started putting away most of our things into boxes, sorted out the garage, and threw out the things we've been keeping that are basically just trash. We take it a day at a time. And I'm so happy with what we have accomplished so far. It's amazing how most of the past four years of our life here are now boxed up in the garage. 

Chlo and I also got to spend a lot of time with her dad. Before their ship's 10-month deployment  (I am so relieved that my husband is not going), he got a 2-week leave period and once every 3 days duty after that. We went to our favorite spots here in San Diego that I'm certain I will miss. We went mostly to the beaches where we just hang around, soaked under Cali sun, and ran on the warm sand with Chlo. He also treated us to a little shopping spree, lunch out. And how can I forget about our quick trip to Mercato where we had a lovely bruch. Now I'm very tanned, but I don't mind at all. Because those two weeks were priceless. :)

- xo


LA JOLLA COVE

MERCATO

LAS AMERICAS PREMIUM OUTLETS

CORONADO LANDING PARK

- C ♥

Come on! Come on! Camaron! :)

It has been just me, Mark, Chlo, and mommy Lizelle at home for the past few months. So a few days ago, we had a couple of veggie dishes for left overs. I looked in the fridge and I saw a bag of shrimp. I though of how I wanted to prepare those shrimp to pair with our left over veggies and the first thing that popped in my mind was camaron rebusado. Yum! :)

I am allergic to shrimp. But it was just so good that I still have to eat it and just endure the itching-all-over drama later on. Eventually over the years, the itching doesn't quite bother me as much as it used to so yay for me! :) And in those rare times that it does, I just eat something sweet or drink a glass of milk and they do wonders! 

I got this recipe from Panlasang Pinoy, which is one of my go-to sites in times my husband and I, have no clue on what we want for dinner. Or even in those times I'm craving for a certain Filipino dish that I can't find a decent version here in Daygo. I love how he explains everything in the procedure and how easy it is to follow his recipes. And every recipe has a video of the cooking procedure; perfect for those who are learning the ropes in the kitchen like me. :)

So here's the recipe of Camaron Rebusado from Panlasang Pinoy. Enjoy! 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 piece lemon
• 8 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 pieces raw eggs 
• 1 tbsp fresh milk
• cooking oil for deep frying

Procedure: 

Marinate the shrimp in lemon juice for at least 30 minutes.

Combine flour, cornstarch and salt in a mixing bowl then mix them well. Add the eggs and milk with the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.

Heat the oil in a pan. In my case, I used my mom-in-law's fry daddy. Once the oil is hot enough, dip the shrimp in the batter, leaving the tail uncovered. 

Deep-fry shrimp until the color turns dark yellow and the texture becomes crispy. 

Wooooohoooo! Fry Daddy! Haha! 

Remove from the oil and place on a plate with a paper towel to remove excess oil. Serve them with sweet and sour sauce. I used sweet chili Thai sauce. Yum! :)

Yum!

- C ♥

Red ☆ White ☆ Blue

Been a little MIA here the past few days and I thought what a better way to blog again than to post photos of Chloe in her cutie 4th of July outfit! :)

It's her second 4th of July celebration and on that day she also turned 14 months. Oh how time flies! It's amazing how everyday she blows me away with the things she know and does. At the end of the day, as I watch her sleep and come to think of it, I still can't believe that I have a toddler. A toddler! A very beautiful and smart one! I am very thankful to God for being blessed with a daughter like Chloe. 

We celebrated the 4th at home as all the beaches and the parks are very crowded. Plus I just can't stand the heat and humidity; just a few minutes under the fiercest rays of the sun and I'm crippled with a terrible migraine! That day we had the usual grill-roasted steak and grilled corn that is so fresh and unbelievably delicious! I've always had steamed corn my whole life! So my very first bite of grilled corn was exquisitely delightful! It was sooooooo good! 

I took Chlo outside to take pictures with my mini USA flag that I got from the Oath Taking Ceremony. There, we met our new neighbors Gabby and her son, Eli, who just moved from L.A. Eli is such a darling! 

It's Saturday night, just a couple more hours before midnight and it's so hard to believe that it's 79°F high! So before I faint in this heat, here goes my Chlo's 4th of July photo diary. 

Happy 4th, folks! 

- C ♥