Today is Lito's Birthday and our Wedding Anniversary. This year we wanted to try celebrating birthdays differently. Or let's say, I got tired of preparing and cooking the food :) Anyway, I got good deals from Black Friday Sales and was able to score the lowest priced dinner vouchers to Medieval Times. Can you imagine the regular price for an adult is from $ 65.00 /person? I will not disclose how much my deal was but it was not the same price :) Anyway, since we ate at Mandarin for Sharyn's Birthday, and will play at Trampoline parks for Aloysius birthday, I got to have a special dinner for my knight and it was a memorable event.
First, it was the first big snowfall day in Toronto so we were so excited to see the snow again. then we were one of the first to arrive. With the deal voucher or not, the seats are on a first come, first served basis and we are so lucky to get the seats right after the VIP row, as in second row.
The kids got excited when the doors opened and a man in costume started to welcome guests and gave instructions. We were one of the firsts few in line, it was a breeze getting thru the ticket line because we had our tickets saved in the wallet of my iPhone and they just scan all the codes. Then we were "crowned" with our own Medieval times paper crowns by the gorgeous servant ladies. :) then we had our official photo taken with the princess before proceeding to the lobby where the goodies and shops are located. There was an area where you can see the horses. we were asked to wait and we used that time to have our photos taken in the castle.
After our colors were called, we then proceeded to the arena and we were seated very close to the front. Plates from the olden times were in front of us and Lex asked me why there are no forks and knives and I said, we are going to eat the same was as the olden times - by hand. The show started after the introduction of the King and the Princess and all the knight's joining the joust. My kids were very excited joining the crowd cheering for our knight and I found myself doing the same. The atmosphere got more excited as the different games came on and we were shouting loudest when our knight almost won the competition. The photos show how great this night was and the knights were.
There were many knights but My knight in shining armor is of course the star of the night. Happy Birthday to my best friend and partner in life.
I would say...Lito! But he did exchange the vows with me in celebration of our 15th wedding anniversary and my 47th birthday. It was an awesome day, the Lord has made! God must have love us so much that rains only started pouring before and after the ceremony and photo shoot. Our renewal of vows was held a day before my birthday at the gardens of The Peninsula Inn and Resort in Niagara Falls, Ontario. It was an intimate affair as family and close friends were present to witness this event.
This second time of getting married was more meaningful as our kids joined us in the ceremony. The 3-cord symbolism that Reverend Peter Goodrich of the Niagara Falls Wedding World explained made an impact as we really need God to be the third party in our marriage - the cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Here are some of the photos from the event: (Thank You Bro. Arneil Fabia of SCM)
My Groom
Our children joining us during the blessing.
Sealed with a kiss
Because I was a member of Weddings at Work the first time I got married (Side Note: It was Benz and Abet Rana who gave me an idea when they did their 15th in Las Vegas), I will share some good and need improvement evaluation of the hotel and the Niagara Falls Wedding World services as part of our post-wedding duties for the other couples to take note or learn from.
1. The Peninsula Inn and Resort (www.peninsulainn.com) - Ms. Jessica Sanchez was easy to deal with. We made all transactions online and since I was from Toronto and I couldn't go to Niagara frequently, she made it a point that all my requests are granted - from the color theme, music to the design of our paddle fans souvenirs. Our rooms were perfect and we got a good deal since this is summer season where other hotels have sky-rocketing rates. One thing that was missed - there was no one (waiter) to inform the guests that there are cold bottled water and refreshments available to keep them cool while waiting for the ceremony to start. Good thing, it was not too hot that day. Also, great location, lots of areas to use for picture taking, free parking for our guests. Most importantly, very near our Reception location - Mandarin Restaurant at Niagara Square.
2. Niagara Falls Wedding World (www.niagarafallsweddingworld.com) - Same with Jessica, I communicated with Nicole Gibson and Rev. Loretta through email and phone only. I was able to meet them only when we were about to start the ceremony. They were helpful in getting our 3-cord props ready - providing the different colored ribbon to highlight God's presence in marriage. They also gave clear instructions to my children and their part in the ceremony and also sending and making revisions to the program to amend my requests. There were two important things that need improvement - the sound system and the declaration of our vows. The ceremony is a very meaningful one and I would have loved my guests to hear everything Rev. Peter said from the readings, to the Cord and Ring ceremonies to the blessing. Lito and I would also like to say our own vows instead of repeating after Rev. Peter. We wrote our own vows and it would have been more felt (or dramatic) if we declared it ourselves. Well, maybe next time, I will request for that.
The Vows
I, LITO publicly re-commit myself to love and serve you, to accept, forgive, honor and pray for you and to be faithful to you as long as we both shall live. I am making this commitment before God, family and friends today and so help me God.
I, IRMEE take you my dearest, as my husband, friend and love. All that I am I share with you. I promise to love and cherish you, to help you in good times and bad, to respect our individuality, to make our home one of love and understanding. I give you all my trust, all of my tomorrows, all of my life. I declare this vow in the name of our Lord Christ, so help me God.
I will post more pictures and reception account soon.
Thank you to all who attended and shared their prayers and well wishes.
We are celebrating our 16th Civil wedding anniversary on valentines day. Today we attended the SCM Valentines and Family Party. We enjoyed posing at the photobooth and here are our best poses:
Of course, this would not have been possible if not for Bro. Arneil Fabia. Thanks Brod! Here's our family photo:
Love is from God. Thank you Lord for the unconditional love, for loving us first and for loving us so much....(John 3:16)
Our dear friend and the second mom to my children got married today. It's a festive atmosphere and we are all looking good. My kids are wearing formal attire. Here are some of our pictures: The wedding reception was fun. Aloysius was also formal during dinner, he liked the food and even tried the champagne and the red wine. He was acting like a little grown up, listening to the speeches and watching intently at the performers. I'm so proud of my first born in his first formal event.
To the new Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Francis Calaguas - Welcome to the complicated and challenging world of marriage. May God be with you always :)
As soon as we found out that Henry and family will go to Brampton to do some apple picking, we got excited. We attended a morning service at The Queensway Church, had a short tour at Ikea then headed to Carl Laidlaw Orchards for our early fall adventure - Apple Picking. Our tour guide Ray chose Carl Laidlaw Orchards because of the attractions for the kids. They were tasting wagon, a hay barn, a barn beam walk, a grainery and a labyrinth. The kids had fun at these attractions. But it was only icing on the cake. The real fun is seeing the apple trees and picking the apples and of course, eating all the apples our tummys can hold.
We were all smiles when we boarded the wagon going to the picking area but the kids were screaming Epic Apples when we came to a spot where the trees were full of red apples. I believe those were Royal Gala, my kids favorite so we started munching on them as we move from tree to tree. Even Lex picked his own apple and ate them.
My kids are Cars fans. I remember Cars was the first movie that Aloysius watched in theater. Kyle became a fan too and started collecting everything that is Lightning Mcqueen. Lex has watched the movie with his brothers a million times and until now they can't get enough.
Last Friday morning, they were shrieking when they saw Mater on Breakfast TV and I was intrigued to find out what they were excited about. I too became excited when I saw Mater and Lightning McQueen on TV especially when the newscaster announced that they will be on display at Vaughan Mills Mall this weekend for a closer look and photo opportunities. The Disney Cars 2: Agents on a Mission is the latest movie showing this summer and they are starting to promote it. I can see that this is going to be another big hit as there was already a long queue when we arrived at the Nascar Speedcar entrance to the mall.
We were parked in front of Statefarm's (the sponsor for this event) own version of Mack and we got excited we forgot to bring the stroller, hahaha. It was fun seeing them up close and although we didn't have our pictures with each one of them. The long queue leads to the Disney official photographer and if we lined up it would take us another hour before we have our pictures taken. We just used our own camera, saves time and money :) Here are our video and photos of Lightning Mcqueen, Mater and Finn McMissile:
Winter is almost over but we made it our most memorable one when we hit the road leading to Barrie's Ski Snow Valley. It was a thrilling (and mostly painful) experience. We looked forward to this March Break ski trip and we were not disappointed especially the kids who enjoyed the most. We left Etobicoke a little past 7:00 and arrived there around 8:17 am. We immediately proceeded to the ticket booths as more cars started to arrived. The first lessons started at 9:30 am but since we are first-timers we needed to have time to familiarize ourselves with the gears that we are going to use. Before paying for the tickets, we filled up forms for the rental of the equipment - ski, boots, helmet and poles. The crew assisted and taught us how to wear the boots and helmet. The boots are really heavy, it felt like walking with a bowling ball on your feet and walking on the moon. Only Lito, Miggy and I were given the gears because Kyle and Lex sizes were only available at the Kid's Village. Holding our 3 kids and the gears, we reluctantly proceeded to the waiting area. You can just imagine how we looked like as first timers gliding in the snow on the way to Kids Village. After paying for the Kids Ski and Play package for my preschoolers, I left them in the care of their instructors who will be with them one on one.
It took us 30 minutes (and 2 falls) to reach the waiting area. The instructor said we already missed the 9:30 class and advised us to wait for the 11:00 class. In between those, we had some picture-taking and tested our ski in the beginners area. The lessons had not even started but our bodies are already aching from the falls hahaha. We met our companions Randy, Gina and their kids already set up for the class. Lito then decided to just stay and wait for the kids who were about to finish at 12:00. If he took that class, no one would fetch the kids. It's a good thing too because he had a chance to witness how they did in their first skiing lessons.
Miggy and I together with Randy, Gina and Hannah took the Discover Skiing 1 with mostly kids in our class. We learned the right position, how to attach and remove the ski, how to slow down, break and do the turns and how to stand up when you fall down - the last one I mastered very well from the hard falls I experienced. I joined that class not only to experience how it is to ski but most importantly, to be on the look out for Miggy. But it seems that he doesn't need his slow-learner mom to learn and enjoy this sport. In fact, he learned faster and I think he only fell once when we were trying on the ski before the class started. He is very good for a first timer. The instructor who noticed that I always fall focused on me and was like a personal trainer to me until I went down the lowest hill without falling. She told me that my son is going to the medium hill (a steeper one) with other 3 kids who were able to do the skills from the beginner lessons. If I want to be with him, I should be able to do the skills myself. But by the time I was able to do all of them, I was already too tired and scared to try the next hill. Gina and I just finished the 75 minutes in the smallest hill. After seeing Gina's kids from the snowboarding class, we were relieved that this is over. From the ticket that we got, we should be practicing what we learned in the different hills but just looking at the lift going up, I could not even move my feet so we decided to call it quits and headed to the Picnic area to have our lunch. There we met Lito and the 2 kids from their class. From the looks on their faces, they must have enjoyed the lessons and I was right. Here are some of the videos and photos from this first (and hopefully not the last) ski trip our family had.
Kyle is in blue jacket.
Thank God that we enjoyed this day. I will share the tips on skiing and part 2 of our adventure later.
and many others I couldn't remember at this time. Anyway, I want to thank those people who have been a part of our lives, those who have touched and made an impact in our lives, and those who share with us the joys and events of the past years and the years to come. Thank God for all of you.
More blessings and answers to BHAP (Big, Hairy, Audacious Prayers) in the coming year.
We were celebrating Christmas in New York City with Irvin and Faye when a blizzard came. We have been in Canada for 16 months but we haven't experienced such a snow storm. Still the kids enjoyed playing in the snow.
A Child Dedication is a ceremony in which believing parents, and sometimes entire families make a commitment before the Lord to submit a child to God's will and to raise that child according to God's word and God's ways.
We spent my special day at Centreville, Toronto Island Park. We took the subway then took the ferry to go to Centre Island. The kids had a good time while we're on the ferry and as soon as the ferry docked, they were running to and fro the park. We were among the first to arrive, there are no lines yet even in the rides. We lingered in the kid's area. I took Lex to the Ferris Wheel and at first, he was enjoying it but he cried when it was time to unload the riders because he doesn't want it to stop. He enjoyed the other rides like the Carousel, Disney Train and Barrel. Miggy enjoyed the Sky Ride - a cable car ride, he took it twice with me and with his dad. Kyle got scared in the Dragon monster rollercoaster ride, after that he didn't want to try any more rides. I enjoyed the day, seeing my kids' faces in amusement is my best birthday gift. Of course, the pictures that my husband took to document this special day is precious; costs more than any gift I can receive. Later, we went to the beach and had a picnic there. It was a good time to relax with the cool breeze and the sun already hiding from the clouds. The kids liked running after the birds on the grassy field. I loved the view and the fresh air, it was a different birthday celebration.
Today is Lito's Birthday and our Wedding Anniversary. This year we wanted to try celebrating birthdays differently. Or let's say, I got tired of preparing and cooking the food :) Anyway, I got good deals from Black Friday Sales and was able to score the lowest priced dinner vouchers to Medieval Times. Can you imagine the regular price for an adult is from $ 65.00 /person? I will not disclose how much my deal was but it was not the same price :) Anyway, since we ate at Mandarin for Sharyn's Birthday, and will play at Trampoline parks for Aloysius birthday, I got to have a special dinner for my knight and it was a memorable event.
