Picture below is a bowl of pompano fish soup with lots of vegetables which apparently you can see it in the middle. The one in the right side fish is the pompano, a kind of fish which is so yummy-delicious for soup. My first time for this fish as made into soup. I am glad my friend P introduced this fish to me and I declare as so delicious for this kind of fish recipe. To go with the fish meat, on the left side is a non-fat brown and white rice {yes, I mixed it. You would surprise how tasty it is when you try it. Try it to taste for yourself. :-) }

Yes, four days ago I had my "Forever 25" birthday. I just hide my age in that phrase in quotation mark as you read. Ha! And now, it is my baby love daughter's month day. And minutes from now, I have to get ready to leave to go to church with my friend Te Claudia, whom was not present in my after-day birthday (a day after my birthday) celebration with my friends. My family's celebration was on the day of my natal day. Me and my two friends (one with her family, much thankful she has with them which made it more) were present in one restaurant, Sizzler. I love the idea of being in a serenade. Ha! My first time being serenaded during my birthday. It made my day! The waiters and waitress along with my friends sang along and I was just smiling all the way. I can't thank them  more for making it a very happy one. We're just few but very happy. I think I can share you the video which my friend A took. Next time. For now, I have to go on the next round so I can already prepare to go to church, my friend C would have waiting for us with my daughter. Bye for now. Thanks for being here.

Soaking your body in warm water can make your muscles relax and relieve you of the muscle and joint pains that you are feeling. You can also relieve your body of the stress that a busy day at work brings. There are even some simple exercises that you can do while in your hot tub that can help improve muscle tone. The many health benefits of hot tub spas have encouraged people to invest in their own hot tub at home. If you have a hot tub at home, it is important that you invest in the proper accessories such as a hot tub spa cover. You can purchase them from reliable retailers. Spa covers uses the latest technology that gives them more advance features that regular spa covers. Spa covers give the hot tub spa protection against direct sunlight and other elements such as rain water and other debris. It provide excellent protection to your hot tubs. They do not saturate or break easily and are made from top of the line materials that stay lightweight thereby providing your hot tub with the high level of protection it needs. Enjoy your pamper thru soaking journey! :-)

Inspired by a co-blogger friend MommyLu on her testimony about her diabetes and what to eat and what not thing. It came to my mind of why not try the brown rice to which DH insisted me before. This time I am serious, I already bought Uncle Beans" and yesterday I bought two bags of 10 pounds weight each for future consumption so it will be straight strict brown rice diet. DH is happy of my decision. Aside from it is cheaper than the white rice Jasmine in a yellow bag, it is healthy for the health. If I eat rice, he also eats it. So it is a double shot.

Now brown rice, here I come! Get ready as I am on diet! :-)

Two days ago, I had a friends get-together for the four of us, here in our place. We had it specifically in downtown. We had food trip and of course, the laugh trip. Ha! It is a great moment. The first time being together for the four of us, after more than six months. My second time went-out without my infant with me. And so, the highlight of the food trip was eating in "The Boiling Crab" restaurant, my first time.

The mild cajun dungeness flavor of the shrimps, taste really great! You would forgot that you are in the restaurant. Well, all the people there have their plastic bibs because it is a shell seafood restaurant. So, it is not a shy moment since all eats that way.
And because I cannot get over with the shrimps, I order a pound weight the next day! I eat it in the house with a little share for my DH (he don't like shrimps much). Yay! Happy me! :-)

Having friends, is one of the most precious in our lives. They are next to our family. Yes, it is to me.

Today is the last day of March, I did not matter it. I even did not noticed that tomorrow is already the start day of April. I had fun with my friends here in my place. We are four, the first time we're complete of going out (Friend P is always not with us), and first time of how many months the four of us together wayback when I was still pregnant, that is more than six months ago. This month has been good to me (despite of being hard having an infant, ha!). Much better because my friend Au with her family was here in the middle of last week.

It has been weeks Friends P and A along with me planned this, and this day just came. Hooray too because Friend D was with us with her two kiddos. What a together-again friends getaway. We had "siopao" and ate in "The Boiling Crab", my first time eating in the resto crab place and it is really good, much more because we had a great chitchat and a reunited moment of the four of us, the mommies in the block. :-)

All in all, it is a great, great day! I hope yours too! How was your day, by the way?

For a gathering (either big or small) and it is for one person at a time, it could call as a "pot luck" but because it is just exchanging foods to each other, I call it as exchanging food(s).  I miss it in a province or even in a city, where a close neighbor will just give and take each other. What a close neighbor cooks give to her close neighbor and vice-versa. It would be fair that way. Ha ha! Oops, it is just a sign of kindness and trust each other, you know. Friendship is a blessing and I believe exchanging food(s) is one way of bonding.

Lately (we have done this for quite long time already), a not-so-close place of neighborhood of mine did an exchanging of foods. I actually did not expect Te Claudine have something for me too. I just want to share my cooked maja blanca and nothing else. I don't expect return either. Her goodness is already fine with me. But then as unexpected she had my favorite cooked vegetables in coconut milk (also known as "ginataang-gulay" in Filipino foods) with pieces of sweet strawberry as well as raw bitter melon. I had bitter melon but don't want to spoil the moment, so I just take it. I miss it this way from my birth country, Philippines. I can now sense the essence of neighborhood (though we are not that so close-by) and friendship which makes me feel better here in the place where I am now. 

What about you, do you like the idea of exchanging favorite foods on your close neighbor or friends?

I have a lot of pictures here around in Los Angeles County taken way back years ago, well, not beyond four years. I was just reminiscing about it. The journey with my friend Au and sometimes with her husband and just anything around here in the city where I live. I wonder where I put it, alright, I remember it was gone. I accidentally deleted, not a good step but then accident happens for no particular time and reason. Next time, I have to be extra careful especially memories that cannot be easily back, or cannot be back at all. Also I can blame it friendster social networking site a bit because of the virus I got in there. It just that it slows down my PC and then I clicked on something without my knowing. I was running out of time and I had to checked something but then, bang! That's it! Some folks also are annoying. Then I just deleted my friendster thing just to clear-up my troubled mind. Haler! Now, my pictures saved from such were tiny. And the pictures saved on my memory card were already deleted. I am still hoping I can recover most of it. My friend has such most but she's so very busy as of now. I'll just wait for the right time.

I might guess what you have in mind, yes, you bet those were our (DH&I) foodies lately. And yeah, I cooked early in the morning for that boney beef soup (or "nilagang-baka" in Filipino primary language *Tagalog*) and spicy chicken stew ( or "halang-halang" in Filipino bisaya dialect). I had an energy cooking it despite I asleep at 2:00 A.M. last night (my body clock extends the dawn time to about-afternoon). DH prepared to work at 5:00 A.M. and I also wake-up when he does because I have to iron his upper clothes. But usually no ironing for me during Thursdays because he will just wear a long-sleeved GIS work shirt, and that already hanged good from dryer which no need to iron. That saves electricity and energy. :-) And so what I did was then cooked and those were it along with rice and began to clean the house slightly. :-) After my awesome breakfast, relax a bit, stand and walk. Then after that, a journey of checking emails. Sleeping was the next thing happened. My friend, Ate Claudia visited me and brought fruits and stuffs. That made me smiled, complete morning! I let her brought some of my spicy chicken stew fresh from my kitchen and the rest of such was my husband's dinner along with the beefy ground chili and beans viand with rice. My kitchen journey was great! I was not able to take pics, next time.

What about you, how's yours?

This picture was taken by my friend, Analou's husband. Thanks by the way for this image as I can share it to you the pigged-out we had in my friend Chelle's house last July 10th. Sure, it is great to have a whole roasted pig (Filipino party specialty and one of the important foods in every occasion when talking about Pinoy party) on the table together with the other foods (of course). Before, I really thought I could never eat this food anymore. Well, until I found my friends. It is really a good journey when precious friend are there along the way, isn't it? Knowing that my place is more of a Chinese community that's why I thought of such but then social network, telecommunication and Internet does miracle unlike the ole days. After that time, I was not able to do my do-it-your own other cooking recipe than pork as the main ingredient because I have the roasted pork "bring-home" to which I cooked through vinegar and soy sauce together with spices like garlic, black pepper leaf, black pepper seeds (to which DH don't like me to put unto it when it is whole, it is hassle for him to get it, *grin* . If it is crushed black pepper seeds, it's fine) and a little of water. Remember not to mix the laddle mix the ingredients when putting up vinegar, not until the vinegar already boiled. I got this tip from Panlasang Pinoy website and it works for me. My friend Chona by the way told me the easy way how to cook "paksiw" or the vinegar and soy sauce recipe. Thanks to Chelle for inviting me and to all the good friends as well as new friends. :-)

Am a bit of party whore. Ha! Okay, these days I am but not the older days. The baby-in-my-tummy likes to go parties, likes crowds. Ooh yeah, likes in front of many people as mommy said. :-) When I was young, I don't like attending such, I avoid parties though I like mingling people but party is not on my calendar, young-vocabulary or such. But then it changed when I got pregnant. Am always alive when I have invitations even if DH could not come, I insist going alone (okay with friend or friends, oops! even just me!). I don't know where I got my energy but I love it! 

Last Sunday, I had my self-proclaimed statement to my husband, yes a bit of promise that this would be my last party attendance. Teehee! It's not that I don't like anymore but husband and my doctor advised me not to be in crowd because a pregnant woman has a weak immune system and it will affect a child-in-my-tummy whatever will happen to me. Alright, am such a bit of stubborn. What can I do, I have awesome and lovely friends whom I want to be with. And yes, I had attend an awesome first birthday of baby Julianna, Chelle's only daughter (for now *wink*). And she has awesome friends too whom I met when I was there. I have friends as well that made me enjoyed much. Though we haven't been swimming in their pool and sang a song (karaoke) but it's fine, we enjoyed anyway. Thanks to my friend Chelle and her husband Bill for inviting me on their child's First Birthday. Meet and greet and the pigging-out was successful especially that a whole roasted pig and a lotta foods were served, ha! Thanks guys! To Analou and Dennis, thanks for the ride! God bless! (By the way, DH thought I was just going to Airlane Ave, Los Angeles only he find out when I was home that it was in Lake Elsinore, ha! But I was safe and sound and he permitted me so that was no big deal. What a brave prego me, huh! *wink* Ah, pregnancy journey. :-) )

Above is the group and left below is the family of the celebrant, Au. Then Dorie and I on the right.

My very first friend in the place where I resides now was having her birthday on the first day of June. We have the same birth country and of course, time varies here in USA and when it's June 1st already there, it's not yet here. Technically, she celebrated twice. *wink* And Dorie and I surprised to visit her during her Philippines time birthday, which is May 31st here. She was happy on our visit and that's what really counts. She's a treasured friend and am happy seeing her happy. Along with our visit was my birthday lovely fresh flowers, ice cream cake and a birthday card. The cake wasn't personalized as I wanted but it's fine. Haven't had my birthday gift as I used to give but that made her so I am also happy. We had fun. She brought us to Maxx Restaurant, strolling, chikkas and etcetera. We were with her only daughter, Dorie and I. Her husband wasn't able to come but he was there when we arrived and he's happy and grateful. He is cool. Some of my friends too wasn't able to come but then it's fine, maybe they can make it next time. All in all, it was a fun birthday celebration of her. She did not think I can remember her birthday but I always will. Thanks by the way to Dorie and her husband by the way for the transportation and for getting me the ice cream cake near her resident. It was a rush event. *wink*)

Above were our pics outside the resto. At left with Dorie and Celyn and at right, me with the birthday celebrant with her daughter. Below are my faces inside the resto of Maxx Restaurant in West Covina, Los Angeles, was about six months pregnant.

Happy birthday again Au. muahhhhugs!