17 awesome things about 2017

2017 started out really great for me and ended on an even bigger note. There were so many things I ventured on and so many learnings from different things. However, there were just a few things that really stood out for me so here are 17 awesome things about 2017 in no particular order.

1. Ngo Family Hong Kong Vacation. It was our first out of the country family vacation and it was definitely memorable!

2. Cloudfone is AWESOME event. I got to ride a helicopter and race in expensive sports car all in one day. It really was awesome and once in a lifetime kind of event. 

3. Influence Asia in Malaysia. This was my first time in Malaysia and it was such a blessing to be able to travel to a different country. For me, it always will be. 

4. The ASUS Max Challenge with Jeron Teng. WE WON! 

5. 3rd guesting with Poptalk and this time, we went to different resorts! My first was a food trip, the second was a spa review, and now it was all about resorts. Life is good. 

6. Getting my very own Zenbook. I mean, just look at that beauty. 

7. Renewed as Spotify Influencer. This was my 2nd year. Thank you to Sunita and the Spotify team for trusting me again. 

8. I conquered Cavinti and saw my first twin waterfalls, the Sumucob Twin Waterfalls. 

9. My son has always been consistent with his school work. He is simply amazing. 

10. I was part of the first group to experience and post about Inflatable Island. It was pretty amazing and really fun! 

11. I won a trip on a cruise from Star Virgo care of Eye Society and was able to go back to Laoag and Hong Kong then visited Taiwan for the first time in my life. 

12. Ford took me on a differend kind of race, one that I don't think I can ever do again but it was definitely an experience. 

13.  I visited Kota Kinabalu, lost someone I thought was a friend, and found myself again. 

14. Church in Molo, Iloilo. I went inside this church and did a quick prayer. The story is that the patron saint of this place grants women their forever love if they ask sincerely which I did. 3 days later, I met Mark. This was also the time that ASUS had us work with them for Operation Smile which is one of their best projects to date. I also got to spend time with Patty which is always awesome. 

16. I went to Singapore for the first time in my life to cover an event and ended up spending quality time with my brothers. It was also there that I met Mark. I never knew he would become part of my life and why I will believe in love and forever once more. Thanks for coming into my life. 

17. My son. He will always be a reason why a year is awesome. 

PS. 18th would be friendships formed and retained but that's going to be an entirely different list altogether. Looking back, 2017 was all about travel and experiencing what life has to offer. It also threw me a curveball named Mark which rattled my world in a good way. 

Thank you 2017. There was one painful part that had to happen but I will always be grateful for that because it prepared me for all of the awesomeness that came right after. 

Hello 2018. Let's rock in an even more awesome way shall we? 

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2018 Goal Setting

I am one of those people who like to read about tarot cards and astrological forecasting. Though I do not believe it 100%, I think that we can all use it as a guide of sorts.

For 2018, this is what the cards has in store for me.

So let's go ahead and set some REALISTIC and ATTAINABLE goals shall we?

1. Health wise, I will work on trimming down my weight. 2lbs a month is doable I believe. I just need to eat healthier and drink more water.

2. Spend less on wants and save more. I am targetting more than Php100k in savings.

3. Purge what is unnecessary in terms of everything. Books have already been taken cared of, happy meal toys and notebooks as well. I think it's time to let go of some of my make up and then finally, my arts and crafts materials.

4. Spend more quality time with my son and my family.

5. Nurture my new found relationship and make sure that it works because I want this to be my lifetime love.

6. Work life balance.

7. Travel to 3 new countries.

There. I think those are specific enough. Cheers to 2018.

Fenty Beauty's STUNNA

There's red lipstick and then there's red lipstick. While classics such as MAC's Russian Red and Ruby Woo will always be a favorite, there's a new player in town and this one promises to be the One Red for All. This means that the brand's promise is to have this shade of red be a match for the lightest skinned woman to the darkest. 

Stunna is a  weightless, 12-hour liquid lipstick in a high-impact colour with a soft matte finish. Stunna Lip Paint’s hyper-intense pigment performs best when activated, so shake before using it. 

According to the Fenty Beauty site: Stunna Lip Paint combines high-impact colour with low-maintenance long-lasting wear in one head-turning shade of matte red, handpicked by Rihanna, that looks incredible on all skin tones.

When life's all about taking risks, wearing red lipstick shouldn't be one of them. Enter Stunna Lip Paint: The love child of high-impact color and low-maintenance longwear in one head-turning red that's got everyone's name on it. It is, hands down, the perfect shade of red, hand-picked by Rihanna and obsessively tested to make sure it looks incredible on everyone.

Equal parts class and sass, this lip paint goes from zero to 100 with one stroke of its lip-defining precision wand. Its serious 12-hour hold is so weightless you’d forget you’re wearing it if not for the non-stop compliments. And if that’s not enough, Stunna Lip Paint won’t feather, staying kissably smooth all day. In other words: it behaves so you don’t have to.

I tested the Stunna matte lipstick and this is what it looked like. 

This is what it looks like on other skin tones as seen on the Fenty site. 

And this is what the product actually looks like.   

The Stunna remains true to it's promise. I had a buffet where I ate buttered shrimp, california maki, sushi, and even chocolate fondue. It stayed still. It was like I didn't have any lipstick on but just really red lips. Amazing! This shot was taken at 4pm and then at 2am respectively.

As you can see, 12 hour matte at work and at it's finest. This is why I have become addicted to Fenty Beauty. I can't wait to actually get my hands on the new line #MATTEMOISELLE. If #STUNNA is an indication, then the new line will definitely be worth having. 

first official date

Mark and I have never been on a proper date. It seems that since we met and through the entire courtship, we are always with friends or family. The one time it was just the two of us at M Cafe, it was for an event that I was working on.

The other day, I got the chance to meet his older brother for a family lunch. Before we met with them though, we passed by Coffee Project because he knows by now that I need my daily fix of caffeine especially in the morning.

I think I looked pretty decent meeting his family. One thing I did not count on was that they'd be really simple so I ended up looking overdressed. Mark says it's okay though. He said I looked fine.

Meeting his brother and his brother's family was lovely and afterwards, we drove around Cavite. I love road trips with the boyfie because he'd always hold my hand and tell me he loves me.

On the way home, we chanced upon this Korean Barbecue Buffet called Mr. Kim along Centennial Road in Kawit, Cavite.

For only Php399, this place was definitely worth it. They had everything from Samgyupsal to buttered shrimps as well as blood that is grilled and liver along with California Maki. They also have Iced Tea, coffee and tea.

I actually had to double check and make sure that it really was Php399 for all. It was just too good a deal! Mark was also very atet

Afterwards, we had coffee at PORT Coffee which was a few houses down from Mr. Kims. This was actually a container van turned into a coffee shop which I really liked. It had a different feel to it and the reuse of the container van appealed to me.

I was so happy to find out that the boyfie, though he is a photojournalist, was also game to be in front of the camera and pose with me. He didn't complain at all and this warmed my heart because I know how most guys dread doing these things.

He even gamely took this photo of me.

This sums up our first official date as a couple. He listened to what I wanted and needed and did his best to make things happen with the limited time we had. This made me appreciate him more and I gotta say, what a great date it truly was. :)

Christmas 2017

This Christmas, we experienced a few firsts. This is the first time Kirk is not with us because he needs to stay in Singapore for work. This is also the first time that a boyfriend of mine has spent Christmas with my family and I. It feels weird to have someone not here with us and to have someone else here with us.

However, as they said, life is all about changes and we need to welcome change. One thing that does not change though is the food that we consume on Christmas eve. My Mom and siblings still make the best noche buena in my opinion and you can see it for yourself here.

We also had our annual family photo though this time around, one brother is missing from the picture.

This time around though, we had an addition. The boyfie made an appearance and as usual, he always doesn't look at the photos. K fine, kinilig ako haha. 

This Christmas, we spent the time just being together, bullying each other, having dinner, scaring ourselves by watching The Autopsy of Jane Doe, then opening gifts.

My brother Karl took this photo of myself trying to hide beside Mark and trying to protect my little cousin who was also scared.

This here is my family exchanging gifts. Mark took photos of us. Many photos.

My son was very happy with his Spiderman flip watch from Avon. He also loved the books Mark and I got for him. Mark also got him earphones because he is forever losing his earphones.

I'm really happy with his gift for me ... one of the many coz he already got me 3 tops from Uniqlo. I've been looking for this light box with letters and he got it for me. He even checked with my little sister if I already got this to make sure that I didn't buy it yet. This is his 2nd surprise for me, the first being the flowers. Doing well with surprises boyfie. Doing very well.

This red hoodie pillow is one of the weirdest thing I have ever receieved. It's cute but I still don't know what to feel about it. Haha.

The bracelet on his hand and the Back to the Future Case is my Christmas gift to him. He seems happy about it so yey!

Overall, it was a great Christmas with a lot of love going around. I think this is the best kind of Christmas because isn't that what Christmas is about? Sharing love, giving back, and celebrating life?

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!