Moms’ Day Out

Earlier she greeted me saying, “Now that I’m a mom, I’ve realized how both challenging and fulfilling it is to be one. Thank you for being a great example Mama . Thank you for helping me to become who I am today so I can also be a great mom to Nate. I love you! Happy Mother’s Day!”

My daughter is so thoughtful  when it comes to special occasions that we both treasure. Now that she is  a certified mom, it is more lovely to celebrate the beauty of  motherhood. Such endless stories  about the baby we both love. Nate is now almost six months old so everything that is new to Nissa’s eyes are all recorded in her cam.  They celebrated Mother’s Day by bringing Nate to the mall and had  dinner there, baby and all. It may not be a romantic way to celebrate with a baby in tow but he is precisely the reason why mother’s day exists.

Yesterday,  my daughter came over to cast her vote  and we later went to Burgoo for lunch, just the two of us. There was a time when we used to dine a lot in one of their branches when it was newly opened at Gateway Mall in Cubao. Though everything is a bit pricey, service is always good.  I remember spending a birthday there with the family and they gave me a small cake ( a larger version of a cupcake) with a matching candle to blow.  You can always draw or write anything on the large paper roll which they use as place mat while waiting for the food. Anyway, Nissa and I were both laughing when we were served what she ordered and that included some take-out for Josef.  Maybe the wait staff  was wondering  how we could finish all that food which I think would serve at least ten.   Hahaha, we were celebrating Mother’s Day, right?

This is their Supreme Sampler. They used to have spring rolls instead of those two large cheese sticks.  Those onion rings are old-time favorites.

I asked for their bestselling veggie salad and the staff recommended this. They call it Manhattan’s Best  with small slices of chicken, croutons, apples,  and pineapple slices on a bed of fresh lettuce leaves. I found it a little dry though.

This Shrimps and Ribs Platter was really pricey at P695.00 but I loved the spicy shrimps. It came with three kinds of dips and sauces and a small cup of corn and  diced carrots. One would think, these are more than enough for the two of us but Nissa said we’ll take  some of them home  so she ordered two more on the menu.

It’s a Seafood Jambalaya Supreme. Back in those days when  we used to frequent Burgoo, I loved ordering this since the mix of seafood,  sausage and chicken on a bed of rice was just an enticing meal. At P475.00, it would serve at least two , three if you are a picky eater. Their pasta would not compare of course to those they serve at Bellini’s  but we ordered a family sized one for take out.

The wait staff greeted me “Belated Happy Mother’s Day ma’am” and Nissa said, ” I am a mom too”. She smiled at us while she took our picture. It was really a great day spent with my daughter. And yes, being a mom and the joys of motherhood were the top topics on our list.

 

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Simply Call Her “Mom”

I was looking for a nice  quote about mothers and I found this instead. It’s a lovely story about someone we simply call “mom”.

A baby asked God, “They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?”

“Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you.”

The child further inquired, “But tell me, here in heaven I don’t have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy.”

God said, “Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel’s love and be very happy.”

Again the child asked, “And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don’t know the language?”

God said, “Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.”

“And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?”

God said, “Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray.”

“Who will protect me?”

God said, “Your angel will defend you even if it means risking it’s life.”

“But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.”

God said, “Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you.”

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, “God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel’s name.”

“You will simply call her, ‘Mom.'”

– Unknown

 

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Happy Mother’s Day!

This came  a bit late because I was quite busy preparing something for dinner. This is a special day for Mom and me after all. Early this morning, I texted my daughter Nissa saying:

“Happy Mother’s Day for the soon to be Mom. I am sure when it’s your turn you’ll be a terrific mom because you are a terrific daughter. Love you anak 🙂 🙂 :)”

Then she texted back  and said:

“Happy Mother’s Day Ma! Siempre I have a good role model. I love you so much.”

These are words that a mom like me never gets tired of hearing.  They are an affirmation of a daughter’s love for her mother. Sometimes, lots of times I guess, I become so emotional hearing words like these.  My two kids are all grown up now. Pretty soon, my son would get married too and I dread the day of  feeling that “empty nest.”  I am happy for them though because I am proud that they grew up pretty well, successful in their careers and my first-born is already starting a family.  I am really looking forward to seeing , hugging and embracing the new member of our family – Nissa’s baby and we’re counting the days till the start of November which is her expected delivery.

Mom and I attended the 9am mass at St. Jude Thaddeus Parish together. Then I treated her to lunch at the mall near our place.  Commuting was our only option because I don’t know how to drive.  Mom at 83 is afraid to ride on an escalator and she’d rather use the stairs than skirt her way faster in one.  It was a happy bonding, just the two of us.  I have to order a take-out for my son who is on a night shift. Earlier on, my eldest brother came over to give mom a bunch of red roses. Roses are Mom’s favorite flowers. Back when we were still growing climbing roses outside our fence, it was always a delight to see her with garden scissors in tow, cutting fresh blooms and smiling while her nose is buried in the blooms. American climbing rose has that heady scent that makes it ideal for flower arrangement.  As usual, I took a few clicks  and made a simple collage with her picture I took at the mall.

I received quite a lot of Mother’s Day greetings on my wall at Facebook  but they don’t compare  to some of the texts I got from my two sisters-in-law and a few close friends.

“This day celebrates strength of spirit and gentleness of ways. Happy Mother’s Day! ^_ ^ ”  from Marisse, one of Nissa’s friends.

“Kapag naging nanay ka…walang log out, walang pause, walang stop,walang off, walang sahod, mas lalong di pwede mag-resign. Pwede ka mang mamili ng asawa, di ka naman pwedeng mamimili ng anak….Dahil ang pagiging ina…TUNAY NA DAKILA. Happy Mother’s Day po.”  – from Mico, a friend  from our Catholic page at Facebook. Most of the members there call me Mommy and I really don’t mind. Masaya ang maging Mommy ng lahat. And I don’t really want to translate his message in straight English because it looks and sounds better in Tagalog.

And this came from one of my sisters-in law:  “The heart of a mother doesn’t grow old. It knows no time nor age. It doesn’t go weary because it takes no effort. It just cares, loves, shares and goes on. Happy Mother’s Day.”

This had me laughing while reading it. It came from Precy, a close friend since my college days in UST. ” MEN say they are stronger than WOMEN. I think that’s a big, fat lie. Can men carry a seven-pound baby in their belly for 9 months?  Can they cook, clean and talk on the phone at the same time? Can they walk all day on a 5-inch heels?  Can they cry all night and then wake up the next morning like everything is OK?  Can they stay alive after five days of bleeding?  Remember, women are only helpless until their nail polish dries.”

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all the lovely moms reading this blog.  Mothers are really special don’t you think? And we deserve all the accolade  that come our way today:)

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Mother Stories Make Me Cry

I watched the Monday edition of KrisTV this morning and they featured three successful mothers, actresses who were married to foreigners  and are happy with their married life. It’s so lovely to see Ina Raymundo’s kids greeting her with such loving words and G Toengie’s  foreign-looking kids speaking in Tagalog. They recounted their lives living abroad, the hardships of having no household help, being hands on in everything and yet they are raising loving, lovable and good-looking kids.

Being a mother is not only a 24/7 responsibility. Being a mother is a responsibility you carry until you die. And the reward of having loving, respectful, responsible and  thoughtful kids is more than enough to make your heart sing. There is something so fulfilling  about motherhood that I can’t really explain. Our relationship with our children are so special that we are ready to sacrifice everything for their well-being. And what makes it more poignant is that as you see them grow  into responsible adults, every small achievement that they do  is your achievement too and every success that they achieve  is  also your own.

My daughter who got married last November is three months on the family way now. And I am waiting with bated breath for the day when I’ll be able to hold a grandchild in my arms. You bet, the soon-to-be grandma is more excited than ever. Don’t they always say that the coming of a grandchild is another milestone for someone slowly approaching the twilight years? No, don’t get me wrong, I am still quite far from the stage of being called a “senior citizen” but I like to think that having a grandchild to love, to care for and to pamper is one such blessing that I will embrace wholeheartedly.  I told Nissa that I saved more than a dozen bird’s-eye diapers which she used when she was still a baby, complete with initials and  embroidery at the edges painstakingly  done by Mom. After twenty-nine years, they are still in very good condition.   In this heat, you can’t always use disposable diapers to wrap a baby, that would be torture. And I still believe in the old-fashioned way of using baby diapers and bringing up kids  the way I was also brought up by my parents.

And the greatest compliment that Nissa told me was when she gave me a card during Mother’s day a year ago saying that she’ll be having a family soon (they have just set the date  for the wedding around that time) and she will bring up her kids the way I brought them up. And that made me cry.

Kudos to motherhood. Happy Mother’s Day in advance to all loving mothers out there.

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A Day Worth Remembering

Yes, it was a day worth remembering. Celebrating Mother’s Day with the family really made me so happy. We started the day by attending the Holy Mass at St. Jude Parish then we later went to SM Hypermart in Pasig to do some groceries and to have lunch. We were looking for a new place , a quiet one obviously to celebrate lunch. I was enticed by the sumptuous-looking cakes displayed at the window of Icings. Compared to the other restaurants in the area, Icings probably would only sit twenty people. We were only supposed to buy some of their pastries. We asked if they also offer lunch, they do, so we decided to try it. The place is clean and has its own comfort room.  The food is really  not that exceptional but the simplicity of the presentation is just fine. When it comes to food, I prefer taste more than the presentation. It’s a plus factor of course if you could combine the two which makes the food more appetizing.

Celebrating such occasion would not be the same without taking pictures of the place .  Force of habit, that’s what the camera is for, to record memories.

 Lemon Grass Chicken Skewers

 Grilled Porkchop in Fruit Sauce

 Hawaiian Loco Moco

Barbeque Pork Spareribs

A yummy Banana-Choco Loaf. We had it for dessert. 

And here’s what made me teary-eyed. After we finished our meal, Nissa gave me this beautiful hand-made card which has dedications of the three of them inside.

She is into arts and crafts and I really admire the way she assembled the silk flower designs and attached a glossy ribbon . But what made it so touching are the words they wrote on the card. In part she said, “Continue to be an inspiration to others as you have been to your family. I will be starting my  own family soon and the lessons you have taught us will surely be passed on – for generations to come.”

We went to Watson’s and to the supermarket later while son and hubby were waiting for the Pacquiao-Mosley fight. They  mounted a big screen at the activity area so shoppers can watch the fight. Of course, it was to be expected, Manny won! Another pride for the Filipino people. It was raining cats and dogs when we left the place and we could hardly see the road we were traversing. When we passed by the Rainforest Park on our way home, we saw several people walking drenched to the skin and hubby remarked, “tamang tama, rainforest nga“. His comment was not really laughable but it was the way he delivered it that kept the three of us in stitches.  He had me laughing so hard which prompted him to remark, “don’t laugh at the misfortunes of others.” That’s hubby for you, he really had a bountiful sense of humor. And it made my day complete, celebrating the day with my family. And here are some  family pictures which a server at Icings took earlier. We normally bring a tripod, but that is a bit overkill for a simple lunch so we have to rely on the  staff of the restaurant to take our family photo.

It was indeed a day worth remembering.

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