surprise!

december is an eventful month for the family. i know of at least 6 relatives celebrating their birthdays on this month. the 2 most important ones are mami and mikey - 12th and 10th. it's also our wedding anniversary on the 11th. bongga bonanza diba? :)

i wanted to surprise mami for her birthday, so i filed for leave for a week and purchased my cheap-o plane ticket. the unexpected happened. i suddenly found myself in a new job. week-long vacation is scrapped along with surprise plans of carolling, party galore with the relatives, and other surprise gimmicks.

then the idea came - i could still go home over the weekend and surprise mike and mami! wawin was the ultimate accomplice! supportive! he told mami that she needs to go to paranaque on the 8th for "something". mami was clueless!

i told mike that jan was going home, and i sent gifts for them, and that he should meet jan at the airport at 6am... or else jan will be late for her trip to tarlac. jan, ikaw na ang berdugo ng pamilya ko hahaha.

dec 8, 6:15 am - i was waiting for mike under the letter "c" waiting area (onlyindapilipins) at naia airport. target spotted. i saw him rushing. he was late for the 6am call time with "jan". i saw that he saw me. he made a double glance. i waved. "si cat nga!" he later on told me what he was thinking when he thought he saw me :) surprise number 1 a success!

reaction on mike's face: priceless!

we stayed in our sto. nino home for a few hours to rest. i love our humble home! it's really in a disarray now. thanks to messy boarders and a maid who didn't care.

then it was mami's turn to be surprised. we told her we'll fetch her at ayala mrt. she knew wawin will be there, but she didn't know that mike and i will be there too. i hid at the back of the vehicle. yes, the part where you put the bagahes. no sweat.

mami and wawin got in the car. conversation started about the birthday lunch. i got on my knees and tapped mami's head. she turned around and just said, "ano ka ba?" repeatedly - in disbelief. at one point i even heard, "bruha ka!" hahahaha! then there were tears...

reaction on mami's face: priceless!

for the convenience of everybody involved, we just checked in at an inn in makati. i brought clothes for mike (the ones he left here in sg), and i assumed mami will bring clothes from tarlac. wawin had his clothes packed too. everybody was ready for the overnight stay :)

pics taken at the lobby and dining area of the inn

 after check-in, we had late lunch at sentro.

tamarind slush and wawin the photo bomber, rated gg, tokwa't baboy, ginataang bulaklak ng kalabasa, and the famous sinigang na corned beef

then we heard the anticipated mass at greenbelt. there was something about that tamarind slush that made us groggy as hell. i swear, it wasn't the normal antok... we were dozing off like crazy!

after mass, we headed to landmark and glorietta for a quick (window) shopping.

bonus! up darma down was playing in glorietta! i was so thrilled and i wanted to stay and watch the mini concert, but we didn't have all the sweet time in the world then :(

up dharma down - love them

as we headed back to our temporary home, we saw the lights show at the ayala triangle. we wanted to watch but we knew that parking is a torture so we thought it was wiser to just retire for the night. nevertheless, the christmas lights display along ayala was a showcase :)

picturan at greenbelt

christmas lights at ayala

the moon was unusually big that night. big as in scary big.  well, it doesn't look too big in this picture hehe.

a sreet lamp, the moon, and the red traffic light

we had late dinner at the inn. special credit goes to the restaurant staff who was overly corteous and polite. you wouldn't mind the delay in food. i assure you. food was pwe-na-sa-gu.  pwede na sa gutom hehehe.

some burger, some pancit, some sandwich. all so-so.

we rested with happy hearts and tummies that night. :)

the next day, breakfast was the traditional mc donald's delivery. i remember the operator was a bit rude. he said he needed the exact address of the delivery place. i understand 100%, but i was a tourist (naks) and was just staying at an inn, naturalmente i don't know the complete address. i gave him the name of the inn, the street name, along with landmarks. ay ayaw pa rin pumayag ni kuya! walang adjust adjust, he just dismissed me. customer service at its finest! woohoo!

after check-out, we headed to moa for a quick shopping and lunch.

last stop was the airport where i cried like a little girl. when will i ever get used to leaving the loved ones? the flight back to reality wasn't easy as it got delayed by 4 hours! 4 hours! it's a good thing i'm a firm believer of "everything happens for a reason" and "it's not what happens, it's how you take it". bumongga pa rin naman ang gabi ko even if i know i'll be a zombie the next day for my first day in my new work! akalain mo yun!

perfect pre-birthday celebration! i love it! short and sweet :)

and that, folks, sums up one of the sweetest weekends in my life :)