How I Celebrated my 2018 Holidays

Ola!!! Welcome to my first post this new year! I'm not even gonna do a year-ender or year-starter post, I just know that 2018 was a whirlwind of everything good and bad. But I'm thankful for those "everythings" because I know I needed them to know more about life and also become the best version of myself. Not perfect, but aware & knowing. Last year, I visited a lot of wonderful places, met a lot of new faces, was blessed with amazing new opportunities (like styling a movie for the first time! Star Cinema pa and with my favorite loveteam Joshlia), ventured more into self-love & self-preservation and towards the end, I sadly lost a dear friend. On this 4th day of 2019, I am just grateful for this life I still have and I vow to make the most out of whatever time I have left in this crazy, beautiful world. So anyway, sharing with you guys what I did over the holidays! Sayang kasi the photos so sharing them with all of you before I permanently tuck them away in my external hard drive haha. More below..

Bloggers United 16 x World Bazaar Festival

 A huge thanks to everyone who came and supported (and have always supported, a lot of familiar faces!) our event. We love you!

Thanks also to our partner World Bazaar Festival! 

Kicked off the holiday season with of course, our baby (me, Ana and Paul), Bloggers United Bazaar! Can't believe we're now on our 16th installment! CUHRAZYYYY. This idea all started during a random garage sale with fellow bloggers 8 years ago and the rest is history. Started from Malayan Plaza's Function Room and now we're here! Can't believe we just did the whole World Trade Tent. WOW. People always tell us how big of a deal this whole thing is now and honestly, we still can't believe it. For Ana and I, BU will always be what it was before--just a passion project meant to bring the whole blogging community together to be able to give back to our readers/followers even just for one day. Because really, where would we be in this industry without them. :) 

 Thanks to my cute assistants Nico and Pia for setting-up and manning my booth!

 with Ate Pin

 CJ's drone shot! Love it!

Wore my new R.A.F. by Plains & Prints coords!

 Hello Shemarot! He's one of our frequent BU goers! :)

 Did a live auction for the benefit of Save the Children Foundation!

 We were able to raise P16,000+! Thanks to all the bloggers who donated their items for the auction. :)

 With the IG gang. Love you David, Vina, Say and Katt!

 Thanks beb Ava for being there since Day 1!

Sorry naman malabo the pic screenshot lang to from IG wahaha! But thanks Moira for saying yes and for being there! Sobrang sweet and nice niya guys. Huhu.

With my faves Lharby and Pam Swing!

The BU Team! Love you fam. Thank you sobra sobra.

At shempre thanks to my forever bessy & partners Anagon and Paul for everything! Cheers to more BUs!

From 30+ participating bloggers, we're now 70+ and counting! We've also included more vloggers and online personalities the past 2 years. It's such a blessing knowing all these beautiful and talented souls who selflessly give their time and effort (some of them even reschedule flights just to attend huhu) just to make it to our event. I'm also grateful to all the brands who believes/believed in us enough to partner with us. At shempre, to our awesome BU team! Will be lost without all of you! :)

Watched Ben & Ben at NAIA T3 c/o Cebu Pacific 

  OOTD sa Terminal 3 walkway going to Resorts World!

With my gf Tracy Ayson! Love you mumsh.

Me and my mumshie Tracy was invited by our friends from Cebu Pacific and Stratworks to watch Ben & Ben's surprise musical perfomance at the arrivals area of NAIA Terminal 3. This one-of-a-kind musical celebration by Cebu Pacific ran from December 19-22 with performances by other musicians. What a super fun day!!! Hearing them perform live just a few feet away from us was surreal. We even got to meet the band after! Waah. From my Yogyakarta trip to this unforgettable musical experience, Cebu Pacific really #makefirstmomentshappen. Thank guys!!! :)

  

 I was super shy coz we had to sit in front of them! Haha. 

But they were all lovely and nice. Love them!

Praying for more #CebTravels this year!!! 

Christmas Party with the Cubao Squad

 Thanks Patrick cuz for our photo!

So many things happened last year, many of which were breaking and making new traditions. Anyway, it was the Cubao Squad's first Christmas Party complete with program, games and exchange gift with makabagbag damdaming messages! Went home super exhausted and with a sore throat 'coz of all the shouting and laughing. Had so much fun PLUS Nico and I won at all the games! Swerte kami that night haha! If you view my stories you'd see they are the same people I am always with. We're all family (as in literally) and childhood friends and neighbors so we're super clingy like that. Hehe. 

Us being normal. hehe.

With my cousins Perks and JL

 Group pic daw kaming partners

 Them being normal naman. Haha!

 Catch was my monito (or I'm his monita?). Our budget was P300 but he bought me a super nice white lamp for the apartment. Best part? Naka assemble na sha. He knows me so well. Haha! I love you bes! :)

Nico's monita was Alex! We bought her a nice wall frame that says "You are exactly where you're supposed to be." Perfect na perfect sa kanya. Ewan ko lng. Wahaha labyu girl. 

FAM. :)

 Blood squad!

Christmas Party with Koolasa Friends

 16 years after, it feels like nothing changed! Crazy pa din tayo noh? Wahaha!

 Half of our group. Others have work and nasa ibang country huhu

Back story: We all belong to the same class on our 4th year in HS at St. Scho Marikina (most hated by teachers coz lahat kami magulo haha) and most of us kasali sa Cheering Squad! We all have different personalities but almost all of my best high school memories were with them. Andami naming pinagdaanan guys. Victories, defeats, lahat na. Madaming muntik na d makagraduate coz of behavior (alam niyo naman gano kastrict pag Catholic school) but look at us, we made it! We also won a lot of contests (cheering competitions, sabayang pagbigkas, etc) together. Magulo but achievers naman noh! Haha. So sa mga kids jan, make the most out of your childhood. Study hard but also don't forget to have fun para madami kayo kwento pagtanda niyo! Haha.

Love you girls! So proud of what you've all become!

Holiday Feast at TGIFridays

 Lunch at TGIFridays in Glorietta

Thank you Raj and Bistro Group for inviting us and letting us try your delicious holiday dishes!

Fave! Truffle Medallion

Barramundi fish and Chicken Wings. Both are tasty too!

Oreo Madness for dessert!

  My OOTD that day! Uniqlo shirt, Lipault bag, Narrnan shoes

And then I went to TGIFridays Eastwood on Christmas Eve for dinner! Also tested my new Mark by Avon lippies. Hihi.

 

Just had a low-key Noche Buena celebration with my family in Marikina! Wala pala kaming photos! This is the only photo I have and it's of my sister and our baby Satu.

 Nico and I surprised each other this Christmas! 

When I woke up I saw 7 wrapped gifts on the floor in our living room. I opened them and Fitness Package pala sha! Haha. Nico said this is to motivate me to make exercising and living healthy a habit this year. He knows that I'm too lazy but with this cge I will do my best! Also, my OB asked me to sweat it out to help remove all the polyps in my uterus (which could lead to PCOS daw if I don't stay fit). Love you babe!

Well, I too had a surprise for him! My surprise was just 2 days in the making. Thanks to my friend Breech for helping me find this mailap na Adidas Samba OG! Nico and I are always together so it was a bit hard to get away from him without being questioned. Haha. I asked my cousins for help (asked them to lure him away) and I made an alibi that I'll finish my Christmas shopping in Gateway lang. He had no idea that I was in Glorietta (picked up the shoes there) the whole day. Lelz. Shempre, I also had a fake/decoy gift (my neck pillow na inangkin na din niya) for the surprise. Success naman! 

 Ganda pala ng Samba. So classic! I want din! Haha.

Okay, so there's a reason why I bought him this pair. He's super obsessed kasi with Freddie Mercury so I thought I'd him give something that's a reminder of him! I know Freddie originally wore a high-cut Hercules (Adidas 80's wrestling shoes) but that's phased out na and this is the closest match to that style. Rami Malek wore Sambas din in the movie! :) 

 Magic on Ice at the Araneta Coliseum

 Feeling winter outfit haha

Watched Steve Wheeler's Magic on Ice show at the Araneta Coliseum! It's a spectacular magic and illusion show divided into 24 unique acts. Theme is The Voyager and Seekers which brought us with them in their journey of discovering a magical and frozen world of dreams! I loved the lights, costumes, story, performances! :) 

 Inside the ice

 Then outside the ice

 Inside

 Outside

 Super trippy! Haha

 May audience participation pa

 Loved the sounds too!

Wow! 

New Year's Eve Party at Fraser Place

 Mandatory shot NYE haha! River Island top, Mango pants, sandals from CLN. :)

 Now with the bro

 No bake cheesecakes from Janbelle Sweet Creations!

 NYE feast most of them cooked by Bhang and Bea!

Lechon belly from Senor Ronaldo's in Cubao. Pero for me mas masarap pa din the one Nico cooked last year! Hihi.

 Wazzup!

Anyway, we usually celebrate New Year's Eve at our ancestral house in Cubao and this was the first time we celebrated it someplace else. The Stevens family (my cousins) rented a huge 3-bedroom suite in Fraser Place, Makati so since clingy kami, we all agreed to just ring in the new year there. Plano din sana namin to party in Poblacion but it was raining and it was such a hassle, so we decided to just stay inside. We broke our NYE tradition but I also realized that it really doesn't matter where you are, as long as you're with the people you love, it will ALWAYS be a blast. :)  

high waist tucked-in daw ang theme haha. Sino ang naiba haha

Cousins and Tito hehe

D namin nakuha ni Nico ang memo na terno terno hehe 

GeRick, JuRie, ChoBhang, PaNix, ShaNe 

(choose your favorite loveteam haha)

After 12 am situation.  Almost complete!

Cubao gang forever :)

And, THE END. Haha! Okay need to sleep now, have so much to do later! :) Aside from doing Anagon's 365 days ipon challenge, I also thought I'd try doing a blog post at least twice a week. What do you think? Would you read it? Hihi. If you have suggested topics let me know! Comment below or DM me on Instagram. :) Hope you're having the best first few days of the year! :)