I thought before love month ends, I could at least be done sharing my memorable holidays.
So here it is. The last one of my Holiday Recap…
Dec 31 (Monday) New Years Eve:
We celebrated it in our little home here in Ohio. 🙂
Family from Houston, Canada, Indiana and Philippines came over to our place to celebrate New Year’s. We were 17 total! We had to set a schedule for shower to accommodate everyone. LOL!
New Years is usually the noisiest time of the year in the Philippines. The same way Americans enjoy Fourth of July with fireworks, Filipinos go all out with the noise on New Year’s eve clanging pots and pans, blow party horns (torotot) and light up firecrackers. We do that in the belief to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck, fortune, and prosperity in the new year. Since we were here in the U.S. and fireworks are not allowed in our neighborhood, we are stuck with just party horns.
Like Christmas Eve, Filipinos celebrate New Years with a midnight feast too. We had roast pig (lechon) that night. It’s been a while since the last time I ate lechon. Good thing my husband was able to find a Filipino food store online based in Columbus, just 1 hour away from us. Their food is really good! So, if you guys are in for some Filipino dishes, check out their facebook page.
My husband and sister attacking the pig. 🙂
At the stroke of midnight, everyone greeted each other a Happy New Year
…and danced the night away.
everyone got too crazy… but fun crazy. lol!
New Year is not complete without a bottle of alcohol. It has become a tradition for us that whoever hosts the party should provide a bottle of Patron.
the unboxing
Cheers to 2013! 🙂
I was just so happy to be with my family to celebrate holidays.
sister, mom and me
My husband and I were overwhelmed with happiness.
Jan 2, 2013 (Wed):
With New Years resolutions starting, there was no better way to start the year of than with renewing your dedication to fitness! 🙂 To get my family motivated, my husband and I brought them to our favorite local specialty running store so they can get fitted correctly by experts and help them get the perfect workout shoes.
My sister plays volleyball so she was given Mizuno Women’s Wave Inspire 9.
My sister loved it and she said that it’s very soft, light and comfortable.
My mom does zumba most of the time so she was given Newtons Distance (same as my running shoes). 🙂
According to the staff that assisted her, Newton shoes are also great for zumba because they have those lugs for shock absorption when dancing (Interesting! I didn’t know that!). They’re light that makes it easier to move and glide across the floor but still supportive enough. She threw in some cushioned inserts as well for added comfort. My mom loved it because it’s very light and comfortable, and has bright colors which suits her style well. 🙂
Jan 4, 2013 (Friday): A day before they leave.
I was already starting to feel sad that day. We made the most out of their remaining hours. We all went out and gave my family a tour of beautiful Cincinnati. 🙂
Who doesn’t like outdoor ice skating to music that time of year? It’s beautiful!
My sister and I had to try it! We had a blast!
After a cold night walking around downtown, everyone got hungry and finally decided to eat dinner.
Everyone wanted some seafood for dinner, so we made a reservation at Mccormick and Schmicks.
I wasn’t too quick to take pictures of the oysters. It was gone in less than a minute. LOL!
my plate
January 5, 2013 (Sat): And then, they’re leaving? 😦
The day my family flew back to the Philippines.
It was hard for my husband and I to go back to reality when they left. Our house felt empty and so quiet. I don’t mind the chaos and the waiting in line to use the bathroom when everyone was here (LOL!). But we had to face reality that vacation was over and they had to go back to work and school. It was just sad when they left.
I’m so grateful this year that my family is healthy and able to travel to celebrate this special time of year with me and my husband.
I am really thankful that I was fortunate to have a very functional family growing up, and my parents set wonderful examples for my siblings and me. I’m very grateful for my husband, who is my best friend, and his parents for being the nicest parent-in-laws one could ever have! We had a lot of fun together. It truly was a wonderful Holiday Season for us.
‘Til the next time for us to see each other again. Maybe in a year or two we might be able to save enough to go home and share my experience with you guys Christmas in the Philippines. It’s nothing like you’ve ever seen before! If you’re a traveler at heart and happen to be in the Philippines around September to December, you will know what I mean. The loud Christmas songs everywhere, the colorful lanterns, joyful caroling of kids, and all-night-all-morning festivities up to Christmas day are things that I grew up experiencing. Still, I am very grateful to be alive and content where life has taken me. My husband and I may be alone here in Ohio but we’ve met so many kind people, friends who’ve already treated us like family and are very thoughtful to us. We definitely feel truly blessed.
Hope you guys had a wonderful time reading my Holiday Recaps as much as I had fun sharing them to you guys!
Have a wonderful day!
xoxo.
Ja on the RUN 