does this face reminds you of someone?

some people say that animals are just that, animals. that they should not be treated more than they should be …because after all, they do not think like people, they do not feel like people, or their lives aren’t as important as people’s.

if only I can put behind bars these people with such mentality, then i would. DISGUSTING people! you are beneath of all the animals that walk on the face of this earth.

why do you think you are better than anyone that God has created?

Holland is still on vacation, but my husband and I aren’t….in between my spring cleaning (window cleaning/ kitchen & floor scrubbing/ throwing away those ‘accumulated undesirable objects’ around the house- mostly what I’ve purchased over the years which were not needed *guilty* / and do my laundry) I thought I’d blog for a while. While husband is tending his father’s garden which has become a ‘forest in the city’ according to hubby, because since dad-in-law was hit by the cancer spread last year, it was left unattended.

Easter was quiet. No egg hunting. But Charlie’s found a hidden favorite snack, carrot. He may be pug nosed but he could smell a carrot even if it’s well hidden. Even when he’s sleeping, the minute he smells me slicing carrots for dinner, he’s immediately standing right next to me in the kitchen, asking for slices.

my Pugs Punny

Raw carrot (especially baby carrot) helps remove plaque and eliminates bad breath. Good for doggies. Luckily Charlie likes it raw and that helps when he doesn’t want his teeth to be brushed. I guess we’re also lucky that our pug likes other vegetables too and moves a lot, quite an active little doggy. See his lean body? that’s pure muscle, no fat. One time a judge for a dog show asked us to enter him on a show because he’s got a good posture. What do you think?
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I am entering my 3rd week of diet and as I weighed myself this morning, I’m +5 kilos off. I have discontinued Jing’s diet program (to those who asked for copies, I’m not following it anymore, not that it doesn’t work because I believe that it does! but just read on… ) because the program’s 4th day ‘menu’ wasn’t for me. It was requiring me to eat just bananas (max 8 bananas and milk) for day four. Unfortunately, a single banana would keep me from doing my toilet business and I didn’t want to take the chance even if it was to be combined with milk. So I just continued my own program and I am happy with the result. Not only that my energy has improved, but my old clothes are starting to fit now (btw these are my large sized clothes, I am aiming for my ‘medium’ ones) I’ve noticed centimeters off my abs, thighs, back and hips. It’s still a long way to go but I’m ready for it.

Aside from constantly eating fruits like melons, watermelons, apples, pineapples, strawberries, and kiwis, I stuff myself with boiled fresh vegies such as potatoes, brocollis, beet roots (sugar beets as we call them in the Philippines), young carrots, beans, cauli flower and all vegies that I love to eat boiled. I season them with pepper, no salt, a touch of margarine and since vegies of my choice are sweet when they’re picked young so most of the time, I really enjoy munching on them, no matter how many times in a day, it doesn’t matter.

(this picture’s posted for my friend J who’s thinking of doing what I’m doing…this vegie-combination isn’t bad at all )

I also drink a lot of water, max a liter a day (this wasn’t easy during the first 3 days as I wasn’t a water drinker) but now drinking comes natural.

I also started using my exercise machines at home. Maximum an hour a day on the cross trainer, free weights for the flabby arms, legs raising/back kicking -just holding on to a chair or anytime I feel like doing  abs exercises, i drop on the floor and just do it on the abs apparaat.
‘joining’ me on my abs exercises is Charlie who loves to sit on top of me, the only thing is, he’s holding my legs together and I couldn’t move.

so am I eating other than vegies and fruits? I sure do. In the past 2 weeks, I baked (2x!) chocolate-orange cake and had two small servings, I had a small portion of spare ribs, has popped chocolates balls in my mouth and even finished a bag of cheeze curls. And just last night, because it’s a celebrated sunday here in Holland, I cooked lechon kawali, liempo, thai chicken barbeque, chicken with coconut/peanut sauce, stir-fry-vegies and steamed rice. I’ve tasted them all.

I don’t believe in starving myself but to eat in MODERATION. And EXERCISE. I have noticed too that my stomach isn’t allowing me to eat the way I’ve eaten before ( I was a bottomless pit! ) Now I eat just enough.

And if I’ve eaten more than I should, I just work double hard to burn the calories off.

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I wish to thank some wonderful blog neighbours/friends for sending me books! Rhada (sorry, ang tagal ko bago makapag ty) Willa, Ellen and a lady friend who doesn’t want to be mentioned. From the bottom of, SALAMAT NG MARAMI!!

HAPPY WEEK TO YOU ALL!!

PS. I hope that those of you who like me, are struggling with weight, will be inspired by what I’m experiencing. Though a friend of mine said this is ‘pagyayabang’ (mokong ka, inggit ka lang belat! he he ) but I know how it is being fat. If I can do it, so CAN YOU! Just make that decision and take a step towards losing weight. Kung gusto may paraan, Kung ayaw may dahilan’.

Pasdagen or Easter is quite different in Holland. Don’t ask me why but they do have a rather unusual easter. I don’t know about the other Filipinos living here, but I can’t feel it’s Holy Week.

Friday is a normal working day. Saturday is a normal weekend, groceries are packed with shoppers because they are close on monday ( tweede paasdag.)

The dutch have two easter days.

Eerste paasdag or first easter- that’s sunday. For the catholics and christian, it’s a church day…they go to church the way we Filipinos do to welcome Christ on the day of His ressurection.

But for the non catholics/christians, this is celebrated just like christmas. Families gather together, grandparents visit their children and grandchildren or vise versa… have a nice dinner, serve prime meat cuts that aren’t normally served on normal days. The mood is festive!

But here’s the most unusual part..

the Tweede paasdag or second easter – monday….all the furniture shops are having SALE! Shops will be flocked by bargain hunters and yes, it’s a tradition. I earlier said don’t ask me ‘why’ because even the most sane dutch person probably would not be able to give you a logical explanation of their ‘tradition’.

Nevertheless, from my family to yours…

HAVE A BLESSED EASTER, dear blog neighbours.

These are my kids’ (Charlie Jacob and Gizmo ) easter eggs and bunny.

Shot with Sony Cyber-shot. No flash.