Baptism Ceremony at Holy Trinity Parish (Village East)

After my eldest child's baptism at Christ The King in Greenmeadows, I swore to never avail again of mass baptism ceremony. Our experience at CTK was disappointing as the ceremony was very disorganized. During that time (2006) they don't offer yet solo baptism.

So for my son, we had him baptized at Santuario de San Antonio in Greenhills as they have a separate chapel or room exclusive for baptism. Now for my youngest, I decided I want a church near our place and if lucky, I'll find a reception hall near the church too for the convenience of our guests.

Fortunately, after weeks of ocular visits I found Holy Trinity Parish located inside Village East Executive Homes in Cainta. The church was being improved from the outside but the interiors were already completed. Best of all, Village East Clubhouse is just a few meters from the church too, which is perfect for the reception!

 

There's something unique in this church and their baptism ceremony. Instead of the usual pouring of water on the baby's forehead, the officiating priest uses a shower head for the baptism. Pretty cool, right?

 

 

According to the church assistant, the parish priest is creative and innovative. He was the one who came up with the idea and the design of the baptismal basin.

 

There's a mandatory orientation/seminar for parents an hour before the baptism ceremony for special baptisms (solo) and on a Saturday scheduled by the church for mass baptisms. Baptismal rites fees are Php350 for mass baptisms are that done every Sunday at 10am, and Php1800 for special/solo baptisms done every Sunday at 5pm. They only accept one special baptism every Sunday.

 

Holy Trinity Parish

Village East Executive Homes, Cainta, Rizal

Tel. No. 474-6362 look for Buboy or Joan.

 

Parish office schedule:

Tues-Sun 830am to 5:30pm; 12nn -230pm breaktime

No office on Mondays.

 

Shakey's Kiddie Party Package

It is very seldom that I am invited to a Shakey's kiddie party. If my memory serves me right, I've only attended 2 parties in Shakey's. The first one was my cousin's 1st birthday and the second was a birthday of a godson.

 

So yes, this was the 3rd time and a lot have changed in their party package since.

There are 2 themes to choose from: Barney and Justice League. Not much choice especially for girls who are more particular with parties.

On positive note, the giveaways/lootbag and game prizes are of good quality (not cheap-looking) and useful compared to the lootbag at Jollibee or McDonald which contain mostly small toys.
 

cupcakes are NOT from Shakey's, hehe

 

I love the Superman capes if you choose to have the Justice League theme. It's fun watching the kids excitedly wear their capes and join the games. Speaking of games, maybe due to the fact that hosting kiddie parties is not one of the key competencies of Shakey's, the party host is not that entertaining. She could further improve with training...maybe she needs to attend Jollibee parties.

 

 

 

For the food, below are the packages, but I also learned you can have food served buffet style. Just check with the branch for more details.

 

 

 

If I could give an unsolicited suggestion to Shakey's, I'd say they should give ample space for their party areas. The space was too limited (at Retiro Branch but I've also been to other branches) for the parlor games and other party activities.

 

For more party info based on personal experience on Shakey's, please click here.

Baptism Ceremony at Lourdes Church

I've stood as god mother to my friends and relatives' children over two dozen times but my experience last week at my nephew's christening was an unforgettable one.

Catholic baptism rites are normally dragging with the priest handing out a booklet so the child's parents and godparents know the proper responses as the sacrament is administered. In most parish churches it involves pouring a small amount of water three times on the forehead of the infant. This is followed by a white cloth or a cap being placed over the head of the baby. The usual lighting of candles ensues at the cue of the priest.

When I got to the baptism hall, I frowned at the sight of babies for baptism wearing only very casual clothes - sando and briefs to be exact, while their baptism gowns or clothes were all in hangers carried by the moms. My nephew was in his tan pair of shorts and shirt so I asked my sister why the baby wasn't wearing decent baptismal clothes. She said that was the instructions of the parish office. Weird.

Anyway, the baptism rites began soon after all the candidates arrived (there were 7 that Sunday). I must commend the priest and 3 church assistants who sang, read the Bible and Gospel and organized the venue. The ceremony was not sleep-inducing and I didn't feel like being hurried and the officiating priest is just doing his duty like baptism is just a paint job that needs to be finished. I actually felt part of the baptism ceremony.

After the usual anointing of oil, the lector asked the babies to be stripped down to their birthday suit. Whoa! That's when we realized the 'wisdom' behind the instruction to have them wear their gown after the baptism. After baptism meaning after they were bathed ala laundry way.

 

 

 

There were lots of forced laughter mixed with nervousness from parents and relatives of the babies being baptized. Come to think of it, when we give bath to our babies we're all careful not to pour water over their eyes and noses - but hey Father Whoever just dip the babies into the water as if rinsing a dirty piece of cloth.

During the days of early Christianity, baptism is done near a body of water (normally a river) where the candidate is immersed in the water. Sometimes the candidate kneels down while water is poured over his/her head. Immersion or submersion are the key words - but during that time people who are being baptized are grown ups, probably way beyond their teens, hence, they could be immersed, submerged, thrown, drowned into the river.

Honestly, I like the baptism ceremony at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes (or Lourdes Church for short). If I could bring back the hands of time, perhaps I'd have my children's baptisms there (that is if The Hubby will not object).

For inquiries, you may call the Parish Office at 731-9306, 740-8878.

NATIONAL SHRINE OF OUR LADY OF LOURDES
Kanlaon cor. N. S. Amoranto Ave. (formerly Retiro St.) Sta. Mesa Heights,
Quezon City

 

(cross-posted at www.bratinelangkikay.com)

DIY Cheese Fountain (for Nachos Buffet)

Just because it's called Chocolate Fountain does it mean we can only use it for chocolates? Certainly not!

During our New Year's party at the office, I decided to skip the usual chocolate fountain and instead try doing a cheese fountain for our nachos buffet.

My colleagues were pleasantly surprised to see the very inviting bright yellow fluid flowing through but what made them even more surprised was when they learned how easy it was to make the cheese dip.

There's no secret to it, really. All you need is a good old cheese spread (I used Cheez Whiz), fresh milk and a microwave oven. That's it!

Procedure:

 

1. Empty a jar of cheese spread (plain, do not use the one with pimiento) in a microwaveable container.

 

2. Pour 1/2 cup of milk on the cheese spread and mix. Expect that the mixture will not be smooth but rather lumpy.

 

3. Put the mixture in the microwave for 3 minutes in medium high setting.

 

4. Remove and stir. The cheese spread should now have a smoother consistency and should easily mix with the milk.

 

5. Keep stirring while the mixture is still hot. If still lumpy, stir in more milk and  put back in the microwave for another 3 minutes. Do this process until the desired consistency is achieved. The reason why microwave only for short period is to avoid burning the cheese.

 

6. Pour into the fountain and enjoy!

 

If you have a double broiler then melting the cheese and mixing with milk is a lot easier as you can see the 'output' as you go along. There's also less chance of burning the cheese.

 

Enjoy!

Party Venue : Palladium Clubhouse

Accessible party venues are hard to find. Normally, clubhouses are located in the middle of a village and guests either need to go by taxi or tricycle.

Thankfully, that's not a problem with Palladium Clubhouse as it is within a short walking distance from the entrance of Palladium. Guests who will take public transportation going to your event can alight at the gate along Shaw Boulevard and walk to your party.

There are actually 2 options for rental: The function room and the poolside.

We've rented the function room twice already and I'd say we were happy with the venue. The room can accommodate up to 100 guests or maximum of 120 if the buffet table is setup outside.

The only downside that didnt go well with me is they prohibit sticking of decors on their walls and ceilings. It's a nightmare for mommies who love elaborate decors for their parties.

I had to content with floating balloons to address this decor challenge just so my son's baptism reception would not look dull and lacking. I also instructed our caterer to use tall and elaborate table centerpieces to augment the decorations.

As for the poolside area, it is spacious and clean and can approximately hold 150 guests. Swimming is not allowed though as well as floating decors on the pool.

Pros:

1. Convenient location - guests can take public transportation going to your event without difficulty.

2. Easy to find - no need for maps or detailed directions as Palladium is along Shaw Boulevard and very easy to locate.

3. Budget-friendly - considering the location, accessibility and the appearance of the function room, the rental fee is reasonable.

Cons:

1. Decorating challenge - sticking anything on the walls and ceiling is strictly prohibited. Only the glass windows and glass panels are allowed to be used for sticking decorative materials. So say goodbye to ceiling swags and hanging balloons (unless your decorator can do magic).

2. A security bond of Php8000 needs to be paid beforehand and is refundable (subject to deductions for breakage, damages, time extension, electrical fees etc if applicable) a week after the event.

Notes:

1. There is a minimal electricity charge of Php300 for any electric-powered equipment brought in.

2. Spot cooking is not allowed.

3. List of guest names and suppliers need to submitted to the Clubhouse admin prior to the event.

Rates (as of February 2013) for 4 hours use:

Weekend booking (Sat-Sun):

Function Room - Php10800

Poolside (swimming not included) - Php14000

Weekday booking (Mon-Fri)

Function Room - Php9000

Poolside (swimming not included) - Php12000  

Palladium Clubhouse

The Palladium (Village)

Shaw Boulevard, Brgy. Wack Wack

Mandaluyong  City

Tel No. 533-3048, look for Margie

Layers & Layers (Cakes by Arlene)

I consider myself an avid and loyal patron of Layers & Layers. The cakes taste as good as they look and the staff are so familiar with me they accept my orders even with just 2 days notice. Ahhh! I am spoiled!

Here's what they've made for my kids' various celebrations:

Hello Kitty satellite cakes

Dora, the Explorer plus cupcakes for my daughter's 2nd birthday. The cupcake tower was rented from them too.

Princess Ariel as the Little Mermaid...

Spongebob Squarepants complete with all his friends! Both layers are real cake and edible, no styro.

Toy Story crew (cupcakes from another baker)

The best thing about Layers & Layers is that you can bring a photo of the character or design for your cake and you can be assured they can execute it perfectly.

Price range from Php1000 to Php3000 depends on size and frosting.

Layers & Layers (Cakes by Arlene)

No. 11-C West Capitol Drive, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City

Tel. No.:633 2810, Mobile Nos.:0917 3201988/0917 8486030

They have also a branch at Fun Ranch Fortera Verde, Pasig City

DIY Tissue Pom Poms

Balloons have always been the first choice for party decorations especially for children's birthdays. A simple decor of a small venue could go from Php3500 to Php6000 and that's just might be 100 floating balloons and a pair of pillars. Surely moms on a budget would rather do their own decors if they can but more often that not, they find it extra difficult doing the balloon decors themselves. First, they have to buy the balloons and need to go to Divisoria to get a good deal.

The good news is there's a new alternative way to decorate your party on your own.

TISSUE POM POMS!

This chic and stylish decor is made of tissue paper. No, not the kind we use in the toilet but the soft ones that is used to pre-wrap presents in high end malls. It's like a softer version of onion skin.



lovely photo from www.phoebegazal.com

I've seen this at Martha Stewart's site and instantly fell in love. I knew I could do this on my own so I spent hours on the internet to learn how to create tissue pom poms and get various decorating ideas. I got hooked to this for days!

It's great for outdoor parties as you can hang them to tree branches. Simple yet romantic...

this beautiful photo is from www.weddingbee.com

They can be used to enhance your table centerpiece just like what I did for my daughter's christening reception (balloon centerpiece also a DIY :))

 

It's also a good way to spice up a candy buffet station, or a cake table

 

I got my inspiration from this...

 

great tips and ideas from source of this photo: www.blog.koyalwholesale.com

 

So where do we get tissue pompoms? Well, in the US, a set costs around $12.00. So you tell me, "I thought this is supposed to be a cheaper alternative to balloons?"

 

Okay, don't fret yet. Why buy when you can create these beautiful babies in just ten short minutes?

 

I am not gonna spend that much too on paper so what I used for my paper pom poms are crepe paper and Japanese paper (papel de hapon). You just need to be extra careful with the Japanese paper as it tears easily.

For video tutorials, please check this and this.

Have fun!!

Welcome Party Mommas!

It didn't take long after I gave birth for me to realize that alongside being a mother, I have to be a party-planner for the many many occasions for my children. I've always loved planning events and parties -  my own debut, my wedding, my sister's wedding, my children's christening and yearly birthday parties. I even plan parties for our office!

To say that I've been through heaven, purgatory and hell with all these hullabaloos of party-planning is an understatement. I'd say weddings and baptisms are always harder to organize mainly because when choosing dates there are always two factors to consider - church and reception venue.

It's migraine-inducing to nail a church schedule only to find out your target reception venue is unavailable or fully booked. Not only that, you also need to worry about the catering, decorations, give-aways and the list goes on!

Lucky for those whose pockets are deep enough to shell out extra funds for a party coordinator, all they need to do is sit and write a check. But for mommies who are on a budget, there is no choice but to be hands on.

So here, I'd like to share with all the mommies out there who are planning their children's parties all party-related information that I find useful as you might find them useful too.

Happy reading!