Happy 1st Birthday, Kyle!

As early as June 2012 I was already crazily planning for Kyle's first birthday which would be on March 9, a Saturday. His real birthday is on March 5.  To some, they would say that I'm overly excited (I don't deny it) and who knows, some may have even raised their eyebrows. But to most moms who love planning for a special event, I know that they understand what I was going through.

I found time browsing through the net when Kyle was asleep or during, before or after breastfeeding.  Ah, the perks of having a mobile device.  This has been a ritual every night and I would always look forward to the nice finds that I would be able to 'google'.

So many ideas, so many pegs, so many cute things, so many birthday themes, so many birthday suppliers, so many birthday photographers, so many, so many, so many!!! waahh...info overload!

I didn't think that birthday parties nowadays were on a different level compared to 10 years ago! I was out of touch!

I was really confused and I initially considered many birthday party themes: 

1. Spongebob - but my younger sister Sheean said they were for older kids. She suggested Bob the Builder. Bob who? oh dear, I had to do my research!
2. Mickey Mouse - because I saw nice Mickey Mouse birthday cakes on the net and there were lots of Mickey Mouse souvenir items available. And I could come as Minnie Mouse! (joke!)

But then, I decided to do away with the character themes.

So I considered:

image from Style Me Gorgeous

Baby Elephant - I really liked this but I didn't know what items I could match with this theme. Maybe for his future birthdays.

Image from partyparade

Cupcake theme - because I love sweets! I could have a giant cupcake as the birthday cake and matching cupcakes to giveaway.  But my office mate Ofie Nunez (who is also Kyle's ninang) said that this is more of a theme for girls and that I should scrap this idea. Thanks for this advise! I almost gave in to my sweet tooth.

Image from Kids Party Hub

Safari/jungle animals- just because I wanted to dress up ala Lara Croft or Indiana Jones? shucks my age definitely showing! Yes I'm overweight and probably couldn't carry that type of outfit but I honestly thought that I would have the will power and discipline to go on a diet and do exercise and be thin in time for the party. I also thought the Genie in a bottle was for real!  And we would all have matching safari outfits (me, Jojo, Paolo and Kyle).  I even influenced my sister-in-law Eileen Tomacruz to purchase safari hats during one of our shopping sprees in divisioria. Of course I also bought matching hats for me and Jojo. Sorry Eileen! We can still use that maybe in one of Kyle's birthday parties in the future.

Image from birthdayinabox

Baby Animals - this is it! I am having this theme. But it has to be cute babyish looking animals.  Not like the mature jungle animals. 

DONE, I veered away from the character themes

DONE, I finally chose a party theme: Baby Animals

I requested my younger sister Sheean who was based in the US to ship some balloons for me and she did! 

And it was still only August. Plenty of time.  I wanted to buy prizes early on so that I could spread out the cost.

So off I went to buy some prizes and prepare party stuff: 
Fury animal hats
Plastic animal coin banks
Animal cupcake holders
And yeah, talk about excitement, I already made invitations!

The party preparation was overwhelming me.  I don't think I can do it all alone - - I thought I could DIY everything or put together everything by getting from separate suppliers the party stuff.  But, this was just wishful thinking as I had a full-time job and extra time was only on weekends where wifely and motherly duties must come first.

I again sought the help of the net to look for the perfect party/event stylist.  And I found her!
Kathleen dela Merced of Spark + Twinkle was my only choice. 
No doubt about it.  
She doesn't have party package but she will/can work on your budget.

We had corresponded via email in August and had finalized my party package. With a P20k budget, she could provide me with:

Styro Backdrop with Moving Elements ( Existing baby safari or baby elephant set)
Styro Entrance Sign
Choice of Entrance Arch OR Cake Arch OR pair of tree balloon sculpture
200 pcs balloons for  ceiling ( artists discretion )
Ceiling Drapes  / Swags
7 pcs. Papercraft centerpieces with balloon arrangement.
Freebies: Balloon burst, 30 pieces name tags, 2 party assistants, styro entrance arch

I was okay with this so In September we met in person (I was very excited to go meet such a talented person) and I made the down payment.  Meet-up is not required for the down payment as you could also opt to do bank deposit but I really wanted to meet her! She is very kind and she didn't mind my asking her a few personal questions like how she got into party business, why did the name of the company change from High-5 parties to Spark + Twinkle, where she studied, etc.  

During the meeting, I decided to also get the cake and cupcakes from her. 
2-layer cake P3,700.00 (to be custom designed by her)
60 pieces cupcakes at P42/piece
I was also thinking of getting a candy/dessert buffet. Starts at P6k

Event Styling, DONE. 

Now let's go to the party host. Again, I sought the help of the net. I had seen good reviews for Flooch (Jervey Capili) so I contacted him. He was very pleasant to speak with (and had good command of the english language) and same day, I had deposited my down payment so I could reserve him. This was end-August.

Flooch: P15,500.00 includes hosting (games), magic show and ventriloquism.  He also brought his own sound system

Party Host, DONE.

As early as June, I had already reserved the grand ballroom of Palms Country Club.  

Venue, DONE.

I had ordered food good for 100 pax with expected guests of 90 pax. To be more economical, I ordered set meals for the kids and the yayas and some few meals for the party decorators.

Kiddie Meal:
Palms chicken lollipop
Spaghetti bolognese
French fries
Ice cream cup
Iced tea

Snack Station:
Nachos
Imported fish and squid balls
Corndog
Pork BBQ on stick

Snack Buffet:
Mini club sandwiches
Assorted open faced sandwiches (Tuna, Ham, and Cheese)
Chicken and Peas Macaroni Salad
Potato Chips
Spaghetti bolognese
Penne with bacon, hand and mushroom sauce
Barbecue hot dogs
Mini beef burger with french fries and ketsup
Roast chicken drumstick with mushroom gravy
Mini salami pizza
Ice cream station with toppings
Fruit tartlettes
Banana muffins
Iced tea

Oh, and I also decided to check-in at Crimson Hotel for 1 night at an Executive Room for Kyle's party preparation. They were on 50% discount because it was still their soft opening. It was really convenient because it was near Palms Country Club and the transfer to/from hotel and Palms was complimentary.  It also happens that Crimson and Palms are sister companies.
Cost: P5,888.00 nett

The photo and video coverage was done by Shuttercount.  

I have worked with Benj of Shuttercount a month earlier for Kyle's pictorial. Benj was very nice and very respectful. His wife Michelle was also the same when I had called their office to inquire on their birthday party packages. Benj even shared a few tips with Paolo on taking pictures.  I also availed of the same day edit (SDE) or they also call it onsite video.

This is my photo/video package:

SDE Package 1: (2 Venues)

Inclusions:

Video (2 Cameras Set-up)

2 Videographers using Full HD cameras + assistant/lightman.

1 Song MTV Style Video (SDE)

15 minute event highlights 

Using the following equipment: 

Full HD DSLR Cameras, Glidecam, Slider, Video tripods,Light + lightstand,Voice Recorder and crane (for more cinematic look)

Price: Php 15,000

Not bad, right?!

All the Photos you see here are taken by Shuttercount.

Kyle's SDE

Photo and Video, DONE.

Uh oh...come November, I had a change of heart on the party theme! Kathleen was kind enough to accommodate this change of heart.  

Now I want this theme:  Little man

Kathleen and I met again and whipped up a new package for me.  She suggested to change the theme to Little Guy, instead of Little man.  Of course I agreed!

DONE, new party theme is Little Guy, Kyle!

My revised package:

Revised Package:

Argyle backdrop rental

Stage props rental including but not limited to: wood fence, felt clouds, clothesline with dapper little guy clothes, suitcase, etc

Letter cutouts spelling KYLE on backdrop to keep

Ceiling drapes rental

200 balloons for ceiling

10 pcs Tablescapes

Entrance arch with 'Kyle's party is here'

Photo op

2 layer cake

60 pcs cupcakes

Themed dessert and candy buffet

Freebies: 30 pcs themed name tags, 2 party poppers, 2 party attendants, 1 pc balloon burst, napkin ring design

Cost: P46k

Stage design by Spark+Twinkle
Picture by Shuttercount

My photobooth was a gift from one of the godmothers but she would not like to have this announced. Anyways, TYVM!  You know who you are (wink wink)!



PhotoArcade was the photobooth.  Aileen and husband were super hands on and I loved it. They were the ones actually present during the party and manned the photobooth. Personalized attention. And mind you, Aileen was so pregnant at that time and she was so game.

 Instead of the usual tarpaulin backdrop and usual props used, I had requested Kathleen of Spark+Twinkle to do a photo op set for me.

Oh and before I forget, to add flair to the event, my mom has kindly provided the bow ties for everyone to wear! Thank you mommy!

I have DIY'd these candy jars which formed part of the tablescape.
The loot bags were also DIY'd by me.

Overall, I was VERY HAPPY with the turnout of the party.  I hope that our guests enjoyed this event. Though I'm sure that Kyle won't remember his 1st birthday, I was sure to keep memoirs of his special day.  The first of many...

Happy 1st birthday to you, My little guy, Kyle.

Kyle's Baptism

Kyle's invitation by Eileen Tomacruz
Invite pictures by me

The Baptism of Kyle would be the first of many special occasions that I would be preparing for, now that I have a baby.  My older son Paolo is now 12 years old and his parties no longer require tedious preparations. 

I am purely breastfeeding baby Kyle.  I didn't think that it would be that hard but I stuck to it because of the many benefits it would have both for me and especially for the baby.  My education on breastfeeding mainly came from my researches on the net and a handful of useful advise from my office mate in HK and my high school classmate. I was also influenced by them as they have also purely breastfed their kids, and mind you, they breastfed all of their kidS (plural, more than one!).  Jennifer has 2 kids and Aura has 3 kids.  They are both an inspiration.

Back to my baptism preparation. 

For the candles, I spruced it up by using gift wrapper, sequins, cross

 I actually didn't have a picture of the finished decorated candle but it more or less looks like this, just add the silver cross in the middle

Kyle's baptism outfits

Kyle's baptismal gown was bought at Glorietta for only P550!
His reception outfit was bought at Periwinkle.  Sorry I can't remember the price but it was more expensive than the gown.

I was hoping to find a Church that:
had an intersting and historical architecture

was air-conditioned

will not require for the godparents to attend a seminar

is not too expensive

I guess I'm in luck because I had the answer: 
Saint Alphonsus Mary Liguori Parish (Magallanes Church)

Requirements:
photocopy of birth certificate and marriage certificate
parish permit
payment of P3,000

 
Kyle did not cry when he was blessed with holy water

Family picture outside the Baptistry

L-R: Dino de Jesus, Claire Ann Yap, Ofie Nunez, Jojo, Me, Paolo,
Ailene Litonjua, Sandy Cortes, Jackie Tomacruz

These special people are Kyle's godparents

Godfather Gene Abao was unfortunately not able to attend

David Lim was my photographer for this event.  I don't know David nor was he referred by anyone to me.  I 'found' him online.  Yeah, he power of the net.  I liked his portfolio and his rate was very competitive. And he took very nice pictures.

Photographer: P2,500 for the first 4 hours.  P500 hourly in excess.  Additional P500 if the venue is far from where he resides (Betterliving Paranaque). He will also provide 40 printed copies of his choice after 1 week, in addition to the softcopy of all the pictures stored in a disc.

Now I wanted to have a very nice baptismal cake.  There are so many beautiful cakes on the net but my budget was only P4,000.  

I decided to contact Michelle Hechanova.  She made Paolo's 3rd birthday Cookie Monster cake back in 2002 and it was very nice! I told her my budget.  She first asked how many guests I would have. Then upon learning this, she suggested to make cupcakes for me because if she were to do a cake with my budget, this would turn out to be small and would not be noticed. She does have a point!

  I also ordered another set of cupcakes for the godparents where I said a wanted a pram topper design.

Here is my final order:

Close-up of the very yummy cupcakes

Full view of the cupcake display with some of the guests at the background

P3,600.00

• 40 pieces cupcakes in Paper Eskimo cups (cute and more sturdy than regular paper), with frosting swirls and monogrammed (letter 'K') sugar hearts: Golden butter cream cake with vanilla butter cream
• Custom tiered cupcake stand embellished with white cotton eyelet lace trim and ribbon
• Cupcakes boxes DIY by me (bought the boxes from a bakeshop store in BF Homes Paranaque, white ribbon from National Bookstore)
• TY card, DIY by sister-in-law, Eileen Tomacruz

godparent cupcakes
Unfortunately, there was no picture taken of the actual godparent cupcake :( but believe me, it was beautiful and tasted yummy.

P1,520.00

• 16 pieces godparent cupcakes with frosting swirl, butter shortbread disk, sugar baby-in-pram design: golden butter cream cake with vanilla buttercream and chocolate buttercream (alternating)
• cupcake boxes - provided by me, bought at a bakeshope store in BF Homes Paranaque
• Thank you card, DIY by my sister-in-law, Eileen Tomacruz

P600.00

Delivery fee to Makati Shangri-la 

For his outfit, 
I only had one venue in mind - Shang Palace of Makati Shangri-la. My favorite Chinese Restaurant
  
Because I already had relations with this hotel (due to work requirements), I felt very comfortable dealing with the hotel staff.  The Shang Palace staff were very pleasant to work with.  

Thank you Cindy, Beth, Angela and Janice!!
Thank you also to Cap Noel, Joey and the other staff who served us well.

I availed of their Dim sum Plus and pre-ordered everything so that food would be served ala lauriat style.  I was also given a few freebies but I'd rather not mention it here.

Dim sum Plus: P1,100/head (nett)

THE MENU

DIM SUM 
Steamed pork dumplings filled with shrimp
Steamed barbecue minced pork buns
Steamed Shanghai "Xiao Lung Pao"
Hong Kong-style deep fried shrimp spring rolls
Steamed pork spareribs with black bean sauce

APPETIZER 
Honey glazed barbecue pork
Jelly fish with century egg

SOUP AND BROTH 
Sichuan style hot and sour soup

RICE, NOODLES AND CONGEE
Fragrant fried with diced honey pork and shrimps "Yang Chow" style
Stir-fried noodles "Fujan" style

MAIN COURSE 
Hot prawn salad
Sautéed scallops with broccoli in X.O. sauce

DESSERT 
Chilled mango purée with sago and diced mango
Chilled almond jelly with mixed fruits (fruits: melon and mango)
Egg tart

Unknown to husband Jojo, I chose May 26 as the baptism date because it will also coincide with his birthday (which is on May 27).  So I can do dual celebration in one event! Translation: Savings!

Here he is, surprised when I announced that there is another celebration that day, and that was his birthday!

Mini cake courtesy of Shang Palace.  I didn't even have to ask. They are really so sweet!

A little birthday giveaway. Cupcake ordered from Cielin's Cake House. TY card by Eileen Tomacruz. Store-bought cupcake box.

The birthday boy blowing his birthday candle


I was surprised that Shang Palace staff rendered a birthday song!! Again, I didn't have to ask

This was a very memorable event as it is Kyle's first milestone.  
Welcome to the Christian World, Kyle Steven!
May you grow up to be God-fearing, respectful and successful person.

Kyle Steven's Arrival

You Finally Arrive, Baby Kyle Steven.

I have long waited for this day.  To see you in person.  To have another baby after a little over a decade. I have been so excited preparing for your arrival. Especially the shopping part! 

My OB and I scheduled my CS operation for March 9, 2012, Friday. I chose this date so that family and friends could visit me over the weekend!

But baby Kyle had another plan...

I still reported for work on March 5, 2012(monday) even though I had constant contractions the day before, Sunday.  Well, I couldn't entirely 'blame' it on baby Kyle because Jojo had asked me to go grocery on Saturday one last time before I gave birth. I had hesitations but I still did it.  Because when he did the grocery during the times that I couldn't get up, the bill was like P3,000 pesos more! Talk about budgeting!

I still believe that the grocery deed took it's toll on baby Kyle.  Come Sunday, I was really contracting. So I just stayed in bed and wished that the contractions would stop.  Well, it did! But in the middle of the night, it started again. I didn't think about it and just hoped that it would stop again. I did not tell Jojo about it else he would make me stay at home.

So when I arrived at the office at 7am (bec the car was color coding) I went to the bathroom and then there I saw it. Bloody Show! I immediately called Dra. Florendo and told her. By the sound of her voice, I think she was still asleep but thankfully she still answered by call. 

She asked me to proceed to Asian Hospital. So now, my due date is March 5, not March 9.  Baby Kyle, this is the story on why your birthday is on March 5!

At Genesis, Asian Hospital, ready to pop!

Oh yeah and don't forget my pang hot oil cap, Dra!

Anxious Dad, 2nd time around.

Both of us were pretending to be relaxed but deep inside, we were nervous and anxious.

I was really scared of the spinal injection. Dra Florendo knew about this. So she requested my anesthesiologist, Dr Escolar, to have a talk with me before delivery.  I would later find out (after giving birth), that he was the husband of one of my ex-officemates. What a small world!

Can't make out what's happening at this point. Thank you so so much Dr Escolar for not making me feel any pain at all! The spinal injection that I had so much feared, did not hurt at all!!! 

Ah, hello baby Kyle!

 Now time to cut-off the precious nourishment-giving chord that attached you to me for the past 9 months.

 Still feeling groggy

First family picture together minus Paolo (now a Kuya) who was waiting in my room.  Smile naman dyan baby Kyle.

Now it's time to clean you up, baby!

Then weigh you...

Of course don't forget the tiny footprint

Then off to the Nursery you go, little one!

Im my room where Kuya Paolo patiently waited for me, so did my Mom and I forget the name of my mom's companion

Mommy and Baby reunited! 

 Daddy and Baby Kyle having a moment

 My room for 5 days

 Hallway perspective from my room. Nice, parang hotel lang.

Our Angel.

Welcome, Kyle.