Evo & Grace: The WanderLusts

It's Elanna's birthday tomorrow. Eireka and Craig's youngest. But before she turned 1, I was given the privilege to have a photo session with her. Thanks to her momma for letting me do so.  When it comes to photo editing, I hate too much "drama". As much as possible I edit less. I prefer doing minimal changes to a photo. Hence, you can see most of the pictures here were edited just to enhance the brightness/contrast and not exaggerating the photo effects.  When the subject is kind of blurry or out of focus, I made use of the SEPIA/B&W tones. To hide the blur and to see the beauty of the photo in a classic way. I love taking candid shots. It's the most precious for me, and to think that kids, specially toddlers are the hardest subject to shoot, because they're too mobile. I really had fun shooting this little tot, though I wasn't feeling well that day. Again, thanks to the Merigill...

To encourage aspiring entrepreneurs to get into business, the Philippine SME Business Expo will feature well-known and successful entrepreneurs and speakers to talk about health and wellness, food enterprises, green entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, and many other business ideas starters may consider. This three-day event will be held on July 12-14, 2013 at the SMX Convention Center Taguig, located at the 3rd floor of SM Aura Premier, Taguig City. One of the featured speakers on the Philippine SME Business Expo is Ms. Charlene Tan, president of Good Food Community. Good Food Community focuses on cultivating a healthy lifestyle as well as creating a continuous demand of produce for the farmers of Capas, Tarlac who aims to live a more fruitful life. Good Food Community developed a community-shared agriculture system that builds up relationship with their farmers and provides them stable livelihood by delivering their vegetables door to-door to the houses in the m...

Cebu, Philippines - The Moevenpick Hotel Mactan Island Cebu is pleased to announce that it has been awarded the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence last May 22, 2013. TripAdvisor.com, presently considered one of the most popular travel websites among online netizens around the world, is renowned for providing its readers with key travel information. It features reviews and opinions of individuals who aim to share their unique travel experiences with the rest of the world. TripAdvisor showcases wide-scale reviews about hotels, restaurants, and much more. The TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence is awarded annually to the top performing 10% of all hotels worldwide, and is given to establishments that consistently earn high ratings from TripAdvisor travellers.  Recently re-launched on December 15 2012, after having undergone a PHP 500,000,000  total transformation, the Moevenpick Hotel Mactan Island Cebu is proud of the fact that it has been publically re...

Technology-aided instruction and learning were at the forefront of discussions at the "2nd Digital Education Conference: K to 12 and Teaching & Learning with Technology" last May 20, 2013 at the HRD Auditorium of the Philippine Normal University (PNU) in Manila, Philippines. Organized by PNU, Vibal Publishing House, Inc. (VPHI), and Vibal Foundation, the two-day conference and workshop featured talks and workshops by some of the most distinguished names in the field of education, dishing out lessons and pointers on how to make technology work for students and teachers. Integration of technology in classrooms In her opening remarks, Dr. Ester B. Ogena, president of PNU, admonished the participants to adapt to technology and be part of the shift in 21st century educational landscape. Mr. Benjamin G. Quito, ICT specialist in education from the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), followed suit with a comprehensive look at the ways tech...

Philips Avent’s Comfort Breast Pump promotes smoother milk flow Motherhood brings countless joys. But with emotional fulfillment come sacrifices  that both seasoned and newbie moms face.  One of the most challenging, as  well as uncomfortable, experiences is breastfeeding. But with the right tools,  breastfeeding can be a pleasurable and fulfilling gift that any mom can give to her  newborn.  “Philips Avent is behind moms everywhere in giving the best possible nutrition for  their babies,” shares Me-Ann Achacoso, Philips Avent’s Business Development Manager. “Providing breast milk to your little one is very important, and Philips Avent sees to it that moms can do this in utmost comfort.” Achacoso says that when moms are comfortable and relaxed, milk flows more easily. And to aid moms in providing milk for their babies, Philips Avent created its most comfortable breast pump yet—the Philips Avent Comfort Breast Pump.  Designed for relaxe...

"A RESTAURANT BRIMMING WITH STORIES" With his trademark panache, Ricky Gutierrez launches a book, “Behind the Doors of Chateau 1771,” to coincide with the 25 th  anniversary of Chateau 1771 last May 18. Available  for only Php650 at 1771 Group of Restaurants' Chateau, Sentro, Cafe, SideBar, and WineBar Ricky Gutierrez chose a risky, creative business in post-Martial Law Manila instead of a safe trading job in the United States. Chateau 1771 was built on the grounds of his old home. He went into the restaurant business cold – not knowing anything about it, relying on his guts and instincts more than anything else. A life that revolves around food and service is both delicious and challenging. This is the life that Vicky Pacheco chose. From Ecole Les Roches and  Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne , Switzerland, she managed an upscale Filipino restaurant in California, then headed home and found herself in Chateau 1771.  “Behind the doors of Chateau 177...

The Global CSR Summit & Awards 2013 awarded 3M Philippines with a Bronze Award for Best Workplace Practices at the Global CSR Summit & Awards 2013 held at the Marco Polo Hotel in Davao City on March 19 and 20. The summit, organized by Singapore-based Pinnacle Group International, is now in its fifth year and is Asia’s most prestigious event for corporate social responsibility. This year, over 500 entries from 100 leading companies in Asia competed for a chance to win in five award categories: Best Environmental Excellence, Best Community Program, Best Workplace Practices, CSR Leadership, and Product Excellence 3M received the bronze award in recognition of its collaborative culture that results in understanding customer needs and its 40+ technologies that are able to provide solutions to make progress possible. The recognition for 3M also noted its creation of meaningful opportunities for 3M employees by involving them in sustainability...

Yes you read it right.  Beyonce's pregnant and Blue Ivy's gonna be a big sister!! :) Read more here.

If one is in for some major food trip, then a must-try place is  The Oriental Legazpi’s Jasmine Restaurant. It not only offers Bicolano dishes with a twist but also Western Cuisine slightly tweaked  to  cater to the Filipino taste. With “Pinoys” innate love for food in abundant servings, The Jasmine goes big with Great Ginormous Dishes for the month of May! Burger fanatics will surely be surprised with the taste and enormous size of the Monster Burger. It’s   an estimated ½ kilo of heaven combining specially made all-beef patty, tomatoes, lettuce, bacon, egg, cheese in a super baked bun. An absolute bliss in a sandwich!   The Oriental Legazpi offers a great prize for its Man vs. Monster contest. Anyone who can beat the record in eating the most number of Monster Burgers in 30 minutes will get  the chance  to win a stay at a Deluxe Room  worth P 9, 500.00. Contest is until May 31, 2013.   Another dish that will surely ...

Art is a moving target. Those who do it most successfully find shades of emotion within themselves that change the texture of their work and how they feel about themselves. As a result, a real artist is ever-changing. Seven-time GRAMMY winning Trio Lady Antebellum has announced the release of their fourth Capitol Nashville studio album GOLDEN . So it is for Lady Antebellum, whose album Golden was figuratively – and literally – borne on the move. The harmony-based trio – Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood – and its sizeable fan base bonded heavily during the band’s Own the Night World Tour, its first arena run as a headlining act, in 2012. The shows themselves were inspirational. But so was the time offstage. Lady A made a point of experimenting and creating with its road band as the one-nighters and the miles of travel piled up. That behind-the-scenes interaction inspired much of the music on Golden, an instantly infectious project in which Lady A discover...

AMERICAN IDOL FINALIST’S EAGERLY ANTICIPATED DEBUT ALBUM ME, YOU & THE MUSIC , OUT NOW!!! Jessica Sanchez  — the 17-year-old California  native who won over American Idol viewers with her diva-worthy vocal range  — released her debut single, “Tonight” featuring Ne-Yo last March 21 st .   Her single is now enjoying heavy rotation on radio and TV Channels nationwide and also charting Top 1 -5 on radio station all over the Philippines. Me, You & the Music , Sanchez’s high-energy, beat-soaked debut album, released yesterday, May 14 on MCA Music (Universal Music Philippines).  Me, You & the Music features production by Benny Benassi, Harvey Mason Jr., Ne-Yo, Rodney Jerkins, Stargate & Toby Gad. Born and raised in Chula Vista, California, Sanchez has worked on honing her vocal versatility for almost her entire life. She started singing when she was two and lists Mariah Carey, Etta James, and Ray Charles among her musical influenc...

Starting today. For a VERY limited time ONLY. When was the last time you ate the Amazing Aloha Burger? The last time it was served in Jollibee Stores was in 2009 but I can still vividly remember how juicy and tasty the entire burger was. But guess what? The Jollibee Amazing Aloha Burger is back, JUICIER and TASTIER! We were given a chance to have the first taste of the Amazing Aloha burger yesterday during its launch in Jollibee Green Meadows and honestly, it brought back a whole lot of memories (it’s a personal favorite so I frequently order this when it was still available in the market.) Starting today, May 15, 2013, the Amazing Aloha Burger will be served in all Jollibee stores. Now isn’t that AMAZING? A bite-after-bite delight of two juicy burger patties, crispy bacon bits, cheese and lettuce drizzled with the right amount of honey mustard dressing, topped with a whole fresh slice of pineapple and sandwiched in between two soft buns. Naglalaway ka na ba? You ...