Even with my few weeks of stress over my thyroid problem, I was still able to lose 2 dress sizes and over a little over 15lbs using Tim Ferriss' The Four Hour Body technique. My husband lost cover 18lbs and is already at his target weight. He definitely has lost alot judging on how loose his clothes fit now.

The first 6 weeks were rough as I wasn't seeing any dramatic day to day drops. Just a few ounces here or there and with the cheat day, it seemed that I was back to the beginning. After 6 weeks and I found out I was clear of thyroid issues I started losing more than a pound a day.

I've decided to stay on the diet to get to my target size before Thanksgiving. I have a feeling I can do it and with this diet more part of my routine I don't feel overwhelmed or bored. My goal weight treat is definitely a shopping spree.

On days when my husband heads out for a business trip, I try to find activities outside the house to help me keep from going insane. Some of the typical places include many of the local parks(open spaces) & libraries. Here on the mid-Peninsula there are many options that sound really appealing for parents trying to get out of the house. Some are free and others have a fee for entry or membership.

Rancho San Antonio
Hidden Villa Farms
Stanford University(Lake Lagunita, Cantor Art Museum, etc.)
Shoreline Park
Palo Alto Jr Museum & Zoo
Bumble Cafe
U-Me
Gymboree

I'll get links and write up some thoughts on kid & parent friendly reasons why I like these places. Of course there are a ton of indoor bounce house locations and places like MyGym/LittleGym but it takes my kids a long time to warm up to these drop-in play places with such a limited time, it didn't feel worth it.

I've decided to tackle the collection of recipes my mom gave me a few years ago. I know some of them by heart but having them in writing is definitely a great treasure of all my pilipino food memories. I'm planning to invite a couple friends to go shopping with me at a local Asian market and then head to my house to cook something up for dinner or afternoon snacks. I'm planning to schedule these from month to month or when I feel like cooking.

1: Adobo Chicken with Jasmine Rice and Leche Flan
2. Siapao(Cha-siu-bao from chinese influence) and Mami(noodle soup)
My mom always served these together for some reason. It’s definitely comfort food. I’ve made these before with my mom supervising, but it’s been more than 10years since I’ve done it.

3. Snacks: cunchita, puto(yes it is called this and no it’s not a foul word in tagalog) I have never attempted these before so this will definitely be a big experiment.

4. Pancit(noodle dish) & lumpia(fried egg rolls)
Will probably do 2 versions of this pancit depending on the type of noodles I find at the market.

5. Pan de Sal(salt bread) major staple bread in the Filipino diet and will be my first time attempting at home and without my mom!

I have a bunch of other recipes, but these were the first ones that I thought I should really learn to cook. I will also document the process with pictures and/or video. I'm hoping my guests/sous chefs will also enlighten me with some feedback and what kinds of changes can make it better. I wish I had a bigger house/kitchen and I'd invite more than 2 or 3 at a time.

So J is applying to just one program, the eMBA program at Wharton West. It's a pretty impressive program. I'm trying to find information on how family support plays a role in the sucess of the applicants/students.

The reason I'm trying to find other families that will potentially enter the same time as J is that it is a very time intensive program. Classes are Friday/Saturday every other week for 20 months. There are occassional travel to Philadelphia and other countries. The only information I haven't found is what happens to the families. Are there family events or even support groups for family members to feel plugged into the bigger community? It's a big investment on the student's time and money and I would imagine there would be support resources for their family.

Application for first round is due December 1st. J is already in study & writing mode for the past several weeks. I hope we make it through to December. Results come in early January. This is when prayers are definitely needed to reduce stress and for J to succeed during this process of writing and GMAT.

SO...I told myself that I would try to write more than 160 characters and not just about the kids. I will explore the myriad of book ideas and pursue them like it's a job...and while they might not lead to various book deals or mega-million dollar movie deals, I know I'll enjoy birthing these stories just the same. However if they do become book deals and $$$movie deals...that will just be icing on the cake. As for this site, I promise not to "whine" too much and to celebrate the blessings and reflect on the challenges. Perhaps even make the effort to learn from the challenges and abstract what values I can learn from them.