Last November 20, we celebrated my mom's 49th birthday. She's almost near her 50s, and I manifest that we could celebrate more birthdays together. That event was kinda busy since I helped her prepare the food. I also accompanied my relatives in commemorating this once-a-year moment. Although I'm not feeling well to write this blog due to Miss Universe, let's still get into it.
I woke up early in the morning since we performed our church duty at six. After that, I helped my mom prepare for her birthday. By the way, it was my freewill to skip my physical and English vocabulary exercises since she didn't have an assistant. I thought she wouldn't celebrate because she said she had no money. Yet, I saw that she prepared many ingredients to be served for a group.
The first thing she prepared was the glutinous rice for suman. While making the filling, she also cooked puto with cheese using the steamer. It was challenging for her to cook everything at once because we only had one equipment. Regardless, she still managed to cook all of it seamlessly. While I was busy editing my affiliate videos, I helped her get banana leaves from my neighbor. My mom also cooked her homemade Shanghai for our lunch.
After eating, I helped her wipe the banana leaves while watching a Philippine sitcom. I remember watching it eight years ago, but I still found it funny. After finishing, my mom ordered me again to cook the frozen Lumpiang Shanghai. I don't know how to cook perfectly, but my golden rule is that it should be golden brown.
While cooking, my mom asked what time Miss Universe would start in the Philippines. I told her that it was at 9AM based on my research. She had high hopes that our candidate would win. As it turned out, the pageant became a BIG COOKING SHOW. I didn't expect that the two weak contenders would be the winner and first runner-up. No wonder why it became the most controversial MU in history.
Moving on with the drama, here's our simple celebration for my mom's birthday. We cooked suman, palitaw, Lumpiang Shanghai, Chicken Adobo, and Spaghetti. On top of that, my aunt also prepared a dessert as an appetizer. APPETIZER?!!! Kidding aside, we only invited my relatives from my mother's side as part of our tradition. Although they had different commitments, they still managed to attend and that's the most important.
Before the eating portion, my mom initiated taking photos and videos as a family. It's unfortunate that my father was away for work. If my plans work well, I would suggest that he resign. I don't have any goals yet to work as a corporate slave, and I avoid that outcome. Right now, we need to hustle silently while I still don't need to face pressure.
The birthday celebrant also took photos with each family. In particular, my mom took photos of each family of her siblings. Although it was unnecessary, she said it was for remembrance. She's just saying that, but the real reason is because she will upload it on her Facebook.
After they took pictures, we finally ate our dinner. We didn't expect that the Chicken Adobo would be sold out. We heard many comments from them saying that it tasted delicious. They also liked how my mom cooked Spaghetti and Lumpiang Shanghai. Unbeknownst to them, I was the one who cooked it. My mom was the one who wrapped and blended the ingredients HAHHAHAHAHA.
In conclusion, we wrapped this celebration in meaningful and memorable ways. This birthday might not be extravagant compared on my aunts and uncles. In fact, we didn’t spend more than ₱10,000 just to celebrate this moment. For us, the most important thing we witnessed was reconnection. They just made chitchats together, and I can't believe that crab mentality was their bonding.