Grateful Dad #30: Celebrating Fatherhood + More
We celebrated our third Father’s Day during the time of the pandemic. It was just a simple lunch celebration at home. We ordered food from one of our party tray sellers – Hotdish. We were surprised because Hotdish was still able to accommodate our last-minute order unlike during Mother’s Day when they were already fully booked days before.
Grateful Dad #30: Celebrating Fatherhood + More
We ordered Pancit Sisig, Beef Caldereta, and Shrimp Tempura. I love Pancit Sisig because it’s always packed with flavors. The pork sisig toppings remained surprisingly crunchy until the evening.
We also love Hotdish’s Beef Caldereta. The meat is very tender while the sauce had well-balanced flavors from the tomato sauce, coconut milk, and liver spread. It was also mildly spicy which I found to be perfect.
Food from Hotdish (Pancit Sisig on the left, top right is Shrimp Tempura, and bottom right is the Beef Caldereta)
Meanwhile, the shrimp tempura was just okay. It tasted good and can satisfy one’s shrimp tempura cravings but I wouldn’t consider it to be spectacular. Then again, maybe I’m just not really a huge shrimp tempura fan.
Aside from our lunch, there was nothing more eventful with our Father’s Day celebration. We played with the kids a little while I take the opportunity to finish some of my deliverables with my Father’s Day brand collabs. Again, in any celebration, what’s important is the meaning behind it and the people who you spend it with.
Speaking of brand collaborations, I’m still grateful for the brands that trust me since losing my old Instagram account late last year. Admittedly though, the brand collabs have been fewer for me this year but I totally understand that. However, I do plan to take a little backseat when it comes to brand partnerships.
Daddy and Rafa
They may be fewer but I found them to be more tiring for me this year. I guess it’s because of the sudden popularity of TikTok and IG Reels. Previously, I would just have to shoot static photos. Now, I have to shoot both static photos and short video clips for sharing on TikTok and IG Reels.
I confess that I’m not too adept when it comes to video conceptualization. In fact, if you look at my TikTok and IG Reels, all my videos look almost the same like the sequence of shots, lighting, materials used, and all.
Furthermore, I want to take it slow because the pressure is somehow catching up on me. I’ve been losing my patience as well as my temper in a snap so that’s not a good sign. I should be enjoying the things that I love to do and not add more burden to my life.
In the end, I’m still thankful for work and the additional income but I think it’s also fine to say no when work is becoming too much to handle.
On a different note, here are some of the things that I’m also grateful for last week:
Miguel’s graduation from his summer playschool
Miguel’s one-month summer playschool ended last June 17, 2022. They had a simple graduation ceremony at school which we attended, of course. The children were asked to wear a costume and Miguel came in dressed as Mickey Mouse.
Miguel graduates from his summer playschool
Certificates and treats were handed to the kids and nursery rhymes were played throughout. We are proud of our son for having finished his summer playschool which he seems to have really enjoyed.
More than that, we are also happy about our son’s progress. His teacher told us that he was already interacting with his classmates unlike during the start of the program when he would just sit still and wait for the toys and class activities to be handed to him.
Going on a Facebook Live with Why We Dine
Why We Dine, which started in 2020, is a group of digital creators born out of the desire of the Hero Kitchen Detailers to help the restaurant industry during the pandemic by sharing and collecting dining experiences.
Why We Dine asked people who loved dining out to share their favorite dining stories before the pandemic hit the country. Those pre-pandemic dining stories brought back happy memories and a sense of normalcy both for the people who shared them and the restaurant industry as well.
I’m a very reserved person and I’m not particularly fond of being seen on screen, much more talking during a live broadcast. However, I said yes to Why We Dine because I like their advocacy of helping the local restaurant industry get back on its feet.
I joined a Facebook live game/contest with a group of bloggers last year that was organized by Blogapalooza and so I thought, “Why not?” since it (Why We Dine) would most likely be the same. I learned later on that it would just be an individual game so that added a little to my nervousness.
All the same, the Why We Dine team gave me a briefing a week before the event plus we had technical rehearsals a few minutes before we went live and that eased my apprehension a little.
Surprisingly, during the event itself, my nervousness disappeared and I was enjoying the games. Everything went smoothly and I’m glad that some of my blog supporters also joined me during the Facebook live. They were even helping me with some of the answers to the questions.
Many thanks to Why We Dine for the experience as well as the prizes from Yellow Cab Pizza, Manam, and Ramen Nagi!
You can watch the full episode on Why We Dine's Facebook page.
How about you, what are you grateful for? Feel free to share them in the comment section below.