This is my first official blog entry for 2008. I’ve been busy with work and other stuff (read: PSP gaming, ha!) the past few weeks.

Conne and I agree that 2007 has generally been a good year for our family and we’re looking forward to this year, hoping that it’ll pick up from last year.

Our son CJ’s growing up real fast and, at 2, is showing signs of being mature, mentally and emotionally, for his age. We hope that his precociousness and sweetness keeps up for this year.

Conne’s career has taken off as well. She finally got the management job that she deserves, even at her young age. I’m really proud of her. I envy how she can adeptly handle a myriad of job functions, where most people, including myself, have trouble handling even just one. And don’t forget to add the task of being a mother to a “terrible twos” tyke. She’s a prototypical superwoman.

My mom has finally re-married and now lives in the US with her loving husband, Dan. We’re happy because we know that they’ll take good care of each other and that they love each other so much. We’ve also welcomed a new addition to the Catarroja (Conne’s family) clan courtesy of Perci and Cienne (Conne’s sister). They finally have a son – Isaiah – or Ice, as we fondly call him. “Kuya” CJ has a new playmate and we can see how much he adores his younger cousin.

And so, we thank the Lord for everything. 2007 has been a good year and with His blessing, we hope that 2008 will be a smashing success.

And we hope and pray that you and your family will have a great year too! Cheers!

Wow, can you believe that it’s already December? It means Christmas is just around the corner.

We’re about to face another exhausting round of Christmas shopping chores. Hmmmmm, I wonder how long my Christmas list will end up this year. ;-P

To start the mood right for the holidays, here’s a picture of CJ as Santa’s little helper.

Anyhow, may the upcoming yuletide season bring happiness to you and your family, just as CJ brings happiness to mine.

Cheers! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Update —— September 14, 2011 ——

The DFA has implemented a new passport processing system. Philippine passport applications and appointments must now be done online via the official DFA passport application website at http://www.passport.com.ph.

You will no longer need to bring passport-sized pictures since your picture shall be taken at the DFA premises. Here are the guidelines that you need to follow when having your picture taken at the DFA Enrollment Section: http://dfa.gov.ph/main/index.php/guidelines-on-photo-capturing.

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We were finally able to apply for CJ’s passport yesterday, Friday, for our upcoming trip this December which was, as expected, accompanied by the usual hassles prevalent when applying for, or securing, any government license, certification or identification document.

We just found out that the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) recently issued new passport application guidelines, specifically on the new colored photo requirement where the photo of the applicant should be taken against a royal blue background.

We already had a passport-sized picture of CJ taken a month ago with a white background, the old requirement. And it’s a good thing that Conne checked out the DFA website to verify the requirements, otherwise she would have wasted a trip to the DFA office if she brought along CJ’s old pictures. And so we had a new set of CJ’s pictures taken last Thursday, his 2nd birthday.

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Update: Here’s a link to the new PASSPORT PHOTO GUIDELINES dated August 14, 2008: http://dfa.gov.ph/?p=234 and you can download the PDF file here: http://www.dfa.gov.ph/consular/PHOTO%20GUIDELINES.pdf