Cagayan Circle Banquet

I didn't have a chance to blog Friday because we were at a banquet and came home late. I meant to blog last night, but we had some problems with our router. (All we had to do was turn it off and on, but it took us a while to figure that out.) Anyway, here's a brief description of the banquet:

Cagayan is a province in the Phillipines; it's where Eugene's mother is from. She belongs to an organization that raises money for medical missions back there; in fact, she's on the board of directors. Part of the reason for the banquet on Friday night was to induct a new set of officers for the next couple of years. But the banquet was also about a "celebration of beauties." I'm not too sure about the details surrounding this custom--perhaps Eugene can comment with more info--but apparently it's like a coming-out party for young teenagers, at least, that's what it seems like at the last banquet we went to. This time, there were a couple of six-year-old girls involved as well, including Mikki, one of our flower girls. Eugene's cousin Desiree, an usherette at our wedding, was in it too. I'm not sure if there was an actual beauty pageant held before the banquet, but the ladies were given the titles of "Little Miss Isbella 2006" and "Miss Cagayan 2006" respectively. They were presented with sashes, tiaras, and flowers. Desiree, another teenage girl, and their escorts then danced. My pictures turned out on the dark side, but here are a few of them anyway:

Mikki with her parents.

















Desiree being crowned.

















Eugene's brother, Jason, and his girlfriend Marissa.

















And in other news, I went to Woodfield Mall yesterday with my mom. I looked for a formal dress for a wedding Eugene and I are going to in September, but I didn't find anything. Eugene and I went to the bookstore last night. I bought a bunch of books (I think I'm up to a Triple Tower of Reading) and wrote over 500 words for a new scene where Jo tells George she's carrying John's clone. Sounds like a soap opera, doesn't it? Eugene and I already ran our errands for today, so I'm just going to stay home the rest of the day and write some more.