we fought!!!

Who did fight? We'll, the three of us! Last night!

Oh, don't be fooled by that sweet and tempting smile of her! She's a 2-year-old-toddler right now, and I am telling you, she's got that "terrible 2" tantrum, too! LOL Most often or almost always, she is the lovely and angelic, so precious little daughter of ours who tries to pretend and act that she's already an adult. Two going 10? Or 12? Sort of! That she can do what we can and we can't tell her what to do. Haha! Well, last night during bedtime was one of those very rare nights when she became so hard-headed. I know she's just a child, but last night was just terrible. It completely was a reverse of how good she was during dinner and afterwards when she helped dadi cleaned up our trash. She's a HUGE helper, a very trying-hard momma's assistant, but last night's bedtime was disastrous.

Here's the scenario if you may want to dig in: :D
She's on her Wiggles, dad's on his pc, and I am on mine chatting with Ate back in CDO. At 11:30pm, she was still too active but it's already bedtime so after I shut down my pc, I asked her to end her Wiggle time for us to sleep. I never minded swithart because he doesn't need to join us in bed. Well, Triz don't like to stop her show even after 20 minutes of waiting. I wish I can just sleep right away but I couldn't when the main light is still on and the audio of her show is still hearable. I am the hardest when it comes to sleeping quickly and last night, I had a slight headache plus my eyes were needing a rest. She already felt sleepy because her eyes were already tired I can see and she was already lying in her huge pillow while watching. Because she won't stop her show after so many tries of letting her press the stop button of the remote, I did it. And after I did it, the disaster came in. LOL Everything for her was just "NO" and she got mad at me for stopping her show. Well, I had my fault for being too impatient already but I needed to be firm. 'nuff is enough and it's what I wanna teach her you know. I did all good things I could do to console her but she kept screaming and crying and she won't go near me. Just when she was really crying her heart out, dad came to the rescue and tolerated her for her doings- turned the player again, gave the remote to the toddler, let her stop it herself but the cries and screams were still there. Hah! Imagine our fight--all 3 of us! We're human after all, can you tell?

Well, in times like it, nobody else can stop Triz in her crying and screaming, not even the dadi, no matter how he finds way. Nobody else but me. And how? Simply by asking her if she wants to listen to my story. I did ask her, and that's when she came near me and gave in. Yep, that easy. She stopped crying and I started my story telling her of my childhood, that I was the most loved by my late father, her Lolo Jose, and I was never scolded or spanked. Not ever because I was obedient and everything my parents said during my childhood, I obeyed, and so it would be great if she would do the same thing. That what momma and dadi say, she'll obey. And then we said our sorries and iloveyous. I can tell we three learned our lesson last night, just like we do every time instances like it happen. The dad tolerates, the daughter was showing her tantrums, I was tough. But in the end, we three still agreed what's good and what's not. :)

Viva Las Vegas!

By the time Yaya [my older sister] and her family from Japan will be coming over to visit us later this year, my sister-in-law will already be living in Las Vegas. She is going to move there end of February and by summer of this year, we will be following her there if the husband will still not be employed by then. It is a great thing for Yaya if we're already residing there because the first place here in the US that her family would love to visit is Las Vegas so it's perfect. She said they don't need for us to accommodate them house-wise because she's very familiar of the las vegas hotels and just now, she's already in the process of looking for the perfect hotel where the three of them can stay. Well, we'll be painting Vegas red on that time! Who can wait? Haha! I surely can't!

of jobs and applications

It is no secret how the number of people being laid off from their jobs are getting higher and higher. It is tough because in today's tumultuous times, our survival depends on our dependency to our incomes. My elder sister is going to fly to HK next week for work and that would make her the fourth in the family to be working there. I felt it's a "wow" factor at first, but then when I look at the reality, that she will be separated from her husband [fortunately, they're childless for now], then the pain of being away from her other behalf is a huge sacrifice that I wouldn't even dare to be a part of. Right now, I am always torn between two situations: whether to go home to Philippines and earn my nursing degree there or just stay here and wait till I could go back to school when swithart will be settled in a permanent and stable job in a college/university institution. It always pains me to realize how long the time have I been unable to work outside but the husband is always there to remind me that it would be SO terrible if we'll be separated again. Now, he is in the process of applying for a MATHEMATICS PROFESSORSHIP position and it's just a consolation that even if a huge number of workers have lost their jobs, job position in this field never run out of. But it's not easy still, and until now, we're still in the wait. More luck to us! Wherever life will lead us, we're decided that we shall be together because we're stronger that way. :)

Project Management Program

My sister-in-law, an IT expert, is an online Project Management certificate holder for a couple of years now. For over 10 years of working as a programmer in a huge institution, she has been sent to countless trainings and seminars in relation to her field and I must say it all give a huge advantage in her career. But earning the Project Management Program certificate is another thing she treasures ever since she was able to complete and pass the exam because she did it with flying colors. She is a team leader and she holds a lot of responsibilities at the workplace so when she tendered her resignation yesterday in favor of a much bigger task that awaits her in another institution, she is considered a big loss in the department.

Anyway, my topic is about the Project Management Program. If you or you know of people who are Engineering Managers, Construction Managers, Management Analysts, Natural Sciences Managers, Computer and Information Systems Managers, then this course is most relevant to them. It could help boost their careers and become more reliable in the leadership section. Nope, one does not need to bother enrolling this program in a campus because Saint Joseph's University Professional Home can let one earn a Project Management Certificate just through online. All of the necessary information are available in the site so check it now if you are interested.

friday!!!

As usual, I am thankful it's Friday because every weekend is always being looked forward by me. Last night, I had a great talk with my two sisters in CDO and in HK. Ate Jov in CDO is going to be flying to HK soon to work and Ate Eve in HK is all so busy, up, and running for the documents that Ate Jov will be needing. Yay, I am so excited and happy for my Ate Jov! Last night, too, we finally we're able to know what's the reaction of SIL's colleagues in the workplace after she submitted her resignation letter to their boss. Oh boy was it soooo tough. Our very very close friend Jerry who didn't expect SIL to resign was in tears. And the boss was indeed stunned and very surprise. BUT, it's done now, so before I know it, SIL will be done reporting here at ISU and will finally be leaving this place to settle in Vegas. Yes, we can't wait, especially Ma and Pa, but for now, we'll stay here until swithart gets to be done with his "must-be-done". Today, I am thankful it's Friday but I gotta keep moving because I have a lot to do. So I wish you all a very nice day and a beautiful weekend ahead!

Time for a Rackmount Monitor?

The husband's notebook has been acting up lately. It keeps on hanging on him when he's in the midst of his very important encoding of his "dissertation". He envies mine because this is a year older that his and yet, I got no problem with it at all, except when there's a virus. lol Well, I told him it's time for a change. That laptops are getting cheaper nowadays so he could get a new one and he could just send the old one to Philippines so our nephew who is in need of it for his IT course will be able to use it. I showed him the site rackmountsales.com and he seemed to be liking a Rackmount monitor for a change. Since he is a very mobile laptop user, then I guess it will work for him. We'll see if he can ditch the old one maybe next month. We're in wait for something in the mail that we could use to buy a new laptop! :)

someone visited

It's a manic day! I know it's not Monday but well, that's how my day went. I am supposed to write my assigned tasks over at pay u but someone visited us this afternoon and I was able to unattend to my pc because I have to mind our guest, otherwise, I am that inhospitable. Well, it's just our fellow kababayan who dropped by without any pre-notice. It was great because Ma and Pa had a great time talking with her. I have, too, not to mention how much we loved what she brought for us- some of those common and typical pinoy desserts that are ever so yummy! We had a long three hours of chats, and it felt awesome to share laughters and bits of "gossips" about the good stuff of our fellow kababayans in the community. Haha! She was shocked to know about what's going to take place in our lives this year-- our leaving here. But well, she's happy and excited for us and she just wished us luck. It would have been awesome if we have taken some shots, but nope, we've got a lot to talk about, about life, laughter, and loves that I never mind getting my camera for a click. Hehe.. Now I wish I can still go on and do my writing task before my body and mind will demand a reast! I hope you all have a great time being here! :)

goodie day!!!

I am calling it a day! Well, it's 11:30pm already in this part of the world where I am in and thank God for the blessings for today! :) I've chatted with my sis, with swithart's nephew who is asking for moolah, and with friends scattered around the globe earlier, and now, I can hear Triz's Barney that's just concluded. In other words, I am ready to retire for bed as soon as I'm done posting this entry. It's been a long day today. Though I am just stuck here at home, I am still that productive. Tomorrow awaits a lot of things to do, and I couldn't wait for one huge thing to be done. SIL is going to tender her resignation at her current job and we can't wait what everybody's reaction's gonna be. It's been a long wait on our part. You see, nobody here knows the whole plan except us here at home. There'll be a lot who'll get disappointed and sad, especially when they'll learn that we'll soon gonna leave this place. Hmm... For now, I wanna say thanks for dropping by and checking me here and may you all have a great time! Good night and good day, whatever fits in your time zone! :D

And oh... keep a smile. God loves you! :)

malwares, virus, and such

Yay! Bravejournal blogs could not be opened at firefox and chrome and I have observed this since last week. It's still displaying so fine though at ie. I am sure if you've got bravejournal blogs like I do [Unsealing My Mind], you know what I'm talking about! I am just wondering why google has suspected a malware on bravejournal blogs when I still could log in to bravenet here at firefox or chrome. Just weird. And I don't get it. Worst, while EC dropping yesterday, I came across a certain site that does EC which made my computer hanged because a window suddenly popped up telling me about a trojan virus being detected by my McAfee. What the!!! So I closed all of my opened windows [which apparently are a lot lemme tell yah!] and off I went scanning. See this?

Hah! I am just thankful and glad that my McAfee works so good to and in my system. Otherwise, duh, it would have been goodbye to my beloved lappy! Thanks to the university's access I have through swithart's account, a daily update is that possible! :)

Wii Break

I have a break from my wii fit session today because I don't feel like hula hooping at all. I guess it won't be right if I'll force myself to do it because my body demands more rest. The monthly period that we women have sure gives us a moody feelings and conditions, and even if you may not ask, I usually feel so lazy during "that" period. I even just asked swithart to do the meals today, which I am thankful because I get to eat just few since I don't like what's on the table. LOL It's Wednesday and as usual, when Triz woke up this morning, her first question was "where's dadi?". I told her he's in school and she said "okay", and when the dad got home at 12 noon, the toddler was the most excited to wait for him at the doorway.

Also, Ma and Pa are just here. They're supposed to be going to their Monday and Wednesday employer but I guess since their employer was too busy to come pick them up when they demanded a 9:30am time to be picked up so they're stuck around here. Last night, I could see that Ma and Pa couldn't hide their excitement when SIL told us that tomorrow, she is going to tender her resignation at her current job. Well, it is going to be a one great step to take and all of us are looking forward to the jump that everybody will be taking in in the following days and weeks. So many things to do, to0 little time. But there's always a way. Well, a lot of things are running in my mind right now, so for the meantime, I wish you all a wonderful Wednesday and stay warm!

tuesday thinkin'

It has been a so short day! I spent so long a time being in bed, just chilling and relaxing, watching the snow outside falling down through our window because I have to, as my body demands me to. I got a little headache today caused by this 'woman thing' and I am glad swithart is around to give me a massage and a much-needed caress in such a time as this. I did a couple loads of laundry though, because SIL's three-day-military duty this past weekend filled our laundry boxes. Nope, I am not complaining at all, in fact, I loved it, because yesterday, we just purchased a huge gallon of laundry detergent (LOL) and I love the smell of Suavitel fabric softener and I love [the most] how warm those clothes are when they come out from the dryer, still, in such a time as this! Haha!

Well, I made tortang talong for lunch [and probbaly for dinner, too!] today. Yum! It's SIL's and swithart's favorite, and I loved it, too with ketchup as a side dish of it. But Triz chose fried beefloaf over it. While the older folks preferred their tuna soup with cabbage and which I made, too! See? I am the cook! Hmp!

:)

Did I mention I was in bed for a long time today just chilling out? Well, Triz joined me half of that time and we enjoyed coloring her coloring materials and I also did my first official routine of teaching her the alphabets. I tried it to see if she's interested so I can then continue the lesson and since she expresses much interest on it, then it will be continued daily or whenever she likes it that's for sure. The thing is, we don't force her to learn these stuff at such an early age but if she shows interest, then me and the dad can be teachers. Oh... I had an awesome and restful Tuesday right here! It's cold, but it's fine, I didn't have to conquer the low temperature so I am completely fine. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday as well!

activating facebook

Okay, I've mentioned in the past how much of a Friendster junkie I am. Yes sir and ma'am, I have loved Friendster because it's where I've gotten reconnected with a whole lot of good old friends, as well as new and virtual friends. It still gets and keeps me excited every time I see a profile of a familiar person, and trust me, it feels so good to have that someone become included in the friends' list page. I may have become a little narcissistic in my profile, but who isn't, huh? :P Haha!

Anyway, I am starting to get active and addict with Facebook now. Today, I've spent a good and long amount of time Facebooking. I do have friends in there who are also at Friendster but there are a bunch whom I have just gotten in touch at FB so I am excited at a different pace and level. LOL There's this one gal whom I haven't met in person yet but she's in Las Vegas right now, studying at UNLV, the very university where SIL will be moving to work soon, and we come from the same place in CDO and oh my, we have chatted unendlessly this afternoon about sooooo many things and I am really hooked. Now I can't blame anyone out there who got addicted to FB as well. I think I am on the same track too and who knows when will I stop? Haha!

#

silent sunday

It snowed overnight in our part of the world last night. I wasn't aware of the forecast so I was surprised to see thick inches of those pure white thing outside when I woke up this morning. "Yikes" was my initial reaction, as usual, and I dreaded the thought of going out. Haha! Yesterday, we were at church the whole morning and it was very very cold. FIL termed it "seriously cold" when we were talking on the van and we all had to laugh about it. We had an awesome time at church though; swithart and I did the special music during the divine service and the congregation was amazed with how behaved Triz was. We left her in our seat and she just hanged in there, trying to hum with us and she sure looked very cute.

Today, yes, it's a silent day here at home because all of us were doing each of our own business. No going out, just plain "mind your own business" thing. LOL Pa was playing the piano while Ma was reading her Health & Home book, Triz was watching her show while I did my round of hula hoop via Wii Fit this morning, while swithart? Still no time doing any other than his paperworks! SIL is on her 3rd day of duty to her military unit and I bet she must be very tired every night when she comes home, not to mention how occupied she is right now with her work status at ISU. Well, in a month's time or two, I'm sure she'll be settled. Hah! It's the usual homebuddy day that we all here go through during weekends. The yummiest part though today is that I fried some dried fish and prepared vegetable salad made of okra and eggpant. It sure boost our appetite in here! And the dieting? Forget about that for today! Hahaha!

So how's your Sunday friends?

fill me friday

I've got someone to show off 'round here! Yep, that's our 2 and a half years old daughter doing her thing!

Can you fill in some caption? What do you think? Will she make it? Haha!

[P.S. I have yet to convince the man and myself to upload one of her singing videos right here!] We're going to sing tomorrow at church by the way! Tonight, it's practice time for our little guitarist! :)

"I just have to keep going"

I am not a huge fan of taking pills. Swallowing any tablet, capsule, or caplet is just not my thing. Any fellas out there who's with me on this? I bet! So when I've uttered many times to swithart my desire of losing weight and my motive of taking any of those claimed best diet pills out there, he just shrugged his shoulders and said I won't succeed. Did I mention I am back to hula hooping now via Wii Fit? Oh yes, I am! Today is going to be my third session for the year. :D I started last Monday and I am doing it every other day because I still have a pained pelvis and joints. Well, hopefully next week I can do it everyday of the week already. I just can't stand anymore the fact that I keep gaining weight and I am not doing anything to help myself. Swithart thinks I just have to keep going and I'll get there. I believe so, too. So any moments later, I will be doing my round of hula hooping! Will you join me? Hehe...

it's friday!

Oh yeah, and I am loving it! It's cold, but it's not as cold as it was in the past week when the temperature dropped down below zero and all I felt was dreaded the time to go out! LOL Yesterday, we went grocery shopping and I am done with it. Today, it's in the 30's and so I wouldn't mind going out again as I want to go to the Oriental store to check if they've got new and fresh vegetables in their freshy section. I want to eat some okra and eggplant made into salad, or put into paksiw. Yum! I've had Mackerel fish here from the Chinese store so these will be good for everybody who'll eat my menu! :)

Why so early here? Well, I woke up at 6am today, mindful of the little noise outside our bedroom. When I got out, it was SIL preparing herself to leave for her military duty. Yep, she's not working today because she was called to report to her unit in Peoria. I hope everything will go smooth. I think she has a lot to do career wise as she is set to move to Las Vegas in a month. Today, I've got a lot of chores to do, as usual, as it's the end of the week. Now I have had a good start of my day having myself updated with the news and other readables online. I hope you all have a great weekend! Happy Friday everyone!

Compact Flash

Is there anybody among you who's needing any type of compact flash? I know my sister-in-law does! You see, she had so much fun during her one-month-vacation in Philippines and all of her photos and videos that we have watched since the day she got back were magnificent. But you know what? There are little things which she finds to be so frustrating when being thought back. For example, her Blackberry phone fell on the AA plane's lavatory and nope, she hadn't recovered it any more, much worse, all of her important files and phonebook weren't retrieved. Another one, her Sony Vaio laptop's screen got cracked when someone [an innocent child we think] seemed to have thrown a coin in it. That's when she was away and she left her notebook in the bedroom and there were so many kids that time coming in and out of the house. So yeah, how disappointing can those be? Now, SIL is in the process of trying to solve each of the negative things she has been though during her trip.

approved!!!

It has been several weeks now that I dreaded to receive e-mails in my inbox from IZEA. That's with regards to the on-going blog audit that triple p has imposed since last year and for all my three blogs active at them, only my bravejournal has been given the verdict so far. Even if you may not ask, yeah, my bravejournal has been cut off, and they said the reason is not because of its substance but because they're just simply taking out from their system all bravejournal accounts. So sad, yeah, but last night, I was so thankful and happy. Why, because finally, I got a huge relief when this very blog has finally been assessed and the result?

So you bet I am the happiest! I know, this is not for permanence, but for the meantime, while I am being stuck here at home, I will have to continue doing paid postings from them, as long as there are writing opportunities worth grabbing the price. You know what I mean? So for now, I wanna say thanks peepeepee for finally giving me the verdict! lol Good luck to all of us! :)

typical meals

SIL is already here and she had a safe and sound flight from Manila to here, a long 26-hour-trip all in all because there were delays and long hours of pit stops in Japan and O'hare. Last Monday night, swithart and PA-in-law fetched her from the airport and we all were excited to have her back. You bet there were a lot of talks and wonderful stories about people and about things that happened during her vacation in Philippines. There were videos and photos to look at, and until now, we are not done yet watching at the pictures because everything is in her laptop and she brings her laptop to work when she went back to duty yesterday so our time to see them all is only when SIL is home. What I love the most though are our meals right now because it feels like we're home in CDO having a lot of noodles, beefloaf, and dried fish around here! LOL Thanks to Yaya who was the one who bought all of what I requested and who sent these all through SIL. Hehe... Now I am having the time of my life not having a long time wondering what to cook for dinner because it feels like everything comes in handy! :) God for me eh?

2nd day for '09

Yes, it's official. Today's Wii Fit session is my second day for 2009 hula hooping to the max! lol You think I am serious in this endeavor? You bet! I stopped religiously turning and swaying my hips in a large, neat circle after two months of doing it late last year but last Monday, after finding out that I've gained 4 lbs over the holidays, I think I am very much decided to go back hula hooping once more. :D The picture is an old one, and before that number of spins was the most I got. But this morning, I broke my record! lol I was able to reach 861 spins! Haha! I have been trying so hard to loose weight, but I just failed in those many attempts. I hate to see all these new outfits I have that just won't look good on me when worn so I am hoping I will make it work good with this time! Hehe... Last Monday, I started my 40 minutes of super hula hooping and you bet I had a strained muscles right now! My belly fats, pelvis, and shoulders hurt and I think it's my sweating last Monday that made my head ached so bad yesterday. This morning, I did another 40 minutes round. For now, I am serious with this routine and I hope I can continue doing this so I will reap the reward soon. :D

Of Washing Dishes

Before Ma and Pa-in-law got here, I was the one who does the washing of dishes almost all the time. I didn't mind though, because I know it's part of my being a housewife. Though I must admit, back in my very own family, before I got married, washing dishes is a household task I wouldn't do. Hehe... I cook, I do the laundry, I fold, I sweep, but washing dishes? That, I only do during parties at home or any events that entail a lot of dishes being stocked in the sink for washing. It's not that I am lazy, but I don't like my hands being wet for only a short time. Weird eh? Yeah, what I like is when I wash dishes, I like them to be many, not few. So now, here at home, with Ma and Pa-in-law around, I could almost never wash dishes because either MIL or FIL tends to wash whatever's on the sink even if there's only two or three. By the way, I just found out that our kitchen's faucet is a Grohe brand. It's a newly-installed faucet and I like it! You think it will make me wash dishes more often now? Hah!

too young for a watch?

I don't think so! You see, she can count one to twenty now. She knows what one plus one, two plus two, four plus four, and five plus five are. I won't tell what she can recite about the alphabets just yet, but I like to talk numbers. At least, to my toddler. The wall clock-- we have five around the house and each time I ask her where the clock is, she is so eager to point it for me. Guess what, she can recognize the numbers 1 to 12 in the clock already but nope, I don't expect her to write it for me. Just not now. And because me and the dad both have our wristwatches with us, she wants to have one, too. So when my elder sister in HK asked me what she could give to Triz last Christmas, I, without too much fuss asked her if she could find a Barney watch or Elmo in there. Ate Eve thought it's that easy because she often finds children's stuff anywhere when shopping but when she tried looking for either of what I mentioned, nah... she called me in the middle of her shopping time to tell me there's just no Barney or Elmo in there! LOL But when we got the package she sent, Triz got a beautiful Winnie d' Pooh wristwatch, and she quickly grabbed it and wanted to put it on.

Ma-in-law thought this 2 and a half years old little girl of ours is still too young to wear one, but again, I don't think so. Not only does she likes it because she could recognizes Pooh's character in it but most of all, she likes looking at the numbers 1 to 12 in it and observing how the seond hand moves. I don't force her to learn, but I think having her that stuff will enable her to learn numbers and counting the natural way. Don't you think?

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one day break!!!

Yesterday, I woke up at 4am with a very painful headache. It seemed like my head could break any moment that I almost fainted as I really felt so dizzied and in pain. The toddler was in between me and the dad so I didn't bother waking up swithart; instead, I just stood up, managed to get a couple caplets of Tylenol 650mg and took it. Then I went back to bed, tried to go back to sleep, though very hard, because the doze of medicine didn't take effect right away. A couple minutes after, I dared stood up, ran to the bathroom because I felt like passing out, and true enough, I wasn't able to control it, I did pass out in the bathroom, and still had a very painful headache after that. Back to bed, I tried so hard to close my eyes and relax, until I was able to sleep.

My bedmates got up at 8:30am and then I told swithart I'll have to stay in bed for a while because I got a headache and the two of them gave me a good massage which I was grateful for. Then they let me overslept and overtayed in bed, until 10am when swithart called me to ask if I might want to watch the Obama inauguration on TV and yes, it's all what I did for the entire morning: layed on the couch, had a glass of hot chocolait and a couple pieces of suman all the way from Mama in Philippines which SIL brought home. I have had a good day of break yesterday. My headache was so intense that the doze of Tylenol I took only helped a bit. I don't know what caused it because it's not my monthly period schedule yet, but I think it's because of the sweating I have had last Monday when I returned to hula hooping via Wii Fit. Because of my headache, I was able to stay off from the online world the whole day. I was on TV the whole time, but mostly, I was just listening to the audio.

Right now, I am feeling 90% relief from that very severe headache. If only I am in Philippines right now, I would be proceeding to the nearest clinic where I could undergo a CT-scan to check if I am alright. :) I am fine now, but swithart still suggests to continue taking a break from the pc. I will later, as soon as I am done with what I'm supposed to do 'round here. Meanwhile, thanks to all who dropped by and I'll try to do my dropping later to pay each of you back! :)

finally!!!

I have shared the long wait of Yaya, Kuya Tom, and Shai-shai being stranded in CDO last week because of the undesirable weather condition in there but finally, early this morning, Monday night Japan time, they already got home and settled in their humble abode somewhere in Japan. [I'm using a little older pictures of them because they still haven't sent me their latest poses. It's them at Disneyland Tokyo summer last year].

They made it there successfully and thankfully. So today, Shai-shai will be back to school and the parents will be back to work. It was just two weeks that they were gone but it seemed like forever. It was quite an adventure at this time of going home and I should say somehow unsuccessful, too because their most important task that's supposed to be done wasn't put to reality. Good thing that we have our sisters and only brother back home in CDO who will be able to take care of stuff. Now, I can't wait for thier next big trip to happen within this year. That's because their plan involves coming over to visit us here so that one will be truly a huge deal for us! :) Hopefully, things will turn out well for everybody!

being home

What a good start of the week I had! It is a federal holiday today, thus, there's no school or classes. After I got up from bed this morning, I hurriedly woke swithart up because it's getting late and he's supposed to leave for school before 8am for his class, only to realized that it's MLK Day today and he could oversleep as long as he wants to. Hmm... perfect because it's been snowing last night and when I looked outside first thing in the morning, snow has accumulated to more than five inches. It's very cold and so there is no sign of melting. I am supposed to go out and get some stuff that we run out of, but I chose to wait till maybe a couple of days or tomorrow because it's just unbearably cold.

So we're just being home today. Play with this ever so active and energetic toddler of ours, watch TV, Wiiing, and chatting endlessly. Minutes ago, SIL called informing us that she's already in Chicago and that her flight to here is still at 8pm tonight. It's a 45-minutes-fly from O'hare to where we are so by 8:45pm, swithart is asking me to go with him to the airport to fetch SIL. I can't wait, because there are a lot of things to be talked and photos to be seen. Not to mention the stuff that my family has sent me thru her. Hmmm... I hope everything will be alright, and snow won't fall down yet until midnight. You see, it's been forecasted to snow tonight but I hope not yet, until SIL gets here safe and sound. So how's your Monday friends?

still below zero but tGif!

Happy Friday everyone! How's one and all? Well, for us here, we're still stuck in this humble abode of ours because nobody would dare go out in the cold other than swithart and Pa-in-law. We still are having a below zero temperature around here; reason why I don't have the nerves to head out, even though the sun shines on us brightly. I would rather sit here on the couch with the curtains open so I still could get the vitamin D sunshine. I am glad Triz is not that insistent on asking me to play in the snow, I think her new Wiggles DVDs helped a lot. lol Right now, swithart is in school for a teacher's meeting and I let him bring my list of stuff-to-be bought so he'll be the one to go to the stores and buy 'em. He offered me a trip to the mall earlier so I could walk around as my means of moving and exercising but I hate to get up and be bundled up so my Friday will just really be spent here at home.

I got two loads of laundry to finish though so it still will make me busy, plus it's preparation day today for the Sabbath so there'll be a lot to do around here. My toddler is my break every now and then from all of these chores I am into and she is giving me a great time. Earlier, I am doing my round of EC dropping when she burst out "i'm ready for skul, mum!" (Left Pic) and when I glanced at her, she's right, she seems all so ready as she has put her Barney pack on. So we played pretend; as if she's leaving for school so I told her, "okay, be good to the teacher and have fun!" And she exclaimed "bye!" and went out of our room. Some moments later, she got back and shouted "i'm back, mum!" (Right Pic) and she looked like she had a blast!

:)

Oh what simple but real joy does our kids give us! Amidst all the chaos outside, when our home is filled with happy kids, then life is not that complicated! At least, for me. Triz is growing bigger every single day and her way of letting her own self finds something to do is a fulfilling thing to see. With her playfulness, I wouldn't mind not being able to do a lot of what I am suppose to accomplish online because she asks a lot of my time in her growing days. Now with her likes to play pretend like she's in school, I feel like ending my online tasks for today and mind her. TGIF, and I wish you all a wonderful weekend ahead while I am saying this is all for today! Keep warm everyone!

On Monday...

...my sister-in-law will be arriving from her one-month-long vacation in Philippines! I bet she had so much fun and she even visited our home and met my elder sister who is also a balikbayan. She said she's got plenty of photos to show to me and I can't wait. But what makes me excited the most are the stuff that my family send to me through SIL. Actually, last Wednesday, Yaya asked me if there's anything more I wanted them to send and I eagerly told her that Triz would love to eat some Richie, Moby, and Sweet Corn junks which she has loved to munched when we were there last year. I also included in the list the ever yummy dried fish and she was afraid SIL might nor bring it because it might stink in the luggage. I thought if SIL is using one of those Zero Halliburton women's cases which I saw at luggagesource.com, then everything that she's gonna bring will be fine. Well, let's see how those stuff will come out on Monday. I wish my SIL a safe and sound 24-hour-flight!

Estee Lauder tote

I won and paid [aka bought] this new Estee Lauder tote plus a coin purse at eBay last night. I was so tempted because I just love the color-- ivory and navy blue combined, not to mention the large size which is a must for me. I actually asked swithart if he will give me a go signal, and as usual, he's not so happy about it because from where he was sitting, he could see the top of my closet where all of my purses have been placed! lol I insisted I can use this on outings or I can give this to someone back home, it depends whether I'll like it or not in person. :D I then just told him I am giving myself a little treat one last [really???] time because after all of those $.50, $1, $1.50 worth of opps popped out, I thought there will never be any future for my blogging career. Haha! Well, when he learned it just cost me $4.95 plus $2.50 shipping, he then expressed it will look good on me! Hah. I told yah, I shop smart[ly]!

I Keep Window shopping!

The husband often reminds me to refrain from taking a look at any sorts of advertisement that comes in the mail- online and off. You know why? Because he finds me to be an impulsive buyer! :D Actually, I am not. I just love taking a look at those different products, be it house and home, personal stuff, or even electronics! So yeah, I love window shopping! And swithart actually need not worry, because I am such a wise spender! Hehe... How so? Well, I only try to convince him to get a certain product when such product is really a must and a great buy price wise. So in these days when being a wise and a thrifty shopper matters most, he can lean on me! :)

can't help it!

I am imagining the laughter amidst the frustrating plight that Yaya's [far right] family has undergone today back home. I knew how busy she was packing up everything she was trying to bring and yet, at the end of the day, all three of them are still going to be sleeping in the same room! lol Napalaw kumbaga. It sure wasn't an easy thing, but all's well that ends well, right? The photo above was taken last year, me at the center [3rd from the left] during their departure as well. We had so much fun at home before they left, but only that that time, no flight cancelation took place! Now, I missed them even more because I am sure they're celebrating in there right now! Hehe...

A Gym on Wintertime

I missed what I have used to do in the past wintertime when I haven't had Triz yet. I was so active in sports and games and even devoted at least two days per week playing bowling at the university's bowling center. Such was the time when I religiously spent at least an hour on a particular fitness equipment at the campus gym where SIL and I would go. Since I gave birth, I totally stopped from playing badminton, tennis, and going to the gym. Such a shame when Ithis could have been the best time for me to get going as I badly needed to get fit and retrieve that prepregnancy body I used to have. Heck! I am just consoled everytime swithart tells me he's gonna be joining me in going to the gym as soon as we could move out from here and he could be settled in a new job. Wish me luck!

hoping for the best and safest

Yeah I am so worried for my elder sister and her family right now. Philippine time, Yaya, Kuya Tom, and Shai-shai are scheduled to fly to Manila at 12:30pm Friday. So right now, they're already at the Lumbia airport and on Saturday is going to be their flight to Japan where they are bound. BUT... I've mentioned in my previous posts how bad the weather is in CDO and the whole Misamis Oriental in the last two weeks and until now. The rainfall just was unstoppable. In fact, the flooding made the city being put under state of calamity as more than 50% part of the place's been really flooded. So in the past week, the airport and the piers have not been operating; flights have been canceled. But the rainfall since yesterday showed it has subsided a bit and the sky almost lighted up so we thought it's going to be fine. Even the PAL [Philippine Air Lines] management thought that flights will resume by Friday.

Well, I did check on them from time to time, and right now, they're already at the airport. They still didn't receive any notice of cancellation yet but there is no PAL plane either at the airport. There's one Cebu Pacific that landed since Friday morning and no other airlines no more. PAL website showed that four of the five CDO-Manila flights have been canceled and the last one which is to depart at 3:50pm is still unsure. So it's been cleared, Yaya's 12:30PM flight has been canceled. But PAL office told them they could fly on the last one since they've got an international flight connected the following day and so they waited at the airport. However, just some moments ago, my other sister who went with them to the airport texted me that they're on their way back to the house and everything will be rebooked. PAL has just announced they wouldn't dare fly in such a windy, cloudy, and typhoony condition. It got me feeling mix of emotions.

I know what the effect is going to be with their canceled flights. It will be rebooked, but it is unsure yet when will the sky give its way for planes to resume flying. Both her and Kuya Tom's work will be affected. Much more, Shai-shai's school where she has asked permission to be gone for a week got the three of them all so worried for the continuous absence. See? Everything will be affected. But as my title clearly expresses, I am hoping for the best and the safest. Ever heard of the US Airways Flight 1549 plight? Yes, it wasn't caused by bad weather condition but it still the same- accident. So there, it's clearly my reason for hoping and praying for the best and safest flight, not only for my loved ones but for anyone.

thinkin thursday

It has been bitterly cold in our part of the world these days. The last couple of days have been below zero here and yeah, you bet it's really cold.

Today, the coldest was 16 below zero and it felt like the cold was biting me when I tried to go out to check if I can bear it. But I didn't chose to bear it, so I just let swithart did a trip to to the store to get Triz some Saline stuff and nasal aspirator for her congested and clogged nose. The university and some of the workplaces here have been closed because of the very icy condition outside and while we are experiencing this kind of weather, my family in CDO have been continuously braving the constant rainfall and flood. I hope CDO weather will get finer soon, I am wondering if Yaya's flight 1pm Friday Philippine time will be pushed through. She and her family are set to go home to Japan and it will be terrible if CDO airport has not resumed operating yet. It's still windy and rainy I have learned, but I hope things will work together for good. I keep listening to the Bombo Radyo CDO live streaming as it feeds me the freshest news in my home place.

Meanwhile, how are you friends doing? I hope everyone are having a great Thursday!

worldly wednesday

It was 10 degrees below zero when I woke up this morning. Pa-in-law met me at the doorway of our bedroom when I got out to tell me that the snow outside have been too thick. When I checked it through the window, our van, parked outside of the carport has been covered with snow. Yes, I found it too beautiful and neat to look at but when I learned what the temperature was, I dreaded for 9:30am to arrive because we will be going to the health department for Triz's shots. But because it was an appointment, I couldn't do anything about it but go.

I am glad Triz cooperated well when I had her bundled up even though she has just woke up. I was finally able to let her use her pink boots which I've been wanting her to wear but she just won't. She looked so cute in her pink outfits, head to foot, and everybody could notice her when we arrived at the health department. We haven't eaten breakfast yet because waking up at 9am is still early for her and me as we're used to 9:01am and beyond. So we were able to conquer the very thick snow outside and it was so windy and still snowing and really really cold but we dealt with it.

Triz was pretty impressive, too with the couple shots she got. She never cried at all, though it surely hurt, but all she ever expressed was just "awwwww! sakiiiiit!" [Ouch, it hurts!!!]. I was so proud of her, and the nurse gave her five Dora stickers instead of only one [w/c Triz loved! haha] because she was also very impressed with how her patient did. She got flu and HepaA shots in each of her legs, and I am sure she has some sores right now but she's very brave to show us she's fine. I hope she won't get fever because of the shots. We then proceeded to Cub Foods store to get some goodies and dadi treated us to our fave Hot Wok Chinese Resto for our late breakfast and very early lunch! Yum!!

:)
See how she smiled? Mura'g wala lay duha ka dagum natusok ba! lol

It is still snowing until now and oh how I would have love to stay outside to let her play but the negative temperature is unbearable. Swithart shoveled the driveway earlier and he showed me how light the snows are, very powdery, and would be perfect to play with but I wasn't tempted really. I am glad that Triz has new Wiggles DVDs borrowed from the library, it helps me keep her inside and not demand to go out. lol For now, I gotta remind you that if you are in the Midwest area of the country, keep warm today and in the coming days. The forecast tells us here that the below zero temperature is going to last till in the coming days. Burrrrr.....

Cyndi is sick!

My niece-in-law Cyndi has not been coming here for almost a month now. Since her mom is vacationing in Philippines, we couldn't ask her to come stay with us because her dad won't let her. We missed her since the last time she was here was still last year, before the holidays, before her mom flew. Triz would always mentions her name every time she passes by the piano as it is always where she would see her Ate Cyndi when she's here. The other day, when Ma called CDO people and was able to talk to SIL, we learned that Cyndi is sick, has a terrible cough and colds, and her sinus is giving her a hard time. Yesterday, I called her and asked how she's doing and she said she's weary of his illness which disabled her to go back to school when classes started last Monday. She also complained she still is undergoing acne treatment and she requested her doze which arrived in the mail in our address here be dropped off to her dad's place where she's staying. So tomorrow, after our appointment somewhere, we're gonna be dropping by at her place to also check her. We hope and pray she's well now so she can go back to school soon.

flu shot. ouch!!!

I need to go to bed with Triz soon. Hopefully, we could sleep not later than 11:30pm. You see, tomorrow is Triz's schedule for her flu shot and her Hepa A vaccine at the health departmet. It is at 9:45am so we need to leave the house ten minutes before the time as it's only 4 to 5 minutes drive from here. I was so worried last week because I thought we will be going by taxi as swithart has a class on Wednesdays but I am glad he was able to find a way to drive us there. What he did was schedule a Pretest to his MAT 201 class through online blackboard which I find to be so impressive. All of his co-teachers are holding the pretest in-class and only him was able to make the test online so he doesn't need to go to the campus then. He showed me how the exam is going to take place in his university teacher's account and I was really impressed. Now I gotta prepare Triz for the ouchy thing which she will be undergoing tomorrow. I am confident she will do good though. It's just too cold outside and it's what my problem is all about! lol

The Need to Spend Wisely

I am very much aware of how tough the economy is right now. I have three sisters who are working overseas and another one is settled in Japan, and with them working in some parts of the world, we all could relate that indeed, it is not getting better at all and the need to tighten our belts and spend wisely is really a must. The number of workers being laid off is increasing and I know some who are being victims. While the husband is experiencing right now his share of the hardship of finding a job. Yes, we've only hear a couple of feedback from all of his applications and I must say the choice of where to go is too limited.

Debt Collection-- it is what I think we need! Well, sort of, because I am feeling the need of help from the experts! The husband thinks I am exaggerating when I told him we should consult a debt expert so we will not be able to get drown from all of these liabilities. He thinks I am too serious about the number of bills we receive and he is worried of me. Well, I am thankful that he assured me that everything will be okay in the coming days. That we will be able to get over these debts that we have. I hope so. Or should say, yeah, we will make it! I have been trying so hard to spend wisely and I think it helps. :)

please send these to me!!!

...and some dried fish, too!

Haha! Can you blame me? I couldn't find these products here so I might as well use the most concrete way of having these. My sister-in-law is in CDO right now and she's bound to return this weekend so I gotta have these sent to me through her. Well, there is always Milo available at the Chinese and Oriental stores here in town but they're not made from Philippines. There are still many that I would love to have but for now, those six are what I so much desire. Hehe... Can you relate fellas?

Jackfruit, anyone?

It is only when one gets to leave the country [and I mean Philippines here] that one gets to realize how yummy Philippine fruits are. :) When we were still there, we got tired of eating those common fruits that we could afford-- mangga, saging, marang, abokado, langka, rambutan, and lanzones to name several and all we ever long to have on the table are apples, grapes, oranges. Remember?

I remember the day I got here, swithart prepared a lot of apples and grapes on the table and just staring at them, I already got filled. The first week has been all apples eaten and then the second week was already a longing of those mangoes and many other fruits back in Philippines. Haha. Human nature eh? Always discontented!

Anyways, I am too jealous right now of my balikbayan sister back home. We chatted this morning and they told me my cousins from Bukidnon is in CDO to see her and there was a huge ripe jackfruit that they brought which is from their very jackfruit tree in their yard and oh it was so yummy I could imagine! LOL See me drooling? The last time I've munched on the sweetest and juiciest langka was just before we came back from our vacation last year. See this photo below?

That's at Jon's family's kitchen and everybody feasted on the huge jackfruit that Ate Dina, Jon's sister-in-law's family brought all the way from Malaybalay as well. Who just don't love the idea of being home, huh? We could always go to the market anytime we want to and find those goodies that our tastebuds desire at a certain time and then we will be satisfied.And yes, we've got relatives who live in the country too who would come to visit us and bring us fresh vegetables and fruits, and sometimes, local chickens! Hmp! I just loved the reminiscence!

Struggling...

I am devoting myself to reading the Leptovox reviews at fatburner.net right now. You see, I am becoming a little problematic because I see myself keep gaining weight. I've stopped from hula hooping via Wii Fit and my diet is so hard to control given the fact that I am in control of the kitchen and the groceries. Nope, I don't divulge in junk foods but with foods rich in carbohydrates? No doubt! It really saddens and frustrates me everytime I shop for clothes because those cute outfits are but just a beauty to my eyes and will not be worn anymore. Swithart thinks I am still sexy but I don't think so. My only consolation is the hope that I will be able to work or go to school again in the near future and with that, I believe I will be on the right track of slimming down. Bummer though, nobody among my older sisters have gotten their prepregnancy body back even though they've worked. It's in the genes, right? But I hope I could change the way it is! :) Any help? Hehe..

The A to Z Tag

Ah... It's been so long since the last time I did a tag and thanks to my new virtual friend Madz of The Pride of Hingotanan Bohol for choosing me as one of her recipients! I've actually done this in the past but it will never hurt if I'll repost this, right? It's kind of an easy tag but somewhat interesting so here goes my take!

A. Attached or single? — Attached
B. Best friend? — I got bunch: Rutchie, Stella, Sha, Janet, Bea, Anamae, Gem, Charis, Ivy, Anna, Farrah. Hmmm... I missed them tuloy!
C. Cake or pie? — Cake. Dark chocolait moist. Duh.
D. Day of choice? — Saturday and Sunday
E. Essential item? — Laptop with internet connection? Hehe...
F. Favorite color? — Blue
G. Gummy bears or worms? — Gummy bears. But my toddler loves it more than I do!
H. Hometown? — CDO City, Philippines
I. Favorite indulgence? — online shopping! :D Hehe... I indulged my self in reading, too ever since!
J. January or July? — July cause it's summer and my daughter's b'day is on the 4th!
K. Kids? — a bubbly and lovely 2-year-old little lady
L. Life isn’t complete without? — air to breathe? Haha. Without God who supplies everything I need.
M. Marriage date? — April 5, 2004
N. Number of magazine subscriptions? - Five
O. Orange or apple? — Orange
P. Phobias? — Adulterer, murderer, [but I forgive people though!] and snakes. Yikes!
Q. Quotes? — “We are a law-abiding people, obedient citizens of any country; 
but obedience to God takes first priority. It is important that we do not 
lose sight of that when the values of two different worlds collide.”--Jan Paulsen--
R. Reasons to smile? — God's love is more than enough reason.
S. Season of choice? — Can I choose all four? Yeah, I love each of their different beauty!
T. Tag 5 people - I'll pass on this one because I've seen this done in almost all blogs I've been to, but if you want, feel free to grab this from here!
U. Unknown fact about me? - that I still have to know. LOL Unknown gani, diva???
V. Vegetable? — Okra, Asparagus, Monggo beans, Eggplant, Bell Pepper, Camote tops, so many more!
W. Worst habit? — Procrastination, perfectionism, and too much online shopping! :p
X. X-ray or ultrasound? - i love unltrasound during my pregnancy!
Y. Your favorite food(s)? - i got lotsa likes! So long as it is bound to be eaten. :)
Z. Zodiac sign — I don't give astrology a part of me but zodiac sign wise, Aries daw.

Again, feel free to grab this if you want! Thanks Madz!

monday musings

I've started my day today at an early dawn when everybody around here was in la la land and so, when I decided to go to bed very late, I was able to wake up this morning as well very late. :) Swithart left for school very early, like 7am, and he deserves an applause because waking up as early as 6am wasn't hard at all. In fact, my phone which I set to alarm at a certain time wasn't needed anymore. Hmm... he did great on the very first day of the class this year alright! It's funny because when Triz woke up at 10am, she then was looking for dadi. It was so unusual for her to wake up without the dad in the room. It is what the goodie month-long of break has done to our toddler. Now, she has to get used to the idea of waking up every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning without dadi around.

So what have I done today? Nothing that involved going out! It was very cold still and even snowing all day. When swithart got home at noon, he wanted us to accompany him to Walgreens because he needed to have a passport photos taken for his INS documents but I wasn't willing to go out. He even teased me the idea of clearance and bargains at the store because he'd seen the ads on the ned but it didn't entice me still. So he left, alone. Haha. I managed to do my home chores, as usual so I am good. And then, I stayed right by the window with my computer to do my dropping and open the curtains wide because I love watching how bright it is outside, and the snow falling down is a bonus.

After his Walgreens trip, it's time for us to go to the library but I still don't want to go out so him and Triz were the only ones who went. They had a great time I guess because Triz was all so ecstatic to share with me what she saw and what she got in the library. Well, I am all done with my offline tasks for the day but with my online stuff yet. I was able to read a portion of my book today and have had some quiet time when my two roommates were out and it's just a good thing. Right now, I am waiting for my sisters in CDO to go online. I can't wait to hear from then on what's the latest about the flooding and the raining updates in my home place. May you all have a good Monday friends!

what keeps me up?

If you have notice the time I have posted my current entries, you must have seen how late it is right now. For the record, it's currently 2:47am. So what keeps me up? Well, mostly online stuff. Actually, I intentionally stayed up this late because I've got assignments to write, thanks to the sheriff for looking out for me [LOL]. My weekend has been pretty much busy that's why it's just now that I've had time to write. Last Saturday was a great time at church and an even awesome noon during lunch because we had a yummy meal and we sang Happy Birthday to my Pa-in-law. :) It was very cold though and the icy condition almost made the van hit our sidings in the driveway when it slid off, thanks to the 1-inch-allowance the skidding gave off, it sure left us utter words of shock and some kind of trauma. We're all fine though so no big deal. I'll post a pic of it soon.

Yesterday, we're just home and made a lot of playing here with our so-energetic toddler. Swithart was so busy with his school stuff as class is going to start today so he did a lot of encoding and printing for his syllabus and lessons. His MATH 201 is at 8-10am today so he is bound to wake a bit earlier than the usual, another reason why I am up this late because he went to bed at 10pm last night and I had to put Triz to sleep as well, with him, making me closed my eyes, too without any purpose of sleeping and the next thing I knew, I felt so active when I got up at 12:55am. Hehe.. But I am hitting the sack as soon as I'm done posting this so until later friends. Thanks for dropping by and see yah around!

I Can't Wait...

As I've mentioned prior to this post, my sister-in-law is now in our home place in CDO. My elder sister messaged me earlier that she can't wait to go to Jon's family's house to pick up what I sent them thru SIL and I couldn't wait either for them to get the envelop where I placed the wristwatches that I've sent and I would love to see them in photos wear those gorgeous accessories I've purchased for each of them. Nope, they're not Audemars Piguet watches but they're still nice-looking so I hope they will like it. There's three watches that I especially bought for my Ate Gina and her two gorgeous teens and I am thinking they will really look good wearing a pair of watch so I hope to hear from them soon to know how they see it. :) Meanwhile, I was browsing finewatches.com and I love their selections of great-looking watches. I am a sucker of watches you know so sites like this is really a plus for me! Hehe..

what a flood!!!

I have mentioned in my previous post below how devastating it is to know about the current flooding and the heavy rainfall that still doesn't stop until now in my home place. See this photo here in the left? So, that's how deep it is. And what if I'm gonna tell you that we used to live in this very subdivision that this picture shows? I was told by my sisters that they did were able to capture a lot of photos of the flooding over there but browsing Sunstar.com, this is what met me on the very front page. I am like "what? this deep? omg!" If my family still lives here, oh., I don't know how to even express the horrible nightmare caused by the flooding. Flooding doesn't happen often in CDO like it does in Caloocan and Malabon areas so this is really a strange thing for the Kagay-anons.

Really, I could imagine how terrible it really is for the residents in this place to be bracing the overflowing water. We still have friends who are living in here and I truly feel for them. Meanwhile, SIL has already arrived in CDO Monday morning [Philippine time] and she is fortunate to make it safely. The plane that she took was the only one to fly that day and all others were diverted to other cities for landing because the aviation authority in Lumbia CDO defined zero visibility and thankfully, SIL made it there! Seems like January '09 is all rainy and wet in CDO. It is not a good thing at all, but there's nothing more to do but recover and go on. I've heard it is still raining in there until now. Classes in some schools were canceled but I hope things will go back to normal the soonest.

To Head Off to HK Soon

I have two elder sisters who are working in Hong Kong right now. One works at a large marketing company and she's fortunate to be working in such firm because her position entitles her for a car provided by the management. Having an auto allowance is sure a great thing in working, don't you think? All those gas rates and vehicle maintenance you won't have to worry at all! :) How I wish my husband's job will provide such thing as well. Hehe... But I think being in an education industry won't, unless one holds the supervisory position in the public education bureau like my friend's mother who is an education superintendent in the regional level in Philippines.

Anyway, back to my two sisters who are both in HK. I am so excited for them two because both their husbands as well are planning to be joining them soon. In fact, one is set to leave Philippines to head off to HK on the last day of this month and he is going to be working as a company driver. Of course it is not an easy thing for them both to leave their kids behind but having to live in the poor country where ordinary workers won't get sufficient amount of earnings to provide for their own family and for some more extended relatives won't help either. I wish them the best luck, I hope they could take their kids with them in the near future when things will settle down to its proper place. My other sister will be doing the same as well and they have our support.

rain, flood, and more of 'em

Yeah, they're all the news that made all of us here really very sad because our home place, Cagayan de oro City and Misamis Oriental in Philippines are experiencing an unending rains pouring so hard which caused the flooding in almost 50% part of the place. So you bet there are a lot of houses splashed away and quite a number of bridges and rivers that overflowed. Some schools were even made into an evacuation centers and we do personally know a lot of friends and loved ones whose places have been flooded. Really, really devastating. Even Jon's family's house has been overflowed; it was even elevated compared to the neighboring houses so imagine the place. I kept calling and texting my family and I am just thankful that they're all fine in there. My Japanese BIL who's in there right now was amazed and shocked to have experienced such terrible flooding which in his description was that, the roads and highways looked like rivers. Hah. Here's hoping and praying that the rains will end soon and that the flooding will dry down so things will go back to normal in that part of the world. While we are experiencing a bitterly cold temperature and an icy weather 'round here, I am just thankful that we are not flooded. I hope you all are well in this bittersome times! :(

Gifting Options

It is sometimes too hard to think of what to give as gift on a baby shower party when the person who is pregnant seems to have enough. I had such dilemma with our friend Janice before and I was thankful for the disposable diaper for babies option which a lot of my virtual friends here in the blogosphere have suggested when I asked for help. It truly was a great idea, very practical, and I must say, worth the money because diapers are truly very useful and needed for babies. I had a lot of unused diapers with my little girl before because I received more than what my baby could use and I've sent them all back home which made my sisters really happy because they need not buy a lot which is really a big savings for them. How about you? Do you think giving a whole lot of diapers is a great gifting option?

tgif thinkin'

Thank God it's Friday but unlike many Fridays in the past, today, I had mine started very late with regards to my online life. :) Well, I had to log in as long as I woke up this morning but only to check my YM, e-mails, and Chikka. I don't know why, but lately, I seem to be feeling a lot of worrisome and bothersome moments about my loved ones away from me. I am just thankful that I can always share what I am currently feeling to swithart. Gives me so much relief and comfort, you know what I mean? Last night, a lot of time were spent chatting with friends and loved ones. SIL is currently in Thailand having the time of her life escapading and touring the place and we can't wait for Monday to come so she could finally fly to CDO after how many weeks of going to and fro, here and there, but missing to go to her planned destination. :)

Tomorrow, it's going to be Pa-in-law's birthday and unlike CDO celebrations, there'll be no serenading that would take place. He'll surely miss that because him and MIL are so used to morning serenades that our church family in CDO are doing to anyone who celebrates his/her birthday. Well, if the three of us could wake up as early as 4 or 5am, we will be greeting him happy birthday through a song and with Triz having mastered the song so well, he will really be delighted. It's Sabbath anyway so he's going to be having an awesome celebration tomorrow noon during lunch since we are gonna be having a potluck at the township hall as we usually do every second Sabbath of the month. Our gift to him? Just a simple happy 70th birthday greeting card and we will be attaching a $70 bill in it. Hehe... I am sure he will be surprise. We've bought some stuff that we'll be giving him so it's going to be an exciting time for Triz who's gonna hand these all to his Lolo.

It will be a busy day tomorrow, but it's weekend and it's a special time so it'll be great! I hope you will have an awesome time as well!

It Always Pays To Have Our Homes Secured

I think when we talk about home security and how much we are willing to afford just to have our home and family safe and secure, we parents would arrive down to one common denominator: that we will try our very best to make our place the safest for our loved ones, especially our kids. My family only lives in my sister-in-law's house right now and because we are not the head of the household, we aren't in control of what device or major appliance should be put down or installed in this house. But I am very thankful that my sister-in-law understands our presence here. That we live in a neighborhood that is not very secure given the so many incidents of robbery and drug crimes in the nearby blocks. Fortunately, we never had the experience yet of being harassed by burglars or some dangerous people and I must say, having a security system here in our home truly helps lessen our fears and worries.

Soon, when swithart and I will be moving out to our own home, I wouldn't consider any second thought of getting a home security system. It is going to be a priority as it always pays to have a home safe and secured, right? Well, ADT.com has home secuty products and services at your fingertips!

You might want to check the site and see what home security products would best fit your needs. They've got home security products from security cameras to video surveillance and they've got the latest safepass touchpad product where disarming is so easy with just a remote control. Well, there are a lot more that ADT are offering. Like us parents, ADT knows we're in for the safest and secured home for us and our loved ones!

out in the cold

It was very cold and windy today but even then, we still went out to go somewhere. It's Friday and I have a lot of things to do here at home. I didn't need to go grocery shopping though but because I needed to go to Wal-mart to send some money to my friend in Philippines thru moneygram, off we hit the store and just bought some stuff that I am thinking of cooking for tomorrow's potluck at church and for Pa-in-law's birthday as well. We dropped by at the university library because swithart has to get something he needs for his class this Monday when school starts and it felt good to have walked around the huge and long hallway of the building. Sort of gave me a good time exercising. Hehe... I have been becoming very lazy with my wii fit these days so a good walk is indeed perfect. Well, yeah, my friend in CDO has asked to borrow some money which she badly needed for her child's hospitalization. I can understand how tough such situation is when it arises and so even if we're struggling here financially, too, I am thankful that swithart is never that hard to give in in such instance. I could have asked my sister back home to let my friend use the certain amount of money that she needed but swithart insisted that it could be less of a hassle if we're the ones sending. Such a thoughtful hubby, eh? Well, I wish my friend's son is now better! And I am happy to be able to help my very needy friend in times like this.

To Vegas So Soon

I have mentioned in my previous posts in this blog of mine that my sister-in-law is going to be moving out to Las Vegas, Nevada soon. She is currently working at a university here but because she got accepted to University of Nevada in Las Vegas on the same job that she's doing but of a higher position, she didn't dare refuse such offer. Well, she applied for it but didn't expect that she would get such position and when she finally learned that she passed the interview and stuff, she was the most ecstatic. And we are, too. Of course, who would not love to stay and live in Las Vegas? So within this year, if the husband will not be accepted for a job that he himself has applied as well, then we will be following SIL to Vegas.

And when my very own elder sister in Japan learned about all these, she was very frantic, too! You see, they've been planning to come visit me later this year and Las Vegas is one of the place they wouldn't dare to miss going so if we are going to be living there, then that would be an extra bonus. I am sure you know what are the things to do and the beautiful places to see in Vegas and if I'll mention about casinos and stuff, then you know what I am talking about! My Japanese brother-in-law is actually a huge fan of casino that's why Las Vegas is a dream place of him. I bet he would love the Golden Palace Casino website as well as it the #1 online casino and a perfect place for online gaming as well where there are over 60 classic casino games available and that one gets to receive 300% bonus plus unlimited free money. Hmm... do you casino lovers know about these?

yes, we've heard from them!!!

...from our very special friends, the Magana Family that is! Did I tell you how much of a chatter I am? Hehe... The last two years since the Magana family went home to Belize were just composed of days, weeks, and months of e-mailing at each other and never did I thought that IMing through Yahoo Messenger could be the perfect way, until this morning. Thing is, Serjio's [the Magana head of the family] e-mail add was not from a yahoo account and so I never thought we could ever add each other in YM. Until yesterday when he e-mailed us using a yahoo account and before attempting to reply to his message, I tried adding him in my YM first and this morning when I woke up, I saw him having accepted my friend request and he was online, too! Whew! I was so excited to tell swithart about it because you see, we have missed each other's family a lot! And then, the start of the chatting through the hi, hello, and how have you been? lines caught up our very long time of exchanging regards and a lot of some other things. And then, the sharing of photos part. Ahhh... it was really good to have talked with Serjio after almost two years.

Almost two years ago, when the family left us here to go home to Belize after Serjio's tenure here in the university was finished [he took up a master's degree at ISU], the kids- our Triz and their Yurik were still very little. The photo on the left was during Triz' dedication when we let them both hugged each other and the one on the right was taken December of 2006 during our Christmas program at church. See how young they were still during those times? Whew! Yurik is the 3rd generation member of the family, Serjio and Consuelo's grandson, Franchelle's [the one who carries Yurik] son and the hippy and cool grandparents used to tell us they want Yurik to marry Triz when they're old enough. lol They adore our little lady a lot and we consider each other as real brothers and sisters. And after almost two years, look how big they've become:

They're like little young man and and lady! Serjio said Yurik is a trouble maker and is becoming so tough to handle. And yeah, he still recognizes Triz because there's a photo of them in their home that's framed and being displayed in the living room. Isn't that sweet? Oh how awesome it would be to visit their place someday as we have the assurance that we have a family in Belize to stay at whenever we could go. Serjio is working as a school principal in one of the schools in their city right now and he's taking his second master's degree currently so he said it's going to be a while till they will be able to come and visit us here. His wife, Consuelo on the other hand has been longing to come back and live here because she has loved the time she has spent in this place but I cautioned her that we might not be here any longer when they'll decide to come back and so she got a little sad. Hehe.. Well, there have been a lot of things that have happened in just a span of less than two years, but nope, our friendship remains to be in our hearts and the Magana family are friends who are so dear to me and swithart; they truly are like our elder brother and sister.

The Magana couple, Serjio and Consuelo during their silver wedding anniversary celebration, April 3.

Can you believe how close our wedding anniversary dates are? Ours is April 5. So we won't be forgetting each other's special dates, huh. They're only in their forties and we are so happy for them as well as honored to know of their so long married life! Their daughter Franchelle, Yurik's mother is living in LA with her husband and I hope we could visit her when we could move to Las Vegas a little later this year. Their son Jonathan, swithart's namesake, has grown to be a very fine and intelligent young man and plans to attend college here in the US in three years so it would be great then. It is so very nice for Consuelo and Serjio to show us a photo of their big house and they captioned it as "this is our house and your house here in Belize". And so anytime we could go, we will always have a family to belong to as they also consider us as their very own brother and sister. And now that we have YM to exchange messages every day, that just gives us another reason to enjoy communicating with each other once more!

more colder days

It snowed a bit the other night and last night. It's not very thick though but with the very low temperature, it sure had accumulated on the ground. It's very cold today, still below freezing, and I hate the fact that I'll be conquering the cold when going out. Hmp! How I wish of being in the warm and tropical place these days! I really am in a very nostalgic mood right now because of my sister's presence in CDO since last weekend and in the next two weeks. I truly envy the time she and Kuya Tom with my nice Shai-shai is spending there even though they're very busy with things that they need to do while there. She and her family are enjoying the warmth of the place and the people back there while I am stuck here at home in this very cold place. lol I can't wait for their pictures to share. They've been texting me every now and then about the updates of their activities every day and the only thing she's been complaining back there is how everyday it is rainy and wet. Oh well, tropical eh?

Meanwhile, I can't get enough chatting with friends these days! The funny thing is, I keep discovering friends over at friendster and facebook and having their e-mail addies make me add them in my YM account and then, the chatting starts with an ending that is so hard to find. lol I am just a chatter myself and it is a great feeling to know what's the latest about good old friends. Guess what, swithart has been infected by me, too and his addiction right now is the MSU Alumni Global Network. He is invigorated to see his college buddies and best friends through the site and trust me, they sound so silly and crazy voice conferencing with his friends scattered around the world, too!

oh this early '09 fuss

I have not been very good in starting my year with regards to my online job. Though I have been spending a good amount of time dropping my cards, blog hopping, friendstering, facebooking, looking at swithart's page in the MSU Alumni Global Network, and chatting, my writing task seems to have been put in the last priority. My blogs don't have a lot of updates when the year kicked in. Writing assignments didn't pop out like they used to so I am finding one reason to just write a new entry in each of my blogs. My eyes are not completely healed yet as well, I still tend to have them turned red and itchy and watery when I stare at the monitor for more than 10 minutes. And so, my break is being continued.

Offline, I managed to do so many things here at home. I started this new year with everything clean; meaning, I changed every linen, mat, and rugs and washed everything that needs to be washed. :) I was like an OC last January 1 but I liked it because it felt good to have everything new and fresh and clean from our bedroom to the kitchen and bathroom. I even cleaned up our fridge and threw anything that I felt needed to be thrown and believe me, I seemed to be the busiest during the first day of this year even when I was just home. Hehe..

I kept communication lines open, and so, our phone bill would surely go up and my prepaid cell phone's load has been consumed! LOL But it's always worth it to have talked to our very special loved ones especially during those times so it'll just be fine. Now, my heart is breathing like I am back home in Philippines. Haha.. It's because my Yaya, Kuya Tom, and Shaira from Japan are there right now enjoying the warmth of the people and the place! It is no doubt I am truly jealous of them back home. And I hate it even more because they're not sending me pictures of their getaways. We do update every now and then through text and e-mails and they are asking me to call them but when I do, all I could hear are screams and a whole lot of laughters! Hah! And... they don't have time to chat with me so I could never see them live and kicking! lol Oh well, the two weeks of their vacation will be over in just a span of a very quick time and I hope that they'll be done with their very important mission over there.

It's been the sixth day of January, can you believe how time flies by so fast? Last Sunday, our toddler turned two years and six months old and oh MG, she is just the most wonderful creature here at home! She's the one who keeps everyone sane and talking right here and who keeps the dad being grounded and feeling relaxed. Hehe... His time spent in his paperworks aka dissertation always seem to be getting more and more and he's becoming more and more busy especially that next week, spring semester starts and he's going to be teaching in the university so another busy-bee hubby right here!

Ma and Pa in-law I can see are getting bored each passing day. Though I salute their ability to choose to be happy and occupied no matter what, I really pity them for being stuck here at home. I am hoping that February, March, April, and then the summer will come too soon so they will be able to join SIL in Vegas and live there and enjoy! Well, one day at a time, and for now, we are trying our best to enjoy these days of cold and no work. The most important thing is to have a warm hearts and feelingsand I think we have that. It's my FIL's 70th birthday by the way this coming Saturday and for sure, he will be surprise on his birthday! Hehe...