We Clicked, the 1,895th Day

Goodbye 2012, Hello 2013!

I'm writing this post about our third wedding anniversary and just half an hour before the new year kicks in. I unfortunately didn't complete my 30-day challenge this month to blog everyday. My flimsy excuse is - we moved and I haven't had stable internet in the last 2 weeks (I'm still trying to survive with just 3G but it's haaard!). Making our home livable has been my project in the last 2 weeks and so far we've settled into a daily routine.

The year has been both rewarding and challenging. I've flown countless miles in the last year and have been to places I never imagined I'd visit - Zurich, Morocco, Sri Lanka and Pakistan! Meeting many new friends across the globe -- Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Singapore etc.) and my team mates in Africa, Latin America and those based in Europe. It's been hard though on my family, so 2013 is definitely going to be different.

I'd like to say though that the rewards far outweigh the challenges and just before the year ended we moved it to our shiny new, tiny home. We were so happy since we envisioned that we would move to our own place (and not rent anymore) by our third year anniversary. We had our house blessed last weekend by Fr. Evan. It's truly a huge achievement for us.

2013 is going to start with a few challenges. After almost a decade I've decided to have my heart repaired. My cardio has advised that I should do it now while my heart is strong and healthy to prevent any further damage. He did say that it's quite unusual for my condition to be advanced at my age. I felt sad when he said that, but I think God will only give us challenges that we can bear. We all leave in a few days to head back to Singapore for my surgery (so please pray for me!).

Now have to finish my post since I have to serve Media Noche already, just wanted to wish everyone a blessed and happy new year! 

Panicking?

Check out what Pinoys have searched this year on Google Zeitgeist.

Achievement Unlocked: New Home!

Three years ago just before Sweetie I got married we tried to look for a place could afford to buy. We didn't so we ended up renting a place in the same village where I was born. It was really convenient since we were close to my parents. We attempted to buy a house a few months later but it was just not meant to be at that time. We then told ourselves that we'd take it slow but target to move to an owned-residence by our third year of marriage. We moved nearer to my old home a month after that fiasco so I could be nearer to my parents and because the house we were renting just had so many problems.

When I moved to Singapore last year my seatmate, Ishi, gave me some really good advise. He said I shouldn't rent a place just for myself in Singapore if my family wasn't moving with me. He said I should just stay with a friend and use the money to buy a condominium unit in Manila. Luckily my childhood friend who's  lived in Singapore for 3 years already was looking for a housemate for her new apartment. I grabbed the chance to get one of her rooms so I could save for our planned home.

It was just after New Year when I realized I should get things going to find and buy a home so we could reach our goal. I remembered a proposal I got back in November 2010 about a place that was being built near our village. I immediately brought up the idea again with Sweetie and after careful review of a number of places we decided to buy the unit near where my Mom lives. Things started rolling in late February and we scrimped and saved (would you believe my weekly allowance when I'm in Singapore is just SGD50 a week?) so we could end our lease by the time it expired.

We ended up extending our lease for another quarter though because the unit wasn't ready yet, but TODAY,  12/12/12 we finally got it!

Thank you Lord! =)

Housewife Diary: the Horror Story

Called up Mom to rant about cleaning the baget's room. I've been asking him to clean his room in the last few months. I didn't dare even enter his room for fear that I might step on a snake (just toys!). I haven't had a cleaning lady in the last few months because my Mom found out she was stealing, so she got fired. It's been hard to find trust-worthy help so we decided to just do the house chores ourselves except ironing clothes since my Mom insisted we just have it done by her helper.

Mom's helper eloped last week and just disappeared. She left an apology letter to my Mom to say she was always tired because she was pregnant and was too embarrassed to face her. Sayang, she was a good and efficient helper. I just hope she would be able to cope with her issue.

So I thought my Mom would commiserate with me, but she just chuckled and said, "He's a boy and they're just really like that." I was shocked! I'm messy too and my Mom used to fix my room all the time (until the day I left home when I got married) and she'd scold me each and every time. I figured though she liked doing it so it was fine. She wasn't one to read private stuff (it was my Dad who I caught reading my diary!!!), so I let her be.

I guess it's payback time since the bagets just doesn't seem to have time to clear out his stuff. I thought I'd need a shovel to clear out the floor of his room. It took me three hours, but I did find $100, PhP1,000 and lots of coins lying around. So maybe I'd just go ahead and confiscate it from him to teach him a lesson. He needs to learn the value of the things that are given to him and be more appreciative of what he has. Sermon sa akin yan pag-uwi nya mamya. 

The House Wife Diary

When I woke up this morning I headed straight to my desktop to log-on and start working and then I realized I took time off to spend time with my family and prepare for our move next week (I still sneaked in some time to check my work email heh). Anyway, I spent most of the day puttering around the house - walis, mop, scrubbed the bathroom, did the laundry, cleared out stuff from my part of the den and cooked dinner, and now I feel like my body wants to dismantle (hehehe).

And now my brain has just stopped functioning for the day... now I know why my Mom sleeps so early.

Zzzzzzzz...

Growing Up

Dad's been gone for almost two years now. I realized that today when Mom pointed it out during her lunch birthday celebration. I was a total mess two years ago when the doctor gave us the bad news. Dad was going to go whether we liked it or not and he was ready for it. I wasn't.

So many things have changed since that time. I moved to Singapore. Miguel's in university. Another uncle passed away. I didn't know that there would come a time you have to double up and be stronger, not only for yourself, but also for a parent.

I've always been the baby in the family (still am!), but my parents always had to get me out of trouble whenever I called for help. When Dad got sick I realized it was time to fully fend for myself and my own family. I didn't want to burden my Mom with trivial matters in my life since she had her hands full taking care of my Dad.

I'm home now for Christmas and will be focusing on my family only for the next few weeks. It feels like I've been away for such a long time and I was surprised to see our choir babies have grown up so fast. The little boys who we used to scold because they were too fidgety during mass are now all taller than me. The little girls have now become conscious about how they look and have been styling themselves whenever they hear mass. Me and my housemate (who's also my neighbor in Manila) can now look back at the crazy things we used to do when we were growing up.

Growing up ain't that bad... except for the bills that keep coming every month! I can say that I love my age now because I've gotten rid of being angst-y, emo whenever I face "disruptions". Of course there are days when I still get blue and mope-y, but life is such and must be lived with faith and love.

Happy birthday Mom! Things are turning out quite like what you've always wanted it to be. I love you.

Never Ending

One of the things that doesn't seem to end.

Love

Home sweet home.

Train Thoughts

Wanted to skip the holiday party tonight but I didn't want to disappoint a friend I invited. Just ate, listened to the announcements and then left. I just couldn't enjoy the party knowing there's so many people suffering back home.

Blogging in the Train

It's been a really challenging week to find time to blog but I'm really keen to complete another 30-day challenge.

I'm blogging right now on my phone while in transit using the Blogger Android app. Today has been a very busy day and I haven't had much sleep in the last few days. A few days back I was feeling really blue but I soon got out of that mood because of the typhoon. It's just not right to feel that way when there are many people suffering ans I pray for those families that have been affected by the typhoon. I'm really hoping that things will be fine in the next few days.

On TV!

I've been trying to avoid this in the last 6 years...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFrJuibHgzg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Typhoon Pablo

Didn't have time to blog today. Was really busy with this.

Be Thankful!

I've been feeling homesick the past week and haven't been feeling well because of a viral infection. I decided to hear mass in the morning today and was surprised that the mass was celebrated by an archbishop from the Holy See! What a rare treat I thought since the last time I heard mass celebrated by someone from Rome was when I attended World Youth Day (Pope John Paul).

It was a great way to start Advent, a reminder to start preparing myself for Christmas. The first I usually take is to be thankful of all the blessings and challenges that I received in the past year. I mention challenges also because it helps build character and a firmer faith.

Many years ago I fell into a rut. This was the time things felt like everything was falling apart in my life. I knew the only way I could get out of the hole was to get myself out of it. The best advise I got back then was when I read a book by Bo Sanchez (I don't remember which one coz I think I've read most of it). He said that when you're stuck in a rut one of the best things to do is count your blessings.

At first I had a hard time listing down one blessing. I soon realized that blessings do not come only in huge packages, but could be simple things. From one a day my blessings list soon multiplied to three, five, ten, twenty etc. and I was soon back to my normal perky, cheerful self.

So now that I'm feeling a bit blue this is what I'm going to do. Today's blessing though came as a huge package for me. The GDG Philippines community who did a Sanitation Hackathon the whole weekend in Manila, Baguio, Bacolod, Cebu, Davao and Zamboanga. Their initiative together with GBG Philippines would surely help many people :)

Be thankful!

Dream in Galactic Proportions

I thought I'd take another stab this month at blogging everyday since I've totally neglected my blog in the last few months. I can't believe it's been a year since I moved to Singapore to take on a new, challenging role. I must say I've been on a roll the past year and I've done quite a lot of things that are certainly outside of my comfort zone. I can honestly say my heart stopped beating a couple of times due to anxiousness, but I'm happy that I've met a lot of new friends across the region (and beyond!).

I dedicated most of the year to work (even weekends), so I'm really finding it hard to step on the brakes to take a break. I've been getting a lot of scolding already from my good doctor to have my condition fixed (he's been at it for about 9 years now). So I finally said yes and now making arrangements to take a break from my adventure so I can do more next year. I'm hoping though I can spend more time at home in Manila because my boys need me.

The past year has been one huge adventure for me. It didn't feel like I was working at all since I really like what I do. One thing I realized the past year is outside the box that I live in is a whole galaxy and one must dream in galactic proportions. I don't know how many miles I've traveled this year, but I've been to so many new places, met a gazillion of new people and done projects I never thought I'd do (or survive!).

Last year I prayed to God to give me a new mission. And He did. I just need to take a break for awhile so I can continue and finally live a normal life ;)