Restful Sunday

I hope you all had a restful Sunday!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Happy Sunday!

I'm just resting for the last few hours of the day. I'm a bit tired from gardening since I'm preparing to re-pot some plants that are overdue for transferring. 

Have a blessed Sunday!

#BeKind #StaySafe

The Raffle that Changed How I Manage Money

Someone asked online if she should sell the hotel stay she won in a raffle. It reminded me of the time I won a raffle during an Ad Congress in Baguio. 

It was totally unexpected since I'm not one to win raffles. My Dad though always win and would always bring home door prizes. I haven't won any raffle since that rare moment at the Ad Congress.

With my Ninong Billy :)

It was a windfall for me. I was a single Mom back then and was drowning in tuition fee debt. My savings was just the minimum to keep my bank account. 

I won and it helped change how I manage my finances. I paid for all my debts and promised myself I'd never go in the red again. I also disciplined myself to pay all my credit card charges monthly. 

Since then I've been very mindful on where my earnings go. I'm quite thrifty and I funnily take a long time before I buy something I want (like years). I also learned how to budget properly (read more about it here). 

Sometimes you just really need a break to change how you do things. Just make sure you use that as a game changer. I did and never looked back.

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Halloween Past vs. Halloween Present

We had a different kind of Sunday this week. We were set to meet up with friends at the park to pick up kutsinta and otap. Leejay also mentioned they will set up their coffee cart, Love & Latte. We didn't know that the annual village Halloween party was also set this afternoon. 

Kids from all over the village trooped to the pergola in costume. They were so cute and were called to parade their costumes in front of all the participants. While they were doing that we got to hang-out with our long-time friends. 

It's been awhile since I had a "proper" Halloween. We've just been checking out the kids who go trick or treat around the village every year. I think that's scheduled for Friday in our area. Way back we used to get together in my childhood home every Halloween. We were a huge group with many young kids. The kids have all grown up though and most of my friends live elsewhere now. 

c2011 at my childhood home

I was happy to see Leejay, Denz and their kids, Ate Edith, Matthew and family again. I miss those days we'd have monthly birthday celebrations. I haven't celebrated my 50th yet, so maybe next month when I'm a bit more mobile. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Happy Sunday!

I've been spending a bit of time in the garden after the typhoon left. I realized it's better for me to do a tiny part of my to do list daily. This way I can chip away on my long gardening to-do list.

Just leaving a cute photo of August. He was playing around me while I was cleaning jars. He's growing so fast!

Have a blessed Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

26D to 50: Happy Sunday!

Happy Sunday everyone!

Nothing much happened today. We just planned next steps. Highlight of the day was having a good cup of coffee and a tuna sub sandwich.

I super miss my cats and couldn't wait to get home so I can play with them again. Miggy said Anakin gave me extra leg rubs today. He's probably wondering where I am. Will be home soon sweetheart.

#BeKind #StaySafe

Happy Sunday Y'all

Today was Pope Leo XIV's inaugural :)

At home we realized we needed a couple of things from the grocery. Sweetie and I made a last minute decision to make a grocery run.

Miggy decided to stay home and so Sweetie and I had an instant date. We just had merienda. We always make sure to have happy tummies before doing groceriea. It helps us stick to the list! Hehe.

Have a blessed Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

FamBam Sunday

Finally did our usual Sunday afternoon lakwatsa today. We were supposed to do groceries the other day, but we weren't able to go out for a number of reasons (#signsofoldage). 

We were happy when we saw a new resto open where we sometimes do our groceries. We decided to try it out since they had a good menu of mostly Filipino food. The food was good, but next time we'll just have our usual coffee at Starbucks.

We were able to get most of what was on our grocery list. I just need to buy some meds next time in my usual drugstore. It was a good day to step out. 

Happy Sunday everyone. Hope you had a restful weekend.

#BeKind #StaySafe

Sunday Rest Day

Woke up late today since I still felt tired. I couldn't help it, I still puttered around the garden. The philodendron I trimmed needed to be re-potted. I also had to rinse the white fabric scraps I immersed overnight in detergent and baking soda. 

And so, I didn't really rest, haha. It's okay, doing some gardening calms me and I just couldn't leave the stems in water anymore. I have 5 pots of philodendron already, maybe I should ask if I have any neighbors who may want some. I'll take photos of the philodendron when I get around to cleaning the leaves (always dirty because of the construction beside us!).

Anyway, I was happy to see a flower from one of my gumamela plants. It was early evening when I saw it, so it was about to sleep already. Still pretty though. I hope the cuttings I propagated all grow. 

Sunday Family Day

We love Sundays. It's usually a laid back day where we sleep in and try to be bored. We're retired, but we do get busy during the week. There's actually so much to do at home and the chores are never-ending. So, Sunday is fun day. We rarely go out on Sunday's since it's usually crowded outside, so we do our lakwatsa on odd weekdays. 

We stayed in today even though there's a Pokemon community day. We've been catching sprigatitto for years now, so we just caught whatever spawned within our perimeter. I woke up at noon and thought about cooking some pasta. There's a can of crushed tomatoes that need to be used, so that's what I did after eating breakfast (yup, breakfast at noon). I also got to watch some parts of ASAP. 

And here's the recipe of this yummy pink pasta (just use rigatoni instead of spaghetti noodles):

After cooking, I got busy watering the plants. I played with the cats in between since they usually lay on my feet while I'm going around the garden. It was Grogu who stayed with me the whole time I was watering in the pocket garden. He's such a sweetheart and never fails to rub on my legs everyday. After having a snack, I then proceeded to water the plants in the garage area.

I super love the desert rose (kalachuchi) flowers. It started blooming last week. I had no idea it would be fuschia since I just picked it up from my Mom's garden to resuscitate. I'm glad I researched what soil mixture to use and it worked. Hopefully it will continue blooming even though Anakin keeps using the pot to sleep in! 

The gumamela plant also sprouted a nice yellow and pink flower. I learned that gumamela plants are always hungry for fertilizer in order for it to bloom continuously. I'm working up the energy to re-pot them since they've grown so big already. I'm trying to propagate some too. I hope it works since my first two propagation batches failed. Try and try until you succeed!

I went crazy yesterday and ironed quite a lot of clothes, so I'm just chilling for the rest of the day. I'll visit the cats again after dinner to see what they're up to. I might try also the treat toy I saw on IG. I need to make them move more since they are getting chonkier, haha. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Sunday Snooze Day

I've been trying to wake up earlier and have been successful all week. I slipped today because my body need to rest more (a.k.a. I conked out again). I think the meds are forcing me to rest more.

Sunday Snooze Day! Our cat, Grogu, agrees.

#BeKind #StaySafe

A Rainy Sunday

The sky looked sad today. It looked like it was going to cry buckets of rain. 

It did while we were having some merienda. We have been stuck at home for over a week. We usually avoid going out when it's raining. You never know when it's going to flood.

We headed out since I booked slots to have a footspa and pedicure. My feet needed a lot of love! And it looks like we finally found a regular spot to visit. It's hard to find a spacious nail salon which isn't always full. After more than five years I also had nail polish put on my toe nails. 

I'm now energized for the new week. I hope I finish the accounting stuff I'm working on.

Have a blessed Sunday everyone.

#BeKind #StaySafe

Family Day

My thighs we're still sore from all the walking we did yesterday at Super Manila Comic Con. I wasn't able to rest in between since the venue didn't have seats. I was only able to rest when the stage area cleared up in-between sessions. The boys parked me there while they went around.

I made the effort to get up and got the boys to go out with me. We skipped going to the grocery yesterday since I was too tired. We went to our usual Sunday chill spot. The area has a small grocery which carries most of what we need. I was really hoping surprised though the shop didn't have any Nestle cream! They said they haven't delivered any yet. Someone's hoarding already for Christmas! 😅

We got home before sunset. We didn't want the cats to be alone for so long. Meredith also wasn't eating. She's active and is probably just cross because I promised her we'll make some homemade cat food. She had some broth when we got home and will cook the cat food tomorrow. 

Happy chill Sunday everyone. Hope you got some rest.

Happy birthday Mama Mary! ❤️

#BeKind #StaySafe

How's Your Weekend Going?

It was a week for recovery for me. We were able to go to the mall for some errands and I got a bunch of craft books again at Booksale. They were selling quilt books for as low as PhP15, so it was really irresistible! The rest of the week was spent resting and catching up on my writing. 

Since I was feeling a bit better, I did some gardening too. I prepared some pots since I need to re-pot my papaya "plantation" and calamansi. I'm also trying to propagate avocado seeds. It will take a few weeks before it will root. Let's see how that goes. 

I also resumed pulmo rehab. I'm glad my therapist, Ronald, is feeling much better after getting downed with pneumonia. He didn't give me a hard time during rehab last Friday. Whew! I told him I have a hard time sleeping whenever I'm not able to attend our session. So I hope to be really consistent with it. 

It's a fresh week! We'll be busy puttering around the house and sorting stuff in my childhood home (Mom really had a lot of stuff). At least we've made some progress.

Have a blessed Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Gift of Love

Kuya surprised me yesterday with a gift. At first I thought it was a box of pastillas, haha. Well, the gift was sweeter than that. It was a gift of love. 

It was the Divine Mercy 3'O clock prayer. Praying the Chaplet is for those seriously injured, sick and dying is a powerful way to receive God's saving grace. It also promises forgiveness of all sins and no punishment for sin. It is a miracle that happens quietly.

Praying for miracles. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Busy Sunday

It was a busy day today. The boys brought Meredith to the vet for grooming. We noticed she was scratching too much. The vet said last week she didn't have ticks, fleas or mites. Her blood and skin was checked, but there were no issues too. The vet recommended to have her washed with medicated shampoo. Since we've never bathed a cat we thought it was better to have the vet's groomers do it. 

Meredith had her first appointment today. She was quite anxious on the way to her appointment. The groomers said she would eventually get used to it. She came back smelling really good. Her fur was so smooth and bright. She is scheduled to do weekly grooming for 4 weeks. I hope that would help with her scratching. 

I myself got busy sorting another box of Mom's bead supplies. I was so surprised to find it. I think she brought it to our home without us knowing because it was my first time to see the box. I finally found some beading materials I've been looking for in the other boxes I sorted. That's how I knew this was a box she had brought to our house in one of her visits. 

Sorting one box of bead stuff takes so long. I thought I'd finish it today, but I need another day to finish it. I've been transferring the beads to uniform ziplock bags since most of the old holders are quite dusty already. I didn't know Mom had bought a lot of beads. When I left my bead boxes with her before I left for Singapore she told me she wasn't really into beading. Haha. She got hooked because she more than doubled my collection. 

I hope I'll finish sorting the box tomorrow so I can move on with decluttering. We want to really finish organizing our home so we can have friends over. Mom said it will take time and it's really taking time. I have suspended any sewing projects for now so I could focus on decluttering and fixing our home. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

The Heat is On

And just like that the cool wind that usually comes during Christmas `til Valentine's has left. The heat is back and I have to be very mindful once again about stepping out in this weather. I spent most of the day yesterday on the couch because I was dizzy. I missed our high school class lunch reunion. It would have been fun to go. Oh well, such is my life. Stable today, unstable tomorrow. 

Well, I was lucky today. I got a "free pass" to go out to buy something. It felt like our regular Sunday family day where we'd head to the mall after hearing mass. We got to try the new Japanese resto in ATC, Kiwami. Then we went to True Value to buy something. I also squeezed in some time to buy a new shirt. It's been awhile since I got something new to wear. 

It's also been awhile since we've been able to have a vacation. Our last trip was when we went to Bohol last June. We'll need to figure out what to do with the cats if we ever decide to leave for a few days. Last time I just had to figure out how to keep the plants hydrated. That was easy. I just stuck a bottle with water in the soil. It also luckily rained the week we were away. The only other time we were away from home was when I was in the hospital. The boys though would go home in the evenings to leave food and water for the cats. So we'll see how we'll be able to go on a getaway. 

Stay hydrated and protect yourself from the blazing heat!

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Grow in Faith

My Mom was a very strong person. Nothing fazed her. I don't recall her getting scared of anything. What was her secret to living without fear? I thought about it for a long time. A few months before she passed, she had to change helpers. She insisted on staying home alone. I couldn't sleep and worried a lot if she was eating properly. We brought her food several times a day. 

On the third day, I had her "kidnapped". Brought her to our house since we saw she wasn't eating well. She insisted to go home everyday. Those with elderly parents would understand how hard it is to extricate your parent/s from their home. I got sick with worry and it was a good thing a replacement helper soon arrived. Mom went home as soon as the new helper arrived. 

That week was very hard for me. It took months for me to recover. I asked Kuya to take over managing Mom's home needs since I had become frail and I fell into depression, again. Mom went home and slipped back to her routines. She was happy and content as long as she could work on her garden. She would call to check on me, but most of the time kept busy with her garden. 

Mom's secret to being strong came to me while I was gardening. I've been able to start gardening again this year. My doctor told me to move more and exercise by doing what I like to do. I never saw my Mom exercise, she just did gardening. I figured I could do the same since I enjoy it and it's considered as exercise according to the CDC. Gardening also stills my mind, it's mindful movement. 

And so it came to me while gardening why my Mom is a strong person. If not gardening, my Mom would be sewing, working on crafts or most definitely, praying. Growing up she told me to lift up all of my problems to God. Whenever I rant, she'd just tell me to pray. My Mom's faith is solid. She never worried because she believed God would always protect her. 

To the end, she got her last wish granted - to not to get sick and just go in her sleep. She wasn't sick, in fact, she spent several hours gardening (2 hours in the morning and several hours again in the afternoon). I told myself, that's what I need to work on this year. To grow in faith and be secure in God's love and protection. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe