Miracle Sundays: You Can Always Come Back to Him

It is not easy to be good. It is very hard to resist temptation. Succumbing to what we want is far easier than being frugal. It is easier to gossip than to hold your tongue. It is easier to keep everything we have to ourselves than to be generous. We all fall into sin one way or another. 

I have had trouble sleeping for a few years now. It is a side effect of my illness and the medications I take. On good days, I can fall asleep by two in the morning. On bad days, it stretches to 5 and even 7 in the morning. Falling asleep late means I wake up late. Waking up at 11 is early for me, noon to 1 p.m. is normal. 

I've been trying to correct this for a few years now. It only works when we're on vacation somewhere. It is frustrating because it means I spend less time with Sweetie and Miggy. I also end up being unproductive. Less movement has resulted in my condition getting worse. It also means I'm not meeting any of my goals for the year.  

Today's Gospel is about the prodigal son. It is a good reminder that no matter how bad we get, Our Father will always welcome us back. With open arms and even a feast. I knew it's up to me to push myself to correct the issue. For this Lent, I resolved to do my daily exercises and work on moving more. It also means I have to wake up earlier to meet my goals. 

I prayed for guidance and the will to complete my Lenten sacrifice. I must admit I haven't really asked God for much. I have fallen wayward and it shows in my health. The Lenten goal is one of my steps to go back to Him. I have so far been waking up an hour and a half earlier the past two days. 

I tied waking up earlier to specific daily goals I want to accomplish. An additional push for me is to make sure I finish what I need to do before the temperature hits 31'C. I have to move to a cooler place before the temperature rises because heat is bad for those with CHF. Who knows maybe in time I can be a morning person again. :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Plantita Saturdays: Learning How to Make Soil Healthy

One of the things I learned about my failed gardening attempts is to make sure that I have the best kind of soil for my plants. It wasn't enough I added compost and coco peat/rice husk to it. I realized the soil I had in Singapore was a ready mix. The soil I have needs extra work so I could grow healthy plants. 

I've been reading and watching videos on soil preparation. I haven't planted anything yet since our garden will undergo some work. I think it's also too hot to plant anything at this point. Here's what I've picked up the past few months about making soil healthy -

• Hot Water - pour hot water in soil that has been infested with pests. This will kill them and the eggs. Alternatively, you can also let the soil dry under the sun, the effect should be the same. 
• Hydrogen Peroxide - another way to cleanse the soil is to pour water with hydrogen peroxide to it. 
• Charcoal - I just learned that you can add charcoal to your soil. It will help keep the soil moist. I think I'm going to do this before I plant anything since I expect it's going to be a very hot summer. 
• Compost - I've been composting the past few months. I look forward to adding it to my soil before I start planting again. 
• Rice husk or coco peat - rice husk or coco peat acts as a soil conditioner. It helps keep the soil moist and adds nutrients as it decomposes.
• Rain water - we collect rain water whenever it rains because that's what our plants prefer. During  the hot season, we use water that has rested for at least a day. 
• Fertilizer - adding fertilizer is important. This is probably one thing I missed doing when I got home. In Singapore we used rice water at least once a week on the plants. I remember also pouring banana peel tea every so often. It helped the plants produce more flowers. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Lakwatsera Fridays: Angrydobo

Sweetie voted to dine at Angrydobo when we headed out for errands last week. Last time we just had takeaway during a staycation last year. We went at an odd hour to avoid the crowd. 

I've tried the adobo twice already, so I thought I'd go for something different. The dish kaldedobo caught my eye. It's kaldereta and adobo combined together with cheese on top. I have not come across the dish and thought it would be interesting to try. I don't have the right words to describe it. The dish was flavorful and just simply delicious. Make sure to try it at Angrydobo. 

Sweetie had the Angrydobo chicken thigh.

Miggy ordered adobo flakes.

The ripe mango shake was perfect for my order since it was a tad bit spicy. Sweetie had the tamarind iced tea. He loved it so much he got a bottle for takeaway. I like the branch at Westgate much better since it's more spacious and there's a lot of parking spaces around. You can also get some items for takeaway. 

#BeKind #StaySaffe

Throwback Thursday: San Francisco with the Boys

A few years ago we tagged along with Sweetie when he went to the US for an event. We were in San Francisco for a few days and since it was Miggy's first time I thought it would be a good idea to bring him around. 

I still have some fuzzy memories of SanFo from my childhood. I was 4 the first time I went. Tito Mon had a house there where we stayed for a few days. I remember visiting Fisherman's Wharf because it was so cold. I wanted Miggy to experience it, so that was our first stop when we arrived. We ended up dining at The Franciscan Crab Restaurant where we had seafood. We walked around for a bit after and we enjoyed the breeze from the bay.

After that we met up with some friends to visit a pumpkin patch. It was a fun experience for Miggy because I similarly visited a pumpkin patch with my scout brothers before. After that we hung out with our friends at a Vietnamese restaurant and had milk tea after.  

The next day Miggy and I walked over to Ghiardelli Square. We had fun going in and out of shops because they would sometimes give free pieces of chocolate. Took a break at Lori's Diner then headed to the Presidio National Park. I wanted to see the Yoda fountain and walk around the Palace of the Fine Arts.

 

By early evening we headed back to the wharf to explore it a bit more. It was fun to hang out in the area because of the wildlife. There were a lot of birds and sea lions. Dined at Bubba Gump just to experience it and then met up with Jay. We checked out the Musee Mechanique. It showcased a lot of 20th century arcade games and artifacts. It reminded me of the Tom Hanks movie, Big. 

We only spent a few hours going around the city. The only thing memorable was seeing a huge warship docked in the bay and walking around the Embarcadero. It was a quick trip. Maybe we'll get to go back someday :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Wellness Wednesdays: How Decluttering Made My Life Lighter

Yesterday, I shared about how I made a cover for a medical device I own. I only use it when needed and don't like to be reminded constantly that I own one. I created a colorful cover for it. The colors give me good vibes every time I see it and I realized that's something we should all do -- surround yourself with items that make you happy. 

It's very much what Marie Kondo advised all of us to do, keep things that spark joy. We've been working on decluttering for awhile now and on top of keeping things that spark joy I've also been asking the question, "Do I/we need it?" "Would it be useful for someone else?"

We gave away 14 boxes of pre-loved items last Christmas. Our decluttering coach, Ally Canita, helped us send it to three charities. Some were books, some kitchen items and clothes. It's much easier to part with things when you know it will go to those who really need it. 

Ally taught us that the first thing you have to do is assess where you are in your life. That would help you know what items you need. In the past two months we've been going through the painful process of sorting through our things. I'm still working on the kitchen, but I've been making a lot of funny discoveries. I've amassed 14 spatulas, 5 peelers, several sets of knives, countless tupperwares and probably over fifty mugs (not counting those we've already donated). Quite obvious, that I need to downsize that number to what we'll just use. 

I think I now just have a third of my wardrobe. I just kept the ones that I use and need for now. I set aside all my "work clothes" last year, but I think I will review it again soon. I don't see any need for it in the near future and it will just decline in storage. 

Just having what you need is bliss. Not having too many things makes it easier to keep them in proper places. The process though is hard and I work on things based on my energy level. We're still getting some help to unbox the last 30 boxes. Getting things in order is taking so long and we want to finish soon so we can finally enjoy our new home. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Creative Happy Tuesdays: Huge Home Appliance Cover

My rainbow colored fabric always gives me good vibes. The color is just so happy so I thought it would be nice to use it to create a quilt cover for my oxygen concentrator. It's a huge medical device my doctor required me to have and I didn't realize it would be so big. It was parked beside my side of the bed. I use it when my O2 goes below 94. 

I haven't used it for awhile and it looked odd in our bedroom. I also don't like to be reminded I have a medical device. To relive myself of the constant reminder I quickly put together a cover for it. The cover was huge, so I simplified the process and just cut up squares to make up the whole project. 

I didn't have a pattern and made a mistake with my measurements. I made up for the size gap by adding a strip of fabric. I had fun piecing together the cut fabric, but assembling the whole piece got gnarly. Good thing I had a lot of clips to hold it together. I also did temporary stitches to make it easier to bind. 

Turned out pretty well. I realized just now I need a second one because I need to wash the cover every so often. I think I'll make a monochrome one next time so it doesn't clash with my new blinds. 

Tutorial and pattern at: https://www.needleadventures.com/2023/03/huge-appliance-quilt-cover.html

#BeKind #StaySafe

Home on Mondays: Condo Common Bathroom Makeover

I almost forgot to feature the makeover we did for the condo common bathroom. It was used as is when we moved in and we just added a few fixtures through the years. The biggest complaint we had for the bathroom were the toilet and sink. The toilet was smaller than standard. It was quite uncomfortable. The sink was also too small. Of course, the bathroom did not come with any cabinets installed so even with the shelf add-on, it looked messy. 

Here's what we changed in the common bathroom:

Removed the old sink, installed a new bigger one

Removed the old toilet, installed a new standard sized one

Added a cabinet under the new sink

Changed the mirror to a cabinet 

Changed the ceiling light

Updated to a new exhaust fan

Kept the tiles and just repainted the walls

The space looks so much better now and got good reviews from it's original user (Miggy). Of course, don't forget to check for any leaks when the contractor turns over the finished unit to you. 

#BeKind #StaySafe