Our Little Abi turned a month old today :) We celebrated simply, at home. We bought a cake and took pictures before we left for the relief center. We scheduled to have her ears pierced yesterday but postponed it the last minute. I felt we need to wait it out while the hospital is probably busy with the typhoon victims.
Pictures and development updates tomorrow! Stay tuned! :)
Yes, I still am. I needed to read on paid web directory for a client but I cannot seem to concentrate on work. All I know is that this is more effective than the free ones. And it is worth getting into it to have your site recognized right away.
Anyway, we (Gi and I) went to volunteer again at Megatent this afternoon. We brought the remaining biscuits we bought from the money sent by Mae. The center was overmanned when we got there at 330pm – a lot of volunteers were just hanging out and had nothing to do. When we inquired we were told there is shifting already and the next one is at 6pm. But we decided to stay put which was a good idea because around 430pm, the packing assembly line started and we were able to help :)
Again, I will write a better entry. I had a long day (as expected) and I need to recharge :)
When I started seeing the images of the damages made by Typhoon Ondoy and seeing the calls for volunteers in different centers, I knew in my heart that I wanted to help. But I could not decide just yet. I was in fear something might happen again and I don’t want to be caught away from home, away from Little Abi. But I also knew that I will regret it if I don’t do anything.
This morning I could not resist the call anymore. Our Badminton friend Rina posted in FB something about buying biscuits and cookies at factory price and the store is just five minutes away from home. I asked Ane if there is some money we can spare. I also asked my brother if we have any extra from the household budget. We only had p2k (<$40) and I was bent on spending all to buy biscuits. Then I got a message from kumareng Mae, and she sent me money right away. It is money she gathered from friends for our supposed Christmas Charity project. It is money I never expected to get hold of at this time. But it came.
I knew then that we have to go, donate the goods and volunteer today. God sent a way to push us out of the house! And we’re doing it again tomorrow.
In this time of trials, the Filipinos are working together to put back the pieces. Mabuhay ka Pinoy! Can you see the Philippine Flag here?
These are the packed rice from the 200 cavans of rice from an anonymous donor. Truly, God is so good!
p.s. I will write a longer entry to share our experience. But I need to rest tonight, because tomorrow will be a long day. :)
It is amazing how the Filipinos are united at this time. Technology and social networking sites are playing an important role in disseminating information. Facebook and Twitter are perfect examples. I was really surprised to see Paulo Coelho (who even donated via bank wire transfer), Ashton Kutcher, and Yoko Ono among others tweeting about the situation and pointing to a site where others can donate.
At this moment, thousands of volunteers are repacking goods to be distributed to the victims. Please help in any way you can, monetary or otherwise.
Here is a site where you can find more information: where to drop off donations, how to donate cash, how to volunteer.
Typhoon Ondoy may have left the Philippines but it is not over yet. Keep on praying for the victims and the rescuers.
During these trying hours in this country I simply cannot let myself go and splurge money on things that I want. Many are dying and hungry, and relief goods have not reached them. I’ve been worried sick about people who matter. I’ve spent too much time surfing the internet for pictures and news and I am surprised that other people can still afford to shop and brag about what they have. Well, I cannot blame them. They probably did not experience the typhoon’s wrath or they have more than enough to shop for themselves and still share with others. I conclude that I have no right to judge them, right?
Anyway, the point of this post is really to say that most women find solace in shopping. If there is something that bothers them, a pair of Kate Spade shoes or one by Michael Kors can easily and temporarily fix that. Most men do not understand that women obsess over shoes, bags and other feminine stuff because these things make them feel better. It lightens the emotions they feel within while making them look good.
I have a confession to make. I am not really particular on my looks. I splurge more on food and eating out, in fact. But I just recently discovered online shopping. I never knew that by simply browsing on women stuff like bags, shoes, make-up, and clothes, the lady in me is awakened. And I realized that I am not getting any younger so I should really consider spoiling myself. Yes, I’ll do that when I get a proper job, LOL! For now I enjoy window shopping from links I get here and here.
Maybe now I can concentrate more on what I really need to do. I just heard news from my friend Derick that he and his family is safe. Although I just saw his FB status and have not directly heard from him, it is comforting to know that he’s fine and can laugh now. Late last night Mitch already texted that she’s fine.
I can breathe normally now.
All I did today was watch the news, reload Twitter and FB, and give updates to relatives here and abroad. I was checking some files on life insurance comparison (kind of timely for insurance quotes, right?) while I did that. I was not able to do anything that has to do with work because I thought I deserved a break from the angst that I felt yesterday. I was working until 4am this morning trying to take it all in.
Anyway, my family and relatives are safe.
Ane got home before 8am and he is fine.
My Mom is recovering from the flu and is much better today.
My Dad had no sleep for 24hours trying to save lives. However, I heard that our house and property got submerged in water even if our place is built on the higher ground. Yes it was that bad. Our stuff were soaked but I am just thankful that no lives were compromised. Those are just things anyway.
My in-laws are safe and flood water didn’t even get into the garage. They had to help the neighbors though because the children were getting hungry and the electricity wasn’t back yet early tonight.
I need to rest my brain and body now. Will write more about us when I have the energy.
God bless the Philippines!!
I cannot find the energy to blog. I am sad and worried. This typhoon is crazy and does not show signs of letting up anytime soon! But I need to blog about my health, before I forget!
So I went back to the hospital to get my blood test results and to see my Internist yesterday. Ane drove for me and even treated me at Starbucks :)
Yay for me!!
My levels are now all normal and my BP never shot up again. Thanks to the maintenance medications. I am to continue with the meds and I will have a blood test again in December for monitoring. I hope this will continue.
That’s it. I am keeping an eye on the news while I try to work!
I slept before three this morning and noticed that the rain did not stop since the night before. When Abi and I woke up around 1030am, my brothers were peering out our room window looking at the neighbors. They were hopelessly holding on to their gate because the creek just outside their compound already overflowed. They needed to keep the gate closed otherwise their entire compound will be submerged in flood water. At this time, they are mid waist deep in water. How sad.
My brother attempted to drive to Bulacan and Valenzuela but turned back when cars were already being re-routed because EDSA was already flooded! Araneta Avenue would be an ugly sight too, we think.
I feel lucky that we are safe at home. I am thankful that we have a roof over our heads and that our food supply is ample. I feel sad for the homeless and for those whose homes are already submerged. This time, even the rich living in high-end subdivisions are affected. I am worried because my family is not together.
Ane is at work, and I am not sure if he’ll be able to drive in this condition. There is a place he can stay in near his office but he hasn’t got stuff with him. Sigh. But then the mall is just right there.
Mommy is in Mindoro, but I heard it is better there. She has the flu, though, so I am worried that there is no one to look after her.
Daddy is in Bulacan. Haven’t tried to call him yet. I am sure he is busy. Our house is on the higher ground but I am thinking of the relatives and I imagine my Dad fussing over all the evacuees. See our town have been below sea level and this typhoon is bringing in so much rain (plus I heard the dam released some water already). This is really bad.
Thank God my FIL is home for the weekend and he’s with my MIL in Malabon. I really hope they are safe.
Let us all pray and bombard the heavens so this will stop immediately. Lord, help us!!
With this kind of crazy weather, I would give anything for a Mexico family vacation to experience this:
This is the view at the Azul Sensatori Hotel. It is a member of the Karisma group of hotels which offers Luxury vacation packages for groups and families. This hotel takes pride in it being a family-oriented establishment with their connected suites and the activities available are geared to promoting doing things together. The hotel, being located a few minutes from the airport makes it an ideal get-away for families with small children. This hotel is world-class and the service they offer reflect that.
Oh, it is nice to daydream especially if one is stuck at home.
Hello!
Here is my wishlist for this year’s Bebots’ Exchange of Gifts. I missed it last year because we were preparing for the coming of Little Klaire, so I am hoping you will make it extra special for me :) Weeeee!!
1) I fell in love at first sight with this pair of Grendha sandals this afternoon. I saw this in SM Department Store (Cubao) but the saleslady said it is available in other branches, too :)
2) This got bumped off from number one this afternoon: A Rootote! These are my choices, in order: North Pole, Festival, White, or Succee :)
3) Books: Diary of A Wimpy Kid – available in Fully Booked (in store and online). There are four books :)
4) Etsy Stuff: Bookmarks – Horse, Snake and Ox. This is a bit over the budget, I am willing to shoulder the extra :)
5) Flickr Renewal :)
If my Mamita is from abroad and you really like to make me ecstatic by giving me my first choice (wink!) please do not hesitate to send me the money to buy it. It is cheaper than the budget and it will save you shipping (nux!)
Thank you!!!
Love,
Baby Kaje :)
I planned to blog tonight but I find myself drained of energy. I was in bed by 1am, then Abi asked for milk at 3 and 5am (yes, she had a rough night too). I had to be up by 6am but snoozed until 615am. By 7am, Ane and I were already out. I had my blood extraction scheduled today to monitor my cholesterol. I was fasting since 915pm last night.
So yes, I was tired, hungry and sleepy. Good thing, Ane agreed to accompany me to the hospital. I wouldn’t know how I could drive and go by myself! We were back home a before ten am, morning rush traffic sucks! If I still have the energy, I will go see my Internist this week and show her the test result.
Then we brought Abi to her Pedia for the well-baby check-up this afternoon. Since yesterday was a holiday, there are a lot of other patients. We were already number 5 when we got there even if we were still early! Abi was a trooper. I’ll post about the visit in the coming days.
I am really just dropping by tonight. I need to recharge! Good night world!
I find this to be true. Literally and figuratively.
Sometimes I sing to Abi and she doesn’t mind if I get the tunes or the lyrics correct. For her, my voice is the sweetest and it calms her down. My voice makes her want to sing along too.
And then there are times that I find myself in disagreement with Ane, or the brothers, or the parents. But at the end of the day (Apples Aberin, is that you?!?), I know in my heart that I am accepted and that this is where I belong.
I should keep this in mind :)
I suddenly remembered a friend with whom I had a row a few years ago. Well, he offered me a life insurance product (he was struggling and needed the commission very badly). But since it was not my priority then, I declined and he got pissed big time. That is beside the point. Now that I am older and wiser, I realized that there is a need for these insurance policies because we never know what will happen in the future. I do not want to think about whether I am (or my family is) properly covered in case something happens. So if you are not yet insured in any way, please consider it.
I was out from 10am to 5pm. And I missed my Baby Abi!! I went to meet up with Bebot friends Kathy, Aggie and Mai (with Asher and yayay) at MOA and got my loots from the Donya. I will share pics of the loots soon. Basically I bought a camera bag for Ane and some clothes for Abi which I realized are still too big for her, LOL!
Driving was stressful so I am tired tonight. I need to do some things so my sharing will come later. It was a fun day though and it was nice to be able to socialize IRL. :)
Leaving you with this picture of us before we parted ways:
Good night world!!
A week never passes without news about drug use and drug abuse, here and abroad. It can get really depressing knowing that a lot of lives are compromised and the youth’s future becomes bleak. I am honestly afraid for my daughter’s future. If you are a user’s parent, make things right by sending your kid to a drug rehab. Encourage him or her to give it up and stay clean for good. Be mindful of the government’s efforts to eradicate this problem. I believe everyone in the society can work hand in hand and drug abuse will become a thing of the past.
On me, sometimes :) So this Buco-Melon flavored ice cream commercial with the comedienne playing multiple roles started showing on TV. And I could not stop thinking about it I kept bugging Ane to buy me some. He didn’t budge until one evening he surprised me by taking the tub out of the freezer after eating dinner! And yes this is after the M&M’s episode that I had to wonder what my husband needs for surprising me too often, LOL!
So we tasted the ice cream…and didn’t like it. Hmp! It was too sweet for us and we were hoping there would be Buco and Melon chunks. And on day two we had to point fingers at one another, who will finish the entire thing, LOL!
Lesson: never let advertising get you, LOL!
No I am not going abroad anytime soon but it was a tiring day (today is market day, and a couple of hours outside can get pretty 
There is, among others:
Violence.
Political war/s.
Hollywood death.
Surprise US Open win.
Showbiz accident.
Volcano acting up.
Really the news can get tiring. There is so much to blog about but because there are just too many topics to choose from, I am at a loss for words. LOL, loser! LOL!
Oh, oh, oh! This is newsworthy: I helped clean our room and I got to throw a lot of stuff! Yay!!Still nesting when the baby is already seven months old?!!? Weeee!! And then a calorie-overloaded merienda afterwards! We had McDo food delivered. I had Fillet o’ Fish Meal and a caramel sundae.
So if this post doesn’t make sense, it is because I am: a) tired and sleepy, b) too full in the stomach, c) overloaded with sugar, or d) all of the above. LOL!
p.s. And and and!!! Abi got new clips from the US sent in by cousin Didith! Yipeee!
September is the month for taking the Bar here in the country. All Sundays of the month, the examinees and their supporters troop to Taft Avenue. I wonder if the law students here needed to do LSAT prep before they were accepted in Law School? How did they prepare for the Bar? Are they nervous? I will never know the feeling because I didn’t follow the piece of advice to take up Law.
Anyway, I do not know anyone who is taking this year’s bar exams. But good luck to all examinees!!
Not exactly here, as in here. They’re here, in the Philippines! I am talking about my loots from the US that I shopped in June. I bought stuff for Ane and Abi, and I used money that I earned writing stuff :) Nothing for me, though, which is totally fine with me because of the new bag and Robin which came weeks earlier :) And even without the bag and Robin, I would have been okay buying nothing for me because my happiness is Ane and Abi’s happiness. Nux! :)
Because of the loots, there is a schedule Bebot EB on Thursday. I really hope it will push through!! I am so excited!! :)
I would like to share a screen cap of my FB yesterday, so I will also get to keep this in my memory chest:
See, when Ane arrived from work, I jokingly asked him if there’s anything he brought home for me. I would ask him for pasalubong every now and then but there are days that I would “test” him. He didn’t answer. He simply looked inside his bag and then handed me a small bag of M&M’s! He actually had something for me. Although he was honest enough to say that he didn’t buy the pack, I appreciate that he remembered me. I love chocolates but I avoid them as much as I can because they give me headaches. And coming from Ane, who is strict about things like that, it was a pleasant surprise.
I honestly felt like a teenager whose crush suddenly noticed her! After this screen cap, my cousin in law Sheila said Ane is lucky to have a wifey who is appreciative of even the littlest things :D Well, I believe that little surprises spice up a marriage, and I think that is healthy :)
I just finished feeding little Abi her dinner. I am glad to announce that she finished the whole bowl that I prepared for her! Yay! I have been worrying about her eating habits for the past week. It doesn’t matter that she still doesn’t want to eat homemade solids, what’s important is that she ate a lot tonight :) It is either she really loves bananas or she’s hungry LOL! Anyway, that is a smilestone for me and I hope she will start eating a lot again :)
Oh! And we figured that she eats better when tv commercials are being shown, hehe.
The day has not ended yet. It is still gloomy outside. Even if the skies are already dark and the sun has set, I can feel the gloominess. It rained almost the whole day. But I am not complaining :D I got the chance to have a long afternoon nap with my Abi, and that’s what matters :D
Did you know you can buy quality airsoft aeg rifles online via ZephyrAirsoft.com? This online shop is perfect for people like you whose hubby is to go shooting with friends. They have guns, magazines and safety gear, they are one-stop shop. The shop started in 2003 initially offering stuff for paintball but eventually branched to other guns sports. Now in 2009, they have a wide range of products that will excite gun lovers. They have the best brand names in airsoft gun industry. The best about this store is that their prices are low and they ship for free. Most of all they promise the best service, you might want to try them.
She slept with it! :D
That’s a pack of banana chips from Calapan, Mindoro that my Mom brings home for us. We all love it! They are the yummiest banana chips I have ever tasted. They are crunchy and not too sweet. These chips have reached Bay Area, Chicago & Wisconsin, and Richmond already, would you believe?!
Well, of course, Abi’s not eating them yet LOL! She just loves the plastic wrapper (or any other plastic material for the matter) that she plays with it. :)
It has been almost three weeks since I received a notification from Artscow that my 5x7 and 8x8 photo books are already being shipped. Oh I can’t wait to have my hands on my pages! The 8x8 is my first ever scrapbook and I am so excited to see how the book turned out! It just sucks that the Philippine Postal system is really slow. I have this urge to already go to the PO and ask!
There is another PB that I am working on. This time it is a 5x7 40-page book. It is going to include Abi’s first six months. I need to finish it before 20 September so I can use the checkout code :) I have nine more spreads to make and I think I’ll beat the deadline.
:)
In this part of the world, cannabis is taboo & illegal. We see news about its abuse and how the authorities would raid suspected landowners who plant it. But in some parts of the United States, it is actually legally prescribed in some cases, thus called Medical Marijuana. That is shocking to know but then again it is considered an herbal plant that can cure some sickness. There is a debate that is going on about its effectiveness. There is however, a need for information dissemination so people are properly informed. Others claim that this plant will help ease insomnia, asthma and glaucoma. One thing should be remembered, though: it may be effective but legal and prescribed users should not depend fully on it because it is still an addictive substance.
Yes, at this time, a few minutes before 9pm, I am so ready for bed. My day was uber busy.
Went to the Market with Ane before 7am.
Bank at 9am.
Grocery shopping with Ane and Little Abi before 11am (Fixed my GCash & DQ treat though before going home).
Lunch at home and I tried to finish the last article in my batch of tasks. Jollibee merienda in between and a bit of chitchat with Mom who didn’t brave the Bulacan flood (and decided to stay here instead). Submitted my articles at 445pm. They were due at 5pm! LOL!
Drove for Mom to her designer’s shop. It was stressful especially that 1) it was raining, 2) it was dusk, which is the worst time of the day to drive, too much stress on the eyes, and 3) it was the first time I drove with Klaire as my passenger in her carseat!
Got home, had dinner and went up to our room when Mom announced she’s going to bed already. They have an early trip (read 2am) tomorrow!
I opened my Photoshop hoping I could scrap but my head is already spinning. Did I say I slept already past 1am this morning?!
Uh-huh, I am so ready to hit the sack. But my energizer bunny named Abi has other plans I guess. I think I’m going to just hang out with her and we’ll watch TV while waiting for Ane to come home from his games.
I’m out now :) Good night world!!
Today is the perfect bed weather. How nice it is to just snuggle under the sheets and watch TV all day. Oh well, that thought stalled me today. At 630pm, I am just about to start working on my articles tasks that are due 5pm tomorrow (Oh where did time go? I feel I just woke up from last night’s sleep LOL!) . Sure I still have about 24hours to work on three more articles (I finished two last night) but I just realized that tomorrow is grocery and market day so I’ll probably be out the whole morning and may extend until early afternoon. Uh-oh. LOL!
Got to work on the tasks now! :) TTYL!
p.s. But I don’t consider today as unproductive because I got to spend QT with Abi and I finished a spread for Abi’s first six months photo book (13 more to go!!). Weeee! :)
Abi turned seven months on August 30. Here is her picture with Sissy this month:
During her well-baby check-up a few days before the 30th, her weight was recorded at 6.8kilos, 500grams more from the last check-up. It was a significant gain but I was hoping she gained more than that. She is still within the average bracket, and for that I am grateful. Abi is not a sickly baby and that is something to be really happy about. :) She had her first anti-meningitis vaccine shot, and took it really well. She cried but stopped the minute we stepped out of the doctor’s office. She still recognized her doctor and would not let him touch her! What an attitude, LOL! The doctor found it cute that she remembers him, hehe. She was given the A-ok stamp and the doctor reminded us that we may have her ears pierced already yey! I’m thinking if it is safe to bring her to TMC or have my lola do it. (Mommy, if you are reading this, can you please ask Lola Zeny if she can do this for Abi and where to get the hypo-allergenic earrings? Hehe Thanks!). We also asked the doctor if Abi can already go swimming, and were given the go-signal, but will have to check about the pool treatment. Well, the Daddy has been dying to dip in the pool for the longest time and he wanted Abi to go with him. We need to buy pool diapers first, though (and a swimsuit!).
Abi’s eating habit is worrying me now. She prefers Cerelac and Gerber versus homemade solids. I’ve tried many times over to feed her homemade stuff but she would cry her heart out when I feed her. Then she would gag herself and eventually vomits the little food she has swallowed. It’s ironic that she loves bananas, well whole ones, but the minute I mash it and feed it to her, she would refuse to eat! She now sips water from the cup, but still refuse if it’s juice. Sigh. I think I am raising a picky eater! :(
She has turned into a Mommy’s girl. She cries when she doesn’t see me, wouldn’t drink her milk and eat her food if it’s not me. It’s gotten too bad that I cannot leave her with the Daddy anymore! I hope this shall pass. I am not complaining but if you cannot go and pee for even a minute, you’ll understand, hihi. I am glad though that Aiza is here to assist me. Aside from me, it’s she who can pacify the princess.
She sleeps through the night but goes to bed really late. She sleeps around midnight, wakes up around 6am for milk, then sleeps again until 9 or 10am. I ready her for her lunch and bath, then naps around 3pm. Dinner at 6pm.
She now crawls fast enough that I just cannot leave her on the bed for one second! She also discovered she can stand already! This little girl is giving me a heart attack! She realized she could already go over the pillows around her, so I added some more. That only encouraged her to stand! She stands more than she sits, hehe, quite funny. She can now do high-fives and kuyakoy; still loves to read. Playtime is never dull for her, she laughs a lot! She now appreciates children’s shows, particularly Hi-5 and Yo Gabba Gabba (well, I need to look for the new schedule!). She stops with whatever she’s doing when commercials are being shown on tv. She likes commercials of shampoo; she squeals in delight when she sees flowing hair. Her favorite commercial is the Palmolive Fashion Girl commercial :)
Our little Abi loves to sing :) She sings (more like humming) with me. Her favorites are Itsy Bitsy Spider, I Have Two Hands, and not quite surprising, A Whole New World :) She stops when I stop, then she will flash a smile and that cracks us up! At times, I would think she’s being cranky when I hear her do “haa hooo hiii mmmm” but when I look at her and her brows aren’t crinkled, that means she’s singing to herself :) She also prays along during bedtime.
She “owns” our TV remote. We need to “borrow” it from her when we want the channel changed! LOL! She also grabs our mobile phones when the backlight is on. Otherwise, she’d leave them alone. She loves looking at people pictures, on the pc monitor or the cameras’ LCD. I think she really loves looking at faces. She observes us when we use the PC and Santino (the lappy). She has realized that tapping on the keyboard will result to something that happens on the monitor. So when we allow her to play with the keyboard sometimes, we would notice that she would tap tap tap on the keyboard and gaze at the monitor! So cute! I am thinking we should get her her own keyboard but will probably get bored if nothing happens so a monitor should come with the keyboard too, and of course a CPU! LOL! Ane faints at this thought, wahahaha! We have a techie daughter!!
Anyway, I am sharing two of her birthday pictures here:
After our lunch in GH, we just ordered a cake and stayed home for the rest of the day.
That ends this really long post :) I hope I did not forget anything! Click here to see the rest of the August pictures :)
I have done some major slacking in this blog, I know. My art blog is updated everyday, though, for almost two weeks now. Yes everyday! :) I did a little experiment and I am happy to announce that I am seeing the results now, yey!
Aside from that, I am extremely busy and I feel I need to step back and rest. Or at least, manage my time better (read: decrease unnecessary net surfing!). It is almost noon here and I still feel lethargic even if I woke up at 10am (I planned to be up by 8am but could not!). If I keep this kind of schedule I just might break out and will need the best acne treatment! And maybe I should also take hubby’s advice to take some vitamin E so my body can take all the stress. But I am not complaining okay?! :) I just feel really tired.
See, I was hired to write articles. This time, I see it as a continuous work where the is no need for me to literally hunt. I was hired late last week, and so far I have written 10 420ish word articles and a new batch of assignment was sent in last night (and I thought I could scrap all day today hah!).
Ok, ok. I planned to upload Abi’s August pictures today and write that monthly update. I tell you, my daughter is even more adorable these days!! :) Stay tuned!
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