Marriage and Beyond

One very important item from this post was a musing from yours truly.. How I have got nothing to give the hubby for a present on Father’s Day, except for this e-card I have prepared for him. I wasn’t able to join him to church that day because I was sore all over especially that morning. My arthritis has acted up crazy. He texted me during lunch time that he so misses us and he hoped that me and our little guy are there with him. I felt so sorry for him. He said he was seeing all those families strolling around the mall celebrating Father’s Day. Although he was practically distracted the whole day because his preaching schedule is full like any other Sunday, he still felt homesick. I told him that I could get a cab with our son and go to the church and I was really willing to do that because I felt a little better in the afternoon. He said it was okay if we don’t come anymore. Continue Reading »

It’s fun to just stand back and watch you sometimes.

You’re such a terrific father. I’d even say you’re a natural.

But I also know that God is the difference in your life.

The Lord blessed me with such a great husband.

He blessed our family with such a great father.

When you became a father, only then it occurred to me

that it is possible to fall even deeper in love.

Thank you for your devotion to our family.

I’m so thankful to be married to you.

“My lover is mine and I am his;”
Song of Solomon 2:16

Tonight as I rummaged for a photo to fill in a blank frame, this shot took my attention. Obviously, it was taken from a traditional cam. Yep, we dated during the generation of the old school camera days. The most digital I got at that time was my beeper (first, it was EasyCall given by papa, then switched to Index) and the unshapely, bulky Motorola Handyphone that prided itself to support 4 AA’s in case of emergency. I’m sure colleagues our age would feel nostalgic all too suddenly. Imagine those times! Seriously now, I cannot imagine how much more digital it’s going to get when our little guy turns a decade old.

Sorry, I got distracted. So there, this is the hubby and me around ten years ago. Nostalgia is the least to describe how it feels looking through old photographs. Joy is what I would describe my life with my man. As I look back at all those years, I remember how silly we were and how our love has grown leaps and bounds since. This was taken a couple of years before I married him. Back in those non-digital times, I was already into taking photographs. It is just sweet to see all those photos and turn back time through memories. I look so “nene” and the hubby looks so “totoy.” The vernaculars that translates to “girl” and “boy”. Well, this was us! Minus all those fine and not so fine lines we now have.

With the big event for fathers coming up in the next three weeks, I am seriously running out of ideas of getting a hold of the best Father’s Day Gift for the hubby. My husband for six years and still counting and a father for more than three years now, I know I have a lot to thank God for. Jeff has been God’s ultimate manifestation of His love for me next to the eternal security of my Salvation through Christ Jesus.

When I seriously think about it, I should really be grateful for having not a perfect husband but a sinner redeemed by God and has chosen to press on living the life God has in mind for him and more. I consider myself really blessed to say the least. The Lord has allowed me to live and have the husband and father of my child that I now have. Continue Reading »

Yesterday was a very busy but fun day for me. The hubby took his time off to accompany me to my oath taking rites and after we swung around the largest mall in Asia which was near the place where twenty five percent of examinees who took the board last April took oath. The hubby then insisted on getting me my dresser for my congratulatory gift and we did check out a few displays. I thought it was too pricey, the frugal in me would rather check out discount designer handbags, clothing, shoes, watches and sunglasses, I have not gone shopping in a while and it was a treat! Continue Reading »

Remember this post? Even as there is a real epidemic of missing fathers, we also need to celebrate the fathers who choose to measure up to the calling the Lord has put upon them and this is to lead their respective families honorably. They may not be aplenty, but there are lots of them who are on their way there or even have arrived and are choosing to disciple young men showing them that to really live is to take that straight path, no matter how preachy that sounds. Not what those stupid commercials would have them believe that the only way to live is to get drunk and get all their insatiable desires quenched at all cost.

Fathers in this league deserve more than just luxury watches or material things. Allow me to repost here men’s basic needs and maybe wives could reassess how we treat our own men. I know this for sure, my hubby deserves more than what I’m giving him and I intend to do better and make sure he knows that I appreciate and admire everything about him. Continue Reading »

Tomorrow we will be celebrating the fifth birthday of the church the hubby pastors.  We are indeed thrilled even as we press on towards fulfilling the great commission through this local church.  I just hope to share with you a group shot from last year’s anniversary.  On our fifth year we celebrate on the exact date the church was born five years ago, its first service ever was held on May 25, 2003.

Yesterday, we got to spend time with Jen’s Tita who resides at Marikina City. They were the ones we were with at Baguio City and spending that time in the country’s summer capital really gave us time to bond together. When we visited them yesterday, we got to taste Tita Pet’s culinary expertise and boy did we really get our tummies full. Below is our photo taken together after the meal we had taken from our Canon A620.

This little guy of ours just turned three on Mothers Day. Please don’t blame me if my celebrating mood was diverted to my son’s third birthday. I am but a mother and I cannot help it. I must admit though that I have become extra emotional that day than all the previous mothers day even as I recall the day commemorating the birth of my most loved son on the exact date (May 11) that I gave birth. (I labored for two days and did the Lamaze/Bradley method of childbirth with the hubby beside me). I tried to hold back tears during the Mothers Day service we attended but failed.

Choosing to be on the front lines of my son’s “becoming” (each and every milestone) is probably the best thing I have ever done in my life. Happy birthday, Jed. I love you son.

I have missed last Tuesday’s toot, even if there was a great deal of things to toot about, I just had to miss it. I was then on a vacation up in the Northern mountains of Benguet Province having the time of my life with my family. The hubby and I meant to get a prepaid WiFi connection that we could make use of with our trusty laptop when we get there. Even if we had the WiFi connection, there is but limited places up in that province where WiFi connection is available. In hindsight, it was good. We were compelled to stay out of the blogosphere and enjoy nature with our family.

Check out these entries on our trip:

And the ultimate tooting news of all, at least for me and my family that made the vacation all the more timely. All those domestic juggling of keeping house, having a toddler to attend to, having this work from home career plus studying at the same time all paid off. What made it so much sweeter is, my passing the board was seriously UNEXPECTED. I got sick in the middle of review, thus my inability to attend the classes that we paid for, which is not cheap. If that wasn’t enough, I even got hospitalized. So tell me, how on earth could anyone expect to pass such a gruesome exam. For which, I give God all glory and praise.

I took the board April 6 and the result came out May 2. Here are my entries on my passing the board:

When I found out that this year’s mother’s day will coincide with our little guy’s third birthday, I was giddy. I knew we weren’t preparing anything grand. No Kentucky Derby Party Invitations, no parlor games, no fancy loot bags this time, but I was thrilled nevertheless because this birthday boy shows more excitement and is now able to get a grasp of birthdays and celebrations and he actually looked forward to his birthday gifts, cakes and all the works. His first birthday, did not have that effect on him, regardless of how grand we made it for him.

Here are some of the photos taken from the morning he woke up and opened his gifts until the celebration we had at Barrio Fiesta, sponsored by his ever loving favorite Tita Ninang Rose.

Continue Reading »

We just had a two day blast with friends. We came home late last night from The Greenery, Bulacan. Our good friends just got hitched and the hubby officiated it. We traveled to that province all the way from Astoria Hotel where we checked in courtesy of our good friend, Ana Banana who just flew in from Singapore. It was a grand way of celebrating her homecoming, to say the least. And it was even grander that it coincided with the grandest news ever (forgive the superlatives, I am still overwhelmed with gladness and it is actually still surreal to me) of my passing the board! Can life get even better?! Even as I am told that it is a given fact that God’s mercies are new every morning, some days are just extra unbelievable, if you know what I mean.

The suite we stayed in Astoria was huge. At first we kind of had a hard time locating it in spite of the fact that it is at the heart of a business district. We finally got it when we say the tallest building from amongst establishments clad with exterior shutters. We so love the place. It was a tad splendid than the previous hostel we rented where we had to pitch in per head. Those days were just like yesterday and it was fun to just remember those days. Our friendship with this bunch have really gone a long way.

We probably all together took gazillion of shots from a total of three digicams. It’s our group’s addiction, aside from us being foodies. Here are a few of those shots:

feasting Continue Reading »

First of all, this post is not to boast of anything but give all the glory to God. I am still currently in a state of shock, even as I just received a text message from one of my fellow board takers. She said I passed and it’s it the papers now. My first response was of disbelief and after a few more moments, more of disbelief. It must have been some kind of a joke or something — this was my initial response.

I practically conditioned myself to do a retake this September because in all honesty I took the board exam last month against my will. I had to give it to the hubby for pushing me to take the board. He had faith in me when I barely had anything to hold on to because of several things. First I was hospitalized, I was physically drained. Second, I dropped out of my review class which cost us more than a hundred dollars. It was money down the drain already. And that review class was important to better the odds at all for me to make it. The day before the exam I had quite a discussion with the hubby. He wanted me to give it a shot and have me treat the exam as just a practice for the real thing. I knew he had a point because even as he said, we have paid for the exam anyway, why not give it a shot.

I had the worst migraine I ever had and literally felt my stomach turn upside down during the exam. It was tough. I did not dare review my answers and finished the exam at 2p.m. (it was designed from 9a.m. till 6pm.) It just did not make sense for me to linger when I was to throw up any minute because of the exam’s difficulty. But the thing is, if I were not ill-prepared, it would have been a different story. I have not lifted one finger on my one foot thick reviewer, if at all I practically relied on stock knowledge and that’s just about it. I was able to take the pre-board and the result was not very hopeful. Anyone would understand how hard it would be to take something that you are unsure of.

I nevertheless submitted to the hubby’s wish and held on to whatever might be God’s will for me in this. I praise Him for this! I was just told that only 25% if the total examinees passed and I was blessed to have been a part of that figure.  I don’t see how I deserve to pass. It can only be His grace. And true to His promise, His grace is sufficient.

Here’s the link to the the board exam result.

 

Ephesians 3:20-21

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

 

The planned date was April 10. But because the finishing stage really takes up a lot of time, the turn over was delayed to another week, which was not bad. April 17, 2007. It just occurred to me a while ago that our house is turning one year old today and I praise God as I remember that every good and perfect gift is from Him. This house is a testimony of God’s faithfulness. For any person who has seen us struggle from the years that passed would definitely attest to this. He is Able to do exceedingly and abundantly, far above all we could ever ask or think. All glory and praise be to Him!

The hubby left for camp in the wee hour of three last Monday. It feels weird to be a single parent, at least that’s how I feel this last couple of days. Our little guy was able to speak with the hubby over the phone at breakfast this morning and he just just keeps telling his father, “Papa will stay here(?)” and the hubby will assure him that Papa will be back home on Friday.

Come to think of it, Monday was only two days ago, but it seems so long already. Two more days and we’ll get to see him. But then again, he would have to leave again the following Monday for the second roundup of the Heroes Youth Camp. Last weekend, we were offered an opportunity by a relative through my father that we can occupy a place in Baguio for free. I got giddy with excitement as I told this to the hubby. I know it’s not like a royal caribbean kind of vacation, but it is still something we are so looking forward to. The last time I went to Baguio was during the first two years of our marriage and our little guy wasn’t around yet. It has been at least four years and it would be such a break from the scorching heat we have here in the city. I know it might just not be all that cool up there but at least the sun won’t hurt as much as it does here. Continue Reading »

Free at last. This was the minute after I was released from my heplock and a day before I got discharged. My poor swollen wrist has not recovered yet until now, four days after I left the hospital.  Continue Reading »

It wasn’t grand. I was not expecting anything fancy. We were just too busy. I know that’s no excuse. We just went out because we had to. We definitely did not have any other time to do our grocery shopping. I have my reviews on weekends and today’s schedule is all but loaded. Continue Reading »

For God so loV ed the world, Continue Reading »