Of Page Ranks and Glasses

Did I see it right or do I need a pair of eyeglasses? I just checked through the page rank checker and I was disheartened to see my page ranks from my other blogs, dropped! It's not a very good news for the new year huh! heheh! But, there's still hope for sure.. opportunities or blessings come from God and not from page ranks so, I better not fret about it. I'm even thankful that at least I've experienced having a page rank of 2 and 3 ( in my other blogs) for the past three long months. Thank You Lord!

So, I don't need a pair of eyeglasses, my vision is just right. But for those who needs to have a new pair of eyeglasses for the new year, then you better check out Zenni's wonderful selection of Holiday frames! I've just been through their site and the choices are just plentiful! And not only that, you can get a pair for as low as 8$! Hmm.. that could also make a great New Year gift huh! So, you better check out Zenni's latest offer or latest style now. As for me, if I were to choose a pair for the New Year, I would like to choose this. Cool!

A Blessed New Year to ALL!

few more hours to go and we will all meet the year 2009! I just want to wish everyone to have a blessed and fruitful 2009!

I'm excited to meet the year 2009. It is going to be our Sabbath Year or our year of rest and refreshing. We had some big travel plans for 2009, but as my hubby and I reflected , we felt that it's not yet God's perfect time for us to push through with that Big Trip. So, we are now intently praying to what's God's best plan for the year to come. We are sure that God's plans are far much better than our own plans for indeed He has a greater purpose for everything. Amen!

Let us meet the coming year with a thankful heart to our God for the year 2008 and an expectant heart for God's miracles and blessings for the year 2009! We are blessed to be a blessing!

3 Weeks..

It's almost 3 long weeks without our broadband connection at home. So, here I am.. still in the internet cafe and having a difficult time dowloading our Christmas photos for my previous post. Oh, I just hope and pray that our broadband connection at home will soon be fixed.

Speaking of 'downloading of photos', I've just found out that Ceiva Digital Photo Frame can automatically receive photos from anywhere in the world. Yes, you've read it right. It means that photos in the frames can be automatically be changed by friends and loved ones from a different country without us doing a thing. How? from a computer or a camera phone. Amazing technology huh? What's even better is that Ceiva is having a 100$ off promotion that runs until the 10th of January. So, you want to be high tech and avail of the One Year Picture plan? Then, you got to buy now. One more thing, I've heard that Ceiva digital frames displays photos perfectly- no cropping, stretching or squishing. Just great!!
Back to my 3 weeks broadband dilemma, I wonder when will be the time when we get so hi tech and get free wifi connection in every nook and corner of the country.

Winter in the Philippines

I'm sure I've got your attention huh? Yes, we had a bit of winter here in the Philippines, particularly in Balulang, Cagayan de Oro City on the 25th of December. Confusing huh?

For our family Christmas party last week, our theme was "Christmas Winter" so, we asked our family to be in their best winter attire for our Christmas celebration. So, here we are all clad in sweaters, jackets and scarves. It's good though that the wind was a bit cool because if not, then we will all be perspiring inside. hahaha!

Anyways, this is one thing I enjoy with our family, everyone is so game to wear whatever theme we choose to make our gathering more fun and memorable. I couldn't forget one Christmas eve where we were all dressed up in our best evening gowns. Anyways, here are our winter Christmas photos .

Watch out for our New Year's eve celebration. Guess what's our theme for new year?? It will be a "Hawaiian New year's eve Party" !!

* Oh, the photos refuse to download in this cafe..so sad.. I'll be posting them later then..

Gifts, gifts and gifts Galore

It's amazing how much gifts we give and receive this season. It's just so touching to receive gifts from friends and family. Just the simple thought of a person taking time to choose, wrap and give you the gift is already touching. Our kids also are so blessed with a lot of people giving them toys and sweets.

We will have another gift giving time for our family for New Year's Eve. We already bought some of our gifts for family but we're not actually done shopping yet. It would be great to be high tech a bit and give hi tech gadgets to family like digital frame, ipod and etc. But then, we couldn't afford to buy these gifts, so we better stick to the usual gift items.

It was a Merry, Blessed, Fun filled Christmas!

Our celebration started on Christmas eve with all of our family with some friends gathered at at 11:00 pm on the 24th of December. We had a time of worship and then a time of sharing of the things we are thankful to God for the year 2008. It was a great time of sharing with laughter and tears from family members. :) God has truly been faithful to our lives!

We then had our noche buena, games, chit chats and a lot of laughter! It was truly a blessed Christmas and I'm glad that our family could come and spend it with our family here in the Philippines.

Have a Blessed Christmas and a Fruitful NEw YEar to Everyone!

Photos to follow soon..

Swing it!

This photo was taken at Country Village Hotel playground. Lyle really loved to be in this swing since it's really fit just right for him. I guess he also loves the speed and the wind on his face as he is being pushed. You must see how he laughs and giggles every time he is pushed. So cute! Our boy is just so cuddly and chubby now. Not to mention he's also getting heavier every day.

Anyways, I uploaded this photo in the site http://www.sitonsantaslap.com/?utm_source=b where you can have a chance to win 500$ for their raffle. Actually, this is only open to US residents , but I can't help but try out uploading Lyle and Hubby's photo and see how it looks like in the CEIVA digital frame. Well, the photo really looked sharper and more beautiful in the frame. It made me wish to be high tech a bit and get a digital frame for Christmas. You might want to try out downloading your photo in the site. If you're a US resident and 18 years above, you can then have a chance to win in their raffle promo. Have you got a wish this Christmas? Then, you better hurry since this contest is only open until the 24th of December.

Still Not Connected

Oh, it's already more than a week now and still we don't have internet access in our house. When my Hubby came last Monday, I thought it was ok not to have a connection since I can't be distracted anyway. We even thought that it's blessing in disguise so, our family could spend quality time together without having to think of tasks, opps or constant trips to the PC. True enough we really were able to bond together as a family and had day outs in the mall.

But then, we have all settled and ready to get back to our normal lives. I'm all refreshed, ready and excited to do my writing tasks. BUt sadly, we still couldn't connect online from our house. Huhuhuh! I've already thought of the days that has passed by, with me missing all the opportunities to do my writing tasks. Imagine, 10 days without internet connection?? That's quite long to get disconnected from the online world.

So, here I am now. .. at the internet cafe nearest to our house. Nearest means, I have to walk about a kilometer to get to the main road and then ride a trisikad to the 'town center'. Okay, let me just think of that as an exercise. But seriously, I do hope and pray that our broadband connection will be fixed by my beloved Globe Broadband. Please..please..please...

Christmas Party!

Our church party has just finished it was really a great party with so much of food, gifts and fun! Another few more days and it'll be Christmas too..and for sure more food is going to be tempting me to eat them. Hahaahhaa! What has happened to moderate eating and portion control? I guess, they will have to reappear early next year huh? Anyways, I hope I can exercise more and be more conscious of what I eat. I don't want to take weight loss pills but want to slim down naturally. but how to slim down with a lot of parties going on this month? :)

Little Miss Van Gogh

Meet my little Miss Van Gogh. I knew that she loves to draw but then I totally forgot that she also used to love to paint when she was little. I only discovered that she could already paint 'well' when she was painting with her cousin last week.

Sorry for the messy hair. But I think artists are like that ( a bit messy) when they're too engrossed with their art. hehehe!

Holding the brush like a 'pro'. She just created this still-life out of her own imagination.

Tada!! The Finished product... and the art piece starts from the bid of 1000$!.. hahah!

Yummy Sunday - Chocolates!

My entry for this week's YummY Sunday is not actually a kind of dish.. but still the same, it's very YummY - Chocolates!

My Hubby brought this box of Ferrero Rocher as a pasalubong and so, I took a few pieces and since I don't want to finish the whole box ( like I did last year), I gave the rest to my nieces, nephews and siblings. :) Yes, I have to be very careful with my sweet and chocolate intake this season as I don't want to gain too much of weight that even taking diet pills won't work.. hehehe!

Want to see other Yummy Sunday entries? Click the button on top.

The Reunion

Here is the first photo that I took, a few minutes after Hubby arrive. See the the joy of our kid's faces? They're indeed so happy to see their Appa and they still refuse to let go of him .:)

Tomorrow marks the 1st one week of my Hubby in the Philippines. So far, he still doesn't have major culture shocks and adjustments. I guess, his 4 months stay here a few years ago while we were doing our cultural training has really helped him a lot. It's quite amusing though that Tricia somehow orients him of the things around and 'teaches' him some bisaya words she knows. " Tag pila ni??"

Blessing Our Neighbors

Every year our family has this sort of a tradition to give out gifts like grocery items or used clothing to the families in our neighborhood. Our neighbors are very simple people who's occupation includes Banana q vendors, Trisikad drivers, Beauticians and etc. Some are even jobless and make their living from collecting all the 'junks' around the area.

My father started helping our neighbors even when we just moved in the year 2001. No, he's not into politics but he did this out of his genuine love to the people. I can't forget the story he related to me during the first Christmas gift giving when he himself went to our neighbors' houses one by one, giving a bag of groceries to each house. One of the old women in the community couldn't help but cry and hugged my father after receiving their gift. Out of her happiness she spoke a very deep, bisaya word that expressed her deep gratitude.

For this year, our family has somewhat discussed to give out some used clothing, house items and anything can be made useful for our neighbors. I even saw piles of our used cds and thought of giving them out too.. But, I remember that some of them don't even have electricity so , I guess it will be useless for them unless they plan to sell it and make money out of it. Anways, we will be busy in the next few days as we turn our house upside down, looking for things to give out to our neighbors.

8 Hours to Go...

68 Days became 39 days... then 10 days... then 7 days... 2 days... and finally.. 8 hours!!

As I'm writing this post now, my Hubby is already aboard the Cebu Pacific Air Flight 5J 502 bound for Manila. I'm not sure if he could sleep during the 4 hours flight as he is also so excited to arrive in Cagayan. After reaching the NAIA 3 terminal, they will have to check in again and board the 8:25 AM flight to Cagayan de Oro city. And then, at 9:50 AM, the will be arriving and our family will be reunited! Thank you Lord for the waiting is coming to an end. Thank you Lord for protecting us and being with us all throughout the days when we were apart. :)

Internet Love Affair

I was riding the jeepney the other day when I heard a lady talking loudly to her friend about her internet boyfriend. It was not a very good experience for her since the guy came to the Philippines and suddenly disappeared without a trace. The next thing she knew, the guy has already married another Filipina girl.

Internet dating is already a norm these days. I have a lot of friends who found their love through the net. Most of them have very happy marriages and a few with not so happy ones. There are internet dating sites offering internet dating tips and dating profiles . One has to be very careful in choosing the dating sites and make sure that it's wholesome and clean.

As with any relationships, may it be online or not, one has to choose wisely and make sure that the person is God fearing and is right for you. A few of my friends who are still unmarried would ask me, how I got I knew that my Hubby is the right one for me. I would then answer, " I prayed for my future Hubby". It's true indeed that when we earnestly pray and seek God's lifetime partner for us, He will guide us and show us.

Balulang Gift Giving

Yesterday was the gift giving of my Li'l girl's school at the Balulang Day Care Center. It's a unique project of the school because the money used to buy the gifts for the Balulang kids were from the LECS students themselves. They had a piggy bank and started to save their coins as early as the start of the school year.

Tricia the 'snobby' giver.. heheh!

They had storytelling, snacks and giving of party bags. The Balulang kids were so happy and the LECS students too. It's a different experience for them.

My Antique Cell phone

If we were to do a survey on who has the oldest cellular phones in the whole of Cagayan de Oro, then I would indeed be one of them. Ever since I stayed overseas, I got outdated and left behind with the latest in Cellular technology. I guess, it's just because only few Thai people are so 'cellular phone' addicts. I only see most of them with simple celphones.

But when I arrived here, I got a shock to see ordinary people bringing hi tech cellphones with built-in TVs and with all the hi tech features. Well, thanks to the China made phones that are sold at a very low price in Cogon or in Divisoria that made a lot of people ' hi tech'. Anyways, back to my 'antique' cellphone, the casing got broken so I went to one of the phone shops that sells all the cellphone gadgets from casings to cell phone amplifiers. I then shyly showed my outdated phone ( which I don't know the model number) to the sales personnel and asked for a replacement. But then immediately she told me that they no longer sell the casing of that model. Woaahh! So, it's confirmed! I'm bringing and using an obsolete phone that's worthy to be displayed in the museum. Hahaha! But still, I won't get tempted to buy a new one. As long as it still has life and it's breathing, I will continue to hold on to it.

Unsafe Neighborhood

Even if we've been living in this community for only 7 years but my parents and grandparents have already acquired this land for decades. Our little community here, though far away from the city center used to be very peaceful and safe. But last night, this confidence has been shattered when one of our church mate, Ms P. who's residing in my Sister's house has been badly hurt by a stranger.

It was only around 7: 50 pm when she walked home alone last night. The lamp post near our gate was not turned on so the path was dark. When suddenly a man just suddenly appeared right in front of her. Unsuspecting of what the man might do to her, she continued to walk on. When suddenly she felt a large stone hit her head! She screamed for help but even then the man continued to hit her and tried to pull her to the side. She screamed and struggled her way out and thankfully she escaped as other neighbors and my cousin came to her rescue. Only then she realized that she dropped her bag on the road but when they came back for it , it was no longer there.

Ms. P is doing fine, now. Praise God that her xray results and tests showed that her head hasn't been damaged at all. We also admire her courage and strength to scream so loud and get away. We believe it has been God who gave her the strength. We are not sure of what that man's motive in assaulting her ( whether he was just after the bag or Ms. P herself) but we do hope that he will be found out and arrested soon.

Writing about this now still gives me goosebumps on what might have happened. But still we thank God for protecting Ms. P that nothing worst happened. This has also served as a warning for us to be extra careful and not to be so trustful and complacent with our surroundings.

Oh, it's just so sad and at the same time alarming to know that our community is not as safe as it used to be. I guess, the times have really changed now. I just hope and pray that our community's safety and peace will be restored again.

7 Days...

Next Monday at this very time, my Hubby will be with is here in the Philippines.. Yipee!! I guess, I'll be blogging about his coming and the countdown for 7 more days..so, please just bear my redundancy. I'm just so excited!

Anyways, I haven't planned out our exact schedule yet - places to go, things to do and etc. My Hubby must have a few days of rest and transition first before we go around and paint the town red or else he'll get culture shock.. hehehe! Now, I'm thinking that it would be good if we have a car for us to use so we can freely go around. It's quite difficult to commute with kids in tow and my bro in law's quite busy so, we can't borrow the 'Multi cab' anytime. Anyways, why don't we buy a new car and get auto insurance quotes? Well, that's wishful thinking actually.. this must be the effect of missing my Hubby so much. LOL!

Sore Eyes

After my niece, nephew, daughter and son had sore eyes, now it's my turn to have it. For those who are not familiar with this 'sickness'. " Sore eyes" is a common term for an inflammation of the thin covering of the eyeball and the inner eyelid brought about by a viral infection which may be highly contagious.

I was just surprised to wake up this morning with my right eye refusing to open as the mucous like secretion from my eye has dried up thus gluing my eyelashes. Yikes! :) I had to wash my eyes thoroughly but still there's a bit more secretion coming out. So, now, I'm typing this post with my right eyes still puffy, reddish and swollen. Not a very nice thing to see. Sore eyes is indeed contagious so it's good that I'm not going anywhere tomorrow or the nest few days or else the people who'll sit next to me might get it too.

Girl's Day Out

Last Saturday was like a Girl's Day Out for us. It wasn't really planned since my Mom, my cousin and I just went to Lapasan to see some tiles for our receiving area. It was a huge place with different kinds of tiles in all shapes and colors. They only sold tiles so they didn't have any bathroom fixtures at all. Anyways, we just checked out the price for the tiles and be checking our budget if we have to opt for tiles or not.

Then, after the tiles shop we went to my Sis' office who's with another cousin and invited them for a snack. So, all 5 of us went to divisoria for a snack , then passed by the Night Cafe' for awhile and went to another shop to do a bit of shopping. I had a great time with them. It's nice to have a Girl's Day out once in a while. So, I guess, shopping is always on top of the list for any girl's day out huh?

Slow Connections...

It's so sad and a bit annoying. My Hubby can't connect to Yahoo messenger in his computer in Thailand so, we had to settle chatting through Gmail. I was already happily chatting with my Hubby when suddenly my gmail chat got disconnected. It was ok if I only got disconnected once but I think I got disconnected for more than 5 times already. Now, we're giving up and cutting short our nightly chats. Huhuh! But it's okay , another 7 more days ( that's 1 week!) and then we won't need to undergo all these internet communication anymore for we will be talking face to face. Wow! I can't wait!

All About Webhosting

Are you a plain blogger , a problogger or an entreprenuer with a website? Then you might need a web site hosting. But I'm sure that you're not so certain which webhost to use since there are a lot of options to choose from.

Then, I suggest that you check out webhosting geeks. HEre you will get to know the cheapest business hosting, most reliable hosting, largest hosting, best blog hosting, best forum hosting and a lot more! This is a site that's all about hosting.

Well, not sure if you need a paid hosting or a free hosting? Or you're not sure what kind of hosting is best for your? Then, you can read through their articles and learn more.

Here is a sample of what I learned in waht to consider in choosing a webhost:

Disk space and bandwidth - You should know how much space your website would need and approximate data it will generate.

Programming tools and the OS - You need to be sure that your website is uploaded through secure servers using the latest Operating System.

Pricing Aspect - You need to compare pricing before you finalize a web hosting service.

Support, Security, Guaranteed uptime and Backups - You should always choose a web hosting service with reliable telephone support.

Yummy Sunday # 2

This yummy Bacon Cheeseburger is from Mom's Corner in Pabayo- Gaerlan st. Cagayan de Oro City. This corner cafe' is operated and owned by a Cagay-anon has been existing for many years now. We often come here with my sis when I was still in high school! And fast forward 2008. Even with a lot of burger chains and fastfood sprouting all around the city, this cafe' has survived. I'm sure they made it through the years because of their delicious food that hasn't changed over the years.

For more Yummy Sunday Entries, Click the badge above.

Wishes.. Desires..

Christmas is coming in a few days time. These days all the shopping malls are filled with people. Everyone is busy buying gifts for friends and loved ones. Some parents are buying gifts that are listed from the kids' 'wish list'. My daughter 'wishes' to have a Barbie and the Diamond Castle toy set. Even though we would also want to let her wish be granted, but that toy set is just too expensive. Sadly, we couldn't afford to buy one for her.

Anyways, there is this cool site that can make your wish come true! Just visit the site, upload a photo of yourself and then you'll be surprise t0 see your photo in the CEIVA Digital Frame. I just tried uploading my photo and it looked so cool in the digital frame. The end result made me wish to have one of those frames too. CEIVA Digital Frame is different from other frames because the photos look much sharper and clearer. And by the way, it was so fun doing the photo upload in the site. If you are interested, you can also get a chance to win in their daily raffle. So, you got a wish this Christmas? Who knows the your wish might come true.

Waiting..Waiting..

10 more days and my Beloved is soon to come. I just wish, it'll be the 15th of December when I wake up tomorrow. But I've already waited for 58 days but why is it that 10 days seem so near yet so far? hehehe! Oh , I don't know...maybe I'm just too excited and anxious for my Hubby to come. Maybe that's why I just want to just sleep away the next 10 days. :) I even don't want to do anything anymore, writing my 'tasks' already seems a burden ( or maybe it's just an excuse?). I just want to wait.wait..and wait . but waiting is more of an agony if time is spend idle. Okay, I must keep myself busy.. ok then, I have to write all my tasks, prepare for our Christmas decors, list out our plans for the seasons and do a lot of things. Maybe then, time will just pass by so fast that before I know it, my Hubby will already be right in front of me. :) Yes, December 15!

Cold Water and Kids

Our shower with the water heater is still broken. I think the knob's bearings is just loose. So, as a result we have been bathing in icy cold water since the day we arrived. Since , I'm already so lazy boiling water for kids bathing water, they have also been bathing in cold water. Actually, they're already quite used bathing in tap water. So, I guess it's not so much of a shock for them to bath in cold water anymore and therefore don't get sick or colds at all. :)

A Fine Day at the Beach

My sister's family regularly go to the beach on some weekends. They used to go very early in the mornings because we have this Filipino 'belief' that bathing in the sea early in the morning can cure cough and colds. So, whenever their kids have cough or colds , they immediately go to the beach. I'm not sure if this is medically proven though but I've always heard about this since I was little.

Anyways, so last Saturday we decided to go with my Sis' family to go to Opol. At 6:15 am, I dragged Tricia and Lyle from sleep. But actually Tricia immediately woke up when I told her that we are going to the beach.


Even if we all have to wake up early but we truly had a great time there. I think that early mornings is the best time to go since it's not yet too hot and the place is not so crowded yet. Our kids enjoyed especially for Lyle who's had his first experience in the beach.


We will surely go back there again one Saturday morning .. we're just waiting for my Hubby to come and then off we go to the beach... :)

Of Cleaning and Vacuums

If cleaning is some kind of a 'gifting', then I for sure don't have that gifting. It somehow takes me forever to clean the house. When we were in Thailand, I would slot in a time to clean in a day but I would go portion by portion. But then, by the time I leave that 'cleaned' portion of the house to go to another area, it's already messy again. I guess it also has to do with the fact that I've got a pre schooler who also follows me around with her 'mess'. :)

If there was some kind of a robot to clean up the house, then I would make sure to get that robot. :) But now with technology, there is indeed that kind of gadget to help us clean our house and that's why they invented the vacuum cleaners. We don't use vaccum cleaners in our house, we only use the broom and the mop. But if you're one of the many people with a lot of carpets, drapes and mats in the house then you would need a vacuum and its accessories. There's good news for you, EZ Vacuum is offering 10& discounts on vacuum cleaners bags belts filters brushrolls machines . Just use the Coupon code EZVAC10 and this is applicable on all orders over $20. They've got have very low shipping charges compared to other merchants and have deep discounts on vacuum cleaner and vacuum cleaning supplies. So hurry and get discounts from EZ now.

Thailand Airports Closed, Hatyai Flood Warning

Thailand Airports are still closed and I've just read that one died and 22 were injured as assailants fired a grenade in Don Muang Airport. It's really getting messy in Thailand at this time.

Last night, when I chat with my Hubby he also said that some parts of Hatyai were flooded until knee deep. The rain is still on going non stop and heavy. I just hope and pray that the flood that happened in the year 2000 would would not happen again when the water rose up to 2 meters and several people died. We were there during that time and thank God that the place we were staying was on a higher ground and we were not affected at all, except that we didn't have electricity and water for several days. But what was good was that free water and food were provided by the Thai government.

Back to the closure of the airports, I'm not sure when it will be reopened again. It has been closed for a week now and as the news said, the damage done is already 'incalculable'. There are already alternate flights available in Chiang Mai and other airports but it would still be a hassle to all the travelers and passengers. Thank God too that the ticket we booked for my Hubby's flight on the 15th is going to be in KLIA and not in Suvanabhumi. The only thing though is that we mailed a special Christmas Card which Tricia made for my Hubby and mailed it last week. I'm sure the Christmas card is also stuck there and my Hubby won't receive it before leaving Hatyai. but it's no big deal actually, Tricia can always make another card for him . :)