… for keeping me company when I’m bored and got nothing to do
… for once again seeing my long lost friends and keeping in touch with them
… for giving me a venue to write whatever pops out my head
Just small and simple things which can sometimes be taken for granted but highly appreciated by someone like me = )
I received a phonecall from my hubby telling me to prepare our itinerary in July… I asked him, “Are we really going home… has your new contract been approved?” And the answer is a sweet sweet YES!
You see, we’ve been waiting for this confirmation before we can finally pack our bags… we need to know if we’ll need the bigger boxes should we be going home for good or just a few months off. Now that we’re just having a long vacation, I’m beginning to get excited and to think about what we’ll be bringing home. We need to shop for pasalubongs as well. Not on my luggage are: 1) My buddy Mac - I don’t want to spend my vacation in front of him, we need to take some time off, hihi… 2) Our DSLR - My sweetheart wants to pursue his hobby and the best time is when he is alone… he can’t concentrate with Julia goofing around and asking him to play with him in her 2 syllable words, ah-ah… and 3) my usual old old clothes - Hehe, I believe clothes made in the Philippines are better looking and more stylish and it’s reasonably priced.
All I want to do is spend all of my time with my family (of course, with my second family, too - the Palacioses) and let Julia play with her dear cousins… actually, this is the most exciting part for me… I can’t wait to see them running around and screaming! Julia was only 4months old when we left so everyone is excited to see her… my mom even kept on bugging me to go home ASAP as she is telling my 2 yr old niece, KC, that we are coming home and that she should share her toys with Julia and teach her how to sing and dance (my niece already knows Julia and calls her Ju-ya when she sees her picture… how cute!). I’m sure my ever sociable and cheerful Julia will be happy to see her, too = ) Good thing that Julia can speak Ilonggo, hehe…
Oh, I am also excited to cook for them… I’m not the best cook but I’m a better cook than the rest of my family, haha! Ssshhh… it’s supposed to be a secret. Nel’s dad is of course, the master chef… can’t wait to pig out at the Palacios table, hehe = ) The Palacios clan will be complete this time so Julia will meet her US-based cousins.
Here are some pictures before we left our motherland last year…
I thank the Lord that we are given the opportunity to stay in Taiwan… it’s the land of milk and honey for us, hehe… and most importantly, we like it here because life is so simple, the taiwanese finds joy in simple things and we have friends who are like family to us = )
I know now how to attach pix in my posts… thanks Yvette! More amazingly, some of my friends asked me how I did it, they too wanted to add pictures on their posts… hahaha, I am not alone in this naivety! The housewife is still more techy… in fact, if there’s such thing as a friendster maniac… you should know who that is = )
It was another company outing for us… we went to Tainan despite the raging rain and gloomy weather. No doubt, the trip was quite a bore because we all got wet, went to only 2 places where there’s not much to see and we didn’t have a lot of pix, hehe! I was just hoping that Julia was strong enough to resist catching flu… thankfully, she’s doing fine up to this writing = )
We took a boat ride to a place where they cultivate oysters. The place was ok, if not for the rain because there were trees along the way which I believe is good for pictorial purposes, hehe. However, I have no evidence whatsoever due to the pouring rain… we wouldn’t dare soak our camera on the rain = ( Prior to that, we passed through what seems to be an irrigation… I don’t know what that was because our tour guide was speaking mandarin all throughout… how will I understand?! Julia felt bored and busied herself with what else… my big earrings and hair! Sometimes, it helps that I accessorize = ) When we docked, guess what was offered to us… yup, oysters, oysters and oysters. We went to a local restau afterwards where we had chicken, asparagus, noodles and fried flour stuffed with oysters!!! Can you imagine the taste?! Though I am not a picky eater, I didn’t enjoy the food except for the “machang” (I even took some home, hehe). Of course, my husband enjoyed it for sometimes, he likes to try exotic food.
In the afternoon, we were given an hour to walk around an area where there were tainan delicacies… we were not supposed to go out but Julia is getting uneasy staying on the bus. So come rain or high waters, we walked around while my husband kept on complaining about his wet rubbershoes which felt like a boat, hehe… needless to say, we found nothing so special… few stores were open and we saw the usual stuff… nothing extraordinary.
Finally, we headed home where we long to be… how relaxing it was just to watch tv, eat and play with Julia.
It just popped out my mind while I was washing Julia’s bottles… I wanna share what Julia has taught me unconsciously:
Greater Faith in God
When she was still at my womb, I had an ovarian cyst and it was bigger than she was (she at 1.67cm and my cyst at 10.18cm to be exact)! My OB gyne even told us that I will be scheduled for operation if the cyst will not disappear or shrink and worse, if it grows at 12cm before my 4th month, there will be abortion in the process! I cried a lot during those times but I realized, I MUST trust Him more and just stay calm for He is in control. Praise Him… on my 4th month, the cyst went down to 4cm and on the 7th month, it no longer existed! Isn’t that amazing?! And even better, my Julia was getting healthier and more active (she even has her coil around her neck when she was delivered). Well, that was God’s way of reminding me to always muster my faith.
Patience
Yes, I am a woman who always want to have anything ASAP… no delays. I don’t like to procrastinate and I hate waiting (ask Nel and he will agree 101%). Sadly, my Julia has poor appetite… she hates milk and being taught from the basic “close-open” to “how old are you?”. Under ordinary conditions, I would just let her be because I don’t want to be irritated if she’ll not follow me… but since I want her to grow healthy physically and mentally, I patiently hold her bottle, waiting for her to consume her milk and at times wrestle with her before she finally opens her tiny mouth… I run after her just to offer her lunch and dinner which I end up eating… I constantly teach her the parts of the body to the point that she cries because she wants to learn things on her own… things I never imagined doing repeatedly. I’m sure, this is no sweat to some of you but for me, it’s a tough job.
Being Calm
As impatient as I am, it is no surprise that I am not calm… one spark and I’ll ignite, hehe… I hate clutter but with my Julia in her toddler years, tidiness is close to impossible. Amazingly, I simply can’t shout or get mad at her. I don’t know how I manage… I just talk to her gently. Maybe because I want her to become a gentle fine lady someday by teaching through example.
Being Selfless
Ooopss… I’m not that selfish as you may think but now, I always make sure that she gets the better share of our resources and blessings.
Acceptance
I used to think of her as the perfect child… fast learner, gifted, skillful, sociable, etc etc… but I learned that whatever she becomes, I will always accept her for who she is, no matter what. I just pray that she will be a woman of character with strong faith in God which for me is far more important than any achievement.
The list goes on and on but this is all for now… Julia is already awake and as usual, I will wrestle with her for her milk ; )
Mama… mamita… mommy… nanay… all these terms simply suggest the idea of motherhood. How time flies… I’m celebrating Mothers’ Day with my mom and grandmothers, guess i’m getting old, hehe… Well, the first time I celebrated it, we had nothing so special, just dinner out with my mom and a special day at church. Of course, as emotional as I am, I cried as the children at church gave away roses to mothers, young and old… can you imagine that?! I just thought of my Julia greeting me (she was almost 3mos then) and the tears started rolling down my blushing cheeks, no way to stop them. How much more if she can talk and greet me with matching hugs and kisses?! I bet I will be down on my knees sobbing = ) Is that so silly? I can’t help it, that’s just me…
This time of the year, I get to be reminded of sefless mothers (not that I only do this once a year but the occassion calls for it)… the first person that comes to my mind is none other than my mom (she will always be number one on my list, by the way). I remember her when we were living at Roxas City when life was so poor then but never did she complained or felt down… she gave us all the support we can get by simply recognizing our inner strengths and being proud of us. She was always there with a cheerful grateful heart, always showering us with love that no material thing in this world can replace. If I were to list down everything she did for us, the list will go on and on that I might end up crying while typing = ) I am indeed happy that God gave me my mom and I hope that I can be as loving and selfless as she is.
I am also reminded of OFW-moms who left their children in the hope of a better future for them. I salute them because I know the feeling of separation from one’s family (which is unbearable for me). They are not there during their child’s bday, graduation, christmases and new years… all they can do is call them up to greet them and pray for them, something I can’t handle so I truly admire them for their great sacrifice.
And I am also reminded of the hopeful moms… wives who want to have a child of their own. All I have for them is an inspiration that I have an aunt who got pregnant after 9 years of praying and waiting but she lived a happy life even before she had a son and an adopted daughter. Why? Simply because she treated all her nieces and nephews as her own. Cliche as it may sound but motherhood is not just a biological thing, it’s something not tangible and far more important than giving birth. To my hopeful friends, God has something in store for you, just wait and enjoy life… He answers prayers ON TIME… ALL THE TIME.
To all those mothers and soon to be mothers, HaPpY MoMS’ Day… let’s celebrate this day with our families and loved ones = ) I hope this time around I can control my tears, hehe…
I have been a housewife for more than a year… no job, no stress, no alarm clock in the morning (I can sleep and wake up whenever I want) and not to mention, no extra income, hehe… hey, don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining! I love the state that I am in and eventhough I’ve always thought of getting back to work, I always feel sad knowing that I will be having less time with my Julia. I think I am the one that needs the weaning and not her… I admit, I am so emotionally attached to her!
Because I had been running the house for quite a while, I never wrote something (what’s there to write about anyway?) in straight english and one day, I realized that my grammar and spelling had been getting worse! It didn’t help that I only write to send text messages, emails and chat with friends… do you get the picture?? It dawned on me that I need to write… I simply MUST write in straight english, no shortcuts (ex. love-luv, you-u, night-nyt) no matter what… I MUST go back to the basic before the invention of cellphones and internet… otherwise, the words I learned from my daily tv/movie watching and reading will never be put into good use. I gathered all my guts and tried “blogging” because I know that in here, I can write anything under the sun… no need for serious talk (but I might try that one day, too).
…. whew! I finally and officially started writing. Honestly, it took me at least 45minutes to finish this, checking my prepositions, conjunctions and tenses as well as my flow of thoughts (pardon me if I missed a period or a comma, hehe…). Well, well, well… this is it for now. I will be writing more if I’m in the mood and oh, by the way, can someone tell me how to post pictures here? I would love to but I just don’t know how… S.O.S!!!
“I love you, you love me… we’re a happy family, with a great big hug and a kiss from me to you, won’t you say, I love you too…” sounds familiar?! For sure, moms like me know this song. I have listened to this song over and over again just so I can memorize it and sing it for my dear Julia… well, I like the lyrics, replacing “you love me” with “you love mama” because I wanted her to grow sweet and loving to who else but me? hehe…
To be honest, I don’t want Julia to get hooked on watching cartoons, barney’s or any other children’s show (most esp the taiwanese channel-yoyo tv) because I don’t want her to be a couch potato but i really can’t help it! What will she do while I am cleaning the room, taking a bath or recently, finishing an overdue project-laying out our wedding album? At first her tv stuff is scheduled but when I saw her stand to dance, sing (murmur, that is), giggle and clap all at the same time, who wouldn’t find it simply adorable? So, I decided to give it a break and let her watch… anyway, she learns something and I found out that Barney is teaching her good manners and it’s indeed educational, teaching her shapes, colors, animals and a lot lot more . You see, I am 90% of the time watching with her and singing with her… I can even memorize a lot of songs if not all of them!
This is not to say though that we leave our children with Barney and the like… the point is, we must first check what they’ll be learning from what they’re watching because in the future, whatever is their output is from their input. It sure is a tough job to be a mom, huh?!!
As the old saying goes, pictures are worth a thousand words… hmmm… but wouldn’t it be better if the pictures were “photoshopped”?! I am fond of pictures… I would rather look at them over and over again than watch videos. Furthermore, I am so amazed at how pictures can be enhanced and laid out using the photoshop software (I even used to think that one can substitute a professional camera with photoshop editing) and so I started learning the craft 3mos after giving birth and practised at night while talking to my hubby thru skype or singing songs to my newborn or chatting with my brothers and cousins over midnights snacks… yes… I am that multitasking even on wee hours! I guess I am simply a night person…
Well, my end products are so simple because I don’t want to distort the pictures so much… I just love to arrange them in a way that they will appear more fun and alive and added with a little touch of class and elegance, no special effects and graphics… pretty boring, huh?! Ok, ok… the truth of the matter is, I am just so lazy and impatient learning photography despite my hubby’s nagging and encouragement. FYI, we have an SLR so that’s supposedly the right thing to do, isn’t it? Besides, I also love the art of photography (for me, a good picture is one which has never been touched and smeared by photoshop addict hands such as mine) but here I am, still settling with photoshop since I am so so hooked that I left the picture taking part to my hubby = )
