Ulysses

 Another storm has hit the Philippines. And this one was as strong as Rolly. We were warned about it. We knew it was coming. But it was scary. It was howling. And it was strong.

I kept a close watch on its path. When it initially was going to pass NCR I was so worried. But later on it deviated to Central Luzon. I am not relieved about this because I knew it would be devastating, but I worried a tiny bit less. Afternoon of Wednesday (November 11) was calm but rainy. We spent the afternoon trimming one of the trees and collecting the leaves and branches into trash bags. We didn't have time to trim the other tree because it started raining harder. Come evening, it started to get blustery. When I checked the storm's path, it was scheduled to be closest to Manila at 4am. I thought, "Well I'm not getting any sleep." And I was right.

By 11pm (November 11), the electricity was fluctuating. And then it just turned off some time before 2am. By this time, the wind was just going crazy! I was so afraid of looking out the window because I was so scared the trees would just fly away. It was really really scary. When I checked on the boys they were fast asleep so that was one less thing to worry about. I was so restless from 2am to just before 4am. By then, it was still blustery but there was a noticeable difference in the strength of the wind. And I was bit relieved that we survived the night. No damage, no danger. And I went to sleep.

When I woke up around 9am, there was still no electricity. I checked on the plants and they were okay except for some pots that fell on their side. Our Christmas parols that hung on the terrace were all gone except for 1. Luckily, my mother-in-law found 3 (they landed in the garage). We found one by the side of the road and another in one of the plants. Our roof had some leaks but nothing significant.

Our next worry is the food in the refrigerator. How long was the power interruption going to be? We didn't want the food to spoil. So we checked the freezer and got the one that thawed the most (It was the ground pork). We made lumpiang shanghai and torta. I thought, if the electricity won't come back in the evening, I would have to cook all the raw meat inside the freezer. 

After lunch, the boys played some Pictionary and we read a bit. Then I took a nap because I was still so sleepy. By this time, the storm was already located outside the Luzon landmass but the damage was devastating. Whenever I would check updates, my heart would ache. So much flooding, destruction and damage. And at the same time, I feel so lucky. We're lucky that our home is secure. We're lucky that our area does not flood. We're lucky that our trees are intact (I really wanted them to survive the storm because a lot of birds and some bats live in it, not to mention some insects.) We're lucky because we could still monitor the typhoon with our phones. We're lucky because we have food to eat. We're lucky because our street did suffer any major damage. And we're lucky because at 530pm, the electricity came back and I didn't have to worry about spoiled food or a restless night. I know these may seem small to some, but I just feel so very lucky today.

I hope and pray the Philippines will recover from this onslaught. We have had typhoon after typhoon and just as we are about to get on our feet, another one comes and knocks us down. But we will rise. Of that I am sure. 

2 More Months

 It's November. Only 2 more months and 2020 will be over. I am hoping and praying that 2021 will be a complete turnaround of 2020. I hope that there will be sunshine and rainbows. I hope that my family will once more be able to travel and see wondrous and beautiful places. I hope that everyone will be well, will be free from the threat of Covid and that the world will return to normalcy. I hope that Ruther and I could finally celebrate our 20th anniversary in the place we call our second home.

Is that too much to ask?

My prayers for 2021 is that it will be an exciting and positive adventure for me and my family. After months and months of living under a cloud, I hope that 2021 will be full of goodness and joy. I am not even thinking about Christmas anymore. I just want 2020 to be over.

.....

The super typhoon passed by without damage and for that I was so glad. I was praying that the storm would weaken more and more as it approached Manila. After the devastation in Albay and Catanduanes, I don't think the Philippines could afford another destruction. And thankfully, it did weaken and left the Philippines Sunday evening. Thank you God. But where the typhoon struck the hardest, I feel extreme sorrow and heartache. :( 

.....

Making plans for 2021 for our family is very difficult at the moment but we need to do it. We need to move forward and think of the future. We cannot let Covid hang over our heads. So, we're taking a chance, we're going to try at least. And we'll see. If change comes for us, then it was meant to happen. 

Fingers crossed and hoping for the best.

Bracing for Goni

 I hope that everyone will be safe today and in the next few hours while Typhoon Goni is in the Philippines. I have been watching the news carefully and monitoring the path of the typhoon and it looks like it will be hitting Batangas-Cavite but it is still alarming because that is so close to Manila. I am hoping and praying that the typhoon will weaken even more and spare us from its wrath.

Prayers and love...

Annoyances

 Today has been a somewhat challenging day for me. Sometimes, little annoyances sneak into your day and your morning or afternoon or whole day is ruined. Don't get me wrong. I am a patient person. I may not be the most patient person in the whole world, but I can keep my temper and I can be understanding. And yet today, my patience was tested when something happened in our garden. 

We love our messy garden. We love the weeds, the overgrown plants in their pots. We love the insects that come and enjoy our strange little garden. We welcome the caterpillars that turn in butterflies and even 2 snails that munch away. We don't mind. We love them all. And yet, sometimes our garden is tampered and prodded and god forbid, trimmed. We have even put a sign saying "Do not trim the plants", "Do not pull the weeds" and "Love the insects and birds" and yet, our instructions are ignored. So annoying really. I don't want to be the one who puts up a fuss but it's just very very frustrating when it's OUR garden and it gets tampered with. I just don't like it. 

Another annoyance today was from another person. Quite demanding, I might add. Her request prickled me to no end. It was very annoying. I was annoyed. To no end. It made me moody all day and I didn't like it. I'm not a biased person but this girl just rubs me off the wrong way. God help me.

.....

A typhoon is coming. It's a big, scary one. I hope it won't be devastating. I would prefer it not to hit Manila of course, but I also would not want any other place to be affected. So I am hoping that when it comes, it won't be as strong as predicted. Praying and hoping for everyone's safety...

Life Imitates Art

We used to do family photo challenges months ago, before the boys' classes started and it was a lot of fun. A few weeks ago, my sister asked us to do a Halloween photo challenge. We had to imitate a painting as best we could. Of course we had to pick simple ones because 1. we did not want to spend for the challenge and 2. we wanted to use whatever was available at home. So we picked the photos of artworks and this is what we came up with. 😄

It was a lot of fun and maybe we'll do another photo challenge for Christmas. 😄

.....

Cemeteries will be be closed this All Souls Day and All Saints Day. We are thinking os a way of honoring our dead from home. Hopefully, we will be able to come up with something creative and nice.

I miss my cousin most of all. He is always in my thoughts. I talk to him when something comes up during the day that reminds me of him. I miss him a lot. But I do know he is happy because he is with his mom. Chie, if you are reading this, I love you dearly...

Sick of Covid

 No, I'm not sick WITH Covid. I'm sick OF it. I just want it over with. Ugh. 

I know people will say "get over yourself", "you're lucky you're okay", "you should be grateful you have a roof over your head, you're eating and your family is safe", yada yada yada. And I get it. And I AM grateful, believe me. I'm glad that Ruther is working from home and safe. I'm glad the boys' education is still ongoing despite the epidemic, I'm happy that we are not starving or destitute. Yes, I am glad and grateful.

But sometimes, when you think about it, and you've been stuck at home for 7 months, it can be very trying. Twenty-four/seven chores with very little breaks can take a mental toll on someone. 

Enter April 2020. For 3 whole weeks I was just feeling so lousy. I wasn't in the mood to talk, I wanted to be by myself, I was grouchy, I would think about my cousin who passed and cry, I would not have the energy to do the things that I used to enjoy... It just wasn't me. And I knew it. I didn't talk to my sister who is my confidant. I didn't like to share anything. I just wanted to be alone. But I got out from under that cloud. Eventually. It took some time but I was able to rouse myself and tell myself to just get over it. And somehow I did. Was it all in my head? Maybe. Hormones? For 3 weeks? I don't think so. My sister said it was because of the quarantine. It was taking a toll on me. And I suppose she's right. I's hard to act cheerful all the time at home when you're neck deep in Mommy duties.

Christmas is coming up. And I don't even have the energy to decorate. I just think, what for? Who's going to see the decorations? Who's coming to celebrate? Ugh. So depressing.

Even shopping is dull. You shop online and it just saps the energy from you. Choose, click, add to cart. Ugh.

When I look at our family albums, I really and truly miss our adventures. I'm not talking about travelling outside the Philippines. Just family trips anywhere nearby. We bond, have lunch together, discover new things, new experiences... Now, it's like pulling teeth. I have to constantly think of ideas and research activities for the boys to do at home. It's very time-consuming, stressful and tiring, to be honest. But of course, I still do it. What else can we do at home? Just sit and watch TV? Sigh.

WHY did 2020 have to happen? 😩😩😩You were supposed to be a stupendous year! Now you just suck.

Suspended

 Online classes are suspended today because of Typhoon Quinta. You might think "WHY?" since students are all learning from home but well, internet providers in the Philippines suck so the connection is not very reliable. It would be very stressful and worrisome so I, for one, am glad that mayors considered cancelling online classes today.

Last night I couldn't sleep because it was so blustery. I was worried about the weather and drips and such. Thankfully, the typhoon at this time, is leaving the country so I hope the winds will die down a bit and leave our mango trees in peace. When I see them swaying I ask God to protect the trees because so many birds live in them. In the morning, it's such a joy to hear the birds chirp loudly and non-stop. You don't usually get that in urban places. But here, because of our trees, we are fortunate to have these birds sing to us daily.

.....

Today was supposed to be a United Nations Day celebration for Enzo. They were supposed to be in costume while having online classes. Too bad. Enzo had his jinbei prepared. We got it from Japan years before and fits Enzo well. It was actually Ruther's. 😝I think it looks nice on him. 😄

.....

I am so glad the storm is leaving the country. I usually am not so worried about storms and typhoons but this one made me worry so much. I must be getting old. 

I'm Back. We're Back.

It's been a while, I know.

Life happened. It's a long story. Boring stuff. Let's just skip it.

Fast forward to 2020. We're in the middle of a pandemic. We're okay. I hope you're okay. And yes, it's not a joke. We're taking it seriously and we're taking all necessary precautions. 

It's been a hectic several years. For a while, I lost my desire to blog. I don't know why. One day I just did not feel like blogging anymore. Life got so busy and I had to focus on the boys. But now that we're in quarantine and at home, I suppose there's nothing stopping me from blogging again, right?

Our baby is now 10 years old. Can you believe it? He's in Grade 4 and Nikki is in Grade 12! Graduating soon! My babies! Ethan is still homeschooling and just loving his art activities. My sweetie is working from home and for a while, it was quite an adjustment, but it's nice having him home all the time. He gets to be with the boys 24/7 (even if it drives him nuts sometimes) and can interact with them often. Although we're on quarantine, I seem to have my hands full all the time. From cooking meals to keeping the house clean and helping Enzo and Ethan with lessons, there's still not enough hours in a day to accomplish much. I suppose a mom's schedule doesn't change.

School started last August. That's a two-month delay in case you are not from the Philippines and don't have an idea when classes usually begin here (although some universities have already moved their opening of classes to July/August). Adjustment has been huge. Online classes worry me, not for the grading system, but for the screen time. But I will reserve my concerns for another post.

After almost 3 months, Enzo seems to be adjusting nicely. He is most concerned about recitations because he is shy and afraid of making mistakes. So I tell him to just do his best and I will be proud of him whatever the outcome. 

I worry about Nikki's college entrance tests. How will we accomplish those? When will the schedule be? How will we be able to get his documents and forms from his current school? So many questions...

I don't know how many more months of quarantine we will have to endure. It's definitely trying, I'm not going to lie. Last April I was in such a funk I couldn't even recognize myself. My sister said it was because of staying cooped up for weeks. I don't know. I was so cranky and moody (no, it wasn't my period) and I wanted to be alone all the time. It was so weird. Thankfully, I got out of that funk and yes, we are thriving. 

Will I continue blogging? Yes. Will it be soon? Hopefully. I always liked writing (or typing) down my thoughts and I suppose I shouldn't stop now. So yes, I will write again and I will be seeing you soon. :)

I'm Late!

No, not that kind of late.

I mean, I'm late in my lessons!! I have one more week to go.  Problem is, I'm halfway done with my week 4 video lectures!  Yikes! Have a lot of catching up to do! Sigh...  Hopefully I'll be able to accomplish everything in the next few days.  Our exams will be on March 1.  That means, I have a week to finish all the lectures, study and rewrite some of my notes (would write during the video lecture and my penmanship is a mess!).

Wish me luck!

.....

Last Saturday the family went to SM Mall of Asia to watch the first day of the Pyromusical.  It's an annual event that showcases fireworks display from different countries accompanied by music.  It's fun and the kids enjoy it. We try to go at least once every year since it began.  Once, we watched all the displays (it ran for 5 Saturdays) and it was fun even if it rained one time.  So yeah, we hope to make this a yearly thing until either the boys get fed up of it, or we're too old to go.  Har har!

.....

My parents are coming from Zamboanga on Monday!  So excited to see them!  I really love spending time with them since we hardly ever see each other except through Skype.  I also want the boys to spend time with them so they always have that bond.  I was (paternal) and am (maternal) quite close with my grandparents so I want my boys to form that bond with their grandparents and have special memories with them.  So yeah, looking forward to make memories with them... :D

.....

Ever since I started the business course, I have business on the brain.  I think:  What products will I sell potentially?  Who will my customers be?  How will  make sure that my customers buy from me?  How will I get the products to sell?  And all those... It's like I have so many ideas and questions that I either feel mentally tired sometimes or get so excited I can't sleep.  Weird.  But yeah, I have some ideas and hopefully, they will put me on the road to entrepreneurship...

At Rizal Park

We brought my cousin (who is from Canada but works in South Korea) to Rizal Park last Monday.  She has never been there and we thought she'd have fun seeing the place and going for a stroll.  We did not want to do the mall thing anymore because it seems as though in Manila, the easiest place to bring friends and family for entertainment are malls.  Since Rizal Park was only a ride away, we thought that it was the perfect place.  And my cousin did have fun. So did the boys.  In the photo, we are standing in front of the monument of Dr. Jose Rizal, our national hero. 

 

Lessons Proceeding Nicely

It's the first week of my 5-week course and I find myself enjoying it.  My professor (as I like to call him) is jovial and sometimes makes me laugh with his ad libs during lectures.  The readings are a bit tedious but necessary and I understand they are important to make me understand the lessons even more.  It's only the first week and I've already learned so much from the lessons. I hope to be able to remember them for future use. I am already quite excited about putting up my own business. :)

.....

We have decided to homeschool all the boys next school year.  I am not happy with Nikki's current progress, especially in English.  Sure, he's learning a lot from Filipino subjects and being with his classmates help a lot, but he's hardly doing arts now, or music, or even learning computer, which is supposed to be a part of their curriculum!  I just find it so lacking.  They don't even have clubs for the kids.  I think only the high schoolers are active in clubs.  It's just annoying that they do not give importance to extra-curricular activities.  Anyway, I know that the road we are headed is challenging but for my boys to grow up well-rounded and world-smart, then I know that we should - and can - do this.

Planning a Reunion

This year will be our 20th High School Reunion.  Scary, I know.  Flashes of movie scenes where terrible and embarrassing things happen during a reunion come to my mind.  Why do people even bother to have reunions in the first place?

But, casting all negativity aside, it's pretty exciting.  Thanks to Facebook and frequent visits home, I've kept in touch with most of my classmates and I must say, I am quite close with several.  I think that is a good record considering Ruther hardly ever talks to his High School classmates these days.

Oh yeah, I am organizing the reunion.  Since I was one of the class officers during our time (should I even say that?!) I thought I might as well start the ball rolling.  I am of course, involving everyone in this. I've started organizing committees and so far everything is going smoothly except the part where a handful of my friends (my good friends in fact) had a spat and are now not on speaking terms.  Yes, what a disaster! I mean, what's the use of having a reunion when people aren't even talking to each other!  I was kind of irritated at first when I found out about it, but then, I realized that I don't know the complete story.  So the most I could hope for is for my friends to look beyond the fight and focus on their friendship instead. So we'll see.  I'm hopeful.  But if I don't hear anyone trying to make up by mid-year, I'll stage an intervention!

Sigh.

Raising My Boys

I am currently reading the book Raising Kids Who Will Make a Difference by Susan Vogt and it's interesting - in a parenting point of view.  Granted, I don't agree with all her methods but I understand her intentions and I respect that.

For instance, assigning a particular color for each child to color-code their stuff.  It's very ambitious and I'm sure it worked for their household, but I don't think I have the time to color-code everything here since we're living with my in-laws and I wouldn't want to color-code their stuff along with ours! I did like her idea of going on dates with each child.  That I would want to do especially when my boys are older.  I hope they will look forward to those dates with me.

Another topic that I enjoyed reading was her propensity to bring eco-bags wherever she went.  Living in Las Pinas has taught me to bring an eco-bag whenever I'm out of the house lest I carry any stuff I buy in paper bags or god forbid, a cardboard box.  I want to encourage my boys to do the same but again, I always encourage them to decide for themselves on what they believe is best for them to do.  Hopefully, all our lessons on recycling and being environmentally conscious will guide them accordingly.

I'm halfway through the book and I hope to learn more.  I hope to finish at least one (informative) book every two months so I guess I'm on the right track. :)

A Kare-kare First

A relative went to the market yesterday and mistakenly bought 2 kilos of tripe.  Yes, you read it right.  TWO KILOS.  I was like, what the heck are we going to do with this much tripe?!

So, I made some lugaw and after the guilty relative pressure cooked the tripe, I added some to the congee.  We had the lugaw for breakfast and then breakfast the following day.  But we still had a lot of tripe left.  Then it hit me. Why not make kare-kare?  I never made kare-kare though so I was a bit apprehensive.  I checked out some recipes and they didn't seem too bad since the longest part of making kare-kare was softening the meat and tripe.  So I told myself: "it's time to make kare-kare."

I decided to use kare-kare mix to lessen the chance of botching up the most important part of the dish.  Here's what I did:

1. Soften the meats (oxtail, tripe, etc).  My relative did this for me.  Using a pressure cooker saves a whole lot of time and gas.  Keep the broth.  You'll use it later.

2. Pre-cook the vegetables (sitaw, eggplant and pechay - in that order.  I forgot to buy banana blossom.) My mother-in-law makes kare-kare.  More often than not, the eggplant is still hard come serving time.  I didn't want that to happen to my kare-kare.   I saw in a website that pre-cooking the vegetables was advisable and I thought that was a good idea.  It's best to pre-cook the vegetables in the broth that was used to soften the meat to make them flavorful. I simply half-cooked the veggies which only took a few minutes.  Set aside.

3. In a saucepan, saute chopped garlic and then some sliced onions in some oil. Add the softened meats and stir-fry for a few minutes.  Dissolve 1 pack kare-kare mix in 1 cup broth and add to the pan.  I then added another cup of broth to make sure the sauce won't dry up after it thickens.  I added one beef cube and let the sauce simmer.

4.  After a few minutes, I added 2 tbsp peanut butter because I simply love the smell and peanut-ty taste of kare-kare.  I added the vegetables and let it simmer for a few minutes.

5. All done!  Serve with yummy bagoong and rice!

Easy, right?  I never thought that it would be that easy!  Again, the toughest part of preparing kare-kare is softening the meats.  After that, it's all good.  Now I wonder why I was so afraid to make kare-kare before!  

Starting to Panic

Yes.

I am finally - and regretfully - at that time when I can no longer say, "to heck with the world, I've got all the time".  No, not this time and I know, turning 37 (gasp!) this year means I have to be more serious about my goals, about life, about how I want my future to be.

I suppose, like all stages in life, acceptance is the first step.  And yes, I accept that I AM getting older.  But what can I do about it?  I can't turn back the clock.  I can't ponder on every mistake I made in the past.  I can't dwell on regret.  I can't very well obsess about every little thing.  I need to focus, to be more positive, to be more organized (believe me, those brain cells are starting to fail me more often than not) and to simply enjoy life.

Now that I feel like the clock is ticking (a little too fast), let me check all the things I've already accomplished so far in my life:

1. Get married.  I know this isn't in everyone's bucket list but I always knew in my heart that I would be a wife.  Dunno how I knew, but I did.  Weird huh.

2. Have a family.  Another thing I knew too was that I was meant to be a mom. I have this nurturing spirit which I think would have been frustrating for me if I didn't have kids.  My boys keep me on my toes.  And I love being challenged as a parent, an educator and a mentor.  Some people tell me that it's just too bad I don't have a daughter but you know, in all honesty, I am quite content with my boys.  They complete me and that's all I need.  Besides, I have a niece I think having a baby girl is covered.  :)

3. Travel.  I've always wanted to travel.  I think my temperament is good for travelling since I have the open-mindedness and patience to understand local and foreign cultures.  I just think that travelling is an education all on its own.  And it's simply amazing.  This one, I have not accomplished fully yet, since I plan to travel years from now.

4. Get an education.  Yeah, did that... moving on...

That's it.  Pretty poor list, isn't it?  Especially since the career section is non-existent. But I'm not an ambitious person.  I mean, I have dreams but I'm not the be-a-world-changer kind of person.  As long as I do my part well in my little corner as a mother, wife, daughter and friend, then I know I did and am doing good.

I've already checked a lot of other things in my bucket list but I think I have to be more serious this year in accomplishing more of them.  Hopefully, I will be able to do them all before my inevitable time runs out.

On My Way

Today I decided to take a course that will help me in my intention of having a business later on.  The title of the course is: Grow to Greatness: Smart Growth for Private Businesses. This course is given by the University of Virginia.  I know it's not exactly a how-to-start-your-own-business course but I figured, any business advice would be a huge help for me.  Plus, the course is free so I can't (or shouldn't) complain, right?

The course starts January 28 and I'm pretty excited.  I'm planning to read the required and optional readings once Ruther prints them out for me.  Hopefully this week. I want to take the Introduction to Finance course as well but I'm a bit intimidated by needing to have some background in accounting, statistics and economics.  But we shall see. I need all the help I can get and some financial education will be awesome.

Yes, we shall see.  For the meantime... I'm excited. Very excited.

Resolutions vs. Goals

Why do people make resolutions at the beginning of the year anyway?  More likely than not, they don't live up to them at the end of the year.  So, why bother?

I gave up making resolutions when I was in college.  I just got frustrated when, by December, I could not even remember what resolutions I made at the beginning of the year!! So I'm letting go of it. BUT, that doesn't mean I'll simply live without something motivating me in a way.  After all, everyone needs something that will keep them on the right track, right?

So this year, instead of resolutions, I am setting some goals.  Achievable goals. Here they are (well some of them anyway):

1. Read more books.  I need to read more about parenting, homeschooling, ASD, finance and education.  I want to be able to learn a lot from the books I read so I guess I'll need to visit Booksale real soon.

2. Learn to drive - again.  I actually took driving lessons but that was years ago. When I was still in college! And I never got to drive in Manila because 1.) we didn't have a vehicle then that I could use; 2.) by the time we had a vehicle, I lost my confidence in driving, and 3.) the current vehicle we have is my in-laws' and I don't want to damage it with my beginner driving!  But realizing that I am getting old, I know now that I cannot wait for the perfect time because there won't be.  I have to learn and I have to learn this year.  Plus, getting my driver's license will be another thing I could cross out in my bucket list. :D

3. Watch less tv and more music.  Sometimes, when the room is too quiet, I turn on the tv just to fill-in the silence.  I don't want to do that this year.  I want to listen to more music and less nonsense shows.  We already have a lot of tv shows on our plate, I don't want to have to add meaningless shows to it.

4. Eat healthy, be healthy.  I get so scared when I think that I'm going to be a diabetic everytime I put a sweet into my mouth (I blame family history).  But I know that many factors contribute to diabetes so I tell myself now that I should exercise, eat healthy and always have regular check-ups.  Hopefully, being conscious about these things will help me lose some weight as well.

5. Start a business; any business.  Looking at our finances, it's worrisome seeing our debt (and at the beginning of the year!!).  So, I'm thinking of ways on how to increase our finances and that would most probably be through business.  My initial plan is to have a garage sale (we have a LOT of stuff here at home) and use the money from the sales, to come up with a small business that can be managed from the home.  I was thinking of having an e-load business (which is very popular in the Philippines) and that's manageable when I homeschool the boys next school year.  I also plan to sell ice for P3/ice bag.  Since my brother-in-law purchased a bigger ref, we now have a bigger freezer space so storing ice is not going to be a problem. Another thing I plan to do is advertise as an English tutor.  Who knows, someone may need my services, right?  Hopefully, with all the money I could earn, borrow or loan, we could have our own bike store, which I learned from a family business, is very lucrative.  So there you go.  Wish me lots of luck.

6. Continue blogging.  Considering the schedule I have for the year, this will be very challenging but hopefully, I will be able to find the time to drop a line or two still.

Other goals related to my boys and homeschooling are in my other blog. :D  Will get back to you at the end of the year regarding the accomplishment/failure of the above goals.

Happy New Year all!

I know it's been ages since I last posted.  Having 3 boys and no helper is tough! I can't rely on anyone else so I barely have time for myself now, much less blog.  But I will try.  Because this corner is my second home. And I enjoy sharing our life with you. This year, I am not promising anything.  Life may get out of hand once more, I may disappear for times again.  But I will surely return.  I hope you have not given up on me.

This year, I wish, from my family to yours, a wonderful New Year filled with happiness, love and good health.  Okay, maybe money, too. :D