HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU AGAIN

I will miss a treasured friend who is ending her blog... Take care of yourself and I hope to hear from you again...

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The weather is cold these days. And I LOVE it! I just hope that this doesn't mean we'll have an even more sweltering summer then before!

In the evenings, even Ruther gets to wear a blanket now. That's how cold it's been getting. And it's just absolutely great. I just make it a point to keep an eye out for colds and sniffles. So far, everything's okay.

Hope it stays that way.

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And here's my techie baby, learning about trucks on his Dad's iPad:

MY IPHONE

I have inherited Ruther's iPhone 3G. We got him an iPhone4 a few weeks ago and he was very happy about that. Since my cellphone was too primitive for his taste, he simply gave me his old one. And so, I gave Nikki my old cellphone.

After using the iPod Touch for a few months, I guess I've gotten used to manipulating similar Apple devices such as the iPod and iPad. So with the iPhone, it was not a difficult transition for me. It still would take some getting used to, but it won't be as hard to figure out. And I'm quite glad for that.

Nikki got my old cellphone and we bought him a new SIM card. We practiced texting this morning and it took him some time to type because 1. he's not used to texting yet and 2. I won't allow him to write in SMS form (like l8r for later, or 2moro for tomorrow, etc.). I don't want him to get used to text lingo and then suffer later on in spelling certain - or easy - words. My mom already texted him after we sent her Nikki's cellphone number. I'm sure she's excited to be communicating with him through text. Nikki's not the most careful kid so I'm hoping he won't lose his phone when we're out of the house.

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Ruther and I are addicted to the Smurfs game in the iPod/iPhone/iPad. It's just a delightful game to play. You get to build your village for the smurfs and then earn experience points and coins and make your village bigger and more beautiful. I like it because I get to design the village. And it's cool.

We also discovered Cut the Rope and it's sooo cute! I of course, can't play it as well as Ruther and Nikki, but still it's just so cute.

Now, I'm looking for a nice ringtone for my phone because the ringtones that I have just aren't loud enough when I'm in public. Hopefully, I'll find a good one soon.

HOME BUT STILL SICK

My father-in-law is home from the hospital. He was discharged last Friday. He's home, not because he's recovered or is well. I think my MIL got too worried about the hospital bills and didn't want to spend another day there lest they end up penniless. So, my FIL will continue his treatment through meds and a lot of it last time I saw the list. Gave me the heebie jeebies.

After browsing through the test results and papers, it was discovered that my FIL had a lot going on inside his body. His lungs are of course, affected because of long-term smoking. His heart, pancreas and liver are enlarged. He has moderate intraperitoneal fluids which is why his stomach is so big. He's dizzy because he's anemic. There's something wrong with his prostate too. And I forgot the other problems. His kidneys are normal though.

Now, my MIL has to monitor his medicine-intake because my FIL can be so stubborn. He doesn't watch his diet, he doesn't exercise and he smokes and drinks. Sigh.

Here's hoping he'll listen this time.

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We went to the mall today for some family time. While there, I decided to have our picture taken in one of the photo studios. We got the one with 2 poses and it turned out nice. I was so glad because we've only had a few family photos with Enzo. This one will be another addition.

Happy about that.

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Ruther and I were discussing the other day about the possibility of putting up a small business instead of me working. I liked the idea because the thought of not being with the boys worries me more than finding a career. I would also like to continue to breastfeed Enzo and if I were to do that, it would be hard if I were working. We already have an idea on what business to put up. I suppose we'll need to talk to some people about helping us with the business then hopefully, we could make this happen. Should it happen, I think this will be one exciting adventure for us.

Wish us luck!

STILL NOT OKAY

So, we went to the hospital today to visit my father-in-law who was admitted last Monday due to dizziness and edema of the feet and abdomen. It's not looking too good right now because according to my mother-in-law, he will need a few more tests and another blood chemistry because they just recently transfused him due to an extremely low hemoglobin count. I asked what the initial diagnosis was and she didn't know. After 4 days at the hospital, the doctors can't even give an initial diagnosis?! If I were in their shoes, I would be texting them non-stop. I mean, hospital fees don't come cheap! And our national healthcare system is not so good.

We still have no idea when they will be coming home but all things considered, I think it's best for them to stay at the hospital for now.

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Tita Nicki's friend Ursula arrived the other day from Australia and it was so great meeting her. In case you didn't know, Tita Nicki is Ruther's Australian aunt. She's married to Tito Leo, who is my mother-in-law's brother.

Anyway, it was nice meeting her because I've so wanted to talk to her about teaching in Japan. She worked there as an English teacher for 4 years she said and I would like to know how the experience was, what advice she could give me, how I could apply, and all that. We haven't had a chance to really chat because she's been catching up with Tita Nicki so I suppose we would have to do that when she gets back from Boracay.

Can't wait.

TO BE HEALTHY

The results are in. Of our physical exam, that is. And it's not all good. Apparently, I have UTI and so does Nikki. Fortunately, it's just a mild infection and I will need to take antibiotics for it. Nikki will just have to take lots of water to counter it. Ethan has hematuria (blood in the urine) but according to my sister (who checked the lab results) it's just a few red blood cells and usually, hematuria in kids are self-limiting. He'll need to take lots of water too and then after a week, we'll have another urinalysis done. Also, Ethan has impacted cerumen. That means, he has a huge earwax that's blocking his ear canal! Ewww!! Gotta take care of that.

We would also have to go to the ophthalmologist for my eye exam and Nikki's too. We might have that next month because this month is just too hectic.

My Pap smear was all right, thank goodness. As recommendation, it was suggested that I "adapt a healthy lifestyle and exercise". Ah, tell me something I don't know?

Anyway, just glad that there was nothing serious. Although I really really think I should stop with the sweets already. Diabetes scares the -bleep!- outta me.

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I have started reading Agatha Christie's Seven Dials Mystery and it's a bit boring. I so enjoyed the Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot series and I think I'll stick to those after I'm done with this one. I just hate being so disappointed when I read. I always want to be excited with the story, to be on my toes, expectant and raring to know what's going to happen next. Un-putdownable books. Those are for me.

SICKNESS IN THE FAMILY

Has it only been two days since my last blog?

Anyway, it's been really tense around here. My MIL brought my FIL to the hospital last Monday because he was feeling dizzy last week. Aside from dizziness, he also said he has a hard time breathing and by Friday, he could barely walk. So, despite his protests, my MIL brought him to the hospital and we found out that he would need to stay for a few days for tests because apparently, he's jaundiced and his abdominal area seemed bloated. They are suspecting his liver is out of whack.

My FIL is a smoker and a drinker. Has been ever since I met him. So I suppose all those toxins are now weakening his body. I asked my MIL how he was doing today and she said he needed a transfusion. Apparently a lot of it because when I asked her how much blood was needed, she told me that we would need around 8 blood donors to replace the blood used in the hospital.

We haven't visited my FIL at the hospital yet. Ruther is hesitant about us because he doesn't want the boys catching any illness while there. Also, we have no way of getting there because Ruther uses the car to go to work, so I would rather stay here and watch my boys for the meantime and then we'd go visit when my sister could babysit.

Hopefully, things will be less tense around here, but knowing how stubborn my FIL could be, I doubt that he'll be recovering very soon.

Sigh.

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Don't you ever get those days when you feel so overwhelmed, have a ton of work to do, don't know how to begin and then end up just staring into space? Well, I feel like that's been happening a lot to me lately. With the homeschooling, and the breastfeeding, and the chores, and everything else in between, I sometimes feel I need to grow a new pair of arms and a fresh brain. It gets quite hectic that sometimes, I eat lunch at 2pm, or I have 6-minute baths!! Yeeesh!!

I hope this doesn't become a permanent thing. Especially with my sis leaving for Canada by next month. She's the only one I could trust to babysit the boys because no one else could handle them and watch over them without me worrying about their welfare when I'm out of the house.

In another note, I would love to continue breastfeeding Enzo, but at the same time, I want to work already!! And it's taking me forever to look for a decent job with my lack of experience (from being a SAHM for some years now). Sigh. I feel so conflicted. I wish there was something I could do, something that would make sense in this crazy world.

And I wish someone (be it human or spirit) could help me already! C'mon Universe! I'm rarin' to go!

BOOKS 2,3,4 and 5

I've finished reading books 2, 3, 4 and almost completed book 5 of the Percy Jackson series. It's pretty neat. Well, I found that all fantasy/alternate universe stories intrigue me. Think Star Wars, Harry Potter, etc. I just think that their stories are amazing. The authors' creative minds just blow me away.

Anyway, I'm now in the final chapter of the last book and I'm quite happy with the way the whole series turned out. It was very entertaining and engaging. I hope my boys get to read these books when they are older, maybe after they've studied Mythology.

Since I breezed through the whole set of books in just a few short days, I'm sure I'll be reading them again the future. I do that. I read all the Harry Potter books like 5 times, the Phillip Pullman books (Golden Compass) like 3 times, Twilight series 4 times and other series books more than once I'm sure. So I just know I'll be doing the same with the Percy Jackson books. :D

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It's so hard to lose weight. It just seems as though I'm fighting a losing battle. And it sucks.

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I gave Ruther a haircut today. It's actually nice, even if I have to say so myself. He was complaining that his hair was unkempt and hard to fix in the mornings and some of his office pals mentioned that it was getting ugly. Since we were both too lazy to leave the house, we decided that I should simply give him a trim. And it turned out okay, thank goodness. If he's getting compliments tomorrow, I'm getting the credit. :D

LIPS

Just goofing around... :D

GOTTA PUT ON A BRAVE FACE

It was such a looooong day yesterday.

We had to wake up early in the morning for our Annual Physical Examination and I already felt out of sorts because I slept late the night before. Ethan was so hyper and was mumbling loudly that I would wake up, tell/ask him to sleep then doze off, then just when I'm about to go to deeper sleep,wake up again from one of his monologues.

My sis came over at 620am and was surprised to find Nikki asleep. When I got up at 640, we had to rush rush rush. We finally left the house around 730am. Sigh.

When we got to the clinic, it was fine because there were only a few people around. There were only 2 people there. Our numbers were 4,5,6. Pretty soon, a woman called, "Number Three!" No one acknowledged her. Then, "Number 4!" Sweet. It was our turn. We started off with the vitals: pulse rate, blood pressure (Nikki said: "Hey! Why didn't she take my blood pressure?"), height and weight (cringe), then eye exam which nobody passed because the three of us are near-sighted. After that, it was off to the Pediatrician while my sis minded Enzo. We did the usual medical history and checking of vaccinations. The boys are updated except for the flu vaccine. Enzo has yet to receive his DPT and polio. But my sis will do that tomorrow. When the doctor asked if Ethan, (who was hyper beyond imagination) was going to school, I started with, "Well, we're homeschooling, actually..." and that got a "REALLY?!?! We are too!!" out of her. After that, we talked about homeschooling, etc which bored Nikki and made Ethan more hyper. After a few minutes of chatting, she checked the boys out (ear exam, chest, etc.) then we were off for chest x-rays, and laboratory exams. I was so glad that Ethan did not freakout like last time when they had to take some blood. He was scared, but he didn't run around and scream too much. After they pricked him, he watched the woman collect his blood in a tiny tube and he said,"I like that!" Weird.

Anyway, I got an ECG test, and a Pap smear. It was my first time to get a pap smear and good thing nothing traumatizing happened so I suppose this is going to be a yearly thing for me now.

We finished up around 1130 which is perfect for lunch. We ate at Kenny's. Yum! Then we spent the rest of the afternoon playing (we stayed at a play place so I could breastfeed Enzo, which I did) and going around the mall until it was time for us to meet up with Ruther. Unfortunately, the car was acting up again and so we had to take a taxi from Festival Mall to Ruther's office which was not too far. It would have been okay if the driver didn't ask for P120!! The fare could have only cost P70 but the jerk didn't have his meter on. If I wasn't so concerned about the boys and our situation, I would have quarreled him and given him hell. But I just wanted to get home as soon as we could.

We left the office and tried to get home slowly but surely but halfway there, the car just suddenly slowed down then stopped. No matter how hard Ruther pressed on the accelerator, the car remained still. So, Ruther had to call the mechanics and fortunately, they agreed to look at the car. Fifteen minutes later they arrived and then after a quick look, decided they could not remedy the problem that night. They had to leave to get another vehicle so they could tow the car. We had to wait again and 30 minutes later, we were on our way. They were kind enough to bring us home first before towing the car to their place. We got home at around 9pm and I was so tired. But I didn't mind. I told Ruther, just as long as we were home safe and sound, it was okay with me.

So it was a long day. Hopefully the car would be fixed soon. Ruther already spent like P20,000 on repairs and it's not doing good for our budget. Already, funds are low with a recent cellphone purchase and paying of the credit card. Sigh.

Hopefully, everything will still be okay...

PERCY JACKSON AND THE LIGHTNING THIEF

I just finished reading Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and I must say, I was really disappointed that the story was so different from the movie. I mean, sure, the characters were there: Percy, his mom, the centaur, the satyr, Annabeth, Poseidon, Zeus and Hades but other than that, the movie seemed like it was inspired from the book rather than based from it, if you know what I mean.

For instance, in the book, Percy never developed his powers until he was in Camp Half-Blood. In the movie, he was underwater holding his breath in the first few minutes of the flick. In the book, Annabeth and Percy did not have an attraction towards each other. She was more interested in Luke (son of Hermes). Also, the god of war, Ares was never ever mentioned in the movie but in the book, he was the one of the gods who conspired against Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. Ares gave Percy a magical backpack that had the lightning bolt while in the movie, the bolt was hidden in the shield Luke gave him before leaving camp. Also, Luke was the one who stole the lightning bolt PLUS the Hades helm of darkness when some demi-gods went on a visit to Olympus. Are you confused yet?

It's just so disappointing for me when movie versions stray away too far from the books. I would have thought it to be more of like Harry Potter or The Golden Compass where there were some extra scenes but still stayed true to the story. Oh and that scene with the Hydra, getting of the pearls, Persephone in the Underworld, and Hades visiting the camp? Those were never in the book.

I just didn't like it. I mean, I enjoyed the movie (watched it weeks ago). I thought it was nice. Then, reading the book chanted a whole lot of things for me. Now I wonder, "Do I like the movie version more? OR the book?" And I can't say because they are both SO different! Oh and guess what? In the book, Percy never got to save his mom! Wrap your head around that! And in the movie, that was all he was thinking of, right?

Sigh. Anyway, I'm now on the second book The Sea of Monsters. I just hope that if they do a movie version of this, they would stick to the story.

2011 BEGINS...

Now that the holidays have passed, it looks like we're settling into our usual routine. Not that our routine is routine, if you know what I mean. It just means that it's less chaotic now.

I'm trying to tidy up the rooms. I can't believe how much junk, I mean, stuff has accumulated in the past 4 weeks!!! From toys to clothes to food, to books... It's just a perennial problem where to put stuff sometimes. Sigh. It's times like these that I wish we had a house of our own, ya know...

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I can't believe how big my little chipmunk is getting!! I sometimes look at him and say, "please, please don't grow so fast", which is then rewarded with giggles and shrieks. Don't you wish babies could stay babies forever?

Sigh.

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It has been wonderfully cool these past weeks. The days have been breezy and the nights have been somewhat chilly. All of us use blankets now, just to ward off the cool night air. No use getting the cold or sniffles again. I don't want any more sick kids, thank you very much. Anyway, I hope this will last til February because I sure am dreading summer. Can't forget the sweltering heat last year! Yikes!

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I really really hope 2011 will be good to me. 2009 was the worst year of my life. 2010 would have been blah if not for Enzo (my sweetie baby) so I really really hope 2011 will be a whole lot better. I'm not asking for much, just that my family be happy and well and that my boys not have a major illness or anything like that. It would also be nice to have more family bondings. Perhaps new experiences too. And maybe lose a bit of weight. :D

HAPPY 2011!!

Well, it's another new year folks! Still doing your resolutions? I think I've pretty much given up on making my resolutions. It's just very disappointing when I realize at the end of the year that I haven't accomplished anything at all. I think it would be a lot better to do a monthly "things to do/accomplish" goal/s. More realistic ya know. Anyway, that doesn't mean I'm giving up on resolutions. I just won't do it the yearly way...

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We took a lot of photos last night for our new year tradition. It was actually fun because it was Enzo's first new year. Here's our family photo:


I don't know exactly when we started this tradition but it's now stuck. And even if we're now 5, we'll still continue doing this in years to come. And why not? It's such a fun thing to do! :D

Here's Enzo's photo:

Isn't he cute? Unlike in other countries, lighting of fire crackers and sparklers and fireworks is legal here. So expect to get a lot of noise and smoke pollution when New Year comes along. Part of my concern was Enzo getting startled at the booms and crackle of the fire crackers and rockets. We did close all windows and doors in our room and that muffled the sounds/noise a bit but when we had our family photo, that was taken in the family room and even if we started at around 1030, a lot of neighbors were starting to light their stash of firecrackers already. So, we had to rush with the photos and then covered Enzo's ears with Miffy earmuffs. He was just so cute! Anyway, after taking photos, we just lit a lot of sparkers and some fountains, Skyped with my mom, dad and brother, ate some spaghetti, and then went to bed.

This afternoon, we went to SM Convention Center to watch The Great American Circus. It was a LOT of fun! The boys enjoyed it but I think my sis and I enjoyed it more because we were hooting and cheering and yelling like there was no tomorrow. Well, we do know how to appreciate a good show. There were acrobats, clowns, a fire eater, balancing tricks, a tribute to Michael Jackson (song and dance number), a crossbow act (I was a bit nervous here), and a whole lot more. The whole show was around 2 hours long with a 30 minute intermission. After the show, we took photos with some of the performers and got a souvenir photo. It was great!! What a wonderful way to start the New Year! I hope that we will have more of these family moments in the months to come. :D

LOOKIN' SHARP

Enzo in his tux. Haha! It's such a cute onesie and we just HAD to let him wear it at a wedding. Everyone loved it! And isn't he just so dashing? :D

BACK TO WORK

Yesterday was a holiday here so it's back to work for Ruther today. He's still a bit bummed about it but I'm quite sure he had fun yesterday because he got his new iPhone 4. I'm not one to question his taste in gadgets. When something new is out, he's sure to know about it.

This means, I'll be using his old iPhone for myself and Nikki will have my current cellphone. This is great because at times when we're out and the boys are home, it's so hard to know how they are without having to call landline. So now that we've got an extra cellphone, Nikki will start using it. Hopefully, he'll postpone using it to call girls until a few years.

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Today was laundry day. Since the helper here at home went back to her provincial home for the holidays, I had to take over some of the chores. And I had to do the laundry today because the mountain of clothes was just too much.

I remember when "doing the laundry" meant going to the nearby river with a metal basin (that looked like a huge beercap - gosh! wish I had a photo of that), a bar of soap and this flat wooden paddle. The paddle would be used as a surface for washing the clothes and the labandera would rub the soap onto the clothes more efficiently using this paddle because the river edge would be all uneven and pebbly. The paddle is also used to whack the clothes to get rid of dirt and grime in those clothes that couldn't be washed by hand like heavy tapestries or jeans.

Today though, the washing machine helps a whole lot. So when I say I'm going to do the laundry, it doesn't hold that much terror and tediousness as those days when we had to do it by hand. All I have to do is just put the clothes in the washing machine, pour in the soap and then all I gotta do is hang them.

Nice. :D

ENZO'S FIRST CHRISTMAS

Christmas has passed. Can't believe it's over, just like that. After all the festivities, the food, the presents, the smiles and the photographs, another year is coming to a close. Can't believe it.

I guess part of my disbelief is the fact that Enzo is growing so fast and I want to hold on to his babyhood as much as I could. I want to treasure and remember every moment. I could barely remember Nikki and Ethan as babies without their photos so I guess it's understandable that I would feel like this with Enzo. I just hope I won't regret not having kids after this...

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A Merry Christmas to all!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

A very happy holidays to all! I hope that the year has been good to each and everyone of you. Mine wasn't the best but having Enzo in our lives was definitely the highlight for our family. I can't believe how quickly time flies and how much the boys have grown. I just hope that I'm giving them the best parenting I could ever give. I love my family so much!

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Enzo spent most of his first Christmas asleep. I don't blame him. If I didn't follow tradition, I would be sleeping as well. My sister got him this cute outfit for the Christmas photo but by the time we were going to take pictures, his jumper got all drooly. Hahaha! I mean, Enzo is cute but I couldn't have drooly clothes in the photo!! So we changed him into nice shorts and he looked a whole lot better. Can't wait to see them all!! I would have to wait because my darling husband is still fast asleep. :D

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We spoke with my mom, dad and brother through Skype a few hours before midnight. It was wonderful getting to speak to them. They loved the card Nikki made for them during art class. We didn't get to talk for a long time but they did get to see Enzo. I guess that was enough to make their night. :D

ONE MORE TO GO...

We attended the wedding this morning and we have one more to go.

It was exhausting but I appreciated the time with the family. I'm sure the boys won't agree but still, I loved that we went to Tagaytay together. The ceremony was especially early, 8am. That meant I had to wake up at 5am just to make sure we weren't going to be late. It seemed as though I just shut my eyes when the alarm sounded. I felt so tired and sleepy yet. Had to snooze. And so I got up at 540 and had to rush Ruther and the boys so we could leave before 7am.

We were a bit late but getting there was so nice. It was like a roadtrip of sorts. Anyway, we got to the church without a problem and then headed to the reception which is at a restaurant not too far from the church. It had a very nice view of Taal Volcano.

We didn't take too long at the reception because Ruther had work in the afternoon. We thought that he would be able to bring us home first then head for the office but it was traffic at the Filinvest exit and if Ruther took us home he would be so late. So we decided to just pass the time at the office. I didn't mind because I knew the boys would be too tired to do anything except sleep. We got home pretty late because Ruther had a meeting and now, I'm pooped!

Hopefully, tomorrow won't be as stressful. G'night!

OUR ENZO