On A Wonderful Day Like Today

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I'm so glad and so looking forward to the holiday tomorrow ---Labor Day. Yipee! Been working so hard lately that I'm actually excited just to be able to stay at home with my baby even for a day. My birthday's also coming up (well, actually it's still in 2 weeks' time) but it's also something I'm kind of excited about. I remember that my birthday last year wasn't so good since we had to attend the funeral of hubby's aunt that same day. Anyway, been thinking of my birthday wish list lately and I definitely would want to include a new pair of jeans on the list. :-) Anyway, happy vacation everyone!

Thanks to Jona, Hailey, Jody, Pat, AidiSan, Tet, Tracy and Jesse (Did I miss out anyone?) on your well-wishes for me to win our Lose 15 and Win 25 contest. Did you know that I actually get dreams (err...more of nightmares?) regarding our deal?! Many times, I just want to drop out from the whole thing and give the 25k cold cash to my hubby. But no!!!! I'm not giving up yet. My aim is to hit the 15 lbs weight loss mark so that I could be more fit and healthier, not to mention more ready to have a second baby soon. I could just hear in my dreams my OB scolding me for not keeping my weight down. That's actually enough motivation for me to continue on. My OB is a very strict doctor, you know. She scolds every time I go to her clinic and I exceed my weight gain limit! LOL. Back to the contest. What did I do on the first week? No, I didn't exercise yet. I was so tired last week from doing the work which needed to be finished before I go on leave for my retreat. Imagine me going ho...

As I said in my previous posts , I took some time out to do a retreat last week. It really took me a great deal to finally decide to push through with it because my work has literally tied me up (as in super tied up!). After praying about it, I decided put God first, just set everything aside and go to my retreat as planned. And then on the day before the retreat as I was rushing to finish what I can, I find out that I've been promoted in the office. Isn't that GREEEAAAATTTT?! God is really so generous. :-)

Here are some things I took note of during my 3-day silent retreat: 1. Do not skip doing mental prayer over something that may be more important. All the more you need to prioritize your time for prayer in order to get things done -- and done well. God is the owner of our lives and many times, we tend to short-change Him. 2. "Vale la pena." It is worthwhile. It is worthwhile to give up that certain whim. It is worthwhile to be detached from your opinions. And it is definitely worthwhile to give your whole life to God. 3. There has to be joy in making amends. Thus, I need to live humility without complaining. 4. Lukewarmness is the biggest obstacle in our interior life. Live your life with a premise to improve your situation and not just going with the flow or doing whatever suits you. 5. Learn to fall in love and you will not leave Him. (This one's coming from a great saint.) Ciao for now!!!

When I was in college studying for my Economics degree, I had my mind set from the very start on doing good at school. So when everyone tends to complain when our professors ask us for an Economics term paper , I just think to myself that I love writing especially when has to be on the topic of Economics. With this kind of disposition, it turns out to be not so difficult after all. However, when I enrolled at Ateneo Graduate School of Business in Rockwell to take up my MBA degree, it was kind of different. I had already been working for a couple of years then and my brain sort got a rusty and I was not anymore into studying or making papers on marketing dissertation topics . But with a little help and determination, I was still able to finish my master dissertation and graduate.

Hi everyone! I was in on a 3-day retreat last week and I feel so rejuvenated. Prayed a whole lot and had my little "horns" chopped out a little, or maybe a lot! Well, it's time to face reality again! Now back to work! Bring it on!

Online games can be so addicting! I know that for a fact since I always see my husband play online games given the time and the free internet connection. He's actually getting better and better each time. Anyway, he might be interested to play internet backgammon . There's a great site on online backgammon where anyone can play either for fun or for real money. The site looks very enticing and easy to play. Maybe if my husband discovers how to play backgammon , we might get a few hundred dollars richer soon!

Calling out all beautiful ladies and hunky men out there! Do you think you got the looks to make it big? Do you have the potential of a future model ? Then now is your chance to prove yourself to the world because the newest beauty contest has now been launched and it's found online. The Look of the Year contest is open to both men and women, grouped into 14-19 and 19 and up. All you got to do is sign up online to participate.

Have you ever tried installing or using a GPS Insight vehicle tracking system in your car or truck? Well, I've read in a Blog for GPS vehicle tracking that it is one of the latest technological breakthroughs when it comes to routing and tracking systems. Just to illustrate, roads and highways can be way too complicated for a female driver like me. For me to be able to go from one city to another, I would need to study the road map and learn the fast way to get to my destination. It can be so hard sometimes since my sense of direction is not exactly one of my better skills. For example, I could not just go on a long trip to go to the beach or the countryside since I am afraid that I might get lost on the way. What I would really need is a GPS Insight support wiki for customers which can greatly assist me in my GPS and transportation needs. My Dad was actually telling me how easy and convenient it is to use a GPS in your car. Last June when he went to my Uncle's place in Frank...

We decided to open Zoe's lutu-lutuan plastic set last weekend. Wow, what a wonderful time she had doing imaginary play. She played with it for hours and hours. :-) Now she brings these toys everywhere she goes. Sweetheart, can you cook something nice for Mommy's diet meal? Pretty please? :-)

Lose 15 lbs and win 25k pesos, that is. I was inspired by the idea from Jacqui who will be getting $1,000 if she loses 15 pounds in 2 months (that's if her husband doesn't lose more pounds than her). Then she can buy whatever she desires. My story naman started one night on our way home from work. My sweetheart and I were discussing possible travel plans for next next month. Our initial plan is really to book a Swingaround promo from PAL for Hongkong for a 5-day vacation. When I said 5 days, whoaaaa, biglang halt ang mga plans. We can't seem to accept that we wouldn't tag the baby along. Given that this is supposed to be like a second honeymoon for us plus a birthday celebration cum shopping of sorts, we're still both feeling very bad about leaving Zoe with the yaya for that long. Anyway, along that line I asked him if instead of going abroad, maybe we can just have a "pustahan". Since we became friends a decade ago, we have been fond of making "pust...

Somebody's been re-varnishing our Narra door at home and I'm feeling hilo over the smell of the varnish. Still gotta finish a ton of take-home work from the office and I can't concentrate. I have this splitting headache na. Can't believe how pressured I can be over doing the minutes of meeting which has been long overdue 2 months ago. I know, I know. Doing this pays so much more than bl_gg_ng. But how come I'm not as interested? LOL.

Hello dear Holy Father, I know you're ultra busy with your schedules in the US. At 81, you must be tired from all the travels and visits you're doing. Seeing you facing the American people, comforting them and sharing with them the truth, makes me admire you so much. Just want you to know that I'm praying a whole lot for you and I'm wishing you more years to come. Happy happy birthday! Long Live the Pope Long live the Pope! His praises sound Again and yet again: His rule is over space and time: His throne the heart of men: All hail! The Shepherd Pope of Rome, The theme of loving song: Let all the earth his glory sing And heav’n the strain prolong. Beleaguered by the foes of earth, Beset by hosts of hell, He guards the loyal flock of Christ, A watchful sentinel: And yet, amid the din and strife, The clash of mace and sword, He bears alone the Shepherd Staff, The champion of the Lord. His signet is the Fisherman’s No sceptre does he bear In meek and lowly majesty He rules...

Here's my latest find from Books For Less. It's a SEE and SAY book version of Thumbelina. Zoe's has never owned anything like it. It's more challenging to read because you have to associate the pictures with the name or words. You got to have quick mind to be able to read the book properly to a child since it sounds weird if you still stop to think for a minute about what word is associated with the picture. Not only will it disrupt the flow of the story but it would also confuse the child. But it's still fun to read ya know. :-)

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Just checked my online banking account and found out that my very first paypal withdrawal is here. Yipee! I really heart blogging! Now, I got money to pay for my annual retreat scheduled next week. It's not that expensive but I thought I'd use my first blogging money for a good cause. >>>Prayer time and some peace and quiet (with the BIG BOSS)? PRICELESS!

In this fast-paced life full of work and frenzy, many people, including myself, forget to just slow down to keep track of the more important things in this life. Those things for me would mean God, family, friends, and relationships. We often forget to keep in touch. We forget to pray, to show our family our love, to be a good friend to others, etc. etc. I recently found out that I could join 3gb community www.3gb.biz precisely to be in the loop again. Here you can network with family and friends and share your thoughts, your current favorite mp3s and many other things. Sign up now so we can get connected once again.

We officially started our weekend by a dinner date Friday night in Pancake House in Makati Avenue. The week was super-duper tiring and stressful. My mother in law just got back home from the hospital and my husband was so stressed out that it was good to have some quiet time together. However, this date turned out to be a not-so-quiet date for us. There was a young couple sitting next to us. They literally entertained us. Hehehe. Instead of us talking about our day, we ate in amusement while watching this couple who were fighting. It was actually the girl who was fuming mad. She was saying with an angry tone -- "O, bakit hindi ka pa umalis sa harap ko. Pumunta ka na sa mga barkada mo" or something like that. LOL. Good thing we don't fight like that anymore (well, not that much anymore). Moving on, the next day, we woke up early to go to morning mass. We brought along Zoe who was relatively well-behaved. Just like other kids, she loves pointing at the pictures and statues ...

I received another set of awards from online friend Pat . She recently went to Europe with her family. I'm sure you had a lot of fun! I love Europe! My memories of the places I visited there are so nostalgic for me. I particularly would like to go back to Spain because I find the people there very strong yet very full of culture and life. I would also love to go back and visit the grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes. Did you that the year 2008 marks the 150th anniversary of the apparitions of our Lady to Bernadette Soubirous ? Over the years, our Lady has interceded for so many spiritual favors to those who try and visit this pilgrim town. When I went there, I wrote a short letter for our Lady and needless to say, my requests were immediately granted as soon as I came back home. Some of my relatives even go there every year as a private devotion. Seeing the many crutches hanging on the top of the altar there and the faith of the people who travel from across the globe just to seek refuge...

Do you have access to the worldwide web and are very much interested to get argent gratuit ? If yes, then there is a site that can give you the opportunity to earn argent facile sur le net . All you just need to do is click on the site to learn an easy and effective method that will be sure to make your dream devenir riche a reality.

Hey friends, care to share some frugal tips? Really need some ideas before I splurge again into another thought-less shopping weekend. Just got the second half of my bonus and I WANT to learn to save it. Thanks in advance!!!!

If someone were to ask me to name a big beauty frustration that I have in my life, one of my answers would probably be not having flawless skin. During my teenage years, my skin began to turn oily and I developed pimples on my face every now and then. School and books were my major concerns back then so I didn't care a whole lot about the way I looked and wasn't particularly conscious about taking care of my face. Thus, every time I got a pimple, I had this bad habit of squeezing each one of them. This resulted to me having deep pimple scars on my face. Because of this, I had to go several times before to the dermatologist for simple blemish treatment . However, even with that, my face still did not stop from getting pimply. As I grew older, I told myself that I want to look better. So it's time for a full make-over! Apart from trying to avoid stress and getting enough hours of sleep, I now want to get myself the best acne treatment available and buy some top acne product...

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I must admit that I'm not a very wise spender much less a saver. We spend a big chunk already of our family budget on Zoe's needs, food, utilities, salaries of our helpers, insurance, etc. Thus, when we still go out to dine or to shop for extras like nice clothes and shoes, our tendency is really to break the bank. I've realized the value of money and of budgeting especially now that my mother in law fell ill and is now in the hospital. She felt dizzy and started to vomit on Monday morning. My husband immediately took her to the hospital and they found out that her blood pressure had shot up and she needs to be admitted for treatment and so that the doctors can observe her condition. Since my mother in law depends much on us, we had to take responsibility for paying for her hospital bill. The problem is, payday is still far away and the doctor said she is well enough already to go home anytime today or tomorrow. So now we are consider getting a payday loan so that we can s...

Hi everyone! I miss bloghopping! Hope you guys are all good. By the way, pls. pls. pray for the fast recovery of my mother-in-law. She's now in the hospital due to hypertension, among other things. It'll be her 77th birthday pa naman tomorrow and she might be spending it in the hospital. Thanks!

I have several relatives and friends who have migrated to the US and are now looking for possible related nursing careers. I advised them to seriously take up some cna training to be more qualified to get a job as a nursing assistant. Particularly for our friend who resides in New Jersey, he can actually search online for some cna schools near his area. He has already been working as a hospital aide and is now considering taking up some cna courses for him to be able to get a job that's better paying and more gratifying. Well, good for him.

Thanks for the tag sis! INSTRUCTION: 1. Go to http://www.photobucket.com/ 2. Type in your answer to the question in the “search” box. 3. Use only the first page. 4. Insert the picture into your Blog. 1.) What is your Relationship Status? 2.)What is your current mood? 3.) Who is your Favorite Band / Artist? 4.) What is your Favorite Movie? 5.) What kind of pet do you have? 6.) Where do you live? 7.) Where do you work? 8.) What do you look like? 9.) What do you drive? 10.) What did you do last night? 11.) What is your Favorite TV Show? 12.) Describe yourself: 13.) What are you doing today? 14.) What is your name? 15.)What is your favorite candy?

I am a self-confessed buko (coconut) addict. We used to have 2 coconut trees right in our own backyard years ago and we would always harvest sweet and delectable buko from those trees. I remember from my childhood days those hot summer afternoons when we had "free" buko. It was so refreshing! Sadly, we had to cut those trees when we there was a storm one time and both trees almost got uprooted because of the strength of the wind. Anyway, when I got pregnant 2 years ago, my love for buko has intensified all the more. I actually craved for buko in whatever form: as juice, salad, ice cream, and even yogurt. Some say that maybe the reason why came out Zoe fair-skinned is because of all that buko that I ate during my pregnancy. Well, maybe. What's funny is even up to know, I still crave for buko and would never say no if offered one. Especially now that it's summer here in the Philippines, a cold glass of buko is the answer to my prayers! Good thing Fruitas offers buco jui...

We got Zoe her very first Crayola set last week. She's been so excited about her new "toy" that there are crayon marks on the walls, tiles, her toys, her bedsheet, her crib, etc. etc. Hahaha. The other day, I decided to bring out the crayons again and do a project. We tried to trace her hand...ang kulit, promise! Lookie here. May kutiks pa! Even though she doesn't quite understand that we should only write on paper and not on everything else she gets hold of, I don't stop her. Who knows? She may be the next Leonardo da Vinci. I won't be getting in her way if that's the case.

I admit that I am a jewelry fan. Ever since my Mom got me a nice pair of earrings with diamonds when I was in my teenage years, I was hooked. Thus, when I have extra money, I always tend to buy some pieces of jewelry. But you know, more than anything that I bought for myself, my engagement and wedding rings which came from my husband are what I cherish the most. Anyway, this site that I know offers genuine diamond rings that I am sure everyone would love. Plus they ship for free and have a 30-day returns policy. Isn't that just fab? Guys who are waiting to pop the question surely would have an easier time ordering engagement rings if they buy through James Allen.

Thanks Jesse ! Happy Birthday to you! We all know that we need to get more links from one another. So join this linker chain! * To get more more traffic. * To increase technorati authority. * To get more back links. * To gain more friends around the world. Here are the Rules: * First copy and paste the list below. * Do not remove any content from the linker list. * Just add One LUCKY NUMBER to your blogs. * If you don’t like the concept…say no. :-/ * The main goal here is we are going to circulate our number of friends. * The more people who will join the “LINKER CHAIN”, the more links we can generate. * Lastly, write only ONE LUCKY NUMBER for your blogs… * Keep it simple and short, I know some of you have more than one blog. * The color for the link should be only black, gray, or white, depending on your blog’s theme. Please avoid using any color, ok ? * Hundreds and thousands and millions only no more trillions …ok lets get started. 1.) 6966 2.) 609 3.) 066 4.) 066 5.) 606 6.) 669 7....

Shopping has always been a great stress reliever for me. I love going to the malls and dining out. However, since I had gotten pregnant and gave birth, my time for shopping has significantly decreased since I had taken on other tasks, apart from my daily office work, such as taking care of the baby and managing the household. That is why I am so thankful for online shopping. With online shopping, you don't have to shop till you drop. All you gotta do is open your computer and click on some buttons. When you have made your choice on what to buy, you just put everything in the shopping cart and close the deal. With the availability of new ecommerce software , busy mothers like me can spend more time with the baby and at the same time have her share of retail therapy online. It's so easy. Now I'm wondering if I can stop working in the office and just start my own online business. I just need to canvass for a shopping cart software , do some networking and advertising. Then I...

Thank you to Kelly for sending me this tag. Enjoyed it! I'm a LOVE MAGNET? LOL. :-) Copy here: 1. Take the test - Love Visual DNA . 2. Post your result by adding your name (linked to your blog), your love type (linked to your Love DNA result). 3. Tag everybody else! Results:1. Aggie - Warm and Fuzzy 2. Kelly - Warm and Fuzzy 3. Vina - Love Magnet Lemme tag Andrea , Nol , Happy and Tet ! End copy.

Sit back and relax. I've been dreaming of doing just that for the past weeks or so. My work has really been piling up due to a new additional assignment in the office. Because of this, I have been feeling so tired and stressed out lately. But since I could not just yet plan an out-of-town vacation away from all the troubles and stress of urban life, I must say that a relaxing time sitting on a massage chair is good enough for now. For somebody who hasn't got that extra time to go to a spa or to travel, sitting on massage recliners is a great alternative. Besides the fact that you don't have to leave the room to relieve yourself of the stress, particularly in the back and neck area, owning one of these means you don't have to set any appointment with your massage therapist and wait in line since you can just use it anytime you want. In addition, for those who have trouble sleeping or whose only rest is when they get to sleep at night, then I suggest that they purchase ...

During a random visit in National Bookstore last weekend, I chanced upon this book. Got it for only P169. I think it's a really good buy! Scanning through it, I found good advice regarding home organization. Really need more tips! My second blog " House Everything " is proof of this need and longing for me to set up a bright, cheerful and organized home. Photo credit here . I will definitely share some of the tips from this book in my other blog . Watch out for it. See you there.

Bonus time means shopping time. My husband and I spent the weekend in the mall shopping. So far, I've bought my husband a new Marks and Spencer shirt, a nice pair of Levis jeans and new Rockport driving shoes. As for me, I haven't really found anything that fancied me. All I got for myself was a new 3D electric fan, if that counts. Anyway, what I am really eyeing is this nice Technomarine watch which I found online. My husband is drooling for one too. I had to stop myself for a minute before I load my shopping cart . Shopping online is really tempting and addicting! But I'm just glad that we have that kind of option in shopping now. Taking advantage of the current trend in business and ecommerce software , I often think of putting up my own online business too. This business would bmost likely be related to my interests which would be food, educational materials and books. Having decided on that, I know that I could get a dependendable shopping cart software from Ashop. As...

I grabbed this from Mari (thanks!) Student number? -- 93-(duh can't remember na!) edit --- now I remember - 93-11024 College? -- School of Economics, Diliman Ano ang course mo? -- BS Economics Nag-shift ka ba o na-kick out? -- neither! 1st choice ko to. Saan ka kumuha ng UPCAT? UP Diliman AS Bldg, first floor. Favorite GE (General Education) classes? -- Komunikasyon 1-3 (daming pogi) Favorite PE? -- My PE subjects: foundation of PE, table tennis, arnis, running for fitness --- among these - favorite ko yung arnis! cool sa mga boys LOL Saan ka nag-aabang ng hot girls/boys sa UP? sa BA canteen? Favorite Professors? -- Monsod, Balisacan, educ profs Least favorite GE (General Education) class? -- Philo I -- kakaantok pramis Did you sign up for Saturday classes? -- nope... gotta have a life too ya know Nakapag-field trip ka ba? -- yup, sa different pre-schools when I took up some electives in Educ. We also went to Marinduque once for a project in Socsci. Naging CS ka na ba or US sa UP?...

Are you at the crossroads of your academic life? Can't decide what career to take? If yes, then with the increasing demand for the people who are in the allied medical field, I tell you that one good option you can take is to be a pharmacy technician . As a pharmacy tech , you are tasked to assist the pharmacists in their daily job of keeping track of the prescriptions, patients' records and medicines in the hospital. Interesting, right? With the proper training and education, it is easy enough to graduate from this course. After that, you are already on your way to getting the acclaimed pharmacy technician salary which you are waiting for.

I received this tag from Hailey . Thank you for always tagging me. So what are the things I am grateful for? First, I am grateful to God. Without Him deciding to create me, I am nothing, as in NADA. Just remembering this keeps me going. I realize that God is the main reason and source of my life and everything that I do should be for Him. Next, my unending gratitude also goes to my parents for raising me as they did, forming me into what I am now and for sacrificing a whole lot just to give me the best in this life. I am also thankful to my sister for being the instrument for me to discover my vocation. She has been a model sister to me. I am also forever grateful to my dear husband. He is the pillar of my strength and my one true love. I am also grateful to Zoe for making me a mom, for humbling me and making me feel more concretely what unconditional love is all about. On the side, I am also thankful for my relatives and friends for their love, support and acceptance. I am glad to als...

Times are really hard these days. With the rising prices of basic commodities, it has been very difficult to stay out of credit and build up a respectable savings accounts. Many people even have to monitor their income and budget to get through the next payday because what they are earning is just enough for their regular expenses. Sadly when emergencies come, they do not have any extra money to pull out from the bank. As a banker, one of my suggestions when emergencies come up is to avail of cash loans . Aside from having at least one credit card as a back-up solution for those financial surprises, it is advisable for a household to know how and where to get easy cash solutions so they don't need to worry about how to pay for unexpected financial obligations. At Perfect Cash Advance, you are able to weather through a financial obligation quickly. They can match you up with a lender and get a fast approval by signing up online. The money can be credited securely to your account as ...