On A Wonderful Day Like Today

Sometimes, God sends us some tests for Him to see if we really, really trust Him. While we felt moved and somewhat a bit troubled, we did trust Him (!!!) and thus, we celebrated my sister's health with a huge banana split! Of course, we did have remorse after finishing it all up and vowed to diet once again. Hahaha. I love you Ate! I wish you a long life of grace and good health.

Thanks to Wordle .

This movie is due to be shown very soon in Metro Manila. It's official website is found here . Quoting from Wikipedia: "Reconciliation matters" is the main take away message that [Roland] Joffé expects from the viewers. Life, he said, is an opportunity to love: "It's a choice, and in making that decision you become free. You do not become free when you hate. The weird thing is when you really love, you feel it like a breath of freedom, you think ‘Oh my God, I’ve chosen this, and it’s beautiful’.” He emphasized that Christianity is about love and the teaching of St. Josemaria "encourages a spiritual relationship with God in 'very simple things', in cooking a meal, being with one’s family, or even having a fight." Joffé states that this is "a film about what it means to be a saint in this day and age." The title refers to its theme exploring the unknown territories of hatred, guilt, and forgiveness, said the producer Ignacio G. Sancha. ...

It's already 2011 on this side of the world (big grin)! Thank you Lord for giving us so many blessings this past year. Please continue to guide us in the many years to come. Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat!

My prayers and sacrifices are offered up especially for you today. Happy Birthday to you, our dear Roman Pontiff !

Tomorrow will be the start of the Lenten Triduum and as a form of sacrifice, I'll be resting from blogging in the next few days. I hope all of us Catholics will have a prayerful and meaningful Lent. Meantime, as a pabaon, I am leaving you with this very recent picture of my kids... Until then, advance HAPPY EASTER to all!

Make your way to Bethlehem, go up to the Child, rock him in your arms, say warm and tender things to him, press him close to your heart... I am not talking childish nonsense, I am speaking of love! And love is shown with deeds. In the intimacy of your soul, you can indeed hug him tight. (The Forge, 345) Have a merry Christmas to you and your whole family!

The Immaculate Conception of the Escorial c1678 Museo del Prado, Madrid Almighty God, Omnipotent and Infinitely Wise, had to choose his Mother. What would you have done, if you had had to choose yours? I think that you and I would have chosen the mother we have, filling her with all graces. That is what God did: and that is why, after the Blessed Trinity, comes Mary. Theologians have given a rational explanation for her fullness of grace and why she cannot be subject to the devil: it was fitting that it should be so, God could do it, therefore he did it. That is the great proof: the clearest proof that God endowed his Mother with every privilege, from the very first moment. That is how she is: beautiful, and pure, and spotless in soul and body ! (The Forge, 482)

Sorry for the lack of updates in this blog. As I wrote in my previous post, I've been dealing with my pregnancy condition and trying to ask for supernatural help to overcome it all. I've also started a novena, praying for a special intention of our family, to Servant of God Bishop Alvaro del Portillo . It was supposedly his 95th birthday yesterday and I found it apt to ask a birthday favor from him. :-)

What's so special with March 19? Well, for us Catholics, it's the feastday of St. Joseph, foster father of Jesus. I particularly have a devotion to St. Joseph since he is a great example of obedience and of interior life. As the bible described him, Joseph was a just man. For me, he is a model for everyone to live a just life. Full of charity and love for God, he submitted to what God planned for Him and lived loving Jesus as his very own Son. Sharing here a prayer for the intercession of St. Joseph: O St. Joseph whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the Throne of God, I place in you all my interests and desires. O St. Joseph do assist me by your powerful intercession and obtain for me from your Divine Son all spiritual blessings through Jesus Christ, Our Lord; so that having engaged here below your Heavenly power I may offer my Thanksgiving and Homage to the most Loving of Fathers. O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating you and Jesus asleep in your arms....

Hi dear friends - Some friends of mine and I are trying to raise some funds for a good cause which involves building a training center in the heart of Makati City for the wholistic formation of women and also for the less-fortunate women in the area who are willing to be educated in the administration of the home and other important manual tasks. In this regard, we're selling some religious products (resin) made by the inmates from Muntinlupa. We have various stuff such as this Holy Family and the statue of Mama Mary (below). In case you are looking for the perfect gift to give to friends who are celebrating their birthdays, wedding or a special anniversary, this can be a great option. Pls. leave me a message if you're interested in these items. It will help a lot in our project for women. Thanks!!!

Today, the Church marks the feast of the Presentation. This feast reminds us of the need for purification so we can go in front of God with clean hearts. We also need atonement which entails that we ask for forgiveness from God and from all the people we have offended. Just like the people who undergo a sort of cleansing in the rehab centers from their addictions, we too, have to submit to God and believe that he can help us change and be better.

I just realized now that Christmas is soooo near and I haven't even gotten close to meditating about the birth of Our Lord and corresponding to His message for me this Christmas. Work is still busy and to top it all, all our evenings for the next few days are filled with parties and gatherings. I know that God wants me to slow down a bit and learn to LISTEN soon. Fiat , Lord. :-)

The topic of wanting to have more children and fecundity have been very much in the air these days, well, at least personally for me. I think it started during one afternoon when my husband and I were out in our mini-garden talking. Just next to our house, we saw the four cute grandchildren (all siblings) running around their grandparent's house and enjoying very much the company of each other. My husband and I realized how happy it would be to have a lot of kids (our own) running around our house. And then this week, I stumbled into this wonderful blog called Sonlight Garden . I then tell myself ~ here is a great example of a mom talking about motherhood, her children (6 kids and one in the oven!), husband, her faith, homeschooling, her garden and all of these don't seem to be in contrast with each other. In addition, I go to Mercatornet and chance upon their feature on big happy families. Finally, I see this one by Pope John Paul II (14 October 2000, A Message of Life and Ho...

Don't keep on talking about your health, your family name, your career, your work, or your next step... How annoying this can be! It would seem you have forgotten that you don't have anything, that everything is His. (The Forge, 1050). Enough said.

I was searching the internet one time and stumbled into this wonderful site/book of Holly Pierlot called A Mother's Rule of Life . It's one of those great sites that you're glad to have found. It's perfect for a Catholic wife and mother like me who is forever juggling priorities and trying to make things work at home. This site has sample schedules, a great Q&A portion, solutions for parenthood dilemmas, and many other beautiful things. I just wish I could buy the book or the PDF workbook soon (fyi, this is not a paid post). I am lifting this prayer from this site and I thought it's nice to share this one. + Behold the handmaid of the Lord Be it done unto me according to Your Word. I seek only to do Your Will Lord: That I avoid all sin and selfishness, That I love, That I fulfill my duties well, That I be attentive to Your Voice. Open my heart to Your Will for me today And I pray the same for my family and friends. Grant me the Grace of a willing heart and a do...

This may be unknown to many but I am sharing here the news article about the recent beatification of the parents of St. Therese of Lisieux, also known as the Little Flower. Parents of St Therese of Lisieux beatified Monday, 20 October 2008 15:46 The cardinal who celebrated the beatification Mass of the parents of St Therese of Lisieux urged those present to thank God for their own parents. "I have thought about my own father and mother, and I would like you also to think at this moment of your father and mother, so we will thank God together for having created us and made us Christians through the married love of our parents," said Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, former prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for Saints' Causes. "Receiving life is a wonderful thing. But it is still more admirable for us that our parents should have led us to the Church, which alone is capable of forming Christians. No one can become a Christian by himself," the cardinal said a...

Why am I so bubbly today? Well, I'll give you 5 reasons. 1. Today is the last day of September and September has been a great month! 2. Tomorrow is a holiday and I plan to spend it well with Zoe and hubby. 3. I had found a renewed sense of peace again -- after finding time to pray today. 4. I'm wearing my new blouse from Kamiseta (new clothes always makes me feel good!). 5. I have many things to be thankful for ---my work, my family, my friends, good health and food on the table. So smile and have a happy Tuesday!

There has been a lot of brouhaha in Congress lately but I think that this reproductive bill issue is something worth lobbying against (that's just my opinion). For other similar views, click here and here .

Just want to type in a quick request for prayers for my dear mother in law who is in the hospital right now. Hoping she will get well real soon. Thank you everyone in advance!!! :-)