happy biRthday, my fiRst-boRn

may 16, 2002

8:00am

i was scheduled for my weekly check up with my ob gyne.  after thirty minutes of waiting for my turn to be called, finally doc rene had me examined.  he warned me that i was 3cm (dilated) already and should have myself admitted at the hospital.  though i felt an increase in the frequency and intensity of my contractions, they were all manageable.

mother and i went at the nearby rustans to buy supplies we will be needing during my stay at the hospital.  i was so hungry  as well and was craving for bibingka.  i remembered very well the funny conversation between my mother and the food attendant.

“she is due to give birth today and she likes to eat bibingka,” my mother told the food attendant. the kind lady recommended that i should eat something light, definitely not a bibingka.

10am

we arrived at the hospital.  i was immediately brought to the labor room.  the people there monitored by tummy, breathing and even counted the frequency of my contraction.

12midnight

i was brought to the delivery room.  i had hard time giving birth.  i felt nothing because i had anesthesia.  later, i felt the anesthesia wearing off.  they gave me another dose.  the anesthesia deadened all my sensation thus,  the muscles of my pelvic floor were so relaxed i had hard time determining if  i was pushing real hard or not.

my doctor urged me to push more.  i felt so numb and tired.  two staff came near me, pushed my stomach in shoving style.  it didnt work out.

they tried once more and it hurt like hell.  i felt i was going to die.  then i heard a cry.  a baby’s cry.  and i lost consciousness.

ten years have passed and our first-born is now all grown up.

may 17, 2012

happy birthday, son!

only two hours and it will be may 17 and yet first-born cant wait for that two more hours.

his original request was a hotwheels gift set. i bought this tomica set instead. glad he appreciated it.

happy birthday banner. the banner is still up there till now.

 

second son played a happy birthday song for his big brother.

spongebob table cloth

spongebob table napkins and plate with paper cups too

first-born’s favorite — chicken, carbonara and spaghetti

and barbecue!

of course, no birthday is ever complete without the chocolate cake. the colorful one is an ice cream cake

first-born played with his new toy at 630am, may 17

 

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heaven is foR Real.

i got a copy of this book two days ago.  ive finished reading it last night.

i got goosebumps all over my skin while reading some entries in the book.  i cant help but shed a few tears as well.  the book is a true story of a nearly four-year old boy’s accounts on his visit to heaven.

colton is the name of the boy. he lives in a small town in nebraska.  and the author of the book is colton’s father, todd, a pastor, with a little help from lyn vincent, a professional writer. colton underwent an emergency appendectomy at nearly age four. during the surgery, he slipped from consciousness and entered heaven.

people he met in heaven

in heaven, he met God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  He saw Angel Gabriel who sits on a throne on the left side of God the Father.   he had a glimpse of Mama Mary as well who kneels before the throne of God and at times, stands beside Jesus.  he also met his great grandfather pop who died 30 years before the little boy colton was born.  he had conversation with his miscarried little sister as well.  her little sister doesnt have a name though, she said their parents never gave her a name.  what’s more, there are many children in  heaven and God loves them so much.  there are no old people in heaven, too, and everyone has wings and a halo — all except Jesus.

things he saw in heaven

the little boy described that in heaven, Jesus has a horse and the horse is rainbow-colored.  there are big rainbows as well and their colors arent contained in seven only.    in heaven, there is a golden gate with many pearls on it.  he also described how big God is and how He fits in his golden chair.  he relayed to his parents too that Jesus has a sash and marks on his palms and feet (wounds from the crucifixion).

three minutes in heaven

colton stayed in heaven for three minutes which seemed to be longer from a heavenly perspective.

first time they heard of colton’s story

four months later after the emergency surgery on colton, the burpo family were traveling when todd reminded his son that they were very near the hospital where he had been treated. the little boy made an off-the-cuff remark, “yes, it is where the angels sang to me.”  thus began a long series of “beyond belief” revelations that stretched over a period of several years.

as mentioned earlier, heaven is for real is a true story of colton. colton had a near-death experience. he disclosed things which indeed rocked his parents to the max.  he started his story with an accurate description of what happened during the surgery — he went up out of his body, he looked down and saw the doctor working on his body.  he saw his dad in a little room by himself, praying while his mother was in a different room, and she was praying and talking on the phone.

in the years following the little boy’s heavenly encounter, todd was very interested in having colton describe Jesus.  he showed to colton many drawings and paintings of Jesus but the little boy would only say no.  nearly three years after the emergency appendectomy,  todd showed to Colton a portrait of Jesus painted by a young lithuanian girl named akiane, who likewise claims to have visited heaven at age four.  “that one’s right,” was the response of colton.

heaven is for real by todd burpo and lyn vincent is a nice read.  i recommend everyone to grab or borrow a copy.  the book personally caused me to imagine what heaven might be like.  the book inspired me to do good for me to go up in heaven and see for myself God’s beautiful blue eyes.  so do i believe in colton’s story?   more than anything else, the book not just gave me a wonderful glimpse of what lies ahead for BELIEVERS but reassured me that 1) there is a place called heaven, 2) Jesus really loves children, and 3) we be ready for the coming last battle.

 

thRow away boxes

do you throw away shoe boxes?  i do.  we have shoe cabinet anyway, is my plain and simple reason.

last week, we bought shoes for the boys.  and my eight-year old boy kept his shoe box.

later that night, i found the shoe box under his bed.

inside the shoe box are his knick knacks.  he mentioned to me that all his important things are inside that box.

1.  his diary, pencil and eraser

2.  his eyeglasses

3. his eye pod

4.  his st. michael prayer book

5.  his wrist watch

6.  a Christmas toy gift

he is indeed right.  shoe boxes can bring order to something messy.  and he even put some dividers inside the box to separate his valuables.  and those shoe foams?  he used them as cushion to protect his little treasures.

he even labeled his box and put his name on it.

 

our little vampiRe

saturday

saw bunso going down the stairs. noticed his upright collar.  thought he dressed hurriedly and forgot to tidy up his clothes.  learned he did the upright collar on purpose.

“i am a vampire!”  he announced with matching i-will-bite-you-on-the-neck action.

that simple vampire act indeed set the mood in our household.  i will have to say my morning was made truly glorious.

 

songs for mama

my mother bought a big piano for the boys.  i thought the boys would just play the piano whenever they feel like touching its keys.

i was wrong.

less than a week after the piano arrived, second son let me hear “best day ever.”  its one of the songs in spongebob squarepants.  when i asked him how he learned of the notes, his plain answer was ”i just played along with the song and tried to find the scale that matches the melody.”

honestly, dont have an idea on how “to find that scale that matches the melody.”

a few days and i heard new tunes — piano compositions by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Beethoven’s.

weeks passed and the kids are now finding by themselves the keys of various church songs — anima christie, take and receive, see ye first…

hours became days, and weeks turned into a month.  and  as always, i am excited to come home and hear my boys play the piano.  why? because before they start, they have this very special message that truly melts my heart  ”this song is for mama.” 

 

i love being a mother

of course, i love my kids.  and of the many things i do, i make sure that i do them right and do not hurt people in the process.  why?  because i want to be a good example to my boys.

just last night though, i felt something new.  more than loving my children,  i love being their mother.

youve got birthday gifts even six months before your special day.

the following day, i hang my two new paper picture frames on my work station wall.

 

latest find: chocola’s 36

we all love chocolates and i love them especially if they have mint or orange flavor on them.  saw these at landmark supermarket and grabbed two of each kind.  weather was so hot thus kept the boxes inside our refrigerator.  after a few hours, we tried both and we were satisfied.  weve finished the crispy orange first.  maybe because i preferred it more than the mint and i ate the most number of chocolates.  the mint flavored chocolate has dark choco on it and i dont enjoy dark as much as i appreciate the white ones.

we read the label.  it says the milk chocolate is made in belgium.  price is at P148.50 per box.  estimated number in a box is 36 pieces.

our rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars

our rating

 

kids RemembeR

last night, i fetched the kids from momi’s house, which is about 500 meters away from our house. we were walking, each with small bags on our shoulders, carrying food, clothes and toys.  i was too tired myself.  after arriving from work, i – without delay – tidied up momi’s house.  picked up kids’ mess.  washed dishes. swept the floor.  etc.

we were walking home when an empty tricycle passed by us.  I asked the driver to accommodate us.  he graciously nodded.  another man hopped in at the back of the driver.  and from a distance was his crying son.

“the son is crying because his father left him,” bunso said matter-of-factly.  “i also cried when papa left us.  good thing, he is now with us today,” he added.

my then five-year old son remembered everything.  yes, it was last year when husband packed his things in front of bunso when he and mother had a heated argument.

husband walked away -

 

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first-born’s school project: viewable online

first-born’s school project: viewable online

chance upon this one day.  it was my first-born son’s art project.  his teacher must have posted it as reference material for future art research paper.

so nice looking into it.

 

 

seRving two masteRs and what matters most

things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matters least. 

                                                                                                                    – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

i am a workaholic.  and  i admit it.  i value work very much and seldom do i avail of our company’s vacation or sick leave.

yes, i even work even when i am not feeling well.  because i always feel indebted to my boss‘s generosity.  and secondly, because i choose to work.

march 24 though was a different story.

it was a saturday and we do not have office work.  but i was tasked to report for work because i have to cover a sales rally.  i asked my boss to consider me out.  i need to attend to my son’s recognition day.  and two days before that, i had an argument with my husband.

i asked husband to attend second son’s recognition day instead.  he begged off.  he reasoned out that he needs to attend an important seminar.  the company paid for that.

then he texted me this - 

things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matters least.

in the end, i attended second son’s recognition.  i left husband in the house still busy attending to other things.  minutes later and i was surprised.  husband came and stayed till second son’s turn to receive his medal.

our son’s recognition was far more important than a paid seminar.

april 4, wednesday.  as part of the company’s observance of the lenten season, our boss declared april 4 as no work.  unfortunately, a client scheduled an important meeting on that day.  i told my immediate supervisor that i have a very good reason for not being able to make it on april 4.  i even told her the confidential reason.  and i thought she would understand.

i am back in the office.  i received an important reminder from my immediate boss.  part of it reads-

• Never assume that your supervisor will cover for your accounts’ activities because you need to be somewhere else. PR work is not easy so AEs must learn how to manage their personal time without compromising commitments to the job.

and i thought my boss understood me.

what is my point then?

as ive mentioned, i seldom avail of my sick leave nor my vacation leave.  i eagerly report for work because i want to.

i choose to work because i am happy with what i do.  and partly because i want to earn money.  i want to earn money because i want to save for the education of my kids.  therefore, i work for my kids.  and most often than not, i take my kids for granted because i am committed to my work.

indeed, no one can serve two masters.  either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. i cannot give all my time to my boys as my work will suffer.  or maybe i have difficulty balancing work and family.   i do not know.  but what i am certain of is-

things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matters least.

during bunso's graduation rites, he got a small sampaguita from his garland and gave it to me. "this is for you, mama."