HUGE!!!

i am HUGE!!!

and it's not an exaggeration. (sigh) good thing my husband doesn't have the habit of criticizing or else i'd feel worse about my body. my belly has become very big that i can hardly walk. my back is always sore, i wish i could just sit down all day. =( paul said i shouldn't worry about the weight because he knows that i will definitely lose all of it after giving birth. talk about positive thinking!!! =)

we had the baby shower on saturday and that was a lot of fun. i would like to thank all my friends and family who helped make the event possible. they all worked hard and paul and i really appreciate everything they did. mj received a lot of presents and almost all of what the baby needs have already been provided. we feel so blessed because we know that our baby has the love and support of all those people even before she's born.

my mom told me that my cousin's wife in anaheim gave birth today. she had a c-section because her water broke last nite but the baby wouldn't come out and the umbellical cord was wrapped around the baby's neck so the doctors had to operate. they had a baby girl, laura jasmine. i pray that the Lord will bless baby laura with good health and happiness throughout her life. i'm sure she will be the apple of her parents (and grandparents) eyes.

as for me...i'm due to give birth on the 15th of september but i have a feeling the baby will come earlier than my due date. pastora mons had a dream that i was to give birth in late august or early september and mariano from work said he suspects i'm going to give birth on september 3rd. was that a confirmation? hehe

tomorrow, home depot will be coming over to change our windows (yey!). the windows badly need replacing because they are hard to open and are not energy efficient...no insulation from heat, cold or sound. we can hear people's conversation as they walk past the house. we were told it will take about a day and a half to replace the 16 windows in the house....yes, 16 windows. it is a big house and it has more than 16 windows but only 16 need replacing...we could replace all of the windows but that would be too expensive....we have a limited window budget. =)

paul's been getting a lot of well deserved rest. he's been waking up past 9 am since i started going back to work. we've already submitted the application for his work permit so he can really start looking for a job. it wont take long and he'll be bored out of his mind if he doesn't find a job soon...but i know that will change as soon as mj arrives. he'll be all over his precious little baby and work will be the last thing on his mind. i'll be going on maternity leave soon (next week will be my last week at work) so paul and i can sit here at home and wait for the baby to arrive. i pray that i don't have too much difficulty giving birth. i feel a little anxious about giving birth---normal for a first time mom, i guess. i told chel im bringing my ipod and will be listening to christian music during labor to keep me occupied. =)

paul's here!!!

i haven't had the chance to blog about anything...especially since my husband arrived on sunday night. finally!!!! the long wait is over and im happy to have him beside me during this last phase of pregnancy. =)

the baby shower is this saturday, too. yesterday paul and i finished working on the favors. and tomorrow we'll work on the prizes for the games.


we went to the social security administration office today and pretty much wasted the entire morning. we didn't know he had to apply for the work permit first and once he has that we can get him his social security number. oh well! we'll mail his work permit form tomorrow and hopefully he'll get his permit with a couple of weeks.

paul spent a good hour and a half to two hours cleaning my car. he doesn't care if it's cold or foggy. i told him the tree next door will just ruin his work but he did it anyway. at least now my car will always be clean. =)

not by might, nor by power...

...no amount of personal strength or talent can make us adequate for this life and its challenges. Only as we rest in the strength of Christ will we find His provision. When we acknowledge our frailty and dependence on Him, Christ’s strength can empower us for the troubles life throws our way. (taken from http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml Aug 10, 2006)

"'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty." Zechariah 4:6

today's culinary adventure: indian/pakistani food from naan-n-curry

i've never had indian food before because i was turned off when i was living with my roommate in college. she was indian and was a vegetarian. she was a great roommate, but i didn't like the smell of the food she ate...maybe she just doesn't prepare food very well. now i've changed my mind about indian food. it was really tasty...really spicy! i will take paul to naan n curry when he gets here. i told him i was going to have him try different cuisine. i don't think he's ever had indian food. this will be an adventure for him, too, just like it was for me today. =)

naan-n curry

for lunch, our office had the following:

Vegetable Biryani (Fried Rice Cooked with Vegetables)

Naan - Indian Bread (Plain Naan Layered with Butter)

Garlic Naan - Indian Bread (Stuffed with Ground Garlic)

Chicken Tikka Masala (Boneless Chicken with Sauce)

Lamb Boti (Boneless Lamb Marinated in Spices on Skewers)

Palak Paneer (Spinach Cooked with Homemade Cheese)

Aloo Gobbi (Potato with Cauliflower)

Baingan Bhartha (Eggplant Cooked with Onion, Tomato and Spices)

Gulab Jamun (Carmalized Milk Balls)

the food was a little greasy so i'd suggest go easy on the sauces...but they're all really yummy (becuase of the grease probably! hehe) and very very spicy...i love curry so the taste wasn't new or weird to me. i enjoyed pretty much everything i put on my plate...i didn't try the Aloo Gobbi because i don't like cauliflower.

i read mixed reviews online...more raves than rants. the rants are usually because the place doesn't look very clean, etc. i'm not too picky about things like that as long as i don't get food poisoning and the food is good...im fine eating a cheap, hole in the wall places like naan-n-curry. =)

downtown locations:

398 Eddy St
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 775-1349

Financial District
533 Jackson Street
San Francisco, CA 94133

when life gives you lemons...make lemonade!!!

just when you think everything's ok...life gives you lemons.

we thought that the plans for paul's work transition to california has been finalized. we believed the promises made by the company that paul was to work from the santa clara office to be with his family in the bay area (handa na nga daw ang desk ni paul e!), but a week before he was to leave, they drop a bomb on us...an ultimatum. it's oregon or resign.

he chose to resign.

i admire my husband for having the guts to quit. i know how much he loves his work. he has spent long hours and sleepless nights working really hard for the company. as his wife, i would have supported his decision even if it meant we would only be together on weekends while he worked in oregon. but God's will is for our family to be together and that's the direction we should go.

this is a big bump in our young marriage. in moments like these, one has to be strong for the other. i praise God for the strength that He provides...if i were not a believer in the Lord, i would have crumbled into pieces right now because of the disappointment and anger. but the Lord said, 'sa Akin kayo magtiwala. sa Akin lang' and that's what we're going to do. i've always told paul that if it's not this job, there will be something bigger and better waiting here for him. all we have to do is really trust God...to rely on Him in every aspect of our lives and this is what we are going to do.

last nite, after my tears have subsided and after we prayed to the Lord, i found peace...and again i prayed and thanked Him for all that He has given us. when we are faced with troubles, let us not forget the number of times He scooped us out of our problems...the countless times He turned our sadness into joy. the Lord said in nehemiah 8:10, '...do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.' the Lord has given us the joy of knowing that starting next week, we will be together as a family...and this bump in the road cannot take away that joy.

we bear no grudges on the managers or whoever decided this is how it was going to be. while we are disappointed...more than anything, we are sad that this is how things must end. we are sad that while they knew for at least 8 months now that paul was moving to california, they gave us an ultimatum a week before his departure. maybe they thought we would fold. maybe they thought we were after money (what money?! they're not even going to pay him fair wage! hehe)... i guess they underestimated the strength we have...unbeknownst to them, we serve a true, living, and powerful God who is never weak and whose plans for His children are always perfect...

God will use this to prove His glory in our lives...in our life, we want Him to be glorified. this may be a test to see if we are really going to put Christ in the center of our lives...we do and we will.

we chose to make lemonade out of all these. it may be a little sour and tart right now...but God will add the sweetness shortly...we just have to sit back, relax, and enjoy the summer while taking a sip of our very own lemonade.