thank you

i am humbled by your goodness Lord.  i am truly blessed because i have my family and the friends that i have.  they make me rich.  i have all that i need and more because you brought them into my life.  

to all of my friends and family...whether you are near, or far...whether the last time i saw you was at dinner earlier or 30 years ago, thank you.  my life would not be the same with you.

tama na ang drama...tayo'y magsaya!!!!  =D

who wants a drink? hehehe

bmw = broken machine with wheels

eto ang kapalit ng broken machine ni paul

honda civic hybrid in metallic pearl

goodbye, portland!

finally, after 2 1/2 years of living apart, my dear husband will be moving back home with us in the san francisco bay area.  he's still working for the same company but at the office that's about 40 miles away from home instead of 550 miles!

it all happened so fast...he sent his resume, he had a phone interview, he told his boss that he is applying for a job in a different location, he was interviewed by 3 different people and then received the job offer.  this all happened in about a week and he has a start date at his 'new' job on june 7th. 

there are so many things to organize with his move...on top of everything, his car broke down and will cost $5,700 in repairs!  so we're planning this move and thinking about what car to get to replace that lemon of a car that we got! 

we've had such bad luck with the pre-owned cars that we bought.  ayoko na!  brand new na with at least a 5 year bumper to bumper warranty!  nasakit na ulo ko sa mga sira-sira na yan!!!  nakakaloka na!  we want a reliable car, good gas milage, low-cost maintainance...the hunt goes on. 

anyway, i'm going to miss portland.  not that i'm there all the time, but it's a great place to visit.  i would still want to visit at least once a year and visit friends (well, ako, si gracious at jay lang naman ang friends ko dun hehehe) and go shopping. 

i'm excited to have my husband home for good.  parang totoo na kaming mag asawa nyan!  =) 

a beautiful spring day at the oakland zoo

sam, michelle's friend, celebrated his 4th birthday at the oakland zoo today.  i checked the weather on weather.com before heading out to make sure that michelle and i were dressed appropriately.  the website reported a high of 61 degrees at around 4 pm today at the zoo...that's pretty cold.  so i put on my boots and coat while i dressed michelle in layers.  

it was a short 30 minute drive to the zoo.  by the time we exited, the car's thermometer already said 69 degrees fahrenheit outside.  patay tayo nyan.  i was dressed for 60 degree weather!  it was a beautiful day though, so no complaints! 

michelle and sam really get along well....obvious naman sa mga pictures nila di ba?

it was our first time at the oakland zoo.   they had a small 'amusement park' type of section where all the rides were for kids 36 inches and above.

michelle really had fun and was really excited to get close to the goat and sheep.  we both didn't  know sheeps can 'baaaaaa' real loud! 

waiting for their turn at the rides

brushing the goat's coat

sam and mommy anna

 sam and michelle on the ropes

hopping along the lily pads

it was another beautiful adventure for mommy and michelle!

tama ba ang ginagawa ko???

sometimes i feel as if super higpit ko kay michelle.  feeling ko ayaw lang ni paul na pagalitan ako pag pinapagalitan ko si michelle dahil ayaw nya na mag away kami.  if paul was here, siguradong tatakbo kagad sya sa daddy nya para humingi ng saklolo.

it's very rare na mapalo ko si michelle (siguro twice ko palang sya napapalo).  mabait naman syang bata kaya hindi na kami umaabot sa point na mapapalo pa sya para lang sumunod at makinig.  i just give her 'the look' and she cries na.  she gets scared of me daw and she immediately hugs me and tells me she's sorry dahil matigas ulo nya.  i have to resist the urge na patahanin sya kasi i have to make a point.  hayaan ko muna syang kabahan at matakot dahil galit ako and then i explain things to her and tell her i'm sorry, too.  

am i being to strict or am i just being a parent?  i want michelle to consider me her best friend forever (oo, nagtatawagan kami na best friends forever), pero i want her to know that i am her mom before i am her best friend. 

ang hirap maging mommy!

who would you vote for?

just watching the news about the upcoming philippine elections make me exhausted.  9 presidential candidates...how in the world do you choose which one will do his/her job well with honesty and conviction?  will the automated voting machines work properly?  will counting be accurate?  will the machines make it easier to cheat or will it be harder to cheat (yes, you know EVERYBODY cheats). 

i remember when i was in elementary school, my dad's cousin's husband was running for mayor....and later on, one of my dad's best and oldest friends also ran for the same seat at my dad's home town.  my dad would take me with him on the campaign trail and i would distribute fliers to the people around the neighborhood...'onyo tahamic po for mayor!' or 'nanding arnesto po for mayor!' i remember those days with fondness.  unfortunately, my uncles lost the elections (and yes,they were cheated! hahaha!) but i think they're better off not winning anyway.  philippine politics is as dirty as it gets.  mudslinging, intimidation, vote buying, murder?  need i say more?

so with elections being barely 2 days away, my parents are glued to the tv set and watching the news even more closely than before.  i haven't really asked them who they would vote for...but i have a feeling they would vote for noynoy...

my husband said the other day that he read some news/blog story that asked the question....'do we owe the aquino family that much that we should elect noynoy?'  tama nga naman.  has noynoy proven himself to be the kind of leader his parents were?  whenever i see documentaries about ninoy, it really makes me think about the president that he could have been.  if he is half as good as he is portrayed in the documentaries, then i'm sure he would have been the best president the country has seen.  cory was an amazing woman, whose faith and courage i so admire.  she was the right president at the right time.  maybe not the best, but she did the best she can do  (at least that's what i think).  so back to the question?  has ninoy and cory's service to our country enough to elect their son? 

i don't think voting for noynoy based on his parents record should be enough.  i don't know if he would be the best fit among the presidentiables.  he stands to compete among the best qualified candidates i have seen in a long time...namely:  gibo teodoro, dick gordon, and yes, eddie villanueva (this is a whole other blog entry, don't ask me now). since i am not eligible to vote, i don't feel i need to do my research on the candidates but based on what i hear and read in the news, noynoy, gibo, dick and eddie seem to be the most 'pwede na' candidates.  

because the elections have been on my mind a lot lately, i even dreamed about the elections and who the winner will be.  in my dream, gibo teodoro won.  sya nga kaya ang manalo?  

abangan...

maybe...

i won't do anything for my bday kasi we're going to hawaii na. wala akong maisip na masaya na murang celebration e.