Valentine's Day Recap

Valentine's Day brought me and Ruel back to our favorite out-of-town getaway....Tagaytay.

My Tootsieroll went out on a date so Hunnybed had me all to himself.  

He initially just planned a simple dinner at a restaurant but upon hearing that I wanted to go on a road trip I think he changed his mind because he suddenly announced that we were going to Tagaytay.  

That's my Hunnybed....always trying his best to give me everything I want just to make me happy. I'm one lucky woman!

We ate at Taal Vista Hotel, and went home right after.  There was no more time to go around afterwards because Tagaytay's roads were filled with cars of couples and families from Metro Manila. In fact, the usual one hour and a half ride from Tagaytay back to our house became a very  slow ride that took more than five hours!!!

Despite the terrible drive back to  Metro Manila, Hunnybed's temper didn't show.  He was as patient as could be and I really appreciated that.  I knew that he controlled his temper and impatience because he wanted to keep me happy until the end of our date.  This is just one of the reasons I love him so!

I didn't receive a bouquet of flowers this year but I received A Wealth of Flowers, In Bloom, A Hint of Citrus and a Happy Heart all in one box.

He gave me the gift the night before the 14th and I gave him his the night after the 14th.

It was actually kind of awkward because he came home from work while I was tying the bow....made me throw a little tantrum (out of embarrassment and frustration), gave him the box with the unfinished bow then afterwards changed my mind, took the gift back and finished tying the bow.  Weird huh?

Well, if you want to know what's inside, it's just a simple Parker pen with the engraving "Dad of 3 angels" (That's what he is--a dad of three angels).  My meager salary as a teacher could only afford this. But hey, it's the thought that counts, right?

So that's how Valentine's Day went for me this year.  

How did your day turn out?

I hope you felt as loved as I felt.

Happy Valentine's Day

Watching my favorite noontime show this afternoon reminded me how it felt to be in love and not being loved back in return. I think I spent half of my life feeling this way...although I have this feeling that half of that time I wasn't really in love, that half of that time I was just in love with the idea of love. Still...in my young self's mind it was unrequited love and as absurd as it may seem, unrequited love made the subject of my love even more desirable....because it was just like the heroine in a book or movie who fell in love with the hero long before he realizes he has fallen in love with her too. My young self longed for the complications of love that one would usually read in books or watch in movies.  Do you think I'm weird? I've always thought so...but maybe just maybe I'm not the only woman who has felt this way.

Anyway, back to unrequited love...when this girl on TV sort of bared her heart and soul in a poem she wrote and read to this guy whose response afterwards was lacking in honesty and feeling, I felt like I wanted to just take back everything she said. It was so embarrassing...something my younger self would likely to have done (but not probably on national TV). It also reminded me of one of my favorite scenes in Smallville (although I've never been a Chloe and Clark fan). I searched for it on youtube and I'd like to share it with you.

  

 Today, I am no longer that girl who loves but is not loved back. I no longer have to think, to wonder, to analyze and over analyze things. Today, I am a woman who loves and is loved in return for everything I am and despite of everything I'm not.  I have found the man who would love me no matter what I looked like or smelled like. With him, there is no wondering, no analyzing. With him, there's only the "knowing"...that I am loved, as simple and as uncomplicated as that.

So for those who are still single, for those who are still wondering and analyzing the things he does and says, or things he doesn't do and say, someday, it will all end. The right man is out there searching just as you are...you just have to keep your eyes and your heart open for him.

Let's all enjoy the love tomorrow and every day.  Whether we are single or not, there are enough sources of love in the world for everyone.  Receive love and spread it around. Happy Valentine's Day!

Three Years as Mr. and Mrs.

Hello friends!  I am back from a very exhausting journey outside the country.  I'm still contemplating whether or not I will tell you all about that.

But this, I'm sure I want everyone to know....

My Hunny Bed and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary on the 2nd of December.  He took me and Tootsieroll on a very quick trip outside the country and on the 2nd of December, right after landing at the airport, we drove directly to Tagaytay-- the charming little town where we got married three years ago.  We attended the late afternoon mass at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, the same church where we exchanged our vows. We booked the same  family suite where my parents, Toots and I slept  the night before the wedding.

My Hunny Bed and Tootsieroll in our suite

During dinner on the 2nd, a few hours after we came from the airport.  I looked so haggard!

my son, enjoying his chicken

I have always loved Tagaytay, and no matter how many times I have been there, and no matter how many times I have stared at the volcano and the lake that surrounds it, I still feel magic when I'm there. But this time, I didn't enjoy Tagaytay at all, I was just so exhausted... too exhausted.   I guess it was wrong to have gone out of the country too close to our anniversary.

I wanted to get Starbucks coffee with my Hunnybed on the night of the 2nd (just like we did on our second night as husband and wife)

first Starbucks coffee with my husband (December 3, 2012)

but I was just too tired.


I have always wanted to see the first rays of morning on the lake again just like on our first dawn as Mr. and Mrs.

first dawn as Mr. and Mrs. (December 3, 3012)

but I was too tired I forgot all about it. 

Even the cold breezy December night that Tagaytay is famous for and the reason many Filipinos flock to Tagaytay at this time of the year, failed to put a smile on my face.  If anything, it just made me feel uncomfortable.  I just wanted to escape it all and sleep.

It just wasn't right to be in my favorite place, with two of my most favorite people, on my favorite date, and not feel anything except exhaustion and the need for sleep.

Sad to say, that our 3rd anniversary was a happy occasion but it  didn't make me feel the way I wanted to feel.

Oh well....with God's grace and loving mercy, I'm sure there are still a lot of wedding anniversaries in store for us.  It's just so sad that I waited for a whole year for it, with joyful anticipation and it didn't turn out the way I wanted it to be.  And now I have to wait for another year. :(

Thank you, God for giving me a loving man who always tries his best to make me happy!  I want to have a lovely date with my husband soon.

Christmas Doesn't Feel the Same This Year

Christmas at Powerplant Mall last year...I took this picture last year, brought me so much joy which explains the text.

Christmas has always been my favorite time of the year.  I used to get all excited each time I see / hear the first signs of Christmas.  Each little decor, each little tree would certainly receive my "oohs" and "aahs",  as if I were eight years old, instead of the "old" middle-aged woman that I was.

Last year, the Christmas season was even more special. We learned that I was pregnant on the 13th of December and our home and hearts were filled with gratitude, hope and even more and greater joy. Every prayer was offered for the baby in my womb and I claimed the baby as God's Christmas gift.  But you know how that story ended...so this time, I look at the sights of Christmas and I get sad.  I no longer feel that giddy excitement that I had always felt.  I look at the lights, and colors of Christmas and I have an empty feeling in my heart...empty save for sadness.    I hate to say it but Christmas has lost its luster. This year, it  just reminds me of everything we have lost.

I was hoping to get pregnant again this December but I don't know if we can even try now that I may have stones in my kidney.  I have to go see a urologist soon.

So, you see, it's hard to get excited for Christmas.  Last year, I placed a text on that first photo that said, "Who wouldn't love Christmas?"  I was so naive.  Now I know better.  I just hope that as Christmas comes nearer,  my heart may somehow find even just a fraction of the joy that I have always felt on Christmastime.

My Favorite Memory -- Day 5 of 100-Day Photo Challenge

I know I said that I was doing a 100-day photo challenge and you might be wondering how I can be on day 5 when I haven't posted anything for day 3 and day 4.  I didn't like the prompts for those days so I just decided to skip them.

Today's prompt is a picture of your favorite memory.  I have more than just one favorite memory but I have chosen this to share with you today.

This is a photo of my first dawn as Mrs. Ruel Remo.  I can't remember why we woke up at around 4am that day but I was glad we did because we woke up to this!  Our suite had big glass windows and had almost a 360-degree view of the Taal Lake and Taal Volcano and the view was stunning!  Who could continue sleeping after seeing this?! I had to stand up and take this photo from inside the glass window.

Ruel and I watched the movie, Tangled after staring at the view for some time.  And you could just imagine how it was --  the song, I See the Light was playing, a beautiful dawn was breaking right in front of me and Ruel, and all the while, I was in his embrace!   I felt so happy and blissful.


And after thirty minutes to an hour, the sun finally rose! A brilliant sunrise signalling a new day, a new and brighter life -- the first day of our happy-ever-after!

It was a happy morning filled with love and hope for the future.

What's your favorite memory?

Guess What I Did Last Weekend

You'd never  guess what I did last Saturday. I attended my former husband's wedding. (Our marriage was declared null and void from the very beginning both by the church and state so technically there was no marriage to begin with but I don't know what else to call him. And besides, I don't want to just call him my son's father because I want to validate the legitimacy of my son's birth.)

So anyway, I attended the occasion together with my son and my husband,  Ruel who is truly such a good sport.   Love him!

My son  played A Thousand Years on his violin for the bridal march and he also acted as a cord sponsor.

This is my son and the other cord sponsor during  the march of the entourage.  I wanted to post the video of him playing A Thousand Years but it was upside down and I didn't know how to rotate it because I couldn't see any option to do so.

    Maybe many of you are wondering how it feels like to see a man you once married marry someone else right in front of your very eyes.  It felt weird. But I sincerely felt happy for them. For many years, I have carried this guilty feeling that I somehow ruined Fidel's  life. He was my first boyfriend and I was 23 when I married him, I was so immature. I expected so much, I expected something like a romantic movie and when I didn't get it, I was disillusioned and became unhappy. I focused on the things he did wrong, and didn't see what he was doing right. I made excuses for the things I did wrong and saw myself as the only victim in our situation.  Now, seeing him happy with another woman, I felt happy too. I  found my happy-ever-after almost three years ago and now he has found his and I just wish them all the best. I pray for their happiness but most specially, I pray that he will become an even better father to our son now that he is happy with his wife.

The newlyweds...and yes, I was the one who took this photo. :)

Two of his brothers were there and though I don't know what kind of story has reached their ears regarding the reason I wanted to have our marriage annulled, they were still the same warm people that they've always been to me. They kissed me and hugged me and never showed any sign of ill feelings towards me. When I told them that it was time for me, Ruel and  my son to leave, his two brothers hugged and kissed me and one of them whispered as he hugged me tight, "You're still my sister."  It was an emotional moment for me because I easily get touched by gestures like this.

Ruel and I had our picture taken with Fidel's granddaughter. Yes, he has a granddaughter from his nephew.   Our sweet Sofia should be almost as old as she is now had Sofia been alive.

This is my son with his Grandpa Fernando from whom he got his second name.  It was so sad seeing him so old and so frail.  He looked so handsome and so strong eighteen years ago when I married his son.

Generally, I was glad that the occasion gave my son a chance to bond with his relatives in his dad's side.  He seldom sees them as they live in faraway Zamboanga City in the island of Mindanao.  And this time, he was able to have some sort of a jamming session with them when the program was over and a lot of the guests had left.  One time, he played "Stand by Me" on the keyboard while his cousin, Iker sang.  He also played two Beatles songs on the electric guitar while his Uncle Balby sang the lyrics.  I loved listening to them and took lots of pictures.  It was truly a moment worth remembering.

With Cousin Iker

My boy and his dad.

I hope and pray that my son is not sad about his dad marrying and that it won't affect him negatively.  I hope he knows how much we love him, and that no matter who my husband is and who his father's wife is, he is our son and though his dad and I live separate lives, we are still his family.  It's just that his family is bigger than most, because he has two dads and now, two moms.  But of course, it is I who loves him best. :)

Sunday Currently (Turned Monday Currently) vol. 2

Here's my Sunday Currently on a Monday.  I'm sure it's still Sunday to most of the bloggers who have linked up with Siddathornton but where I am, it's Monday night.  

I am currently...

reading my students' make up quizzes.  After that, I'll be checking their projects.  It just seems so endless.

writing nothing but scores, scores and scores on my record sheet.

listening to our wedding soundtrack.  Right now, Ever After is playing.  That's the song that was played when we were first introduced as Mr. and Mrs. at our reception.

thinking that I really really need a good vacation and plenty of rest.  It's been more than a week and I still have the cold I wrote about in my last post.

smelling like hair color.  I bought L'oreal Excellence Creme yesterday to put highlights on my hair but it didn't work the way I wanted it to.  Ruel, my husband kept telling me to have my hair done at a salon but I didn't want to spend too much money on my hair so Ruel and I just did my hair last night after a lot of grumbling on his part.  I regret my decision though.  All I got is the same black hair plus the  bad smell of hair color which is proving to be stubborn.  I can still smell it even after I have shampooed my hair.  Maybe next time, I should listen to my husband.  I hope I remember this next time.  Hahaha!

wishing for an extension of the deadline for the submission of our grades.

wearing GAP pajamas and shirt.  I'm not yet ready for bed.  Still haven't had dinner but this is mostly how I look when I am at home.  I'm always in my pajamas.

loving the travelers notebook that I sewed myself.

hoping to have more free time soon so that I can finish sewing notebooks for my friends.

Let's all have a happy and productive week.  Good vibes!!!

For more posts like this, check out Siddathornton.

Sunday Currently vol.1

Tonight, I'm linking with Siddathornton for Sunday Currently.

I have more of these waiting for me in school.  :(

Currently...

Getting ready for bed, with a bad case of cold and nasal congestion.

Reading...

nothing for quite a while now.  My busy schedule as a teacher sadly doesn't permit me to do the things I love to do and one of them is reading fiction.

Writing....

some pitches for a screenplay I'm planning to write. Woohoo!  I'd be the proudest if and when I'd really get to write one.

Thinking...

that I should really find time to read something before this month ends.

Smelling....

nothing.  My nose cannot smell anything at the moment. I cannot even breathe!

Wishing....

I'd feel a lot better tomorrow so I can finish all the exam papers I have to check.

Hoping....

to make the most of my break time tomorrow to finish at least half of the exam papers.

Wearing...

a dark pink shirt and white pajamas with pink, blue, and green hearts.

Loving...

my new pet...

Wanting...

to finish this post asap so I can go to sleep already.  I really feel terribly sick at the moment and need all the rest I can get.

So that's my Sunday Currently.  If you want to read more posts like this, head on to Siddathornton's.

I hope you had a lovely Sunday and that you feel a lot better than I do.

Versatile Blogger Award and Woven Bag!

It has been a busy but wonderful day.

I woke up to find out that I have just been awarded  the Versatile Blogger Award!

Thanks so much Chris for nomination!  Check out her blog for her latest adventures at http://pinaythrillseeker.blogspot.com.

According to the rules of the award, I have to give seven information about myself.  I don't know how good I'll be on this one.  I've had written so much about me during the 15 Day Challenge but here goes...

 There was a time I wanted to be a nun.  I just thought I'd be kicked out of the convent for laughing too 

 much and too loud.

   I am allergic to shrimps and crabs but I still eat them.  I just drink plenty of water afterwards.

   When I was in 2nd grade, I was so shy and quiet that my teacher sat me next to the noisiest girl in class to keep her quiet.

I've given up traveling abroad twice (the second time  to five countries)  in the name of love.

I love buffet meals.  I once got dizzy from overeating.

I loved to catch dragonflies when I was young.  I was very good at it.

I consider myself a frustrated singer and actress.

I'm just a new blogger so I can only choose a few bloggers to nominate for the award.
I need more time to complete the list as I want to be totally sincere about the nomination.

Click on the links and visit my first five.
1. Allie
2. Sar
3. Kristin
4.Jennifer and Tiago
5.Yelena

Nominees, please check out  http://versatilebloggeraward.wordpress.com/vba-rules/ to know what you have to do.


On a totally different note, here's why I've been busy today.

Sheryl Cruz, a local actress and the mother of one of my  students, invited me to take weaving classes.  She's been attending the same for quite a while and have already made a LOT of fabulous bags made of woven paper.  It's just so bad I wasn't able to take pictures of her bags.

       This is mine...

Me...with one of the organizers.  She's the one holding a wallet.

The purpose of the program is actually to give livelihood for housewives.  The one in red shirt and the other girl in stripes are women who have already been trained to  make bags and they were the ones who taught us today.  The one with the eyeglasses is Sheryl Cruz.

Here's Sheryl Cruz.

 She's very passionate about new-found hobby.  Her designs are just fabulous.  Loved them all!

She was also very nice to me. Thanks so much, Ms. Sheryl!

                                      Here's the wallet you saw a while ago... now in focus.

I haven't finished my bag yet.  Once it is done, I'll post it here for you to see!

I have to go weave now!

Thursday Thoughts

This is a link up with Sar.  

(one)

 School is starting in just a week and there are still a lot of things I need to prepare.

We'll have our Parent Orientation/Meet the Teachers tomorrow.   I'll be in school the whole day.

(two)

I was in Intramuros in the morning (business purpose) and fell in love with the place for like the hundredth time.  I kept thinking , "I should take a picture of this building, and that building ...."  but  we were in a hurry and there was no time to stop and do all these.   I'm so looking forward to our dinner date there on the 8th!  Hopefully, we'd get there before the sun goes down and I can take as many pictures as I want.

(three)

I need to write another letter to another bishop regarding the procedural fee that I incurred during the processing of my petition for the nullity of my first marriage.  Somehow, problems keep sprouting up.  With God's help and grace, I am filled with great hope that Ruel and I will be able to overcome all of them and that we will finally receive the sacrament of Holy Matrimony on the 2nd of December 2012.  I think these problems or trials are going to make our wedding even more beautiful.  

(four)

Pre-opening activites start on Tuesday next week and there are thousands of butterflies in my stomach.  I'll have a big role to play and I am not that confident that the people I'll be working with will be as cooperative as I want them to be.  Most of them are  older than I am, and this is the first time I'll be working with them.  I really don't know what to expect.

This is all I can think of at the moment. I hope you head to Sar, read what is on her page and link up!

Angel

I saw this angel standing beside the entrance of the building of the Matrimonial Tribunal of the Catholic Church.  One of his hands was holding a basket that seemed to be full of round things. The other was holding a string  with a fish hanging from it.

It wasn't exceptionally beautiful but this was the first time I've seen a statue of an angel with a fish and a basket.    I could not keep my eyes off it.  It aroused my curiosity and interest.

I wondered:

Why was it holding a fish?

What was inside the basket?

What was the message of the sculptor?

Was this connected to the phrase "fishers of men?"

Anyone care to interpret this work of art?

Trip to Tagaytay

 I know I was gone for only a day but I really missed my blog!  I guess I am now a certified blog addict huh?

So, here's why I didn't post anything yesterday....Ruel and I were  in Tagaytay the whole day! We had to talk to the parish priest in Lourdes Church about one of our wedding requirements which I was somehow having problems with.

My mom and my son tagged along, wanting to escape the terrible heat in the city. Unfortunately, a lot of city folks were thinking the same thing!  The usually one and a half hour trip to Tagaytay became a
three-hour trip because of the traffic.

Here's what the sky looked like during the drive to Tagaytay

The long trip left us so hungry that by the time we entered Tagaytay, we just had to drop by Ming's Garden for a quick snack.  Ruel and I had already tried their  suman latik .  We liked it a lot so we ordered the same thing.

Ming's Garden, aside from being some sort of a restaurant, sell gardening plants and seedlings of trees.


Some plants around the restaurant.

I really can't be a science teacher because I don't know whether this is a dead butterfly or a dead moth!

I  saw this little gardener inside the ladies' room.  Cute!

And her husband gardener was on the other end of the sink! They were so cute I just had to take their picture!

We didn't stay for a long time because  I wanted to get on with business.  Problem was, their was a wedding at the church and we were told to come back at 4:30 pm because Father was going to officiate two more weddings after the one that was just about to take place! Goodness gracious! It was just 11:00 am!  

It wasn't as if there was nothing to do.  It was the exact opposite. However, we were not there to do these things. We were actually on a budget, given the fact that we were saving all our money for our wedding and our future home.

Well, anyway, because I've always been a sucker for weddings,  I couldn't help but take a peek inside the church and have a quick glimpse of the gowns. The bride's gown was cream, heavily beaded, and lovely!  Sorry, I didn't take a picture, I wish I had but I was thinking whether it would be polite or not....

Here's what caught my eye...lovely chandeliers!  The last time we went there, there was no wedding so they weren't lit, but this time they were and I thought they were absolutely stunning!

Next stop was Villa Ibarra,  This is where we are going to have our wedding reception.  I wanted to show my mom what the venue looked like.

The Villa was quiet and as soon as we got permission to go down to the reception area, I felt so happy!  That was the first time I felt that I had Taal Lake and Taal Volcano all to myself.  We were the only ones in the patio and we had the view all to ourselves!  We didn't have to take turns with tourists in taking pictures of the best view of the lake and volcano.  At that time, I felt I owned the lake and the volcano!  

So, this is the view from the reception area.  We are all praying for good weather.

That's the villa.  My family and I will be staying in one of the suites the night before the wedding.  The reception will be held right where I was standing when I took the picture above.

And the night of the wedding, right after the reception, Ruel and I will be in another suite outside the main villa,  which will give us an almost 365 degree view of the lake and volcano.

Lunch was at Max's.  Ruel and I would usually find a place with a good view of the lake and the volcano every time we are in Tagaytay, but as I have said, this was not our usual Tagaytay "date" trip so Max's was okay.

My naughty son with grandma

He just loves getting this kind of reaction from his grandma!

Happy couple...I love him so!

Lunch took almost 2 hours.  Next stop was Flowers of May where we got a pretty good deal for our entourage and for the church.

We still had an hour to burn before we could talk to the priest so we drove to Sonya's Garden to buy pan de coco.

Sonya's Garden is a bed and breakfast place some 40 minutes away from Lourdes Church.  It's also a favorite venue for weddings and other celebrations.

Flowers of course were all around!

Doesn't this look a lot like a pea shooter?

 There were a lot of vases and pots like these in the property.

 At the bakery at Sonya's

We also bought cookies and crinkles, aside from the pan de coco.

Well...I really don't know what this is called but this little guy and his buddies kept on making noises around the area.

We finished talking to the priest before 6 pm.  But before finally leaving, we dropped by Rowena's to take home some of their yummy goodies.

I prefer Rowena's more than Colette's.  There's a wider selection here.

Vinegar made from pineapple....

Lambanog, a really potent local white wine. It's made from coconut water.

Unlike Colette's, You can sit down and eat inside Rowena's.

They also serve coffee.

And as if, we still didn't have enough food, we still stopped at one of  the fruit stands to buy fruits.

The drive home was longer than the drive in the morning!