pets

So I decided to name my pets.

Trivial but I'll share with you the stories behind their names.

Fave was the first to be baptized although he's my 6th adopted. When I posted this pic of them six on Instagram, my friend commented "Fave!" And that's it.

Being the 6th and starting with F, I decided to alphabeticize their names so I know who came first when eventually they become many.

So first is Aries.

The hubby's zodiac sign. He, being my first cactus before all of this. I say this, with the belief that cacti are plants that survive in the dessert, take time and patience to flower and their thorns can hurt but only to protect themselves. Enough said.

Second is Blow.

Just because.

Third is Chorizo or Choz for short.

Just look at him and you'll know why.

Fourth is Dizzy.

She grows in many different directions I'm thinking eventually I will have to break her and replant a part of her and make it her mini-me and call it Dizzielet.

Fifth is Elle.

Well, she's elegant and regal and sosyal so she deserves the name of a supermodel.

So there. My new companions in the little garden. ❤🌵🌱🌼

just another weekend

Hello Monday morning!

It was a productive weekend. By that I mean, I was able to finish 4 weeks worth of laundry including 3 bedsheets. I bought new curtains.

I bought two new cacti and a potted giant rose plant.

I didn't do my tryinghardchef stint this time, except for the mandatory buttered shrimp for the little girl. But I did buy a tom yum soup pack for next weekend's shrimp. For a change. 😊 I also bought Yummy, a recipe magazine so I'm sure to try out new food this week. I am excited about that.

Kids and I attended The Feast Valenzuela again yesterday (2nd time this month). So heartwarming. Kids think we should attend it every week. Which makes me really glad that they like worship.

We haven't gone to taekwondo training for 3 weeks. It feels sad not to be able to go and letting my kids' "athleticity" go to naught. But last night Mommy O called and said the coach wants the little big man in the national tournament on the 26th. That's two weeks away so we gotta work up our schedule to be able to train.

So I'm off to a brand new week. Wish me luck. Good vibes only. God's will, God's time.

Parang sabi ni God...

Today I posted this on my Instagram account. Now I'm thinking of starting a blog of all these little instances when I think God is trying to tell me something. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When I was about to water the plants this morning, it rained a little. Parang sabi ni God, "Sige na anak, mag instagram ka muna. Sagot ko na ang plants." #blessed #simplejoys

Tapos umaraw na ulit. Sabi nya, "O maglaba ka na."

growing plants

i am not into plants. i'm into pets but i don't have a pet because i cannot take care of one, what with my hyperactive, choleric, type A personality kids who take up my time and energy. i do not want plants in my life as much as i don't want pets because of the responsibility they bring.

but i've been watering my mom's plants daily for over a month now. i don't have a choice because they are placed in the front yard of our little penthouse for the longest time and there is no one to take care of them now but me. so just this summer, i get up at 5:30 in the morning to water them. everyday.

and i dunno... i've grown a slight attachment to them. i pick out dried leaves and weed out those unsightly grass that grow here and there.  i got guilty when i went on vacation for 2 days and i got home and some of them dried up a bit. i also began to treat my daily watering chore as a form of exercise, what with me dipping the tabo in the timba for each potted plant. and boy, have i got a lot of potted plants to pour into so you can just imagine how many times i bend over and carry each tabo of water to each plant.

anyway, this morning, i was in awe to find most of "my" plants healthy and.... flowering!

over the last month, i've grown too with my plants. just as i did my best to nurture them, i nurtured myself. i've learned to be self-reliant now more than ever. things i never did before on my own, i can now do by myself. cooking. laundry. house-cleaning. more recently, driving. and basically, managing my household. i have re-affirmed that God gave me trials and hard times for me to become a better person. just as those plants experienced dry season, they are now blooming in summertime.

yeah. me. blooming in summertime. :)

belated happy mother's day to me.

A garden requires labor and attention. 

Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions.

They thrive because someone expended effort on them.

~Liberty Hyde Bailey