july 15-21,World Youth Day,Sydney 2008

"YOU WILL RECIEVE THE POWER WHEN THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS COME UPON YOU;AND YOU WILL BE MY WITNESSES"(ACTS 1:18)WYD08 theme
BENEDICTO!!!went the chants of the different pilgrims from around the world walking towards the pilgrim venue site.Our own pilgrim group stayed in a caravan park and booked ourselves to a self contained cabin with ensuite,in a town a bit away from the city central of Sydney.
From Day one ,as we travel 14 hrs. by bus to Sydney,it was filled with excitement because while travelling we get to brush shoulders with other pilgrims from different nationality;Germans,Italians,Americans etc. when get to stop at a petrol stations,or highway fastfood shops.We go wave our flag (hehehe,no not phil. flag but Aussie flag since i was with aussies from Geelong,and yelled Aussie,aussie,aussie!OI!OI!OI!As expected they went waving thier flag to us.What was amazing is that almost 200 big buses were on the same road we were taking.I think all the pilgrims were hosted by Melbourne,for about a week...for the celebration of Days in the Dioceses throughout Australia n New Zealand.DID08 is a celebration leading up to World Youth Day in Sydney.Days in the Dioceses had program of events and activities,taking in tourist,spiritual,cultural,musical and life-changing experiences.It was an awesome feeling for me to know that i'm multiplied a hundred times as a catholic faithful...that in this particular occasion i'm not so controlled by what other "non-believer" would think of me.Most often times if ever i'll show some signs of my devotion,they misunderstood me of being "too imposing" of my faith.I was elated for the fact that there are hundreds and thousands of people like me in different sorts of culture and background gather together in prayer and worship and be one in sharing our catholic faith.To know the reign of God's love is already in our midst,i was teary eyed...walking with other pilgrims,hearing and seeing them chanting of jubilant praise and worship songs.It was such a victorious gathering for God!

tickets for the fairies concert -$60.maeve n niall spinnin around and dance- priceless

Its such a mystery what parents would do for thier kids...for me and willy, making our kids happy is more important than anything else.I know money doesnt come around like rain..but we do try our best to at least grant little wishes from our lil'bubbly maeve.Willy had been so sweet to surprise us one day and got us tickets to the concert, inspite of been hard up yet he had been so thoughtful to sacrifice some money for it.It was kinda exciting though hard to keep it a secret,i hadnt told maeve until we were actually there in the concert.And my goodness,was she so surprise and over the moon!I packed her Fairy costumes:wand,glitters,the works!My heart plumped up to see her so happy.With all the excitement of the day...when we got home,maeve was so exhausted that she had fallen asleep on her little couch.Ahhh,priceless indeed!

Fwd: FW: WHAT LOVE MEANS TO A 4 - 8 YEAR OLD

Note: forwarded message attached.hello guys..hope you like this one.i personally think the children have thier own God-given wisdom...in thier own limited understanding and expressions of words,they could still convey such profound outlook on such simple,trivial things.

Godspeed,

mira

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Five years na kami!

This photo was taken by dad the very first day willy and i met....and now it's our 5th wedding anniversary.It all started with just lunch after CLP in Banago...and hadnt looked back ever since...we've got two beautiful kids and each other...what more we could ever ask for?Im forever grateful for the gifts God showered me...in the face of willy and our two adorable kids.

"Marriage means accepting who we are and forsaking new,improved models of husband and wife.It means respecting the other above all,and never acting against the sacredness of that life joined to our own.It means being faithful.And it means we never stop working on being married."

"Marriage provides an oppurtunity for two people ,working together,to become the people that God created them to be.Each couple is called to leave behind selfishness and small-mindedness."

"Marriage is about finding someone who understands and accepts you-quirks and all.Your commitment means you join a club in which you and your spouse are the only members."

"Having that level of comfort makes marriage vital for the growth of each partner.Knowing you can be You is empowering.Speaking of her husband,one wife noted:"There is a phrase we use as an ice- breaker after an argument:'Do you love me anyway?"'

"Dont forget the "Third Party".Recognize God's great love for you-no matter what-and mirror that concept in your marriage.Respect each other.Pray together.

"The power of two,just as two heads are better than one in dealing with challenges,two hearts are certainly better at loving together through whatever problems life has in store"

Couples Prayer.....

Dear God,

Help me treasure my spouse as the most special and valuable gift you have given me.
Remind me that we are friends,and teach me how i might be a true friend in good times and bad.Remind me that we are partners,and open my eyes daily to oppurtunities to encourage my spouse.Remind me that we are lovers,and guide me into an unconditional love that bears all things,believes all things,and endures all things.Push me beyond selfishness toward a commitment that is total and timeless.Give me the strength to treasure my partner beyond what is easy,normal,or humanly possible.
Amen.

tribute to the best mom i've ever had:Happy mother's day

Here's the last card that mommy sent me...it said it all what mommy wanted to say...to me its her way of saying farewell and assurance that her love will keep me going.


"There is no influence so powerful as that of the mother"--Sarah Josepha Hale

As a a six year old kid i remember i was a clingy child,i hanged and tagged mommy's skirt everytime she would start saying goodbye to go to school as she was a teacher.I struggled through separation anxiety...i rather find ways to keep close to mommy as much as possible, being a big family...i have to compete myself for attention with the rest of the younger broods...it was tough but now looking back,i think i'm not as deprived as i would have thought back then.Mommy had a way of giving that special attention even when i wasnt aware of it.Most especially when we would get sick...we oftentimes would almost want to get sick bacause of getting that special TLC from mommy.She never fail to show us that she would do everything in her power to make us well again...even up until we were old enough to take care of ourselves.She would always say this to us "Ti maano na lang kamo kun wala si mommy nyo"..."
Mommy was a disciplinarian..well of course she has to be...she's running an army of ten,otherwise we would not be what we are today.Back then we all felt that mommy was a terror and ruthless on her ways of beating us up with a special bonus of sermon of the mount...which can be a torture to our ears.When we have sibling fights and squabbles...mommy would very well hand us a "binangon" (knife)and would tell us "ari hu binangon para tapos dayon".And it did...we would stop fighting...it had worked everytime.
Mommy was a neat freak...inspite of whatever living conditions we would be...nipa hut,a half finished house...it had always been regarded that our house was neat and tidy.I was taught valuable skills...at an early age we all had chores to do.Everyone has their own responsibilities and that everyone was liable to mommy if anyone had screwed up.Now being a full time mom and wife i had sown the seeds that mommy had planted.They were the valuable life skills...love,care and attention,discipline and order,patience and forgiveness,hardwork and dedication,hope and faith.I'm passing it on to my children...an on going process until they will too will pass it on...and so on...and so fort.
Mommy,if there's one thing i had regretted in my life is when i had not shown enough how much you mean to me.I hope and i pray wherever you are now....know that i love you back...i could not complain anymore that i hadnt been loved because i had been loved more than i could ever ask for in my life.
Thank you for all the love you gave to us...thank you as well for loving unconditionally your grandchildren especially maeve.I know you are watching over them as you are watching over us your children.
I love you mommy...Happy Mother's Day.

Mother,i love you so.
Said the child,I love you more than i know.
She laid her head on her mother's arm,
And the love between them kept them warm.
--Stevie Smith

trip to memory lane:fond mem'ries of mommy and daddy

im still in the process of grief and loss of the two most important people in my life....it has been 2 years or so since their passing away.There are still some moments when i would just cry like a river because i was missing them so much.As they always say you would most likely appreciate the person the most when they're gone.And yes its very very true....and its hurts as much too.Anyway i was rummaging through my box of photos when i got a couple of this old pics of the better days with mommy and daddy.
As children,we would oftentimes looking forward to sundays..particularly because that's "d Day" for a stroll in the plaza,a treat to the bachoyan and if we can push our luck sometimes we can have other good yummy stuff as well.Mommy and Daddy had never deprived us with good food.They always see to it that once they've got the ways and means to spoil us they would....more especially daddy.He would oftentimes wake us up in the middle of the night and had us enjoy delicious Bob's big boy burger..he would be coming home from his graveyard shift duty as a policeman and would always have something for us...siopao,balut,peanuts,inasal..etc.I often remember evrytime its mommy's n daddy's payday..its our happy day too because they would get nicest stuff we kids enjoyed like tenderjuicy hotdog,d biggest tin of milo,cornflakes (Dad liked it with condensed milk and we normally have it as a snack) and especially spaghetti(dad's specialty).
Good food and cooking will always be close to our hearts because Dad spent his time with us of showing us the love ofgood food..brings good memories too.


mommy,daddy ....wherever you are,i know you are both happy.hope you know that ive love you as much as i can show you.

people vs. things

i was watching oprah..yes im an oprah fan much to my husband's dismay...hehehe.anyway,as i was glued to the tv..this story caught my attention..a story about a guy who has a terminal cancer,he talked about his awakening to life ironically whilst diagnosed with cancer.He had a wife and two sons...well paid job,owned his house,got a nice classic convertible car...life had been so good to him...and yet while he had those things he never really had valued life as he would now that he has cancer.Having a terminal illness made him realize what's more important.Once upon a time he would be so wary of letting his sons get on his car because they might ruin the nice leather seats...or dent it or something.But soon after he was diagnosed of cancer...he saw what his kids saw in that car...it was just a THING. It was just a thing not people...People are more important.They are the ones who will feel the lost of You.They will be the ones who will missed you the most when you're gone.People are your friends,family,neighbor,boss,employee,stranger in the street...etc.Things are just things..when they are torn or lost we go to the shop to get another one.
This story inspired me and gave me one good moral lesson....life has so much to offer when we value the gift of people in our life.Happiness is just around the corner ...when you know what you really looking for.Its not in the big plasma tv..or a brand new car..or a diamond ring. Happiness is found in the laughters and giggles of children at play,when hubby brings a bunch of flowers,kisses from my kids and hubby...when we have a dinner out and have fish n chips...knowing i've got special friends just a heart beat away...having brothers and sisters though inspite of the distance we are close, its everywhere...you only have to look close to your heart and there they are.