pregnancy

Being pregnant in your thirties has its downside. It poses more risks and you have to be more careful in every activity. I am on my sixteenth week and have been put on bed rest for a month. I have about two more weeks left. It is only now that I can afford to use my laptop and write blogs again. Before, every time I would walk, sneeze, and sometimes even sit, I would spot. It scared me. Now, I can do a little walking and a little activity and there's no more spotting. I am trying to do more activities gradually to prepare me when I get back to work.

I am excited to see my baby next year. It does not matter if it's a boy or girl as long as he/she is normal. 

Dolphy

I am watching the necrological services of the Philippine's King of Comedy. He died at the age of 83. What an amazing life he had. He had an aura that draws all kinds of people to him. I had the privilege of having a picture taken with him during our vacation in Singapore. He was with his whole family. He was so generous of his time. I was so happy that time because even if he did not know me, he graciously posed for our picture.

Dolphy is one of a kind and his contributions not only to showbiz but most importantly to his community will never be forgotten.

Unexpected Blessing

My husband and I are going through minor challenges that require major decisions. We have more than one option and it makes it harder for us to decide which path to take. We always take it up to the Lord and trust that whatever decision we make is in accordance to His will.

This week, we have received a wonderful unexpected blessing. We have hoped for this and we feel that God's timing could not be more perfect. We feel very blessed to know that we are surrounded by loving family and friends. We know that there will be more challenges in the future but knowing that we have a God who truly loves us, we can look at our future with peace in our hearts:)

Find out what you're prepared to die for, and then don't die for it---live for it.

Excerpts from Powerful Prayers

Some pray to marry the man they love,

My prayer will somewhat vary.

I humbly pray to heaven above

To love the man I marry.

                                                     

                                                      ---Rose Pastor Stokes, "MY PRAYER"

Excerpts from Powerful Prayers

The most important component of happiness, by far--there isn't a close second---is gratitude. Nothing instills gratitude as much as religion and prayer done correctly. Prayer is a major vehicle to gratitude. Not request prayer, grateful prayer: Thank you, God.

Our role in universe--it's not original to me--is completing God's work by using our free will to be good and holy, to make a better world than we have inherited, to appreciate what we've been given, and to enjoy it. I am absolutely convinced it is a sin to be unhappy. It's a statement to God that he blew it.

                                                                                                                   ---DENNIS PRAGER
                                                                                                                              (page 234)
                                                                       

Excerpts from Powerful Prayers

We turn to God for help when our foundations are 

shaking only to learn that it is God shaking them.

                                             -----CHARLES WEST

      THEOLOGIAN, PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Excerpts from Powerful Prayers

Prayer is compared to a bow:
the more you stretch a bow,
the more accurately it will score a bull's eye and not miss the target;
so too prayer:
the more concentration and proper intent a person adds to it,
the more it pierces the heavens and breaks through the firmaments.
                                                   ----THE SAYINGS OF MENAHEM MENDEL OF KOTSK

Powerful Prayers

I am currently reading a book written by Larry King about Powerful Prayers. Larry King has admitted that he is doubtful about praying. His daughter who is religious convinced him to write about how powerful people pray and their views on prayer. I am still on the first few pages of the book and already I have read so many things that I really like. I would like to share one of the thoughts of Rabbi Katsof (Larry King's friend and co-writer) about prayer. 

Rabbi Katsof said that there are four things one must keep in mind about prayer:

1. Prayer is easy and difficult. It is easy because it is just like any conversation. It is difficult because prayer requires attention to our words and thoughts. A sincere and focused prayer can transform one's life.

2. Prayer could change you. We become a different person after making a request. Prayer can be an instrument for change if we only allow it. We must remember though that God knows better what is good for us. What we think is best for us may not be what God thinks is best for us.

3. Prayer connects you to your true self. Prayer is not for God but for us. Every time we pray, our soul is being fed. Prayer helps us learn what is really inside our hearts.

4. Prayer goes to the source. Prayer is our means of communication to the creator of this Universe. 

Losing Weight

When my husband went to Manila last week for training, I took the opportunity to try and lose weight. It is hard losing the pounds whenever he's around for he loves to cook and  I just could not resist savoring his recipes. I tried USANA's Nutrimeal meal replacement for helping me lessen my cravings. It actually worked on me. I have stopped drinking the Nutrimeal two days ago and it's amazing that until now,  I do not look for my usual cravings like chocolates and junk foods. The best of it all is that I could not eat a lot. It seems that my stomach had been trained to eat just enough. I hope this will continue because once my husband starts cooking again, I don't know if I can resist:)

missing someone

I miss my husband. He is currently in Manila undergoing training on Marketing. I feel really blessed that I have him in my life. He is not only my husband. He is my best friend. With him, I feel really secure. We can talk about anything under the sun. I miss how he makes me laugh and how he grabs his guitar and just sing his heart out. I can't wait for tomorrow for he will be arriving. I wish Friday is a holiday:)

Proverbs 19:21

 "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails."

Everyone of us plan for our future. We all have different dreams and aspirations. Ever since we learned how to think, each day of our lives involve planning. We plan to watch a movie but when the scheduled date arrives, something comes up and we could not go. We plan to take up Psychology in college but when enrollment comes, we take up Accountancy instead. We plan to go to a certain school but sometimes a better one comes along. We plan to take up Law but because of financial constraint, we find work instead. 

Some plans are just part of our everyday living and if it does not push through, we do not feel any significant effect on our future like the missed movie or the missed lunch date. But some plans truly affect our future. Sometimes we question God why things have to happen. But like what is being said in the above verse, whatever plans we have, the Lord's purpose always prevails. It is good to have plans but it is more important to lift up all our plans to God for we do not know what will happen in the future. I truly believe that God only wants the best for us. Sometimes or most of the time, our plans are not the best for us. God sees the end of our tunnel. We can only see the present. It is always best to put ALL our trust in the Lord. It is the only way to be at peace amidst all our uncertainties.

Guyabano

One of the most dreaded illness is cancer. More and more have been affected by cancer and treatment is really expensive. Sometimes diagnosis comes in late and chemotherapy might not be as effective if having been detected earlier. In our world today, a lot of medicines, food supplements, vitamins are offered to combat all kinds of illnesses. I believe they really work if the manufacturer can be trusted. However, before taking all these medicines, I think it is also wise to try all the natural fruits, vegetables, etc created by God. The guyabano fruit is one of them I have been amazed to know that we can benefit not just from the fruit but also from its leaves and bark. Guyabano has been known as the cancer killer. We have been blessed to have our own guyabano tree in our backyard. Every night we boil the leaves and the bark and this serves as our tea. We also eat the fruit and what a yummy fruit it is. I think this will truly help us fight not just cancer but the other illnesses that might affect us. Research has shown that guyabano is a very powerful antioxidant. It only kills the bad cells of our body. Truly, our God is so amazing that HE created this wonderful fruit for us to enjoy.

USANA's Nutrimeal

Do you have weight problems? Do you find it hard fighting those unhealthy cravings? Lack of discipline can truly hamper one's goal of losing weight. I personally do not believe in fad diets. I think the only way to lose and maintain your ideal weight is by eating right everyday. Lifestyle change. Sometimes it takes a lot of effort to correct how we eat. Well, I have found a product that can help in correcting our bad eating habits. Discipline must be in the picture if you take this product. Have you ever heard of USANA's Health Sciences? Well, USANA offers a wide variety of quality food supplements and beauty products. They offer the RESET Program where your cravings will be regulated. This will only take about 5 days. You take their Protein Milkshake as a meal replacement which tastes really yummy. I have tried their chocolate milkshake and it tastes like real chocolate to me. They have other flavors like Strawberry and Vanilla. Aside from drinking their shake as a meal replacement, you have to take their mega anti oxidant, Essentials and their Proflavanol which helps our cardiovascular health and slows down the aging process. I have been taking the Essentials and Proflavanol for about three months now and I feel really good about my health. In case you want to try these products, just send me a message and I can tell you more about USANA's Products.

Melaka

Our trip from Singapore to Melaka took around 5 hours. We left Singapore via S&S International Express. Since we are only staying overnight, we booked our tickets round trip which cost us $47 SG. We left at 9AM and we arrived in Melaka at 2PM. From there, we rode the taxi to our lodging which is a guest house named D'Laksamana. It's a three bedroom house complete with kitchen facilities and recreation area. If ever you plan to go to Melaka, I would recommend D'Laksamana for your lodging. Its location is a walking distance to everything that you need to see in Melaka. It's near to the World Heritage site where you can see old buildings like St. Paul's Hill or A Famosa. It was a Fort built by the Portuguese which ruled in Melaka from 1511 - 1641.

The Dutch took over in 17th Century. There are also a few old churches, the Dutch graveyard where you can still see the old tombstone dating back to fifteen hundreds. One famous streets in Melaka is the Jonker Walk. It comes alive at night every weekend. When we came back from our World Heritage Tour, we were surprised to see the activity at Jonker Walk. When we took our walk in the afternoon, it was still quiet. We had so much fun trying local delicacies and enjoying the music and just observing the other tourists having fun as well. We hardly slept at all. We tried to make the most out of this historically beautiful place because our bus will leave at 8AM the next day. We wished we had more time to explore the place more. But we did not regret going to Melaka as it was a different experience seeing all these beautiful old building

Universal Studios Singapore

Universal Studios is not only for kids. When my friends and I visited Singapore, we allocated one day to be spent in that place. I'm glad we went on a weekday. Aside from it's much cheaper having to pay only $68 SG as compared to $85 SG if on weekends, the longest time we've waited on queue was only about thirty minutes. We were able to enjoy around 90% of the rides and sites. What is lacking on weekdays is that there are no fireworks during closing as compared to weekends where there are fireworks display. Nevertheless, our group truly enjoyed the place and most importantly, we all bonded.

When I set foot on Universal Studios, I felt like a kid again. I was so excited. We tried almost every ride. The ride that I most enjoyed was the Transformers The Ride 3D. It was a roller coaster but we had 3D glasses on. We were freedom fighters and Optimus Prime was there. It was the best ride for me. We were all shouting and raising our arms. We truly felt like we were actually there. It was amazing.

There is one ride that I did not dare try. It was

the Battlestar Galatcitca: Human vs Cyclone. Only three of us dared to try it. They said that they screamed like girls during the ride and that they would not go again. At least they were brave enough to try it out. In this ride, your feet will be hanging if you ride the blue roller coaster. The blue roller coaster is the Cyclone. My friends were lucky they queued in BattleStar because their feet would not be hanging. Even if their feet was not hanging free, it was still scary but thrilling according to them. They were proud they had the guts. The three of us just stayed behind and watched their things.

There were really a lot of rides that I enjoyed. I would mention the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure. Just be prepared to get wet. We were soaked wet after the ride but it didn't matter. I would just like to mention that Universal Studios are really clever in their business. Since we know that this ride will get us wet, they have provided a locker for a fee. Locker prices depends on the size. We paid $4 SG four our locker and we really tried to squeeze all our stuff in just one locker. Then, they sell raincoats which costs $3 SG. We

did not buy for ourselves thinking that we would easily dry. When we got out after the ride and we were soaked, we saw a drying machine which costs $5 SG for 5 minutes. If only our clothes were wet, we could have dealt with it. The only problem was that our shoes were wet as well. I guess you have an idea what it feels like walking on wet shoes. So we had no choice and we rented the drier. I guess that's how it is. Fun sometimes takes some spending on our part. It was a small price to pay for all the fun that we had. This clearly shows that age is only a number. I truly felt like a kid ready to explore everything when I was there. Well, at least almost everything:)

My next post will be our trip to Melaka, Malaysia the next day. Till then:)

Singapore

I love to travel. Once again, I have been blessed to travel back to Singapore with friends really close to my heart. And the best thing was that my husband was with me. Yes, it was supposed to be our honeymoon and we were supposed to be alone yet somehow, I felt that it was just right that we had our friends with us. At first, I was a bit worried because we had our church friends, my friend since elementary and my husband's friend since high school. I did not really know if they would click. When we all met at the airport, everyone was reserved and sort of feeling the the rest of the group's personality. My hubby and I stood as their parents. We prepared food for them and sort of guided them on what to expect during travel and when passing to immigration. When we got to Singapore, we were met by my sister in law and her fiance and took us straight to our hostel. We stayed at Bunc Hostel in Little India. It's a new hostel and I was impressed by their cleanliness and I loved the design. I have posted some pictures of the hostel. I was not able to get pictures of our room because I guess we were always tired when we came back. During the duration of our trip, we only had about 3 hours of sleep. We just had so much fun. I am really thankful that the group bonded and we are now planning to save up for our next out of the country trip next year. The group actually started bonding the following day after we arrived. We went to Universal Studios and it was where all the fun and the bonding began. My next few blogs will be about our adventures during the trip. I will post more pictures:) If ever you are in Singapore, I really suggest Bunc Hostel. They have a facebook account. Check them out.