Caroleen’s Treasures

Today I woke up feeling so sore on my back, chest and throat Donald with the other members serenaded Ate Aling. I decided last night to stay as Ella has no company. It is raining when they left here. When Donald arrived at around 6 am, I told him I am not feeling alright. So he and Ella prepared themselves for the church while I declared I am on a sick leave The kids has no Sunday School teacher ‘cos no one is willing to teach, so the kids decided it was time for a tour around the church. As much as I want to get up from the bed and get dressed, I could not. Ella was even telling me “Please Mommy, you dress now ‘cos we don’t have a teacher…” Awwww…..poor Ella. She missed Sunday School but I am sure they did enjoy their “field trip” around the yard. I am not feeling well from too much heat exposure yesterday on the wood stove. After I cooked lunch, it rained and I got wet. I thought taking a shower will keep me from getting sick but I was wrong.

After lunch, Donald and Ella went with the rest of the members to the river for a baptismal. I am still not feeling well so I stayed in bed. At 3 pm they came home and Donald prepared again to leave for a bible study. I and Inang had a nice chat in the living room while she was going through the pile of our clothes that needs to have a new home. She was looking for spaghetti strapped tops as she was feeling so hot. Just in time when Tatang was leaving, Ate Edith came with her tail….three daughters and a son who are Ella’s playmate. While we are chatting, I heard some kids yelling in the chapel. I went out and saw a bunch of kids, boys and girls, playing inside the building. I asked them not to bring their “tire toys” ( an old motorcycle tire which they push with a stick to make it roll ) as this is not a playground but a chapel. I told the oldest daughter of Ate Edith to lock the gate when everyone leave. She did lock it. After a while I heard a noise again from the chapel and it sounded the same kids whom I asked to go home. I went there to see them all again in the chapel. I was like “Heck! How did they came in when the gate was locked?” I went near them on the other side of the Chapel only to see one part of the fence was opened to give way to the truck which dumped gravel this moring. Man, if the kids were’t looking at me, I must have laughed out loud at what I have discovered. Such an idiot I asked help from Ate Edith’s daughter to put back the fence to keep the kids out.

In the evening, Donald gave me a very good massage just before we had dinner. He is so good in it and I felt better. Yesterday, when I and Ella were on our way to the grocery store, she said her friends were haunting for steel, nails and tin cans to sell to earn money for the enrollment fees. I said, “Oh really?” then she, in her most innocent look, said “Mommy, I will go and find steel too so I can sell it and pay for my enrollment fee…” Awww….she is such a sweet girl! I told her she doesn’t need to do that as she will go to school without selling steel.

While Ella was in deep sleep, I and Donald are so engrossed watching the You Tube of Moymoy Palaboy. They are so talented! We had so much fun watching their videos. You gotta watch it and see for yourself :-)This is my favorite….entitled GIRLFRIEND.

I was not in the best mood to blog tonight…but since I wasn’t able to blog much about what has transpired last Thursday night until yesterday when I was having issues with my internet, I decided to beg to my fingers and my brain to at least write one decent post tonight. Glad they agreed.

Last Thursday morning, my internet was slowing down. I thought it will get pick up speed at night. Before we had dinner, I posted one tag and was planning to post another entry after dinner. But when I sat infront of my puter to write a novel for the day, the internet is having its MOOD SWINGS. I could not open any site and I began to panick a little but feel eased somehow that I can sleep early that night as we are having some special visitors the following day. I waited for a few more hours but to no good. So at past midnight, I crawled in bed hoping that I can access to my site when I woke up.

At 7 am, Tatang and Inang were already here bringing in coffee and rice for the visitors. Uncle Dencio, the preacher from Davao City, and his wife Ate Leah arrived at 10 am with the team of other preachers and church workers for the monthly workshop here in Trento and the other neighboring town. They were about eight and they had coffee and lunch here. Inang and Tatang are very busy the past weeks and there was no exception that day and today. So they just pop up here every few hours and leave again. It was actually blessing in disguise that I do not have internet connection as I had time to fix the visitor’s meals. After lunch, the others left for the other town and Uncle Dencio and Ate Leah stayed. We had a nice time with them as they are our close friends back in Davao. At 6pm Donald had a great news when he arrived from the market. He said there is an internet connection and I knew it then when I went to check it. Yipey!!!! I can get online!!!! The couple had a body massage by an old woman from the neighborhood just before dinner. We had “dinegdeng” for dinner, an Ilocano vegetable dish cooked with fish paste. At night before bedtime, it rained and I was chilling a little. I just love hiding underneath my blanket when it gets cold like this.

This morning, I and Donald are up early to prepare breakfast. We don’t usually have breakfast, but for the visitors we will serve them their requested breakfast. Boiled eggplant, bitter gourd tops and quail eggs was set on the table and the couple are happy to have vegetables again. In Davao you seldom can get fresh vegetables. After breakfast, they had a chat with Ate Leah’s brother in Kentucky. They had a nice time talking with him, then time to get a shower and prepare for the workshop for the church members which will be conducted by the couple. I stayed inside the house while they are there in the chapel. I prepared lunch with Tatang while running back and forth on the puter. When lunch was ready, I sat infront of here with my lunch on my desk. Bihon guisado! My favorite especially when I was the one who cooked. Time flies so fast that at 2pm they left for Davao.

When they are gone, the members stayed for a while to have a meeting and to conduct a visitation and bible study on one of the neighbors. I and Ella went to pick up my earnings from blogging that was sent through Western Union by my sister. Ella was so sleepy that she was complaining almost the whole time we were there. Then we went to the market and bought vegetables, fish paste, mangoes, mongo beans and she had picked a cellhpone toy. After the market, we headed to the grocery store and picked some items.

It was such a long weekend for me as I had back pains from straining my muscles. Ella and Donald were off to dreamland, while I was hoping I can get this done and crawl to bed too….my eyes are shutting off by themselves and I needed some toothpicks to keep them open.

Wohooooh!!!! My internet is back. For 24 hours I was going crazy about not being online. Donald called Smart this morning and was told we will just observe for 24 hours as other sites are having no problems, only with our site here. I think it is God’s plan as the other brethren from Davao arrived in the morning for tomorrow’s ladies’ and men’s class. So I had time to fix them coffee, lunch and dinner. Uncle Dencio, the preacher from Davao, and his wife Ate Leah were staying with us. They are old friends of ours and we had a nice time catching up together. I fixed the other room for them. I hope they can sleep well there as it only has single bed.If only I had money, I will get a room for them at the cheap hotels or inns here in town.

When I saw Julie’s blog about her Mother’s Day present from her dear husband Joe, I was like “Oh my! What a gift!” You can go see her blog and there you will find her pink (yes you read it right) vacuum cleaner. It is really a big help in keeping the whole house tidy especially there. I was wondering how much a unit costs so I looked at Miele vacuums and found great deals and great quality. When we get to the US, I’d surely want the same Mother’s Day present too ;-)

Today was such a lazy, hot and slow day for me. We had a black out and the heat is terrible! The fact that I could not get online made it worst. I had assignments to do and I cannot wait to check on my mails too as one of my online friends are saying she and her husband are visiting the Philippines probably in December. I was thinking about sending her a birthday gift on her birthday if I can have funds. I wish to give her a plus size lingerie that she’d surely love.

I suppose I could finish the laundry today but I got hooked in my pc. Donald and Ella went to the gymnasium to watch the championship game of volleyball. One of the players is the daughter of Tatang and Inang and they were there to give moral support and stress themselves when the other team scores. With all their cheering and yelling the team lost the game, but Donald says it was a close fight. At least they gave the opponent a great scare and made the audience almost had a heart attack

Ella has a little bottle of cologne I bought yesterday, so before they left she put on her neck and wrist (Oh well…she is really growing up fast and more lady like) Then she put the bottle on her pocket and I tucked a Mickey Mouse handkerchief on the other pocket. I am not used to being alone here in the house, their absence makes me miss their noise and constant questions. Yes, I have to answer questions asked between them. I was joking to Donald when he asked me something tonight with regards to the camera my sister Crislyn got…and I was like “Hey, can you give me a break? I feel like I am raising two toddlers…” Of course his and Ella’s queries are different…Ella asks a lot of WHY’s while he asks a lot of WHAT, HOW, WHO and WHEN which of course will take me more time to answer than that of Ella’s. I told him “When a child asks too many questions, she is showing intelligence…but when a grown up asks too many questions, he is showing he is a fool”. Oh no! I must not have said that ‘cos he will tickle me to death! Glad he just gave me the look

Not much going on today. I woke up at the usual time and sat on my pc while Ella still sleeps soundly. I think she must have been tired from yesterdays active play. She also stayed late last night, singing and doing her puzzles while Donald sleeps. She is darn good in her 24 pieces Pooh puzzle She actually got it as a birthday present on her 4th birthday and it was just a few days ago that she enjoyed it and keep on assembling and breaking it just to do it all over again. She has two puzzles and she can finish it in just a few minutes! Her 8 and 9 year old playmates could not do it that fast And I am the proud Momma here She is really growing fast! In a week she will turn 5 and I kept asking myself where did the time go?

Donald wasn’t feeling fine today. He complained on muscle pain and he has a slight fever. I told ya, he is not used to climbing trees that high! But of course he still did his chores around the house and he did some weeding too in the backyard. As I inspected the flower bed around the chapel, I almost cursed the chicken for ruining it. I am thinking of ways to keep them from coming back…maybe putting chicken wire around? But Donald has a better idea. To keep the chicken away is to get them to the frying pan

I was chatting with a friend last night who was in the US. She said she wanted to come to the Philippines with her husband to see us especially Ella. She even said when they come we will have a barbeque in the backyard and she’d buy a pig and a cow so the neighbors won’t say we are rude I was thinking “Oh my…one pig and a cow can feed more than a hundred neighbors!” She was even more excited when I told her about Davao, Samal and Talicud. Then she said, she hope she can see us there also to bring us to the her favorite restaurant. She’s done Chicago travel  and tour many times and she just loved to do it over and over again.

We’re back from Davao and all I want now is to have a whole body massage before going to bed. Wish Donald would hear me We have not made it home yesterday and it was a blessing too that we did not so Ella can have more time with her tita’s, tito Ace, Lolo Tony and Lola Carmen. And I almost forgot about Puto, Maya and Kiaw-Kiaw whom Ella spoke about each day.

Ella woke up much earlier than I. I heard her went out from the room and played with the dogs outside. I felt so tired and my body aches terribly from the travel yesterday. Imagine to travel 3 hours with more than 20 kilos sitting on your lap It was half past nine when I finally dragged my feet outside. Ella was convincing me to let her go with her tita’s today to our hometown. Tomorrow will be my mother’s 2nd death anniversary and they are going home to visit her grave. Daddy was there and was planning to have a simple lunch get-together with relatives and friends of my mom. Wish we could also go but the budget won’t allow us plus there would be no one to take care for the Sunday worship.There were two deaths among family members of the brethren here. Tatang will be leaving tomorrow to attend the funeral of the mother of his son-in-law then he will proceed to our hometown to pay respect to her sister-in-law who died a day before. Since Tatang and Donald are the ones in-charge of the service and bible studies, Donald can not go. We decided it will be best if we will stay as it is more important for Tatang to attend these important events. Anyway, we can still honor my mom’s memories while we are here….I know she will understand. Daddy missed Ella and was looking forward on seeing his only grandaughter. But I sent him a message this morning and I am glad he understood.

After a quick shower, I went to the bank to get my eon card and picked coloring books and some snacks for Ella as I promised her to get these for her if she will stay. It only took me an hour and a half to get these done and headed back to my sister’s place. Had a quick lunch and prepared to leave for the province. I sent a message to Donald to pick us up at the bus terminal before 5 p.m. as I was expecting us to be there at 5. But my sister Crislyn told me that we will wait for them so we could all ride in one taxi to get us to the terminal. The expected time of departure was way behind and we finally arrived here at 8 p.m.. While the bus is in motion, I was thinking of what Donald might be thinking why we aren’t yet there. He was bored stiff waiting for us for more than 3 hours!

After we had dinner, Ella was saying tomorrow will be Teddy’s 5th birthday. She told Donald to grill fish and pork for Teddy’s party. I don’t know where that idea came from Teddy was her favorite toy since she was still 1. They spent time together playing and Ella will ride her bike with Teddy on her back. When we travel, she will bring Teddy always. Teddy was a Russ stuffed toy that we got from our bale of stuffed toys when we are still selling “ukay-ukay” (used stuffs from abroad). Well I guess this is Ella’s way of remembering her Mamang Eling’s death and I am pretty pleased that she is making tomorrow a day to remember. 

What a day! me and Ella left home past 9 in the morning to Davao. Last night she agreed on going with me, but when I called her to take a shower, she changed her mind. I need to give her a look just to follow me to the bathroom. She wanted to stay as she found out that the neighbors are washing clothes in the well and she wanted to do it too. She kept complaining on having to go with me. She always feels sick when we ride buses, even airconditioner won’t do any good adn this makes her unhappy to go. I made her sleep and I was so pleased she did, only to wake up after 30 minutes and start complaining again.

We arrived in the city around 1:30 p.m. and we went straight to Crislyn’s place. Ella was pleased to see the dogs and her titas. She even don’t care when I kidded that I am leaving her and we will come and get her after 100 nights.

I was expecting that I can get my eon card today but I wasn’t able as I only have NBI clearance. So I went to National Statistics Office to get an authenitcated marriage certificate. It was 3 p.m. when I get in the office and have to fall in line thrice…the screenig, payment and claiming section. After an hour and a half I finally got it and rushed to the bank only to hear that I shall come back tomorrow. I have not made it before the bank closes at 4 p.m. and even if I beg to consider me as I am going home to Agusan and tellers are still on their posts, they won’t hear me. So I turned my back a little bit disgusted. I went to pick up Ella’s birthday package in the post office then heeded back to Crislyn’s place. Ella got a pair of pink flip flops, two jeans 4 shirts and a stuffed dog and flower. She was so thrilled and showed off her new clothes. She also got an early birthday card with $$ and a fashion necklace and a bracelet with a penguin pendant in it. I was thinking about going home but then I want to stay to get my card tomorrow. That’ll sae a lot of money for fare. So we stayed and Ella was pleased. She had a bonding time with her two titas. Crislyn got her new SLR and she took pictures of Ella.

I have seen many new establishments around the city…it has been a while since I last seen downtown. I am feeling like a tourist here

Donald and I chatted in the evening and I was told that it rained so hard there. I hope my antenna didn’t fall or bend, if so I will really have a bad head ache when I get there. I hate it when my internet is going on and off I think I will have a good sleep as I am sooo sleepy and dead tired from the trip. Good night everyone!