I am a marked forehead...

Wow, it's been a while...tryin to write more, so here we go.

So today begins, as always, the 40 (Or rather 46 days of Lent)...and as usual, I'm going to be giving something up.  Typically, I give something up...something material, or more physical, to symbolize the sacrifice that was made for us by none other than Jesus himself...but it's also important to realize that the whole purpose of Lent is to kind of "focus" on your relationship with God and work on being a better person as a whole. So in addition to the "sacrifice," I typically make some "improvements" as well.  This year...I believe I will be giving up the following:

1)  Cursing - Trying start with Lent and extend for the unforeseeable future
2)  Noodles
3)  Ketchup

For those that know me...I absolutely love these two things...not together, although that wouldn't be the worst idea ;)  But there it is, written and "set in stone" for the world (or bloggosphere) to see....call me out on it please!  We can always use a little help maintaining our goals!

I WILL be doing MORE of the following in order to make me a better person:

1)  Getting to church on time
2)  Going to church on Fridays
3)  Be more accepting of people
4)  Try not to be so critical of people
5)  Write more...I've always been better at expressing thoughts through writing; I feel that it makes me a happier and wiser person, not to mention, it keeps me up on my writing skills.

So here's to the next 6 weeks of reflection, growth, and in the end, hopefully being a better human being, and one that can lead by example.

Of all things Cbear...
i'm going to dedicate a part of each entry(when they come) to our cute cuddly little Cbear.  These days, Chloe has been a little crazy...maybe it's because her vocabulary is expanding and she is unable to find exactly the right word to express what she's feeling(e.g. saying "milk" when she really just wants "water"), or that she's teething and it's causing her immense pain, or maybe that she's quickly starting to reach that "terrible two's" stage, or simply that she has her mother's side of the family's temper...just kiddin on that one; but whatever it is, it definitely has required more patience on my part.  And I believe I've been failing more often than not in the patience category, so I'm resolving to be more patient with the little spud and just accept the change.  As with everything so far in her life, it's been SO fast that I'm sure this phase will be gone before I can blink.

I am the return of the work week...

October 24, 2012

Your mom went back to work on Monday this week, thus beginning the next stage of all of our lives...working, and daycare.  Consider yourself very fortunate and extremely blessed my child, because you are one of the rare few who has been lucky enough to have all of your grandparents helping out in taking care of you.  A couple of days a week with dodo and doda, and a couple of days a week with your lolo and lola.  We are so absolutely blessed to have them be close enough to watch you, and at the same time, you will get to look back on your life and see how involved they are in your life :)  It has definitely been an adjustment period so far...dealing with the fact that now we are both pretty tired at work.  But we both have something to look forward to when we get home; so we count down the minutes and the seconds so that we can get back home as fast as possible to see your beautiful, loving, adorable, innocent face.  I hope you miss us as much as we do when we're gone from you for so long...

On a side note, flu shots were given out today.  Man, I hate needles, and shots...I have to admit, it DID hurt a tiny bit, but it was over in a jiff.  One mini-embarrassing moment tho, I was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and we couldn't roll up the sleeves high enough, so I had to open my buttons and kindof take it off, good thing I was facing the wall, ha ha ha.  So hopefully, I don't feel sick like everyone said they did last year after they had their shots; I don't get sick too often, but I'm mainly doing it to help minimize my risk of exposure so that my lil one doesn't catch the flu.  I thought I had more to write today...but I'll call it quits for now...

I am daddy day care...

October 9, 2012

Yesterday, your mommy and Auntie Belle had a "treat yo'self out" day; after we all had brunch together, they went to the spa, whilst uncle Lou and I watched your cousin Emi and you for most of the day.  It was pretty cool actually having the two of you guys together; we even switched for a while, so I got to carry Emi for a bit, while uncle Lou carried you.  Your moms needed the day out; I seem to take it for granted that, although they love you VERY VERY much, that moms end up having to spend most of their time with the kids, and don't get too much of a break.  Which is why they got their day out yesterday...it's not that they need to be away from you...because who would want to be away from your adorable little face?  It's just that there are things she cannot usually do if she has you; like go to the spa.  So that day was for her, and i'm pretty sure there'll be more days like that to come.  It's nice on our part too, because we get to spend some QT with our lil ones.  Of course I'm speaking in the collective here, but I'm not sure if everyone is on the same thought pattern as me.  So I'll change it to the singular...but yah, it was awesome.  You slept most of the time, but you did grace me with a monster bowel movement, he he he.  Just kidding...well, no, not kidding, but I'm kidding that that's all you did.  You interact with us much more now...you even started laughing recently.  Hearing it for the first time, oh man, it was simply exhilarating, it melted our hearts.  It's hard to explain just how much we love you.  It's like falling in love again every single morning when I wake up and watch you sleeping before I get ready for work.  If times were different, and the economy was booming, and well, if we won the lottery, I would opt to stay home with you all day long.  But alas, such are not the times, and we have to do what we can to provide for your future.  So off to work I go, but always counting down the minutes until I get home to you and your mom.  :)  

Schedules are much different than they've been as of late.  It's been harder to do our daily prayers at night lately...not only with the addition of the lil one, but the season is changing and it's definitely affected our habits, plus, I think we have just not been as diligent about it.  Bun tried to set an alarm, but I think it was happening much too late; we are more tired lately and we have to focus on getting it done earlier.  Just like with our other chores and stuff, they haven't been getting done, so just gotta try harder, and just try to set it to a schedule.  

I am the next quarter...

Didn't get to post this yesterday...friggin internet was down til past midnight pretty much...friggin Charter, but that's for another post, ha ha ha....

Oct 2, 2012

You turned 3mos today!  We can't believe it's come so quick already, and you are already SO big!  When your mom or I hold you, you definitely take up more space than you did before :)  It's crazy how fast it's going by.  I swear, it seems like only yesterday we were cleaning up from the baby shower and then boom, you came into the world...and now, it's a full quarter later!  We took you out and had some DJ's Binbinkahan and had some pancit, as is our tradition for bday celebrations.  And then met up with your ninang Jane and Mike, who just got married this past weekend.  Oh yes, you laughed for the first time while you were awake!  It was completely out of the blue and totally melted our hearts!  You smile all the time at us and it really just makes our day.  Hopefully now that the weather is cooling down, we can go for more walks together; so far, it's just been your mom taking you in the mornings before it gets too warm.  You're gettin big so fast, soon you'll be WALKING with us!  But let's not get ahead of ourselves...just let us hold you and squeeze you and give you a million hugs and kisses for now :)  

It's been a crazy week so far; big big wedding for Jane and Mike, like I previously mentioned.  It was beautiful, and the bride and groom pulled out all the stops, including a surprise Gangnam -style and Dirty Dancing routine to set off the night!  Couldn't be happier for those two, and they're now part of our club!  ha ha ha.

Lots to do, lots to do, and there's always something new to deal with; the latest being that my driver's side rear window is stuck and I have to take it in to get it fixed...argh.  Oh well, deep breath...just keep swimming, right?  

"When the world hands you lemons, make lemonade"

-can't remember who said it, but I'll have to cite later =p

I am a screen refreshed...

So after chatting with Bev about things lately, and her wanting to know everything that's going on with Chloe, she was able to convince me to start posting my journal entries that I was keeping private onto my blog.  That way, I can also post and write all I want about her, without inundating everyone's facebook pages with random things that Chloe is now doing, or how she pooped today, or laughed for a minute at nothing, he he he.  So we should probably start at the very beginning...I'm probably gonna skip some entries from the beginning and just move forward, but I'll try to include all the milestones...they are written in a form of a letter to her, for purposes later to be determined, possibly compile them all and give them to her or something, I don't know.  We'll just see where it goes.  I guess enjoy, if you're reading along =)

July 02, 2012

Today, you came into the world, crying, screaming, bloody and cone-headed...but absolutely, amazingly, by all of God's graces, perfect and beautiful.   Your mom and I couldn't have been happier.  I have to admit that the entire experience wasn't exactly what they show in the movies or on TV, but it had it's own special-ness to it.  It was surreal, overwhelming, exciting, exhausting intense, and amazing all at the same time, but I wouldn't have traded anything in the world to experience it.  After 36 weeks and 3 days, you decided that your mommy's belly had served it's time for your first and home you then decided to come a little early!  I gotta admit, it was very unexpected for you to come so early, but because you did, I actually got an extra week off of work for it!   We loved you before you ever even came into the world  officially, and seeing your face for the first time, we loved you even more than you could have possibly ever known.   

So that was my first post when she was first born...very short, and to the point.  Remember, both Tinz and I were on VERY little sleep at that point and writing was not really the very first thing on my mind.  

So I guess I'll include an old post for now, unless there is a new thing that happens...probably pictures mostly and maybe some additional things going on in my life.  Maybe previous posts that I didn't put up too.

I am the light at the end of the weekly tunnel...

Ahhhhh, Fridays always feel so gratifying for some reason.  Especially after a busy week of work...even if I took a day off yesterday, it still felt long.  And I'm looking forward to the long weekend.  It'll be nice to not have so many things planned, and to have an extra day to do stuff around the house.  Tinz is now 31 weeks, so I have roughly 6 weeks to get all my ish done around the house!  I need to get cracking! 

Of P90x, Insanity, and quick-fixes
We're always looking for the quickest fix, the get-rich-quick ideas, rather than slow and steady, steady and slow(Believe it or not, the first time I ever heard this saying was Goofy, racing some crazy fast car on a hilly course, and ends up winning...kinda like the tortoise and the hare I guess).  Anyway, the same goes with fitness...the P90X or most recently, the INSANITY workout...7-minute abs, he he he.  Instead of making physcial fitness a regular part of our daily life, we go for the quick-fix.  And I don't have anything personal against the P90X or INSANITY workout, especially if you're trying to lose fast...but what happens AFTER the program is done?  Do we go back to our old habits where after some point, we'll have to go back to the exercise program again down the line?  Or at that point do we keep it up on our own, exercising daily for at least 30 minutes?  I'd HOPE it was the latter, but I fear it's the former.  This applies to everything we have in our lives, and the thing we all have to realize is that habits make a lifestyle.  We have to develop the habit of being fit, not go for the rush; or taking "shots," and then going hard until we are spent.  And in our goals and dreams, this is the most important to realize, it takes baby steps, consistency, and perseverence to achieve our goals and make our dreams a reality.  I've known this and always brushed it off, and not until recently did I really make an effort to put it into application.  Let's go back to fitness...well, kinda; I want to compete in a triathalon, not competively, but for myself, but I never did anything about it.  I always thought, I'd just start training once I sign up.  And then when the triathalons were approaching, I would back out because I would be scared that I don't even swim laps.  So it would go back and forth....I soon realized, before I can even sign up, I should already be swimming.  It's just not a good way to go about it.  So I started swimming with Tinz...ideally, it would be 3 times a week, but 2 a week is all we can manage.  But hey, 2 is > 1 and 1 > 0, right?  So this baby step is helping me make huge leaps and bounds towards achieving that goal.  Now I actually have my sights set on a target date, and feel much more comfortable at actually trying to get trained in time.  See, baby steps.  No crash-course would've prepared me for a race.  And no crash-course can help us get to where we wanna go in life.  It takes hard work and dedication.  And the sooner we realize that, the better.

Take that baby step....that's the only way to get to the finish line!

I am a well-needed day off...

I was up pretty late last night because of an upset stomach, amongst other things...so I decided to stay home today...it's good, because I was able to get some work done around the house; namely working on the office and baby room.  More clearing out the baby room and organizing the office/guest room so that I can actually WORK ON the baby room.  But baby steps, just work on things one step at a time.

Going back to the circles of control thing from the other day...I was posed a question on how I focus my energy; is it directed at the things I can control?  Or do I get caught up trying to work out things that are not?  It's good to reflect on something like this, because I can look at my own history and actually see whether or not I had control of the things my energy was directed at.  When I had complete control, well, not complete, but when I had some control over a situation, was when I focused my energy on training for the LA Marathon the first time I ran it; I had control over when I trained, what I ate, and was completely accountable for whether or not my training was adequate at the end.  I knew I was in control because when I was faced with adversity, I found a way around it and make sure my training was done.   When I got sent to Japan for work, I made sure I packed accordingly, along with running gear and made sure I squeezed in running time; when it rained, I forced myself to learn to run on a treadmill.  For those of you who know me, you'll know I detest treadmill running...and the fact that I was able to run 16 miles on a treadmill is quite an accomplishment for me.  I made sure I found time to do what I needed to do to train.  Ironically; I trained so hard that I sustained an injury, of which I wasn't made aware of until about mile 15 of the marathon.  All of my rigorous training while still participating in various other sports for cross training, I partially tore my meniscus and I definitely felt it during the marathon.  At that point I had no control over the pain I was experiencing, and I had no choice but to walk when the pain got too unbearable.  All I could do was run when the pain subsided and walk again when it returned.  It was very difficult, to say the least, knowing that I just could not do what I wanted to do, which was to reach a goal of about 5 hours for the marathon, and I warred with just running it all out against my better judgement, just to accomplish that goal.  But that would've probably caused me much more long-term harm than just sucking it up and accepting the situation for what it was.  There are definitely many other situations I can look back upon, both when I have had control, and times when I had none at all, and even times, when it was a little of both, kinda like the marathon.  Again, it's important to reflect on these moments, because you can learn from them.  You can see what you need to do to act accordingly in the future.

Okay, time to get back to my tasks for the day....