Life, Day by Day

There are many suggested methods on how to tell a child about his adoption.  Based on others and our own family experiences, it is a proven fact that not telling a child about his adoption brought about dire consequences for everyone involved especially if the truth is found out from people other than parents. In the case of my aunt, she found out when she was already 10 years old  from well-intentioned relatives who wanted to help her parents resolve her habitual lying when she got caught doing something she shouldn't, like playing hookey from school, for example. Needless to say that was the start of her years of rebellion.  I heard other "horror" stories so when the time comes, although I never really thought about it, I knew that I will tell my child the truth.  My turn came around the time when my son was around 4 years old when out of the blue while playing in my bed, he reached out to my stomach and said..."I came from here".  My initial reaction was to

Two weeks ago, the Negros Bloggers got an invitation to see the operations of Merci , which not so long ago was a bakeshop but has now evolved into other businesses like a pasalubong center, a fast food restaurant, among others.  Unfortunately due to classes I can no longer reschedule, I was not able to go with the group.  However to my surprise, I got a small box of their pasalubong treats, which of course made my kids' sweet-tooth very happy.     To be honest, this is the first time I have tasted Merci's Mango Tarts, Cheese Tart and Butterscotch. My relationship with Merci is purely about loaf breads and pastries/cakes (their cake rolls are good).  Now, my family loves butterscotch but I usually buy the other brand since their outlet is near my home...so what was the final verdict?  The mango and cheese tarts were good but... The Butterscotch was really special! It was chewy, soft, with just the right sweetness. It is the best I have ever tasted among the commerciall

This is probably an old story going around the internet but this is the first time I read about it shared by a friend on Facebook. I needed some picker-upper after a meeting this afternoon, and this story is a good reminder to me that whatever happens in my life, I should endure everything with a smile and trust God with all my heart because He always makes a way for me.   The Donkey in the Well  (Facebook version) One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey. He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quieted down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally lo

I have always liked answering all sorts of questionnaires.  I used to do those found in the women's magazines of my mom and aunties. I would willingly register for free surveys and so when I came across  GlobalTestMarket , I thought this is cool...I would actually get paid doing something fun. I have been a member since 2009 and have taken 70 surveys since then.  Have I been paid?  Yes, I have!  But in case you think that doing online surveys will bring in money, think again. Still, when I received my check in the mail (a little more than Php2K), I was over the moon...I never thought I would get paid! So for those who like answering surveys, have fun ;)

I have 2 children...a 20 year old son and a 3 year old daughter. People not in the know would almost always ask...Why such a huge gap between the two?  I understand their curiosity because if I were in their place, I would wonder too.  And so, I would always take the time to explain that my children are adopted.  But it wasn't always that easy when my son was growing up... not because I wanted to keep it a secret.  On the contrary, by the time he was 4, my son knew that I was not his only mother and that he had another one who gave birth to him.  The act of adoption, fostering and guardianship were nothing new or strange to my family.  There was always an adopted aunt, cousin, nephew and niece in the past and present generation, so it wasn't like being adopted was such a big deal to us.  But you see, I used to think that saying he is adopted would make people treat him differently and I did not want that.  I get so tired of people telling me (and him) how lucky he is; they for

The Negros Bloggers in cooperation with SM City Bacolod sponsored a Blogging Seminar entitled “Everything About Blogging: From Hobby to Money” this morning at the SM Event Center.   More than 50 participants registered to listen to our 2 invited lecturers, Enrico Dee of Biyahilo.com and Lloyd Tronco of Talonggo.blogspot.com . We would like to thank SM City Bacolod through Lorena Quizan Martinez, for allowing us the use of the Event Center, Audrey for the delicious Sugarlandia barquillos and barquiron, Eduardo Mirambel Joven for the tee-shirt raffled off and most of all to Enrico and Lloyd who shared their time, talent, experience and passion for blogging pro bono.  To all of us...happy, fruitful and prosperous blogging today, tomorrow...and beyond! registration table

Okay, so this is a continuation of sorts from my last post ...after doing all that, what next? The answer came two days later.  I am now participating actively in a local blogging community, the Negros Bloggers . We are a growing group of people from or in Negros who blogs about anything and everything under the sun.  They have started to organize in 2009 and I was invited by a friend through Facebook to attend a blogging seminar they organized in October 2010.  It was serendipitous I think, because I met some really sincere people who are so into blogging, I felt this was my chance to expand my blogging into something more than just an on and off hobby.  And so, after connecting with more experienced bloggers...here I am now...an active member of Negros Bloggers. So far I have attended 3 enjoyable meetings, the last one was downright hilarious...this is a group with a very good sense of humor but definitely serious about blogging and in fact we have several activities lined up for the