Living a Sugar Free Sweet Life

I posted these six words in my Facebook profile yesterday after learning that my father's hospitalization bill is within my budget. I felt stupid that I spent one sleepless night just thinking about our finances. By the way, my dad had a mild seizure last May 19, a day before my boy's 10th birthday. According to weather reports, that day was the hottest day in the Philippines so far for 2010. Probably, that's why my dad's blood pressure went haywire.

God again manifested His love to me this afternoon. Before I went to the hospital to settle my father's bill and bring him home, I first went to BPI and withdrew money from an ATM. Only 2 out of 3 ATMs were operational. The other one had the TRANSACTION CANCELLED sign even when the green light above the card slot was blinking. Two people ahead of me had problems withdrawing money from the 2 functional machines. I went ahead even when I already heard them complain. Lo and behold, I was able to successfully withdraw money from the ATM. And I did it twice since I needed 15 thousand pesos! After I got what I needed, all 3 machines went offline.

I just thought of it as pure luck like one time when a supermarket's POS systems booted out after I paid my purchase. The long queue I left behind me had to transfer to other terminals. When I got home, I read a post from a plurkfriend asking if it is already safe to withdraw from BPI ATMs. I didn't know that a technical problem occurred around 2 pm. It made me realize that it was pure divine intervention. And I thank the Lord for helping me out as always.

Oh yes, God is good, all the time!


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It is the Lenten Season once again and I am one with my fellow Roman Catholics who practice fasting and abstinence during this season. It's Friday and we cannot eat red meat. Well, I don't even eat chicken during Fridays of Lent. Being a diabetic, I cannot fast as I closely monitor what I eat and the time of the day when I eat. As for the my daily protein requirement, I get it from fish and eggs.

Abstinence from food is not the only thing that we do during the Lenten season. Personally, I resolved to refraining from the little comforts that I usually enjoy on normal days. I also read a plurk that abstinence of words can also be done when we can try to resist cursing or saying hurtful words to others. I think I can manage that.

There's also a friend who wrote about how she will lessen her Facebook usage as her sacrifice for Lent. I cannot reduce my online usage because of work but I think that I have already significantly lessened my FB activities. I don't even play games anymore.

Abstaining from yummy food and other comforts in life is easier said than done. I'm glad I haven't forgotten what I cannot have last Ash Wednesday and the first Friday of fasting and abstinence which is today. I'll just motivate myself and have comfort in the fact that I can lose weight without even taking slimquick extreme. No, but seriously, it really is a comforting thought that I can somehow sacrifice small things to remember Christ's sacrifice.

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Marahil ay nabigla kayo sa aking lahok ngayon linggong ito? Akala ko ba puso ang tema? Eh bakit si Rap ang nandiyan? Ganito kasi yan...

You are probably wondering why this is my entry for the week. If the theme for this week is "heart" then what is my son's photo doing on that spot. Here's why...

Lingid sa kaalaman ng mga bago naming kakilala, si Rap ay nagkaroon ng Kawasaki Disease dalawang linggo bago niya ipagdiwang ang ika-apat niyang kaarawan. Ang Kawasaki Disease ay isang sakit sa puso na karaniwang tumatama sa mga batang limang taon pababa.

Most of our new friends do not know that Rap had Kawasaki Disease two weeks before he celebrated his fourth birthday. Kawasaki Disease is an uncommon heart disease that affects children five years old and below.

Nilalagnat siya noon at maraming mga rashes sa kanyang braso, hita, at tiyan. Ayaw niyang tumayo at maglakad dahil masakit daw ang mga paa niya kapag itinatapak sa lupa. Namula ang kanyang mga mata na parang may sore eyes at namumula ang mga dila at labi. Dinala ko sa doktor at ang sabi ay tigdas lang. Binigyan ako ng isang linggo para obserbahan siya. Isang linggo rin kaming naka paracetamol.

He had fever and rashes on his arms, thighs, and tummy. He didn't want to stand up because the soles of his feet hurt everytime they touch the ground. His eyes were blood red just like when one has sore eyes and his lips and tongue were blood red too. The pediatrician told us that it could be measles. I was advised to observe him for a week and he was only given paracetamol for the fever.

Inabot ang lagnat niya ng 11 araw. Nangingitim na at nagbabalat ang dulo ng kanyang mga daliri. Nung dinala uli namin sa klinika, alam na agad ng doktor na Kawasaki Disease nga. Hanggang ngayon daw ay hindi alam kung anong nagdadala ng sakit na iyon dahil hindi nga siya pangkaraniwan.

On the 11th day of his fever, his fingertips became blue and the skin near his nail beds peeled. The doctor finally diagnosed that it was Kawasaki Disease. Up to now, researchers are still finding concrete evidences on what causes the disease.

Na-confine agad siya sa ospital. Ni-rekomenda agad ng cardiologist niya na bumili kami ng sampung IVIG (intravenous immuno gamma globulin) na kinakailangan ng puso niya. Ito kasi ang magpapaliit ng pamamaga ng mga ugat ng puso niya na nagiging dahilan ng lagnat niyang hindi mawala. Pinainom din siya ng aspirin para hindi lumapot ang kanyang dugo at hindi mahirapan ang mga ugat ng kanyang puso. Agad-agad akong nagtawag sa kung saan saang ospital para sa IVIG na iyon. Kailangang mag-window shop at ang pinakamura ay nasa sampung libo isang botelya. Hindi covered ng aming insurance ang ganoong kalaking halaga kaya't naisip na rin namin noon na maghanap ng buyer ng aming kotse.

He was confined in the hospital. His cardiologist told us to buy 10 vials of IVIG (intravenous immuno gamma globulin) that his heart needs. This medicine will treat the swelling of the vessels of his heart. He was also given aspirin so his blood will not be thick enough to cause strain on his blood vessels. I started to look for the cheapest supplier of IVIG. The cheapest the I was able to find was at ten thousand pesos a vial. The large amount needed for the purchase cannot covered by our medical insurance and we already thought of selling the car.

Ewan ko ba pero, siguro dahil marami na ring nagdasal para sa amin, bigla na lang bumababa ang lagnat niya. Nadala sa pag-inom ng aspirin, pagmamahal, at pagdarasal ika nga. Natuwa ang aming mabait na pediatrician. Hindi na raw kailangan ang IVIG at makakaiwas na kami sa gastos. Iyon nga lang, hindi ito garantiya na ligtas na siya sa pag-atake muli ng sakit paglaki niya o kung mayroon mang mga kumplikasyon. Hindi rin kasi nila alam dahil hindi pare-pareho ang mga datos tungkol sa mga pasyenteng nagkaroon ng Kawasaki.

His fever miraculously subsided probably because there were so many people praying for us. My son was healed with only aspirin, love, and prayers. Our pediatrician advised us not to buy the IVIG vials anymore but she did not guarantee that there will be no more repeat attacks or complications. She wasn't that sure because there were no concrete data available yet regarding the future of patients who have had the disease.

May mga nakilala rin akong mga Pilipinong magulang na may mga anak na nagkaroon ng Kawasaki. Lahat sila ay bumili ng IVIG dahil nga sa ika-apat na araw pa lang ng lagnat ay nalaman na agad ang sakit ng anak nila. Sabi nila sa akin, dapat daw ay nag-IVIG na rin kami. Ang sabi naman ng doktor namin, wala nang magagawa ang IVIG dahil naka-11 araw na ang lagnat ng anak ko. Dapat daw ay nasa ika-4 na araw lang ng lagnat kung ibibigay ito. Sa tingin ko naman ay ayos na ang lagay niya dahil pagkatapos ng isang taon ng pabalik balik na check-up at echocardiogram ay nasiguro na ng mga doktor niya na malusog na uli ang kanyang puso. Sa katunayan nga, noong 6 na taong gulang na siya ay nag-football varsity pa siya sa Don Bosco Makati. Goal keeper pa! Nananalig na lang kami sa Panginoon na kung sakali mang bumalik ang sakit niya ay hindi Niya uli pababayaan ang kaisa-isa naming anak.

I was able to meet up with other Filipino parents who have kids who had the disease but all of these kids had the IVIG treatment. They told me that we should have asked the doctors to give IVIG to our son instead. But our doctors said that the IVIG treatment will not have any effect on our son anymore because it was supposed to be given on the fourth day of fever. I think my son is okay now. Even the countless check-ups and echocardiograms within the year after his bout with the disease showed that his heart is healthy now. He was even the goal keeper of his school's football team in Don Bosco Makati when he was 6 years old. I just have this firm faith on the Lord that He will take care of our only son if he suffers from the disease again.

Pasensya na sa larawan ha. Noong 2004 kasi ay wala pa kaming digicam. Kaya ayan, kinuhanan ko na lang ang pahina ng scrapbook ko na inilaan ko para sa mga larawang kuha noong kanyang ika-apat na kaarawan sa beach. Naging espesyal ang araw na iyon dahil alam naming nalusutan niya ang Kawasaki.

I'm so sorry for the blurry photo. That was in 2004 when we still had no digicam. I just took a shot of the page in my scrapbook remembering his fourth birthday at the beach. That day was very special because we know that we are also celebrating his triumph over Kawasaki Disease.

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This is a rule of thumb among firemen. Never leave your partner behind, especially during a fire. Never in my wildest thoughts that you can use the same mantra in a marriage. People nowadays look upon the sacrament of marriage as just a contract between the husband and the wife. Only a few good couples look at it as covenant between them and God. Fireproof is a movie that made me remember that God really is a part of our marriage. I feel that it is fitting for my first post for "The Love Month" to be about fireproofing a marriage.

The movie is about a young couple, Caleb and Catherine, with a marriage on the rocks. They both wanted to get a divorce but the Caleb's father took some time to talk to him and gave him the "Love Dare" to save their marriage. The "Love Dare" consisted of loving acts that he would need to do for forty days for his wife. Each page was lovingly written (in the dad's own writing) for his son to enlighten him in not only winning back the love of his wife but also to recognize his need for bringing God inside their marriage.

The 40-day love dare reminded me so much of "A Purpose Driven Life". Both are journeys taken a day at a time with God. The only difference is that the Love Dare focuses on fireproofing a marriage. It was really a very wise thing for the producers of the movie to make an analogy between fires and temptations in marriages. You see, Caleb's best friend in the movie told him that being fireproof does not mean avoiding a fire. It just means that something that is fireproof can withstand a fire. It just works out the same with marriages. A marriage is always tested with many temptations. In the movie, some of the temptations were anger, selfishness, disrespect, and lust. For a marriage to be fireproof, which means to be temptation free, God has to be in the center of the relationship.

I do not want to be much of a spoiler because I really want you to have the same experience of being touched by this movie. It is not yet available in the Philippines but you can purchase it online through Ebay. I guess it will be available in Christian book stores and DVD stores soon.

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Half of my waking hours each day I devote to my online activities. Part of my online activities include chatting with friends and relatives either here or abroad.Those who know me personally also know that chatting played a big history in my life. I met my husband online and I never regret each day that I came to know him more through chatting even before we met. Chatting is an indispensable avenue for keeping in touch either with people you already know or those whom you want to get to know more.

Among all the chat rooms that are familiar to me, the Catholic Chat Room is one that made me quite interested. I am a practicing Roman Catholic and I revere every facet of my faith. But then, the internet is such a big place to be in, much more so if you're chatting with people from all parts of the world. Chatting with fellow Catholics gives me the freedom to talk about my faith more without the thought of creating an issue among others of different faith. The last thing I need would be a confrontation anyway. It also gives me the opportunity to discover how it is being a Catholic in other parts of the world. The Catholic population in our country is dominant and our Catholic rituals and traditions become a way of life. This is quite different for other Catholics who live in a place where Catholicism is not the dominant faith.

Whether it be for friendship, faith discussions, or finding a date of the same religion, the Catholic Chat Room is a place for online Catholics to be.

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pictures taken on our road trip to Naga


We're here in Naga City already. We reached my sister-in-law's house a few minutes before 3 in the afternoon. I thank God for giving us a safe trip and sending His angels to guard us all the way to our destination. If not for His guidance, we could not have reached our destination safely.

We all planned it to be an exciting road trip. To cut down on our expenses, we cooked adobo and rice for our lunch and brought drinks stored in a cooler. We have gone home in the past doing this whenever we drive the car to the province. We have already identified a spot somewhere in Quezon where we can stop the car and have lunch by the roadside fronting the sea. Because we set off early, we passed the place too early for lunchtime. So we moved on and just decided to have lunch somewhere else but definitely not along the Quirino Highway diversion. We knew that the place is NPA (Filipino rebels)and highway robbers infested. The circumstances did not allow us to avoid making a stop-over along that highway though. Our car needed the stop and so was my husband who was already driving for four hours. We thought it was still safe because no rebel or robber would dare to come out in broad daylight. Or so we thought.

The highway was undergoing a lot of repairs as of the moment. We initially planned to make a stop along the nearest military checkpoint but all the dust from the road repairs prevented us from doing so. We ended up deep into the highway around 30 minutes away from the checkpoint. We found a shaded spot and made the stop. I brought out or folding chairs and opened the back of our SUV so we can have lunch. We ate to our hearts' delight. We brought a sleeping pad so we put down one side of the back of the passenger seat to make room for the sleeping pad. I intended it for my husband who needed to lie down so I can give him a little massage on the back before driving another 4 hours from Quezon to Naga.

As I give my husband a massage, Rap was playing his PSP in the front seat. My mother-in-law was content in relaxing on one of our chairs just by the car's door. We were enjoying the moment because it was breezy and quiet. I heard a bird tweeting in the background. Then after a while, there were more tweetings. I thought it was great to hear birds in the place and the sound of tweetings even made me a little sleepy. When the tweets became louder, my husband awoke and rose up suddenly. He signaled everyone to get up and prepare to move. There was an urgency in his voice. There was not a long explanation of why we were supposed to pack up quickly. He just said that it was not safe. I was rattled a little that I almost left my rubber slippers outside the car. Once all of our things from our little picnic were brought in the car, he drove quickly away from the place and explained everything.

Months ago, during a company teambuilding session in Subic, Zambales, my husband underwent survival training in the forest. There they were taught how to cook rice in bamboos, make some survival paraphernalia, and also how to identify threats in the forest. There he learned how to identify authentic bird tweets from those that are just signals of rebels in the forest. He said that their military trainer informed them that rebels, in the absence of radios, mimic bird tweets to send messages to their comrades without divulging their presence. He told us that that was what he heard during our stop over.

He asked us if we recognized the pattern of the tweets because he did. I remember hearing two different tweets but I thought that the tweets still came from birds. My mother-in-law recounted that she was hearing the tweets from beside the spot and not from above the trees where birds usually nest. She was trying to find where the tweets were coming from but she did not find one.

It was a humbling experience for me. Once again, God has showed us His presence and how He looked after us. What if my husband failed to recognize the tweets as threats? What if he was not able to go on that survival training course? What if, while hurriedly packing our things, somebody went out from the bushes and held us up? These are the what ifs that kept me thinking today.

I'm glad we're here, safe and sound. Praise God and His angels for watching over us.

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My Grade 5 student's Christian Living lesson for the week focused on the seven sacraments and their roles in our Christian faith. One of the activities in the lesson that we studied was making a Dayenu.

According to the textbook, a Dayenu is an ancient Hebrew prayer of praise to God. It's a way of recognizing and appreciating everything that God has given. Day in Hebrew means enough. In praying the Dayenu, the Hebrews acknowledge that God has given them so many gifts and it would have still been enough even if He only gave them one. The traditional Dayenu is composed of 15 stanzas, 5 stanzas each are focused on leaving slavery, on God's miracles, and on being with God.

The purpose of the activity is for us to think about and name the many ways that God acts in our lives. My student was tasked to make only 3 stanzas of his own Dayenu. I made 5. Here's what I have written:

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