sick +(

i'm feelin' under the weather since yesterday... hope i won't get my kids sick though. thankfully, i'm working from home today. my daughter asked me to drop her off since our street hasn't been plowed yet... geeze, they're always late!

nway, last weekend i was feelin' creative again so i made this for my lil' godson, max! it was his bday and i wanted to add something memorable besides the gift we already have for him. we were late at the party again (nothin' new *yikes*), coz i was making this:
nway, i've got to tell you that the highlight of yanna's toddler years happened at max's party. barney was there! (played by max's awesome dad, martin!) ahhh! yanna couldn't get enough of him. there was an anchor when we were all leaving and yanna got teary eyed when she was saying bye to barney. aw! she spoke of him till the next day - so thanks to the magsingit fam for an awesome party!!! happy birth again max!

don't you just love the weather this past weekend? gosh! whatever happened? oh! hello! chicago weather?! just lovin' the surprises this place can bring =)

oh btw, i made my first "shrimp pad thai" - although my family loved it, i feel that i needed to put some more olive oil since it's kinda dry and a lil' more soy sauce, but i'm glad my family was so proud of me... hehehe i'm definitely likin' the chef in me... oust!
k gotta drop off my kids now and back to work!!! have a blessed day! till next blog!

here's some pics taken over the weekend:

*bored*

i was so bored while cleaning up files in my computer... 'till i found this...

uploaded it in youtube hehehe

*date nite*

ahh! finally... a date nite alone with my hubby. it's been awhile. it's pretty hard to find time away from the little ones since they do take up most of our time. not that i'm complaining... it's just that i do believe part of having a healthy marriage is having date nites with your spouse... don't u agree?

well, last friday was that time for me and my husband. we were both looking forward to it. thanks to my loving sis, she took my kids out too!

nway, my husband and i had an intimate dinner at hachi's kitchen... love the food! i highly recommend it! 1st time we tried volcano maki and it was delish! of course we had to get our fave, dragon and wine. i do recommend though to have enough time to find parking since they don't offer vallet. we were in a hurry, but still had enough time to enjoy our food and each other. nway, we were too stuffed to walk, plus it was frrrreezing outside... but we laughed it off. =)

we head straight to see blue man group! i've been wanting to see it... but too bad i expected more! i mean it's nice to see their performance esp. the music, but i wouldn't pay that much money to watch it again. some parts dragged.

but for what it's worth... we made the most out of our night. we even agreed to do it 1s a month! we're going for texas de brazil next time since i have a gift cert there! thanks to my sweet brother!

thank God everything went well... tho all were memorable, there is one thing my husband said that completed the night and will always remember... he said, "i love my life now and i wouldn't trade it for the world!" aw!

as promised... here's what i made for him... (i just picked a few pages) - he loved it! he kept saying... this is so cool! lolz
~ do you see the envelope looking card? that's a plain white bookmark... i just folded it, decorated it a lil' and wrote my message to him inside!

next project: haven't decided yet =)

thank you Lord for the wonderful night you gave me and my husband!!! till next time!
-love

happy LOVE day!

wow! what a day! so fun and exciting!

ok, the project HOPE fundraising my sis came up with is selling bouquet of roses for valentine's day. we arranged these beautiful roses with such joy in our faces and we just kept praising the Lord for an amazing opportunity. i have to confess that we did not expect it to do this good. thank you Lord for doing this with us and giving us the skills to even put them together.

please be advised that we will be doing this for mother's day as well. hope you can help us spread the word!

i did manage to take a few pictures. i was planning to take a picture of each delivery, but i left my camera at my sis' house. oh well! i'll have to post what i have, this weekend.

i do want to share to you how surprised and overjoyed every recipient we delivered the flowers to. all of them were a kodak moment. some cried and some were just flabbergasted. i wish all of my friends received one, but i didn't have their email addresses. i mean, i didn't want to let the girls know and kill the surprise you know what i mean? but oh well, next time i guess. =)

however, i love the trick i did with my girlfriend, marge though. i called her up while i was on my way to drop off her flowers (she had no idea at all). she kept talking on the phone until i rang the doorbell. she even told me that's someone's at the door... hehehe! she was sooo surprised to see her roses and of course seeing me deliver her flowers given by her husband? um, love what's going on? u lost your job or something? hehehe (probably the thought that was playing around her head) lolz

overall experience: driving? of course it's kinda tiring esp. if you're sitting in traffic. delivering the flowers? it was a feeling i would love to experience again - seeing different emotions (smile, tears, speechless, etc.) were all worth the drive. plus, this project not only brought these wonderful feelings to many, but it has given another way to bring hope to the less fortunate. that is what we're aiming for.

thanks to all and have a blessed night!

important updates

well first, i'd like to be one of the first to greet you all in advance a happy valentine's day! valentine's day for me is special... for it reminds me of how precious and infinite God's love is for us.

i decided to change the video in the W2R main page as well as include some new features and updates for project hope.

my sister, yvonne (project hope's account's administrator) have thought of another way of raising funds for valentine's day and we were all so excited to put it together. but i'd like to commend her dedication for she has done almost all the work in spite of her busy schedule. see she's also an independent tax consultant and of course if you pay taxes, you know that this is the busy season for them. so i'd like to personally thank her for going the extra mile to make this happen.

i can't really say much about this in advance even if i was tempted to coz it'll kill the surprise for many (chicagoans). so i'll have to update you with the results tomorrow night. but we are once again so grateful for the provision of the Lord coz we absolutely did not expect this plan excel the way it did. and of course thank you so much to the thoughtfulness and generosity of many who have trusted us and considered our offer. you have not only made your loved ones feel more special than they already are, but you have also offered such difference for the lives of the less fortunate.

*****

project HOPE updates:
you can now donate online!!! we have decided to use paypal for this service and made arrangements to transfer your generous donations to project hope's personal bank account. no worries - it's safe and secure!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: please take time to get to know what Project HOPE is all about. however, for those who already know that this is a family ministry, i would like to inform you that our trip to the philippines will have to be postponed to a later date. i am one of the founders of this ministry, but unexpected circumstances have come my way and it will definitely impact our financial plans to support the traveling expenses as well as a big part of the project. however, our hopes are completely in the Lord so please be certain that this project will still be in effect regardless of my personal circumstances. our fund raising plans and support to other ministries will continue.

for those who have generously donated, please know that your donations are secured and will strictly be used for the benefit of the less fortunate and not for any other purposes. my circumstance only affects my family's living expenses, travel plans and other support we have planned for project HOPE and so please do not be alarmed by any negativity in regards to your donations. we know that the Lord has greater plans and He will provide for our needs.

our focus remains the same... we do this for God's people and we remain His servants.

please feel free to contact me for any concerns you may have at (630) 802-7648.

our mission is solely to spread the love of God to the forgotten through the giving of hope bags and the offering of friendship. we are confident that the Lord will make this happen in His appointed time.

we simply ask for your continued prayers and support for this matter. in Jesus' name, we can do this together.

thank you for your time, thoughtfulness, support and bountiful prayers!

sincerely,
lovely miranda

b4 workout

thought of bloggin' before i work out. yesterday, my siblings and i finally had a chance to visit my mom's friend that i was telling you about. tears just started running down my face right when i saw her coz she looked so fragile. she had her feeding tube on, her arms were restrained coz from time to time she would try to pull her tubes and get out of bed and she looked so alone (literally i would say). her family hardly visits her. my sisters and i felt so broken for her.

she was so delighted to see us there. although from time to time she would have memory lapses, she was so energetic to talk. it was hard to understand her words coz she was mumbling due to the effect of her stroke. but so far there are no other diagnosis beside the experience of alziehmer. alzeihmer... something i pray that i won't have to go through. i'd rather be with the Lord than experience a period of memory loss... the heartache of seeing a loved one forget about the wonderful memories we used to share is just heart breaking. so hard...

but i thank the Lord for her wonderful responses when i was talking to her about how God loves her so much and how she is loved by many. she asked for a hug a few times and i was able to take a video of her singing "Because He Lives" with me.

i couldn't get her off my mind. these type of experiences brings back memories of how we cared for my mom during her battle with lung cancer. every time i'm reminded of it, i thank the Lord for the opportunity He gave us to be with my mom during her struggle and how different and amazing it was to see one of His faithful followers shine even in the midst of such physical despair. it was an experience that i will treasure for a lifetime. i'm so proud of my family and the God given bond we have for each other.

~
well, over the weekend i did something different for my husband for valentine's day. i will have to spare the excitement for now till that day so bear with me... don't worry i'll take a picture of it. i sure hope he'll like it... it was worth the 13 hrs. i spent putting it together.
~

my son, ayren couldn't sleep the other day coz he was so excited for his book fair. he wanted to get next sequal of "diary of a whimpy kid". well, the book fair was today and guess what? he got the last one in the shelf. whew! that was nerve wrecking! nway, i was so happy for him that i just had to take a picture of him. (will post when i get a chance tomorrow)

right now, i need to watch american idol! besides the filipina, i also have an eye on someone, i just didn't catch her name (the best part - i have a feeling she's a Christ follower too!)

blog right back! still have to work out right after AI- too much to do at such little time!
have a good nite!

Look a like Meter of d Miranda =)

Happy Friday!

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family history sites - Pedigree chart

another success!

since most of the people at my house are sick, i decided to cook again. hehehe

thankfully, we were told in advanced to work from home if it's bad outside... so really, this worked out really good.

chicago weather... either you love it or you hate it! here's a shot of my back yard.

my husband said that the travel is really bad out. he went for his drug/physical testing for at&t... yep! the Lord finally gave him a new job! so tough just having one income coming in. all is well with the benefits and all so that's another answer to our prayers since by august i might not have a replacement job right away. yikes! but my hope is in the Lord and so i claim it in Jesus' name that He will give me a new job where i will prosper financially, spiritually, emotionally, socially & mentally. meet new friends and help new clients. u never know!

k, here's a pic of the new dish i made it's called, "stir fried shrimp & veggie with terriyaki & oyster sauce"... another successful dish to share. i'm like a cooking machine!!! i'm lovin' it!

stay warm!

tried and true

this past weeks have been tough for me. too many things on my mind that just last week i just felt like my head was going to blow. but thank God for His mercy... He never fails to come to the rescue!

things have been happening both in my personal and my professional life. the company i work for is facing a major transition that will affect my employment. however, i'm grateful that i was chosen and trusted to stay until the end. the estimated last day will be between aug. & oct. thankfully, in spite of this unexpected circumstance i still have the Lord's unfailing peace that passes all understanding. i just really felt more for the people who have families and were just recently hired and now they only have weeks to complete their part and that's it... on to sending resumes again.

at least with me, i'm still grateful that it's not going to happen tomorrow or a week from now. i'm just sorta nervous and excited at the same time for the next assignment God has in store for me. i wonder where He's going to bring me this time... would it be in the same field or totally different? yikes! Lord, i'm ready when You are! i trust You on this!

i actually shared this in today's ODB... hope you'll be blessed!

also, last thursday i was overflowing with sorrow for noel's family. his cousin's son was born with just half brain and no skull.... christopher lived for 5 days. he was able to give a big smile before he passed (caught on camera too!). but noel and i could not help ourselves and just broke down as soon as we saw christopher laying peacefully in his coffin. my heart sank, but i'm grateful that the Lord was still glorified through it all. the whole family acknowledged God's sovereignty and mercy. you could just feel the love everyone had for each other and for christopher. the experience may be heart breaking, but it brought everyone on their knees and that's the beauty of brokeness... the Lord is always near. christopher is loved and i'm honored to be one of his aunts.

okay... changing the subject to put a lil' smile on your faces... i'm so excited to share that i tried cooking yesterday. totally forgot to take a picture of it so really i have no proof to show you how yummy it looks... but hey, it really is delish! my fam said so... hehehe i got the approval of my family so i guess that's enough for me to keep trying new recipes. i got the recipe from food network, it's called "shrimp scampi with linguini", but i want it to look more colorful instead of blah... so i decided to use rotinni instead and i doubled the ingredients so it's not dry. love it! i'm so happy =)

on to my next one! still haven't decided, but will let you know soon.

i think i need to log off now. i was so busy at work that i still had more to bring home so i've been working on it since i got home... don't want to get some spankin' from my family again... yikes!

one last note: THANK GOD FOR THE GOOD TIMES AND EVEN THE BAD TIMES! once again, i received an overwhelming response from today's ODB... thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. i'm so blessed to have such wonderful ODB friends. God is AWESOME! He never fails! thank you Lord, i love YOU!!!

nitey nite!