back to regular week!

well, how was everyone's thanksgiving celebration? hope y'all had and awesome one just like mine! the highlight for me was the time we spent expressing reasons to be thankful for, before we started eating. although some were caught off guard, i'm in awe for the sincerity of everyone... from the youngest to the oldest. ahh! thank God for my entire family!

nwayz, thanksgiving week is about to end and i'm back to job hunting, kids are back to school tomorrow and noel's back to work after a week of family time and many expressions of gratefulness from the family to God.

so... how was black friday for everyone? this was my first year not going. thank God i didn't feel quite down about it. i guess coz i was so tired preparing and plus the kids in our family are well aware and understand our situation (i'm so thankful that they do). i know retail was down this year tsk tsk tsk.

just the other day, i was reading the article about the great depression and the economic crisis the world is going through right now and i must agree to all of the people that were interviewed, who experienced the great depression, when they said that the generation nowadays will feel the hardship more due to the lifestyle we have gotten used to compare to their lifestyle in 1930s. well, thank God we have God with us to satisfy our every need and to give hope when the situation continues to exhaust it. i tell yah, faith in God really helps to get back in the game!

yesterday was my friend, larraine's graduation party. it was held in a fully renovated, classic bowl. it was a joy seeing some of my girls i haven't seen in ages... gosh! i miss them again already hehehe. too bad i don't have pics, but i sure hope those who took pics will somehow have the time to forward them to me *ehem girls!* as usual we were all loud, cheeks were hurting coz of laughing and are thumbs were close to getting blisters coz of bowling. it was a fun night and i sure hope rain had an awesome time. congratz again my loves! you did it! we're so proud of you!

here's a shot of the shadow box i made for my friend, rain. i'm glad it put a smile on her face =)

k, this is it for now... y'all have a good nite! God speed!

hAPpy ThAnksGivIng EvE!

thought i'd blog before i start with my busy day. we're hosting thanksgiving this year and i've been trying to joggle my schedule everyday since last friday. see here's one of the many things i'm grateful for even if our budget is tight... i may not have the luxury to be shopping for myself anymore, but the Lord continues to shower us with food. 2 of our fridge are full - it never runs out - that's why i really find it hard to complain coz God continues to provide for our needs.

thanksgiving and Christmas are 2 of my favorite occasions to celebrate... there's nothing like recognizing how awesome our God is... although everyday should be thanksgiving, tomorrow is the highlight of the amazing journey our Christian brothers and sisters (pilgrims) went through. from numerous trials and sufferings... they were faithful to give thanks to our Lord! now that's faith!

so to you my friends, what are you most thankful for this year?

have a blessed thanksgiving to you and your loved ones. may you cherish each moment coz no matter what, everyday is different... and each day is a gift from God.

p.s. it's not turkey day... it's THANKSGIVING DAY - recognizing the blessings God has given you. (it won't hurt to be reminded)

muah! i love you all =)

Celebrating My Uncle's Life...

we love you uncle von! say hi to mama for us... we know we will see you again!

heaven was waiting...

for my uncle who went to be with the Lord last night @ 11:45p. people wonder if we were surprised since he was suffering from lymphoma, pneumonia & tuberculosis, however, for me, since i've gone through this same situation with my mom, you don't really find yourself leaning towards departure, instead you hold on to every moment you have. no matter how bad the circumstances is in front of you, you can't really ready yourself to face your loved one's departure... however, i can speak for my cousins and my aunt (who are also believers in Christ) that the experience and every moment was worth it. my uncle received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior during his battle and although we grief for his passing, i can certainly attest that his departure was not in vain, instead we rejoice for his new life eternally with Christ, our Lord.

i'm a firm believer of matthew 8:36... "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" yes! in life it all comes down to one decision, that is if you want to gain everything in this world and lose your soul, or you won't have everything this world brings, but you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? at the end of the day, it is what it is... we will depart this world, but we just don't know when, but i'm glad to say that I AM SAVED and i just look forward for the day i will finally be with my King! how about you, do you know where you're going? don't be too arrogant with your good deeds, for we are not saved coz we do good works, but bcoz of His love and mercy, He died on our behalf. His free gift of salvation was made available to us which can only be received through faith. now, when you love Christ, that's when good works follow.

so, going back to my uncle... i'm glad i was able to spend time with him when we went to VA, but i'm most delighted to hear that he received Jesus' gift of salvation right on time! to God be all the glory!!!

ahhh! it feels so good to be at peace with everything! though trying moments come my way, i'm so glad i have the Lord to turn to and share my deepest sorrows. if you're interested in finding out more of how you can have "THE BEST' relationship with God, please feel free to shoot me an email i'll be glad to pray for you and with you.

i've been sick since last week. i loss my voice 3days ago and i'm having such a hard time sleeping at night coz of my severe cough. i just thought i'd log in real quick before i hit the bed. i've been cleaning like crazy (even if i should be resting) coz we're hosting thanksgiving this year. thank God we're able to even if we're in the midst of a financial crisis. God is good and there's no way i would decline celebrating thanksgiving and Christmas... it's about my Savior we're talking about here for crying out loud!

nway, last sat, i met up with my girlfriend for brunch and tried the restaurant in arlington heights called "uptown cafe"... it was both our 1st time there and we both tried something new hehehe. we're glad we did. every food we ordered deserved 5 stars. thank God for metromix i discovered this restaurant! oh gosh! i'm getting hungry just thinking about it. too bad my girlfriend totally forgot a few hrs won't be enough to catch up on things, but i'm glad to see her and blessed to have that opportunity with her. looking forward for more!

so, what's for thanksgiving? well, besides good food and many laughs, i look forward to hearing everyone's testimony of what they're thankful for. oh btw, i volunteered to cook. oh my! is that a good thing for my family? hahaha maybe not, but oh well, they don't have a choice =)

k signing off now! may you all have an awesome night and a blessed tomorrow!

the power of the Lord...

i happened to browse around billy graham's website to find some resources that might be of interest to me at the moment and i ended up watching this video.

i'm glad i did and now i'm MORE IN AWE of just how powerful the Lord is once you fully submit your life to Him.

watch and be blessed!

the God i know...

when you think about God, what thoughts do you have in mind? who is He? what’s He like?

i'm glad that God had found me. if it wasn't for Him, my life would probably be so miserable. coz right now, even if we're having financial difficulties, i'm grateful that my family stands strong all because we have God as our foundation.

i can honestly say that it's been really tough financially lately, but i'm grateful each waking day, each time i see my kids, each meal we eat, each time i grocery shop, each time i fill my tank, each personal time i have with the Lord, etc. see, the Lord has taught me not to look at the people above me when the feeling of envy is kickin' in, instead look at the people below me and be grateful for what i have.

yes, there are times i just cry in the car when i just don't know how we will get by for the next month's expenses, but believe me, this trying time definitely brought our family even closer. it has opened many doors of great communications and best of all, it has brought us down to our knees and closer to the Lord.

last week's message from willow has once again helped me add more fuel of trust in the Lord. and so i would like to share it with you. you and i may not have the same situation, but i'm almost positive that this will help you one way or another.

may you be blessed as you listen closely to the message of comfort... (to watch, pls click on the image below. once you're on the site, click on the same icon on the top right)
remember, when life gets dark, come to God for comfort. gnite!

the Heart of Jesus

i'm in awe! just watch what Jesus could do...


Praise the Lord for Adoption!!!

CHANGE has come to AMERICA!

I decided to turn today's ODB to the topic of yesterday's historical win due to a phone call I just received about a couple crying, out of disappointment for McCain's loss over Obama.

Yesterday, if you think about it, millions of people casted their votes for their choice of political leaders, and more importantly for President. After many months of campaigning each one of us, voters, had the opportunity to choose, however, we must understand and accept that not everyone’s choice will win.

Yes, we all have our differences... we have proposals we agree and disagree on. But even if the turn out was different, we, of all different walks of life should remain in prayer everyday for those who are in authority to make the right decisions. I tell yah, living in this land of great opportunities should bring us hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel... ALWAYS.

I must confess, I voted for Republicans. I have my reasons... like most of us do. There are things I agree and disagree with both parties, but like many others I stand for the hope, the right direction, and the great opportunities ahead for us.However, watching America unite for change and hope yesterday was definitely historically breath taking. As my kids and I direct our very eyes watching this historic triumph unfold before us, I felt JOY in my heart. No major incidents were reported, instead unity as one nation took its place under the provision of our glorious King. Yes, I truly believe that Barack Obama was appointed by God to be the next President of the United States. Did I know that then or was I leaning towards that? I can honestly say, no, but as a child of God, I trust and embrace the Lord's plan. Whether McCain won, we all serve ONE GOD who is our eternal President, the One who has our best interest... the Creator of McCain and Obama... so I choose God's leading.

On another note, I salute McCain's gracious message yesterday. There's no doubt how much he loves his country and how willing he was to bring about unity and change, but such time as this has to happen. I do not regret voting for him, instead, like him i embrace the new chapter of America's story and Obama cannot fulfill any of those changes we want to see if we just sit and watch, we all have a role to play and if we want to see those changes then we all need to help and better get moving!

So now what? Do we just let yesterday's triumph become a one day history? Do we continue to dwell on McCain's loss? Or do we stand together to work for the greater good and prayerfully support our next leader?

Friends, let's pray that the Lord will guide Obama's steps, his decisions, his choices, and his presidency. That the Lord will use him and his members to really bring about change in America. That the hope we all hold on to will finally be revealed and experienced through the touch of God in Obama's leadership. I pray that Obama will put God first in everything he does, to live in the foundation of Joshua 24:15, so that all will be well even in the midst of trials and tough decisions.

AMERICA, I celebrate with you! God bless us all!

p.s. my weekend was so exhausting. i finished painting my brother's bathrooms... ugh! it was so dangerous coz i didn't have the proper ladder to use, but someone had to do it and i wasn't about to buy a ladder just for a small portion i couldn't reach. so i managed to get myself up there and yes, by the grace of God i'm still ALIVE! whew!

we finished my daughter's election 2008 scrapbook - stayed up till 3am monday night. oh gosh! out of all the things i had to do and finish over the weekend, i was so drained yesterday all i wanted to do was sleep, but i only succeeded 30 mins of nap time coz my lil' one kept calling me... ayayay! well, i'm off to study for my last test this sat. i hope and pray for a celebration soon!

enjoy the beautiful weather and a blessed wednesday!

Is He in your life?

Hello All,

I hope you all remember me... the ODB lady. Wishing that all is well with everyone and that although we're at the verge of economic crisis, know that God is faithful and just. I also want to take this opportunity to thank you everyone who continues to pray for me as well as the numerous follow up emails requesting for the daily bread. So without further ado, let's get on with today's message.

Does God exist in your life? Or is He a figment of your imagination?

As a child, my siblings and I were surrounded by a very strong atmosphere of religiosity, both in school and home. Our mom was a devoted servant of a church in our town. We were told to pray and do the ritual practices at church. I thought I knew God then. I would say that He lived in my heart, but nobody really explained to me about the importance and the difference of having a PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with Him. I guess I kind of assumed too that I already had one.

Not until things were going wrong in my life did I start searching and caring for the REAL MEANING of a relationship with Christ. I was so in hurry to find out that I even longed for something I could touch, hold, feel and hear to give me proof that there is really someone out there who has my best interest.

Let's be honest, no one enjoys the feeling of brokenness. But after receiving Jesus Christ as the Lord and Savior of my life and devoted some of my time getting to know Him through His words, (believe me it was tough understanding it at first, but the more I spend time with Him the more He reveals Himself to me), I learned to depend on Him & His promises everyday. My hopes became brighter and being broken gave me an entirely new perspective on God's plan for my life.

Just the other night, I I tried going through different books to understand what Jesus was trying to say in this verse: "Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only one seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." After much research, I came to the conclusion that this passage teaches us that death is necessary for a harvest. Jesus' death for our sins led to glory and life not only for Himself, but also for us.

Therefore, only by falling and breaking can a single grain produce a rich crop. If it stays isolated and protected, it will never produce anything.

I truly believe that's how the Lord works to mature His children. He allows us to be broken to bring spiritual growth and supernatural ministry into our lives. And the process is always the same:
1) He targets the areas where we're not submissive to Him.
2) He arranges circumstances and selects the tools with which to break our self-sufficiency.
3) He controls the pressure and timing of those circumstances to bring us back into His will.

I mean, the choice is still ours... if we refuse to be re-formed through this brokenness and continue to cling to whatever God wants us to release, then He will put us on the shelf. Just think about it, yes, we resist brokenness wherever we turn, but just like the single, unbroken grain of wheat, we will become fruitless and alone if we continue to follow what we think is best for us. Our biggest problem is we choose to hang on to the things we think bring joy. We want to persist in relationships that are blocking our spiritual growth. We want to take the easiest way hoping that God will bless our laziness and impatientness. My friend, this is not the road to maturity that our Father in heaven has prepared for us.

There's no doubt that brokenness hurts. But God's word, proclaims that it hurts more not to be broken. Don't be distracted by short-term happiness. Look where God is leading you and let Him do whatever it takes to get you there. When God says "NO", when He takes away instead of adding more, when He divinely manages what we have, how much we have, and how long we have it, He is helping us keep our eyes on Him. don't despise these moments. Instead, recognize them as the voice of God calling you back into His loving arms. Yes, it won't be easy, but in the end, as you continue to trust that God delivers and redeems people from all walks of life, you can look back and see how amazing and genius God is for putting your pieces back to whole again.

Have a joyful day everyone!

God speed!
Lovely

whoa! too much...

project goin on for the kids' school. noel and ayre worked together for ayre's science project (due tomorrow) while camille and i worked on her history project (due election day, but too much research and scrapbooking to do).

here's ayre's space rocket model (made out of legos - he's presenting it tomorrow) you can do it, ayre! i so love every details of this...

here's a preview of camille's election book (will post more LOs when project's done - still have a lot of pages to do. a lot of cutting, gluing, thinking and laughing comes with this project, but what i love the most is the bonding =)

i've been sore since yesterday. i finished painting one of my brother's bathrooms, last friday. i'm glad he loves the color i picked for him. it's a modern gray. at first i thought he wouldn't like it coz i know he's not into dark colors, but thank God he likes my taste hehehe. he says that's one of his favorite rooms in his house now, aww! i'm painting the master bath next and i think a lighter mocha would be great for it. he likes the idea, i just hope he'll like the results too. yikes!

i'm about to send the odb for tomorrow as well as send my resumes out again so i leave you with well wishes and a reminder that God is good all the time!

tired, but it's all good

it feels like this day was dragging. although i ran a few errands all morning, talked with a friend i haven't seen in ages, did a few things around the house, the day still seem too slow. anyway, so much eating and physical work since thursday. let me summarize if i can *wink*

thursday: hubby and i had a lil' misunderstanding the day before, but he totally surprised me by taking a day-off just to take me out on a date. as an early gift for me, he wanted to take me on a shopping spree, but i'd rather do an early Christmas shopping for our family rather than buying something for myself since i don't really want anything, but a job, you know what i mean?

i was so hungry so we decided to eat first. originally, we planned to try the sushi station in our area, but he wanted me to try, house of tokyo. wow! i must say it was all worth it. we arrived exactly in the beginning of the "all you can eat" dinner special. get this, it was $24 pp, the chefs just began serving fresh sushis in front of us while this little boat filled with different types of sushis sailed this long table we were in. we went sushi CRAZEE! it was too much for the night that it felt like the food entered our brain... oh gosh! it's too much just thinking back. we enjoyed the food so much coupled with some good laughs and great topics of conversation.

we then purchased a few gifts from aurora outlet, watched eagle eye then called it a night. purrty good i must say.

friday: my 32nd birthday - wow! time flies! i thank the Lord for giving me another year to experience more of His amazing plans for my life. God is good all the time, i tell yah!

well, although it's kinda tough for my husband to get a vacation from work, he requested this day anyway and thank God they approved it, but not saturday. well, better than nothing. we had a few things planned, but i was dragging. so we ended up at woodfield mall (kids' choice), they wanted to go to gameworks, but we were running late for dinner. i wanted to try weber grill since the kids and i get really curious every time we see that ginormous grill in front of the restaurant. how do i rate it? well, i finished my humongous burger w/ jalapeno cheese (i was hungry ok - but i prefer pepper jack cheese, but they didn't have it), i like the starter, which comes w/ shrimp, chicken, ribs, onion rings & somethin' else, and the rest of my fam were satisfied w/ their orders... so i would have to give it a 3 1/2 out of 5. only bcoz i'm not really a fan of grilled stuff and the server was somewhat in hurry to take things out of our table. but all in all, it was a night well spent with some of my loved ones. thank you Lord!

saturday: woke up early to help my brother move to his new condo in chicago. although i also like his town house before, i feel a new and good beginning here. the place of course is BEAutiful... surrounded with crown molding, tall ceilings, 2 huge patios, marble bathrooms, and cute layout. with all the loading, unloading and unpacking, they managed to surprise me with ube cake and yummy food... aww! they love me =) it was almost midnight when we got home.

sunday: we all woke up sore, but thank God for pain killers! the message once again, hit the nerve of my current situation. it's called, what we learn in downturns. of course with the downturns we've been experiencing this year, bill explained the hope that is in Christ with clarity and confidence that God is faithful through it all. it was the perfect time to have heard this message and i'm again, so grateful to our heavenly King. i plan to share bits of what i learned for tomorrow's odb (say no more, i know i've been slacking off with my odbs and believe me i'm so disappointed of myself and so i ask for your prayers).

the kids still wanted to hang out so we decided to just eat at panda express. we filled the place with our laughs... gosh, we're loud! hehehe

noel got home early from work. we watched indiana jones in the theatre room while munching on our popcorn and chocolate - it was heaven!

monday: went back to chicago to help my brother unpack. @ 2, we rushed back to pick up my son from school. did my daily job description as a mom and hit the bed pretty late.

that's pretty much what i've been doing the past few days. tomorrow afternoon will be voting day for me and my husband. are you guys ready? i'm sorta not, since i haven't reviewed the other candidates... hopefully tomorrow morning... i'm so bad =(

this week will be physically and mentally draining for me. my brother requested that i paint parts of his house, i have to help camille with her election 2008 scrapbook project & help my son, ayre with his science model project. since he's so fanatic with legos, we decided to make a model out of his legos. he just can't wait to start on it. as a matter of fact i'm pretty excited too! hehehe

well, that's it for now, i'm supposed to be sending out my resume, not bloggin' - WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH ME?

k, blessings to all! gnite =)