A few weeks ago, we found a park near our house. After picking my grandkids up after school, we headed over to check it out

Brandon planned on reading....

Tyler planned on fishing ....

Sandra planned on walking ....

Anna planned on being silly ....

I planned on enjoying time with my grandkids ....

Fun was had by all ....

BOO AND TOMATO SOUP

Meet Boo.  Our daughter, Sandra's little dog. Boo is 3/4 Shih Tzu and 1/4 Maltese.  He is a delight! Such a happy dog, always wagging his tail and very loving.  But he also has a mischievous side to him. Probably because he is still a puppy.

This particular day, I had a tray of food in my room which included tomato soup.  I left the room for a few minutes and as I returned, I noticed quite a bit was GONE from my bowl of soup. Did not really think about it until I glanced down at Boo ....

Who knew he was tall enough to reach up to the coffee table where I had my lunch sitting! It is like having a toddler in the house again ... always having to watch him, but who could be mad at THAT face!

32 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!!

This past week, Gary and I took off to celebrate our 32nd anniversary. This has been a long time coming! In 2007, we had planned a get-away to Thailand for time of golf and beach for our up and coming 30th, but Gary became ill and was later diagnosed in September 2008 with 4th stage non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the nerves and later a brain tumor. At that point, our every thought was getting him through the treatments and keeping him alive.

There were many times, we did not think he would live long enough to reach our 30th anniversary. In June 2010, he had just been released from Mayo Clinic after 8 months of treatment, ending with a stem cell transplant. We were thrilled he was alive, but he was still very ill from the transplant. So ... no special get-away trip.

Last year, we had just arrived back in the Philippines for 6 months, and along with being busy with our ministry here, Gary was still not very strong. Go HERE to see a video I posted last year for our anniversary. I am having trouble with my external hard drive where I store my photos, so can not post wedding or our early pictures right now.

Now, we are two years past Gary's stem cell transplant and even though he still suffers pain from the damage done to his nerves and there are days he can not do as much as he wanted to do ... he is still free of active cancer! I am so thankful to have him with me another year. So THIS was the year to do a special get-away.

We travelled north to San Fernando City, La Union here in the Philippines. We had lived in San Fernando for 11 years, so have always enjoyed the beaches here. Recently, a new resort had been built on the cliffs of Poro Point. Thunderbird Resort Poro Point is absolutely beautiful!

Our stay coincided between two tropical storms hitting the Philippines, but it was still beautiful as you can see from the view from our room.The Thunderbird is considered the only 5 star hotel in Northern Luzon and it was all that we hoped it would be and more. Our room was comfortable with modern decor and all the amenities you would expect. A complimentary breakfast buffet and nightly massage was included with our room. Plus, extra drinking water and little packages of chocolates every afternoon.

The best part about the Thunderbird, is the 9-hole golf course! It was so much fun for Gary and I to spend our days golfing with the view of the South China Sea on one side and the bay with mountains on the other side. Our first day was cloudy with the storm threatening, but we played through the massive winds and still had a great time! The next day was sunny and absolutely perfect for golf.
The following day, we stayed in our room and listened to the wind and rain blow. Tropical storm "Falcon" had landed. In spite of the weather, we had a very wonderful time together. This just may become our favorite "go-to" place!

COLORED CHICKS

Easter is not the only time when you can see and buy little colored chicks. This is an ongoing thing in Metro Manila. On Sundays, you will see them being sold near the Catholic churches, along with flowers, balloons and other items to catch a buyer's eye.

When I see them, it always brings a smile to my face, remembering a conversation our daughter, Sandra, and our house helper had on the way home from church one day.

Sandra: "Oh! Look at the little baby chicks! How do they dye them?"

Helper: "They slit their throats" While trying not to laugh too hard and embarrass our helper, we had to explain to a shocked Sandra, that she misunderstood the word "dye" for "die". Just one of many misunderstandings with language and culture here, but one that makes me laugh every time I think of it.

BALUT

Today, I saw this video. Mikey Bustos has done several video tutorials on Philippine life and culture. He has a great way of not only giving you good info, but does it in broken Filipino-English, which most of us call Taglish.

So, "WHAT IS A BALUT?" ..... A balut is a fertilized duck egg with a nearly-developed embryo inside. They are boiled and then eaten in the shell. Balut is usually sold at night among the many street vendors.

In the Philippines, balut eaters prefer salt and/or a chili and vinegar mixture to season their egg. The broth surrounding the embryo is sipped from the egg before the shell is peeled, and the yolk and young chick inside can be eaten. All of the contents of the egg may be consumed, although the white may remain uneaten. Depending on the age of the fertilized egg, the white may be tough.

One of the things we like to do with visiting guest, is give them the opportunity to TRY eating a balut. It is a badge of honor of sorts that earns the respect of our Filipinos. They LOVE to see someone open a balut for the first time. A few years ago, Ron Williams, a good friend and Pastor of Palmetto Ave. Baptist Church in Sanford, FL. was always willing to try anything and everything we offered him. At a youth meeting, he started out handling it like a pro .....

So far so good! My husband says the broth is the best part ... tastes like chicken soup.

BUT ..... EPIC FAIL!!! I wish you could have heard the laughter as Ron could not finish it. He at least earned their love and respect for giving it a try. *smile*

After all .... even Filipinos will say you should eat a balut in the dark and with San Miguel (local beer).

GOOD EATS

This week, Gary and I visited our mission church in Binangonan, Rizal. Located on Laguna de Bay. Fishing is the main source of income in this area. As a gift to us, the church gave us a large fruit basket filled with bananas, mangoes, papayas, apples and oranges. Then, as an extra surprise, they gave us 4 large prawns.

To show just how big these prawns were, I used our newest member of the family, Boo to model with them.

We were going to put them on the grill, but decided to do a southern type "boil" using Old Bay Seasoning. We served the vegetables from the "boil" along with rice ... after all, we do live in the Philippines. The prawns fed 6 in our household. We do not eat the heads, but our helpers do, so it was a feast all around with the wonderful view we live with.

DOCUMENTING MY LIFE

Many times, I am asked "Why" do I blog. I guess I have always had a journal of some sort and this is a more creative way to do it. Sometimes "Life" does get in the way and I let days, weeks and, much to my chagrin, months go by without posting something. I have other blogs than this one .... one to record the journey my husband went through with Cancer, one to record the ministry we do in the Philippines, one to record what I love about party planning, decorating and photography. I also have been a part of blogs that I share with other family members. I have let these go by the wayside because I do most things about my life and family on the blogs I personally have. I hate to delete those blogs, however because they have some special memories on them as well.

Some days, I know I should post something, but inspiration escapes me. I always feel like I need to write about something significant.

Recently, I started thinking that I should post about my day, even if nothing significant happened. A friend of mine shared this video on Facebook (yes, I do that also) and it really inspired me to be conscience of every day "blessings". So watch out.... either this blog will be full of exciting, inspirational posts ... OR ... it will bore you to death. Either way, it will be 'my' life and something my children and grandchildren will be able to read in years to come. Let me know if this video inspires you to do the same!