Looking back to the year of the Monkey 2016

2016 isn’t really a bad year for me. Yes, there were so many undesirable events. But, there were also pleasant surprises  and many firsts for me. And I wouldn’t trade anything else for these.

Entering the Blogosphere

In 2016, I finally joined the blogosphere. I’ve been wanting to write and review stuff. Writing has been one of my passions ever since I was young. I remember writing poems back then but I just didn’t know how to channel it out. So, I found blogging to be very interesting.

It’s actually funny that I love to write but I’m not very fond of reading. I can fall asleep or have my mind afloat when reading a book. But, in writing, I can stay awake all night with hundreds of ideas running in mind when I’m in the mood. I don’t know, I’m just like that. So, please don’t expect me to read much. I’d rather hear it or experience it than read. Maybe there’s a term for that. Just like being in the middle of being an introvert and an extrovert. Complicated.

Yes, it’s very hard to write when you’re not in the mood of doing so. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no perfect writer–I get my grammar wrong most of the time. I’m having a hard time editing my piece too, since I’m only using mobile to blog. This will change maybe in the middle of the year. I do have a desktop but it has a 32″ unfriendly sized screen. I know I have to replace it with a normal size one. But, I have to work on my internet connection first. Because of the buildings around, the signal can no longer penetrate our unit. So, I’ll settle blogging in mobile for now specially when I’m up to it.

The Road to Discipleship

In 2016, I’ve started to take my faith as a Christian in a new level by being discipled. God has His ways of making me follow, connecting me to my Victory group leader May of fullyhousedwife.com. God didn’t give me just that. He gave me a blog mentor, a friend, and a faith partner. He gave me someone equip for reinforcement. I grew up as a Christian but somehow dormant in faith. Still a work in progress as I’ve told you in my last article about positivity. But, better than being dormant.

If you’ve missed my last article read HERE.

A Paid Time-Off well spent

In 2016, I had my longest vacation ever! 4 and a half months or so. Yes, it’s a paid vacation. This actually paved the way for me to experience all the events that blogging has to offer and have my head in writing. It also gave me the time for my weekly one to one with May until we finished all the sessions. It’s pretty amazing how everything worked for a purpose.

The time off also gave me time to take Andrey in her modeling workshops and contest for Top Fashionista 2016. The schedule was hectic and I won’t be able to give her my full attention if I was reporting to work. Aside from taking her to her workshops, I had to worry myself of the outfits that has to go in every segment and the budget. Being in a contest is really time-consuming and pocket wrecking. But, just to see her standout in the stage is mind-blowing. Talking about a stage mommy. Lol!

Read more about our adventures Here.

Making New Friends

In my field of work, I don’t really interact with a lot of people. So, new friends are mostly from the same industry aside from my old friends, of course. But, this year, I made a handful of new and amazing friends like Berlin of momiberlin.com who’s one of my favorite narrative writers in the blogging industry and many more others.

There really are people you meet that you never know can become one of your friends. And with the friendship, you learn from them. Friends are gifts from God, they help you, support you and often makes you smile. A very good add-on to ones life.

Taking Control of the Wheel

In 2016, I also had the chance to experience Chicklet (a name I gave to a car) when her Dad (owner) left her in our care. We did have a lot of adventures together from North to South of Luzon. Long drive and traffic is just swift with her. I’m not confident driving other cars. But, with her I can go to Mom on my own or take the kids to school, church, name it. It’s just disappointing when she got scratches when she wasn’t even turned on. I do miss her a lot now that she’s in Zamboanga and is negative in coming back anytime soon.

My husband John did get frustrated teaching me how to drive at times. You see, I drive trucks back then. I don’t know, maybe time and events have made me less of a risk taker. I had fears of getting hit, I had difficulty in making approximates, and my heart pounds heavily when the engine starts. That’s how difficult it was for me.

The time with Chicklet did rekindle the driver in me. Made me comfortable with the wheel again. Approximating is still a bit off, with a 1 meter distance and I feel it’s too close already. Hahaha! Better be safe than sorry, right?

Scary Kitchen

I’m happy to say that before the year ended, I made my first Lasagna! Hooray for me! Well, I’ve been wanting to cook it for the longest time. But, I didn’t have the chance and courage of doing so. I preferred the usual stuff like spaghetti and carbonara. These two I’ve mastered our own blend. Frightened to screw up, I settled to cook the usual dish every time we have an occasion.

My first ever Lasagna!

 

But, not this time. I wanted it special and different to end the year for us. Of course, I bothered May (as I always do with different kinds of stuff. lol!) about it asking for a simpler recipe other than the one that I learned from The Maya Kitchen. I did some twist here and there, applied what I’ve learned from the workshop and tadah! It was a blockbuster hit! Okay, maybe because there was no other pasta dish. Hahaha! I asked the kids on how it was and I got a two thumbs up! That’s all that matters anyway. For them to love the dish, is victory for me.

My Thoughts for the Past Year

I’m amazed how God controls everything. That even my interest maneuvers back to Him. Even during times when I feel left out, it still leads me back. I’m just happy and thankful for everything that happened in 2016. The bad experiences will always have a mark in my heart. But, I trust God to heal me. For all of us, may all the bad ones teach lessons and allow us to make a well thought-of future decisions in life.

We only have one lifetime to live. Each year is a new opportunity for us to make things better for ourselves and for others. May this year and the coming years for us all be blessed, so we can all be a blessing to others as well. Let the past be past and let’s look forward to a better future.