Featuring Mr and Mrs Spice!

 They say that the best way to start a relationship is look for someone who shares the same interest, someone who mirrors you in terms of what you like and does not like -- i cannot agree more BUT this is not the end of the equation!

I was in our kitchen and saw our spice bottles.. I called them Mr and Mrs Spice -- they are a couple but they have their own names. Mr Salty Spice and Mrs Pepper Spice.  What I am driving at is that both of them have their own qualities but they blend well together!

Like in a real couple, like me and my husband -- we have our unique selves, we are SMEs in our own fields but we blend well together.  They say we complement --  .  There are situations that we have consensus because we know that we will both benefit in our informed decision.  There's give and take because we do not want to take each other for granted.

We bring the best out of each other because we are not up for competition and we want to grow together as a couple and as an individual.



I am not saying that we are perfect but I know we are doing our best to grow our imperfect and crazy relationship!  We are an ordinary couple who shares struggles and laugh at simple things!


What's important is that we stick together!

If you are in search of your Mr Salty or Ms Pepper -- i would suggest to do self check and know yourselves more before sharing your gift to another! 


Xoxo

Listen to your Spouse!

By now you should know that my husband and I got married 7 years ago, but its only three months ago when we moved into our own place..


Feeling like newly weds is another story all together but this time i would like to share something about Listening and Trusting!


I know these are two "Big Words" and they are very easy to utter but equally hard to do. Why? Let's face it girls -- we just don't listen eh??!!


When we moved in, of course we have to do everything on our own.. Chores and stuff that lazy people (sometimes this is me) doesn't want to do. Like cleaning windows!


All my life -- i didn't clean any window because our windows ain't glass but now we are faced with a window glass and I know sooner rather than later I have to face this!


I have an intention in mind! I will clean the windows and I was so excited to do it. 


My first step was to go to Pinterest and search how to clean glass windows. I was delighted to see how easy it was..  I just need some soap, vinegar, alcohol, chamois and water! I was browsing and browsing and i didn't notice I was browsing for two weeks now and still haven't started to clean the windows!


Sweets said "clean the windows"
my response was "alright, I know how to clean it, i just need blah blah blah".


Another weekend passed:
 
Sweets:  clean the windows 
KL:         need to mix blah blah blah
Sweets:  Gamitin mo yang Sabong panlaba, gamitin mo ang sponge, then tuyuin mo ng dyaryo"
KL"         oh okay, kaso ung particles ng dyaryo dumidikit sa window
Sweets:   It means basa na ung dyaryo, need mo na siya palitan
KL:          Oh okie


Truth: i did everything sweets mentioned and this happened!
This was the glass window -- see how clear it was --
Btw, that's our small garden down there :)

As simple as this scenario I can say that I had to listen to Sweets and trust that what he is saying is true! It was indeed the easiest thing to do rather than procrastinate because what I saw in Pinterest was way too complicated than what i did!


My lesson is that: I may know things that will work but there are far more things less complicated that may work as well! The results are the same but the effort is less! Not only sometimes, most of the time, we have to listen to our spouse because we can definitely learn a lot from them!


Xoxo

Learning experience from Arianna Huffington

Some two weeks ago, another Learning opportunity was given to us by Accenture.  I was given the opportunity to attend the six - week course of Arianna Huffington in collaboration with Oprah Winfrey Network. 

Accenture not only is concerned about our career development; they are also heavily involved in investing for our personal development and thus I felt blessed to be part of the group who can benefit in this six - week course.

With the very hectic schedule that I have right now, it takes dedication to proceed with this course and I am determined to finish it together with the other Accenture employees participating in this course as well as my colleagues and leads.

It started with a reading assignment and I would like to echo what I have learned so far and what I plan to do moving forward.

1. Success is not only measured with Money and Power.  While we are busy achieving success, we also have to take care of ourselves.  Simply put: health is wealth!

2. Technology is a good tool to have but is equally dangerous if we do not know how to use them.  In this day in age that we are all communicating majority via email, it is us who needs to be the boss of our emails and not the other way around.  

3. Personal interaction is the ultimate tool to strengthen relationship.  It gives health benefits that money can't buy.

4. Give back - whether this is money, time, skill or even attention.  Giving something to someone increases our happy hormones and helps promote a healthy life! 

I know my next steps, how about you?

Xoxo

How do you treat others?

It's nearing Christmas and I know each one of us is getting more and more excited about the season (or is it just me?).

Anyways, before we get all excited, I hope that we can have a quick sanity check and see how are we doing as a person -- yes a person who lives with other people!

Am I the type of who loves to give help?
Or am I the type who loves to receive?
Am I the type who loves to give back?
Or am I the type who takes advantage?
Am I the type who gives 100% effort in what I do?
Or am I the type who gets credit from others?
Am I the type of who speaks my mind?
Or am I the type who just listens?

No matter how we play this life, let's always make sure that we play fair. Why? Because everything that we do will definitely go back to us!  If we do good, good will come knocking!  If we do bad then bad will also come punching our face! 

This is what you call Karma! 

How about you?
How are you treating others? Will you be at peace knowing that you did not do any good? 
If not, think again because nothing is too late! ^_^

Xoxo

Oh it was by Birthday!

How can I forget the most important day of the year? My birthday!
This was the day where my parents got very excited to see their little bundle of joy! Where all the angels sang and all their eyes wide open to see how cute I was!

I don't want to start to brag but I was really cute when I was a lot lot younger.  As een super duper cute to the max that all of my aunties, uncles, and cousins would like to carry me.  Ganon ka cute! ^_^  I won't post any picture because I will let your imagination do the thing!

Well after all those years, I know I have grown into a fine young woman.
I can say a lot of adjectives about myself but I choose not to, my family and friends know about it already.

Probably I was so busy about a couple of things and almost forgot to write about this very special day.  I was very blessed that I was able to celebrate this special day in the Philippines.  Blessed enough to celebrate it with my two families - DIAZ and FERNANDO family.

Everybody was present and that was the best birthday gift ever!  For us Filipinos, if there are celebrations, eating is the first in the list of to dos!  Sharing the food and stories with your loved ones is one of the best thing to do in strengthening relationship and I do not wish to forego this tradition.

Not sure if everyone is aware but my sister and I shared the same birth date.  Nope, we did not share the celebration but we were really born on the same date ~ January 4.  In case you are asking, we are 15 years apart! Awesome isn't it?? One celebration for two birthdays!

I do not intend to elaborate all of the things that I learned for the past x-years, but I know that I did learn a lot!  I wish to thank all of the people that has been part of my wonderful life ~ those who gave their appreciation and thanks, those who have hurt me and rejected me!  Those who have accepted the weird and crazy me ~ You know who you are!

I thank all of the people who are still actively part of my life now and giving color to my being.  Thank you all for everything!  I cannot elaborate further as I will be lost for words!  (feeling nanalo lang sa Miss Universe).

I cannot thank all of my family and friends but ofcourse I have a top list!

Mama Inday and Papa Gary:
Sa walang sawang pag suporta! You know what you have done to make me the person that I am right now and I am very blessed to have you as my parents! 
I cannot explain how thankful I am but I hope that in my simple ways, I am able to give back!  Both of you are very special to me so please take care of yourselves! Wag pasaway!

Mama Lena and Papa Nestor:
My "wala akong masabing" parents in law!  Para ngang hindi in-laws eh, they are literally my second parents!  I am the luckiest person to have these two wonderful and awesome in-laws.  Parang barkada lang and the level of love is just unconditional.  They made my marriage life so beautiful and I cannot thank them enough for (1) bringing Noel into this world (2) accepting me as their daughter ~ with all my weirdness and craziness!

 
To my brothers and sister! G-Boy, Mika at Louise:
I am happy to be part of this crazy siblings!  When we were a lot younger I was like their worst nightmare because I am really acting like an "Ate".  However, as years go by (althought I am still acting as their Ate), it feels like we are all "barkada", talking about anything under the sun, laughing at the most non-sense matters and making fun of everything.  I think humor is the best part of our relationship. 

I thank the two Kuyas (G-Boy and Mika) because they act as the "Ate" while I am away.  They are my family's guard, doctor, preacher, reporter and they are doing a good job! 

I thank Louise for being the toy! Hahahahah! Toy meaning, someone that is making Mama and Papa busy.  Since Gboy and Mika are both grown up already, Louise is the one that keeps them busy!  A very good student both academic and non academic! Aminado ako na hindi mana sa ate! :)

Would you agree with me that we all look like we are at the same age bracket?! :D

Lastly but definitely not the least!

The ever wonderful and all in one love of my life ~ Noel.
He gives color to my life! I think that is pretty much self explanatory!
If the wife is happy, meaning the husband is doing his job! Hahahah!

 

Life is short, but I know how to enjoy my life. One step at a time.
Simple things, simple joys!
Give thanks!
Be contented!
Give back!

Thanks for sharing your life with me and I hope to share the laughters with you!

Xoxo

Happy Friday: I want to share with you my "WHYS"

I am often asked "Bakit ang saya mo lagi?"
"Why are you always happy?".

My simple answer would be "There are many reasons to be happy about!".  These reasons kept me up and running and smiling all day.  These are the reasons that I would like to share with you all so that it will not be an effort to be happy.

Remember that "Happiness is a conscious choice, not an automatic response".  You have to have the desire to be happy because it's not instant.  Happiness is an action from your heart and not just a facial expression.

Some people might find it hard to be happy but there are some quick tips that I would like to share from my personal experiences.  Something that we all do but just don't realize its potential in making us all happy.

Here you go:

1. Nobody is perfect, even I am not perfect and I can never be one.  In order to be happy, we need to accept that we have our own flaws and failures in life.  These things are not good to look at but it does make our lives more colorful.  This is the same principle with the people around us, they too have their shortcomings and these are but normal.

2. Human beings have the tendency to look at the flaws of other people and sometimes we feel happy if we say bad things about them (at their back).  This is something that we should avoid because it does not give a healthy relationship with people.  If we do not have a healthy relationship with people then we are attracting negative vibes and thus defeating ourselves to be happy.

3.  Relationships are powerful to make one person happy.  The more that you have a good relationship with your family and friends the higher possibility that you can be happy.  One thing to maintain such relationship is if we learn how to listen.  Not just listen perse but listen from the heart.  Your friends, relatives, loved ones will feel when you are listening from your heart or not.  Therefore it has to be sincere.  This is another way that I feel happy within.

4. Responding to every situation is good but responding with positive enthusiasm is even better.  Learn to say YES in every good thing that comes your way.  If something is not for you and you want to say NO then say it in a nice manner where the recipient will feel the sincerity from your words.  Saying YES to positive things attracts more positivity in life.

5. Everything happens for a reason, may it be big or small, may it be grand or simple.  With this in mind, we need to be thankful in everything that we receive whether it is good or not good.  "Thank you" are two powerful words that we can use without any cost involved, we should say them more often.  I  personally like saying "thank you" even with the simplest act from a stranger.  It's also our way of appreciation and contentment.

6. Laugh Loud!  You will feel most happy if you are able to release that positive energy through a good laugh.  Mind you, this is very contagious and if you do it right you will never realize its potential in making another person happy. No need to elaborate because of all the things I have written here this is the easiest of the easiest!

7. Stepping into the stairs without seeing the end of the path - this is having a positive outlook in life, this is FAITH.  Knowing and believing that something good is yet to come and giving thanks in advance is what we should all do.  Personally it makes me happy to think that something BIG is about to happen and it will happen not only to me but to my family and loved one as well.

Happiness is but just a word that starts with letter H and ends will letter S.
However it may sound, whoever say it, we create our own Happiness and if we do it right it is like a puzzle that will fit perfectly in our Life's landscape!

Keep everything light and you will feel light.
Carry the world on your shoulders and you will never see light ~

Xoxo 

Happiness Attracts!

 

Happiness is key to everything! 

Happiness will lead you to more possibilities you never imagined.

Happiness is something that is not given, it is felt!

There is a saying that "opposite attracts". 

In simple explanation, if you are not mature enough then you can be attracted to a mature individual and vice versa.  This feeling gives a sense of security in the relationship.

However, aside from this fact, there is another theory which I would like to prove (not scientifically nor through survey but from my own experience).

"Happiness Attracts"

Yes, this is my theory and I know this is something that I can prove! 

--------------------

You should know by now that I am a HAPPY person.  Well if you haven't noticed then I would like to inform you that fact!

Since I am a happy person, I attract happy people as well. (Ehem!)

Very evident with my photographs below!

From Genting Highlands

From French Village

This goes the same with our relationship with people. 
If you are a happy person this means that you have a very light aura which attracts positive energy.

This energy is contagious that if you surround yourself with happy people then you will feel light and happy as well.

This does not mean that you have to forget about your problems or worries but this will even make your problems feel light and solutions will come pouring to you.  Being happy is one thing, having faith is another thing!

See related post --> This is our Faith 

Now today, you have a choice to make:  
Be happy or surround yourself with happy people, if not then happiness energy will not come to you!  

Yes that's a WARNING! :D

Xoxo

Love Story

I always want to hear love stories from different people. How they began and how they ended up as a happy couple.  Truly there is always a "Happy Ever After".

I am always touched on how people stood by each other, making into reality the vows that they have exchanged during their wedding days.

"To have and to hold,

  from this day forward, 

   for better, for worse,

    for richer, for poorer,

     in sickness and in health, 

      until death do us part" 

I am slowly building this promise to myself and to my husband.

Last year, one Saturday, when I was busy minding our house chores, my husband gave me this link which led me into tears.

This is, in one of its true essence; LOVE until death do us part.

I hope that you will also like it!

Second Wedding Anniversary

Nothing is sweeter than spending a special occasion with special friends.  For our 2^nd wedding anniversary, my husband and I decided to have a simple dinner with our friends here in Malaysia.

Luckily I have special friends who are more than willing to help me cook our meal.  Jen, helped me with the glass noodles and the fried shanghai; Connie helped me with the beef Afritada.  You might ask what I cooked, well I fried the chicken, shanghai and cooked the steamed rice. I still had my contributions. J 

Cake from Mars (Mau) and Bless :)

It was fun and it was full of laughter since we don't get to hang around longer that usual because of our work.  This night was a break for all of us.

Che, Ced and Khristian making themselves busy in the kitchen!



Jose was not able to hold the Philippine Flag properly! Boo Jose!!!  Maybe because he was already hungry!

Here are some of our other close friends who came and joined in our special day!



These are the ex-office mates from Accenture
From left (Ced, Che, Khristian, Aymi and Sweets)

From left (Mars (Mau), Bless, Connie, Karl and Che



From left (Jose, April, Ed, Anne, Jen and Aymi)

Nelven playing Pinoy Henyo with Ced

We finished at around 10pm but it was not tiring at all.  I was very happy with what happened. I wil always be inspired and inlove because I know that I will always have my husband's support no matter what!

By the way, he doesn't want to have a dinner at home because he doesn't want me to get tired but I insisted that's why I'm thankful that he allowed it to happen.

We ended the night with a kiss to show how happy we were together! It was like the day when Father Jerry said "You may now kiss the bride"!

What Marriage is all about!

I was browsing through FB and saw this very beautiful video that I would like to share.


No words can explain how a love can be expressed, it just has to be done and everything else follows!





This is Ian and Larissa! Indeed very inspiring!

It has been an inspiration to me and I hope it will also be an inspiration to others!

Happy Friday: What makes the orange Sweet?

I was asked more that once: "You have been married for close to two years now and yet why are you like as if you were married just last month?"

There are many possible answers to this question but for me it's simple; I know what I want!  

For me every action that we take always starts from the basics "what do we want?" then everything else will follow.  If you want something to happen then you will definitely know what actions to take to make that "something" happen.


I want a happy and fulfilled marriage and that's why I make it a point to keep it burning.   Now that I know what I want, I now take actions to accomplish them.  It does not mean that I will continue to tell my husband to court me or for him to take me out for fancy dinners or the other way around, for me it is how I make myself continuously in-love with him.  See, Love is not just a word that we say, it is an action that we need to show.

A simple activity that I do, I have this notebook with me entitled "Reasons that I Love you" (no I no longer create journals :D) and every forth nightly I take this out and write the things that my husband did to make me smile.  It is not even a story, the notes are just bullet points to specify the things that made me smile.


- He gave me donuts
- He washed the dishes for me
- He helped me carry my bag despite the fact that he is already carrying a lot
- And so on and so forth


This notebook does not just contain the positive notes, I also include the not so good things that happened but still are part reasons that I love my husband.

I made this activity for myself as a reminder that I married and loved my husband not for only one reason but for MANY.  There were times wherein I got angry with my husband (breath in and breath out) and I just looked at my notes and instantly I will realize that one small dot cannot ruin a clear bond paper.  Sometimes I don't even look at the notes, I merely think about them and instantly all is clear to me.

This is just one of that ways I do to keep it all burning. Not sure if this is something that will work for others but for me it does well :D

xoxo

Weekends for me is... the light!

Photo by: Noel Fernando
Location: Titiwangsa Lake Park, Malaysia

Whether you are a student, employee, entrepreneur or housewife / househusband -- we all look forward to weekends!!  

Weekend is where our official duties (whatever our duties are) comes to an end and we finally have time for ourselves at home.

For me, weekends is spending "more" time with my family and now that I am here in Malaysia, weekends is spent with my hubby.  I know! I know! We are always together so what's the difference right? 

Weekend is the time where both of us are not thinking about work and we can do extra activities for the rest of the day.

I am not a big fan of out of towns or dining outs.  Aside from the fact that this is an extra expense, it will still take some of your physical energy (energy in walking out and traveling) just to go about a certain activity.  Besides there are a whole lot more weekend activity that we can all enjoy without risking our budget (if budget is not an issue then by all means, loh and enjoy a whole lot :D).



Here are some of the things that I liked doing during weekends:


1. Cooking - I plan my weekend by looking out for possible recipes that I can try, whether this is a meal or a snack.  I believe that spending your time together (your family / your partner) in the kitchen means interaction and teamwork.  Good bonding moment and source of fulfillment if the meal is yummy for the tummy!


2. Cleaning - This is definitely a scheduled activity.  This activity is actually double purpose,  you can clean the house and at the same time assess how you (as a couple) take charge for house chores.  Splitting the chores and having some fun time together can also be your bonding time.  You will also get to know your partner more, if they find cleaning interesting.


3. Do some fun activity outside - An activity need not be expensive.  I remember one time when my husband and I had "Kite Flying" during sunset, we added some bubbles to make it even more fun-filled -- it was a good experience because of the fun of it.  There was also this one time when we played with his remote control helicopter and had some frizbee.

I also remember, playing "Jenga" and "Pictionary" with my friends.  Very fun activities and worth the time spent. 


If you are living in a condo / subdivision where you are privy to use the pool,  have some time to take a dip with your partner.  If there is a tennis or
badminton court then one Saturday afternoon game should be interesting.


4. Movie Nights - Although nothing will beat the movies in cinemas, sometimes, it can also be nice to see one at the comforts of your own coaches at home.  There are a lot of materials that can be seen on the internet and I know there will always be something that will interest both of you.


5. Communicate - Whatever it is that you are doing, make it a point to communicate with your partner or family members.  This will make each of your weekend worth the wait!

Now, who is excited for the weekend? :D

Remembering our Pre Nuptial Pictorial

Exactly two years ago, my husband and I had our pre-nuptial pictorial!

I don't know where the idea of pre-nup all started but it was a cool idea to have one before getting married.  They say that you have your pre-nup pic together with your photographer for some important reasons:

1. For your photographer to establish rapport and to get to know the couple better - This way your photographer will have a hang on how the two of you relate with one another and will know how to beautifully take your pictures at your wedding.  Remember that wedding pictures are the one thing you can reminisce on and therefore we have to make it worth.

2. For the couple to be comfortable in posing for "a lot" of pictures!  Some people does not want to be photographed (well that's not a challenged for me at all) therefore, this activity will get them used of smiling and posing for a pictures.

At first I thought it was luck but over time I realized that we were blessed to have found the perfect photographer for our wedding.  I will never get tired of bragging about this one because I was greatly satisfied and I will always remember our wedding day every time I see the pictures.

Today marks the second year of our pre-nup pictorial, not a very significant event but for me it's important because this is where we met our friends.

This is the original photo.. nice blur!

 This is a taste of our Pre Nuptial Pictorial -- Noel's Blog!
 Here are some other pictures from my facebook -- Pre Nuptial Pictorial

Cotton buds

What the hell are you talking about?   I have always talked about love and relationships, on how my husband and I started out as friends and now as a married couple.  It may be cliché but not everything happens over night, it will always take time and relationships (strong ones) are made from a lot of drilling and not just happy moments.  Like you can feel Heaven in your Marriage but we should also remember that Thunder and Lightning are also from heaven!

When you have been with a person that is a part of who you are, in my case my husband; it’s a nice feeling when you know that you can almost talk about anything under the sun and moon.  Joy, Sorrow, Happiness, Love, Fear or even Pain and anything that will make your relationship grow is something that a couple (married or not) should not take for granted. 

For me, asking my husband how he was for the day is just a simple thing but it will kick-start the conversation.  Constant communication is important and thus when at home, I make it a point to set a time for our casual discussions.  I make it a point to find something interesting, I don’t want to be monotonous; being monotonous is like a candle melting to the ground; monotonous for me is the ritual questions like “How are you?”, “How was your day?”, “What did you had for lunch?”... As an interested individual we should not settle to just these types of questions, we should ask more, more and even more.  Find out what made the day bright, what at work interest him a lot, what about cars that he liked.  Eventually through time, as you build your relationship with your partner you will know the right and interesting questions to ask.  This is one great way to build your relationship.

Discussions need not always be serious.  If you are very comfortable and interested with your partner, you can talk about anything as simple as a rainbow or the rain and still end up laughing at each other.  Learning from each other’s experiences and thought processes. These conversations are the most stress free ones and helps build relationship little by little.  However, to be honest, this feeling does not last long.  More often than not, this happens only at the START of the relationship which is a trap that we all should avoid falling into.

As you go along with your relationship, there will be times that you will get used to what you talk about, and then you will not even notice that you are driving away from your partner.  Your attention now is with your gadgets, tv, vices, friends or basically other things.  Therefore, an advice to myself is:

“Always find something exciting!” 

            “There is always something new!”