Remembering Marites

She would grace parent-teacher conferences, come to school gatherings and bring her boys to school wearing her signature bandana. No, she wasn't making a fashion statement. It was to cover her falling hair, a well-known effect from her chemotherapy. She was undergoing treatment for a recurrence of her breast cancer. This was last year when her twin boys, Kenneth and Kevin, were classmates of Nadine in preschool.

In May this year, she was asking me for advice about sending her boys to a different school. Because of her aching back, her doctors did a bone scan and discovered another tumor. This would entail another round of chemotherapy, another set of expenses.

I got to visit her sometime in July with some other mothers from the school. It was a nice morning of chatting and eating. She seemed in high spirits and would talk about her pain but never dwelling on it. She was always smiling, always active. You wouldn’t think that something was bothering her. She would only ask for prayers.

Since then I would constantly think about her and say a prayer for her. Though her boys went to another school, she would ask me about dentist appointments and I would text her about party happenings. I had always planned to see her again but never really got the chance. I know I should have done it.

Last Friday, Mier informed me that Marites was brought to the hospital earlier that week and was in a bad shape already. We decided to visit her that same night. I called up a fellow parent and immediately asked for a phone brigade to say a prayer for Marites.

When we got to the hospital, nothing prepared me to see her in her bed with different tubes attached to her and a respirator helping her breathe. Her eyes were dilated, probably from the morphine that helped her deal with her pain. I got teary eyed right away to see her like that. Gone was her smile.

We stayed awhile and met her sister who just arrived from the US. We chatted with some other relatives and her helper just to ask how she’s doing and how the boys were.

And then all of a sudden there was a commotion. Some relatives came and were checking on her only to realize that she had stopped breathing. They checked her pulse and felt her clammy skin. Then reality set in --- she passed away amidst all the people in the room, with no fanfare, no attention to herself. She left quietly, so typical of Marites.

As relatives broke down and started weeping in the room, I tried to be strong and did my best in hugging and consoling them. I hardly knew them but we were all one in our grief. I looked at her boys who had just lost their mother and my heart just went out to them. So young to experience all this! It was only when we left the room to go home did I allow myself to let the tears flow. I cried for her. I cried for her life lost at such a young age. I cried for her motherless boys.

I will miss her. I will miss her smile and her sweet nature. But I know she is in peace now in the bosom of Jesus. No more pain, no more suffering. Only joy and bliss! And I am consoled.

Just Be Yourself

The 3rd Kaya Challenge for the month of November is to use distressing techniques on your layout. I thought this challenge is perfect for a personal layout for my 2nd daughter, Raya. At five years old, her strong character and personality are more evident now. I have seen how this is manifested in her relationship with her sisters. I have always worried about her having the middle child syndrome but so far I see that she is able to assert herself in some way while still valuing her sisters. She is such a great person! This is my tribute for her.

I used the Studio Azul October kit for this layout. I love the SA kits! (Hi Tin!)  I feel so deprived here in Cagayan de Oro of new scrapbook items so subscribing to their kits have made me a little more up to date with new products and materials. :-)

By the way, I took the photo using my Nikon D60 camera and an 18-55mm lens. :-)


Title: Just Be Yourself

Materials: American Crafts and Prima papers, American Crafts alphabet thickers, Prima Essential 4 flowers, Chinese button, Scenic Route Butterfly Chipboard, All About Scrapbooking brads, Letter Rub Ons, Whispers Archival Ink, Staedler Pen

Journaling: I realize now that it isn't easy being the middle of three sisters. I watch you as you patiently deal with Nadine's wants and Alyssa's demands and I admire you for being so understanding. But you are not a pushover! You assert yourself, at times, with dignity and strength when you feel you need to. You are a beautiful person, Raya! And I love you very much! Always remember that! Raya - age 5

The Dancing Castrillos

Yup! We've been practicing the whole year round. Finally, we can show you our talent! Presenting the dancing Castrillos!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/BGLF0MsAZlAmqG7zwFiw

And just to make you enjoy the holidays more, here's another one:

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/DxAZeli3IigRUd3QG7Xf

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

The Cost of Having Children

A few years back I did research and wrote an article on how much it would cost to be having children. At that time the price of gas and rice have not gone up yet but the overall outcome was still pretty high.

Then a few days back I got this forwarded email from my sister saying that the government “recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 of age and came up with P5,404,725.00 for a middle income family.” Oh my goodness! That doesn’t even include college tution!

Then it breaks down the amount and comes up with P300,262.50 a year or P25,021.88 a month or P6,255.50 a week. So that’s P893.64 a day or just over P37.23 an hour.

But instead of dissuading people from having children because of the “costs” there are still so much more you get for that amount. The email lists the following perks:

        * Naming rights. First, middle, and last!

        * Glimpses of God every day.

        * Giggles under the covers every night.

        * More love than your heart can hold.

        * Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.

        * Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.

        * A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.

        * A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.

        * Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

What else can you get for P5,404,725.00? You never have to grow up. You get to finger-paint, mess about with paints and clay, play hide-and-seek and catch dragonflies and butterflies.

You have an excuse to keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watch Saturday morning cartoons, go to Disney movies, and wish on stars. You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray-painted-noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere P893.64 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for retrieving a dog off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off a bike, removing a splinter, filling a wading pool, changing the clothes of the Barbie dolls.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the first step, first word, first bra, first date, and first time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match. In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

   That is quite a deal for the price! So love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren! It's the best investment you'll make!

First Honors

Mier and I attended a parent-teacher conference (PTC) this morning and I'm so proud to announce that both girls are doing very well in school! Both their grades have improved tremendously from the last quarter. Nadine was especially proud for making it to the first honor roll this quarter. During the first quarter she was second honors and was determined to do better and be first honors for the second quarter. I'm so happy that her efforts have paid off. Here's her report card:
Raya's grades all went up too and she's reading very well now. Her teacher commented that she gets along well with teachers and classmates and have learned to do things on her own. These are her report cards:

I'm so proud of them! :-) :-) :-)

Alyssa at 14 months

Here are some shots of my Alyssa at 14 months. Can you tell how much I love my Nikon D60? Hahaha!

Love that Lolly

I usually discourage my girls to eat sweets at a young age. But as I learned from Raya before, it is difficult to allow one and not the other just because of age. So when Alyssa saw Raya eating a lollipop, she insisted on one too.

Funny because Alyssa didn't know how to eat the lollipop! She didn't know how to suck it and just bit into it as you can see in the first few pictures. Only after watching Raya did she get the picture. Definitely a fast learner.

Sorry if the pictures are not that good. I'm still learning the ins and outs of my camera. But I have better pictures of Alyssa which I will upload soon. :-) Thanks for looking!

Raya's 5th Birthday Party in School

Found these cute tumblers. I filled it up with candies and placed toothbrushes also inside. :-)

Raya turned 5 years old today. Can't believe my baby is already Five! We decided to serve pancakes and hot choco for her party. Great idea, says Teacher Honey! Usually the kids don't eat (or finish) the spaghetti, chicken and burger that others bring. The pancakes were a hit! And everyone loved the hot choco. The yummy choco cake was made by the mom of Tito Mackie. We placed Raya and Nadine's pet shoppe toys as decors. Some classmates thought they were giveaways! Uh oh! Hehehe!

In Cavite

We spent the girls' semestral break in Cavite from Oct 25 to Nov 1. We were there for Lolo Ed's birthday celebration on Oct 31 and Sabine's christening and Raya's advance birthday party on the same day.