Carl's Birthday Weekend

It has been a tradition that we greet our birthdays at exactly 12 midnight... It doesn't matter what it takes, it has to happen! Before the strike of midnight, we had some visitors to celebrate the tradition. But when it was just the two of us again... it was time to bring out the surprise. While Carl was at work, I baked some banana cupcakes and kept them inside the oven (a place Carl never checks). After dinner, Carl was commissioned to stay inside the workroom while I worked my magic in the kitchen... and so Carl's birthday weekend started with this:

Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
topped with semi-sweet chocolate shavings

On the morning of his birthday, we had a BIG BREAKFAST! Carl and I seldom eat breakfast together because he usually packs his breakfast and eating breakfast too early gives me tummy problems, so on most days we have brunch hahaha! But this is CARL's day - and its got to be special!

Birthday Breakfast: Garlic Rice, Bacon, Spam,
and Mushroom Frittata with Cheese and Scallions

If there is one food Carl is willing to travel for, it's a warm serving of Jollibee Spaghetti and Crispy Fried Chicken. Believe me when I say that I have never seen him crave so much for something! But then again, the closest place to get this favorite is a 6-hour drive away from home - in Las Vegas! If it was a weekend, I bet Carl would just pick up the keys and we'll drive to Vegas! So I made my version of Jolly Spaghetti (complete with sweet sauce and hotdogs!) and crispy fried chicken for his birthday lunch!

Birthday Baon: Home-made Jolly Spaghetti Meal :)
PS. It was served on a serving platter we got from Jollibee

For weeks, we have been planning on watching the last installment of the Harry Potter series, and where to have dinner after the movie. Again, we can not say this enough - we are seafood lovers! But we live in a place that is no way close to a coast, and we've never found any good place to satisfy our seafood cravings. So in the end - Carl requested I make dinner myself! And so we bought tilapia and some shrimp from the store - and prepared one awesome seafood dinner!

Birthday Dinner: Garlic Shrimp, Fried Tilapia, Corn on the Cob,
Tomato & Mango Salad, and UNLIMITED Rice

...and we watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows after...
it was a great culmination to an amazing series!

Saturday was gym day, and laundry day, and most importantly TEMPLE DAY! Since the Provo Temple was closed for maintenance, we went to the Mt. Timpanogos Temple and grabbed a burger from Carl's Jr. on our way home...

Sunday was Carl's birthday party... It wasn't a big party - just friends and family... the biggest thing about Carl's party was his CAKE - his BART SIMPSON birthday cake. You see, Carl loves me so much he thinks I can do anything in the kitchen - including baking and decorating molded/sculpted cakes! So high his expectations hahaha!!! So anyway, I went ahead and bought a molded pan from eBay because Wilton has discontinued the Bart Simpson cake pan forever ago. I baked the cake on Sunday morning, cooked the rest of the menu while the cake was baking and cooling, and when everything was cooked, I started frosting the cake (which took forever I ended up missing church).

Happy Birthday Cake!!!

At the end of the day, everyone was full, and everyone was happy - especially Carl. Our friends even brought food!!! We ate and laughed and talked stories... and it was an amazing birthday weekend! Carl definitely had a blast!

HAPPY 27th BIRTHDAY, MY LOVE!

reading the Book of Mormon

My 15-year old Book of Mormon

CONFESSION: The last time I committed myself to reading the Book of Mormon from beginning to end was in 2005. In fact, I did it twice. I used to put it (and my journal) under my pillows so that I could be reminded to read it every night. The Lord surely blessed my life with the wonderful gospel insights and inspiration that I got from reading it. After reading it, I could proudly say that I genuinely have my favorite books (Jacob, Mosiah, and 3rd Nephi) and that I have gained my testimony of it. It helped me find a new perspective and look forward to better days....

Mosiah chapters 3 - 5: one of my favorite scripture blocks;

Mosiah 4:26 - share that which you have,

Mosiah 4:27 - work diligently with priorities to succeed

Well, with all the stresses in our life right now (school, work, future plans, etc...), I was inspired to reach out to my old friend, who I think has been reaching out to me for the last couple of years. And as the saying goes, a good friend is cheaper than therapy. One night I shared my testimony to Carl about the Book of Mormon, and the next thing I know I was crying (sorry, emotional...crazy hormones)... But seriously, I felt very strongly that this was what I, We, needed to do. We've tried for the past three years to religiously read the scriptures - one verse a day, one page a day, one chapter a day - but then we get so busy we lose track. So last week we started reading again... and my scriptures are not on the shelf anymore but are on the little folding bedside chair. So far, we've been good. We're hoping (and working on) we'll not lose track this time. I know it will bless our lives and give us direction, as it did to mine when I did before. The scriptures are powerful, and yes, like a good friend, its cheaper than therapy.

Here's a powerful scripture from Jacob Chapter 2 that Carl and I were talking about last night... 

12And now behold, my brethren, this is the word which I declare unto you, that many of you have begun to search for gold, and for silver, and for all manner of precious ^aores, in the which this land, which is a ^bland of promise unto you and to your seed, doth abound most plentifully.

 18But ^abefore ye seek for ^briches, seek ye for the ^ckingdom of God.

19And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to ^ado good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.

Let's get spiritual therapy everyone! :)

Mama and Papa's trip to the U.S. of A.

So I know Carl and I have been sort of outside the radar. We have not become boring people with no updates, that I can assure you... Still, no excuses... and I will really try to keep this blog updated as often as possible...

After picking them up from SLC Airport, we had dinner at
The Garden at the Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg
in Temple Square

First of all, my parents visited us from the Philippines and we had a blast. It was a good month and a half, and it was truly something Carl and I will cherish forever. It was a great blessing for our family, especially for my parents to be granted tourist visas by the US government. I, personally, am grateful for a wonderful husband who helped our family make it possible to come to America. My parents have never been out of the country, well my dad travels a lot throughout the Philippines as a part of his job but mom pretty much hasn't gone out of town a lot. Their trip was indeed a very much deserved one for both of them, as they have worked pretty much with very limited breaks and time-off for the last 30 years. It was a very tiresome almost 24 hour plane ride, which according to my dad has been the hardest thing he has ever done in his life (that is to sit in a seemingly motionless plane for almost 14 hours from Hong Kong to San Francisco). Nevertheless, both of them beamed with gladness when we picked them up at the Salt Lake City Airport. Though we all knew they were tired from their very long flight, their excitement was stronger than anything else.

Mama and Papa after attending
the Salt Lake Temple

As we did most of the Salt Lake City to-do activities one at a time, I came to better appreciate and understand how much this trip really meant to my parents... and I am glad that Carl was able to know them better as well. Three things my parents wanted to see (and do): visit the Salt Lake Temple, see my school (BYU) and Carl's workplace (Church Headquarters/Riverton Office), and have fun with Carl and I and make sure we were ok (well, ok, yeah my dad wanted to see snow and visit Las Vegas since its only a 6 hour drive - pretty much like travelling from La Union to Manila). Of course, we did other things too - but at the end of their trip, my mom said her favorite activity with Carl and I was visiting temples and doing sessions. My dad, he really liked that part too - but Mr. Explorer that he is - he didn't pinpoint anything in particular and said he loved everything (but I know he was ecstatic about experiencing SNOW up in Alta). We visited temples (number one on my parent's checklist), watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, toured BYU (and met with mi propesor who told my mom great things about me I felt embarrassed because really I'm not great - just good haha!), hiked the Y mountain (this proved to be another testament of mi madre's strength!!!), played frisbee and some billiards, did a Kinect sportsfest, danced with Wii Just Dance, took countless pictures in Las Vegas, dined at Jollibee, ate dried fish over and over, and ate and ate some more (you can never beat mi madre's home cooking).

Photo-op with Brigham Young :) in front
of BYU's Smoot (Administration) Bldg

at the Church Headquarters in Temple Square where Carl used to report
for meetings every Thursday (He now works full week at the
Riverton Office Building as part of the mormon.org team)

Finally reaching the "Y" up at the mountain!!!
(FYI - madre has not hiked for the last 35 years)

We played :) (This actually went in and they won!)

We ate lots of these - squid, fish, and TUYO - over and over again!

Up at Alta - Papa was so stoked about "real" snow

Waiting for the dancing water show at the Bellagio in Las Vegas

Jollibee!!! Las Vegas, Nevada

MoTab Sunday for Music and the Spoken Word

Visiting the St. George Utah Temple
(we also visited Draper, Oquirrh Mountain, and of course Provo)

The night before their flight back to the Philippines, we had FHE and I couldn't say a word (actually, I didn't want to say a word 'coz I was feeling really sad and I might just end up balling). I didn't want them to leave, or maybe I was hoping if only we could fly back home with them, or maybe I was hoping if only it was easier for all of us to live closer with each other. I practically left their nest when I was 17, and I have always been comfortable being away... but this time was just different, maybe because I am just in a very critical period in my life where I want them to be very close and accessible for many wonderful reasons (like I could just visit my mom and talk to her the whole day about my worries about having children and such, or visiting for the weekend and be carefree 'coz mama and papa will make the meals and we'll just play frisbee outside and soak every bit of sunshine). I guess we never really appreciate our parents until we're grown-up and we realize how awesome it is to have someone else take care of life's complications for us. But I guess its our turn to take care of those "shoot me now" situations, because they're supposed to have raised us to be able to handle those ourselves. That was pretty much what FHE was about on the eve of their trip back home... and when we finally bid them goodbye at the SLC airport, I was balling in the car (like crazy - you can ask Carl!). Carl and I miss mama and papa a lot. See, my mom made us curtains for our living room and for our master bedroom. Mom's yellow curtains remind me to be happy everyday - and people running in the morning reminds of my dad every single time (too bad he missed the Utah Valley marathon, I bet he would have had a blast). But for now, we got to live in the right here and right now.

Our next goal is to have Mommy and Daddy (Carl's parents) to come and visit. That would be another great opportunity for all of us - with my sisters-in-law Jasmine and ate Ley having not seen them for the last 5 years (and them having not seen/met Keana and Scott, and Ricky, yet). That should be one great family reunion to look forward to!

Hello Minot, North Dakota

This post might sound like we've been travelling a lot... But let me just say, as much as we like to travel and go places, we do not have bottomless pockets. This trip, almost didn't happen, for many different reasons, but we decided this one was worth taking - because there are just some things we shouldn't miss!

So we used up some of our miles to buy this trip, and we boarded a Delta flight bound to Minot, North Dakota. Where in the world is Minot? We flew out from Salt Lake City and then caught a connecting flight in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Minot is a small city, and Minot State University was a quaint little campus, pretty similar to BYU-H sans the tropics (and the sun!). We were so close to the northern border of the US, Canada was about an hour and a half drive north. In fact, we were told that North Dakota's economy gets its boost from Canadians who cross the border everyday just to shop - in fact i wouldn't doubt that at all. When we went to a nearby mall, most of the cars in the parking lot had Saskatchewan and Manitoba plates.

after the Hooding Ceremonies at
Minot State University's
Old Main Bldg
(formerly Teacher's College)

First of all, Carl earned his Masters degree in Information Systems (online program) from Minot State University, thus the trip to a city located in north central North Dakota. The reason of this trip to Minot, was in fact, Carl and my love for him. He deserved this trip - he well deserved to be there at his graduation. He worked really hard, completed his assignments, and finished his thesis - despite of occasional burn-outs from work stress and some taunting that sounded like "Cougars vs. Beavers?". I am so proud of Carl, and again, I can not emphasize enough his hard work and dedication. Go Beavers! Minot.... (drum roll)... to TOP!!!

Our Minot experience was very heart-warming. When we got there, we had a car rental reservation with Enterprise. But after some asking around locals at the airport, we decided to cancel our reservation with Enterprise. Even then, the Enterprise rep who was already at the airport to take us to the car garage to get our supposedly rental car still dropped us off at the car garage where a cab was instead waiting to take us to our motel (free of charge!). We stayed at Comfort Inn, which was very close to the mall and to some restaurants (and McDonalds of course - it actually reminded us of the McDonalds in Laie). We decided to get Chinese for dinner, but Carl ended up absolutely hating it - and thankfully McDonalds was just around the corner. We were tired from our flight - and so we hit the bed early... and soon we were out!

Carl and his graduate chair, Dr. Lory Willoughby

The following day was Carl's graduation day. We had to be there early for the hooding ceremonies. For the first time, Carl met his cohort, their professors, his graduate committee, and his mentor. We were so excited, and it was such a unique experience to watch them talk to each other in person for the first time. After the ceremonies, their Department Chair Dr. Willoughby treated the whole cohort for lunch at Badlands Grill. We were so full!!! After that, the group split because some had to drive to Bismarck to catch their flights out of North Dakota. Carl and two others who we carpooled with decided they wanted to look around campus, in fact they decided they wanted to get their school IDs! Another guy joined us later on, and they talked and talked. This third guy was a local and he talked stories about Minot and stuff.

So they started talking stories at around 2pm... an hour later, they decided to get coffee at Starbucks (of course we had hot chocolate), and another 2 hours of talking ensued. At one point I couldn't blend anymore 'coz the started talking tech stuff, so I went and read at Barnes and Nobles. But then they decided they wanted to have dinner together. We were gonna bail since our motel was already around the corner, but they insisted. So we went to this only Thai restaurant in town called Baan Rao. Carl order a very spicy dish, which he did enjoy, but regretted ordering it to a very spicy specification! It was a very heart-warming experience, and we were blessed with very hospitable and generous new friends. See, we went on this trip with a very strict budget. At the end of the trip, we only paid for our plane tickets, 3 cab rides, (discounted) motel rate, one yucky Chinese dinner, and 3 dollar burgers. And to top that, we had a very kind-hearted friend waiting to pick us up at the SLC Airport when we landed the day after.

My graduate :)

Some of Carl's MSIS cohort with Dept. Chair Dr. Willoughby
(we carpooled with the guys on the far right and 3rd from right,
and they paid for dinner too)

Carl and his new friends at the
Scandinavian Heritage Park

Our trip to Minot, North Dakota - was indeed worth taking!

Guess Who's Here...

Mama and Papa are in town - and we are absolutely stoked!!!

An Eventful Month of March

There were a lot of beautiful things that happened in March...

We had birthdays, milestones, missions, baptisms, and conference posters to name a few...

March 12th was Mama's 49th birthday - yup, she doesn't look her age at all!

March 22nd was Mara's 19th birthday - this is in fact her last teenage year... :)

March 25th &26th - Yken went to the temple to receive his endowments with Mama and Papa, and it was a very spiritual one. The next day, he entered the MTC in Manila and officially started his 24-month mission. It was a very special day, our hearts are full and we all feel blessed that Yken has made the righteous decision to work on the Lord's sacred errand.

March 27th - Ricky entered the waters of baptism - FINALLY. It was a very beautiful rainy Sunday. It was an amazing feeling. Carl confirmed him the gift of the holy ghost that same day, and the spirit was so strong. It was indeed the right time. We pray that Ricky and ate Lei soon attend the temple together, and will be sealed for time and all eternity

last week of March - Carl and I (mostly I) spend a total of 54 hours at the MFHD Graduate Lab running Structural Equation models for my Mary Lou Fulton Conference project on Asian-White Intimate Relationships. I ate my breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the lab for almost 3 days, and Carl is the most awesome husband one can ever have - he brought me meals, stayed with me at the lab, and stayed up late with me...

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY KEANA LEIROSE

ELDER MALIG

This is my big little brother, Yken

Today is his 21st Birthday!

Today, he also got his mission call...

...and he will be serving for 24 months in the PHILIPPINES BUTUAN MISSION

We love you dear brother!!! We know you've been preparing for this all your life! We are proud of you!!!

XD means interaction designer, CISCO is a fish, and MOSTLY STRAIGHT is a sexual orientation

breathing deeply...

so here's how our study table looks like...

Carl sits on the yellow chair, and those papers under the table are mine

carl and i sit on opposite ends on of the table... i do my thing and he does his, and sometimes...we sometimes take our deep breaths together without doing it on purpose... he usually says... its like being in the middle of deep water - we stop and get some air from above the surface, and then we dive again...

and tonight is one of those very rare weeknights when i get to stay above the surface for a little longer, because:

1. i have no class tomorrow and i have no homework due on a friday, and

2. i decided that i'll be spending my friday in the middle of deep water - so i can appreciate our WEEKEND (yup, rather be knee deep on homework and readings on a friday than drag myself through the weekend thinking about how to catch up on a sunday afternoon).

so anyway... its been 3 weeks since Graduate School Day 1 (at least for me)... for Carl, its been almost 7 weeks. here's a glimpse of how my USUAL WEEK looks like... I'm not including Carl's version of this calendar because I don't want to traumatize anyone, because his planner has actually lost its lines and boxes already...

yup, and that's just the first couple of weeks

It's been a pretty interesting couple of weeks though, and Carl and I are both slowly getting the new routine. We're enjoying our own little apartment here in Provo, and our new ward (family student ward, that is) is full of little kids. Our laundrymat is open 24 hours except on sundays, we have a huge "christmas tree" (as carl refers to it) in front of our balcony, Carl carpools to Riverton everyday, and I walk about 3 miles to and from school each day (about 1.5 miles each way). I am reunited with Food Network and life is a lot better after a long day in school and you come home and you GULP super cold water while you watch Giada de Laurentiis cook a frittata.

We are both enjoying graduate school. We've been borrowing books from the campus library, and I think its pretty cool that I can loan a book for 3 months. Here's a couple of interesting things we've been learning from each other lately through our individual classes:

1. The amount of money Lowe's make annually is equal to the amount of money Walmart makes in 3 months.

2.Walmart's supplier's delivery trucks have a 10 minute interval... no two trucks can unload at the same time.

3. XD means interaction designer

4. Read a book, interpret what was written, then cite the authors - NO EXCEPTIONS

5. On IT management processes: You can solve problems as many times as you want, but you might miss an opportunity to capitalize

6. CISCO is actually a kind of FISH.

7. Research methods is not as intimidating as it sounds... and a patient mentor makes a lot of difference.

8. Structural functionalism has been considered a dead theory, but its ghost is ever so present in the current social theory paradigms.

9. Families are so complex - so deal with it.

10. Research suggests that its better for couples to confront each other's issues than to keep their mouths shut - because in so doing they learn how to deal with confrontations with their teenagers' issues later... that is if their relationship is strong enough to last despite of the confrontations until their kids become teenagers. WE FIGHT, WE LEARN, WE MOVE ON.

11. On Filipino's being Asians: Some institutions actually debate whether Filipinos should be categorized as Asians on grounds of language and cultural processes. (Example, on one of my classes, our professor said..."this is the first time I've taught this class with no Asians {then looking at me], oh wait, do you consider yourself Asian? [and I said yes]... Oh well, don't you speak like what languages? and then the Spanish...and, anyway... [moving on].

12. A sexual orientation called "mostly straight" actually exist. Sexuality is fluid, whether you accept this or not is your own free will and choice.

so there you go...

and oh, we bought a scrabble and Carl's been winning because he keeps getting seven tiles that he can use at one time which gives him 50 bonus points...

until i find time to write again :)

THE WHOLE SIX WEEKS

This blog update is extra special... and will be sort of extra long... i hope you can bear with us. As most of you know, I took an emergency trip to the Philippines and had to stay there for about six weeks. You must have read my post early in July which I wrote while at the San Francisco Airport wait for my connecting flight via Philippine Airlines.This post will basically give details of those six weeks in the Philippines, mostly from my point of view... and then the two weeks that followed after my arrival in Salt Lake City...

THE HOMELAND
Mama and Papa and Carl's parent's met me at the airport and we spent the whole morning in Paranaque. Ezra was overjoyed to have his Thomas the Train toy and Esther absolutely loved her little stuffie! Later that day I took the 6-hour bus trip with Mama and Papa back to La Union. I can honestly say I was still out of my head... of course I was extremely glad that I was home...but my mind kept wondering and worrying about my visa interview...because if worse come to worst...my 6-week vacation can become 6 years or more. I spent 2 days in La Union visiting family and friends, especially my sister whose been staying in Baguio City attending school. And then it was time to face the music at the US Embassy.

THE GATEWAY TO AMERICA

We were there really early. Mama, Papa, and I - just like the first time. It was sort of a deja vu... except that I know it will be harder for me to bear the consequences of any unpleasant outcome this time. I was inside the embassy for probably 4 hours, and I only spent more or less 5 minutes explaining my reasons why I should be granted a new student visa. I honestly thought the consul was going to deny my application. At the back of my mind, I was praying, Amen after Amen...I was asking Heavenly Father to please, more than anything, reunite me with Carl. And then the answer was YES. I can almost hear Carl whisper, "Welcome Home."

THE VACATION
I spent a week with my new extended family. I truly enjoyed cooking for them - from Garlic Shrimp to my Lumpiang Shanghai! Ezra and Esther were the perfect playmates... and I love love love them to pieces. Ate Ruth and I took them to the mall and we all had a blast as the two little munchkins joined other kids participate at a kid's show mall tour. Being shy certainly doesn't run in the Canlas' blood - that's for sure. Mom took me to Divisoria for some budget friendly shopping... and with Dad they showed me their house where Carl spent most of his younger days... I should have taken a picture of it, but I was so overwhelmed I forgot all about it - but that particular house of theirs has the Laie Hawaii Temple engraved on its main door. I also met up with some of my college girlfriends including Carl's cousin Ann. For me the highlight of my whole stay with Carl's family was Carl's birthday - Mom and I went to the Manila Philippines Temple together.

Ate Ruth and her babies, Ezra and Esther, at SM Bicutan

UP Baguio Girls - Love (UPB Econ '04, Davao Mission bound),

En (UPB Econ '03, career woman looking for Mr. R)

JV (UPB SocAn '03, happily married), and

Ann (UPB Comm '04, Baguio Mission bound)

Mom and I at the Manila Philippines Temple on Carl's birthday

FAMILY and FRIENDS
A day after I got my passport/visa in the mail. Papa picked me up in Manila. During the 4 weeks that followed, I was able to spend some quality time with my family. On my first weekend, I actually went out with my High School friends and we visited our good friend's grave who died from bacterial meningitis in 2008. I also went out on a date with my big little brother and watched a movie, and I also attended his first baptism ever. Papa took us out and we had a feast at Shakey's. I met up with my good friend Angela in Baguio and had a great lunch at VOCAS with ate Chona. Angela was also leaving the Philippines for graduate school... she'll be attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on a Fulbright Scholarship. I know.. its great to have friends as smart as Angela! Mama and I also went to Baguio a couple of times, mostly to do some shopping at the famous Ukay-Ukay. On a normal day though, I was just at home, with Lola and two little kindergarteners who make life interesting for everyone - Ydian and Ylyzza. Carl and I talk at least twice a day. I spent a lot of time talking stories with my lola... she has lots and lots of stories... and I can never have enough :)

Ylyzza and Ydian: BATH TIME PINOY STYLE!

THE WEIGHT..THE FOOD... AND ALL OTHER REASONS.
I know... I gained 25 lbs over the last 4 years. And everyone seemed to notice... And almost everyone told me I should lose weight so I can get pregnant. In reality, its like the other way around... this whole weight gain is an effect, not a cause, of a medical condition I didn't know I have ... it's called Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). Because of PCOS, conceiving will be a challenge for Carl and I... it won't be impossible, but it will take a while (and some medical intervention). And according to my OB-GYN, one of my condition's side effect is weight gain. So there... everytime some one said I've gotten HUGE, I just dismissed it... knowing that its not entirely my fault... and so I continued to eat like I usually do. HAHAHA! I ate A LOT of veggies and fruits - ONLY IN THE PHILIPPINES STYLE! Can't beat that!

THE BIRTHDAY and THE ANNIVERSARY
I received a birthday card and an anniversary card from my only love Carl. Can't ask for more... My family organized a simple gathering for me - to celebrate my birthday and Carl and mine's 2nd anniversary... and for many more reasons close to the heart. We all had a great time catching up, realizing how kids have grown up so fast, and seeing what the future has promised to all of us. Families are awesome - no matter what size and shape they come in. I am ever glad to have a family like mine. I wish Carl was there.. I know how much he wished he could. Friends from my home ward also came, and my very good friend Joreen came down all the way from Manila to spend time with me over the weekend. It was good...and it felt great to be 24!


THE MOST NEEDED TIME FAMILY TIME
A couple of days before I had to leave for the US, we had to be in Manila to pick up my aunt's family from the airport. We visited our family in Pampanga on our way to Manila.Tita Jen's family arrives from Texas a day before my flight. and we spent some time with them in Subic before driving back to the airport for my flight.. We had a blast at Zoobic Safari in Subic, feeding tigers and all that fun stuff. We stayed at the Grand Seas Resort in Olongapo, and enjoyed their pool's cool water and their yummy breakfast. We had a late lunch at Gerry's Grill with the super uncle in the world, Chammy. It has been a while since our family was able to have a "get-away." We were always a busy family, and we usually don't go very far. My aunt's family was so nice to include us in their budget ;) Seriously, the last family trip we probably had was 10 years ago... It was really heartwarming, and again, I was wishing Carl was with us...

TIME TO LEAVE

After an exhilarating day at Zoobic Safari, we scrambled to get back to our hotel and get ready to leave for Manila. The trip from Olongapo to Manila was about 3 to 4 hours, plus traffic because it was a Friday. We left Olongapo at around 3:30 in the afternoon, and you bet we got caught in traffic. My flight was at 10, we arrived at the airport at 15 till 8. Awesome. Carl's dad was there with more stuff for us. And then, in a whirlwind, I was inside and checking-in my bags. Mama and Papa, oh yes those two were teary eyed, as they always are. After i checked-in my stuff, I went out again to spend a couple more minutes with them since I still have time. Papa wasn't able to give me a blessing, so he just lead us in a family prayer. It is going to quite a while before we will become a family of five again. Later this year, Yken will be leaving for his mission... so lets say, the next reunion for this awesome family will not be until 2 years from now... and yeah, Papa felt awkward to give his big baby girl a hug, not because he's not affectionately expressive, but because he doesn't want to cry...

one last time... before five becomes three (for the next two years)

UP IN THE AIR
There's nothing much to say about my flight back to the US except for the fact that I was afraid my flight was gonna be cancelled because of the airline's issues with its staff and crew. Seems like international flights weren't as affected as the domestic ones... And so, every couple thousand miles, my heart felt closer to my one eternal love... Carl.

(at least) 6 weeks of separation

Today I sit at the San Francisco International Airport waiting for my 10pm flight to the Philippines via Philippine Airlines while Carl is in Draper, Utah probably taking a nap so he won't have to think about me being away.

The last three weeks had been a whirlwind of unexpected complicated situations, though most of them are not essentially bad. On June 15th, we put down our deposit for the apartment we were going to rent beginning July 1st. The day after, BYU informed me that they were ready to reopen my graduate school application which has been pending since March. Carl had a feeling I will get in. We decided to call our future landlord and requested a refund of our deposit because there is a possibility that we won't be able to commit to a 1-year contract. Our landlord agreed and the check was voided. The following day, I was informed that I was admitted to the BYU Graduate Program. In the fifteen days that followed, Carl and I were endlessly brainstorming - we did hope for this to come, but we did not expect for this to happen at this point in time. We had exactly 8 weeks to figure out how to work things out.

Our challenges ranged from how to pay 50% of graduate school's cost of attendance to how am I going to get the legal documents that will allow me to study in America. We also had to deal with the issues of my passport, which up until last Thursday, had my maiden name on it. We also had to make sure the validity of it met the requirements for the new visa status I am currently seeking. It was a battle. We eventually had to take a trip to San Francisco last Thursday to apply for my new passport. Once there, we were greeted by more complications. The standard 15-minute passport application lasted for almost 6 hours. Through some sort of Divine intervention, a couple of consulate representatives were able to assist us in resolving my passport issues - the validity was extended for 2 more years, my name was amended, and I was good to go.

At one point in this complication, I had a feeling I would have to make a trip to the Philippines to settle all these things. It was not a very welcome idea. A trip to the Philippines, though always in our plans, was not on our budget list this year. After consulting with BYU Admissions office, Carl and I decided that I really had to take the trip home. The process of changing my current visa status to a student visa will take approximately 8 - 9 months, according to BYU International Admissions. If I go home, my current visa will be terminated and I can apply and schedule for a visa interview with the US Embassy in Manila. IF all goes well, the process will only take about 3 weeks - which means I will be able to come back to the US in time for Fall semester and I can start my Masters program in Marriage, Family and Human Development... and of course, most importantly, I can be with Carl.

The last 15 days of June were certainly miraculous. Carl and I literally saw how our prayers were answered each day as we plead for guidance on how to work out this situation. We went to the temple on Thursday night and poured our hearts to the Lord, pleading to Him, asking Him to bless us in our plans. Our main concern is that if the US Consul at the Embassy decides that I do not qualify for a student visa, I will not be able to re-enter the US...and Carl and I will have to live separately for a while... I don't want to think about that right now.

As Carl and I drove to the airport in Salt Lake City this morning, he asked me what was going on in my head because I looked like I was thinking about so many thing at one time. He was right. In fact, I can't even fully look forward to spending good times with my family and friends in the Philippines because all I can think about right now is the visa interview on Thursday. Maybe after I pass through that hurdle, I can totally enjoy the fact that I have an opportunity to spend quality time with Carl and mine's families.

The past three Thursdays all gave me good news. Thursday June 17th, BYU informed me that I got accepted into their graduate program. Thursday June 24th, I received all the documents that I need for my passport and for my visa. Thursday July 1st, we went to temple and we were comforted and inspired and we were able to commune with the Lord and poured our hearts' desires and lifted our most sincere prayers to Him, leaving our circumstances in His holy hands. Next Thursday July 8th, I will be interviewed for a student visa at the US Embassy in Manila.Carl and I leave my fate to the Lord.

This will be the longest time Carl and I are separated since we got married. To make things worse, we will not be able to spend his birthday, our 2nd anniversary, and my birthday together. Before I boarded this morning, I told Carl that compared to the first time I went home to the Philippines when we were still dating, I actually feel more comforted right now - because whether I can come back to the US or not, it doesn't change the fact that I am his and he is mine. It will be sad, but it will all be fine.

Today is the first day of the longest 6 weeks of my life....

the baby that makes everybody happy

I should have written something about this little princess couple of weeks ago... but well, I waited until her momma took enough baby pictures of her :)

This is our family's newest little princess, Keana Leirose. She is now 6 weeks old... and she's getting prettier and prettier everyday.

Carl and I love watching and playing with her while momma Jasmine is busy doing something or taking a break.

We are content with her while we're waiting for our own, who will come when Heavenly Father decides we've had enough vicarious parenting experience and its time for us to do the real thing.

We love Keana!!!

We're Proud of Our Brothers

Carl and I are very proud siblings of these two very smart boys..

Carl's youngest brother James graduated Valedictorian from St. Leonard Academy in Paranaque. He was also awarded Best in Math. James will be attending college at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines come June, and he will be majoring in computer science. Way to go James!!! Kuya Carl and I are very proud of you!

My younger brother Jave Yken graduated among the top of his class and received his Bachelor's degree in Nursing from Easter Colleges in Baguio City. He was also given a Varsity award for playing in the school's basketball team.

Yken will start his review classes this April in preparation for the Nursing Licensure Exam in July. While doing so, he is also processing his mission papers and is preparing to leave right after he takes his boards.

Carl and I are very proud of our brothers. They have both studied very diligently and they were blessed for their hard work.

Congratulations James and we hope you have fun in college!

To Yken, we wish you all the best and we welcome you to the bigger world!!!

We love you both!!!