Ooooh that thing you do!

The naughty boy at 1 year & 9 months,

just a day after he got out of his 1st hospital stay.

***

I love how my little dude...

• refuses to lay on his bed unless I do so myself
• only wants nobody else but me when he cries
• says "do" when he means dog, "ka" when he means cup, "nga" when he means one more (weird, I know!), "cos" when he means close, "toter" when he means water, and all those other small "words" he can utter
• greets me when I get home with his eyes all lit up
• grabs my hand when he wants to ride his bike or go outside to play
• laughs uncontrollably when playing with his dad
• messes up his hair as if shampoo-ing when he sees a shampoo commercial on TV
• goes around in circles, jumping, until he gets dizzy and falls
• calls me "ma" only whenever I'm not paying attention to him
• wants my arms wrapped around him when he wakes up at the middle of the night to get him back to sleep

... and the list goes on.

Thank you, Lord, for the greatest blessing ever. :)

I Like the Number Eight

On this date, eight years ago, I was happy and excited being in a new relationship. You know how you always have that silly smile on your face because you're just so kilig? Something like that. I wasn't really expecting it to be for the long haul then, but I was hopeful that "he" turns out to be, well, someone worth it.

Fast forward to three years ago... it was confirmed. He was worth it. And so on the same date, at the exact same place where we "met", we made it official to spend the rest of our lives together.

October 16, 2008 - THE Day

Today marks our 8th anniversary - 5 years as boyfriend-girlfriend and 3 years as husband & wife. I don't think I can ever stress enough that our story isn't all good and fairy tale-y. We go through challenges (a lot of them, actually) but the bright side is, we choose to continue to understand and love all of each other.

This is the first time since we got married that we are celebrating our wedding anniversary. (On our first year, I was preggers so we couldn't do much. Last year, we were too busy taking care of our little dude that we didn't even have time to plan.) It's still nothing really grand ala second honeymoon though. Believe me, when you're both stressed from work and taking care of a super active toddler, this is already a luxury. Anyway, here's what we did for our anniversary weekend:

• Checked-in at Marriott Manila for a night (for free! We just used hubby's rewards points! Hehe)
• Had dinner at the Passion Restaurant at Maxims
• Watched 2 movies (one after the other) - Real Steel (very nice!) and No Other Woman (finally!)
• Did some planning stuff for our future, complete with worksheets (yes, very HR. haha!)
• Went to Mercato Centrale for some food shopping

We just spent time being together, connecting with each other - just us, physically, mentally, and emotionally. It felt great! :)

To end this post, I'd like to recall what I said on my wedding vows:

My Jax, I have so much joy in my heart as I stand here beside you today. Everyday, I thank the Lord for giving you to me - the one who will always have the ability to make me smile, the one who inspires me to be the best that I can be... the only one man I am spending the rest of my life with.

I have found what I always hoped for. I know that no matter what happens at the end of a long day, somebody's going to hold my hand and tell me that everything is going to be okay, or thank God for all the blessings He showers us with.

I promise I will be your best friend, number one fan, and partner.

I will not only be there for you when you are hurting. I will try to shield you from pain.

I will not only take care of you, our home, and our future family. I will give my 100% to be the best wife and mother.

I will love you not only for the things you do for me, nor for the way you make me feel. I will love the whole of your being - body, heart and soul, today and for all eternity.

Aaaaaww.. can I be any cheesier? Hahaha!

Happy Anniversary, my Jax! I love you to to the moon and back. :)

My ex-boyfriend and I - eight years strong!