Father and Son Bonding: Hiking and Camping in Mt. Arayat

Sugarcane plantation near the base of the mountain.

Kassy and I had the whole bedroom to ourselves for the first Friday and Saturday of the year (January 3-4, 2014), a situation that rarely happens because we're known to be a close-knit family. As in literally, ganun talaga kami, always magkakadikit. Ang lakad ng isa, lakad ng lahat. Haha.

Rev.Fr. AP, my brother-in-law, called Thursday evening and invited us to climb Mt. Arayat again. My husband and his siblings have been there a few times already, but this time around they wanted to spend the night at the mountain. I couldn't go with them of course, as I have misgivings about hiking and camping with a one-year old baby with me. They said the hike takes at least 3 hours, so I said no, I definitely wouldn't go.

Dirk wanted to go with them, though. Since my husband promised to take care of our little boy, I gave my consent. That night, I packed his clothes with all these items included:

Cap;
Sunglasses;
Sweater;

A pair of pyjamas;
Blanket;
Towel;
Green Cross Insect Repellent Lotion;
Sunscreen;
Hygiene Kit;
Kiddilets - Chewable Paracetamol Tablets;
Biscuits and Water; and
Crayons and Coloring Book.

At the base of the mountain.

Rice farming at the base of the mountain.

Morning view from the camping site.

Husband says this particular trail is steep. Dirk was scared he'd roll downwards and preferred being carried on his back.

Picture muna bago bumaba. :)

Ang higpit kumapit. Hahaha.

They stayed in these little tents.

They drove to Gapan after lunch to meetup with Rev.Fr. and 4 other hikers. They reached Arayat by 2PM and hiked for 3 hours before setting up a camping site. My husband said Dirk kept on complaining halfway through the trail, so he had to carry him piggyback the rest of the way. I think he did just great. I'm sure if I went with them I'd require frequent rests along the way, too!

He had a lot of stories to tell when he came home Saturday afternoon but was so spent he slept until dinner. His eyes were shining whenever he tells me that he saw beautiful birds, monkeys and other animals in the mountain. He wanted to test the water and swim at a mineral spring they passed by, but he said his Daddy did not allow him to. "Sayang", he said, "I wish we stayed longer."

I'm glad my son was able to experience a taste of nature with the big boys. He'll be bragging about this trip to his classmates, for sure.

One Word 2014: ROAR

I think my 2013 was good enough, but you know... I mean, really, is this all I got? Is that all I can achieve? Is that all I can accomplish?

My overall performance was lackluster. Amateurish. Unremarkable. I need a change. I need motivation. I need improvement. I can do more. And I choose one word to keep myself on track and motivated this 2014: ROAR.

Yeah, I got it from the Katy Perry hit song of the same title which inspire hundreds of people to speak up, stand up, and bring out the best in themselves.

"Hear me ROAR!"

And yeah, it is also with reference to the Great House of Lannister's official motto, you fellow Game of Thrones fanatic. The Lannisters are smart and strategic people. Exactly how I intend to be. If I want to reach my goals and aspirations, I have to think smart and plot my actions strategically.

This is how I want to live my 2014. I will ROAR, not with anger, not with defiance, but with happiness to impart to other people. I will ROAR with my family, friends, colleagues and God.

My name is Lexi and you will hear me ROAR.

2013: The Year That Was

Okay. Last year was good enough. But somehow, something tells me that this year, I CAN DO BETTER. To sum up my 2013:

Finance

To give you a background of my financial situation, I accumulated huge debt when my late father was battling stomach cancer in January to October 2011. Being the eldest, and basically because I earn more than my brothers did at that time, I provided for my father's hospitalization, chemotherapy and other expenses as much as I can.

I borrowed money from family and friends, and my employer. My father lost his battle, heaven gained an angel, and by the end of 2011 my Mother and I were buried in debt up to our nose. My Father was a great husband and father and we did everything we can to save him until the end. No regrets.

I spent the next couple of years, 2012 and 2013, growing my cash flow, saving for loan repayment and acquiring assets. I worked really hard. And by the end of 2013, I was able to acquire a couple of agricultural lots for farming rice and onions and reduce our debt by 70%. The remaining debts I intend to pay for within the first quarter of 2014.

Work

I've always enjoyed being a WAHM. But 2013 was the year when I finally realized how grateful I am for being one. I was able to breastfeed my daughter directly and on demand and attend to everything she needs all the time. My son started going to pre-school and I can afford to guide him through each lessons and attend PTA meetings even, at times. I have a flexi-sched and I am loving it.

I don't feel like I've given my best in every task and deliverable, though. I practically wanted to finish everything up, quickly, so I can do more. I no longer have the luxury of time to do things more meticulously because I now have two kids to take care of. I feel like my quality of work have declined. My employer says nothing of the sort, I don't feel like he sensed any difference, but I KNOW that I am capable of better output.

Family

Kids-wise, I am contented and happy that I was there for them always. I was there with them during important dates, events and milestones. I really couldn't ask for more.

Marriage-wise, 2013 has been a roller-coaster ride for us. We do not like the idea of hiring other people to take care of our children, so husband and I made an obvious choice. I make more money than he did, so we mutually agreed that I continue working and he takes care of the kids and the household. We believe that taking care of children are the parents' responsibility. So yes, he is officially a full-time househusband now. He may not be too proud about it but as a partner, I am very proud of my husband. With his sacrifice, we are able to prioritize what's really important and what really matters - our KIDS.

How was your 2013? Care to share in the comments?

Cheers!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! How did you spend the first day of the year? Well, I chose to declutter our closets and cabinets, clean the house and organize files in my computer.

I sorted out the kids' clothes, put the ones that doesn't fit them anymore into paper bags which I delivered to my Mom's later in the afternoon. I separated clothes that needs fixing, too. I was surprised to discover that we're missing a lot of buttons, haha. There were 16 clothes with incomplete buttons, 3 pants that need new zippers. Sigh. There's a lot to mend and repair.

I cleaned the house, every corner of it. Re-arranged the furniture, changed the bedding, etcetera, etcetera. This task took all my energy, at the end of the day I feel aches and pains in my back.

And lastly, I deleted files I don't need anymore from my hard drive. I seriously need to free up some space so I can get my laptop working like new without reformatting it again. There were many files that I couldn't bear to delete, so I uploaded them to my Google Drive before deleting them from my computer.

My day was very tiring, so husband and I decided to spend the night and eventually have a good night's rest at my Mom's place.

The thing is, I brought my laptop with me. I woke up at 11PM, couldn't sleep, so I started to make a list of all the things I want to accomplish this 2014. A To-Do List. A bucket list of sorts. And I intend to do every single one of them so good luck to me!

I hope you all had a safe New Year. Cheers!