This is a late post because it’s been a week since we went to Baguio to watch the Panagbenga 2009. Baguio was so crowded and everywhere I turned therewere tons of people. The highlight of the event were the street dancing competition and the float parade. The street dancing was done last Saturday. The next day was the float parade. There were more people last Sunday because they wanted to see those celebrities like Kim Chiu, Gerald Anderson, Ogie Alcasid and Alyssa Alano. Hubby and I went to the sports complex and we waited for the floats to arrive because that’s where they all gonna end up. The sun was shining and it was hot especially there were too many people. I even got sunburned so my skin color now is dark brown. Next year I will just watch it in the tv. I just wanted to take my hubby there so he can watch it live too for the first time. He doesn’t like the crowd so next time we’ll just stay at home. As I’ve promised, here are the photos taken during the float parade.

Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson on the float


Alyssa Alano



singer Ogie Alcasid

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We’re preparing to go to Baguio tonight to watch the Panagbenga 2009. The street dancing competition will be tomorrow at 8:00 AM. We’re just waiting on my sister and my bro-in-law to come home from work then off we go. My hubby is excited because this will be his first time to watch the Panagbenga. The float parade will be on Sunday morning. This is the biggest event in Baguio every year and I’m pretty sure that Baguio is crowded now. Lots of people from the lowlands go up to Baguio to watch this event. Me and the whole family will be going except my aunt and my youngest brother. I will be posting here the update in the next few days. Expect to see some photos too. Till then.

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Hey guys, it’s been ages since the last time I updated this blog. Just been busy lately with all the packing and moving. Finally, at last, we’re here in the Philippines! It’s good to be home after more than 5 years of being away and lived in a foreign land. We’ll be staying here for a while and we’ll start a ministry for the Lord. That’s one reason we moved here. In the meantime, we already went to some places here. The next day after we arrived in Manila, my hubby together with my siblings, nephews and bro-in-law went to the Mall Of Asia. It was my first time to see this mall and it’s so humungous.They said it’s the biggest mall in Asia. One day is not enough to see all the stores there. We ate lunch in the food court and we roamed around the mall. We even rode their free ride and it took us around. We did some shopping, mostly groceries and flip flop for me and house sandal for my hubby. We stayed in the mall to kill the time because we waited until 6:30 PM to drive home because my bro-in-law’s van was color coded that day. The van was parked infront of the hotel where my hubby and I stayed for the night.

We left Manila at 6:30 PM and before we exited Manila I drifted off to sleep because hubby and I were not able to sleep the previous night because of jet lag. Then I was waken because of a very loud voice. Two highway patrol officers had chasen our van and my bro-in-law had to pull over. My bro-in-law was surprised what’s his violation and one of them said that he was on the wrong lane. He spoke so harsh and he then asked for the driver’s license of my bro-in-law. The van’s window was open and the officer had seen my hubby in the window. My sister got off the van and approached one of the officers. She pleaded to excuse her hubby and not take his driver’s license. He didn’t listen so my sister went inside again. Then I can’t help myself but plead too. My bro-in-law said he will just pay right there and then because it’s a lot of hassle to go back again to Manila from Pangasinan and get back his license. Besides he’s working and he can’t drive without it. So he offered to pay a thousand under the table but the officer didn’t accept it. Would you believe he wanted P3500 as under the table payment. He had seen my hubby and crooked officers here in PI thought that all Americans got lots of money. How disgusting! My bro-in-law made a bargain and ended up paying P2500. He said “nakibalato lang ako”.

It’s a shame how these crooked highway patrolmen operate in Manila and that was the second time my hubby had witnessed it. The first time was during his first visit to the Philippines. Nakakahiya talaga ang mga buwaya sa kalsada. Matakot kayo sa karma. I had to replace the money that my bro-in-law had to pay so he can concentrate driving. It was really a bad experience for him. Their van broke off in the express way the night they’re supposed to pick us up in the airport. He tried to repair the van but he wasn’t able to so they had it towed to a mechanic shop. He and my siblings and my 2 nephews spent the night in the van and waited until it was fixed. Then they came to the hotel where we stayed. My bro-in-law apologized to my hubby for the bad experience that he had seen there in Manila regarding the crooked highway patrolmen. What a way to make a living! My youngest brother had observed that they covered their name tags so it can’t be seen. I fet sad for them because they’re on their way to hell unless they repent from their sins and accept the One who died for them.

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After more than a year that our house was on the market, it’s finally sold. My hubby and I together with a friend of ours who was our witness went to sign the papers this morning with our buyer. After that they gave us the payment. It’s really an answered prayer. A lot of people wanted to buy our house but the problem was, they have no money to pay cash. We wanted our house to be paid cash because we are planning to go back to the Philippines. With the real estate market situation that everything is not doing well and the price of houses dropped in the market, selling a house nowadays is not that easy, especially we want cash payment for our house. We still owe money from the person whom we bought the house, so we need to pay him off. We just got some of the equity that we paid for our house. It’s better than renting an apartment. You can’t get back anything afterwards.

The Lord is really, really faithful to His promises. We’ve been praying and trusting Him that He will send us a buyer of our house in His perfect time and He did. I got my passport 2 weeks ago, we sold our house and the other blessing that we’re waiting is on the way. Everything that we asked from the Lord, He gave it to us. We can’t thank Him enough. Thank you Lord. Words are not enough to express our deepest and heartfelt thanks for all the things you’ve done for us. Philippines, see you soon…

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I received my US passport in the mail today. I applied for it last October 16th and the clerk in the post office told me it will take 4 to 6 weeks before I will receive it. I’m glad that it only took 3 weeks and now I got it. I didn’t find my US naturalization certificate in the envelope with my passport. I told my hubby that they didn’t return my naturalization certificate. He said they will mail it back to me. I still wanted to verify how come they didn’t return it with my passport. So what I did, I called the number I found in the enclosed pamphlet and asked them about my US naturalization certificate. The lady asked my name, SS number and date of birth and then she told me that they gonna mail back to me my US naturalization certificate separately in about 2 to 4 weeks. I told her I just wanted to know because I submitted to them the original copy of my naturalization certificate and I didn’t make any copy because it was stated there that it’s prohibited by law to make any copy of it. So I just have to wait for that to arrive in the mail.

I’m just so happy and excited because I have now my US passport and I can travel outside the country especially to my beloved country Philippines. I miss my family terribly. I hope to see them soon. I thank God for answered prayers. Words are not enough Lord to express my thanks and gratitude to You. You’ve been so good and faithful even though sometimes I think I don’t deserve it. Your love for me is so great. I LOVE YOU LORD and I am thine!!!

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What a blessing to be able to go on a weekend vacation with our loved ones! My hubby and I were invited by Wayne and Melissa to spend a couple of nights with them at Tanglewood Resort Hotel in Pottsboro. The place was so great, peaceful and relaxing. Our suite has 2 bedrooms and it’s fully furnished. It’s been 2 years since the last time we’ve seen Wayne and Melissa and they flew from Iowa to spend a week vacation here in Texas. My hubby and I had a great time being with them. Wayne is my hubby’s oldest son and residing in Iowa for 10 years now. He has a very sweet and lovely wife. Last Saturday, Melissa took me to a massage clinic in the resort just beside our hotel to have a tranquility massage. She said it’s their gift to me for becoming a US citizen. I found out that the massage cost $80 an hour. So pricey compared to what I’ve been paying to my former massage therapist. But in fairness, the massage was really, really good, so relaxing and I almost fell asleep there. They call it the Swedish massage. I’m so thankful to Wayne and Melissa for being a blessing to us this weekend.

Later that afternoon, we went to see Lake Texoma. We took some photos there and on the way back we stopped by a pumpkin patch. We just went inside and looked around, took photos and went back to our hotel. Yesterday, we went to look for the miniature golf course in Sherman only to find out that it was already closed and went out of business. Wayne just drove around and we went to see the Wildlife and the lake again. Before heading back home yesterday afternoon, we stopped by to eat at IHop in Sherman. It was a good weekend get away for us. My hubby and I just can’t afford to stay in a fancy and fabulous hotel like that in Tanglewood. Just imagine, they charge $450 a night there. It’s a good thing that Wayne and Melissa were using the time share of her parents in that place or else, it’s hard to afford it. They are still there right now and they gonna fly back to Iowa on Friday. They will have to visit Wayne’s siblings in Alvarado before going back home.

See more photos by clicking HERE.

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I have wrote in my other blogs that I finally sworn in as a US citizen last October 2nd in Arlington Convention Center. My church family who had been wanting to attend were not able to go because it was not held here in our city. It was more than 2 hours drive and my hubby and I went to spend the night at Shelly’s house in Cleburne because it’s a closer drive rather than from here in our place.

I told my church family that we will just celebrate after my oath ceremony. So tomorrow, we will have my citizenship party in our church’s dining hall right after our evening service. I made a lot of lumpia already because everybody in our church love it. Ann’s mom-in-law made a cake and she decorated it with US flags. It really looks neat! I just put it in our refrigerator and I’ll bring it to church tomorrow. Ms. Marsha will also make a cake and she said some of our church members will bring food. I’m excited for tomorrow’s celebration.

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More than a week ago, I called the office of our congressman here in our city. I talked to the secretary who is in charge of the immigration paper works. I asked her to follow up in the office of the USCIS when will be the schedule of my oath ceremony. It’s been 3 months since I had my citizenship interview and I passed it. I already submitted all the police clearance from the 3 cities where I resided for the past 5 years that they required me to submit since the FBI can’t read my finger prints. But I haven’t heard from the USCIS since then. It’s not my fault that they can’t read it after two times of going to their office to have my finger prints taken. Maybe they need to update their computers so they will have no problem. It had caused me delay to swear in. The long wait was killing me.

This morning, I heard the postman dropped the mails in the mailbox on our porch so I went out to get them. Most were shopping catalogs, I got 3 of them mind you. These companies want my money and they are enticing me to shop from them online. Well, I got some mails too and guess what? I was so happy when I saw the mail from the USCIS. I quickly went inside and opened the mail. It was written there the schedule of my oath ceremony! At last, after a very long wait, I will finally swear in as a US Citizen on October 2 at Arlington, more than 2 hours drive from our place. I called my hubby right away and informed him about it. Both of us were so happy. Then I called the secretary of our congressman and thank her for helping me follow up my papers. I was so grateful to her and she was so happy for me too. I called her September 16 to follow-up my case and the letter from the USCIS was dated September 19. It was so quick, huh! I told the secretary that I should have called her earlier so I didn’t have to wait that long. This is the 2nd time that she helped me. The first time was 3 years ago when I was waiting for the approval of the the removal of my conditional status. It took me forever to wait that time but after I called the congressman’s secretary, it didn’t take long and then I received the approval of my application.

My hubby and I have been praying daily that I will get my naturalization certificate soon and God answered our prayers. After I will get my citizenship certificate, I will apply for a US passport. Next I’m going to apply for a dual citizenship and then we’ll go back to the Philippines and start a ministry there for the Lord. Hubby and I believe with all our hearts that God will grant us our hearts’ desire in His perfect time. We are also praying that God will send us a buyer of our house. I believe that all things work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

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