Thursday, November 27, 2014

Random Thoughts of A chaotic mind on a midweek...

With its galloping grace and elegant arched necks, fine silky mane and tails, horses are an epitome of elegance. (Methinks). A horse suggests refinement, power, beauty and grace; attributes I wish to emulate. 


But since becoming a mama, I am now more drawn to becoming a duck.  Yes from a horse to a duck! Lol! Have you seen a duck swimming in a pond? Calm and collected.  It seems to be swimming without any effort, but under the water it’s kicking its duck feet very hard.  So now, I try to be a duck, trying to look calm in the surface, but behind the scene I paddle like there’s no tomorrow.  I guess any mom can relate, you may be a working mom or a stay at home mom, being a mama is a serious business that requires hard work but it is indeed very intangibly rewarding.



So while I try to become that calm and collected duck like the one above.  I have a funny feeling I look like this ruffled duck below.  But this would change (I hope!). I will share with you some tips once I have mastered the calm and collected duck look ;)





PS:  Hey, I did warn you these are random thoughts of a chaotic mind ;)  Have a good week ahead everyone! J



photos from :blackmamba.wordpress.com,google search,flicker.com

Monday, November 3, 2014

How do you catch time?



time flies, time zooms...the only way I know how to stop it - take a picture of it



I guess I can now relate to the irony of this statement.  “The days are long but the years are short.”  It seems like only last week when we first set foot in this country, but now it’s November, in a month or so, the year will be over.  Whew! Time flies indeed.

We get caught up with the daily to-dos and the list never gets cleared, it keeps getting longer. The time and things just pass by in a blur, and then we wake up a year older.  Now that I’m a mama, I’m becoming more emotional.  I want to capture every moment and experiences I have with my little family.  I want to snap photos of my toddler who is beginning to have his feisty personality shine.  And when I capture an adorable antic of his, I become that proud mama, ready to share to the whole world how amazing my little boy is.  And at times, I just want to keep it to myself and freeze that special moment I share with my toddler. 

There is no stopping time.   It flies whether you are having fun or not.  The choice is yours.  And I want to consciously take an effort to make the right choice.  Time well spent, a life well-lived.  It's never easy amidst the busyness of life, but it's never an impossible feat.  

How about you, how do you catch time?


Snapshots from my weekend with my family.
went for a crochet tutorial session after Saturday field ministry and I made my first granny square, yay!!!
hopefully beanies and scarves for the little one soon ;)
caught the little one rummaging through my bag, he found an apple :)
barefoot at the park after the meet....
lovers at Cornwall Park ;) 

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Hopping on the DIY bandwagon

I may be a career woman, a working mom that is, but I am a homemaker at heart.  And so cute knick knacks that makes a home homier really draws me.  But home-decorating can be expensive as what we have learned when we moved to our rental unit in the suburbs. And since we live under the down under, whatever is not made or grown here are imported and thus quite a bit pricey.  Well I think logical reason dictates that importing goods into the bottom of the world has to have a hefty price tag attached to it.  Anyways, I digress.  Now back to the cute knick knacks for the home.  *insert big smile*

Have you heard about Pinterest? Well, if not do check it out.  I think it’s an awesome site with an extensive curation of all things DIY and more.  A lot of businesses advertise there and it has also become a platform for people to showcase their crafty talents.  With Pinterest, Etsy, Instragram and felt.co.nz (the web is not short of crafty DIY inspiration), I too was inspired to be able to transform one thing into something beautiful and useful.

And when the sweet hubby gifted me this as a wedding anniversary present,
 
I squealed with joy! Yes that’s an exaggeration, but really while some ladies would prefer diamonds and pearls (but I don’t mind receiving these either *hint* *hint*), I was really happy with this gift because I can now find out whether I do have the makings of a domestic diva. :)

And so these two sealed the deal.  I am now hopping on the DIY bandwagon. 

So far these have been the projects made.




Throw pillows for the couch, to lean on or rest your head while watching the telly (that’s TV for us!).  And it’s amazing how these simply pulls together a lively spring aura for the living room. 

Cute matching curtains for our tiny toilet window. This pretty curtains can make doing your “business” here more relaxing.


With these small projects, the homemaker in me is equally pleased.  Casa de Martinez just got a little bit livelier and homier.  Just in time for the spring season!

I really do hope I can come up with some more.


How about you, any DIY projects lately?


Monday, September 29, 2014

What I've been up to -- learning the ropes

It’s been exactly six months since we first set foot in New Zealand.  With two huge bags in tow, the hubby and I bid farewell to wonderful friendships we have made in Singapore and with a heavy heart but filled with anticipation and excitement (what irony!) we were ready to start the next chapter of our adventure.

It’s been 185 days of ups and downs, highs and lows, everything you might expect from a BIG move from one country to another. House hunting, job hunting, and all the nifty gritty of setting up bank accounts, taxes, internet connection, mobile phones, insurances, etc. etc.

My how time flies.
We arrived at the close of summer and in a matter of weeks, the leaves started to fall.  And slowly winter crept in to replace autumn. 
Reflecting on our last six months, I can sum it up in one sentence.  “What a learning experience!” And the learning continues.  As they say “You are never too old to learn new things!”
What I have learned/discovered so far is that you cannot drive anywhere in New Zealand without passing fields of sheep and cows along the way.  And the rumor that there are more sheep than people in NZ, well I think might be quite true.




You pay rent weekly and not monthly.  It has its pros and cons.  I guess it helps guise the high cost of living as acceptable, coz when you sit down and do your maths, wow rent is “bloody” expensive ay.
You have to have patience in waiting for customer service to attend to you.  We waited for over a month before we have our internet connection.  And when we moved house in the suburbs another month of waiting for it to get reconnected.  Or was this just a bad case of chosing the wrong service provider for our mobile and internet lines?  Oh well, benefit of the doubt....
I learned that kiwi is not just a fruit, but it’s a flightless bird as well.  And Kiwi is also the name of the people of New Zealand.  Confusing ay?  Well you’ll get used in how to use it contextually right.

While Singaporeans like to end their sentences with a "lah", kiwis on the other hand end it with an "ay". I have been replacing my "lahs" with "ays" lately, guess I'm going local now ;).  Kiwinism (as how I like to call the kiwi slang) is quite an interesting topic that merits a blog entry of its own.

Driving in the left is ok, but wait till you get to the roundabout and then it’s a completely different story.  The hubby puts it simply, always give way to the right. Yeah right! Confusing ay!

And as what the hubby and I have learned, you will soon get over the stress of driving in the motorway (freeway).
A car and a house content insurance is a must!

Getting rid of your rubbish is expensive.  We have to buy a $2.50 bag that holds 10kg of rubbish.  Place your rubbish inside any other plastic bag and the garbage collector might just leave that bag in the curbside.  While back in the Philippines, if we want to get rid of extra boxes at home, we can turn it into cash by selling it at the junkyard.  While here, instead of making extra money from those old boxes, you have to pay to get rid of them.

But that’s a price you have to pay for living in one of the most beautiful country in the world. No matter where you are in NZ, you are approximately 10-15 minutes’ drive away from something spectacularly beautiful.  The scenery is just incredible.  From beaches to mountains to lakes to glaciers and even volcanoes. And artisan vineyards to boot.
And for a coffee lover like me, I just found paradise. :)
As our adventure unfolds, we are learning the ropes one step at time....



Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Spring has sprung in this side of the world


pssssttttt bawal yan ;) for your eyes only

The birds are chirping, the maple trees are budding and the daffodils are blooming.  Yes, indeed, spring has finally sprung. 
But for the locals and those having lived in this country for a number of years, most of them have commented that this time round the start of spring has been a disappointment.  Well for a newbie like me, it’s quite a welcome change from the cold gloomy winter I have had experienced a couple of weeks back.
Yep, we have made that BIG move from one country to another and that very well explains my very long hibernation. J Hopefully with the start of spring my blogging mojo would be back so I can tell you all about our experiences here in the land of the long white cloud – Aotearoa.
Do join me and my family in our adventures in New Zealand.  Kia Ora and till the next post.

 
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