Goodbye... Hello!!! [2010 - 2011 New Year Countdown]

Can you believe that it's the last hour of the last day of the year 2010 as of this writing?  Where did the time go?  It seems that time went by so fast... another year of work, play, travel, joy, sorrow, love, happiness, trials and victories, and the list goes on and on.  What are you thankful for this year, my friend?

I have a lot to thank God for the year 2010.

January:  I thank God for a month of celebration.  Many of my family & friends celebrated their birthdays on this month - my brother and 2 sisters-in-law among many others.  Another reason for celebration was my 1st Year Wedding anniversary!  My husband & I celebrated 2 weeks of wedding anniversary bliss after being apart for 4.5 months!  It was also a time to assist my sister abroad after she was diagnosed with a problem in her lumbar region.  I thank God for work and work/service opportunities as a Pediatrician and Medical Acupuncturist.

February:  Month of love... lots of it.  Our church celebrated its Church anniversary and my father was installed as a Pastor.  Isn't that great?  God is so good!  My sister came home making it all the more special.  My nephew and 2 cousins celebrated another year this month.  Oh, how I miss my nephew!

March:  Another month of birthdays and celebration for the family.  'Twas my sister, parents, mother-in-law's birthday and my parent's 43rd wedding anniversary.  My parents-in-law came to visit and I was able to go with them to a nice vacation trip to Cebu.  This was a very interesting month because my mom & I discovered a new hobby.  We attended a seminar on "How to build your business" (for her) and "Jewelry making" (for me).  It was fun doing new things with mom.  Oh... I went back to school this month:  took up a certificate course in Phlebotomy.

April:  ohhhh... my birthmonth!  I got a dozen of pink roses from my hubby from Island rose.  I always love their roses but since it was a very hot and humid summer, the roses got kinda dehydrated.  I informed their customer service about it and they sent me 2 dozens more! - thanks, guys!  I thank God for allowing me to travel with my mom and visit my sister abroad.  It was a nice time for bonding among us, girls.  Then it was time for the Pediatric annual convention - it was great to see old friends and meet new colleagues. 

May:  I received my certificate of acupunture from my mentor.  I thank God for his dedication in teaching us the skills that we needed to do it.  It was also my husbands birthmonth.  I surprised him by flying in on the day of his birthday... it was an awesome surprise!

June:  this month went by fast!  I watched my first professional baseball game and our team won ☺.  I started my craft blog:  Cabbycraft.  I started making cards and other crafts to keep myself busy.

July:  I went on a roadtrip with good family friends to Texas... my first time!  Awesome!

August:  the month when we filed our papers.  I got immunized for MMR (against my will but no choice).  Met with our very nice lawyer and did this and that.

September:  I witnessed my first marathon on 10-10-10!  Great times with great friends!  My first to go apple picking!  This month, i started to do crocheted hats... and never stopped since then.

October:  I experienced my first Fall season... it was so nice to see the colors of autumn.  Definitely a month for many photos.

November:  my first time to spend Thanksgiving in America.  I missed my family back home.  Sad time for losing my dear friend back home who passed on so suddenly.

December:  we had our papers approved, praise God!  Many firsts this month:  first time to see and feel snow!  My first time to spend Christmas away from home and our first Christmas as husband and wife.

And now... it is our first time to spend the New Year together.  It just makes me cry with tears:  missing my own family back home but now spending it with an additional family and making memories with my "own family - my husband and I".  God is so good... yesterday, today and forevermore.

MAY YOU HAVE A BLESSED NEW YEAR 2011, MY FRIEND! 
God bless you!

Finale Date [Dec. 30, 2010]

I love it when my husband takes me out for a date.  Both of us have a passion for food and desserts and we really enjoy eating out.  Lucky for him since he seems to metabolize food fast... sorry for me for obvious reasons. 

For our finale date for the year 2010, we went to a Japanese resto called Sakuma.  It was a nice place - very cozy, friendly staff and delicious food. It was a little pricey but hey, it's good food.  The Chef (and owner), the man standing behind the bar) made the sushi and sashimi.

To start off, we ordered the Maui Island sashimi:  Yellowtail & tuna tartare with scallions and Chef's sauce.  At first glance, the food presentation looked weird but very intriguing.  Hesitantly, i got the small spoon and a small piece.  Oh my... it tasted wonderful!  There was a wonderful play of flavor and texture - you could feel the crunch of the fish roe, taste the tangy, sweet, salty sauce and smell the freshness of the tuna.  Very appetizing indeed. 

On to the entree'.  I got the Beef shogayaki:  marinated sirloin beef with onions.  It was similar to beef terriyaki but not as sweet.  Hubby got the Beef skewers a la Sakuma.  Both dishes were yummy and the portions were enough for a hearty meal

Dessert was a choice between vanilla, red bean and green tea ice cream:  red bean for me and green tea for him.  Creamy, not so sweet ice cream.  Sarap! (Filipino term for Delicious!) 

Whew!   There was a lot to celebrate this year as a couple and we are looking forward to a lot more this coming year 2011.  Happy New Year!  Here's to more dates with my husband ♥.

My USPS Day

Yes, you read it right!  Today is my USPS day.  I had been busy with crochet for the past weeks and it was time to mail them today.   I always enjoy receiving mail, well, except for the junk mail.  Anyway, we ordered several boxes from the USPS website a fews ago and it was delivered right to our doorstep - for free. 

I mailed 1 each of a flat rate small envelope and box today - US$ 4.90/box which is ok.  Then, i bought 20 Christmas stamps at US$ 0.44 each.  I like the stamps in the US because it has a sticky back, in contrast to my homeland where it's a "licky" back, haha.  Nevertheless, i enjoy sending and receiving snail mail.

Two and a half months ago, i sent my sister a photobook through USPS however, the address was lacking so it didnt reach her.  I called the USPS but since the package had no tracking number, they had no way of knowing where it was.  So, it was a waiting game.  I hoped for the best - that the package would get back to me instead of being opened by someone else.   After the long wait, the package finally came back to me today.  Oh, such a relief to see my slightly battered package travel to Hongkong and back. 

There you have it... here's to more happy mail!  ☺♥☺