Hello again

I've been quiet for some time here. The truth is I was sad and felt alone in the past months. When my Hubby started working, I asked myself, "What now?" We were not able to get pregnant and we would only have the time to do so again after 9 or 10 loooooong months. Holidays was spent smiling to everyone but myself, not attending family lunches and hiding from relatives and neighbors who would ask me the dreaded question, "Buntis ka na?"

The pregnancy and childcare books were left unread at the drawer. I stopped tracking my cycle and going to Sister Regina. I lost the drive to start a new phase in preparing myself for pregnancy. I did those things last year and still no baby. It was like studying very hard for an important test. And then failed. Again.  Yes, I was close to depression, if not in that state already.

Now I'm trying to regain the joy in my heart. I'm reading (again) "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick Warren and "Everyday a Friday" by Joel Osteen. These books are helping me realize that all is not lost. Now is not my time to have a baby. And as always, God's plans are always good and perfect.

To all my fellow TTC ladies, keep your head up!

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

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Just finished reading a borrowed copy. There are three things that made my juices flowing.

1. Do not say "I can't afford it." Instead, ask "How can I afford it?"
2. Be an "Indian Giver."
3. Assets buy luxuries.

Mr. Robert Kiyosaki advises us to stop saying "I can't afford it." when seeing items that we want to have or actvities that we want to do. This statement stops a person's thinking process. It's a dead end. Unlike asking "How can I afford it?," it makes a person think of ways on how to acquire these things.

Be an Indian Giver means getting something from nothing.It's not stealing, cheating or anything bad like that. It means investing your money, letting it grow for a period of time and then pulling out your initial investment, leaving your gains in the investment. For example, Mr. Kiyosaki said in investing in stocks, with the guidance of a broker, he buys stock of a company. After a week or a month, when stock prices move up, he pulls the initial amount while leaving his profit in the stock market. Regardless whether the prices fluctuate, he's not worried since he got his shares for free, so to speak. He got his initial investment money and has left the profit to grow and work for him. Now it got me thinking that I should also have that principle in investing. I have to have earned my initial capital and let the profit work for me. I can use the capital in another investment. Ka-ching!

Assets buy luxuries. I like nice things. I like new clothes though I seldom buy. I love to buy books. I want to travel and eat. Mr. Kiyosaki teaches us to use our assets, not our savings, when buying things that we WANT. We have to plump up our assets first before buying any luxury. If I get a windfall such as a bonus, 13th month pay, leave conversion, etc., I shouldn't go to the mall and buy whatever things I've been fantasizing about. I have to invest the money and when I get 100% profit from my investment, then that is the time to buy my luxury. Sounds difficult right? Well it is. That's why we go back to the "How can I afford it?" mantra.

Reviewing this post showed me that these three things are tied up together. :)

New Habit #1 - Morning Power Drink

According to Bo Sanchez, a widely known preacher, speaker and author in the country, he has 52 Healing Habits to transform our health, in Body and Soul one habit at a time. The first of these habits is taking the Morning Power Drink.

What is the Morning Power Drink?
The Morning Power drink is just a drink consisting the freshly-squeezed juice of 28 pcs. of calamansi. This should be taken first thing in the morning. Any drink or food should be taken one hour after drinking this power drink. To know more about it, click here.

In one of Bo's newsletter, he said it takes 28 days to take on a new habit. A new habit should be done everyday, no skipping a day for any reason. Should you skip, you start counting again the days.

One of the habits that I want to acquire is drinking the Morning Power Drink.  As February 2012 began, I also started drinking the juice of 5 pcs. calamansi. I will increase the number everyday till I get to the recommended 28 pcs. calamansi. True to Bo's words, I didn't become acidic. My tummy's just fine.

Calamansi for good health! 

7:00 A.M.

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One night I was watching a Lifestyle channel show called "What's Good for you." One topic was about our body clocks. It says, when trying to conceive, 7:00 a.m. is the best time to do the baby dance since it is "when our hormones rise and sperm counts peak." 

Smart Driving School

 

with Sir Clifford and Bebang, the Altis



A week ago, I enrolled for a Beginner's Course in Smart Driving School. For beginners with no driving experience at all they require a minimum of 10 hours of lessons. The requirements are a student permit from LTO and the payment, of course. I paid P4,300 for the lessons and the secretary, Shayne, and I drafted my schedule. I planned to have an hour a day of lesson. I'm hesitant to have 2 hours of lesson in one day, worried that my feet would hurt or get tired. 

In their list of offered courses, there is a SMART course which is more expensive than the regular lessons. Shayne told me that the SMART course allows the student to select the instructor or the vehicle to drive. I thought it was impractical and just a waste of money.

I was excited on my first day and nervous. I read a forum wherein some students were not able to learn how to drive even after going to a driving school. I hoped I won't experience the same. The first lesson was all lecture. The instructor and I sat inside the car as he explained the different functions of the pedals, gears, etc. I "drove" for about 5 minutes or so. I went home feeling great that I learned these different parts but disappointed also that I wasn't able to drive longer.

Second day came and I had another instructor, Sir Clifford Manimtim. His supervisor was with us during the lesson. Sir Clifford let me drive the car! Woohoo! I told him that I didn't do that the day before and he said I should've done so. He was very patient and kept my fears at bay. Booo to my first instructor whom I shall not name.

I was ecstatic after my second-but-should-be-first day of driving lesson. I thought about upgrading my lessons to the SMART course so I can pick Sir Clifford to teach me everytime. It would cost more but I would not risk letting another not-so-good instructor in my driving lessons. I humbly ate what I said about the impracticality of choosing your instructor. For me, it's better than having a different instructor everyday. Having the same instructor means he knows your day-to-day progress. :)

It was a good decision that I upgraded my lessons. Sir Clifford thought me alot about defensive driving and he wasn't selfish about sharing his knowledge on the road. He made me feel at ease while driving, boosted my confidence and he even cracks jokes.

I finished my 10-hour lessons in 8 days. I recommend having 2-hour lessons a day (I did it one Saturday). It may seem too much for a beginner to be behind the wheel but true to Shayne's advice, 1 hour lesson is short to fully enjoy it.


SMART Driving School
St. Francis Square Mall
Tel.# 631-1663
http://www.smartdrivingph.com/