What a week that i just had

See, I am no rockstar, or a reigning beauty queen, or a head of state. For me to have that much activity crammed in one week left me disoriented with the flurry of events. Now I will enumerate what I did last week below and you might tell yourself: "nah, that's a pretty standard week for me!"

Having implied at the beginning that I am a nobody an ordinary employed mother of two with routine like clockwork so these things events rarely align themselves in one week. Or perhaps I've had had other days with consecutive stuff happening but none as many awesome events as what I did last week. So yeah, you can pretty much deduce that my life's boring. But heck, I love how ordinary and simple things are in my life. I am in love with my life. Hence, I am blogging this away now to remind me that everynow and then I do get to be the rockstar that I truly am. :-)

Prepare to be bored because this is more for me than for you. =P

Right, let's start with Monday. Me and my teammates decided that it shall be a carbo loading day. We stuffed ourselves with pizza and pasta like there's no tomorrow. Normally, I am very conscious of my carbs intake however, we ate like hungry marathoners then. It was fun to let go just like that. Then that night the whole support group had a telepresence meeting with our boss' boss. Allan who is at New Jersey suited up and met with us to tell us about what has happened and what to expect in the coming months. He recognized our efforts as well as the exciting times ahead for all of us.

Tuesday is to be known as the day I spent in bed and our bathroom in equal parts of the day. Too graphic for me to expound so let's just leave it at that. Oh I got the chance to catch up on my reading though (was I bluer than blue? Not really ha!).

Wednesday was just a truly productive day. Learning-wise I was blown away with what coach Chot Reyes shared with us. One of the best learning sessions I attended in years! He left me totally awestruck. I even got to personally ask him a question. :) This was the day that I also attended a short briefing session because I was one of the few chosen employees (out of 2000) who will attend cocktales with the richest man in Canada. Our company chairman himself! Read below.

All right, then came Thursday which was like one of the highlights of my employment history in Thomson Reuters. Everyone suited up because our Chairman -- 3rd Baron of the Thomson Fleet, Lord David Thomson himself has graced us with a visit. There was an executive townhall attended by at least 700 employees. To say that everyone was moved, inspired, and proud after that event was an understatement. Then about 30-40 of us had the chance to personally meet him at a more relaxed and informal setting. There was good wine, food, laughter, so many group selfies, and even show stoping performances. Truly one of happiest parties I've been to lately.

Friday, was all day strategic planning with our Transactions team at the office. We were rewarded with a buffet at Spirals Sofitel for dinner. Too many food! There was an epic conversation with our Global Head to cap the day.

Saturday morning was spent with the kids at Gymboree, having lunch at Eastwood, then doing the grocery. This is a usual weekend routine. My officemate Mae brought her family at home for a much needed play/swim date. We had impromtu picnic/merienda. They brought so much food. I made egg salad while my sister bought Pancit from a well-known Chinese resto. After stuffing ourselves full it's now time to attend another party! After taking a bath and changing to party clothes we Mae & I headed to Tony Romas. It was another night of good food, wine, and laughter. Truly a time well-spent. After the party I had another few round of drinks with my husband at our favorite little bar called Black Olive.

Early Sunday was spent attending two consecutive masses just to make sure we had a good seat when his Emminence Louis Antionio Cardinal Tagle celebrated mass. It was the feast of Divine Mercy. We headed straight to my in-laws to celebrate my brother-in-law's birthday. Another event with overflowing food! Haha. 

Afterlunch we were so beat that we were already tucked in as early as 8pm. What can I say, a rockstar's life is not easy. But amidst all, my heart is truly thankful. Moments like these validates how blessed I am to have my family, friends, collegues, in this journey. :)

On marriage and having kids

I have other more 'fun' blog posts in my drafts. Why did I choose to start my morning today on a rather contemplative mode?

Hmm..maybe it's the hormones? Maybe because a very good friend just woke me up to give me a surprising (and happy) news? Maybe it's the APO song playing on the background? 

For whatever reason it got me to thinking... Does having children define a great marriage? When I was in college (true story) I had my Values Education teacher walk out on us in class because I engaged her on a debate when she said that the sole purpose of marriage was pro-creation.

I am not trying to offend anyone. This is me thinking out loud. If you have your own set of beliefs which happens to be contrary to my own, I respect it. So I expect you to respect me by not taking anything that I say too seriously (haha!). I mean I am just rambling so if I happen to irritate you feel free to change the url with impunity. Hehe. :)

Alright, I got derailed again. My point is, for three and a half years we were trying to get pregnant. (I know I know 3.5 years is not a long time but if you know how impatient and baby crazy I am then you will understand that it IS a long time :))  I remember going to confession one time and I asked the priest how come hubby and I are still not blessed with a child yet. He said: "The happiest couples that I know don't even have children, my dear."

What followed after that conversation was acceptance. We realized, we'll do whatever means possible medically to get pregnant and if the Lord decides to bless us in another way then so be it. You see we were given less that 10% chances of having a baby by the very first doctor that we went to.

But that story is two parts: First was unwavering faith and acceptance. Second was a deliberate decision from us to take control of the situation and seek medical help. Just like with how everything that life has blessed me so far it's always two fold: The Lord's grace blessing me and my own will taking steps to get closer to what I want.

Now back to my question at the start. Do kids define a great marriage? Yes they can but ultimately they don't. 

They give meaning and test your partnership like no other life changing event in your life can. Kids have their own way of turning your world upside down! In a good way though. Totally perplexing and happy way! I can say marriage would require more effort since you don't want to just get stuck on the parenting aspect of your life. I say this because motherhood was very natural for me. Being a great wife, now that takes decision and commitment. But I what makes things easy (and realistic) for me is I don't try to be perfect at these roles. I am not a perfect wife nor mother but I'm sure as hell that I am a fun one! :)

I started picturing a childless marriage back then when we were still trying to concieve. And I was okay with it too. I was happy if things were to stay forever the same. That was weird for a baby-obsessed person like me. But here's how I came into acceptance: God gave me a wonderful life partner. Really, and that's what marriage should be about companionship. We are complete baby or no baby.

Marriage is an institution that should be defined by a mutual decision to accept things that life has to offer together with your partner. Marriage has struggles but don't forget it's supposed to be fun also. So just find the right partner (a faithful, kind, and funny one). And stay committed. :D