Thursday, April 30, 2015

Growing

2 weeks after I first tried to germinate seeds, my sweet corn and sugar snap peas are ready to be transplanted to a bigger container.

Mommy just needs to get more potting mix.


Hitting rock bottom

My health has, unfortunately, hit rock-bottom.

I knew my control was slipping and that I've been gaining weight lately, but I didn't realize that the overall effect on my health was going to be that bad.

I was puzzled when I was asked to give another urine sample when I went back to the clinic the following day to get my results. The doctor explained later that she wanted to do a pregnancy test for me because that might explain the unusual results in my bloodwork.

It turned out negative, but for a while there, my hopes were up. We have been considering having another child recently but given my most recent checkup, I wasn't sure if I wanted to go through a pregnancy with this many health issues going on with me. It wouldn't be good for the baby.

I have to thank my company for giving us an incentive to get our annual checkups done (there's a gift card when you complete certain activities). I am not the type to make an effort to see the doctor for checkups if it weren't for that incentive, my husband is the same way too so we both have to be thankful for this.

I teared up a little as I was reading the results, how could I have let it get this far ?

Anyway, sabi nga ni friend/ofcmate "at least alam mo na, pwede mo na gawan ng paraan." and he is right. My husband says the same thing and that we should treat this as a wake up call and start making lifestyle changes.

Tuesday:
When we got home after daycare pickup, I turned on the tv and searched for an exercise video on YouTube. Ang dami pala!  The good news is that I was able to find time for exercise, kaya pala because Swe-cha generally entertains himself when we get home from daycare. The not-so-good news is that I was panting at the 5 minute mark and at 15 minutes, I found my muscles shaking and I couldn't move them anymore, not even to sit down on the floor. Thankfully, Swe-cha let me do this for 30 minutes without bothering me. He just sat on the floor watching me and applauding every now and then.

I had the realization that my fit days was really that long ago. Those days when I could easily do 3 straight hours of advanced aerobic classes ? those were long gone.

Wednesday:
More realistic this time and considering that I still have aches and pains from yesterday's exercise session. I searched for a beginner's exercise video. Eventually, I settled on Zumba. I found it doable and after a message saying "don't judge yourself, just have fun!" on the video appeared, I started having fun. Ang tigas ng katawan ko and I don't even know if I'm doing the moves right. Boy, am I glad that I don't do this professionally - nakakahiya.

Swe-cha was a bit more difficult today, he wanted to be hugged, he wanted me to sit beside him, he wanted to write and do all sorts of things. He kept asking me to turn off the tv and at one point, was able to get hold of the remote and actually turned my video off. this resulted in my having to start over, until I was able to finish the 30 minute exercise.

The good news is that, at this point, I see results of my hard work (exercise and diet) immediately. I've lost 1 lb daily for 3 days now. Hope this continues para ma-inspire ako and maka pag 2-piece bikini for summer (mwahahaha!).



Sunday, April 26, 2015

When friends don't LIKE you anymore...

I've noticed recently that some friends have not been LIKE-ing my posts on FB.

I know it's not mandatory but since I think it's a way to say "hey, I saw this pic and I think it's nice that you were able to do this" quickly. And when I don't see that, I get the feeling that it is deliberate and that they are sending a message. After all, it doesn't take a lot to click that little thumbs up button.

Have I offended or frustrated them in any way? Granted, we haven't really been as close lately as we were before and don't spend much time together, but I do see them LIKE-ing posts of other friends who are much farther away so distance / spending time together must not be a factor.

In any case, as sad as I am with the message they are sending me, there is really no sense in wondering (who knows how & what they are thinking ?) and I just have to move on. After all, why force someone to like me/us ? Eh kung di nila ako like, edi hindi. What am I to do ?

Over the years, I've seen people cull their friends - some do that to get rid of toxic people in their lives, some just don't have time for people they consider acquaintances (and not friends) - so maybe I am being culled.

Sad, matagal rin ang pinagsamahan namin.

Anyway, kung hindi na nila ako gusto maging friend okay lang, Pero I'll always be here with my heart & hand waiting in friendship.

Sana lang malaman ko what I have done to cause them to boycott me.



Tuesday, April 21, 2015

South-facing window

While I was fretting about getting a portable / mini greenhouse and doing the research, hubby asked me how and where I planned to set it up.

I haven't quite figured it out yet, I told him, but what I really needed was a place where I could set up my seedlings and have them face south. Ideally, they should still be inside at this point but should be placed at a South-facing window.

So hubby asked me which way was South and I pointed to the South wall at our home and pointed out that there are no windows.

And he asks... uh,... how about the window in the 4th bedroom, can I make use of that window ? But, he points out, it's going to be warmer up there, compared to the rest of the house.

My husband is a genius! We don't have any South-facing windows in our living area but I didn't think about the bedrooms. The 4th bedroom is perfect because it really gets a lot of sun and it is unoccupied. We just use it to store semi-opened moving boxes and unused toys so I can keep the door locked (to keep Swe-cha out) when I'm not fussing with the seedlings. The fact that it is warm is also perfect, that's how a greenhouse is supposed to be - warm but not too much.

It's been a day since I planted my sprouted seeds in a seed-starting potting mix and a lot of already poked their heads out and have started sprouting the cotyledon leaves.

It'll be a few more weeks, I think, before the seedlings will be ready for the planting bed but I am so excited and really hope that they make it.





Saturday, April 18, 2015

Vegetable garden

We've always wanted to have a vegetable garden but we didn't start one last year because we were going to be away for a vacation and so our raised planters remained empty (other than the weeds that sprouted - boo!). I bought seeds last year but decided, at the last minute, to not plant them.

This year, I tried to germinate (not sure if this is the right term) the seeds that I bought last year.

Since these are from last year, I wasn't sure if they're still viable so I decided to go with the paper-towel method. I soaked some paper towels, spread the seeds on the wet towels and sealed them in a ziploc bag - sort of like a mini-greenhouse. I made sure to label the bags, of course.

3 days later, the seeds have sprouted. I didn't completely open the bags so I have no idea if all seeds are good or not but here's a peek-preview. I may leave them in the bags for another day or two but I am thinking about getting a small greenhouse to put in the back, hopefully, tomorrow.

Sugar Snap Peas (the vine variety)

Sweet corn

Rio Grande Tomatoes

Spinach

Beefsteak Tomatoes