Celebrating the Feast Day of St. Lorenzo Ruiz

It is St. Lorenzo Ruiz's Feast Day today (Sept 28). Since it is still flooded outside due to Typhoon Pedring (which seems to have "calmed down" a bit, thank you for joining us in prayer!) I thought I'd try to come up with a post on how to celebrate his Feast Day. (Since I can't find one on Google! haha!)

But first, here is some information about the St. Lorenzo, or San Lorenzo Ruiz, as he is fondly called by Filipinos everywhere:

Lorenzo Ruiz is the first Filipino saint. He is also the first Filipino martyred for the Christian Faith. Lorenzo Ruiz was a layman, married, and had two sons and a daughter. Born in Binondo, Manila, about 1600's, he was educated in the school of the Dominicans there. He served as an altar boy and later was a helper and clerk-sacristan in the church of Binondo. He was a member of the Confraternity of the Rosary. 

How we celebrated Mama Mary's birthday

Photo from whenmomspeaks.com

Here is what we did aside from incorporating "tidbits" about Mama Mary's birthday in our homeschool lessons for the day (I had to report to work today though - thank God for my mother, who for us who are blessed to know her, consider her as a modern-day Mama Mary in many ways! She became "Teacher Lola*" for today.):

 - Cupcake decorating for Mama Mary's birthday "cake"
I brought home supermarket-bought cupcakes and blue and white icing (ready for decorating) from Goldilocks bakeshop and let Tim and his cousin Gabby (one of his FAVORITE playmates!) decorate them. Rysse and Gabby's brother (born a month apart, they love playing with each other too - when they aren't fighting over toys and books! haha!) participated in the fun by trying to decorate their own cupcakes too - though they ended up eating their share too early! haha!

- Candle-blowing ceremony for Mama Mary
After the kids were done decorating the 10 cupcakes, we arranged them on a plate, placed the plate in front of a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, lit and placed a single, white candle beside it, and sang "Happy Birthday" for our dearest Mother. The kids had lots of fun taking turns to blow out the candle!

- Eating and sharing the "cake"
Once we were done with that, the kids (and some of the adults present!) enjoyed eating the cupcakes! :-)

- Praying the Holy Rosary
This morning at the office we had a recollection focusing on "Moments with Mary" (one of the perks of working fulltime for our Catholic community) and I was reminded again of the power of God's grace manifested through the sacramentals attributed to Mary, one of which is the Holy Rosary. 

It was wonderful then for the kids and I to pray the Rosary together with my parents (after such a loong time, especially since we don't live with them anymore!), and brother and his kids. (Hubby was at a Thanksgiving Event for our community's "Build My House" project, heading the Logistics Committee).

To my delight, our almost 5-year old son Tim occasionally led us in praying the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be, and would even lift up his own intentions when my dad would offer up prayer intentions before each decade. (Of course, towards the end, he was already getting restless and asking me "Are we almost done Mama?" hehe). Praise God!

All in all, it was a great way to celebrate our dear Mother's birthday, and bond with extended family members too! ;-)

I'll be posting pics from my dad's camera soon :-) hehe.

Once again, dearest Mother Mary, thank You for your love and for saying "YES" to God's will! May we imitate you in all we do! WE LOVE YOU!

Happy Birthday Mama Mary!

(We're incorporating Mama Mary's birthday into our lessons for today. I have work *huhuhu!* so the kids will be at my parents' place. I've prepared the lesson plan for my mom to implement. Check it out here if you like. We are praying for God's leading regarding my work situation right now. Please do pray with us! Thanks! Godbless all!)

Ideas for September 5: Feast Day of Blessed Mother Teresa

I have JUST decided to include some activities for Blessed Mother Teresa's Feast day for our first day of homeschooling. Did a search on Google and here's what I plan to use: (wish us luck! haha! Blessed Mother Teresa, pray for us!)

Activities from Paper Dali (like this cute coloring sheet below!)

Coloring Pages from 4Real (scroll down to September 5)

Watch videos:
Mother Teresa of Calcutta cartoon for children


For me (hehe!): Mother Teresa on God's mercy and forgiveness

Why I believe in natural family planning

“Natural family planning? What’s that? And does it really work?”

These are probably some of the most common reactions or statements we get when people ask us how we spaced our two kids (Tim is turning 5 in October and Rysse just turned 2 last July). Those who are already in the know though can testify that NFP is the best way to go when it comes to family planning.

Our kids are products of NFP, just like Umbert. ;-)

What is natural family planning (NFP)?
Wikipedia defines NFP in the following way:


Natural family planning (NFP) is a term referring to the family planning methods approved by the Roman Catholic Church. In accordance with the Church's requirements for sexual behavior in keeping with its philosophy of the dignity of the human person, NFP excludes the use of other methods of birth control.


*To read the full article, please go to Philstar.com's unBLOGGED section by clicking here.

Parents for Eternal Life

I recently read an article entitled “The Teaching of the Catholic Church on Home Schooling – Parents for Eternal Life” by Jesuit priest Fr. John Hardon, and the following paragraph really struck me:

“...what they (children) mainly need is to know why God made them; why they are on earth at all; why they are in this world; that they are here in this life in order to prepare and train themselves for the world to come. In a word, children are to be taught that their short stay here in time is only a preparation for the world that will never end. They are to be trained for heaven.”

(*To read the rest of this entry, please go to my blog post on Philstar.com's unBLOGGED section here. Thanks in advance for your support!) 

The Teaching of the Catholic Church on Home Schooling - Parents for Eternal Life

by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.

(from http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Education/Education_028.htm) 

Why should we ask the question, “What is the teaching of the Catholic Church on Home Schooling?”

The reason is obvious: Because we are Roman Catholics!

We know how much emphasis the Church had placed for generations on Catholic education, and for generations people came to practically equate Catholic education with institutional education. Home schooling as home education had not been the focus of the Church’s magisterial teaching until fairly recent times. We might say it was taken for granted.

But no more. The rise of global secularism on every level of modern life has placed the Church on guard. Her authoritative stress is now more than ever on the role of parents as the primary teachers of their children.

The most recent and authoritative ecclesiastical documentation on this subject is in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, issued by Pope John Paul II on the very day of the five hundredth anniversary of the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus.

The key word that stands out in the Church’s teaching on home schooling is the word “primary”.

Parents’ responsibility to educate their children is primary. This means, it is their first responsibility. It is primordial; it is inalienable; it is almost impossible to provide an adequate substitute.

It is critically important to understand what the Church means when she says that parents have the primary right and duty to teach their children.

Ways to celebrate the Assumption of Mary (from Catholic Icing)!

As usual, Lacy over at Catholic Icing has some wonderful ideas on how to make the Feast of the Assumption of Mary meaningful and fun for our kids. (I didn't have time to prepare for any of these - grrr! - but I will try to at least print out some coloring sheets for the kids to commemorate this wonderful feast day. *But I don't have a printer pala! hahaha.* Maybe I'll go over to my parents' place! hehe. Happy Feast of the Assumption everyone! ;-) Mama Mary, we love you! Pray for us!

Anyway, here is Lacy's post:

Assumption of Mary- Are You Ready to Celebrate?

on Friday, August 13, 2010

The Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary is on August 15. FYI- Jesus Ascended into heaven. Mary was Assumed into heaven. Hence the "Ascension of Jesus" and the "Assumption of Mary". Guess Jesus could do it on his own, and Mary was abducted alien style. Ok, only kidding about the 'alien abduction' part. :-)

Here are some ways to have fun in celebration of the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary! (Man, what a mouth full!) 

Who loves free Catholic coloring pages? I do! And these ones 

from St. John's Catholic Church are some of my favorites!

This coloring page of Mary's Assumption is just beautiful.

Over at Catholic and Loving It, they made this great

Marian Cake for celebrating the Assumption of Mary.

If you're looking for food ideas, you could try

Cloud Cocoa, Cloud Meringue Cookies,

Cloud Souffle, or Cloud Cookies! 

Also, here are some ideas from my Ascension of Jesus post. I love this
jello dish because not only is it clouds for the assumption, but
it's blue to symbolize Mary, too! :-)

I wish I would have had the time to pull off a craft for this one- maybe next year. Anyway, enjoy the coloring page and say good bye to your diet for this one!

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Freebie Friday: Catholic Lesson Planner for Homeschooling plus Divine Mercy Sunday ideas from Catholic Icing!

Look what I found: a free Catholic Lesson Planner for Homeschoolers! Yipee! Just what I needed! (I am SO disorganized! Waaah. How are we ever going to "formally start" homeschooling?!) Need to get me a printer now! Bwahahaha. To download the Planner, please go to this link. :-)

Also, since it's Divine Mercy Sunday this Sunday, hop on over to Lacy's blog at Catholic Icing for some wonderful ideas for Divine Mercy and St. Faustina crafts and activities! :-)

Also this Sunday, our beloved Pope John Paul II will be beatified! Check out this link for ideas on how to commemorate this wonderful occasion! :-)

Last but not the least, MAY is Mama Mary's month! :-) Lacy has come up with some great ideas for that as well. Check them out here!

Happy Homeschooling to us all! :-) (And LORD, please grant this homeschooler the organization and peace of mind and patience she needs to accomplish all she needs to do! Amen!)

Tim and his "Love Land"

While walking to the gate on Holy Tuesday, Tim starts telling me about an adventure he and his (imaginary) pets had. They were in a place full of "bad guys, enemies and bad people" (Grr... Cartoon Network and Disney Channel - I loathe you! This is partly why we moved to our own place, hehe!). I was trying to listen intently while babywearing Rysse, holding Tim's hand and watching the road for oncoming traffic when something Tim said made me stop in dismay.

Tim: "Then I made the bad guys dead."

Whoa! My 4 year old talking about "making people dead"?!! Waaah. What kind of a mom am I?!

But then he said something else.

Tim: "But then.. God helped me.. And the land became Love Land. The bad guys grow (*we're still working on proper tenses with Tim, hehe), and became good guys. They were kind na and good." (I can't really recall his exact words. hehe)

So a lightbulb went on in my head. AHA! Perfect time to introduce Jesus' saving love and mercy, esp. with the Holy Triduum coming up.

Me: "You know Tim, that's what Jesus does too. He doesn't make us dead, but He makes the bad things we think, say and do dead. Then He fills us up with LOVE. That's how much He loves us. Remember in your book, He died on the Cross and rose again because He loves us?"

Tim: "I know that already, Mama."

*Sighs* This Holy Week, it's time for me to reflect more on how we are raising our kids, and be thankful for God's saving grace. May we all do our part to make this world a "Love Land" for all. Blessed Holy Week everyone!

Image taken from hamlinreformedchurch.org

Lenten Activities For Preschoolers PLUS Holy Week Crafts We Plan To Do

Sharing with you this article I wrote for the Smart Parenting Philippines' website (they published it rather late in my opinion.. hehehe... but still.. I hope this helps you!). Also, I'm posting the links to the Holy Week crafts from Catholic Icing that we are going to do.. I am still gathering materials, but I hope we could start doing them tomorrow, Holy Wednesday. Have a blessed Holy Week everyone! :-) Remember.. JESUS is the reason for Easter, not the Easter Bunny! :-) *winks*


Lenten Activities For Preschoolers


Lent is the best time to introduce your little ones to the joy of Easter and how to prepare for the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.  They may not fully understand the concepts of fasting, abstinence, and almsgiving, but it’s never too early to teach our kids about these things. 

For a more meaningful Lent for you and your little ones, try the following activities:

1.    Prepare a “Sacrifice Storage Area”. 
Ask your child to choose something that he would like to give up for Lent and let him keep it inside a special box or other container that can act as a “Sacrifice Storage Area.”  He may choose a favourite book or toy or DVD. Set a good example for him by also choosing something that you will be putting in the “Sacrifice Box.” 

As much as possible, get other members of the family to do the same as well, no matter what their ages. Explain that we make sacrifices during Lent as a sign of our love for God, and to learn to appreciate the sacrifice that Jesus made for us.

On Easter Sunday, prepare a simple but meaningful ceremony where each member of the family gets to take out their “sacrificial item” from the Storage Area and say a Thanksgiving prayer.

2.    Make an Offering Box.
Using a makeshift “alkansya”, our family sets aside money during Lent which we will be offering on Easter Sunday to a charitable institution of our choice (most probably, it will be Bo Sanchez’s Grace To Be Born Maternity Home and Nursery, which caters especially to pregnant mothers in crisis).

Making an offering box is a great way to teach your kids about sharing your resources and material blessings with others. Tell your child that instead of spending excessively on things that you don’t need in the first place, donating money will help others in need. 

Tim and his offering box

It would also be good to note that teaching our children acts of generosity is something we should do not only during Lent, but all throughout the year.


3.    Make a Lenten Cross.
This easy-to-do craft will give you an opportunity to teach your children about prayer and thankfulness. This idea is taken from the Domestic Church website and is a fun way to get your preschooler to practice her scissor skills under your supervision. 

First, draw cross patterns on a cardboard then have your kids cut them out.  Make sure you have enough space on the cross for pictures.  Next, let the children cut out small pictures from magazines, old brochures and other glossy printed material of things that they are thankful for and glue them on the cross.  Talk to them about the images on the pictures that they have glued on the cross and encourage them to be grateful for all the good things you have in your life. 

Teach your kids about the Power of the Cross and the Love of the Savior!

You may want to display their Lenten cross crafts in a prominent part of your home, like on the fridge or the kids’ room as a reminder to pray and be thankful for all He has given us.

4.    Make a Spiritual Bouquet of Prayer Petal Flowers.

This is another great idea from Domestic Church, and is a creative way to build your children’s devotion to the Rosary, one decade at a time! 

Using colorful paper, cut out a series of flower petals, stems and leaves for each person taking part in the Rosary. There should be one stem (representing the Mystery), ten petals (representing the Hail Marys), one little circle or centre for each flower (representing the Our Father) and one leaf (representing the Glory Be).

As you pray, glue the “flower parts” that correspond to the prayer until you complete one flower. 

When you do this daily and all the decades are said, you and your kids will end up with a wonderful collection of flowers – a spiritual bouquet of prayer petal flowers. You could offer the prayers each day for a specific person or group, and give them the completed flowers as a colourful and meaningful gift.


5.    Learn about the Stations of the Cross.
The Stations of the Cross is another beautiful devotion that we can teach to our children. It is a good way for them to learn about the events that led to Jesus’ crucifixion, death and resurrection. There are many resources available online for teaching the Stations to your kids. Here are several useful links to help you get started:

Online Stations of the Cross for Kids and Families
Family Stations of the Cross from Domestic-Church.com
An article from the Passionists on Teaching the Stations of the Cross to Children
Multimedia Stations of the Cross for Children from Loyola Press

The most important thing to remember about these Lenten activities is that they will have greater significance when parents do them together with their kids. Find time together with your kids and make your bonding moments even more meaningful by enriching your family life AND faith all at the same time.

And now for the links from Catholic Icing (and linkys from other blogs/sites featured there) ! :-)


We plan to do these: (I am hoping to do all of them! Quite ambitious for a disorganized mama like me, but with God all things are possible, right?!)


Holy Thursday - Last Supper Craft, Praying Hands Craft and Washing of the Feet

Good Friday - Stations of the Cross Coloring Activity and Loyola Press' Stations of the Cross for Kids


Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday - Resurrection Eggs, Easter Countdown Calendar, Printable Resurrection Set

Thank the LORD for moms like Lacy who are SO gifted creatively and SO hardworking in putting up posts like these! Super helpful for clueless Teacher Mamas like me! :-) hehehe. Here's to a blessed blessed Holy Week and an even more blessed Easter everyone! :-)

Pro-Life Crafts and Activities for Kids

February is Pro-Life month here in the Philippines!

I hope to be able to do some pro-life crafts (suggested by Mommy Lacy) with Tim and Rysse this month, though we can do this all year round too! Every day is a reason to celebrate life, and to FIGHT FOR IT!

Photo from Catholic Icing

Here are the links I'm going to refer to, from Mommy Lacy of Catholic Icing:

http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/01/pro-life-craft-for-kids.html
http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2011/01/pro-life-activities-for-kids.html
http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/01/pro-life-printables-and-activities-for.html
http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/01/pro-life-game.html

I also found this great new site for Catholic homeschoolers when I googled "Pro-Life crafts for kids"! You can check it out here: http://myagape4u.com/catholic-homeschooling/category/prolife/.

Love life, live passionately!

Lessons from 2010 and Resolutions for 2011

It is 2011 already! 7 days into the New Year (it's our anniversary today! Woohoo!), I want to share the lessons we learned from 2010, and our homeschooling resolutions for 2011. I want to be more "accountable" and have positive pressure from you, my dear readers. :) So feel free to comment below, and share your own lessons learned and resolutions too! :)

Lessons Learned From 2010

1. Homeschooling is NOT easy. But we believe that it is God's calling for our family. And when God calls, He also supplies. His grace is sufficient for us. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

2. There is nothing wrong with unschooling. Especially when your child is only turning 4 years old. Kids will have to deal with so much when they get older, and they deserve all the time to play, laugh, sing, dance, be read aloud to, discover, explore, etc, etc while they are still young.

3. Support of family, friends and other homeschoolers is essential for every homeschooling family. I am grateful to many who have been sources of encouragement, information and guidance especially since we arrived in the Philippines. Special mention goes to Teacher Mamas Josette, Michelle, Blessie, Monica, Jennie, Martine and Chame. I thank God for you! And my parents who are totally supportive of our homeschooling/unschooling!

4. It is okay to shift from one homeschool provider to another, or to have different resources from different providers, or to have no provider at all and just get your resources from the internet. What is important is what works for your child, and that everything is wrapped up in prayer and planned for well. (Must remind myself about this once we decide on which homeschool program/curriculum to use!)

5. Do not underestimate your children. Hubby and I have not been formally homeschooling our preschooler, but he learned to write his name (TIM) without our directly teaching him to do so, amongst many other things. A lot of times, people ask what school he goes to, and he proudly answers "homeschool!" 

6. The 4Rs of homepreschooling, as described by Susan Lemons, is a great way to assess one's "progress." Focusing on relationships, routine, readiness and reading aloud to (our kids) are one of the best ways to homeschool your preschooler.

And now for our Resolutions for 2011, which boil down mostly to three:

1. We will be more active in discerning for what homeschool program/curriculum to use for Timothy (and Therese). We will do more research, ask more homeschooling parents for inputs, attend more orientations and be MORE OPEN to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

2. We will offer all our homeschooling plans to the Lord through Mama Mary's (and our patron saints') intercession. We will continue to enforce the 4Rs and remove all the negative attitudes and bad habits to make way for God's will to be more clear and homeschooling to be more efficient! (Away from me, procrastination and poor planning skills, in Jesus' name be gone! ;-)

3. We will be Catholic in all we do - not just in our homeschooling, but in EVERY thing. We will strive to be the best Catholics that we can be, and champion the cause of homeschooling among more Catholics and Christians, especially those in our circle of influence. Of course, we will be open to the inputs of our Christian brothers and sisters, especially those who are homeschoolers themselves.

Pray for us please as we continue in our homeschooling journey. We offer up prayers as well for all families out there who wish and hope for a better 2011! May God bless us to live our lives with purpose and passion! :) Happy New Year everyone!

1st Sunday of Advent - Happy New Year!

I rejoiced because they said to me, “We will go up to the house of the LORD.” (Psalm 122:1)

For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; 12 the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light (Romans 13:11-12)

Happy New (Liturgical) Year everyone! :) Just sharing with you some pictures of our simple celebration of the 1st Sunday of Advent :) 


We went to mass in the morning. In the evening, Tim and I made our family advent wreath using this link from Catholic Mom: http://www.catholicmom.com/advent_wreath_craft.htm.

Look what we made! :)

This is fun! :) Even if I am sleepy already! 

I modified the craft a bit and we used some real wax candles (previously used) instead of making paper ones. We just covered them in purple paper, and the pink one we used one that was left over from my niece's baptism (she's 10 years old now! haha. Talk about saving one's memorabilia!)

Our family Advent wreath

Then we prayed as a family together. Lolo Mon and Lola Tita led us. We used the prayers from this link: http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=952 and the readings from this one: http://www.amazingmoms.com/htm/christmas_advent.htm.

Lolo leads the prayer

Papa helps Tim light the first Advent candle

Lola reads the Bible reading with the theme: HOPE

Singing Isaiah 60 together

Kuya Tim accompanies Papa on the saxophone

Good job Kuya!

Time to blow out the candle!

It's always nice to celebrate Advent and the coming of Jesus with family, especially by creating your own family traditions. Now I'm thinking of something else to do to make CHRISTmas more meaningful for the kids, and us kids at heart too of course!

How about you dear readers? How are you celebrating Advent and CHRISTmas this year? :)

How To Prepare Your Family For CHRISTmas

Advent is fast approaching and this means CHRISTmas is near too! :) Yehey! :) But sadly, a lot of families are blinded by the glitz of Christmas decorating and busyness of gift-shopping that they don't give importance to the TRUE reason behind the season i.e. Christ. Let's bring back the Christ in CHRISTmas by sharing with our family members, especially our kids, the richness of our Catholic traditions during Advent.

One of the ways we can do this is by having our own Advent wreath at home. Teacher mom Lacy shares two great new ideas for Advent in the links below:

Edible Advent Wreath for Kids http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/11/edible-advent-wreath-for-kids.html
Make Pink and Purple Advent Candles http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/11/make-pink-and-purple-advent-candles.html

To view all her posts related to Advent/Christmas you can click on this link: http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/search/label/Advent/Christmas

Last year, Tim and I made this Advent wreath using his handprints by following instructions from Catholic Mom's link (http://www.catholicmom.com/advent_wreath_craft.htm). He really enjoyed making it (sorry, I can't seem to find our pictures of it!) and to our surprise he still remembers doing it to this day! So we will probably be doing it again, along with some other crafts. A Jesse tree perhaps?













Or maybe make a Baby Jesus in the manger craft?

How about YOU dear friend? How will you be preparing your children and family for CHRISTmas? :)

My 3rd Philippine Homeschool Conference Favorites

Can I just say, GOD IS AMAZING?!! Come on people, say it with me, GOD IS AMAZING! :) He really knows our needs, desires and thoughts. His ways are really far beyond our ways, thoughts higher than our thoughts! He alone knows His plans for EACH and EVERY one of us, just like He said in Jeremiah 29: 11-13!

Last October 30, hubby and I were so blessed to be part of the 3rd Philippine Homeschool Conference. It was worth every centavo we paid (we were able to avail of the P500 early bird registration fee!) and hubby and I are so grateful to God for providing for this "investment" in our family and kids' lives. I don't have a lot of time to post EVERYTHING I want to write about the Conference right now (more on WHY in another post! :) hehe. Suspense, suspense!), but I will try to sum it up in the following list:

My Top 5 Favorite Things About The 3rd Philippines Homeschool Conference:

1. The inspiring and informative talks 

There were two keynote speakers: Pastor Peter Tan-chi, Christ Commission Fellowship's dynamic leader and Philippine homeschooling pioneer (one of the main men behind The Master's Academy) and Ms. Luanne Shackleford, one of the authors of A Survivor's Guide to Homeschooling and a veteran homeschool mom.

In a nutshell, homeschooling and parenting in general, is heart work and hard work. Without the Lord's guidance, both tasks are very hard to do. Training up a child in the way he should go (Proverbs 6:22) so that he will not depart from it when he is old is something EVERY PARENT should strive hard for (including hubby and myself of course! We've a long, long way to go in becoming the Godly parents our kids deserve! *sighs* But we all gotta start somewhere right?!)

Other points that struck me: "The more you listen, the more you understand your children. The more you understand your children, the more you can influence." Bam! Right through the heart, Lord, Your words cut me! What a loving reminder to LISTEN and UNDERSTAND Timothy (and Rysse) more. Especially on difficult days.

And the pointers on how not to react when your child is acting up (I am now publicly confessing my sins, Lord! Guilty of everything listed below!!! Your grace alone can save me!):

-Do not be angry.

-Do not raise your voice.

-Do not send "busy" signals.

-Do not use words "you never..." or "you always...." 

-Don't answer immediately.

The reminders above apply not only to our kids, but I believe to our spouses as well. Right?! Anyway, since we are convinced and convicted that homeschooling is for us, I realized that I really need to work on my OWN heart and attitudes. This is where I (and hubby) would need all your prayers. (Thanks!)

2. The panel discussion with veteran homeschoolers, recent homeschoolers AND homeschooled kids themselves :)

We learned a lot through the panelists' sharing of experiences and tips. My MOST favorite part here was when a question was brought up related to socialization (this almost ALWAYS comes up when you talk about homeschooling!) - "Where can homeschoolers find friends who they can grow up with? (i.e. get best friends, etc). 

One of the homeschooled kids, a college freshman from Ateneo quickly replied: "My parents are my best friends. I am so blessed to have them support me and pray for me and be with me all the way." (Something to that effect.) Aaawww.. hubby and I exchanged looks after this and both said,"Hopefully Tim will also say that one day." (And Rysse too of course!) Just goes to show, homeschooling can really strengthen the bond between family members, especially parents and children!

3. The exhibit featuring different businesses and services that may be of help to homeschooling families.

We had fun going around the different booths and getting our "map" stamped by the different exhibitors so we could be eligible to win a prize (we didn't however, but that's ok!). There were also 2 photo booths, and hubby and I had a laugh getting our pics taken :) It made for a nice souvenir too! :) I also got some business ideas from the exhibit, which I will blog about in my other "home" online soon. :) Woohoo! Thank You Lord for Your blessings!

4. The chance to meet fellow Homeschooling Mommy bloggers :)

Thanks to my blogs, Facebook and being part of the Pinoy Homeschool yahoogroup, I was able to "meet" other homeschooling mommy bloggers like Blessie, Monica and Michelle. It was SO nice to be able to meet two of them in person at the Conference, and it felt like we'd known each other for years! (Too bad Mommy Michelle couldn't make it, I wanted to thank her in person for answering all my questions through her blog posts. Hope you're much better now Mommy Michelle!) 

Because of the Conference, I also got to know Martine who had been serving on the working committee of the Conference, and Chame, a homeschooling mom included in the panel of speakers, who previously had been "unschooling" her son. We are now friends on Facebook and get to exchange messages about homeschooling and the like. Cool huh?

By serendipity, God-chance or whatever you choose to call it, I was also able to meet Irene, whom I discovered was the one and the same Catholic homeschooling mom my friend Michelle had mentioned to me. She had shared their homepreschool curriculum with Michelle, who in turn shared it with me. (We haven't started using it though, since we haven't decided on a particular curriculum yet!) Irene and her husband Arnold are one out of the five Catholic homeschooling parents from Ang Ligaya ng Panginoon (LNP), a Catholic charismatic community based here in the Philippines. Incidentally, our community, Couples for Christ, was established in 1981 by LNP as its outreach to evangelize married couples but it severed its ties from LNP in 1993.

Up to now, I am just AMAZED at how God has used homeschooling to connect our family to other Christians and Catholics who want to hand down the Faith to their children and form their kids according to God's ways. 

Last but not the least, my no. 5 fave thing about the Conference was:

5. The time spent with the Lord and with hubby :)

The whole day, from early in the morning (kids were still asleep when we left, thank you Lola! We love you!) up to the end of the Conference (and even beyond, we picked the kids up and went to a birthday party after!), I was blessed to spend time with hubby sans children. Being on mission for the past 5 years, with no one else to watch the kids for longer than 2 hours, it was great to spend time with my Honey. He is my no. 1 supporter when it comes to all my advocacies and adventures, and sharing the HS Conference with him while there were many moms around without their respective partners was truly a great gift from the Beloved. Indeed, we could really feel the Lord's presence with us all throughout the Conference. It made me all revved up and inspired with so many ideas for future events for homeschoolers, especially the Catholic ones! Woohoo! Truly Jeremiah 29: 11-13 aptly describes how great our God is!

The conference ended on a high note with the launching of HAPI - the Homeschoolers Association of the Philippine Islands! With HAPI, homeschoolers and wannabe homeschoolers in the Philippines are able to link up more effectively, and are also able to receive information and tips that are relevant to their journey in home education. HAPI will also be lobbying to have a special Home Education Department under the Department of Education, among other things! Sooo exciting! 

Can't wait for what else the Lord has in store for us homeschoolers in the Philippines! :) Amazing blessings coming our way, thank You Beloved! :)

P.S. Here are some pics of the Conference. For more photos, please go to my Facebook page :)

Stage set-up

Pastor Peter Tan-Chi: Parenting Is Heart Work and Hard Work

TeacherMama Monica :)

Luanne Shackleford: Homeschooling - You Can Do It!

Afternoon Panelists

Chame and Dan Abbey

Homeschooled kids (Martine is no longer a kid, but a pro-homeschooling mom herself now! :)

"My parents are my best friends." Aaawwwww....

Edric Mendoza, HSLDA's official Philippine representative launches HAPI

Homeschoolers dance onstage 

Too bad I wasn't able to take a pic with Mommy Blessie!  :) We missed Mommy  Michelle too!