It's My Birthday!

Another year has passed, I can't believe it! I'm 31 years old today! Let me start this day with a prayer, a prayer of thanksgiving....


Thank you, Lord of the Universe,
      for all the gifts
      you always offer me.
Thank you for all I receive:
      for the water that washes me,
      for the clothes I wear,
      for the bread that sustains me.
For my dwelling and my parents,
      for my sisters and brothers,
      and for my friends.
For the knowledge gained from striving,
      and for the toils of each day.
For the good mornings that have dawned upon me,
      for the light that shines upon me,
      and for the handshakes that link me to others.
For the time you have allotted me,
      for the life you have offered me,
      and for the blessings of each new day.
Thanks you for being with me, Lord,
      for listening to me,
      and for taking me seriously.
Thank you even for receiving today’s thank you.
Thank you, Lord, thank you very much.

Amen.

Lei & Nana

Everyday treasures discovered through a mother and daughter team's love for shopping... visit our shop at multiply.com - lei & nana

These are just a few products that we offer.  More items to come soon!

Wish List # 1

MACBOOK PRO 

I'm currently using a MacBook 13" but it's totally outdated.  The gadgets I want to buy is not even compatible with it anymore.  My OS is still Tiger and was hoping that maybe I can just upgrade to a higher one, but when I went to the Apple store...it's just not possible anymore. BOO!!!! I hope Santa will gives me one, even if Christmas is still 8 months away.

Singapore Adventure

Had a blast at our recent trip to Singapore with Marc and Rianna. Even if it was really a business trip, we were still able to explore so much. The long walk to Lau Pa Sat was tiring but worth it...will definitely go back for the Satay and that yummy fried rice from Ming Yen Restaurant. Had a fun day too at Universal Studios...Rianna loved the Dino Ride! I wanted to try the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure but Rianna didn't want to. It was just so much fun and will definitely go back again to explore some more.

Singapore Adventure 2011

Deals, Discounts, Vouchers...

Everyone seems to be looking for a good deal, whether it's a discount at your favorite restaurant or cheap packages to your favorite destinations or even a free pass to an expo. Lately, several sites like Cash Cash Pinoy, Local Roam, Deal Grocer to name a few, have been sprouting in the internet. I'm not in anyway connected to them, I'm just an obsessed fan trying to find a good deal.

I haven't bought any of those discounted restaurant vouchers or vacation packages, still waiting for the right one. Although just last week, I bought a voucher for my daughter, a P500 voucher which has P1000 credits for Power Station. She loves to play Love & Berry and with this she will be one happy crazy little girl playing until she finishes up all those dress up cards. LOL!

Planning A Trip...SINGAPORE

I've always enjoyed planning our family trips, whether its just an overnight trip or a 2 month vacation outside the country. So when I found out that I have to attend a convention in Singapore this April, I was really excited and started to plan the trip right away.

There are so many new places to visit. I'm so excited to take Rianna to Universal Studios at Resorts World Sentosa. When we were there back in 2008, it was still being constructed. We came from Sentosa Island and aboard the Sentosa Express, we passed through a construction site. Little did we know that they were building Universal Studios already.

I booked our airfare through Jetstar Airways. This will be our first time to fly with Jetstar. I was able to get low fares for our trip and with the times now, we have to be practical. Some airlines just charge too much and instead of paying so much on airfare I'd rather save it for shopping and food tripping.

For our accommodations, I had to book through the JFC since this is a business trip after all. We're staying at the Fairmont Hotel at Bras Basah. I've never really stayed in that area before but when I checked online on what's nearby, it's actually not bad. Raffles Shopping Center is in the same block and Funan Digital Life Mall (place for gadget addicts like me!) is close by too. The City Hall MRT Station is very near also so it won't be difficult to transfer from one place to another.

I'm just so excited, especially after everything that's happened. How I wish my parents and sisters will be there too, since we've always traveled together, but this will be a fun family bonding trip for me, Marc and Rianna. It would have been nice too to have our Lourdes Angel with us, but I know she'll be there watching over us.

My Baby has a booboo!

My little princess has a booboo. She fell off the bed while balancing on the side frame of our bed. She said she was trying to be a Musketeer...just like Barbie.

She fell on her shoulder, good thing she didn't hit her head. When she fell she couldn't move and was crying and crying! We brought her to St. Lukes Global City for an x-ray and they saw that she has a fracture on her left clavicle.

Good thing this kind of fracture will heal by itself as long as she wears her sling for the next 2-3 weeks. This is the first time something like this happened to her...hope its the last. I couldn't bear seeing her cry every time she's in pain. =(

Our Angel Lourdes

LOURDES CLEMENTE LLAMAS
January 29, 2011

An Angel Never Dies

Don’t let them say I wasn’t born,
That something stopped my heart
I felt each tender squeeze you gave,
I’ve loved you from the start.

Although my body you can’t hold
It doesn’t mean I’m gone
This world was worthy, not of me
God chose that I move on.

I know the pain that drowns your soul,
What you are forced to face
You have my word, I’ll fill your arms,
Someday we will embrace.

You’ll hear that it was meant to be,
God doesn’t make mistakes
But that wont soften your worst blow,
Or make your heart not ache.

I’m watching over all you do,
Another child you’ll bear
Believe me when I say to you,
That I am always there.

There will come a time, I promise you,
When you will hold my hand,
Stroke my face and kiss my lips
And then you’ll understand.

Although I’ve never breathed your air,
Or gazed into your eyes
That doesn’t mean I never was,
An Angel never dies.

Author Unknown

"Now I lay you down to sleep,
I pray the Lord your soul to keep;
Within his arms he'll hold you tight,
My Heavenly Angel, My Guiding Light."

Our Sweet Angel Lourdes,
I will never forget your small lips and chubby cheeks,
Your cute little fingers and tiny feet.
Mommy, Daddy & big sister Rianna will always remember you.
We love you very much and that will never change.
You will forever be in our hearts
and we know you're just out there watching over us.
We love you and we miss you!

- Mommy, Daddy & Rianna -

My Baby was Stillborn, She was 30 weeks.

Last January 29, 2011, our Baby Lourdes was stillborn. She was 30 weeks.

A stillbirth occurs when a fetus dies in the uterus, after 20 weeks gestation or the baby weighs more than 400 grams (14 oz). The causes of a large percentage of human stillbirths remain unknown, even in cases where extensive testing & autopsy have been performed. In cases where the cause is unknown, some possibilities of the cause of death are: bacterial infection, birth defects, maternal diabetes, RH disease, etc.

With Lourdes, she started with having fluid in her heart and had nuchal edema. The ultrasound confirmed that she had hydrops and had complete heart block. My doctors already prepared me on what could happen. If in case I deliver her full term, she might need a pacemaker or it's also possible that she won't make it. We were praying really hard for a miracle that she will make it and was very hopeful since she was very malikot in my tummy and also whenever we have an ultrasound, her results are always very good. Even to the last ultrasound we had on January 24, her biometrics score was 8/8. So we thought that she was finally okay. We even saw her through 4D, she was playing, eating and even looked like she was kissing my tummy.

Sadly, Tuesday morning was the last time I felt her move. There was no movement the whole day, which made me worry that the last kick might have been her way of saying goodbye. True enough, the following day, January 26, we confirmed that she was gone. It was so difficult to accept since just 2 days ago, she was completely okay.

The most painful part was when I saw my husband cry so hard for the first time and how to explain it to our 4 year old daughter. She was already ready to be an "ate". She already had plans on how she was going to take care of her little sister and the places they will visit together. Right from the very start, Rianna already developed a special bond with her little sister. Everyday she would speak to my tummy and say, "ate, loves you". When we got home from the hospital that night, it's as if Rianna knew there was something wrong, she kept on asking if the baby was okay. And if the doctor said that Lourdes was going to be okay. We didn't know what to tell her.

January 27, I was admitted to the hospital. I was given something so my cervix will open since I'm not really due yet for delivery. The following day, I had to stay at the High Risk Pregnancy Unit of St. Lukes because they started to induce me already. The long wait for me to deliver her was really depressing. I was going through all this knowing that when I deliver, my baby is gone. Finally, early morning of January 29, 3:35am to be exact, I gave birth to our Lourdes.

We had her cremated and she's here with us now at home. I know someday, we have to bury her but for now I want her beside me. She's our little angel now. I know she's with the Lord and she's watching over us.

Good bye Lourdes, we love you very much!