FAMILY MATTERS Archives - Page 65 of 66

To live is to die…

April 1, 2010 by Tina Leave a Comment

As I write this, it is already Good Friday. And in the wee small hours of the morning, I want to declare to the world that I AM GRATEFUL.

I am grateful to my God. For my family. For my friends. For my community. For my faith. For Mother Church.

There are many customs, traditions and “superstitions” associated with today, the day the entire Christian world (and some non-Christians as well) remembers what True, Sacrificial Love means, as personified by Jesus dying on the cross.

Some of these customs and traditions are considered silly, some sacred.

As for myself, I want to start a tradition of my own. To always remember how GRATEFUL I should be for this life that I have and probably do not deserve.

Yet because of Ultimate Love on the Cross, I am worthy.

And not just me.

My entire family. My husband. Our precious kids. My parents, brothers and sister, in-laws, etc etc.

All of us are worthy.

Because when He died, we lived.

Today I’d like to recall the lyrics of a beloved hymn I grew up with in Brunei…

“To live is to die

And to laugh is to cry

To live is to love with all your heart

To live is to walk

And to talk in Your word

And to live is to…” (oops, forgot the last line! LOL)

But the point is..

TO LIVE is TO DIE…

And as God holds my future and the future of our family in His hands now, especially what will happen in the next few months, I am going to have to learn to DIE..

DIE to my personal preferences..

DIE to my own wants and needs…

DIE to my hopes and dreams..

And SURRENDER all to HIM..

So that I may LIVE..

So that my preferences will be what He prefers..

So that my wants and needs will be fulfilled by Him, in His own time and on His own terms..

So that my hopes and dreams will live through His grace…

Indeed, what joy it is to DIE..

in order that one may LIVE..

Children Learn What They Live

March 28, 2010 by Tina Leave a Comment

Children Learn What They Live by Dorothy Law Nolte

If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

May our children live as You want them to O Beloved, and may we open ourselves to Your will for them and for us as parents so that they may learn all the good things in life.

Love is priceless.. Families are forever…

March 27, 2010 by Tina Leave a Comment

I love my family.

My nuclear family: hubby Anthony, kids Tim and Rysse.

My extended family: Santiagos and Rodriguezes (no pic to show yet though for the Rodriguezes!)

FAMILIES ARE FOREVER! 🙂

COJ or CFA (Catholic Preschool or Homeschool?)

March 15, 2010 by Tina 2 Comments

Right now we are in the process of discerning what God wants for our kids’ education. Tim just turned 3 yrs and 5 months and we’ve been wanting to enroll him in a preschool or something similar here in Timor Leste. However, so far, all the schools that he could apply to are categorized as “international” (read: EXPENSIVE hehehe) and also, every time we ask him, he’ll say “I don’t want to go to school. This is our school. Here.” (And he gestures around him). “And you’re my teacher, Mama!” (Aaawww… *heart melts* )

Truthfully, ever since I learned about homeschooling from Bo Sanchez (Catholic Filipino Academy or CFA) and other resources online (mostly from non-Catholic Christian sites, which by the way are very, very good! :)) I’ve been thinking a lot about what Tim always says about going to school (read above :)) Perhaps homeschooling IS the way to go for us, and God is using Tim to send me a message.

On the other hand, if we do go for homeschooling, we know it will be a HUGE commitment, especially on my part. I’d have to really stay at home (or find work I can do from home) to be able to teach Tim (and Rysse when she’s old enough). Which means Anthony would be the only one left working.

The question in this case would then be “Can we afford to live on one income?”

Hmmm…

On the other hand, there are several good preschools (in the Philippines) that I’ve discovered online. One of them is Cradle of Joy (COJ), which has really caught my attention, since they advertise themselves as a Catholic Progressive School, and claim that their curriculum is the closest aligned to homeschooling. After having read some of the testimonials of parents who have sent their kids to preschool there, I’m half convinced that COJ is the school that we’ve been looking and praying for. (Although, at present I have no idea how much the tuition fees there cost! Perhaps when I do find out I’ll change my mind! hahaha.)

Anyway, for the meantime, while we are still here in Timor, I guess I’ll just make the most of Tim wanting to go to “school” at home with myself as his “teacher.” I’ve managed to get some good materials online (here’s a sample from www.dreamenglish.com: howmanyfish) and from the bookstores in the Philippines, and hopefully I’ll be able to teach Tim the basic preschool concepts he needs to know at his age. At least for the next few months, that’s how our set-up will be.

What do you think? COJ or CFA? 🙂

Kids say the cutest things (continued)

March 5, 2010 by Tina Leave a Comment

This morning Tim was drinking a cup of chocolate milk and playing with his wooden blocks (thank you Ninang Sister Socorro!) while I was singing “I Offer My Life.” He had heard the song yesterday during our morning worship with the Mission Team and still remembered it (what an amazing memory he has for a 3 year old! And I don’t mean to sound biased, but it’s true!). So he started singing along. In the usual manner of any precocious, inquisitive preschooler, he then asked me what the song meant, so I tried to explain to him in terms that I thought he’d understand.

Tim: What is the song talking about po, Mama?

Me: Well, it’s about us offering everything to God. It means whatever we do, we give it back to Him to make Him happy because we love Him.

Tim: We give to Him?

Me: Yes, everything we do. Like when we sing, or play with our blocks. Or like me now, I’m eating breakfast (gestures while holding sandwich in hand). When we work. When we pray, and play. Even when we drink and eat, we give everything to God.

(Upon hearing this, Tim gets this frowning, puzzled “I don’t want to share” look on his face and hides his cup of chocolate milk behind his back. LOL. I try to explain again to him.)

Me: It’s ok po Tim. I don’t mean we give to God our food and drink, like your milk. It just means when we eat or drink, we thank Him and want to make Him happy.

(Tim looks relieved and continues drinking from his cup. I am amused and amazed at his antics and offer a silent prayer of thanksgiving for this precious little boy.)

Later on in the morning, he says another endearing thing. This time it’s before his daily “Learning Time,” where I attempt to teach him age-appropriate preschool concepts for at least 30 minutes.

Me: Let’s pray before we start learning, and ask God to bless us, so that what we learn we will not forget.

Tim: Ok po Mama. Oh wait, wait.. I want to put my blanket on my feet first. Wait! Wait, God!

Me: (heart melting) Don’t worry, God will wait.

My prayer for you, my dear Kuya Tim, is that every day you will grow more and more to be the boy and eventually, the man, that God wants you to be. I only hope that despite your Papa’s and my faults and failures as your parents (and you know dear Tim, how imperfect we are!), God will still bless our desires for you, our hopes and dreams for you. We love you our dearest first-born!