My two-week vacation is at its end.

I'm going back to work on Monday after my laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of the gall bladder via laparoscopy which meant I now have 4 tiny scars on my body , one of which is on my bellybutton). I thoroughly enjoyed my semi-vacation because I got to be with the kids, catch up on our TV series downloads, read books on my Kindle Touch (yes, kelangan sabihin yan hehe), and go online from time to time to play online games.

I finally succumbed to buying a Kindle e-ink reader because I realized that even though I love the smell of bookpaper and the feel of it, I have to be practical with our storage space. I absolutely love books and if I continue to buy books, someday soon, we'll run out of space at home. I have also started collecting ebooks (saved on my laptop) and sometimes I find my eyes getting too tired because of the glare.

Thus Kindle e-ink...initially, I was thinking of buying the Fire but as I said, I don't want the glare.

Now, for magazines (which I also have a tall stack at home despite disposing of several magazines when we moved house)...it's a conscious effort to avoid buying new ones. I do try my best although sometimes my resolve crumbles hehe.

To be honest, I was scared of going under the knife - even if my surgeon and other doctors tell me that the gall bladder is much like the appendix, it doesn't really serve a major function - it's still a part of me that's going to be removed. But I had to. Because I was more scared of the possible consequences... a stone might reach my liver (it would be harder to remove, if at all), my gall bladder might get inflamed, or a stone might reach my pancreas and lead to pancreatitis. So I decided to go through with it.

Other reasons why I had to have it done: (1) my parents are here and they can take care of the kids without me having to worry about carrying Ianna, etc; and (2) I wanted a longer recovery period while still in the country.

Yes, the decision for our PR visa to Australia is out and we have until March next year to have our first entry to Australia.

When we applied for it late 2007, we were (at least I was) anxious to have it granted but then life took over and we built our home, Ethan grew, we had Ianna...so now, when the decision finally came, I have to admit, I'm torn.

Hindi pa man, nami-miss ko na ang bahay, si Pula (ang aming kotse), ang pamilya ko, mga kaibigan. Kasi alam kong pupunta kami sa malayo at hindi basta-basta ang pag-uwi dito sa Pilipinas.

At the same time, I am glad that it's finally granted. Kung hindi man para sa amin ni A, para sa mga bata. Isang bagong adventure na naman para sa amin. Isang bagong buhay sa labas ng Pilipinas. Nung huli akong namuhay sa ibang bayan, malungkot kahit maraming bagong experience. Hopefully, this time, mae-enjoy ko na talaga kasi kasama ko na ang pamilya ko. Kung pwede lang sana, maisama ko din ang lahat ng mahal ko sa buhay :)

So, that's the big news I was talking about. But that's still a few months away. I still have several months to enjoy with my family...we still have our birthdays to celebrate pohon. The little girl will have her cupcake birthdays pa dito...and we still will have the future to look forward to.

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Ethan has again moved up a level on his Kumon (he's now in Level 2A, equivalent to Prep na daw) and will start Math (4A) by June.

During his diagnostic exam, his teacher informed A that Ethan knows how to add, without finger-counting. What he does for example, 4+2...he'll count (on his head) 1-2-3-4 then add the 2 by continuing with the count...1-2-3-4 -- 5-6 so 4+2 = 6!

We were actually surprised to learn this because we didn't teach him how to do this. I usually discuss addition with him by raising fingers on both hands so that he can count them.

Another feedback from his teacher was that if we were to enroll Ethan in big school now, pwede na daw ipa-Grade 1 because he knows how to read, write and add :P

Thank you, Lord for Ethan's abilities.

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Ianna naman will turn five months soon (pohon). Nakakadapa na, and can communicate what she wants... syempre, medyo unti lang naman kelangan nya for now: dede, tulog, or change diaper. Ay, kasama pala ung pagligo :)

This girl, she has her own timetable...wakes up around 6am, takes a bath at 9am, naps during the day, and ito to the dot: prepares for bedtime by 6pm and is asleep by 7pm na.

Para syang may alarm clock sa katawan kasi talagang nagagalit na sya pag 6pm na at hindi pa sya napupunasan at hinehele/pinapatulog. As in. Kakaiba. Hehe.

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So much ahead, so much to reminisce...eto na naman ako, ang agang tinatamaan ng homesickness hehe. Basta, kasama pamilya ko...go, go, go lang! :)