Jumpin' juniper it's a jolly January!

So far this year has been a good one for me. Considering that it's just the first month optimists would say that it bodes well for a good year while pessimists would say something like "wait till you see what the rest of the year of holds for you (with accompanying smirk of course)". Today the optimist in me has won and I am looking forward to more blessings, surprises, and little triumphs this year.

Short list (with long detailed explanations/descriptions) of things to be thankful for this January.

Sam's reaction to fireworks. Although we spent New Year's eve in Bay where there weren't that much fireworks Sam enjoyed himself extremely. His reaction to the pops are much faster and he can now spot the fireworks faster when we point them out to him. Yun nga lagn super nabitin cya kasi medyo konti lang fireworks. He ended up turning and twisting everytime he heard a bang eh paputok lang naman or it was too far away to see!

Long Wendy's chikkahan with Angel complete with laughs, a few tears, and lots of fast talking. Got to see Frank Miller's Spirit that night too. Angel and I decided to go for it after Mark read that the director was 300's director. Real reason: the ABS! The first few minutes didn't disappoint us in this regard and since we went in with absolutely no idea what it was about (I thought it was a horror flick...hehe) we were pleasantly surprised with the whole movie. It was a real laugh, though I'm not sure if it was really supposed to be a comedy either.

Cris Tanseco's wedding and reunion with the girls. I absolutely loved everything about Cris' wedding. So far it's the best one I've attended (that includes mine ha...hehe). There really is something to say for intimate weddings. The number of guests were very limited - close friends and family only. The chapel was nice (Jas loved it but am not to huge a fan of white and gold), the priest was a hunk, his message was short, refreshing and insightful, the wedding vows so heartfelt, the food delicious from the soup to the dessert to the martini, and the couple so in love and perfect for each other it will literally make you go awww. The wedding was all about the vows, sharing the happy moment with loved ones, and simply enjoying the moment. It really was the most relaxing wedding I've ever been to. Am going to post pics next time. Ay thank you Gel for letting Jas and I raid your closet. Hehe.

A "new" nephew. A cousin has met his son for the first time and we absolutely love the little boy. He looks so much like Silas and acts like him too! Am glad for my cousin that he's finally met his little boy. Always better late than never. ^_^

Productivity with Sunlife. I am still far from being the most productive Sunlife agent but at least this year started with a couple of settled apps. Here's to being more productive this year and to becoming a better agent ( disipline + courage + persistence = better ). I have the product knowledge and genuinely care about my clients' interest so all I really need to work on is becoming a sales person. Hehe. Big challenge. Doable. Help!

Lost pounds. Am extremely happy that despite not sticking to my diet due to the Christmas vacation I still managed not to go back to heaviest weight and kept the five pounds I lost prior to Christmas. Hurraz!!!!

Relationship with Mark. We're being nicer to each other. That may seem like a funny statement to be thankful for but it is really significant because to me it means that we...

• want to please each other more
• are more concerned about each other's feelings
• have grown a bit more matured
• are learning how to express our love (and frustrations) in a way the other person will understand
• are journeying towards a better marriage each day.

It truly is living more for the other person than yourself. In the end no one loses out because you both end up giving and loving more and more. Sheesh. Seems elementary but those of you who aren't married should just wait to see why it takes more work than batting your eyes at each other and saying sweet nothings (though that is extremely important too!)