Anyway, I really could not believe how this year flew so fast. It has never happened to me when I was not a mom yet! I mean, seriously! Didn't my little boy just turned 1 early this year? Now, he's about to turn 2! Oh no! Also, I still remember very vividly the feelings of anticipation and apprehension waiting for Yuri to take his first steps. Now, I have to worry about him not climbing upstairs. Time doesn't fly when you're having fun; time flies when you're watching a little person's life unfold in front of your eyes!
I need to steady myself, and I think remembering this year will help. To recap what happened this year, as well as the highlights of my blogging, here are my favorite posts from 2013:
January
I remember that it was early last year, when Yuri was just around 9 months old, when he first fell down from our bed. That single accident led me to rearrange the bedroom's furniture (single-handedly) to find an arrangement that is safer and would work for us. After consulting Google and some mom blogs, I decided to have a side-car crib arrangement, and we still have the same arrangement now!
February
By the end of February, when Yuri was already 11 months, he still did not have any teeth. I didn't really fret about it because I was scared he would bite me while breastfeeding. I was really surprised when a small tooth erupted on the 28th! I didn't think he would have teeth soon because he didn't demonstrate the signs of teething. He did not fret at all, but he did keep chewing on stuff.
March
Of course, the highlight of this month was Yuri's first birthday! I only got to spend weeks preparing for his birthday, and while it wasn't perfect, the real essence of it was how people around us care for Yuri and how extremely blessed we are to have him in our lives.
April
April this year, I did the unthinkable and decided to pursue a little online business. By that time, students from the US were about to go on summer vacation, so the number of essays I review grew considerably less. I needed to augment my income, so I cleaned up my closet and sold some of my clothes. The clothes were quickly sold, but I stopped selling immediately because of a certain problem.
May
Unlike me and my siblings and Job, Yuri didn't walk before his first birthday. I was eagerly awaiting his first steps, and I didn't worry (at all) because I knew they would come soon. Other people were commenting (some with accusatory tones) why a 1-year old wouldn't walk yet, but I know different children had different timelines. Alas, on May 15, it happened! He stood up on his own and took his first steps!
June
June is my birth month, and I would always anticipate the coming of June no matter how old I get. Hey, I have an old soul but I have a young heart! For my birthday, I did a lot of "special" birthday posts - heehee - but this gratitude post is my favorite:
June was not all fun and lightheartedness, though, as by the end of the month, I encountered news of a premature child whose mother died in childbirth. She needed breastmilk and a lot of help, and while moms in the city did their best to help, God took her back to heaven, too, to be together with her mother.
July
In line with PNoy's State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July, I did a fun twist to it: a State of the Baby Address (SOBA)! While political commentators might not be impressed, I surely enjoyed putting together bits and pieces of Yuri's life in a tongue-in-cheek blogpost. Yuri turned 16 months then. :-)
I also got (unexpectedly) invited by Jollibee to take part in their blogger contest. If I remember it correctly, there were only 6 of us mom bloggers who were invited to join: 2 from Luzon, 2 from Visayas, and 2 from Mindanao. Jollibee sent me a cool Instax camera, and my family and I had fun going to different places in the city to take snapshots (my favorite thing to do)! I didn't know who won the contest, but I am forever grateful to the experience.
August
I also received another blessing in August this year. I was one of the winners of Rinadesign's giveaway! Though I didn't win first prize (a fellow blogger did!), I was sooo happy I got the chance to have Rinadesign's beautiful creations for free. While I chose some for my mom and sister, the rest was for Yuri. Hence, at just 17 months, we already have a complete study table! Haha!
September
The first highlight of September was my mad baking skillz! Haha, I'm kidding. I don't know how to bake in the oven, but I did try baking using the microwave. Here's what I was able to do:
Noob Baker: 5-Minute Peanut Butter Chocolate-Chip Cake
Another blog milestone also happened last September. Davao Mommy got featured in an international website, Mommy Hotspot! I didn't expect it at all, and when I read the email in the morning, I jolted up from bed! I try not to bask in self-centeredness, but I still feel honored.
Finally, Yuri turned 18 months during this month, which marked the beginning of his "toddler-hood." I was very excited and a bit apprehensive at the same time! However, I could not deny that I enjoy his company more and more as he grows older. I would forever treasure my memories of Yuri as a newborn, but I prefer his toddler self! Haha!
I wrote a post on October about getting rich, which might have garnered mixed reactions. I couldn't blame some because like them, I was raised to think of "poverty" as a "noble sacrifice." However, when I became a Christian and started reading the Bible daily, I really could not see anything biblical about the mindset. On the contrary, God promises prosperity for us (Jeremiah 29:11). Please keep in mind, though, that prosperity doesn't mean amassing riches but acting as stewards to bless others.
On a lighter note, October also marked the anniversary of my blog! Yay! (Okay, the actual anniversary of my blog actually falls on September 22, but I didn't have time to write a blog-versary post until October.) Until now, I still couldn't believe I was able to blog regularly for a long time. I didn't think I would be able to achieve it. For my blog-versary post, I wrote about the reasons why I blog, which are also the reasons why I persevere doing it without any concrete returns.
November
November saw me unleashing my inner photographer. Haha! Okay, so before you get the wrong idea, while I took a photography class back in college, I never had the "talent" to make pictures. I was just an avid "picture-taker." However, when Yuri began walking more and more independently, I suddenly had the desire to take beautiful photos of him. It is hard to do this, since I only have a cheap Samsung camera and my toddler never stays still, but I do try!
December
December of 2013 is special to me because I truly opened up to God for the first time in 2 years. I rekindled my relationship with him, which faded for some reasons. In return, God sent me beautiful messages, helpful warnings, and delightful promises. I pray to obey him always and trust in his plan.
Job and I also made the choice to follow God's order and create a major change in our current lives. I haven't blogged about it yet, but this also happened in December.
Lastly, we took the first step to investing. Finally! After a year of studying about it and preparing for it, the time has finally come to concretely commit to creating a financially independent life.
Whew, that's a lot of posts! I didn't realize I wrote so much this year! Well, I actually realized that when I was browsing through my 2013 posts and choosing which were my favorite. Haha! Writing this post made me realize that God truly and faithfully blessed me this year despite my sinful ways. It also made me realize that while I encounter problems, they were very few in comparison to the blessings. I shouldn't have worried so much about these problems when they were just minor bumps in the road!
The good thing about looking back is being able to thank God for the year he has given us. Thank you, God, for everything. I'm seriously looking forward to a rocking new year!
Happy new year to all of you!!!
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