Strengthening relationships with simple gestures

Posted by Mirage on Jan 13, 2012 in Gifts | 7 comments

Whenever I see this photo, which I took 2 or more years ago, I am reminded of the simple things that hubby would do and little gifts he would give to make me remember him even on a no-particular-day day. A single red rose, a bunch of gerbera daisies and maybe a bar of my favorite chocolate that doesn’t come easy around this region. There were 3 white roses that he handed me during our first official day as a couple. Nine years and a half more  I still recall that day with thrill, remembering the way we were so full of hopes and I’m glad those hopes made us what we are today.

So if you got no time to visit that corner flower shop,  here are some tips I could give you (as a starting couple) when looking for gifts for her and some other tips on what you can do to strengthen your relationship with her.

1. Send her flowers and other things she’ll love. It is much easier nowadays than it was when hubby and I were dating. With a click of the mouse you can  send her hand-tied flowers, chocolates, balloons and other trinkets – sent the next day or better yet, on that same day! Gifts can be personalized as well, like a box of cupcakes with your own message to the recipient – telling her how much you missed her.

2. Call her every so often. She would surely feel your concern if you call her asking if she’s safe home or if she had lunch already. These simple gestures would go on her daily notes (or her blog) as “sweet motions.”

3. Go shopping together. That’s buying even a simple dress, a pair of earrings or wedding anniversary gifts for a celebration you’re attending on the next Saturday. Going with her to shop for birthday gifts for her parents, siblings and spending time with her in such ways will let her see you as a “patient” partner.

4. Dine at her favorite restaurant even if you don’t agree with her choice of cuisine. Even if your palates have different preferences, it’s a big plus if she sees you eating her favorite food that you have come to list on your “no-no” food. Who knows, that might be the one food you’ll learn how to cook in all your life.

5. Go Mountaineering. Go snowboarding, kayaking, bicycling, bunjee-jumping or simply exercise together.

There are a lot more things that can draw one closer to the person he adores and if by persistence and true intentions she says yes to him, the next tips should be; how to make a relationship fun and memorable.

Touching Fish

Posted by Mirage on Jan 11, 2012 in Mommy Moments | 11 comments

Kids were really excited when I told them we’ll be visiting the Haus des Meeres, sort of Singapore’s Underwater World but also featuring amphibians, reptiles and birds under one building. We arrived around noon so we were in time for the feedings of those gigantic Kois. There were a lot kids who came before us so the kids lost their want to feed them and urged me to go see the snakes first. We did and after going about they felt hungry. We decided to eat, relax a little and went about the other areas until we got to the ground floor again where the Kois are contained.

They were huge compared to the ones we had at home. Touching them is allowed so they were thrilled and placed their hands into the glass tub – giggling while being “kissed” by the kois. They would touch them too saying “slippery” all the time. Little boy is actually a bit small for the container so I had to hoist him up.

There are a number of Kois and you can clearly see a Ki-goi below. There were also Kohaku, Taisho Sanke, Ogon and other types. We spent around 20 minutes touching and watching these beautiful creatures. Had we no winter and had we a garden with a big pond I’d surely take Kois for it!

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Missing this meme:

Dating then and now

Posted by Mirage on Jan 4, 2012 in Relationship | 5 comments

Back in the days, when I was in college to be exact, online dating sites were slowly getting popular. I haven’t tried that though…The trend then was you’d get into a chatroom, back then it was mIRC (Microsofts’  Internet Relay Chat) that was the most logged into. ^_^

Over they years, this kind of getting to know and meeting someone online first before actually meeting them in person became prolific. I even know of some who got married to someone they met online. I have reservations of course, getting to know someone online is different from getting to know them in person. We’ve read it over and over again; one can always present himself/herself differently. There are also reports of dates getting out of control and we are warned about stranger danger…it’s but natural since we’ve heard that from our parents when we were kids: to not easily trust someone we don’t know.

Having said all that though, there are still sites that offer dating for parents, that would be single parents, that has produced couples that had stayed together since they met. Like my good friend based in Canada now. Her husband unfortunately died after two years into the marriage, she was left with a one-year-old. I can’t imagine how heartbroken she was. Our other friends suggested that she try an online dating site, just to have something to get her mind off the heartache. She did after a year of persuasion and she has had 5 dates before finding someone that she’s spending her life with now. It could be sort of a fairy tale to some — but it happens.

Best New Person

Posted by Mirage on Dec 21, 2011 in Girls Talk | 1 comment

That babies are an inheritance is something that I’ve always believed in. It’s not an easy feat – to cultivate and care for such a precious gift and I salute those who take on that herculean task.

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Few posts below I mentioned that my closest friend is giving birth, sad that I won’t be able to see her firstborn soon enough. Won’t be able to carry her baby as she did my eldest a lot of times when I had her. Day after the birth I received a link to the photos of the little angel, C. That was 10 days ago. ^_^

To my dear friend; “A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bank balance smaller, home happier, clothes dirty, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for.” Enjoy motherhood. Here’s longing to get a hold of the little bundle of joy soon.

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Walk

Posted by Mirage on Dec 14, 2011 in family time | 19 comments

(Idling by the Danube river)

What’s the best thing to do when the sun is out on a supposedly cold autumn morning? I say we go biking, RC flying or simply go out on a walk, enjoy the sunshine, watch a movie and eat sushi later on.

When hubby goes with us out, the kids tend to really leave me alone. It’s because I’m the not so-adventurous-mom, their dad’s complete opposite. I am not envious at all because I knew well that they enjoy those times – which could be Friday afternoons, Saturdays and Sundays. They know that Daddy is up to something fun when these days come. They would fly a kite, make the RC boat spin around the water, pick up fallen chestnuts or simply sit on the grass and let me be the mamarazzi I’ve always been.

A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty.

I once used this quote on my other blog and it has become my favorite since. Everyday, as I said then,  the kids would immediately stop what they’re doing, they would run to the door then shout “Daddy!”  and throw their arms around him then give him a kiss.

I’ve been shooting behind their backs for so long I’ve lost count of how many I’ve made. Seeing them this way is like an assurance that as long as daddy holds their hands, it will be ok…that until they can walk by themselves, he will be there for them.

To make them hold our hands for as long as they need is the best thing we can give our kids, it may not be easy to let go later on but we’ll be sure that they can go on in life well  having held our hand firmly in their childhood.

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for:

Family Time