I Care Blog Contest

This is a contest that will end really soon. There is still time for those who want to join too, just go to Janet's blog called Expression and Thoughts.

This is how I show care to my family:

Showing for my family is being able to provide for their needs. When I was still single, I would help in buying our food, pay rent and bills, buy clothes for my parents, and give them money when they need it. Sometimes it becomes a heavy burden because I feel I don't have anything for myself. God would make me realize that family is more important than things. I also don't know how to save and budget my money and food so I tend to spend a lot of money and waste. It's so much different now that I'm married. My husband taught me a lot about budgeting. We still send money to my family three to four times a month. I make sure I call too or send messages through Chikka.com to make sure they're okay. I would also send care package but a big one for my family in the Philippines like canned goods, clothes, chocolate and other stuff. We try to send at least twice a year. I also try to play with my nephew and nieces before I came to America so they will remember me. My nephew is older so I would bring him to a mall and he will play at a playhouse and eat. I try so much to call and talk to them too so they won't forget me.

Care for my husband is more special because if I see him happy, I am happy. If he's in a bad mood, it affects me too. Every morning on weekdays, I make his breakfast and pack his lunch. Weekends he usually take care of me. Making coffee was my least favorite but it's his favorite so I would force myself to make it. It made me grumpy before too and he would notice it and tell me he can make it. Then I start feeling guilty so I made an effort to not get grumpy. Now I feel good making him coffee. I'm glad the struggle is over. If we have lots of extra time in the morning, I would make him choose what type of breakfast food he would like. Once I'm done with breakfast I prepare his lunch which I made the night before and his gym clothes. There are times when Steven doesn't wake me because I am too tired or when I wake up and everything is ready including his breakfast he'll tuck me in the bed.

Before he gets home after work, I would clean the house and make our dinner. I give him space to unwind and just relax after a hard day's work.

I also try to iron his formal clothes for work and make sure he always have clean clothes. I would arrange his clothes in the dresser way better than mine. I don't know why.

Lately, I have been also giving him time to watch sports with his friends. He gave it up when I first moved here so he could give almost all his attention to me.

Disagreement time, I used to just keep quiet and ignore him which makes him really frustrated because he wants to settle the matter sooner. Before, I like it when he gets frustrated, it made me feel I got even. God made me realize that I'm not being a good helpmate to him. I prayed for Jesus to change me and Steven said I'm getting better at expressing my feelings in a gentle way. I have a tendency to help him when he has problems but he only wants to express them to me and just listen. I am still working on being a good listener to him and pray for him all the time, I am a WIP (Work In Progress).

We try to work as a team. He works hard to make money to take care of me and my family so I must also work hard to give all the care for him. That's what keeps me going. He is a wonderful husband, very loving and kind so I want to give him my best. It's not going to be perfect immediately but in time and God's guidance, I hope I will be able to.

For friends:

Whenever I get to shop at the Asian market, I usually invite friends to our house and make Filipino dishes. I tend to invite college students because they don't get to eat healthy food as much. It's a good ministry too.

We join the couple's group from our church every Friday and I would bring some food for us to eat. Steven and I would also bring games and I'm glad we started doing that because it was our icebreaker. It brought me closer to people that I play with.

For strangers:

I used to join the street feeding ministry where we gave nice evening meal to homeless people. It was a really good experience for me to serve them. Even though it gets tiring but when they say thank you to you, makes it all worthwhile. Our church also has Meals of Love where the church members cook for a certain family who are not able to really cook for themselves. The first time I did it was for a family whose mom is unable to really move because she just had back surgery. I've never met them. I made baked chicken, potato salad, and macaroons for dessert. They were so grateful and it gave me and my husband joy to help.

We are supporting a girl in India through an organization. Her family is really poor so we give a certain amount every month to provide for her food, clothing, and school. I don't know if we'll ever meet her but we're glad we are able to support.