I am swamped!

I don’t like to sound like I am complaining because I wanted to have this job in the first place and I do really want to keep it.

Teaching is a lot of work. I have a minimal number of classes per week but the amount of work is tantamount to having a 7-5 job. I used to have more classes per week in China but I was always relaxed. I had time for other things like meeting my friends, chatting with my family back home, and partying. Right now it seems that the time I have is just enough for lesson planning and making props. Other tasks like most of the housework are postponed. The pile of clothes waiting to be ironed is incredible… I don’t know if I can ever iron it all to the last piece of clothing.

Hubby understands that since I am now working, he has to help me with the housework and that’s what he is doing but I never dare let him do the ironing (he can’t do it to my standard). I still do the cleaning but at least he tries so hard not to make a mess.

He cooks sometimes. He likes doing it and I let him because he’s a far better cook than I am.

The work brought so much adjustment to our household. I still do most of the work but I noticed that when hubby can help it, he tries to minimize the housework for me.

Box of Chocolates

gertrudehawkchocolates.jpegMy birthday is still three weeks away but I already got my birthday gift and I am really loving it. Although my husband told me that that should be it and that I should not expect more on my birthday, I just know that he will still do something special for me on that particular day. I don’t know yet what he’ll do but I am sure that I’ll receive a bouquet from him plus a small sweet gift like a teddy bear or a box of chocolates. Though these gifts are very common, I always appreciate them more than the expensive ones.

I think that chocolate gifts and flowers always melt the hearts of women who receive them. A man can never go wrong about giving a woman flowers and chocolates because these are always welcome no matter what the occasion is.

Home is Where the Heart Is

mypinknotes-moving-boxes.JPGIn one of my interviews, I was once asked if I am having a difficulty moving from one place to another, if I hate it, or if I hope that it ends soon.

You see, I do hate moving and that means packing, transporting and unpacking things. I think I moved from one place to another like more than 10 times in my life. Now that I am married, people I know (like my mom) kind of expect that I am more settled and that I should be raising a family together with my husband already. That means we’re expected to have a kid and to live in a place where we can stay for the rest of our lives.

We are on our way to that place but right now, we are still preparing for it. I do hate moving but I’d do it again  because I  can’t imagine being away from my husband. If the situation asks for it, then we’ll move again together and we’ll build a home to whatever that is.

A Present for Me

I got my birthday gift a month earlier! We went out last Sunday to shop for my gift. My husband bought me an iPhone for my birthday and since my birthday is still a month from now, he told me that I am not to use my iPhone yet until that day but I am glad that he doesn’t have the heart to refuse my request. He gave in right after I said “puuuuuuuhhhhhlllllleeeeaaasssssse!”

This iPhone will be Marcus’ birthday gift and Christmas gift for me. It’s really too bad that both occasions are in the same month. I say that not because I only get one gift for both occasion but because Marcus only go through the difficulty of deciding what to give me once a year!

A House that is Built for You

Once, I asked my husband why did he choose to continue working abroad when in fact, life standard in Austria is much better. He said it’s because he wanted to be able to buy our own house when we finally settle in Austria. He doesn’t like to be paying a monthly mortgage so he is working so hard to earn a sum that would be enough to buy a house.

I told him that it needed not to be grand. A simple home with a small garden is already great. There are ready built houses in Austria and I think owning one is practical but my husband told me that he doesn’t like such houses because they are too generic. He wants something which is built for us and he would like to help build the house. I don’t know exactly what he has in mind but I do hope that it is within our reach and capabilities.

In the US, there are a lot of custom home builder companies and Schumacher Homes is one of them. This company has over 15 years of experience in this industry and over these years, it has helped over 5,000 families build their dream houses. This company prides itself on the quality home construction, exceptional value, and award winning designs. They’ve got locations all over Ohio and Indiana so if you are from these places and you are planning to get a custom home, you might want to consult them. You may also visit there site at SchumacherHomes-ohio.com.

Our Simple Anniversary

We celebrated our one year of being married together on a plane. Yep. I was so angry at Marcus when he unthinkingly booked our flights from Vienna to Shanghai on the evening of October 12 (GMT +1:00) so technically we were on air when October 13 happened.

So I didn’t expect too much from the beginning. We agreed to just celebrate it a day earlier so on October 12, we went to a nice place for lunch and after that, we revisited the villa where we got married. We spent a quiet afternoon there and at 5:00 pm we drove to the airport.

For me that was our anniversary.

But on the 13th while on the plane, we were served with a very special wine. Afterwards, a warm “Congratulations” from the pilot and the flight crew was heard from the voice over. The whole plane cheered for us and asked that we kiss and so we did. :)

(More details to come).

Tips on Choosing a Wedding Dress

One of the most important decisions you will make when planning your wedding is selecting the perfect wedding gown. You’ll be faced with numbers and numbers of wedding dresses making it more difficult for you to choose “the one”. So here are few tips on choosing the perfect wedding dress for brides-to-be.

bestbridalprices.jpg1. Have plenty of time. Technically you can get married a few days after your engagement but why the rush? Forget about spontaneity and impulsiveness. Plan! Consider it as a one time thing in your life so it should be really really special. Planning a wedding and rummaging through bridal dresses can take a lot of time so be sure that you have plenty of it.

2. Have plenty of choices. Don’t decide immediately. Try as many wedding gown as you can and then try to narrow down your choices as you go until you finally settle on the best one.

3. Have at least one sincere and honest person with you when choosing a wedding gown. Sure, you have a taste but comments and criticism from others can be very helpful.

4. Consider the bridesmaid dresses when choosing your wedding dress because it’s important that your wedding dress will make you stand out from the rest.

So there you go. Good luck in your quest and you may directly start looking at BestBridalPrices.com for the perfect wedding dress.

Why Did You Marry Me?

One Sunday morning while stuffing ourselves with Bretzel and Weißwurst dipped in sweet mustard, I asked Marcus a question just so there’s something to talk about other than how lucky we are to be able to get a Bretzel and Weißwurst in China.

    Vienna: Schatzi, Why did you marry me?
    Marcus: Because I thought you were rich?
    Vienna: What? What made you think that? Did I give you the impression that I am rich?
    Marcus: You told me several times that you have 7,107 islands but I learned after the wedding that you don’t even own one.
    Vienna: (LOL)

FYI: Philippines have 7,107 islands and we Filipinos normallly say: “We” have 7,107 islands when we mean Philippines has 7,107 islands.

Call me shallow but I really like our nonsense talks sometimes.