My-SECRET-Corner

 Yesterday was Feb 23 , 2012 ,  was my 14th Wedding Anniversary. I was pre-occupied by cleaning all over the house coz the pest control guy is coming over during the day. When suddenly, I got distracted from my house chores by the sudden ringing of my mobile phone in my bag. I hurriedly grabbed it from inside the bag .Quickly enough so not to have a missed call . I saw the caller was not from Perth WA. It was Bee Lin , my Singaporean lady friend who had adopted my 2 Shar pei dogs in August 2010 when I left Singapore to live in Perth . She had called from Singapore.

She sounded a bit sad with a very low voice which is not quite like her. I knew immediately she's bothered by something .That very moment I noticed her way of speaking, I got a bit uneasy and nervous . I was thinking ... something had happened to the dogs . Oh God no ... I hope not.

She grew up thinking I was her mom I guess coz I had cuddled her twice in her sleep on my belly by the sofa for  the 1st 2 nights she came to our house when she was about 3 months old. I couldn't bear to hear her crying downstairs in her cage by the living room during the wee hrs of the night so  I would come down to remove her from the cage and wrap her with a tea towel, put her on my tummy and put her to sleep like a baby.She snores LOL!

 She slept nicely after that without anymore complains during the night!

Would you like to guess what's been keeping me busy these days ? I have my stacks of never ending beads but seems like my creativity wanna expand to a much further level ! How I wish i could learn how to make glass beads but opportunities and class availability here in Perth is so limited and even narrowed to none ! What a pity .

I was in Spotlight craft store last week and while browsing for bed sheet covers on sale, I happened to pass by an alley full of Acrylic Paints, Brushes and  Sculpey Clay . I had heard about Sculpey from  some beaders before and I had seen some finished beads on the internet made fromn clay but I never had any idea what to do with the clay myself. I was thinking it was just probably something like a kid's playdough that anyone can mold with their bare fingers into whatever form and shapes they prefer. Hmmm since curiosity was creeping inside me, I took my reading glasses and read the instructions on the packaging regarding how and where to use such clay material. Seems like the process of molding it into beads and baking such in the oven is not too complicated as it seems . Eventhough I never liked the process of baking beads , there's no harm on trying to bake some ... LOL!



A bit more browsing thru the display of materials and then off I went to the cashier with a small 2oz pack of red and white Sculpey clay for my 1st clay beads making attempt. This is going to be a good trial and challenge for me to do ...  I told to myself .

The moment I arrived home, I was excited to check more facts and ideas in the internet about making clay beads and what materials could I have to start with in the process. I  took out a few of my metal findings I presumed I can use to  create molds for specific shapes. I started with making a flower mold using the white clay and formed a pair of hearts with the red clay. Then set the oven at 275 degrees accdg to Sculpey instructions.  I had put the white flower moding 1st in the oven for  about 15 mins but I noticed that it was not even 12 mins yet, I saw fumes coming out of the oven. Oh my God,  so I suspected something was not right. Well, I would admite that my very 1st attempt was a fail coz I had put the oven at 275 degrees centigrade and not fahrenheit so the oven went too hot for the clay.
The poor mold was burned ! Oh No !


Now this flower mold looked like a brown cookie to me and that's how my daughter described it as well upon seeing it. Yayyyyy!
Anyways, I set the oven to a lower temperature 130 degrees Centigrade the second time  and I started all over again. Then I had put the pair of heart beads with holes poked by a toothpick on to the tray and baked it for 15 mins as instructed !
Geeee....They were done so well that I was happy and was convinced to try out another design... a pig fridge magnet I had pre-formed with my fingers ! It was kinda cute ...





Hmmmmmm So I would now say , it's not too bad for a first time clay challenge at all ... based on what had happened,  I should read instructions even more carefully next time and be precise with the oven heat which is a very important part when  creating beads or other ornaments out of clay .

I had reviewed more comments regarding clay sculpting and how to paint or glaze the beads after few more days. Now this is also one interesting stage of this project.  But I don't have the necessary materials needed for it.




Now this is the time I got pushed back to Spotlight to gather more materials and some molding trays, paint brushes, Acrylic paints to start with and a bottle of Sculpey Gloss Glaze. I want my beads to have a shiny effect and not a matt finish. Especially for the hearts ! I had engraved my name's initial "W" and painted it with Black Acryllic  to give it a more personal touch.




I let the acrylic paint to dry for 30 mins before I coated the beads with Sculpey Gloss Glaze for the final finishing touch.




The best way to dry the gloss on a bead is by hanging the bead with it's sides away from anything it can come on contact with. So I used the head pins to hold the beads in place while drying them for at least 24 hrs.

As soon as the gloss is fully dried and the heart beads are ready ... I was excited to make a pair of earrings designed for Valentine's day . So I was really very concentrated last night on the making of these earrings I had designed using my very own handmade Clay heart beads matched with Swarovski Crystal Bicones, Czech Glass fire Polished Beads and finished off  by wire-wrapping all the beads with  Gun Metal color Artistic Wire ( permanently colored copper wire ).






Now isn't this clay beads project worth all the challenges ?





Happy Valentines To All of You !


( This photo courtesy of : http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-photography-valentines-day-red-heart-with-rose-arrow-image7573082 )

February 1,2012 ~  I am trying to gather ideas to write about today. I even went to the beach in Scarborough about 15 mins drive from my kid's school to get some inspirations.  I was surprised when I reached the said place coz there's hardly anyone there today. I was thinking maybe I was a bit too early at 8:45 am. But , I was also suspecting due to the news I got yesterday that there was a tiger shark sighting and someone had drowned in the Brighton Beach area yesterday.
What a sad news tsk tsk !




Whatever the reason was, the beach was too quiet & empty without the surfers and usual swimmers. I just sat there with my coffee and an oats / honey cereal bar while the birds watched me from afar. I started to remember an occassion when there was this sneaky bird watching me while I went sunbathing on the same beach one day. The bird seemed to look so sneaky so I had kept an eye on it.
You never know what this little bird is capable of doing, it might bit my foot or do something unusual LOL!



One thing I enjoyed the most here in Perth is the nice fine sandy beaches.



The beaches are clean and well maintained with rangers patrolling all the time to make sure all is well & secured for the general public. Isn't that wonderful ?

Never mind if there are no trees that can provide some shades when it's burning hot coz I love being in the sun with my zero protection tanning oil everytime I lay on the sand. I guess I'm the only one putting that on the skin here ... almost everyone here spreads sunblock on their faces and arms and cover up to avoid skin cancer. Not me !

It's truly very hot nowadays in Perth.  On the 28th of January, it was extremely hot at a record breaking 42 degrees ! The hottest day ever recorded in 50 years ! The following days were from 36-38 degrees. I didn't notice it was that hot outside coz I'd been staying inside the house during those days suffering from my aching upper left back muscles while at the same time enjoying the coolness of our airconditioning at 21.5 degrees and trying to be in n out of my beadroom to clear my mess scattered all over my beading table. A good way to beat the heat outside ha-ha .



The only downside about the heat was our garden surrounding the house. The grass and shrubs are dead ... really really dead ! the water we put is not enought to combat the dryness and extreme heat during the day. Poor plants ! Even the big trees at the backside garden were shredding so much dry leaves everywhere. Such debris were such a huge mess but I'm not ready to sweep all of it. I had tried before and I ended up sweeping the whole damn yard for 3 continous days. So, never again ... period !

I'm just happy to concentrate and do my jewelries again. Especially now that my left burned hand had healed completely.





 I had so much beading to do again but with so little time as I have chores that needs to be done most of all. Take kids to school ... either go supermarket after or choose to come home fast and clear the mess at home, then cook lunch to take to kids at school coz they prefer the food I cook than the ones being offered in the school menu.Then come home again to eat my lunch and continue cleaning again , clearing the dishwasher or washing machine or the dryer or whatever needs to be put away in  cabinets. Everyday is always a busy life for me but I can still have time to do things for myself that I love to do. Beading which is my main therapy for happiness usually happens at night when everyone is fast asleep except for me. I'm a night owl and I would always be like this probably the rest of my life or perhaps until my bead room run out of materials which is impossible to happen ha-ha-ha !






 

Nearing the end of  January , I couldn't help myself looking back to the last few weeks that had passed by so quickly. From the celebration of New Year's day with my family after 16 yrs is a big change for all of us back in the Philipppines, to the celebration of my daughter's 25th Birthday

Happy 25th Birthday Barbie ! the occassion where I had accidentaly burned my left hand while baking some chocolate chip cookies using a gas oven unknowingly turned off by my wondering 1 yr old grandson ,

As u can see... some of the cookies were burned too !  Luckily , that was the last batch in the oven ha-ha !

Then to the silent moments of my own birthday back in Perth on the 3rd week ...

My birthday which started with disaster when the flower shops I went to were closed during that day.

I was about to buy myself my favorite flowers ... but luckily I found some good ones in a supermarket in FLOREAT FORUM. So still , my day wasn't bad at all ... plus ... now hear this one ... I had an extra bunch of flowers around noon from hubby. We both have the same color theme too .. Yellow ! Now that's a sure miracle LOL!

before I forget ( How can I  ? ) , my kids had also given me a nice Birthday present. This nice shiny clock was perfect to keep me in time . Thanks kids .. muaaahhhhh !

Anyways , there is really so much more to tell about this month.

But , oh my ...my head starts to stir while trying to recall the events . Hmmmmmmm this is gonna be a long blog for sure ha-ha !

My days are filled with chores to catch up to when I was back in Perth.  But my poor left hand was often keeping me at bay so from time to time I do sit and browse the internet for some news and get updates from friends. I also had visited my ebay sites and even bought a nice pair of garnet earrings from ebay seller "jewelsbyheather".
. Isn't this pair gorgeous ?

I bought it as a birthday gift to myself  LOL!
I had this pair included in my Garnet collection I had bought for myself several years ago . Garnet is my favorite color / stone and by coincidence and luck ... it happened to be my birrhstone .

Anyways, back to my poor burned left hand , despite of what my hand had bern  putting me through it never stopped me from beading a cleopatra necklace for 3 days !

The skin layer under the burned skin was still raw and inside was still tender and sore so I have to be very careful not to loose the upper layer of the skin inorder not to expose myself to infection.

 I was almost into crying for several nights coz the itch and the pain were combining ! I had tried to soothe my skin with Aloe Vera gel as often as I can . Unbelievable but true, The gel had healed my hand fast ... much better than the Papaw ointment considered as a healing oitment for burns. So my advice to all of you out there is to stock up on Aloe Vera Gel . I don't just use it for the burned hand but I had been already using it on my face as a moisturizer for over a year now.

 It worked wonders I'm telling you !

My burned left hand has now healed with just a slight scar by the base of my middle finger.

But my pain isn't over yet. Presently, I'm suffering from a severe left back pain. I just couldn't sit for a long time but I tried my best to move around as much as I can. In fact , been doing a lot of movements in n out of the house just to put my attention somewhere else to ignore the pain. But of course in the end ... I need to sit and keep my hands busy ... beading like crazy as usual ha-ha . Truthfully, the pain is worst if I sit and I don't know why !

 I still have to unpacked  the loads of beads / findings I had amassed during my trip to Singapore and Philippines. They are all still in plastic bags. Oh no ! With my aching back right now ... leaning and reaching down is my biggest problem coz it creates a huge stabbing pain on my left back. How I hate this pain.

I need to see a physiotherapist as soon as possible. After I had searched the internet for the possible causes of this back problem I can be sure it concerns a muscle tissue I had strained in my back from carrying heavy loads from the supermarket about a week ago. Here in Perth , I have to carry everything in n out of the cart, into the cashier back in the cart then out again to put in the car then out of the car once again to bring inside the house. How I miss Singapore for the home deliveries coz they deliver all the boxes of drinks and groceries all the way into the kitchen ! Here in Perth , I can't get that convenience at all ! I have to do this job all alone everytime !

Well anyways ...  I am glad I can still sit right now to type my blog . Sitting while leaning on a warm bottle of water to relax the muscle on my back and relieve the pain somehow. But surely tomorrow when I wake up ... 1st thing I'm gonna do is go to my doctor and ask for referral to a physiotherapist ! I can't bear this pain anymore . So ... I must go ... go ... go !

Lorenine Barbie 1 yr Old

January 1987 ~ The greatest gift to humanity is nothing else but the birth of a new life . Unfortunately, to some who where unable to continue their generation their grief is replaced by adopting abandoned or unfortunate children from poor families . I am thankful up to this day that I was one of the chosen gifted ones who can add to the continuation of life and generation of my family. It's now exactly 25 years since my 1st child was born the normal way in the evening of 9th January 1997. She weighs a little over 7 lbs and about 50-51 cms long.

I had a baby girl who's face was so peaceful in her sleep.
I named her Lorenine Barbie .
Lore ~was derived from my own name and I added the word Nine coz she was born on the 9th of January. Then followed by Barbie coz she looks like a doll.
She got long beautiful eyebrows and lots of hair with a rounded angelic face.
Her 1st smile brought me such an enormous priceless joy .


 She was brought to me from the nursery a few hours after I gave birth so I can breastfeed her for the very 1st time . Then they took her away again back to the nursery so I can rest and sleep afterwards.
It was such a happy experience to craddle her in my arms and give her a motherly kiss on her chubby cheeks for the very 1st time . She was so beautiful and smells like a bunch of fresh flowers in her baby wrap.


The following morning, the nurses came and told me I should start walking around. Get out of my bed so i can start stretching to avoid catching Pneumonia or bed sores from sweating on my back from laying down all the time. I was dizzy when I got up and felt blood coming out of me when I sat on the side of the bed. Nurses said there's no need to worry .. it's a normal reaction coz I just gave birth. So I tried to get out of my bed slowly and held on the bed rails for support. I need to stand on my own and walk around a bit. My legs were both shaking when I tried to stand up. It wasn't easy but finally did it after few minutes. I walked the hallway passing the other patients in the ward. I think there are more than 50 beds in the room where I was. All like me who just gave birth. I was in the big maternity ward of Fabella Hospital in Manila.

I had about 10 mins walk before I decided to take a rest. Baby Lorenine wrapped in her white n pink baby wrap arrived from the nursery with the nurse. It's time to breastfeed her again and keep her in my bed permanently to give space to other babies coming in the nursery.I was delighted to finally have her with me in my bed. She was hungry so I quickly fed her. But I just noticed after she had fed that she threw up a bit. But I thought it was just a normal reflux. So I just ignored it and cleaned her face. But after few hours ... she keeps giving out liquid from her mouth even thru her nose. She won't breastfeed and she keeps vomitting the milk she had before. I get alarmed. It's been all day and I got worried coz she doesn't want to feed. When the nurses came to check me & her up , I told them about the problem. They advised me to keep watching her till my doctor comes for my daily routine check up .

The nurses informed my doctor about my baby's condition. The doctor came and he immediately checked Baby Lorenine. She'd started to get dehydrated. But no matter how I try to breastfeed and the nurses' attempts to give her bottle feed she won't take any. So the doctor decided to check her belly with a stethoscope . The sound he heard wasn't good so he decided to put an intravenous drip. Baby Lorenine needed to transfer in the Pediatric ward up in the 4th floor so she can be observed more . I was in the maternity ward on the 2nd floor. So I'll have to carry and take her there myself while the nurses ready the necessary things for her. I wrapped her well I walked up the stairs holding unto her tightly while my other hand held on to the handrails while I slowly go up the stairs to the 4th floor. I suddenly feel blood coming out n dripping on my legs down to the steps when I was halfway up the stairs. I just kept moving up the steps slowly on my own with her but I got nervous after a while when i started to have blurry vision. So I stopped and waited for people to come by. Luckily, someone saw the trail of blood on the steps and alerted the nurses to give me some help. They took the baby up to the pediatric ward and a nurse took me to the 1st aid. I was ok after they cleaned me up. I asked them I needed to be with my baby so they kindly assisted me to go up. The building was an old one without lifts for the public so there's no other way but to go up but the stairs!

My heart sank when I heard my baby crying. The sound of her cry is not just due to hunger. But a cry coz she was in severe pain . The doctor assisted with 2 nurses had started poking her with the needles. She was so tiny that they couldn't find a vein big enough to put the needle in . Every poke of the needle into her pinkish skin is a poke into my heart. Oh My God it was such a horrible experience for a 1st time mother like me ! I started to cry ... it's unbearable to see my tiny baby Lorenine crying in pain right infront of me . Worst is I just couldn't even hold to soothe her . It's absolutely devastating !

Seeing me crying , the doctor asked me if I would prefer to stay outside the room while they try to put the needle in . I just nodded my head and stayed there with my baby all the time. I can't leave her alone in pain . I was there to be strong for her coz she herself was strong. She was struggling and kicking her tiny legs a lot .
Just a day old and she has to go through a lot of pain already. This is not fair !
2nd Day ~ Doctors from the pediatric ward came to see baby Lorenine in the morning. She was with the drip and not allowed to be fed . I had not slept well coz I didn't have a bed in that pediatric room. All I have is a chair beside her crib. I had been rubbing a wet cotton on her lips everytime to keep it moist so the lips won't dry and flake. The doctors told me to be ready for some tests & x-ray for her. I got even more nervous. I asked myself - "Is my baby dying ? What's wrong with her ? " She looked very healthy at that time . From the outside , she looked like she's very healthy and got nothing wrong at all . I was confused and problematic coz I was also destitute. I only have very few pesos I had saved for my child birth. In fact to even save more, I gave birth in a charity ward coz I can't afford to be in a private clinic or be attended by a private doctor. So knowing she's gonna be undergoing medical tests gave me a huge amount of stress.

Despite of everything that had happened after that 1st day of her life ...I never stopped  to find the final cure for her. I'm a mother who wants nothing else in this world but to see my child well and healthy.

Baby Lorenine about 10 months old .

We had stayed in the hospital for 2 months since she was born coz she was diagnosed with " Megacolon" and she had undergone surgery for colostomy .

Baby Lorenine 3 mos old. A month after she left the hospital

Baby Lorenine at 4 months old with her colostomy.

Lorenine was about 2 yrs old when we went to Puerto Galera, Mindoro Philippines

 Her colostomy surgery took her under the knife 5 times and it went on for 5 long years before it was finally closed in 1992 at Lungsod Ng Kabataan ( now called Philippine Children's Medical Center )  under the supervision of a well known Pediairic Surgeon  Dr. Leonardo Cua who did a charity surgery for her for free the first time she was operated.




The final surgery being sponsored by a kind hearted Australian Guy Mr. Don Mentz of CAB International who readily volunteered to support her medical expenses upon seeing her condition.. A guy with a big heart and one who acted like a father to me who passed away few years ago due to a heart attack. May his soul rest in peace.
.

Lorenine had showed me enormous anount of courage even when she was just a tiny baby. She was my inspiration in life and she had pushed me a lot to be strong and to never ever give up on hope. Have a positve way of thinking and always convince myself that there's always light at the end of the dark tunnel.

The Black Nazarene

Quiapo Church at night .

The Shrine of the "BLACK NAZARENE" inside Quiapo Church.

The most unforgettable day when Lorenine got fever after her operation. She was immedtely transferred  in the intensive care and given a lot of attention by her attending surgeon.

Recovery time for her ...

Her little brother Meier is keeping Lorenine company in the hospital during the day .

Our lives spent  going in n out of the hospitals for the first five years of her life, made both us and our bond much even stronger.



I had surpassed so much aches just like her.
We both came out as survivors.
Our struggles had paid off.
Now she even had given way to a new life herself  .

Visiting Lorenine in hospital after she gave birth prematurely to Rhendolf who stayed in the incubator for few days.

My grandson Rhendolf  was her 1st born .

Lorenine on her wedding day in Dec 2010

I was happy both of them are healthy despite of what she's been through .




Today , 9th of January 2012 is Lorenine's 25th Birthday and the feast of The Black Nazarene  !
I just would like to tell her how much I love her and wishing all devotees of the Black Nazareen a safe & wonderful day !




HAPPY 25th BIRTHDAY !!!