The "Real Housewives"

I am sure some of us have been followers of The Real Housewives reality series.

I was one of them, and sometimes still watch snippets of it.

I often think how glamourous their lifestyles are. The clothes. The cars. The bags. Vacations.

Mansions. Shoes. Jewelry. much , much more. Yet, there are dramas. jealousy. gossip. backstabbing.

It is wild and crazy.. entertaining.

I met our Real Housewives.  They live on shacks. Barely have clothes. some have shoes. just one pair.

No bags just a wallet.

the Real Housewives ( yep, one dad was there too)

Listening to their stories

Some of them gossips. Women often do. Who doesn't?

We all have one thing in common. Provide for our children and families.

We live in such two different worlds. But share the same emotions. Same goals and dreams.

Some of them have given up.  Some still have hope.

US.

Thank you for stopping by,

Hugs,

Monica



my mother, my teacher

I was the oldest of 3 girls.

my first teacher. my mother.

she taught for 35 years.

she was strict.  very.

supported  me to do more. do well.

after all these years, she still got it.

Let's start from the basics.  

FLAG girls were so attentive.  She still got it!!



We don't have blackboard at the moment. We will have soon, Thanks to our lovely donors!!



Say 'Ahh'

She was pooped after just a few minutes. Why she retired her ' teacher's stick' over a year ago

her students have not forgotten about her. even to this day.

they would approached her on the street. she doesn't recognize them.

but they do.

 

although my mom was not with me during the important years of my life.

 

 

there's still a lot of lessons I have learned from her.

 

i am still learning. she is still teaching.

 

this time it's just me. 

Thank you for stopping by,

Hugs,

Monica

Are you my mother??..

There was a point in my life that I did not see my mom for over 10 years

she was not there during my wedding. birth of my first child. my separation.

we did not celebrate mother's day together until year 2010.

Regine has not seen her mom since she was little. She is 6 years old now.

Her card to her mom. One day she will have a chance to give it to her.

For all the moms, kindly send your kisses and hugs to Regine.

I know in spirit she will feel your love.

Happy Mother's day!


Thank you for stopping by,


Hugs,


Monica


 



dreams will start from a book...

We didn't have television until I was in the 5th grade

Reading  has been the activity at home.

My dad would finish a book in 2 days.

he would tell stories of places. He has never been in any of them.

talked about the best food in the world, he has never tasted them.

books helped my dad and i dig into our imagination

the power of reading helps me dream. endlessly.

the girls need to have those dreams as well. .. But.

we need books. we need bookshelves. we need a library

This is where we keep our books today..

 we will be dedicating our first library to all my Mom blogger friends! we thank you for

generous donations and ongoing support. 

You will be making dreams come true!!



www.avagracescloset.blogspot.com

www.spanishpinaynanay.blogspot.com

www.riseaboveyourlimits.com

www.joysnotepad.blogspot.com


Thank you for stopping by!


Hugs!

Monica

tough love

Going on our second year here at FLAG, it is an ongoing learning for us.  My husband and I have big hearts however running a school is still a new experience.  The purpose of this visit is for us to build guidelines and processes for everyone to abide to.  That’s one of the strengths Jon has – building processes and growing a business.

Jon's meeting with the  parents ( apologize for the quality of this pic, couldn't upload the pic from my camera)

He didn’t waste any time to speak to the girls’ parents as soon as he arrived in Manila.  We have been receiving reports that there is a huge absenteeism problem at the school.  It is unfortunate although we offer free education, food and clothing, there are still parents who do not want to commit their children to go to school regularly.  It is sad but true. This is just the beginning.

Thank you for stopping by,

 Hugs,

Monica

Another baby

Recently I was told by our director that Carol is going to have a baby. Again.  She has 5 children and can barely feed them.  She is one of millions of moms in the Philippines who are uneducated, have lost hope but continue to have kids because they can’t say no to their husbands or no access to proper family planning. Also, part of the Catholic faith is against contraceptives. I could go on about this but I feel it is a touchy subject.  I respect all opinions so please feel free to voice them.  

Two of her kids, Irysh and Jessel are with F.L.A.G.  Irysh, who is now ready to go to Grade 1 in June, is doing very well in school.  Jessel, who have shown an enormous improvement, is in Grade 1 now and ready to go to Grade 2.  We are so happy for both of them.  I see the great future for these 2 girls! I hope Carol feels very proud of her kids.

Jessel 2010

Irysh 2010

Carol is also a member of our Project Super Mom initiative where we have given her a small loan to start a food vendor business.  All she has to do is to grow her business, pay back to loan to F.L.A.G with no interest and no deadline.  One thing that is slowing Carol down is having this new baby. 

She asked the question – “Can Monica and Jon adopt my baby?”

How can I take this baby away from her mother?  I could never do that.  But on the other hand, what kind of future will this baby have? This baby will soon be part of F.L.A.G.  But how can I make the parents understand?


It is easy for us to give the advice coming from where we are.   I’m sure it is hard for a mother to have to think to give up her child.  I don’t know what to say but I will help in the best way I can. 

Thank you for stopping by,

 Hugs,

Monica

Follow us on twitter.com/flagphil

Made by Steph

I saw the pendants from my good friend’s blog (www.avagracescloset.blogspot.com) and found it very cute and personal. I contacted Steph from www.pendantsbysteph.blogspot.com and it was an easy process.

Finally, they came and they were adorable. Nothing means more to me than these 3 people in my life. 

 I found silver chains in my jewelry box some long some short so I can definitely mix n match.

With my oldest already in college and my youngest leaving me in September, I always want them to be closer to my heart. (sniff!).

Thank you to Steph for making these wonderful pieces. I will definitely show them off.

Thanks for stopping by,

Hugs,

Monica

Angel from Utah

With the big change that happened last week (getting laid off) I felt a bit sad because of the uncertain future. During this time I have been chatting my mommy blogger Becky Jane (www.riseaboveyourlimits.blogspot.com) about sending books for our girls back home.  Can you believe it? At the time of sadness and uncertainty, this angel from Utah delivered 4 boxes of books for our girls? Incredible!

It amazes me how the universe responds to one’s circumstances.  In the midst of my self-pity, finger pointing, what if’s blah blah blah. Here’s Becky Jane packing up 4 boxes of books for the underprivileged girls in the Philippines.

Jobs will be there, might not be as good as what I had before, but I know I will be okay.  For there are people like Becky Jane (whom I have not met) has a big heart and extended her support to girls thousands and thousands of miles away.

Becky Jane, thank you, thank you on behalf of the F.L.A.G girls. We appreciate all your support and prayers. 

Please check her website - http://www.riseaboveyourlimits.blogspot.com

Thank you for stopping by,

Hugs,

On behalf of the F.L.A.G team

Follow us on twitter.com/flagphil

LIKE us on facebook.com/flagphilippines

Super Mom No. 2

I started a new topic  called " Super Moms" a month ago.  These are moms who came to us to ask for small loan to start their own business.  Our first mom was Adelyn ( posted November 15 ).   She bought her stove and  ingredients for her small store and now up and running.  Stay tuned for her progress.


The word got around and second mom approached us for the same idea and we are so happy to start this new business with her.  Like Adelyn, Che-che would also start a small business by becoming a banana vendor.  The initial start up cost is $50. ( ladies, that's not even a price for a good pair of shoes in North America).  The buzz in any charity or non-profit organization is starting a micro loan for women in developing countries.  It has been proven when women are given this opportunity, the business will not only grow it will flourish.  She will be able to feed, cloth and educate her family. 

We wish her good luck and pray for her success.

This is Che-che with her daughter , 15 years from now she will be walking with her when she graduates college.

Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you again,

Hugs,

The F.L.A.G team

LIKE us www.facebook.com/flagphilippines

Follow us on twitter.com/flagphil

Visit us www.flagphil.com

Start a business for just $30

Readers,

Correction, the mom's name in this picture is Adelyn.


If only that's true here in North America. In the Philippines, you can start a business for as low as $30.

F.L.A.G is happy announce that we are starting a micro loan for the moms of F.L.A.G.  One of the reasons we started F.L.A.G is to break the cycle of poverty in the Philippines.  We believe education is key to unlock this problem.  With 97 Million people in the Philippines, more than half of our citizens live in extreme poverty and desolation.  As a result, the parents are not able to send their children to school. 

We reached out to the moms and discussed if they would be willing to start a business if F.L.A.G would fund the cost.  We are surprised to hear that all of them are willing to work and be responsible for their families if only they were given the funds to start.


Let me introduce , Adelyn she is the mother of Chrisdel, she is the top student of F.L.A.G last school year.  Adelyn  did not finish high school nor elementary. To support her family, she washes clothes for rich families around the neighborhood.  She would like to start a small food business just outside her house. She needs $30 for all the ingredients and equipment.  ( we spend that in one day ! Starbucks  AM $4.15, Lunch $10 to $15 , Starbucks PM $4.15 , am I exaggerating?)


For Adelyn , there is hope of relief.  She can work from home, watch her small children, buy food for her family and eventually she will be the one who can help her children finish their education. What a nice feeling that would be!

 
"There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women" - Madeline Albright.

Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you again,

Hugs,

The F.L.A.G team

LIKE us www.facebook.com/flagphilippines

Follow us on twitter.com/flagphil

Visit us www.flagphil.com