Thankful Thursday 24

Thankful Thursday: What CHRIXEAN is thankful for this week >> For Nicky's successful show called "Jeremiah Goes Home". We recently helped in the production of an original musical by our Ligaya community, and Nicky is also a part of the kids ensemble. He had so much fun doing the show, and I was so proud of how dedicated he was in attending all the rehearsals (1pm-5pm on a Friday and Saturday is no joke for a 7-year old!). All tickets were sold out on the actual day of the show, and we had a really great reception from the parents and from outsiders who watched. This is our 2nd show, and we look forward to next year's production! >> For God's protection over me and baby Keira. I FELL two steps down the auditorium steps on the night of Nicky's show! Yup, it was a scary spill and I was so glad that my friend Keith was behind me to catch me before I rolled down the steps. There was a nasty gap between the auditorium seat and the step down, and my foot went straight in which caused me to lose my balance. I had contractions an hour after and I was so scared that the baby might have been hurt, or that I would go into premature labor. Good thing my doctor was able to prescribe medicines immediately. I went straight to bed to rest after the show. I'm ok now, and praise God that He didn't allow anything bad to happen to us. Links to other Thankful Thursdays --> A Child of God A Revision Anna's Place As My World Turns EPH2810 Friday's Child Imagine Bliss Journalling Through the Valley Momma's Life Mommy Does It All Mommy Needs To Vent Nightingale no_average_girl Show Them Through Me Uzi's Musings Blog Charm Russell And Aine's Haven Reverberate - My Echo Gabrielle

Click here for the Thankful Thursday code

Click here for Chrixean's blog


Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged!

View More Thankful Thursday Participants

Preggy Postings: Full Maternal Glory

A quick (big!) peek of me in my 26th week. Nicky loves talking to Kirsten (Keira is still his nickname for the baby) a lot now.

Ad Aware

I managed to escape from my sketchpad and my open Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator pages to go online. While searching for stock photos I could use for my ad studies, I stumbled upon this blog called Advertising / Design Goodness which features the best and the worst ads around the globe. You guys might want to check it out, too. I really enjoyed studying these ad concepts and I'm posting a few of my favorites.

Listerine Ad
Copy: "Here I am. What were your other two wishes?"
Extreme Breath Confidence. Cool Mint Listerine Pocket Packs

Tekken - Playstation 2 Ad
Copy: "Fun, anyone?"
Playstation 2

Toronto Plastic Surgery.com

Listerine Ad
Copy: "You know, under these clothes I'm naked."
Extreme Breath Confidence. Cool Mint Listerine Pocket Packs

RealHipHop.com.br Website Ad

Outdoor 3D ads for an office products shop called FedexKinkos.com

I didn't get the brand name of this stain removal product but its an ad made by TBWA Thailand

Thankful Thursday 23

Thankful Thursday: What CHRIXEAN is thankful for this week A new graphic designer. I finally hired help in the design aspects of the company! I think it's a wise decision based on the applicant's qualifications and, of course, prayer! She starts on July 15 and I am hoping it will be a great start for the company as it slowly expands its business. Support of friends and people in community. I have not been able to be around for a lot of events due to work and my pregnancy. I have friends who I know are in a crisis of some sort in their lives right now and whom I would normally meet out to talk and to give counsel. Unfortunately, time is against me in this aspect and I try to stay present still by text messages or emails. This is true also to a lot of activities and bible study sessions which I've begged off from attending. I am just thankful that they've been understanding of my situation at the moment. The Lord's refreshment and strength -- which he pours out upon me every morning to give me more than an extra dose of "kapow" power to meet the requirements of the day and allows me still to enjoy my family's presence. Links to other Thankful Thursdays --> A Child of God A Revision Anna's Place As My World Turns EPH2810 Friday's Child Imagine Bliss Journalling Through the Valley Momma's Life Mommy Does It All Mommy Needs To Vent Nightingale no_average_girl Show Them Through Me Uzi's Musings Blog Charm Russell And Aine's Haven Gabrielle

Click here for the Thankful Thursday code

Click here for Chrixean's blog


Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged!

View More Thankful Thursday Participants

Upside Down, Inside Out

These past days for me have been really CRAZY. My schedules are really unbelievably full, that I can't believe that there are only 24 hours in a day. I am partially to blame for all the commitment I made, and maybe because I should learn when to say NO to some things. But a part of me believes that if I just commit all the things that I have laid ahead to the Lord, He will make things possible for me to accomplish and He will make sure I (and the baby) get the rest that we deserve.

I have no complaints with the work that our company has. In fact, the Lord has been faithful in answering our requests for certain projects to be awarded to us. So faithful indeed, that He gave us all the projects we bidded for, and more! I guess what makes it all overwhelming to me are the other things around and in me that I have to do still apart from the work at hand. I committed to help our Friends of Jesus Children's ministry in the production and marketing aspects of their musical (which will be showing already this Saturday evening -- Nicky is part of it, too!), which kinda shares a few of the working hours that I have during the day. I also had to make time to visit the wake and burial of my aunt who just recently passed away. It's not easy to shift from being an emotional wreck to being in work mode all in one day, but I had to do just that for me to get things done. Then of course, there's the everyday meeting with client that I need to attend to, the business trips, and the fact that I am limited in movement due to my being pregnant (I am already in my 6th month! Imagine the load I am carrying around by now!). Now add to this equation all the emotions that come with being pregnant, and the physical pains of the baby kicking at night as well as the sleepless nights that come with it. I think you get the picture by now...

And through all of these, I try to apologize to all the people and friends who I have neglected to spend time with (I know quite a few who are going through rough times right now and who who have wanted me to be with them), as well as all the readers of this blog who may have noticed that I have limited my posts to at least twice a week. God has blessed us with His provisions and I am gratefully accepting all that comes our way because I know that He knows I can handle it. When the work seems too much for me to handle in a day, He "postpones" a meeting or moves a deadline for me without me even trying. He even gave me a new staff (a new graphic artist) for my company to help out in the workload, and gave us the means to expand our office to accomodate our growing team. God is good to me always, and I will always acknowledge this. So in the midst of my crazy world right now, I am kept grounded by His presence.

Thank you to all my blogging friends who come by still despite my erratic posts. I am still around, don't worry. Hopefully in a week or two, things will be back to normal and I will be granted time to rest. As for now, I will just do the work that is sent for me to do and know that wherever I am now is where He wants me to be. :-)

Thankful Thursday 22

Thankful Thursday: What CHRIXEAN is thankful for this week For the life that was given to one of my aunts, Minerva Chavez, who passed away just last night because of cancer. I am also blessed to have known such a great and inspiring woman in this lifetime, and to have been a niece of hers. I wrote a post about her sometime last year. I'm re-posting it as my tribute to her, and just so you'll get to know a little more about her. Heard Any Bells Ringing Lately? Posted December 30, 2005 To give you an idea of who my Auntie is, she's an 82-year old sweet, soft spoken and joyful woman who out of pure love and generosity just loves to give to others and finds pure joy in doing so. She has 10 children, all successful in their respective fields, and now lives with her youngest daughter's family blessed with everything and anything an old lady could ever need -- family, friends, good health and material comforts. I got the chance to visit her today to drop off some long-overdue Christmas presents, and in return was blessed with an outpouring of her love and affection through endless hugs and kisses. She shared with me this write-up, and in the process she gave me a piece of her heart. I would like to now share this with all of you, in hopes that it would bless you, inspire you, touch you, or maybe just to simply bring a smile to your face. We all need to be reminded time and time and again just what the spirit of the season is all about. THE BELLS IN HEAVEN ARE RINGING Do you have bells ringing for you in heaven? If you are not sure, start this year by doing something nice for a poor and needy family. If you do not strive to do good this year, you may never get a chance to do so. What is the reason for our existence on this earth? Just to live? Therefore, is it ok to be selfish, uncaring and deaf to the cries of those who are needy and near you? We should have the unconditional love of God in our hearts. God is forever helping us with no strings attached. Do we ever stop to say "thank you"? Why is it that we only remember the Lord when we need something? Yes, at times people can be so ungrateful. There was a time when I visited a friend. I saw her lying on the floor with a baby by her side. She was so haggard. Unfortunately, I only had P100 ($2), and I had to pay for the fare downtown. So what little money I had left, I bought a small can of milk which was about P20 ($.38) and P5 ($.09) worth of sugar. I talked to somebody who owned a small store and asked a favor to boil water so I can mix the two. When the milk was ready, I picked up my friend and held her in my arms. She drank the milk as if it were her first time to be fed! I told my mother about it and she said "child, don't you know that the bells in heaven are ringing for your good deed?". I was overflowing with joy for what my mother said! I promised then to let the bells in heaven ring for me a lot of times as long as I lived on this earth. Now, I do have children who let the bells of heaven ring most of the time, and I do hope the bells would not be destroyed. I am so proud of all of them for they have understood the true meaning of "unconditional love". I owe this good trait to my parents, and I believe I have passed on this trait to my children, as they will hopefully pass it on to their children. So let the bells of heaven be ringing for you also forever! - Minerva Chavez Links to other Thankful Thursdays --> A Child of God A Revision Anna's Place As My World Turns EPH2810 Friday's Child Imagine Bliss Journalling Through the Valley Momma's Life Mommy Does It All Mommy Needs To Vent Nightingale no_average_girl Show Them Through Me Uzi's Musings Blog Charm Russell And Aine's Haven Gabrielle

Click here for the Thankful Thursday code

Click here for Chrixean's blog


Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged!

View More Thankful Thursday Participants

God's Annointed One

After everyone has voted...

After getting feedback from close friends and family...

After Allan FINALLY made up his mind on what HE wants...

My baby finally has a name.

Kirsten - Holy / The annointed one

Soleil - Sun

P.S.
Nicky still wants to call the baby Keira as her nickname.
We might consider this compromise :-)

Thankful Thursday 21

Thankful Thursday: What CHRIXEAN is thankful for this week I am thankful for the powerful magic that Photoshop brings! hahahaha! I did some major color and light retouching on some amateurly shot photos of the cast and production crew for the Jeremiah Goes Home show that our community is staging. Had to "fix" more than 40 photos! Phew! I am also thankful for the opportunity to help out in this ministry effort. Since I do this for a living anyway, this was our chance to give back to the Lord, in a small way, for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us recently. Here are a few of the lovely "after" shots which I will be placing in our souvenir programme. Ok, ok, so Allan and I aren't really in the show. We just took advantage of the available camera and semi-studio set-up... :-P Links to other Thankful Thursdays --> A Child of God A Revision Anna's Place As My World Turns EPH2810 Friday's Child Imagine Bliss Journalling Through the Valley Momma's Life Mommy Does It All Mommy Needs To Vent Nightingale no_average_girl Show Them Through Me Uzi's Musings Blog Charm Russell And Aine's Haven Gabrielle

Click here for the Thankful Thursday code
Click here for Chrixean's blog

Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged!

View More Thankful Thursday Participants

Whazzup, Whazzup?

I've been busy these past days (as you may have realized seeing that my last post was Thursday last week!), and it was guilt that drove me to make this post. Here's a quick glimpse of how my week has been so far:

• Sunday - Attended our community Pentecost celebration. It was really great and was a refreshing change to the toxicity of the previous days. Then went back to work on a billboard for a famous plastic surgeon couple here in our country. Took me HOURS to do digital plastic surgery on their photos. I should be getting paid by the millions. Not them!
  
• Monday - Sent final artworks and CDs to our client whose company does Family Ministry videos. Then went on to work on a new client's project which was to create 3 studies of wall murals for their office. Was really cool and was quite inspired to do it since I had tons of neat high-resolution photos to choose from. This took up 3/4 of my day already because the mural was quite big (96" X 165"), which meant more careful attention to detail was required.
• Tuesday - Nicky's first day of school in his new "big school" -- and was up at 6:30am! Ok, to many of you, that may not seem shocking, but for me who wakes up at 9-10am everyday, 6:30 is an ungodly hour! Stayed with him for 2 hours, to more or less ease him into the change of environment, then went back home to get an additional 1 hour of sleep (my baby was kicking so badly that I had to lie down to rest). Then went off to another meeting with Jennie and Allan at 2:30pm. Met with a new client for a new project which was going to be a lot of work, but was also quite exciting to do.
  
• Wednesday - That's today! It's only 1pm, and already I emailed some quotations, did sketches for a brochure layout I'm preparing to do for a new project, did revisions on a certificate for a pediatrics department of a hospital, and plastic-wrapped and labeled all of Nicky's school books and supplies.
  

Ok, I guess this really isn't much of a post than it is a photocopy of my daily planner. It's more like a sticky note to all of you who might be wondering -- whatever happened to her? So anyway, I'll be back tomorrow for my Thankful Thursday post, and hopefully I will have a lot more to say there.

I will leave you now with a question that (if you decide to answer it) will definitely make my work a bit more lighter:

What one-word object / image comes to mind when you think of this word -- INTEGRATED?

Thankful Thursday 20

Thankful Thursday: What CHRIXEAN is thankful for this week For all the work that our company has been awarded with this past week. Truly the Lord works in wondrous ways. I have re-learned the valuable lesson of prayer, faith and seed-sowing, and how giving to others and to the Lord of ourselves assures us of God's faithfulness to our needs. For all the votes I received in determining my baby's name. I am still open to receiving your vote if you haven't yet. I'm waiting to reach a quota, hehe. VOTE HERE. Links to other Thankful Thursdays --> A Child of God A Revision Anna's Place As My World Turns EPH2810 Friday's Child Imagine Bliss Journalling Through the Valley Momma's Life Mommy Does It All Mommy Needs To Vent Nightingale no_average_girl Show Them Through Me Uzi's Musings Blog Charm Russell And Aine's Haven Gabrielle

Click here for the Thankful Thursday code
Click here for Chrixean's blog

Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged!

View More Thankful Thursday Participants