{ random facts about me }

hi, thanks for dropping by!

on top of my personal littlemsfirefly blog, this new blog is for my crafting projects, shop updates and all topics relating to arts and crafts - the subject i am most passionate about. feel free to contact me by leaving a comment here, or through my contact form on top of my header. i'd love to hear from you!

in a short while, i'm hitting the 30s and in a way, i feel sad saying goodbye to my twentysomething years. to mark the new milestone, here are 30 boring facts i'm not sure you might want to know about me...

1. my middle name is valentine
2. because i was born one sweet february night.
3. that day would remain my favorite time of the year to this moment.
4. i'm married to my soulmate, the love of my life, and everyday with him has always been better than the last...cliche that may sound, but oh so true!!!
   
5. i started sewing when i was in grade school, my doll's dresses made from my old clothes
6. my favorite subject then was home economics, all because of the sewing lessons
   
7. except for my mad sewing knack, i'd grow up the undomestic diva and failed all the meals i attempted to cook at home, leading to my being banned in the culinary department
8. my brothers were excellent in the kitchen, and as i thrived with their cooking, i also had to endure all their favorite movies. everything bloody and violent excited them, and not until i was in college, did i know that there are moviestars other than bruce lee, jean claude van damme, charles bronson, arnold schwarzenegger, and steven seagal.
9. i think it's a wonder i grew up a normal person, after all the violence i've seen and cringed at, and despite the ordeal i went through, i still love my brothers to bits.
   
10. i moved out of our house when i was 21, to work in the big city about a thousand mile away from home.
    
11. after two years, i had enough of the big city life, and decided to move back to my little hometown, where life was simpler, quieter, cheaper, and where family and friends are at my beck and call.
12. the last five years i had a busy and stressful banking job, which became a trial by fire, i consider it the most formative years of my adult life.
13. being a grown-up doesn't mean i've put away the little child in me. i am at peace with her, settled our issues together, and we have kept in touch every now and then.
14. a thought, a smell, a song, some random thing on the road can bring distinct memories of my past. strangely, the mind only remembers the good things vividly, tugging at the heart, and eventually at the corners of my mouth to bring about a little smile.
    
15. my husband and i knew each other since 1996. we lost touch for a few years, and in 2004, we crossed paths again. in 2005, he visited me in the philippines and met my family. in 2006, i visited him in holland and met his family.
    
16. before the end of 2006, he gave up his flat in amsterdam and moved to ireland for a much easier immigration route for me.
    
17. on 19 november 2007, we got married in general santos city in a small ceremony with our family and friends.
18. i arrived in ireland one cold, wet and windy (should-be) summer day of july 2008.
19. despite the gloomy weather, only feelings of gratefulness and happiness filled my entire being, from the tips of my frizzy hair to my cold toes.
20. we now make our home in a quiet town in the west dublin, so quiet in fact that some people have moved out.
21. with the help of my friends, i am slowly breaking off the mold of the undomestic diva. i can cook a mean dutch or irish meal for my husband now.
    
22. i am unemployed, and my main occupation at the moment is keeping myself and the husband healthy and happy.
23. when he's off to work, i sew, and craft and read blogs. when he's home, we cuddle in the couch and watch dvds. we are anti-socials and seldom go out. when we do, mostly we're riding our bicycles.
    
24. i call him kj (read: ka-yiy, from the dutch alphabet), and he has a thing over news reports. in the morning before he's off to work, we watch bbc breakfast. at six in the evening, we watch the irish news with rte. at dinnertime, we watch the dutch news with the nos journaal. i've never had this current events overload ever.
25. i miss my parents very much. i love them and i'm proud of them. my mom is an intelligent, practical, no non-sense woman, a workaholic who can type probably a hundred words per minute while chatting on the phone but who would drop everything she's doing at my first call of h-e-l-p. my dad is a free-spirit who taught us to see the humour of every situation, to learn to laugh at silly things, to see and understand in a child's perspective, to express ourselves through art. my mom can wipe away pain and tears in a tight hug. my dad can build a playhouse with his toolbox and woodscraps.
26. my mother-in-law plays the drums in a band in a little town in north holland. she edits some books written in her language. she studied to speak german and english. she skates, plays badminton, cycles, and walks in the woods for hours every week. she watches her diet and she's more than 70. my husband loves her very much, and i do too.
27. i dream. i've always believed in my dreams too.
28. ik spreek een kleine beetje nederlands.
29. without crafting, my life would be a total bore. i need to knit, sew, craft, doodle as they're the food of my soul. i love handmade things.
30. i have made wonderful friends online. they've made my life happier, sweeter and more meaningful than it already is. i am grateful from the bottom of my little red heart.