One of the things we try to maintain at our home is Transparency. As a young lady, I got into all sorts of trouble because of the things I kept from my family and the only time those troubles disappeared was when my mom or my siblings intervened. So I make it a point to ask my daughters how their day was in school and if there was something that happened in school that they wanted to share to me. It's the first thing I ask them when they get home and I use the same question on the dinner table to suggest that we are open for discussion while eating. Red and I try to show them how it's done and share a great deal to them. They generally know the state of our family's affairs. How their dad earns, what I do with what their dad earns, what we are doing in Steemit and how much more time it would take before their dad and I could get married.

Red and I share our plans too and since last year, we've been telling them about the big possibility that we will be moving to Davao soon; 3 years max. Lucy, who grew up there, is excited about the prospect. While Sam, who pretty much spent her entire life in Malolos, gets anxious while airing her concern about how she doesn't know any other Bisaya word aside from "kaon" (eat) and "unsa" (what). Her voice notch up into a squeak while asking what would happen if she doesn't like it there.

I really couldn't blame her. While I was growing up, I never wanted to leave Davao; I could not imagine living anywhere else! But alas, Life had other plans. I moved to Makati City when I was 20 because of work and though I stayed there for over 8 years, it never felt like home to me. Red and I rented a small condo unit where we could sleep and rest so that the next day, we could work again. It was that way for 8 years until in 2013, I was able to "retire". I badly needed a break from the city so we decided to settle in Bulacan. Besides, Red's family is there and that's where Sam grew up and we didn't want to move her into an entirely new environment.

Davao & Malolos

Although they have a lot of differences, Malolos and Davao are similar in ways that matter to me. The neighborhood where our house sits remind me very much of the one we have in Davao. It's quiet but not forlorn; more like subdued happy. The kids are friendly but not rowdy. Our neighbors are generally pleasant and we know each other because our village is quite small. We'd recognize an outsider right away so we feel it's safe to let the kids play outside.

I also enjoy the good prices of the produce being sold in the market. The "bayan" in Malolos is a big marketplace that supplies for the whole province of Bulacan. This means that all the other markets get their products from "bayan" and then pass on the cost to their buyers. Since I go directly to the source, I get the same products at a much cheaper price. I grew up eating fruits freshly-picked right from our backyard in Davao. We have no such fruit-bearing trees here in our home in Malolos but my girls still enjoy fresh fruits from the market.

If I had to take you on a tour of Davao, we'll probably spend our time in Nature; visit the beaches of Samal, enjoy the vast green garden of Eden Resort, or go to Malagos to meet the Philippine Eagle. A tour of Malolos would be a stark contrast. It is easily one of the most historical places in the Philippines, so we'd probably end up in the heart of the city where you'll see grand structures built from the Spanish era. There's Barasoain Church - the site of the first Philippine Republic, the Malolos Cathedral - whose convent once served as the Presidential Palace, then there's Casa Real and all the other "Malolos Mansions" that have been witnesses to the evolution of the city. We have been to a number of them but have yet to visit the Museum of the 21 Women of Malolos, which I am quite excited about.

Steemit

Steemit is one of the biggest blessings that 2017 has given me. I will never tire of saying that my experience in the platform is truly life-changing. This experience has become even more meaningful because of all the activities we have with our SteemitPh family. My girls and I had a memorable time that day in September when we joined Alinaga and @steemph in A Day Of Hugs, a Music and Art therapy session with kids with special needs. Lucy and Sam were also there during the Steemph year-end party and were just as pleased to finally meet the humans behind the steemians.

We have planned more events this year too. About 3 weeks ago, we joined the Child Ministry of Bangkal in a simple gift-giving for children in Bangkal Davao City. It was the first charity and promotional event of @steemph.davao after months of being inactive and I am so glad to have been part of it although I wasn't physically there. Next month, @kennik who is also from Davao will be conducting an art workshop for underprivileged kids. He and his friends aim to keep these children away from drug-related dangers and also introduce Steemit through Art. Then in April, SteemPh will be in Libertad National High School to impart homesteading techniques and basic knowledge about growing crops to students there. It will also be an opportunity to introduce Steemit to the educators of the school. My family and I are flying to Davao in April for that event and I look forward to meeting all the Steemians there. I am already working with some in order to plan a meet-up with them.

Bulacan Steemit Meet Up Plan

All of these are supported by my partner, @steemitph. I will gladly return the favor now that he has decided to finally hold a meet-up here in his hometown. Besides, Malolos has been a home for me as much as Davao is and I am equally excited to meet all the Steemians here - truth is, I'm always excited to meet Steemians!

Our target is to get 15 Steemians from Bulacan to attend the meet-up. These 15 have to bring along at least one non-Steemian friend with them. After @steemitph published his post, 9 Steemians have confirmed their attendance: @mhelows @mikel2la1 @markjason @dombaltazar @isrl @lhey18 @daddydave @jamescarlo

Our friend, @enjieneer who has been campaigning this meet-up to her friends in Facebook, will be bringing along 6 friends. (Thank you, sis!)

So we now have a total of 21 attendees. 9 slots are still available so if you'd like to join, comment down below. There will be an introduction to Steemit for the non-steemians, lessons on basic text and formatting, powering up (the importance of keeping your steem power and the benefits of doing that), and we will also touch on the communities within Steemit (utopian, sndbox, and steemph).

The proposed venue is in CAFE+ in Plaridel, Bulacan and the tentative date is on February 17. @steemitph will be posting an update by the end of this month for the final details.