CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Episode 9

 Hi y'all!!  I have fallen behind on my update to our pre-retirement journey, life happens all the time here in the Smiths household specially with Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons.

We have had some pretty warmer weather in November and even the early part of December.  I figured I'd better take care of the leaves all over our front and back yards if I want the house to show nicely when we list it for sale so that's what I did one day.  The next day was so windy that the neighbors' leaves blew over to our yard so I had to do it all over again.  Luckily, I only had to do it to our front yard as there wasn't any blow-over on our back yard.

I was able to sort our stuff in the basement and hauled a lot of them to Goodwill.  We will slowly sell some of our furniture (desks/dressers/chest of drawers/occasional and side tables and other little fixtures).  I have a couple of them displayed in my booth at an antique store here in town and will bring in another one once something is sold.  Hopefully we will slowly get rid of most of them as we work on the house to get it ready for the market.  Mike seems to not care about having another garage sale and I hope he will agree with me to have a moving sale in late January.

Mike has disassembled the lawn mover, got all the parts cleaned and I have packed it in the balikbayan box and it's ready for shipment to the Philippines.  We need the mower in the Philippines as we have a large yard and a push mower just won't do the job as quickly as a motorized lawn mower.  Next he disassembled the tiller as we will be doing a lot of gardening.  We are not sure how good the tillers are that are available for purchase in the Philippines so we decided to bring our own.  It's waiting for me to box it up in a balikbayan box.  I might need to pack it in 2 balikbayan boxes though, we'll see.

Mike has unused paid vacation and floating holidays that he will lose if not used. So his last work date is December 21 and the rest of December is his vacation.  Then he will go back to his employer to sign the necessary paperwork and turn over keys and other stuff on January 4.  He's so looking forward to that day.

Well that's it for now lovely people.  I pray you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a blessed Christmas!  We thank you for following and God bless us everyone!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Episode 8

 Happy Thanksgiving to y'all!!  Time flies when you're having fun - I mean when you're busy.  My camera gave up the holy ghost last month and, after a couple of weeks I finally got a new one.  Well, the thing is, I am slow when it comes to technology so it took me a good couple of weeks before I was comfortable using it.  So I have a love-hate relationship with my new gadget but I managed to put out some contents somehow to which I am glad.

Last month we celebrated our 36th anniversary.  We thank the Lord for blessings beyond measure both now and in the past and we sure are looking towards the future and can't wait to see what He has for us.  I had a friend (when we lived in San Diego 35 years ago), who said this when Mike and I were ready to return to Wichita, Kansas: "Treat everyday as if it is gift that you open every morning.  God always has something special for you."  Since then I make it a point that everyday I thank God for the gift of a new day and wait with anticipation what He has in store for me.  I know that whatever comes our way - good or bad - it's all good, because God's in it.

So somehow we managed to slip out of town, to South Dakota to visit Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse Monument as our wedding anniversary celebration.  This might be our last trip to US National Parks so I chose Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse before we move back to the Philippines.  This will also be our last Thanksgiving and Christmas here in America.  Just between you and me - I don't think I'd want to come back here during the cold season - I have enough of the cold weather.  We might come and visit family but it will be during the summer months.

Anyway, I'd like to share with you our travel to South Dakota.  You can watch it here:

While we were there we explored Fossil Forest Park, the Military Cemetery and we drove up to Sturgis and visited the Harley Davidson Museum.  It was a long drive from Kansas to South Dakota and along the way we saw cows, cornfields, cows...and cornfields :)  I will miss this country but I can't wait to move out of here too considering what's going on all over....well I'll leave it at that.  Thank you all for following.  SHALOM and God bless!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Epi. 7

PLAN WELL WHEN YOU PLAN TO RETIRE TO THE PHILIPPINES

 Hi y'all!!  Things are getting hectic in the Smith's household with JJ involved in Upward Soccer this season.  On top of that my camera quit on me so I need to procure a new one and of course with that comes the "learning" the new gadget period.  I don't like the learning process - it's a hit and miss - but it is what it is.   Yet today I still haven't figured out some of the new features of the camera so I decided to film using my phone this time.

So I have been keeping abreast of what's going on in the immigration aspect in the Philippines as that is what everyone should do if one plans to travel anywhere abroad.  The Philippine government has lifted the Covid 19 travel restrictions in July of this year.  Meaning, no more Covid testing required, no more registering to OneHealthPass, no more vaccination cards required, no more 7 or 10 days quarantine not even travel insurance.

What is new though is the eTravel registration and here's the link to that: https://etravel.gov.ph/ the Philippine One-Stop Electronic Travel Declaration System.  You are required to register within 72 hours of your departure.  I imagine you can print out something to bring with you just like the OneHealthPass once you finish registering.  If you are like me I will print that out and have it handy along with my tickets and passport.  Immigration might or might not ask you for it but better to have it just in case.

Another thing that's new for travelers whose plane lands on terminal 1 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport is the online registration of Declaration Form before your flight.  Again just do it for a smooth immigration exit.  Here's the link: https://customs.gov.ph/customs-declaration-form/

Travel insurance is not required anymore but if you are a foreigner who will travel to the Philippines for a short visit, I would recommend getting one for peace of mind but of course that is totally up to you.  When JJ and I travelled back to the Philippines JJ was required to have travel insurance coverage so I got him one from Safety Wing which was not expensive.  Here's the link if you want to get a coverage; https://safetywing.com/

So far, that's all I know regarding what Philippine immigration requires of every traveler planning to enter the Philippines but of course I will keep monitoring changes and new laws as our travel date gets closer.  

I appreciate you following us along on this new journey.  May God bless and keep us in our comings and goings for in Him alone do we live and breath.  Until next time....SHALOM!!!

 

Because of who you are // LIVE // Josue Avila // Calvary Orlando

I learned the other day that my cousin in the Philippines had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer.  Today she messaged me that the cancer has metastasized to the ribs.  She's on her 5th round of chemo therapy and in October will have surgery then radiation treatment after.  My heart aches for her and her husband and their two young kiddos.  And as always I turn to God, Jehovah Rapha!!

Then I found this song "Because of Who You Are" where the message speaks volume to me personally.  I pray that today, whoever you are, whatever you're going through, you turn to the One who loves you.

Be blessed today and be a blessing to everyone you meet.  SHALOM!!!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Episode 6

 OUR OLDEST SON WANTS TO BECOME A DUAL CITIZEN (US/PHILIPPINES)

Good morning dear people.  I pray you all had a great August and survived the heat wave that swept across America.  Today we turn another page of our calendar - can you believe it's September already?  I tell myself that this month will go fast just by looking at our calendar which is already full.  And we like it that way because it will speed up the days as we check off whatever it is we have for September.  Today also I tell Michael, "Four months to go and we will begin another season of our lives under God's amazing plan for us in our retirement years.  Hang in there darling, before you know it it will be here."

Now the reason I tell him that is because he tells me almost everyday that the closer he is to retirement, the more he realize that he really didn't care much for people at work who don't have the initiative to get things done nor have the critical thinking to perform their jobs.  I think a person tends to feel that way once you hit a certain age - you lost your patience along the way, and you just have to teach yourself to "let it go."  And it must be getting worse every day because when I ask him how his day been when he gets home, he will just tell me "I don't want to talk about it."  Ohhh...so okay then :)

On a different note, our oldest son expressed interest in applying for a dual citizenship.  He has plans to do some mission work in the Philippines in the near future.   So he thinks having a dual citizenship will allow him to come and go anytime.  And being a dual citizen allows him the opportunity to buy a property in the Philippines as well.  He needs a home base while there, preferably close to the airports to allow him to travel to different places/islands.  He loves the urban vibes that's why he's looking at living in Tagig City in Manila.  He had been looking at condos in McKinley Park West in #BGC Taguig.  

So here I am gathering all the paper works needed for him to become a dual citizen.  He was born before I became a naturalized citizen of the USA so technically he is automatically a dual citizen.  Except for one thing: I didn't report his birth with the Philippine Embassy (I didn't know I had to until recently).  So I need to file a Delayed Report of Birth with the Philippine Consulate General in Chicago.  Well since he is now of age, he will file it for himself but I have to get all the documentations for him.  I made a video about this and published it in our You Tube channel.  You can watch it below if you want and while you're at it, would you hit the subscribe and like button?  Please?

We are four months away from retirement and these last four months will go fast because we will be busy with all kinds of JJ's school activities, sports and church events, not to mention the holidays just around the corner.  JJ is doing well with his Rosetta Stone lessons in Pilipino and Michael is doing well with his practice in speaking the Visayan language.  He found two books on Visayan language and he said that it helps a lot to be able to read the words instead of just listening and repeating them.

Me?  I'm still working on getting rid of my eBay "stuff" in the basement.  I'm making progress though.  We're just doing what we can slowly but consistently and then I will be painting the basement once I clear things out.  I did found out we need to replace 2 panels in the basement because of water damage from 2 years ago.  Mike was able to fix the problem and we didn't have any leakage since then but the walls on the far corner of the basement has some water damage.  That's the only issue I've found so far.

So...off to more clearing I go.  I thank you all for watching and following our journey.  May the Lord Almighty bless you and keep you in all your comings and goings...for in Him alone do we live and breath.  SHALOM!!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Epi. 5

 Hello y'all!  We're in the middle of summer and if you are in the Midwest you know how hot it gets, but I can't complain.  We have had really nice temperatures for the past weeks and cooler temps during the night.  I chuckle when Evergy messaged me 3 weeks ago telling me we were poised to have a 64% increase in our electric usage.  But last week I received another message from them congratulating me for using less energy the week before.  Well, that's because of the nicer temps we have had up until last week.  But this week's forecast looks like it's going to be a scorcher and I felt it yesterday and today. It's like being in the hot oven getting out of church and into the parking lot.  Whew!  Oh well, this is Kansas, after all.  So the order of the day this week would be stay indoors if possible.

Before school started JJ and I have been doing our morning walks up and down the hilly part of our neighborhood and I noticed two houses with for sale signs.  One was only in the market for 3 days and it got sold, the other was only on the market for a week and it too got sold.  I thought I must work on getting our house ready for the market but then Mike and I decided we'll hold off and wait until the end of the year before we put our house up for sale.

Well just this last week, I noticed another house just four houses down from our street had a for sale sign up and it had a sold sign on it.  I didn't even notice that this house had a for sale sign in it and when I checked it out it was only listed for a couple of days and it got sold already.  Another house on the same street further down on the corner had a contract pending on its sign.  I know this house had been on the market for more than a month because JJ and I walk past it during our morning walks. I told Mike I'll go ahead and get our house ready for the market by October/November and he agrees.  I believe we should do it before the Feds increase the interest rate again and besides that, the prices of housing have really almost doubled up which means we get more money for our house.

So since the forecast for the coming week is high temps, I'll work on the basement and get it ready for painting and also I have to gather the necessary documents for Mike and JJ's 13a visa applications.  I have lots of copying to do and sorting these documents.  I've printed the checklist of paperwork that needs to be submitted to the Philippine Consulate Office and found out I'd better start working on these now instead of later.  Oh by the way, I do have a video where I talked about 13A visa for Mike and JJ and you can watch it here if you like:

Well, that's it for now my beautiful people.  Y'all stay away from the heat, drink plenty of water, make sure you have water with you when you are out and about.  May the Lord keep us in our comings and goings for in Him alone we live and breath.  SHALOM!!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT Epi. 4

Hello lovely people!  Well, JJ has started school this week and can you believe almost two weeks have come and gone for the month of August already?  Have you noticed the days zip by so fast these days and before we know it Fall will be here.

In preparation for our move to the Philippines, we have to figure out what kind of visas Mike and JJ need for them to be able to move and live, and in JJ's case study, in the Philippines.  In my research I found two options for them:

A.  The SRRV (Special Resident Retiree's Visa) is a special non-immigrant visa for foreign nationals who would like to make the Philippines their home and the benefits are:

1.Indefinite stay with multiple entry/exit privileges;

2. Exemption from:

    - Bureau of Immigration ACR-I Card (annual reporting);

    - Custom duties and taxes for one time importation of household goods and personal 

       effects worth up to $7,000.00;

    - Tax from pension and annuities;

    - Travel tax if retiree has not stayed for more than one year from last date of entry;

    - Student Visa/Study Permit.

3. Access to the greet and assist program at selected Philippine airport;

4. Free subscription to the PRA newsletter;

5. Discount privileges from PRA accredited merchant partners;

6.Free assistance in transacting with other government agencies;

7. Entitlement to PHILHEALTH benefits and privileges.

There are 5 options offered in this kind of Visa program and we are interested in Option #5 but upon further investigation we decided not to do the SRRV program.  I just made a video about this and the reason why.  You can watch it below:

Well it looks like we are going to start gathering paperwork for 13A visa instead.  We've done this before so it should not be hard.  I know it entails going to the Philippine Consulate General in Chicago, which I am not so excited about considering what is going on around Chicago but it needs to be done. 

And that's it for now my dearest friends.  Have a great weekend and I will see you on our next episode.  May the Lord keep us in our comings and goings for in Him alone we live and breath.  To Him be the glory!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT - Epi. 3

 Hi y'all!!  We turn another page of our calendar and it's August which means we are at the end of summer.  And for us it means we are 5 months or 23 weeks away from when Michael says goodbye to his work to retire.  Actually he keeps pointing out to me that he is not retiring in 5 months but he is quitting his job in 5 months.  And he is right.  He doesn't turn 62 (his target date to retire) until next year but it really doesn't make any difference.  Quitting, retiring, they both means you stop working, right?  So having mentioned that, we will be working on our house to get it ready for the market then, so we would still be working although not for someone else.

Well, I've been dreaming of building a "payag" next to our house in the Philippines.  I wanted to have it built last year when JJ and I were there but since I wasn't sure then when we might be back, I decided against it.  A "payag" by the way is a Filipino term for gazebo, except a "payag" has a place to cook and a place to take naps and it's even used as a place to sleep at night if you have family or friends visiting.  It's also a good place to lounge and hang out during the hot season.  We decided that in our "payag" we will have a sink, a place for cooking/grilling and a place for our "pugon" or earth oven.  The other part of the structure will be open with counter the length of the open space with bar stools so we have a place to eat or enjoy halo-halo on a warm afternoon weekend.

Speaking of halo-halo, we are having one every other night.  If you are curious what it is I made a video while I was making it.  It's so good and very refreshing.  You can watch it below:

  

So there you go lovely people.  I know I'm just rambling here but if you want halo-halo, message me and I will be more than happy to prepare one for you.  Until next time may the Lord keeps us all in His care for in Him alone we live and breath....SHALOM!!!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT Ep. 2

Hi y'all!  July is almost over, school is almost here and JJ will be starting his 8th grade, which would be his last year in the school system here.  With what's going on in the public school these days, I worry about him a lot and sometimes I'm even toying the possibility of homeschooling him just like I did with Josh and Zach.  But the boy loves to socialize (we call him the social butterfly of the family), and he is involved in band and sports.  So I will just wrap him daily in prayer before I send him out among the wolves, so to speak.  I claim daily God's promise of protection in Psalm 91 and my heart is at rest.

On a different note, Michael and I have been, (for months now) exploring and planning to build an earth oven when we return to the Philippines.  We have a gas range/oven there but it would be more practical to have an earth oven since we both love to bake and wood is abundant year round.  Besides, nothing beats baking on a wood fired oven.  It just feels different and very natural when you cook or bake with wood.  I grew up using wood to cook our food so I know what it's like.

Right now we have been experimenting with sourdough bread and also the sourdough discards we've accumulated while maintaining a sourdough starter.  The reason why we started turning to sourdough is two-fold: one - we found out that regular bread that you buy at the store no matter how the labels claim them to be healthy, is loaded with first of all, an enormous amount of sodium AND preservatives.  And two- sourdough goes through a fermentation process and therefore, is good for your gut health.  But it has to be home made because store-bought sourdough breads are also loaded with sodium and preservatives.  And also the process to make sourdough helps break down the gluten in the flour to make it very easy to digest which is actually good for me since I had a tummy problem myself.  And because we've started to watch our sodium and sugar intake we want to make our own bread and pastries when we get back to the Philippines.

Yesterday I made whole wheat roti out of the sourdough discard and we love it as a wrap or tear it and eat it dipped in olive oil.  Oh it was so good I'm making another batch today.  We've also baked decadent brownies out of the sourdough discard, it was so moist you'll have to lick your fingers :)  I decided to film my sourdough experiment yesterday so you can watch it below.

There's so many you can do with a sourdough and sourdough discard and we continue to experiment while we are still here.  Then when we get to go back to the Philippines we would have enough know-how to do it there.  That's it for now lovely people.  I'm going to try another recipe called "Rosemary and Olive Oil Fougasse" which is a flat bread and apparently is best dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  This one I will use the sourdough starter so I best take it out of the fridge to revive it so I can feed it.

We hope you enjoy today's blog and thank you for following.  May the Lord keeps us all in our comings and goings, for in Him we live and breath.  Until next time.....SHALOM!

CHRONICLES OF OUR PRE-RETIREMENT

 Hello y'all!!  I decided to come back to writing/blogging, which is my original favorite past time.  Good thing too, because starting today, I want to publish for posterity's sake our journey to retirement.  When Mike and I started Midlife Wanderings blogs we were heading to the Philippines to be with my aging mom.  Then we came home to the USA in 2018 after she passed on.  

Back then, JJ was a cute 8-year old boy who captured the hearts of everyone in our place and neighboring towns.  This time JJ will be a 15-year old teenage boy who will definitely tower everyone there.  He will be finishing his 8th grade education here and then next year he will be attending high school in the Philippines and possibly college.

Last year JJ and I were back in the Philippines to fix our house after typhoon Odette.  We accomplished a lot in our 5 months stint there, making improvements to our house, helping others rebuild and strengthening relations with neighbors and families.  I was even able to make it to our mountain property to see the damage to our coconuts that Odette left. 

Mike stayed behind to keep working and sending us money for the rebuilding and improvements.  When it was time to go, I thought it would be years (at least 5-6 years) before I could see my beloved town again so I decided to record one of my favorite places so I could revisit it any time I feel homesick.  I'm sharing it below if you want to see it.

Then when we came home Michael informed me that he plans to retire at 62.  He's not waiting for full retirement age.  He wants to enjoy life earlier than he should which is music to my ears.  My heart leaped with joy!  Yes, he said we are retiring to the Philippines!  Isn't it wonderful?

We are 6 months to retirement - and today is the start of our pre-retirement chronicles which I will update and publish consistently until we leave for the Philippines and then it will be another chapter when that day comes.  

May the Lord bless us all in our daily comings and goings for in Him alone we live and breath.  I hope you join us once again on this journey.  I love you all...SHALOM!