Corregidor Island

Last Saturday we spent an exhausting and fun day on Corregidor Island. For those of you not well versed in World War II history, this is a small island at the mouth of Manila Bay that was a heavy combat zone. At one point the US had over 8000 troops on this small island. When the Japanese attack was imminent, the Filipino government leaders relocated here. General McArthur eventually was ordered to leave, but left with the historic words "I Shall Return". He did return and recaptured the island.

The tour was enjoyable and informative, though a bit rushed. Our tour guide was punctual to a fault. We enjoyed seeing the different monuments, museums, lighthouses, ruins and history of the island. The boys mostly just enjoyed the guns.

It felt like one of the warmest days of the year, or maybe just being outside all day made it feel that way. We started with an hour boat ride to get there.


Happy to be on the boat - the kid in the middle is Jake, our neighbor, who was inseparable from Jeffrey and Laird.


This island featured a lot of restored guns.


Lucy finds a shoulder to sleep on while I am sweating profusely. This is taken on our bus that took us around the island.


Guns, guns and more guns. There were also ruins of old barracks (which were exceedingly long) and houses (where the officers lived), but the kids were focused in on the guns.


The "Eternal Flame" monument.


View of Manila from the boat as we headed back.

Laird turns 4

With his new fire station lego set.

The latest backyard accessory.

The castle cake, celebrated with the Allens and Tom

Easter Egg Hunt

Rock Stars

On a slow-starting Saturday morning, the boys decided to showcase their guitar performances for me:

Jeffrey

Laird

Lucy

Sunday Twitter

I did sign up for twitter, but I cannot imagine a more annoying website to follow. Facebook is bad enough. But twitter is a good idea. Today I would like to translate it to blog form so you can see (if you care at all) what an average (ok - slightly busy) Sunday looks like for me (Pete):

6:15: Laird appears by my bed, waving. I'm happy he slept in as long as he did.

6:40: I read stories to Laird and Jeffrey while Sheralie gets breakfast ready.

7:00: Breakfast - usually cereal on Sunday, but we had it yesterday on our rush out the door. So today we had hard boiled eggs and toast.

7:30: Check email, work on my remarks since I will be the third (and concluding) speaker at church.

8:30: Fall asleep on my couch. Hey, if I am going to be denied a Sunday afternoon nap I am going to make room for a Sunday morning one.

9:45: Tinker around on the computer - checking the score the Rockets Saturday night game going on at the time, grab a snack (crackers) from the kitchen

11:00: Shower, get dressed

12:00: Wake Laird up from his nap, carry him downstairs. He hates waking up from naps.

12:10: Lunch - leftovers, I have sloppy joe sandwiches and carrots.

12:20: Wake Lucy up - she is actually already wide awake but not making any noise. Change her diaper.

12:30: Out the door to church. Murderously hot. It is the warmest part of the year here.

12:45: Arrive at church. Chapel is mercifully over-air conditioned.

1:40: Give concluding remarks/talk in sacrament meeting.

2:10: Organize and conduct opening for Sunday School.

2:15: Wrestle and entertain Lucy for the next two hours. She throws my cell phone about 10 times.

4:10: Send the rest of the family home with my neighbors so I can drive to another building for another meeting they just announced during church today.

4:30: Missed the turn-off to the stake center. I think I can get there using the back streets.

4:40: A key back street is not letting through traffic. I am rerouted through a street that should have been labeled an alley. The passage is so narrow that my rear view mirror hits people doors, and people have to scoot their chairs back to make room for my van.

4:50: Finally arrive at church, extremely dehydrated. Unfortunately, unlike at US Mormon churches, there are no drinking fountains. And the kitchen water doesn't usually work and I wouldn't trust it if did work. So I go in search of a canteen (called Sari-sari stores).

4:58: Find a store, rehydrate with Mountain Dew. Whew. Take a bicycle cab with side car back to the church.

5:05: Volunteer to conduct the music. The Stake President asks my name. I say: "Broadbent". He doesn't hear it correctly and responds with "Brad Pitt"? Everyone laughs.

5:40: Sweating like a mule. This church does not have air conditioning. The fans are all going, but it is still awfully hot.

6:45: Meeting ends, I find a main street to go home on. I'm tired of navigating the side streets and in the dark it is pure folly.

7:10: Arrive home - Jeffrey is still awake. Jeffrey announces with excitement: "We had ice cream!"

7:15: Starving man eats dinner. Chicken with BBQ sauce over noodles with Grandma's rolls. And ice cream of course. Delish.

7:30: Discuss schedule for the week with Sheralie.

8:30: Finish my book on Roman Catholic exorcisms. I've read better.

8:45: Read blogs of various relations and friends. Post comments so that they will feel better about themselves.

9:00: Start working on this post.

Wow I'm glad I don't twitter on a regular basis. That's a lot of work. Anyway, that's my day. I have skipped posting a few events that I will hopefully post some pictures for soon.

Coming attractions: Easter! Obligatory egg hunt included. Laird turns 4! And a trip to Corregidor Island - a WW2 site with enough guns to keep the boys happy all day.

The Jeepney Game

Something the children and I enjoy in the car is a game we call "the Jeepney Game." While on the road, we see typically see hundreds of Jeepneys . . . so we look for our favorite. Some are old and rusty, some new with a fancy painted design, but all are very colorful (sometimes rather garish).

Most Jeepneys have a name. The names range from the slightly normal, "Cheska" (Jessica) or "Genypher" to the religious "King of Kings" or "El Diablo." I am not sure who came up with naming cars, but the Filipino people have latched onto the idea and many city buses have a name too (my favorite: Cher).

A good third of Jeepneys display some kind of religious text on the back, as you can see above. My favorite is a bit of a prayer "God will make a way." I suppose in heavy traffic many drivers are praying to find a way through!