Good morning and welcome back! Today is a very busy day as we wrap up our time in the city and prepare to head back home to Moalboal. We started the morning with a little pool time for Liam. He wasn't exactly thrilled about putting on his swim gear—there were quite a few tears—but once he finally got into the water, he had a great time. It’s those small moments of family time that make the hectic schedule feel worth it.
After checking out of our room and packing the car, we had some serious "adulting" to take care of. Our first stop was DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) to deliver a care package for a young boy whose story we’ve been following. He was severely mistreated by his parents and almost died. While we aren't allowed to give money directly, we brought a big bag of clothes, toys, and diapers for him and his twin sister. Every little bit helps when a child has been through that much trauma, and I’m just glad we could provide some comfort.
Next on the agenda was dealing with a potential land purchase. We had been looking at a plot of land in Ginatilan, but I’ve decided we are definitely not buying it. Good thing we went to a lawyer to check the papers, because it turns out the people trying to sell it didn't even own it in the first place! It could have been a complete disaster. We’re heading up to the mountain house later today to return the documents to Jessa's parents so they can give them back to the "sellers." This man is not getting fooled today!
Before leaving the city, we hit up the malls for some final errands. Jessa did a bit of shopping for Liam’s upcoming birthday, picking up decorations and toys. She bought some incredibly bright, colorful curtains and decorations—I’m more of a gray, black, and white kind of guy, but for a kid’s birthday, I can live with it! We also ran into a small snag: we bought some storage containers but realized the lids were missing after we had already left. That’s 400 pesos down the drain.
On the drive toward Ginatilan, we witnessed what looked like a horrific accident—a car flipped completely over with an ambulance arriving. My heart sank, but as we got closer, we realized it was actually a realistic training exercise for emergency responders. It’s good to see they take training seriously here, given how dangerous the roads can be.
Once we reached Ginatilan, Jessa and I went to get our Pfizer booster shots. After the shots, we grabbed some lunch and then hiked up to the mountain house to drop off those land papers and check on the pig we’re raising for Liam’s birthday feast.
To end the day on a high note, we visited a local "Tivoli" or amusement park we spotted on the way. Jessa made the mistake of promising I could pick two rides for her to go on. Let’s just say she wasn't quite as excited as I was once she saw how high they went!
Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you in the next one!
