Okay, people in the Land Down Under...let's now say good bye to the Summer WE NEVER HAD (insert sarcasm here).
Autumn officially starts tomorrow, not that I hate Autumn...I just haven't had enough of "Summer" yet---because 60% of the time, I was wearing jackets!!!! Some kind of a Summer, aye? Summer-lamig!
Exactly a month from now, magiging hard-core Wifeski na uli ako 
.
and the countdown begins!!!!!
I've officially change my name here in Australia.
When wives change their names after the wedding, it's tedious. But if you change your name here in Australia, it's doubly tedious.
Here in Australia, they don't use their mother's maiden name--as in they don't. My cuzins who were born here were simply First Name Second Name (if they do have any) Surname (example: Teresa Charmane Malabunga). But in the Philippines, ganito ang name natin: Teresa Charmane Zurbano Malabunga (Zurbano being the mother's maiden name and it will eventually became Z.).
When I got married and applied for a driver's license, the officer was very confused by my name. Yung passport ko kasi read: Avigail Zurbano Malabunga, then there was an amendment by the Philippine Consulate saying that my name has been changed to Avigail Malabunga Sanchez. Akala ng officer my second name was Zurbano at nagtataka sya kung bakit napalitan nang magpakasal ako. So I insisted na maiden name yun ng nanay ko and that after getting married napalitan ng Malabunga because I adopted my husband's surname. When they were creating my license, it read Avigail Zurbano Sanchez...so I said, "No, no, no, that's wrong!" Finally na-gets naman nila kasi pinakita ko yung birth certificate ko certifying that Zurbano is indeed my mother's maiden name. Halos maubusan ako ng English kaka-explain.
So I thought okay na. All my records here has been changed to my new name from the Immigration, bank, and office records.
BUT (the biggest but of all), since I wasn't born AND married here, the change of name HAS to be official...as in registered in the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. Because somewhere down the line, some government agency will still need that certification that in the records of Australian Government, that is your name. If you're married overseas, Australia does not honor the Marriage Certificate from wherever country. And in my case, I need that certification because (1) I will soon be applying for citizenship and (2) I will be travelling. In some government agency pwede ka pang makalusot pero kung maga-apply ka na ng citizenship, you don't have much of a choice--they will ask for that document whether you like it or not.
And another thing, when you change your name here, you have to take out your maiden name. So dito sa Australia, I can't use my maiden name anymore :(
On a nostalgic light, I feel kinda robbed in a way, like a part of me was taken away. But there's nothing I can do, that's the way life is here. I've never had any qualms about changing names, but to take MY name (the one given to me by my dad)--that name that will always connect me with MY parents....parang na-sad ako bigla.
Oh well, that's life. I will always be my parent's baby no matter what name I have.
I got this warak-warak package today....a package I never thought I'd ever see in this lifetime.
It probably got lost somewhere and for some miraculous reason, it still landed down under.
The husband told me he sent this package in January for our anniversary and my birthday.
Just last weekend, I remembered us talking about this package and I told him I'd probably not receive it anymore.
This package really made me laugh today...a great surprise in my craziest week ever.
So what's inside the package? 2 greeting cards--one for our anniversary and another for my birthday--and the calendar he made for the company he's working for in Dubai (it was made by him).
Like every card Husband had given me, he always seemed to choose very funny or creative ones or both!!!
On the envelope of this card, it read:
To Ibyang, My Ex-girlfriend, kasi wife na.
it's soooo cute!!!! the bear really looks like Chris when he smiles hahahaha.
According to him, meant daw na bilhin nya itong card na'to kasi may word daw na Babe hehehe, para daw talaga ito sa birthday ko...kaya siningit nya yung pangalan ko in between "irresistable" and "babe".
At may bago akong pet name: Ibyangski, my Wifeski --sinulat ni Husband sa envelope ng birthday card ko. :) So dapat ba tawagin ko rin syang Husbandski? hehehehe.
*sigh* Late or not, I don't care...I'm grateful these cards arrived just in time to make me laugh and make me feel better now that I'm experiencing one of my "living on the edge" moments (meaning I'm really really busy and there seem to be a lot of loose ends I'm trying to work out at the moment). Napawi talaga ang pagod ko dahil dito sa mga aliw na cards na ito (salamat husband!).
