It kind of saddened me that I couldn't be as active here in read.cash. I would think of posting atleast one article a day but unfortunately, my days are always busy. I couldn't even think properly because I get different tasks everyday. Every day it gets busier.

We are in the middle of the year, and birthdays and occasions are on queue for my cakes. I'm not an expert baker but family and friends come to me because I sell my cakes for a cheaper price. I never thought my cakes would be in demand and I was thinking that maybe they wanted it because it's of a lower price compared to others but so far, customers give me good feedbacks. They liked my cakes because it tastes good according to them. The kids are my best customers, I have received feedbacks from parents about my cake and just recently, a co-worker approached me and said she liked my chocolate cupcakes very much. My secret is to make it moist so they can be the most delicious even if there is no frosting on top of it.

Aside from my cakes, there's a lot on my schedule for seminars and gatherings on my work place. I couldn't focus on writing. I have had a few in my drafts but I deleted them since I couldn't finish a single article and the idea just fades over time.

I couldn't even remember when was the last time I submitted an article here. But now that I am alone, I'm taking the chance to share some things that happened to me in the past weeks.

June 23 was the first cake order I had so 3 days prior to that, I have already started baking my cakes. My birthday is on June 27 so I thought of baking some extra for myself. But then there was a sudden message from my sister in-law. She's asking for a number cake for my brother's birthday on July 2. Upon checking, my ingredients were running out and I don't have enough money so I had to cancel my own cake so I could accommodate my sister in-law's order. One thing that really confused me is the costing of my cakes. Due to inflation, it affected me a lot. The price of my cakes couldn't justify my efforts anymore. It's as if I am giving away these cakes almost for free so I decided to increase prices after the last order on July 6.

My customers had paid me in advance which I used to buy the ingredients in bulk. Upon costing, I realized I only get Php 100 ($2) per order. Everything have increased, from gas, electricity and other commodities. I felt like giving up. Good thing some of my customers are giving me extra tips and I get additional orders which are unexpected so I get to use all the new ingredients that I bought. I was able to make a reasonable income from that set of order.

After long weeks of baking, I get long weeks of scheduled appointments at work, too. And appointments in doctors, again.

The worst thing I don't want to happen is bring my children to the doctor and it happened. So my income only went to the doctor's pocket. No matter what I do to protect and prevent my kids from getting sick, they do get sick. I spend my money for them to get good nutrition but at some point this doesn't give the assurance that they won't catch a cold. Kids are fragile, unlike adults that can be treated easily with over the counter medicines. They needed proper prescription. But I am very much thankful that orders kept on coming because my salary is reserved for the bills and other needs. Plus we have existing loans due to previous emergencies.

Little Miracles

I was really out of budget so I had to list down all the important things we need every day. One day, we were at the mall looking for good quality yet affordable badminton racket since I need one for the upcoming sports try outs. My husband took a small skateboard and showed it to our youngest son. Then the kid started asking me to buy it. I really don't have extra but decided to sacrifice my badminton for it. I never spoil my kids with toys or with anything. My kids have asked me so many times that I felt ashamed for always telling them that I don't have budget. I mean it's okay to refuse but today I'm not going to do that. I hope you got my point. So I don't know what's gotten into me but no doubt I bought the skateboard. The calculator in my mind then started computing but nevermind, though.

We went to the hair accessories shop. A few moments later my husband came to me and handed me a 1000 peso bill. He said it was our youngest who found the money on the floor near the cell0phone kiosk. The kid told him "look papa, someone left a money on the floor".

My husband said we surrender it to the lost and found section but I told him that we should wait for the owner to come back to the place where they found it. We waited there but no one came looking for it. We kept it cause I was thinking that if he gave it to the lost and found, I don't think it will go to the exact owner.

We were walking around the mall looking for a person who might own that money. My husband also thinks that we could be subject of a vlog content. We have seen so many videos of pranks and vlogs that contain scenes like this. We never used the money even if we really needed it. We also thought that maybe it was a fake bill since nobody cared to look for it. The next day I went to my co-worker who owns a fake money detector and it was proven legit. Still I kept it even if we almost have nothing in our pockets.

In the evening, I received php 100 commission from my online casino thru gcash. I got tempted to try my luck and in a few spins I won Php 4,000 ($72) in an instant. I immediately transferred ot to my bank and the next day, I spent the winnings on groceries. At the end of the day I thank God for giving me these blessings in disguise.

I don't and never will gamble huge amount of money. And if you're wondering why I joined online casino is because I am a part time agent for extra income. Sometimes when I get very low commission that's the time I would try to roll it on slots. Win or lose. Only the amount I can afford to lose.

In 3 consecutive days, my husband's still asking me if I have seen us being uploaded in Youtube for not returning the money. Lol! 😅

2-3 days went by and here we go again with these health issues. My youngest got sick and I had to buy meds again. My mom wanted him to be sent to the doctor and I thought I can handle the situation. Besides latest prescriptions were kept and I'm just gonna use it as reference since his meds were available over the counter.

I tried home remedies but it seems uncontrollable, I started to worry. Still I composed myself and focused on the home treatment. I borrowed a nebulizer and good thing my cousin was able to keep her son's (same age as mine) vials and she gave it to me. I was releived when the child didn't resist and was peacefully asleep after nebulizing. The next day I called a massage therapist and that gave him more relief. His fever was gone after that.

One week has passed and then here's another fever. My husband has cough and I think I'm gonna get sick, too. This time my budget is really running out. Then suddenly my mind went back to last year when covid happened to us. I became paranoid again that made me really eager to buy meds for all of us. I was so close to crying. But God is good. I remembered the 1000 peso bill we found. I guess, that's the purpose of it. I bought some meds good for 3 days for me and hubby. Then antibiotics for the little boy as he was having fever again. But before giving him the antibiotics, I tried the IgCo milk. The milk is usually given to dengue patients. One sachet is very pricey. I gave him that milk (half a sachet for his age) and in minutes his fever slowly faded.

I did not give him the antibiotics yet cause I tried to observe the effect of the milk. After that one sachet, my kid never had a fever again. Good thing my customers paid in advance for their orders. I was able to buy food and medicine for my loved ones. Now, I am focusing on my cough since husband is getting better as he had completed his medication. Unfortunately, I can't afford to complete mine anymore so I switched to just drinking herbs.

Despite all of this, I still continue to get busy with my cakes. Last order I accepted is for this Saturday and after this, I decided to stop baking for a while. Ingredients' prices are high, gasoline and electricity plus water bills have increased as well. And I don't think I still can sustain to it. 😒