I really do understand her more as a mother ever since I became one. As I write this, I am slumped on the floor in one quiet corner of the house just so my 11-month-old gets to nurse and sleep in peace. It isn’t the most comfortable position for me, but it is for him. These days, it’s been a practice to tell myself that I must put his needs before mine, because the season calls for it. It makes the hard sacrifices a little more bearable when you know there is only a window of time provided when kids are extremely needy. Because these things end. One day, my children will want others for compan ..read more

At least for us Filipinos, Lent is the time when offices shut down and the entire nation gets to enjoy at least four straight days of rest. But because this only happens once a year, many also use the time for long vacations, taking off for the beach or nearby destinations. So often, celebrating the true reason for the season—the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus—gets lost. It is because of this that our team decided to create something that will enable our rest-deprived friends to still go away and physically remove themselves from the noise of the city, while bringing their minds and ..read more

The Room The room is rectangular and straightforward. It makes for easy fixing, with windows that give it a daily dose of wonderful sunshine. The Cabinets The house came with cabinets and it took me a while to change the one in the kids’ room because I didn’t want unnecessary expenses. But part of a child’s developmental needs is to help them grow in independence and ownership through their environment, and a cabinet customized to their size is one way to do that. So I eventually bit the bullet and had a new one made with which Philip (and soon, Manu) can easily pull his clothes out and put t ..read more

I had no idea my dad was going to die that day. Yes, he was already critically ill, hence the trip. But he was also improving. There was hope that he could sill last another year and that was what my heart was banking on. After all, his latest apo was only two months old and as I had in the past, I brought to him in one form or another, every milestone of my life. Sadly, this one didn’t make it. And as though a father’s death would not be hard enough, life decided to throw at me a flair of extra drama. I explain in the vlog that I immediately purchased tickets after I learned he was criticall ..read more

It was great timing as we just welcomed the newborn and it would be a good opportunity to also signal a new level of independence for our firstborn, Philip. He was also very excited. He always likes the idea of riding a plane and going to different nations. I do, too, but I just was not prepared enough for the day that he was going to do this without me. For years, I thought of everything for all this boy’s trips. His passport, his birth cert, his visa; the air pressure affecting his ears during take-off and landing, his allergy meds, what he would eat, or play with, or wear; where we would go ..read more

The perfect example is myself. When I was renovating my mom’s home which she was going to lend to me back in my 20’s, I had the kitchen removed. My mother’s wisdom suggested I leave at least a simple frying area by the corner – just in case. Never used it. Or maybe I did. Once. Can’t really remember. Now that’s because I didn’t cook back then and I didn’t like eating very much. But things have changed. If only I had the budget for a major renovation right now, I would no doubt fix our kitchen and make it bigger. So what happened? Well, the family did. Because family. The needs of a household o ..read more

3:00am. I woke up with mild cramps. Three hours later the mucus plug appears in my underpants, and I then knew that it won’t be long before new life is added into this home. SATURDAY Welcome, Team! The first ones to come into our home were my midwife Aileen and her assistant Charmayne, who is a nurse herself. They respectfully stayed on the second floor as I managed through the surges on the third floor. They eventually asked if wanted to check how dilated I was and found out shortly that I was already 6cms open. The rest of the people I had called in for this birth trickled into our home even ..read more

What I remember to have helped me a lot through the drag of long nights and bleary-eyed mornings weren’t even books or Google, but a handful of real people. First, there was a small group of moms whom I personally knew to be also awake around the same hours to serve their own infants. Our WhatsApp group chat was so indeed helpful for my real-time questions. Then, there were a few of those baby gear suppliers who approached me and asked if I would be open to try their products and that was when I met Tiffany, who made me try Baby K’Tan and opened my eyes to the wonderful idea of baby-wearing. I ..read more

I know Konmari’s the craze these days and I will get to it another time. I actually read her book two years ago and even blogged about how it changed my life. Guess what? I actually found my very own Mari Kondo in MNL and while I am so excited to share my vlog about what she’s done for me, let’s reserve that for a later and better time. For now, I simply want to inform fellow homemakers about the wonders of outsourced house cleaners and deep cleaning. It actually started last year when Clean Place PH came over to my home and worked on two floors of our home. I was amazed that their deep cleani ..read more

I find it as an oppressive arena where girls are lined up to be sized up according to the current standard of beauty the world has. Especially in the age of diversity, I find this so glaring and yet so many people continue to support it. However, I must face that I am a minority, and must settle to not kill the joy for those who truly enjoy it. Neither do I judge them, as I do see how entertaining it can be to see a roster of glistened limbs and chiseled abs and thighs strutting on a long runway. But as for me, I do not even look. I just cannot. But then everyone says something about Catriona ..read more