TOPAZ HORIZON

True.

And then there's him:



I never want to close my eyes, darling boy. I just want to drink you in as I pray that God never closes my eyes and make me miss the wonder that is you.

The plate is full, that's for sure. I am happily busy. It's my magazine's deadline week. There's a lot more happening at work but I won't discuss anymore. I'm just glad I'm really enjoying work!

Lovely lunch with Kat of Kat Dy Finds

I've also been seeing friends almost every day. It's been lovely, having mini dates with women I admire and miss. I've been feeling out of sorts this past month, and being with friends and feeling their encouragement... Well, I feel much, much better now!

On the blog front, well, obviously I haven't been blogging here. Well, I had a contest to run over at Topaz Mommy and that kept me occupied. I've been getting a lot of requests to sponsor a giveaway of their products on my mommy blog and I usually say yes (I have to like, love, believe in the product! And I have to be convinced that the promo will help my blog) but it really isn't easy to do a giveaway. For example, checking the entries alone takes time. Plus, the raffle, then the coordinating with the winners, then the sending of the prizes. It's not a joke. I don't have an assistant.

I do have a maid/yaya. I pay her more than the usual rate because I like to keep my help happy. Well, I wish the help felt the same way about me. Last night, after I sent Vito off to sleep, I got up very carefully from the bed so as to not disturb my slumbering toddler and then have dinner. No dinner. Maid was already locked in her room. So I set the table, fix dinner, and she comes out of her room sleepily, annoyed at the (very minimal) noise. She asked if Vito was finally asleep. I said yes as I set out plates and utensils. She said, "Okay. Good night!" Then tonight, as I was telling her to prepare dinner, she tells me that she has to go out and meet someone and that she'll be back by 10. Then she left, without even saying good-bye. She just got back now, at 11. And don't get me started on the daily annoyances. I pay this woman to do what again?

Oh well. No rest for the weary. But I can't complain. I'm very grateful. I have a little boy asleep in this same room and a wonderful man writing in the other room, rooms in a house filled with lovely things and love. I'm a very lucky girl!

Halloo, halloo! Been incredibly busy this week! Magazine deadlines, meeting old friends, restarting an online sideline biz, enjoying the entries to my Topaz Mommy book giveaway (join now!), and all that on top of being wife and mommy!

I also updated my dormant beauty blog with an event I attended recently, the double launch of Pond's Age Miracle Cell ReGEN and Flawless White with GenActiv. Here's what I wore:

Tint dress, shu uemura makeup bag used as evening bag, tiangge and Vita Fede bangles, suede peeptoes from eBay

And this is what happened. See you again here soon!

Elaine, Kabbie and Paola have been raving about the Goody Spin Pins for weeks now but I couldn't bring myself to get a pair because I have the thinnest, finest hair in the world and one regular-sized pin sticks out of the bun. So no point, right? The three girls gave one solution: the Goody Spin Pin Mini!

The coin is just so you know how small the pins are.

I hardly ever put my hair up in a bun, though. So I found another use for the minis--make my hair all soft and wavy!

A kit comes with 3 pins but since my hair's so thin, I usually just need to part my hair into two ponies, twirl into buns and secure. One pin each!
I wait for about 15-30 minutes for the curls to set (this is when I usually apply makeup and dress up) then I unspool the pins and voila! Casual curls that float around my face. Happiness! Perfect for relaxed weekends like today.

Outfit details: Gingersnaps T-shirt maternity dress, my favorite plastic earrings from the tiangge and Get Happy charm bracelet

I usually spray on Kiehl's Stylist Series Super Thick Volumizer first then end with Matrix hairspray after. If I want body, I use thermal curlers from Watsons. If I really want sexy waves, I bring out the curling iron!
This hair tutorial (naks!) was shot at Midas Hotel last week, by the way. I was there as a guest of Pond's. More about that event in the next post!

The first ever photo of Vince and me! We didn't know each other yet when this was shot. Yes, it's destiny!

I surprised my Valentine this morning. Left little gifts on his desk and waited for him to wake up. When he did, I hid in our bedroom as he ambled sleepily to his study. Then--aha!--he made a (very satisfactory to me) delighted, surprised sound and then we kissed and hugged and the world is a place filled with love and happiness!

How was your Valentine's Day?

If you're expecting a baby or a new mommy, I have a Valentine's Day surprise for you, too! Head on over to Topaz Mommy for the details!

Happy Monday, everyone! Here's a pregnant fashion post to start the week.

On Friday, I'll be on the 27th week of my pregnancy with wee Wiggle. That means I'll be 7 months along, which means in a few weeks, I'll be cradling a little baby again! Vince and I are so impatient and excited. Vito, not so much.

The pregnancy is going along extremely well, which is a relief and a joy considering how awful and tenuous it had seemed for the first 4 months. That's why I wasn't as open about this pregnancy as I had been when I was pregnant with Vito. But now we're entering the third trimester and it's all excitement and anticipation from hereon.

And fashion! I've posted a few photos recently of my pregnant self. Here's more of my preggy body in the glorious 6th month!

SM Dept Store dress, Kenneth Cole suede and satin heels

Gingersnaps dress, Anthology tweed flats, Kate Spade tote

Gingersnaps dress, Longchamp clutch, handmade multimedia necklace, Anthology tweed flats

This belly bump is waaaaay bigger than my Vito bump. I was this big at 8 months' preggo back then! Now, at only 6 months, I'm huge. I can't imagine my 9th month. Scary!

I'll post more pregnant fashion photos soon! Meanwhile, have a lovely and stylish week, my dearest readers!

In my Letter from the Editor, I dared my readers to do something new this year:

Open in a new tab to enlarge.

To be very honest, I wrote that letter as a dare to myself, too. And now that it's out there, I'm feeling very fragile and scared and stressed out!

I feel a change coming. I've been feeling it since 2009 actually, and it was perhaps brought about by my pregnancy. You can read all about it here, but I'll post an excerpt anyway:

There's still that ambitious part of me that's screaming in my head in absolute fury. I know opportunities like this don't come traipsing along every day, and I'll just have to live with this decision for the rest of my life. But now that it's done, my agony is over, my insomnia is cured, my world is again at peace.

Whatever the future holds, I only know that what I choose will always be the one that, in the words of that timeless song, will need all the love I can give, every day of my life for as long as I live.

Well, just reading the comments section of that two-year-old post made me realize that my pregnancy had nothing to do with it after all!

Anyway, I do know that I am still enjoying my magazine gig. I have so many plans this year and if you've been following the magazine, you'd see its transformation. It really is getting better and better with each new issue and I am very excited about the stuff my team and I have planned this year for our loyal readers.

You all also know I dipped my toes in entrepreneurship last year. The bag business is closed now but I took away some pretty good realizations there and I will do it again! It was very hard work, made me cry and freak out and stress many times, but I am convinced I can and will do better next time!

I also have big plans for my blogs. It's no secret that I earn from my blogs and 2011 was very good to me. My readership has gone up. Brands and PR companies have been wooing me. So many opportunities have come up! But I have had to turn down a lot of those opportunities because it will present a conflict with my job or because it will take me away from my family.

Yes, my lovely, wonderful, amazing family. I never would have thought this but I am really such a mother. I am also a committed wife. There's absolutely nothing I enjoy more than basking in the devotion of my husband and son. But because of the many many many things on my plate, I haven't really been fully immersed in my roles as mother and wife. And I feel like I'm giving so much to the things that make my life fun and not to the ones who make it worthwhile. I talk about my sadness about that over at Topaz Mommy.

So a change is coming. I can feel it thrumming in my veins. Right now, I still don't know if the change means my life will get crazier or maybe it will become quieter. My life will either get bigger or smaller. Both options are so very real, I can taste them. I'm very scared. But I'm also very excited!

I live in a condo and my bedroom wall is right against the bedroom wall of the neighboring unit. We used to have a very passionate couple as our neighbors and, boy, they made love really noisily. I didn't have to press my ear on the wall behind my bedroom door. We can hear them from our bed from across the room! I used to tell Vince, "Dammit, let's do it and drown them out!"

Well, they moved out some time ago and so, last week, I found a new thing to do with that blank wall: It will be where I keep my necklaces!

Vince doesn't like hammering nails (that's why he bought power tools) so...

... this was a true labor of love.

Tada! So neat and pretty!

I have a lot of necklaces but I never get to use them much because they're all bunched up in a messy bowl. Really terrible. So I edited my collection and decided that I will only keep a dozen. Yes, just 12 pieces! If I want a new necklace, I'll have to get rid of an old one. The simple solution above really helps!

Thank you so much, Vince! I super love you for organizing my life!

P.S. Ok, I found other necklaces buried in my closet this weekend and I couldn't part with them so now I have 2 necklaces per hook! So... just 24 pieces! No more than 24! (Wish me luck!)

You've all seen my lovely escritoire from Prizmic & Brill:

This photo is from the Real Living magazine feature a few years back. Many things have changed in our home--lots of new stuff!--but this writing desk will be mine till I'm old and gray. It's such a lovely piece. And it was Vince's Christmas gift to me in 2008. One of the best gifts he's ever given me!

Here is my now super messy desk with another (even more) amazing gift from Vince:

That little boy is always grabbing stuff from my desk! So my desk is messier than ever since I have to keep piling papers and things higher and farther from his reach. Which then makes it harder to work since my laptop is buried under so much stuff that I get lazy to do anything!

But you'll only see a teeny bit of it since I'm using TwitPic (follow me for instant outfit updates!).

In the previous post, I used another TwitPic of a Tango dress I wore last week. Followers asked where I got the sexy dress. From Tango! There's a branch in Glorietta, beside VNC (that's the only branch I know) and another one in Megamall Bldg B (but I dunno where it is exactly). Go shop na there!

Now, the Tango dress I'm wearing here is an electric pleated coral caftan with a deep plunging V-neckline. Whenever I wear this, everyone loves me! Like, they want to touch me. It's so... weird! My husband is especially enamored. I have to fight him off! Haha!

When I Tweeted this photo, they didn't notice the dress so much. Everybody asked about the necklace. It's turquoise. It's gorgeous. And it's fabulously cheap! Just P900 from Kultura at Megamall. You guys really ought to check out that place. It's full of really great accessories, bags, home stuff, delicacies--ya know, local stuff! Super fabulous items. I can never leave that huge store without a big bag of new things.

So there. Now you know where I go buy my things. The best thing about Tango and Kultura? They're Proudly Pinoy! Actually, almost all my stuff is local. Gingersnaps, Karimadon, Anthology, Janilyn, Fino, K&Company... I do shop at Zara and Mango sometimes but I mostly patronize Pinoy brands. Really amazing products we Filipinos have!

Okay, okay, past few posts have been too heavy. Didn't I promise I ain't ever gonna do that?!

(Actually, I might still have a few serious posts coming. I'm kinda feeling serious lately!)

So anyway, let's get shallow again. And what could be more shallow than an outfit post? Here's what I wore recently:

That is one huge baby bump. And I'm only 6 months pregnant! I don't want to imagine what I'd look like 3 months from now.

Oh, that's a Tango dress. Tango is my best-kept shopping secret! That little shop is filled with racks upon racks of dresses that are so nice, comfy and inexpensive. I think this dress is only P1,200. I always buy 2 or 3 dresses when I'm there. And now you know my secret and now I'm going to regret this!

Anyway, sorry if I haven't been blogging. Been a bit sad so I've taken refuge over at Twitter where 140 characters forces me to focus my thoughts on more cheerful things. So I've been Tweeting outfit pics and happy stuff lately. Follow me!

Last week, I got an email from a reader asking me for advice. Now I said I don't like giving advice but she was sincere and sad and desperate so I believe I had to say something. Here's what she asked (I edited it a bit):

Dear Ms. Frances,
My boyfriend and I have been together for five happy years. He said his New Year's resolution is to marry me. I'm very afraid of marriage because my father cheated on my mother constantly. How can I tell if my boyfriend, when he's my husband, won't cheat on me? You said you were also afraid of marriage but you never said why. How did you finally agree to marriage? How do you know Sir Vince will be faithful or that you yourself won't ever cheat on him?

Dear Fearful of the Unfaithful,

First of all, I think your guy is awfully cute. I've never heard of a New Year's resolution like that! The problem with his resolution, however, is it all depends on you and you happen to be resolute in remaining unmarried.

I think that it's unfair of you to keep him waiting, considering that you have, as you yourself described, five happy years as proof this guy loves you and you alone. But I am familiar with this fear of marriage so I won't condemn you.

The past is a powerful thing. So witnessing your father's infidelity and your mother's suffering can leave a horrible scar. Maybe it hasn't even healed. And now it's a wound that continues to hurt you... and your man. Look, your boyfriend is not your father and you are not your mother. Not all men are scumbags and not all women take shit. So don't let someone else's past affect your future!

I was afraid of marriage because, like you, I saw my mother suffer. My father never really took care of her--he didn't put that roof over her head, didn't provide for her and her children. But my mother never left him because she believed, as I do, that marriage is till death. Besides, he was the one man who made her laugh. However, she kept telling me, up to the last time we talked, that if she were to live her life all over again, she would never have gotten married. That's why I was deathly afraid of marriage. So you and I may have different reasons, but it led to the same results.

How did I finally agree to marry Vince? Well, I loved him. Still do. I believe I always will. Still, it seemed love wasn't enough of a reason to take that plunge. What made me finally marry him was my realization that life will never be perfect but, with Vince, it's going to be pretty darn close!

Still, it haunts us, my indecision. One time, I told Vince that that famous line from When Harry Met Sally made me cry: "When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." Vince replied, "Then why did you wait so long?"

That hit me in the gut. Why did I wait so long when I knew from the start he was The One? Because I was afraid, and fear, as a wise old Jedi once said, is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering. And you, my dear sad frightened girl, are now suffering. You're afraid of the past. You're afraid of the future.

How can you tell a guy won't ever cheat on you? Well, you can't. It takes faith to marry. Faith, as the Bible says so eloquently, is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). So in marriage, all you have going for you is hope--hope that he'll be true to you always, hope that you'll honor your vows, hope that your love will last forever. And hope, as Stephen King's Shawshank Redemption defines, is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.

Aside from that wonderful word "happy," you didn't describe your relationship a lot but I think what you and your man have is a good thing. Don't let that good thing die. I think you know that, too. And I think you know exactly what to do.

So say the style rules. But pregnancy, in its usual exasperating way, changed the rules yet again.

I looked like a stuffed sausage in black...

Zara shirt, Gingersnaps leggings, Anthology flats, Kate Spade bag, Vita Fede gold-studded leather bangle, plastic earrings from tiangge

... but I looked really cute in stripes!

Zara tee, Gingersnaps shorts, Anthology tweed flats. Longchamp clutch, Vita Fede gold-studded leather bangle, pearl necklace

Weird.

Will post more pregnant pics soon!

I was born in 1976, which makes me a Fire Dragon. I'm not Chinese but every time I tell a Chinese person that I'm a Fire Dragon, they get really impressed, and I haven't even told them all my other accomplishments yet! Seems to me that, to them, to be born a Dragon is a huge accomplishment in itself. Then when they find out that I'm giving birth in the year of the Water Dragon to a male child no less, my Chinese friends get all wild and happy and envious and full of wonder. They think I'm the luckiest woman alive!

Well, I don't believe in astrology but I won't say no to good fortune. And if a huge number of people think I'm incredibly lucky and powerful and blessed, then so be it! After all, my life does seem to be pretty fantastic. Whether or not that was destined, I am grateful.

Anyway, to usher in the year of the most powerful astrological sign, many companies have some awesome stuff lined up. They have deluged my inbox with press kits and, only because I'm a Dragon and 2012 is supposed to be my year, I'd like to share with you some of the more interesting stuff I got!

The Dragon is believed to be the mightiest member of the Chinese astrology animal pack. The Dragon year is said to always be a lucky year because of the fierce energy it brings to everyone. Well, considering how terrible last year was (Japan earthquake and tsunami, political upheavals, Sendong), I say we need all the powerful and positive energy we can get this 2012!

Sun Life Financial (that's my family's insurance provider!) is celebrating the Dragon year with a truly terrific party! The morning of January 24 will witness a thousand-foot dragon dancing at the heart of the Chinese community in Binondo. It will parade through to Manila City Hall then Jones Bridge then end its dance spectacularly at Plaza Lorenzo. Why a dragon that's 1,000 feet long? Sun Life says it represents the "long and steady years that w ehave been of service to the Filipino and Chinese communities."

In the afternoon of the same day, the party continues in Bonifacio Global City. There will be performances by drumbeaters and zip and poi dancers. Plus, there will also be a special show called the "Fung Show," the highlight being a talk on improving your wealth, health and prosperity in the mighty year of the Dragon.

Bloggers who have those huge cameras (get an Olympus Pen, dammit! No, seriously, you don't need those mega-cameras in this day and age. Sa totoo lang talaga, hindi porke malaki camera mo, maganda na ang pictures mo) will definitely enjoy the chance to capture this colorful event. Families, too! Yes, everyone's invited! So if you're free on January 24, head on over to Binondo and BGC and enjoy the activities Sun Life lined up for you!

I wrote that title myself since the press release had a rather prosaic one: "Chinese New Year 2012 - The Year of the Dragon." Parang mas masaya yung sa akin!

Anyway, Alfred Dunhill himself designed these lovely little pieces. Intricately carved in solid sterling and hand finished (and you know I'm a sucker for anything handmade), the collection consists of cuff links, key fobs and ties.

Exquisite key chain

Good luck charm for your phones

An incredible gift to your impeccably dressed man. Or for yourself, if you like dressing up in crisp button-down shirts!

Press kit ends with "The Dragon sign is associated with bravery, honesty, pride and self-sufficiency. Dragons are irrepressible free spirits and enjoy grand gestures and ambitions." Sounds an awful lot like me! If you know a Dragon (ahem! ahem!), drop by Dunhill (Rustan's Makati, Newport Mall, Rustan's Tower) and get him/her a trinket.

I'd like the key chain please. Thanks!

There will be tons of celebrations next week and if anyone wants to invite me and my two Tigers (Vince and Vito were both born on Tiger years) to a party, drop me a comment below! I already know what gifts to bring the host and hostess and they'll be from Marks & Spencer.

I appreciate the very Britishness of Marks & Spencer so I think it's kinda cute that they prepared special treats (like gold coins, toffees and mints) for a Chinese holiday.

Hmm. Okay, so they're still nowhere near Chinese (not even close!) but, hey, who says no to sweet treats? Oh, you guys on a diet. Seriously, even on a happy holiday? Ditch the diet this long weekend! If you really can't, Marks & Spencer has some digestive biscuits. I actually like those a lot!

So there! Enjoy the long weekend with festivities, trinkets and treats! Happy New Year, everyone!

Except that it might have to be a king since Vince, Vito and I all tumble into one bed and the little big boy takes up too much space (seriously, how can someone so tiny take up so much space?!). Now another baby boy is on his way and we'll need a new bed.

Last month, I was finally able to visit Ronac Art Center. I know everyone raves about it so I was a tad disappointed that I didn't see any art. I was kinda expecting it to be a museum or a gallery, not a mini mall. Oh well. I still liked the place, especially when I discovered the Uratex beds!

I actually was in the premises for an event but the event was running suuuuuper late because some celebrities must've gotten the memo that the affair starts at 6 instead of 4pm, the time the rest of us were told. At least that's the excuse I always give these celebs. Anyway, I wandered about while waiting and as soon as I saw rows of mattresses, I did this:

Kicked off my heels!

Lay on the beds!

The Uratex memory foam pillows are better than Muji's. And much cheaper!

I tried out all the mattresses! I lay on them, rolled around, bounced. I sure gave Goldilocks a run for her money. I liked the Perfect Serenity mattress best--it's the perfect balance of firm and soft. Some of the mattresses were like sinking into clouds, which is a good thing for some but for me it felt like I was being suffocated. Some of the mattresses were very firm but that's because they're orthopedic. Perfect Serenity was just right.

The best part is the mattresses are not expensive at all! The Perfect Serenity queen is a mere P15,000. I'd have bought it then and there except I remembered I have a husband who must be consulted on purchases above... hmmm. I actually really don't ask Vince for permission to shop because he spoils me like that but I figured that since he'll be sharing the bed I wanted to buy, he had to have a say!

And this is what he had to say: "Let's wait."

The reason is we had just bought a major piece of furniture (I won't say what it is!) so he advised me from buying yet another one, even if the bed doesn't cost as much as the aforementioned major piece of furniture. Good idea. So we'll wait. But Perfect Serenity mattress, I'm coming for you soon!

My phone fell twice in the toilet last year so it's been dying on me. I've been asking people on Facebook what phone to get for months now. I always get very passionate answers on why I should get the phone they think I should get. I noticed that people in the creative fields (arts, publishing, etc) said, "iPhone!" and the rest of the world said, "BlackBerry!" Since I'm a magazine editor and a writer, the answer is obvious but I still hemmed and hawed.

Before I could decide on it, my office decided for me and gave me a BlackBerry. I think it was ready for pick up by November. But I only remembered to claim it last week. That's almost 2 months of forgetting I have a new phone. And now it's been an entire week since I got the phone. Finally, the Third World Nerd took it out of the box and charged the battery a few hours ago. I still haven't touched it.

It's not that I'm tech-challenged. Part of the reason is I'm really not a phone person. I have two phones--for my Globe (personal line that I've had since 2003) and for my Sun (free from my work). People who know me or work with me get exasperated with me because I seldom answer phone calls, I rarely reply to text messages and I always misplace my phones. For the entire month of November, I forgot to charge my Globe phone. Then I forgot where I kept it for the whole of December until Vince found it under a pile of papers last week.

My phones are almost always on silent so when I misplace them (which is often because my toddler plays with them!), I never could find the damn things. And I never feel the need to look for my phones when they're missing. And when they run out of battery power, I forget to charge them. On weekdays, I almost always ignore my phone after 6pm. On weekends, my phones are forgotten.

But now I have a new BlackBerry. And I am not excited to use it because everyone tells me, "You'll LOVE it! You'll be so ADDICTED to it! You CAN'T LIVE without it!" That enthusiasm makes me very apprehensive. And now I'll confess why.

Late last year, I became addicted to Twitter and Facebook. To my horror, I found that I spend 2-3 hours just refreshing for updates, replying, commenting, sharing, RTing. That's 2-3 hours every single day. That's 2-3 hours a day that I could've spent reading a book, reading the magazines (a year's subscription to Vanity Fair, Glamour and Allure!) my husband bought for me as a birthday gift, writing, blogging, cooking healthy meals, putting on lotion, deep conditioning my hair, doing my own mani-pedi, seeing friends, sleeping. Sleeping! I could use those extra 2-3 hours of sleep every day dammit! But no. I spend those precious hours on the social networks.


It would've been okay if I earned money from all the Tweeting and Facebooking. But I don't. If you noticed, I don't blog that often anymore. Blame my addiction to social networking. Blogging makes me money and I've neglected it just because I'm stalking people (really, that's what social networks are for). I have to stop. Obviously. I'm not disciplined enough and it's controlling my life.

So just as I resolved to wean myself from Tweets and FB updates, the BlackBerry arrives and everyone says I can now Tweet, update my FB, check my email anywhere and everywhere. "Isn't that so great?!" they trill. That's like giving a recovering alcoholic a free pass to a fully stocked bar.

I'm in trouble.

Yes, folks, I'm still alive! Happy New Year! Happy 2012! Happy everything!

I'm just drowning in work, motherhood and house management (new yaya!), hence the absence of updates. But I will be back soonest. I have tons of stuff to share and give away!

Meanwhile, I update regularly on Twitter and on Facebook. See you there!

I have a sinking feeling that my New Year's resolutions are the same every year (see here and here). And this is when I look in the mirror and say, "You disappoint me, Frances." Well, here's a progress report:


The Good

• I am eating healthier (because I got pregnant, breastfed and am pregnant again).
• I'm going to the doctor a lot for health check-ups (but that's because I'm pregnant and, honestly, I'm sick of seeing hospitals and doctors!) and the good news is I'm very healthy. 
• I've worn red lipstick (it really does wake up the face!). 

The Bad

• I was exercising but then my second pregnancy became delicate so I had to quit so now I'm all flabby again. 
• With a baby and another on the way, sleep has become a thing of the past.
• I'm still not drinking enough water.
• I'm still pimply! My skin had actually cleared up, but then I got pregnant and the hormones are wreaking havoc on my poor face.

The Never Mind

• I don't have to eat fruits. I already eat tons of veggies anyway!
• I've resolved that some relationships are toxic and that it's better for me (and them) to just step back and not be involved. Especially now that I'm a mother and have very limited time to spend with anyone who doesn't deserve my time.

So now it's 2012 and I have a (kinda) new list of things to do:

1. Drink more water!
2. Exercise as soon as I hit my 6th month of pregnancy and then six weeks after I give birth. Not because I want to lose weight (it's never about the weight), but because I want to be strong and healthy for my children.
3. Let this be the year my skin clears up!!!
4. Use the lovely things I get for free (like luxury skin creams, eye-lash growth products, creamy lotions, etc) and try to go to the derma and salon more regularly so that I'd look even better! I'm already 35, with a growing family and career. I can't let myself go! 
5. Spend more time with the people I truly care about and who care about me. I actually do--I'm very proud of that!--but I want to spend even more time with them. I don't know how I'm going to do that with all the things on my plate but I will!
6. Go into business again. I tried this year and failed because of unreliable people (more on this soon). I have learned a lot and I will do better! But I'll do this after I give birth.
7. Grow the blogs. Bigger and better this 2012!

... weren't my usual fabulousness, but that's because it's Christmas! I'm a better gift giver for birthdays, weddings and housewarmings because those are personal occasions but Christmas is just, well, it's a LOT of gifts to buy! So Vince and I give tokens instead, little somethings, ya know, a "Hey, we thought of you!" thing. Here are some of the stuff we gave to family and friends:

hardbound books from Fully Booked and candy from Candy Corner

science kits from Toy Kingdom and beauty/grooming sets from Bench

And the gifts I always give on Christmas: Body Shop Christmas collections!

Just cute little things, right? Now that I'm a mommy, I find that I just can't spend too much time away from my son. So we brought him along to the shops, which wasn't a good idea since Vito's a little devil, sweeping things off shelves and begging and whining for all the brightly colored things that fascinate a little boy. And since I'm pregnant, I'm not fast enough to stop him! So we did all our shopping from three shops. And that already felt like too many shops!

Anyway, this year, I didn't do any gift wrapping. With no household help, I just didn't have the time. So I figured I'd just put them all in brown bags and give them like so. After all, aren't brown paper packages tied up with string a few of our favorite things?

I think I'll do this again next year. It's simple and cheap!

I used to be a fantastic giftwrapper kinda girl--I'd do artsy folds, tie ribbons, add mistletoe and glitter. The works! Last year, I had the utterly insane idea of recycling magazine pages. Yes, it's a good green idea but I just had to take it up a notch and customize. For example, if the gift was a toy car, I looked for ads of cars and used those. If the gift was nail polish, I used nail polish ads, beauty product-beauty pages, book-book review section, food-recipe section, etc. I did not realize how hard it was to actually look for the perfect pages to match the gift! I am never doing that again!

I'll talk more about the holidays soon. This was a lovely season for my little family--even after we had a big scare right before Christmas Eve--and I want to tell you all about it. My Facebook page followers have a bit of an idea; I'll talk more about it here this week. Plus, I want to share my blessings! I've been preparing a blog giveaway but haven't gotten around to doing it because, well, you all know my reason: I have no household help! So stay tuned, folks!

From our home to yours, we wish you all the love, joy, peace and prosperity in the world!

There are gifts under my pink tree!

It's a week before Christmas and my Twitter and Facebook feeds are all screaming about the horrible traffic jams and crowded malls. I'm glad that we didn't need to go out and shop since last month, we had already bought toys for the kids, gift sets for friends and neighbors, and little cutesy stuff for co-workers and forgotten relatives (haha).

Oh wait. I forgot that I went to Megamall a few days ago because I still don't have gifts for my nieces. They had asked for new clothes and this has left me stumped. For one thing, I hated getting clothes when I was young (even now actually). The clothes gifted to me are usually not my size and not my style.

Well, I asked my nieces what their dress sizes are and even then, at the mall with my sister, I was paralyzed. What do teen girls wear these days anyway? I was looking around the girls at the mall and was just horrified. They're either in the most unimaginative clothes or they're dressed indecently.

So my sister suggested we shop with the girls. Seemed like a good idea until I remembered the time I shopped with my niece for her prom dress. One dress, one pair of shoes--6 hours. I guess you'd say that's not so bad but regular readers know I hate shopping at the mall. The longest I'd spend at a mall is 2 hours, and half of that time is spent eating. So the 6 hours spent looking through racks upon racks of gowns was torture. (SM Dept Store truly has everything, by the way, from size 0 chiffon gowns and cheap plus size cocktail dresses to tacky nightmares and intricately beaded works of art!)

But, Y, if you're reading this, I want you to know the torture you put me through was worth it since you looked absolutely perfect in your lavender gown and silver strappy heels. And the cherry on top is you ended up as Prom Queen! But... I will not go through that again! So can I just give you gift certificates so you can shop for yourself?

I may abhor shopping but Vito makes going to the mall fun!

Hmm. Do you think gift certificates are a no-no gift? Some people say it's a lazy gift. Well, I love GCs! I love cash gifts, too! But in this case, I truly honestly have no idea what kind of clothes my nieces want and where to buy them. Where does one buy stylish clothes for girls 10 to 16 years old anyway? The ones I've seen so far either bore me to tears or shock me. I saw an adorable dress for a 10- to 12-year-old girl, for example, but when I took it from the rack, it was backless. Backless!

So I have a week to buy my nieces new clothes. Or just give them shopping money on Christmas. If you were a teenage girl, which would you prefer?



Not done with your shopping? Check out Unarosa's Top 10 Fashion Finds!

Haven't been able to update because, well, you all know the household help abandoned us last week and, boy, it's been tough to juggle caring for the baby, the house and the job! But you know what? It can be done! The past few days have been incredibly exhausting but super incredible, too. I'll talk more about that over at Topaz Mommy but I will say that I am lucky to have the job I have because my hours are flexible and I get to bring Vito to the office!

Tonight was the office Christmas party, by the way. I wasn't able to go because of my yaya-less situation. I feel a bit bummed--very slightly--because the Christmas parties of the company I work for are insane. Being a media company, we're populated by highly creative, very expressive, super fun lunatics. Some people are decked out in lingerie, some wear costumes like cheerleader outfits, nurses uniforms and all incarnations of Johnny Depp's movie characters. Some guys have attended as women, some women have attended as... well, let's just say their mothers wouldn't have approved! All in all, our parties are fun to attend if only to see what crazy outfits people come up with.

But I haven't gone to an office party since 2009. That year I was suffering intense nausea and fatigue as I was in my first trimester of pregnancy. Last year, I didn't go either because I was a new mom and was just overwhelmed and tired. This year, well, I had no one to leave Vito with (I'd have to bring Vince because no way am I going to a party without a car, not with the hellish traffic we've been suffering this season!).

Am I sad to not have gone? Well, a part of me wanted to see all the craziness again (it has been a while!) but a bigger part of me just wanted to cuddle the baby. It's not sourgraping. It's just being a mommy, I guess. I get a lot of crazy from my 16-month-old child all day anyway!

And it isn't because of my pregnancy. It's because I employed maids since August 2010, Vito's birth month. And the no-housework life has proved to be my body's undoing!

I haven't lived with a maid since I was 13 years old. So that's 20 years of doing everything myself. Even though I say I'm a cluttery person, that's really just in comparison to my ever-so-neat husband. I'm actually pretty clean! So the most difficult thing about parenthood for Vince and me so far had been the fact that we had to hire help. Mahirap makisama, right? Especially if you know how Vince and I are--we're not the sort who make pakisama, but for the past one year and three months, that's what we've been doing.

And now that's over and done with! The yaya and maid left abruptly last Friday. The yaya's eldest daughter abandoned her three kids last week and so yaya had to go home. Since she had no idea how and when that mess would be fixed, she resigned. The maid, who is yaya's niece, has a jealous husband and when he found out that the yaya won't be with the maid anymore, he ordered her to resign as well. So there!

(I'm digressing!)

So this weekend, Vince and I did all the chores--cooking, cleaning, washing up, the laundry--on top of taking care of the baby. Boy, are we tired! But I was surprised when I was doing the laundry and my arms started to hurt by the third article of clothing. The third! How flabby and weak I'd gotten! I used to do full loads of laundry, rinse and rinse again, hang dry, fold and iron, and no muscle ever complained! Well, my back muscles usually, from bending over and over the washing machine, but I'm used to household chores. Rather, I used to be. Now my whole body is screaming in pain!

So I guess I know now what my secret to being slim all these years is--housework! Twenty years of tidying up, scrubbing toilets, doing the laundry, ironing, running to the supermarket, cooking, dusting, polishing have helped keep me trim. And when I stopped doing the chores, my body got fat and flabby fast. I guess this means I better get off my ass then! It will be harder with a toddler and a baby on the way (on top of a career and blogging!) but I can do this!

Even when we do hire help again, I really have to stop depending on the maids. I just don't want this screaming-flabby-muscles thing to happen again. It's alarming actually. So until the new maids arrive, I'll get busy strengthening my body.

Meanwhile, I have a secret weapon: Vince! He's beyond fabulous when it comes to tidying up. There are huge benefits to having a husband who can't stand dirt and disarray and whose favorite thing to do is clean up! I sure am a lucky girl!