Inspirations

The past few months, I've been in a creative rut.

Every month is spent meeting deadlines, orders and shop inventory. Unlike years before when I can spend days and days of making my own designs and experimenting with new techniques, most of my orders now are very particular. I have to meet a certain theme, or motif for giveaways and resellers. I keep doing more mainstream designs for a shop inside a mall. :/

I've been needing some inspiration and wanted to read a few books unrelated to what I do. After all, a clear mind is a hub for creativity.
I have a habit of buying books then not finishing them. Unlike back in college when I can devour three books in a week, I think the last time I finished a book was more than 6 months ago.
I didn't even know that I have books that are still sealed!

For now, I will be starting on some fun, short, not-so-serious reads...

I'm really enjoying the 30 Things! Love it!

Then off to these after. 

*****

I started this blog to update my whole family in the States how I'm doing here but since Instagram, Hunter and putting up shops and everything in between; I haven't been very good with updates and regular posting. I will do my best to be back on track. 

After all, these are the good old days I would like to look back on. 

Leaving Home, Going Home

So we are finally back in Manila after half a year of being with my family in the States. Hunter and I are still adjusting with the time and are usually awake early in the morning.

We arrived four days ago, just the two of us. Flying halfway around the world with a toddler was surprisingly easier than I expected. Hunter couldn't have been more behaved. No meltdowns and tantrums. He was the most behaved little person in the plane and his mama couldn't be more proud.

This was his "worse" behaviour during the flight---a few whimpers when his favorite Thomas video won't play. =)

Too much Ipad time is bad for little kids, but when at the airport--do what you gotta do! =D

Good thing that my little guy was at his best behaviour because I was barely holding myself up leaving my family again. I hate goodbyes. We are not good with them.

Holding my sister's hand while being driven to the airport

The last 6 months had been the best stay in Chicago I've had. Although I always say the same thing every time I go home to my family. It's just so reassuring to know theres a group of people in the world who always have my back. It's like one big requirement in life is ticked off the list, I can do anything.

 I was able to recharge, regroup and just basically map out what I need to do. Turning 30 was also cathartic for me. I'm motivated again and more importantly, optimistic. I can't wait to see how the next few days will unfold. So many exciting things ahead. 

See you again, Chicago. You are home.

Hello again, Manila. I missed you. I'm ready! Let's do this!

Hunter seeing his papa after half a year. ❤ We missed you

Hunter is 2!

 Just a dozen posts ago was my entry about Hunter's first birthday. I can't believe we just celebrated his second one last Sunday!

We really planned on celebrating his second birthday here in Chicago with family since I didn't have anyone from my family last year except my sister who flew in to celebrate with us.
This year though we didn't have Paolo with us since he had to fly back in Manila right after the holidays. Something's always gotta give when you are far from family.

Since I'm on a work hiatus, the Type A in me got a little carried away preparing for Hunter's party. It was 80% handmade and homemade. I did all the decorations: the pompoms, pinwheels, paper letters and paper flowers.

Mason jars always give a nice vintage touch to any occasion. Will be selling soon in my shop!

Mini Candy bar was just an assorted of our favourite treats for the little ones. 

I also cooked the Prosciutto Pasta, Bruschetta, Bacon wrapped in Asparagus, Waldorf Salad and Chocolate-dipped strawberries. I made a mock-tail of Citrus, Pineapple juice with Rose Grenadine. The rest are generously given by family.

I love Ree Drummond's blog The Pioneer Woman. I get most of my cooking inspiration from her recipes. =)

 Bruschetta is topped with an assorted of Salami slices or Prosciutto with basil and my favourite Brie, I also added a thin slice of apple and a dollop of honey that really works well with the tanginess of the cheese.

That's what I loved about celebrating here, everything can be DIY since its easier to look for the right materials. Doing much of the work without Pao and my house help were relatively easy. But then I also have the most gracious and generous hosts, the Lorenzos who made everything so much easier.

Seeing Hunter enjoy his party is all worth it. He is beginning to realize the importance of birthdays. 

And I am becoming more and more into this mommy business. =D Sometimes we think we do these things for our children, but the thing is we do these for ourselves too. 

There's a different kind of joy seeing my little boy happy not because of expensive toys but the pompom wands that I made. But then they are almost always happier playing with plain boxes and thingamabobs than toys anyway. But still.

Goofing around with his other mommy, Mama Vi.

He loved seeing our guests sing him a happy birthday! The look on his face  was priceless. We had to sing "Happy Birthday" numerous times!

Enjoying his new ride

Birthday cards from the little "Ate's"

              "Banderitas" and cupcakes by his Mama Zel

Celebrating with Auntie Michelle

All the details have something to do with family and I love it! Its so personal and special which is what birthdays are all about. =)

My birthday wish for you is to be always healthy, safe and happy. 

And that you will always have that sweet smile in life. I love you so much.

Motherhood and Holidays

I’ve always been conscious about not turning my blog into a “tutorial” of some sorts. I will feel embarrassed to do so. Sure, I can share some items that I’m loving, a few recipes here and there but not a “how-to-do-this” blog, especially about motherhood. Never that.

The reason for this is because I am also learning and I will be forever learning. I’ve read something when I was pregnant about that mommy guilt that automatically gets built-in, the moment you give birth and I couldn’t agree more. No matter how hard we try, at the end of the day we always ask ourselves: are we doing it right? Are we giving enough?

I’ve been feeling this way, the past few days months. This year has been a really busy year for my business and although I am so thankful for all the blessings, there’s always this small voice at the back of my head nudging reminding me that I am a wife and mom first. No matter how far we’ve come as women, doing everything, being everything, I guess there will always be that “mommy guilt” when you get too busy and juggle everything and justify that’s its all for your children.

Heh. Anyway, I’ve been reading so many articles about how different it is raising a boy. Hunter is now at that age when his personality is really emerging and he is now a big ball of energy bouncing all over the place.  I’m trying my best to keep up. I know there is no right formula about parenting but it won’t hurt to read as much as we can and just apply whatever works for us.

From all the articles I’ve been reading girls generally follow rules easier, stay put longer and focus on school and excel academically. Sometimes the challenge is not to fall into the trap of comparing our son to the girls in his class/group. Everyone develops at their own pace—and it all evens out in the end.

Personally, I am happy that I have a boy as my first child. Growing up with three sisters, I know how girls develop and mature earlier than boys. I like to think that him being the first child automatically makes him more responsible because he is in-charge. He will have that “first-child” personality.

“You may think you’ve birthed a baby boy, but you just gave the world another man.”

Anyway, my body clock is all messed up right now. I have less than two weeks to finish my big projects and all Christmas orders as well as finalizing all the details of the new store. After all this hoopla, I will slow down and enjoy the rest of the holidays. I promise.

Speaking of holidays. Yes, we celebrated Thanksgiving. I cooked everything! I’m proud to report that this mommy guilt does have its advantages if you wield it properly. After days of being so busy with projects and such, I was able to whip up Pumpkin Soup, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy from scratch together with Roasted Chicken and Apple pie. Nothing too fancy.

It may sound pretentious, celebrating Thanksgiving in the Philippines, I know. But I just want Hunter to grow up being aware about the basics even though he lives here. And really, we don’t need any holiday to be thankful everyday for all the blessings.

Our Charmed Life these days...

I can’t believe I have written only less than 30 entries this year in my blog.

The thing is, I have never worked this hard in my life than the last few months. Since I opened my shop, I have been running around so much I didn’t have time to log in my little cyber home. I missed it.

November 6 was supposed to be the grand opening of my shop in a new location, but because of the recent fire that happened in the east wing of Robinsons Galleria, we had to close shop for the next few weeks.

I was thinking of doing a blog about my new store as my “blogging comeback.” I was really excited about this new store. It’s not a lot bigger than the old one but there will be more display shelves for more options.

I still have to clean my display racks and jewelry holder due to the smoke from the fire that stained most of our furniture and displays. *Sigh.

For the holiday season we scheduled a weekly meet-up at a hotel near Paolo’s office to meet up with clients and resellers.

Makeshift shop. Do what you gotta do.

Holiday season is exhausting enough as it is, hauling stuff every week to a new location on top of meeting deadlines is just so physically draining. I can't wait to have a vacation.

I'm not complaining though. I love what I do, I think part of why I really push myself all the time is because of that love. I don't do it because I have to but because I want to.

I also do it all for this little guy here.

He makes it all worth it. 

Jewelry and Cosmetics and Everything In Between.

One of the things I had been busy with the past few weeks was scouting for an additional collection or products that I will be carrying in our shop and all the trade shows. As I have blogged before, I sort of went into the cosmetics direction since I love makeup. I've been toying with the idea of trying out something new but still something fun and something I know and more importantly, love.

One thing I was sure of was carry a local brand. The brand Beauty Cosmetics is perfect. The owner, Rosenn who is just a terrific entrepreneur knows her products really well. I'm just so glad we are their first physical store.

Speaking of our shop, I have been hot and cold for years regarding dabbling with real, precious jewelry. Aside from it being such a big investment, I still wanted to keep the personal element of our service which is customizing designs.

 This opportunity came in a few weeks back just days before Mothers' day which is so fitting with the kind of jewelry we will be coming out, You'll understand once we announce them and I'm excited! Hopefully, will be able to next week.

I know, I know it seems like I have no life aside from running my little business and still being a housewife. Jewelry and cosmetics sound so glam and fun but of course, I still wade through the creative and technical side of the business. Although I must admit, loving what I do so much makes it feel just like playing sometimes.

On the topic of playing, Hunter is now a busy, very active toddler and I'm proud to say I'm still hands-on and yaya-less.

I'm posting this at six in the morning while the boys are still sleeping and the house is still quiet. I guess I should take the opportunity to get a morning cup before my little stinker wakes up. =) Looking forward to a great Sunday and Fathers' day!  Happy Fathers' day to my Papa! =*

Hello...again.

Life has been very busy the past few weeks. Last month, I turned 29, my last year in my twenties. Somehow I suddenly felt an urgency to get my stuff together and finally do the things I have been putting off.

One of my goals is to open a shop before I turned 30. Now that I finally have crossed that off my list, we are off to the other ones we have been procrastinating with for the last 4 years. Paolo and I also celebrated our 10th anniversary last month. So you can say last May was one of the most eventful months of my life.

We were finally able to squeeze in some R and R last weekend. Its a no-brainer, of course. Where else? Tagaytay.

We were able to book a room the last minute. I'm so happy that Hunter is such a laid-back baby. He doesn't need a lot of fuss. As long as he knows we're near, he's all good. I guess all those months of not caving in and getting a full-time nanny, we were able to find that groove we are all happy with. I am much more comfortable that way, surprisingly.

Hunter's all good in his nook with his favorite Little Einsteins.

Tagaytay of course means food galore. We were only able to take photos of the salad and pizza at Buon Giorno at The Cliffhouse. We were only too excited to finish them off. :/

Foie Gras Insalata

Prosciutto Pizza

Hunter thinks his foot is yummier.

It was Hunter's first time to swim! =)

We have a jam-packed schedule. Exciting times ahead means more stuff to post about although that also means less time to do exactly that. =/

I'll try harder though. I really missed writing here. I hope all of my three readers have missed me too. Hehe.