Weekend in Midas

Our past four weekends had been jam-packed so Pao decided to book an overnight in Midas Hotel so we can meet everyone we're supposed to meet with and have at least an overnight break from all the shenanigans.

Spa and Dinner date with my best friend.

Hunter's Uncle John's Despedida family dinner.

Our little family's quiet breakfast

My big boy! 

Who are you? Where's my baby?!

Hello

To my two loyal readers, I'm sorry for the lack of updates. Life has been very hectic the past few days. =/

I'm taking care of my lola right now after her successful surgery. We had been in the hospital for quite sometime. Thank God for my ever reliable cousin Vanessa, who stepped up and took charge with Nanay's care for two whole weeks in the hospital. I'm just thankful though that all four of us are nurses so it's not hard to understand what must be done and the changes with her care and medication.

I am amazed by my three cousins devotion to our lola. That's pure love right there.

I knew from the start that July will be a really busy month. I must admit right now that I'm having a hard time juggling everything. House organizations and repairs are going very slowly because of the rainy season and I'm just antsy to get it done and over with.
I'll post photos of my July so far. I'm also excited to post photos of my latest mini-makeovers and DIYs around the house.
In the meantime, I just want to share this fun pieces I made for a client. I love kitschy pieces like these because I always end up making one for myself as well! =)

Papa's magic

 Since we got back, we have been asked many times about the cost of giving birth in the States.

I understand the curiosity since we are both based here but decided to give birth in the States without any medical insurance. So I just decided to write about our personal experience.

I wouldn't write here the exact figure because it is a case to case basis but the costs of giving birth give or take can be researched online depending on the State. 
The price for us wasn't bundled into one package but we were billed for every procedure and check-up since we were paying out of pocket. 

We were ready with the cost of giving birth. It was the prenatal care that got us way off track in our budget.  Aside from the series of check-ups for the baseline data, we underwent a number of ultrasound and non-stress tests because 1. I transferred care late in my pregnancy (27 weeks) 2.They found out Hunter’s cousin was born with HLHS, a rare heart condition and 3. Hunter was small for his gestational age and wasn’t gaining much weight during the last weeks. 

Our Prenatal care alone costs as much or even more than giving birth twice here in a good hospital.  That made us a bit nervous. :/ 
That is why its safe to always add an extra 20% to any budget for unexpected costs. 

I had a normal delivery so the cost is significantly lower than a CS delivery. The cost of the epidural is what takes up a lot of the bill aside from the PF.  I was asking for epidural the minute I stepped foot in the hospital.

So this means martyr moms (I salute you!) who will opt to forego epidural can save much more.

The good thing about paying out of pocket for a medical bill in the States is you get discounts especially if you pay in cash.

Wherever you opt to give birth, you just need to research well and be ready (as much as possible) for whatever comes/happens.

We were advised more than enough to just go to the hospital “when the baby is ready to come out.” But that wasn’t even an option for us.  We were sure about going for prenatal care because it is very, very important.

We decided to do this and that means doing everything right.

More importantly even though my whole family is based in the States and Pao has some relatives too, we planned on giving birth by ourselves and not disrupt other people’s schedule and lives as much as possible since we figured this was our decision so we better be prepared for it.

Overall, it was the best experience of my life so far. I realized while writing this that Pao and I had been so hands-on with Hunter even from the beginning. We did everything by ourselves with my family on our side.

And Yes, it was all worth it. =)

I dream of creams

I woke up early today because Paolo left for Cebu. He will be there for two days for one of his major projects. I will be tackling some projects of my own while left to my own devices. =))

As I have blogged days before, I'm busy with some home improvement projects and next is the small sitting area downstairs.
And lately, I have been conjuring up images of streamlined yet plump creaminess.

I really want to  need to lighten up the area downstairs. We'll see, we'll see.

Work Mode on

What a great way to start July!
I got a nice email from Kim of KK&Co. letting me know that my line is doing well in Cali.

So to my friends and Clients in the States, you can avail Charmed Life by Ysa Yason at KK&Co.
I'll be coming up with more designs and items exclusively for KK&Co. =)

Twin Cousins

I used to like the idea of having twin boys; wreaking havoc, running around doing icky yet adorable things only little boys do.
This is the closest to having that!

Hunter and his cousin Tacio. They were born  only 2 days apart. Yesterday, Tacio visited us for their first playdate.

I can tell they really like each other and will be good friends. They just started blabbering and smiling when they saw each other. How cute!

Tacio's mommy and Hunter's papa are twins too! =)))

*Sigh, babies are so cute! I wish they are like this for a little bit longer...

Monday Musings

When friends talk badly about other friends, the gossip usually comes around and back to the person you talked about …especially when you move in the same circle.

She who gossips to you will gossip about you.