Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!

To my two readers, hehe.

If you are one of them, you may have noticed I haven't been blogging regularly. As I've written days ago, I'm more active now in Instagram, although my profile is in private.

Anyway, life has been busy the past few days. My baby just celebrated his "half year" birthday

with a really, really yummy cake from Parvati! Its a cross between cheesecake and Brazo de Mercedes, so you can just imagine how sinful it is.

Last weekend, we spent a night with all of Hunter's cousins in his Papa's side. Too bad we weren't able to get hold of all the kids for a photo op but I just can't resist posting his pictures with his Twin Cousin, Tacio.

Lock up your daughters!

So excited for another long weekend. We have so many plans and I promise to post more entries this time!

This photo is just so inspiring for me.

I want this book! Holly Becker is one of my favorite designer bloggers ever. Check out her blog. 

I’ve always been maternal, as my best friend attests.

In retrospect, yes I can say I am. Not just because I know how to take care of babies and kids...

But because I know how to make each child feel special. I think that is the most important thing.

I have two nieces who are only a year apart and I took care of Cheska more than I did of Yanca.
I love all my sisters with all my heart, though admittedly I am much closer to Cheska’s mommy, I make sure my nieces will never feel as if they aren’t loved equally because they are both special in different ways and I will not miss any of that for the world.
 I thoroughly enjoy being an aunt to all of my nieces and nephews.

My girls! Yanca in Orange and Cheska in a flower dress

I guess this stemmed out from how I felt growing up. I never felt as equally, say, cared for when I was younger by my paternal aunts. Maybe because of the age gap, my cousins were much older than I was or maybe because we grew up far from them.

 But I remember feeling as if I was an outsider visiting my aunts while my much older cousins see our same aunts as their parents as well.
I learned early on that one of the worse things you can do to a child is to make him feel you don't care for him because you favor someone else and I'm learning now that one of the worse things you can do to a parent is make her child feel left out. 

I do regret being not being as close to them. I thought when I was younger, preferences in the family is unavoidable. Maybe we weren’t just as loved the same way because they already have their “favorites.”

It is only now that I’m an adult and have a bigger family, I realized, Love doesn’t run out. Our hearts just get bigger.  

I only hope I can teach that to Hunter. I cannot shield him from feeling that way someday from people. There will be times he would feel rejected, or not as loved or accepted but as long as he is true to himself and know that he has a loving family, it is okay.
Yes, baby it is alright.

I like to think that when I became a mom, I became a better person. I’ve always thought I’ll be one of those mama bears who come rushing to their babies each little whimper but I’m not.

That is because I know in my heart he needs someday to face heartaches, rejections and failures to make him the person that he is supposed to be.

You are so loved, Hunter. Remember that. 
We do miss everyone back home, yes home is in Chicago and I'm sure they miss you too, big guy.

Sunday senti

Today I felt like what most parents feel when they see their children go through a milestone in life.

Today I felt that inexplicable pride and joy as if I'm the only parent in the world and my child is the only person who goes through those life-changing moments.

Today I also felt that feeling on the other side of the coin, that feeling that always comes with those exhilarating highs: that sadness, that bittersweet feeling knowing that each milestone is a moment he is becoming more independent, he is becoming his own person, apart from me.

Today I felt what most parents feel during their children's graduations, weddings...






Today, Hunter's first tooth came out. 

*Sigh.

I will definitely miss those gummy, toothless smiles. Though I will never see that gummy smile once again, I look forward to giving him his first solids; witnessing his first steps; watching his eyes light up with his first cookie and more, more firsts in the world. Our world. =)

Oh, how I love you, little guy.

Good morning!

I am so happy to see the sun shining after days of gloom. Rainy seasons now make me a bit nervous.

I used to love it when it rains, but seeing how destructive it can be last 2009 when our house in Kingspoint got flooded, I saw and experienced firsthand how hard it is for other Filipinos who have to endure this every year.
Our house is supposed to be our sanctuary. I watch the news and realize how really resilient we Filipinos are, that I am thankful for.

As for us, we are all cozy and safe in our little place in P8. I was supposed to post photos of some house projects I did but because of what happened, I will move that down for the time being.

Since I'm done with my house projects and will just resume back after the rainy season, I've been busy with my little shop and some new projects that I'm excited to share. =)

I'll be posting more soon after I take nice photos. I've been obsessed lately with Instagram and is more active there than in my blog or other accounts.
Hopefully though, I'll be able to get some decent me time to organize this blog I have been neglecting for weeks.
Stay safe and dry!

I'm on Instagram

Add me up: ysacharmedlife
=)
 I'll post more photos there since this blog is more for verbal diarrhea  lengthy posts.

Charmed Life

I've been writing how busy I am the past few days but its not due to my little jewelry business.
I do miss being really busy all day with my bead works but because of the baby, the house and everything else in between, I can't do as much as before.
 I still accept orders and I have help for bulk order like party favors and weddings but I still have so many plans left on hold for now. :/

I saw this and thought how funny and true.

I'm happy though that I'm almost done with my new little office nook.
Next week, I'll get on with my plans. I feel re-energized. =)

House Updates

I have blogged several weeks ago how I wanted a new cream sofa. Something that's much more apt for our tiny receiving room.
Several weeks later, I have this clean, cream piece.

Its actually a reworked piece from our old sofa set. I had a it scaled to a more appropriate size for our living room, re-stuffed and reupholstered. I requested for a very clean yet plump design that means no buttons, no extra tweakings and details.

This one I love, it looks a bit lumpy on the photo, but its actually very comfy. I had this made initially fro my office area hence the color but decided that it will look better in Hunter's play area. I imagine it will be our Giant cuddle chair for afternoon readings. =)

I hope to be done with Hunter's playroom this weekend.

This one's my favorite. Breathing new life to your old furniture set isn't really as hard.
I don't have a before photo of this coffee table set but the wood used to have that dated cherry brown coloring with floral (yikes!) fabric.
I had it repainted and stained to a brown-black glossy shade, a bit darker than Wengue. I find this shade makes everything look more modern.

I chose a Grey Blue thick fabric to replace the old one. I love it! I think I'll be using this in the afternoons answering emails since its just a few paces away from my office nook.

Hello, Hunter!

I had to stick to classic, clean styles which translates to boring for others but I'm working on an old house with old furniture.
That means working on what we already have. I think the interesting part about these little projects is the fact that we are a young couple, a young family working on a fixer upper, an old house with old things and with a history that I'm a big part of.
I still want to hold on to some elements that made this house my home when I was little and just breathe in a few things that will update everything else.
More updates soon! =)

Hello, August

I'm sorry for the lack of updates.
 I'm trying to be on top of many things right now: a teething 5 and a half-month-old baby coupled with an 80-year-old grandma recuperating from a major surgery while doing projects for a fixer-upper house.

Our house is undergoing some major changes. I am known for being unsentimental in getting rid of things. One of my major stress busters is what I call "therapeutic de-cluttering."
Save for my investment pieces, I don't own anything that's more than three years old. When I buy something, I make sure I give or throw something away. It just makes life so much simpler and easier. When I'm feeling a bit down, de-clutterring makes me feel better all the time.

But unfortunately for me, this is an old house with a history of teenage dramas from my sisters (and I mean you, Tazel) and a semi-hoarder Lady of the house.
Cleaning out things means packing too many photographs and sentimental abubuts from God knows when.
I just found out my sister has kept every little thing from a lifetime ago: ribbons of little trinkets from past crushes to old articles and writings from her h.s. days.
I had to spend a whole day trying to sort out what to throw and what to keep to send her to very new, very shiny abode in Illinois.
My mom on the other hand is a very capable interior decorator who loves to clean all the time but also likes to keep every little thing.
So now, I am tasked to sort everything out and decide what to toss and what to keep and its taking so. much. time.

I only have the weekends to gallivant.
 Last Saturday, we attended the wedding of our friends Albet and Diane.

Since I bring Hunter with me all the time, its flats for me now everyday.

Hunter meeting Zhinny Mikenzie for the first time. What a cutie! Little Z is one of my dearest friend's baby girl.

I think our little guy has a new crush!

Z and Hunter on a date. ;)

Sunday was breakfast at The Pen with Paolo's best buddies. Love these people, I wish we can see them more often.

July was a busy, busy month for me...but a happy, blessed month as well. =)
Cheers for August and to more work and love.

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.