Somewhere Between Dreams & Reality

 Being in my mid-thirties, I look at my life now and realize that the life I have now is very close to the life I had imagined when I was young. There may be some slight differences, but yeah, I'm living the life I used to dream about.

With social media being such a huge part of our lives now, I often see old classmates and acquaintances and find myself wondering: are they living the life they once imagined for themselves?

I don’t know about you, but society has definitely shaped a certain picture in my mind of what life is “supposed” to look like — finish college, get a job, get married, have kids. But did we all really dream of that same life?

Maybe some people knew from a young age that they never wanted to get married or have children. Maybe others want kids but not marriage, or marriage without kids. My brother, for example, has always known he doesn’t want children.

I know people around my age who got married and are now separated, and somehow it affects me more than it probably should. Maybe it’s the empath in me, but no one enters a marriage expecting it to end.

On the other hand, many people on my feed are still single, and maybe not all of them even have the freedom to move out of their parents’ home. Some may not be able to afford it, while others are held back by the toxic Filipino tradition of staying, even when it no longer serves them.

Sometimes I wonder if we’re truly living the lives we wanted, or simply the lives we were taught to want.

Thankfully, even though I may seem “career-less” in the eyes of others, and even though being a full-time mom challenges me mentally and physically every single day, I can honestly and sincerely say that I am happy. This is the life I once imagined for myself.

I imagined having a husband who is caring, generous, understanding, and sweet — and I have him. I imagined having children who would fight over my love and attention — and I have them. I imagined myself cooking and cleaning for my family, creating a home filled with love. And although I never imagined it would be this tiring, I really am happy.

Hey, just the fact that I married my high school crush despite the obstacles is a dream.

My life now revolves around my little family.  And while there are days when I feel lost and miss having time for myself, my love for them will always be greater. I will gladly offer my days to them — to care for them, guide them, and be present as they grow. I will enjoy every season of watching them become who they are meant to be, until the time comes when they can finally stand on their own feet.

Prewedding Shoot

I don't want to sound defensive, but I want to explain why we ended up having this type of photo shoot just because I know that to some people, it's a bit "grand".

To start off, we didn't pay much for this shoot. Had we rented a condo unit (which I had intended when I thought renting out a yacht would be too expensive), or a public place, we would probably end up paying the same. We had a pretty good deal from a friend so we decided to push through with it! Lucky, I know! 

Years ago when we just started dating, Rab said, "when we get married someday, I'd like to have our prenuptial shoot at a yacht because it's somehow aligned to my line of work, and I also dream of having one someday. If ever I don't get to own one, I'd have those photos to look at when I'm old." It was nice to hear that from him at that stage because at least I knew I wouldn't be wasting time and emotions for him; and he was thinking about marrying me. Anyway, months before I actually had the courage to ask my friend, I was looking at different yachts for rent and they were all too expensive. I already told Rab that I think we had to go to plan b which is to rent a condo unit. As mentioned above, well, we went with the original plan.

We're not really morning people therefore we really hate waking up early. It wasn't necessarily hard to pick a date, but it wasn't easy either. I had to make sure everyone would be available: the makeup artist (a good friend), hairstylist, photo & video team, the yacht, stylist (a best friend), my dad or our driver (to drive the PV team), and of course, the groom to be. We woke up really early that day since we had to travel from Manila to Subic and start at 12NN to get good shots.

When we started, both me and Rab were very awkward because we're not really used to being subjects for a shoot! Especially me! I'm used to being the one behind the camera. But the Digital Elements team was so good we somehow didn't get lost doing poses. BIG THANKS to our HMUA as well for making us feel confident about ourselves and of course our stylist for making us look fab! Another big big big thanks to my dad who drove the team. 

I didn't think it would be that tiring but oh my gosh. There was a part of the shoot where we had to lie down and close our eyes as the PV team was doing the drone shots. I fell asleep! Lol! At the end of the day, I knew that it was a success and I WILL NOT HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY. I love that we didn't go for plan b, and I love that we have these fab photos to look at for the rest of our lives.

Special thanks to:

Digital Elements

Makeup by Iya Gueco

Hair by Renzo Lusterio

Styling by Nikki Sapo

Here are some of the great photos:

Of course I had to include my dad!

2019 Highlights

Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm all about our wedding. But answer this, if you were in my shoes, wouldn't you be?

#tinadhanakayrab

There are a lot of things that will run through your head during your preps. 99% of them don't really matter. People often forget what matters most. I'm glad I'm a last minute girl and that I didn't really focus on the glitz and glam of the wedding. (Don't get me wrong, I know our ceremony and reception looks glamorous.) I've received a lot of compliments during the wedding - our ceiling was beautiful, the principal tables were glamorous, yada yada yada.

My Harry Potter Engagement ⌁☍

December 28, 2018

Purple Owl, Tagaytay City
No, I didn't have any idea.
Yes, I was surprised up to my very core.
My inner goddess was screaming and jumping the whole time.

Blogworthy & Travel: Boracay 2013

View from our villa

I was going through my photos and I saw my 2013 Boracay photos. I checked my past entries and was surprised I didn't post a single entry for this trip. Call me weird, or whatever you want, but I really want to (still) blog about this because our stay here deserves a post... two years after.

✰ This post is going to include LOTS of photos ✰

My family and I are Shangri-La fans mainly because they have the best service ever. There are other 5-Star hotels in the Metro and in places like Boracay, but in our hearts and minds, we are sure that nothing will ever beat their service.

1. Arrival at Caticlan Airport ✦ Shangri-La Lounge

As we arrived at the airport, there were already people from Shangri-La waiting for us and they assisted us with our luggage - we didn't have to pick them up. They asked us to tell them which were ours and they would do all the job. I had to mention this because the expressions of their personnel didn't show any hesitation with all the help they give. They always talk to you in smiles unlike other personnel who makes you feel that they're just doing their job. These people have the "happy to serve you" face all the time.

I was pretty delighted to find out about the lounge. If I remember it correctly, there were three lounges: Shangri-La, Discovery Suites and the general lounge. Obviously, it was air conditioned, they had nice and soft couches, super friendly staff (as usual), and they served juice. We only stayed at the lounge because we were waiting for the speedboat that would take us to Boracay. The waiting wasn't really that long; I know because I didn't finish my juice and I am a sucker for Calamansi Juice.

2. Speedboat to Boracay

In my other Boracay entry, I posted there a photo of the boat we rode. Of course, this would be far better since there's actually no cheap room in the hotel so they just better give you a good ride.

My brother would usually get seasick, but this short ride from the airport to Boracay didn't make him feel dizzy or anything. Personally, I liked the white - it kept the simple yet sophisticated look. The seats were very comfortable, I must add. 

3. Villa 8 ✦ Villa Kanluran

Welcome to Villa 8 ✦ Living Room / Receiving Area

This is my favorite (smoking) spot. Wouldn't you enjoy this view?

4. Rooms

Master's Bedroom & Bathroom

Master's Walk-In Closet + Display & the other bedroom and bathroom

I'm telling you - they aren't just photogenic. It would even more appropriate if I say that it looks even better in person. The ventilation and temperature were perfect. The pillows, bed, towels - they were all soft and smelled really good.

...but these photos do not give justice yet. Here's my favorite part of the Master's Bedroom:

Paradise at your doorstep

Yes, that's right. When you leave the curtains on the side, you have a view of the ocean and the sky. Isn't it AMAZING?! It has access to the back part of the villa. I was slightly disappointed to know that my mom didn't know that it was a door, not a full window. Nevertheless, she enjoyed her view before sleeping and waking up.

The villa included two butlers (yes, butler): One during the day and one during the night. If you're seated on the porch and you want water, juice, or anything you like, you can just call or text him and he would bring you what you requested. And yes, it came with a cell phone. That's where the butler's number is (well, duh).

5. Restaurants: Vintana Cafe & Sirena

Vintana Cafe

So these are the only photos I have of the restaurant. We had lunch here after checking in. I remember ordering my all-time favorite, Adobo. My brother had Steak, and forgot what my parents ordered. Regardless, we all know Shangri-La restaurants serve good food.

This is also where the breakfast buffet is held.

Sirena

From their website:

Perched on a cliff top above crystal-blue waters, Sirena, the resort's signature seafood restaurant, provides a casual, carefree dining experience.

Sirena serves culinary creations fresh from the market and a wonderful selection of wines from around the world.

Food was great, as usual. It's the experience I wanna talk about. Never in my life did I imagine that I'd get to have dinner by a cliff. Spending this quality time with your family is another thing.

Exemplary Service:

My brother was whining about his eye being itchy, and the waiter who was serving us noticed and asked what the problem was. When my brother told him about his eye, he excused himself and came back with an eye drop, and told him to keep it. Again, this is with no hesitation and was done with his lips smiling from ear to ear. Well, let me reiterate - we didn't request for an eye drop. 

Random words:

I was browsing through tumblr when I saw this photo:

I feel overwhelmingly blessed to have experienced this while it's on most people's bucket list. I need not to explain, but this photo, that spot, is exactly where we were seated (as seen on photo above). When I saw this on my feed, I immediately thought, "hey, this looks familiar". 

Given these, can you just imagine how I'm pretty pissed with myself for not blogging about this earlier? 

and YES, we had our own pool. 

MORE PHOTOS: