Who needs a work out

These are the bags I carry on a daily basis

Reason why I quit my gym membership.

Enjoy the rest of the week!

Flower girl

Sunday

Still trekking hardware stores and kitchen showroom

What better way to exude femininity

in a masculine setting

but with flowers

Happy Sunday!

The much awaited Friday

w/ Tita Patsy, got my engagement ring from her

Just some photos from an event last night.

Saw lots of friends

Happy long weekend!

Geeky side of me

After Mass went to my son's affair in school
Usual funfare
then met someone who's also a good girl
never smoked, doesn't drink and loves fashion
a geek, like me, in disguise

Another thing which is interesting about people
how it's human nature to judge someone by their looks
When I was younger
In grade school, people would always describe me as intelligent
I think, all my life, that's how my parents described me
When they have friends over, they'll always tell tales of my awards
I had many at such a young age
Hence, I have an air of confidence, sometimes arrogance, if misunderstood
Only intelligence can do that
I don't think beauty does


As I grew into womanhood
Especially, when I got married
My husband would always come home telling me
How this person or that tells him he has a pretty wife
Or that they love how I dress up
And I would always tell him
Hey, I'm so much more than that
Do they know am this, blah, blah, blah


At a recent private party
where all the guests were intellectuals
And I felt like the youngest and only "fashionista"
we got to talking about politics and the state of the country
And how several U.P. people were helping them with ideas
Told them am a U.P. graduate
No one seemed to pay attention to that
I had to blurt out my all time "I'm more than average and I have
something to prove it" line
Oh yeah, I was a topnotcher in Civil Service
Wow, did I impress them!
And yes, I had to say
Hey don't judge me by my exterior


Guess what, got an email from a mayor
asking if they can pick on my brain
the things I say...


Yup, another thing I will venture in
Just hope, my bragging wouldn't disappoint
Wish me luck
or better yet
Wish that town luck!

Happy Friday!

My hang out

Spent hours at Home Depot then the site

as you can see , it's starting to take shape

I, sometimes, just sit there, amidst the noise and dust

Staring, conceptualizing

already thinking which furniture goes where

whether I should put a ceiling fan or not

Days seem to go so fast

that am so happy I get to document this process

I have the chance to enjoy every single minute of it

I get to see something come to fruition

Though we're in a hurry to move

am absorbing every step

learning, listening, observing, learning some more

And though I teach

Am a student through and through

Friday's almost here

Enjoy!

Mrs. W

Yesterday was my first day to teach

I have never been that nervous, EVER, in something I have to do

I've always been confident about anything & everything for as long as I remember

Thanks to my parents esp my dad who always believed in me

I can face the most intelligent, famous, respected, most handsome/beautiful, richest

person in the world and I would know what to say

I never get intimidated

First time yesterday

and I'm not exaggerating

that I actually felt insecure

How will I teach 8 year olds about the most important topic of all?

I volunteered to teach catechism to kids from international schools

Kids, for me, are the hardest audience

How can I impart these values to them knowing

these can help them become better human beings someday

Teaching is indeed one of the hardest jobs in the world

I got to know the kids in so many levels yesterday

And honestly, got to know a side of myself a bit more

The kids couldn't pronounce my name

So one girl asked if it's okay to call me Mrs. W

I like that

I think it's cool

And I think it's sweet

Lots of people call me differently

I would know from which time or place

I know a person by how they pronounce my name

So 10 years from now, when I'm at the grocery store

and I hear someone call out Mrs. W

I would definitely know that that was a student

And I just hope he/she has grown into

an amazing, faithful, good- hearted adult

I sure hope so.

Don't Mock the Muck

Reg Yuson's solo exhibit at Manila Contemporary

w/ 2 geniuses in their fields, Ed CAlma & Reg Yuson

w/ Ed & Reg amidst Reg's impressive art

the muck
photography by Thomas Wenger

w/ my hubby who only goes out with me when it's relating to art never fashion

Saturday afternoon

Whenever I need my good friend, Reg, he's there for me

And he knows I haven't missed an exhibit of his

Well, he joked, I did, 19 years ago

To which I replied

I wasn't born yet, haha

As we had guests with us from Switz

decided to bring them along

don't know if these teenagers understand Reg's art

But it's good exposure to them

What's really great about Reg's work

is how so much thought has been put into it

It amazes me when he explains his concept

that it's really, he thought of that?

Man, he must have a lot of time in his hands, haha

Bumped into Ed Calma , as well

Ed's a co-parent

Always nice to see another genius in his field

If you have time

try to drop by Manila Contemporary

Just hope that the artist is there

to better appreciate & understand

Enjoy the art!

Not everyday is Christmas

This photo depicts how I felt that day
Rough day

Too many challenging people

Though I've forgotten most of why

Had a home massage that night

Told my masseuse

what a rough day it was

I always try to give her good advice

She relieves me of my physical stress anyway

Was just so appropriate what she said

"Not everyday is Christmas"

So true

And though that day kinda felt like Lent

Am back to Easter mode once again.

Happy weekend!

Hard hat kinda girl

top: Bayo, pants: ZARA

You probably had a fill of my construction updates

but such is my life nowadays

Exciting, tiring, it occupies my day

and even when I'm asleep, I sometimes dream about it

It if doesn't hit my subconscious

then am not so into it

Had lunch with my best friend, Cel, yesterday

She's renovating herself

So we're both in the same predicament

I always tell people how i don't get perturbed

with busyness

I enjoy achieving things

I enjoy organizing

I enjoy challenges

What I have low tolerance for

is when people don't try to cooperate

So far, my team has not given me big headaches

just the normal delays

which test my patience

Other than that

All's good

My husband already told me this morning

how he doesn't see any shopping from me

in our credit card bills

I don't have time to go

Am now a hard hat kind of girl

The hardware store is my oasis

Only for now...

Happy Friday!

Random shots

Random shots last weekend.

One thing I always do when I know how busy

I'm going to be

Is make sure

I still look polished

It always gives me the extra oomph

to go through my day

Happy Tuesday!

My Secret Garden

shirtdress from SM bought years ago, belt from Theme HK more than a decade old, necklace : Club Monaco, gift from Cielo Juarez

credit : My Secret Garden title suggested by Rina

With our houseguests asleep til noon

Went to do errands for the house , grocery then meeting at the construction site

You'll be amazed how you spend hours on meetings everyday

and that's not even enough, there are gazillion texts on decisions and updates

There's no time to just be quiet

You can but then there are people waiting for your decisions

Sometimes I just want to have silence

But then again, you appease yourself with knowing you're working for a goal

My thrill for today

No matter how shallow

was getting a laser pointer from my contractor

I love that I don't need to talk to my foreman and say so many times

there, that wall, there, no that one

Now I can just point and we both understand exactly what I'm talking about

Now if only he can get me a robot to answer all the texts from suppliers

and stores

That would be the day!

Houseguests

With everything on my plate

Having houseguests is not exactly easy

specially when they're just a wee bit after the teenage stage

When I have guests, I really prepare and organize

Everything is set up

and preparations before they arrive are made

Here's how I set up the beds and prepare before bedtime

I want them to experience the welcome

Am a stickler for manners

I know these days, people don't understand protocol

but I still feel it's all about respect

and knowing your place

Just one thing I ask if you ever visit

Keep your things tidy

So when you leave

It won't be good riddance but

Hope to have you back again.

Just a thought...

A birthday first!

w/ Isa Palabyab , vote for her as the Philippines' representative for Clean & Clear

w/ my ex-neighbors Anna & Tim Tayag

w/ my future neighbor supposedly but we're moving - Windie & Taka

w/ my neighbor and good friend, Anna Rufino, and cutie Stefano

Anna , birthday boy, and the big boys

Despite the busyness even on weekends

Was so glad to celebrate my cute neighbor's 1st birthday party!

Always nice to see how children grow and witness their personalities unfold

Was there when he was inside his mommy's tummy

visited him at the hospital when he was born

even though their place is just 10 steps away

Though we're both moving

and excited about it

one thing I'll surely miss

is the proximity we have

Our homes are each other's extension

My morning's not complete when I don't see Stefano by the poolside

or hear him

Good thing, we're still moving close to each other

Life is always about change and moving on

On to bigger and better, so we say

It's providential though when friendships last

With this one, I think it's for keeps.

Happy birthday, Stefano!

Looking forward to seeing you grow and explore the world!

So charming

got this from one of my fave sites, desire to inspire

got this for our powder room

One of the things I appreciate in foreign design magazines

is the charm & character that the interiors exude

No offense meant but I feel a lot of the ones shown in Phil interior books look generic

they all have the same kind of furniture

I usually say, when I look at the photos

it's about what they can afford

Rather than how creative, unique and stylish the interior is

I like the interior on top, shows so much character

That pillar in the middle

looking misplaced but actually attractively stands out
I wish more architects, designers

put charm into interiors

not cookie cutter ones

Off to check my fave site and get inspired.

Happy weekend!

Hot and Cold

When the sun was out

In the morning, was raining

cheesy pose

Had a Board Meeting in the morning

then right away proceeded to the construction

Architect was late, so decided to re-sched time

I have low tolerance for tardiness

When I was single and young

I used to be always late

Now, am not always perfectly on time

But I really try

I now realize the value of being on time

Being married to a Swiss and my dad used to get mad if we're late

It's respect for the other person

Respect for an agreement

Respect for one's self to keep your word

Respect for time

It's basic consideration for the other person

Did errands for the house

then home depot

That place used to be huge, in my perspective

but knowing it and going there almost everyday

It's not so intimidating anymore

Funny, how one's perspective changes as one gets to know a place

or oftentimes, a person

Back to the construction

Met with architect and contractor
Am grateful for my contractor's patience and support

Home now blogging, e-mailing

Waiting for my massage

Time to re-charge!

Rubble

So, in between the indelible smell of cement

and rubbles all around

This is my normal life nowadays.

I am living in exciting times

So exciting that my contractor is the last person I text

and the first one I call in the morning

It is now in my every bone

I am 100% hooked!

I guess it boils down to personality

I can never do something mediocre

If I know I can't commit

then I'd rather let go

than do something half-heartedly

Over dinner

Kids were asking me how construction's going

Told them, really good

My 8 year-old asked

How's the dream team

I said, oh yeah, architect said,

am the perfect project manager

Keeps everyone on their toes

Tough in a subtle way

Funny what my 8- year-old replied

Are you sure they're not just saying that?

I go, what for?

Scared they'll get in trouble with you

How perceptive can an 8-year-old be?

Or does he know his mom too well? haha

All in all, was a very good day

Had a meeting with a client in the morning

then proceeded to our own construction

Picked up my son, lunch at Rockwell

Picked up my other son

Rested at home

Meeting at 5

Home by 6 and everything's done

Everyone satisfied

I do live in exciting times.

Night!

Party girl

dress: Banana Republic, belt: ZARA, clutch: Aranaz (given by Anne Gonzalez)

Covered a private event last night.

What I like most about covering the society pages in a premiere magazine

is meeting all these highly intellectual individuals

High profile people who you don't necessarily see in the magazines

but whose names and jobs define the movers and shakers of this country

and some even globally

I love the exchange of ideas

the dreams for this country

and the desire to build a hopeful nation

Went home so high and happy

Told my husband when I got home how I enjoyed that party a lot

Then it's not really work

It's broadening one's horizons

Meeting people

Inspiring goals

Making a difference

I love this job!

Building dreams

top from Hong Kong, shorts: ZARA

location : a congregation's office

The construction is in full swing.

Am so excited!

I think I go there everyday, two times a day!

So far, despite the busy-ness of it all

I'm totally enjoying it

Tired, yes, fulfilling, double yes!!!

I know a lot of people who get so stressed when building a home

Several, even said , it will put a strain on the couple

So far, we've been cool and easy

My architect said we're such good clients

We let him do his work

then we give comments after

I guess because my hubby and I are creative people too

To get the most out of an artist

Let them be!

Tip is to get someone you trust

We trust our architect

He knows what we want

So we don't need to dictate

I have 9 meters of walk-in closet

I heard no complaint whatsoever from my husband

I guess after all these years

He's realized a happy wife makes for a happy husband

Physical stress, yes

Mental, hmm, at times

But nothing matches the excitement

And seeing something grow and unfold

Most people would say building is one of the most stressful times

in one's life

True but also one of the most exciting, creative, team-building, inspiring moments

And if you have your mind on the goal

Everything will be easy

Cause everything's a labor of love

One thing I can just say

Pray every step of the way

Then, build your dream!

Happy weekend!

Memories

dress:Zimmermann, shoes: Charles & Keith, clutch: Aranaz

Covered an event last night at CCP.

Opted not to watch after as I have seen CATS more than a decade ago in Broadway.

Just quickly updating the blog.

Have tons to do and have tons already done.

Happy Friday!