Getting Back To My Routine
I have to admit that I sort of went on a hiatus when it comes to my exercise routine. But it’s not as bad as it used to be. It’s only for a couple of weeks compare to before which lasted months, or worse. a year. But I’m back now. Actually, I’ve been back since the end of July. I took my Insanity Fit Test last Monday and let’s just say I was so happy with my results. It’s my best fit test results since I became serious in working out again back in February. Talking to myself like I’m my own trainer probably helped a lot. I was practically yelling at myself, haha. It worked so I’ll keep yelling at myself until I am satisfied that I can fit my booty in a pair of dereon jeans that’s on sale for less than $20. I hope it’s still on sale by the time it happens. It shouldn’t be long now.
My Pinay Advantage
Even though some people mistake me for a Mexican all the time, especially here in North Carolina which really makes me laugh sometimes, I really am a Filipina. I’ve gotten so used to situations where someone suddenly starts talking to me in Spanish thinking I could speak the language. I could understand it after a few minutes of running it through my head coz some of the words are actually similar to the Filipino language. I don’t blame them though for thinking I’m Mexican because I do have Spanish blood in me. Totally different lineages but similar in some ways. Anyhoooo, I was talking to a Filipina friend a few weeks ago coz I saw some pictures of her and I was so impressed of how young she looks. I think she’s nearing 50 but when I saw a recent picture of her, she looks like she’s in her late 20’s. She’s gorgeous. Then I remember the time I turned 29 when we were still living in NY. My friend there was surprised when she heard my age. In astonishment she said, “really?? wow, good for you.” I’ve deduced that maybe she thought I was only 25, in more ways than one, hehehe.
I mentioned to that friend I was talking to a few weeks ago that there is just something about Filipinas who never really look their age. We’re like the classic examples of the adage, “age is just a number.” I think it has something to do with not spending too much time under the sun. I know I try not to. I’m not a fan of sunbathing at all and I know a lot of Filipinas who aren’t either. Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen! I’m sure there are more factors behind it but that’s one thing I could think of that’s on top of my head. Not that we’re complaining that we look younger than our age of course. I’m just happy that reading wrinkle cream reviews is not part of my agenda in this time of my life yet. The picture was when I turned 25 for the 8th time back in December of 2009, before I got my first tattoo. And this is me just this February, except not a full body shot coz I will reveal the full shot (after Insanity workout) in another fabulous outfit when I turn 25 for the 9th time 
. So, yeah, I’m enjoying it.
Taking New Pictures
Old friends have found me in Facebook. I don’t mind. I wanted them to which is why I added my maiden name in my profile. My husband loves to make fun of how long my complete name is but he has no problem saying all of it when he’s pretending to be angry.
A friend asked for more pictures because they want to see the former “Ms J/S Prom Queen, Ms Intramurals, and one of the best students of our time.” Her words, not mine. Yup, I was one of those girls you love to hate in school 
. The last time I added a new picture was when I got my bangs again which was back in January. I guess it’s time to take new pictures again.
It’s really hard to do so sometimes because I work at home. Either I’m in my sleepwear (tank top and shorts) or my workout outfit. Of course I take a shower and clean up sometime in the day but after a shower, I don’t try to look all dolled up anymore. You have to understand, I have a toddler to tend to, work to finish and chores to do. It takes a process for my face to be picture worthy, hah. When I’m all decked out for a trip outside I usually don’t have time to take pictures coz we’re all rushing to go. Sometimes I take pictures for the fashion blog to feature what I’m wearing but only when I remember to do so.
So my mission next week is to prettify myself to take new pictures. I don’t have time to buy loose diamonds to surround myself with so I would look all enchanting though. Oh well, I’m sure I still got it 
.
That Dreaded Swimwear
Every year my goal is to wear a 2-piece bikini to the beach or the pool come summer time. As the weather temperature goes higher I think about wearing something from L Space Swimwear. So I keep working out and as days go by, I feel like my goal is reachable. But then there are days when I face reality about my body. I’ve had two kids. I am not that confident in letting my stretch marks hanging out in a Beach Bay Swimwear.
The thing is I have bought my swimwear for this year. 2 pairs actually. The first one is a 2-piece tankini which is always what I’m comfortable wearing to hide those stretch marks. I mean I don’t have it that bad coz I was actually good in applying coco butter in my body during and after pregnancy. But the tankini top not only hides the stretch marks, it also covers the little pouch in my lower abs.
The Insanity workout has given me the confidence to also buy a 2-piece bikini. I felt good when I tried it on. I didn’t even think about the earth swallowing me alive when I looked in the mirror and smiled at the reflection looking back at me. Well, maybe a little bit. This year, I’m planning on stuffing both swimwear in our beach bag and just see how I feel once I’m actually near the water. Just to keep me sane, I’ll buy a cover up like the one from Lucky Brand Swimwear. You know what they say, it’s always better to be prepared. I ain’t Gisele Bundchen after all, heh.
My Second Tattoo
2 months and 12 days after I got my self officially inked with a butterfly and initials, I got my second tattoo today. It’s really true when they say once you get one, you’ll want another one, and another and another… I actually said I was going to wait 6 months but I couldn’t wait any longer. Especially since my husband had an old tattoo covered with a new one and got his old tattoos redone (colored) these past weeks. The tattoo artist did so well on husband’s tattoos that I got very jealous . On Tuesday night, he scheduled an appointment for me to do it today at noon. I wanted a “D” in script font just like the “D” in my first tattoo, and a pink flower too. I have been D-Flowered .
There you go, a D in 3D colors of blue and a pink hibiscus. And that ain’t a small D with hibiscus. Hubs’ hand (in a slight angle) could barely cover the whole thing. Compare to my butterfly tattoo from a different tattoo place, this one didn’t hurt much at all. I had to cover my face the whole time I got the first tattoo and barely said anything to the tattoo artist but not with this second one. Well I held on to my purse and covered my face with it when he did the outline and I think about 3 people who works at the place asked, “Are you ok Sweetie?” but that’s about it. My tattoo artist Braeden from Sacred Art who is just the coolest ever and had become good friends with the Hubs was really understanding. After the initial outline I was just taking the drilling like a pro. Braeden told Hubs who came back after getting an ice cream from Coldstone with the little girl that the Mozart music made me feel better, hehe. We were listening to both Metal and classical music. It was awesome. I was talking and smiling and was telling them that it was actually tickling me . And it was. I happen to be ticklish in that area which reminded me the first time the tattoo gun (drill, whatever) touched my skin. Good thing I was able to control myself from moving or that would have been a disaster.
Everything turned out beautiful. I ♥ it. On the way home, Hubs asked if I’m getting the “J” done sometime which I never really thought about until he mentioned it. I told him tonight that I will. It would actually look really nice right next to the D and the hibiscus. I have to go back there in a month to get my butterfly tattoo fixed coz there’s a bit of scarring in one of the wings and some of the outline so I might ask him to see if he could do the “J” then. 
The Knit Scarf I “Stole” From A Teenager
At my sister-in-law’s Christmas Party last year we played a Yankee Swap game. If you’ve never played it before Yankee swap is basically where people who comes to a party brings an unmarked gift(no f”rom me to you” tags). Each guest then gets a number which serves as the order of the person picking the gifts. The person who gets #1 goes first, and so on and so forth. The 1st person picks a gift (not the one she/he brought) from the table, then opens in it front of everyone. Then the 2nd person picks a gift, and opens it for everyone to see. Now this is where the fun starts. She/He can decided whether to pick the gist she/he just opened or swap it with the 1st person. If she/he decides to swap it, the 1st person doesn’t have a choice but to give the gift to the 2nd person. And the game continues. And chances are, Yankees swap will take forever coz there is always that one gift that everyone would like to have. It’s fun if everyone involved have a sense of humor. And it’s also good for the party host to set a price range for the gifts. Our theme was “cheap and/or funny.”
I’m 25, For The 8th Time
I turned 25 yrs old (for the 8th time on New Year’s Eve, ) . We didn’t do anything huge to celebrate. Not much for huge parties anymore I guess. But we still had a lovely day. I woke up to a lovely bouquet and a beautiful birthday card from the Hubster. The day started out with a nice brunch just the 4 of us at Bob Evans. I appreciated how our waiter took my request of Country Eggs Benedict with spinach, chopped crispy bacon and hash brown on the side. This particular breakfast is not on their menu anymore but the waiter said they’d still make it for me. How sweet was that? And it was delicious for sure. They also made sure Emma got her bowl of cottage cheese before our orders came in to hold her off. Cottage cheese happens to be one of her favorite foods.
After a filling brunch, we went home, relaxed, watched TV and just waited to start cooking our New year’s Eve dinner slash my birthday dinner. We didn’t go out to eat out or anything coz I planned on cooking for my birthday. Something with a Filipino flavor. It’s the time of the year where I feel like everyone in the family should partake in some dishes that I crave for. This year I decided to have lechon kawali with the help of the deep fryer that we used for our Thanksgiving turkey.
