Frannywanny

I hope she won't mind me sharing this story but tonight I had a little argument with my sister. It was over something petty but of course, being the drama queen that I was, I just had to blow things out of proportion and since she's exhausted from her busy day, she didn't hesitate to put me in my place and to give me a piece of her mind. That's also one thing that I love about my relationship with my sister. We both can say our piece as it is, no holds barred and after all that I know that we will be okay and she loves me just the same. I know you're reading this Pan, and I just want you to know that I'm really sorry. Photo by Lina Trochez on Unsplash She also said something which got me thinking all night. She told me to learn to appreciate the people around me before it's too late. Given the current situation where people within our circle are falling sick and dying, it's really the reality that life is truly unpredictable and anyone of us can ju...

"If there were no love, there's be no grief." - Zig Ziglar It just felt like a movie on repeat. The entire family inside a hospital room, quietly wiping away our tears, giving each other supportive hugs as we watch the numbers on the monitor slowly going down. One by one, we each walked closer to the hospital bed as we whispered I love yous, thank yous and basically our last messages. Four years ago, it was my beautiful Ama lying on the hospital bed. After a mad rush home from the Lion City followed by a stressful drive from the airport to the hospital, I made it in time to say my final goodbyes to the woman whom I proudly call my grandmother. Together with my parents and my sister, she and Kongkong were the center of my world for 30+ years. Her death brought about so much "what ifs", "if only" and painful acceptance that she's no longer physically here with us. Of course, the most painful of all was to see my dear Kongkong cope with the death of...

Dearest L and J,  In exactly a week's time, we will finally meet for the first time. That said, I thought of writing you both the first of the many letters that you will be receiving from me. Our journey together started around early March and it has been filled with a lot of excitement with a mix of paranoia as I simply just wanted to do everything right for the two of you. Your Dad is a tougher cookie but I know how paranoid he gets too as he would check on your heartbeats and patiently monitors your kicks every single night.  Often times, I try to imagine what will be the feeling of seeing you both for the first time. Will I cry? Will I laugh? I'm not really sure as I'll partially be drugged with anesthesia too but one thing is for sure -- my heart is  filled with so much gratitude. It's exactly the feeling of finally getting that one thing that you've been wishing, hoping and praying for the longest time.  We have grown to be so close through all these mon...

Here we are again celebrating another milestone in our lives. 7 years ago on this very same day, I officially (and legally) became Paul's wife. Funny thing was, the number seven seems to play a very important part in our lives. 7 years of dating before we got married and now, 7 years of being husband and wife before we are about to start a new chapter in our lives where we will soon be welcoming our very own babies. A lot of things can happen in the span of a year.. what more in 7 years? In the past 7 years, we've migrated to a new country and together we've adjusted to a new independent life. We both fell, picked each other up and moved on hand in hand. We've seen friends come and go. We've celebrated successes and triumphs. I can go on and on to tell you how our 7 years went but that would just be way too long for a blog post. A lot of things have changed. Aside from Paul's shrinking waistline (I love you Hunnie! hehe)  and my growing belly at the ...

I wasn't really intending to write this in my blog as I really wanted to keep my feelings private. Yes, as much as I am very open with everything else in my life, I try to keep all things related to family a secret. However, I also realized that writing has always been my outlet to express what I truly feel inside. I write when I'm happy, I write when I'm stress so it just makes perfect sense to also write now that my heart has been broken for the very first time in my life. Our relationship has always been different compared to most people. While others would regard their grandparents as elderly members of the family whom they rarely have any deep interaction with, I would say that you and Kongkong have played one of the most important roles in my life. I never felt any difficulty in telling you my thoughts and feelings. You know everything about me and Pan that it just felt so normal to share everything with you down to the tiniest details. I guess, it's because I k...

I know I haven't been blogging as regularly as I used to. Hope you all forgive me. It's just that, my most favorite season is here and my offline life is as busy as ever! Catching up with old friends, meeting a couple of new ones along the way and of course, dedicating most of our time to our families. Yes, Christmas is here and soon, we will be welcoming 2015 too! I'll be blogging sporadically but I promise to be back to regular programming come January!  From my (two) families to yours, wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy (and Yummy) New Year! ♥

Exactly 29 years ago, our family was blessed with a new addition in the form of a bouncing (or perhaps are jumping) baby girl. Months prior to that, I actually thought I was going to have a little brother so when I met her for the first time, the 2 years and eleven month old me somehow couldn't understand why was she wrapped in a pink blanket and instead of having to call her " shoti" as what I was taught to say, everyone was now correcting me to call her... SHOBE . Meet Pannywanny -- my one and only little sister. Today's her birthday so I'm taking a break from all the food talks and I'd like to dedicate this special entry just for her. A lot of people have told me how amazing it is to see that my sister and I are so close to one another. Yes, it's something I'm really proud of and I'm glad that I'm blessed not only with a sister but with someone whom I can bet a gazillion dollars on that she'll be there for me for the rest of ...

CHANGE.  Such a big word and it basically encapsulates how 2013 was for both Paul and I. We all recalled how the year began with an arrray of farewell dinners thrown by good friends and family as we prepared for our big move to the Lion City . Such a great leap it was that we were faced with new responsibilities, a new career, moving into a new home and the opportunity to build new relationships and friendships too. Months passed and we slowly made ourselves feel at home.  For us, Singapore has slowly became our second home. I guess we got these three people whom we consider our family in the Lion City to thank for. Meet I , O and C . Our three flatmates who have made our transition such a breeze. They're always ready to answer all our questions, to lend a helping hand and best of all, they're always game to join us on impromptu food trips too.  Unlike the past years, we were not able to travel anywhere beyond the frequent Singapore-Manila-Singapore tri...

Today is #ThrowbackThursday and I'd like to share this photo with all of you: It was actually our first photo together taken during Paul's 22nd birthday exactly 10 years ago. We were not a couple then. "Just friends", as what we would tell suspecting friends and family members. Very showbiz, no? Anyway, it's Paul's special day today and I realized that I haven't actually dedicated a full blog post on him. I know he'd probably strangle me if he knows that I did anyway. He's a low profile kind of guy, shying away from the limelight yet he has always been there cheering me on. In keeping with the showbiz-ness of this blog entry, allow me to end this with my personal dedication for Paul: Dear Paul, Happy Birthday! May our future sons (yes plural) someday not only have your cute looks but may they also grow up to be the nicest, most selfless, ever supportive, loving and caring men too.  Looking forward to a lifetime of adventure with ...

They say home is truly where the heart is . Some of you may have noticed that I haven't been updating this blog for a few days already. Well, it's because both Paul and I are extremely busy at the moment. You see, three VIPs flew in over the weekend and we've been happily taking them to our favorite restaurants, hang out places and basically showing them how our lives have been for the past months even introducing them to some of the people whom we consider like family here. These VIPs are indeed the most important people in my life.. they are my family. That's Papa, Mommy and Pan. You have no idea how excited I've been since their plans to visit us here have been finalized just a few weeks ago. Everyday, I would look forward to the day they will arrive and that is possibly the reason why I've been wearing an extremely happy smile on my face that some of my dearest friends have been noticing. I honestly didn't realized how much I missed them until I ...

I can't believe it's finally December ! It just seems like yesterday when Paul and I celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple and in 24 days we'll be celebrating it again for the 2nd time! Time surely flies extra fast when you're having fun and I am sure having a blast this 2011! Imagine being able to attend the weddings of two of my closest friends, spending more time not only with my family but with my in laws, taking out of town trips and a million food trips with friends and a whole lot more! Mommy and I can't help but get emotional whenever we see our house well-lit with Christmas lights which were carefully installed by my Dad. Three years ago, we were still unsure if Papa can fully recover from his brain surgery as he was still undergoing motor and speech therapy and was 100% dependent on his personal nurse. Today, he can move around, talk, listen and eat on his own. Best of all, he would even walk all the way to Greenhills just to get his regular...