I think I was, kaso hindi pa uso ang salitang 'friendzone' noon.

I feel like it's been so long since I posted something. I only have one reason -- life happened.

Before 2013 ended, Jeff told me that we should make a vision board to set our goals for 2014. Giddy about my new stylus, I said I am going to draw mine instead of the normal cut and paste from the magazine. He said he's opting for the cut and paste as he has no talent on the arts department. Well, I don't have much, too. Just so you know, Jeff hasn't made his vision board yet. Haha!

I never thought I'll ever write about cancer. My earliest memory of it is my Tita Bessie, my mom's eldest sister, who was very sick when I was in kindergarten. I didn't know it was cancer until I was in grade school. I can't seem to understand what it was. I just knew she was sick. A few months later, she passed away. It was a blurry memory. I was a kid and I didn't feel the pain of losing a relative. I still didn't know that feeling. Tita Bessie taught me that losing a family member is a sad thing. I didn't know her pain as well.


Late in 2012, my friend Faye was diagnosed with Stage 1 cancer. In February 2013, she had a total hysterectomy. She had her entire reproductive system taken out. She is a survivor. A very brave woman that I will always look up to. You can read her story here.

Taken at Mom and Tina's in Mother's Day.

After two years, I am back to my curly hair! Last Friday, Jeff asked me if I want to go to the salon and have my hair permed again. It was a day after my birthday and I was in a really bad mood. He knew how to cheer me up!

Since I have already shown my left and right ovaries, I might as well share this little secret that I did. I did a Boudoir Doll shoot in 2011.

Yep, that's right. I was a few pounds lighter at that time. Jeff and I just got engaged and I wanted to give him something in return for the ring that he gave me. Haha!

The Boudoir Dolls is a group of women photographers of Imagine Nation Photography. They do shoots like Boudoir Bride, Boudoir You, and Boudoir Bump. It started when my friend Ria, who used to work for Imagine Nation Photography told me about the shoot that she did. So when they had a promo with Ensogo, I bought it right away.

In our life, we'll only have one mother. The one who you will stay with for about 20 to 25 years. If you get married, you get to acquire another mother -- your mother-in-law. My mother, who never had a mother-in-law because my father's mom died when he was just four years old, once told me that if I ever get married, I should love my husband's mother the way I love her. She told me that having a good mother-in-law is one of the best gifts that a woman can have.

I came across this list back in August and I thought of sharing it here. I totally forgot about it, but you know, it's better late than never. These things mentioned totally make sense. Share it of you agree!

Photo from http://thefacultylounge.edublogs.org/

"Wala pa ba?"

"Hindi ka pa ba buntis?"

"Kelan kayo magbe-baby?"

These are few of the questions that I still get until now, until after I wrote about my condition. I have read somewhere that September is the National PCOS Awareness Month. Wow, I didn't know we actually have a month for us! I feel like it's the perfect time to write about this.

PCOS or Polycystic Ovary Syndorme is one of the most common female endocrine problem. In layman's term, it is hormonal imbalance. It affects a woman's body -- she gains weight, have acne breakouts, more hair in the body, and no ovulation. There are also more male hormones in the body than female hormones. It is said that 1 out of 15 women has it. I'm quite confused because I think 1/3 of all my female friends have PCOS. Has the number gone up since I don't know when? Has stress taken it's toll to our kind?

I'm not sure if you are interested to know what our ovary looks like, but for your reference, here's a photo from http://womenshealth.gov

Antipolo, as we all know, is on top of the mountain located in the east of Manila. Growing up there, I only saw the beach twice when I was in gradeschool-- during excursions in my mom's company. She used to work for a textile factory and every year, they schedule trips to Matabungkay or Quezon beaches. My next few trips would be with my family in Pangasinan and Quezon.

It's been a few days since I wrote my blog on PCOS. I feel overwhelmed that friends and family are actually sending me personal messages of comforting words. Some were sharing their personal experiences and battles on PCOS and other reproductive health related stories. I feel blessed. I feel that I am not alone in this.

It's been 400+ days since Jeff and I got married. A lot of people has been asking if we're already expecting, or if are planning to have a baby. In fact, we do plan to have a baby. We want to have a baby, but until now, every month I still get that one purple line in the pregnancy test. So no, as of this writing, we are not yet expecting.