Tina Lee

Bathroom Renovations

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I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before but we live in an old house that’s been left empty for years. As you can imagine, the overall look and feel of the house are outdated. Often, the design goes against my preferences and you know how I love to surround myself with beautiful thangs. Anyhoo, the bathroom is the worst offender, I hate it to bits.

My mom had it made into a maroon mess and the tiles are too dark. The tiles were discolored because the space hasn’t been used at all. Anyway, we’ve been living in this house for a good 2 to 4 years and the bathroom suddenly had a leak and we had to get the piping changed.

I was told that the entire floor will be replaced so I took this as an opportunity to renovate the entire space to the chagrin of my mother. My mother thinks that getting that ugly wall replaced with new tiles is a waste of time. She belongs to a generation that hates changes for aesthetic reasons, apparently. I hate the walls enough to spend a small fortune on it, to be honest, and this was a long time coming.

Here’s how our bathroom currently looks like right now:

Ugly, right?

Initially, I wanted to create a white and gold color scheme but then I realized that we won’t live in this old house all our lives. It will be a waste of money if we suddenly moved out ten years from now. All that money wasted on getting all the gold hardware. So my plan is to stick to a simple white and silver color scheme and simple silver hardware. Once we have our dream house, I’ll do the white and gold!

Here are some of my pegs:

Simple, clean, and sleek.

The kids are at grammy’s house and we’re on day 2 of the renovations. The house is a mess and so am I. I hate it when all my stuff is in disarray, le ugh.

It’s funny because a few days ago, I was thinking about starting to save up again. We’ve recently opened a new business, a home decor store, and I was looking forward to getting a quick break from spending money and now we have this.

I do feel, however, that it will benefit us the most anyway so might as well get this over with and just accept that 2020 will be a shitty year no matter how I try to stay positive about it. Hey at the least the bathroom’s getting a makeover.

 

Investing in Better Sleep

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Since malls remain semi-closed and I can’t travel anywhere, I do my shopping online. And the problem with online shopping is it’s so habit-forming. Every day since this God-forsaken health crisis started, we get a new package from the trinity: Lazada, Shoppee, SM. Yes, it’s a mini-crisis on its own, hahaha!

Anyhoo, one of the things that I wanted to improve while I was pregnant was our bedroom essentials. Our sheets are fraying and our pillows aren’t as nice as before. Our blankets are too thin pa and the designs are meh. I decided to slowly change all of our sleep essentials just to elevate our sleeping experience.

I bought several sets of bedsheets at Bedsheet Master PH. I then bought those “hotel” quality pillows from Gourdo’s online store. Then, I bought heaps of plain white pillowcases on Shoppee. Finally, I bought several thick, fleece blankets at SM. Now all our bedsheets match and I get the best sleep of my life.

In case you’re in the mood to shop, here are the relevant links:

Worth every cent guys. Don’t skimp on sleep.

A New (Ad) Venture

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I know opening a new biz in the middle of a health crisis and at this economy sounds ridonkulous but that’s exactly what I’m doing right now.

The idea started when my husband lost yet another client. Since I experienced the same thing, I thought it was a good idea to give the husband something to take his mind off the negativity. So yeah, with the earnings I got from my gem store, I decided to build a small home decor store.

I have big plans for this venture guys. My plan is to make this shop legitimate and long-term. So yeah, here’s Decor Depot PNQ!

Yes, the PNQ is Paniqui because I wanted the biz to have a local, physical store. Since I don’t want to deal with monthly rent, I decided to build a small pop-up store in front of our house. Specifically, our garage.

It sounds crazy but hear me out.

I live in our town’s business district, literally at the edge of the street. I am imitating my neighbor’s business model. A few months back (before COVID), my neighbor built a farming tool store in a literal hole in the wall. Guys, we’re talking about a literal hole here.

Fast forward a few months later (after COVID), the store didn’t just grow, it boomed. Right next to it is a store that sells the same thing, only it’s nicer looking. That nicer looking store closed the fuck down.

Moral of the story: It’s never about the size or appearance of the business. Sometimes you just have to start somewhere, anywhere. Thank you neighbors for the business lesson!

So yup, we found several suppliers for our little decor shop. The goods are, in fact, already here at home just waiting to be sold. I also had a collapsible wooden food cart made. We’ll turn this into the store counter.

My plan is to hang a tarp featuring our logo on the bottom part of the cart. I also bought a couple of crates and I’ll have a wooden pallet made so I could hang our shabby chic wall decors. Overall, I spent about 30K on the whole thing, which is lower than my projected principal.

Apart from getting a business permit, the husband will manage the whole biz while working remotely. He won’t quit his day job, he’ll just transfer his work station. Neat, right?

Our goal here is to turn this into a major source of income! My end goal is to establish different streams of income and use our earnings to build our dream home.

I must say, I feel very proud that my little gem store literally gave birth to another business. Despite everything, I feel like I accomplished something this year so it’s not so bad. I’m hoping that everything goes smoothly during our opening (sometime next week I guess) so wish me luck!

 

Dealing with Postpartum Shit

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… no, I haven’t outgrown the habit of adding the word “shit” to plural things that I cannot name, hahaha!

As of writing this, I am 8 days post-partum. It’s been a great week, I’ve healed enough that I no longer need the pain meds (although I still take it to minimize the risk of muscle soreness), Rocky is such a good boy, he’s not as fussy as his big brother, and I am getting the rest I need because I have a lot of help.

Since I am still on a break and there’s not much to do, I can focus on all the changes that happened after this pregnancy. Mind you, even in the midst of the pandemic, I never stopped working (something I am so grateful for!) so this is the only time that I have for myself.

Hyperpigmentation

One of the things that I am currently dealing with now is the intense hyperpigmentation that I got on certain areas of my body, particularly the pits. TMI I know but it has to be said, my pits are so fucking dark right now, I have no idea what happened. Admittedly, my pits turned dark during my first pregnancy and it never really returned to its former fair color (I was pretty proud of my white kilikili back in the day) but this is something worse!

I think I mentioned this in my previous blog, that I resemble a dalmatian because there is no transition from my fair skin to my hyperpigmented skin right now. It’s baffling, honestly. I also noticed that my neck and nape got dark as well but not too dark to cause any alarm. I think the color should go back to normal within a few short weeks but I know my pits will remain dark from experience.

The short-term plan is to use whatever whitening products I could get my hands on to treat the affected areas. I am also planning on going the all-natural route and use calamansi to whiten my pits, something that I did back in the day. The future plan is to have these areas treated by a professional so my pits would look decent again.

I know I seem maarte about this but grabe guys, Batman could never.

Skin Tags

Some of the most common yet rarely talked about effects of pregnancy are skin tags. I was surprised as heck when I started getting skin tags all over my neck on my first pregnancy and was kinda expecting the same this time around.

On my second pregnancy, I didn’t develop a lot of skin tags all over the neck. But I got them in weird places, like the underboob. Thankfully, these are easily resolved. I’d just have these lasered off once I start heading out again.

Weight Gain and Weight Loss

I know I shouldn’t be obsessing about my weight so soon but hey, that’s part of it, I suppose. When I had Damien, I gained about 45 pounds and this time, I only gained 30 pounds so that’s a major improvement. Because I had my tubes cut, I was more motivated to lose the baby weight this time around, knowing that it will be my last.

As soon as we got back from the hospital, I went on a strict diet. Portions were cut, no snacking, and only Nesvita for dinner. Damien and Rocco are exclusively formula-fed so I don’t have to worry about eating more to achieve a steady supply.

So far, I lost 22 pounds of water weight so I am less than 10 pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight. But since I was overweight when I got pregnant, I still have to lose more weight. It’s not like I’m pressuring myself to lose the baby weight in a few weeks but I wanted to feel like my old self again as soon as possible because it makes me feel like I’m still in control of this rapidly aging shell, if you get what I’m saying. So yeah, the diet is still happening and will continue to happen until I’ve healed enough to work out.

Baby Blues

Ah yes, the dreaded baby blues. I had these briefly when I had Damien. It lasted for a good couple of weeks and it sucked. The dreadful sadness came in the afternoons and honestly, that was the worst part of the entire “bringing new life into this world” bit.

8 days into it, I haven’t had any experience close to the blues I got with Damien. I mostly feel anxious these days because so many people are losing their jobs and I’m afraid that I might lose mine too. But God and the universe are good, I’m still getting by. I’m one of the lucky ones.

I try to maintain a positive mindset no matter how much fate tempts me to do otherwise. There are so many bad things going on all around and having a new baby is challenging enough as it is, I’d be damned if I let the negativity affect my fragile mental health.

My life isn’t perfect, there are hiccups but I am working through them and keeping it together. I wish everything goes back to normal, it’s been a challenging few months for everyone.

Rocco Dorian: He’s Here!

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Rocky and I totally made it to September 1, guys, I am very pleased! As you know, I’ve been pregnant for what felt like forever and I finally gave birth on September 1, right around the time when Jose Mari Chan’s memes reared its ugleh head, hahahaha!

Can you tell how happy I am?

I finally got the snip snip too so this is officially my last pregnancy. Again, I know that I will regret this at some point in the future but for now, I’m just happy that I won’t go through another year of pregnancy sometime soon.

Getting to the Hospital

For the sake of documenting the experience, I’ll recount the entire thing. The day before I was scheduled for an elective CS, we went to the hospital to reserve a room. Since there’s a health crisis, we have no choice but to come early. We got there too early, me think, because there was no room available and we had to check-in to a nearby hotel until the room we wanted is vacated and sanitized.

Around 7 in the evening, we finally got to our room and we waited the following morning for the surgery. I was scheduled for a 7AM CS, which I liked because I just wanted the whole thing to be over and done so I can finally recover. The surgery didn’t take long, it was only about 30 to 40 minutes, including the ligation ha, so my OB was fast.

Everything about this pregnancy is the opposite of my last pregnancy. During the surgery, I was actually awake. I didn’t like it because I’m enjoying none of the sensations but when I heard Rocky’s cries, I was relieved. Also, the entire OR burst into laughter when they saw how big Rocky was, he’s freakin 8.6 pounds. His older brother is big na at 7.9 but apparently, the second is bigger.

It’s amazing how Damy and Rocky looked so much alike as a newborn. Like, I couldn’t believe my eyes, they look almost identical.

We stayed in the hospital for 3 days because of the uncomplicated, healthy birthing. It was amazing because everything happened so fast and most of the time, we were just waiting for the discharge order.

After we got the discharge order, we pretty much got the heck outta there because, COVID. The ride home was just as smooth, Rocky was such a good boy. He never cried, he just drank his milk, locked eyes with me, and fell right asleep until we got home.

When we got home, the yayas dressed Damien in an outfit that matches Rocky’s going home outfit. It was so cute. I got these at Ali Basics on Instagram, check them out.

Unsurprisingly, Damy didn’t know what’s going on while he’s being introduced to his little brother. He kinda got a bit scared of the baby too, which was so funny. He was hiding behind my back at first!

After the introductions, we sat down for an impromptu family picture. Since there’s a health crisis, my husband was unable to join me in the OR to cut the cord and take more pictures although Rocky was shown to him right after the surgery.

So here’s us! Our little brood is complete.

Healing from the Surgery

We’re still adjusting to our own “new normal,” but so far, everything is going great. Since I’m still on a break, I get to rest more. I was dreading the healing process because I remember how painful the incision was after the surgery.

Surprisingly, I am healing quickly and the pain, though ever-present, is much more tolerable this time around. Not sure if it’s because of the stronger pain meds or the fact that the incision site was numb after my first pregnancy. I’m healing so fast yet I don’t feel like I’m in so much pain I cannot move.

Quite the opposite, I’ve been moving around, getting things done, and apparently, writing this piece, hahahaha!

So yeah, this concludes the quick recount of my last pregnancy. The timing was so off, it was difficult to be pregnant in the middle of a global health crisis but it made me appreciative of the simple, little things.

Like the fact that my health was good throughout the pregnancy, Rocky was healthy and he developed normally despite the stress. We found a good OB who really took care of us and everything else went so smoothly. There were no complications during and after the surgery. We were in a good place mentally, physically, and financially despite job loss all around.

All these things made us extremely, extremely lucky and I know I’m so blessed. Sometimes when so many things are happening at the same time, we lose track of what’s important, the little thangs. That’s what I’m grateful for the most!

 

Pregnancy Journey: The Home Stretch

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At 39 weeks pregnant, I was told by my OB that I could give birth anytime. But since I’m a control freak, I told her that I’m willing to wait until the first of September – about a week away – because I want Rocky’s birthday to not feel “off.”

If you know me then you know how I feel about dates. Damien’s birthday was supposed to be on December 15, 2018, just like I planned it because 12-15-18 felt *soothing* to me. But because I got talked into giving “natural birth,” a try, his birthday got delayed by a day. That bothered me ever since. But whatever.

Here’s Damien

I totes asked Rocco to stay in my tumtum just a little bit longer so we could make it to the first, which will be two days from now! We’re almost there!

40 Weeks Pregnant

I just hit 40 weeks of pregnancy and man, I’m so relieved. I almost forgot how everything hurts when you’re in the later parts of the pregnancy. The pregnancy pains are so much different this time around, btw. Pelvic pain is so much worse now and I read that it’s because the bones that loosened during the first pregnancy were not “tightened” the way they used to.

I noticed that I’ve become more bloated this time around. I swear my cankles were not this bad when I was pregnant with Damien. I’m heavier this time around only because I was overweight when I got pregnant but I only managed to gain less than 30 pounds this time versus whopping 45 pounds last time. I thought that was an improvement!

I got more migraines this time around too. Didn’t take any meds for that because I felt it’s safer that way. I am always, always tired and sleepy all the time now. Hyperpigmentation was so bad this time around too. From my neck right down to my pits, there’s zero gradience between my fair skin and my pregnancy skin. I literally look like a dalmatian, don’t laugh. I see laser treatment in my future, jujuju!

I’m supposed to take a month-long break but because I got paranoid about the virus and the competition being stiffer these days, I’ve decided to cut my maternity leave to a mere 2 weeks. I know, I’m a workaholic. But everyone’s been working from home these days and I cannot help but feel like my market’s starting to dwindle. I won’t stop managing the shop as well because that doesn’t really take much effort. So basically, I won’t stop working, is what I’m trying to say, hahahaha!

This will be my last pregnancy BTW, I’ll get the snip snip after giving birth. I know I’ll regret this at some point in the future but for now, raising a child is financially, emotionally, and physically draining, much more raising two. I feel like I’d lose my mind if we had another one and we do not see this happening at all so might as well accept the finality of it. Husband’s onboard of course. I love my sons, they’re precious to me, but lawrd, I **hated** getting pregnant.

Pregnancy in Time of COVID-19

It was challenging to be in this position in the middle of a health crisis and believe me, it was hard to choose a hospital. As much as I’d like to go to a nicer hospital, we’re not in the city so we have to work with what we have. Hopefully, things will go smoothly, just like last time. Also, we’re so lucky that the pregnancy is very healthy, we never had any reason to go to the doctor for emergencies.

Anyhoo, we’re pretty much ready to go at this point. The crib’s ready, all the essentials are already, hospital bags are waiting in the car, etc. Tomorrow, we’ll drive to the hospital to book a CS, and then we’re ready to bring life to the world, one last time.

Wish me luck!