Jillian Iyanna Arellano (JIA)

I forgot that I wrote this and saved it as a draft. Better late than never!

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Born on July 8, 2008. Despite lacking sleep from the night before and coming straight from work, I just had to be there when Jia was born. I made it in time to hold Flor's hand and wish her luck. Though nervous and scared, she was quite the opposite in the video.

Ok, so now after watching the vid, don't you think Jia has an amazing set of lungs? Holy cow. We could hear her testing her vocal chords while she was in the nursery and we were outside waiting for them to show us. Note: the nursery is supposed to be sound proof. lol.


That was Jia then. Here she is after she's air dried. lol. (around 6 months ++ old)

Cutie!!

Blogging by Force

I'm posting these pics because Nestlee is forcing me to. She claims she needs a "pampasaya". I think I should rename this blog to Holiday's and Hunter's Blog. lol. Can't blame you though Nes. They're adorable as can be. Hope this makes your day!

Here are the twins on their regular "walking" training one afternoon.

Holiday...the braver one
(or probably just has more patience & perseverance) lol.

Oops! Steady....steady.....

Hunter...training... (5 minutes earlier)

Hunter...5 minutes later. lol. "I'd rather count my fingers. It's less tiring."

the twins with Mum and Dad


Holiday showing off

Hunter & Mum

Hunter at the beach in his surf suit

Cheers!!! Big EarSsssszzzzz!!!!

AND HERE'S THE FINALE:

dare I say it comes from my side of the family?

Today, Holiday's walking on his own. A little wobbly but getting more and more confident. Hunter on the other hand would still rather crawl. He's got an amazing appetite. Won't pass on anything. lol. They said his legs can't carry the weight. lol. Hurry up kids! Pano sa wedding ko!!!

Partners in Crime

How cute is that?

6 Months

It's now 6:28am. Woke up at 4:20 after 14 hours of sleep. There's nothing else to do now but blog. Nobody's online. I've exhausted my interest in browsing Friendster and Multiply and Facebook. Maybe in a while I'll update my wedsite (which only a few people have seen). It's not finished yet.

Speaking of weddings, in exactly 6 months and 10 days ours will be here. Still a lot of things to do. I have yet to book a hair and make up artist (HMUA) and to find a designer that will accommodate my budget for the gown.

6 months. 6 months left to lose all that extra weight. People are telling me to start. Man, is it really that bad? lol.

6 months. 6 months more of planning our perfect wedding. Just a bit more and we'll be down to the hard part. The small details and bits and pieces that would be the least of one's worries on a wedding. lol.

6 months. 6 months left before my life and my priorities totally change. My decisions will now affect not just me, but Ron too. And hopefully, if we are blessed, a small person will join us next year. Hihihi.

6 months. 6 months left of being an Arellano and before I become a Reyes. Wonder how life will be after? As it has always been with me and Ron, better. We're better together.

As for my wedsite, i'll launch it soon. Yuck may launching pa. lol. As if.

Team Spain

I awake to a dark room after 14 hours of sleep. Hey, it was day time when I went to bed for a nap. What gives? Oh yeah, then I remember, my days are back to front inside out and all screwed just as my friggin' body clock is. Ah, the perks of having a call center job --> None. Just the money and friends. You lose your social life because all you want to do is sleep. And even if you get enough sleep, you're still tired coz sleeping during the day can't compare to the sleep that normal people have during the night. lol. Anyway, despite this erratic schedule that i have, work is good. Petiks. Stress free. Excellent pay. And a lot of new friends. Some definitely worth keeping.

This is TEAM SPAIN:

Some of the funniest and mischievous people that I know. One crazy bunch.

dad's turn

April 8, 2008. A week after Mum's birthday, it's Daddy's day. I didn't get to call him coz their land line was busted. But made sure he read my text message. Seems the old man had a great bday with a surprise gate crash at our place by our filipino friends. Potluck mania. I wish I was there. I miss Dad even if sometimes I don't get his drift. lol. Love you Daddy.

happy birthday mummy!!

This morning, I go home today from work with only one thing on my mind: Mum. It's her 61st birthday today. I wonder what she's doing. Taking care of the twins? Driving to town to run some errands, grocery shopping or going to SM (segunda mano)? Apparently it was the last one. lol. I call 2x to greet her. Still not home. I text her: "hoy. lakwatsera. umuwi ka na. kanina pa ko tumatawag." (yeah. we're like best buds. lol.)

It's a treat though that i get to speak to Ate Leslie. I miss her. I hope she's doing ok.

It's been 2 hours since i last called. I call again. It rings.

Mum: hello?
Me: mum!
Mum: oh! (tapang noh?)
Me: happy birthday!
Mum: oh thank you!!! kumpleto na araw ko!
.
.
.
and so on and so forth.

3 minutes after we say goodbye: I'm still smiling. Thinking of mum's stories of the twins. Mum's laugh. How things are going well with Kuya & Ate's clinic. This year just might be a good year after all. Even for me. :)

ain't looking like nothing over 60.

certified & contemplating

So we made it through nesting and now we're on the floor doing what we do. It's fun. Well, earning alot and not being so stressed with the work itself. But hell, the schedule is killing me. Shifts starting at 12mn, 1am, 1:30am...and next week 3:45am. Crap. It's scary going to work. As Dave said, Cubao is the place to be.... ROBBED. lol.

So anyway, last Friday, here I was, chatting away and then Chiqui sends me a pm. We catch up. Miss the old times. And she mentions an opening at her company. P&G. No work experience needed. No CPA license required. And according to her...the offer is irresistible. Way more than Stellar plus this is a day job. A normal job. And it makes me think. It's exactly what I need. Especially when I'll be starting a family next year. Wow. A normal life. And I'll even be using what I tried so hard to pass at UST. lol. That is...if I pass exam and the nose bleeding panel interviews. So there Chiqui was, waiting for my reply. And what do i say you wonder? "Yes!" Why not? It's worth a shot. Who knows, by some miracle, i might even pass.

*UPDATE* I didn't. I wish I could blame my lack of sleep and and rest that morning after my shift but I don't believe in mental block. So...either I'm getting dumber every year or it just wasn't meant to be. I'll take the latter just because it makes me feel better. lol.

Twins update

To my friends who are avid fans of my nephews Holiday & Hunter, here are a few photos for you to go goo-goo gaga over:

at exactly 1 year old

Day-Day's space suit

*DO NOT DISTURB*

"come on! let's go!!!"

weeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!


Shaolin Day-Day (parang si Jairus ng Kung-Fu kids)


Hunter's real twin brother


this time pool time is really FUN time!!!


new hair cuts (Holiday: "where'd my hair go?")


sooooo cute. gigil!!!!


one of the biggest brightest smiles that never fails to brighten my day


clap your hands, clap your hands

I miss these kids so much. Mum told me that sometimes when they tell Hunter, "call tita", he'd get a cell phone, get the screen to light up, then place it over his ear and say, "Heyo tita!". Isn't that adorable? And yes, it made me cry. Hopefully one of these days I'll get to hear that over the phone. lol. *UPDATE: apparently Holiday does the same thing!!!*

Oh, and here's a video I took of Holiday while I was in PNG.

Honestly, I didn't mean for it to happen! It was an accident. But really, you gotta admit, it's funny. lol. Love you Day-Day!!! You're gonna be famous bebe...on Bitoy's Funniest Videos. lol. Sorry bout the end part. I dropped my phone to pick up Holiday. lol. Don't worry, he wasn't hurt.

almost there

We made it to nesting. Just one more week. Hopefully we'll all make it. Russ and I are still on different shifts. This time I'm on the shift before hers. Anyway, it has been the bestest 2 weeks of training that I have ever experienced. Our trainer Dave is the best. Hell, it didn't feel like training. Too much fun and laughter. To celebrate all of us passing PST and test bed, we all went over to Gen's place yesterday. Loads of fun. Was a farewell party too. I'm gonna miss Dave. Wish training could be longer. lol. Anyway, we're just 5 days away from becoming probi's. *fingers crossed*

Wave 9B! Awoo! Awoo! Awoo!

With Gen, Dave and Zen

my new buddy Russ

time to celebrate

enjoying Dave's KFC dinner

a new beginning .... again

It's been exactly a month since I got back from Papua New Guinea. Until now I am missing the twins and everyone else. One of the hardest things I had to do was leaving. I still catch myself crying when I hear Holiday's favorite song "No One" by Alicia Keys and when it's 11:30pm and I remember that's the time I sing Hunter to sleep with "The Power of Two". They're growing so fast. And I can't wait till they come home this October. They won't recognize me, but still...they'll be home. For 3 months. Kewlies. I wonder what they'll look like. How fast they can run. What they'll look like in their cute little suits on our wedding. *giggles* Soooooooo cute!!

Anyway, I know this blog is long overdue. Just an update. A week after I got home, I tagged along with Russ when she applied at Stellar Global Solutions in Cubao. Yeah. Call center. IP-Relay Operator. The pay? Wow. I couldn't resist. lol. To cut things short, we both passed the Interview, as well as a week or so of Soft Skills Training, and now we're on our third day of Program Specific Training. Oh da ba. Kaching! Kaching! Kaching!!! lol. Wish us luck that we pass. Though we're not in the same class nor shift, I've found a new set of friends. The funniest bunch. I've got a new Russ in my life. But this time he's a she but is really a he but wants to be a she. Gets? lol. He's one of the funniest people I know. Kinda reminds me of Abba. But just how he makes me laugh. lol. Love you Babba!! Aside from Russ, there's McKai whose introduction goes - "I'm McKai. And no I'm not anorexic. I'm not bolemic. And I don't do drugs." Yeah, she's that thin. Got a couple of piercings and is the lead guitarist of a band named Sink. Cool I know. Then there's Lee who loves to drink. She used to weigh 43kg way back when she religiously dragon boat rowed (or whatever you call it) I think was about a year ago. She once modeled her rock hard abs for that Del Monte 202 commercial. (I think). Anyway, drinking 3 bottles of Gran Matador in 4 hours ALL BY HERSELF and all the beer drinking kinda paid off. So there. Another funny one. There's more of them. My new friends. But I gotta cut this thing short. (i know i know, mahaba nanga e!!!)

Anyway, I'm off. Gotta hit the showers. I think I've finally adjusted to the night shift. Today I slept like a baby. And now I'm definitely ready for training. Maybe my brain will actually work this time in class. Til next time! Promise, I'll make sure it won't be next month. Hahaha!! Ciao.