Tiffany & Co.

My Very First Breakfast at Tiffany’s

A probinsyana girl, a gold heart, grief, privilege, poverty, and learning that love can exist beside healing.

Standing Outside Tiffany

There’s a part in the video where I was still standing outside the Tiffany & Co. store, zooming in on the Tiffany sign from afar before finally walking in. And honestly? My heart was beating so fast it was almost embarrassing. 😂

Because imagine this.

I’m just a probinsyana girl from the Philippines who grew up seeing places like Tiffany only in movies. Especially in Breakfast at Tiffany’s starring Audrey Hepburn. Tiffany always felt so glamorous. So sosyal. So untouchable. One of those places that subconsciously felt like it belonged to another world. Another kind of woman. Another kind of life.

And then suddenly there I was.

Standing right outside an actual Tiffany & Co. store with Dada Hanz and Tuz beside me, about to walk in.

Continue reading
Luxury Shops at Nustar Cebu

I Thought I Wanted Luxury. What I Really Wanted Was Safety [A Mother’s Day Post]

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mamas out there. 🌷

Today felt different for me.

Not because of the luxury bags.
Not because of Tiffany, Dior, Louis Vuitton, or Hermès.
Not because of flowers, jewelry, or beautiful stores.

But because for the first time in a very long time… I allowed myself to feel taken care of…

Continue reading
podcast by the beach

I Thought I Was Back to Normal… But My Body Had Other Plans | MomTraNeur Diaries Ep. 3

For the past couple of weeks, I honestly thought I was finally “back.”

My energy came back. I can wake up early again. I can work again. My brain feels clearer. I don’t feel as physically drained as I did the past few months.

After everything my body went through recently, especially after the D&C, that already felt like a huge thing.

But even though I feel better, I’ve been noticing something I can’t ignore.

Continue reading
Momtraneur Diaries podcast EP 2

My Energy Is Coming Back… But I Don’t Want to Forget This Season | MomTraNeur Diaries Ep. 2

I can feel it.

My energy is slowly coming back.

Not all at once. Not like before.
But enough for me to notice.

And I’m grateful.

But at the same time…

Continue reading

You Can Have It All… Just Not at the Same Damn Time (And I Finally Understand Why)

There was a time when I thought having it all meant doing it all: at the same time, at full speed, without pause.

And when I couldn’t?

I felt like I was failing.

But this past week… something shifted.

Not in a loud, dramatic way.
But in the quiet, gentle return of me.

Continue reading

Where I’ve Been… and Why I Needed This Space | MomTraNeur Diaries Ep. 1

I’ve always been strong.

I run businesses, albeit small.
I take care of my family.
I show up for everyone.

And I know I’m not the only one.

A lot of moms… a lot of wives… are like this.

We carry so much.

We keep going, even when we’re tired.
We hold everything together, even when we’re quietly falling apart inside.

And sometimes, we don’t even realize how much we’ve been carrying…
until something breaks us open.

Continue reading
SENSUAL COUPLE

Epilogue: When Life Returns to the Body

Writing the story of Baby Lux has been one of the most emotional things I have ever done.

In the span of a few weeks, we experienced hope, fear, confusion, grief, surgery, and healing.

We learned how fragile life can be.
We learned how strong love can be.
And we learned that sometimes the deepest wounds also reveal the deepest parts of our hearts.

Baby Lux was with us for only a short time.

But that short time changed us.

Our family will never be the same again.

And strangely… that is not entirely a sad thing.

Because in the middle of losing a child, we also discovered something powerful: How deeply we love each other.

Epilogue: I Didn’t Expect This

And just when I was ready to give up on the precious act of lovemaking, something unexpected has been happening to me these past few days.

And I’m almost embarrassed to admit it out loud…

Continue reading

Part 4 – The Quiet After: Healing and Remembering Baby Lux

(The Final Chapter of the Baby Lux Story)

THE FIRST NIGHT IN THE HOSPITAL

The night before the surgery was the night we were admitted through the Emergency Room.

Everything had happened so quickly — the unexpected ultrasound results, the doctor’s explanation about a possible molar pregnancy, the sudden instruction to go straight to the hospital.

By the time we were finally settled into our room, all three of us were emotionally drained.

Continue reading

Part 3: The Operating Room — Letting Go of Baby Lux (My D&C / Dilation and Curettage Experience)

The Waiting Before They Came For Me

That afternoon, I began quietly counting the minutes.

Around 1:30 p.m., I kept glancing at the clock. We had originally been told that I might be wheeled to the operating room around 2:00 p.m., but one of the resident doctors had also warned me earlier that my OB still had other patients scheduled before me.

So it might be 3:00 p.m.
Or even 4:00 p.m.

Still, the waiting made every minute feel longer.

Nurses came in and out of the room throughout the afternoon, checking my blood pressure, oxygen levels, and asking the usual questions. Each time the door opened, I wondered if it was finally time.

At 3:30 p.m., the gurney finally arrived.

Continue reading

Part 2: The Morning Before Surgery — Saying Goodbye to Baby Lux

Part 1 ended with us entering the hospital not knowing exactly what the next hours would bring.

Morning came anyway.

And with it came the quiet understanding that the day ahead would ask us to let go of the life we had begun imagining.

Continue reading
The Waiting, the Wanting, the Yes

Pregnancy & Perimenopause Diary Series: The Waiting, the Wanting, the Yes

This is what happened next…

Today was quieter than yesterday.
Not calm exactly… but softer.

At around 3 p.m., Hanz and I went to the diagnostic center for the blood test. The one that would say, clearly and officially, whether this pregnancy was real or not. We waited, did what we had to do, and then decided not to hover. We went to a nearby restaurant for my first meal of the day.

It was a nice moment. Ordinary in the best way. Good food. Sitting across from my husband. Life continuing while something very big hovered in the background.

Continue reading