[K&L] How We Broke the News to My Parents

December 21, 2013

After Kelvin had proposed, we went to tell the people closest to our hearts the big news.

I first sent a text message to my sister and my best friends. Being the closest to my heart, I wanted to make sure that they were the first to know. Ate Ye immediately called me andcongratulated Kelvin and me. She was very happy for me and asked for details of the proposal over the phone. My best friends replied to my text and were also very happy and excited for me.

Hon and I first went to Tita Corgie's house to surprise them. It turned out that Kelvin's original proposal plan was to propose to me in Jo's house. But he was afraid that I had figured his plan out and decided to propose to me at my house. Boy, did that surprise work! :) 

It was very early in the morning and Hon dragged Jo out of bed. Tita Corgie, Tito Emil, Jo and Inah congratulated us and we all had breakfast in their home.We also asked Tita Corgie to be our Ninang in our wedding. I've got to say that I'm very blessed to have Jo, Tita Corgie, and their family in our lives; we consider the Santoses as our second family.

After breakfast, Hon drove me to Glorietta where I bought a couple of gifts for my nephews. After which, we traveled back to Kelvin's house and broke the news of our engagement to his family. After a few minutes, we were on the road again; this time to Batangas to bring the good news to my Mom and Dad. Hon and I agreed that we were to tell my parents in person before we tell all our other friends. I wanted to make sure that my Mom and Dad hear it from us before they hear it from my aunts or our friends on Facebook.

We arrived in Batangas at half past three in the afternoon. Dad was busy trimming the grass when Hon and I got out of the tricycle. Dad greeted us with a big smile, but a puzzled look in his face. We went inside the house and were blessed by my parents. Hon and I agreed that he will tell my Dad then we'll tell my mom together. Mama and I were talking inside the house when Kelvin was trying to tell Daddy about our engagement.

Kelvin started loosening Daddy up with small talk. After a few minutes, Hon slowly broke the news to him.

According to Daddy, Hon started talking and patting his head (He does this when he's stressed or nervous about something, heehee!)

"Ah, Tito, ah, may sasabihin po, ah, sana ako, ah... May sasabihin po sana ako sa inyo e." was his stammered opening. He was gesturing to his ring finger and struggling to tell Daddy the news.

Dad, seeing how nervous Hon was, tried to appease him, "Oh, ano ba yon?" I guess Daddy didn't realize he was holding his big ass grass cutter in his hand and there was no way in hell Kelvin was about to relax.

But Hon pressed on, "Ah, ano po kasi e... Ah, ano po..."

At this point he was stuttering and gesturing to his ring finger.  "Kami po ni Leng... Ah... Ano po kasi, Tito. Si Leng ano po... Ah... Engaged na po kami ni Leng." I'm guessing at this moment he was mentally preparing for a blow or a swipe from Daddy. None of that happened, of course!

Dady, bless his amazing heart, said in return, "Ah ganon ba? Ah okay... Gano na ba kayo katagal?"

"Seven years na din po, Tito." was his quick reply.

Daddy answered, "Ah, e matagal na naman na kayo e. Okay na. Yun lang, si Mama nya ang sabihan nyo pa." - Please note I'm not very certain if these were Daddy's exact words.

After a few minutes, I stepped out onto garden and Hon confirmed to me that he had already told Daddy. Seeing him in one piece and blood-free, I looked at Daddy. He had a smile on his face and I discreetly showed him the ring that Hon gave me. His smile grew wider and he motioned towards Mama's direction.

Alright, Mission #1 had been accomplished, it was time to move on to Mission #2: Telling Mama

I started by asking Mama, "Ma, di ka ba nagtataka at kasama ko si Kel?"

Mama's reply was, "Oo nga, bakit mo nga pala kasama si Kelvin?"

"Ah, may sasabihin po kasi kami sa inyo...", was my hesitant answer.

Mama was startting to get this confused expression, "Ha? Ano yon?"

I showed Mama my ring and simply said, "Ito po."

After a stunned and confused second, Mom said, "Teka muna!"

It took Mama a few seconds to talk again. I could totally read my mom's facial expressions! It started with a stunned expression, then I could see her schooling her emotions and trying to look happy. "Ah, e... Ok na naman, nasa edad na kayo, matagal na naman kayo."

"Wag ka iiyak, Mama, ha!", I told her.

She answered, "Hindi ah!"

And then Mama couldn't keept her emotions in check anymore. Her voice cracking, "Alam ko namang mahal mo ang anak ko. At alam ko naman ding mahal na mahal ka nya, ikaw lang ang nakakapagpasaya sa kanya ng ganito."

And there I was, with tears in my eyes, I laughingly asked her, "E bakit ka umiiyak, Mama?!"

"Iba na pala pag totoo na, mahirap. Ikakasal ka na e." You see, my mom has been telling Kel and me that we shouldn't wait too long and that we should get married soon. She has been vocal about wanting us to get married because I have an ovarian condition that may affect my ability to get pregnant. I've always told her that Hon and I were not in a hurry to get married and that we were very happy as boyfriend and girlfriend. Thankfully, Mama has not put any pressure on me nor Kel. But I realized that even with her asking me to get married, deep inside her, she was afraid. I realized that she was dreading the day I will come to her and tell her that I am getting married.

And on the day that I did tell her, she wasn't sure what emotion was winning: the happiness or the fear.

I hugged Mama and said to her, "Mama, hindi naman ako mawawala, hindi naman ako aalis. Mag-aasawa lang ako; tsaka nag usap na kami ni Kelvin, uuwi pa din naman ako dito, pero kasama ko na sya."

Mama then turned to Hon and while crying, said, "Kelvin, alagaan mo ang anak namin, ha? Baby namin yan. Papauwiin mo pa rin sya dito sa amin ha?"

Hon was quick to calm Mama down, "Ay, oo naman po, Tita." He then said something else, but I can no loner remember what.

Daddy, quick to diffuse the tension, called out, "Hayaan nyo nang umiyak yan, para maubos na ang luha at di na makaiyak sa kasal!"

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was how Kelvin was able to tell my parents that he wants to marry their baby.

And yes, he came home to Manila in one piece. :)

[K&L] How he popped the question and my life flashed before my eyes

December 20, 2013

The last working day of the week was exhausting. I observed three training classes and attended three calibration sessions, and then battled through traffic on my way home. I finally reached my house at past midnight, and I immediately sent Honey and my parents a text message telling them that I was home. 

After a few minutes, I got a text message from Hon saying, "Hon, nagtext si Jo, said he wants to talk to us tomorrow. He'll text you soon."

I got worried so I texted Jo first; he immediately replied saying he was very troubled and that he wanted our (Kelvin's and mine) advice. He said that he wanted to talk and that if Kelvin and I could go to his house at 8 in the morning. One of his texts said, "Sensya na tlga, really lost and I need advice n tlga eh. :( see ya tom." 

I even offered to go to his place that same night if he needed to talk to us that badly; but he said he was still at work so a meeting the next morning would have to do.

That got me thinking. Si Kelvin at si Jo gigising ng maaga on a Saturday morning?! Si Jo, na super impulsive, would plan a meeting to discuss his problems? And knowing Jo and Kel, if Kel knew Jo had a problem, he would drop whatever it is, and go to Jo.  I suddenly remembered our first monthsarry, on December 21, 2006, when he connived with Jo and they both managed to surprise me.

And then I thought, "Ah, 85th monthsarry namin ni Kel bukas, baka naman may surprise para sa monthsarry namin. Or baka naman problemado lang talaga si Jo." Nevertheless, I sent Hon a message saying we should be at Jo's place at 8:30AM the next day. And with that thought, I fell asleep. 

December 21, 2013

I was awakened to the caterwauling of what was a phone call. I looked at the time and it was 7:18am; and it was Kelvin calling. I groggily answered his call, "Hello, by?"

"Baby, open the door. I'm here na!", was his greeting.

I realized I overslept and he was there to pick me up so we could go to Jo's house together. So I got out of bed, hastily pulled my hair up in a messy bun, sleepily walked down the stairs and out the front door to the gate. When I got there, I saw Kelvin standing at the gate holding a bouquet of roses.

This picture was taken about two hours after he proposed. 

"Whoa!" was my pleasantly surprised morning greeting to the man standing at the gate with the roses. You see, it has been years since he last gave me roses.

I unlocked the gate to let him in, and he gave me a big morning hug while saying, "Happy monthsarry, hon."

"Happy monthsarry, honey. Come inside the house. Ang aga ng gising mo ah! Can I bring my flowers to Jo's house?"

"Sure, baby." was his response.

"Mag-ready ka na, Ny, para makapunta na tayo kina Jo." was his request when we got inside the house.

 "Yes, maliligo lang ako.", was my answer while looking down at my flowers. I was so happy I got flowers from Hon! 

I noticed Hon suddenly became quiet. When I looked up to ask him what was wrong, I saw him taking something out from his pocket and he was struggling to open it. (A few hours later, he told he was having trouble opening the ring box, turns out he was opening it the wrong way. Haha!)

After a few seconds, he extended his hand and showed me what he was holding. It was a beautiful, sparkling diamond ring, sitting in a satin bed, housed in a purple box. At that moment, I wasn't sure what was happening. So I asked, "What is that?!"

I was still trying to figure out what was happening when he suddenly dropped down on one knee in front of me, silently laughing.

And then I realized what was happening. 

In the movies and videos I've seen, when a guy proposes to a girl, the girl bursts into tears, hiccups, and collapses into a trembling mass of a woman. Then she shakily answers with a "Yes" and kisses her man on the lips.

My reaction was no way close to what I've seen in the movies. I collapsed in a heap of laughter and asked over and over, "Are you serious? Seryoso ba to? Joke ba to?"

It has been days since the proposal and for the life of me I can no longer remember what Hon said while I was laughing my butt off. He said something like being serious because he was down on one knee. But there was one thing that made me stop laughing and that was the moment when I realized that he was serious. 

And that was when he popped the question, "Will you marry me?"

After a few seconds, I gave him my answer. 

"Yes."

He then put the beautiful ring on my finger, (at first he wasn't sure which finger, haha!), and gave me a bone-crushing hug. And there we were, my dear friends, Kelvin giving me a big hug, and me, with messy hair, di pa naliligo, naghihilamos, o nagtoo-toothbrush hugging each other and savoring the first few seconds of our engagement.

That was when the waterworks came. 

I've always wondered why women cry when their men propose to them. Why is she crying when she knew her man had plans of proposing? Why would a woman cry when she loves her boyfriend, now fiance, anyway?

I then realized why I was crying. In a matter of seconds, a thousand thoughts came rushing through me head. I was crying because of the new experience we have added to our seven years together. It dawned on me that we have embarked on a new together together. He was no longer my boyfriend; he is now my fiance, my future husband. The man I will serve and love for the rest of my life. The man who will be the father of my children and the man I will spend the rest of my life with. I was crying because of the amount of love I have in my heart for him. I was crying because of the joy in my heart. I have found the man God has made for me. A man who understands and knows the real me; a man who already knows the desires of my heart even without saying. A man who respects me and my family; and a man who selflessly loves, cherishes, and protects me. 

I was also crying because I was scared. And I mean holy-shit-this-is-for-real-I'm-getting-married! kind of scared. Can I do this? Will I make a good wife? Can I get pregnant? Is Kelvin really sure about marrying me? Will I make a good mother? Will Kelvin become stricter once we're married? Will he still love me when things become predictable and boring? 

And then I got really scared... What about my Mom? What about my Dad? My about my nephew? My family? Can I really leave home? Can I still go home to my parents? Will Daddy still let me sleep beside him? Will I remain my Daddy's little girl? Will my Mama be ok? Will I still be able to see my Mama and Daddy during weekends? 

With tears running down my face, I had to ask, "Papayagan mo pa rin akong umuwi sa amin ha?" You'll still let me go home, right?

Laughing, he answered, "Yes, baby. Of course, baby. Sama pa ako!"

And with that, my fears instantly disappeared. The answers came to me as quickly as the questions did.  I will make a good wife because my Mama showed me how to become one. She has shown me how to love, honor and serve a husband. I will make a good mother because I have the best mother. My husband will love me whatever happens because I know the man I'm going to marry. He knows me, and he knows how much my family means to me, and he has assured me that he will not take me away from my family because they love him as much as they love me. And bless him, he loves my family too!

After realizing all of these, the reality of everything has started to sink in. Kelvin and I are engaged! We're getting married! We're going to start a life together and make good-looking, chubby babies! Haha!

We're getting married, everyone! 

P.S.

Here's a picture of me checking if my nails were clean. Kelvin was taking photos of me and my hand you see, I wanted to check if my nails were clean. LOLs. Girl problems.

Legazpi Escapade Day 2

Hello, dear readers!

As promised, here is Day 2 of our Legazpi Adventure!

I fell deeper in love with the place the next morning I woke up. Guess what greeted me to an amazing morning!

The volcano says "hello!" at 6 in the morning!

Good morning!

We came down to have breakfast at Jasmine, the hotel's in house restaurant. 

Boy, were we in for a treat! The Oriental Legazpi's breakfast buffet was too fabulous for words. Dear readers, feast your eyes on the breakfast feast that The Oriental Legazpi offers!

Yep, that's my plate. :)

The cake display

Beverage station

The fruit station

BACON!!!

Adobo and bacon

Eggs!

Gotcha, hon!

After our hearty breakfast, we were off to Cagsaua ruins! 

I was in awe when we finally reached the place. I remember when I was in grade school browsing through the photos of this majestic place. Who would have thought I would be standing in the same place having my own pictures taken? The best part of it was, Kelvin and our awesome friends Jo, Em, Joma, and Joyce were there to share the moment. 

Here are some snaps of our Cagsaua Ruins experience:

Enough of the pictures from the ruins; now on to the real adventure: ATV!!!

It was my first time to try such an activity; I was terrified before we started but , boy, did I have a blast! This was surely one of the Top 2 highlights of this vacation.

Here are some snaps of the adventure:

Whew! What a rush that was. 

But the adventure wasn't done. We stopped by Lignon Hill before lunch and we bought a few odds and ends. I ended up buying two bags (one for me and my mom).

The boys showing us girls how we post for pictures.

Exhausted and sweaty from our adventure, we treated ourselves to a sumptuous lunch at Mr. Crab.

Lookie, shrimps!

Oh, sunburn!

When we got back to the hotel, we decided to rest for a bit and then meet again in an hour for dip in the pool.

And another round of fun it was!

You'll notice that there are no pictures of Kelvin and me together; that's because when these pictures were taken, we just had a terrible fight and I wasn't talking to him. I had one of my crazy moments where I snapped and broke up with him. But we fixed all things up after all our friends had left us alone in the pool.

Enough about our LQ, let's move on to the photos, shall we?

Hello, ladies!

JoEm

Joma and Joyce

And just when you thought we were exhausted for the day, we went out of the hotel again! But just for dinner, of course. We went to Embarcadero, one of the hottest places for families to tour and visit in Legazpi. We couldn't find other places to eat that looked good so we had dinner at Mr. Bigg's.

The contrite Kelvin :)

We went back to the hotel after our delightful dinner to rest our bodies in preparation for Day 3's Adventure.

What's in store for Legazpi Day 3, you say? Look out for my next blog!