Category: 52 Week Project

It’s one of those days when the twins are too busy playing with their toys to look up and smile for the camera. Fiiine. :)

They’re turning 9 months old next week! At this point, they like testing their boundaries by crawling beyond the edges of their play mat, and walking around the house with support. Dawn likes clapping her hand when she’s bored, and Rain likes screaming when she’s excited.

I like to think that they’re happiest every time the door opens and they see me or their Daddy come home from work or from school—the smiles on their faces are just.. priceless. Admittedly, those are my happiest times of day too.

Our house is a mess. Their toys are all over the place, there’s barely enough floor space to walk on, and we don’t have enough closet space for their growing amount of clothes. They consume milk and disposable diapers like there’s no tomorrow. Our schedule revolves around the time they’re supposed to eat, and play, and sleep. And 24 hours is simply not enough for all the tasks and chores that has to be done.

Life has never been more busy and more chaotic than this.

But it has never been happier too. :)

19/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of June 30-July 6
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

The 8th month is such a happy month! There’s so much laughter, and smiles, and milestones.

We’re enjoying this time we don’t need to chase them around just yet, knowing that they’ll be crawling all over the place soon. Like, really soon, because just the other day we caught on video how Rain crawled from one end of the mat to the other end just to get a toy. A-ma-zing! I’m not sure “crawling” is the word I’d use to describe what Dawn does, mostly she’s rolling over and doing cartwheels. You know, cheerleader stuff!

There was a time last month when we would sing “Happy birthday to you” every single day because it made Dawn happy. Like, she would be smiling from ear to ear at the sound of the happy birthday song, as if it’s her birthday everyday. Rain liked it too at first, until maybe she realized that we’re just singing it to make fun of them. Smart kid.

That’s exactly what’s happening in the photos above. Husband and I were singing  “Happy birthday to you”,

and Dawn goes, “Yay it’s my birthday everyday woohoo! And I have cake!”

and Rain goes, “They’re singing that song again. Oh, what is that bright, burning thing?”

Haha. These two.

Happy 8th month bebegirls. We love you.

18/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of June 23-29
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

The usual routine works like this: First we give them a bath, take we them to the bedroom and let them play for about 30 minutes. And then we switch off the lights, turn on their lullaby, and let them have their milk. Works like a charm. Usually.

But then there are nights when it’s more difficult to get them to sleep. These photos were taken from one of those nights when our energizer bunnies would rather play than be tucked in.

See what we have to put up with? :-) This is why we have too many Instagrams and videos of them all over our social networks. It’s totally their fault.

17/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of June 16-22
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

As for my day job, I report to our Makati office 3 days a week and work from from home the rest of the week (not bad, right?). I couldn’t be any more blessed and thankful for the setup, I guess there’s really just no easy way to leave your babies behind, for whatever purpose you have to be away.

So I endure the occasional separation anxiety, go through the day, take the train to Makati, sit in front of my office desk for hours, weave sentences together, send emails, go to meetings, and then take the train back home. I realized that no matter how stressful the commute or how tiring the day, coming home to this just makes up for the long hours away.

I mean, look at those faces! Who needs stress tabs when you have them? :)

16/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of June 9-15
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

The days and the months have been passing by so swiftly. Tomorrow, Dawn and Rain are turning 8 months old. And in a typical “new mommy” fashion, I can’t stop marveling at how fast they’ve been growing! As promised, here’s a rundown of the weeks I’ve missed in my 52 Week Project. These photos were mostly taken with an iPhone, between May 12 to June 10. Soooo hard to pick just one or two from each week, but here are the best ones.

15/52: Last Sunday with Ninang Jeline

Dawn & Rain don’t have any concept of goodbyes just yet, and surely they will not have any recollection of this day, but I want them to remember their Ninang J through these photographs. And these pretty dresses that she’s gifted them.

15/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of June 2-8
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

x o x o

14/52: Guess How Much I Love You

I looked everywhere for a copy of this book for months until finally finding one in a book sale. I kept it and looked forward to a time when we could finally read the story to the twins. At last, we had our chance.

I watched my husband read the story to them, holding a phone camera and making sure I captured the moment. Rain was a little more attentive, like she’s really listening to each and every word her Daddy said. Dawn’s attention span was a little shorter; she couldn’t wait to flip the pages, sometimes she would even lean forward with her tongue sticking out as if wanting to taste the book. It’s funny seeing their personalities shine through as early as now. :)

As their Daddy ended the story with the all-too-familiar words, “I love you to the moon and back,” my heart was just.. bursting at the seams. It would take Dawn & Rain a few more years, and more bedtime stories, but someday.. someday they’ll understand what those words mean.

14/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of May 26-June 1
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

x o x o

My greatest birthday gifts

I turned 30 years old, and I wouldn’t have celebrated it any other way. I already said a handful about that day so click here to read it, if you haven’t yet. :)

13/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of May 19-25
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

x o x o

Just one of those happy Saturday afternoons

I have a theory. I think that, soon as their Daddy and Mommy have fallen asleep, Dawn and Rain go to a secret school. In this secret school they learn how to make funny faces, and how to be adorable, and how to get their parents wrapped around their tiny fingers. Because really, we don’t teach them these things, and somehow they’ve become experts at it!

12/52:  A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of May 12-18
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013

The first photo had been my Facebook page’s cover photo for weeks. And can you blame me?

I can’t remember what’s making them laugh in this picture. It’s probably me jumping up and down our bed, or their Daddy making weird faces and inventing silly words. Seriously, there’s nothing that makes these two laugh more than seeing us act like crazy people.

Anything to make you happy, darlings.

11/52, A Year of Dawn & Rain | Week of  April 14-20
Portraits of my children, once a week, every week in 2013