Hard Work is Starting to Pay Off

This week's been really busy at work, I actually didn't realize it's finally the weekend! Last Monday, I received good news from my boss. I am one of the two people chosen to undergo training for the new account that the company will be opening up here in the Philippines. Sure, it means more information above the many that I am still learning and new adjustment with the processes and system - but I am not complaining. I actually welcome the challenge and truly appreciate, that of all the employees in our company and tenured ones at that, my boss chose me.

I've been on training since Monday, trying to digest everything that has to be learned and hoping that I at least meet, if not exceed, the expectations that my boss have for me. Even though this new role doesn't have an equivalent pay raise (I know that'll come eventually), I am still glad that an opportunity like this opened up for me. Having to pioneer a new account is HUGE, it'll open up new doors for me and will bring me much, much closer to my goal.

There's so much to thank God for.

How was my First Day?

I think I did pretty well.

Johan woke up almost the same time I did. He asked to be carried and I gave in while I cooked my baon for work. Good thing he let me put him down in his crib when it was time for me to take a bath.

He stayed awake until I left for work and the "tearful goodbye" (from me) that I was expecting to happen surprisingly did not take place. Though I felt really sad that I was leaving him behind, I felt more energized, refreshed and very ready to take on new roles.

Of course, I missed him the entire day. Especially when 10 o'clock struck because that was the time I usually give him his bath. During the orientation at work, I secretly sent text messages to my MIL asking how Johan was doing, if he already took his vitamins, how many bottles of milk has he consumed already or has he taken his naps.

I promised myself that I will stay calm and won't worry too much. But, the mom in me just can't help it. It's in my blood to worry.

When I arrived home, Johan was already sleeping and I think that was the saddest thing. I thought he will still be up and will welcome me with his killer smile. But he did not.

I wish he will wait for me next time.

(Oh and as for work, everything went great. I expected it to so I'm not really that worried about that. More stories in the coming days.)

Huge Changes are About to Happen

Remember the birthday wishes that I posted here? I have specifically asked for these two consecutive wishes:

• I wish hubby's income would increase or he finds a job that pays more or I get to work again so we could finally buy our own car. 
• I wish hubby's income would increase or he finds a job that pays more or I get to work again (hehe!) so we could start building our own "home". 

Guess what? Hopefully we're on our way to finally having our own car or own home because starting February 3, this mom is a SAHM no more.

I waited until today to announce it so as not to jinx it. I had my job offer today and I signed it, the contract will be signed after I completed all the pre-employment requirements.

I know that I've been blogging about how awesome it is to be a stay-at-home mom, it really is, believe me. If only we could live comfortably with hubby's income, I would have stayed a SAHM forever. But, our needs are increasing by the day and there are certain areas that need to be considered - like a family car, a house and most importantly, Johan's education. I realized that if I will be so picky in choosing the right school for Johan then I better start helping out hubby in saving for it as early as now. I heard that preschool in an A-list school down south already costs PhP 90,000.00! WTH! Imagine how much more it will be in 2-3 years when Johan starts school. I'm already scared.

I haven't been thinking about the adjustments we had to make because my mind is full on which of the Pre-employment requirements I should accomplish first. But, here are some of the major things that we had to decide upon SOON:

• We need to find a yaya but hubby and I had to weigh things first if we could afford one from my income. MIL is living with us but she's already taking care of my SIL's daughter who's also living with us (long story) and I'm sure she'll have a hard time taking care of Johan as well. The SIL's daughter is already a handful and with an active toddler like Johan, MIL won't be able to rest until I came home from work. Kawawa naman.
• I'm also thinking of bringing Johan to my parents' house in Laguna but we still had to hire a yaya because my parents will have a very difficult time caring for him plus Johan's not used to them yet so there might me crying spells, lots of it.
• List of to-dos regarding Johan - like the time he should sleep, he should take a bath, what he should eat, what he should not eat, what he's allowed to watch, what he's not allowed to watch, reading time, play time, vitamins to give him, lotion, insect repellent, pajamas when he's walking outside, EOP or English Only Policy when talking to Johan. The list is endless and from an OC mom like me, you wouldn't expect anything less. I'm thisclose to purchasing and installing a CCTV at home so I can monitor all of Johan's movements and his caregiver, whoever that ends up to be.

I'm not even thinking about me and Johan being apart five days a week. I'm sure I will be the one who'll have separation anxiety. For now, I'm just focused on his future and this motivates me to be strong and to work harder. 

Please don't judge me for wanting to work again. I'm not prioritizing work over my son. I've given up work before when he's still inside my tummy and I would do it again if ever he needs me back home. I would give up anything, in a blink of an eye, for my son. 

I'm missing you already, buddy! Mommy's gonna cry now. =(

But for now, I need to work - for Johan's future and for the fulfillment of our dreams.

Pray for me?

Information Overload!

I'm in a new team for work, it is amazing and pretty exciting to be in a team with most of your teammates being located in another part of the world. I've been on training for 3 days and let me say that "I never studied this hard since college!". Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying at work and I so welcome this challenge. Plus, getting to learn new things  is always good. I've been really tired whenever I arrive home from work due to too much information that I think I've been taking my training even to sleep. The same reason why I haven't been posting as frequent as I wanted to. 

Here's a picture of me and my Makati teammate Kitty with our Team Lead Carla. Our super great Program Manager Stacey took this picture when she treated us to Starbucks early this morning to unwind a little after hours of Live Meeting with our Washington teammates.