Anticipation is creeping in. 2 hours. 2 hours more and everything will be shut down, signed out, and perhaps forgotten. My desk  that used to be a home of a cutesy pup plushie, scratch papers, post-its, and candy wrappers now screams emptiness. This room, once a nest of brilliant people fueled by passion, is now an empty space only filled with the deafening chorus of the air condition and our keyboard strokes.

Nothing is going to be certain from here. But there's one thing that I am sure of, I will miss the people who showed me support and encouragement at times of pressure and failure which ultimately led me to discover my inner strength and true capabilities. My colleagues, workadas, friends, or however I call them, have become and will always be a family to me.

Today, marks exactly one year since I first set foot into the corporate world. Time flies really fast when you get too preoccupied, with or without fun. I never even thought I'd survive a year in this dog-eat-dog world. But look! I'm still here, more alive than ever, typing out loud when I should be prepping for work.

365 days is too short, too fast, and too furious. Within that span of one year, I've lost some and gained some. Aside from the weight and acne scars, I have also gained knowledge, a new sport, friends, and love. I am really thankful that things happened the way they did. It molded me to what I am today - bug fixed and updated. Still under development; a work in progress trying to achieve how the Supreme Being designed me to be.

Everyone who knew me and those who read my blog know that I've been working at home ever since I got my first job. July this year, I was quite devastated when I heard the news that the company I work with (and came to love) has to put me from full-time to contractual work since sales and AU dollar rate have been declining. Meaning, I only have work to do and get paid when the need arises.

It's actually the biggest heartbreak of my career because: One, my bosses are really nice. You will seldom see nice (and forgiving) foreign bosses like them. Two, I had a great team. A project manager and developers that I can collaboratively work flawlessly with, beat that. Three, it's the highest paying company I've ever been to that my salary as a designer can equal to that of a developer (or even higher compared to other companies).

I admit it, I know it's shallow, but the last one bit me the hardest.

September marks the month of transition. Well, to most Pinoys, the start of BER months mean a transition from the ordinary days to the festivities of Christmas. As early as the first day of September some friends are already posting Christmasy statuses on Facebook. So if you're getting a Christmas greeting in social media as early as the first of September, we have not lost our minds. It's just a culture thing.

Well, yeah, I feel the transition. But this September begins a bigger transition in my life. Starting tomorrow, I will be a WAHM (work-at-home-mom) no more. Yep, you heard that right. I will no longer be waking up at the heat of the sun on my face, turn on the laptop and work on my jammies. Starting tomorrow I will have a new routine which includes dressing smartly, beating the rush hour, getting stuck in the traffic, going up the elevator, and checking in.

When I'm on facebook, I don't just spend my time stalking on people's profiles and read about what they do with their lives. I join groups. Groups for mommies, bloggers, freelancers, hobbyists, online money makers and whatnot. Groups where you find healthy discussions, lessons from experiences, advises, and whatever useful tips you can get from there. Yep, these groups actually prove that facebook's existence is not just for stalkers, braggart, and/or attention seekers - just like every one of us. hahaha

While lurking on one of my most visited groups, Girltalk - a group for women, particularly moms who want to share their journey of motherhood, I came across a number of threads about full-time working moms who are in a dilemma of quitting their jobs to become full-time hands-on mom.


Not everyone is privileged to have an uber rich husband that you can just take your hands off work and focus on the kids instead. It is difficult because at times like this, when bills, milk, diaper, medical, and tuition fee prices go sky high, I can say that money does matter. You work because you want to provide. Provide not just what you can, but provide what you think is best. Right?

Upon hearing(or should I say reading) the sentiments of other moms, I have realized that I am indeed very blessed. Every day, I work an 8-12hour shift, and at the same time I tend to my son's needs and prepare him for school, and during breaks or just right after work, I am still able to do a few house chores like cooking, cleaning the house, washing the dishes, and/or doing the laundry.

Everyday is too much of a juggle, I would say that. Hiring a yaya even occurred to me, but I oftentimes ditch that thought because I can still handle one very active toddler, the pressing house chores, and the light pressure from work.  The routine's pretty exhausting, really. But I'm not complaining (although sometimes, I do!). When I do, all I just think is to be thankful that I have a job that earns pretty well (at least the boyfriend doesn't have to shoulder all the expenses, plus it puts my self worth at a level), a house that I keep in order, and a family that I can take care of.

Not everyone is lucky to become a work-at-home-mom (WAHM). It's really tiring but the rewards are oh so priceless. I can just take my hands off the keyboard anytime my son asks for a kiss or a hug, who wouldn't love that? :)

When people learn that I work from home, I get different reactions. Most people would say "Ka hayahay."  Hayahay is a term from our local dialect which could mean any of the following: relaxing, comfortable, convenient, ease, and all other terms related to it. It is as good as saying "It must be nice to have a stress-free work."  

No, not really. And there's no such thing.

Sometimes, people envy me, thinking that I hold all the time for myself. Note, thinking. It seems most people with "real jobs" think home-based jobs can be as easy as just clicking the mouse, (e.g. paid to click, networking, referrals, ponzi schemes) earning while doing almost nothing. No. These are real office jobs we do, only we chose to be at home.

Working from home is not what you really think it is. I am well aware of the perks of working at home, and I absolutely love it. However, I can't deny the fact that I also need to acknowledge the perils that come with it.

My Workstation

I have this callous. It’s thick and it’s dark.

Ten years ago, I chose to study nursing because I thought this career could take me to a good life: work abroad, have a car and build my dream house.  One hundred hospital duties, thirty absences and countless pink slips later, I dreaded the fact that I chose Nursing.

I regularly slept in class, I flunked a major subject because of accumulated absences, and I loathed every second of every day of every 8-hour health care lecture. I just do not like it. It costs more or less than half a million pesos to send me to nursing school and I ended up being a disappointment.

I design websites for a living, cook breakfast, wash the dishes, then feed, bathe and play with my son at the same time. Sounds like too much of a juggle? I don't think so.

I survived the first crucial year of mommyhood, tending to my son's needs, always there to see my baby's sloppy first, watching him grow every minute, never missing a milestone - while at the same time earning money for our basic needs. See? That reason alone is the greatest perk of working at home.