I'm trying to catch up on my backlogs for this blog, but my body and motivation are failing me. Send help!

Found this unused 2015 planner that by-ik gave me a few years back. Been wanting to start a new journal this year, and coincidentally, the whole 2015 calendar matches with the 2020 calendar 👀 so timely to have found this now! Figured I’d use this as a journal instead of buying a new notebook. ✨

Out of all the years, I chose to journal this 2020... and in the middle of a pandemic. Wonderful! At least, I can make the most out of the quarantine through this, right? Anyway, I don't really follow a template for it, so I'm considering it a memory journal... probably a junk journal as well. Whatever it is, it's my journal.

Here’s a journal entry for March 17. Used scrap paper and the DIY stickers I made for this spread 😂 I have a total of 4 spreads now and I can’t wait to fill this journal with 2020 memories! The community quarantine reliving my artsy self.

Blurring the text because it's cringe-worthy. It's for my (and by-ik's) eyes only for now. :"> I was able to use the journaling stuff that by-ik bought me for this spread. Gotta stay positive despite the hard times! But please negative lang sa virus 🦠

How did I do on my first spread though? I feel like it's messy, but it screams ALYSSA, so I love it!

Baby-ik's birthday fell on a Monday this year. Sadly, we couldn't do anything (fun) on weekdays considering that his dad still has to go to work despite the community quarantine going on. So his family decided we celebrate it on a Sunday instead. They were very pushy to celebrate it in the beach. By-ik loves the sea!

Just a little backstory, we had a fight a day before the celebration. It could have been the hormones influencing my mood... I just wasn't feeling okay that day... was feeling grumpy and I was having the worst mood swings! By-ik wasn't having the best day as well, so he snapped at me, though he tried his best to make me feel better later on in the day after realizing I just needed comfort and reassurance. #Pabebe He even told his parents he wanted the celebration cancelled because he wanted us fixed. We both never expected  for it to push through.

We didn't get to have proper sleep that night, so I told him he could come celebrate with them and I would just stay home because I was feeling exhausted. Staying home was my excuse so I could make him his birthday present. Hehee! But he insisted I come because a birthday celebration without me isn't considered a celebration for him.

Fast forward... his family decided to go on a small man-made island in Cordova. It was a pretty small island and there were very few people that day. Probably because you need to get on a pumpboat to reach the island. If I remember it right, there was another family of six on the island. Of course, we still practiced social distancing. Going to the beach was still allowed during this time. 

By-ik brought me pillows and blankets because he wanted me to be as comfortable as possible. I rested almost the entire time we were there. By-ik saw two coastal foragers and noticed they had Swaki (sea urchins) in their pails. By-ik bought two lapads. He knows how much I was craving for Swaki the past days. Though I wasn't allowed to eat anything raw due to high risk of Salmonella, I still ate anyway. Couldn't resist. Felt really guilty afterwards.

By-iks dad also grilled fish and squid while we were on the island. His mom brought homecooked dishes for us to feast on. It was an intimate and memorable celebration with his family.

The whole family, including me, dipped in the sea for a few minutes after that. By-ik went snorkeling. He was so happy to have found fishes, crabs, sea urchins, star fishes. He found Coral Banded Shrimps. They were so pretty!

And then we had to leave. We decided not to stay longer because of the community quarantine. Wish I had taken more photos though. If only I was feeling a little bit better...

It was supposed to be by-ik's birthday but he bought me all this stuff for my journal. Very timely because the 24-hour curfew just started the same day at 3PM, and all malls will be temporarily closed. He actually thought of me at a time like this. He said the fact that I was there to celebrate with his family was more than enough for him. By-ik is just so precious!

By-ik's birthday falls on a Monday this year (March 23). We couldn't really do much on Mondays considering that his dad still has to go to work amidst the quarantine. So, we celebrated his birthday at Isla Romantica, a small man-made island in Cordova with his family on a Sunday instead. It was just an intimate celebration. Wish I had taken more photos while we were there, but I wasn't feeling myself that day. I plan to have this on another blog though.

On the night before his birthday, I was feeling so exhausted from beachin', I wanted to sleep real bad, but I forced myself to get up so I could make him these paper candies with random love notes in it. Did a faux calligraphy for the DIY birthday card as well. I couldn't really head out the mall and buy him something fancy, especially that we are on community quarantine... It's not much but it's something I made with love.

We were in the same room while I was making the paper candies. Oh, the thrill! Haha. He was busy cleaning the laptop and changing the thermal grease though, so he couldn't be bothered by what I was up to. Told him I was journaling so he wouldn't suspect all the crafty papers and pens on the table. ;)

On the day of his actual birthday, I had an "intentional" argument with him after we had our breakfast just so I could surprise him. I managed to make something up just so we'd argue. I even cried. Haha! He was just comforting me though, he was all in trying to make me feel better. 'Twas so sweet considering it was his birthday. I had it all on film, but I don't think I'll be uploading it on the blog. It's something I want both of us to cherish alone. 

Anyway, while I was 'crying', I told him to hand me a box where I keep my "journal stickers". He reached out for it and I told him to open it. He cried when he saw what he saw. Haha!

By-ik was surprised to see a watch. Where could I have gotten a watch? I didn't have the money (he handles the expenses for now), and I NEVER go out even just to buy something from the nearby sari-sari store. But, I sneakily found a way for that... he just didn't notice. Not a fancy watch though. Just a simple watch I thought he could use.

Nope, I didn't go to the mall. Didn't steal money from his wallet either. How I managed to acquire the watch... I'll probably tell him... one of these days.

Hey guys! Missed me?

Been on a blogging hiatus for more than a year! I kind of regret I haven't blogged anything for 2019. Really though, 2019 wasn't such a good year for me. But glad I'm back on track now. Hopefully, I'll be consistent this time.

Changed the blog name yet again. Baby-ik Diaries will always have a special place in my heart, but I realized how most of my blogs are of my thoughts and personal life... so I'll just name the blog "Alyssanity" again. I wonder if anyone noticed the re-rebranding?

I don't think I have readers who still visit this blog... but hey, this space is for keepsake anyway so that doesn't really matter, right? But if anyone still stuck with me even after being MIA for a long while, I want to say thank you for staying. Choss!

Anyway, starting a 2020 blog post with a homemaking blog. I've lived with by-ik for about three years now, and I'm happy to say we now have a place we could call our own. We have actually been living here for more than a year already... and managed to have it renovated so we have our own kitchen and bathroom. It's officially our home!

Having said that, I have been spending most of my time decorating our room and doing crafts while this community quarantine is ongoing. Tough times, and I'm undoubtedly scared, but I have to stay positive for my own sake and mental health. 

Anyway, just to give you a little background. I used to sell pixie lights, fairy clips, and letter boards months ago. And I managed to save three letter boards for myself. A large white board, a black board, and a smaller pink one. So, I've been wanting to hang one of my letter boards on this empty wall above the bed, but then randomly decided I wanted shelves put up instead. Last-minute impulse... very Alyssa. Glad by-ik’s free to help me out. He did most of the work while I watched and cheered him drill those holes 👸🏻 I decorated the shelves myself tho 😁 Not quite happy with how “my decor” turned out but this will do for now. 🥰

Let me show you how the this area looked before there were shelves.

Apart from this, I have also managed to tidy up the room a bit. Organized our DIY open closet and displayed some of my books on top of this repurposed drawer. I just DIY-ed that drawer, by the way. Used floral wallpaper, and installed the handles. It was an impulsive DIY and I wasn't aware it would turn out more than just okay (for me, at least)... Wish I had documented the entire process.

A lot has actually changed with how our room looks as of this writing. I'll have all the changes documented in the next entries! Anyway, this turned out like a mini room tour. Nevertheless, I'm glad to have something to update this blog. :)

I swear I had photos of how the baby-ik and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary last October 17th... just that I had forgotten to save copies on my computer before I restored a previous back-up of my phone -- all recent files have been deleted. Careless me, I know! 

But just to make up for it, I wanted to show you guys this montage I made for the years I have been with the baby-ik. Most clips were from our travels. Looking back made us feel so nostalgic... and yes, the usual emotional Alyssa cried, and so did the baby-ik. I bought us a small can of dream cake. We munched on it while we watched this montage together. 

He, on the other hand, had apparently prepared a surprise as well. He told me he'd fallen asleep the night before when he was in fact awake pasting photos of our moments on a wall in our room. He also bought us a chocolate cake. 

We almost always think alike, especially on this ocassion, only I did mine as a montage... it had been a simple and memorable anniversary for us.

Keeping this short and simple.

I'm not generally a fan of korean cuisine. First time I ever had Korean food was when my workmates brought me to Chosun Chicken. Never knew why they raved for it that much, but after trying it out, I must say, it was, by far, one of the best tasting fried chicken I have ever had. Still couldn't beat Jollibee's fried chicken though, but still it was that tasty! 

One day, I found myself craving for Korean Samgyupsal, and that red hot tofu soup (I never knew what they call 'em). I specifically wanted to go to Pearl Meatshop and Restaurant because it's lowkey the only korean restaurant I know of and have been to after Chosun Chicken. 

But then, I remembered a former workmate who once raved about a Korean food place just near our place. It was so random, we just went for it to satisfy my cravings. We even almost got lost on the way, good thing my "Hangeul" (korean alphabet) skills still work a bit. 😉

The place wasn't how I was expecting it. Not like most korean Shabu-shabu places. Loved the lake, and the little center islet. I felt closer to nature, especially that they had little monkeys, parrots, and a frickin' Iguana!