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I got married in 2020.
February 20, 2020 to be exact.
The ceremony was held at Eden Nature Park and Resort.
It was one of the happiest days of my life.
That was 5 years ago.
A lot has changed in 5 years.
Just in case you’re interested in Eden Nature Park and Resort and don’t want to go through the entire article, here’s their contact information.
The Last Big Event Before the Lockdown
Our wedding was the last big event most of the attendees experienced before the lockdown was imposed.
That money cost us a lot of money.
In hindsight, I should’ve pushed harder to save up instead of throwing it all away for that one day.
But it’s the bride’s day and I really wanted to let my wife have her way. I did ask for some cost-effective ways to make her dream day come true but it still cost us a lot of money in the end.
It’s not all regrets though. I’m glad that we were able to bring a lot of people together for that one day. If only we had done that with less money spent.
Ah shoulda woulda coulda.
That’s done.
Move on.
Pregnancy During the Pandemic
My wife got pregnant in June of 2020. This was shortly after we’d both completely quit cigarettes because there was really no supply in Davao.
She tried ordering online but thankfully, the cigarettes came late and we no longer craved it. I had shifted to vape but eventually said goodbye to it before Lyle was born.
Since my wife is a doctor, we had a few privileges like being able to move around during the pandemic without too much restriction. We did purchase some full body protective suits and masks to make sure we were safe.
We looked like the people who took E.T. with our getups and people would stare. I said let them stare. It’s better safe than sorry.
And Then a Pandemic Baby Was Born
In 2021, Lyle was born making him a pandemic baby.
The moment I laid eyes on him, I was in love.
I remember kissing my wife in gratitude and falling in love with her the second time because she was now a different woman. A mother and not just my wife.
And she had given me the best gift any man could ask for.
A child.
A son.
The next two years was fileld with caring for Lyle and making sure he developed well.
My wife had initial trouble with making him latch but after going to a specialist, had no problems after. We also had a huge surplus of breast milk because my wife produced a lot. She produced so much that she was able to donate some.
So women, drink lots of water and have some Moringa tea. Soup too.
Get as much food and soup in your body because you are literally eating for two.
Lyle turned out very healthy and developmentally advanced over his peers in terms of size, strength and body weight. Barely over a month and he was already trying to crawl. At 8 months he was already trying to walk. Just a little over a year and he was climbing over his crib.
He gave me the scare of my life when I saw him sat atop a shelf and he still wasn’t two then.
My biggest fear then was how he’d be towards other people because he didn’t get exposed to them especially to other kids.
Thankfully he turned out well and is very social.
Probably too social.
I think he got that from his Lolo Tatay and Tito Jappy who can be friends with anyone. Hopefully he gets to be as tall or taller than his Tito Chong when he comes of age.
I won’t mind looking up to him as we speak in our future father-son conversations.
Hustling Hard Throughout the Pandemic
The pandemic was really hard because work opportunities were very minimal. Everyone was shifting to online work opportunities. And then AI happened.
But I’m gad I was able to get some really good clients.
I always had work coming. I didn’t have a lot of money coming in but it was enough to contribute.
All I really worried about was taking care of Lyle and working hard enough to contribute.
Fast Forward to 2023
The lockdown was finally lifted in 2023 and despite being paranoid for the past few months, we finally had the courage to start moving around without masks.
And I Thought it Was Only Because of the Pandemic
We haven’t celebrated our wedding anniversary ever.
In 2021, I thought oh it’s because we have Lyle to worry about.
In 2022, Lyle just turned 1 and needs more of our attention
In 2023, Lyle as usual
In 2024, Hmm… something was off.
And now it’s 2025.
We just got back from Manila and I think things are getting worse instead of getting better.
Three months in Manila revealed a lot of things to me that I kind of gave a blind eye to before November because I wanted to be a good husband and a good dad.
Now I just want to be a good dad.
I don’t want to spend my time trying to get another adult to fix their priorities in life. Seems like my wife has found a new calling as a gamer and that seems to be consuming her entire time leaving me to do the majority of the household chores.
I feel like getting married is voluntarily subjecting yourself to modern slavery.
I’ve grown tired of arguments so I just keep my head down and do the things that need to be done to avoid additional stress of having to clash with another person.
Bye Feb 20, Hello Feb 21st
OK, one minute left to go and it’s going to be another day.
Happy Wedding Anniversary to you, you fool.
Hang in there.
Don’t do anything stupid.
Bawi sa next life.
