Around 12 noon yesterday Johnboy my 11 year old son called to inform me that their school is letting them go early and asked to be picked up. Since I needed something from the supermarket I volunteered to pick him up right after I finished some errands. The supermarket is just across his school.

On our way home, he told me that they have this debate in their Language class on what to choose between family and wealth and that everybody in the class except for himself have chosen family rather than wealth.

So I asked him “why did you choose wealth?” “Because if I have lots of money mommy, I could have the chance to enjoy bad nose surgery correction.” I then directly looked straight to my son’s nose and remembered an incident that happened 8 years ago, when I noticed a gaping wound on his nose caused by a bad fall from our stairs.

I remembered how scared I was at that time and how guilty I felt of not being able to do anything to fix it. And now it is just a scar that had marked my son’s face for many years now.

We’re older - and we look it. The lines around the eyes, the uneven complexion, the dullness. It doesn’t help boosting one’s morale. Get eight hours of sleep? Yeah, right. Eat properly? We try, but we’re guilty of crash diets, stress-triggered potato chip binges, and oily lunches in the office cafeteria.

Most women nowadays, if budget is quite tight prefer today’s anti-aging creams. Most are very powerful and effective. Those lines and complexion issues are all caused by the fact that older skin is weaker - kind of like a mattress that has started to sag from wear and tear.

But if we want to look young, only to see our husband’s eyes twinkle when we walk in the room, or to save ourselves from complicated makeup routines. (aaah, for the days when we only needed loose powder!) And many moms are wary of surgery - the procedure may not hurt, as Florida cosmetic surgery boasts but it surely hit every mom’s budget.

Close family ties have always been part of Filipino culture. And I feel this keenly whenever my husband is out of the country, with us always on his mind. You may lose everything but family will always be there to love and accept you for who and what you are. I especially miss him, who has been supportive of all my endeavors and nurtured my interest in fashion, cooking and even in writing. He inspires me to do well in my craft.

Fashion has always been a part of me. I have always been intrigued by the changing trends, season after season. Even if I feel a bit heavier than I was before we got married. I convince my husband to take me to Washington DC liposuction surgery for a little bit reshaping. I was drawn by my friends to try to improve my looks some more so that I could be more confident to stand on my own.