the wonder years...

   pardon me! i know i just said i'm not into birthdays.. :) okay, i take it back! hehe.. nice naman pala to be extra special on your natal day! imagine! on that fateful day of feb.27,1977 a beautiful baby girl was born! the future of the universe! the one who will save the dying economy of the country! haha!

this is me: elva piandong calumpiano

6lbs. 20inches

- i was a heavy baby and kinda tall too! as compared to my 90lbs. 5"2 stats now..

- i was an instant hit to the grandparents since i was the first grandchild on my papa's side. story has it, they couldn't figure out if i was a boy or a girl. as you can see, i don't have much hair. and when my lolo saw me he instantly said- "kairo man tak apo..kasisirom." haha.. baluga baby! but i was their little bundle of joy!

if i were a boy..i would be a cute boy

ang opaw! no wonder i was always in a dress to avoid confusion! hehe

my parents were living in an apartment then. the neighbor's would often borrow me. so that explains my laagan self now.

         mama, said when i wake up in the morning, i would immediately knock on the neighbor's door and pee there. haha.. C.R.?

  naging cute nalang daw ako eventually coz i was such a bibo kid! i have a lot of crazy antics (up to now! haha). i was pretending to be a doll here. papa went gaga looking for that kind of doll beside me. when we were on a boat, i tried to get the other kid's doll and cried my lungs out- "akon! akon!" and that black and white tv was also a victim of my craziness. sesame street was my fave show then i'd get a walis tingting and poke the speakers, thinking if i do that id be able to poke big bird as well! loka!

   that's my brother! now! he was the cute one.. mestizo, long lashes with long curly hair. we have a 2yr. gap. when he was brought home- na-insecure daw ang beauty ko.. kept asking who he is. when they told me he's my baby brother, i said i don't want one. i started knocking on the neighbors' doors again asking them if they wanted to buy a baby. i was selling my brother! i even attempted to deal my lil brother to that Bombay nga nag-papautang in our village. haha.. i wonder if 5-6 na ba at that time!

  good thing i didn't succeed in my first try as an entrepreneur. he turned out to be a sweet little boy i bullied most of the time. mama instilled in me to always look after him. she said if she and papa and yaya are not around, i will be in-charge. so feeling ko i'm the boss. haha.. when he asked what his role is- i designated him to be the boss of Fighter our dog.. he cried out loud complaining- gindaog-daog ako ni ate! haha.. but i love this little monster to bits. this time i wouldn't trade him for anyone. not even to mr.bombay!

pretty

cute

charming

 now that i'm all grown- pretty and cute and charming.. (hwag nang pumalag..cge na..tagi na hin chance..) my mama still talks  of my childhood with fondess. she would go- sus! si ivy sa una.. like it was just 2 yrs ago. they say even as a child you already show your own character. how you mold them may make or break the kid as a person he is today. now, i realized, if the parental units didn't impose discipline, i would have been a bratty bitch coz i was a little spoiled on the lola being her favorite. or if they weren't strict in givng me curfews, i might have been some bugoy in the kanto or worse dalagang ina nga undergrad.- i was such an outgoing kid. i was a people person, i don't choose who i mingle with. looking at what i've become now, i'd like to congratulate my folks for raising me and brother well. they were my first teachers. and now as i go through adult life i can only pray that i'll be able to practice what they preached. and when i have kids on my own,be able to teach them the core values that made me who i am today. hoping i could even be half of how great they are as parents, i know i'll make them proud!