First Day High...not!

Today is my first day back
At work after 10 months of maternity leave. So what greeted me here: new faces, no allocated workstation and no system access because they deleted mine! Lovely!!!

I hope I'll get my access back tomorrow so I can start working and building my SAP favorites once again. :(

And did I mention I miss my baby girl? Can't wait for 4 pm so I can get my bread and be done for the day.

Well, hello there

I know, I know. Its been a month since my last update and I have a valid reason for not attending to this blog --- I was busy at work! Yes, busy. We just had a hectic year end with all management reports due two weeks after the 4th of September. But now, that is all over and the new financial year have started (I will worry about month end tom).

Today, I am 18 weeks and 4 days pregnant, almost halfway already. I will have my second ultrasound on Thursday and we can't wait to see the little one once again and to finally know his/her gender.

The second trimester is the 'most forgettable' according to the books I read --- no major dramas, morning sickness is gone and you are not that huge yet that you can still do whatever you like (or almost). And this is true in my case. I am just so happy that I'm over morning sickness because it not really funny! I am monitoring my weight now so I won't gain more than what is desirable for me and for the baby.

I haven't had a monthly photo to show off my tummy but on my 16th week, hubby took this photo of me when we went to Bobbin Head Park.

I am ending this entry with a photo of me and Rose, my highschool barkada who went to Vanuatu to educate the people there on how to do organic farming (and even grooming!). I am so proud of her coz she is doing what she loved to do --- be involved in her own NGO and help other people by imparting her (and her husbands) knowledge about farming. You are truly an Iskolar ng Bayan Rose --- you gave back to the people what your learned from UPLB, I salute you!



Till my next update.

Hope you are having a lovely day!

Never ending blessings

I claim 2011 to be my year and I can't thank Him enough for all these blessings. We're still two thirds in the year but I felt my bucket list were all ticked off (well almost).

I had my CPA ceremony in April.

Found at that I was pregnant in July.

Hubby got a new job near my workplace in August.

and, as an icing to the cake, I got promoted in September!

I have been whining about my work (or the lack thereof) for a quite a while now. Friends are envious that I am not busy and can go home at 4:30 everyday. But sometimes, the lack of work is making my brain stagnant. To compensate, I used to read my CPA materials during work hours. After finishing the program last December, there was nothing for me to study at the office anymore and the boredom returned.

Middle of last year, our Department was made into a shared services of the entire GROUP  - this meant we are now doing the back office not only of the Bread Division (our current division) but also Milling, Cereal, Information System and more are in the pipeline. With the move, our financial accountant was promoted to Manager but all eight of us assistant accountants were not given any change in title despite the fact that most of us are doing more than an assistant acccountant job. (Title is very much important here in Oz specially when you want to find a new job).

Then, in December, they announced an opening for FA in our IS Department. Naturally, I applied as I know I am more than capable of doing the job. You see, during this time as well, they asked me to take on the role of Corporate Accountant (on top of my asset accounting without any jobtitle change and payrise!). But of course they did not promote me to the IS role and hired someone from outside to do the job. This really pissed me off.

I've decided then to look for a new job. So in March this year, I was busy talking with agents for a possible role. After reviewing my resume, they told me they would change my title to Financial Accountant because that is basically what I am doing. I asked them if this is okay, it looks like I am lying in my resume, but they told me what I am doing is more important than the title and they will explain it to the client once they placed me. But I also told them that I am more interested in the Western Sydney area because it would be easier for me to work close to home. But jobs that I like are few and far between...

Then I got pregnant.

I have to stay in my current job because we have two months maternity leave benefit. The plan was to take a year off from work and then in the middle of my leave, I will look for anither job and will not return to the Bread Co. Sounds like a good plan right?

Last monht, we had our year end performance evaluation. We already knew that because of business performance, we are not to receive any bonus nor increase for this financial year. Bit of a bummer really because I know I made a very good contribution to the team but what's making me stay was the added knowledge that I am getting each day --- Corporate Accounting, Fixed Assets Accounting, budget and forecast etc. These are essential to my resume and linkedIn profile. =) So when I had my review, I was not really expecting anything but in the middle of it, my boss was discussing employee management as part of my objective for next year. And then she told me that they had a review of my job, a review of the current structure of the team and made some changes. The changes are not yet final but they said I would get my new position description come 1st of September. Also, my maternity leave arrangements were discussed so they would know how long I would be off from work. Hmmmm, very interesting!

The next day, an announcement in the people portal was made for a Group Accountant opening --- the current Group Accountant is moving to the other division and they are hiring for his replacement. This could have been the perfect role for me as I am doing half of his job now. But with my pregnancy, I couldn't apply because this meant I will have to train someone to do my Corporate Accounting work and then be trained for the Group Accountant role, then after three months go on maternity leave. It's not right and I do not need the stress of learning more at this time. So I decided not to apply and just wait for the confidential discussion to take effect. I think my Boss knew about the opening so she told me a day ahead her plans for me so I dont end up applying for that other job.

Then, on the 1st of September, I got my papers --- Management Accountant for Shared Services! Wohoo!!! And the payrise was good too, double wohoo!!! The new challenge (which was not announced yet) was the people management bit of it. I thought I would not be doing performance reviews here in Oz, I thought I would just be a receiver of the review but hey, I welcome the challenge. The people handpicked to be in my team were those who ask me how to do their work everyday anyway so not much of a change there really. And because I am in the team longer than most of them, I already earned my position so to speak.

As to when the announcement would be, I do not know. As long as my pay is adjusted this month, I am happy. Me and my growing baby need the additional money for our future needs. =)

Thank you once again God, all in Your perfect time. Thanks for giving me the patience --- the pieces of the puzzle fit perfectly. Please continue to guide and protect me and my baby. I cannot wait for this precious little gift to finally be born to this world.

I am forever grateful.

A Simple Thank You

A new program of recognition was introduced in our workplace this year - they named it "A Simple Thank You". And truly, its the only thing that we wanted to hear from our superiors for a job well done, for lending a hand or for doing more than what is expected of us.




Last Monday, in our monthly morning tea, I was given a simple thank you card for helping out the Trade Spend team in their work. I spent three days doing claims clearing which substantially reduced the claims balance. The team already thanked me enough for my help but its nice to know that your Boss recognized your effort as well. Thanks Lydia!

A simple thank you in a simple card is a simple way to let your employees know their work is appreciated and the effect to the morale of the staff is more than simple. =)

Welcome 2011

There is no doubt that 2010 was a great year for the Cellacay's - we moved to our own place at the start of the year, we travelled overseas together, we both got our licenses and bought a new car, and to end the year with a bang, I got to add CPA at the end of my name!

This year, I wanted to dream BIG. I want my own business so I can work on owning my 5 bedroom house with big play area for the baby. Yes, the baby that we so wanted to have and I am sure we will get this year. We have 12 months to work for it and with God's grace and my optimism, I know it will happen this year!

When I migrated to Australia, I haven't got a clear picture of what I want to achieve in my life whilst here. But slowly, I am learning, I am discovering and I am working towards the goal that I set for myself. In a conversation with one of my colleague, she pointed out that my professional experience is all over the place and I need to decide now if I want to pursue financial accounting or management accounting. But I am still decided, why? because I wasn't given the opportunity to move to management accounting and financial accounting is my comfort zone. But is it what I really wanted??? Well, as with everyone else, I also want to 'retire' early from work, stay at home, play with the kids, be my own boss and enjoy what life has to offer. I don't want to be stuck in the nine-to-five job and complain about not having enough time in a day to do all the things I want.

During the christmas holiday, I met up with Mami El who showed me a business that she wanted to share with me. It is a multi-level thing. I have been very skeptical of this type of business because I've been exposed to networking in the Philippines --- Amway, Forever Living Products, etc etc. There are a few success stories but heaps of failure and sobs stories as well. I accepted the invitation to hear about the product and the business and listened with an open mind.

I was surprised that I liked what was laid in front of me. At the onset, they were very honest that this is not a get-rich-quick-scheme. As with other jobs, you have to work hard for you to earn your keep. "We all do our best in our daily job so why not work doubly hard for yourself instead?" - a statement Mami El said that stuck with me. She's also a migrant, with 2 kids, who worked as an auditor and have two part-time jobs - all involved selling and networking. And she said one day, her full time job would be her part-time and she'll have enough monthly cash inflow to allow her to spend more time with her two daughters. Her husband resigned from work to care for the kids and her salary plus the income of her networking business is more than enough for their daily needs and monthly mortgage. I will be like her in the future, I will have the financial freedom and not rely on my salary for my daily needs.

So, how was I convinced to join the business?
1. Product - the product that I will be selling is something that everyone uses everyday --- Internet, Mobile Phones and soon electricity. Earning a few dollars everytime I use/pay these items is a good start. Also, I believe that it is not difficult to sell something that everyone is already using, I guess the difficult part is convincing your friends to try your product but if the service is good it won't be a hard sell.

and

2. Opportunities in other markets - The business is set to open in the Philippines so I can also create Business Partners back home. Since this is a global business, I can ask my friends in the US, Canada and Europe to join my business or become my customers too.

As I've mentioned, this is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Hubby and I have to work on this. It might take me two years or even three years to get the monthly income that I want but at least its a start. And this being a business, the $495 that i paid to join the company will be tax deductible, including a percentage of the products I will be signing up for. It also meant setting up my home-business --- I could charge myself "rent' for the space too. So many possibilities for me to save on taxes on this venture as well.

It is a good start of the year for me. This Saturday, I invited a few friends over for a business presentation. They might like to join or they might think it is not for them but I could always ask them to be my customers, if not now then in the future. At least I am doing something to augment my income and who knows, this could be my calling! =)

To know more about the business, check out www.acnpacific.com.au. I might buy a website soon and post the products there but for now, I will learn the business first and expand after.

Products we offer include mobile phones (too bad international calls are not inlcuded in the cap), digital phones, adsl, mobile broadband and soon electricity and gas.

I am excited. I can see myself owning my dream house in 3 years time. Hindi ko pede i-asa sa lotto lahat, kelangan ko din kumilos, kung hindi ngayon kelan pa? (parang rally chant lang, hahaha).

Friends, help me out in my business venture ha? Or join me so together we can see the realization of our dreams.

Random Thoughts for the Day

travel.
I'm thinking of living and working in New York? hmmmm. Maybe just a visit but not really to live and raise a family there.
Palawan and Boracay
How about the May 2011 Europe adventure??? Top Deck tours daw sabi ni Ellyn.

food.
I have my macaron ingredients at home, I just need to buy my piping bag. Time to use my Homeworld gift certificate.
Masterchef is my life for 4 months now, I don't know what I'll do on July 26. Withdrawal syndrome na eto!!!
I need to replicate my banana peanutbutter chocolate cupcakes and this time I will take photos of it. yumyum!

online.
chuvaness
daphneosena
topazhorizon
marketmanila
philstar
inquirer
fb
twitter

work and studies.
August is our yearend, August is the start of the cpa program
bonus in november, results of cpa exam in dec
new year, new work in 2011??? (parang mas maganda pakinggan ang 'new year, new work, new yok' hahaha. but no, I love Oz, US will just be a holiday destination)

family.
miss my hubby and will miss him more next month for an out-of town engagement
talk and text sa Bukid.
need to have a check up to make sure nothing is wrong with me, GPs cannot be trusted, need to go to specialist this time. I wanna have a beybi!!!

television.
Masterchef finals week. I hate curry.
Friends Season 10. I love Rachel, Joey, Chandler, Monica, Ross and Phoebe.
Modern Family. So dysfunctional so loveable.
Don't lie to me. Your facial gestures gives you away.

back.to.work.

All in a Day's Work

a (not so) typical day for me... let's see if something exciting will happen before this day will end

6:20 am - woke up and went straight to the shower (not minding Agie who is brushing his teeth and laughing at me because I can barely open my eyes).

6:38 am - walked with Agie to the station so we can get on the 6:44 train. Its an early Friday for us... (and yes, it only took me 18 mins to bathe and groom myself)

8:03 am - after a 15 minute wait for my train at Epping, I finally arrived at the office.

9:30 am - di pa nakaka simula magtrabaho pero ang aking daily read sa world wide web ay tapos ko na basahin. gusto ko na umuwi kasi antok ako at feeling ko mas magiging productive ako sa bahay (makakapag aral) kesa dito sa opisina.

10:30 am - mobile FB and answering msgs from high school barkada. i miss them. :(

10:46 am - mobile blogging is soooo much fun!!! but this entry is to be posted via the normal route. =)

11:00 am - eating my banana. Its non-stop eating for me... but to my credit, I said no to cake for once haha. You'll get fat in this company if you're not careful --- free bread and spread anytime of the day (I only eat bread occassionally, i try to be healthy and eat oats in the morning), Top Taste cakes every Wednesday, Cereform mud cake once in a while and Michel's or Cheesecake Factory cake every month end!!! I sooo need my daily escalator walk/run at Epping and Macquarie Park stations.

11:38 am - so many things on mind and Ate Pearls new job makes me want to try the jobmarket too... but I will wait for the right time.

11:50 am - walked to Macquarie to have lunch with Ellyn and Sally

1:00 pm - came back from Macquarie. Lunch was flop - didn't happen. Sally has another lunch with her ofcmates so I just gave her the bread and the long overdue bday gift while Ellyn is still at her desk working. I walked back to the office, its a very nice day to have a walk - cool and windy.

2:00 pm - Got myself some Peppermint Tea - a great way to wash off my junkfood of a lunch (aka Whopper jr).

2:04 pm - Received email from Yen and her good news! Yey, excited for her. Hope the training will be in Sydney so I can see her again. =) All I can think of at this stage is the make up and shoes I'll be asking her to shop for me in Singapore, mwahahaha.

2:11 pm - went to search for Teradata and CSC websites for jobs and noticed one thing --- their job search is powered by Taleo - same as NSW job search page.

3:00 pm - Ofc mates are eating cake again! Now I am hungry but will not give in to my cake cravings. Buti na lang may tira pang Dingdong, hehe.

4:21 pm - ready to go...


happy weekend everyone.

What do I really want?

I had a long exchange of emails with my girlfriends today, we were talking about blogs and doing something we really want, something that makes us happy, something we always dreamt of but never got the courage to do, and that we need to get out of our comfort zones to realize these dreams.

It got me thinking --- what do I really want?

I want to travel, see the whole world. Kiss infront of the Eiffel Tower, be serenaded by a Gondolier, go inside beautiful castles, see windmills and sand dunes. Eat burritos in Mexico, paella in Spain, pasta and pizza in Italy. Check out the tallest building in Dubai, the grandest falls in Canada, safari in Africa. I can go on and on and on.

I also want to cook. Bake. Eat.

Dance.

But all these I can do only when I have the money. That is the issue. I need money to survive, I need money to do the things I love. Being an accountant pays my bills, so I am happy. But, what if we stretch it out a bit, what do I really want to do besides working as an accountant? Childcare? But I am not good with kids.

Maybe, I am born to be an accountant... or maybe not.

I need to find the answer to this question.
.
.
.
.
o baka naman talaga im meant to be an accountant. kulit! =)

Three years and counting Part II

I can't believe how time flies so quickly these days. This week marks my 3rd year of being employed in THE Bread Co. Looking back at my list of employers, this is the longest I've been in a company. I have my highlights and lowlights while working here.

I love that...
I get free bread everyday which me and my friends enjoyed for the past 3 years;
I can come in early and leave early or come in late and but still leave early, hehe;
Our team is so multi-cultural, almost all race is represented;
Its easy for me to take long (Christmas) holidays when some people cannot take a day off during these times;
I am never stressed with this job, and can count with one hand the times I stayed after 5pm, yes, I considered staying after 4:30pm as overtime.

I hate...
how kurips the company is to the Finance Team (compared to how they treat Sales Team that is);
how the current performance evaluation is just not working! I haven't had my final appraisal for 2009 but I got my bonus and increase already. We're halfway thru the year and I haven't discussed my goals for 2010 yet! I've been receiving my reminder email for the appraisal but nothing is being done;
how sometimes I am really petiks. but at the same time i love being petiks coz I can sneak some studying time in between;
how far I my workplace from Tonggabbie is and the one hour commute to and from work. :(

Many times I thought of leaving this company to look for more challenging roles but Agie always tells me that I have the best job in the world!. No pressure, no overtime and no brainer at times. My officemate who came from P&G also told me to stick with the company because this is the most stress free job she have had that she sometimes forget its already month end! She was reminiscing her P&G days where she needs to come to the office even on a weekend to cope with month end tasks.

Big companies are just banking on their name to hire people but at times, they really have a crappy work environment. You'll never know it unless you're inside the organization. Which led me to believe that the grass is never greener at the other side of the fence. When I hear stories about friends getting good job with good pay, I get jealous. But when I hear them complain and work doubly hard, I feel blessed. I'm being paid good money here, don't get me wrong. I have had 5 increases over my 3 year stay here, nevermind that the two ones were just over 1% of my annual salary. But sometimes, I feel that there is so much more I can offer, so much more I can do. Its like I am an untapped talent waiting to be ignited. Its happening slowly, but being an impatient ME, I want it now (or probably not, hahaha).

This the perfect place for me now. I am happy to stay here for a year or two, but if there's a government job somewhere in the West, I would definitely jump ships!!! =)

Lawn Bowling (The Gracy Way)

For our 2009 GWF Christmas Party, we went to Hunters Hill Club for a day of Lawn Bowling.
Not my kind of game (boring IMO) though and it was sooo hot during the day. I didnt enjoy the food and is ready to call it a day by 4pm. I didn't even go to the afterparty in Woolwich Hotel! But I did enjoy taking photos of my ofc mates with my newish Canon cam. :-)

anovah, may fimfle ako!!!

Gracy ready to bowl.

roll it from the side Gracy!

Yey! I think I got it close to the little white ball. :-)

Finance End of Year Party

For the past two years, GWF always have an uber-cool end of year Finance Party. Last year's Amazing Race saw us running, eating, sweating and having so much fun (with our competitive spirits really coming out) around Sydney CBD. The Pink Team (that's us) won last year's event.

Go Pink Team!

This year, the committee had a different take on FUN. We went to Double Bay Marina Yacht Club for a day of cooking demo and skills testing. Yep! a chef was there to show us how to prepare an entree, main and three desserts!

Everyone enjoyed the cooking (and the eating afterwards). Too bad we didn't win the best presentation. :( I loved the Ocean Trout with Salsa Verde that I cooked it the next day at home (but i forgot to take a photo of my masterpiece, sayang!).

Finance Team and the food we cooked.

My Lunch Mates =)

I made this Tiramisu! I was the Dessert Girl for our Team.

Chocolate Liqueur with Caramelized Walnuts

What could be next? :=)

Comfort Zone

Today is my second day at George Weston and I can't get over how good a company it is.

They have nice office, spacious pantry, freebies (bread and fruits), they use SAP and many more.

I actually did the posting for all cheques today... ang galing, and no training really. Nagamit ko ang natutunan ko sa Shell and I am eager to learn more specially SAP. Got to attend a meeting also, whcih I will be leading in the next few weeks. I want to be hired on a permanent basis here so magpapakitang gilas talaga ako,hehe.

I am so blessed, really... Thank God talaga.

On another note, i joined the thousands of people who walked the Harbour Bridge last Sunday --- taking part of history baga. I can't upload my pix kasi bagal internet ko, ieew.

Sa multiply ko na lang sa Friday. :-)

Yun lang...