Jea Dreams Of

Rooting deeper, growing larger, and blooming into bold new branches

I just turned 33, and birthdays have a way of making you stop and think. 2025 has been my year In Bloom. The biggest bloom? Becoming a mom. Theo has changed everything. I’ve learned to really value my time — to choose which “plants” I water, which ones I prune, and which ones I just let go. Some are flourishing, some are weeds, and some are vegetables pretending to be flowers — things that don’t belong in this garden I’m growing.

It’s been hard, too. Postpartum life and early motherhood come with curveballs I didn’t see coming like breastfeeding & pumping journey, or the wake-feed-sleep cycle. Motherhood also came with navigating how I show up for everyone – as a daughter, as a friend, as a coworker, as a wife. I had to grow and the growth isn’t linear. Blooming takes patience, care, and sometimes letting things rest.

My career and projects are part of this garden as well. Some blooms need daily attention; others are on pause until the right season. Photography is still there — a flower I’ve tended for years, ready whenever I am. LAROWAN is in motion in its mission. It’s foundations have been built on the lessons learned from Dreaming of Clay – more support, more partnerships. But I can already see it will need more care than I can give next year. I’ll see it through the holiday season and markets, but a pause is coming. Not because it isn’t working — it’s doing fine — but because it deserves more energy than I can sustainably give while balancing everything else. Like the name had outlined, it was my playground and it allowed me to explore parts of myself and what it means to be a small business owner & entrepreneur.

Running a small business has been eye-opening. It’s not just the pop-ups or the products — there’s marketing, rising costs, social media, and an economy that isn’t exactly friendly to small businesses. It’s been challenging, and it’s taught me where my energy really matters.

At the same time, my career path is evolving in ways that excite me. I want flexibility, growth, and stability for my family. Answered prayers and new opportunities are appearing like new buds. And like any opportunity, I have to trust my gut on this and take the leap.

And while the fear of letting my more creative passions rest, I know that I’ll stretch it in other ways. Creativity doesn’t disappear — it just shows up differently: supporting local makers, taking sewing classes, making jewelry, building dashboards, and exploring ideas that feel aligned with me. Creativity is how confidence & grit shows in the ways you solve problems.

Looking ahead to 2026, I feel something new forming. If 2025 was my year In Bloom — accepting who I am, embracing motherhood, tending to different parts of my life — then 2026 feels like the year of the Vanda Orchid.

The Vanda, especially the Waling-Waling, is one of the largest, most striking orchids in the Philippines. It doesn’t bloom once and stop. It roots, stretches, grows, and produces new branches for future blooms. That’s how I see this next chapter: taking the lessons and growth of 2025, rooting deeper, and preparing to bloom bigger, bolder, and unmistakably me.

Vanda Energy is about showing up fully — as a mom, a wife, a creator, a professional. It’s about going deeper, letting some things rest, and nurturing the branches that are ready to bloom. It’s about iteration, patience, and the quiet confidence that each bloom makes room for the next.

And yes, you’ll likely see new ideas pop up again, maybe it’s already in the works. (Because you know me — I’ll always keep iterating.)

Here’s to a year of Vanda Energy — rooted, resilient, and ready to bloom bigger than ever.