Between stints in the recording studio for her latest CD Thankful, Ayen checks on her husband Franco Laurel and children and tries to make sense of her full-packed schedule in order to accompany her youngest daughter to a VTR shoot.
It’s not easy, Ayen acknowledges with candor. "You really have to put in extra effort," she explains. "You cannot just relax. Especially since I have three kids and they’re of different ages. They have different needs. So I really have to balance it well." Ayen is proud mom to 13-year-old Mariella, nine-year-old Kiko, and Angia who’s one year and nine months. "Angia is no longer a baby," Ayen reports with glee. "She’s already a toddler. So she can be makulit." Precocious and precious, Angia’s a busybody. "She’s always running around the house. Fortunately, there’s a nanny to help us keep up with her. Otherwise, it can be tiring."
Ayen the mom often finds herself shifting gears, adjusting her parenting styles to suit the varying needs of her three children. "With my teenager, I have to do a lot of talking," she elaborates. "We really have to talk to her all the time because she’s at this stage when she’s thinking of too many things. And I’m here to guide her." Constant communication is the key, Ayen avows.
With her son Kiko, she gets a lot of help from Franco. "With the boy, Franco is the one in charge." Being a mom in a bustling household can be a mighty challenge, but Ayen is unfazed by it all. Fortunately, her kids are pretty well-behaved. "They’re not the kind of children you have to scream at. They’re very obedient."
As such, her vocal chords are spared from the stress and strain of motherhood. "That’s very important in taking care of your voice," Ayen affirms. "I avoid screaming and talking too much."
The caretaker needs to be taken cared of, after all. "I always make it a point to have time for myself," she volunteers. "I know when it’s time to work, when it’s time to relax, and when to spend some time with my family." To pamper herself, she indulges in the usual girl stuff. "I go to the spa," her eyes light up. "I go to the salon to have hair treatments. I also have facials at least once a month."
But as she herself divulged on the GMA 7 lifestyle show All About You, "beauty rituals need not be expensive. You don’t have to spend so much," she counsels other busy working moms out there. When her schedule permits it, she raids her kitchen cabinet for all-natural, budget-friendly beauty aids. "If you have dry oatmeal at home, you can use it as an exfoliating scrub," she shares. "Just add milk and apply on your face. And after exfoliating with the oatmeal, you can put a papaya mask on." Such beauty therapies are practical, she states, because the ingredients are cheap and readily available hereabouts. "We have lots of papayas in the country," she proffers. "Papayas have an enzyme that relaxes the pores."
If she speaks like an expert it‘s because she thoroughly enjoys such homespun beauty rituals and have turned them as a bonding opportunity with her daughter. "When we don’t have anything to do at home, my daughter and I have facial sessions," Ayen chimes in.
Ayen also imparts her health and fitness secrets. "I work out," she declares. "I do cardio for about 45 minutes. I run on the treadmill three to four times a week. I also do weight-lifting and play badminton."
She exercises not to lose weight. "In fact, I don’t want to be too thin and look haggard. My goal is just to keep my stamina up there. Which is what I need when I am doing shows and recording songs. To strengthen my abs and maintain my vocal power."
And these days, Ayen’s crammed schedule can daunt even an Olympian. On top of running her booming household, she is wrapping up work on her latest CD Thankful, embarking on a whirlwind mall tour for said album (September to October), and mounting a major concert (set at the GSIS Theater on Nov. 19).
With her bustling singing career and mothering chores, how does she make sure that she still has time for hubby Franco? "I think our only secret is that we have God as the center of our relationship," she intones. "It sounds like a cliché, but it’s true. Without faith, it cannot function the way we want it to. It’s more than just about our commitment with each other, it’s about our commitment with God. It’s a promise we’ve made before God. It also takes a lot of patience and acceptance."
Needless to say, they go the extra mile to keep the passion burning and the bond, strong. "I always call," she quips. "I always make sure that he has food to eat. That he’s okay." She calls them her wifely duties. "And we spend a lot of time talking," Ayen asserts. "Every night, even though we come home exhausted from work, we still talk."
Believe it or not, they even make time to go out on movie dates. Like they even caught the Sharon Cuneta-Aga Muhlach romantic comedy Kung Ako Na Lang Sana in the cinemaplex. "We liked it," she pipes in. "It’s very light and it’s about friends who eventually fell in love. I can relate to the story because that was how we started also. And it’s not too mushy. I felt so relaxed while watching it. It’s not like other heavy drama movies that are full of screaming, fighting, slapping scenes, you feel drained after coming out of the moviehouse."
In the same way, she hopes to put across a "light and inspiring message" with her latest CD Thankful. "Times like this, this is what we need these days," she opines. "It’s a feel good album." The title itself reflects the state of Ayen’s heart and mind.
"I have a lot to be thankful for," she waxes poetic. "I am thankful to God for giving me the people who are always there for me, for the people who inspire me."
And they are her children, her husband, her family.