Kapamilya couple Emmanuel and Christine Raymundo are expecting their second child, a sign that they are growing together in love and life. They used to work together on a cruise ship and that was where their friendship slowly blossomed into romance.

Emman admits that it was a case of love at first sight for him. He instantly fell for Christine’s sweet and caring ways. The lovestruck guy started to make a move until they began going out as groups. Little by little, Emman and Christine got to know each other deeper. The group dates eventually turned into couple dates.

After two months, they decided to get married. Christine lauds Emman for being a responsible husband and father. She says marrying him is the best decision she’s ever made in her life. She saw his willingness to stand up for her, and that’s when she knew he is ‘the one.’

“Naramdaman ko sa kanya na ready na talaga siya. Ito na ‘yung lalaki na alam kong bubuo ng pagkatao ko, ng buhay ko, na makakasama ko, na magiging ama ng mga anak ko. Happy ako kasi sa desisyon na ginawa kong ‘yun, never akong nagsisi,” Christine adds.

Emman vows to keep his family together no matter what life brings them. He will remain strong for his wife and kids. In return, Christine promises to nurture their family and that they will remain as her top priority.

The world might be facing challenges right now but as long as they are together, Emman and Christine have a lot to be thankful for.

Melai Cantiveros-Francisco

True love can sometimes be found at the most unexpected time and place. Melai Cantiveros proved so when she met her ‘the one’ inside the Pinoy Big Brother house in 2009.

Fans witnessed the love story of Melai and husband Jason Francisco inside Bahay Ni Kuya. The former housemates were bonded by a mutual understanding. They would get each other’s thoughts just by a simple glance or smile. They would laugh at each other’s jokes. They were like soulmates who clicked right away. By that time, Melai already knew she found the one.

After more than a decade since their first encounter, and now with two beautiful kids, Melai could still remember why she fell for Jason. “Sa PBB pa lang, medyo naramdaman ko na kasi nga nagtatawanan kami noon. Magtinginan lang kami, nagtatawanan na kami. Siguro kahit ma-lockdown kami ng three years walang labas-labas, kaya pa rin namin magtawanan.”

More than anything, she knows Jason is not like any other guy who’s into games. She saw the willingness and commitment in him. Melai felt Jason would do everything to keep her. “Ito, alam ko na magpapakamatay ‘to para sa akin. Kahit mag-away kami nito, hahabol pa rin ‘to sa akin,” she jestingly says.

But their love story is also peppered with challenges. Melai calls their married life “under construction.” It requires never-ending effort. They are often confronted by challenges and fights but what matters is they keep choosing each other every day, especially Melai whose main priority is to give her daughters a two-parent home.

“Hindi na sarili lang iisipin mo. Ngayon, lagi mong iisipin ang mga bata kasi kapag nag-away kayo, maghahanap sa Papa nila. Ito pa namang dalawa, Papa’s girl, so talo ako. Ngayon, getting stronger na ulit.”

Melai would admit that they still fight a lot. The last intense quarrel happened during the first weeks of the lockdown period. What started as just a small discussion about grocery shopping turned into a major dispute about trust issues. A sequel happened when Melai told Jason not to bring his PA (Personal Assistant) when going to work, so to limit physical interaction. But Jason misunderstood his wife’s concern and felt he couldn’t decide for himself.

It was a major quarrel, so intense Melai’s mom had to meddle after hearing them yell. Melai says even the neighbors could hear them. They didn’t talk to each other for two weeks after the incident. The tampuhan eventually cooled down since they would inevitably need each other.

As they grow together over the years, Melai and Jason already learned how to survive marital challenges. To know when to apologize is one. Melai even gets kilig when Jason breaks his ego to say ‘sorry.’ She recalls another incident wherein Jason raised his voice at her while looking for travel documents. Melai says she was hurt and gave Jason the cold shoulder. That was how he knew she was upset.

Jason is currently in his province in Mindoro while Melai is accompanied by her kids, mother, and cousins. While the setup is perfectly fine, Melai reveals she felt bad when Jason forgot to tell her ‘I miss you.’

Melai is utterly happy with her family life. She couldn’t ask for more and is content with her two beautiful daughters. With the crisis the world is going through right now, Melai adds that she doesn’t have any plan of raising more kids in the future.

Melai and Alex’s Friendship

When Alex Gonzaga joined the Kapamilya gag show Banana Nite, she found the perfect friend in the person of Melai Cantiveros. They just clicked right away that Alex opened up to Melai about her private life on their first meeting.

Alex says Melai hasn’t changed a bit since winning Pinoy Big Brother in 2009. After a decade, Melai remains the simple woman who isn’t scared to keep it real and is humble in every way. Alex believes the undying humility is influenced by Melai’s family and husband Jason Francisco, who she says is the only man Melai has eyes for. She praises Melai’s authenticity and ability to make everyone happy. There’s no mean bone in Melai’s body and she could never be heard badmouthing anyone.

Melai was likewise excited over Alex’s entrance to the show. She knew she have found her match. They just never run out of stories and things to talk about. The show’s management would even call them out for their noise.

Sometimes the clingy Alex would convince Melai to leave the set and go out with her instead. There was a time when Alex tailed behind Melai’s car going to the latter’s house. Toni Gonzaga butted in and says Alex loves to drop by their colleagues’ homes uninvited. She was even surprised to learn that Alex went to John Lloyd Cruz’s place.

Melai reveals that Alex is a generous friend and loves to send her gifts. Even if she’s lauded for her seemingly perfect love story with fiancé Mikee Morada, Alex believes that Melai is much wiser in love, amused with how the ‘Big Winner’ ended up with her first love.

To end the interview, Melai shares a hilarious anecdote when she was invited for a guesting with “Alex.” She was excited, thinking she’d be reunited with her friend even just virtually, unaware that the staff was referring to comedian Alex Calleja.   

Alex Gonzaga and Mikee Morada

We all know that Alex Gonzaga and fiancé Mikee Morada are gearing up for their much-awaited wedding. But before that happens, the lovely couple shares their love story to none other than Alex’s sister, Toni Gonzaga.

Toni recalls that in 2015, Alex promised to remain single for a year and devote that whole time for self-love. She could also remember the day when Piolo Pascual headed to their dressing room looking for Alex. She didn’t know what the two talked about until Toni learned Alex and Mikee’s love story.

Mikee confessed that he repeatedly asked Piolo, his good friend, to introduce him to Alex. He just knew they would click. Mikee got Alex’s mobile number but he was still too shy to make a move. Then, he decided to tag along with Piolo to ASAP Natin ‘To, hoping to finally meet his crush. The long-overdue encounter finally happened.    

Mikee always takes relationships seriously. He enters one in hopes of settling down with that person someday. And with Alex, it was easy to see where the relationship was heading to. They just click as true soulmates would. They bring out the best in each other. Alex mentions that her fiancé inspires her to be selfless and become a better version of herself.

Others might wonder how they jive, knowing that Alex is the goofy type while Mikee seems a serious guy. The bride-to-be reveals that Mikee is also a joker and is even more jologs than her. She adds that Mikee has the tendency to please others, and that’s one thing she doesn’t like about him.

Mikee thinks Alex is more showy but also the one who likes to quarrel. He says he doesn’t like Alex’s habit of waking up late.

The engaged couple’s families recently got together for the Filipino tradition of ‘pamamanhikan.’ Mikee made sure that it will push through. They didn’t want their families to get left behind the wedding plans, saying it would be a sign of disrespect. It was Mikee’s parents who kept on reminding him about the occasion.

As the wedding day gets closer, though the couple hasn’t shared much detail about it, they just couldn’t hide the excitement. Alex is looking forward to finally sleeping beside and waking up next to Mikee. No more video calls to tell each other ‘good night.’ Mikee is likewise excited to be Alex’s husband, raise a family with her, and grow old together.

Asked if she’s willing to leave everything behind at Mikee’s command, Alex says ‘yes.’ She trusts Mikee’s judgment. She knows he would always have a valid reason behind major life-changing decisions.

As advice to those still looking for ‘the one,’ Alex highlights the dangers of keeping a long list of qualifications. “As much as possible, i-lessen natin ang ideals natin kasi baka kaya ‘yun ang rason kung bakit hindi natin napapansin na baka nandiyan na pala sa tabi mo ‘yung para sa’yo.”