Little School Boy

Jared attended play school last summer and I've been meaning to share the photos of their last day in school but keep on forgetting where the photos are stored. I'll get around to it, after Oct 10, when my life gets back to normal. =)

Daboon to Bawoon and other milestones

He's taken to watching the movie Up lately and just the other day, he said bawoons instead of his usual daboon.

He's also singing for most part of the day, while playing, in between bites, while watching TV. He's learnings his colors. He knows yellow by heart and can identify purple, but still jumbles up the rest.

Other milestones:

- He's perfected his 1-20 by reciting and can identify them all jumbled up. He says 10,20,30 then 100, then 1,000, 3,000, then 1,000,000!
- He draws oblongs
- He's 3 ft and 1 inch tall
- He'll be 2 1/2 years old soon
- His new words: faster (when daddy is driving the car), turn right, turn left, go down now (when he sees Jollibee or Mcdo)
- Songs I can think of now that he can sing: London bridge, Eensy weency (or is it wincy) spider, it's a small world (one paragraph), bahay kubo, leron, leron sinta, 3 blind mice, row, row row your boat, I have 2 hands, fly, fly the butterfly and so many songs I have difficulty of keeping track.

he's growing up so fast mommy can't keep up. =)

Nicknames

My grandfather is Chinese. He came to the Philippines from Amoy when he was 17. My family tree warrants an entire post but the intro is necessary to understand why in our family, we have peculiar nicknames.

Angkong (grandfather) can talk in Tagalog but with a definite Chinese twang (twang!). He had difficulty pronouncing names and so it was said my cousins' nicknames were created just so he can pronounce them. The nicknames I tell you are so far from their real names.

With that, I present my cousins:

Pong-Pong (who is giving birth anytime, soon. kaya mo yan!)

Ton-ton (with daughter Tracy who is the eldest among the newest batch of cousins)

Sing-sing (and son Cyrus--the youngest for now. but not for long )

Ding-dang (not technically a repeat but very, very close)

We also have a Che-che, a Jing-jing and a host of other names repeatedly said and passed of as nicknames. =)I'm just too lazy to lift pics off their FB accounts.

Confessions of a Blog Stalker

Hi, I'm Leslie and I'm a blog stalker. =)

Oh, yes, I am! I love peeking into the blogs of other people because:

1. When my baby was just born, the blogs I frequent helped calm me. That I wasn't alone in feeling I'm not a good enough mom, that most new moms are also going through the same sleepless nights, breastfeeding issues etc.

2. During my maternity leave, It was my connection to the outside world. As a person always on the go, I was happy with a baby, but unhappy I can't go out, try new restaurants, be with friends. I was updated and that was a lot of help in battling with the baby blues or maybe the reason why (aside from a very supportive family) I didn't go through the baby blues at all.

3. I get ideas of places to go, complete with photos and often times, budget you need to allocate on each place. With toddler that we need to constantly entertain, this is a big, big help!I dream, dream about the vacations we'll have and it helps to visualize things, right?

4. I read the blogs of mommies with children the same age as my son. Here, I can compare notes on parenting styles, on how they discipline their children and on milestones and developments at a certain age. It made me a wreck when my baby was younger-- why is my son not crawling yet when other babies his age already are- but I am past this and now I just enjoy reading the blogs. They're more helpful to me than the books I read. The experiences are from real-life moms who I feel I can connect to.

5. And lastly, I get to ask the mommies which products are the best they've tried and where to buy these stuff. Mommies search high and low for the best to give their babies and that makes them the best resource persons. I've made quite a few purchases based on what I've read in other blogs.

So thank you to the blogs who keep me entertained and are a source of new learnings to me. I may not know you personally, but I do feel like I have a circle of friends in blogsphere.

The World is a Happier Place with Grandmas

This is my belated Grandparents' Day post

I’m the 3rd of 24 apos (grandchildren). As one of the first batch of grand children, I got to enjoy being with my mamang (grandma) longer and now looking back, my fondest memories of her center around food and the kitchen.

You see, she has 10 children and as a mother, the busiest part of the house is where the food is cooked. I remember that she’d always, always have food ready. As a matter of fact, the vendor selling bananas would eat sometimes at the house.

I remember with fondness gifts of plastic dangling earrings and clothes (terno) almost every time my lola would visit the market, the pasalubong of yummy halo—halo in empty Carnation evap tin cans, helping make bilo bilo for ginataan, and trying my small hands at grating coconut the old-fashioned way.

I remember our trips to Alabang for our summer vacation with mamang towing us apos in all, I remember the smell of freshly cooked pinipig, the smell wafting from mamang’s kitchen down to our room in the first floor. I remember going to the market with her and cleaning the fish we bought at the market afterwards. Yes, I am odd that way, actually enjoying cleaning the gut and entrails of the galunggong.

Now, with my own son, I’m just so thankful his mama/nona (grandma) is with him.

After 32 years of working, my mom has retired this year and is hopefully reaping the rewards of being a full-time grandmother to her first apo. =)


I wonder how I will be as a lola? I want to be like my mamang and my mama before me, but more beautiful and way cooler!

So, a world without grandmas, nonnas, lolas, mamas, mommys, mammitas or whatever endearing way you want to call them is a world definitely less happy.

Why Condo Living Isn't for Us (Now)

a 3 month pregnant me at the foyer of the condo unit

I've seen condos being constructed left and right and even I drool over their model units but with a child, it really isn't for us at this point.

When I was pregnant and was always in fear of losing our baby, our doctor advised that the long trip to and from work (1 - 1.5 hours each way) is taking its toll on me so either we find a place near our workplace or I stop working until I deliver the baby.

Hubby searched high and low for apartments in the area and I was losing hope we'll ever find one when his colleague at work offered their condo unit.

It was perfect for us then.

It was small, sure but it was just me and him and it made cleaning so much easier.

We wake up at 7 am to reach the office by 8, and by that I mean hubby drives me to my office first then proceeds to his.

When he picks me up at night, me buy food before going home. As soon as we reach our unit, we eat dinner, watch some TV. Then settle on the foam (there was no way I can go up the loft to sleep) we set up at the living room to watch our fave series on DVD. Then hubby will make some popcorn, prepare iced tea for him and Anmum for me.

That went on for 7 months and it was the time of our lives! I never had to worry about security even if I'm left alone at times I was on bed rest. And hubby's office is just actually less than 5 minutes away. Lovely set up, if you ask me.

With the size of the unit, we still had friends over and we loved the coziness of it all. I even had relatives sleep over -- all 8 of us in an approximately 20 sq m unit. =)
We loved our stay there in a major, major way.

But with a baby, now a very active toddler, I can't imagine us living in a condo like what we had before. We need a bigger space, with a wide yard and a happy, yellow kitchen. That is the family home I dream of (though in my dreams, we have 2 floors), and that is what we have now which we just need to fill with happy memories.

Telltale Signs we have a Toddler in the House

It's 4 am and I couldn't go back to sleep. Our toddler woke up to drink cold water and my, my, he's really so big now and so making his presence felt in this house.

1. Our house, or my mother's house, spic and span before the baby, is now in eternal mess. Well, maybe not eternal as we are moving out soon.

2. We have a cornucopia of baby food in the house--oatmeal and wheatgerm, koko crunch cereals, bread sticks, milo etc.

3. You couldn't sit on the couch without your bum hitting something. There is always a toy hidden there somewhere.

4. His things are everywhere. Clothes in his closet in our room, extra clothes at lola's room, and still some more at his tati's (aunt) room.

5. You couldn't watch TV properly--not when it isn't Thomas and friends, or Baby Einstein, or Dora.

6. Speaking of #5, his DVD tape collection now rival that os his dad's!

7. And, we even have Jollibee ketchup in the bathroom.

Weird, no? He adores Jollibee and he hates getting his hair wet--so our solution was to bring in his favorite inside the bathroom so we can give him at least a decent bath.

I'm sure I can add more to the list, but it is 4 am and my brain isn't functioning at full speed yet.

Gotta go and try to sleep now. We'll be in Mcdo in a few hours for our Saturday morning breakfast.

Cute Jammies

Okay, my son really is so "pawisin" that his everyday outfit consists on white sandos and his briefs. In fact, he's so used to this outfit that when we dress him differently, he will go in front of the mirror and say "Podi" (for pogi or handsome).

But the mommy in me could not resist buying him these cute pajama sets.

Set 1: Monsters

Set 2: Animals

Set 3: Rocket (but he took off the bottom part)

He's gotten so big that the bottoms look more like tights. I do think they are designed to look and fit that way. Better protection from the dreaded dengue, if you ask me and doesn't he look so cute in a winnie-the-pooh way?

Goodnight Prayer

My little boy said this little prayer last night.

In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Dear Jesus,

Please bless my ... (looks around the room and focused one the window) lizard
(the lizard almost always appears at that window at dusk and it scares him)
Bless my ...(looks around the room again and saw the drawer) lotion
Bless my.... powder
Bless my ...(pauses and looks at me so I thought he'll say mommy) bread
(and he just ate dinner and had milk at this time)
And bless me(without hesitation)

Amen.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Biscuit + Chocolate= YumYum (I mean YanYan)

Our little boy discovered this yummy treat last weekend at a convenience store. It was pure love for him. A combination of two of his favorite food. He couldn't get enough.

Our Philippine Aerospace Museum Visit

What better way to spend the National Heroes Day weekend and our son's love for airplanes than at the Philippine Aerospace Museum at Villamor Air Base.

But, being a holiday, the museum was closed. We did get to see the planes on display on the grounds.

Here's how we spent our Monday morning.

Small planes for your viewing pleasure. They look nice from afar.

We realized though that he's scared of the planes! He just likes them from afar.He's trying to "escape" from mommy here.

It took a lot of convincing before he even touched a plane's wing.

Stiff and still scared here.

He's scared. Really, look at his face.

So, he's glad to leave the place.


We took the little boy to McDo nearby for breakfast and of course, he ate with gusto.

Then, we're off to visit the nearby church to offer a little prayer.

Face to face with your own mortality

Death scares me--more so now that I have a kid. But recently, my OA (over acting) self was faced with my own mortality when I had to undergo a breast ultrasound, supposedly for a lump felt by the doctor during our annual physical exam.

Now, I was too busy to be in hysteria, but I was scared. And while waiting for my turn at the ultrasound room, I was thinking--life really is short and we should all be prepared for it.

I don't know much about making a will yet and all the legalities that come with it, but here's what I was thinking of as I sat at the clinic:

* I want my son to be in the care of his father, provided his father will bring my son to my mother and sister's place at least once a month. I want my mom and sister to be actively involved in the upbringing of my son.

* To my husband, I will not forbid you to remarry but please not during the one year mourning period. And please, please find a wife who will love my son enough for me not to get up from where I'm buried.

* For my son to be raised in the house I so love and for my husband not to use what is our room as his and his wife's room. You can take the third room and my son can use our room.

* If I get to leave some money, I want it all saved for the use of my son.

* I want my son to remember how much his mom loves him so please show him pictures and videos of me. And make him read this blog, too as soon as he is old enough.

Okay, before people think I'm dying-- let me clarify I am not. Not yet anyway because we're all going to get there on our own time. The ultrasound, though not read by the doctor yet, says normal.

The lump must just be milk.

I am still breastfeeding, by the way.

Project: Dream House

This will be quite a long post as we are passionate about this house-no matter how simple or small it may be. And besides, turning a house into a home is a never ending process. =)

We first set eyes on our home sweet home February of 2007, when I was heavily pregnant with Jared. It wasn't a home, sweet home yet. In fact, it looked like a dumpster! But it was in a good neighborhood and the property was offered to us at a price we could not resist.

Then I gave birth and it was only after (around May) that we started preparing the documents for the loan. That took a good 4 months, details of which I would gladly forget.

Then the renovations started. I have always dreamed of living in a two-storey house, living in a bungalow for most of my life. But sometimes, what we get is dictated by the money we have in our pockets. So for the meantime, bungalow it is. Having acquired this property at the early part of our marriage, we're hopeful we'll get a bigger and better house in the not-so-distant future.

Then, everything came to a halt.No paint yet, no kitchen nor cabinets. It was actually livable already but I could not imagine living in a house with no paint. =)

After more loans from kindred souls (say mama and sistah-pay when able!), we had the flooring installedthe kitchen started
and had the gate changed (the old gate was an eyesore).
Of course, we also had the house painted and what a change it was!

This house accommodated our clan of 72 members last Christmas. Because we had nothing inside yet, that's why.

This year, we concentrated on filling up the house with things that are important to us. We bought the dining table on sale at Home Depot (on hindsight, maybe we can get a better deal at Paco), then the sofa at Abea (love their price and the style--fit for a family just starting out), then the side tables, center table and arm chair with foot stool at Bangkal (yes, yes we scoured the shops).

Then, I bought things which I feel will make our house feel like a home. Non essential items for some, but they are important to me. Curtains at one of SM's sales, throw pillows, table napkins (they have Martha Stewart at SM-- I am one happy mommy).

Off to Dapitan to buy a specific tray I saw online and I found it there for less than half the price at ebay.

Our orange Cleopatra chair was bought literally on the street. We were going to Laguna and this chair caught our fancy with its big for sale sign and loud color. At 3,500 and can sit 4 people, it added a pop of color in our neutral sala without making a big dent on the pocket.

We are bringing in our old TV set and refrigerator. Bought our oven this month and will have the screen installed soon.

Oh, and I don't have photos of it yet but I'm already envisioning how our sunburst mirror will make our living room elegant looking. Here's how it looks like. This one was from Robles Heritage.

We're excited to move in!

Quaint Little Coffee Shop: Kitchen of Cakes and Coffee

I don't frequent coffee shops that much. Aside from the fact that I can't take cold coffee (gives me goosebumps--I order hot cafe latte 95% of the time ), I find it too crowded most of the time.

It was a pleasant surprise to see this quaint coffee shop. It's not too small but not too big, the vibe inside is good, cheerful yet homey, and the price is just right (case in point, a breakfast set of 2 poached eggs, toast and jam is just P65). I love the mango jam that came with my order and I tried to make them sell me a bottle. Alas, it wasn't for sale. I do hope they'll start selling it, though.

It's also way out of the usual areas we visit. The branch I visited is at Tomas Morato. I'd been aching to try their cakes as the display looked totally yummy.

I read they have a branch at the Sky Garden at SM City. Should plan a visit there very, very soon.

Enjoy the photos and happy weekend!

Reminder to Self

This is just to remind me that no matter how tired I get with work, a big reward, literally and figuratively, is waiting for me (us) at home.

He Knows...

...the days of the weeks and that Saturday is a fun day because he gets to ride the car and mommy and daddy is with him the whole day.

...plenty of songs. He learned the national anthem (or parts of it) last summer, rain, rain go away, bahay kubo (the complete albeit bulol version), leron, leron sinta, you are my sun shine, don't cry little one (wait, is that the title?), and almost all of the songs in his CD.

...that when he's naughty, he needs to say sorry.

...to say excuse me and bless you (when somebody sneezes)

...how to drink his vitamins.

...how to share. He shares his food with Thomas and Teddy (his toys) and he even shares mommy's milk with them.

...daddy and mommy need to go to the office Mondays to Fridays. He bids us farewell in a most adorable and yet nakakaawa way.

I have tons of photos to post but no decent camera. Hay, wish the new digicam will get here soon enough.

Have a Happy Tuesday!

*all photos taken at Mcdo last Saturday, his favorite day of the week

Mommy Moments: I Love Books

As individuals, we've probably read thousands of titles each before getting married. Once married, I got to read most of his books, and he got to read mine.

It is one of our hopes that we'll get to raise a reader. I hope our son will also love scouring the shelves of bookstores, will get excited at book sales, will try to finish a good read standing in a book store, will exchange books with his classmates, and will bask in the scent of a new and prized book.

We hope we'll always have the means to support his love of reading. And we hope reading will teach him to imagine and explore and learn things not usually taught in the classroom.

At the photo is my son at 9 months.

Get to know more about Mommy Moments here. It's a lot of fun!

How to Survive without a Yaya

mommy, no yaya?

We’ve been officially yaya-less for close to 2 months now. It has not been a walk in the park, mind you, but it can be done.

Here are my realizations. We've been so tired that I'm surprised I have time to "realize" some things. =)

Okay, the minor setbacks first.
can you do it mommy?

Prepare to give up some snooze time. With a yaya: we’re mostly asleep by 9.30 pm. Now, the scenario is we get home around 8 pm. Eat dinner, then play with our son. We wait for him to sleep and now that his sleeping pattern has changed (why now????), he only gets to sleep at 10.30-11.30 pm. So, I can only wash his bottles, and do some minor cleaning when he’s asleep. His dad washes the dishes and hand washes his clothes while I wash his bottles. We sometimes get to sleep only for 5 hours.

House work is no easy task. This I know way before but things I’ve taken for granted, mahirap pala. I like to cook, but cleaning up afterwards is so tiring and it takes the fun out of cooking.

sorry mommy, i've been a naughty boy

Be ready to take the tot everywhere. With a yaya, we can eat while the yaya plays with him or holds him. We can sneak out a couple of times, too. We bring him along everywhere now. To errands, of course to the mall, and to the other house to clean. Come to think of it, this one isn't so bad.


The blessings in disguise.
As a parents, our time management skills are honed to the max. More so without a yaya. For minute things like getting a haircut or doing the grocery, we have to zip in and out of the aisles as fast as we can and for visits to the salon, which is close to nil, I sometimes have to ask the hairdresser for just the basic blow dry because it takes too long.

This is an opportunity to get to know my son better. At 2, he’s still not so terrible but he’s becoming a bit more difficult. Strong headed, and very, very playful. Before, I can hand over my son to his yaya when I can’t seem to take his antics anymore.

Energies renewed. No matter how tired we were at work, our energies have to be renewed/restored once we open the gate to the house because a little boy has been patiently waiting for our return home the whole day.

Respect for SAHMs. Ideally, I want to be a stay at home mom. Without a yaya now, I’ve gained a lot more respect for WAHMs and SAHMs. Sometimes, it’s easier and less tiring to be at the office than to stay at home.

We’ve learned to let go of the small things. Like we just need a clean house not a spotless one. And we’ve accepted toys will be around the house, on where we’ll sit, or even lie down, all-the-time.

i'll behave,mommy

In closing, I realized, after all the previous realizations above (hahaha), that we need an all round helper to keep us all sane, and to unload the housework from our shoulders. This way, we can focus our energy on watching, playing, running and talking with the toddler.

p.s.
Our prayers have just been answered. Our new helper will start on Friday.