Iggy Tweets

At 30 months, my son speaks a lot of words. This started as just me understanding what he's saying, then his Daddy. There are times we'd still translate what he's saying to others but most of the time, even strangers understand him. He doesn't just speak words or phrases but full sentences. I am still amazed at how he does it. Last night, he said something that made us laugh. He likes asking questions and answering them himself. This is what he said verbatim: "Is that the kitchen?" (pointing to the bathroom door) "No, it's the banyo." Haha. At least he knows Spanish.

I noticed he also knows how to add "s" or "es"  for plurals and possessives. 

Best of all, my son knows how to say "Thank you" and "Please" now.

The other day, while we were going downstairs to eat, he said clearly and completely, "Thanks for cooking, Mommy". This momma is forever thankful for being given such a wonderful and gracious child.

The Cat in the Hat

In grade school, I liked hanging out in the school library and borrowing books (and yes, getting fined for not returning them on time).  Our school had a charming library located on the second floor near the sisters' quarters and offices. It was a quiet place to read and reflect. However, I don't ever recall seeing Dr. Seuss's books back then. Or maybe I was more keen on the Enid Blyton ones and never really paid attention to the former's very awesome books. Anyway, I was already 30 when I owned a Dr. Seuss book and it was not even mine. A good friend gifted us with it on our baby shower. I cried the first time I read it. I cried the second time I read it to my son when he was a few months old. We love Dr. Seuss's books so much, my husband and I read it every night to Inigo when he was a small baby. We've even memorized some of the lines. Among our favorites are: Green Eggs and Ham, Mr Brown Can Moo, The Shape of Me and Other Stuff, There's a Wocket in my Pocket, etc.

So it was just apt that our first birthday party theme was: Cat in the Hat! I believe I've posted photos here before. Looking for the link now. Haha! I'm such a blogger newbie. Anyway, I also wanted to show you what I wore for our company Christmas Party. The theme was Mad about Hats and this was the first thing I imagined myself to be:

Somewhere between partying and taking photos, I lost my bow tie. I was wearing a black mini skirt here and matching red and white striped socks but no one cared to take a photo of that. Hehe. Here's another one with the red bow and slightly seen white gloves.

“From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere!”
― Dr. Seuss, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish 

Happy Holidays!

Free Play*

It's always nice to find a park that's pretty accessible to home. Well it's still a good 20-min ride but who minds when the kids get to enjoy so much green grass as these:

It's located in the midst of a business district which we found unbelievable at first. The photos above were taken at the Washington Sycip Park in Legaspi Village after our Sunday Market trip. There's also a nearby park with a playground that's heaven for the kids.

* "Free play is when kids get to play on their own, they have free time to do what they want to do, and can create their own fantasy world, choose their own friends and exercise their own bodies."

http://m.inquirer.net/lifestyle/?id=73810

Breastfeeding at 28 Months

Since Inigo started talking, his words for breastfeeding have evolved. At around 18 months, he'd say "De-dey" really clearly and loudly whenever he wants to nurse. At 24 months though, it changed to a short "Puh". Now 28 months, he's reverted back to Dede (without the "ey" in the end) followed by, "other one' when he's done with one boob and wants to finish off with the other one as well.

Here's his schedule for nursing this time:

Morning, upon waking up - around 10-30 mins (depending on how busy I am) There are times when he'd nurse back to sleep but there are times when he'd stay awake nursing until he's ready to get up and start the day. After the nursing session, I usually offer him water and light breakfast (usually fruits and cereals)

Noon -- after his bath and when he's gotten tired and sleepy

Noon or mid-afternoon, mid-nap - As I work, sometimes he'd wake up from his nap and ask to nurse again. I'm happy when he goes back to sleep because I'm able to go back to work again

We have lunch after he wakes up from his nap.

Late afternoon -- before dinner but just a short feed that lasts less than 5 mins.

At night when he's about to sleep (usually a long feed accompanied by a painful bite).

I know this schedule is quite frequent for a toddler at 28 months and realize we're nowhere near weaning.  I would like our weaning experience to be as natural and gentle as possible with my baby's needs taken to account primarily. The main reason that I'm working from home is to breastfeed my baby as long as he wants, or at least until he no longer needs the comfort of my breasts whenever he's hurt or feeling weak.

Here are some more active weaning techniques.I like the idea of a weaning party when my nursling weans. 

Nursing I. at 22 months. Cebu, Philippines.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

When I learned that Multiply is being shut down, I took my old photos for posterity's sake.

October 2007. The night he proposed to me. This was taken after the Madz concert in CCP. We had Peach Martini at the bar of G Hotel.

 February 2008. With our friends, Herbert and Pog, we did an ocular inspection of Sonya's Garden.

We have the sweetest friends. They gave me a bouquet of flowers for being engaged.

Probably taken in 2006.  With my MA classmates. I never got to finish my MA. I probably won't.

One of our many out-of-town dates with friends. This was in Anawangin, Zambales.

A picnic at the UP Sunken Garden with more friends. 

Oh, Iñigo

Yesterday, my two-year old (and three months) boy left me in awe once more after counting (with some coaching) from 1 to 20. At this point he is also able to say the names of six shapes, circle, triangle, square, rectangle, star, and cross. At mornings, I'd usually hear him pointing to stuff in the room and asking himself, What shape is the teewee (TV)? Then answering "Rectangle!" What shape is the electric fan? "Circle!" What shape is the clock? "Circle!" He can also recognize colors on his toys and saying the colors out loud, red, green, blue, yellow, pink, purple, orange, etc.

Interestingly, my husband and I never really pressured him in learning those things. We make him watch educational DVDs (we don't have cable) and even us would watch with him. From time to time, we'll tell him what's on the screen or just repeat what the narrator says. His books are also full of things to learn from. He likes choosing what book to read himself. I'm just glad he's turning out okay and I'm happy that he's so interested in learning and studying. I guess this work-at-home set-up is for the best!

Ten years ago

I hate this picture of me, but at the same time, I love it. I love that my eyes are closed and the wind is blowing strands of hair on my face. This was taken exactly ten years ago by my friend, H. We were on a trip to Chiang Mai together, a province in the northern part of Thailand. I was so young then and adventurous that I took a teaching job for about 9 months, away from my friends and family. H. was just visiting that December of 2002 and so I met him in Bangkok with his friends and we all went to a week long vacation to the cold province of  Chiang Mai. I had lots of fond memories of the trip including good and cheap food, seeing elephants up close, trekking, flying a humongous paper lantern at night, shopping, and learning and practicing the Thai language.

The next year, I went back home, fell in love with the guy I wanted to get married with and gave him this photo of me with the words of the Chilean poet written at the back:

"Laugh at the night

at the day, at the moon,

Laugh at the twisted

Streets of the island

Laugh at this clumsy

girl who loves you,

But when I open 

my eyes and close them,

When my steps go,

When my steps return

deny me bread, air,

light, spring,

but never your laughter

for I would die."

Pablo Neruda

Ginisang Patola with Misua

Before my mood for documenting my cuisine specialties expires, let me tell you about a recent favorite dish of my son. He likes soup generally, which I mix with vegetables and rice for more nutrition. He doesn't mind the vegetables but his appetite for rice is quite sporadic. Everyday, I would plead him to eat carbohydrates, be it bread, noodles, or rice, because I'm always worried he's not getting enough of this, just look at his thin built. Anyway, here's a recipe that he loves so much.

Ingredients:

Patola, sliced in quarters

Garlic, chopped 

Onions, chopped

Misua (Egg noodles)

salt & pepper to taste

2-3 cups of water

1. Saute garlic and onions

2. Add in patola

3. Add some water then put a little salt and pepper to taste

4. Add the misua

5. Simmer for a few minutes until noodles are cooked.

6. Let cool a little before serving.

For dinner, he finished this bowl and asked for another serving of about the same amount as this. Yahoo!

Yummy Tom Yum Goong in an Instant

I've been up since before 4am to catch up on some backlogs that have accumulated last week, maybe the week before, when I. got sick. He had flu for days, it was awful and very tiring time for the three of us. But I'm not about to blog about such unfortunate events, besides, I'm not in the mood for ranting. I want to write about my favorite Thai dish recipe, Tom Yum Goong.

Ingredients:

100 to 200 grams of shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 to 3 cups of coconut milk
3 tablespoons of Tom Yum paste (I use the Thai Heritage brand)
Mushrooms (Straw mushroom is ideal but oyster or button is ok, too)
String Beans
Eggplant
salt
lemon

This is so easy to make and yummy in the tummy (if you're a fan of Thai dishes)! Because of the Tom Yum paste, you are spared from a number of steps, plus you don't have to chop certain ingredients like onions, tomatoes, ginger, and lemongrass!

First, pour the coconut milk (you can use a canned one, if preferred) in the pan. Put three tablespoons of tom yum paste then dissolve it a little. Set the fire to medium heat to dissolve the paste some more. Let it simmer. Add the shrimp (you can also use chicken breast fillet, sliced in small pieces, and it's equally yum!). Add a little water if you like it soup-ier. Add salt to taste. Make sure the meat is cooked before adding mushrooms, eggplant, and string beans. Don't overcook the veggies. Squeeze half lemon or to taste.

While I'm trying to figure out how to copy my photos from Instagram, here's a photo from Satay.com. Happy eating!

Selfless

I remember it was around October in 2010 when my Mom first left for the States. She was granted an Immigrant Visa from being petitioned by her brother in 1987. Yes, that's about how fast the system works. I was really excited for her. It's probably her first time to ride a plane and travel that far in years. She's in her mid-sixties and deserves this kind of vacation after being a housewife to a husband and five children for almost three decades. I grew up watching and eventually learning household chores from her.

I think I was already in my twenties and working when I asked my Mom why she chose to be a housewife. She had a career in teaching and a UP graduate, as a matter of fact. She replied she couldn't focus on working away from her child. Eight years after she quit her job as an English teacher in Don Bosco, I was born---the third daughter, like her, who could not bear to be away from her child to work. My Mom was the first person I called when I learned that I was granted permission to work from home. She was delighted more than I was.

Last Friday, my Mom left again for the States and this time, we were a little bit sadder. We were reminded again of my Dad, who was still alive the first time she left. My Dad passed away while Mom was abroad and grieving then was a little hard for all of us. We decided not to let her come home during the funeral as it might just drain her terribly. When she came back months after, all we did for a good long while was to cherish pleasant memories of my Dad. She says she prefers being reminded of when he was alive and not of his sufferings.

Being a plain housewife didn't prevent me from seeing my Mom as a woman of strength and wisdom. I am happy that she's found happiness and enriching experiences in travelling. I am glad that she's making her life more meaningful not only to us, her kids and grandkids, her siblings, but most importantly, for herself.

Babywearing my Toddler

Last Monday was a sure treat for our small family. Since it was a holiday (National Heroes, is it?), we decided to go our for a quick lunch and a few surprises at the mall, well not the mall the we go to every weekend, at least. We went to the Mall of Asia for a change. Since my husband would be leaving us on our own after lunch, to take care of work matters at his nearby office, I decided against taking the stroller and packed my ever-reliable sling carrier instead. It's been a while since I used it and I thought it was perfect on my already-tired-from-doing-my-baby's-laundry arms. So after we had a delicious meal at Pepper Lunch, I put I. in the sling and walked around the mall. Our first stop was at Toy Kingdom. He stayed in the sling for around ten minutes or so while I showed him the Legos and Megablocks we are planning to buy and some Spiderman items. He begged me to let him look at the toys himself so I put him down. He played with the Leap Frog toys for a good thirty minutes (or was it 15?) so my arms still got the rest it deserved.

Here's us in the sling that day:

I didn't get him a toy (although I was really tempted to) but good thing he was kept busy by the Leap Frog toys and the counter was on the other side of the store and he didn't like falling in line. I thought I'd give him a fun experience with the carousel instead and that's what we did. After the first round, he cried for another one, but then decided against it when he saw the balloons. I got him a yellow, mickey mouse shaped one and we had an ice cream from Dairy Queen. He saw the car strollers that were for rent and naturally, he wanted to ride them so I let him. I didn't rent though, I just let him sit in one of the cars. I hardly noticed that two hours have quickly passed by and Daddy has come to pick us up.

Here's one happy kid in the carousel:

Parenthood Stories

My title must be sounding really incoherent right now (Oops, I just had to change it from Ring bearer, maidless and madless stories). It's because my main reason for blogging is for me to have something to look back to when I need stories to remind me of how our family gets through living our day-to-day lives, moreso, be utterly grateful for the wonderful blessings especially the gift of parenthood. One of the virtues that have been reinforced in me when I became I parent is the virtue of patience. In the morning, I wait for my son do his thing in the potty, it's the longest ten minutes, I tell you, but the moment I hear that peeing sound relieves me more than him. I patiently feed him so that he'll finish a bowlful of the rice and nilaga that I sometimes cook for lunch. You see, my son loves to eat and can finish his food when he likes it so I let him, even if I have to forego some little tasks I've been itching to do, just to feed him while he's busy playing or watching his favorite movies. At bedtime, when I'm tired and restless from all those activities of the day, I would wait for him to finally bid his toys goodnight before I let him nurse and drowse into dreamland. This last thing I mentioned isn't as easy as I have stated here. A lot of times, he would disagree about being put to sleep because he wants to play or watch some more or read his books or just walk around the room. Worse, is when he wants to pretend he's Spiderman and be carried high on the walls and tossed in the air as if he's flying. My favorite but saddest part at night is when the husband leaves for work and my son tells me to carry him by the window to say "Bye-bye, Daddy" in his cute bulol voice.

Last Saturday must've been one major parenthood story for me and my husband. Our youngest brother (my brother-in-law actually) finally said "I do" and tied the knot. Naturally, we were part of the entourage and our little boy is the Ring Bearer. I knew he would be intimidated by the people and get distracted by the lights of the cameras so I never really set my expectations that he would walk. Although I hoped and prayed a few times that he would. Well, just so you know, my little one, you were the cutest two-year old Ring Bearer in Barong Tagalog and Chucks, and you walked on your own down the aisle towards your Tito at the altar. We were walking behind you though, but still, you walked! You were also very quiet during the ceremonies although I couldnt really not let you roam around the air-conditioned church with your new Spiderman toy which you tossed all around the placed as you quietly murmur, "Go web!". You're so cute like that and everybody find you so adorable.

 Here's our group photo during the reception at G Hotel. I'm still fixing the other photo with you in Barong Tagalog as it doesn't seem to rotate.

It's been one and a half months now since I've been a WAHM (Work at home mom) and I'm still amazed how we're able to pull it off without getting insane. It has also been about a week and a half since Christine, my son's Yaya, left. Although I have a pretty bad cough right now from doing household chores during ungodly hours and not getting much sleep, both y husband and I are very much contented without her. After all the stress she's caused us, I think it's for the best that she left.

What I like about our newest setup (Work from home and maidless) is that we get to be really hands-on with parenting. We get to enjoy being home more and our son gets involved in the activities around the house, too.

Instagram and iPhone Love Affiar

My love affair with Instagram started when my husband brought home his first ever iPhone, a gadget that neither of us thought would change a lot of our online habits and activities. I. had just dozed off but he was still latched and continued to suck for more milk. I never liked texting or playing games on my phone that time and I remember the only other thing I could get hold of at that moment was my husband's iPhone. He was telling me about this phone application he downloaded earlier that allowed him to edit photos taken on his phone. I looked back at the photo he took of me and I. and loved the old-feel effect. It was as if the photo was taken in the 80's. I decided to check out the community of IGers (their term for Instagram users) and discovered that some of the bloggers I read also have Instagram. I followed a few of them. The next thing I knew, I was already checking Instagram on a daily basis, much more than I do on Facebook. I contemplated it for several months, a year even, before I finally decided on buying an iPhone myself. It hasnt even been two months since I had this phone and it's gone through a lot of beating up by my clumsiness or my overly-eager-to-watch-youtube-videos toddler who'd throw it away on some nasty occasions but it has given me so much already. I even editied my son's birthday party invitation thru one of the available apps online. Well, here are some precious photos I posted on Instagram lately:

Here's the invite followed by the cake design I made using just my iPhone:

Over Coffee

Sorry for the lousy and negative post last time. I just got from reading Alphabet Dad's most recent blog post written earlier today. Well, I know it wasn't composed on the spot, as he has this really great writing style of jotting down in his little notebook bits and bits of words which he will weave eventually to come up with an even more brilliant journal entry. I mean, who writes so damn good as this nowadays:

"I picked up Lars Von Trier’s The Boss of it All from a pirated-DVD shopping spree around 4 years ago. That was a time when the pirates seemed to have better taste, because “indie,” art house, or foreign films were also boot-legged. I remember that it was on the “sale” or “bargain” rack, which suggests that it might be damaged. But I remember getting Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai on the very same rack and it worked fine. 

The disc played okay, but my mistake was I thought it didn’t have subtitles or audio dubbing. For years, it was just tucked away in the shelf. 

In these four years or so, parenting and other good things proved time to be luxurious. Even if we stopped watching Cable TV, we really just didn’t have that much time to spare. D. and I had to give up frequenting the foreign film festivals. I bought a copy of Run Lola Run for posterity because I saw it with her on a German Film Festival. On one of our dates, she kept gushing about her German silent film experience. We were still regularly hanging out with friends when we went to our last Spanish film festival. And we still get excited over the thought of Eiga Sai or French Spring Manila. 

Nowadays, we watch an enormous amount of cartoons and Disney movies. Our little one is also a film buff in his own right. He has been very fond of having Toy Story Trilogy marathons. I must have seen the Toy Story trilogy ten times more than the Godfather Trilogy or twenty time more compared to Kieslowski’s Tres Colores. 

We still see a fair amount of DVDs, but we miss foreign films and festivals probably not just because we had excellent dates or great company when we saw them. There is also a subliminal relief in going through a communal experience in a theatre, but a worldwide curiosity in cultures and a shared experience. We blur the barriers of language with delight and understanding at least while the reel projects a collective take on human drama. It binds stories, colors, action, imagination and sentiment to liberate us from a totalizing aloneness.

One July Sunday night, when the little one was asleep, we jump on the chance to have our own date in our room. We were aching to see anything that wasn’t made in Hollywood, and we were actually willing to watch something we’ve already seen from the DVD shelf. 

That’s when I tried Lars Von Trier’s The Boss of it All. It had subtitles, after all. May the Nazareno bless the pirates and peddlers in Quiapo.

It also turned out that The Boss of it All was a comedy. We laughed away even we know that for the life of us we know we’ll probably never speak Dansk. As the Danish quietly language bounced off the room’s walls, there’s a film festival feel that nudged the darkness into life."

I shrink with envy just reading his words.  I'm no writer. He is. (The entry above is entitled "Like a Boss" and was taken from his unpublicized blog).

Deconstructing the Yaya

She wakes up whenever she likes, takes a nap on our couch on an almost everyday basis, throws away her unfinished food and water, has average cooking skills (she can cook rice and fry almost anything) but can burn your food and use too much canola oil , she's a lousy toilet user, her cellphone never stops beeping, she'll die without turning on her radio even while sleeping, she consumes 2/3 of our rice, water, and sugar supply, she complains of having a headache 4 times a month, she can be out of the house on break for three hours or more, everyday. She's disrespectful and childish and not a good influence around my son. That's my Yaya.

We've been trying to live with her and accept her long-list of flaws for one and a half years now. Heck, I even shelled-out fifteen thousand on her to have her teeth fixed (She's fully paid now and has improved her oral hygiene). I thought at first she's got so much potential. She can keep the house in order, she's makwento, and has a fairly positive aura. She's young and was able to finish HS. She did quite well looking after my son when I was still working at the office. She fed him well and sent him to sleep on schedule. My husband and I have left the two of them on their own on a few occasions and she seem to have handled these situations quite fine.

Now that I'm staying at home, I could not help but notice her countless flaws. I'm on the verge of letting her go especially now that she's causing me so much stress. But I want to have a trusted "kasambahay"so badly and I don't have much candidates to choose from. I'm starting to contemplate now whether I really need one or a househelp is just something nice to have at the moment.

Breastfeeding Hurts

I had to tweet the title above last night because I was in real pain after having been bit while nursing. Confession time: Breastfeeding hurts! I hope you don't get me wrong. Even before I found out I was pregnant, I already knew I was going to breastfeed my baby. Aside from being breastfed myself (beyond 2 years), I believed in all the benefits of human milk. I prepared and expected a lot of pains in the process.  I went through engorgement so many times, a really nasty nipple crack, and best of all, numerous bites from a toddler with almost a full set of teeth.  It's been two years and I'm still breastfeeding. My plan is to let him lead the weaning.

With this new set-up of working from home, I find myself stuck in a very hectic schedule. Although I have househelp, I still insist on doing most of the chores---cooking, bathing I., feeding I., putting I. to sleep, etc.  As soon as I put I. to nap, I rush to my netbook to get my work done, for about 1.5 hours, or 2 if I'm lucky. When he wakes up, he asks to nurse, and if I'm lucky again, he goes right back to nap. By the time he's fully awake, I'd need to attend to whatever it is he wants or call the yaya (when she's anywhere to be seen) to take him outside and play until I finish work at around 4:30 pm. By that time, my husband would wake up and I'd have to cook dinner. When we're up for it, the three of us would go to CCP to stroll around while the husband runs.

It's not exhausting on some days but you know how it is when you find yourself stuck in some stressful situations like for example, potty training a two-year old for days and all you get is just one success in the potty and the rest are all misses? By the time I turn off the lights and get some rest from a long day of catching poops and pees, I get a bite...that excruciatingly painful bite from a sleeping two-year old and I feel helpless and all I can do is cry. Sniff :(

My Dessert Table Happened!

It came true and I'm so happy with end-result.

The Amazing Iñigo

Dear Iñigo,

We celebrated your second birthday last Saturday, with our closest friends and families. They have tagged along their little ones so they may meet you and have fun with you on your birthday. Mommy and Daddy planned for your party to be held at home, but things got a little different so we decided to just have it at the fast-food restaurant which has a fun character that you love so dearly. Unlike the parties we've attended, Mommy and Daddy were the program hosts and you yourself sort of acted as the mascot in your Spiderman costume. You were so amazing that afternoon as you played around the room with all your cousins and friends. You did the activities that Mommy planned for all the kids at the party like getting a stick-on tatoo and coloring. I'm sorry that Mommy forgot to have you design your own cupcake, too like the rest of the kids but things got a little busy and we had to attend to other matters at the party.  When you were done eating, you went in front and got hold of the microphone. You were so comfortable saying the words you knew for everyone to hear like, "Spiderman", "Mommy", "Daddy", "Iñigo", "Buzz Lightyear", "Cake", "Balloons", etc. You and Daddy even had a question and answer portion which went something like, "How old are you Iñigo?" and your reply was, "Two" which you pronounced as "Choo". As I said, you were amazing, like your friendly neighborhood Spiderman. Everyone was in awe of you, especially us, your Mom & Dad.

They say that turning two is something that parents must look out for, because TWO is usually spelled as TERRIBLE. They may be right, because that night after your party, you had a huge bump on your forehead and cried so hard that Mommy and Daddy thought of bringing you to the hospital. Thankfully, the bump disappeared the following morning and we didn't have to bring you to the doctor anymore. But despite these little accidents that we know will still happen as you grow older, we trust that you will be terrific and we will always love you and we'll continue showing you how much love we have for you.

Do you know that Mommy and Daddy got the idea of throwing a Spiderman party from you? You had some other favorites like Mickey, Toy Story, Nemo, but as your birthday came nearer, your admiration for Spiderman became undeniable. You would climb up our windows and tell us that you're Spiderman. Do you know that Daddy also wore a superhero costume? Can you guess who?

Anyway, everything at your party went smoothly. We had fun games and the food was also great. There was a dessert table set-up which Mommy DIYed and it was quite a hit. You loved your cakes especially the one with Spiderman's face, which your Ninang Cathy ordered. Towards the end, you danced away with your friends to the tune of your favorite songs.

Mommy is now super excited to plan for your upcoming birthdays. We love you little man!

Infinite Love, Infinite Happiness

When Alphabet Dad and I were just starting to go out, I asked him a lot of questions about the girls he used to date and made sure I knew each one of them. If you ever want to know, he and I have known each other since our mid teens through common friends but we never really thought that we will end up together. Well, we did,  we went through highs and finally decided to settle down. The girls from his past must have sensed it and they slowly disappeared from his network or maybe destiny never gave them a chance to meet again. Hey, that worked so well for me for I'm the really jealous type back then (I've had my share of heartbreaks, too, haha!). Anyway, of all these girls (they were a handful, I tell you), B. was the only one I never got jealous with. No they never dated, she's his best friend from piano lessons back when they were ten. Instead of getting jealous, I was really eager to meet this lady, who from his stories is Chinese and has a lot of lhasa apsos. I got to meet her a few months before our wedding as she willingly accepted our request that she does the calligraphy on our invitations.

Last Sunday, B. got married to her Prince Charming, who according to one of the maid-of-honor resides in Capaz, Tarlac. With their union, B. will not only be taking care of her more than a dozen dogs but also look after some 250,000 chickens!

We are the type that look forward to attending weddings. I bought a not so fancy but appropriate dress some weeks before the event and he even bought a new suit that he used for the occasion. We eagerly trooped to Sofitel that rainy afternoon and enjoyed being in a fancy place, meeting fancy people, and eating delicious food. Life is good this way. To B and J, infinite love and happiness to your journey together.

Small-town Life

Early this year, Alphabet Mom and Dad got hooked with this TV series about a New Yorker and brand new doctor who landed a practice in small-town Bluebell, Alabama. Admittedly, the plot is cheesy and mainly revolves around Dr. Zoe Hart's (played by Rachel Bilson) love interests. What got us watching the whole season 1 is the charming premise of a small-town life, where everyone knows almost everyone else and where people, especially ladies are quite on the conservative side.

 

However, what I love most about this comedy-drama series is Zoe's fashion style. Yeah, I realize it's not too motherly and quite superficial to wish for her vital statistics but I'm grateful to have been inspired by the way she dresses up somehow. Maybe it's the contrast of country life vs. city life that makes this series and its characters interesting. Anyhow, I wanted to share my outfit to our recent visit at the nearby farm I blogged about previously:

I wonder if it's anywhere near Zoe Hart's style? Well I sure did feel like it was so. Haha.

(On me: Top and blazer from SM Girls Teens' Wear, mini skirt from Kamiseta, Sandals from Payless, On I: Inner shirt from Gingersnaps, Jumpsuit from Osh Kosh, Shoes from Mothercare)

Birthday Thoughts

June is a birthday-packed month for our family and made even extra-special because it's little man's second year. The mister and I talked about having a small party at home for just the family. Even so, I have dreams of throwing a really fun party for the little man and his five cousins. I've only got two weeks to prepare it that's why I have to decide, like right now, which theme to pull off. I'm torn between these cute inspirations. Can you guess which themes we want?

I love this photo wall. We have a window frame in our service area that I have been wanting to put into good use.

 

 I want interesting food labels on the buffet table. It looks quite fun.

I'm planning to set up a dessert table with all of our favorite sweets: cupcakes, jell-o's, lollipops, chocolates, etc.

I also need to look for games and activities that will keep the kids busy.

Hmmm....I'm pegging this entry as my checklist as well. I need to buy these:

1. Table cloth 3 pcs
2. Electric fan (our lone fan downstairs won't be enough)
3. Loot bag and loot bag goodies
4. Game prizes
5. Costume

...

I'm so bad at making lists, let alone fulfilling them. Which reminds me, we have to get the little man a gift! Haist. Two weeks to the birthday.  Bless this Mom.

A Balanced Diet

Being healthy shouldn't stop at eating nutritious food. Our meals should also be well-balanced. Here's a list of the food groups that should comprise a toddler's daily food intake according to USDA. Younger ones aged 2-3 yrs old are required at least 2/3 portion of the following:

Grain group: 6 servings
(Serving size examples: 1 slice bread, i/2 cup of cooked rice or pasta; 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, 1 ounce of ready to eat cereal)

Vegetable group: 3 servings
(1/2 cup of chopped raw or cooked vegetables, 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables)

Fruit group: 2 servings
(1 piece of fruit or melon wedge, 3/4 cup of juice, 1/2 cup of canned fruit, 1/4 cup of dried fruit)

Milk group: 2 servings
1 cup of milk or yogurt, 2 ounces of cheese

Meat group: 2 servings
(2 to 3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish, 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans, 1 egg counts as 1 ounce of lean meat, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter count as 1 ounce of meat

Fats and sweets: Limit calories from these

Here's another guide I got that we try to adapt at home once in a while (it's for vegetarians and we aren't). It's comprised of indigenous kinds of food that's actually better as they're locally available and most are chemical-free:

Great News, Good Memories, Healthy Stuff

The Alphabet Mom has been very happy the past days. I can't reveal the details yet but as of late last week, I was already granted permission to work from home. That means, I will have a fuller devotion to my other career, which happens to be my most favorite thing to do in the world at the moment: Mothering.

While counting the days though, I have made use of my time wisely. Well, I've still been going to the office for the past two days while I wait for my new contract to be drafted, however, I've also been giving myself some pampering by going to Core Yoga for my long-overdue fitness regimen. I bought a coupon for a week long unlimited yoga classes  from Deal Grocer a few months ago but I had to wait for the perfect timing to use it which happens to be this time of the month, before the coupon expires on May 30.  I've gone to two classes last week and tried both their Bikram and Vinyasa routines.  Although I missed their weekend classes and yesterday's (forgot to bring my mat), I'm looking forward to going tonight after work. I think four days of yoga are well worth the 600 bucks I paid already. Imagine 90 minutes of pure sweating, stretching, and concentrating. It was my first time to try Bikram and I thought I was gonna pass out some time between the 70th to 80th minute but I survived it. I felt divine having finished the session. While I was already doing Vinyasa before, as part of my pre-wedding fitness activity (naks), it wasn't easy coming back to doing the postures perfectly (at least in my standards). The instructor had to coach me in some of the postures and it felt like I was doing yoga for the first time again. Well, I don't mind much, what's important is that I'm giving the alone time we all deserve while I can. I really wish there's a yoga studio as nice as Core Yoga in Malate area that I and my husband (yes, he wants to try!) can go to.

Meanwhile, we were at Sta. Elena Fun Farm last Sunday for the Balik Bukid Country Fair. We had a terrific time and I can tell from the face of the little one he found the whole place A.W.E.S.O.M.E. He laughed really loudly when we took him near the carabao resting beneath the tree but was really quiet when we rode the carabao-driven cart that took us around the farm. We decided to hang around the Kids' Playground where he enjoyed sitting on the swing, jumping on the trampoline, and balancing on the bamboo bars. Here are some of the photos we took from our phone (forgot to bring the digicam, geez). Our friends though brought their very nice DSLR so we are waiting for them to upload the pics on Facebook.

Daphne blogged about it and that's where we learned about the place. I also saw a big banner along the highway on the way there. The parking lot was full but the place is vast so I hardly felt the crowd. When we arrived there was a band playing and it felt just like Saguijo, my husband joked, only it's more General Patronage.

As it was also a country fair, there were so many local goods being sold. I was giddy to see the colorful flowers and cute paper weights made of stones and covered in crochet pictured above. I also took home some organic vegetables from Holy Carabao which I cooked with the organic beef and chicken we bought from Landmark. I've been a fan of free range chicken of Bounty fresh for quite some time now and have also been buying Farm Organics meat whenever we shop at Landmark. The chicken and beef are packed with flavor and with just little salt, the flavors are even more enhanced. I love serving not just nutritious food to my family but also those that are artificial flavoring-free, hormone-free, and preservatives-free! Now if only they would do away with the styro and plastic packaging of these meats, that'd be perfect!

UP Naming Mahal

I've been meaning to write sooner but things get really depressing when you finally have to leave home and work at your faraway office again. Forty-five minutes going to the office + 8 hours straight work + one to one and a half hours going home. That's ten hours and 15 minutes away from Iñigo. Heartbreaking for a super attached mother like me, I know. So we did a couple of things to bid my one-month work from home arrangement farewell, I bought a blazer and we went to Sunday Car-less Oval at UP Diliman! Being a Malate resident for three years now, it's a real treat for me to go to Quezon City once in a while. With my little family, including a very fun-loving two-year old, it's even more fun to go visit my Alma Mater again.

Iñigo was so well-behaved during the trip. He sat on the car and even let me put on his seatbelt. I say, he was in a really good mood that afternoon. We passed through EDSA and luckily, there was no traffic. I was amazed to see how Quezon Avenue cor. EDSA has changed. There's a new mall there now and lots of establishments. We passed by Quezon Memorial Circle and wished we could be brave enough to pay it a visit soon. I heard there's a nice playground for kids tucked there somewhere.

Being in the UP Campus where I spent four years of college evokes so much good feelings and fond memories. Almost nothing changed, the trees were still luscious green and the smell of grass was addicting.

I suggested we hang out at the park behind the Admin Office and we were not disappointed. It was big enough for our Iñigo to run around and kick the ball we have brought with us. 

We even got to try taho. Iñigo exclaimed, "Eat, eat" upon seeing me and his Dad buying taho from the vendor. So although I have packed some snacks, I let him have some of the delicious soy snack. He loved it but I had to restrict him from having too much as it was a bit on the sweet side. 

 

He loved the grass so much he didn't mind sitting on it. Seeing him enjoying so much in this green background made me wish we lived in a house with a garden, with well-trimmed grass, trees and plants around.  It made me miss my childhood a bit, too.

Thinking he'd get bored from playing, I packed the bubble machine we recently got on sale. It was perfect in this setting. He enjoyed chasing after the bubbles and I didn't have to worry about cleaning up bubble puddles in our room. Haha! Here he is looking so mesmerized with the "Babows".

The bubble solution that went with the machine lasted a good forty-five minutes of not stop bubble blowing.  Sulit na sulit yung two hundred pesos! Hehe. 

Lots of bubbles, eh? After all, the packaging promised a gazillion bubbles.

And because I can, I'm posting my outfit that day. Top from Betty, Shorts from Juana, Sandals from Payless.

Here's what Daddy wore: Top from Gap, Shorts from Robinson's Department Store, Shoes by Nike.

So after an hour we decided to head back to the car. Must I say, it was perfect timing because it rained soon after we got in the car. We took one last photo of the trees before it rained.

We love UP. We promise to be back. (Play UP Naming Mahal in the background. Fade.)