Christmas is Here!

We haven't had the chance to have a Christmas photo taken yet this year. These were from the Christmases a couple of years ago. Can you spot the difference? I just noticed I'm wearing the same white dress. I wonder how different our Christmas picture would be for this year. I wouldnt be wearing that dress, for sure. Thanks to the pounds I gained this year. Merry Christmas and have a bountiful new year!

2011

2012

Bee Tin Grocery

I usually pay my credit card a day in advance because I can't be bothered going to the main bank and rely on the nearby SM Bayad Center. But due to the holidays last week, I forgot all about my due date and didn't make it in the cutoff time of the payment centers. So last Monday, I had to go to the nearest branch of my bank which is in Binondo. I left a little past ten and was all giddy to be trooping down that part of Manila. I arrived just before 11 and paid my bill in the machine which took about a quarter of my salary. This month wasn't that bad because months ago, I pay my credit card using all of my salary. Poor unfortunate soul me, I know. Anyway, I've been doing great managing my card nowadays and I couldn't be any prouder.

As soon as I have done my bank duties, I walked in the nearby Chinatown but scrapped the idea of going to Divisoria. I didn't want to be out for so long because my husband and son were by themselves at home and it was nearing lunch time. I decided to walk towards where they sell vegetables and fruits. On the way, I chanced upon the Bee Tin Grocery and seconds later found myself inside checking out the variety of Asian goodies inside, Thai, Korean, Chinese, etc. Here were my loots:

From Top L-R: Cinnamon sticks (60 php), Pork floss 100g (700+/per kilo), Sweet and Spicy Tapa (480 per kilo), Cua Pao (9pcs @ 50php)
Bottom L-R: Seaweeds (i ate one pack 3 packs for 80 php), almond gelatin (50 php) and a tray of siomai (70 pesos)

I loved most of my purchases. I also got black grapes, lemons, and mini onions but didn't take a photo anymore. I am hoping to get more of those seaweed snacks since the little one loved it. The tapa and cua pao were a great combination and we had them for lunch when I arrived. I hated the almond gelatin but I'm planning to mix it in fruit salad. I haven't opened the cinnamon sticks but I'm planning to make cinnamon iced tea out of them. This experience left me all smiles because it gave me memories of Thailand, a decade ago and also got me excited for our Hong Kong vacation next year.

Mouth Sores (Singaw)

It may only be the size of a pencil eraser, but a mouth/canker sore, more commonly known as singaw can be hard to ignore, especially on your little ones. Kids with mouth sore tend to be whiny and become very picky with food when they're usually not. For the breastfed, nursing is quite next to impossible. Expect a lot of crying, especially in the midst of sleep but after a good five minutes, it will stop and you can both get back to bed.

"It generally measures three to five millimeters in diameter and is usually located on the inside of the lip or cheek or, less commonly, on the tongue...The most painful phase lasts about three to four days, and the sores go away in about ten days."1

"What causes canker sores? No one knows for sure, though they frequently afflict people who are fatigued or stressed out or who have poor diets... Cankers may also occur as a result of a minor injury in the mouth, such as from a slip of the toothbrush or a jab from a taco shell. Certain foods, such as spicy dishes and citrus fruits, have also taken some of the blame."1

When you get the chance, you can apply solutions like baking soda or hydrogen peroxide mixed with water on the affected areas.2 However, for a fussy kid like mine, water and pain management are the best options. We composed a song that we sing together whenever there's pain. It goes:

"Mouth sores, mouth sores

Go away

Mouth sores, mouth sores,

We don't need you in our lives

Mouth sores, mouth sores

We will fight you til the end"

It seemed to have worked several times. It's a first time for my three-year old to experience mouth sores and I can imagine how dreadful it is for him. I had to explain what's happening and even showed him some pictures of what they look like inside his mouth. He asked me several times to "do a web search" for how to make the mouth sores go away. I make him sip water all the time so the healing process would be faster. We've also avoided some sour food that could aggravate the pain. Drinking yogurt juice and eating soft foods were quite helpful too. It's been two nights since he last nursed and although I have been complaining about this extended breastfeeding, his cries of excruciating pain make me want to just breastfeed him until the pain stops. But he just couldn't take the pain of nursing with his condition and so he refuses to even see my breasts. This morning he wanted to nurse so badly but I told him we could just cuddle. Thankfully, he fell asleep right away.

Sundays are Golden

It's Thursday now and I couldn't be more grateful that the week flew by so quickly. It only means the weekend is fast approaching. Most Sundays leave happy memories in our family's book. I told my husband how fun our last Sunday went. The husband left early to run and we had breakfast as soon as he arrived. I brewed some coffee and made pancakes earlier. Afterwards, I washed the dishes while the husband did a couple of laundry batches. We're always happy to accomplish house chores while the little boy is busy playing in the living room with stuff he gets hold of: train sets, scrabble, bike, etc.

We went out for late lunch and had pizza at Papa John's in Greenbelt. We always pick the less crowded restaurants because from experience, they turn out to have better service. But what I find funny, and my husband also agrees, is that we tend to attract crowd. As soon as we placed an order , about three groups arrived after us and it wasn't even lunch hour anymore. And that was the end of our peaceful lunch. But I'm not complaining. The service at Papa John's was nevertheless good and our tummies were happy. We also had a great view outside and a huge dose of afternoon sunshine and it was apt that we snapped some photos/selfies.

After we took photos, we had crunch flavored gelato at Gelatone, which was located one floor below Papa John's. We picked up our groceries for the week then proceeded home. For dinner, I cooked chicken fried rice and opened a can of... yes, sisig since we were having beer after, which we believe is a perfect way to cap off our golden weekend.

The Highs and Lows of October

Welcome, October. Let your cool breeze fill our lungs and dry those sweat glands away. This is the first phase towards forgetting the calamities in the past months. Save for Santi last night, the days ahead are expected to be more clear and our laundry finally get some sunshine. As for the plants, I may have to water them on days that don't rain but sunlight is great for photosynthesis.

This month also broke the health shield in our household. We've had colds and low-grade fevers but not the kind that stays long, thanks to a balanced eating and this new super supplement we're taking. And maybe a little experience on the fever department. 

After a long hiatus, we've invited a few friends over our home again. Did a little cleaning and organizing for days just because I couldn't take unnecessary comments from the guests. I'm glad the few hours of partying in our living room while the kids jump on our bed whilst watching Hi-5 was quite successful.

Getting the asparagus ready for our asupara bacon

We baked cupcakes mixed with cookie butter, grilled some asupara bacon, and prepared liver pate with black olives. For the carbs, we just ordered the best pancit malabon in our area paired with chicken lollies. We drowned our stories and mini-arguments of a few with wine, beer, and mojitos. Not a very good combination and I'm glad I ate cucumbers and drank water before going to bed. It was supposed to prevent hangovers. At this time and age, HO is what I dread the most. That, and a filthy house mainly because of my tendency to hoard. Which reminds me, I should get back to cleaning this weekend. Glad its Friday and oh, we're not even halfway October yet!

Welcome to our home.

Did I also mention we went to the Trick Museum this month? Super cool!

The Trick Museum

Happy Thoughts from 2.22.2009

It's been almost five years since we got married but everytime I unearth our wedding photo CDs, I'm still wowed by how much happiness looking at these pictures give me. I'm supposed to put together pictures for our wedding album but somehow some photos are giving me a hard time with the layout. Here they are with some captions I could not resist putting.

"We want to be fully conscious that a wedding is not just a day, it is not just an event but a beautifully conceived process that we will do a thousand times over."

"I am marrying the man I love and the man who loves me in return"

Gown by Pepsi Herrera

The Transfiguration Chapel

Just before we went to Sonya's Garden for the wedding reception

On Using the Potty

We are officially diaper-free! At three years and two months. Yes, a bit late but nevertheless, we are not buying any disposable diapers anymore. And I'm now guilt-free of the tons of garbage we produce from these non biodegradable inventions of our generation. Thank goodness! I'm so relieved because I've been trying to potty train him since he was 20 months old but I never succeeded until last week.  I know I should've listened to my instincts sooner. Here are my tips which are purely based from our experience.

1. Trust your instincts! 

2. Remember that potty training is a combination of instincts and timing. It also helps that you are an expert when it comes to your child's natural schedule and mannerisms. 

3. Common sense is also helpful! When you are with your child 24/7 you tend to sync your schedule with him/her, in my experience, the times when I need to pee myself are also the times that my child needs to go to the potty.

4. Act and lessen the talkies. I noticed that the more times I remind my child to go to the potty, the lesser he is interested to actually go. I have learned that when I feel its time for him to go, I just make him sit and that's when he pees/poops.

5. Accept that there will be accidents and as much as possible, don't reprimand your child when it happens.

6. Always empty your potty as soon as it's full. It's less messy, I tell yeah.

So congratulations to Mommy and Daddy is in order. Cheers!  And of course, this is primarily the little man's accomplishment. Well done.