A Walk Through Life

Upon reaching home, I got excited to show the little girl the printed photo of the 3 of us. I had our family picture printed because she is supposed to do her assignment for tomorrow and that is to paste a picture of her family within the space provided in her Language book. I had it labeled "mother", "father", "daughter" accordingly since, according to her, the teacher verbally instructed to label each member of the family in the picture. At first, she looked really excited to see the photo that she grabbed it quickly from my hand to get a really good view. Suddenly, the happy and excited expression on her face quickly transitioned into a worrisome look. We had to find out why. Almost crying, she said she doesn't want to get a "zero" mark for not being able to provide a picture with a brother or sister in it. I tried to assure her she will not get a "zero" on her assignment because we are only 3 in the family and that she is our ...

Since English is not really our first language, we would already consider it a milestone for our preschooler daughter when she tries to converse to us in English. Every time she would hear or learn a new English word, phrase or sentence in school, she wouldn't miss sharing it to us when she gets home. I recalled there was one time when she explained what "empty" meant when she finished her milk and then showed us an "empty" glass. I can't remember exactly when it was that she first understood what empty meant, though. However, I found it kind of funny somehow when my husband shared to me her conversation with our daughter some time the other week. This was what happened. Our little girl told him that she peeped through the door in her classroom to see if her father was outside waiting for her when she's done with her class. She then asked him, " Papa, why were you empty? " and then concluded that perhaps he just went out for a while to buy lun...

I mentioned in my other blog that my little girl is almost ready for school . We have already found the school that she would be going to this coming school year. She will be four years old this coming March and her age by then would be just right for Kindergarten I. I tried to tell or ask the teacher who was in charge of admission that she has not even entered Nursery yet. I was a little worried that she might not be ready to write just yet. However, the teacher informed me that her age is more appropriate for K1; and so, husband and I had to defer to her judgment as well as the curriculum. If it were only up to me, I wished she had tried to be in a Playgroup first but I guess it's already too late for that. Anyhow, we're enrolling her for Summer for a month (on a playschool just near our house) just to immerse her on a classroom setting and to get her started on her writing. As parents, we also have our own sessions with her at home just to prepare her for kindergarten. Hop...

What's keeping me sad sometimes about us moving back to our own home (even though I know we are doing the right thing) is leaving my daughter to a nanny when she could have been happier being with her cousins at the in-laws' place. Deep inside, I feel really guilty every time we have to extend extra hours at work because I know my daughter is patiently waiting for us to come home every single day. Had she been under the in-laws' watch, I would not be as guilty as I am  these days. Indeed, parenting is a little difficult when you cannot find the right balance. Anyhow, husband and I are now planning on reporting earlier than usual at work so that we can make it home earlier as well. This also means that we need to get to sleep earlier than we normally do. Unfortunately, I am still up (and blogging!). There's one more post to do before going back to bed to join husband and daughter.

Lately, it is getting a little harder for us to leave for work every morning as there are times already when our daughter wouldn't want to be left behind. I thought that she has already gotten past the separation anxiety stage but there are now instances that she would cry and beg to go with us. Thankfully, a simple promise of returning back home with her favorite lollipop and chocolate drink is usually enough for her to let us go. However, we always have to make sure that whenever we would promise her anything, we need to make sure that we're not breaking it since she has sharp memory that she would usually remember to ask about it later when we get home. There was one time, though, that we almost forgot to buy what we promised her to get. It was a good thing that there's a convenience store near the gasoline station where we stopped to fill our motorcycle tank with fuel. At first I thought it would take longer to find exactly the goodies that we needed to buy for our da...

Having a baby is really life-changing. I really believe that becoming parents is the best thing that has ever happened to me and hubby. She’s already one year and five months old – look at how far we’ve come! Even though we’re working everyday and she is under the care of our nanny while we go to work, we are still able to closely watch her grow. I can still say that we’re still hands-on parents to her. You see, we are working in the convenience of our home; so there’s not a single day that we don’t get to see her. Our toddler is a real copycat. She would observe how I would click and scroll the mouse and type something on my keyboard. She would like to do them as well. Oh well, what is ten minutes a day of distraction, right? Two weeks ago, she showed us another talent of hers. She can already climb up our rustic furniture in three counts. Next thing we knew she was already standing and smiling at us, as if to brag about her newly discovered talent. This week, she climbed up the r...

At her very young age of one year and two months, I think somehow my toddler already knows how to pay attention. So, in many of our walks in the mooonlit night, I kept asking Dipdip this question, " Where's the star? " and then I would also teach her the answer " Star! (pointing my finger up in the sky)". I was amazed because each time I would ask her that question, I would instantly get an answer from her by pointing her finger up in the sky. So, this is why I got scared hehehe... fast forward...

Does anybody know how to interpret what my one year old princess is actually talking about here? I can't seem to transcribe her words more clearly. For those who can give an interesting interpretation, I'm giving 100 EC credits. Is that a good deal? :-) I am really amazed at how interested she is in communicating to us even though her words don't make any sense just yet. Oh, what a milestone!

It's been a year ago since I've written about coming home with Baby Pauline (Dip-Dip) from the hospital. This time, I'd like to do a little recap with DipDip's one year milestone. Newborn It was March 26, 2009 when I delivered Dip-Dip via Caesarian, it wasn't a planned Caesarian. It was a decision we both had to make at the eleventh hour to ensure that she will be safely delivered into this world. I guess Dipdip pretty much liked it inside my womb that she didn't want to come out. And of course, it also had something to do with my safety as well. It's funny because some friends would blame it on my age (referring to me as "old") because I had Pauline at the age of 32 years old. But what can I do - I only got married just a few days before I would turn 31, ya know. Well, anyway, we were so happy that the Lord has answered our prayers to bless us with a child. She was 6.8 lbs (3.1 kgs) when I delivered her. Not bad! First Month This was a pic...

Hubby signed up for a new abs training program just this month. Check out how this abs training program goes and see if this is something that could work for you as well. :-) As for me, I tried it once but I have quitted from this program because my little Dipdip's weight was no joke. Let's just play something else, princess! Hehehe

When dipdip's teeth started to appear, which started somewhere between her sixth and seventh month, we have already started putting a little fluoride on her teeth and gums. This was the pediatrician's instruction. We were worried at first because she doesn't know how to spit it out but we were told that it's okay for her to swallow some fluoride as long as it is just a little amount. We've been planning to really let her brush her teeth because each time she sees us brushing our teeth, she gets so amused and looked really excited to have the same experience. Last night, she ate a lot of fish and we didn't like the smell of her mouth after taking her dinner. So, we decided it's time to let her use the new toothbrush that's meant for her age. By the way, we only used just a really, really, really tiny amount of the toothpaste because she's not learning how to spit it out just yet and we have also learned that too much fluoride on a child can cause fl...

I thought I should post this video of dipdip where she happily walked away from her mom to be with the nannies who usually take their walks every afternoon. This was the same day we took the many faces of my baby . I was surprised to see my daughter, now at 10 months, walking away from me because she loves to stroll with her friends. Oh my, she's really walking now! I never thought it would be this early but oh well, there might be other babies who walked earlier than she did. I just thought I wanted to "baby" her, you know--where you just simply cuddle her and all. Now, she wouldn't usually want to be carried because she likes to walk !!! And I was like thinking of postponing her to grow up faster hahaha just kidding. Anyway, so here's that short video of my daughter walking away from me. :-)

It's been awhile since I've posted more updates about Dipdip, our dear little princess. She is now 8 months old! She's a cheerful little darling, much like her own mother. The house would only turn like a library when she's asleep but when she's awake, be prepared for her noisy chants and screams :-). Her two front teeth is showing now and she can already stand up when she holds on to something like the sides of her crib turned playpen. I'm so happy to have witnessed all of this as her mom.

Despite the not-so-good weather today, we brought Dipdip to her pediatrician. It's her last shot of the 6-in-1 vaccine. I can't help but brag about my daughter, she's so brave. She didn't let out a loud cry. She was only teary-eyed because the one holding her leg (the pedia's personal assistant) was not familiar to her anymore but she already smiled when she saw her mom (ahem!) beside the assistant. Just like her previous shots, her pedia was amazed because she has endured all the pain coming from the needle that pricked her skin. She would just give a surprise look on her face and look at her doctor. After that, it was like nothing has happened. I guess she was already used to the needle when she was just a newborn. She had a couple of shots after I delivered her via Caesarian because she had a little infection when she was inside my womb. Her last vaccine (Measles) will not be due until she reaches nine months. Incidentally, it's her sixth month today. Tim...

Lately, our little angel has been experiencing some discomfort because of her swelling gums. I don’t know when a tooth or two will show up completely but I can already see something white through her lower gums. I feel sad for her. If only I have the power to take away all the pain she’s feeling, I would gladly take her place. Despite all the discomfort, over all, she’s still a cheerful baby. I’m proud to say that she’s generally a happy baby. Not cranky. She would still smile at me as if trying to assure me that she can handle everything. Every time she’s feeling some discomfort and pain, I would just carry her and sing her some songs and she would just pinch my flabby (ouch!) arms and then she would seem to be okay. I love it when she looks and smiles at me. After that, I would already hear her saying something. Yeah, I can’t wait till I would hear her say “Mama”. As for now, I just hope she can get through her teething with less and less pain.

A week after I received my retrenchment notice, I had another talk with the big boss. He offered me a new project that could somehow delay my retrenchment for another two months or more. It was so kind of him to have re-considered me for another project but I guess my mind was already set that I will be home after August 31st, after having signed all the papers. Add to that, the circumstances leading to the termination of Dipdip's nanny seemed to be in favor of my plan to stay at home with Dipdip. Without burning any bridges, I told him I'm gonna try and make this home-based thing work but when all else fails, I would surely like to come back like a prodigal daughter, if I'm still welcome. Else, it'd then be the time to look elsewhere. I knew he understood because he respected my decision. In fact, I will never forget when he told me this, " Babies are only young once ." And he's most definitely right! As Dipdip's mom, I want to be near her, to look a...

i know i shouldn't miss a post about father's day. i have planned to write a wonderful article about my husband in celebration of this special day but like i mentioned in my previous post, we were so caught up with worries about little pauline and the possibility of her getting the sore eyes from her nanny and so we had to make immediate plan of action and decided to take dipdip to my inlaws. honestly, parenting would be a difficult task without him. just like motherhood, fatherhood is also a full-time job. and it does not only take a day to appreciate what a wonderful father he is to our daughter. i'm sure hubby would be sneaking in to this blog when he's not busy. i'd like to dedicate this post for all the times that he would put off buying something new for himself just so we could prioritize our daughter's needs; for all those nights of staying awake for our daughter; for putting off getting a haircut just so we could be home the earliest possible time for o...

At 2 months+, dipdip has found a new habit of feeding on her fist. She’s like eating fried chicken. She started to do that from the time that she no longer wore any mittens. I don’t know if all babies do this at a certain stage but it’s a habit that I don’t want to tolerate. I know that it wouldn’t be long until she would find thumb sucking even more enjoyable than her fist. I sure hope though she’d skip this stage.

"At work, you think of the children you have left at home. At home, you think of the work you've left unfinished. Such a struggle is unleashed within yourself. Your heart is rent." -- Golda Meir Ever since I got back from work, I couldn't help but think about my daughter back home. Yes, it's separation anxiety. I know all working mothers go through this and it's only a matter of time till they can adjust to the situation, but, I don't know how long it would take for me, I just felt so bad about leaving my daughter behind to the care of a nanny when I should be the one attending to her. Why bear a child and leave her behind ? I thought if my daughter could only complain, she would probably ask me that. Mama and papa needs to work baby, so we can afford raising you and sending you to school someday. It's called a mother's sacrifice. It's painful having to leave your child to somebody else, especially when that somebody is not even your relative. ...

"There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it." - Chinese Proverb wohooooo... what's up? dipdip is now two months old. wow, that was fast. it still feels like yesterday when i gave birth but when i look at my daughter, my golly, i can't believe that the child i'm seeing before my very eyes came from me! a product of love. she's grown bigger each day and Lord knows how thankful i am for giving me this wonderful gift. she will become my new inspiration. i will give all my best to be the kind of mom that she deserves.