Got to drive the car again today. Yes, we do have the car back. Dashboard gauges-less, automatic lock-less, digital clock-less, stereo and player-less but running. Got it back Friday last week. We went all the way to the shop (third shop and nth computer box after) in Banawe, lost Lia’s shoes to the taxi driver in the process, drove to Teacher’s Village to grab early dinner at Cocina Juan where after wards, the car just would not start and we had to wait for shop boys to come to our rescue. Ryan almost made Lia and I go home on our own but he could not find an empty cab.
So anyway, I finally got to drive the car again after so many months. I swear it’s more than three months. Getting good at shifting but still have to control my hands at the wheel, or so I was told. What do I know?! I just drove down Soliven because there was a lot of traffic today. The goal is to be able to drive on my own next year so I can take Lia along for when boredom strikes her. This baby can get so bored sometimes! I wish we did not bring her with us to Bohol, because now she is aware there is an exciting world out there.
Lia at the South Supermarket
We went to get t-shirts at some warehouse sale The Tshirt Project had going on, then did the groceries at some obscure little supermarket called South Supermarket along A. Rodriguez Avenue before driving to Eastwood to grab some dinner at Heaven and Eggs. A Caucasian family came in while we were waiting for our orders to arrive. They had two little boys and probably a three-month old baby girl. We saw the dad kept waving and smiling at Lia who I was actually teasing with my pretending to own her teddy bear. On our way out, Caucasian dad who had his back turned to us, stopped eating and turned around to ask me, “Hey, how old is your baby?” and he looked at Lia, smiling and waving goodbye and saying, “Oh she’s so cute!”
I remember on the Cebu Pacific plane to Bohol, one of the flight attendants who was initially pushing a cart down the aisle to offer snacks stopped in front of us and never moved on. She just kept talking to and playing with Lia. After they stowed the cart away, she came back and took Lia with her.
In Bohol Bee Farm, I was inside the store buying organic soaps when I saw Lia crying hysterically through the glass window. She was surrounded by a group of maybe six Koreans. Story was, one female Korean came out of the store, saw Lia, got all wide-eyed, came back into the store, called all her other Korean friends and they all went to crowd around the baby. One said, “Oh she’s so cute! Can we have a photo taken with her?” and Ryan said, “Sure, do you want to hold her?” and promptly handed her over. Well, of course, Lia was scared to death and cried hysterically. They were all oooh-ing in loud voices and telling her, “You’re so beautiful!” Poor baby was traumatized, she would not let her mother out of sight after that. I could not even brush my teeth or wash my face or take a bath.
In the plane going back to Manila, a young Caucasian couple was sitting on the seats behind us. The girl said, “How old is she? She is so cute!”
I don’t understand. I think all babies look the same. Hahahaha. But what is up with this international scene? I am beginning to think my baby is “exotic”.
Speaking of the baby, she is now asleep in our eucalyptus-scented room. Thanks Kiel. We are all sick with colds. Ryan and I do synchronized coughing. We think its from that amazing air-conditioning our room at Dumaluan Beach Resort had. Off to bed for now. I hope tomorrow is better. I am losing way too much weight, none of my pants or even belts fit.
Lia and Mama by the beach in Panglao Island, Bohol
I don’t really have anything to blog about, but at least I’m back. The past week has been an emotional low, more like a real crash, for me and I just did not have the energy to blog about my low rah-rahs.
I am finding this day real slow. I can’t believe it’s just noon. I have done way too much for it to be just noon! With the amount of productivity I have managed to spew up today, it should be five o’clock by now!
I woke up at about six thirty in the morning, cleaned and disinfected the ground floor, washed the garage free of dust and any remaining Ewok fur-abouts, washed and sterilized bottles, made coffee, made hot water bath thrice!, gave myself a well-deserved bath and even managed to do a home hair treatment, folded laundry, ironed Lia’s clothes as well as mine, gave Lia a bath and this morning alone managed to put her down for two naps. I was just blow drying my hair and I thought to myself, “you’d think I would have more time to blow dry my hair when I had the maid,” but I do not remember ever having the time. A wonder indeed. What’s up with that?!
Nothing really is going on. I have birthday and Christmas parties, and even weddings, to attend. I have housework to do. I manage. Today is such a slow day that I decided to blow dry my friggin hair.
I have unpublished blogs. I have five hundred or so photos from the recent trip that I have to process, watermark and upload to Flickr. None of it is post worthy. They’re just documentation… and lots of family photos. More like lots of touristy photos. Dang, I am giving up photography. That makes me wonder, did I ever take up photography? Maybe not.
Now that I officially have the Nikon D80 because Ryan now has a Canon SX120IS that he bought for about P9,000 in the U.S. and sells for P25,000 in this shop in SM Marikina, we found ourselves short of fighting over who can use the p&s. I swear it is so liberating to be shooting with a p&s. No pressure! Just click away! People with dslrs are just so pretentious. You think since they have a dslr in their hands, they know how to shoot. So, it was just liberating to shoot with a p&s. No one cares if you’re holding a tiny camera in your hands so you can shoot away. No one expects your photos to be astounding either. So fun! And of course, you can shoot photos of yourself wherever and however. Ryan found himself saying, “Do you want me to buy you your own p&s camera? Because you know, this is MINE!” Whatever!
I am waiting for my Pa to come over I guess, right about after lunch. We were supposed to visit my parents where they are staying at but all three of my family members have colds and cough. Poor Lia kept waking up and mumbling rah-rahs at about one thirty this morning because she couldn’t breathe. My other family member, Ewok, was availed against her wishes albeit of a summer cut in this friggin December weather. She was also given a mohawk and a feathered tail, not to mention shaved chest, legs and feet. You get the idea? She looks horrendous and she knows it too. So these days she been hiding in dark corners, under sofas, sinks and I suppose wherever it is that is warmer. She was snuggling under the comforter and my blanket the other night. Poor little one. It’s just not right for some”one” who shuddered in Starbucks Tagaytay with her full coat on to have a summer cut in December. *shakes head*
So far so good. In the week that has gone by, I think we have settled into a manageable routine. A good, healthy, happy routine if I may so myself.
In the morning, we take Lia out for a walk. Sometimes we take Ewok with us too. We have breakfast then, while Ryan prepares for work, I put Lia down for her nap. I do housework and other things for myself (like Mafia Wars, Cafe World, blogging, emails) while Lia naps for two to three hours. When she is up, we do things together, like wrapping presents or folding clothes. I give her her bath just in time for her second nap around lunch time or early in the afternoon. While she naps for another one to two hours (sometimes three!), I prepare myself for going out. I am dressed when Lia wakes up and it’s her turn to put shoes or a bonnet or a light jacket on. We then go for our afternoon out.
Saturday: Lia, my brother Melo and I went out for a walk around the village. Actually, it was just food shopping. Pancit at Johnny’s, pichi-pichi at Arny Dading’s, burgers, bread, chocolate mallows and a bottle of distilled water.
Sunday: an afternoon at SM Marikina with Lia’s Lolo and Lola (Ryan’s parents)
Monday: some time in Sta. Lucia Mall and SM Marikina, looking for an ink refilling station and cell phones
Tuesday: we went to meet Ryan out at work and on the way home, decided to stop by Toy Town and ended up buying more presents for Ryan’s godchildren
Wednesday: I took Lia shoe-shopping. Lia liked the shoe saleslady because she smiled at her. Lia almost never smiles when she is outside the house, at anyone. She just gets that serious expression and never ever smiles at anyone. The saleslady was a nice mother of two herself and she was a lot of help to the clueless first-time mom in me. I discovered that Lia’s feet is, contrary to what I thought, not fat and pudgy, but long and narrow, exactly like mine. And her shoe size is for a one-year old.
Thursday: A short trip back to Sta. Lucia to buy gift wrapping at National Bookstore.
Today: Ryan will take a half-day at work so we can do our packing and a little bit grocery-shopping for this weekend’s trip to Bohol.
I am not too keen on making a daily habit of going to the mall because that can be expensive. Like I only dropped by NBS to buy gift wrapping but ended up snatching few items for scrapbooking – that resulted in my bill jumping from the supposed P50 to P300.
I have this urge to just take that tricycle all the way to Sta. Lucia, get in one door, get out the other door at the other end and get into a tricycle that will take us back home. I find the idea of strolling with Lia around the neighborhood morning and afternoon everyday excruciatingly boring. I have been taking driving lessons from Ryan every now and then this year, but that stopped after Ondoy. We still do not even have the car back yet to this day, two and a half months later.
Ryan now wants to enroll me in formal driving lessons, with “your practice is going to be picking me up from work everyday with Lia.” Honestly, that sounds good.
Lia now sleeps at around nine in the evening, unlike the six thirty or seven when we still had our maid. Sure, Ryan gets to rest when he comes home from work at seven-thirty or eight but they do not get to spend time together. This week, we have dinner all together, play for a little bit (either before or after dinner whichever comes first) before changing Lia into her bedtime clothes and putting her to sleep. Ryan and I hang around for a bit doing a little bit of cleaning up and some TV watching while we chat in the quiet privacy of our home. I have not felt this peaceful in my home in months. This is how it used to be when it was just the three of us too, back in April, May and June. The house is quiet and I feel calm.
I do a lot of housework though… but doing housework makes me feel productive and my feeling of productivity makes me happy. Even if I am more tired, it is definitely worth it. I am glad to have my house back. More importantly, I am glad to have myself back. You can not imagine how difficult it was for me to not act like myself in my own home.
Now, if I could find a baby sitter to watch over the baby in the evenings, while she sleeps, so we can go out with friends every now and then, things would be just perfect.
Of course, this is a continuation of previous entry. Some of you may be looking for a present for my little Lia *wink wink wink* so here are a few tips from BabyCenter. Still, some of you may not be looking for a present for my Lia but may be looking for presents for other babies of your friends and relatives, so this may be useful still.
If your little gift-receiver is not in this age bracket, there are links for other age brackets at the end of this post. Have fun and happy shopping!! Hope all our little ones have bright smiles on their beautiful adorable faces this Christmas!
Your baby’s play is becoming much more vigorous. When she picks up a spoon now she bangs it against pots and pans, and she furiously rattles the bunch of keys she finds. She can now grab two toys at once and slam them together. But her movements are also becoming more precise; thanks to her growing dexterity, she can pick a raisin off the floor.
She is becoming aware that objects still exist even when she can no longer see or feel them. This means she’ll miss a favorite stuffed animal if she can’t see it, and try to search for it. It also means you can begin playing hide-and-seek games with objects. Hide her teddy bear while she’s looking, and she’ll find it right away — and be very proud she did.
This is the age at which most babies go mobile. From sitting, it’s a short developmental step to scooting around on her stomach, to rocking back and forth on her hands and knees, and then to crawling. By the time she’s 8 months old she may be pulling herself up to a standing position and climbing your stairs. The following toys can help her explore her quickly developing senses.
Busy board: Many babies adore these activity boards that can be attached to a crib rail. They come with parts that move and spin, giving your baby a place to practice coordinating her hands with sensory experiences. She’s also getting the idea that you can make things happen to objects — so poking, twisting, squeezing, shaking, dropping, and opening things will fascinate her.
Soft dolls or stuffed animals: Babies this age often develop an attachment to a “lovey,” or favorite toy or blanket. And pediatricians encourage this connection, saying a familiar object can ease transitions later on. Still, some dolls and stuffed animals make more suitable loveys than others. Avoid ones with ribbons, plastic eyes, yarn, or anything that can be pulled off and put into your child’s mouth. And don’t get dolls so big they’re hard for your baby to pick up and explore.
Balls: Balls are fun for just about any age. Lightweight fabric balls suit this particular crowd well. Roll one back and forth between the two of you on the floor, or when she’s older, toss it across the room so can can crawl after it.
Household items: Look no farther than your kitchen cabinet for some of your baby’s favorite items. A plastic bowl, some measuring cups, and wooden spoons will entertain your baby for a long time. Open the cupboard while you’re preparing a meal and your baby will pull out a few utensils of her own and whip up something alongside you.
Wood or soft blocks: Show your baby how to stack a few blocks, and then knock them down. Pile them into containers for her — and dump them out. She’ll get the idea. Stacking blocks and filling and dumping games are wildly popular in this age group.
Moving toys: As your baby begins to crawl and move around, she’ll be more interested in toys that do the same. Find some sturdy cars she can push around the rug. Or toys that pop up when your baby pushes just the right spot.
Books: This is the age at which reading becomes more interactive and fun for both of you. (Find out more about reading to your child.) Cloth or board books work well now. After you read the book, you can pass it to her so she can take a turn flipping the pages and “reading” to you. For more ideas, see our recommended books for babies.
Things to keep in mind when shopping for presents for your little loved ones this Christmas season.
Toys are the treasures of childhood, as long as they’re chosen with care. But are toys really hazardous?
Consider the year 2004: In that year, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), an estimated 210,300 toy-related injuries were treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms. Of those, 35 percent (72,800) involved kids under 5.
You may want to observe these guidelines when choosing toys, and share them with anyone who may be buying gifts for your children.
• Is it suited to your child’s developmental level? Most toys bear a “recommended age” sticker, which should be taken as a starting point in the selection process. Be realistic about your child’s abilities and level of maturity when choosing an age-appropriate toy. Toys that have projectiles, for example, are never suitable for a child under age 4 — and even some 6-year-olds aren’t mature enough to handle them. Likewise, if your 3-year old still puts everything into his mouth, continue to steer clear of toys and games with small parts and pieces.
• Think big. Until your child turns 3, toy parts should be bigger than his mouth to avoid the possibility of choking. To determine whether a toy poses a choking risk, try fitting it through a toilet paper roll. If a toy or part of a toy can fit inside the cylinder, it’s not safe.
• Is the toy too heavy? Could your baby be harmed if it fell on him? If so, pass.
• Look for toys that are well put together. Make sure tails are securely sewn, seams of stuffed animals are reinforced, and paint is not peeling. Stuffed animals should also be free of buttons, yarn, ribbons, and anything else your child could yank off and put in his mouth.
• Is your child physically ready for this toy? For example, parents of older kids may buy a bike one size too big so as not to have to buy a new bike the next year. This tactic can lead to serious injury if a child doesn’t have the physical skills to control the bigger bike.
• Is the toy in good condition? Used toys passed down from older relatives or siblings or bought at yard sales can be worn or frayed, which can be sometimes pose a danger. Examine all new or used toys for buttons, batteries, ribbons, eyes, beads, and plastic appendages that could easily be chewed or snapped off.
• Does the toy have a string or cord longer than 12 inches? A cord can too easily be wrapped around a young child’s neck, causing strangulation. Once your child can climb up on his hands and knees, remove crib gyms and hanging mobiles from his crib. Be particularly vigilant about older toys. For example, an older model of a popular play kitchen may have a phone attached with a potentially deadly cord, while the latest model of the same kitchen has the more current and safer cordless phone.
• Does the toy use small magnets? In 2007, the CPSC named magnets the #1 hidden home hazard. Small, powerful magnets are often used in toys, and may fall out of the toy and be swallowed by a child. Two or more swallowed magnets (or a magnet and a metal object) can be attracted to each other through intestinal walls, causing twisting and pinching of the intestines, holes, blockages, infection, and worse if not discovered and treated promptly. As of August 2007, one death and 86 injuries from magnets had been reported to the CPSC, and 8 million magnetic toys had been recalled. The agency recommends keeping toys with magnets away from kids under 6 years old.
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