Major Milestones

It's been an insanely hectic week!  However, amidst the chaos, 2 wonderful things happened:

1) The kapitan finally agreed to poop in a restaurant potty!  Woohoo!  You see, he's been pooping in the potty for quite some time now.  Our biggest challenge, however, was he refused to do it on any other potty!  In fact, there was even a time when he would only go to his bathroom potty and not ours!  This time it was different. :)  Now to work on the peeing...;

2) The kapitan slept in his own bed last night!  We have been co-sleeping when he became too big for his crib.  Recently, our bed has become too small for the 3 of us!  I think even Tiago feels it because he's been preferring to sleep at the foot of the bed.  For more space, I guess.  So I took it as as sign and finally tried to let him sleep on his own.  Success!  Next step:  Kick him out of our room! Hahaha!

Ahhh, the triumphs of a mother.  :)

Christmas is Here

At home, that is.  

When we moved into our place 5 years ago, we didn't have a Christmas tree.  Every year, I'd always say, I'll get one after the holiday season (coz it'll be cheaper then) for use the next year.  Never got to.  

When I became pregnant, I promised myself to get a tree in time for my child's first Christmas.  I kept delaying the purchase because the prices continued to dissuade me. I continued to search. I knew there was a tree out there that would be perfect for our home that we can afford. God must have seen how desperate and determined I was to find the perfect one that he gave me one!  Through the kindness of my boss/friend who luckily (for me) had an extra Christmas tree that she wanted to dispose of!  And, believe it or not, it was exactly the kind I was looking for.  (Well, I would've gone for something a bit smaller, but who am I to complain?!)

And so, I used the budget for the tree to splurge at little on decors to spruce the tree up.  I went for traditional decors --- balls, snowflakes, ribbons, stars, etc. During Tiago's first Christmas --- he was 5months, he absolutely enjoyed staring in awe at the Christmas lights.  Last year,  at 1.5yo, he still enjoyed the lights, but had more fun trying to pick the balls out of the tree and bounced them around!  I ended up moving most of the decors to the upper part of the tree where he can't reach them. 

So this year, I decided to make our tree more kid friendly but keeping the tradition Christmas colors of red and green.  Now, we have teddy bears, gingerbread men and angels donning our tree.Not only does Tiago like the decors, he can also touch and play with them without me getting a heart attack from worrying he might hurt himself. 

It's gonna be another Merry Christmas.  I just know it. :)

Tiago's First Word

CUP.

Because of his obsession over his toy cups. It's one of the few toys that has survived the test of time - his favorite for the past 7 months! He asks for it every waking moment. He even says it in his sleep! Geesh.

It started with him saying "c-c-c". Then it progressed to "c-pff", then "cu-pf". Now he can clearly say "cup".

Actually, he has long been saying "wow", but I refuse to accept that, that will be his first official word! That's not even a word! Hahaha.

So, his official first word is "cup". :)

Flash! Flash!

Since my photography professor taught me not to use the camera flash unless and I quote "you know what you're doing", most of the pictures I've taken are all flash-free (is there such a term?).

Lately, I've been using my point & shoot's flash to capture my kapitan's smiles. I don't know who taught him how to smile when we take his picture, but heck, he smiles so that's good. I have to use a flash to make sure I freeze the moment, otherwise, I'd end up with blurry pictures. Gee, does this mean I have to get a new lense and external flash for my DSLR already?

Ah well.

Anyway, take a look at how Kapitan flashes smiles to the camera flash. :)

Half-y Birthday, Tiago!

We never really celebrate Tiago's monthly mark. However, we decided to make his 6th month a little special. He is, after all, half a year old. So, we had a half round cake made with HAPPY 1/2 BIRTHDAY, TIAGO written on it. Hahaha. Trip lang. But cute, right?

So, to our little Kapitan, Half-y Birthday! 6 more months and you're already a year old!

Officially in my mid-30s

I've been telling family and friends that even birthdays take on a different meaning once you become a parent. At first, I couldn't explain why or how. After some pondering, I now know.

Not that my previous ones were less meaningful, it's just that now it's become more about my son and my husband -- a family I can call my own, rather than just myself.

More than the presents, the food and well-wishes, waking up to this was the best part of my birthday:


Credit goes to my wonderful husband who thoughtfully orchestrated the whole thing :).

Officially Parents

Presenting our baby boy....


Name: Santiago Manuel Macalino-Santos
Born on: July 14, 2008
Time: 11:43am
Where: The Medical City
Weight: 5lbs 12oz
Length: 49cm
Type of Delivery: C-Section

No words can fully describe the overwhelming happiness we feel with this latest blessing in our life.

Now, let the wild and crazy and fun ride begin...

Father's Day

"As a new baby is born, so is a father".

I guess because of obvious reasons, pregnancy is always about the mommy-to-be. What will all the extra care and attention given to the woman, it's easy to forget that the man goes through his own changes as well. Besides, who does the woman first call on whenever she needs or wants something -- a back rub, food craving, complain about various discomforts, share excitement and anxiety, check-ups, and lots more.

Admittedly, it's easy to get lost in all these and forget the fact you're not the only one going through the pregnancy.

So today, allow me to acknowledge the man who's been going (and still going) through all the ups and downs of pregnancy with me. MY HUSBAND, soon-to-be father, Myke.

Happy Father's Day, Myke. I can't wait to see you take on the role of being Dad to our baby boy. I'm sure you'll be great!

Practicing during our childbirth class. So adorable!

Oh boy! Oh boy!

Contrary to practically everyone's guess, we are having a boy! Yipee!

While it really does not matter whether it's a boy or girl as long as it's normal and healthy, truth be told, all parents have gender preferences, especially for their first born. Thank God, He granted my preference. Wohoo!

As our first gift for our baby boy, we got him a Wii!!!!! Wheeeeee!!!!! Okay. Okay. It's really for me and my hubby -- something we've been holding-off buying for about a year now. So, to our unborn child, you might have to sleep on a banig or on our bed (whichever is more comfortable). Hahahaha!

Back to our baby boy. I remember our excitement when we found out we were pregnant (24-hour morning sickness aside). An excitement you can't explain. However, it's a different kind of excitement when you find out the gender of your child, seeing "it" on the ultrasound monitor, plus the bonus of seeing the baby move inside your tummy for the first time! It's thrilling, exhilarating.

I can only imagine what kind of feeling I'd get when I finally give birth. I can't wait.

Milestone In My Teaching Career

It's part of my job description and clearly discussed under "expectations" during my interview. I've always known it was bound to happen, but at the back of my mind I was hoping it wouldn't.

After almost 2 years of teaching, it finally happened.

I changed a poopy-filled diaper.

There Goes My Weekend

You know that I always try to keep my weekends sacred (something I learned from my parents) -- time to give your full attention to your family.

This weekend is one of those rare times that I have to sacrifice my weekend. I'm working overtime/double time to finish my tasks for our graduation and year-end party. Although I'm at home, still, I'm working.

Anyway, I'm taking a break now and decided to blog about a pleasant experience I had last weekend.

I went to a university to inquire about the requirements I need to take up a masteral course. So I went inside the office and asked for the requirements and, if possible, the schedule for the first semester of the next school year. The lady stared at me, clarified what I needed and asked some other questions that didn't quite make sense to me. Thinking, maybe she didn't understand me I repeated myself (in tagalog this time):

"Miss, hihingi po sana ako ng requirements para makapag masters ako"

And she replied:

"Ahhh, akala ko undergrad ka eh..."

Then she gave me the list.

That's all. (*wink*wink*)

Gotta go back to work and hopefully, I get to join my brothers and my husband in watching a movie tonight.

Ancient

I enrolled in a short course to improve my teaching skills. During the first day of class, I was surprised to find out that my classmates are college students (taking up early childhood education) and my teacher is only 3 batches ahead of me! I felt ancient! Especially, when the students who come from the same university where I graduated started talking among themselves about the new buildings and facilities in the campus! Then, I said to myself "hey, this is my second career path already so that gives me the right to be old in here." (talk about being insecure about my age, huh? :p) and just sat there and participated as much as I could.

Until it came to a drill wherein we all had to quickly (as in a milli-second)but silently read a question and call out our answer out loud at the same time. Questions are answerable by a single word. Then this question came:

Are you married?

Surprise. Surprise (heavy on sarcasm here). I was the only one who answered "Yes". And I saw that everyone gave me a quick glance before we all moved on to the next question.

As expected, after the drill, everybody started asking "You're married na?" -- in their collegiala tone. Including my teacher! And here's how the rest of the conversation went.

Everybody: You're married na?

Me: Yes (with a grin). (Or I think I may just have nodded and grinned. Whatever.)

Collegiala 1: Grabe. Bata mo pa.

Me: Hahaha! Why how old do you think I am (yes, i was fishing, hehe)?

Collegiala 2: 23.

Me: Shaking my head. Smiling.

Collegiala 1: 24?

Me: Nope. Smile.

Collegiala 3: 26?

Me: Shaking my head.

Collegiala 1: Higher?

Me: Yes. Much higher.

All of them: 27? 30? 31!

Me (thinking it was taking too long): I'm 33. Turning 34 by the end of the year.

All of them (yes, in their collegiala voices): OMG! You don't look it! I swear! You look 23, or something!

We moved on to talking about how it was during my days in college, how different it was...how low tech it was! Then they starting asking me questions as if I was the Dalai Lama!

And at that point, I felt wise, rather than ancient.

Mr. & Mrs. January

Guess who's wedding picture is featured in the Weddings at Work 2007 calendar? Ahem! Ahem!

Our photographer, Fol Rana chose our Rizal Monument photo as his advertising tool for the wedsite's calendar. Out of all the weddings he did last 2005 and 2006, he picked us! Needless to say, we're flattered.

Anybody need a pocket calendar? :p

Gifts that make you go....

OOOH, WOW, AWWW, WOHOO & YAHOO!

As I mentioned in my previous post, I love opening presents. It's fun trying to get into the mind of the gift giver during that exact moment when he/she was deciding what to get for me. Have you ever uttered the words "What was he thinking?!" upon opening a present? Hahaha!

Here's a list of "my favorite gifts" this year. This is not to diss the others that didn't make the list nor sound unappreciative. Admit it, we all have our faves among the lot, right? And here's mine:

SHARED GIFTS - One beef I have about being married is that your gifts become conjugal too!(TO: Mr. & Mrs or Dear ____&____). Whatever happened to the individual gifts we used to get?! :) Thankfully, there are those who"respect" our union AND our individuality, and opted for the "His & Hers" type of gifts. And here's the best H&H present we received.

I am not a perfume person, but these are great! Ang bango! Thanks to Globe.

PERSONALIZED GIFTS - I'm not talking about mugs or pens or keychains that has your name engraved on it. I'm referring to those labor of love items, carefully thought out to make sure that it puts a smile straight to your heart. Perfect example that gifts need not be expensive.

Like these little "thoughts for the day" from a co-teacher, that came in a tiny pouch that can surely perk up any gloomy day.

Or this framed photo of me and a student (obviously, mom's idea) and the compiled (also)framed photos of our adventures with our couple friends, D&P.

REQUESTED GIFTS - I know I said I don't give out a wish list. True. These items are those I asked for, not for Christmas, but nonetheless got them as Christmas gifts!

Thanks to my friend D, I can now carry a tripod anywhere I go, however small my bag may be. No more trying to look for the perfect surface to put the camera on for a perfect group shot. :)

And super thanks to my Tita for sending over this vitamin, especially made by and for teachers like moi (you'll never believe how expensive this is here in the country!). And what's great is that it does not contain ingredients that work up your appetite!

UNEXPECTED GIFTS - Then there are those things you've been meaning to buy for yourself but haven't for who knows what reason. Then you receive it from people you wouldn't expect to even think of buying one for themselves. Like this webcam we got from my father-in-law.

Now we can talk to our relatives abroad and see each other at the same time! Oh and it perfectly matches the color of our home PC!

SEMI-EXPECTED GIFTS - Of course there are those items you sort of expect you'd receive because you posted it in your blog under the "My Christmas Wishlist" post. Good thing "Santa" had the time to bloghop, I can now print my own pictures at home! Woohoo!!!

Check out the photos I printed by myself! On photopaper! It's just soooo cool! Thanks, Santa!

Thank you to ALL those who sent their Christmas presents and greetings! I wish your Christmas wishes came true! Most of all, I wish you all had a happy Christmas surrounded by those who matter most to you.

(Note: I was trying to post this a few days ago (check the date), but due to the earthquake in Taiwan, our broadband connection was affected, ergo, I couldn't upload.)

The Toothbrush Club

That's the name of my oldest barkada.

I can still remember that day we met. It was the first day of our College life. J & I (both from different high schools, met during the freshman orientation) bumped into each other in the campus and walked to the gym (believe it or not, the first class we were to attend in college was PE!). When we got to the gym, to our surprise, it was under renovation! "Shucks! What do we do now?" Then came M & T. Looking for the same class, too! J & I overheard them talking, so we approached them and asked them if they wanted to go with us to look and ask around.

That's how we became a barkada.

Sadly, the last time all four of us were together was 9 years ago (I think. If not, even longer)! J went to the U.S. soon after College for further studies and eventually, decided to work and live there. I got to meet up with her when she was briefly (I think a few days!) when she was here last 2001. M got to visit her when she went to the U.S. a couple of years back. She didn't get to attend any of our weddings and none of us got to attend hers!

However(!), last night, The Toothbrush Club was reunited once more. It was just like old times. Nothing has changed. We reminisced the entire night, leaving our husbands to discover more and more things about our past! Talked about our lives now (though we do that via email), realizing that we are all freakin' married! And it's like only yesterday that we were sharing our woes about our boylets. Hahahaha! It was so much fun, to say the least. Very much like our carefree younger years. But more than that, I am SO happy to know that I have very good friends, who are more like family, who will always remain true despite being pulled apart by time and distance.

God knows when we'll be able to do this again (I really hope our plan of crashing J's place pushes through. Maybe with our kids in tow.). For now, allow me to look back, reminisce and hold on to this moment, until we are reunited once more.

Then...

...and Now.

How time flies, huh? Oh! You might be wondering about the name. It's really simple. After having our lunch, we would all go to the washroom to brush off all those food remnants stuck in between our teeth and braces. Hence, the name.

Finally Feeling Home & Some Random Thoughts

Due to another typhoon (Reming: Another Milenyo?), classes are suspended. Normally, teachers still have work unless the typhoon signal is increased to # 3. Today, however, our school Directress decided to call off work for teachers too. And I'm so glad to be at home. Since we got back from our trip, we haven't really been able to stay at home. Our first week back was busy catching up with family and friends (aka handing over pasalubongs). The weeks after that has been unbelievably busy. I can't believe the Christmas season can be so hectic for a teacher! You'll never believe how packed the 3-day weekend is going to be for us! That is why I am savoring this moment at home and taking the chance to tidy and fix up our place.

Our cable TV company installed this digital box as part of their system upgrade. That means another item to dust, another remote control to handle (imagine if you're watching DVDs. you'll be holding 3 remote controls -- TV, DVD player & digital box!!!) and added wattage to your electric bill. Since we are captives of this cable company (am hoping that someone gives them a stiff competition), we just have to stick with them. Problem is, since they installed the box, our cable connection has been really terrible! It's been a week and they haven't fixed the problem.

I am slowly shedding off the pounds I gained from our trip. But the stock European chocolates we have at home seems to be bottomless! Anybody want to help me get rid of them?

Yesterday, my hubby prepared my lunch box for me. Look what I saw when I was about to eat lunch!

To those who are waiting for the rest of our honeymoon pictures, I'm working on it. Hopefully, I'll be able to upload everything within the week.

Just saw on the news that typhoon Reming will hit Metro Manila at 12 noon tomorrow. Hope everyone has taken necessary precautions. Keep safe, people.

Making Birthdays Special

My birthday is definitely my favorite day of the year! I get to be a star (in my own right!) for a day. I make sure that it is going to be a special day. That is why I make it a point to celebrate it people who matter. No, not to collect gifts, but to be with those who make me look forward to another year because I know they will be around to share my life's highs and lows with the laughter, comfort and appreciation they bring.

Okay, okay. Gifts ARE welcome, too! Hehe. Admit it or not, receiving gifts makes birthdays special too! Especially gifts like this picture book my wonderful hubby created:

Doesn't that give you a lump in the throat, bring you to tears and make your heart feel like exploding because of so much happiness? It's priceless.

I just love celebrating my birthday.

Call me...

"Teacher Anne".

Yes, I am now realizing my life-long dream of becoming a pre-school teacher. I am just overwhelmed with happiness.

I have been praying for this since I said goodbye to my advertising career. But it wasn't until last summer that I actively worked to land the job. Months went by and all my attempts had been futile and I was losing hope. However, I couldn't question God, because He has blessed me in so many other ways. I just couldn't find it in my heart to ask for more -- including this job.

Until about a month ago, after wallowing in a (sort of) period of depression where I became resigned to the fact that maybe the Lord had other plans for me (I even, started toying around with the idea of going back to school to get education units or enroll in classes that would increase my marketability as a teacher.), I finally got a call for a final interview for a teaching position. And the rest, as they say is history.

I cannot be grateful enough to the Lord for this blessing (on top of all the other ones). I am equally thankful to my hubby who never stopped believing in me and never got tired of telling me not to lose heart and for always, always supporting me in realizing my dreams.

God is good. Life is great.

This is the life I pictured/dreamed/hoped for.

I will blog about how fun and oh so fulfilling this profession is soon. I just really want to share my happiness with everyone. Dreams do come true. Just have faith and believe.

Pigging Out Weekend (an overdue post, i know)

We usually go out of town during long weekends. For this year's independence day weekend though, we didn't plan anything. We, however wanted to do something than just stay home or go to the mall. Little did I know that it will be an eating frenzy.

I've been on a strict no rice-no soda-no dessert diet for 2 weeks now. And this weekend just ruined it.

Friday. Red Box.

In between songs were spoonfull feedings of sisig and crispy pata. And how can you eat those without rice?!!

Saturday. Lunch. Kids At Work, Gateway Mall.

Children's party serving KFC Fried Chicken and ONLY soda for drinks.

Saturday. Dinner. At home.

Finished one whole fish by myself with I don't know how many cups of rice and finished it off with chocolate chip cookies.

Sunday. Lunch. Banana Leaf Curry, Power Plant.

One whole Roti Canai, some noodles and shrimp.

Sunday. Dinner. My in-laws' home.

A despedida feast for my father-in-law which I capped-off with a cup of hot chocolate.

Monday. Breakfast. Breakfast at Antonio's,Tagaytay.

I don't eat breakfast but I had 2 scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese, potatoes and a HUGE schublig.

Monday. Lunch. Sonya's Garden, Tagaytay.

Oh, you know how much food they serve over there.

Monday. Dinner. Salcedo Village, Makati.

Birthday party with food prepared by an awesome chef (love them non showbiz, non commercial chefs)-- thai curry shrimp, steak, steamed fish, chocolate fondue and glasses and glasses of soda.

I think I have enough food in my system to last me for the next 2 weeks! Oh, you might be wondering why the non-food related pictures. I purposely did that to remember the good company I was with, rather than all the food I ate.

Now, if you'll excuse me, gotta shed off the pounds I (re)gained.

Sneak Peak Into Parenting

Last Thursday, at around 11:00 p.m., my friend calls me asking if I had plans the next day. I got a little excited because I thought she was going on leave and decided to spend the day with me. I was wrong. Turns out, she needed someone to take care of her kids because her yaya went on an emergency leave. I really had no plans except to do some errands in the afternoon which I could schedule for another day. However, I wasn't sure if I can handle 2 boys -- a 6 year old and a 3 year old at the same time!

I love taking care of kids, but this is the first time I'll be left with them without a yaya in tow or their parents just around the corner. However, as a friend and as a god mother to one of the boys, I felt it was my duty to take on this responsibility.

The next day, the kids were dropped-off in our house at 3:00 p.m., and I took them to our study cum play room, turned on the playstation and let them have their fun.

I had my hands full and I was exhausted, but by the time their mom fetched them (that was around 9:00 p.m.), the kids didn't want to go home and wanted to stay with me, I felt then, it was all worth it.

As I look back to that day, here are the things I have learned about being a parent and some things you need to survive each day being one:

1. You really do have your hands full. No matter how you try to keep them busy, they will always go to you for something -- opening a candy bar, going to the bathroom, a drink, sit on your lap, go with them to check on the dog, etc.

2. You have to have a supply of entertainment. Kids easy get tired of a particular activity and are always looking for something new to do. Thank goodness our house is a haven for this (because you know, a "little boy" and a "little girl" do live here :-)) -- we have playstation with games that cater to both boys and girls, a cabinet full of comic books, a collection of McDonald's Happy Meal toys (thanks to my McDo stint in advertising), PC games, board games, DVDs, painting & drawing stuff and of course, cable TV.

3. You need ample stash of kid-friendly food. Again, thank goodness we have a lot! Because we have family and friends come over quite often, we have easy-to-serve food available at all times -- chips & dip, crackers & cheese, chocolate bars, cookies, ice cream, bread & spread, popcorn, juice, chocolate drink, soda, etc. Sometimes it's wrong, but food do calm kids down.

4. Your house should be free from anything pointy, breakable, rough, etc. At around 6pm, I started cooking chicken noodle soup for dinner (I thought, it was perfect for the stormy weather, and kids would eat noodles anytime). Half-way through my cooking, the kids probably noticed that I've been out of the room for too long that they looked for me and found me in the kitchen. I asked them to not to stay in the kitchen as they might burn themselves. Out the kitchen they went and straight to the living room and starting jumping from one couch to another. Imagine my fear, not of the damage they can do to the couch, but of the possibility they might fall off and hit their heads on the coffee table, hit something breakable and cut themselves! Kids believe they are invincible!

5. Feeding kids is a CHALLENGE!

• They won't eat, not because they don't like the food, but because they want to eat something else -- junk food specifically. I told them that they can't have the chocolate pudding unless they eat dinner.
• They won't eat veggies. Problem. I don't either. I had to take out the diced carrots and Chinese petchay I threw in the soup.
• They won't sit still on the dinner table. Every spoonful intake they would run around or go watch TV or play with something or try to see if they have that junk food they want.

6. Forget about order. I'm no OC, but I am very particular about how tidy and well-kept our place is, at all times. But no matter how much I put back the toys and books, set-aside their shoes and bags, they will always find something to grab and leave scattered all over. I gave up and just fixed up after they've left.

7. Forget about doing your own activity. Don't bother trying to read a book, emailing or even texting while watching them because they will always want your attention for one reason or another.

8. Extra clothes are important. No matter how much you tell them to be careful not to dirty their clothes, they will. No wonder my friend left a huge bag full of clothes with me.

9. Your husband sort of takes a back seat. Because I was busy attending to the kids, I almost forgot that my husband was on his way home, as hungry as the kids, too! And when he arrived, I couldn't give my full attention to him because I couldn't leave the kids alone.

10. No time for yourself. Because you have your hands (and time) full, you hardly ever have the time to fix yourself up! No wonder I see a lot of make-overs for moms on TV!

Whew! Parenting, motherhood specifically, really is the hardest job on earth! I salute those moms who can keep a successful career, be a wonderful wife, keep a peaceful and orderly household, bring up happy and smart children, keep a loving family, yet still manage to keep herself pretty, healthy and sane. And I really admire those who leave their successful careers behind to become a full-time wife and mom. I believe it is not just the hardest job on earth, but the most noble one at that.

I'm glad I am given these chances to see how it is like to be a homemaker -- kids and all. At least, I can equip myself as much as I can to be ready when it's my turn to be one.