Mother’s Day 2013

 

I woke up with the world’s best greeting cards in sight. Set on top of my laptop on the bedside table. And so, the day just keeps getting better.

Little greeting cards from my kids and a loving one from my husband.

  

The kids made me peanut butter and jelly sandwich topped with over flowing whipped cream and chocolate syrup for breakfast even though I was already up and awake so much ahead of them. It’s more like an early lunch already. Crazy yet very sweet idea.

 

I’m saved from cooking dinner as we had take-out food consist of Super Herfy Burger and Saudi’s best Al-Khareej Broast Chicken.

 

 

To complete my Mother’s Day treat, my dear husband brought home a box full of my all time favorite cinnamon rolls from the one and only CINNABON.

I had a day full of surprises. It makes me wish for this occasion to last the entire year. The good thing about it though is that, I am celebrating with all the other mothers from the rest of the world. Lastly, I would give my salute and appreciation to my dear mother who has made me for who I am today. Happy Mother’s Day!

When kids starts to wear glasses

My daughter told me one day that a classmate of hers who is sitting behind her keeps peeping and copying from her notebook. I told her all she has to do is tell the kid that copying is bad. I know she can manage to deal with her peers so I wasn’t alarmed with the issue. I asked her who the kid was, and it happens that I knew who the kid’s mother as she is a very good friend and a former classmate in high school.

Several days after my conversation with my daughter, the kid’s mom who I said is my friend, posted on her Facebook that her kid needs prescription eyeglasses at a very young age. Right there and then I know the answer to my daughter’s concerns as to why her classmate keeps on checking her notebook or paper when they are writing.

I started wearing eyeglasses at very young age too. Nine years old to be exact and I was in fourth grade. I cannot remember how my mother discovered why I need one but I can still recall how I felt before I was wearing one.

1. Having a hard time at school and reading problems

I belonged to a SPED section, it is homogenous selection in terms of general average on grades. Bragging aside, I went to school in a classroom full of genius kids.  I reached the point where studying to cope isn’t fun anymore and I started not to enjoy it. I love reading and even that activity is a struggle. The lessons are hard to understand anymore as everything appears to be blurry or the alphabets on some words are not written as it should be. I can see numbers or other characters I don’t recognize in the middle of the word. I can see number 8 replacing the letter S all the time.

2. Eye Gestures

Squinting, winking, rubbing eyes often , frequent sets of quick blinking, covering one eye or alternately closing one eye from the other can help clear vision. I develop this habit to be able for me to focus more on the image or the board when the teacher is writing something. Normally, our eyes don’t do this gestures. To see the kids having to develop this habit is a way of telling us parents that something is bothering their vision focus.

3. Frequent headaches

I experienced having unexplainable headaches all the time. It usually goes away when I am doing nothing that is stressful for the eyes, like playing dolls or running with my cousins. I complained a lot about getting headaches in school and I usually feel fine after classes. Parents , oftentimes fail to consider this seriously as it could be an abused excuse used by children to avoid going to school or to get the teacher to send them home when in school. I can remember my optometrist back then told my mother that my vision problems is 100% causing my frequent headaches.

 

4. Sitting close to the black board or to the television

Back in grade school the teacher arranged the sitting assignments of the class. I am a small kid back then but not the shortest , so, I was placed in the 2nd or 3rd line and  I always move to the front when I need to copy something from the board. I ended up not writing anything on my notebook if I am told to move back to my proper seat. Worst, I ended up not writing answers on my paper if the quiz questions are written on the board.

Watching television is something I am not fond of as a kid or even now that I have kids. If I do back then, I will be sitting so close to the screen for me to be able to enjoy the show.

 

5. Recognizing people from a distance

I got my first glasses a couple of weeks after I got home from Girl Scout Camping.  I can’t recall exactly but I think I did complain to my mother that the camping gave me a hard time. I was unable to recognize people from a distance. I had difficulty going to my troupe not unless I have a buddy with me. It is even harder to tell who I am really with since everybody is wearing uniforms and my means of identifying people I am with is through the colors of the clothes they are wearing.

I was told a couple of times that I am a snob because I don’t acknowledge those who greet me in a distance  or by those waving their hands at me when approaching. This situation really sucks. As kid, this is confusing.

Eyeglasses are not a very pretty accessory to wear when you are a kid at school. I have my own share of moments being teased and picked on because I am wearing one. Luckily, there are two other kids in class that was wearing a pair too when I started wearing mine. The impact wasn’t so bad and that they were already used to having a classmate with four eyes.

Few days after I saw the Facebook post of my friend, my daughter reported to me that her classmate is now wearing eyeglasses. I asked if he still peek into her notebook and she answered me “not anymore”. I made her realize that the classmate was doing that as he has vision problems. My kids know how important eyeglasses are as I am wearing one and they know how I depended my life to it. I asked her what her other classmates reaction was when they saw him come to class with it on and she told me a lot of the kids called him “Lolo” (Grandpa in Filipino) and a few others were laughing. I told my daughter never to tease the kid as it is not funny. I told her how I felt being picked on and I am sure she understand. I know my friend’s son will get used to it soon and and the classmates as well.

Merry Monday– “Simple Ways to Make Your Day Better”

Unconsciously, we people hoped for our days to go as good as possible. We often hear the words “ It’s Monday, let us start the week right!”. Is there a procedure to follow in order to achieve a good week? Or even just a day?

Well, maybe this would help.

1. Wake up few minutes earlier than usual  – My alarm this morning never get to make its annoying ringing. This is because I turned it off in a good 30-minutes before the time set.   That is right! I woke up early and surprisingly, I didn’t feel grumpy at all. I went to bed late the night before just like any ordinary night. In short, the usual morning scenario in our house, like rushing kids that were half awake for school and myself getting frustrated over them still wanting to grab few more blinks was replaced with a relaxed morning even if it was the critical prep hour of the day. Since I already have extra time in my hands, it made me start getting thru my routine extra early. It felt good and I realized that it isn’t so hard to have a good start to a full day.

2. HUG someone or spend a little time cuddling –  I turned closer to my daughter who was sleeping beside me. I put my arms around her and automatically she snuggled close. I am slowly waking her up by cuddling her and felt her hugging me back. It would have been nice if Husband dear is around because he always make cuddling a morning habit. As they say, hugging and cuddling gives the person an emotional lift. I spend time slightly tickling their toes or the sides of their neck that I knew would make them giggle. I woke the kids up in a very heart warming way instead of the usual forceful tugging and shaking and making them panic realizing they will be late for school.

3. First Things First – I took a moment to think about what needs to be done. Prioritizing task will help us get through the day and hopefully the whole week avoiding a stressful and unorganized activities. Having a long list of tasks to do can be overwhelming, so tackle any problems head-on at the start of the day to get them out of the way as early as possible. I finished house chores quick and dealt with my weekend laundry. From time to time I checked my emails and did a little Facebook browsing. Once must-dos are done, I can work with almost anything I can lay my hands on. Exhausting, but it seems I did more in a day.  I actually felt a sense of progress each time I finish a simple task. It helps too that I wrote things down. It is a good way to keep myself  from forgetting things and track what is accomplished. Being a stay-at-home mom is the hardest job. I may have all the time but its never enough.

4. Listen to Music – I am a music lover. I just don’t know if music even loved me! It has been awhile since I opened my playlist and get in tunes. I sing my heart out while doing chores and I silently pray that my neighbors will ignore me. They did. Nobody called the police and I had my mini concert. Why does music make us feel good? People love music for much the same reason they’re drawn to sex, drugs, gambling, delicious food or an awesome book. These things make people happy in one way or another. Listening to music can be a form of having a “ ME time”. One can get emotional, and physical because up beat songs are hard to resist to do a little bit of  shakin’ and pumpin’ and moving like Jagger! Its motivational and inspiring. Good or bad, and mostly good, listening to music never fails to make a day worth living.

There may be all sorts of ways to make your day better. A person just needs to figure it out and do it.  For all we know, an unexpected act or a single song can do miracles and take us a long way. Look around and take time to appreciate the colors of the surroundings. Follow a butterfly and you’ll never know how it can surprise you. Say a prayer of thanks each day for a day passed can never repeat its moment. Above all, have fun, smile and never take laughter for granted!

Be happy and have a Merry Monday!

Related articles

• Merry May: Monday-itis (sleepandsalami.wordpress.com)
• Merry Monday… (ouchmybackhurts.wordpress.com)
• marvelous monday: the magic of to-do lists (daybydayorganization.wordpress.com)

“talking my way out”

Year 2007, I left and worked overseas when my daughter was just a year and nine months old. She can only utter couple of syllables such as “ma-ma” that time and I never get to hear her first full words. I noticed her development in speaking only on phone calls I made back then. Now that she is in the 1st Grade, she is talkative and rarely quiet. She wants to talk while dressing, eating and brushing her teeth. She talks to herself in the mirror when she’s playing and acting. She discovered the audio recorder on my cellphone and records herself mimicking the newscasters on TV. She talks a lot in the poolside during swim trainings, Heck- she talks in her sleep sometimes. She is a kid who loves asking questions and enthusiastically talking about her experiences and the surroundings. If she doesn’t have anything to talk about, then she would just keep repeating the rhymes, telling self-imagined/invented stories and counting numbers.

For the past two years, I only have one concerned question to her teachers during classroom meetings. “Is she noisy and talking too much?” So far, both Junior and Senior kindergarten teachers that she had told me she’s just like the other pupils. She is active and participates well. That doesn’t really answer my question, does it? Since they don’t complain, I assume that her chatty character is only at home or other places where she feels at home(like the pool perhaps? after all, I named her WATER). Without negative feedbacks from school, I am proud that she is smart and maintains her rank in the honor roll.

It’s been three weeks since current school year started and I am surprised with both of my kids’ adjustment to schedules. School work is manageable and school assignments are something they both look forward to work on with me. With that, I am thankful and silently hoping for this good vibes to last.

Today, my daughter told me something that caused me to realize that her chatty behavior after all is now unstoppable. She is just as chatty and talkative in school as she is at home.

I understand, that as parents, we should never discourage our  talkative children. This is because they show interest in talking and this is their way of expressing their feelings towards us and to people around them. Communication as a matter of fact is an effective means of interaction. It is easy to picture out what they have in mind when they speak about it. It would be helpful too determine if kids are being bullied or not because they are comfortable talking about it rather than keeping it a secret as most aloof and introvert children often do. If my daughter is quiet, I start to worry and often times it happened when she is not feeling well.

If a talkative child is being disruptive and interrupting in class, therefore, it is an issue that needs careful attention and approach. I asked my daughter how it made her feel when she was told to move to the front because she is talking too much. She said she was embarrassed. On the lighter note, she was glad because she had always wanted to sit in the front. I told her that chances are, she will be asked to move again if she talks too much while sitting at the front. Her looks told me she doesn’t want that to happen and I acknowledged this reaction as positive. Hopefully.

I admit I am chatty and talkative too, so she must have inherited that from me. Though I was never reprimanded for being talkative during my own school years(as far as I can remember). I used to hear the line that says “Children are three times more of what their parents are” and I guess that is true for this case.

crayons and color pencils

Sunday night last week, I checked my kids’ school bags and prepared it the way I wanted(not how they want) for the week since the next day is a Monday. Their notebooks were numbered by subjects according to the teacher’s preference which I arranged carefully. I will open their pencil cases and sees to it that pencils were sharpened and puts an extra pencil in case there is none. I will remove bits of pencil shavings because both of my kids have the habit of doing their sharpening in their pencil cases while in the classroom. Everything was going smoothly with my tidying up until I picked my daughter’s crayon case and this is what I found:

Barely two weeks passed since school started and my daughter’s crayons were already peeled, removed from the crayon box, lost some of the other crayons which were originally bought in a box of 24’s and some to my slight disappointment were found at the side pockets of her school bag looking like this:

I cleaned up the peelings and stuck the broken crayons to her color case. We actually have an old large Mackintosh Chocolate can which I use to store old crayons and coloring pencils. I know that other moms like me always have this kind of situation. Many of us have bucket-full of old crayons, broken, peeled, or otherwise which our children ignored and would ask us to buy new sets every time school started. For craft-loving moms, this broken crayons will be recycled, melted and molded to create new multi-color pieces of crayons.

I was up to the mall for some stuff  few days ago and as usual, paid the bookstores a good visit. Approaching the counter to pay for my purchase, I saw these “eight in one” coloring pen in a shelf beside the cashier’s counter.

(photo credit: Google)

It is made in plastic, clear and transparent barrel which contains eight retractable basic colored crayon sticks with a rotating change tip for selection. Each cost Php70.00(US$ 1.65 approx.)so I picked two of these and gave it to my kids as a surprise. They were surprised indeed and thank me as they checked it out and tried using it in awe. It may not have the complete set of colors like Crayola’s box of 24 or 36 but I hope this will keep them from loosing crayon pieces, or breaking and peeling them not unless the entire coloring pen will get lost-which I am fervently hoping not to happen.

This current school week is my trial period for the said coloring pen. I am waiting for complains from my kids regarding the item. Whatever feedbacks I will get, I will let you know.

***********

Here are some sites that gives cool ideas on what to do with old crayons. Check it out!

 My Green Crayon by Overflow Creations

 Hot Rocks Project on A Bird and a Bean

 Melted Crayon Art by Playful Learning

Recycled Molded Crayons by Recraft

 Hot Easter Eggs on The Chocolate Muffin Tree

 Recycled Crayons by Busy Hands Blessed Hearts

DAD’s Day with Goldilocks!!!

HAPPY FATHER’s DAY

celebrating Dad’s day with Goldilocks’s chocolate pops

My father passed away when I was barely two years old. Through out the years I celebrated Father’s day greeting my uncles who has been the closest father figures I could ever have. I never had a “first nor last dance with  my father” , and I know I can never have one. My father-in-law passed away also long before I ever got the chance to meet him. Any man can get a woman pregnant and have a child but it takes someone special to become a Dad, a Father, a Tatay, a Papa, a Baba. My children’s biological father had parted his way and has a separate life from us long before my children can greet him a “Happy Father’s day”. While I was working overseas, my children grew up with my aunt and his husband who showered my children with unconditional love and care which they badly needed during the first years of their life. With that, I am forever thankful to you Uncle Romeo “Papa Meyok” Cantarona. The words “so much” can’t describe how I owe you.

I finally found someone who knocks me off my feet who dreamt  and longs for a family just as much as my children and I do. The man who accepted me for who I am and for what I have and became my children’s best Daddy. To you my dear WCW, We love you so so much!

Happy Happy Father’s Day Papa Meyok!

Happy Happy Father’s Day Daddy Mer!

We love you both so so much. And to all the daddies in the world, greetings from us!

What a swimmer’s parent must know…

As the team management’s secretary of my children’s swimming team, the coach asked me to search and check out websites of different Swimming Federations and Associations so as to get ideas to develop the team, more considering that we are newbies and rookies to the field. Browsing around, I was able to find these thoughts to ponder, not for the swimmers but for the most important factor on a swimmer’s life- the PARENTS. Reading the content, I made a conclusion that this doesn’t just apply to a swimmer’s parent but to all parents in general. Hence, I am posting this for all the world to see.

…………….…………

10 Commandments for Swimming Parents
by Rose Snyder, Managing Director Coaching Division, USOC
Former Director of Club Services, USA Swimming
(adapted from Ed Clendaniel’s 10 Commandments for Little League Parents)

I. Thou shalt not impose thy ambitions on thy child.

Remember that swimming is your child’s activity. Improvements and progress occur at different rates for each individual. Don’t judge your child’s progress based on the performance of other athletes and don’t push them based on what you think they should be doing. The nice thing about swimming is every person can strive to do their personal best and benefit from the process of competitive swimming.

II. Thou shalt be supportive no matter what.

There is only one question to ask your child after a practice or a competition – “Did you have fun?” If meets and practices are not fun, your child should not be forced to participate.

III. Thou shalt not coach thy child.

You are involved in one of the few youth sports programs that offer professional coaching, do not undermine the professional coach by trying to coach your child on the side. Your job is to provide love and support and a safe place to return at the end of the day. Love and hug your child no matter what. The coach is responsible for the technical part of the job. You should not offer advice on technique or race strategy or any other area that is not yours. And above all, never pay your child for a performance. This will only serve to confuse your child concerning the reasons to strive for excellence and weaken the swimmer/coach bond.

IV. Thou shalt only have positive things to say at a swimming meet.

If you are going to show up at a swimming meet, you should be encouraging, but never criticize your child or the coach. Both of them know when mistakes have been made. And remember “yelling at” is not the same as “cheering for”.

V. Thou shalt acknowledge thy child’s fears.

A first swimming meet, 500 free or 200 IM can be a stressful situation. It is totally appropriate for your child to be scared. Don’t yell or belittle, just assure your child that the coach would not have suggested the event if your child was not ready to compete in it. Remember your job is to love and support your child through all of the swimming experience.

VI. Thou shalt not criticize the officials.

If you do not care to devote the time or do not have the desire to volunteer as an official, don’t criticize those who are doing the best they can.

VII. Honor thy child’s coach.

The bond between coach and swimmer is a special one, and one that contributes to your child’s success as well as fun. Do not criticize the coach in the presence of your child, it will only serve to hurt your child’s swimming.

VIII. Thou shalt be loyal and supportive of thy team

It is not wise for parents to take their swimmers and to jump from team to team. The water isn’t necessarily bluer in another team’s pool. Every team has its own internal problems, even teams that build champions. Children who switch from team to team are often ostracized for a long, long time by the teammates they leave behind and are slowly received by new team mates. Often times swimmers who do switch teams never do better than they did before they sought the bluer water.

IX. Thy child shalt have goals besides winning.

Most successful swimmers are those who have learned to focus on the process and not the outcome. Giving an honest effort regardless of what the outcome is, is much more important than winning. One Olympian said, “My goal was to set a world record. Well, I did that, but someone else did it too, just a little faster than I did. I achieved my goal and I lost. Does this make me a failure? No, in fact I am very proud of that swim.” What a tremendous outlook to carry on through life.

X. Thou shalt not expect thy child to become an Olympian.

There are 250,000 athletes in USA Swimming and we keep a record of the Top 100 all time swimming performance by age group. Only 2% of the swimmers listed in the all-time Top 100 10 & Under age group make it to the Top 100 in the 17-18 age group and of those only a small percentage will become elite level, world class athletes. There are only 52 spots available for the Olympic Team every four years. Your child’s odds of becoming an Olympian is about .0002%.

HUNGER is not a GAME

 

Last night, my daughter stubbornly complained of not liking the dinner. She took a spoonful or two and started playing with it. She was about to throw a tantrum drama but since I am not in the mood to put up with it I let her leave the table and I ended up eating what is on her plate. My children(my daughter most of the time actually)has this attitude of pushing away their plates with left-over food and leaving the table when they feel they don’t want to eat anymore. Embarrassing as it is on my end because it looks like I failed as a parent to impose discipline in this type of table manners. I left to work overseas when both are still young and I felt guilty for doing so sometimes. God knows how much I tried my best to teach them right from wrong and the good moral values that an individual should master by heart. I feel bad whenever they ignore the food served on the table because it is not of their favorite or something that would suit their taste buds..which mainly are vegetables! I gave them the freedom to serve themselves so they will learn to estimate the amount of food that they can consume. Most of the time they clean their plates but each time they have left-overs or a half eaten cookie in the trash can, I can’t help but solemnly assessing myself on my credibility as a mother.

They are not picky eaters but like most kids they have their favorites. I know I always sound like a bad record playing or a pirated music CD when I keep telling them this:

With the aid of photos from the internet of kids in hunger somewhere in Darfur Sudan, Somalia or even the indigent, needy and malnourished of our very own Philippines, which I showed them from time to time whenever I have to, just so they will have an idea and hopefully will realize the very thought.

I even showed more disturbing photos of children suffering of famine in their own countries and doesn’t have a choice but to live with it. I will look at their reaction and would see that the realization creeps in but still they tend to forget. Every now and then, I visit the orphanage in our town and take along the kids with me so they will have the actual picture of what it is like having the least than what they have.

the children Gloria Christi Regis Center Home for the orphans and the street children 

Sometimes, I am tempted to let them experience starvation with plans in the back of my mind not to cook and prepare meals or not to buy anything to stock the house with munchies, but then again, the mother in me can’t even bear the thought let alone dare of actually doing it.

I am fully aware that I am not the only parent dancing in this kind of tune. It is not just the food actually that I want them to value but the privilege of being provided of human being’s basic needs. I prayed for them to be forever grateful of their blessings, to be contented and humble because I hate to think that in order for them to realize is for them to experience hunger not as a game but in reality.

happy little things

Yesterday was Mother’s day, though I was surprise to learn that some countries celebrated mother’s day on the last Sunday of May, I still felt that the entire world is celebrating with me.

My Facebook wall was flooded with greetings from everyone whom I know cared for me, just as my mobile phone kept beeping with SMS texts to extend their greetings and my Twitter friends tweeted endless tweets of Happy Mother’s Day which made me feel grateful and honored. My kids and I went to my grandmother’s house where most of the clan gather on special occasions and I, in return kissed, hugged and greeted my aunts and cousins. At the end of the day, my mother got these sweet little things:

A pretty red rose from my cousin Malou and Black Forest Ice Cream Cake which I ordered from FUNTASEE CAKES- a cake shop owned and manage by one of my cousins, Kukkhie.

I on the other hand has my own share of surprise. My kids call me “Mama Toshiba”  because they know that I will be in front of my Toshiba laptop whenever free time I have aside from finding me reading books.  After I had my kids dressed and ready for our visit to my grandmother’s house, I found their little surprise on the top of my laptop that the my son secretly placed while I took a quick shower.

I know it looked like a Valentines Day greeting card but who cares, my children inherit my lack of artistic and creative ability so for them to show their love which they easily  expressed in no other way but to draw hearts. After I took pictures , I turned and saw my son standing by the door checking and waiting to see my reaction of their little surprise. He smiled and greeted my shyly and hugging me at the same time. At that moment, I know I got the most important greeting for the day that no Facebook, SMS and Tweets can ever topped. I wouldn’t be greeted with a “Happy Mother’s Day” if not for them in the first place. Just like all other mother who are proud of their mother’s day presents, I am glad and proud too of my own happy little things that comes with hearts!

Happy Mother’s Day 2012

 

To all the Mommies out there… Happy Happy Mother’s Day! I salute you!