Weekend

Saturday....
We didn't got to the doctor. Neo got better.
Yaya no show. Did laundry by myself.
Watched "The curious case of Benjamin Brown" on DVD. A curious movie indeed. Watch it!
Val attended the closing of the Colors of "A" Spectrum exhibit in SM North EDSA. He just took the MRT going there.

Sunday....
Val trimmed Neo's hair.

Lunch at Spaghetti House, Robinson's Pioneer. Cream of spinach for Neo, Gambasetti, Cannelloni with italian sausage eggplant and cream cheese, Four Cheese Pizza and bottomless iced tea for me and Val.

Grocery at Robinson's

Where are your shoes, Neo?

Maybe we underestimated Neo and still regard him as a baby who just somehow managed to walk.

Last Friday, as I was talking with the yaya on our turnover, I heard Val apprehending Neo as the little boy headed for the door. "Wag ka lumabas wala ka shoes". Neo retreated and went straight to the back of his crib where we keep his things and extracted his red shoes! Hahha! Gulat kami and no one even taught him that! We asked him again, "Neo, where are your shoes?" And he did it again! Surely, he knows what shoes means and even knows where to find it!

We tried asking him other things ... where is your exersaucer? and he went to his exersaucer! where is Bob? and he went to where Bob is and he picked up the doll. Shower! shower ! and he went straight to the bathroom!

With all these developments is our realization. That Neo understands his surroundings now. That he can absorb everything and anything that is happening. That it is time for us to be cautious of our actions, careful with our words and mindful of our actuations. Our boy is growing and learning and we want to instill in him good values and set a favourable surrounding.

Go and grow, anak! We love you.

Another pedia visit

Neo's cough and sipon is not getting better. Although he doesn't seem to mind it, I'm still worried that his condition will aggravate. There are episodes of sinat in the afternoons since Wednesday. My problem is that I cannot administer his medicine prescriptions properly. Its either he will vomit after taking it or he will not finish his formula where I mix the dosage. Ang hirap nya talaga painumin ng gamot!

So we are seeing the pedia again tomorrow.

Val's photography feat

On January 20, 2009, Val completed his short course of photography with Mr. Jo Avila. He received his certificate along with an 8' 11" size photo print of Neo.

Yey! Congratulations!

Down with the flu .... almost

I battled the flu last Tuesday. Errrr, i think Biogesic did it.

I was ready to be down with fever that day, feeling weak and drowsy. I asked to leave the office early and headed straight home to take a short nap before I dispatch the yaya for the day. I popped a tablet before sleeping and I was feeling the same when I woke up at around seven. As I retired for the night I took another dose and dyaraan! I was up and about in the morning. Yahoo! Salamat po!

The SM exhibit

This is us beside Val's entry at The Colors of "A" Spectrum exhibit at SM North Edsa. Nakatulog si Neo boy eh.

And earlier, while Val was attending to his affairs, see us riding a giraffe! Ten pesos for a 5-minute round. We lasted thirty pesos worth. Pwede na rin for a joy ride!

A reunion

We were classmates from grade 4 to grade 6 at Jimel Academy, from 1st year to 4th year high school at St. Joseph's. We entered the University of Santo Tomas on the same year after our highschool graduation. Her brother is a classmate of my sister, her sister is a friend and classmate of my other sister. Her mom is a colleague of my mom in government service. I am ninang to her daughter and she is ninang to our boy. She is Gladys, my best friend, and we have come a long way. Although we are miles and miles apart we still manage to keep in touch.

She is based in the US now and have recently vacationed in the Philippines for the Christmas holidays. Because of the very stiff schedules both of us have, we only found time to see each other on December 29, 2008. Two or three days before their return to the US.

Our rendezvous was in Mall of Asia and we met up in the skating rink. With her was her family - husband Ed and kids Gianna and Erron. We had dinner at Super Bowl. We haven't had enough time to catch up because it was already late. They had a long day, we had a long day. But it's alright. Sometimes, because of the friendship built, the bond remains constant and lighted. As if time hasn't elapsed and distance is not a barrier.

And so we left it there. To Gladys, Ed, Gianna and baby Erron, it was nice seeing you and hasta la vista!

Neo now

Look at our boy now! Hale and healthly at 14 months!

Laundry

I never thought that doing laundry can be a herculean task. Well, this is me speaking (or blogging). When I was still single and living with just my sisters, we would just gather the clothes worn for the week and send it over to the laundry service. The pambahay ones were brought to Cavite to be done by Inday.

Laundry, no sweat.

Now that I have Neo, laundry has become a regular weekend affair. I cannot schedule any activity for Saturday morning until noon because I have laundry to do. I cannot stay so late waking up because, of course, there is Neo and there's laundry to attend.

And since, I am in the business of doing laundry for the little boy, sinasabay ko na din my clothes.

Val doesn't like my laba so he sends his bunch to Pretty Wash. Ano ba yan, di na nagluluto, di pa rin maganda maglaba! Hahahha!

Another herculean task ......... plansta.

Haaaay.

The exersaucer

As I was entering the entrance door of SM megamall's children's department. I can already see Val and Ritzie waving at me and pointing at something. And what was it? It was an EXERSAUCER! I immediately checked the brand and it was EVENFLO! Anoooo!?

Why am I over reacting? Let me tell you the story....

When Neo was about two months old, we noticed a persistent flat spot on his head. It didn't bother me that much until one of the neighbors noticed and another one did too. This alarmed me and had me thinking na baka nga lumaki na ganun sisihin ako ng anak ko pag laki nya. So I did my research, consulted the pedia and frequented blogs and forum threads. I learned that this is called plagiocephaly. A condition characterized by an assymetrical flattening of one side of the head. I self assessed Neo's stage as mild. Although around 90% of the online testimonials assured that this condition will correct on its own and the pedia likewise said the same, I was not convinced. I followed the pedia's advise of repositioning and all other steps. However, through all my readings from the internet, exersaucers were always mentioned.

"An ExerSaucer is the modern answer to a baby walker. They are shaped much like a walker, only baby's feet do not touch the ground, instead resting on the saucer's base. ExerSaucers and other stationary entertainers allow babies to remain upright to practice standing and play with available toys while taking in the action around them. Play saucers do not allow babies to move around a room, though. This eliminates the safety concerns present with walkers - namely the risks of falling down stairs or stumbling upon dangerous household items.

ExerSsaucer-style activity centers are available in many shapes and sizes and usually have an interesting selection of on-board toys to keep the fun easily at hand for babies. From airplane and bug themes to versions with symphony music and built-in picture books, there is an exersaucer or stationary activity center to entertain any baby."

Stories related mothers leaving their babies in these saucers for some time and let gravity work its way. I researched for this exersaucer and learned that it is widely availed in the US. I even saw pictures of my cousin's daughter and my friend's son on board this activity center. I was further convinced because of the following beneficial features:

• Includes a variety of activities especially designed with fun and learning in mind.
• Aids baby in achieving 10 developmental milestones such as hand-eye coordination, object exploration and more
• Patented folding technology makes travel and storage easy
• Baby can rock, spin or bounce...sit or stand!

Next hurdle, where to get this exersaucer.

I called SM, Robinsons, S&R, Toy's R Us, BabyLand, Maxi Toy Lab. We visited all the children shops in Megamall, Shangrila , the Podium. None of them carry the item. Meron lang yung closely but not quite similar ng Fisher Price, the hop and pop. But I really liked the one of Evenflo. We asked a friend of Val who is coming home from the states at that time to buy us a unit. She declined because when she saw it in the department store, sobra bulky dalhin. With that, we didn't ask any other anymore kasi nakakahiya, masyado abala ang size. Di pa rin ako sumuko, I even called the distributors of Graco here (they have a similar model kasi) pero they don't ship the item in the Philippines. We considered buying online, sa Amazon. But when we computed the total amount, ang mahal na. Not practical. We tried, Buy and Sell and Sulit pero no one in the Philippines is selling during that time. We almost bought the hop and pop na sana. The actual retail was around 5,000 plus, may nag sale ng 4,400 and then we saw another super sale at 2,500. Val will buy it already pero di ako pumayag. It was evenflo for me or wag nalang. It was at this time that I was intoduced to ebay. I opened an account and was making a daily check na baka may mag sell ng unit. And then I gave up. Ok nalang.

I opened my account one day and I was browsing around. And what did I see? A picture of a Smartsteps Evenflo Exersaucer! I didn't get excited right away because I thought it was one from the international sellers. Pero hindi. Somebody from the Philippines is actually selling second hand. The item was placed at 2,500. I placed my bid with 7 more days to go. 6 days left, 5 days, 4 days. I was the only bidder. Yey! the exersaucer is ours! 3 days left and then 2 days. There was a bidder! I panicked and out bidded the last. On the night before the closing of the auction there were several of us already. My adrenalin was hulahooping! Naku, kailangan ako manalo! I didn't bid anymore. I decided and thought it best to bid the next day.

The next day came and I am losing. I didn't placed any more bid until the last 8 or 10 minutes at tinodo ko na for 3,800! Naku sana wala na maka outbid sa amin! And then the bidding closed. Immediately got a notice that I won. Yahoooo! Success!

The settlement final price was 3,150. We picked up the item from a family with address in Marina Bay. The item was in very good condition. I assessed, it will look new when cleaned and polished well. And then home we went that one afternoon in April with my coveted exersaucer inside our car happily imagining that Neo will be riding in it in the days to come until the time he can walk. Which is more or less a good seven months. Yep, yep, yep! Mission accomplished!

And above explains my over reaction earlier. Mag kakaroon din pala dito, sana naisip nila last year pa. Nahirapan lang ako. Hahahah!

Now you see its not just because I really, really liked to have the exersaucer per se. I just felt guilty my baby had a flat head and I dread the day that he will question me for letting it happen. Beyond this physical acquisition, this is my redemption. Of at least doing something about it.

The things mothers do for her child!

But hey, the exersaucer is an excellent product, nevertheless! Neo got his balance early. Mobilized his reflexes well. It was with this that he learned to flip pages, and now he does it well with his beloved books. Great for learn and play. And what's more, you can have a few extra minutes for yourself because its super safe and steady. Check it out I think the tag price is 5,200 or 5,400. Though the one displayed at Mega is not the same model as ours. We have the Smart Steps model.

As for the flat head, it has corrected.

Father and Son

Flip flops.

Father havaianas from Duty Free. Son's from Subic Duty Free.

Birthday get-up.

Matching jersey's for the father and the son. Neo's birthday party

Shoes so cute!
Father and son Converse. Pasalubong of Gigi from the US. Medyo malaki pa yung size for Neo.


Black Chuck Taylor All Star

The latest: Cough duet.

Father and son both have ubo. The son got it from the father. Kaya pareho sila tumatahol. Uhu, uhu, uhu!

Prescribed medicine for Val:

Celestamine and Ventolin. Mixed together, one tbsp every 8 hrs. for 1 week

Prescribed medicine for Neo:

Salbutamol - 2.5 ml, Disudrin 1.2 ml every 8 hrs.for 1 week

Check-up and Mega

I noticed a quaint cough from the little boy since Thursday night. According to the yaya, the cough became more pronounced on Friday and he vomitted several times. He is very irritable also because there are four teeth peeking out.

That is why we brought him to the pedia this Saturday. Not to his usual pedia but to one of the accredited doctors in Clinica Manila covered be Val's health insurance. Also on this check-up I asked the doctor to see the pimple-looking bump on his birdie that I have noticed about a month already. He gave his prescriptions for the cough. For the bump, he said there's nothing to worry, "mawawala din yan ng kusa". Although he gave us a topical cream that we can apply twice a day.

After the check up, we ate lunch at our favorite Mann Hann. As usual, the orders are fresh lumpia, lechon macau, fish and tofu and the never missed manggo cheesecake. Neo wasn't eating much, walang gana.

And since nasa Mega na rin lang. We breezed SM department store. I wanted sana a jacket for Neo for this cold weather pero wala ako nagustuhan. And the we saw this Mossimo jacket. Maganda sana kaya lang Php1,090. Too expensive!

See our megamall short shopping results:


Avent milk powder dispenser (Php309), Avent easy sip soft spout (Php 499.00), Johnson's shampoo with honey, Huggies XXL 30s diapers, Neo's T-shirt (Php 149.00), two bed sheets on sale at 50% (Php 250 each).

Friday night

Gigi is in Manila. And she's staying for a week only.

She is Val's cousin, his closest one. She took a break as a stewardess in the States to visit family here and their lola in Guam.

Val with Neo picked me up from office around 6:30 PM. After dropping off Mama in Pandacan, we went straight to the hotel where Gigi was checked-in.

Gigi was happy to see her pamangkin and picked-up the little boy right away.

We had dinner at Aristocrat. Sa Endagered Species sana (now with a new name or management?) kaya lang may band performance kaya di pwede sa bata. Sa Aristocrat, Val and I both had chicken barbeque, Neo had cream of asparagus soup and Gigi had pancit palabok (which she craves for) and ripe manggo shake.

While dining, there was this cute little girl na natuwa at nakipaglaro kay Neo. She kept on pinching Neo's cheeks.

Ayan, nagalit tuloy! hahha!

After dinner, we checked out the bakeshop. Naku, ang daming masarap! Lahat na yata! We didn't buy cake, cheesy ensaymada, one muffin and one egg tart lang for Neo. Next time nalang.

We brought Gigi back to the hotel mga past 9:00 PM.

We thank her for all the pasalubong! For Neo, converse sneakers and three sport shirts. For Val, converse sneakers also. And for mwah, a pouch of body shop lotion etc, and a Reeds silver chain.

Photo Exhibit

Every third week of January is National Autism Consciousness Week in the Philippines, by Presidential Proclamation 711 of former President Fidel V. Ramos. As part of the event is an exhibit "Colors of A Spectrum" where Val was featured as a volunteer photographer (click on the picture to enlarge and see Val's name on the roster).

He is excited and we are mighty proud! But more than the hype of being part of the project and this being his first public exposure, he said it was the encounter with the families with children afflicted with "A" that made this experience worthwhile. He got first hand stories from the family assigned to him and he can't help but admire and be inspired by the dedication, perseverance, patience and solid love these parents have to their children under this state.

Kudos and thanks! to the organizers for promoting this awareness and touching the hearts of others. And let us all be thankful for all our blessings in love and in life.

We will be on the venue on Sunday.

Neo's feet

These tiny feet on the left are Neo's when he was only a month and a half old. And the next are his year-old size! He has outgrown his havaianas tsinelas and is now comfortably wearing his pelican crocs. Maybe a month more before he can use his caymans. And yey! his black chuck taylors are arriving soon!

He is walking very well now, without assistance. Although, my ever praning self would still brace him most of the time. Heheh, takot pa din ang mommy!

What's goin on?

Neo is 14 months old and he has been growing and going day by day. He surprises us with new and cute things day all the time. Words and non- words are coming out from him that really amazes us. This little walker is constantly on the go, always wanting to be on the floor to strut his steps. Kakatuwa at kakapagod!

He likes anything with wheels. Plays with the wheels of his strollers and his toy trucks. Loves to watch wheels of other cars on the road.

He enjoys eating and refuses nothing. Really loves kalabasa. He drinks in straws. There should always be merienda! Always delighted when you hand him a craker or biscuit. He will show frustration if he sees you eating and he is not.

He imitates mouth sounds and other mouth gestures. He nods his head as in "YES" and nudges it as in "NO". Act out YES and NO and he will imitate.

He can follow simple instructions. Show him how to open a wallet, or press the remote button, or snap open a watch and he will do the same. I showed him only once how to flip and small latch from his book and he readily got it.

He blesses, not consistently though. Still plays saw-saw suka.

He is aware of his daily schedule. He knows when it is time to take a bath, have his lunch, take his afternoon walk etc. He surely knows that mommy is coming home anytime.

He fakes his cries when he wants something.

He is working on making an escape from his playpen. That's why we made strict instructions to the yaya never ever to leave him unattended.

He likes Barney. He's really attentive with matching reactions while watching the episodes. Bakit kaya? Naaasar nga ako kay Barney eh! He has two new CDs of Barney from Tata Ritzie.

His interest with books does not tarry. Apart from flipping the pages, I think now he appreciates the content. He listens when I read to him. From his many books, he damaged just one.

He forever enjoys the play, Bulaga! or yung english version na peek a boo! As in, di sya nagsasawa ever! Tuwang tuwa pa din.

"pompom" means time to change diapers. pauso ni yaya.

He hates all head wear.

Two pairs of teeth pa rin. Two up, two down. Pero I think the other will pop out soon kasi namamaga na yung gums nya and I can see white peeking out.

He loves his baths. Ayaw pa umahon kaagad.

He sleeps na nakasiksik sa akin.

What a joy to be a mother!

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Val had two sessions of his photography seminar down. Three more sessions to go and he'll have a photography certificate! He is learning a lot, he said.

Below is a sample of an assignment they had. Subject: Coke. He was explaining about composition (whatever that means). Heheh. I think this was a good shot, according to the teacher.

By the way, he upgraded his DSLR from a Canon 400D to a 20D.

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As for me, I have jumpstarted my scrapbook work. I have to finish the one on Neo's first birthday muna. Details soon nalang. Office work ... as usual.

More presents

Gifts still trickled for Neo even after Christmas.

From Tita Leddie, a King Kong stuffed doll
From Tita Rhaindie and daughters Kim and Tintin, a squeaky hammer and colored floor mats
From Tita Gladys, my best friend from the US, shirts, denim pants and Shrek projector book
From Tata Ritzie, fisher price giraffe toy, leap frog alphabet tray, blues clues hardbound book
From Tata Ruthie, six printed pajamas

It was a fun, fun Christmas for us. We are looking forward to a healthy, happy and peaceful year!

New Year

Hello 2009! What do you have in store for US THREE?

We were hearing the 8:30 mass at San Sebastian with Mommy, Daddy and Ritzie as 2008 was ending. Unfortunately, Val had to work early on January 01 so he had to stay in the apartment alone! During the turnover festivities, Neo did not mind the fireworks and noise. In fact, I think, he enjoyed it as I pointed to him the lightning displays viewed from our terrace. For our medya noche meal we had spicy tuna pasta, our home recipe tacos, manggo float (all prepared by Ruthie).

We spent the rest of 2008 in Cavite. Because we are having our apartment fixed, me and Neo had to stay away from the dust, paint odor and the clutter.