LIFE IS FULL OF SURPRISES

I can't believe it was only Nov. 21 that I wrote my last post. It feels like a lifetime for me. Since then my yaya quit her job, I am now an all-around yaya, maid and milk supplier (for Anton only hehe) of my 2 boys, I opened an online store and I've resigned from my job of 5 years.

Things are just crazy but right now I'm thanking my yaya for giving me the chance to quit my job which I've been thinking of for some time, be more hands-on in raising Anton, make my family be closer to each other and give me a chance to do something else.

I've never been without a helper since Anton was born. But now I've decided to take care of my household myself. Neal wants me to get another helper though so that I can be more flexible. Maybe in the future. Right now I'm just enjoying my crazy busy life with my two boys. I never thought life can be so good.

EXERGEN

You really learn a lot in school. I was talking to Teacher Gabby when one of Anton's teachers borrowed a thermometer. And I was like can I see that Teacher Gabby? I'm really excited that Exergen is out in the market. Anton really hates the thermometer so every time he has fever I am clueless. This is the most accurate and non-invasive thermometer there is so I asked my sisters abroad to buy this for me. I hope they send it soon I can't wait.

MY SIT-IN

I was able to visit Toddlers Unlimited this week. Last Tuesday I sat in Anton's entire class and talked with his teachers. There were times he will go to me and sit on my lap. Teacher Maica told me that he will usually just sit on the mat with his other classmates.

Here's their art time. I expected worse. Anton just got a little bit of paint on his shirt.

This is romp time. Anton loves loves this part of the class. But the teachers really have to be on their toes. Last week Anton had a forehead bump with one of the boys in his class and the Aussie boy cried and his forehead got really red. Anton naman deadma lang. This time Anton fell on his classmate and landed on the poor girl's face. Nothing serious but the little girl really cried out loud. I warned them, Anton is pretty rough.

These are photos from yesterday's class. Yaya took all of these cos I was busy making chika with the other mommies as you can see.

I love going to Anton's school. If only I can every time ...

LAST SATURDAY

... Neal and I went to the Richwell toy sale at 9am. I had my 2nd haircut with Chiyo at 10:45am. We picked up Anton at home and changed outfits to go to Zuri's 3rd birthday.

Here I am with my old friends. No pic of Anton in this pirate party. He was so likot.

Then we went to Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street. We love going here because it's lots of fun to read to Anton and play with the toys and it's all free.

Here's father and son in the gardens of Bonifacio High Street ... before Anton got all dirty with mud hehe.

After that we still went to Powerplant Mall for Power Station, window shopping and have dinner.

Thank God Anton did not get sick. We had to stay out of the house the whole afternoon cos we had our ceiling fixed and it was so dusty. The ending? Ang sarap ng tulog namin.

READY FOR SCHOOL

I am confident that Anton is really ready for school. He is now able to sit and play for about 20 minutes straight and he loves playing with the other kids in the playground. But I was not counting on naman of being overconfident that I missed his trial session last Tues and today being his first official and paid-for class.

We are closing a project in the office and I just couldn't miss it. Next week I'll make bawi. Hopefully they will still let me sit in the class pa.

Here are a few pics of Anton last Tues for his trial class. Thanks to yaya for these precious photos and video.

He was the first in class.

I guess this is their free play time.

Singing Mr. Sun.

They made jello :) Anton took home a cup and ate it the next day.

Snack time. Anton here checking out the feast hehe.

Ang bait o kinakain ang baon nyang grapes.

Pero hindi napigilan. Nang-agaw ng crackers ng classmate.

Romp time

Last but not least, walang pic nitong watermelon activity so here's a vid :)

EXCITED

I never thought shopping for a lunchbox can be so stressful. Neal and I scoured Market Market and Megamall to no avail. We really wanted a tin luncbox cos its just cuter :) But the only available ones were Batman, Superman and Disney characters. We wanted either Spongebob or Disney Cars.

Thank God for ebay. When I saw this Anton just has to have it. This just arrived this morning and I can't wait to show it to Neal and Anton :)

1ST DAY HIGH

We visited 2 schools today and I really felt like a mommy :) We were on full force. Neal and yaya were there and if my mom was in town I'm sure she will go as well.

First stop was Happy Hearts Preschool at Rockwell Club. This is the nearest toddler school from our house and I really hoped they would be affordable. Well they were not which is to be expected since they're in one of the Rockwell towers. Majority of the class were foreigners and all of them live in Rockwell. Their monthly fee is P22k for a 3hr 5x a wk class. For the amenities and teacher-student ratio I don't think it's worth it. But Anton really enjoyed himself and refused to leave. But we have to go because since we have to find something else Mommy and Daddy can afford :)

Next stop and the winner is Toddlers Unlimited in Salcedo Village. I heard good feedback from this school and I really wanted to visit them for the longest time. I was just concerned about the distance from our house which isn't really bad come to think of it. Mas malayo pa nga his therapy class. We will try out the 2x a wk class, 2 hrs a day. Either me or Neal will drop yaya and Anton off then they will take a cab going home. I saw one of my classmates pa from college there. She was picking up her daughter at sabi nya sa Toddlers na daw ako. According to her Toddlers is the cheapest in the area. She will make bantay pa daw my son hehe. Gusto na nya i-partner ang daughter nya sa son ko. Sayang daw her daughter who just turned 2 is in a different class.

We're going on a trial next Tuesday and I can go inside the classroom. Even if there are more schools in Salcedo Village and the Fort area I want to stop looking already. I think it's pretty easy and safe to catch a cab in Salcedo Park. And from what I saw earlier, there were only 6 students and there were 2 teachers and 1 yaya in Anton's class. Tapos there's free snacks pa from Mon-Thurs. And there were more affordable than I imagined. I guess because its just 2x a wk. Verdict - what's not to like right? Sold to Mommy and Daddy, and yaya too kasi may Starbucks sa baba ng bldg hehe!

PROUD

I usually borrow Neal's old corolla on Wednesdays when my car is coding. It's a M/T which should not be a problem but his corolla is really pawis steering and the pedals are so low and tigas that everytime I use his car namamatayan ako at least once.

The other Wed on my way home I went to McDo El Pueblo for a drive thru. When I was just about to exit El Pueblo this car in front on me stopped for a really long time and when it was time to drive again namatayan ako. I automatically turned off the a/c but silly me forgot to turn off the headlights. So when I tried it again the battery was dead. Thank God there were no cars behind me and I called Neal agad. A car suddenly appeared and I can see he was pissed. I stepped out of the car to find someone to push my car. Alam ko papagalitan ako ni Neal cos he said nasisira daw ang car nya sakin. That time he was in a good mood and he just asked if I knew how to jump-start. Mukhang mahina na daw ang battery ng car nya. Two men suddenly offered their help and pushed my car. I failed the first time but was a success on the second try.

Not bad eh? The guy behind me didn't even have to wait 3 mins :)

Guess what the hubby said when he got home - "I'm so proud". Aba, dapat lang no :) How many of my fellow mommies know how to jump-start a car?

PAMPERS XXL

I was excited when my sis-in-law texted me saying she has some Pampers XXL for Anton. She said this is not yet available in the market. Pampers is Anton's diaper brand until he was over a year old, or until nagkasya pa sa kanya ang XL size.


Pero nalungkot ako pagbukas ko sa kanya. Kay liit :( Just look at the size difference w/ Mamy Poko which Anton uses.

In fairness kasya pa naman pero sakto na sa waist and super low waist hehe.

SCHOOL HUNT

Since my husband gave me the absolute power to choose Anton's preschool super pressured ako. I'll hopefully start the school hunt by November. Unfortunately I'm too busy with work now so all I can do is start calling the schools and check their websites. I'm also always checking Mom Exchange for the school reviews and Preschool Choices for their school listing.

So far I'm looking at these schools. Second Mom, Learning Jungle, Cambridge in the Pasig/Ortigas area or Cambridge, Toddlers Unlimited, Early Achievers in the Makati area. Although we live in Makati it might be better to send Anton to a school in the Pasig area where I work. Since I'm a more reliable driver (well not exactly the driving part but definitely the punctuality part) I can drop off Anton on my way to work.

If you guys have any recommendations please leave a note for me. Location is very much important since we don't have a driver. I'm specially looking for a progressive or Montessori school anywhere in Makati/Fort or the Pasig area (Kapitolyo, private villages or Ortigas Center).

THINKING TOO MUCH

There are so many things that's stressing me out the past 2 weeks.

1. Work - I don't even know how to begin this. Basta it's pretty serious that I'm thinking of a transfer, a new career or just be housewife for a while. Now when I think about me staying at home that will give me more stress. Haaay confusing I know!
2. Preschool Hunting - Neal has been bugging me for days. We should put Anton to school na. Naawa daw sya kapag walang kalaro ang anak nya. He follows the kids around in the playground. Uhaw sa playmates!
3. Household - We have been maid-less for a month now. We decided not to get another all-around help because they just give me and my yaya headaches. So now I help with the house chores, which puts my hubby further down my 'to-do' list. Pun not intended :)
4. Anton - His attention span did improve but tamad pa din magsalita. And he has new behaviors - covering his ears and hitting his head. After 2 months on the GFCF and organic diet he suddenly showed this kind of behavior. Even though his therapist said that these are all sensory-related naloloka ako!

I'll stop at #4. Baka lalo pa akong ma-stress. So that's why I'm not updating my blog. Now I have to pump my milk and get back to work. Happy weekend!

CLASS PIC

Anton's first class pic at Kindermusik with Dr. Liz. Mommies included for the kids who are malikot :)

TATAY's 91st

Tatay celebrated his 91st birthday last month. Inspired from the reunion in Mindoro earlier that month we had another grand Medrano reunion in Balayan. There were 12 cars in the garage and I think there were over 50 people were peresent. Hopefully this can be an annual thing.

Our side of the family.

Tatay's apos sa tuhod.

Me and Anton.

LONG LUNCH

I really try hard to keep my lunch/errand breaks short but today I got back to the office just before 3pm. I had a plan. Go to Megamall (5 min drive from work on a good day), have Anton's pic printed for his Kindermusik class and have my toes painted. But this simple plan took me 3 hours compared to just 2 hours when I had my haircut all the way in Legaspi Village Makati.

It's mostly the fault of Megamall. As usual it was overly traffic. The Bldg A multi-level parking was full but I was third in line so I thought I had a good chance of getting in. After 15 mins the 2 cars in front of me drove away. Smart move. While I had to wait until it was 12:45pm bago ako umalis.

Well I could have had Anton's pic printed anywhere but I really wanted to go to Tips 'N Toes for my nails. I have a suki kasi there and they have the nail polish color that is just perfect for me. So anyway I drove away and went to Shang Mall. I first had Anton's pic printed in Digiprint. I usually go to Fuji but since I was in a hurry and its for someone else naman pwede na. Digiprint is really fast as in 2 mins lang. But as expected the quality is not that nice. Will still have Anton's precious pics printed in Fuji. Then I ate beef stew from Kimchi and off I went to find a nail salon. The lady guard directed me to the Nail Spa on the 5th floor. The place is really nice and the sofas are very comfy. I was also impressed by their gamit. The have a really neat tray and they soak all their cutters and stuff agad when not in use. And ang sarap ng masahe nila sa paa. Haay sarap I can't wait to have a foot scrub with them. Plus they're more mura pa than Tips 'N Toes. I definitely will be back. But I need to buy my own polish. They don't have my fave polish so I had to settle for another color.

So kahit na-late ako sa 2:30 meeting ko (na di ko na din pinuntahan hehe) naka-discover naman ako ng bagong nail salon :) Happy weekend everyone!

GFCF GOODIES

We've been on the GFCF diet for 2 months already and I am so happy that I can still enjoy some of my fave foods from Impy and Janise.

I saw Impy's flyer in Able Center. Impy has a shop at the Corinthian Clubhouse and we get our bread rolls and hotdogs there. Her hotdogs are really yummy. They are softer compared to the ones available from Healthy Options. She also has ice cream, cookies, waffles and different kinds of frozen meat. Her products are on the expensive side so I'll just try to make homemade tocino and longganisa. For the complete list look here.

I got to know of Janise naman thru Ting during the n@w garage sale. Thank God I found her! See her Multiply site here. She sells the best and most affordable GFCF cookies. She also has stuff that can be bought from Healthy Options like flours and pasta but I prefer going to her. Since her son is also on the diet she knows which products are no longer GFCF like the gluten free pasta I bought in Healthy Options before. Buti nalang I mentioned it to her nalaman ko tuloy. Basta she is so helpful and I order from her every week. She couriers the goodies to me sa office. Anton loves the vanilla cookies as you can see from the pics below and I ADORE the crinkles. Thanks to Janise and her cousin who bakes these goodies I can satisfy my choco craving.

Mmmmm..... so good!

KIDDIE PARTIES

Here's a couple of kiddie parties Anton went to.

This was Ianina's 1st bday in Active Fun Macapagal. My pics here are really bad. Nangangapa pa sa bagong camera.

Anton loved this floor piano.

Watching the magic show

Anton had a blast in Active Fun. Pawis na pawis dahil walang tigil sila ni Daddy sa giant slide show.

This naman is Kimi's 1st bday in Chili's Greenhills.

Anton at first was not in the mood since he took his nap at 3pm and I woke him up at 330 kasi we have to go to the party. Bad mommy!

Ayaw talaga magpababa

Ang sama tuloy ng tingin sa bday girl.

Chili's setup

But after some time he started to have fun and dance pa. Anton has shown big improvements na. Even though he was inis he never shouted which he would do before. Now he is able to cope better with different situations :)

MRS. N

My sister is officially a Mrs. They got married in a courthouse in Arizona last Friday. My sister was telling me how she became all teary-eyed when she was reciting her vows while the groom was getting all the words wrong when all he had to do was repeat what the judge was saying. Comedy talaga my new brother-in-law. Here's a few pics of the lovely couple.

Her dress was inspired from this. It was made by our cousin, Enan Almando. I think it's gorgeous!

Can't wait for my sister's church wedding next year so that I can wear another gown by Enan :)

AT LAST CHIYO

I have been looking for a new stylist for some time now. I was a happy client of Angelo Justin since 1997 but after I gave birth I just couldn't keep up with the high maintenance cut he had been giving me the past 10 years. So I switched to Louis Kee of Razzle Dazzle. His first cut was really good then the second one was disappointing. So I went to Kei in Toni & Guy. Was raving about her cut on this blog then the next time I went to her she was gone, resigned from the salon. And guess where she went? To Basement in Rockwell where Angelo cuts. I couldn't go back to her naman. So the past 2 cuts I went to 2 different stylists in Toni & Guy and both were the worst cuts I had. The layers were not pantay it was really amateur.

Sorry ang haba ng intro. Anyway now came Chiyo. You can read all about her in Kelly's blog.

I had to wait a week to get an appointment but it was all worth it. Sei Salon is different from the usual salons I go to. They had an all-woman team. Only 2 stylists and 3 assistants. That's it. I guess they only have a few services to offer but I'm not sure since I didn't ask if they had mani-pedi etc. Chiyo was still cutting a client when I arrived so I had to wait pa. When she was done blowdrying her client she went over to me and touched my hair. I told her that I wanted to keep the length and the styling was up to her. She said I had nice hair daw. Yikes my hair was all over the place nga. After that I had my shampoo which was really relaxing. The girl took her time to shampoo and massage my scalp. Then the girl blowdried my hair and I got curious when she starting twirling my hair with her fingers. Para daw sumunod ang hair (I tried it myself the next day and it didn't turn out well). Now it's time for Chiyo to cut my hair. Her hands are super gaan and I just feel so at ease with her. She said that the back of my hair was very short so she had to chop off some of the length in front. She said that usually the first cut was like going to the ER. She fixes the cut first then maybe on the second visit we will do treatment. She was really very nice and when she was finished she reminded me to be back in 2 months. I also love the leave-on treatment she used on my hair but when I found out it's over P2k next time ko nalang sya bibilhin.

When I tried styling my hair the next day I noticed how different the bagsak is. The hair on the sides of my face is pumapasok which did not happen for a very long time. The back of my hair still flips out just like Chiyo said but it looks much tamer. The cuts I had before were very manipis since my former stylists would get rid of as much as hair as they can but with Chiyo's cut it was not that manipis. As she said it's in the cut. I can't wait for my second cut with her. For sure it will be much better pa.

BON VOYAGE MAMU

After months of getting visas from 3 embassies my mom is off to her trip. I only wish for her good health and a safe journey so that she can really enjoy her vacation. My mom has diabetes and high blood so when one is off she really gets weak. So weak that the last time it hit she was rushed to the ER in San Francisco and my uncle had to pay the hospital a lot since my mom didn't have insurance. So this time we bought insurance and I hope my mom won't have the need to use it. Bye Mamu! Anton and I will miss you so much!

MY NEW CAMERA

After ten years I've managed to upload the photos from my new Sony W120 camera. It is definitely different from my Canon Ixus so I need some time getting used to it. Parang Canon is like a Nokia phone that is so easy to use (or we are just so used to it) then you switch to a SE phone. I miss the small Canon charger, the organized way of uploading files and the fool-proof shooting. My Sony though it's a very old model already has a lot of buttons and settings. But I love the smile shutter and Anton loves the slideshow feature. Hope this camera sticks with me longer than my Canon.

By the way I bought this camera for only P8,500. Retail price is P16,999. A steal!

MINDORO PICS

Thanks to the Medrano twins I have a few Mindoro pics to upload.

The ship that ate my camera.

Aboard the Supercat. Anton's first boat ride.

Parang Beach Resort

Garden and cottages

The party venue - the resort's covered courts.

The birthday celebrant Tio Jun with the whole Priela clan.

KELLY MOMENT

Here is a picture of my Kelly moment. This was taken in my car after I had my haircut. I love my new stylist. But I love Kelly more for sharing her stylist. Can't wait to go back in 2 months.

GARAGE SALE

I had my first ever garage sale last Sunday at the QC Circle and I think it went pretty well. I had a lot of baby stuff (Anton's old stuff) plus my sister's size 1-2 clothes and I was able to sell 90% of my stuff :) Not bad eh?

I also loved it when my buyers already put on Anton's old hats and shoes and then they show it to me. Truly one man's old stuff is another man's treasure.

After the sale my body ached all over. I haven't felt that tired in a long time and I'm thinking my age is showing. Was only able to treat myself to a massage last night since Anton was demanding when I went home so I just couldn't leave him.

Thanks to Ting for organizing this sale. I'll definitely join another one soon.
(Photo credit: Ting)

PANIC BUYING

We just saw Dr. Dimalanta 3 days ago and because of his strict diet I've already had 2 major purchases yesterday and I'm not even done yet this week.

Before I even went to the office yesterday I dropped by the ISIP Center in Palma St. Rockwell to pick up the things I ordered the other day. I ordered frozen chicken (free range), a kilo of brown rice, and sayote. I also picked up wild honey, malunggay leaves and the last few pieces of eggs and bananas I saw there. My bill was P700+, it's mostly on the P300/k chicken. Everything in this place is organic but they have really few veggie choices. Talagang by order sya and medyo expensive sila. The organic eggs in SM Bonus are just P45 for 6 pieces compared to P10/pc in ISIP.

Then during my lunch break I went to Shang Mall. According to the files that Dr. Dimalanta gave me Rustans Fresh and Healthy Options in Shang are the best in town. I first went to the grocery and there were only 5 organic vegetables available - carrots, okra, sayote leaves, lettuce and brussel sprouts. The carrots I did not buy cos they cost P199. I was only able to buy Full of Grace sayote leaves and bottled guava juice which was affordable but both Anton and I didn't like the juice. It was sour so we had to put quite a lot of honey pa so nagiging expensive na sya. I'll be sticking to Earth's Best tetra pack juices nalang. The organic brown rice is also more affordable in Rustans. It's only P50+ per kilo compared to P62.50 in ISIP. Next time I'll buy the brown rice here. Since there were no organic fruits I settled for regualr fuji apples nalang. Anton really loves his fruits. After the grocery off I went to Healthy Options. It's my first time to visit that branch, I usually go to Megamall or Powerplant. It's a huge store, its double the size of their usual stores. I bought crackers, pasta and turkey sausage. My bill was just under P1,000.

Then this morning I saw the ad of Free Living Foods in Able Center while Anton was in class. I can't wait to visit this shop! GFCF cookies, bread and milk! It's almost too good to be true! And we are also scheduled to go to the Salcedo Market tomorrow morning. Need to get organic veggies for Anton. He can't live on sausages alone.

Gastos na naman ... can we go on spending like this?

MINDORO TRIP

We went to Calapan Mindoro last Saturday to attend the 75th birthday celebration of Neal's uncle. Tio Jun is also our ninong sa kasal so we just had to be there.

We wanted to take the 10:30 am Supercat trip so we left home at 7:30 am and fetched Neal's parents in Paranaque. The road trip was so fast thanks to Star Tollway. It's our first time to pass by the completed tollway and it just took us an hour to reach the Batangas pier from Paranaque. P60 very well spent. We arrived at the pier at 10 am but Supercat cancelled their 1030 am trip so we had no choice but to ride the 12:30 trip. The departure area was spacious enough for Anton to explore and there was a toy shop where we bought new toys to keep Anton busy.

The waves were quite strong on our boat ride so nahilo talaga kami. Anton was the only one unaffected by it. Super kulit pa din as usual. Buti nalang it was just an hour long ride.

We were fetched at the pier by a van from Parang Beach Resort which is owned by Papa's cousin. This is also where the party is going to be. The rooms and cottages are really nice and made with the best materials. The shoreline though is very short halos walang sand so Anton wasn't interested to swim sa beach. He was happy running in the gardens nalang.

The party started at about 7 pm and I was surprised that the attire was semi-formal. Gosh I only brough my havs with me hahaha! Feeling ko kasi resort so I didn't bring any shoes. Even Neal also just brought slippers kaya di din ako nagdala. Sabi nga ng cousin ni Neal dapat daw sa hotel nalang at di sa covered court ang venue kung semi formal pala.

We had fun though at the party. I was able to meet and see the talents of Tio Jun's whole family and friends from Calapan. Tio Jun owns a hospital there and even the doctors, staff and some of his senior citizen friends had a number for him. I also love that all his apos know how to play a musical instrument. As in pati sax meron pa. Talented talaga :)

The next day we went to mass at the Sto. Nino Church and went around the city. We took the 5 pm trip back to Batangas and it was a gentler ride. Thank God it was since Anton was already cranky.

We had dinner at Chowking along Star Tollway and that's when I found out that my camera was missing. I was playing the videos saved in it for Anton and I thought I put it in the diaper bag but hindi pala. It must have dropped and I did not have time to look back because I was carrying Anton.

Now I have to get the Mindoro photos from Neal's cousin para naman may copy ako. I'm not that much affected kasi naisip ko buti nalang yun ang nawala at hindi ang phone or wallet ko. The camera maybe more expensive but no hassle like getting a new sim card or getting new cards. I've already reported the loss to Supercat pero no news yet. Anyway I've already moved on. Already looking for a new one to buy :)

2ND VISIT

We had our 2nd visit with Anton's developmental pedia yesterday. It was not a good time since Anton just woke up from his siesta so he was irritable. He was crying while we were in the waiting area and he was leading us down the stairs. Gusto na umuwi.

To cut the story short, just like our first visit, Anton was crying the whole time. Dr. Dimalanta once again told us not to mind Anton, to just let him cry cos he will stop soon enough.

Did not happen. He was crying for 15 minutes. Then he stopped. Then he cried again. Best actor nga daw sabi ni Doc hahaha. But he did sort the shapes Doc gave him. A little improvement than last time.

Doc prescribed to him Arctic Cod Liver Oil which I bought from his clinic for P1,500 and he was put on a strict GFCF diet. Anton and I have been on this diet for 3 weeks now and Doc gave me new rules. White rice pala is not pwede because it's polished. It should be unpolished organic rice pala. And now I have to give Anton purely organic food, right up to the salt and pepper we use. Slowly but surely ... that's all I can say.

SLEEPING ANTON

Neal took these the other night. Sorry for the bad photos these were taken on my phone.

These were taken by me last night.

Cuteness! When I see him sleep this peacefully I fall in love all over again.