puzzles: the toy that iñigo loves and mommy likes best for him

iñigo's love for this toy started when he found three 12-pc puzzles in the lootbag he got during the li'l hands fun day november of last year. he was pleased with what he can do with this toy and using the rules we taught him on how he can build it faster, he finished them off in less than a minute per puzzle. i was more than happy with this toy as it also introduced him to concepts of "corner" and "edge" and it also developed his critical thinking and more importantly... patience! hahaha. there were times i would hear him whine and complain that he can't put the pieces together but i'd just let him be and in a while, i'd already see him running to me proudly showing the puzzle he built all by himself.

one of iñigo's first puzzles, a 12-pc.

but iñigo had been playing with it for the nth time and i thought he must have already memorized the pieces and its exact location in the board so i thought of buying him more... as i want to challenge him. bad mommy! =D we upgraded to 15 and 18-pc. puzzles and again after some time of playing with these toys, i bought more and we moved up to 24-pc. puzzles just like the one below.

he was able to build this for the first time in just less than a minute

the last puzzle i bought for him is a 28-pc dinosaurs puzzle. it was quite difficult as i've also tried it myself (took me more than two minutes--shame! hehe.) but with the rules already on top of his head, iñigo had beaten mommy and built it in only less than two minutes!

"no sweat, mommy!"

time now to upgrade to 30+ pieces... =)

 

 

homeschooling iñigo: start of our endeavor

it's already the month of june and while other parents are sending off their kids to school almost everyday, i take 30 minutes of iñigo’s play time, may it be in the afternoon or in the evening, and tell him, “we will do something…” or “you will learn something...” the kiddo has really no idea of what we are doing and for him it’s just like another play. he also looks forward to this time that he can use his crayons, activity books that i was able to buy in the local bookstores, and other media for learning. our set-up is very informal, unstructured, flexible… i don’t even follow a particular curriculum right now as i feel there’s no need yet. i teach what i think he needs to learn as of the moment, not being pressured that other kids are already starting to do this and that; and i teach what i think he is very much interested on that’s why teaching him about baby animals was a breeze as he’s really into animals and nature. he was able to differentiate the coconut tree and banana tree among other trees as soon as he turned two.

but i also slowly introduce him into letters and numbers, aside from the basic concepts. he has also now mastered drawing a straight line and a round shape, not as crude as they were weeks ago.

 

my only goal for this year or school year is for him to get familiarized with our homeschooling routine and hopefully, he'll get used to sitting down for 30-minutes to an hour everyday so that when by next year and we are already subscribed in a particular curriculum it’s easier for me to teach him more serious stuff. it’s still hard to teach someone in his terrible two so am taking it easy right now. i also like to develop his zeal for learning and that the initiative to "sit and study" would not come from me but from him. 

 

i was teaching him the sequence of the letters

proud of his accomplishment

working on his activity book

he was a good pupil here as he followed mommy's instructions =P

learning the vowels thru his activity book and magnetic letters

btw, if you're curious on what activity books am using right now for iñigo it's the little genius and easy to learn (ETL) books series which we bought from powerbooks (one of iñigo's favorite stores these days as we're able to read other books for free. hehe). each only costs php 60.00 to php 65.00. it's really for preschoolers as their target age range is from three to four or five years old. i also bought some imported activity books in booksale which i find useful in the coming months.

it's a baby boy again!

i just had my ultrasound today and since jude and i can't wait to know our baby's gender until the D-day, the first thing i asked from the sonologist is if our baby is a boy or a girl and i was amused with the sonologist's answer after checking the genital part, "it's a boy! ayan o... kitang-kita yung betlog." hahaha. he's really one of my boys...! =P

so it's not yet time for us to have a baby girl (am i giving hints? hehe). but am happy with the fact that he and kuya iñigo will be playmates two to three years from now and i can already see that it's gonna be a riot everyday in our house. for jude, it's gonna be tipid! kuripot talaga! haha. but i was quick to tell him that i won't recycle iñigo's clothes and shoes as much as possible, except probably for the everyday clothes.

we are more excited now that we already know the gender of our second baby. i thought it's already a girl, not because it's our preference, but this pregnancy is a lot different than during my time with iñigo. but then, we also had hints that it's gonna be a boy. it's probably why i can't dispose yet some of iñigo's things that he seldom used and why i was semi-pushing jude to buy another ride-on car we saw in a thrift shop last weekend. i had a strong feeling that it's going to be useful, not only for iñigo but also for the next baby.

 

 

iñigo as the bible bearer... but sans the bible =D

iñigo was "recruited" to be the bible bearer in my second-cousin's wedding in novaliches sometime in april. since the wedding was scheduled ten in the morning, it's not surprising that we arrived one hour late and iñigo was not able to join the processional... may this serve as a warning for those plan to invite us on their occasions. =)

since there's nothing for him to do when we arrived and he was excited to see his cousins, he just kept himself busy inside the church by playing with them...

btw, my ate was laughing hard when she first saw him as his pants was already bitin and it was obvious that he was not wearing any socks. blame it on the mommy who was still in her extended lihi stage that time and was so lazy to prepare the things he needed for the wedding beforehand. it's only that morning that i realized the black pants and black shoes which he first wore in his ninong an's wedding six months ago were already short for him (kids really grow up so fast!). i just asked one of my cousins to buy him a pair of socks in the nearest convenience store, which should be sheer enough to let iñigo's feet fit in the shoes. my cousin went back to the church with white socks.

...with his ate rhea

shortly after we arrived the members of the entourage were called to go to the front and we were happy to see iñigo behaving well again and readily flashing his trademark peace sign... the one which always covers his face in the pictures. =)

 

and when it's time for the recessional part, he did his best to walk alone...

but guess what he's holding in his hands? it's definitely not a bible... =)

this picture was taken during the reception, throwing of the bouquet part... guess what the little boy did in front of the crowd?

iñigo stealing the moment from the bride as he was showing his jollibee dance steps =D

 

he'll turn 3 years old soon =D

only one month to go and iñigo’s going to blow another birthday candle, though the blowing would happen three days later as we’ll have the celebration on the 11^{th of} july instead... cakes are expensive these days so he’ll just have one cake… i-explain ba? hehe.

since it’s been months already that i made an update of his developments i think i should make one now before he turns three for posterity’s sake.

 

mental aptitude and communication skills

 

• he’s ready for school but we opted to teach him at home first and so far, so good as i didn’t have a hard time teaching him as he’s a fast-learner (walang kokontra sa mommy! hehe). he knows to recite the alphabet and identify the letters, count from one to fifteen in english and uno to diez in spanish… thanks to dora for prompting me to teach him the latter; identify the numbers, and count things he see around and tell how many they are.

• he loves to know more about animals and can name most of them, even those that don’t exist in this country but sees them in books. he can also name some of the young animals such as the puppy, kitten, duckling, chick, piglet, calf, foal, tadpole, kid, cub, caterpillar, and joey.

• learning the basic shapes come so fast for him and there was even a time that he was addicted to round shapes as he’d call our attention whenever he saw one that is shaped as round. it’s the colors that he had a difficult time of learning except for black and white and up to this date, he’s still having a hard time with color “red”. but i know he’s just taking his time. i’m already past the stage where i was afraid that my son is color-blind. hehe.

• he’s now becoming adept with the english language and knows when to pluralize a noun like “many houses”, “two feet”; he also knows when to use the past tense of some verbs like “rode” and “drank”. it’s his tagalog that sounds funny, it’s barok-style, so i plan to read him books in tagalog like those adarna books recommended by some mommies so he’d also use this language fluently.

physical development

• i wonder about his actual weight right now but when we went to his doctor last january for his shot he was already weighing 15 kilos then, almost perfect for his age as said by his doctor. and mind you, he’s getting heavier and heavier every week and jude now is complaining of how his back is aching every time he carries iñigo.

• what am most happy about is iñigo’s health is continuously doing well and except for the runny nose brought by his allergy last cold december, he had been sick-free since he turned two. we had nothing to worry about when it comes to his health and i hope and pray that he remains healthy.

• but i think i have to pay more attention now to his eating habits as the little boy is starting to become picky… thank god he still eats veggies! his mealtime would also be cut short by playing unless he’s really hungry.

• he’s also becoming more athletic. i saw him one time climbing a wall inside a play area in glorietta and i was surprised to see that he could do that as the other kids who played in the same wall were about 5-7 years old. he’s also showing interests in some sports like soccer and tennis (gaya-gaya kay maisy, hehe) and he’s now not afraid of swimming. =D

toilet training

• iñigo has improved as he now aims for the toilet bowl when he pees, flushes it after peeing, and washes his hands in the lavatory. jude was so proud of his son when he saw him doing this… and can’t believe he has a son who has toilet manners. bwahaha!

• unfortunately, he still poops in his diaper. we tried many times to let him sit on the toilet bowl and let that thingy fall down with matching cajoles to iñigo but all of these attempts were not successful (umuurong ‘ata… hehe).

behavior

• is it because he knows there’s another baby coming soon or he just misses our nursing moments that every time he drinks his milk he’ll cry and insist that I carry him on my lap and hold him like a baby as he’d even recline his body and let my right arm catch his head and that i should utter this: “ang baby ko… ang baby ko…” haaaay, he’s pa-baby lately and i have few clues on where it’s coming from. =(

• but my heart leaps when I hear him saying “please” and “thank you” especially when it’s “thank you, mommy,” after i prepared his milk or fixed his toy. ang babaw…! hehe.

• male hormones is definitely kicking in his body as he’s crazy over heavy equipment like tractors, bulldozers, big automobiles, machines, etc. his eyes open wide when he sees one and he even dreams that his daddy will also have a big car like tito dylan’s land cruiser (ang taas mangarap!). i remember being troubled about iñigo’s liking over girly stuffs but now i know it was just a phase. =D

• i mentioned about assertiveness (read: kakulitan) and the little boy has a high point on this. he also becomes uber-naughty especially when we’re in the mall that’s why malling with him is no longer an enjoyable thing for me. i always find myself playing tug-of-war with him especially when he sees a toy or anything fancy. for disciplining, time-out works sometimes with him but i also now use spanking, just the threat that i will get the hanger already freezes him.

it seems that iñigo is not yet finished with being a “terrible two” and instead will just upgrade to terrible-R three… wait i think i already said this when he turned two. okay… then i hope it’s only terrible-ST three and he’ll mellow at the age of four. please, lord? =P

 

iñigo during the li'l hands club fun day in megamall last 31st of may.

the camera didn't catch him scratching his tummy while watching the mascots...

hay, bata-batuta na talaga... =D

hope to upload more of his recent pix soon... i mean later... hehe.

on living on our own: my message to you, my friends.

i was exchanging emails with two of my friends lately and was giving advices on whether they should stay with their in-laws or move out, as they were asking. one friend will be marrying her long-time boyfriend near the end of this year and is in a dilemma now whether she will agree with her fiancé that they will live first in his parents’  house so they can build their coffer first before they live separately, hopefully in a house of their own. while another friend currently shares the house with her in-laws until now and after some years of being together under one roof, the relationship she has with them turned from sweet to bitter.

and timing it was that while i’m doing this post, another thread about living with in-laws brewed up in the forum i belong with and i can’t help but smile while reading the replies of the other members.

i know there’s no perfect living arrangement as living with or without the parents or in-laws has its own pros and cons. but for me, and hopefully for jude =p, our decision to live outside the turf of our parents has been one of the wisest decisions we’ve ever made. yes, it’s true that there’s an extended support system when you live with or near the parents like someone can watch over the kids in your absence or help you inside the house when you need an extra hand, etc. but jude and i were able to survive without this even through our most difficult times. it was hard and taxing but with a little creativity and an additional pound of patience, we managed to resolve these problems with little assistance from our folks. and look… we’re still alive! =D

i just strongly feel that the benefits of living on our own still outweigh the disadvantages that’s why i would never give this up. i can only cite one advantage of being in an extended family which i have already mentioned above but for the life we chose, i can tell a lot.

he’s the king and i’m the only queen of our house. we have heard of this statement before, “sa bahay isa lang dapat ang reyna” and i have the right to validate it. one of the best things i like about our living arrangement is i can give my rules inside the house with jude as my only consultant and critic, i can sleep and wake up whenever i want, i can cook whatever my palate desires, i can clean or not the house depending on my mood, i can go out and bring my kid with me as far as my heart desires (and no one makes simangot, hehe), etc. unlike when i’m in another’s house it’s me who has to follow the rules and make adjustments in order to live harmoniously with its owners.

we are in control of our parenting styles. i know grandparents can be spoilers to their apos (my mother is) and can be critics of our parenting styles. another advantage of our living arrangement right now is we’re the only one who decides on how we’re going to rear or raise our kid and we can use disciplinary measures that we wanted without considering the opinion of the others. it irks me most when someone comments on my mothering skills especially on trivial matters so it’s best that we (me and my son) shun away from the public eye. =)

let me tell you a story: jude has a barkada from don bosco whose wife and sons live with his parents and siblings under one roof--chaos! one time, his wife (who’s also now my friend that’s why I learned about her story) spanked his eldest with a broom stick which made the poor boy cry out loud enough to be heard by the lola who immediately went up to where they were and scolded his daughter-in-law for her violence. my friend who also happens to be a maldita (hehe; she knows it) spoke up in a way that earned the wrath of her mother-in-law. to cut the story short, my friend is now the villain in that house as even her father and siblings-in-law no longer speak with her. i told this story to jude and pointed out the mistake of his friend’s mother as she should have spoken first to her son if she doesn’t agree with her DIL’s disciplining style and not scold her in front of the kid. that’s what respect means… but in the ending of our discussion, i opined that that incident wouldn’t happen in the first place if they live outside that house… agree?

we were forced have a house of our own. if you want to live separately and you think that you’re wasting money on rentals, you have the biggest motivation to have your own house early on in your married life. you’ll be more disciplined with the way you handle your income and you think big when it comes to savings so you can pay the monthly amortization. it’s what happened to us. i forced jude that we have a house of our own and made magic with our budget. haha. it's hard and we really have to stick with the essentials and just some wants. but look at us now... within our three years of marriage, we are already proud owners of a house and lot while others are still dreaming of it. no offense meant to others, but i really think that others are still complacent of living with their parents or in-laws as they still enjoy the free lodging.

we have our privacy. imagine if am the nagging type of wife or jude and i will go into a verbal tussle and my parents or his parents will hear us from the other room? que horror! with just having jude and iñigo, and sometimes a househelp, inside our house, i don’t have to screen my words and actions… even our clothing… so as to put an image that is not me.

it made us tougher and more ready for the world. since we only depend on each other inside the house, may it be house chores or bigger matters, jude and i carried all the responsibilities all by ourselves which honed us to be more mature and resilient now. as jude told me one time after a very busy day, he can already migrate abroad with just me and iñigo. =)

i believe in the saying that “familiarity breeds contempt”. enough said…

this post has gone too long.  i just want to tell my friends that marriage is complicated enough so don’t complicate it further by having too many things to mind or worry about. zero in on what you’ve promised to each other and to God when you took your vow: you’ll commit your lifetime to your spouse and your kid/s. PERIOD. God probably knows that we can’t serve both our parents and our own family at the same time and with the same passion that’s why even the scripture says that we leave our parents as soon as we marry. there’s nothing wrong with living on our own…. it’s even one of the bests that you can give to your family, i think.

embracing SAHM-hood

i already left the work force since sunday… yes, sunday, 31^st of may, since my company still had an event that day in megamall and i was expected to be there. but starting yesterday, i am already a full-fledged stay-at-home mom and a full-time homemaker, a noble job because it’s a 24 hour job but without any pay. but still, i took the plunge.

 

i can say that this decision was backed up with a lot of courage and some of you may know that this was long overdue. i wanted to resign even early this year but i could not as we’re not yet ready then and i was not also allowed by my boss. but pregnancy came and i had more reasons to leave my work and concentrate first on my number one duty, which is to take care of my kids (iñigo and the baby inside me). aside from that is my failure until now to find a full-time helper and/or nanny though am not really interested to find one, hehe, still praning to leave over iñigo with just a stranger. and am not a superwoman, i cannot juggle parenting, house chores, and work without feeling dead-tired every night.

 

but i know it’s not a popular decision as the trend nowadays is both the husband and the wife are working. i always had to explain to my boss who happened to be working mom why i wanted to stop working for the meantime. i had to tell her that it would not make me less of a woman if i ask money for a lipstick from a husband. there were also those who raised their brows or sighed in disapproval over my decision as they were afraid that i’ll just be another dependent of jude but i didn’t mind. the husband’s role is to provide anyway and though society now dictates that the wife should also earn money an unemployed wife doesn’t mean she’s the lazy, incompetent, and good-for-nothing wife. damn… why do i have to tell all these??? hahaha.

 

oh, i’ll just rest with the fact that this decision is a mutual decision between me and jude.

 

my father was not also keen on the idea that i just stay at home as i could no longer use what i learned from school. i get his sentiments as he and my mother really made an extra effort to send me to good schools and i even had an mba degree to boot. but as i’ve said, this is only temporary and i hope when the time comes that am ready to work again the corporate world will still take me in. but if not, i would gladly accept my fate and find something worthwhile (and hopefully lucrative too) to do in other fields. my life doesn’t stop with having an 8-5 job.

soon-to-be irrelevant

it was two saturdays ago when we dipped again in the pool but this time we were with the family of dylan, jude’s bestfriend. after serving as iñigo’s lifeguard for one hour or so, i asked one of the girls of dylan, hannah, to replace me while i swim in the bigger pool for a few minutes.  but it didn’t take long and i went back to the kiddie pool as i saw iñigo, without his floaters on, swimming alone (and enjoying his new learned skill!) while hannah who took fun of teaching him how to swim was a feet away—horrors! i immediately grabbed his torso as soon as i reached him but to my dismay iñigo shoved me and cried, “go to other side (of the pool), mommy!” the little boy wanted me to get back to my own business as i interfere with his’! i told this story to jude who wasn’t in the pool area that time and both of us laughed about it. but i took this incident seriously and marked it as a sign that my son is now starting to build his own world. *sniffs*

 

i should be happy and mighty proud that at his age iñigo can already and would insist to do most of the things on his own. we’d often hear him now saying, “iñigo/me only!” whenever there’s a task to be done, and he’s also quick to remind us whenever we get in his way as he’d say, “no! (on) my own!” he really feels he’s a big boy now and thinks that all things are possible without my or his daddy’s help. and because of this milestone that i now feel am becoming irrelevant for my son. if not for the hugs he asks before he goes to sleep at night i would already tender my resignation to jude as the mom of his son. hahaha.

 

but i still wonder why iñigo never fails to ask me for “help, please?” when it’s time to keep his toys away. hehe.

 

iñigo in one of his fish-feeding moments in greenbelt. he feels it's his task to feed the fish everyday =)