Planking

(Note: nakatuwaan ko lang sya picturan, she was actually pretending to sleep like that on the bench, hindi nakikiuso sa planking :p )

Reasoning Out

Last minor exam, Gabbie got -1 in her score because she did not include the toy teddy bear to the things that belong to a baby, despite teacher's instruction to include it. She said "It belongs to a kid, not babies." And that it is not in the book that they previously discussed and reviewed. I told her that she also has a teddy bear toy in her room (so she must be familiar with it) but she said "But I'm not a baby anymore!"

Yesterday, she got a "?" mark in her seatwork for not coloring the milk (teacher said color the pictures that begin with letter M) because "Milk is just white, mommy. I don't need to color it." I had to explain to the teacher that she knows that milk begins with letter M but she did not color it because she believed that milk is just white. The teacher kind of "forced" her to color the picture using any color but she only colored the bottle cap (tansan) not the entire bottle, because again, "Milk is just white."

(oo nga naman, we're talking about the milk inside the bottle, how can we color it? and if it's the bottle that we're talking about, then it is not correct to color it, because bottle begins with letter B, not M. vague talaga)

I'm beginning to think that Gabbie can not work in a government office in the future. Or that she would prefer to run her own business than to work for somebody else.

Or she could also be a lawyer?

Another series of "Why's"

Gabbie was asking me why the pinky finger is small and different. And why the other fingers are also different from one another. I told her each finger has its own use, and maybe Jesus made it smaller so that there will be a baby finger, just like a baby boy and a baby girl. I was running out of explanations.

And then last night she had some follow up questions

"Mommy, why do you have that (pointing to my mole)?
I said "Jesus gave me that."
"Why did Jesus give you that?"
"So I will be beautiful and unique."
"Why do you want to be unique?"
"Because each person is unique, no one is the same as the others."
"Why are we different?"


There were also series of questions about the rain and the sun and the storm.

"Why does it rain?"
"Why do plants need water?"
"Why do they need to grow?"
"Why do we need to eat vegetables?"
"Why do we need to grow strong?"
"Why does the sun hide in the night?"
"What is a storm?"
"Why is there a storm? What is it for?"

And the list of questions go on and on until it was already time to sleep.

Shower Party for Ate Gabbie & Rafa

As requested by their daddy, we're pushing thru with our planned Big Sister Shower for Ate Gabbie and Baby Shower for Rafa, but it's going to be just a simple gathering with the family, close friends and godparents-to-be.

Now I'm doing the layout for the tarp banner and thinking of souvenir/giveaways. :)

Shopping for Baby Rafa

Today we went to SM Megamall to check out the Kids' Warehouse Sale in Mega Trade Hall. There were A LOT of kids' clothes to choose from- different brands, different styles, different sizes. We did some shopping for Baby Rafa's clothes, and Gabbie got a jacket of her own. Gabbie was more excited than me because she was the one choosing everything for Rafa. She put everything in our basket as if they are all for free. But in the end, we just got some onesies, a shirt, a blouse, a dress and a set of mittens, boots and cap for our little baby.

Gabbie recites a Tagalog poem for Linggo ng Wika

Gabbie was included in the eight Nursery students who recited a Tagalog poem in solo during their school's Linggo ng Wika celebration.

Weeks before the event, the kids were given a copy of the poem. At first, Gabbie was very hesitant to practice the poem at home. But the teacher said they will have their own time to practice in school. They practiced "sabayang pagbigkas" for three consecutive Mondays.

At home we still tried our best to help her memorize the poem. I'd read it loud to her even if she pretended to not listening and even if she was watching cartoons during her free time.

Two days before the program, the kids did a rehearsal outside the classroom. We, parents and fetchers, were able to see them recite together. Seven kids, excluding Gabbie, practiced solo.

The next day, they did their final rehearsal and the kids used a microphone. After each kid, Gabbie would raise hand and say "Me!" The teacher gave her a chance to recite and to my surprise, she did well! At the end of the session, I was told that she'd be the eighth kid to recite in solo during the program proper.



I never thought that my daughter can recite a whole Tagalog poem that easy! Some said she was slang and "bulol" but we really didn't care. After all, she's just three and what's important is that she was not scared and shy to speak or perform in front of many people.

In celebration of Breastfeeding Month

While we were reviewing for Gabbie's lesson about "the things that are used by a baby"

Gabbie (pointing at the feeding bottle): Mommy, what is this?
Me: It's a milk bottle. The baby drinks milk from that.
Gabbie: Mommy, you have milk bottles too oh! (then she points at my breasts) You have two!
Me: Hahaha! Really?
Gabbie: Yes. This is how I drink milk from you oh (then pretends to breastfeed) and then Rafa will also do like that when she come out.

Gabbie was breastfed from birth to 22 months albeit only around 80 - 90%, because I worked on her first six months and there were not much support from the environment. Its ok; she may have experienced feeding from a bottle but she only remembers mommy's breasts as the baby's dede, not the bottles.

I'm looking forward to 100% breastfeeding Rafa this time, now that I am totally aware of the benefits of breastfeeding for the baby and the mommy :)

Star Pupil Award

Earlier today too we went to Ate Gabbie's school to get her school card. They didn't have classes, but the teachers talked to each parent upon giving the report card. When it was my turn, she began by saying "Congrats po mommy, may award po si Abby." I was like, "Ay talaga po, ang saya naman! Pati po sa Writing?" And then the teacher said "Opo, ok naman. Pero shempre kailangan pa i-improve." And then she handed me the report card with this certificate:

Yesterday when I saw the results of her first quarter exams, I was overjoyed. I kissed her in her forehead many many times. She asked "why kiss me many?" I told her because she did really good in her exams. She got 45 out of 45 in Reading, 45 out of 45 in Language, 60 out of 60 in Math and 33 out of 45 in Writing.

Honestly, even if she got 33 out of 45 in this major exam for Writing, we were not expecting that she'd get a high grade, at least for now, because in the second minor exam, she only scored 23 out of 40. But still she made it to the Star Pupil Awardees! I felt really proud of my daughter, I was teary-eyed when we went out of the school. Feeling first honor na!

I know this is just the beginning. But it is a very good start. And I know that this will serve as our inspiration to teach her and guide her and be patient with her especially in areas she needs to improve more.

Good job Ate Gabbie! And Thank You Lord for giving her the wisdom and for always guiding her in all her school work. You're the best! :)

Baby Rafa is a GIRL!

Last week we had an ultrasound to determine the gender of our second baby. Baby Rafa is a girl! Today we had the 3D scan and this is the first photo of the new princess in the house :)

It took us a few minutes to get clear shots. Baby Rafa was a little shy at first, she was covering her face with her feet! And when she moved her feet out, hands naman ang itinakip sa mukha. The sonologist asked me to lie sideways to position the cam right, but still nothing. Then we asked Gabbie to talk and sing some songs for Baby Rafa. And then Baby Rafa quickly moved and smiled and opened her eyes and moved her mouth like she was singing along with Ate Gabbie.

Such a lovely sight to see :)

Missing Daddy

Gabbie woke up from siesta one afternoon crying. I asked why and she said "because I want to go to daddy." But daddy was in the office. She kept crying and said "I just want to talk to my daddy." So I called daddy and they talked.

Daddy: Why are you crying?
Gabbie: Because I'm mad.
Daddy: Why? Are you happy or sad?
Gabbie: Sad, because I want you to come to my house.

She wanted daddy to come home already. She must have dreamed of daddy in her sleep or she just simply missed her daddy.