It's Been A Crazy Crazy Two Weeks!

Well, it's actually been a crazy month! We still haven't found a new yaya/helper and although we are doing okay, I really could use a rest. But nooooo... there's no rest for this momma! It's Y's first quarterly exam, she's only in Kinder, but their lessons are what I study when I was in Grade 1. Kaloka! Tutoring her is like going back to school, my Mandarin is rusty but it's a good thing I still remember what I learned. But it also doesn't help when Y can be a bit stubborn and she told me her teacher told her to clean her ears daw (Eh ano pa ba ibig sabihin non? Hahaha! Chikahan galore sa seatmate kaya walang pumasok sa ears! LOLz)

Then I'm also preparing stocks for Paper Chic Studio because we have moved in into a new home! Wuhooooo! Paper Chic Studio will be available at Common Room! Paper Chic Studio has been on a hiatus ever since Y started going to school. Roma and Maan of PopJunkLove are the brainchild of this new concept store which houses 34 crafters in one shop! And I've been running around like a headless chicken fixing my stocks and thinking of how to "style" my shelf because honestly, I didn't think it would this hard! I'm cramming!!! Aaahhhh....

With Y's exam and fixing my inventory, sourcing for props and thinking of how to style my shelf, I cannot adult!!! Seriously, my multi-tasking skills is not working. It's either that or there's too much tasks and it's making me hard to multi-task. Ang labo na! Haha! This post is mostly babbling, I just need to let this out because it's really making me crazy!!!

How's It Been Since I Resigned?

It's been a month and a half since I resigned. Feeling ko ang tagal tagal na. I haven't gone back to the office for my clearance! O diba? Can you spell B-U-S-Y? It's one reason why I don't blog as much. I'm still adjusting to this whole set up.

How do I feel? I've never been HAPPIER. I don't have Monday blues. I don't dread dressing up. I don't have to think about my baon or will I still get a parking spot outside for Php50 or do I have to spend Php130 for a whole day's parking at the basement. Am I going to be late again today? Or ano nanaman gagawin ko sa office today? Will I be able to debug and solve the error? No nothing! I get to stay at home with the kids. No alarm clocks. I work on my own time plus I get to be in PJs the whole day! No judging please!

While it's rewarding and nice feeling to be the boss of your own, I need some discipline in both business and personal aspect. I'm glad I attended this financial talk last Saturday which made me really think about a lot of things and also learned a few things on investments. Hindi pwede pasarap lang lagi!

One of my agenda is to revamp my blog's look. Make it look more "professional". I don't know who to go to for design but I'm already talking to a designer. Crossing my fingers! Samahan niyo ako ha!

Oh and another agenda is to blog about R's party! Hoping I get to do that next week... hmm. Sana! Plus I still have a few giveaways to run! Exciting diba??? Please do stay tuned for that!

Now I need to put little R to sleep! Ayaw matulog! The reason why I get to blog now but no photos hehe! Good night!!!

What's Up?

I really don't know how Mommy Fleur, Jackie and Patty do it! They get to blog regularly even with their busy schedules. My blog posts are all in the draft folder, one post can take up to 3 days! I want to write at night when the kids are asleep, but when my back hits the bed, wala na! I doze off to lala-land na!

So now I'm trying to write everything in a nutshell!

I'm trying to put on make up whenever I have events to attend or meet with clients. Parang mag mukha naman akong tao paminsan-minsan!

 

Went to have our family photos taken at BUB (will blog soon!) And Yukie looks like she's going to do the boogie!

Finally tried this. Nothing to fuss about.

Love the new Family Lounge at Greenbelt 5!

Went to a very yummy 1st birthday party of my inaanak. Decors pa lang bongga na. Love big parties because I can never throw a big party like that!                        

This is so much better than TJ! Yum yum yum! Thank you Lorena and Loreta for this!

Exchanged IG comments and a few iMessage, I sponsored some goodies to Alyanna Martinez's fitness party!

Cooked pancake one morning for the kids!

Collected the Hello Kitty Happy Meal in just a day. Yeah. Kaya ako mataba! Ahihihi

This Angus Beef Salpicao from Jam Foods is soooooo good!!! Rice please!

Had a great bazaar at Yummy Eats! We're the only non-food concessionaire!

Our next event! Come visit and vote us!!! :)

Mom Musings: On Being a Mom of 2, Being a WAHM and Quitting My Job

As much as I wanted to say my two kids are always kissing and hugging and there's no sibling rivalry, I can't. There are days I question myself if I'm doing my job as a mom in teaching my child how to be good to her sibling.

Y is a loving achi. She kisses and hugs R when she sees me doing it. She would take her shoti's fingers out of his mouth when she sees him feasting on his fingers. She would help her papa get all the things needed for his diaper change. She would help when we're giving shoti a bath although she's just playing with the water but you know she wants to help. She'll make gigil with his shoti but despite all those, I don't think she understands the whole concept of sharing yet. She gets territorial with everything, as in EVERYTHING, including me. Most of the time distraction works on her, add a little humor there, sometimes it doesn't work at all. Can I split myself into two? I feel guilty when I give more attention to one kid than the other. How do you do it?

Y is in her Terrible Two's. She screams if she doesn't get what she wants, either that or she cries agad. Is this normal for a 2 year old? Sometimes I fear she'll become one those kids who hits other kids (because she does it to me, her yaya, her amma) Do they understand what's wrong and what' not? I've tried talking to her but she'll just smile at me, cup my face and kiss me, how would I get mad? I admit I sometimes lose patience and snap at her. I feel bad every time this happens. I don't want to be a bad mom/parent.

Sometimes I wonder if it is me being a working mom that I don't get to spend more quality with my daughter, and hinders me from nurturing my child to the best of my capability and leaving the disciplining with the yaya (which isn't the case ha, hypothetically speaking). My husband stays at home but his hands are full from taking care of shoti (because we didn't hire a yaya anymore), that there are times when he can't look over Y. All of these things are really making think twice if I should quit the corporate world and be a WAHM/SAHM instead and be with the kids. I really want to be there for my kids in their formative years. Really. Now question is, why am I still not writing my resignation letter?

The Scary Mommy Manifesto

I saw this on Mommy Fleur's Pinterest and all I can say is AMEN! Motherhood is hard, each mom is different, each mom has their own ways of parenting, and you can't blame a mom if she feels like she's going crazy, not want to be around her child/ren and just want to have a me-time. Moms are not perfect, we're also human.

And with that, raise your right hands and repeat after me. CHAROT!

Source:
http://www.scarymommy.com/the-scary-mommy-manifesto/

My Family Makes Me Who I Am

I really feel blessed for my kids today. I never thought I'd have kids but the universe heard what I really wanted and gave them to  me. :)

This may not be the set-up I want to be in, a working mom, and sometimes I can't help but be a bit green with envy with my sisters (one is a housewife, while the other work-at-home mom) and they have all the time in the world to spend it with their kids. That's why weekend are sacred to me, even if I wanted to go out with my friends or just go to the mall, I chose to stay at home with them. No regrets.

I'm a wife, homemaker and a mom in progress. I don't know how other women juggle all these roles. And some doesn't have a nanny pa. My budgeting skills are nowhere near any of you, if you see my Excel file, it's empty. Haha! I wish the BOS and I can have more date nights instead. Ang lapit na ng Lucky Chinatown sa amin. No need to go to Makati for a date.

I've been busy with something. Finding my niche. Igniting my passion. I'm really hoping for the best. Crossing my fingers, legs, eyes, lahat na! LOL!

And at the end of the day, my inspiration, my family is still the one thing makes me who I am, makes me whole. There may be ups and downs, toddler meltdowns, baby colic, plus things really get crazy in this house, but it's the only place in the planet where I always want to be.

Just a Month Left

R is 7 weeks-old already and in 3 weeks I'll be back to work. So fast. It felt like I just gave birth last week. That only means I got 3 weeks to think and start something. A sideline, a business!


The BOS talked about this before I gave birth. But 3 weeks na lang and we haven't started anything yet. Well, there are potential suppliers but have yet to meet and see samples. It's all exciting but sometimes I get lost. Then all the excitement will pick up again after a week. Labo noh?


The last two weeks have been busy. Looking for suppliers, blog opportunities, a friend's baptism, kids's check up, DepEd Q&A. Not complaining but I'm wishing for something more. Basta yun!

Tick-Tock, I'm Almost About to Pop!

In about a week, I'll be giving birth to our baby boy, R. Excited? YES! Scared? YES! It has been a great pregnancy, just like my first, except the morning sickness and throwing up during the first trimester, but other than that, everything's GREAT!

Y will be an achi na next week. I don't know how she'll react when she sees the baby. I will surely miss spending time with her as I have to take care of the baby and nurse on demand. The Terrible Twos is really kicking in in high gear for Y, but we'll manage, I hope. Or I'll go crazier!

We're still yayaless. I already interviewed a potential one over the phone. I liked her, the only problem is I can't give her the same pay as her last employer. It's way over the budget :( I'm still hoping she'll somehow accept the job.

Hmm.. our house is still a mess. I won't go into details. Thinking about it is making me stressed. Hehe.. I hope by the weekend, some things would be more organized already. Still need to clean and wash the playard for the baby. I have yet to pack my hospital bag too!

Everything is overwhelming! The anticipated arrival of baby R, Y's reaction to her new baby brother plus the chaos it would cause, I really don't know what's going to happen once we're in the house! Exciting and crazy times!

Homeopathy

So lately, I've been reading about homeopathy. Y rarely gets sick but whenever she gets colds, cough or fever, I panic! I call her pedia and ask what meds to give her, but along with those worries is that I don't want my kid to take so much medicine/chemicals this young. I don't think their body can handle it and there are side effects. While I grew up with taking those medicine and they are effective, I'm now thinking twice about it.


I know some mom bloggers go to Dr. Cricket Chen, though her clinic is far from our part of the city. It doesn't hurt to visit. I really want to get rid or minimize the taking of medicines. The BOS is not a fan of drugs too. So, homeopathy, I shall do more reading about you!

Quick Update...

I got 2 posts on queue but one entry won't save.. Sucks!


Met with our new party planner, and it's looking good!


My yaya slipped in our laundry area. I don't know if it's serious so I told her to get an x-ray tomorrow. She has to rest, while me and hubby will have a family time with Y.


Not so much to be blogged about. But please do visit the blog carnival for this month! Check my post below!

One Month To Go.. One Year Ago..

I can't help but feel nostalgic and reminisce that one year ago, we were still living in a condo, I was pregnant with Y, I was busy buying things for the little unborn Y, had a maternity photo shoot and now she's eleven months turning one year old next month. Hay... how time flies!

And now three weeks into her birthday, with all the party preparations, I'm stressed. Well, not really. Just a bit. We got the invitations, cupcake labels, giveaway labels, some prizes.. Acckkk! This doesn't feels like a small party. Haha.. well, we invited just family and friends only. But we also got a host, face painting activity, dessert table (which I'm excited about!), nice decors, the whole shebang! Waahhh... I'm really excited!

With all these things happening, life has never been good! Y added so much life and happiness to our marriage, our family, and to our home! Love you, Y! Looking forward to more adventures and mishaps!

What I've Done to Promote Breastfeeding and Some Thoughts...

I was supposed to join this month's blog carnival but I got so busy that I only got the chance to write this now. Warning: This is a lengthy post!

When I first learned I was pregnant, breastfeeding was not the first thing that crossed my mind. I was so into reading what I have to eat/do to have a healthy pregnancy. Honestly, choosing to breastfeed or formula-feed did not cross my mind at all until my husband said that our baby should be breastfed, as he was breastfed.

Having no idea on breastfeeding, internet became my friend. I didn't know anyone who breastfed or was breastfeeding. I was the first one to get pregnant both in my family and circle of friends so I was on my own. I read Girltalk everyday in the office until it got BLOCKED (yes, I was on it the whole time I'm the office, of course while I'm not swamped)! Reading experiences from moms who did it inspired me and made me determined to do it for as long as I can! I actually learned about Fabnaima and Kellymom while reading the forum. I bought books and armed myself with all the knowledge I can absorb.

When I gave birth, my baby was latched to me for a few seconds right after delivery and while I was in the recovery room. I'm lucky that I was producing milk right away. But when she was roomed-in, she didn't sleep well the first night and I stayed up the whole night! She would latch then cry! My confidence on being able to breastfeed my baby went down the drain! The next day, I messaged Abbie Yabot if she could do a hospital visit and the rest was history!

Ten months into breastfeeding, I know I somehow promoted breastfeeding to my family and friends. Many are surprised/amazed that I'm still breastfeeding, some are cheering on and some are telling me to stop or supplement. I'm not blessed with a abundant milk supply but I thrive and sometimes I have to supplement when I'm having low milk supply.

I always tell my friends (pregnant or not, single or married) to breastfeed their baby. It's the best, it's natural and healthy, and very economical. The benefits for both mom and baby plus you lose weight fast! You can't beat that. Since all of them don't have kids yet, I feel that my only way to promote is to educate them about it. Find a breastfeeding-friendly hospital, breastfeeding advocate OB and pedia. One friend even laughed at me when I told her that I consulted a lactation counselor, she thought I was bluffing that there was such a profession/person. It might be awhile before my friends will have babies but when that time comes, hopefully my being "makulit" on breastfeeding, they will decide to do it.

With my family it's different, we were all formula fed. That's why when I decided to breastfeed, it was alien to them. They would tell me to supplement, wean her all together and have her start drinking formula just because she's lean. But eventually they stopped with all the advices and encouraged my younger sister to breastfeed when she gave birth. I was really happy that she decided to breastfeed but she was traumatized by her sore nipple. I really tried my best to encourage and inspire her to breastfeed. I bought her Mommy Treats, gave her my Medela Lanolin Cream, offered Abbie's services (she was there when Abbie visited me in the hospital) but she gave up. Now my older sister is pregnant, I'm lending her my breastfeeding books. She has friends who breastfed. She saw me breastfeed. She probably knows few things about breastfeeding but I plan to take her to LLL meetings so she'd be more exposed to information and hear from other mom's experience.

In my office, I'm the only one breastfeeding and pumping. I've heard stories of other moms who did breastfeed and pump. Some gave up, The others I don't know the story. But if they would ask me to do a talk about breastfeeding, I'd be happy to do it. Although I'm not an expert, I'd gladly tell them about my experience, and some basic knowledge.

I, myself, can't promote breastfeeding all alone. I'm glad there are blogs and forums that I can just go and read but what about other women and families who doesn't know anything about breastfeeding? We all know that the Philippines is influenced so much by showbiz and celebrities. With all the big star celebrities endorsing formula, people would really be enticed to buy them. I hope these big stars would rather promote breastfeeding rather than be blinded by the big bucks these milk companies are offering! I remembered one of Daphne's tweet, something like she would rather earn money from her brands (Daphne Linens and Furniture) than from formula milk endorsements. I really hope that a private company would support the government in promoting breastfeeding and launch a big campaign! Billboards on EDSA, SLEX, NLEX, C5! I really do hope to see some actions in the near future...



I have mixed thoughts kaya sorry if this is all magulo..

Finding My Passion... AGAIN

Note before reading: This might be a boring post as I'm going to talk about myself. Skip this post if you don't want to get bored by me or my job.

I think I'm having a mid-life career crisis. YES you read that right.
I want to be a stay-at-home mom, I want to have my own business, I want to do what I love.. that means finding my passion.. AGAIN.

I used to have/own a multiply store, a very successful one at that, maybe five years ago. I was selling clothes, shoes, accessories. Then I got a job, I was a fresh graduate. Thinking that I should put my degree into use, I took the job, I stopped selling. I had no time to restock, work took over my online shop.

Five years and two jobs later, here I am. Many times I was asked during job interviews, how do I see myself in five years. None of my answers I am now. Maybe it's a sign for me to move on to better things.  I missed having an online shop. I miss being my own boss. I gained friends from shoppers/buyers. I miss being busy taking pictures, packing stuff for shipping. Yes I was happy doing those. Maybe I missed being busy running around, buying stuff to sell... Maybe I'm bored sitting down for nine hours in front of a monitor doing this programming/debugging/testing stuff. I feel my brain cells are dying from my work.

Photography is one of my passions too. Got it from my dad. I take good portraits. I considered going professional but I lost that passion too. I still like taking pictures, I hope I find my way back to photography.

So here I am, finding my passion again. Rone's Brand Me Talk got me into thinking. If I want to be my own boss, I have to start right now. I've got so many ideas that I want to work on. But everyday when I got home from work, I just want to rest my brain and my body. I want to free myself from that.

Mid-life crisis, itdatchu?