My Mommyology

Learning from Motherhood.

August 22, 2011
by mymommyology
4 Comments

Proud Momma Moment

My Mommyology Kumon Honor Certificate

I will FRAME this!

The other day at Kumon the owner of the center Mr. Jiming handed me a cute little certificate showing that Sam was on his Math honor roll.  He proceeded to point out that she was on the announcement board along with the some of the other students, and that it publicly showed she ranked #223 out of 776 kids across North America.

Of course I looked at the certificate like I had just won the lotto.  Maybe this is how parents feel when their kids bring home high grades and medals.  I swear I couldn’t believe that she already had something with her name and the phrase “honor roll” beside it, even before she turned 3 years old.  Now granted that she isn’t competing in the next junior math olympics (and that is no where near any goal or objective I have for her) and all it means is that at her age she has no trouble counting to 100 — it still felt like a big deal.  Well — it is a big deal to me! 🙂

The funny thing was that when she came out and I showed it to her, she was so happy too — “Oh look!  A sticker with popsicles!” and proceeded to remove it and stick and re-stick it all over her shirt.  “I want to eat a popsicle now!”

I realized then that certificates like these are mostly for the parents like me — a re-affirmation that I am doing something right.  It probably didn’t even have to say honor roll, just “passed” for me to breathe a sigh of relief that our diligence and patience was paying off.  For the kids, it’s about the the joy of learning, which if you think about it, is as it should be for any person at any age.

My husband offered Sam a prize for doing well.  He said she could have anything she wanted and she asked for a puppy (I don’t know where she got this idea of wanting a red puppy but it’s been going on for the past few days).  Of course he wasn’t about to buy her one for learning to count to 100.  We’d have to pace our rewards; what happens when she can divide, does that mean a trip to Europe?  A house?!  In any case I was able to salvage the situation and deflect the idea of receiving a prize.  I also realized that this might set a precedent for the future when she develops a “do well and I’ll get a reward” mentality and will start to do things for that reason.  As Jiming said, at this age she should just want to do it and should have fun doing so.

I always make it a point to ask Sam when during the day she wants to do her Kumon.  Inasmuch as I would like her to get into the habit of doing it before she plays, sometimes I find it easier to allow her to dictate her schedule so that she is more committed to finishing faster.  Doing Kumon everyday is work, but at least in that way, it is also still fun and somehow a part of her “play”.  Of course while I commend her for a job well done, I also try to show her that it’s just one of the many things everyday things we need to accomplish.  Hopefully she does not feel my insides doing the dance of joy or hear the majestic Halleluia playing in my head.

August 20, 2011
by mymommyology
1 Comment

The Happy Meal Toy Invasion

My Mommyology Happy Meal Toys

Sam's little Happy Meal family so far minus the Zooble who is MIA.

I believe we have reached that age when Happy Meals (and their contents) have become a part of our most recent trips to the Golden Arches.  My husband is and has always been a McDonald’s fan, and so of course on one of his dates with Sam, that’s where they ate.  Ever since then Sam has once in a while asked to eat chicken nuggets at Old McDonald to “get a new toy”.

So far the ones that we’ve gotten are actually not bad quality for a $3 meal.  Now her little box of knick knacks include the ones you see above, also opening up her world to all these new characters that I have not bothered to introduce to her before.  She creates little stories with them, starts conversations with them and pretends that they are all one little happy family that can play with balls and Play-Doh.  Once in a while, they all go to bed with her along with several of her other stuffed dolls and get lost amongst the pillows.

You’d have to admit though that while the meal isn’t always the best choice health-wise (but she’s a kid, how much harm can 4 pieces of chicken nuggets do in the grander scheme of things?), it does seem to be sparking the imaginative chords in that little brain of hers.

I can’t complain.  Strawberry Shortcake, Master Wushu and Smurfette all seem to be getting along fine too!

August 18, 2011
by mymommyology
3 Comments

Au Revoir to Chicken

My Mommyology Chicken

Until Next Year...

To all the poultry that graces my diet,

Alas.  We find ourselves down this road once again where we must part ways — even for just a little bit.

I still remember the itchy-scratchy years when I could not enjoy having you in my digestive system. The rashes that would appear each time weren’t the most comfortable moments to say the least.  And to think, you taste sooo goood with the Manila version of KFC (thank the gravy!), our favorite instant office lunch option.  You in Chicken Inasal style too is and forever will be a temptation (with sago and gulaman no less!).

I sometimes was able to endure days where I would just give in and have you on my plate, and subsequently treat the consequences with topical anti-itch creams, steroid medications and anti-histamine pills that would mix up my days and nights.

But you see, now it isn’t just about me anymore.  Based on the last few weeks of ingestion and observation, it appears that you and Jamie aren’t getting along either.  There are red splotches scattered across her squishable little body a few hours after she takes her milk from me.  What can I say, like mother like daughter eh?

While a part of me feels I should take little bits at a time to desensitize her, she still can’t tell me if she’s itchy or not, and remembering so vividly still how uncomfortable I felt once upon a time, I wouldn’t want to put her through that at this young an age.  We’d have to wait until she can say a little bit more than Mama and can tell me how she’s feeling.

So my dear feathery friend… it’ll be another year until we cross paths (depending on how much longer we can sustain the breastfeeding).  And I will miss you, really I will.  In the meantime, I will make good friends with your fellow animals the Pig, the Fish and the Cow (I am sorry Chick-Fil-A Cow)!

Ahhh… such is the life of a breastfeeding mom ey?  We do what we gotta do.

For poultry and eggs that you may want to enjoy, do read about them in the adventures of Max and his chickens in the soon-to-be international bestseller Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto!

August 16, 2011
by mymommyology
7 Comments

My Mommyology Recommends: Before Ever After, by Samantha Sotto

My Mommyology Before Ever After

It's that kind of book you want to keep a copy of. I hope to get mine signed soon! 😉

Even before I actually read the book Before Ever After, I had already become (I am) a fan of Samantha Sotto.  How can you not be, when you hear her story and how she produced this novel?

Sam (I hope you don’t mind me calling you that! :)) and I have never really met, although I do feel now more than ever that we have so many people in common we might have even found ourselves in the same room at one point in time and didn’t even know it then (After reading through your acknowledgements page Sam, I realized there were more than I thought!).  So for now we are virtual friends, but I do sincerely hope that it will all change soon.

From all that I’ve read and heard from our many common friends, this is what I know to be her fairytale come true:  When Sam decided to leave the corporate world and become a full-time mom, she started writing this book.  Everyday as her son entered Kindergarten, she would park herself in the coffee shop across the street from his school to save on gas and time from commuting to and from home (which in Manila, while it is really only a few kilometers, with the traffic and the tolls, it feels like a million miles away) and write.  Eventually she bought a 2nd hand “Guide to Publishing”, made a few edits here and there, and in the blink of an eye, Crown Publishing picked it up.  She is officially the first Filipino to be published internationally.

Now here it is, 3 weeks into the launch (Philippine readers, you’ve had it since July 26!) and thousands of radio interviews, blog posts and reviews later — and from what I’m reading from various unrelated sources, it is on its way to becoming the next international best-seller.  Way to go Sam!

So I had all this great hype and information before my pre-ordered copy arrived last August 2.  With all the excitement, the book trailer, and the launch in the Philippines , I could not wait to read it.

Now weeks after I did finally finish it (my husband used to say that I “devoured” books, but ever since my two precious ones that demand my attention and free time, I think the devouring has turned into something similar to “grazing”), I am left pleasantly speechless!

The book for me is incredibly well-written and it is an easy read, in spite of the many “characters”  involved and the way it takes you back through time.  I’ve seen reviews that say it is similar to The Time Traveler’s Wife, and I can see how Sam used it as an inspiration for her book.  But Before Ever After is more unique than anything I’ve ever read and there are so many good reasons why.  Imagine a love story that is also part fantasy, set in modern times, and in Europe no less.  Even if you’ve never been to the stops on the Slight Detour, you can actually picture them all from how well Sam describes them.  It’s a look at Europe from a different perspective.  While there are so many facets and elements to the story, it all builds onto the other and makes perfect cohesive sense in the end, so it is impossible to get lost.  It is humorous and witty, refreshing yet deeply insightful.

The other part that leaves me in awe is also how well marketed the book is.  Everything looks and feels thought-through (and I’m sure that it’s all very deliberate!), down to the rough-cut edges of the hardbound’s pages (packaging is important!), all the way to the details on the website and the blog.  The pre-hype and the continued advertising and PR that is being done today make it all feel  larger than life (That is a phrase my boss in a previous life used a lot to signify when a campaign was a success).

I think best of all, no matter how big and successful Before Ever After is becoming, Sam is still able to keep it all very personal.  I don’t know how she does it but she manages to reply to every single Tweet, Facebook post or blog comment that you send her in spite of her hectic schedule!  It’s amazing.

To Sam, congratulations once again from the bottom of my Chapel Hill heart!  You are truly an inspiration to all of us and have proven that cups of coffee can indeed make dreams come true! 🙂  I hear that book #2 is underway and so I have one question:  Where do I pre-order? 🙂

If you haven’t gotten your copy of Before Ever After yet, you can order it now from Amazon or from any of the distribution channels listed in Sam’s site.  And if you’ve already read it, what do you think of it? 🙂

August 14, 2011
by mymommyology
4 Comments

Our Workout at the North Carolina Zoo

Pop Quiz:  What happens when you maneuver (or juggle?) a toddler, an infant, their belongings, a double-stroller, a camera and a video-phone to the North Carolina Zoo on a hot summer Sunday?

Answer:  You get your week’s worth of exercise.  (I therefore conclude that my purchase and consumption of half a bag of mini-chocolates is justified. Oh who am I kidding?!)

You start by scanning the 5-mile walking terrain and planning your route.

My Mommyology Map of NC Zoo

The brochure says, "plan to stay 4 to 6 hours to see 200 species in about 1,100 individual animals."

The idea was to take the tram all the way to the end so that you’d be nearer to your starting point as your legs turned closer to jell-o (Thank you Helene for this suggestion!).  But of course, people half your size may have something else in mind; especially because they can read every directional sign posted.  “I want to see the elephants now mom!  Then the rhinoceros!”, when both species were in two different directions.  Suddenly it is 7 miles instead of 5.

It’s also not flat terrain mind you, with lots of mini-hills to push up.  I found myself thinking of the hill climbs in spin class, and could hear the songs in my head as I cranked up the weights (Weights = # of children riding at one point in time).

Then there was the finger-dexterity challenge, where you had to feed a giraffe without getting licked by its long tongue.  An added degree of difficulty was to hold an infant in one arm and gently nudge the toddler forward with the other (because she was struggling with the desire to feed the giraffe, yet the fear of getting slime on her fingers ).  It’s good for leg squats and core balance, I tell you.

My Mommyology Feed the Giraffe

Her tongue looks a lot like the piece of "meat" we buy when we make lengua. 😉

And then it’s arm work and endurance.  Holding up a total of 47 lbs worth of squirmy weights for at least 10 seconds while catching the elephants in their watering hole.

My Mommyology Catching the elephants

Don't drop the children. Better yet, don't drop in exhaustion.

I tell you – I have not sweat this much in a long time.

The last leg after several pit stops at the Carousel to catch some sort of a breeze, was a walk to see different types of animals found in North America — bears, bisons, impalas, cougars etcetera.  It turned out to be a more leisurely stroll, sort of like an active recovery before the second wind hit.

Also, with an infant sleeping in the toddler seat (it was much cooler than the carseat and could recline all the way), there was not much of a choice but to walk-jog the rest of the way.  Now this I encourage, even if it slows down the pace — it could make for a potentially good nap in the end!

My Mommyology Training for Ironkid

In perfect form, wouldn't you say?

Finally a cool down (literally) inside the arctic area where the polar bears, seals and puffins reside.

My Mommyology NC Zoo Sea Otters

I have a shirt that says, "Love one an otter." 😉

That my friends and fellow mommies, is  an intense workout right there.  The nice part about it, is that there were a lot of trees and several mist sprinklers along the way to prevent overheating.  And it isn’t like any other zoo we’ve been to where the animals are behind bars or in cramped quarters.  While I swore I saw a foot spa oasis as we walked back (but alas, it was only a mirage…), it was in fact a nice, long, enjoyable walk back to the car.    The 4 Carousel rides in between and the mandatory tram rides were good resting periods.  The Dora Adventure — well, how can you not see Dora in 4-D?

Now to gear up for round 2 (As again there is a little persistent 3-year old voice in my ear that says, “I want to go back!”) when the weather gets a tad bit cooler.  No need to collapse from heatstroke.  Hopefully we still burn enough calories to justify a whole red velvet cake.

%d bloggers like this:
Skip to toolbar