We’re Back!

Someone pointed out that I haven’t published an entry on this blog in a long time! When I checked the date of my last post, I was shocked! I was gone thatlong?

Anyway, Daniel turned two last month and we celebrated it with my husband’s relatives. As opposed to the grand celebration that we had during Daniel’s first birthday, we had a simple one this time. The birthday boy blew his candles without help (well with some coaching from daddy) and clapped his hands while our relatives looked over.

Daniel’s is a big boy now. He’s also very smart and knows words such as ‘infinity’ and ’scrumptious’, can count in seven languages, can memorize his alphabet and numbers up to 50, can identify the things around him, knows the president and the secretary of state, and is a big fan of American Idol! He’s also semi-retired from watching Brainy Baby and Baby Einstein– his favorite shows now are Dora the Explorer, Blues Clues and Go Diego, Go!

We often check out some kid-friendly locations in the Bay Area for our active toddler. Here’s a recent photo taken at SadieDey cafe in Oakland.

The Cake Lover

Well, not really. Daniel just likes cake decorations like most kids go. We didn’t order one. As far as enjoying it, yes he can but on special occasions only.

Blogging from my iPhone.

Thank God for Brainy Baby!

I can almost hear all moms (those who bought them, anyway) reply in a resounding chorus, “I know what you mean!” their eyes widen with certainty. They say it as if I just brilliantly articulated what exactly they have in mind.

If you’re a mom who thoughtfully or impulsively bought these DVD sets, you can totally relate: Brainy Baby [and Baby Einstein] videos are absolutely the best when it comes to soothing tantrums and keeping toddlers entertained. These miracle disks that often go in colorful cases are little savers for me. I mean, seriously, what will I do if the geniuses behind these amazing videos hadn’t thought of them in the first place? But, isn’t why I called them geniuses in the first place, because they actually thought of them?

I don’t know. I haven’t figured what I’ll do, really. I’ll probably spend the entire day playing Itsy Bitsy Spider with Daniel or singing Old McDonald Had a Farm, Ee I Ee I Ooo, while trying to think of what to feed him or trying to cook up a trip somewhere that will allow him to explore and appreciate his surroundings, or thinking which playgroup I should join next week. I would have been too enervated and tired to think of going to Betty’s nail salon for a quick pedi with salt scrub. Oh no, I’m going to miss Betty and her girly salon with pastel and glittery O.P.I. nail polish collection—one of the best nail salons in the Bay Area, I must say. If I can’t go to Betty’s, I’m going to have ingrown in all of my toenails they’d hurt so bad I won’t be able to walk! Then if I see her again, she’d be horrified and say, “Oohhh I teenk you need to go to the hospitaaal. You need an operayshun. Dis is really baaad” Then she’ll have this ‘I’m Scared For You’ look on her face that will eventually melt into ‘Gosh, What a Poor Girl’ look. And then, of course, the procedure will cause and arm and a leg (literally) because the insurance policy doesn’t cover it. Then I’ll spend days and nights at the hospital because it was that bad and I won’t be able to work. Then we’ll lose all our clients because they will become impatient and antsy. Then we won’t have any money to buy anything, we’ll be so poor we’ll collect leftover food and dollar change along downtown San Francisco, or maybe pretend to strum a guitar or play an accordion and wait for people to give us coins while battling the cold. But then I won’t be able to travel that far to San Francisco. My feet hurt, remember? Read more

Raising my 20-month-old son

So, after almost two months of living in the Bay Area, I can safely say that Daniel has already grown accustomed to his new environment. The adjustment was so quick that he didn’t even break a sweat over the sudden change of weather patterns and new faces that bourgeon in front of him. He’s more attached to me now: he clings into my pants or any fabric that he can clutch his tiny fingers into, whenever I attempt to slip on my heels or put on my rubber shoes. He knows when I’m going somewhere, maybe by the way I blithely toss my damp hair, or how I wear my purse in a certain way. And no amount of cajoling can soften his strong grasp. Most times, he rushes to hide between my legs or pretend to morph with them, whichever makes him more invisible. While that is the best thing since sliced bread, sometimes I feel guilty that I have to go somewhere without him. On the other hand, I delight in the fact that I am needed by my son. I admit I’ve never felt so needed like that before.

Daniel doesn’t miss his Yaya and while I am still trying to figure out whether “not missing” is a good thing or not, I also doubt if he even realizes losing his nanny in the first place. It seems that life goes on for Daniel and his days go by nary a word spoken about his trusty nanny. I guess I wouldn’t want my son to start crying profusely in the middle of the night and demanding to fly his Yaya to the Bay Area. So in this case, it makes sense to say that “not missing” is a good thing.

When we left Iloilo (God, the mere mention of the place makes me want to catch the next flight out of San Francisco) more than a month ago, Daniel brought with him basic words that he picked-up from his Yaya, the people around him (mostly our relatives), and from his deep personal attachment to food or anything that looks edible. One of the first words that he masterfully enunciates in different accents is apple. I didn’t know that apple, if repeated a thousand times over in one day at the rate of five repetitions per second, can be pleasing to ears especially if it is formed out of the lips of my dear son. Read more