RainEbow Bright

My little girl has been developing and growing in leaps and bounds since I last blogged about her antics. She never fails to amaze us with the amount of new information she picks up. I don't really teach her in the traditional classroom way. She learned about the parts of the body while I dressed her up or changed her diaper. She was just a little over a year old when she had memorized the basic parts of the body, not from a book but through our daily dressing up routine. I always sang to her old nursery rhymes and songs I made up and she looked so cute as she would watch me as I sang to her. She got to know the sounds farm and jungle animals make mostly as I sang "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" to her. We bought the usual colorful books and posters of ABCs and 123s and were delighted whenever she asked for these books or pointed to a letter from one of her posters.

Now I'm very proud to say that she can sing the Alphabet Song and count up to 12 on her own. She can even read majority of the letters if you point them out to her on any written material. She just gets confused with the letter "I" which she mistakes for "L" sometimes. I helped her learn numbers by counting the steps to our old apartment in Marshall Islands as I helped her climb them. She recognizes most animals already, unlike when she was one and thought all four-legged creatures were dogs.

Last week she totally surprised us by singing a lullaby I made up with the correct words and in the correct tune! I made up this song when she was a baby and had stopped singing it about a year ago. But 2 weeks ago I sang it to her again and so we were taken aback when she suddenly sang it to me and hubby on her own. That was a definite moment.

We've been prepping her for the coming of the new baby. At first, she would refer to the baby as baby brother as directed by hubby because we're hoping baby number 2 is a boy but after a few days I said we should make it more generic just in case it's a girl. Now Raine calls the baby, "baby silbing". She is now Ate Raine and sometimes likes to be known as the big sister. I really hope she won't be jealous of the new baby come August.

I'm very conscious now of the remaining months Raine will be an only child and I make an effort to spend quality time with her. I know this will be a little scarce especially during the first weeks of the new baby's arrival when he or she will be at the most demanding stage. For now I'm relishing our bonding moments especially at night when she asks for song after song and story after story while she lies down beside me in wide-eyed wonder.

Back from hiatus

I’ve been on another very long blogging hiatus. I will finally admit it, I was pretty lazy during my first trimester. Even if I spent half of it on “bedrest” I still wasn’t able to do as much as I should have done. Sigh, blame it on hormones? Not that there wasn’t anything to write about. There were and have been tons of things going on in my little life I could blog about. I just didn’t feel like it.

First of all and most importantly, we finally, or should I say, hubby finally took the plunge and opened a business we can all our own. After turning down a very tempting offer from a company overseas he rolled up his sleeves and got to work setting up our very own construction consultancy company. It hasn’t been easy being the boss. Unlike a restaurant or a store, it’s like we are back to the daily 8 am to 5 pm grind. He goes to the office everyday and has two full-time engineers to manage. I on the other hand, being the boss of the boss (hehehe!) come to work after lunch. Anything that doesn’t have anything to do with being an engineer is my territory.
We’ve been busy registering the company with the different government agencies. The escapades alone, to BIR, SSS, etc. are another blog entry altogether. I aim to have everything in place sooner than soon. All this is new to me and I’m still learning the ropes. I was so used to being just a regular employee and left the HR and Admin work to those in the know. But now, that responsibility rests on my shoulders. Yikes! It doesn’t help that our government agencies are just soooo easy to deal with, if you know what I mean. Plus the fact that you have to file for you and your employees every friggin’ month. Double yikes! I’m sure I’ll get used to it in due time.

After I give birth come August I will most likely be working from home most especially during the infancy of Baby # 2. Soon the SAHM in me will be a WAHM! Whew! At least my blog title is still applicable.

Three Blessings on the Way

Come Christmas our family on both sides, mine and hubby's will have 2 more new members each! A couple of weeks ago my brother, just barely a month after his wedding late last year, broke the great news that he and his wife are expecting. A true-blue honeymoon baby! I had earlier announced that I was pregnant as well. We're all very excited for the addition of two new babies to the family and look forward to a very eventful Christmas.

It turns out the baby news does not stop there. My sister-in-law on my hubby's side is preggers too with baby number 2. The stork has been very busy indeed making his rounds between our families! Three times the blessing, three times the charm! The Year of the Ox is turning out more than okay in our book.

Baby Gear Galore

I'm now pregnant with our second child and I'm seriously contemplating on investing in sturdy, yet affordable baby gear. For my first baby, my sister generously showered me with her toddler's crib, stroller and car seat. Her little girl was only 1.5 years old when I gave birth so all her baby stuff were still in pretty good condition. I was thinking of just borrowing them all again but it's been nearly three years since that time and a lot of really cool innovations in baby gear have come about.

This is especially true for car seats. Although it's not a must to have children in car seats in the Philippines, a lot of well-meaning parents have realized the importance of this baby gear and have included it in their must-buy items.

I hope to find one that would grow with my second baby and of course fit in our car. My sister's old car seat was a bit bulky and took up a lot of space in the backseat. With the endless choices particularly online I just know I'll have a field day shopping for the perfect car seat for my baby.

My little Brad-fest

I was recently able to watch two of Brad Pitt's latest movies; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Burn After Reading. And I must say I enjoyed my little Brad-fest. He's been my absolute favorite Hollywood actor ever since I accidentally saw him on a re-run of the movie "A River Runs Through It". I didn't see the whole movie, just the scene where he is fly fishing. Needless to say, I was smitten. Then came "Legends of the Fall". And that was it.

Warning, this is not an in depth critique of either movies, mind you, just my general thoughts on both flicks. If you haven't watched either movie and plan to do so, you may not want to read on. Spoilers present. Haha!

Benjamin Button is about a man who is born in his 80s and ages backwards. It's a period movie and chronicles Benjamin's life from World War II to the 20th century as told through the eyes of his one true love portrayed by Oscar winner Cate Blanchett. I thought the movie was too long and dragging in some parts. Hubby even dozed off a few times. Shallow as it may seem, I couldn't wait for the part when Brad would look young again so I could see my favorite actor in all his handsome glory and this the movie didn't disappoint. We see Brad as he is now, then gradually getting younger as the movie progresses. I'm amazed how they were able to make Brad look like a young teenager again, on the skinny side, with lush blond hair but still absolutely fabulous.
Burn After Reading is a black comedy. I wasn't able to really sit down and watch the entire movie, thanks to my hyperactive little tyke but I enjoyed watching it. Brad was his usual handsome self. He played a simple, happy-go-lucky fitness instructor so of course he looked the part. No need for any special make-up here, if there was a fitness instructor who looked like him, I'd sign up for the gym in a heartbeat. I was pretty shocked when Brad's character dies suddenly halfway through the film though. But it was refreshing watching him play a moronic role for a change.

Have You Googled Yourself?

I was googling myself just a few minutes ago when lo and behold, what do I find but my first ever published article for an independent website. I got the "job" thru the website helium.com. It's a community for budding writers to share their knowledge on a range of diverse topics on anything under the sun. You can write on subjects of interest to you and if a publisher picks up your work you get paid for it.

The first article I ever wrote was really easy for me. It was about how to hire a professional make-up artist for your wedding. I must have done that piece in less than an hour, because it was something I enjoyed writing about. I knew my entry was chosen but had forgotten that it was to be published in another website, until I googled myself. Haha!

I beg your indulgence. Click on this link to view my article.

Cravings

I found out I was pregnant a couple of days before Christmas via a home pregnancy test. I hadn't gotten my period yet and I was feeling weird. Nausea at odd times of the day and preferring soups and salads to any other dish were another hint. I also suddenly craved for sinigang, anything with vinegar or with a sour taste. I now can't eat too much of anything or I'll feel sick to the stomach right after. Sometimes I think it would be better if I just actually threw up instead of constantly having a bad taste in my mouth. Ahhh, the "perks" of the first trimester. I wasn't this way with Raine 2 years ago, but I did crave for salads as well.

Hmmm, I think I'll have some green mango now.

Baby on the Way

It's finally confirmed! I'm indeed pregnant, 8 weeks and 3 days! We are hoping for a boy this time and as early as now, hubby is thinking of unique, sometimes funny boy names.

I went to the OB yesterday and got an ultrasound. Like in my first pregnancy, there's subchorionic hemorrhage so I have to be on bed rest for two weeks. Notice, my blog entries, one after the other? I do hope the hemorrhage will disappear soon like with Raine. It's very small actually, just 1.0 x 0.7 x 0.4 cms but we are still being cautious so it won't grow bigger.

Do include us in your prayers.

Three 's a Charm

On our third anniversary we were able to get away, just the two of us for the first time since we got married. We spent our first anniversary quietly at home because Raine was barely two months old at the time. For our second year, we were in Marshall Islands and had a simple dinner at a nearby hotel's restaurant, with little Raine in tow.

This year, my Dad conveniently took Raine to Fun Ranch for the day so the hubby and I were able to hie off to Tagaytay. We had lunch at the T House followed by a relaxing massage. We then went around scenic spots around the city to take pictures. Thanks to hubby's trusty tripod, we were able to take pictures of the two of us. It was very, very cold which put a little damper on the day but mainly because I didn't bring a jacket. But I had fun nonetheless. We capped the night at a smorgasbord buffet diner that served German, American, Italian, Chinese and Filipino food. Yummy!

Happy Anniversary B! I love you.

My Brother's Wedding

My brother Sonny got married 2 days after Christmas, it was the third wedding in the family; following my younger sister's in 2003 and mine in 2005. Sonny's wedding reminded me of my own since it was held around the same time, the holidays. It can be doubly chaotic having a wedding during the Christmas season, what with the flurry of activities going on, but for me it's the best time to hold such an important event. It adds just a little bit more romance and nostalgia to the big day. Relatives who wouldn't normally be able to come at other times of the year, make an extra effort to attend because they get to do more and see more with one trip.

It was a day of firsts for the family. My dad, who you'd think would be more relaxed by now after giving away two daughters, said it was definitely different since we were on the groom's side this time. I was the commentator for the holy mass. In the past I would only get to do readings or the responsorial psalm. As commentator I had to closely follow the priest through the missalette which proved to be a fete at certain portions of the mass because he changed some of the wordings so I got lost for a few seconds. Raine was flower girl too. We had practiced walking along the hall at home but come showtime, she got cold feet and only walked a little of the way. Dad had to come to her rescue and escorted her the rest of the way.

My dad's speech was well-applauded and got a some smiles and laughs from the guests. I helped him edit it and added a couple of things to spruce it up so I felt good about that too. Hehe! But for me the highlight of the wedding was Sonny and Anna's first dance as husband and wife. We really got the surprise of our lives. The newly weds didn't just do a simple waltz, they did a choreographed dance with turns and dips. My sister and I were laughing and clapping the whole time because we had never ever seen Sonny dance like that before. He looked a bit shy and it was clear that Anna was the one who was more confident but Sonny just trained his eyes on his bride the whole time as if getting inspiration from her. That was definitely a memorable moment.
Instead of the usual bouquet and garter toss, there were games for married couples and a Jeopardy-type game with tequila shots for the singles. The night ended with dancing and revelry as party hats and horns were passed around to ring in the new year.

The Whirlwind Holidays

The holidays are over. Bah-humbug! It's back to reality and back to the daily grind. We had a jampacked Christmas and New Year, I didn't even have time to sit down and write down any of it. I did finally get to update Raine's multiply site. Family and friends are welcome to check it out.

The festivities started pretty early for our family. There was the red-letter despedida de soltera for my sister-in-law where we all discovered Raine's dancing skills, my brother's last birthday as a single guy, my father-in-law's 60th bash in Negros, my own dad's 66th celebration, the arrival of our relatives from the U.S., my brother's wedding, our 3rd wedding anniversary, reunions left and right and of course New Year's Eve. Whew!

Now it's all over. The gowns and party clothes have been put away, the visiting relatives have left for their homes, we're on our last vestiges of leftover party food. I love the holidays and the anticipation of it all. I now see it through Raine's eyes and delight in the many gifts she received as if they were for me. She got to watch her first fireworks display at the Fort on New Year's Eve and she was in total awe of it all. I look back at the hundreds of pictures taken this past month and realize how time flies. In 2007, we were celebrating an ultra-quiet holiday season in Marshall Islands.

This 2008 was the total opposite. 2009 promises to hold more surprises for all of us. Stay tuned!