Disney on Ice : Disneyland Adventure

We watched Disney on Ice early yesterday afternoon. It was Griffin's second time to watch while it was Hailey's first time. At the beginning , the National Anthem was played and Griffin stood up and even put his right hand on his chest. Griffin seemed to enjoy it more this time than when he watched it in 2008. He clapped and shouted and participated when the characters asked for audience participation. On the way home, he said that he liked the show. On the other hand, Hailey slept through the first half and watched the show for quite a long time before she fussed. She was relatively good as she did not cry during the whole show. Of course, we got some souvenir items which were so expensive. It was a good thing Griffin was feeling much better already and his cold sores were almost gone or else he wouldn't have enjoyed the show and he would not have been able to eat pop corn and cotton candy. My poor little boy, he suffered from so many cold sores in his mouth and he could not eat for 4 days. It is a lesson for him to stop putting his fingers in his mouth and to always wash his hands. We told him to stop eating his fingers if he does not want to suffer from cold sores again.

Hailey is 7 months old

Hailey at 7 months is still vary attached to me. She does not like anyone else to carry her except me. When she is on her walker and sees me walking away from her she starts to cry. She is also starting to crawl. Although not very well yet, she can easily and quickly move around the bed. I just tried feeding her Gerber (squash) today and she really loved it. I tried to feed her homemade baby food but she could not eat it properly because I just found out that I should have made the consistency more watery like that of Gerber. When she sees us eating or drinking, she also wants to eat or drink. She knows how to make a sound telling you she wants something she sees. She starts laughing with sound now although still not that often. She also loves commercials specially Selecta 3 in 1 plus 1. I have a video of this commercial in my iPhone so when she is crying I play the video and she stops. She still has no teeth as of today. I wonder when her first tooth would come out.

Learning Filipino

As I have mentioned before, it is my greatest worry that Griffin would not learn to speak Filipino before he enters Prep. My worries are slowly disappearing as he is learning the language slowly. He can now understand more words and can even say simple sentences in Filipino. He also gets practice while playing with Ran Ran and Em Em. He told me he said, " akyat na" when he was done playing with Ran Ran and he was ready to go upstairs. He also said, "opo, sira" when he was agreeing with Ran Ran that something was broken. It also helped that the song they sang for their Christmas program was also in Filipino. He has also learned new words because of the song.

Yesterday, he was at the playground in Timezone playing with a little girl who spoke to him in Filipino. Whereas before, he would speak English to his playmate, this time, he spoke in Filipino despite his limited vocabulary. Here is a sample of how he spoke to the girl:

Girl: Dito na tayo!
Griffin: Opo.
Girl: Color tayo!
Griffin: Exercise tayo!
After going on the treadmill...
Griffin: Play na tayo! ( proceeding to go up the play structure)

Some of the other things he can say...
Ligo na tayo!
Nanay, laro na tayo!
Ano pangalan mo? ( although he would say it as "ano palangan mo?" sometimes.

Willie asked him some questions which he was able to answer.
Willie: Sino tatay mo?
Griffin: Ikaw
Willie: Sino nanay mo?
Griffin: Siya (pointing at me)
Willie: Sino kapatid mo?
Griffin: Ano kapatid?
Willie: Brother or sister
Griffin: Si Hailey

He has learned so fast that's why I'm no longer worried that he would not learn Filipino.

Chinese watcher

Griffin is one of the students selected to be in the Chinese dance for Chinese New Year this coming February. He had his last practice for the year last Thursday. Their dance practice will resume next year and will be from Monday to Friday. I asked him yesterday, if his other classmates are not Chinese dancers, what are they? Are they Chinese singers? He said, "No, they are Chinese watchers. They only watch".

Pet Ecology Week

It is bring your pet day today at Griffin's school. Originally, he was going to brung his sea monkey but I asked him if he wanted to bring a fish to school. He told me he'd like to bring the fish like those Apit used to feed the Arowana, ie. feeder fish. Last Wednesday, we went to Cartimar and bought a small square aquarium and 2 colorful guppies. He was set to bring those to school but yesterday, we went back to Cartimar and bought 8 little crabs and a container with a handle. This would be easier to transport and also easier for Griffin to carry to his classroom. Aside from the convenience, I think it is a unique pet, not something a kid would bring to school. I hope he has fun looking at all the animals in school today.

Update:
We picked Griffin up in school. His pet got a special award as Rocker Pet (the hardest pet).

Hailey is 6 months old

Hailey at 6 months is very active. She can move around in her walker very quickly and moves around on the bed really fast. She is not quite crawling yet but she can easily roll around the bed and can move by using her feet to push herself forward. She can sit down unaided for longer periods. She is also more patient when given a teether or pacifier. She does not cry right away as she can hold on to the objects better than before. She still cries but it's mostly because she wants me. She usually starts to cry when she notices that I'm not there which is almost immediately. We will start giving her solid food this month. She seems to be ready to eat solid food because everytime she sees us eating, it seems like she also wants to eat.

Report Card - Second Quarter

Griffin got his Report Card today. He got even better grades than in the First Quarter. The S's he got last quarter are now VS except for one. His penmanship grade also improved from Limited Progress to Satisfactory. He only has 2 Satisfactory grades and the rest are VS and HS. I am so proud of Griffin. He got an Achievement Award again for Academics this quarter.

Griffin is doing very well in school. As I mentioned in my earlier post, his teacher said he's the fastest reader in his class. He was also chosen to be one of the prayer leaders for their prayer service on Monday. I don't even have to help him practice reading the prayer because when I asked him to read it, he read the entire prayer correctly. I don't have any problems teaching him his Reading subject as he already knows how to read. In fact, I have no problems teaching him any of his subjects, whether it's Math, Chinese or Language.

Dance practice

Griffin was selected to participate in a Chinese dance for their Chinese New Year festivities on February 10-14 next year. They will be having their practices everyday from 3:00 to 3:30 except on Fridays, . I asked him if he would like to join the dance and he said yes. I hope that we'll be invited to watch the dance as I would love to see Griffin performing a Chinese dance.

Bad tummy

Griffin had a tummy ache this morning. He still went to school. When we picked him up at school, his classmate told us that he vomitted in the classroom. He probably had indigestion because according to his teacher, he threw up 3 times in 2 minute intervals. He was sent to the clinic but went back to the classroom after a while.

When we got home, Griffin took a bath and told me that his teacher said he was the fastest reader on his class. I'm so proud of him. I hope that he will always do well in school.

Happy Birthday to me

It is my birthday today. We brought Griffin to school then went to Greenhills and ate at Shakey's. We picked Griffin up then passed by Red Ribbon to buy a cake. Griffin sang the birthday song then we both blew the candles out. I then ordered Amber's palabok and barbecue for dinner.

Writing update

Griffin has started writing his homework in his HSCN. He has already done it for two days and his penmanship actually looks good. He had GOOD stamped on the first one and VERY GOOD stamped on the second one. I am very happy with the improvement in his penmanship. I hope it gets better and better.

To sleep or not to sleep with Ama

While hanging out in Ama's room last night ...

Ama: Why don't you sleep here with me tonight?
Griffin: I don't want.
Ama: Why?
Griffin: I don't want to, but I still love you Ama!

Hailey goes bananas over bananas

Last Tuesday, November 3 , Hailey had her first taste of solid food. We gave her some bananas placed in a mesh container and as expected, she loved it. She's been trying to eat everything she sees whether it is food or not. When I am holding a glass or bowl or just about anything in my hand, she would try to reach it. We gave her some bananas again today. She loved it so much. She also likes drinking water in her zippy cup. We will start giving her solid food regularly by the time she turns 6 months in 15 days. It looks like she is not going to be hard to feed. I hope that she won't be too greedy as I don't want her to get fat.

Filipino update

Griffin is learning little by little, more Filipino words. I asked him the other day, "Masarap bs yung ice cream?" and he answered, "opo". He also asked me once, "Gusto mo ng fries?". Just a while ago, he told me, "ano is what in Tagalog". He can also understand a little because sometimes we talk in Filipino and he asks or says something related to what we were talking about. I really really hope he learns to speak and understand Filipino soon.

Griffin's Conversations

While eating at Max's Restaurant after Hailey's Christening ...

JD: I'm married to Jamie (his sister).
Griffin: I'm not married yet because I don't have a wife.

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A few nights ago, while helping Ama make Angkong's food...

Griffin: Diego is back .(His classmate was absent for a few weeks. According to his teacher, Diego was in the US to do important things,)

Ama: What important things did he do? He went to Disneyland and Universal Studios?

Griffin: Ama, those are not important things, those are important places.

Hailey laughs

Hailey laughed with sound today. She usually has big smiles but she has a silent laugh. But today while lying on the sponge during bath time, she sees Griffin and laughed a few times. It was a joy to hear since she rarely does it.

Hailey loves Griffin so much. She laughs when she sees him and she also loves to touch his face and hair. I hope they would always love each other.

Good Reader

Griffin is a very good reader. He's a good sight reader but we tried asking him to read Tagalog words, he can also easily read them. He does not read them per syllable. He just says the whole word right away. I bought him a vcd and cd of Filipino songs to help him learn to speak Filipino. I hope he learns through singing the songs. I hope he'll be able to speak and understand simple Filipino before next school year.

Hailey is 5 months old

Hailey turned 5 months old last October 20. She can sit down assisted and sometimes she can sit by herself altough not with her back straight. She has really strong legs as she can stand up with some support. She still screams specially if she wants something or when she wants me to carry her. She can easily turn over already. She likes grabbing whatever you're holding, particularly glasses and plates. She likes to eat just about anything. She is short tempered though, specially when she tries to bite her teethers. She bites them then after a while she gets so frustrated that she starts to cry. We might start her with solid food by next month. I hope we won't have problems feeding her.

Mooncake Festival

We played the dice game in celebration of the Mooncake Festival last October 3. Griffin won First prize in the second round. I hope this brings him luck all year.

Hailey's Baptism

Hailey is now a Christian. She was baptized at Our Lady of La Paz Parish at 11 o'clock this morning. She was well behaved for the Baptismal Ceremony and only started crying when it was time for picture taking. Her Ninongs were Apit, VJ and Alvin while her Ninangs were Iper, Nikki and Cathy. After the Baptism, we went to Max's Restaurant to eat lunch.

Griffin can tie his laces

Griffin can tie his own shoe laces. He just tried it out last night. At first, the knot was kind of loose but when he did it this morning, it actually looked really good. He's really a big boy now. He takes a bath by himself and eats by himself. My little boy is all grown up.

A Visit to K.I.D.S.

Griffin had no classes so we visited Teacher Cristy at KIDS yesterday. We arrived at around 11:00am. We were lucky that Teacher Cristy was there because she said she was not teaching this year. She will be in school only for 2 weeks because Teacher May was on leave. Griffin showed his Teacher his Happy Grams, Good job cards and Achievement award. She asked how was Griffin's penmanship and I said he improved a lot. Teacher Mina asked if he has tantrums in school and I said he was well behaved in school. I told Teacher Cristy my worry was Griffin not being able to understand Tagalog and I told her about the Filipino enrichment class I saw. But she said there's no need, he'll learn in school. Anyway, I still have time to teach him before next school year. I also told her that Griffin reads so well. He doesn't read slowly by trying to put the sounds of the letters together. She told me that he's really been a good reader. He sight reads so well.
Griffin had so much fun playing in the playground with his former classmates specially Enzo. His classmates Chesley, Nadine, Maddie and Angelo were there. He was really sweaty after playing on the slide and shooting balls with Enzo. We left at around 11:45 am. He told me he would like to visit again. I told him he could visit if he has no classes. Maybe on December he can visit again.

Hailey at 4 months

Hailey at 4 months can now stay on the bed without crying a little longer. At times, she can be left lying on her back or lying on her tummy and she would squeal and smile. Her neck muscles are very strong now, so she can hold her head steady and even lift her head up for long periods while lying on her tummy. She can easily turn over from lying on her back to lying on her tummy. She can sit up with support and can be propped up to sit leaning on pillows. She also gives big smiles when she's in a good mood so it's much more fun to take pictures of her.

She already has separation anxiety. When I leave her with someone else she usually cries her heart out until I carry her. She would at times stop crying once she hears my voice. I guess she'll be as clingy to me as Griffin was and still is up to now. It feels good to be loved by my kids but it can also be tiring when they want you all the time. I love them both so much inspite of the stress.

Report Card - First Quarter

Griffin got his report card last Friday. As I expected, he had good grades. He even got an achievement award in academics. His lowest "grade" was in Penmanship where he has Limited Progress. I'm not bothered by it because he has improved so much in writing, coloring and even in drawing compared to before he entered big school. He loves writing in his Megasketcher. He can even draw stars and hearts already. He can also draw by just copying a drawing unlike before when he would have tantrums because he couldn't copy the drawing.

UPDATE: I emailed Griffin's teacher to ask what grade he got in his Reading exam. Griffin told me he only got Good in Reading while he got Very Good in Chinese and Math because he got perfect scores in these tests. His teacher answered me today and said that he also got a perfect score in Reading.

Hailey at 3 months.

Hailey is now 3 months old. She is no longer colicky however she still has crying spells. She likes talking to people in her gurgling language. She smiles a lot these days although it could be immediately be followed by crying. She has tried to lift her head up while lying on her tummy. We have also seen her turn over from lying on her tummy to lying on her back twice already. I am not sleep deprived at night because she usually wakes up to nurse then goes back to sleep right away. She's getting bigger and bigger each day. Before you know it, she would be sitting, crawling, standing, walking and talking. Can't wait till she gets a few months older so I can buy her more cute little dresses. It is really fun dressing up little girls. If only she had a lot more hair, i would buy her cute little hair clips. She looks like a baby boy because she doesn't have much hair.

School Boy

Griffin has been really good at school. He is well behaved as evidenced by his Good Job cards and Happy Grams. Academically, he's doing really well. His quizzes have perfect scores except for one chinese test where he got 2 mistakes. His seatworks are mostly very good too. He also did very well in his oral tests in chinese and english. I am looking forward to seeing the results of his quarterly exams. It was really easy studying for the tests because he has mastered all his lessons. I just had to review him a little.

Griffin turns 5

Griffin turned 5 years old today. As was his request, he had a Ben 10 cake and cupcakes. I also bought him flying balloons. Of course, he got to open his gifts which were mostly Ben 10 toys. He particularly loved the Alien Creation Chamber. We went to Greenbelt to eat at Chili's but there were no more seats so we ended up at Flapjacks. My baby is a big boy already. I will miss the times when he was younger that we spend every single day together, just the two of us.

Hailey is 2 months old

Hailey turned 2 months old last July 20, 2009. She sleeps a little longer and doesn't sleep as much as last month. She's not so colicky anymore, although she still cries at times and likes to suck her hand or my arm. You can make her smile now, when she's in a good mood and is either lying down on the bed or sitting in her seater.

Sad Griffin

When i picked Griffin up today, he looked sad and had teary eyes. I asked him what was wrong and he answered, " I don't know". In the car, on the way home, we asked him again why he was sad and he still said, "I don't know". When my mom asked him if he got a "good job" card, he said he got 3 stars but he did not get a "good job" card. We asked him if that was why he was sad and he said, yes.

I wrote to his teacher and she told me through email that Griffin did cry before dismissal because they had Penmanship and he was scared to stay after school to finish his work in case he doesn't finish it on time. He however finished second to the last and on time so he need not stay after school. He did get 3 stars and his good job card is in school where the teacher keeps them till the end of the week to keep track of who gets a Happy Gram by Friday.

Mid-quarter PTC

I went to the parent-teacher's conference at Griffin's school last Saturday morning. I talked to his teacher, Teacher Ail. She told me that Griffin is a happy boy in school. He is enthusiastic when it comes to recitation. She also told me that when asked a question, Griffin thinks about his answer. His answers are very related to the question unlike some kids who just answer without thinking. She told me that Griffin is smart and has no problem with academics. He is also very friendly. He just gets easily distracted when other kids are talking or playing in class so his attention has to be called. Knowing his happy disposition in school the teacher was surprised when Griffin cried when classes were cancelled. He kept on saying to the teacher that I did not know that classes were cancelled and that I would not come to pick him up.

I am really happy with the feedback I got from the teacher. He also got a Happy Gram last week for being a good boy the whole week. Griffin has improved a lot. He had a lot of homework last weekend, particularly penmanship homework. He was able to finish it without any tantrums. Knowing that he's not fond of writing, writing so many letters and writing his full name 8 times was a major accomplishment, specially because he had to write it on blue-red-blue lines.

Ben Tennyson

Here is Griffin in his Ben 10 costume made by Ama.

Happy Birthday Ama!

Cancelled Classes

Classes were cancelled yesterday. Unfortunately, I learned about the cancellation when I arrived home already. Poor Griffin, he had to wait for more than an hour to be picked up while most of the kids went home already. When my mom got him from the classroom, he was just sitting down on the chair. He kept asking Ama where I was and why I was taking so long.

That night, he told me that he almost cried because I was taking so long. He asked me why I did not know that classes were cancelled. I explained to him that I only learned about the cancellation when I reached home so I had to go back to pick him up. My poor baby, next time it's raining hard, I'll wait for a while, in case they cancel classes again.

Best mommy in the world

Griffin and I were walking out of the EED gym, when I picked him up from school yesterday afternoon. As we left the gym, I saw one of his classmates who was not in PE uniform .....
Me: Why isn't Diego wearing his PE uniform?
Griffin: Maybe his mommy forgot it is PE day today.
Me: Maybe.
Griffin: You're the best mommy in the world because you know everything.
Me: Thanks.

It feels good that Griffin appreciates the things I do for him.

Hailey is 1 month old

Hailey at one month still sleeps all day. However, she prefers to be carried while sleeping. If she is left on the bed and she wants to be carried, she cries till someone picks her up. She is also not so fond of taking a bath so she usually cries during bath time.

Her main problem is colic. There are times when she cries and cries because of this. There are also times when you can see from her facial expression that she wants to get the air out by passing gas or pooping. Sometimes she throws up and seems to feel better. She is a breastfed baby so I hope she is not lactose intolerant. I hope she outgrows the colic really soon. Some say babies usually get better at around 3 months. I'm praying that it is not lactose intolerance that is causing the colic.

First Day in Big School

Yesterday was Griffin's first day in big school. They did not have their regular class yet since it was the open house for the nursery class. He just did some coloring and gluing shapes on paper. Then the teacher discussed some stuff then the kids were free to go and play in the playground. He had so much fun playing and loved drinking cold water from the drinking fountain. He's so happy that his school has a big playground. I hope that he'll always enjoy being in school.

Hello Hailey Caitlin!

Hailey Caitlin was born last May 20, 2009 at 8:29 am via cesarian section delivery. She weighed 7 lbs. 3 oz.

Here are my babies, Griffin and Hailey.

Hailey Update

I went to my OB this morning and had my last ultrasound to check if Hailey is ready to come out already. According to the doctor, she's not ready yet if I wanted to give birth this weekend. We decided, however, to schedule my c-section next Wednesday, May 20. According to my ama, May 20 is a very good day to give birth. My doctor has agreed to this date as I will already be on my 38th week of pregnancy. Praying that everything will be fine during my delivery next week. Hailey is already 7 lbs. based on the ultrasound.

Here's the latest ultrasound of Hailey's face:

My Little Coin Bearer

Griffin was a coin bearer at the wedding of his Ninong yesterday afternoon. We arrived just in time. The processional had already started. Griffin was a good little boy. He walked slowly holding the pillow until he reached his seat. He even sat through the whole mass and wedding ceremony without any complaints. Right after the wedding, we went to the reception where he says he had a lot of fun because he was playing with the other kids the whole time.

Hyper Baby

Hailey is a very active baby. When she moves in my tummy, her movements are so strong. I sometimes get poked on the ribs. She's usually very active towards midnight.

When I was at the hospital and had a fetal monitor attached to me. she kept on moving that it was difficult to hear her heartbeat. The monitor kept on slipping off my tummy because of her movements that's why someone had to hold it in place.

I wonder if she will be this active when she comes out. Will she be a hyper baby? I will just have to wait and see. Just a few more weeks till we see Hailey.

Spotting and Contractions

I went to the delivery room yesterday to have myself checked because I had spotting yesterday afternoon. My mom, Griffin and I left at around 6 pm. I did not expect to be there till after midnight neither did I expect that I would be admitted. The main problem was because of the moderate contractions I was experiencing. I was injected brikanil twice but after 15 to 20 minutes there would be a spike again. I kept on praying that there would no longer be moderate contractions so that I could go home already.

Poor Griffin, he waited for me for so long until he got sleepy, so my mom had to bring him home. He was left with Auntie Pebbles and Tai-ma while my mom went back to the hospital and waited for Willie to come. When my mom got back, Griffin was really sleepy so they went home until he eventually fell asleep. I was really worried that he would get up in the wee hours of the morning looking for me since it's the first time that he has slept without me by his side. He slept through the night. When Willie came back for him this morning, he was still asleep, when he eventually woke up he was crying. Willie was telling him that they would go see me and it would be like a hotel room. He did not want to go because he felt bad. When I talked to him on the phone he told me, "Why are you taking so long?". It's the first time we've ever been apart for a very long time. I told him to come and see me. He was a happy little boy already when he arrived at the hospital. He loved playing with the bed. When we were about to leave, he even said, "I'm going to miss this place".

I was fortunately allowed to go home this afternoon. I had an ultrasound and everything was fine. I was given duvadilan for the contractions and an antibiotic for the UTI. Now, I have to be really careful with what I do, I have to limit moving around so much, so as not to get tired and stress myself. This is quite hard to do when I have to play with Griffin and clean up his mess everyday, but I won't tire myself anymore, I don't want to give birth prematurely. Hoping everything would be fine with this pregnancy until around the third week of May when I would be 37 weeks already and could probably give birth through c-section.

Big Tummy

Just this morning, while Griffin was hugging my tummy, he said, " Mommy, I love your big tummy. If you don't have a big tummy, I don't like it anymore, but I still love you!"

Easter Egg Hunt

Yesterday, we decorated some eggs which we were going to use for the Easter egg hunt. Griffin still remembers decorating the eggs last year, he even told me that we were going to do it in the lanai like last year.



















Griffin had his Easter egg hunt this morning. I placed the eggs where he could easily see them. I did not actually hide them. He found the eggs really quickly unlike last year when I still had to show him where the eggs were. Of course, after the egg hunt, he got some prizes for finding all the eggs.

Swimming at Makati Shangri-la

It has been two years since Griffin last swam in a big pool. This morning Griffin and I went to Makati Shangri-la to have a swim. I used my voucher for a one week free trial of their health club. We arrived a few minutes past eight, got dressed then went straight to the pool. At first I gave him his swim ring but the swim ring was too big for him that's why he had a hard time holding on to it. I asked him if he wanted to try his floating vest, he agreed, so I put it on him. Initially, he was kind of scared of letting go of me. After a while though, he got the hang of it and would confidently tread around the big pool. We were at the pool for almost 3 hours. Griffin told me, he had so much fun swimming.

Monsters vs Aliens

We watched Monsters vs Aliens last Friday at Greenbelt 3. Griffin enjoyed watching the movie. He said, " I liked the movie because it's funny". After watching the movie, we ate at Wendy's then went to National bookstore where we bought a Monsters vs Aliens book. He makes me read the book all the time. He also likes visiting the Monsters vs Aliens website where he enjoys watching the short clips from the movie.

Writing Update

I've been asking Griffin to write the letters A-Z and his name everyday, for over a week now. So far, so good. He's been cooperating and he even tried writing some numbers. His number 2 and number 5 look good now. He did not write them in reverse but he still needs to copy the numbers just to be sure. I'm hoping that by the time June comes, he'll be at ease in writing numbers and letters. He's writing the alphabet in uppercase but maybe in a few more weeks I hope he could also practice writing the lowercase letters.

Boys School or Coed?

A couple of days ago Griffin was telling me...

Griffin: When Hailey* is 4 years old, she will go to my school then I will show her to my classmates.

Me: But there are no girls in your school, only boys.

Griffin: I want a school with boys and girls.

Me: Maybe you can transfer to a school for boys and girls when Hailey* starts going to school.

* Hailey is the name we call the baby in my tummy.

I don't really know if Griffin would still want to transfer schools in a couple of years. I'll just wait and see.

Last Narrative Report by Teacher Cristy

The last few weeks have been very busy for all. The children worked very hard to do their scrapbooks. As they looked back through each page, they remembered many things that they learned, fun activities that they had, plus memories that they will be carrying with them, hopefully for a very long time. Teh different pages will show bits and pieces of their hard work, creativity, and love for learning. :)

We also had our second semester Assessment, where we again determined how much the children have grown in the different areas of development. Griffin is really a smart boy. Learning concepts has always been easy for him. He thinks faster though than he can write his answers which makes answering worksheets a bit of a challenge for him. And while his ability to handle frustrations has improved, he still gets stressed out once in a while because he always wants things to be perfect.

It has been a very good and fulfilling 10 months! It was long but fun! As I was collating some of their pictures during the first few months, and looked back at some of their pictures last year, I couldn't help but smile, as I see how small they were then, and how grown up they seem now. I am very lucky to have been witness to their laughter, feelings of triumph, success... and also their moments of tears and sadness, fear and anger, and even of disappointment. How lucky I truly am, to have been able to hug them and be given a big hug in return.

I now say good-bye, with a sad and happy heart. I had a wonderful time with the children and will truly miss them, especially those who will be going to big school already (Griffin being one of them). I learned much from them, maybe even more than what they've learned from me. Allow me to say again, thank you for entrusting Griffin to us here at KIDS. It has been a privilege to be part of his small school experience.

Love,
Teacher Cristy

P.S.
We will pray for a safe delivery for you and your baby. We hope to see you again in a few years when it's your little one's time to start school.

K.I.D.S. Moving Up Day

K.I.D.S. Moving Up Day was held last Saturday, March 14, 2009 at the Mariners' Home in Malate, Manila. We arrived at the place at around 8:45 am. Griffin looked so handsome in his white polo and blue jeans. My baby is now Moving Up to big school this coming June.

I feel kind of sad because I really love K.I.D.S. If only they offer Grade School, I would still let Griffin study there. I don't know how Griffin is going to adjust to big school. I hope he doesn't have a hard time as he still has difficulties in writing. He has to practice writing this summer. I hope he cooperates when I ask him to write. That is my main worry for next school year.

I also don't know how he will cope with Chinese as a new subject for him. Anyway, I'm open to him transferring to another school if he won't like studying Chinese. I asked him the other day if he wants to learn Chinese and he said, "no". I told him that there's going to be Chinese in Xavier and he fell silent then told me that he would just study at K.I.D.S. again. I don't want to force him as he will probably have a hard time also once he starts having Filipino as a subject, and we can't do anything about this. Hoping that everything turns out fine specially with another adjustment for him once the new baby comes in May.

Check Out This Outfit

Here's a photo of Griffin trying out his white polo and blue jeans for Moving Up Day on Saturday.

Narrative Report: February 9 - February 27, 2009

Narrative Report
Period Covered: February 9 - February 27, 2009
By Teacher Cristy

I really missed the children during my leave of two weeks and I am glad to see all of them again. It's unfortunate that I missed several special activities like our Valentine's Day celebration, the class picture taking and the Family Day. Everyone seemed to enjoy the Family Day as they talked about it when they got back to school. Griffin said he liked playing in the sand and where there were ropes, as others talked about the different animals and riding a horse and going fishing.

T. Mina's observations about Griffin are very consistent with how he has been performing in school these past months - He is smart, witty, very quick to learn, follows directions without difficulty and works with very little supervision. He just gets easily frustrated when he makes a mistake, as he wants his work to always be perfect. He also continues to have difficulty writing but is always willing to do his best.

As we learned to tell time (by the hour abd half hour), Griffin was quick to grasp the concept and answered his activity sheets with great ease, except when it came to having to write the time, as he has to be reminded not to write his numbers too big and to write within the space provided.

Griffin continues to spend play time with boys although there was one time, he played "house" with girls. When his friends asked him why he was playing girls stuff with the girls, he just looked at them and said, "it's ok". He also continues to remind those who are not sharing that "sharing is good". He is extremely observant and knows who brought a particular toy and left it in the slide outdoors. He even noticed that Maddie came to school one day wearing the same clothes she was wearing the previous day! "Why are you wearing that green shirt with pink flowers inside, you were wearing that yesterday!, he told her."

New Black Shoes

Yesterday, I bought Griffin black leather shoes because he's going to be a ring bearer on May 10. This will also be his school shoes when he goes to big school in June. When we got home, he put on his shoes and was showing it off to everyone...

Griffin: I'm going to wear these shoes when I go to Xavier. Xavier is Apit's school but he doesn't use it anymore becuase he's big already.

Blue Jeans, Fat Genes

After going to Mass yesterday, my mom, Griffin and I went to Mc Donald's Kingswood to eat. While eating, I was telling my mom that Griffin sometimes has a big appetite. Just the night before, he ate hotdog with rice, then when Willie brought home some fries and chicken with rice, he ate again. My mom said that it's good that he's eating a lot more now.

Me: It's good that he doesn't eat so much because he has bad genes.
Griffin: What's bad genes?
Ama: Ama and mommy have bad genes because we have fat genes.
Griffin: Me, I have blue jeans because I'm thin.

K.I.D.S. Family Day

K.I.D.S. had their Family Day at the Fun Farm in Sta. Elena, Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Willie was not able to come with us because of the seminar he had in the office. It was only Griffin, my mom and I who went.

We arrived at the Fun Farm at around 9:10 am. Griffin joined his classmates Enzo and Colin and they tried fishing. He wasn't able to catch any fish though. After fishing, Griffin rode on a cart pulled by a carabao then he went horseback riding. He told me it was both fun.

This is actually Griffin's first outing. He's never been to a summer outing. He's never even been to a beach. Griffin enjoyed the other activities like boating, climbing on the ropes, playing on the swing and going up and down the tree house. He also tried feeding the rabbits and guinea pigs although he didn't like holding the carrot while the animals were munching on it.

There were a lot of games for the family, I wasn't able to join any because of my big tummy. Griffin had so much fun. He even told me that that's why it's called the Fun Farm because you have fun there.

Fishing with Colin

Valentine's Day

We had our Valentine's Day lunch at TGI Friday's last Saturday.

This photo was taken before we left for Glorietta.

Active baby

Baby #2 is a very active baby. She moves around in my tummy so often. When I was pregnant with Griffin he was not this active. It seems that this baby loves to move her arms and legs. Even during the congenital scan, the doctor mentioned that the baby kept on moving. I wonder if she's going to be this active when she comes out of my tummy.

It seems like I've been gaining a pound a day these past few days. I'm not as big as I was when I was pregnant with Griffin but I hope I don't keep on gaining weight.

Baby #2 is .....

a GIRL! I had my congenital scan last Saturday. Results of the ultrasound were normal and it is now confirmed that the baby in my tummy is a girl. As of now, I'm leaning towards the name Hailey although I'm still thinking of a second name. My mom, brought out and washed the baby girl clothes she bought 4 years ago when I was still pregnant with Griffin. We also looked through Griffin's old baby clothes and got the yellow colored ones which the baby could use.

Narrative Report : February 2 to February 6, 2009

Narrative Report
Period Covered: February 2 to February 6, 2009
By Teacher Cristy

Except for the tantrum he threw last monday when his seatmate Maddie accidentally hit his hand while he was doing his dot to dot activity, Griffin was in a positive disposition during most of the week.

When asked to draw God's creation, he drew his family. And as we talked about God's love and Jesus on the cross, he referred to our crucifix as Papa Jesus and kissed it as we passed it around. When he made a doorknob hanger with a sign "Jesus is watching over me" on one side and "do not disturb" on the other side, he asked what "the do not disturb" side is for. At first, he only decorated his hanger with a few cut-outs but when he saw the others full of cut-outs, he asked if he could add more pieces to his work.

He did very, very well (as usual) during worktime and just told his friends to wait for him when the worksheets involved writing letters (which he is still not very comfortable with). During one exercise where there was a picture of a hut and he has to fill in the missing letter _ut, he couldn't figure it out. When I told him it was a hut, he quickly wrote "h" and then asked what a hut is, I tolod him it's a small house. "I don't live in a hut", he was quick to say. :)

During one group hug, which we sometimes do at the end of classtime, he got hugged a bit tighter than usual and cried. He stopped crying only after several prompts. After that though, he went on to join us for our final song, as if nothing happened.

Infected tooth

We went to Griffin's dentist last Friday, supposedly for fillings on his canine tooth. Unfortunately, the dentist said, there is infection on the tooth so fillings are not possible. He has to either extract the tooth or perform a root canal. However, he wants clearance from Griffin's pedia before doing any action. We went to Griffin's pedia yesterday to ask for clearance but he says he doesn't give clearance unless the procedure is to be done in a hospital. He just prescribed antibiotics. Hopefully, the antibiotics would get rid of the infection.

Narrative Report : January 19 to January 23, 2009/January 26 to January 30, 2009

Narrative Report
Period Covered:January 19 to January 23/January 26 to January 30, 2009
By Teacher Cristy

We missed Griffin for several days of weeks 30 and 31 but are somehow glad he was able to join us for our special activities, i.e., pajama day and field trip. Science is something he seems to show a lot of interest in. He was very curious about our little experiment on simulating a volcanic eruption. He was likewise attentive when we watched a video about the solar system, and had a thing or two to say about the planets in space. He really is still a little boy as he initially went in front of our big screen and jumped up and down while playing with his shadow. :)

Because he had to answer extra worksheets, his worktime was longer than the others. "Why am I taking so long"?, he asked, but went on to answer his math and phonics worksheets without difficulty. There were just times though when perhaps because he wasn't feeling very well, he was easily agitated and became irritable with his colds dripping from his nose. He would need extra prompts for work time, especially when it involved a lot of writing. Sometimes he would say he's sleepy. When given time to rest a while, he goes on to work after. He often felt better after snack time.

He missed our lesson about the planets but when he saw our chart with the planets arranged from their proximity to the sun, he read all of them by himself, only needing a little help with uranus. :)

Narrative Report : January 12 to January 16, 2009

Narrative Report
Period Covered: January 12 to 16, 2009
By Teacher Cristy

Griffin's initial comment when we started to talk about our latest theme, EARTH, was about aliens coming to invade it. :) He was quick to identify land and water forms like oceans and mountains and volcanoes as we looked at various pictures, and when we talked about the need to take care of the earth and keep it clean, he said "I always pack away my toys."

Decoding our clean up slogan required patience as it took longer than our usual activities to complete. Griffin needed some extra prompts to finish his work, which he eventually did at almost the same time as the others.

He was very cooperative when asked to do extra activities to improve his penmanship, he answered 2-3 pages at a time of the writing book - so far, so good. :)

During our cloud gazing activity, he was the first to form an image with the clouds, saying " I can see power rangers"! And when we had an activity about clean vs dirty water, and talked about fish dying if the ocean is dirty, he said, "the water in my aquarium is dirty but my fish is still alive". He also said that the glass of his aquarium broke.

When asked if mommy is pregnant, he first answered " I think so". The next day though, after mommy brought him to school, he said "my mommy was wearing that blue dress when I was still in her tummy". :)

Griffin's Colds

Griffin's colds just started again just when I thought his colds were going away. I wonder what's wrong with him. It seems that everytime he's getting better, he gets colds again. It might be allergy since this has been going on for 4 weeks already. My poor baby, I hope his colds go away for good. I don't want him to miss school anymore since they only have a few weeks left before summer vacation.

Handwriting Improvement

I see a lot of improvement in Griffin's handwriting. His lowercase a's look really well formed compared to a few days ago. I think he's just kind of lazy when it comes to writing so he really needs to practice. Hoping he would get better and better before he goes to big school this coming June.

Sand Play at R.O.X.

We went to Bonifacio High Street last Saturday at Griffin's request. He actually suddenly told me that he wanted to go to that place with the sand box and the ball catching toy. When we arrived at R.O.X., the place was arranged differently from wheh we last saw it last year. The toys and sand box used to be on the ground floor. We went up to the the second floor then finally to the third floor where I saw the toys. I tought what he really wanted was to look at the toys but he was actually looking for the sand box, which fortunately they still had. It was even bigger and had wall and rock climbing too. Griffin had a lot of fun here, he played for about an hour until he got thirsty so I told him we would get something to drink outside.

Preggy Belly

Here is my bulge at 5 months. Griffin loves my tummy. I asked him if my tummy was not big anymore would he still like it and he said, "no". I told him why doesn't he like to do what he does to my tummy, to his daddy and ama's tummy and he said, " Daddy's tummy is sweaty and Ama's tummy is yucky". I asked him why Ama's tummy is yucky and he said, "because it's old already".

Field Trip: Science Entertainment Center

Last January 28, Griffin had their field trip at the Science Entertainment Center in the Boom na Boom Complex. We saw how they dub the cartoons and how they do special effects like showing the kids on a flying carpet. After, they were allowed to look around and try out some science displays.