Overnight at A. Venue Residences

We were at A . venue residences last weekend for an overnight stay. We purposely went there to have a swim as I promised Griffin. We booked 2 adjacent 1 bedroom suites as no 2 bedroom suites were available. Griffin and Hailey had fun hanging out in the room but of course it was swimming that Griffin was looking forward to. We had our first swim on Saturday after eating lunch at Wendy's. We didn't stay long because the water was so cold that Hailey was shivering. Griffin still wanted to swim but I told him Hailey was cold so we went back to the room. He asked me if he could swim again the next morning and i told him yes if he could get up early. The next day i woke him up at almost 9 am. We just ate a little and went to the pool. The water was still cold so hailey just stayed in the jacuzzi where the water was warm. We stayed there till 11 am. Griffin had fun swimming. He did not want to go yet but we had to because we still had to take a bath and had to check out already. It was a fun weekend for Griffin and Hailey. If only the water wasn't too cold, hailey would have enjoyed it more at the pool.

Hailey's molars

Hailey's 10th and 11th teeth have erupted from her gums. It is the upper left molar and the lower right molar.

Hailey is 19 months

Hailey at 19 months still does not talk but is starting to put together more syllables. She can certainly understand us and can let us know what she wants although not verbally yet. She can now say woof woof when asked what a dog says. She raises both her hands when you say ran ran ru. She also does the same when she wants to see Ronald Mc Donald's ran ran ru video or whenever she sees Ronald's picture or statue. Her new tricks include 'brain freeze' where she holds the sides of her head and says 'aah!' , 'chill' where she stretches both arms with fists balled and shivers, tickle where she pokes you trying to tickle you and cries her fake cry when asked to cry. She once did brain freeze, chill and cry one after another without anyone telling her to do so. She can understand what we say even we are not talking to her. She has this bad habit now of spanking when you tell her 'no' and stamps hers feet when she doesn't get her way. When I ask her where something she played with is, she usually shows me where she left it. She also usually tells when she makes wee wee or poo poo even when she's in diapers. She loves touching stuff in stores and usually makes them fall down specially if they are bottles. She also likes putting stuff in the shopping cart. She loves playing with pretend food and also loves monkeys. I hope she adds more words to her very limited vocabulary. She can now say bubba for bubbles though, something I just heard her say just a few days ago while she was watching Hi5 blowing bubbles on the video. She has no problem making herself understood as she nods or shakes her head for yes or no and points and gestures to help you understand her.

Second quarter report card

Griffin got his report card today. As I expected, he got good grades again. He got HS in Reading, Language, Math, Filipino and Chinese. This time he got an award for good penmanship. Good job Griffin! Keep it up!

Hailey is 18 months

Hailey at 1.5 years old still does not talk although she can copy some repetitive syllables like mama, dada, kaka, nana, zaza and baba. She can say ya sometimes for yes and shakes her head for no. She loves watching videos of sesame street and hi5. She loves Dora and Spongebob. Whenever she sees these characters on clothes or other stuff like pens, blankets, containers she gets excited. When we are at the supermarket, she would get things on the shelf like chips and chocolate then drops them in the cart. She also loves making bottles fall on store shelves.

Hailey Anecdotes

This afternoon when Hailey saw that I was cutting the plastic lamination from a printout for McDonald's, she got excited and pointed to the McDonald's "M" logo. There was also a time when she saw a very small Ronald McDonald throwing trash in a bin on the softdrink cup and nuggets box. She was ponting at it then raised both her arms up just like the Ronald doing the "ran ran ru" action om you tube. Hailey surely knows McDonald's. Just this evening she saw a Chowking coupon on the table. She was looking at it and pointing at the chicharap on the plate. She saw the chicharap and wanted some. Hailey sure is observant and has very good eyesight. She notices things even if it's just a tiny picture. She also remembers that there is a sorbetero on the sidewalk of Griffin's school. She often wants to go to that place even if the sorbetero is not there. She seems to be like another Griffin in the making. She's smart, observant and has a good memory.

Upper molars

Hailey has two new teeth coming out. She has two upper teeth that have cut through her gums. I think it is her left and right upper molar.

Griffin's allergies

We brought Griffin to the ENT last week to have his ears checked because he always complains that he's dizzy whenever he's riding a car. The doctor checked his ears, he did not see anything bad. We also told him that Griffin always had colds. He said it was allergies, as he saw Griffin's eyes. He checked his nose and throat and said Griffin had inflamed or enlarged tonsils, I'm not exactly sure. He also checked Griffin's balance and said he had a slight imbalance because he was slightly swerving to the right during the test. I don't know if the test was accurate because Griffin said his right shoe wasn't worn properly. Anyway, griffin was given Alnix and Avamys nasal spray to treat his allergy. He has been taking the meds for more than a week now and he's been allergy free so far. He has not complained of a clogged nose nor does he have colds. I am happy that he does not have to suffer from allergies anymore. So far, he also hasn't complained about dizziness in the car too which he never fails to complain of before taking the meds. His dizziness surely was caused by his allergies. It was not motion sickness after all because he also felt dizzy at times even when not in the car although not as bad. I'm glad that he no longer has to suffer from a clogged nose, something which I could not relieve him of.

My birthday

It was my birthday yesterday. We had no special food, not even a birthday cake. The day was kind of hectic since Griffin had classes and it was raining so hard. We got home so late because the traffic was so bad around the school. We'll be having my post birthday celebration at Yaki Mix on Saturday so that my mom, Apit, Nikki and Iper can join us. I'll probably buy a cake later so Griffin and Hailey can blow out the candles and we can have some photos together.

Yaya interaction day

Griffin is having their Yaya interaction day in school this afternoon. They won't be having classes just fun and games with the yayas. He doesn't have a yaya so a few months ago when they started talking about this activity, he was telling me he wanted one. He of course wanted to bring a yaya to school just like his classmates. When we got home from school yesterday, he was telling me about the gifts the other kids were to give their yayas. He didn't get one because he has no yaya. I asked him who else doesn't have a yaya and he told me only he did not have one. I felt kind of sad for him as he could not experience the bonding the other kids would have with their yayas. I also felt guilty for being a grumpy mommy specially when he's being "makulit". I feel stressed taking care of two demanding kids everyday. I am guilty of getting mad easily, having little patience and shouting. I really don't like being a monster mommy. I pray to God for me to be more patient and to understand that Griffin and Hailey are just kids. I know they love me and both want my full attention. It's not an easy task trying to split myself in two to satisfy both of them but I know it's not an excuse to be mad all the time. To be loved so much by my two babies is a blessing. I have to stop being stressed all the time to get rid of the monster in me.

2nd quarter test scores

I am so proud of Griffin. He is really such a smart kid. I saw his 2nd quarter test scores pasted in his HSCN and he got perfect scores in Reading, Language, Filipino, and Chinese, while he got 39.5/40 in Math. He has been very good in school and hasn't given me any problems whenever he has tests. He knows his lessons well that he does not need to review much when he has exams.

Hailey is 17 months old

Hailey at 17 months still doesn't talk. She can say mama but doesn't call me mama all the time. She say "da" for yes and shakes her head for no. She can follow instructions like "throw it in the trash can" or "get elmo". Hailey loves the water. She enjoys playing around in the big tub. A few days ago, I filled up the jacuzzi with water because Griffin wanted to swim, naturally, hailey and I would join him. She had a blast swimming. She wasn't afraid of getting her face wet . I had to hold on to her because she would twist and turn in the water . Just recenty, i saw her shakng her finger and trying to talk as if she were telling Griffin off. She's surely seen me get mad at Griffin.

Hailey is 16 months

Hailey at 16 months knows how to get what she wants. She often cries to get her way. She quickly climbs the computer chair once she sees that its empty then gestures that she wants to watch youtube. She pushes Griffin when he comes close to the computer and if he does not leave, she starts to cry. She still has not said her first word, although these past few days she has called me "mama" a few times. I tell her to say mama so I can catch it on video but she refuses to say it. She can understand what you tell her and follows instructions like when you ask her to get something. She seems to have a good memory too. She can also identify objects in her books and posters. She likes playing with the play doh ice cream maker and pretends to eat the ice cream. She cries when she gets frustrated at something she can't do. She likes scribbling on her whiteboard. Just recently, she has been enjoying eating on her own. I gave her a small spoon and fork and she tries to eat on her own although the rice oftens falls off the spoon before it reaches her mouth.

Griffin's First Quarter Report Card

I am very happy with Griffin's first quarter grades. He got HS in Filipino, Math, Reading, Language and Chinese. According to his teacher, Griffin's intellectual ability is amazing. He just needs to be more assertive. He is kind of shy in school. I am really glad that he is doing so well in school. I hope he keeps it up.

Hailey's 8th tooth

Hailey's 8th tooth has come out. It is the tooth beside her upper right front tooth.

Hailey at 14.5 months

Hailey still hasn't said her first word. Although she is starting to say mamama or paba, she has not called me mama yet. When she sees food and wants to eat, she says, a-ma or mam. She watches videos when we are in the car, but recently she has the habit of wanting to change the disk all the time without watching the video. She loves getting stuff out of drawers or cabinets. She likes riding on her car. At times she would play with her doll's stroller or her toy shopping cart but instead of pushing, she would carry it.

Griffin is 6!

Griffin turned 6 years old last Monday. How time flies, he's growing up so fast. Next year, he'll be in Grade 1 already. He's a very smart kid so I don't have any problems with his school work. My main concern is his temper. He can't control it especially when he gets frustrated at something he can't do. I really hope he would outgrow his tantrums really soon.

Mid quarter PTC at Griffin's school

We went to Griffin's school for their mid quarter PTC. We arrived before 10:30 am, luckily there were no other parents waiting so I was able to talk to Teacher Karen right away. She had very good feedback on Griffin's performance. She told me that Griffin is smart. He is doing well in school. He recites when he knows the answer and does well in his worksheets. She told me though that he easily cries and does not talk much to his classmates. Although, I think he does not mingle much with his classmates because he does not know them so well yet. I wanted to talk to his Chinese teacher too but there was a long line so I decided not to anymore. Anyway, he's doing well in Chinese. I just got a graded worksheet and he got a perfect score. He was able to recognize the chinese characters that the teacher dictated. I'm surprised he could recognize the characters because I haven't practiced him at home except for posting a list on the wall with the English meanings.

The PTC actually lasted for just 5 minutes but we stayed for around 30 minutes more because Griffin wanted to play in the playground. We left at around 11:10am. Griffin said he had so much fun in school even if there were no classes.

Hailey's 6th tooth

Hailey's 6th and 7th tooth have come out. It is her upper right front tooth and the tooth beside her upper left front tooth.

Hailey walks

Hailey can now walk very well. At home, she walks around the house barefoot. She was even able to walk around the mall wearing shoes. It used to be difficult for her to walk around with shoes. She hasn't tried running yet. I am sure she'll start running in a few more days. At this time, Hailey doesn't talk yet. She has yet to say her first word.

Hailey's 4th and 5th tooth

Hailey's 4th and 5th tooth have erupted from her gums. It is the tooth next to her lower right front tooth
and the upper left front tooth.

First day of school: SY 2010 - 2011

It was Griffin's first day of school yesterday as a Prep student. They had an open house so we were at his classroom till around 12:30 pm. He now brings a large trolley bag. It is quite heavy but at least it has wheels so he just has to pull it. Unlike last school year, when they had to carry their bags on their shoulders. When we arrived the school's vicinity, there were grade 1 students going home since they had half day classes today. Griffin said, with his hands together, " Please, I don't want to be in Grade 1." I asked him why and he said, "I can't wake up early.". That is truly a problem, because I can't even make him get up at 9 am what more if he has to get up at 6 am. I'll
just have to figure a way next year. Maybe homeschooling could be an option. No more travel time to school. As for this year, I am really glad that Griffin can understand and speak Filipino already. He's not that good but at least he's losing the accent when he speaks Filipino. When we picked him up he said he had so much fun running and playing in the playground.

Trip to Manila Ocean Park

Griffin had his first trip to Manila Ocean Park last thursday. He had fun looking at the fish, touching the starfish, having his feet nibbled by fish at the fish spa. He did not get his feet in the water immediately because he was still reading the story about the doctor fish on the walls. He said it tickled when the fish started nibbling on his feet. Of course, we went to the souvenir shop where he got a clown fish stuff toy, some 3D cards, a glitter globe and sea creatures window decal. After having lunch at Chow King, we went to see skin and bones of different animals like a bear, goat, camel, etc. Then we went to see the dancing jellyfish. He said he liked the song the jellyfish were dancing to. He had fun and wanted to go back again although later that night he said he liked the Ocean Park in Hong Kong better. Maybe next year, we might go to Hong Kong when Hailey's 2 years old already.

Hailey's teeth

Hailey's third tooth has erupted from her gums last tuesday. Her gums are all bulging, her teeth are ready to come out. She has been sick for a couple of days now. I hope she gets better already.

Griffin and his comics

I bought Griffin a spiderman comic book last thursday. It is a compilation of 4 stories. He can read it so well and very fast too. I would like to get a video of him reading one of these days.

Hailey at 1

Hailey turned one year old last thursday. At a year old, Hailey can already walk unaided but she is limited to a couple of steps. She is still a bit afraid to walk alone. Her steps are not that stable yet. She can't talk yet so she gets what she wants by screaming and pointing to whatever she wants you to do. When i am doing something and she wants my attention, she forces her way into my arms by trying to lie down on my arms. She seems to have a good memory too like Griffin. She's very possessive of me, specially when she sees me carrying Griffin. Even if, i am carrying both of them, she tries to push Griffin out of the way.

Hailey walks

Last May 4, was the first time that Hailey walked a few steps unaided. She has started to walk on her own although just a few steps at a time. I hope she suddenly starts walking on her own before her birthday party.

Swimming time

Hailey, Griffin and I swam in our new inflatable pool. It was a fun way to cool off this summer. Too bad, I think we got a little darker again. I was not able to take any pictures because I forgot to bring down the camera and I was already in the pool. I was not able to ask my mom to get it since she was not home. Hailey used the floating car as her walker in the pool. We swam for more than 2 hours. We got out because Hailey was sleepy already.

Hailey is 11 months

Hailey turned 11 months on April 20. At 11 months, she can stand on her own but she is kind of scared to try walking. When i ask her to walk to me, she reaches her hand out. She does not want to walk unless she is holding on to me. She calls me mama when she wants me. Mama is the only word she can say unless you count "nanana" which means she wants to nurse. She can point out on a picture mommy, daddy, and Griffin. She still loves watching commercials and political ads. Her favorite character is Dora. She gets so excited when she sees Dora on tv or computer or even just a sticker. She gets jealous of Griffin when he is near me. She just to move him out so that she would be the one next to me. Hailey loves the water. She enjoys swimming so much.

Summer outing at Acuatico

It was out first summer outing as a family, just the four of us. We went to Acuatico in Laiya, Batangas. We left the house at around 6 am. I carried Griffin to the car and he slept all the way to Acuatico. Hailey woke up around 30 minutes before we arrived at the resort. It was the first time for both Griffin and Hailey to go to the beach. Yes, in his almost 6 years of existence, Griffin has never been to a beach. In fact he has never experienced a summer outing till last Sunday. He actually loved being in the pool. He only stayed in the beach for a while to play in the sand. He enjoyed swimming specially now that he can hold his breath under water. He likes the deeper pool, the jacuzzi, which has water that reaches his neck. We swam twice, first after having breakfast then we had lunch and rested for a while in the room then returned to the pool at around 4 pm. Hailey also loves the water. She is not afraid to be in the pool. She even crawled on the fountain and near the ledge of the pool. We don't have much photos in our digicam but I brought a disposable waterproof camera which I still have to bring to the photo shop. It was a fun vacation but it would have been better if we had more company. Maybe we would return to Acuatico before school opens in June.

Broken hard disk

I am so sad that our external hard disk with all our photos and videos is broken. It broke because Hailey pushed it off the top of the CPU. I tried to have the data recovered but the problem is a mechanical one so it needs to be opened in a clean room. The data is probably still in it but to have it recovered is very expensive. I have emailed a data recovery company in Hong Kong. They offer free evaluation but I have to ship the hard disk to them. I asked for an estimate cost for the type of damage of the hdd and it is quite steep but I'm still contemplating on whether to try having it evaluated. It is so unfortunate that I did not back up our photos from August 2008 to February 2010. I have printouts though until April 2009 and was able to save May, June and July 2009 digital pictures. I am still so sad that Hailey's 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th month pictures are all gone. I don't even have a single picture of her Baptism. Now I can't do her baby book because I have lost so many pictures. It is doubly unfortunate that I was not able to printout any of her pictures. The set of photos that I was supposed to have printed were lost to our other hdd which crashed before the external hdd broke. It is a very hard lesson for me to learn that backing up is so important. There are so many memories in there that's why I am still hoping that I would still be able to recover them.

Griffin's Report Card

My mom got Griffin's report card last Friday. He got good grades.  He had an achievement award in academics, Happy Gram and an award in Chinese. He did not get the award for penmanship though but that's ok. He actually writes so neatly now. The other day, he wrote the numbers 1-30 on a yellow pad and his penmanship looked really good.

Second tooth

Hailey's second tooth started coming out last March 28. It is the lower right front tooth. She looks cuter, now that she has 2 cute little teeth.

Hailey is 10 months

Hailey turned 10 months last March 20. At 10 months she can easily cruise around the house. Her single tooth is slowly growing. She can even say "mama". She still loves commercials and likes Manny Villar's new ad. She waves her hands when she likes a certain song. She still loves eating and oftentimes is envious when she sees other people eating. Her hair is getting longer but is still spikey but at least it is possible to put a hair clip on her already. She can clap her hands when told to do so. She also waves her hand when you say hi or bye.

Sick boy

Griffin has been sick for 3 days already. He has fever and a headache. I don't know what is wrong with him. He now complains of a sore throat when he swallows. We will be going back to the doctor tomorrow. I am hoping he'll be better already.

Hailey's First Tooth

Hailey's first tooth is finally cutting through her gum. It is her lower right front tooth. I will be brushing her teeth real soon. I hope she cooperates and allows me to brush her teeth.

School's out! Vacation time!

Griffin had his last day of school yesterday! The day before they had their last exam then had special center time where they had face painting, made some music and had the chance to eat from the chocolate fountain. Griffin's first year in big school has gone so quickly. It was a breeze since he did not have any problems academically. He is growing so fast. He is also taller now as evidenced by his school pants which are too short for him now. He'll be in Prep this coming June, I am hoping it would be a good year for him too. He's happy that school is out because he is excited to go to the beach. It is going to be his first time at the beach. We'll be going to Acuatico in Laiya. The beach sand will be grainy and not the type for making sand castles but I hope he would still enjoy. Maybe when Hailey is older, we could go to Boracay.

Hailey is 9 months

Hailey at 9 months can easily walk around the room while holding onto anything for support. She can crawl really fast and can go up and down the bed. She is quite talkative and has a loud voice. When she sees food, she would make noise to tell you she wants some. When she wants something, she can tell you by making noises and by reaching for it to the point that she could almost fall if you did not hold her tight enough. She loves Griffin and gets excited when he's running around. She eats anything and everything she sees. She knows though, if it's food. Her teeth, both the upper and lower front teeth, are almost coming out. You can see the bump under her gums. Hopefully, the teeth would cut through the gums before she tums 10 months. I think she'd look even cuter with teeth. Her hair is also getting thicker although it's still spiked up. I hope it gets longer soon. I would love to put a hair clip on her. She no longer wants a hairband on her head.

Griffin's 3rd quarter Report Card

Griffin got his Report Card today. I am so happy with his grades. He got 5 VS marks and all the rest are HS. He also got a big Happy Gram, an award for Penmanship and another achievement award for academics. I hope that he always does well in school. I am also glad that he has learned to speak and understand Filipino through his playtimes with Ran Ran and Em Em. He hasn't mastered it but that's ok. I know that he will learn eventually. At least, I am no longer worried that he will have difficulties in his Filipino subject when he is already in Prep.

Hailey is 8 months

Hailey at 8 months can now get to the sitting position effortlessly. She can crawl really fast and has figured out how to get down from the bed to the floor although she still has accidents. She can also get to the standing position while holding onto the bed. However, her legs are still wobbly when she is in the standing position. She moves around the house on her walker really fast so one has to watch out or she'll hit you and you would hurt your feet or ankles. She loves eating. She can eat rice even without soup. She's very active specially when you leave her on the floor to explore. My baby is growing up so fast. In a few months, she'll be one year old and would probably walking on her own. I'm starting to prepare for her first birthday party with an animal/safari theme. I am actually excited about it. I have just reserved the party venue this afternoon.