Kids, Inc.

Hello to you all my dear friends. I’ve been into a lot of things lately so busy I was not able to update my blog. Well lot of things would mean the youngest kid going now to school, my birthday, my mother’s hospitalization and my endless things to buy and things to do.

Well.

As I said, Yana started big school today. And neither of us cried.



There's such a revolting feeling when your child starts kindy. Who will help them open their crackers? How can they possibly go to a bathroom stall by themselves? The classroom is SO BIG, and she is SO LITTLE. How can this happen?

So we have one girl now in kindy and one boy in year four, at different schools. I keep telling my son in my best Rizzo voice that he's gonna"Ruuule the school."

By the time I was my sons's age, I was already thinking about my future like who will I marry, and how many kids will I have. I don’t feel so pretty then but I know that somewhere out there a little boy is also growing to be my husband.

I also tell him that because he is so strong and tall and popular, he has a duty to watch out for kids who need his help, who might be bullied. He tells me he does - I hope he does.

You think your kids are set once they are no longer babies, that the hardest part is over. It's not. It's a whole new ballgame, one I never saw coming until it came and I was all um, I didn't order this particular parenting sandwich?!

Fights, arm wrestling, limits ignored, harsh words. The severe worry and panic that you are totally wasting these kids up. It's completely terrifying. I just hope it's minimal, that not too much damage is being done, and that when they go out into the world they're armed with enough confidence to take care of themselves. And respect themselves and other people.



Financially, we often just lurch from one problem/crisis to the next. I've been parenting for nine years now. I've sucked at it, been awesome at it, loved it, loathed it. It demands so much, to look after people who can't look after themselves quite yet. Sometimes I count up on my fingers how many more years until it's just me and Hubs again, like, boyfriend/girlfriend.

But man they keep us anchored. And responsible. We're all just a bunch of crazy people, doing the best we can.

Would You Rather: Hot or Cold?

Happy June first, my dear friends.

June is always abuzz that is a start of a lot of things to Filipinos, especially Metro Manilans. School, traffic, and well, rainy season. Remember that scene in my beloved Calumpit Bulacan-where residents waded in knee-deep water for weeks? God forbid it will not happen again.

The title, this looks like a pretty innocent question. Did you ever ask yourself which you prefer, hot or cold? May be inane, as in not much of a debate material. But it seems that people have very strong opinions when it comes to this all-important question -- opinions that are right up their with their plans for world peace and their thoughts on the Vice Ganda- Jessica Soho ongoing issue on comedy bar jokes.

Below, the poster that plot down the plus and minus of our wet and dry weather.



I like hot weather better. Do you know that I get a bit sentimental when it rains?

The bottom line: it’s all a matter of taste. Some people like R&B, I loathe it. Some people like heavy metal songs and I would rather stick my head into a grinder.

Ultimately we do not question each other’s preferences.

Finding Friends

You can’t catch time when you’re busy catching your rowdy kids

Sorry friends. I miss you and I love you, but my hands were full. In as much as I want to yak all my stress up, converse where life has taken me so far, and convince you to death that I really took Zumba, there were lots of things on my plate. You know my kids. They trick me into “Ma, we need you more than you need friends”.

They make me feel this way all the time. Every time.

I met my college friends last December 31 and I miss them. I just couldn’t let this one pass. Gah, I miss going out. Sadly, I can’t do that as frequently as I want. And sadly, I met them with my brood.

The food was great, the place just fine. Only I had a nightmare on the first hours. I was no use to anybody because I was always busy with the kids. They need me like air. Forget the steep stairs, or the kidnappers. I fear them breaking the glass barriers anytime, falling straight down the concrete floors of Festival Mall in Alabang. Ang mahal kaya ng glass barriers.!

So to these people who I got the chance to share my life with, although very seldom I see and chat, I hope our ties will never end. And despite of the long times that went by we connected last, and the more time it takes to catch up, I know friendships are not about time and distance alone. It is about the heart that never forgets. I pray that our friendship will last forever. I pray that our kids will be friends too and share crazy stuff and relate stories only genuine people can value and understand.

To my one friend who feels that love is so elusive: Ease up. Don’t worry it will come in the right time. Feel good and look good. Love find its way to a heart that never stops dreaming and believing.

To my other friend who just entered her first romantic relationship: Enjoy the moment. Don’t fret about things you cannot control. Go with the flow. And let life takes it’s course. Sometimes when you release the reins, things fall into place naturally and simply. As they should.

And to you who suck up all the craziness of this world and still end up the best mom: I am so proud of you. You have already proven yourself. I adore your klutziness. You never hold back and that’s what makes you special. I pray you meet your one true love some day.

This post is for you guys. Rock and roll!

Do You Miss College?

I do. I enjoyed college more than high school. College was the time that I started to carve my own identity. I was no longer very shy. To some degree, it was then that I was slightly becoming of the person I really wanted--the kind that doesn’t need other’s approval.

Just a few weeks ago I had the chance of returning to my dear alma mater. Seeing the century-old columns, hallways, staircase was like coming home. Archaic, with some buildings almost dilapidated, but this university helped built up my moral fiber which are now my principles, values, standards and general understandings of life as a whole. My visit was only for few hours but the longer I stayed, I find myself sinking deeper and deeper back into old memories of friends and hardships (naks!). Did I mention I am few points away from being Cum Laude?

I also miss the people and the experiences I met and had while inside the academe. And like a favorite movie, there are days that I rerun in my mind all the funny, embarrassing and happy moments I had. I am sorry to tell you all that no, we did not dare go inside men’s room nor stolen test papers. But yes, we poked fun at one professor for not wearing the same pair of stockings. Yeah that was too lame a way of poking fun. It could be worse.

Anyway.

I will forever hold myself indebted not only for the degree that I used to get myself employed but also for the wisdom, the prudence and rationality in making life’s choices. To the one institution that accepted me not only because I have the money to pay for the tuition, but because I am willing to learn, MARAMING SALAMAT PO!

Here’s the bucketlist of all the awesome things I miss in College:

1. The colon-cleansing food they sell at the cafeteria. Oh how I miss the ginisang munggo (sautéed mongo sprouts) that magically appear every Friday.

2. I remember coming to our PE class looking like a European medieval soldier this:

Crap!

3. Secretly passing a paper and writing down what we “love” about our professors' outfit that day.

4. Being able to get rid of all those unwanted trees on the planet by turning into papers that eventually gets turn up and burned.

5. Going home early due to typhoon.

6. Arriving to school only to know the class was cancelled.

7. Foundation day

8. Library (especially the Thesis section where I sleep)

9. Eating dirty ice cream and kwek-kwek.

10. Friends: Tet, Eunice, Thelma, Joy, Jo, Beca, Benny, Ate Marlyn. Naming them will not give the perfect description of how grateful I was, am and will be.

So there you go. I am certain that I could add a ton more stuff if I really put my mind to it, but I'm lazy and feel like napping, so that's all you're getting. For now.

And to all of you who are returning to school on Monday, take heart kids. School is fun and so are the memories you will make inside and outside of it.

First Day High

Yesterday, the little boy woke up very early for school. Blankly, he took the shower, get dressed and ate his breakfast. Though he was not complaining, he was certainly not thrilled about waking up, eating and taking a bath early. And as if zapped by aliens, he moved and talked like zombie, while everyone in the house was crazy preparing his things. Suffice to say, he discovered too soon that school at early hours is not really a cool idea. To go from being cuddled and having everything sugar-coated, to the responsibility of keeping to himself and do not have someone to come in rescue in case he messed up.
However, his moods picked up at the sight of huge trees and building and courts once inside the school ground. He also took delight with the pictures and drawings posted all over his big classroom. His classmates, obviously not all was shy, were getting noisier. Not wanting to leave the boy just yet, I took one last look at him; expecting him to beg if I could just take him home. Soon I realized I was just as fearful to leave him on his own. But I was wrong about him. I thought I saw courage and guts in his eyes telling me that he will be fine. That’s when I knew he was ready for this after all.