Happy Birthday Sesame Street!

November 5, 2009 by pepperpots

I grew up on Sesame Street! I wish it still shows on regular TV so Athalia could watch it (because even if she’s got too short an attention span when it comes to television and she’s too busy at play, she actually knows the TV programs my mom watches and their respective timeslots).

Happy 40th Sesame Street!

These two showing Big Bird and Cookie Monster are the more “general” Google logos and showed up in www.google.com.ph (today and yesterday, respectively):

This was used for Google Mexico:

For Google India:

For Google Israel:

For Google Belgium:

And for Google South Africa:

My darling SIL alerted me about these cute Google logos (because apparently, they didn’t show on Firefox and I had to open Google on IE.)

can i gobble up a baby?

October 15, 2009 by pepperpots

I’ve seen this photo a few weeks back, and I still keep looking at it every now and then.

Katherine Heigl Introduces Baby Naleigh!

This is a photo of Katherine Heigl and her husband, Josh Kelley, with their newly adopted daughter, Naleigh. This super cute and adorable 10-month old baby is from Korea. I just wanna bite her cheeks!

This photo is actually my current fave stress reliever.

Pear

October 15, 2009 by pepperpots

I regret not being able to successfully breastfeed Athalia.

http://www.mediabistro.com/agencyspy/original/pear.jpgI look at my body now and I cringe. Big, flabby upper arms. Bloated mid-section. Invisible waist. Large ass and saddle bags. My husband says I am slowly getting to be a pear-shaped woman… although he says he doesn’t mind at all (which I believe because he is also gaining as much weight as I am). When people comment about how much extra pounds I have lying around, I always say in defense that I am on BCP and have more eating appetite than I used to. I also think the culprit is this 12nn-10pm work schedule I have. My body clock has never been good at adjusting and now it’s gone totally haywire. Eating late doesn’t help me at all, but I also cannot avoid it, considering I work until late at night and starving myself after 6 o’clock means going to sleep with a tummy full of gas.

I look at women who have given birth way, way after I have, and who have returned to their pre-pregnancy figures with no difficulty whatsoever, and I can’t help but heave a sigh of regret. I realized too late how much breastfeeding can really help you slim down quickly. Had I known this earlier, I would have forced my little boobies on Athalia when she was just a newborn. Now I think I gave up way too early; I just gave up when she showed no interest at my nipples at first sight and when she showed signs that she doesn’t like the taste of my milk. But hey, in defense again, it was really frustrating for me at that time, and I knew forcing myself on my little one and her shoving me off in favor of cow’s milk would just have led me to have postpartum blues.

Anyway, it’s goodbye to BCP for now. Not that I want to get pregnant again so I can give birth and breastfeed. Hahaha.

And I need to get a pair of running shoes. What use is it working in IT Park if I don’t jog around the joggers’ block?

photo credit: mediabistro

Randomness

September 1, 2009 by pepperpots

Haha, I feel so inadequate having nothing else to write about lately, except for Google logo trivias. I honestly think these Google logos are so cute and if they were actual, tangible things, they’d be a neat collector’s items. I don’t know why, but there’s a teeny weeny bit of a pleasant surprise when you go to Google to look for something and you’d see the logo’s not its usual look. I think it’s highly creative and original of Google to do this.

Anyway, here are some random updates:

* Athalia is such a great talker now. She can actually utter complete and fairly comprehensible phrases. Like this weekend, I got a call from somebody, and when I put down the phone, Athalia asked “Papa to? Papa to?” I was surprised upon realizing she was actually inquiring if it was her Papa who rang up.

Totally potty-trained, with only a very few accidents. It’s been more than a month since I bought the last bag of diapers, and there are still a few nappies left.

* Still wishing I’d be ready to leave my 10-hour regular job. Yes, I have a 10-hour job (12noon-10pm), not including the 2-hour total travel time, and it’s totally draining my energy. I really want to go into full-time freelance, but although the thought of being with Athalia all day long is really tempting, I don’t think I’m also ready to give up whatever chances at daily social interaction I have. And I am still not sure how being in my pyjamas the entire day will affect me. I mean, it’s enough that I don’t find myself dressing to kill for work (I go to work in shirt, jeans and flats, with no make-up whatsoever), but I wouldn’t want to go “losyang” all the way.

* 27 feels great. Better than I felt when I turned 25, or 26.

* I have finally broken my 3-year hiatus from watching movies on the big screen. I tried begging with Alvin a million times before, but this time, it worked. Mainly because it was my birthday and I wouldn’t take no for an answer. I finally was able to drag him into the movie theater to watch UP. It’s my first 3D movie experience, and it’s so amazing! I also love that the animated film was all about DREAMS, and I was already crying a bucket within the first 10 minutes of the movie. The best thing was that Alvin did enjoy it, and he wasn’t sulking all throughout as I had expected.

* When you are a mom, you celebrate your birthday by buying a present for your kid. And not for yourself. I wanted a really nice dress or a pair of comfy shoes, but instead, we ended up buying Athalia a pretty big dollhouse.

Now, I finally understand why my mom would buy my brother a pair of rubber shoes with her birthday money. And I now feel sorry having actually resented it before.

* Held a garage sale a few weeks ago. My goal was to get rid of some of our old stuff (mostly clothes) so we’d have space to accommodate new ones. (And we have a bunch of clothes to dispose of because they no longer fit, with Athalia getting bigger, as well as both Alvin and me.) But it felt like no decluttering happened at all.

We sold some of Athalia’s really nice Periwinkle dresses and some Florsheim kids shoes and little Havies that are still in great condition, hoping we’d get paid a good price for them. But we ended up selling the dresses at really low prices… like below 50 pesos. I realized that people are really not ready and willing to spend that much money on their kids, knowing that they outgrow stuff really fast. Oh, and it’s funny how Athalia didn’t go all too possessive about her things, because she usually does. Everytime somebody takes her clothes or shoes, she’d go “Buhbye shoes!” or “Buhbye dress!”

We also sold a pair of Alvin’s Nike shoes for a super depreciated price, and it felt good. It was a pair he used only a very few times a few years ago, and it was just gathering dust at home. A few guys tried the shoes on and really wanted it… But they are not ready to pay 100 bucks for the pair. We were like “Hey, it’s original!” and refused to mark it down. Hello, it’s super marked down already! But here comes a pedicab driver who asked if he can have it for like 6o bucks. “Give me 75 and it’s yours!” I said. “But I only have 60 pesos. It’s the only money I earned today.” And without any more hesitation, I gave him the shoes for 60 pesos. Just imagine spending all money you have for that day. I knew right then he gave me more than the 100 bucks any other guy with a better job would have paid for it.

Today’s Google Logo…

August 29, 2009 by pepperpots

…celebrates the King of Pop’s birthday. Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful entertainers of all time. His unique contributions to music and dance, along with a highly publicized personal life, made him a prominent figure in popular culture for four decades.

Michael Jackson's Birthday Google Logo

Today’s Google Logo…

August 25, 2009 by pepperpots

400th Anniversary of Galileo's Telescope

… celebrates the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s telescope.

Today’s Google Logo…

August 14, 2009 by pepperpots

Hans Christian Ørsted's Birthday

…celebrates Hans Christian Ørsted’s birthday.

Hans Christian Ørsted (14 August 1777 – 9 March 1851) was a Danish physicist and chemist who is best known for discovering that electric currents can create magnetic fields, which is an important part of electromagnetism. He shaped post-Kantian philosophy and advances in science throughout the late 19th century.He was also the first modern thinker to explicitly describe and name the thought experiment.

Today’s Google Logo (8/12/09)

August 12, 2009 by pepperpots

Perseid Meteor Shower

Every year in early August, we can observe the Perseid meteor shower (“the Perseids”). And it’s a fascinating sky event.

The Perseid meteor shower actually starts in late July and runs to late August. However, the best time to view is around the peak.

It’s not precise, but the 2009 peak is expected on August 12th at around 15.00 hours UT. There is some uncertainty, so it’s very worthwhile to observe either side of this.

In particular for European observers, the hours of darkness either side the peak hours, may well prove more fruitful! So try the previous Tuesday night, as well as the night of Wednesday 12th.

And there is also a potentially prominent Moon to contend with. It will not set below the horizon until the early hours of the morning.

Let’s take a detour for a while.

August 11, 2009 by pepperpots

Okay, so now that the frenzy’s quite over, I have to admit that I shed a lot of tears when reading news and watching clips and interviews related to the late President Cory Aquino. She was the president I really grew up with, and I remember that one of my dear old grandmother’s favorite http://thejakartaglobe.com/media/images/large/20090702234426980.jpganecdotes about me was when I was not quite four years old and I’d shout “Cory-Doy!” with the Laban hand sign every time I pass by a group of people. I believe she was the only president who’s not corrupt. She was the only one who feared God enough not to abuse her power. Yes, she was quite “incompetent” and relied on a bunch of advisors, but considering that she lacked any prior political experience aside from being a politician’s wife and serving other politicians coffee, I think she did really great. Yes, it was Ramos who actually got the country stable and even made it into an “Economic Tiger,” but it would have been impossible for him to do it without Cory paving the way.

It was in her death that I realized how much courage she has, and I do echo the many people who say she was bigger in death. I try to place myself in her shoes, think about my husband dying on me, leaving me five children to take care of on my own. I don’t think I’d be able to stop crying for months and years, much more stand behind his coffin during the funeral march so calm and poised and composed! I think I’d be on the floor, bawling hysterically. And what if I get asked to run for the presidency and try to dethrone a tyrant? I don’t think I’d run the risk of leaving my five children complete orphans. I would not only hesitate, but I’d say NO without even spending a second longer to think about it. In so many of his letters to his family, Ninoy always referred to her as a woman with a “rare brand of silent courage.” And I do see that now. It really takes a woman of great courage and strength to be able to do the things she did when I was a mere four-year-old kid. It took me until now to appreciate her.

Anyway, I have decided. I know I have promised before to never take part in electing any public official, lest he or she turns up to be another Gloria and I’d forever regret having a hand in putting her or him into office. Or at least not until I see someone with a really pure heart and with really noble intentions, not one who can mindlessly go to New York and eat a million-peso meal with her entourage while hundreds of thousands of Filipino children are starving. So I have now decided. I am taking a day off from work within this week and register for the coming National Elections. For the very first time in 27 years.

Potty Training Adventure

July 26, 2009 by pepperpots

Potty training is indeed an adventure in itself.

My little girl was the perfect, happy baby — no chronic crying, no wailing in the middle of the night (which meant straight 6-hour sleep for me, even when she was just a newborn), no teething blues and crankiness, no fuss when I had to wean her from the pacifier and from the baby bottle. Well, except for the fact that she developed some kind of lactose intolerance during the few months before she turned one, she was really perfect. I didn’t feel the need to buy any baby rearing books.

However, when it came to potty training, I had some bit of difficulty. Now, I have to admit Athalia’s not really advanced in all aspects of child development. She learned to walk rather late, especially when compared to other toddlers (she was 14-15 months old when she took her first few steps without assistance). She learned to talk rather late, too. In fact, at two years and 3 months old, she is still speaking in one- and two-syllable words (like “baba” for buhbye, “te pe” for water please, “seh” for sorry, “bu” for I love you). She doesn’t know her ABC’s and her numbers yet. Although she can recite the first few letters of the alphabet and numbers 1 to 10 in her usual “ngo-ngo” fashion (wa, tu, tee, fo, fa, seh…), she doesn’t really know yet how the letters or the numbers look like when written (except perhaps for the letter M — because that’s what she sees on her favorite chocolate, M&M). She also doesn’t know her colors yet.

So back to potty training. A few months after her first birthday, we got her a potty chair, which we left at her Grandma’s house where she stays most of the day. We gave her directions on how and when to use it. But maybe the chair came at a time when she wasn’t ready to be potty trained yet, or maybe I wasn’t there to really supervise her use of it, so it didn’t really work. She sat on it during play and made it into an ordinary kiddie chair.

Around a month ago (which is around a year after we got her first potty chair), I figured it was really time. This was because she’d give signals when she’s about to poop, and sometimes she’d even try to take her diaper off. She also demands to wear only her panties in the afternoons and she’s starting to find her nappies uncomfortable. We got her a new potty chair because I know she can no longer associate the old chair with pooping or peeing — or, I thought, at least not in Grandma’s house. (I got the same cheap model but in a different color, because the really nice, cushioned ones are so friggin’ expensive!) So I left the new one at Grandma’s, and got the old one for our house. I figured the switch will help us have a fresh start at potty training.

Every time we’d notice her turning red and about to poop, we would hurriedly take off her pants and her diapers and lead her to the potty chair. At first, there are times when she’d make it, but more often, she either wouldn’t get there on time, or we’d get a false alarm. I also decided to use the reward method. I tried preparing stickers and telling her she’d get one if she uses her chair. That wasn’t successful as she’d beg to have the stickers and I’d find it hard to resist. So I got face paint sticks as substitute. I drew stars and flowers and butterflies on her arm as a preview of what she’ll get as a reward when she uses her chair.

hebrews 002

I guess the arm tattoos worked, as slowly, day by day, she’s getting the hang of using her chair. At first, the stats were poor (but good enough for us!). But nevertheless, she looks forward to having an artwork on her arm when she wakes up, as a reward for her achievements the day before (she doesn’t really mind the delayed reward). Her favorite tattoo design is the letter M, or, to be more exact, the McDonald’s logo. LOL.

Her milestone last week was when, for an entire day, she didn’t get any of her diapers and panties wet!!! Hurrah for my big baby! She peed in her potty chair five times and pooped into it once. In return, I drew five stars and a moon on her arm.

Right now, she can go through a day without wetting her undies. She can even last the entire night with her diaper completely dry. I thought it would take a few more months to train her not to wet the bed, but I guess she can already hold her bladder well enough.

star tattoo

I can’t help but think my little girl is almost a grown-up. However, I don’t want to think of the time when I will be sending her to her classroom for her first day of school.