Monthly Archives: April 2014

Its definitely Summer

Posted in Insights by

It has been quite hot in the past weeks. Some afternoons, the airconditioner would blast on high cool and yet the air still feels like room temperature air. There are limited activities a one year old toddler can do during the summer. In my case it was my son who showed me what fun we can do this summer.

He whined himself out of the house and walked toward the hose. We have introduced the hose to Joshua so he could learn watering plants. That particular afternoon was different. At 230pm on that sunny summer afternoon, Joshua strolls himself around the house with the hose. We let the water run and suddenly he became quite creative. He starts playing with the water and showers himself with the hose. It was fun to watch. He super enjoyed the sprinkles of water on his face. With the summer heat, my son taught me to have fun in a more practical sense!

Summer is here

I also bought a inflatable swimming pool for Josh to enjoy at home. The first time we set it up, I got all excited and took liberty to be in my swim suit to play with him in the pool. But after two photos with him in the pool, Joshua insisted to kick me out of the pool. I was not even a minute in the pool! Hahahhaa.. It was like him telling me, “I can take care of myself mom.” He can be really independent some times. In fact, he makes me forget that he is just 1 year old.

Mom and babe in the pool before Mom gets kicked out!

Mom and babe in the pool before Mom gets kicked out!


I guess swimming and hose playing are a good way to cool down this hot summer. Also it is good to keep babies hydrated with them drinking water and juices. This heat can be really fun if we allow our little ones to enjoy it. Playing with water can be really, really fun!

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TANG Sweet Orange Baby Teethers!

Posted in Personal Picks by

If you are a mommy like me, you know exactly that a baby going through teething is no joke. Our babies get cranky, they often want to have those itchy gums soothed by pacifiers, or even toys.  Well my little boy is growing a new tooth again and though he is pretty sport about it, it still makes him drool alot and want to bite on toys.

This week, I was privileged to join my other blogger friends to the launch of Tang’s new product.  They introduced something really interesting… A TANG powdered juice formulated for the Mindanao palate.  They brought their own food scientists to study what a Mindanaon wants in their orange juice.  7 out of 10 Mindanaoans seem to agree that they want a sweeter flavor in their orange juice.  So, if you like your orange juice sweeter, guess what, you can now buy the TANG SWEET ORANGE.  The only catch is, you can only buy it in MINDANAO groceries and sari-sari stores! 

Think about this —  An international brand willing to formulate a new variant just for Mindanaoans … willing to adjust to the taste and the culture of Mindanaons???   I say, “Its just super cool!!!” 

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Well, my son is a true Mindanaon. He was born in Mindanao and most likely will grow up in Mindanao.  Therefore, it will be highly possible that he will develop a Mindanaon palate.  Good thing that TANG Sweet Orange it is fortified with Vitamins A,B, C, Folate and Iron, and is Halal certified (meaning clean food and organic).  So I have decided to be creative, and use TANG Sweet Orange to make a Baby Teether suited for my Joshua.

It is suggested to mix one 25g sachet of TANG Sweet Orange with 1 Liter of water. I still find it very sweet.  So, to adjust to my little one year old’s taste, I mixed the sachet with 1.5 Liter of water.  Then I started storing it in Ice Plastics and placed it in the freezer overnight. This TANG Sweet Orange teether is ready to soothe my baby’s gums.  Also since its summer, it is another great popsicle to cool off the hot sunny days! 

 

 

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Creative Play

Posted in Insights, Teach at Home by

The daily routine of my 16 month old boy includes alot of play.  We use toys, we do role play, we have books and story telling, lots of hugs, affirmation and laughter. We have toys that are battery operated and makes alphabet sounds and music when certain buttons are pressed.  It has helped Joshua understand cause and effect. It also helps him with the mastery of his fingers and hand motor skills. Music also communicates an idea more creatively. Its good to have music and sounds as part of the play.

What amuses me the most, are the “accidental toys”.  These are household items or stuff I intended to throw, but in a surprise has become a valuable toy in the eye of my little boy.
One of the most enjoyed items Joshua has been playing are bottles. Shampoo bottles, lotions bottles, water bottles, and other toiletries are actually fun to arrange and rearrange. Joshua can actually play a while with these items as his imagination takes over.  He stacks them, rearranges them, packs them in boxes and likes to discover the object’s shape and function.

Another one he enjoys is making the monoblock plastic chair his ship.  We make him stand on it and we just push it around the dining area as if he was the captain sailing away.

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Recently, my husband received a gift that has become one of our objects of creative play. Its a wooden set of coffee confectionary. Joshua has made it his imaginary kitchen and role plays that he is cooking up a great dish. We have fun pretending to be chefs and making up recipes. I really enjoy watching him pretend to stir the food and take a taste with the spoon as he says “uhhhmm!”

Another toy that has become cool is just a box. His nanny saw that he would fit inside that box. She puts a ribbon at one end and made Joshua sit inside. With the ribbon we dragged him around the house making the box his make shift car/jeep. Its been a lot of fun!

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Playing does not need expensive toys all the time. We can just look at our closet or pantry and find lots of interesting stuff for our toddlers to play with. What we parents need are just a bit more imagination and creativity…

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He decided to potty!!!

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I bought that baby toilet seat about a month ago for my 15 month old. I was trying to make him understand that poo-poo should be done on the toilet seat. Joshua did not fully understand at first. I would make him sit on the baby toilet seat and hold him with my facial expression of pushing bowels and making that sound “uh-ohhh… Uh-ohhh”. He would try to follow my face but still not get it.

For the first time today (April 11), in the middle of our play time, Joshua looks at me and makes the “u-o” sound. So I asked him, “do you want to poo-poo?” I was surprised to see him turn away from me and run to the bathroom.

We rushed to follow him, and took off diapers and placed his potty training toilet seat on top of the main toilet seat. He sat without protest. He kept pointing to the toilet paper. It was not long when he finally dropped those baby bombs! Yes! My son at 1 year and 3 months got himself to successfully do #2 in the toilet. I am so thrilled!

Joshua has caught me using the toilet several times. I surmise he figured things out by what he saw. This son of mine never ceases to amaze me. He really is such a smart little boy!

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Music and intelligence

Even when my son was in my womb, I had sung to him songs. I made him listen to my ipod tunes. They say, if you let your child listen to classical music, they get brain stimulation. For me, any music can stimulate a child.

Maybe its partly genes that my son is just a natural music lover and dancer too! But I am more inclined to believe that exposing a child to music at an early age just helps in their development.

I have never stopped singing to Joshua. I sing songs I know, I have also discovered and reconnected with many childhood songs, and I also put melodies to my own sentences. Music is part of our mother and son relationship.

I also bought him musical toys like a small xylophone. He also liked playing with a baby drum. I also downloaded a baby piano and a baby drum application on my tablet. He started playing with these as early as 4 months.
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A few days after Josh turned one, I decided to take him to a kindermusic class in gymboree. It was there I discovered that Joshua was quite ahead. His exposure to music at home gave him so much confidence. I was a bit embarassed actually. He was getting all teachers attention while the other kids were still figuring music out.

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listening to percussions at a wedding

My son at 15 months can do the actions of several nursery songs (about 8 children’s songs or more). We are constantly exposing him to instruments and music. Its been a wonderful thing to do songs together and affirming him when he gets it right. It is a new level of fun!

As a parent, I can’t stop praising God for the joy I experience with my toddler. Music has been a great blessing to my little intelligent baby too.

“Thank you for the music… the songs Im singing… thanks for all the joy they’re bringing”