Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts

As a mom, you get your hands full almost everyday.
And I'm sure most moms will agree with me that kids get bored VERY easily.
I for one totally ran out of ideas last week.
Even limited credits to using gadgets didn't do the trick to keep boredom at bay.

So here's my second try at making the most out of this summer.

I'm sharing this calendar with you with the hopes that both of us will get our kids' diverted into activities that enrich their creativity and artistic side.

Feel free to download the art compilation I made for next week's art stuff. (First image on this post)
You can do two activities a week or do everything in the list, depending on what you can manage. :)

I usually leave out Sunday because we take the kids out by then.

Recycled Art is up for next week!
We've been wanting to do this and so we had to gather enough recycled materials for the past 2 weeks

*Photo and Idea credits to Google and all owners/crafters, a big thanks for sharing your talents

 Cheers and Happy Crafting!



I used to have a baby monitor that we had a family friend buy for us from the states. We never really got to using it as much. 

This time, given I'm working all around the house, I wanted something that's more economical yet even more effective.

My business partner and good friend had one installed just for monitoring their living area. I was amazed by it because he could access the camera via his mobile phone, from wherever he is.

It's called a P2P or IP Camera.

You can see the real-time monitored location just through an app in your mobile phone.
The IP address is unique of course and you will need to have an on-going internet connection during the duration that you are using it.

You can hear and see what's happening and the other person on the monitored end can also hear you in case you want to talk to them. 

You can plug it via an RJ45 connector directly from your modem or it can also tap into your internet connection at home wireless.

I'm ordering one to try so I can monitor my kids while I'm out (for the ground floor) and if it turns out to be a good buy, I'm getting another one for the room for use as our baby monitor.

You can order this plus other versions in www.lazada.com.ph 
Prices start at Php1,790 and up (depending on the brand and model).
Not bad actually for a CCTV camera.

Here's the link to the product I ordered: CLICK HERE

If you're new to Lazada, download their App and key in this coupon code before you do your final check-out/payment: LZDAPP250 so you can get Php250 off!

 Minimum is Php1,500 purchase plus you get FREE shipping. (This is not a sponsored post. Everybody love getting a discount so might as well share this! LOL).

I'll update you on the actual trial run when we get the item.

Cheers!




We taught our kids to speak english first before we introduced Tagalog words.

I personally never thought one language was more important than the other but I knew that Tagalog, being our mother tongue will be easily learned by my kids because that's how I learned growing up and It was a breeze for me.

Prior to September, where we're set to venture into the world of Homeschooling, I've been doing a lot of research on parent teaching methods.

One thing my husband feels I'm so obsessive with is correcting my kids' choice of words.
I tell him that more than being the "Grammar Police", I want my kids to accept that being corrected is okay because its going to make them better at what they do. I'm not by any means perfect when it come to the proper use of language. I learn too as we go along and I need to constantly review and recheck myself as well. So really, HATS OFF TO ALL TEACHERS! :)

My eldest loves to read. She reads different Almanacs, Books, Googles things she doesn't understand and has learned to use the dictionary at seven.

My little boy however, does not have as much patience as his sister so I teach him more directly.
He LOVES making up words! It starts out cute but when I think about the time when he grows up and uses those words, it's really going to be a turn-off! LOL.

His common words that I correct on a regular basis are mostly in past tense:

1. EAT becomes "EATED" instead of ATE
2. BRING becomes "BRINGED" instead of BROUGHT
3. FIGHT becomes "FIGHTED" instead of FOUGHT

and mostly other words that aren't supposed to have "ED" in the end. hehe

It's most likely because most past tense words generally end with "ED". 
Since he really doesn't have more than 3 minutes of patience to learn a bunch of words at the same time, we do it on a practical and regular application.

My first step is to keep correcting him and be patient with correcting him. 
I also ask him to say the sentence again then place a POSITIVE reinforcement of "Good Job!" or "That's great!" and he loves it so he remembers most of it the next time he uses the word.

I'd love to know how other moms and dads teach their kids the right way to use words.
It's actually a very fun challenge.

Cheers!





Admittedly, my husband and I are not big on big celebrations, except for our children's 1st birthdays which we feel we really want to share with lots of family and friends.

My little chicken (aka Peyton) will be turning 5 soon and he was asking me earlier what we'll be doing on his birthday. I had no idea so I asked him back (okay, it was sneaky I know) and I was surprised that he didn't also know.

For my daughter's 7th birthday, we decided to sponsor an orphanage's weekend by preparing healthy food varieties, doing an afternoon of arts and crafts and just taking time to hug and play with the kids.

We wanted my daughter to learn a lot of things from being grateful to being able to share.

Given it will be a month before I give birth, I'm not prepared to risk preparing for something that I can't accomplish (OC issues).

I'm thinking of giving him a day's worth of activities he will truly love.
I still have no concrete plan but the ones below are his all-time favorites:

- Minecraft
- Lego
- Angry Birds
- Pizza
- Ninjas
- Clay

My goal is to prepare an itinerary by end of the month because I think this will involve a lot DIY stuff and I'm don't work as fast as I used to because I'm being too careful of the baby bump. :)

Wish me luck! Will post the concrete plan soon.

Cheers!




My kids and I have been spending more time together since I'm usually home based due to some pregnancy issues. 

I make it a point to be firm with them with days that they are not allowed to use any of their gadgets.
In return, we buy them different crafting and art supplies to make their days productive and encourage more creativity plus learning how to work together so they won't bite each other's head off. :)

Yan-yan has always been fascinated with things from crafts, science and art.



This was her at 2 years old, whenever she'd get something new, it was like Christmas morning with the oohs and the aahs.

It's also the same when a package arrives from one of our favorite online sellers.

She's been making a lot of loomband creations and is quite good at it.
I didn't want her to easily get tired of it so we went ahead and got new crafting sets.

One of which are these food-grade plastic beads.



They are called Hama, Perler, Fuse, Ironing, dependent on the brand.

Here are some of he creations the kids accomplished within 1 1/2 day!

Finn and Peppermint Buttler of Adventure Time by Yan-yan

Minecraft Characters and Weapons by Peyton

My Little Pony by Yan-yan

A bigger and more complicated My Little Pony by Yan-yan
This activity needs adult supervision though because in order to fuse together the beads, you need to iron them underneath wax or ironing paper.

I bought them several sizes of the clear plates to mount the beads on so that we can iron them in batches (to save time and electricity as well).

There's so many items to make like keychains, decorative pieces you can make stands for, pen toppers, hair pieces, fashion jewelry, 3D objects and so much more.

There are currently 2 online sellers who are very nice and accommodating that we enjoy purchasing from.


You can find a lot of new craft activities from them plus more, we highly recommend these two sellers. :)

For patterns, we download from various sites, just google and you'll find a lot.

There are a lot of Youtube Tutorials too.

This is a good tool to bond with your kids so try it out, you might even enjoy it too.

Cheers!



I have two kids, one is  8 (daughter) and another one who'll be turning 5 this June (son).
They share 3 out of 10 things in terms of interest but my son won't do anything much without his sister which is quite sweet actually.

Peyton, my son, is obsessed with:
- Minecraft (he could play this before he learned how to read, he's quite good at it actually)
- Lego
- Angry Birds
- Painting (though its more of a messy colorful collage of blobs for now)

Rayne, my daughter, is so into:
- Loombands / Rainbow Loom
- Doodling
- Alamanacs (yes, she reads and memorizes facts)
- Any new form of crafting activity

I'm determined to fill up their summer and the extended months because we won't be formally start with homeschooling via our chosen community till September (we're waiting after the baby is born so I can have time to recuperate).

I'll update this post and share the activity calendar and another post that has the current listings from the Metro that might be of interest to you.

Cheers!



Gymboree with the babies


I have been so busy (and still am) that I have totally neglected this blog.

With all the things I wasn't able to document, I almost can't remember what I've been up to for the past months.

I'm trying to juggle my memory and so far, here's what I have unearthed

THE GOOD:
1. Changed my haircut and updated the color (finally!!!)
2. Went over my shopping ban time line! YEY!
3. Spent a nice Sunday with my family at Church then quality time with the kids at Gymboree
4. I have decided to live healthy, well, one step at a time and will start by running
5. I have decided to venture into something exciting and educational, I am praying to Him that it does go well and that I'm asking Him to point me further to the right direction
6. I love that I'm working with a team at the office whom I consider my work family, they are the best




THE FAT
1. I still have the post preggy tummy...go figure, I have never exercised regularly since I gave birth (1 year and 2 months...hehehe)
2. There are only 3 major gyms in the Philippines - 1 overcharged my credit card before and I am bound never to return to them again, 1 has too few outlets and is quite expensive too, the other has strategic locations but the equipment is kinda outdated
3. I am left with no choice but to look for alternative means which are:
- Running (it's free, there are thankfully no doggies wandering about in our little village and I can also run within the area where my hubby works but again, there's no shower area nearby so it's a little on the "if we're headed straight home then ok" side)
- Alternative gyms - There's a sort of hidden gym just outside our village and it used to be so visible, I was too scared to check it out myself. Another one says BODY BUILDING which well, is 90% male dominated so that's a NO. Im still on the hunt.
- Barre3 but unfortunately, class schedules don't match with my work sched plus its 700 a pop (per session)
- Home routines - like that's happening. I can barely get to lift my leg without a one-year-old toddler clinging to it liked a tree trunk and another little cutesy girl eating up the rest of the space because she says it's her "magical ballet kingdom"
- Badminton - I need to find a way to get my friends and office mates to join. Everyone's pretty tired after work, including me!

THE UGLY
1. Weather gives me the allergies. I feel sick all the time and some meds give me allergies too, they swell up my eyes and face
2. Still haven't enrolled in driving class - schedule sucks, go figure
3. I miss my bestfriends a lot. :(
4. I haven't finished my accessory line and online shop re-launch. :((

End of the day, the good outweighs the ugly and the fatness...well, its here to stay until I find a great solution.

Till next!

Welcome!

This day and age as a parent is indeed exciting and challenging at the same time. I hope you enjoy reading through my experiences as a mommy and I'm quite excited to hear yours as well. :) Cheers!

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