Hey, it's Wednesday!

Wow, can you believe it's already Wednesday? Just 2 more days and here comes the weekend again. I hope it doesn't rain this time as we are planning to go to the playground with the kids. They had a lot of fun last time we went there so yeah, it would be great to see them having the time of their lives, in a very inexpensive way :D It warms my heart to see them running and playing with the other kids.

Fun times. Please rain, stay away this weekend, okay? LOL!

Bright Beginnings For Our Children

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of PBM Products. All opinions are 100% mine.

Being a mom of two adorable kids, I am always on the lookout for new products in the market that will work best for my children. Not only that, it has to be affordable and has to have many health benefits too. If the packaging is eye catching, it’s definitely a plus so that the kids will be enticed to reach out for it. I found Bright Beginnings available at diapers.com and thought to myself, it’s a new way to give healthy formula to kids. Nowadays, organic is the way to go and if we can feed our children with antibiotic-free and with no added growth hormones formula, I’m sure all moms out there would love to give this a try. Bright Beginnings has an ergonomic design that is helpful and informative at the same time, as it lists the nutrients that can be found in the formula. I like the design as it used refreshing colors for the label and straightforward too. Everything I need to know is right outside the can and it makes decision-making easier.



If you want to order this great product, you can go to Bright Beginnings available at diapers.com and order from there directly. They have exciting promotions available that you can check out too. You can buy 1 can if you’d like to try it out first or buy 6 cans in one go. Nothing but the best for our children.

Choosing the Right Infant Formula

When I was still pregnant with my first born, I was clueless about a lot of things concerning motherhood. I thought if I buy his things branded, it will be better albeit more expensive. But yeah, I just wanted to give him the best and that included his formula milk. Unfortunately I only breastfed my eldest for a month and after that, nothing came out anymore. There was no choice but to feed him infant formula. There are a lot of choices in the market and I opted to go for one of the expensive ones as I equated it with quality.

However, there came a time when due to financial constraints, we had to switch to another brand. We chose another milk coming from the same manufacturer but more affordable. I checked the label and guess what; they almost have the same content! So I checked it more and realized I was only paying for the brand name but in essence they have the same quality because of course, all store brand formula are approved and regulated by FDA.

With this, let’s be careful in choosing the right formula for our children. Not buying the expensive ones doesn’t mean we don’t want the best for them but it just means we want to be economical and at the same time give them the best. In this difficult times I believe we can be wise spenders and give the best care for our children too.

Work and Facebook

Good day everyone! I am extremely busy so I haven't been able to update my blog nor visit others's. There's a big change in my schedule and I now work 15 hours a day. Well, yes I just work from home but I have to do some serious time management because I also have to take care of the kids. And yes, still no babysitter for over a month now. Sigh.

Of course, more work hours mean a bigger salary so no complains there. Whatever time I have left, I squeeze in some household chores, bond with the kids and hubby and if I'm lucky, I get to sleep in too :) This opportunity doesn't come everyday so I say bring it on! LOL!

By the way, have you played Pet Society in Facebook? It's my latest addiction along with Farm Town. I just started playing a few weeks ago and I'm on my way up! I managed to get more friends so that my pet, Maddie, can visit more pet friends and that means more coins and that means more money to buy furniture, clothes, etc. Ha! If only that were real :D I rarely update my friendster account because I spend more time in Facebook and from there I get to chat with friends and play lots of games. It keeps me sane :)

With everything that's been going on, I still try to create balance with my work and family. I'm grateful that even if we don't have a helper, my family has stepped up to help me :) Thank you!

Catch you all soon for more!

xoxo

DSL troubles

For the past two days, my dsl connection has been really unstable and it has affected my work a lot. I've been told that if I don't report for work on time tonight due to internet connection yet again, I have to go to our Training Center in Pasig to work there. Sigh. That puts me in a tight spot because I have two young kids and there's a typhoon which makes it a challenge to commute to and from work. I just hope and pray my internet connection doesn't fail me tonight.

Mommy Moments: Outdoor Fun

We don't go out most of the time but when we do, Jeremy is always beside himself with excitement. Just last May, we went to La Mesa Ecopark and he played in the playground. He busied himself with the slides and running around the place. His Tito Bong, my brother, played with him and they had so much fun.



Just look at his face when I told him that we were about to leave LOL! He kept running back to the slides because he didn't to go yet.



And here's Jamie, sleeping as usual :)



And finally, she woke up to say hi to everyone!



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Difficult Times

It's been two weeks since Jeremy's nanny left and she's not coming back. There were applicants but really, they were all demanding. The first one wanted to leave every night so that she can be with her kids. Okay. That's out of the question. She is supposed to take care of Jeremy's needs at night (he still drinks milk when he wakes up in the middle of the night) because I take care of Jamie who's turning 3mos. old this month. So I turned her down. The other applicant wanted to work as an all-around helper and for my mother to take care of Jeremy. LOL! Well, my concern really is for someone to look after Jeremy. We can do the chores. I can do the laundry during my day off from work. Again, I declined.

There were a few more applicants but all did not come up to par. Being a Recruitment Officer at work, I've learned to read deeper to the applicant's answers. Too bad I sensed the hesitance on the applicants's part and for me, that's a sign that they are not too keen on the job.

Anyway, it has not been easy these past two weeks. My youngest brother looks after Jeremy while I work while my mom takes care of Jamie until my husband arrives from the office. I only get to sleep well during weekends and the other days, coffee and multivitamins help me get through :)

I don't know if we'll find the right nanny for Jeremy but definitely, I won't be settling for just anybody because we know how great an influence they could be to our kids. For the meantime, our set-up at home still works. It just gets better when everybody steps in to help one way or another :)

Mommy Moments: Haircut

Jeremy had his first haircut when he turned 1 year old. It has always been a challenge to have his hair cut because he cries very hard, doesn't sit still because his eyes and hands follow the barber's razor LOL!

As you can see in the picture (August 2008), he's still all smiles because he thought he'll just be playing with the toy car



He's still smiling here when the cape was put on and he was given a lollipop. But that's about it because he started wailing when the guy started to cut his hair. I didn't take a picture anymore as I was restraining him from getting up fom his chair and well, I just wanted to pacify him.

Here's what he looked like after his haircut. We were thinking of just a trim for him so that he gets a new hairstyle but the barber found it difficult to style his hair so there.



Afterwards, we treated him to his favorite spaghetti, this time at McDonald's, to make him feel better :)

Lately, it's easier to have his hair cut but whenever he hears other children crying, he follows suit LOL! Maybe next time, there won't be tears anymore.

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Mommy Moments: Grandparents Bonding

Wow! I missed Mommy Moments last week and I only realized now it's a Friday so I wouldn't want to miss another entry :) This Friday, we give the spotlight to grandparents bonding with their grandchildren.

At the start of our marriage, my husband and I lived in Bulacan and we stayed there until Jeremy was more than 3 months old. After that, we moved back to Manila and had the chance to visit my parents often. Even then, Jeremy didn't warm up right away with his grandparents. It's pretty obvious with the picture below, right? LOL!



After a few more visits, Jeremy finally bonded with his lolo (grandfather) and now they're the best of friends :) And here they are today:



By the way, I looked for any picture of Jamie with my parents but there's none. I guess I overlooked it. Hmm will have to take lots of it one of these days.

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What's up?

The past week has been a busy one and I even missed posting for Mommy Moments :( I'll make up this week and will submit early, I hope LOL!

Anyway, I'm still busy both at work and at home. Our team is finished with the mock calls last week and we're just waiting for the date of our go-live. I hope everything turns out fine so that we get good feedback from the client. It would be great if the account stays for a very long time :)

I'm also busy at home because Jamie has apparently changed her schedule (babies change their schedules every month)so she's awake most of time in the afternoon but the good thing is she's very sleepy by 8pm and can now sleep for 3 hours continuously. Yay! I can sleep too, of course that's why I'm happy. I hope this carries on for the months to come. Getting a good night's sleep is still the best thing even if I sleep during the day.

After my shift in the morning, I then spend time with Jeremy who's growing more and more talkative as the days pass. He still speaks German, sometimes Chinese LOL! Kidding aside, I can now understand more of the words that he says and he's even starting to eat rice again! I'll elaborate on that on my next post. I told his dad to put up the kiddie pool tomorrow so that he can take a splash while the rains are not back again. I even plan to inflate his beach ball and floaters to complete the experience :)

Talk to you again soon!

Jamie turns 2 months old!

Happy Tuesday!

Even if I was on training which started last night at 11pm until 4am this morning, I got up at 8am to cook spaghetti for breakfast because it's Jamie's 2nd month :) And of course, it's Jeremy's ultimate favorite food so I had to cook early.

Here's Jamie looking pretty in her summer dress. I'm sure all the mothers would agree that their kids are the prettiest and handsomest in the whole wide world :)



I'm going to be very busy with work in the days to come as we are going to go live for a new account by Thursday. Hopefully things will turn out fine and I'm going to devote time in studying the training manual. I'm going to visit everyone again as soon as I get free time.

Thanks so much for dropping by and I hope you enjoy the rest of the day!

Mommy Moments: Happy Mommy Moments

This week's theme of Mommy Moments is Happy Mommy Moments. Like what Chris said, everyday is a happy mommy moment and choosing one or even some is difficult especially since I can't find those pictures LOL!

Anyway, I just thought of posting this video of Jeremy dancing while you can hear me on the background coaxing him to face the camera. I took this video last April 13.

This video is indeed a happy mommy moment for me as I see my son enjoying himself. I hope you like watching it too :)




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Mommy Moments: Daddy Moment

This week we give way to the Daddies in the house :)

Jeremy and his Daddy are very close. My hubby vividly recalls how our son used to sleep in his chest when he was a few months old and that he would put Jeremy in a makeshift sling while he's on shift (and I am trying to get some sleep). Too bad I can't find these pictures.

Now that Jeremy is older, they have fun doing activities together like playing in the arcade. In the picture below, his Daddy helps him in the game by pushing on the pedal while he drives. It's so touching to see my boys just having fun and bonding.



Whenever we have occasions to attend to, we see to it that all of us go. Like the recent kid's party where Jeremy was invited. His daddy was there to guide him and even watched him while he was playing games.



I'm looking forward to the time when we can bring Jamie along to such activities. I'm sure it will be so fun. We savor these moments when we can all have fun and we make sure to squeeze some R&R no matter how busy we are.

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Rainy Tuesday

I was checking my blog the other day and got the surprise of my life when I saw that I have a follower! Oh yes! I didn't know what it was at first LOL! It's like I was living under a rock :) But yes, it just dawned on me what it was when I read it. So, that's the thingamajig that I see in other bloggers site. Interesting. What made me appreciate it more was that it was totally unexpected :) Thanks, Elaine!

By the way, the three of us (hubby, Jeremy and I) went to SM Fairview yesterday to buy food and also to bond with Jeremy. I wanted to spend time with my son so that he'll know and feel that we love him even if he already has a baby sister. We had lunch at KFC and he ate his favorite spaghetti and then we headed over to the newly-opened Timezone at the Annex. Jeremy played some games and then it was time for us to go home. Too bad it was raining so hard. Maybe it was because of the weather or he's just plain sleepy, but Jeremy didn't want to walk! I can barely carry him. Imagine a petite mom like me carrying a 17-kg big baby LOL! Oh well, it was just a short distance to where Daddy was waiting for us so I obliged. I guess he just missed it because I didn't do much carrying when I was pregnant.

We went home and Jamie was fast asleep. I intend to do this more often. Spend time with Jeremy and definitely when Jamie is a bit older, we can bring her along too. That would be too fun :)

Mommy Moments: Sentimental Moments

Truly everyday I spent and will be spending my kids is memorable but if I have to choose some sentimental moments, one of those was when Jeremy was finally transferred to a room from the incubator.

He was born premature (I gave birth at almost 33wks) and weighed 3.96lbs. He was very small but even then, he was the loudest to cry and was also active. The nurses were all fond of him because it seemed he kept a happy disposition even while inside the incubator and with all those tubes in his body. I was relieved because he didn't suffer from any serious condition but just the same he had to be incubated for a few days.

We finally transferred him to his room on the fourth day. This picture was taken shortly after midnight and my hubby caught the smile on Jeremy's face. I know it was involuntary but still it seemed he knew the situation and was smiling about it. :) It was Dec. 24 when we finally brought him home just in time for Christmas.



The second picture just made me realize how much my baby has grown into a fine, little boy. I just loved the way he looked here, as if telling me, "Look, Mom! I'm driving by myself." I can't help but wax nostalgic and just be very thankful that I was able to witness every milestone, no matter how simple, in my little boy's life :) I vow to do the same for my sweet little girl.



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Jamie's Baby Shower...Sorta

So my colleagues at work planned to throw me a baby shower last March but because Jamie wanted to make her grand entrance sooner than expected, it didn't push through. I gave birth on a Thursday and they wanted to have the shower on Saturday. So there.

But still, my friends sent me their welcome gifts to Jamie. Hazel had it delivered via Xend while my hubby went to the office to get Mother Len's gift. She's our Boss, by the way. I was so touched by the gesture and it really helped because we didn't buy a lot of stuff. Jamie got a receiving blanket, Minnie Mouse tie-side shirts, booties, shorts, a baby bag which was too cute, 2 pretty dresses, short-sleeved shirts and even feeding bottles.

This May we'll have our annual Mixer at the office and I'm thinking of bringing Jamie along so that they can see her personally. It'll be fun because we all work from home and we only get to see each other during special occasions :)

Jamie's Day

Happy Easter!

Aside from Easter, today is also the day our baby Jamie turns 1 month old :)

My mom cooked spaghetti and we took pictures of Jamie wearing her first dress and with a headband too. She looked adorable and looking at her, she has indeed grown a lot. She was barely 5lbs. when she was born and now she has definitely gained weight. Just look at those chubby cheeks :)



So there, just wanted to share those pics with my friends. Have a great week ahead!

Mommy Moments: Kids in Costume

This week's theme in Mommy Moments is Kids in Costume. We attended a Halloween Costume Party in the office last year and it was Jeremy's first time to don a costume. We bought a penguin costume for him because it was the smallest we could find. I guess the other costumes sold out fast and those that were left behind were either big or out of our budget LOL!

Anyway, Jeremy wore this costume for approximately 10 minutes and then he threw up all over it. Oh yes, it was such a mess. His nanny was in a hurry (and I didn't know why) to feed him and just kept on putting lasagna in his mouth and then it happened. The photographer didn't even get the chance to take a decent pic of him. Good thing we had a dress rehearsal at home and I forced him to wear it. You can see in his face that he didn't like it. Maybe it was itchy or he was just having one of those days.



I just kept his costume and maybe he can wear it again this year when we go on a trick or treat. Who knows he might actually like wearing it this time around :)

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I'm a Mother, I'm a Wife

I would like to thank Gene for tagging me and I appreciate it a lot :) These are good questions and I seriously thought about these before answering LOL!

Rules PLEASE:

1. Link with the person who tagged you.

2. Copy above images.

3. Post this on any or all of your Blog/s.

4. Answer the two-part questionnaire following these Rules. (Feel free to elaborate your answers. For questions 8 - 14, post only the one (1) which you believe best describes your choice).

5. Share this with at least seven (7) friends on your Blog Roll.

6. Come back to Living A' La Mode (DO NOT CHANGE THIS LINK PLEASE.) and leave the URL of your Post in order for you/your Blog to be added to the Master List.

7. Have fun!

Parenting Style

1. Do you exercise full or minimal control over your child's / children's behavior? --> Full control

2. Do you expect your child / children to obey 100% or let her / him / them do what pleases her / him / them? --> I'd be very happy if my kids, particularly my son, will obey me and his dad all the time but I know he's exploring and wants to be more independent so we give him space :)

3. Do you welcome discussion or you simply set rules? --> Now that my kids are still young, we set the rules.

4. Do you reprimand? Yes.

5. Do you use spanking for punishment? --> Sometimes if the situation really calls for it

6. Do you use some kind of a reward System for motivation? --> Yes

7. Do you enjoy being a Parent? --> I definitely do!

8. Are you a hands-on Parent or do you have a full-time Nanny? --> My son has a nanny but I'm a hands-on Mom to him and his little sister.

9. At what age would you let your child make simple decisions for himself / herself? --> As early as now, my son can make simple decisions like what to wear, what to eat (yes, he's at this stage. I can't make him eat something he doesn't like), etc.

10.Do you and your Husband have the same Parenting Style? --> Nope.

Wife Style

7. How long have you been married? --> Almost 3 years.

8. How do you feel about being a Wife?
--> *It's fun!
* It's just a duty.
* OK.
* I hate it.

9. What has been your typical sleeping attire since you got married?
* A cotton night gown.
--> *Sweats or Shorts.
* Something sheer & soft
* Nothing.


10. How do you show how appreciative you are of your Husband?
--> * By being always affectionate.
* I do not show him anything.
* By giving him presents even if there is no occasion.
* By cooking his favorite dishes all the time.
* I do not show him anything.


11. What do you do when your Husband annoys you?
--> * Keep quiet for a little while.
* Just ignore whatever it is.
* Talk with him about it immediately.
* Scream at him.


12. You are buying or planning to buy your first house as Husband and Wife ....
* It is / going to be a large estate.
--> * It is / going to be in a suburb close to a big city.
* It is / going to be in a metropolis.
* It is / going to be a fixer-upper but with tremendous potential that you can fill with first-rate furniture and appliances.


13. How does your house look like at the end of the day when Hubby gets home?
* Immaculate and spotless.
--> * You are still finishing up your cleaning.
* Unmade bed, unwashed dishes and children's toys all over.
* Husband's clutter are left for him to take care of.


14. How do you feel about running a household?
--> * Always motivated.
* Dislike it, for the most part.
* Oftentimes pretending to like it.
* Whatever!


15. What is the sweetest gift you have given your Husband so far? --> Hmmm...I think the fact that we have two wonderful kids, they are the sweetest gifts I could ever give him :)

I am tagging all of my friends who are moms and wives. We all do a wonderful job in our own little ways. I'd love to hear from you :)

Mommy Moments: Special Day

This week's theme is Special Day :)

I gave birth to Jeremy when I was just almost 33wks preggy so it was a preterm labor. He was so tiny and weighed in at just 3.96lbs. Those who saw him when he was still a baby can't believe how big he's grown :) It was indeed a special day for hubby and I as we have been blessed with a beautiful baby boy.



The next picture was during his Christening. He looked like he was really listening to the priest's homily :)



And then this one was when he turned 1yr. old. We celebrated it with a party at Jollibee. He loved Jollibee the mascot so much! He was with his former yaya in this picture.



For Jamie, we'll surely be collecting a lot of pictures in the days to come and we'll chronicle her special days too :)



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