One child is a painter who loves to tinker with crayons and watercolors since he was 2 years old. His earliest work included the walls of our bedroom where he used a mixed medium of crayola and a green stabilo. My little artist is now 4 years old and apparently influenced by the art on-line of Playhouse Disney requested me to buy him a painting set which I did this weekend. It was perfect timing my brothers D and FA paid us a visit on Sunday. FA is the one endowed with aesthetic sense and talent. He gave Speed Racer a blast with their instant painting lessons. My son’s masterpiece is now posted in my brother’s blog “Arnoland” and it really made my day. 
One child is a lover of words. I am thinking and praying that she grows up embracing the gift of gab. The first thing I observed about my little girl is her preference for books over toys. She owns a considerable number of new and old books, some inherited from her brother, some sent by our Tita Mari, and mostly we bought for her during our visit to the mall. Her books occupy a good portion of space in the 3rd level of my bookshelf for her easy access and storage. She initiates our reading time before we go to bed as she pulls 2 to 3 storybooks from the bookshelf and requests me to read to her. She listens intently at every word I utter. She also knows when I skip a word or re-word a phrase for she insists that I read that same phrase again. I observed that this practice is doing her well for she did not only talk early, just last night while playing with Speed Racer, she said, “Kuya please turn off the lights.” Hubby and I exchanged looks and we started laughing, YB’s voice might be tiny but she expressed her thought in a sentence. Moreover, she’s only 2 and yet she knows how to get her kuya to follow her. 
Fact # 1: As we grow older, women gain weight. This happens because we accumulate a lot of information in our heads. Then, of course, we get to a point in which so much information doesn’t fit in our heads and it starts to distribute itself throughout our entire body. Now I understand it all, I’m not overweight! I’m not fat! I’m smart!! Very smart!!
Fact # 2: Life should not be a trip to the tomb with the intention of reaching it with good health and an attractive and well cared for body; it should be more like a ride on a great water slide, with a big piece of chocolate in one hand and a glass of good wine in the other, with a body totally worn out from good living, and yelling... 
One day a beautiful lady came near me while I stood in a queue with my friend Violet in a convenience store. I felt the girl’s eyes burning on the side of my face when she couldn’t resist the chance and blurted out, “Excuse me miss, are you from UPLB?“ I looked at her while scanning my memory banks fast, I honestly did not recognize her and worse, I couldn’t get the name. I worked my mind out until I managed while nodding, “Uy sis ka ni Earl (Earl was my high school classmate). The girl was my classmate in a number of electives (crop science, agronomy) back in college. She leaned forward to give me a peck on the cheek and a brief hug. Of course I did not resist this act of warmth from a pretty lady like her, I could only smile while I faltered again in my mind for her name. I guess she was fumbling too on the name game. “Where do you work now?” was her second question and I gave her my answer and tossed the same query. After her response, she pursued for the work location and I said, “I work at the Petri Dish Building along Almonds Avenue.” She exclaimed, “Hey I just work at the Flasks Building along Almonds too!” I then added, “Your building is just across our museum err… office.” I was affable with this girl, we were having a conversation and I really like her now.
Winking at my tummy, she followed a question, “Uy buntis ka?” I was smiling when I said, “No, I’m just chubby.” She was very brave and continued, “Uy… buntis ka no?” Usually when people become privy at the wrong time and place, I easily ignite into a fiery version of myself. However I wondered why I only answered back, “No I am not. I just have exercise-challenged abs here, FYI, I already have 2 kids.” My friend Violet at this point was already throwing glances at my long-lost girlfriend, the look seem to say “one more word on the pregnancy thing and you’ll get kicked on the butt.” I am really a sucker for pleasantries especially the ones seasoned with hugs and kisses for I did not get irritated with this lovely but lost girl. At least I did not carry the burden of embarrassment as she appeared to be frozen on the spot and about to put her fist inside her mouth. She doesn’t deserve to be punished for an honest mistake, doesn’t she? I care less for we even exchanged mobile numbers and yes we’re texting.
Another unforgettable encounter was with a cold-blooded classmate working in a hospital. When I gave birth to my first born at the MMC in 2004, hubby was scared out of his wits with my labor show running for 3 days. During the registration, he got some of my personal information mixed up so we were required by the admitting office to get the information fixed prior to the birth registration of our baby. So we went to the admitting section of the hospital and I found myself face to face with a former classmate in high school. She attended to our requirements like she was dealing with a stranger. There was no trace of friendly connection which caused my graciousness to be superseded with frankness and I said, “Ano ka ba Nigella, hindi mo ba talaga ako nakikilala eh magkaklase tayo nung h-school saka andyan naman sa record mo yung pangalan ko.” Translate: Get a grip girl! Stop this play-pretend that we don’t know each other, it’s so pathetic and by the way, hi!
Then there was also this another tricky one, we almost bumped into each other at the Galleria, she was wearing eyeglasses that didn’t work I suspect as I found my smile fading when she gave a sharp stare in exchange. She used to be a fair and sweet young girl in high school, a former classmate who happens to sit behind my seat in 4th year high. She’s changed with that pompous air she wore like an elephant pretending to be a bird. The surprise did not end there because after a few months, I got an invitation from her in my social networking account. What?!?
Not all my brief encounters were hostile though, I have a bunch of former classmates and friends reconnected with again like the one I bumped into while shopping for shoes when I heard her voice out of the blue. Daffodil was as glad as I was for the unexpected meeting that she treated me to dinner. There was also one friend in college, a classmate in my tennis class, who was as jovial and as gracious. Like they say, it is not how you make friends but how you stay friends, time and attitude spells the difference. It’s not difficult to spot which one is a keeper or a loser. Another one important lesson is to keep a Samurai handy in case someone suspects me again for being more than chubby err … (take note, the politically correct term is) “weight-challenged”.
Love is indeed in the air though there’s a commercial whiff into it. With the amount of branding Valentines have been receiving from the market, it beats every celebration we Filipinos look forward to except Christmas of course. 
I’ve drafted several paragraphs only to highlight and hit the delete button afterwards. I’ve done it four times in a row that even Neo Gray here seems to protest with her keys ticking loudly as I begin anew. I had 4 unsuccessful attempts at boxing an array of conflicting emotions which has enveloped me for the past few days, and the failure to get the whole thinking process done only adds up to the looming devastation. I wanted to post it as a remembrance of the cruel times but my inability to put it into readable form betrays me. 
I am angry, very angry. This emotion which I have successfully kept under control for the last 3 months has finally caught up with me, bursting at the seams, ignoring pleas to calm down by my reasonable conscience. It was triggered this morning when SRacer’s yaya neglected a regular duty which I have firmly reprimanded her for more than 10 times already. My anger exploded into tremendous proportions that after a slew of words between gritted teeth, my temper was still running high, I could feel my blood curl with the amount of chemical imbalance taking toll inside my body. Photo: Angry Little Asian Girl by Lela Lee
been led on to this surprise, I could barely wait to see him in the evening and when I prodded further, he simply said, something for your writing gig.”
ately. At least now when the moment strikes me…I can pound the keys with style Haha! 
Still the happiest sight of the moment goes to a number of Mommy-baby pairs who come passing by. I counted several pairs of them: taking a stroll, stopping at the fruit cart, crossing the street and emerging from the Jollibee store with a Kiddie meal take out. One common denominator was the cheery aura, as if both were caught in their own little bubble and the rest of the world do not exist. I felt envious.
with my kids. I could just do blogging for a living like Anton of AOP and I would be available to my kids anytime. I would fix my schedule around them so I could be the one preparing their breakfast, giving baths as often as they want in a day, driving them to school and putting them to sleep in the afternoon. We could watch their favorite movies a hundred times over and eat their favorite cookies and chocolates until our tummies ache and read and re-read their favorite stories and talk and talk without the worry that it’s past their bedtime because you can do it during the day. Sounds perfectly simple, but it is not simple.Acknowledgements to the following image sources:
www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/4991399
Today is Dec 3, 2008, a Wednesday. That same day, also a Wednesday, 5 years ago at exactly 3PM, Braveheart and I took the promise to have and to hold at the Shrine of Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life in Pasay City. 
And yes, we are having a new baby. Our baby project will soon be unveiled by January 2009 and I wish my readers (yes I have a handful) to continue their hits in my blogs. Braveheart already secured a space in the web for this new baby. Details will follow after hard work and I am keeping my fingers crossed, may our interest and diligence put us through. This is more than a product of our hubby-wifey partnership; it is a culmination of our talents and ideas. 
I have a good friend who is a die-hard fan and advocate of recently elected US President Barack Obama. I realized my friend’s affinity towards Mr. Obama may be due to a common trait they share like eloquence and boldness. I find this connection a great concoction for inspiration for someone starting with his legal career; I always believe that my dear friend W have in him what it takes to be a remarkable lawyer. 
I remember picking this up from the CNN, it said that Mr. Obama did not only create a leader out of himself with a strong base of followers worldwide, he created a movement which he termed people who believe in change. I wish him God’s blessings for he is a man worthy of praise and support, having rose from humble origins with his intellect, strategic vision and good intentions. How I wish that someone like Obama would be in our midst as our country badly needs one.
For Speed Racer’s b-day, we gave him two options on how to celebrate it: 1) have a school party or 2) have a birthday trip. He chose the latter and had a great time. Ever since we took S Racer and little YB to Manila Ocean Park (MOP), my children became fond of the creatures of the deep. Finding Nemo has been recovered from the shelves and once again highly patronized while Discovery Channel and Animal Planet gained 2 more avid viewers for its documentaries on the colorful marine life. 
become a walking endorser of the MOP as he often mentions in his nursery 1 class the fishes, corals and sharks at the MOP. Currently S Racer and little YB are sleeping with us on the same bed, along with their 3 fishes named (angelfish) Dory, (clownfish) Nemo and a blue dolphin named Kit which S Racer bought from a recent trip with his GrandMa at Subic’s Ocean Adventure.
Some people really think they own the world and all its contents. They act like some kind of a demigod who has the knack for making the lives of others miserable like their own. I see them in everyday life like in the following situations: 
thoughts into words, considering the amount of caution I’ve thrown into the air while I was band-struck, let these photos speak for this post. 
1. You do crazy stuff just to give your kid an unforgettable experience
relevant snippets on my children’s favorite characters, mall tours/live appearances, shows including lyrics of its TV theme series. Further, arming yourself with loads of information is essential especially when you buy toys for your kids. At least you could assert to Mr. Salesman that Racer X is different from Speed Racer. You could explain to a misinform
ed salesgirl that Elly in Pocoyo’s show is a girl and not a boy and that you are looking for a pink-colored elephant ballerina and not Lumpy, the violet colored elephant from Pooh’s tv series. 
