Pages

30 November 2010

surgeons?!

Saturday afternoon, by 12:15pm, our Deputy General Manager finally decided to let us go home early because the smell in the office (caused by the insecticide that was sprayed last Thursday evening) was too much to bear. Hurray!

Here is a picture of me with my 3 colleagues at the reception, goofing around with the face masks we had to wear just before we left the office.

Hmm...I can see myself in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy now, working beside McDreamy and McSteamy in the OR (hahaha!)

21 November 2010

don't sing me that song again, daddy

Last night, after drinking her bottle of milk, Caila begins to fidget in bed. Since hubby and I are already sleepy, we also want her to go to sleep (naturally!)...and so the conversation goes...
Hubby: Anak, sleep na tayo okay?
Caila: Okay.
Hubby: Sige, kakantahan ka ni Mommy.
Me: Si Mommy o si Daddy?
Caila: Daddy!
Hubby: O sige.
(hubby inhales, and just when he opens his mouth to begin singing...)
Caila: Mommy! (I try hard not to laugh, unsuccessfully though)
Hubby: Di pa nga ako kumakanta, ayaw mo na kaagad?!
Caila: Mommy!
Me: O sige.
(I sing “Smile” and almost reach the end of the song when Caila starts to fidget again)
Me: Di ka naman nakikinig. Si Daddy na lang ang kakanta.
Caila: Daddy!
Hubby: Ok.
(He inhales and starts to sing a song we used to sing in SFC, “Heaven”) You -
Caila: Mommy!
Me: Hahahahaha!
Hubby:
(he’s already amused, but tries to look angry) Hmp! Ano ba yan?
Me: Sige, ako uli.
(I only sing the first stanza of “Silent Night, Holy Night”)
Me: Caila, ikaw naman mag-sing.
Caila: Aya? Sing?
Me: Opo. Sige na.
(I help her by singing the first word of Beyonce’s song) Listen...
Caila:
(singing) Aaahh...Aaaaaahhh... Daddy!
Hubby: Ayoko na. Ayaw mo naman ako pakantahin eh. Linoloko mo lang ako.

Hahahaha! Nagtampo!

bye-bye pao!

We never wanted Caila to use the pacifier, but then there came a time when she cried so loudly in the middle of the night and there was nothing we could do or give that would make her stop, so we finally decided to try the binky...and there was silence. Since then, every time she became fussy, we resorted to the pacifier.

We researched widely on the pros and cons of this little soother. My foster parents from Germany who are dentists and have their own clinic said it was ok (at least, until she was 2 years old). So, since it was a big help to us (especially if we were out in public), and better than having Caila suck her thumb instead, we decided to keep the pacifier.

When I went home to the Philippines to fetch Caila and her nanny, I discovered that the pacifier was almost a constant fixture to her mouth. Although she was 20 months old, I was slightly worried that she would become too attached to her Pao (yup, that’s what she calls it) and her growing teeth might be affected. On our first night together, after she had finished her bottle of milk, she immediately asked for Pao. I gave it to her, but first explained that only when she was going to sleep would she be allowed to use it. She agreed, and once she had drifted off to dreamland, I took it out of her mouth. The next morning when she woke up, she immediately asked for Pao. I reminded her calmly of the agreement we made the night before, and fortunately, she didn’t make a fuss (I was so proud!).

During the day, she would often ask for her pacifier, and we would all remind her that she would get it only if she were going to sleep. This went on all throughout our remaining days in the Philippines until she learned to ask for it only when it was time for her to go to bed.

Before our trip to Dubai, I had planned on just telling Caila that we had left Pao in the Philippines in case she asked for it (but the truth is, it was already in her bag). Things went ok at first. She believed my story and would just stay quiet in my lap during the flight. But then, the plane started descending to land and the air pressure was too much for her little ears. She didn’t want to eat or drink anything, so out of desperation, I gave her the little soother to stop her from crying. Somehow, it worked.
But then of course, I had to think of another way to “lose” her binky.

Back in Dubai, things continued like before...she would only be given her Pao if she was going to sleep and once she had drifted off, we would take it out of her mouth. In the car, or whenever we went out, if she asked for it, we would just tell her that we had left it at home.

We still hadn’t thought of a story to make her stop using the pacifier, until last Thursday. That evening, after attending a party in Deira, we went straight to my sister’s place in Discovery Gardens where we were going to spend the night. As usual, after drinking her bottle of milk before bed, Caila asked for her Pao. We told her that we had left it at home and Aning (that what she calls Auntie Ning, my sister) didn’t have any at her place. Although she didn’t make a fuss, she kept asking for it over and over again; and in turn, we would keep explaining to her that we forgot to bring it with us. Finally, I guess she believed us, so she went to sleep without her Pao.

The next day, after Caila had her bath and began to feel sleepy, again she asked for Pao. Again, we reminded her that we had left it at home. This time, she asked for it only three times before nodding off to sleep. In the afternoon, we returned to our apartment. When Caila climbed on to bed for her afternoon nap, she immediately asked for Pao. I’m sure she was expecting to get it right away, but instead, we told her that we had left it at Aning’s place. Of course, she didn’t believe us at first. She kept asking for it every ten seconds, but we stuck with our story. Finally, I guess she realized that there was no way she would get it no matter how many times she asked, so she resigned and slept. The same thing happened again that evening.

But Saturday was different. In the afternoon, as she was about to have her nap, we expected Caila to ask for her beloved Pao...but she just remained quiet after drinking her milk and went to sleep. Probably she was too sleepy or she forgot about her pacifier, but whatever the reason, we were happy. Then, in the evening, maybe she remembered her binky again because she asked for it. As usual, we gave her the same reason. This time, all she said was “Pao? Pao? Ba-bye Pao! Bye-bye!” with matching hand-waving in the air. To us, that was a major accomplishment.

I’m really happy that detaching her from it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be (honestly, I thought she would throw tantrums or shriek her lungs out). And I’m so proud that she is no longer dependent on the pacifier to soothe her. Hurray!

15 November 2010

things i learned yesterday

Actually, these are things that I am always aware of, or received countless forwarded e-mails about, or heard in many talks in CFC and SFC. But yesterday, I was reminded about them...and I hope I won't forget them or take them for granted ever again.

1) Life is short. You never know when or how yours will end, so you should make it as meaningful as you can.
2) Friends made in Christ are true friends for life. They may not end up being your best friend/s forever, but they will surely be good friends you can count on.
3) The wife is her husband's partner; but the husband is still the head of the family who makes the decisions.
4) Couples should never say anything negative about their partner to anyone (remember when we said our vows "...to honor and respect...").
5) Bad things happen to all of us and we often don't know why, but the only things that can help us overcome them are true friends, family and God.
6) Think before you speak. You'll regret it if you don't.

13 November 2010

he did it again!

Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito
Congratulations, PacMan!
Once again, you have made the Filipinos around the world proud!

11 November 2010

she's back!

It’s been a week since I returned from my (very short) trip to the Philippines. Of course, the only reason why I went to the Philippines was to bring back Caila, along with her nanny.

Thankfully, we didn’t encounter any problems at NAIA. We were worried that the return booking of Ate Cel’s flight wouldn’t show in the system, or that the Immigration officer would ask her for other requirements, but fortunately, everything went smoothly. The flight was ok, Caila slept most of the time, and we arrived in Dubai 30 minutes ahead of schedule.

That night, the three of us squeezed in our bed with Caila in between hubby and me, allowing both of us to cuddle her and thank God that our family was together again. I remember the following morning, Guchi and I had just woken up and Caila was still sleeping soundly. He leaned in just to sniff her, and remarked wistfully that she doesn’t smell like a baby anymore, but like a kid already.

Well, it’s true. We missed out on almost half a year with her and kids this age always grow fast. She’s no longer an infant, but a very active toddler. Caila may be small (she takes after her parents...duh!), but she can walk really fast, has stretched her vocabulary to simple words that we can easily understand (about 90% of the time), and uses her imagination when playing with her toys. Being “malambing,” she responds right away with a tight embrace or kiss when we ask her for one or if we’re leaving for work (well, except when she has her mood swings or wants to act “pakipot”).

There are times that she has tantrums or cries almost immediately when we don’t give her what she wants, but hubby and I are trying to discipline her and teach her that she can’t have things her way all the time. Very often, I have to remind myself that even though I see her as a miniature version of me, our daughter is an individual, who has her own personality, trying to discover things and observing what she sees. Her mind is like a sponge, so we have to be careful what we do or say around her, and whatever we watch on television.

Yes, it’s an adjustment to have a little person in the apartment with us again after a long time. Now, we can’t go out anytime we want to, we can’t stay out late, plus so many other restrictions. But of course, nothing beats opening the apartment door to a pair of little arms stretched out for a tight hug and a wide smile welcoming us home after a tiring day at work.