Loaded Week

Hello guys, I'm still alive! :P Did you missed me or namiss nyo ba ko? haha,feeling lang! kase ako namiss ko kayo lahat while I was away. My day is not complete without checking my daily reads here in my blog :(

Our internet connection is just so irritating that it really stuck me to being lazy to blog. Plus I was really busy for the past few days with my life at work – my new workplace, new workloads, new schedule and I'm still on the adjustment period although I'm still on the same environment pa din naman and still working in the same school but this career change of mine is something positive which gives me the time to go home earlier than my previous work. Meaning, more time with my Xian! Then aside from that, I'm tending to our school boy everyday. Before I go to work I make sure that all of his daily needs are ready and when I got home naman, we'll talk about their activities at school that day and will ask Xian to sing the new song or the new things he learned from Teacher Anne as our bonding time. This kind of busyness especially with my school boy is what's giving me a new kind of high nowadays. Hindi sya yung stressful, in fact I love everything about it especially after a tiring day at work then Xian will show me his activity sheet from school as soon as I enter the house.

So I just dropped by to have a quick post. quick daw ano eh kanina pa ko daldal ng daldal. Honestly I don't know where to start. The new blogger's layout didn't help. Kaloka! Andami ko gusto ikwento especially Xian's summer class. by the way for the past 8 days, he's doing great in school. As promised, I was the one who dropped him off to school on his first day and nag-sit in ako together with the other moms while they're having their activities and OA man sabihin pero alam mo yung feeling na nakakaiyak sa galak just by merely looking at him with his new milestone and that is his life as a preschooler enjoying on his new environment. On his second day I told him that I need to go to the office and I cannot go with him sa school kaya si inay na muna maghahatid since may service naman sila. I thought iiyak sya but to my surprise, ok lang sa kanya and when I called Inay at school to check them, she told me that Xian's inside the classroom already and there's no crying moments. in fact, she's already at the guardian's area together with the other parents/guardians. Then when I went to his school few days ago, according to Teacher Anne, he's very good because he's really participating in class and active in every activities. I noticed that school became Xian's happy place together with his classmates as his new-found friends and playmates.

Then kanina, I filed a half day of leave because I attended my first ever parents' meeting! Hello PTA meeting, I belong. Haha. The meeting is about the Culminating Activity on the 3^rd week of May which is the kids “graduation day” because they'll be having some dance presentations so meaning they also have costumes and all. I can't wait to see my Xian participating on the school program.

As much as I want to share some of Xian's memorable photos at his school right now but I have yet to download them from my camera, imagine paga-upload lang wala din ako time.haha,this time being busy is bad! So let me just share you some of preschool-related photos of our Xian from my phone.

 first day high -- off to school!

puzzle time!

 their first ever coloring activity.

my first ever parents' meeting notice.

 

That's all for now muna! :)

 

Preschool Hunting: The Final Edition

Like what I've mentioned before, initially we have four choices of preschool for the little man. I'm done with preschool #1 and since preschools 2, 3 and 4 are all near our place approximately 5-10 minutes travel time, I had the best time to check them in one day. So during my 1 week bed rest after I had my surgical operation last month, I allotted one day to check these schools together with Inay and Xian for ocular visit. Nung nag-ocular kami, magkakalapit din lang yung inikutan namin. hehe. Unfortunately, I don't like preschool #3 because of some factors, imagine yung feeling na first impression pa lang pero sablay na. preschool #4 naman (which is also a catholic school where I graduated) is my last choice if ever preschool #2 will not pass my standards.

So I'll just focus this post on our preschool of choice.

Preschool #2: St. Jude Science and Technological School

They're one progressive school in our town being 4 years only in the business.The name is quite confusing at first because it doesn't sounds like a "normal preschool name" but they're actually one. While there are several existing schools offering pre-elem, elementary  and highschool courses within our town, SJSTI is the first Science and English-speaking school in the area. They also offer grade school and high school that's why the name is a little bit different. What I like about this school is that it is somehow aligned to our family values or values that I wanted to teach him since I also studied in a catholic school.

I don't have any photos of the facilities to share since I'm too shy to take pictures that time since the principal is there.haha! But they have nice classrooms and clean playground, same thing with other facilities.The school for me provides a conducive environment for the little man's growth,away from the noise of the vehicles in the street. While we're checking the school, we saw some hollow blocks and other construction materials present that time but that's understandable since they're undergoing some expansion.The approved building plan also is very promising. The staff  and teachers are courteous and even the security guard speaks in English.  There are a couple of students at the area that time and seems like they're well-disciplined. We also saw the school canteen and most of the foods we saw there are nutritious ones. Wala akong napansin na junk foods.  And although may mga big kids na kasama sa school, the pre-elem's classrooms are far from the elementary and high school so I don't have to worry na may makakabangga sa kanya na malaking bata. You know naman mga kids, they have the tendency to get rowdy sometimes especially with the little ones.

The tuition fee is ok and fit nicely in our budget and I believe that it commensurate to the quality of education they provide. The best thing about it is that when I asked Xian if he already like there as his school, he answered me with "yes" and everytime may magtatanong sa kanya sa family namin kung saan sya papasok he'll proudly reply with "St. Good (Jude)!" so that's a big factor for us to consider-- Xian liked preschool #2.

Here's one of Xian's snapshot during our ocular visit.

With their mission "Your partner in the holistic development of  your child" . After careful deliberation with hubby Allan and weighing the pros and cons of our top 2 school of choice -- Silvercrest School and St. Jude and carefully comparing them, we came to our mutual decision and that is we're finally going to send Xian to St. Jude!  We'll see and try there muna for 1 year. After all St. Jude passed our criteria especially the convenient location without sacrificing the quality of education. Although sayang yung discount sa Silvercrest as one of Xian's benefit as my son, who knows maaavail din naman nya yun in the future pag big kid na sya. 

I already enrolled Xian at St. Jude's 1 month summer "practice" class which will start on Monday. This also served na din as reservation fee and they'll just deduct 50% of what I paid for the summer class from the actual tuition fee for the whole year.The staff said that it's more of playtime and socialization and some activities for kids in preparation for the opening of classes this June. As promised, I will be the one to accompany the little man to his school on Monday. I already filed a vacation leave. :)

So yes, we will finally send a kid to preschool! I'm a bit excited and scared. Hopefully, Xian's first day will be a smooth one.Wish us lots of luck.hahaha!

 

Xian and Magnum

During the hype of the Magnum Ice cream when Xian's tita ninang Twinx got this adorable puppy as a gift from a friend,hence she named him Magnum which became additional member of the family in our compound.

 Hello Magnum! :)

I think this is the perfect time to test Xian's nurturing skills to have his own pet in the future. If ever he'll have one, through taking care of his pet Xian can know how to take care of others which will cultivate his own sense of responsibility. Magnum is the best candidate for now! Good thing his Tita Ninang made Xian as one of the co-owner.haha!

 during their playtime

Here's one side kwento about Xian and Magnum:

Xian: mommy,kakainis si Magnum! (frown face)

Me: huh? bakit naman?

Xian: eh kase dinilaan nya ko dito sa ulo (sabay turo) 

Me: yun lang naman pala eh,naglalambing lang sayo si Magnum.

Xian: ok! pero sabi ko sa hand lang eh.bawal sa head...

hahaha,yun naman pala eh.Magnum,di ka sumunod sa instruction! :P 

Speaking of the real Magnum, here's the little man in his favorite Magnum Classic.

Preschool Hunting

This is a super delayed post. 


Like what I've mention before, our Xian will start schooling this June as Nursery. Allow me to say my favorite motto but time really flies so fast! May preschooler na kami! I wish there's also a ticker here on how many times I've said that statement eversince this blog was born no? I know utang-uta na kayo sa line na yun.haha!

Although I started my hunt late last year through checking the school's website but not that serious,tamang preschool hunting,steady lang. Early last year, Allan and I are already considering of sending Xian to school at 3.We did a round up of possible schools in our town. Others may think that it's way too early especially the oldies, I totally recall one scenario although this is not our case but I heard this one time while I'm riding a jeepney on my way home. Can't help but listen to the  woman in front of me.Sa lakas ba naman ng boses nya. According to the woman,"sus kaya pinapapasok ng maaga ng magulang ang anak nila eh tamad lang alagaan!" Ano daw? Where in the world did she get that idea.

Although I don't know who she is referring to particularly; but as a mom,  I was really pissed off with her statement. Hindi rason na dahil tinatamad lang alagaan kaya pinapapasok ang anak at an early age.  As a parent, it is my desire for my son to be exposed to other people with a very conducive environment for his growth and develop more of his skills.  I don't want to put pressure on the little man's schooling, I just want the whole thing  to be  a fun and enjoyable experience for him. 

One more thing to consider is the child's readiness.  2 years old pa nga lang si Xian but he already knows the concept of schooling because of his cousins and he's already excited about it. As much as I want na 4 years old sya magstart and do the homeschooling type first (as our initial plan), there are still a lot of things na mas matututunan nya at madedevelop sa personality nya away from home together with kids of his age since at our home, big kids na nakakainteract ni Xian that's why we always bring him to the play area at the mall to play with the same age bracket.

Oh well,sana lang naexplain ko yun kay ate no? hehe!

Anyway moving forward, at the start I had around 4 schools on my list. 3 in our town and 1 near my workplace.

Let's start with the latter.

Silvercrest School

What I particularly like about the school since they just opened last year is the premises, there is a small teacher-student ratio, faculty and staff who are highly qualified and competent, fully air-conditioned classrooms and laboratories,state of the art play and swimming facilities and effective system of linkage for it's site learning activities.

It is stated that their program center on the children's development which could make them socially, spiritually, emotionally, academically and globally prepared for the demands of higher learning and of the real world.

Why do I know all about these things? 

It's because this is the preschool department of the school I'm working for 5 1/2 years,I'm only assigned at the college department and no, I'm not part of their marketing team.lol. 

What I'll be stating here are unbiased observation of a first time preschooler mom. Allow me to share some of the photos I had during my ocular visit (well,sort of) hehe.

Let's tour Preschool #1,tara! :)

This is the main entrance of the building.

Welcome Greetings for Parents and Students. Noticed the date? I told you, I've been checking prospective preschool as early as last year. hehe.

This adorned the hallway

religious statue at the corner of the hallway 

 The Playroom

 Xian will surely love this.

some do's and dont's

The Classroom

During preschool hunting like this, I'm very particular with the classroom because this is where Xian will spend majority of his time. The classroom should be interesting and pleasing to the eyes.Kase ako man nung nag-aaral ako,mas inspired ako matuto kapag maganda at maayos environment ko. So a nice classroom is a big plus for me.

Here's three example of a preschool classroom at Silvercrest.

This is the green classroom. I think this belongs to the Kinder students.

The Yellow Clasroom. Siguro eto naman sa Nursery. 

Sapphire Mommy @ The Blue Room! Malamang Prep level na dito.

cute na cute ako sa design na 'to ng wall.

 This occupy one side of the wall

height chart (with my friend Kai) and animal chart.

The Comfort Room

clean comfort room for the li'l boys and girls

The Playground

hmmm.. isa pang possible hide out ni Xian

final shot after the school tour.
logo @ our back: Silvercrest is where your child becomes the best! 

This is my first choice of preschool actually. Imagine, Allan and I could save atleast 25% from Xian's tuition fee (50% if he's already in high school and college) as one of the benefits of working in a school plus I could check on him every once in a while since the preschool is just a few walks away from our building. I'm sure the little man will not have a hard time to like his "home away from home".

 But since my topmost priority is the location, I wouldn't want Xian to experience 20-30 minutes travel time every morning going to school to think their class schedule is just a couple of hours everyday. Di ba? Gusto ko papasok sya sa school everyday with a happy feeling hindi yung tatamadin na ang bagets maisip pa lang ang byahe unlike preschool in our town na 5-10 minutes travel time lang. One more factor is that, I want Xian to achieve and excel in his preschool based on his own capabilities, I don't want others to think na naaccomplish nya ang isang bagay just because his mom is a school staff. Yung ganun. You know naman I hate politics.haha!

That's why hanging pa si Preschool #1.

Nonetheless, I still continue my journey of preschool hunting down to preschool #2 of my choice and tell you about how our ocular went, but that would be on my next post! :)

 

Our Little Man is Three!

Last week was a very busy day for me at home and at work. I'll just give you an idea of what happened on the past few days since I'm not yet done with my pending blog posts including my birthday post for Xian.We had a very slow internet connection.  Anong sinabi ni Pong Pagong. Ay grabe. I'm just using my phone for the past few days to connect to the internet that's why I'm planning to change our internet service provider at home soon.

>> Xian is not feeling well a day before his birthday. He had a slight fever. So we had an impromptu visit to his pedia.  Thinking that it's UTI, the doctor asked for urinalysis. Good thing that the result is normal. Ordinary fever lang  daw because of the weather. That's also the time I asked for vitamins replacement for Xian since his previous vitamins doesn't have any effects on him. Pansin ko lang. So he just prescribed new ones before we finally go home. Good thing that Xian's feeling better already on his actual birthday.We just had a simple celebration (day out) meant really for our little man to enjoy the day his way.

>> Since I'm working in a school, part of our activities where our presence is needed the most is the Graduation Day. Happy moments for students and parents which made me  remember my very own 2004 Grad Day. Saya na nakakamiss!

>> Then after Graduation, the next day we had our 2 days out of town trip at Matabungkay for our Employees' Day. Then the following day, back to work again.

>> family gathering,household errands etc.

So many things to do so little time!

So here's my better late than never birthday greetings for the little man.

 ===============================================================

Date: March 25, 2012


Dear Xian, 

Happy Birthday, Baby!

3 years ago,God gave us the most precious gift and we will be eternally grateful to Him for giving you to us.

Time flies so fast and you're not so little anymore.it is with you that we have first experienced the joys,the pains and the fears that comes with parenthood.Everything with you is a first that we will forever cherish and remember.We're hoping and praying that you'll grow up to the kind of man we want you to be and in the future, we'll be contented knowing we have showered you enough love for you to share.

Happy happy birthday anak,we love you to infinity and beyond! ♥

birthday boy na bagong gising!

Love always,

Mommy and Daddy

Sunday @ Kiddy's Arts Town

Before we bought Xian's birthday gift at the mall last week, we had our lunch first at Red Ribbon then after that we brought him at Kiddy's Arts Town kiosk near the bakeshop.

Kiddy's Arts Town located in most malls offers arts and crafts that kids (even kids at heart like me!) can enjoy. Everytime we go to the mall we always see their little kiosk and as much as I want Xian to try and experience it that time, he's hesitant  to try it. Probably because most of the kids he saw there are older than him and they're so engrossed with what they're doing. Feeling nya di pa sya belong.hihi.

But last Sunday was different,tinanong ko sya if he wanted to try it and he willingly nod. So go kami.

Xian chose the fish pattern (Php 180) from the wide variety of choices. The chosen design was put in an aluminum plate.Then the staff provided Xian with cute apron and a small tray with rubber colored paints in squeezable tubes. They also provided toothpicks, cotton buds and tissues to clean up edges and wipe colors beyond the outline.

 Xian doing his masterpiece.

According to him, the reason kung bakit pink ang eyes ni fish is because of mommy and blue allover because of him and daddy.


After the little man finished his painting we give the pattern to the staff and she put it in the microwave oven for few minutes until the rubber paints dry up.

while waiting.

Presenting the final artwork! (of course with a little help from mommy.tee hee!)

It's absolutely a good and relaxing activity. We will definitely go back next time! :P

Pimp My Ride

The little man got his early birthday gift last Sunday.Because his happiness is also our ultimate happiness, here's what we've got for him this year:

Power Wheels Lightning McQueen car

I asked him what's the name of his car.I suggested "Macky" short for McQueen. Kaso panget daw yun.Cars2 na lang daw.haha! Anak naman, ayoko sana basagin trip mo pero pangalan ba yun? No matter how I insist  and suggest cute names, he always ends up with "Cars2". Maybe because that's his favorite McQueen movie of all time. haaay whatever,anak!

O sya pagbigyan na,after all sa kanya naman yun ba't ba ko nangengelam eh sa yun ang type ng bagets! ^-^

The features are really nice, even the husband agreed that the price is worth it.

 

 I noticed that the little man became so OC with his new ride that after he used it, he will immediately wipe the surface and park the car on its proper place in the corner of our living room (This weekend pa namin plan i-try sa outdoor.Sorry baby, KJ ang mommy.haha!). May instance pa nga na gusto nya i-wash ang car (just like what they do with Azul as one of their favorite daddy-son bonding moment). I just told him that daddy's car is different from baby's car. It also became his instant tambayan even when he's watching his favorite cartoons. 

He really love his car and the first time he knew about it as our birthday gift, his eyes instantly gleams with so much happiness. Ayun,deadmaru na ang blue bike nya.

I'm sure this is one of the most memorable gift he received from us for the past three years - his first car that he can actually drive around. Karera daw sila ni daddy paguwi, pero sya daw ang panalo kase magdi-drift daw sya.haha! haaaay anak, big boy ka na talaga.

Advance Happy birthday Xian naming mahal, we are really happy that you like our gift because to us, you are God's most precious gift.


Love always,
Mommy and Daddy