Christmas Program Costume

Planning for a costume for one of Andre's school program adds up to my stress level...(because its on top of the stress i get from work) especially if his costume requires me to buy something that will not be of use in the future or not be used at all. But once I have everything figured out and start prepping for it.. i'm full speed ahead..and I have to admit that I enjoy doing kindergarten crafts.

For their Christmas Program last December 14, the kids were required to dress up like peter pan and fairies..and that's not all.. Andre was given another role as one of the 3 kings for their Nativity production number.. No problem with dressing up like peter pan because his holloween costume back when he was 1 year old still fits him.. even if the long pants is now a short pants (hehe!)...My concern was for his role as a KING!

Good thing I have colleagues who have kids who have been there and done that.. and so when i got an advise to get him a red bath robe.. it was like a light bulb popping to my head.. which is actually a great idea since he can use it after and not go to waste...but when we got to the mall, no red robe for kids.. what I saw was a red  bath cover for women which is used to wrap around  and cover your body (under the armpits) after you get out of a shower... This inspired me to use it as a cape. I made him wear the knickers he wore at Liz's wedding as his inner clothes. And of course i made the King's crown.. that turned out nicely even if I was so sleepy when I was making it.

the finish product: a KING's Crown

All those stress are forgotten as soon as I see my son (in peter pan and king's costume) performing in center stage with his classmates. So proud of him!

AJ as one of the 3 Kings ( in red cape and green crown )

AJ and the rest of CASA B singing 'A Holly Jolly Christmas' to all the parents

This time, singing the Christmas Alphabet

How are you enjoying the season so far?

xoxo,
S

My Annual Birthday & Christmas Wishlist

In my 6 years of blogging, I have maintain only one tradition.. which is my annual Birthday and Christmas wish list. Since by Birthday falls on 3 days before Christmas day, I always (more often than not) get only 1 gift for the year.. while unlike the others who enjoy separate gifts for their birthdays and Christmas. Thus, since I'm only getting one gift, I make it a point that people close to me who wants to give me gift would have an easy task of getting me something that I want...so without further ado.. here are my Birthday & Christmas Wish List for 2010.

1. Levi's curve jeans - got a good deal for a classic 501 at 50% off ..couldn't resist to say no!
2. Lumix LX3 or LX5
3. HTC Desire HD - Got my HTC Desire S courtesy of SMART's retention free phone :)
4. Beauty GC (Diamond peel, warts cauterization, facial spa etc)
5. BodyShop Lip and cheek stain - Thanks Kim, to be safe she game me a Bodyshop GC :)
6. Flats size 7 - GC from VNC will do
7. iTouch skin/cover/case in Zebra print or dark purple - Bought a discounted cover from a store somewhere..
8. the Spa GC
9. a shopping spree at forever21 or market! market! Tiangge
10. Tix for the F1 SG night race ... Sagot ko na ang plane tix :)  Hubby got us a tix for the Sept 2011 race :) Love you Bebe.

Happy Birthday to me and Merry Christmas to all!

xoxo

S

As seen on Gossip Girl: Macarons de Paris

GG aka Gossip Girl has been one of my favorite tv shows that i have been following for 4 seasons now. And last Monday's episode was a delicious one where B and C were having secret rendezvous and making out while keeping it a secret from their friends. Of course you can never keep a secret too long as as soon as S found out B was just pretending not to care anymore and saying that they are some sort of FUBU or something to that effect and the only way to keep her thoughts away from Mr. Bass is by munching on her favorite Macarons.

My GG addict gal pal, Kitchie, was 10 steps ahead of me...while I was thinking about that delicious looking pastry (with a nice box), she was already making her fingers walk on the computer. Checking out her TheKnot account, she saw the same pastry that B was eating. Timing that one of our food addict girlfriend, Mary, was at the office yesterday and Kitchie asked her where she can buy those yummy colorful macarons. And she knows where... at BIZU!!

As soon as Kitchie told me about this, I can't take my mind off it. We check the site http://www.bizupatisserie.com/home.aspx and there it was the colorful picture of Macarons right before our eyes. I was salivating in my head and imagining its taste already. The nearest branch of  BIZU is just 10 minutes away via MRT. I can't resist the urge and so I decided that after office I'll head off to Glorietta and buy me some Macaron de Paris!

a variety of Macarons de Paris to choose from..Lovely!

As I approach the patisserie stall, I gasp as I saw the little colorful macarons..they were so lovely and looks so yummy. I saw the cost per box (it wasn't cheap-P35 each) I just have to purchase more than 8..so I chose 14. I bought the green ones of course (since B was eating this one)- which is pistacio, butterscotch,  raspberry, coffee and chocolate. And as I put the pastry on my mouth..it was heaven..just the right amount of sweetness and chewy enough to let you enjoy the taste for a few seconds before taking another bite.

The next day, @kitchiedelacruz tweeted : feeling so upper east sider!ü thanks to @shenski for the macaroons de paris!ü ++ diane/zekee/jerome luvd it!ü
Indeed felt like a real upper east sider at that moment :)

I found another happy food and I'm so happy that its available here in the Philippines.

xoxo.

my new addiction. Love et!

my son's broken bone and my broken heart

When I arrived home last night, the house was quite and lights are out. I know Andre is upstairs sleeping soundly with his yaya. I ate dinner while I was preparing my laptop so I can start with the video that I'm doing for Jen who is leaving the country in two weeks to join his hubby in Singapore. I was about to finish my dinner when the yaya came down. I asked if Andre is asleep already and she said yes.. all the while I thought everything was fine..until she uttered. "nadulas po si Andre sa hagdad' (Andre fell off the stairs) and he was crying and saying that his shoulder hurts. So I went upstairs to see my son. He was sound asleep and I don't want to wake him up. I touched his shoulders and he groaned in pain...but went back to sleep. 

I went down again and no longer have the appetite to finish my dinner. I asked repeatedly what happened and trying to replay it on my head. I scolded the yaya on why she let him go down the stairs alone and didn't even bother to hold his hand when he was coming down. I wanted to strangle her but that wont do any good...damage has already been done. I'm just praying that everything will be alright. And I am trying to convince myself that its just swollen and no fracture whatsoever. But I was wrong.

The trip to his pedia was quick because all the referred Orthopedic Doctors are either out or no clinic today. We then went to another hospital where his pedia (the pedia doctor when he was born) has a clinic and referred us to an Orthopedic but again he has no clinic today. But we still went through the x-ray to see if there's any fracture. The pedia explained to us that in worst cases, AJ could be admitted in the hospital and go through anesthesia to align the bones if the break is sever. My heart stopped and my head says not again!! he already gone through general anesthesia when he was 3 (due to a deep cut in his chin a year ago). I was silently praying that its not a sever case and no broken bones..

But when I saw his x-ray film and anyone who sees it does not need a medical degree to confirm that he has a fractured bone. His Collar Bone. My mouth suddenly went dry. again for the second time, my heart stopped and I felt pain in my chest. It broke my heart to see my fear right in front of me. I wanted to cry but I held it until we left the hospital. Poor thing.. hasn't reach puberty yet but had already stitches and broken bone. I wish I could absorbed his pain everytime he moves his shoulder. But he is a strong boy. He is the same AJ who is very makulit even with a broken collar bone. I just pray that he will heal faster.

x-ray of AJ's  broken clavicle in his right shoulder

Of course, I research the things that I need to do. and here are some of the ways to care for your child with a broken collarbone.

1. Dressing your child can be one of the hardest steps. Without a broken collarbone, dressing them could be a hassle, but with it, it becomes a little bit more challenging. The best way to put on shirts is to roll up the sleeve and place the arm with the broken collarbone in first. Then slide the head through and the other arm. For removing shirts, you are going to go the other way, and end by taking the sleeve off of the bad arm

2. When changing diapers, sleeping, or any laying activity, make sure that the child is supported with one or more pillows. This will relive pressure on the collarbone and help minimize the pain.

3. The child with the broken collarbone and other children may not understand what is wrong and will want to play like any normal day. This is why it is important to try and keep your child away from other children, including siblings. Some playtime is recommended but make sure it is supervised, because you do not want your child to get hurt and damage the collarbone or shoulder even more.

4. Medicines for pain can be different from child to child, but during the day use a liquid ibuprofen and at night a liquid aspirin with codeine to help the child sleep. They may not be open to taking the medicine, so you can easily mix it in with their drinks, just make sure no one else is drinking from the same cup or bottle.

5. For proper healing, it is important that the child wear a sling to support the arm. They may not like the restraining of that, so an ace bandage wrapped around the arm and torso will help keep it constrained. If possible, get a sling of your own and wear it for a few days to help them ease into it. Make it look like fun and they will enjoy it too.


Read more: How to Care For a Child With a Broken Collarbone | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2148027_care-child-broken-collarbone.html#ixzz14ENllhJR

My Little Spanish Matador

Finally the day has come. The UN Day Program at AJ's Montessori. As I have mentioned a few  weeks back, he was assigned to represent Spain and Matador was my inspiration for his costume. I admit that I am a crammer. Even if I had the materials weeks prior to the event, I waited for the last weekend and the day before the event to finish up his costume. I sew a red and gold ribbon at the edge of his vest and the side of his pants. Then I sew the hem of his pants to make it 3/4 shorter. Then I sew a red cloth on one side of the cape that I bought. And  nights of carefully sewing it together and praying that it will look good in the end, I'm so glad to say that the end result was great.

my little Matador

During the Program they sang and dance and the pre-schoolers shared some famous places in the world. AJ was assigned to say something about the Stonehenge. And I am one proud momma because he really did memorize it (a month long of helping him memorize per phrase was worth it). And he did very well during the presentation. He missed a preposition but thats fine. He did very good at age 4. They also danced to the tune of Bailamos and sang I am but a Small Voice.

And to end the week,yesterday at Olivia's 1st birthday party which is a Halloween theme party. He was suppose to be a Bandido or Zoro but the costume I bought is too big for him so I end up dressing him his UN day costume. And it was for the better since he won the best in costume in the kids-boy category :) got a 500 GC as price :) and that's more than half the cost of the entire ensemble. haha! my hard work paid off!