First Hero

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I remember seeing this in Facebook and I think to myself how true this statement is. I see my husband and my son and I know that it is true. I see how connected they are and how much they love each other. My husband works away from home and only get to be with Jaden for 3 days every week. The rest of the week, the little one will be shouting out Daddy! whenever he misses him.

I see them play and I see how my son adores his dad. That look of awe when he sees him doing great things that his little mind cannot comprehend. That look when he tries to copy what his daddy is doing and the big smile when he thinks he got it right. It is really important for a child to have a father figure that he can look up to. A father is an image of strength and greatness to them, a superhero comparable to Superman and Batman.

I smile whenever I see Jaden copying his dad and doing things his daddy does. He sees his dad exercise every time he is home and he is very eager to try too!

He can't lift an actual dumbbell so he's using the ab roller instead :)

And look at that pout. He's chanting HOO! HOO!

He loves the treadmill too!

I'm glad that he has someone he looks up to. I know they'll be best buddies forever :)

Haircut Woes!

I woke up in a very hot Saturday morning, when I took Jaden outside I saw that it rained last night, so that's why it's effing hot. Around 8 A.M, I was giving little one a bath when the bathroom light went out. Jaden immediately shouted "Out!" meaning brownout. If you are a resident here in the good old Philippines, brownout is a common thing, sad but true. I understand that they have to do monthly maintenance but to turn off the town's power for almost 12 hours??? It was hellish.

After taking a bath, Jaden was sweating and his hair is so damp. He has very thick hair which he got from me and our last haircut was early January. Since it was Daddy's day-off we decided to go to SM City and have his hair cut. I am so not looking forward to going-to-the-barber moments. I know some of you moms could relate to this.

The first time we went to Jem's Salon for Kids, he loved everything he saw. They have this awesome cars for chair, a television with Barney on and lots of toys and stuffed toys. He was very eager to ride the car until his barber came forward to cover him with his "cape", he started crying. I only asked for a trim so the job was done fast with a scissors.

After his first haircut

The second time, I asked for a Mohawk style haircut and he cried the whole time. It was a lot harder to divert his attention, he was terrified of the electric shaver. He was hugging me and Daddy while the barber did his job well. The picture below clearly shows how depressed he was after.

After his 2nd haircut

Before we went inside the salon for his third haircut, I talked to him and I pointed out how other kids are behaving. He was very attentive and was very eager to go, I guess the toys was so attractive. He sat down and watched Barney. The trouble started when he saw the cape, I know, a child never forgets. He stand up and hugged me and dear me, he won't sit back down. I was carrying him while the barber was cutting his hair. This time he lets Jaden play with the shaver first before using it on his hair, it worked! I was carrying him and this time he was enjoying the shaver. His Daddy was busy entertaining him with stuffed toys (Pooh, Barney and McQueen). After the haircut, he cried out loud when he heard the hair dryer. Gosh! It took me minutes to hush him down. Hair was all over the two of us and he won't let the brush near him so I just wipe him down slowly.

After his 3rd haircut

The good thing about kids is that they don't hold grudges. After changing his clothes, he went out the salon and run around the mall. We rode the carousel which he loves so MUCH!

After the carousel, we ate at McDonald's and he had his favorite meal: Cheeseburger, french fries and pineapple juice. Look at how happy he is!

I know some children deals with haircut in a much braver way but I don't mind hugging him while he is still getting used to it. Maybe on our next haircut or the one after the next, he'll be able to sit down on his own. I guess that's why we're here, the parents, to give a reassuring hug when their little hearts are afraid of scissors and shavers :)

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Building a Routine for You and Your Baby

One of the things I have learned from being a full time mom is the fact that babies who sleep better are healthier and happier. While I was pregnant, I have already prepared my self for sleepless nights. After giving birth, I slept 3-5 hours a night. I know I have to do something to make my son adjust his sleeping habits. In the womb, he sleeps all day and kick the night away.

So when he was a month old, I developed a routine for the baby and I made sure that I stuck to it.

My little one usually wakes up at 5 - 6 AM so I give him his bath every 8 AM. After his bath, he sleeps again. I'm breastfeeding him so it is easier for him to fall asleep. I give him his afternoon bath at around 5 PM. I make sure that he's in bed by 6 - 7 PM until morning.

Sometimes it would take me an hour to lull him to sleep, sometimes 5 minutes will do. No matter what, I ALWAYS make him sleep by 7. It was hard at first but eventually he got used to it. Now he is 1 year and 5 months, every night around 7 PM he would ask for "mommy" and I know he is ready to sleep by then.

What is good by building a routine is that the child adapts to it and it will make your life a whole lot easier. By 8 PM I could sit in front of my laptop and blog, I could have my after dinner snacks (a privilege of a breastfeeding mom), I could read a few chapters of my current book or I could sleep early :)

I'm quite proud that my son sleeps early and he doesn't wake me up in the middle of the night except when he needs to nurse. I wanted him to keep this routine so when he starts going to school a year from now it won't be hard for me to make him sleep early so he could wake up early.

It might be hard to build this kind of routine but I tell you, it pays off in the end.

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