Presidential Parenting

I found this article by Sara Kugler very interesting.

It seems that Sasha and Malia Obama are not exempted from doing chores even in 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Being the presidential daughters (and having access to all kinds of household help) does not give them the license to neglect fixing their beds or cleaning up. And with the hunt for the new presidential dog, walking the dog and scooping the poop would be on the to-do list soon.

Apparently, First Lady Michelle Obama is trying to work out a plan with the White House staff to get the kids to do their chores.

This is a great day for parents, especially the moms. Hooray! This is what I call presidential parenting.

Now, I can safely say this to Kuya and Kowi: If the leader of the free world can get his daughters to clean up and fix their beds..."

Not Bad For A Day's Work

I've been in and out of the blogosphere for a while due to several reasons. One of them is organizing my house (the attic in particular) for a yard sale. Yes, it has taken me a loooong time to get things together. It's hard to move around on your own with Kowi in tow. And a few "activities of daily living" prevent me from sorting the Stuff as much as I'd like.

And then there's the difficulty of parting with things. I sometimes catch myself taking back a few items I've already labelled for sale. Some of the Stuff had certain memories attached to them but Kowi reminds me, "We're selling that, mom." The three-year-old voice of reason.

I guess my enthusiam to get rid of Stuff and simplify started to rub off on Kuya and Kowi as well. They started to go through their toys and picked out the ones they didn't like so much. Most of it were stuffed toys and Happy Meal toys.

Our itinerary for the sale was like this: Thursday, make posters with kids. Friday, put up posters around the village (Kowi liked doing this.) Saturday, make breakfast early and haul the Stuff to the garage.

We were in operation by 8am. The kids were excited to see the neighbors/buyers. Kowi even said, "Mom, we're having a garage party!" And by the close of the shop at 3pm, I had over Php 4,000 in profit just from the Stuff we had around the house. Not bad for a day's work.

I Give Them Toys But...

My kids have a little quirk--they don't play with toys.

Don't get me wrong, they have loads of toys. In fact, I have banished several toys they got from last Christmas to the attic. Many of them are still untouched and wrapped. Along with them are other old toys that I have confiscated. My kids seem to have forgotten about them.

These days, instead of toys, they play with a lot of other stuff--empty paper towel rolls, bottle caps, loose microwaveable containers, strings, and other odds and ends scavenged during trips. The Ben 10 Happy Meal toys of Kuya and Kowi's PowerPuff dolls are starting to gather dust.

We've sailed the seven seas looking for pirate treasure, gone camping in the deep woods and joined the Queen's grand parade while eating Kowi's "mini strawberry" soup all from the comfort of our house.

I'm glad I have pretty imaginative (and very cheap) kids. I'm wondering how I can ask people to give money to my kids instead of toys this Christmas. Haha.

Cats In Hats

Kuya had their Mufti Day at school last Friday. The theme this month was to come as their favorite literary character.

He initially wanted to wear his Spiderman costume. But from last year's experience, most boys came in assuper heroes and most girls were fairies and princesses. In last year's class alone they had 5 Supermen, 3 Flash(es?), several Batmen and 1 Green Lantern. I wanted Kuya to wear something unique and easily recognizable.

I asked him to name a book that we read during bedtime and choose a character from there. A lightbulb went on and he decided to go as the Cat in the Hat. Not a bad choice. It was unique and something that we could make together.

We bought red and white felt paper and construction paper to make the hat, a red ribbon, black shirt and pants, white gloves and penciled-on whiskers and viola--our version of Cat in the Hat. We had fun making it, although Kuya had a bit too much by taping all the discarded paper together and finishing a whole roll of scotchtape!

We made two hats. Of course, Kowi had to have one--just like her Kuya.

Getting Ready For Halloween

Kuya wants to dress up as Ben 10 for Halloween this year. But finding a Ben 10 costume (white shirt with black lining) is proving to be difficult. I've been surfing the Cartoon Network sites. So far, all of them cost around $24++ online. Good thing my Dad will be going to the States this October. I might ask him buy a costume for Kuya.

Or I'm thinking we might just make this into a little project. Ben 10 is fairly easy to do on our own. A little plain white shirt and a black fabric pen just might do the trick. Kuya does have his own Omnitrix Deluxe. Brown cargo pants and rubber shoes should complete the ensemble.

Kowi wants to go as a fairy princess (again) this year. I'm trying to convince her to change it up. Oh well, she's pretty headstrong. Hopefully, she can go as Bubbles from the Flintstones. That would be cute. I'm already imagining that little bone on her hair.

Hmmm, maybe I should go to Tabora.

Really Cool Online Math Website

As I was doing Kuya's Math worksheets for his exam tomorrow, I stumbled upon Dr. Math. It's a cool website that has a variety of Math questions ranging from Elementary through High School.

I was looking Math exercises for Kuya and saw Mad Math where he can practice addition, subtraction and multiplication online. Actually, it's a way to practice all basic Math skills so there are also problems in division.

The site is great because you can customize how many problems you can give and what problem types. you can also choose subtraction with negative difference and division with remainders.

I added it to my favorites. Kuya and I will be checking this site out frequently. This just saved me printer ink and paper. =)

Instant Stress Busters

Moms definitely know the meaning of stress. When you’re running late, your preschooler won’t get dressed, stress kicks in. But before we start yelling (or crying), here are some guaranteed instant stress busters that I’ve browsed over the Web to help us cope better.

Get some perspective. Whenever you're on the verge of a meltdown, try to remember, “Will this matter a year from now?” And usually it won't.

Expect the unexpected. Stress is often triggered by unrealistic expectations. Do not assume that routine will go as planned, especially with kids. When the day goes well, consider it a bonus.

Think happy. In the middle of chaos, moms should learn to visualize a happy scene. Think of your kids laughing or sleeping soundly or maybe something else that doesn’t include your kids. Meditate on it often to stay relaxed.

“Me” time is mandatory. It may be as little as 10 minutes a day. Have that cup of cocoa when the kids are asleep, wake up earlier and update your blog or go out for the night with the girls. Having fun is not illegal. It will certainly help keep us sane.

Breathe in and out. Research shows that deep breathing reduces stress. So slowly inhale and exhale.

Have a stress-free week ahead.

Practical Parenting

If you're a parent, you know that kids = expense. The minute you saw that stick turn pink, you know that you're going to have to shell out money for monthly doctor's appointments, pre-natal vitamins and milk, cute maternity clothes, larger and comfier flat shoes to match the new clothes because stiletto heels just won't do anymore, extra lunch money for those can't-just-wait-I-have-to-have-it-now cravings and the list goes on. And all these even before the baby arrives! Yes, parenting has never been easy on the pocket.

Of course, once they come out there's your hospital bill, doctor's fee, layette, bassinet if you're not co-sleeping, breast pump, formula and feeding bottles if you're not breastfeeding, strollers if you're not baby wearing, car seat, a contant supply of baby wipes, diapers, a diaper genie, baby products like baby bath, anti-rash creams, nail clippers, socks, hats, bibs, blankets and the list still goes on and on and on...oh, and this is just for your baby's first month of life. This long list continues on until your baby leaves the nest in about 20 so and so years.

When you calculate wardrobe change for your baby from the day one until he turns a year old, brace yourself, it's not cheap. Especially when it's all out of pocket, your pocket. And wardrobe isn't the only thing you spend for your baby. There's monthly check-ups and vaccines, diapers, wipes, baby products, still the list goes on...

Maybe this was why the practical parent was born. And I'm announcing to the world that I am a practical parent. At today's fuel and food prices, is there any other kind?