A heartbreaking conversation with my daughter

I was hospitalized two weeks ago.

I found out today that my poor baby girl thinks she was the reason I got hospitalized. I was gone for a long time, and we only got to sleep beside each other last night. So I was talking to here today, saying sorry I wasn't here with her. I asked what she did while I was away.

Litte moon:"You were s'pposed to be here." (Not angry, but kinda sad.
Me: "I know baby. I'm really sorry. I didn't want to be sick, but I got really sick."
Little moon: "Because of my teeth?"
Me: "What?? What do you mean?"
Little moon: "Because of the dede. May teeth (marks) there."

The hour before I was rushed to the hospital, she asked to nurse. I was in so much pain, so I asked her to stop. That was the last time she ever breastfed.

I was thinking about this the whole time, and was worried she might blame herself, because I wasn't able to explain to her what was happening before I went to the ER. Today my fears were confirmed.

I didn't want to tell her about the ectopic pregnancy, and about how she almost had a little brother or sister (she'd been asking for one for months), because it might break her heart. So all I told her was:

"There was something inside my tummy, and the doctors had to open me up and take it away. It wasn't your fault."

She still thinks I was in so much pain because she bit me.

My poor little girl. I will keep explaining to her till she understands.

:(

Doc Mcstuffins at SM Megamall

Hey Doc Mcstuffins fans out there, there's an event at SM Megamall for your little doctors! I was super excited when I saw this poster on Toy Kingdom's Instagram yesterday. Read more after the jump!

McDonald's Happy Meal: My Little Pony 2014

My Little Pony lands in Happy Meal boxes once again. Oh happy day! This time, the ponies get the Rainbow Power treatment. Loving their colorful tails!

We saw the TV commerical yesterday. I panicked (my husband said I looked like I was having a seizure, lol) because I thought we heard the news late, and the ponies might be out of stock already. Turned out they only became available yesterday.

Of course we couldn't wait to get our hands on them, so early this morning, we had McDo delivery. Haha. I didn't want to eat 4 meals, so I asked my Lola if she wanted to order something. I ended up only having to buy two Happy Meals, because I requested Lola to upgrade her two orders so Little Moon gets the complete set of all 4 toys today. Hihi.

Little Moon with her "Happy Meals", Pinky Pie is still inside that paper bag.

The little one excitedly said: "Mom, let's show them to the other ponies on the bed. They're famiwyyyyy! (family)"

The new ponies with last year's collection. "Famiwyyyy!"

Apparently, the US got 8 ponies: Pinky Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, DJ Pon, and Rarity. We only got 4 here in the Philippines (the first ones I mentioned). You can get the other 4 on eBay.

I like these Happy Meal My Little Pony toys because they're not as cheap looking as other Happy Meal releases that look like disposable plastic toys. These are actually well-made, as far as Php35 toys go (that's how much you actually pay for the toy, if you consider the cost of the food). For that price, they're a good alternative to the My Little Pony toys you can buy at toy stores, which start Php299 each. 

Some of the differences I noticed: they come with stickers this time around, and not with a comb/keychain like last year. And because of this, they no longer have that unsightly bump on their heads, where the comb used to be attached. This year's Pinky Pie is is a bit darker than the old one, with a slightly different Cutie Mark (that's what the signs on their butt are called, I kid you not. haha).

Troop to your nearest McDonald's ASAP if you're a MLP fan. These will get sold out fast, I'm sure. Better yet, have your Happy Meal delivered so you don't have to leave the house on this hot, hot day!

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose. I wasn't paid to post about this. I just like My Little Pony because it reminds me of my childhood. :)

Happy Mother's Day!

Hello gorgeous mommas! I hope you had a wonderful day last Sunday! I gave my own mom a special surprise: a tribute on Smart Parenting Magazine's website! One of the moms in the WAHM (Work at Home Mom) group I am part of on Facebook, writer Tina Rodriguez, was looking to interview 5 mothers for an article on "mom-spiration". I was kinda shy to participate, but I thought it was the perfect opportunity to tell the world about how special my mom is!

And here it is, published just in time for Mother's Day! "I learned from the Best: 5 Moms Pay Tribute to their Moms" tells about how our moms became the inspiration for how we raise our own children.

Thank you Smart Parenting and Ms. Tina Rodriguez for giving me the opportunity to give my Mommy Merilyn a different kind of present this time!

It's been a while

Little moon is now 2 years and 7 months old. I just celebrated my 29th birthday a few weeks ago. We've been busy doing everything and nothing.

These photos were taken one April afternoon, on one of our visits to my sister-in-law's place. I look preggy in the picture. I'm not. Not yet. Haha.

Scrumptious Saturday: Slice's Granola Champorado

I love Champorado. I grew up in a home where my dear mom would cook this comforting chocolate rice porridge for merienda.  I am also convinced that it was probably Champorado that Goldilocks ate at the three bears' cottage. Haha.

A few months ago, my friends and I got together for an afternoon out with the kids. We ate at Slice in Bonifacio High Street. It was my third time there. I'm not a big fan of the place - the food is good, but a bit overpriced. The cupcakes look yummy, but I am still a die-hard fan of Cupcakes by Sonja.

I must say though, that their champorado is worth checking out! They call it Belgian Dark Chocolate Champorado. The name itself sounds yummy already. It's an interesting take on my favorite merienda - they serve granola instead of the usual malagkit rice. There's peanut butter and bananas on the side! What I did was dip my spoon in the peanut butter before I dip it in the bowl, and I get a spoonful of peanutbuttery-chocolatey goodness in every bite. The idea is probably to enjoy the peanut butter with the bananas, but they didn't have bananas that day. Boo. I was determined to still order the Champorado, so I requested they substitute watermelon for the bananas instead, which I figured I could eat for dessert (and share with Little Moon). Yes, chocolate for the main meal and fruit for dessert. Am I weird or what?

The Belgian Dark Chocolate Champorado is a bit pricey at Php200, but it's worth trying. My Little Moon likes the carrot soup. I like it too - it doesn't taste like carrots at all! Yummy! Slice is at the new section at the end of High Street, where Uniqlo and Jamba Juice is located.

Elmo likes sweets

Having a toddler in the house means finding funny little surprises everywhere.  I was putting away Little Moon's toys yesterday when I found this.

So now we know Elmo is a sweet-tooth. Even if he doesn't have teeth. Haha. No wonder one of my polymer clay cupcakes went missing.

Happy shabby chic pendants

I got to play with my polymer clay over the summer. Oh how I missed my clay!

But the super quick time I spent at my crafting table made me realize I'm never gonna be able to get back to work anytime soon. And I don't think I want to anymore! When I was preggy, I imagined doing little projects whenever Little Moon was asleep. Who was I kidding! Raise your hand if you'd rather conk out beside your little one than get back to work! Diba? Haha! I am super duper thankful to my husband for being such a responsible breadwinner. I am able to stay home and care for our baby and not worry about having to get back to work!

So anyway, this latest collection is called Inchie Winchies. They are so me. The colors, the details. I wanted them to look like mini collages of ribbon, lace, and strips of paper. But they're all made of clay. I was inspired by the lacy details on my daughter's clothes, my fabric stash, and by the mini mood board notebooks created by Holly Becker of Decor8, my blogging mentor. Thank you teacher Holly, for the inspiration!

These pendants look so happy and cheerful, don't you think? I'm happy with how they turned out - all the details are handmade, no molds were used! The colors were custom-blended by me too. I imagine wearing them on a thin chain, with a simple sunny dress. Or they could brighten up a plain t-shirt.

These inchie winchies are available on Luna Lollipop on Facebook. Luna Lollipop deserves a separate post, and I'll blog about it once the official website is up. For now, I hope you enjoy these photos.  Follow me on Flickr to see more.

I lost my mojo

I haven't written a decent blog post in months. To be honest, my blogging energy got drained out of me by that post about our MMR scare. After that post, I didn't know how to reboot and be chirpy-cheery again.

Little Moon is okay, thank God! No sign of regression so far, and it's been 5 months. I chatted with my Tita one time, and I was convinced that we did a good thing by getting the vaccine. The result of what could happen without the MMR is much scarier. As they say, the benefits outweigh the risks. So we have proceeded with the recommended vaccination schedule.

I want my blogging mojo back. There are tons to write about. I want to start blogging again.

Life lessons from Candy Crush

I don't know about you guys, but I recently got hooked on this drug game called Candy Crush. My goodness, I never knew such a seemingly simple cellphone game can be so addictive! I'm a late comer to the game, with most of my Facebook contacts now in the 100+ levels (Hello Jen Cruz at Level 350)! I have my husband to blame for this addiction - I saw him playing it on his phone one day, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Funny how you realize some pretty deep stuff when playing the game. Here are the Top 5 Life Lessons I learned from Candy Crush. Haha.

1. Don't waste your time/moves on meaningless things.

Like no-brainer 3-candy switches that lead to nothing.

2. Delay gratification.

Forming the 5-candy combo is sweeter than the instant gratification of a striped jelly bean.

3. If you don't learn to let go, you'll never know what good things are in store for you.

Like how sometimes you think you've got no other good moves so you go ahead and dejectedly use up the chocolate bomb you've been saving, and whaddayouknow! The next candies that come crashing form multiple combos on the screen. Coolness!

4. Life is like a box of chocolates, you'll never know what you're gonna get. Or when. Damn that chocolate.

5. No matter how much you plan ahead, shit happens.

Like when you're saving that chocolate bomb for later, then you do a seemingly harmless switch and all the other candies come crashing down on it and it detonates prematurely. Shet.

A summer to remember

Five blissful days in Bacolod, two of them spent at an almost deserted beach. The lovely photo above is of my Dad (left), Marco and little moon, and I. Credits to my brother Troy.

I made this little video to mark this unforgettable trip, come check it out.



Ah, summer. Feels like a dream.

The MMR scare

Today marks one week since our baby got her MMR shot. It's been a crazy week. I wanted to write about it here because it might help other moms looking for information.

The day after her shot, I noticed red dots on her back. The dots spread to her tummy and legs, and then her whole body. We texted the pediatrician, and he said it was a normal reaction to the vaccine, and the rash would go away in 3 days.

But on Saturday night, our baby developed another reaction to the vaccine. (Please skip this part if you're eating.) She had a loose, watery bowel movement which is a complete opposite of her usual stools. She had another one Sunday morning, and another Sunday night. We are talking about our toddler who only poops once a week (that's her normal cycle believe it or not!), so three loose bowel movements in 24 hours alarmed me.

Amoebiasis was the first thing that I thought of. Maybe she got it from the water? I have horrible memories of bouts of amoeba in my childhood days. So I texted my mom and asked what happened to me when I got amoeba. She said I was vomiting, had fever, and LBM. Since Little Moon didn't have fever and wasn't vomiting, she probably didn't get amoeba.

Then it occured to me - could the LBM be linked to her MMR shot? Since the rashes and the LBM started after we got her vaccinated, and the shot is the only unusual thing that happened this week? So I googled. And I found many links describing how a child can get a rash and yellow watery stools after getting injected with an MMR vaccine.

What I read scared me. Why didn't I know that the MMR could ruin your child's digestive system? And that it was somehow linked to autism? Oh my gosh. I had read about vaccines when Little Moon was a baby, but I didn't see these red flags before. How could I have missed these scary information? I can't freakin believe I didn't come across it before - I used to spend hours reading about autism and child development. Mahilig ako magresearch, tapos eto namiss ko? And most importantly, why didn't our pediatrician inform us about the side effects of the vaccine?

There are a lot of moms of children with autism who said that their toddlers were perfectly normal before they got their MMR. Then their kids got rashes and diarrhea, and then regressed. Their kids stopped talking, forgot the things they've learned so far, and stopped developing mentally. I wanted to cry.

So I called Little Moon's other pediatrician and pleaded with the secretary to get us an appointment for that afternoon (they don't allow walk-ins). This other pedia is a homeopath, and a supporter of breastfeeding, so she gives me good vibes.

I was going to consult with her because there was no way I was going to go back to the pedia who gave Little Moon the MMR shot. The one who didn't even warn us about the possible side effects of the vaccine - at least man lang the part where your child can develop tummy problems! Diba? Ugh. If we went to him, he'd probably brush off my fears and say what doctors usually say - don't worry. But I didn't want that, I wanted an explanation. I wanted someone to tell me why my daughter reacted to the vaccine the way she did. I wanted to know the truth about autism and the vaccine.

So we went to the homeopath pedia, and I told her about Little Moon's loose stools, and my fear about the link to autism. She didn't downplay my fears. She didn't discredit the information I read on the internet. But what she said made my heart sink. She said before she administers the MMR vaccine to her patients, she asks the parents first about the family history of autism. If there is history, she won't do the shot. We should have been asked. I have a cousin who has autism.

This pedia was concerned that Little Moon had two reactions to the vaccine - the rashes and the LBM. She said the chances of autism developing after an MMR shot was so small, but we were treating Little Moon all the same. So she recommended probiotics and Vaucheria. The probiotics is for her tummy. The Vaucheria is for lessening the side effects of the vaccine.

Let me explain the whole brouhaha. I could be wrong here, but here's how I understand it. Vaccines can start trouble because there are heavy metals in the vaccine that can accumulate in the gut. Sometimes the child can't get rid of these, so they stay in her body. When that happens, the heavy metals can pass on to the brain. That's why there is a link to autism. Although the study that introduced this idea was discredited by the medical community many years ago, they are yet to disprove it. And that shadow of a doubt is enough for me to be very afraid for my daughter. That, and the testimonials of mothers who have shared their stories online, and this case.

So what we are trying to do is address Little Moon's tummy problem. The probiotics will help get her gut back to normal. The probiotics come in powder form, and you dissolve this in water, or mix with food. We got the Protexin Restore sachets. There's another brand we tried that come in pellet form (Bio Bita), but our baby doesn't like it. We used to just make a paste out of the Protexin and a few drops of water and feed with a spoon, but she's stopped taking it. So now we try all sorts of tricks. Today we mixed it with her mango juice, and she didn't notice the weird taste. We have to do this for a month.

The Vaucheria comes in liquid form, and you administer it through a dropper. There's no other way to give this to her because it has to be taken every 4 hours. So we toughen up, brace ourselves for some wild crying and heartbreaking pleading (she knows how to say please), and shove the dropper into her mouth. We have to do this for two weeks.

Today is Day 3 of this treatment plan. Her stools are loose and yellow, and it scares us. My readings say yellow could mean her body is not absorbing the nutrients from the food she eats or the milk she drinks. And that's another problem - she hasn't been eating since Sunday. She has even refused her favorite snack (Stick-o, that chocolate wafer stick). At least she still nurses. I just hope she gets the nutrients from my breastmilk. And she's been cranky, and only wants to be held by either her daddy or me. She cries when our househelp G carries her. They used to have fun together. The rash is starting to fade away.

We are desperately praying that this treatment plan is enough to heal her. I have been begging God to help us, to take away whatever it is that is causing havoc in her body. I am praying that she isn't in pain. And most of all, I am praying that she continues to develop normally. Lord, please make all of this scary stuff go away. I hope all this is just paranoia.

Dear moms and dads who might be reading this, I am sharing this with you because I want others to be aware. I am not urging you to say no to vaccinations. I am not saying don't get an MMR. I am not here to cause panic. What I am trying to tell you is be vigilant. We, parents, have to know what we are saying yes to. If we had learned about these things before we gave Little Moon the shot, would we still have gone for it? I don't know. But we should have been armed with information. We should have done our research. That way, we could have made an informed decision. 

Scrumptious Saturday: Have you been to Qizia?

There's a quaint little cafe in Marikina called Qizia (pronounced ki-zha). The strange thing about it isn't its name, but its location.

The first time I was brought there by my friend Jessica a couple of years ago, my jaw dropped. You see, she was building up my expectation about the food all day long, but she didn't warn me about the location. We took a cab and got dropped off in front of SDS Hospital. After all the talk about this cool cafe, I couldn't believe she was making me eat in a hospital. I wanted to strangle her. I was close to tears. She was laughing her ass off at my reaction.

Turns out, the cafe wasn't inside the hospital - you'll find it in an obscure corner behind it, in the parking lot. Whew. I was relieved I wasn't going to be fed hospital food. Hehe. And I am thankful to Jessica for introducing me to what has become one of my favorite places for comfort food.

Beef tapa served with egg, garlic rice, and iced tea - Php135

The only meal I ever order there is their beef tapa with egg and garlic rice (Php 135). The beef is sweet and tender, and you dip it in spiced vinegar. I am writing this at 12:30am, and just thinking about it makes my mouth water. This is what I order all the time.

Cheese sticks (Php95)

Their cheese sticks are sought after. The first few times I visited Qizia, these intriguing appetizers eluded me - they were always sold out! Finally, I got to try them in their Antipolo branch (which is now unfortunately defunct). I imagined the usual cheese slices in lumpia wrapper, but I was so wrong. These are 6 fat fingers of mozzarella cheese rolled in flour and bread crumbs, with a sweet tomato dip. The cheese oozes out ever so slightly as you bite into the crunchy stick. Oh my gosh.

The last time we ate there was just last Saturday, and we took home one order of cheese sticks. After sitting in the fridge for three days, they were still surprisingly good. I just popped them in the turbo broiler for a few minutes (sorry, we don't have a toaster!). The breading wasn't as crunchy as when ordered fresh, but the cheese sticks were still yummy!

Qizia also serves pizza, pasta, coffee, and dessert. We tried a slice of their banana caramel cake, and it looks and tastes a lot like Banapple's! I'm thinking they're the same thing! (Is that possible?)

If Qizia wasn't so far from where we live, I'd probably be there every week. Be sure to try this hidden gem in Marikina, you won't be disappointed!

Qizia Cafe

Katipunan Ext Concepcion II, Marikina

(02) 489-0760

Major meltdown at the clinic

Anxiously waiting for her turn. She could sense something's up.

 Little Moon got her MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) immunization today. Oh how she hated it! She was already tense before the doctor arrived. When we were called into the clinic, she clung to me and wailed. She was crying so loudly, I almost couldn't hear what the doctor was saying. She was hysterical when we made her sit on the examination table. I've never heard her cry like that before! It took three of us - the daddy, the doctor's secretary, and me - to hold her down. The actual injection took all of 3 seconds. Right after the injection, when she was back in her daddy's arms, she stopped crying.

Here she is a few minutes after, playing in the garden at the hospital. Like nothing happened.

New look for the new year!

I had my loooong locks chopped off! A perfect way to start the new year. I think it's been three years since I last had hair this short. Funny how a haircut can instantly lift the spirits! I feel like a big burden was lifted off. I feel so free!

Photo by Angel Sobrepena III

 

Little Moon's 1st Birthday Video

One of the best gifts we received over the holidays is a video of Little Moon's 1st Birthday Party, shot and created by my cousin Kat. It's beautifully made, it feels like a professional created it. So cool!

Watch the video for some Monday eye candy!

I love you, don't you see,

You stole my heart in 1-2-3

I love you, yes it's true

You stole my heart

and I'm gonna steal yours too.

- "Stole My Heart" by Little And Ashley

Kat said when Ally was still a newborn, she already knew what song she'd use in the video! Hindi naman masyadong excited? Haha!

We will forever treasure this video. Thank you Kat!

How to store Christmas decorations

 

I only started packing away our Christmas decor today. I'm a little late, I know, but I wanted to hold on to the holidays a little longer. To my dismay, our housekeeper went ahead and shoved the tree in its box earlier this week, without my go signal. How depressing. In my head, when we take down the tree and the baubles, it was going to be a festive event, just like how we put the tree up last month. That probably sounds a little silly. But that's one of the traditions we were supposed to do as a family. Oh well. We'll do that next year.

But what upset me the most was how all the ornaments were jumbled together in one paper bag. Even the delicate wire thingies that could easily get deformed. So today, I took out everything and properly stored them away. Here's how I did it.

Ideas for Christmas decoration storage

Extend the life of your precious holiday decor by keeping them properly organized. Shoving them altogether in one paper bag may seem like the easy, space-saving solution, but here are better ways to ensure you get to enjoy them for many Christmases to come.

1. Designate a sturdy storage box for your decor. Paper or garbage bags can offer protection from dust, but they can easily get squished in storage. I use clear plastic bins which we bought on sale from the department store, Php99 each. 

2. Wrap your ornaments individually in bubble wrap. I saved the ones mine originally came in. If you forgot to keep yours, reuse the gift wrapping paper from the presents you received.

3. Wind ribbon on a spool to keep them wrinkle-free - don't fold them. I kept the spools my ribbons came in, but if you tossed yours already, you can use a tissue paper roll.

4. Keep Christmas lights from getting tangled by doing the same thing you did with the ribbons. Wind the string of lights around a spool, tissue paper roll, or a Coke can.

5. Cushion delicate pieces in bubble wrap or crumpled, old gift wrappers. Here, I stacked all bubble-wrapped ornaments in a plastic bin, and nestled the wire drops on top.

Don't forget to label your boxes so you don't forget what's inside!

My happy place: Cupcakes by Sonja

This cupcake bakery in Serendra makes happy. Every time I'm in the area, I make sure I go inside Cupcakes by Sonja, sometimes just to whiff the yummy scents coming out of their kitchen.

When I had dessert there before Christmas with my college friend Ateen, the place was even more dreamy because it was decked in Christmas cheer.

Cupcakes by Sonja opened in September 2006, and I was there at the opening. I remember being shocked by the prices. I still find their goodies expensive, so I don't indulge too often. The simplest cupcakes are Php65, the special ones are Php115.

My favorite cupcake has always been Berries 'n Cream (above). But on that fateful night last month (lol!), I took a bite of the Valrhona Flourless Chocolate Cupcake. Oh. My. Gosh. Heaven! I think I found my new favorite. Now I don't know why I didn't try it sooner. Probably because it looked plain. It's the one without frosting below.

Look who became a new fan?

This is an early post for Scrumptious Saturday, ok? Hihi.

Cupcakes by Sonja is at Serendra Piazza in Bonifacio Global City.

Bakery Hours:

• Monday - Thursday 10 AM - Midnight
• Friday - Saturday 10 AM - 1 AM
• Sunday 10 AM - Midnight

*Thanks Ateen for dessert!

Hello 2013!

Hello blog, hello world! That long vacation felt great! I'm sad that it's over, and to tell you the truth, I'm having trouble snapping back to real life. The holidays were such a flurry of happiness, it's hard to get back to the program. What with everyone leaving after the holidays, and the sudden lull in daily activities. It's like the crash after the sugar rush.

So to cheer myself up, I'm looking forward to the year ahead! My plan for 2013 is to fill the days with lots of new experiences for our little family! We got to do a lot of firsts over the holidays, and it was so fun to see how Little Moon drank up all the sights and sounds of the world around her. I'll blog about our holiday getaways in the days to come!

Here's the beginnings of a bucket list. I haven't really thought of making one before, so I'm making this up as I go along. I will update when I think of something new! Some of the items are shallow and ditzy - don't judge me! Haha.

1. Get a haircut. I've had long hair for too long. I actually checked this off already - I had my locks chopped off on January 3! Woot!
2. Learn to apply eye makeup. Just because. I'm a late bloomer, and I just discovered the wonders of makeup last month. I am still clueless, but it would be great to finally be made up on special occasions!
3. Read one book a week. It's sad that I haven't been reading as much as I want to ever since I became a mom - when I try to read at night, I fall asleep. I used to finish thick volumes in one sitting, forgoing sleep. This year I want to catch up on my reading! I don't know yet how I'll pull this off, but there's so much to read, one lifetime isn't enough!
4. Go on another family trip with Little Moon and the daddy. Preferably somewhere cold again.
5. Still thinking...

Cheers to a fruitful, meaningful 2013!


 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! The holidays are in full swing, so see you next year!