Mommy Pehpot, Author at Mommy Pehpot

Cheaper By The Half Dozen

When we learned about this pregnancy, I was shocked. It’s not a mixed feelings, it’s really shock and nothing on excitement. I wish I could say it was just a few minutes of selfishness but it was not. It lasted quite a long time before the shock turns into excitement. Having a lot of kids is not that easy and then another one? Oh no no no no…

However, I realized that this is such a huge blessing! Not just the fact that we were able to produce another human being but also because this baby came at the right time. We’re moving to our new house and our finances are doing good. As compared to when we had my other kids, those were difficult, but now, life is easier! There is no more reason to be afraid.

And as the husband puts it, we can always find ways for “our time” even with a new baby.

But still, a part of me is is having a hard time accepting it… I just don’t know if I can still give that much love to another baby.. specially after Sati. She’s our only girl and I couldn’t deny the fact that I am so in love with this princess. I am just do not know if I can love this coming baby as much as I love her…

Of course, my kids are all excited! Sati really loves the idea of her being a big sister and she loves it when we call her “ate”. So I accepted my new baby wholeheartedly with a promise of loving her/him the same way I love ate and the kuyas.

But God has a way of getting the best out of me. Seeing how easy motherhood was for me and knowing I can very well take care of my kids.. He gave us not just one, but two babies!

We’re having TWINS!

To say we’re excited is understatement! Sobrang nakakakilig itoooo!! God really knows what we need.. and though it would be very challenging for us, we’re ready to face it with His guidance.

I started writing this blog post a month ago… and while I wait for my first trimester to end before publishing this blog post, we learned that the other baby vanished… the condition I experienced is called Vanishing Twin Syndrome. If want to know more about VTS, please read my blog post about it: Vanishing Twin Syndrome is True And I Experienced It

Crazy for BMX Bikes – My Boys’ New Hobby

My sons’ new found love for BMX riding first began when Filipino-born Daniel Caulaug took the gold at the Asian Games. It was back in 2014 and ever since, they’ve been obsessed. Thinking they’re going to follow in the footsteps of his BMX hero, maybe one day he’ll also make it to the Olympics.

At first I was skeptical and a little worried. It’s an extreme sport, after all, and my first concern was for his safety. However, I did a little research of my own and learnt a few things about BMX riding. The activity is great exercise, builds strength and burns plenty of calories — approximately 610 per hour. And if you have a son of your own and are looking to build his discipline and confidence, you should try buying him one of the boys BMX bikes at Tesco or from a sports store and see how he gets on with the hobby. They really look forward to the next BMX competion to watch. Unfortunately, BMX was dropped from the 28thSoutheast Asian Games in Singapore. This would have been a brilliant opportunity for him to meet his hero and watch the professionals in action. I’ve been researching upcoming BMX events and if he’s lucky we may visit one.

UCI BMX Supercross World Cup

This premier BMX racing series features the world’s most elite male and female riders from more than 30 countries. It acts as the main qualifier for the Rio De Janeiro Olympic Games to be held in 2016. Events have already taken place earlier this year at Manchester (Great Britain), Papendal (the Netherlands) and Engelholm (Sweden). The next in line is taking place from September 5th-6that Santiago del Estero in Argentina. The location has been a favorite on the circuit for the last three years and was voted the best event in 2014. Famed for its electric atmosphere and warm climate, you can see some of the best BMX bikers in the world at this one.

The final event of the year takes place on September 25th-26th in Rock Hill, USA. This is one of the largest cities in the state of South Carolina and marks a new location for the world cup series. A circuit has been newly built which will also host the 2017 World Championships.

UCI BMX World Championships 2016

This is one of the most thrilling events in the BMX calendar and one which my son would love to attend. The 2015 event has recently taken place at the magnificent Lotto BMX Centre at Circuit Zolder complex in Belgium. Next year it will be held at the new location of Colombia. The city of Medellin will host the competition with a newly built track.
Hopefully we’ll make it to one of these events. If not, we can still cheer on the riders at some of the smaller ones that are happening throughout the year.

Images by Gamma Man and Stig Nygaard, used under Creative Commons license

5 Advantages of Having Your Own Water Purifier

After reading the article, How safe is your drinking water? from Rappler, naalala ko tuloy noong kabataan ko.. I can drink water straight from the faucet, as long as it is clean looking and without foul smell, I can drink that. When I got pregnant with our first child, ayan na.. diyan na nagsimulang maging conscious ako sa quality ng tubig na iniinom ko.

We used to buy our supply at water refilling station near us. Kaos lang, when I saw how untidy their delivery boys are and not to mention unprofessional, I stopped buying from them and opted to have our own water purifying system.

We have been using this for more than 3 years already and I am happy that we made a decision to take care of our water supply.

From our experience, here are some of the advantages of having an in-home water purifier:

1. It’s actually cheaper in the long run. Compute the amount you usually spend on your drinking water in a month. If you consume 3-4 5 gallon container a week, at 40 Pesos each container, that’s around 5000 Pesos in a year. But when you buy your own water purifier, say the new Unilever Pure it, you only need to spend 5000 Pesos once, not yearly.

2. You don’t have to wait for your water delivery, it’s right there on your counter top.

3. No need to deal with unprofessional delivery men.

4. You have control over the handling of your drinking water unlike in refilling stations where in you can’t see the people handling it.

5. And lastly, you don’t have to worry about the safety of your water. As stated in the Rappler article:

Refilled water for delivery is then transferred into sanitized transports that ensure water is maintained at room temperature (25C-28C). Delivery vehicles that leave the containers exposed to dust, pollution, heat and direct sunlight are not acceptable.

We all know that this is not the case most of times. Most water refilling station delivery vehicles are exposed to pollution and direct sunlight. Karamihan nga ng deliveries sa loob ng maliit na subdivision, naka tribike lang! Que horror!

Now I’m curious, where do you get your drinking water supply?