Parenting Archive

My thoughts on parenthood, and what it's like to be a mom in the Philippines.

Beach Camping

Camping. That’s one thing we have never tried. I don’t know, I don’t think my OCD can handle camping. Maybe if we’ll have our lawn and we’ll just camp outside the house, that I can handle. I just can’t imagine sleeping inside a tent, I don’t feel safe. But the idea of beach camping is quite enchanting. Bonfire, marshmallows, the sound of the waves and the horizon. Maybe we can give it a try next weekend on our trip to La Union. And while I contemplate on beach camping, I found a really cheap camping tent at Shopwise last week. It was big enough to accommodate us and with the price tag of less than 1000PhP, I was so tempted to buy it.

Beach camping can be a fun experience for the kids(minus the horror stories telling haha). As I read on a few camping tents, I have listed some essential things we have to bring.

Food. We need lots of it, with 4 kids, two baskets won’t survive the night. I am thinking of hot dog, marshmallow, chips and some drinks. And of course, we also need a few utensils, barbecue sticks, some cups for drinking, and plates.

I am also thinking of bringing tables and saw a few very light camping tables that’s perfect for us. I saw an affordable folding picnic table that we can use while eating. I am also tempted to buy a few camping chairs that we can use.

Blankets and pillows. It can be bulky but it will be very handy, specially if it becomes cold during our stay. And the kids can’t sleep without pillows or blanket.

Insect Repellents is a must too. Other essential things I am thinking is a lighter or a match for bonfire, emergency light and a cooler box for our drinks.

Have you tried camping on the beach? Tell me if my list is complete or not.

The Summer Ride

Once in our trip in San Juan, La Union, I saw a few locals riding an ATV in the sand. I am guessing it’s the best best atv in the area, it looks new too! Now, that makes me wish, I have one or we can rent one to complete our beach adventure.

All-terrain vehicle (ATV for short) is also known as quad bike. Usually this kind of vehicle is single seater but atv side by side are designed to hold not just the rider but one passenger as well. As the name says it, this vehicle is made to handle any kind of terrain which other vehicles cannot. I am not sure if it is legal to drive an ATV on the road but I have seen a hisun atv here in our subdivision. Maybe on national road, it is not permitted, more on super highways.

I maybe generalizing, but I would like to call ATV as the summer ride. We know how summers are; swimming, outing, trekking and almost any adventure one can imagine. And with the ATV being able to navigate in almost any kind of terrain, this is your perfect ride. Use it in the beach, on dirt roads or even when visiting towns (just make sure that it is legal).

Here in the country, ATV rentals are popular near beach resorts. In Boracay, if you want to trek Mt Luho, you will need an ATV. ATV rentals in Boracay ranges from 300 PhP and up. In La Union, ATV rentals is 350 and up and depends on the number of kilometers you will use it. In Tagaytay, ATV rentals is at 400 for 30 minutes and 700 for an hour.

If you are thinking of buying an ATV, the prices goes from 400K and up. And yes, like any vehicle, you need a driver’s license to drive one.

Chico’s Diet Shift And How We Overcome It

There was a time when my two older boys would eat nothing but their favorite meals.. sinigang na hipon for my oldest and corned beef for my second. A few months after, they were back on track eating healthier food, vegetables, fruits and the likes. I think it was just a phase and thank goodness, my two older boys went through that phase without me worrying that much.

The story is different with my 3rd boy.. well you know, we had a situation before where I almost neglect him..it was kinda hard dealing with him, specially with eating.. since bumabawi ako sa kanya sa lahat ng pagkukulang ko, I have this tendency to give him what he wants.. There was a time when he’d prefer eating donut over meals o minsan naman mas gusto pa nya ang popcorn kesa kumain ng kanin..it was a hard phase.

Later on, I learned that this kind of phase is normal to kids ages four to seven years old.. it’s called the “diet shift” phase, where they develop a preference for unhealthy food and therefore, becomes at-risk of important nutrients he needs for proper growth and development. Obviously, my two older boys went through this phase too.

Medyo madugo with my 3rd son.. ang hirap niya iplease! But now, he’s better in the eating department.. through a series of experiments and close observations, I was able to handle him better. For one, I noticed that he eats a lot when our ulam is soup based or if the dish has a lot of sauce. So, I started preparing dishes that he would like, sinigang, kare-kare, menudo, and anything with sauce. Little by little, he learned to love eating more.. and though he still loves eating donut, he knows now that he can only eat those after eating his meal.

he even eats like his dad! how a true blood novo ecijano eats!

I know a lot of moms have a hard time battling this phase, here are some practical tips on how to overcome diet shift:

Know your kids, just like what I did, observe and observe. Take note of the healthy food that he likes and from there work your magic
Always make sure that you eat with your child. It will encourage him to eat better since he can see you eating, but make sure that what you are eating is healthy. This was effective with my third born, he would sit beside his dad and eat whatever his dad eats, hence he now prefers Filipino dishes (it’s daddy’s favorite!)
If your child does not like vegetables, slowly incorporate veggies on his food.. like a fried rice with a few carrots, spaghetti with more veggies.. just make sure that he won’t see the veggies.. minced everything if you can.
Establish a routine in terms of eating, do not commit the mistake of giving them snacks before meal time. Make sure that there is time for meals and time for snacks.
In terms of snacks, ask them to prepare it with you, give them healthier options like sandwich instead of chips.

Another thing that helped me overcome my 3rd son’s diet shift is the fact that his older brothers eat healthier food.. aside from his dad, he have his two kuyas to look up to in terms of eating.