Parenting Archive

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

Horseback Riding in Tagaytay

I have been telling my husband we should do a Tagaytay weekend. You know, not just an ordinary breakfast in Tagaytay but spending Saturday and Sunday there. Looking for a cheap hotel in Tagaytay is not easy, specially the one that offers horse back riding, play ground and a swimming pool. Luckily, I found a good deal that offers 2 days and 1 night stay at hotel near Tagaytay at 55% off.

The hotel is Chateau Royale Batangas and included in the deal was 2 days/1 night accommodation good for 4 persons (perfect for us, family of 6), free 3 course dinner, plated breakfast and free use of some of their amenities (playground and swimming pool). It’s a steal, considering the many amenities the hotel offers.

What made me buy this deal is the fact that the hotel offers horse back riding. You know how much we love horse back riding, er, I mean my kids. In fact, one of my dream destination for them is an equestrian holiday, and if my kids would enjoy riding, I on the other hand, would enjoy shopping at equestrian clearance. A hotel that offers horse back riding in Tagaytay is a must visit hotel for us.

Of course, the free use of swimming pool and playground is another factor, having 4 kids is not an easy task and all I want for a weekend vacation is a nice play where they can play and be as wild as they want.

Chateau Royale Batangas is located a few kilometers away from Tagaytay, so it’s a perfect hotel for us. Breakfast at Bag of Beans, picnic lunch at Picni Grove then straight ahead to Chateau Royale Batangas. Tagaytay weekend, I can’t wait for you!

A Mother, A Wife and A Worker

I have four kids, some blogs I maintain and a household with no helper.. How do I managed it all? The answer is easy, time management. I am no super hero and I have my downfalls too 🙂 but yes, the key is time management.

Before, I used to dwell so much on getting everything done on a given time. I have to keep the house clean, wash the clothes, fold the laundry (in a department store kind of fold, in short pantay pantay dapat!), wash the dishes, make sure there is enough food, clean the kids, update my blogs, finish my online task.. argh! it’s endless and I only have two hands and one body! Then I learned to let go.. to let go of the things I cannot do and focus more on things that I can.

Take for example, maintaining my sink clean, I want that but I cannot do that. so what should I do? stress myself on cleaning every plate, every glass and every spoon and fork that lands on the sink? I used to do that.. then I realized there is nothing wrong in having a not so clean kitchen, I can do the dishes once every meal and not every minute!

Another example is the effort I put on folding clothes, I always make sure that the clothes are neatly fold. It will take an hour or more just to fold our clothes, it’s taking up too much of my time and I feel so stressed out if I can’t fold it right. Then I realized, neatly folded clothes is not a requirement to have a happy and stress free life.

I guess in time management, that’s the first thing you need to do, accept the things you cannot and make time on things that you NEED to do. And with that, I was able to manage my time effectively and I live with these simple rules:

Kids and husband first
household second
me time for third
work is last

Having 4 kids is another thing. I also have to manage the time I spent with each of them. And as you know, I always make sure that fun is incorporated in our activity. Bonding with my two younger kids is not that hard. Both are still not going to school and we have the whole morning for ourselves, reading, writing, learning and singing. As with my two older boys, it’s kinda hard to keep up with their life. I feel old already! They have school, friends and games and more.

Haay my boys.. and so to keep up with them, I play some of the games they play.. Dragon City as an example, and what, I was rewarded with You’re the best mom phrase! How cool is that huh? Of course, aside from “playing” with them, I am also the one helping them with their school projects and homework. To make it more fun, I would incorporate play while studying, tickling or changing my voice to a funny one. We have dates too!

As I have mentioned earlier, I am not a super hero so there were times that I feel like I have so much to do but so little time. Blog posts, tasks pending, assignments and not to mention sleep. I just stop and take a rest, helps a lot on clearing my mind and make me realize what are the things that should be done first.

Oh, I forgot to mention, always have a to do list and a schedule, helps a lot in reminding me what I have missed so far 🙂

Most of us tends to over analyze and stress ourselves, learn to let go and be a more fun mom.. head on to Seriously Fun Moms for more tips on time management, parenting and child care tips.

Is Facebook For Kids?

A few months ago I posted a few things about what is right and wrong on child photography. What prompted me to write something like that is a photo I saw on my Facebook stream. A little girl, sleeping with her legs wide spread. There is nothing wrong with that? Maybe, but not for me.

Now, what prompted me to write about Kids and Online reputation is the fact that my two boys are now into social networking. But before that, let me just say that I was always against kids having their own Facebook account. Though it does not show that much, I am but a very conservative person and very traditional. I just don’t think social networking is for kids. But what can I do? Their friends are on Facebook, they communicate with their teachers on Facebook, they share photos and what not on Facebook. So with a heavy heart I created their Facebook account and set my rules:

Rule number 1, they can only open their Facebook account with my consent and that as much as possible no Facebooking on school days.

Rule number 2, I have full control over their Facebook account, their log in details and I will have to approve their FB friends and will delete anyone that we do not know.

Rule number 3, I will delete their Facebook account if I think I need to or when they are being hard headed.

It does not end with my rules, I also have to manage their online reputation. And when it comes to handling their reputation, I have a set of simple guidelines:

Ask mommy before you click.
Ask mommy before you post.
Ask mommy before you upload.
Ask mommy first before anything else.

It is hard not to worry about our kids safety and reputation whenever they sit in front of the computer but I think with our close supervision, internet and our kids can be really good friends.