Wean-Wean Situation

To wean or not to wean, that is the question.

Being mom to a now toothy 14-month-old, you'd think that I'd be doing the dance of joy to finally be done with the clogged ducts, stained blouses, throbbing boobs, limited "gimmick" time and the occasional bib malfunction in malls (never thought I'd be a flasher...gasp), but now that my self-imposed weaning deadline of one year has come and gone, I find myself strangely, intentionally prolonging the end.

Sigh. I love the feeling of her warm little body against mine, her soft hand playfully slapping my chest, pinching my lips and stroking my face (yes, she's one active kid). I also love seeing her slip into sweet sleepy bliss every time I tuck her relaxed and limp body down in her crib. There's nothing like it. (God really knew what He was doing when He created women to do this!)

Not to mention the fact that the famous tagline of one of those milk commercials, "Breastmilk is still best for babies up to two years," rings in my ears everytime I think tonight's the night to finally wean her off her last remaining feeding.

I'm so torn. I know that I can prolong this as long as I want, some determined moms have even nursed to 5 years! But talk about heroic. No superhero intentions here though. My opinion is, if the baby is big enough to go to preschool, it's time to let go.

Which brings me to today, I'm itching to get back into freelance styling soon and physically and mentally need to be present to do the job, so the faster I can transition my sweetie the better it is.

I never thought it would be so hard.

If you like this blog, please leave me a comment so I'll know which ones to do more of. Thanks! 

The Perfect Cover-Up

Always on the lookout for cool, practical and stylish pieces for the baby, I stumbled across this little must-have that I've been using on her since she was 6 months old--the cape hoodie from Enfant.

We have jackets and cardigans in her wardrobe but this little cotton cape with its attached hood has been a lifesaver especially when a wriggling, screaming toddler is in my hands. With one swoop of the cape behind the back and a quick button at the neck, little cutie is suddenly covered up without the fuss of having to shoot small resistant, moving arms into narrow sleeves. I'm also glad it comes with a hood since my baby is as bald now as when she was born.

It's a little pricey at P659.75 but since I got her a one-year-old size, when she was six months, I've already gotten a lot of mileage from it. She's now 13 months and STILL uses it! Also factor in that it doesn't have sleeves, this little cape will still be in use well into her 2nd and 3rd birthdays!

Their colors range from white, beige, yellow, pink, orange, blue green, blue, lavender and apple green and are available at any department store.

*I got her the white one so it's easier to match with her outfits.


If you like this blog, please leave me a comment so I'll know which ones to do more of. Thanks!

My Anti-Stretchmark Secret

One of the things I actually was not looking forward to getting when I was pregnant was the "badge" that stamped the majority of preggy gals everywhere--stretchmarks.

Coming from a line of stretchmark-prone women--my grandmother, mom, older sister and actually myself (specifically my thighs from my adolescent years) all bear the mark of the unsightly, whitish irremoveable streaks--I was resigned to the fact that all things bikini would have to be banished forever (check out my gigantic 8 month belly at left).

I'd made peace with this fact and was reveling in my newfound state of finally being pregnant when I came across an article in a magazine that would change the fate of my yet unmarked tummy forever.

A socialite with 5 kids was recounting how she too had accepted the fact that stretchmarks would be her destiny when her Chinese mother-in-law taught her the magic combo of rubbing both lotion and oil on her growing belly--thus leaving her without a single stretchy streak even after FIVE kids!

She, however, failed to mention the brand OR kind of oil she used, unfortunately, but that didn't stop me from diving into this little nugget of wisdom and finding the best (or at least the most ideal for me) lotion and oil in the market.

(I'd heard of cocoa butter but decided to skip it when my sis told me it didn't work for her.)

Haha! I felt like I'd stumbled on the best-kept secret ever! After much research--testing on my own, getting feedback from friends and checking out my oh-so-particular Lola's stash--I decided on committing to Aveeno's 24-hour Moisturizing Lotion and Mr. Coconut Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.

I chose the first because even my frugal Lola didn't think twice about the price and used it religiously on her chronically dry skin and the latter because it was what I had in the house.

After every bath, I faithfully slathered on a generous amount of lotion on my entire belly, thighs and back and followed it with a palmful of oil. I did this EVERYDAY until I gave birth. 

Anyway, to make a long story short, I am living proof that it works! Not a single stretchmark has dared make an appearance on my stomach! I have a few strays on my upper thighs but that's it. Eureka! Anyway, I hope this gives you preggy gals out there a fighting chance to keep your tummies stretchmark-free.

*I also want to say that I drink water like a camel preparing for a drought so I'm sure the extra fluids did it's lubricating job as well.

If you like this blog, please leave me a comment so I'll know which ones to do more of. Thanks! 

What The Heck Is "Usog"?

I love being a first-time mom. Most of the time, that is. One of those times I wish I had an arsenal of veteran mommy defenses and wisdom was when I came face-to-face with a Filipino old wives tale of the dreaded "usog"--the one commonly uttered with concern from one individual to a potential usog-er with "wag kang lumapit baka mausog yung baby". (Don't go near the baby or else she'll be moved/affected/tainted).

I had my 4 month-old baby in a nail salon and was in the middle of having a long-awaited foot spa when a salon attendant put a little spit on her finger and swiped it on my baby's leg "para hindi mausog". Wha?! Did you just spit on my baby lady?!!!! Totally taken by surprise and paralyzed by both disgust and utter disbelief, I was left with my mouth open and a baby with a stranger's saliva on her. Stunned I couldn't even come up with anything to say, much less do.

What do you say in such a situation? Ah, thanks for making sure my baby doesn't get usog. Or, would you like a taste of your own medicine and I swipe some of my own saliva on you just so you'll know how disgusting and just plain WRONG it is? Or do I just nod politely and acknowledge her good intentions? I, of course, being stunned, innately polite and caught up in a shockingly unfamiliar situation, did the latter.

Ugh. I felt like kicking myself a few minutes later when I was finally out of the salon and guiltily wiping my baby's leg with a baby wipe and some sanitizer. What would possess a completely sane individual to intentionally spit on an infant?

Did a little research and found this on Wikipedia.  

"Usog" or balis is a topic in psycho-medicine (attributed to Filipino superstition in Western Psychology) where an affliction or psychological disorder is attributed to a greeting by a stranger, or an evil eye hex. It usually affects an unsuspecting child, usually an infant or toddler, who has been greeted by a visitor or a stranger. 

Please. If there's anything I fear more, coming from any stranger, it's a mouthful of bacteria and a bad case of misdirected good intentions.

At least now I know when a stranger coos and and gets all friendly with the baby, I make sure to move the stroller to arm-swatting distance and to keep an ear out for the dreaded usog word coming out of said stranger's mouth. With appearance of spit, I now know to take off running. Never again.

*The sign in the picture above is from www.mytinyhands.com, created by a mom who has had one too many unwashed strangers touch her little cutie. Now if she only made a sign that said, "Please Do Not Spit on Baby."

If you like this blog, please leave me a comment so I'll know which ones to do more of. Thanks!