Maddie's Activities while on ECQ

Even though I am mostly sad about being far from our daughter at this time, I am also quite thankful that she is in our family home in the Philippines because she has a bunch of company there. In the first month of the ECQ, my mom and 4 sisters were there with her full time so she never runs out of playmates. Even now with the MECQ, she still has her two aunties left because both are students and school hasn't resumed since. Unlike here where hubby and I have to work and do chores ourselves, we only get to really spend time with her in the evening and that too limited because we are either tired or sleepy.

To make up for the distance, I always try to plan activities to keep her busy in this #stayhome period. Sharing with you some of them :)

We try to do a little bit of homeschooling. Before the circuit breaker in Singapore, I got to buy a workbook to help her learn high-frequency words. I must say, the exercises are peanuts to her because she's been reading since she's 5 but at least it helps her to get more familiar with the spelling of these commonly-used words and also keep her writing so she won't have to adjust again when school is back. I also try to teach her a math lesson or two, and very recently, we had a run through of common nouns and proper nouns. It helps that Maddie is a fast-learner so she's able to pick-up even though some of our sessions are via Facetime :)

She also plays board games with her aunties. Among their favorites are Uno and Toy Story 3 Monopoly. These make her quite the competitive kid, and it also trains her to accept defeat (wow ah! haha!)

We also indulge her need for gadget time, but only once she's done with her learning sessions. She is quite addicted with an app called Roblox where there are a million games within a single app. Because of it, she's now the one calling us once in a while to check if it's already "Roblox time" with Mommy and Daddy. Playing with Maddie helps us to be virtually together as well -- look, I have screenshots! :D

Musical instruments. Maddie loves music so my sisters gifted her with a keyboard on her 6th birthday (oh, I need to write on this soon!) and she also got a toy ukelele last Christmas. She tries to play these instruments with the help of her Aunt Haley and this weekend I was so happy because she said she wrote her own song! She shared with us the lyrics and sang it to us while on video call and even though it's only a few lines I have to say, wow, we have a Taylor Swift in the making!

Swimming sessions. Yesterday, we finally got her an inflatable pool! Even before the lockdowns, Maddie loves swimming, so she was pretty ecstatic when she saw it and can't wait to dip already! Needless to say, she spent some 2.5 hours in the water and afterwards already said she's gonna have another pool session today (and she did!).

We try to engage her in oldie-but-goodie challenges like Categories and P.A.N.T.S (90's babies, raise your hands if your remember this!). In P.A.N.T.S, a player chooses a random letter and all the other players write down a place, animal, name and thing that starts with the chosen letter. After each round, everybody shares their answers and whoever has unique ones gets the S -- score that is! :) This game is fun and it also adds to her general knowledge and vocabulary.

Online Cathechism classes. Here in Singapore, the Catholic churches hold Cathechism sessions for kids every Sunday but due to the circuit breaker, the face-to-face sessions were cancelled. Thanks to technology, they were able to commence it this month via Zoom. Maddie learns more about Jesus in each session and she also gets to interact with kids her age. Special mention to the Church of St. Teresa and the very dedicated cathechists who make this happen.

Listed above are just some of the things keeping our pre-schooler occupied while staying in. Well those and eating a lot! And like most of us grown-ups, she's already gained more than 2 kilos in the last 3 months! Pwera usog! :) But look at the photo below, she's getting really chunky and her clothes are quite snug now so I am already looking forward to to spending some time with her shopping when life goes back to normal, or at least what they call "the new normal."

Oh well, let's all continue praying that this virus ends soon. Until then, keeping our kids healthy, safe and happy remains our #1 priority! So fellow mommies, if you have your own quarantine activities to share, please leave them in the comments so that we can try them too!

I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend and have a good week ahead!

Laters,

Maddie Moments: Post-3rd Birthday Shoot at Mayad Beginnings

Hello, hello, my very few readers! I am still alive! 2 years of blogging break and I am back now because 1) I miss writing 2) I just renewed my domain and I want to get my money's worth! Hahaha. Seriously though, I sooooo missed doing this. I also felt that I need a rehab from Facebook and I think blogging is a good diversion. Still online but much more worthwhile. Right?

So for my comeback post, let me share with you Maddie's post-birthday shoot with no less than Mayad Beginnings! Mayad Beginnings is the family and lifestyle photography arm of Mayad Studios -- yup, the famous wedding photographers! We were lucky because they had a contest in Instagram back in April, and even luckier because we were one of the two winners. Let me share with you my entry... (and oh, follow me in IG will you? :D)

TBH, I prayed to win because I want Maddie to have a yearly shoot to mark her milestones but I don't want to spend so much. She was here with us for two months and while I am very thankful for the precious time with our daughter, it also meant hurting our bank account (Singapore being the world's most expensive city to live in). So when I was informed by the Mayad team that we were chosen, oh boy I was on cloud 9! And to think that they are one of the industry's best, it was like hitting the jackpot!

After a few exchanges with their staff over IG, we got a slot on April 21st, 1pm. Days before the shoot, we were sent a mood board to help us with our outfit choices. I got even more excited because the color palette consists of beige, blush and gold which are my current favorites (blame it on Pinterest!) For the little girl I didn't have any problem -- I got her dress from Cotton On in like 15 minutes and it couldn't be more perfect for the theme. Then I got her sandals and crown headband from H&M. Easy-peasy. For J he just got himself a pink polo from G2000, and a nice pair of brown shoes from SM - all done. The hard part  really was choosing my dress because out of excitement, I bought a beige and black dress before I received the mood board. It was dominantly black so it's gonna kill the soft and feminine mood. I searched high and low for a new dress but time wasn't on my side. The night before our flight, my husband went through our closet and found a Dorothy Perkins dress that I bought some months ago but haven't really worn. I tried it on et voila, I have an outfit! Moral of the story: Shopping for more than what you currently need isn't a bad idea after all ;-)

Then came the day of the shoot. Locating their studio in Quezon City was a breeze, thanks to Waze. Traffic is also bearable so we arrived there with a few minutes to spare. The staff was very welcoming and I was quite surprised that they were all very young (like millennial kind of young). But I guess that worked to our advantage because Maddie felt like they were just her aunties (hello my millennial sisters!) That's one step to warm Maddie up. There was also another set in the studio with some toys so we played a bit to make her more comfortable.

A bit of side kwento: she saw a toy whisk among the stash of props and said "Remember Mommy, we use this when we were baking?" It's a beautiful feeling knowing that kids remember what you do together. So a little piece of advice to young moms like myself, spend more time with them and engage them in your activities. They are gonna treasure those moments, and I'm sure you will too!

Okay sorry to digress. When Maddie seemed ready, we were led to the actual set. The theme was Bedtime Story and the backdrop was just gorgeous - it was prettier in person, I tell you! Another thing worth the mention is the photographer (forgot the name though) because she was very nice and patient with our baby girl. Maddie was shy as usual but she followed the photog's instructions very well.  She asked her to smile, say "Three!" since she's three years old and turn the pages of a book while asking her some shapes and colors. It was an interactive session, so Maddie loosened up just a few minutes into it.

Unlike her infant photoshoot, they didn't mind when I took BTS shots. So here's one from my phone :-)

Shall I make more kwento while I show you the official photos? :D

Kumbaga sa exercise, stretching palang 'to :)
But I like this because it captured her shy yet still adorable personality.

I'm three, folks!!!

This one I want to hang on her future reading nook ^^, I hope someday, Anak, you fall in love with books.

Her Daddy's mini-me!

This is one of the two I've chosen to be printed 12x18. When I saw this I realized, anlaki-laki na ng anak ko! Can we just slow down a bit? T_T

After that, we joined her for photos already. Please bear with my humongous arms nalang, ha? Thankie :)

My favorite shot of them all! We are all so happy here. That's the real Maddie, bungisngis! :)

Our obligatory kiss shot. We have shots like this yearly! Planning to do this for as long as she lets us to ^^,

This is the other photo that I got printed. Planning to get the two framed in rose gold (specific eh? :)) and put up the wall above our bed. If you know where I can get customized frames, comment please? TIA!

In fairness, magaling sa candid ang asawa ko! :)

I'm jealous of this one. Huhu.

I told you, excuse the arm T_T

Her photos with her daddy look more natural than ours. Kainis! Hahaha.

I requested for a photo just the two of us, and the photog obliged. Maddie happily moved to the side, too. Then when I looked at her, she was also smiling while watching us. Katuwa!

Then nainggit, sumali na! :D I would have chosen this for blow-up but Jhay's eyes were so small here. Sayang!

Then, towards the end, hubby suggested this pose. Good job, Daddy!

And this one. Just love. Super inggit talaga ang Mommy! T_T

Actually, they are closer in real life, so I guess their photos reflect that. I couldn't complain, really. Seeing them like this also warms my heart.

This is such a cutie, too! This is the last one na pala, after this she was shy na ulit. But it's okay, I think we got great photos already.

After that, I hugged Maddie and told her that she did an awesome job in front of the camera. So proud of her! We got the photos two weeks later and I was squealing in delight! Ang ganda lang talaga. Even J loved every single shot.

We are very grateful to Mayad Beginnings for the opportunity. While doing this post, I checked out their website and saw the published rates. Naloka ako ng slight! I showed J and asked if we can do this again for Maddie's 4th birthday shoot but he said only if it's free. Hahaha. But I think now that we experienced a real professional shoot, my standard got even higher. Maybe I should start saving up so I can afford another session with them. I think the quality of the photos as well as their work ethics make the price worth it. Thanks again, Mayad! More followers to come, and more and more years of capturing beautiful memories!

On a final note, I highly recommend Mayad Beginnings to parents who are willing to go all out for their little ones' milestone shoots. After all, they are only young once :D

Cheers,

Maddie Moments: Infant Photoshoot at Baby Shower Studio

I regret not getting a Newborn Photoshoot done for Maddie. Back then, I didn't know that the baby has to be 10 days or less =( So I thought the next best thing is an "infant" photoshoot - just to capture her being so small and so cute and so baby! ^_^

My favorite shot. Too cute for words!

I took advantage of Baby Shower Studio's summer promo. I got the Php2499 package which includes 1 set-up of background, 2 outfit changes, 30-minute continuous shooting and most importantly, all high-resolution files. Their studio is in Timog Avenue, Quezon City -- quite easy to find if you ask me. Upon entering, I was immediately amazed at the pretty sets. I really wanted to choose the garden theme as it is more dainty and colorful but in the end I preferred the one with a bed since it will be more comfortable for the baby girl.

My friend was able to take a couple of behind the scene shots before we were told that it's not allowed. Sorry!
These photos (especially the one in the right) shows just how challenging it is to do an infant shoot. We're all trying to capture her attention but I guess she's a bit overwhelmed with the all the lights and the unfamiliar faces.

I can say that I am satisfied with the output although I'm quite sad that we were only given 40 shots and they were the ones who did the selection. It should have been okay given that it is relatively cheap but at least they should have explicitly mentioned it in the offer that they published so that customers can manage my expectations.

Also, my mom, who is naturally protective of Maddie (who's only 2.5 months then) was a bit concerned on how the photographer's assistant handled her when switching positions. My mother called her attention and asked her to be a bit more careful as Maddie is still fragile but she responded in an unpleasant tone and even made a face. This could be an isolated case but to be honest, this made me look for another studio for her next shoot. Customer service isn't everything, but it's still something :)

Anyhow... here are the other shots that I liked...

I specifically requested for this shot because she was a cry-baby in the first few months. Haha!

I also asked for these last two photos to somehow immortalize those tiny hands and feet ^_^

In conclusion, will I go back to Baby Shower Studio for Maddie's photo session? Maybe yes. But only when she's old enough to follow instructions and stay still for some time to give photographers the chance to take lots of good shots without the need for another person's intervention. I don't think that would happen anytime soon because she's too naughty now and you just can't ask her to stay put! =)

Maddie Moments: Her First Trip to the Philippines

I didn't let my 3-month Maternity Leave end without going home to the Philippines. I remember telling Jhay that I needed it to re-charge just before I go back to work so my very understanding husband obliged (even if it meant leaving him behind because he can't take a leave that long).

Of course I had to take Maddie with me primarily because she is breastfed and also so that our families in the Philippines can finally meet her!

Her first passport! And look at that tiny face! ^_^

She just passed the 1 week mark in there!

See you after 9 days, Daddy! We'll miss you! :-*

(L) While waiting to board. (R) Maddie's first plane tickets!

Maddie cried only for a little while during take-off and slept in for the rest of the 3.5hr journey. Unfortunately I was too nervous about her waking up mid-flight so I failed to take a picture of her first plane ride. Boo!

Meeting her Lolo for the first time. Maddie is the first baby girl in Jhay's family so she's everyone's darling! That's Maddie's cousin, TJ (remember this post? :D)

With my side of the family. I preferred to have her call my sisters Aunt instead of the Filipino equivalent Tita because I find it more cute! Haha!

The next day, we went with the kids to a nearby clubhouse to swim.

Maddie, anak, I'm so sorry that you are wearing pajamas on your very first dip in a pool!
Bad mommy!

I wasn't prepared because I really had no plans of letting her swim. You know, paranoid that she might catch a cold or something. But my mom was insistent as it is a scorching summer day and this will help her freshen up.

Just as mom said, she was able to take her morning nap immediately after the swim :)

Maddie also got the chance to meet her Isda Ninangs (if you already forgot why we call ourselves Isda, here's a refresher :D). She only slept as we ate and when she woke up, she's still very well-behaved. No crying at all! Good job, little one!

The food at Rack's is so good! The fall-off-the-bone ribs are a given as it is the house specialty but their mashed potato is also worth a mention! I'm making a mental note to eat there again when I go to Manila.

They still can't believe that they are carrying Maddie already because the last time we were together, she's still in my tummy. One of my friends, Jejo, thinks she's too fragile so she doesn't want to hold her on her own. Haha.

Maddie's outfit of the day:

Top, bottoms and Minnie Mouse boots from Mothercare :)

Another agenda that we had in this homecoming is this...

April 28, 2014 | Maddie got pierced! Another milestone! :D

Can't help but notice her chubby cheeks, though. Hihi. Sarap kurutin!

The earrings that I got for her are the usual hypoallergenic ones that you get from the pediatrician. It's her birth stone, Amethyst. Getting her pierced put an end to people mistaking Maddie for a boy because of her naturally spiked hair (guess she also got it from Daddy!) Hahaha.

Maddie also had her first photo shoot in the Philippines but that's for another post :)

Thank you to our family and friends who welcomed Maddie with so much love! You made her first travel fun and full of happy memories!

Third row middle photo was taken before we flew back to Singapore.

Till we meet again, Aunties, Uncles, Lolos and Lolas! Kisses! ❤