Looking for Daddy

Keisha's been driving me and my mom in law nuts with her constant questions regarding where her dad is and when he'll be home. The first time Henry went on a long trip, Keisha literally threw everything she could find around and cried her lungs out. While her dad was still here, she even asked, "If I behave really well, would you still leave?"

I knew Henry felt bad about leaving us, but he has to do it for the money. The 5k he'll be taking home means a lot to us. I'd like to think and state that when Keisha grows up, she'll understand why her daddy leaves us for work, and eventually not feel sad while he's gone and just look forward to his return.

Funny, I perfectly understand why he leaves for long trips, but I still feel sad.

Accident Prone Keisha

Around noon yesterday, Keisha was doing bunny-hops on the stair steps, and before I could say "Stop" she tumbled down the stairs with her back going first. My mom in law and I almost had a heart attack, luckily the refrigerator was stationed below the staircase; so her back hit the fridge and broke her fall. She fell for almost 4 steps, I think. Everything was a blur. Luckily, she wasn't hurt or anything but it took us almost half an hour to calm her down and stop her from crying.

I'm sure she learned a lesson yesterday. As a parent, I don't want getting my kids hurt but sometimes, it's the only way for them to learn. I'd like them to know that when they stumble, it doesn't matter how high or how hard they fall, but how they get themselves back up.

Meeting Aunts

Henry and I picked Keisha up from my mom's house earlier tonight. We went there around 4pm since my aunt Vyon and her two daughters, Amanda and Marty, came home from Riyadh. She's been working there for as long as I remember, and this was the first time Keisha met her and her other aunts.

Keisha had a fun time staying at my mom's house, primarily because she had my older sister Elena with her anyway. I was worried she wouldn't eat that much after she recovered from her fever and cough, but my sister said she ate a lot. She slept early, too.

I was concerned about Keisha's interaction with Marty. Although technically she is Keisha's aunt, she's only 7 years old and Keisha's almost as tall as she is. They didn't get along really well, since Keisha bullied her most of the time, but Keisha was quick to apologize and acknowledge her mistakes. When Simone grows up, this would also be the first time Keisha will have someone to play with.

I'd like to think that this is due to the fact that Keisha did not grow up playing with other kids her age, nor with any kid at that. I'm sure she'll outgrow bullying other kids, especially when her sibling grows up.

Right now she's busy watching "Ful Haws" (not sure of the spelling of house) with Vic Sotto and Pia Guanio. It's 11pm right now, and she'll probably fall asleep once the show is over.

Busy at Work

Really sorry we haven't been able to update this blog as much as we'd like to. For starters, I'm busy at work and Leslie's busy with the kids, my mom's pretty much busy with a little bit of everything.

Even though I'm at work, I love going to home. I love the way Keisha's eyes lights up whenever she sees I'm home, and especially if I have a little something for her, like her favorite chocolate bar. I think it was yesterday when I gave her a big baby doll that laughed whenever she moved it. She was really happy at first, then later on got annoyed when the laughing wouldn't stop. She managed to figure out on her own that all she needs to do is to stop moving the doll. After she did, she left the doll on top of her clothes cabinet and hasn't moved it since. She also gave strict instructions to not move the doll unless she told us to.

Sleeping Habits

Keisha didn't sleep this afternoon. She ended falling asleep really early, around 6pm and ended waking up around 10pm. We couldn't get her to sleep right back, so she ended up going downstairs and playing her favorite PC games (she threatened to scream and wake Simone up so we just let he have her way). I was (and still am while writing this) watching the shop, and then I remembered she hasn't had dinner yet. So I ended up cooking her instant noodles (her favorite) which she ate wholeheartedly.

After her late dinner, Henry managed to convince Keisha to go to bed, and she agreed only if we let her drink her milk from her feeding bottle. We've been trying to wean her from the bottle and get her to drink from a glass, but we've been unsuccessful. I hope that when she goes to school next year, she'll stop drinking from the bottle herself.

Keisha's Turn

My mom's all better, but it's Keisha's turn to be sick, I guess. She most probably got her cough from my mom, since they sleep together in one bed, and also the fact that Keisha won't stop kissing my mom. So there, she's coughing in her sleep and has lost a little of her appetite.

What she hasn't lost though, is her appetite for playing computer games. When she wakes up, the first thing she does is to sit in front of the pc and ask my mom or Leslie or me to type in her favorite websites, Y8 and Puffgames. And she's all set - she chooses what game to play herself and even figures out on her own how to operate those games as well. My kid's pretty smart.

And since I'm back in the travel industry, Leslie's the one who usually stays up late to watch the shop. Keisha's ok with having Simone sleep in her bed until Leslie goes up to bed herself and takes Simone with her. I'm just worried since Keisha is such a fidgety sleeper, she might hit Simone or something. But not to worry, my mom stays in the middle anyway.

Still Sick

My mom in law's still sick...it's been several days already, and I'm honestly beginning to worry. She's always pretty tough against fevers, colds and coughs, but I guess she was hit pretty hard this time. It's a pretty good thing I have Henry to help me around the house, or else I'd probably be nuts right now. It's hard to take care of two kids, plus the computer shop and the entire house in general. She is taking her meds religiously, and and hopefully in the coming days, she'll be a lot better and back to playing Tantra.

Keisha is, as always, very considerate with her grandma. She helps me massage her, takes water up to her room, and always asks whether it's time for her to drink her medicines. I'm very thankful to have Keisha around, she's a big help.

Down With the Flu

My mom-in-law's down with the flu...she has a pretty high fever, colds, and body pains. Henry's out at work, so I'm stuck taking care of the two kids and managing the house, plus watching the computer shop....whew. But she still manages to get up and help me whenever she can.

Keisha has to be the most considerate daughter ever. She knows her grandma is sick, so she's behaving pretty well today. She's not making much of a fuss about everything and anything (like she always does) and even watches over her grandma. For today, she's in-charge of watching over Simone, she goes to the bathroom unsupervised, and ate a lot during lunch.

I hope when Keisha grows up, she'll keep this attitude of hers. For a baby (yes, I still call her baby) who's turning four, she's pretty responsible. Simone's lucky to have her as a sibling. :-)

It's Keisha who's Sick Now

Simone's a lot better today, but it's Keisha who's down with the snuffles. Her grandmother caught her stuffing Simone's nasal aspirator in her nose after she just used it on Simone, so everything that she took out of Simone's nose went inside Keisha's (yuck). So when Keisha woke up today, she had watery eyes, sneezed a lot, and talked differently.

After 2 days of fever due to her immunizations, we were able to bathe Simone. Boy, was she happy to bathe! Before she even finished her bottle, she fell fast asleep. I think it'll be after lunch that she'll wake up.

My Favorite Pictures of Keisha

For my first post, I've decided to share some of my favorite pictures with my eldest daughter, Keisha. I've chosen these pictures (aside from being in them) because these are the photos I feel have captured a little bit of my daughter's personality - smart, funny, charming, and even obnoxiously cute. My wife was right, you really can't stop talking about your kids.

While I Can Spare Some Time

I'm busy taking care of my grandchild Simone...her fever is running a bit high due to her immunizations early today, and all she wants is to be carried all the time - even when she's asleep! I'm squeezing in this post since Simone is asleep. I have my eldest grandchild Keisha to watch over her anyway, she'll be screaming my name when Simone wakes up. Taking care of my grandkids are such a joy after all, they're the only grandkids I have. My son Henry is an only child.

Simone Got Immunized

Very early today I took my daughter Simone to the doctor to have her immunization and to have her cough checked. She's been coughing for two days now, along with an occassional runny nose. We were gone for about two hours or so and when we got home, Keisha immediately descended the stairs and asked where I went.

"Where have you been mommy? I was looking for you everywhere."

"Simone and I went to the doctor for her shots."

"Did you bring anything back for me?"

"No, sorry I forgot," I said. I honestly forgot to buy her a present which was something I always did. She frowned, looked at Simone and then screamed.

"Mommy! There's bloooooood!"

One of Simone's legs where she was immunized had a little red dot of blood on it, and there were some that went to her dress. I wonder why kids are so fascinated with blood. Before she could press Simone's leg, I stopped her and explained, "Keisha, that spot hurts. She was pierced by a needle by the doctor."

"Oh, okay then. I'll watch tv instead."

Later this day, Simone got a fever of 38 degrees C, something that I expected as a result of the immunizations. I've never seen Keisha so concerned about Simone. She appointed herself as Head Doctor, applying a cold towel on Simone's forehead, talking to Simone in a soothing voice when it was time for her medicines, and she just laid by Simone's side, watching her sleep and patting her back whenever she coughed.

I guess today was a pretty good day for both Keisha and Simone.