The Last Time

A quick journal before I gave birth.

07 June 2017

We were originally scheduled for June 17 but it turns out, this baby wanted it to be a week earlier. And we weren't even surprised. We thought it best for me to take the a day off before I got admitted so I can rest and do our last minute preparations. Glad I did because I did not do any of those two. But instead, I spent the day playing, lounging, snacking, story-telling and playing with Ava.

This was the last day that it will be just as two.

I know we'll still have our own bonding time together. We even made plans already since I told her that I'd be staying at home for a while after I gave birth. She started babbling about having breakfast dates, going to Robinsons Magnolia just the two of us, her and Mr. T's dates, etc. I know it's gonna be fun, but I also know it's not gonna be the same again.

For four and a half years, she's been our only baby. While I know Ava's more than ready to welcome her new sister already, anxiety still hits while thinking how we're gonna adjust to our new normal. Maybe the anxiety was more for myself than Mr. T and Ava. Most days I felt excited, but there were days when I wondered if I'd be able to be as curious or as patient as I was before.

I think I will, I know I will.

But for now, let me just worry about the next activity that Ava and I will do, just the two of us, for the last time.

Life Recently

Glad the hiatus did not take a whole year. Lol. So many updates, big and small, being pregnant with Baby Number 2 is the biggest I guess. Yes! We're having another baby! :)

Our hearts (and my body!) are getting bigger by the day. Mr. T and I are both excited and anxious even though it's our second time. Four years was long enough for us to be feeling like we're back to step one again.

But we are most excited for our little Ate Ava. She's been nothing short of awesome in this whole pregnancy. First, I had to wean her from breastfeeding a month after confirming that we are expecting. We tried to keep going but my body was just not cooperating. We had to sit down and talk to Ava about it and she was such a trooper. Just a few nights of crying herself to sleep or carrying, a week later, we were ok already. I still could not believe how mature Ava has grown that we are now able to discuss our decisions and options with her.

How our mornings look like lately ♡

You know how it is when having a child, all those milestones, transitions, etc. Well, we had a big one the other day, definitely one of those "Oh gosh, this is how being a parent really feels like."

MamaGuilt: I Hate Play-Doh!

We did another round of toys shake-up because, well, it seems like our toddler is starting to move out and a kid is slowly moving in. Dear heart, please.

Anyways, so another round of going through Ava's toys, clothes and other stuff included. If I was my 20-year-old self, going through my stuff and deciding which to keep and which to let go would be such a daunting task. But when Ava was born, I slooowly learned how to keep things that we only need. Plus, reading up about Marie Kondo's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up helped a lot. This deserves another post. :)

Moving forward, so we went through all of Ava's toys and discussed which to keep and which to let go. A lot of bargaining but I think we both did a pretty good job. So on to my main point, one big move we did was to get rid of ALL our Play-Dohs!

Courageous Caitie

The story of Courageous Caitie hits so close to home even when the only thing I can relate to is me being a mother to Ava. Or probably because Ava's second name is Caelin which is an alternate version of Caitlin. We do not know the family on a personal level but like everybody else, we were still moved by her story. I only know of the courageous mom Feliz through different online mommy groups and communities. We got to exchange a few chitchats on threads and even had some exchanges through N@W GS. Here's a picture of Caitie wearing Ava's first birthday party dress. She looked so cute.

Caitie during their family trip to HK Disneyland, Photo by her Dad Jay Jay | Ava during her First Birthday Party

It was earlier this year when the mysterious case of of Caitie's illness started circulating. I read about her condition and updates and saw how similar her symptoms were with what my niece, Via, had when she was the same age as Caitie. I checked with my sister about the details of Via's condition back then and realized it was almost the same. I also had a quick chat with Feliz earlier on and shared Via's diagnosis, she told me that other people also mentioned it and it was already ruled out by the doctors. Word started to spread quickly and Caitie's story and the community supporting her continued to expand not only from the country but outside as well.

Daily Caitie updates became a habit. Talked about it with friends, online mom groups, group chats with other moms and more. The highs were celebrated and everybody cheered the family on. But it was when the lowest of times for the family I found it moving the most. Updates of Caitie being unstable, low oxygen levels, platelet of 1 and other complications were hard to take on. But the page becomes even more alive with people offering prayers and encouragement. I guess this was Caitie's effect, everyone is moved by how she courageously takes on what she's battling with that people are left in awe. There's just no room for sadness, just faith, an immense amount of faith.

Early Thursday morning I had to go to Baguio for work. While waiting for our meeting, I was chatting with my co-BLW moms when an update came up asking for prayers because of Caitie's critical condition. We were all hoping and praying for the next update to be a good one, a better one. It was probably the longest hour on Caitie's page as everybody awaited for the next update. And there it was.

A picture of Caitie in the arms of her parents. It was devastating.

After hearing the news, I wanted to immediately go back home to Ava and give her the tightest hug I can ever give. One of my co-BLW mom shared the same feeling as she was also at work. I immediately shared the news to Mr. T and told him how I feel. He just told me that he will take Ava with him when he picks me up later regardless of time.

And when I saw Ava in the car, that's exactly what I did.

An update from Feliz or Jay Jay after sharing the news of Caitie's passing..

Looking back... No wonder you were so advanced in everything. No regrets. So glad we brought you everywhere we could... Did everything we could. Became silly, study, play... Looking back, I know we did everything. No regrets. We lived it to the full. We flew around the world together... I will miss you pumpkin... your EQ, IQ was just so high... Your love for us was just so pure. I love you so much.

This is always on my mind as a parent. To make sure that we live our lives with Ava to the fullest. Day in, day out. It could be as simple as talking over dinner, it could be as grand as a trip to Disneyland. It won't matter. Because amongst all these things, time and love will matter most.

No words will ever be enough to explain the many questions of how and why this happened. I can only hope and pray for God's grace to provide peace and joy to the Lucas family in this very trying time.

Ava sends a message to Caitie. #flyhighcaitie

Books Over iPads

I was supposed to just put a post up on Facebook but Mr. T suggested I blog about it as well. Thought it was a good idea since I really haven’t published anything for quite some time. 

One of the things we made sure to work hard on as parents is to not let Ava become so hooked on watching TV and using our iPhones and/or iPads. At this digital age, it’s really hard work. For one thing, it should start with us as her parents and I tell you, up to this day we are still trying. This is in no way a swipe against parents and children who liberally use smartphones and tablets. I really believe that it's a personal preference. I think it only becomes bad when the use of tablets and other similar gadgets are way too excessive that it grows into a bad dependency and starts replacing human interaction. But if managed well, like any other technology and digitalization, it's an awesome help for parents in teaching young children.

Earlier on while Ava was still a chunky little belle, I chanced upon this video from one of the mommy groups I was in. If you have time, please do watch this video because it explains a lot about the effects of screen time to toddlers, even babies.

After watching, I immediately shared the link to Mr. T and right after we've both agreed that this is something we really want to work hard on. We uninstalled Youtube, a lot of game and baby apps on out iPhones and iPads. Ava was not entitled to any of our gadgets. She knows it's not hers, and she needs to ask and borrow only if and when we allow her.

Since we bring our stuff (phones and tablets) with us, a huge struggle in this practice was how to teach our Ate to adapt and make sure that Ava will not be glued to the TV all day while we're out. I'd like to believe that we've succeeded with teaching because we see positive results. We thoroughly explained what was discussed in this video, making sure they actually understand. Instead of totally cutting off watching TV, we just asked that it won't be a whole-day-watching-spree. Late afternoons, Ava is allowed to go out of the house and play, allowing her to interact and socialize with other people. After a while, we also shifted from battery-operated toys to wooden toys and other educational toys.

Travelling Tips for Your First Family Trip

We recently had our very first family trip to Hong Kong to celebrate Ava's birthday. Mr. T and I thought about it after Ava's first birthday and we both agreed that we are going to Disneyland for her second. Seeing our little darling's progress, we knew exploring Hong Kong will be worth it already. While our trip had its kinks, we still think it was a huge success. Looking at our photos and videos afterwards made us realize more how much Ava really enjoyed it.

For first-time parents who are travelling with their little tot for the first time, I am sharing some of the things we did that made this trip really, really awesome.

1. Research Well.

There are a lot of readily available guides and articles online that you can find over the internet. Read as much as you can to help you decided which places you'd want to go. I always find Lonely Planet's Guide to Hong Kong helpful every time I visit because of its comprehensive guides and suggestions.

2. Plan Your Itinerary.

Make an itinerary that's feasible for your family instead of trying to squeeze everything just so you can visit as many places as you want. Remember that toddlers can be a little impatient, moody and cranky. Putting a lot of activities in your itinerary without considering these things can result to a meltdown for the whole family.

Part of planning your itinerary is becoming familiar to the area where you're staying at. Check where the nearest MTR stations are, bus routes and other transportation services. Going around Hong Kong is fairly easy, you can always go old school and use tourist maps which are conveniently available in the airport and probably in your hotel's reception desk. But with today's digital age, there are a lot of apps readily available for your smart phones and tablets. The apps that helped us the most is Google Maps and the MTR Tourist. Most establishments in Hong Kong offer free wi-fi services already but for those times that we could not connect, Google Maps' offline map services came in handy. The MTR Tourist app is also a pretty neat app because you can easily see your train route just by plotting your place of origin and your destination.

3. Prepare Your Documents.

Obtaining a passport is a lot easier now compared to before. You can simply set up an appointment through the DFA's official website and choose the schedule that's convenient for you. Most countries require a passport that is valid for at least six months beyond the date of departure, check if all passports are within the six months validity. Better be safe than be surprised during airport check-in right?

In applying for your baby's passport, for 1 year and below, setting up an appointment is not necessary since you can go straight to DFA and you'll be directed to the priority lane. But it's still more convenient to set up an appointment so you can have the application form filled out and printed already.

4. Pack Light and Pack Smart.

Having a baby or a toddler in tow often times indicate packing the whole house (if possible) just to make sure that you have everything you need. This is really not necessary. Identify the basic things that you really need to bring and check if it will be more convenient if you just buy once you reach your destination. As your baby grows older, the smaller your baby bag becomes.

Check the weather so you can bring the appropriate clothes. Since Hong Kong's weather is really not far from the Philippines' we still brought clothes that we normally wear. We just packed a couple of extra sets just in case the weather gets colder.

5. Prepare Your Gears.

And by that I meant, strollers, baby carriers and other baby essentials. While your toddler is already eager to explore and walk rather than be carried, there will still be a lot of carrying that will happen. Mr. T and I both love babywearing so it wasn't really something new to us. Train rides and strolls with a lot of people were more manageable with babywearing compared to pushing a stroller. For leisure walks and when Ava naps in the middle of our itinerary, the stroller did it's job. I would recommend choosing a very handy and lightweight stroller. Earlier this year, we got a Maclaren Volo in preparation for this trip. It's perfect for travel because of it's size, weight and design. Practice using your gears first should you decide to purchase new ones specifically for your upcoming trip.

6. Enjoy.

Don't forget that there's really no perfect trip, especially for a family who's travelling for the first time. There will always be glitches along the way and how you will react to it will make or break your trip. So it's best to opt for the more positive approach for an equally positive result.

These are the things that I think made this trip awesome. Of course I'm sure there are a lot more but I'm still trying to recall. On my next post, I will add more to these as I share our four-day itinerary.

The Yaya Chronicles

It's inevitable for a Mama's blog to have a post or two about her Yaya encounters. Here's mine.

While I did not constantly have a Yaya/Househelp when I was growing up, I still pretty much experienced a lot of dealing with them, mostly when I was all grown up because of my sisters and their babies and a lot of stories from friends and online communities.

And when Ava finally came, I finally had my very own share of Yaya stories.

The first one who came in was when Ava was just around three months old. Yaya #1 agreed to do the job but she eventually confessed that she was pregnant and she just had to get away so her family won't know. Of course we had to let her go and told her that she needs to let her family know about her situation. Yaya #2 was too young and because of the lack of goal and maturity, she got bored and opted to go back home after two months of stay. Yaya #3, we had to let go after a week because she was totally not fit to take care of a baby. That was also the first time I fired a person. Yaya #4 was a familiar face to us. She was my first niece's previous Yaya and she also became our help at home before Mr. T and I got married. She left because of personal issues and later on we heard news that she eventually had a baby on her own. Conveniently for us, while we were looking, and for the third time, she went back to us and became our Yaya from Ava's fifth month until her eighteenth. She left once again because this time, she needed to take care of her own kid.

The one that followed, Yaya #5 lasted for a little more than two months. She took a weekend off and while she was away, we found out that she's been doing some things that are unacceptable, nothing that involved Ava, thankfully. We understand that it comes with being young and all but I really can't tolerate some things. We told her not to come back anymore.

Teachings from my Daughter

One thing I love the most about motherhood and parenting in general is that I get to learn a lot of things from a pint-sized tot with a cheeky face. :)

Last Tuesday night, Ava felt warm to the touch. But aside from that, she was her usual jolly self - ate dinner with so much enthusiasm and sung and danced like a pro before our sleep routine. When she latched on to me, that's when I knew she has a fever. We checked her temperature and it registered a 38.1°C. Mr. T and I both concluded that her budding molars are causing it. As per our pedia's advice, we gave her a dose of paracetamol and stuck a Koolfever on her forehead. I also applied some teething gel (prescribed by her pedia) to her gums. She started getting fussy and would latch, unlatch, cry and asked to be carried. We were monitoring her temperature every hour, and by midnight her temperature was already 39.1°C. And she was at her crankiest. Mr. T and I were calm and quiet the whole time, we agreed that if her temperature didn't go down on our next checking, we are going straight to the ER. Thankfully, it went back down to 38°C. But she was still fussy and would wake up every hour or two until the morning of Wednesday. It was then when her temperature started going down to 37°C. Late afternoon, she was totally back as if the night before didn't happen.

You wouldn't know that she's still sporting a low-grade fever here. This was the morning after.

I found out later on that Mr. T and I were sharing the same feeling during one moment when Ava was crying (as if in pain) and we couldn't figure out why. As I have said, we were both quiet and calm but the truth was, both of us were really worried, close to panicking thinking it could be something else other than teething. After recalling what happened the previous night, we realized that it wasn't that bad after all. And once again, Ava taught us how to be her parents.

Ava shows us more and more about her character on a daily basis. We are often caught by surprise with how fast she's growing and maturing. Maybe it's today's generation, but we are really seeing how Ava is becoming her own little person everyday - strong and independent yet loving and compassionate.

Our characters as parents are also changing along with her growth. And I just love how Ava continues to teach us to be more patient, understanding and compassionate. She made us see life on a different perspective, through her eyes. Where everything always has a brighter side. Her sense of humor is so contagious making our home filled with laughter all the time. But she also gets frustrated, she also cries and whines thus teaching us to respond more with sensitivity. 

I know this post is going nowhere really but today my heart is just filled with so much joy just thinking about these things and moments that Ava has brought to our lives. :)

More of our BLW Story

I know I have been mentioning how much we love our baby-led weaning (BLW) story with our Ava but I just realized that I haven't completely shared some of the things we did that made our  journey successful. So I thought of making this post with high hopes of inspiring other families to at least consider the baby-led approach in feeding their babies.

Let me first give you a quick introduction about BLW, just in case the term is pretty new to you. Baby-led weaning is an alternative approach in introducing solids to babies at six months, we also call it baby-led feeding here in our country. Compared to the traditional way of solid feeding, BLW does not recommend spoon-feeding, mashing or puréeing food. Instead, it allows babies to pick up their food and eat independently. It also encourages a healthier eating habit, so no boxed or jarred baby food, just wholesome and all natural foods cut into chunks big enough for babies to grasp and gnaw.

Here are the things that will happen in BLW:

• The baby sits with the rest of the family at mealtimes, and joins when she is ready.

• She is encouraged to explore food as soon as she is interested, by picking it up with her hands - it doesn't matter whether or not she manages to eat any at first.

• Food is offered in pieces that are the size and shape that the baby can handle easily, rather than as purées or mashed food.

• She feeds herself from the start, rather than being spoon-fed by someone else.

• It's up to the baby how much she eats, and how quickly she widens the range of food she enjoys.

• The baby continues to have milk feedings (breast milk or formula) whenever she wants then and she decides when she is ready to begin reducing them.

- Excerpt from the BLW book by Gill Rapley.

If you are interested in reading more, the best way to start is read the Baby-Led Weaning: The Essential Guide to Introducing Solid Foods - and Helping Your Baby to Grow Up a Happy and Confident Eater by Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett. Everything you need to know about BLW is in that book.

I thought of sharing our story based on the commonly asked questions I've read in the BLW group or from the questions that I've received from other mamas. I will also share some ideas and principles that we have practiced that made BLW easier and more fun for our family. :)

How did we learn about BLW?

I learned about BLW in one of the breastfeeding meet-ups we attended when Ava was just three months old. Solid food introduction was asked and I distinctly remember one mama sharing how her son eats fruits and vegetables, cut into chunks, independently. Hearing her story amazed me so much that I decided to do some further researches and discussed the things I've learned with Mr. T. He also liked the whole idea and the principles of BLW so we agreed on trying it with Ava. I also learned about a Facebook local support group for those practicing the baby-led approach in feeding their babies - Baby-Led Weaning Philippines. At that time, it was a group of just less than 500 members, and I was amazed at all the stories, photos and videos of babies eating on their own. Now the group has reached more than 8,000 members and it's so nice to see that a lot of mamas (and papas too!) are practicing the same approach and a whole lot more are interested in trying it with their babies.

Tips: It is very important that you understand the whole concept and principles of BLW. That way you will gain confidence in letting and trusting your baby to eat independently. You can also attend some first-aid classes about Infant and Child Safety seminar in case you are worried about choking. There are also a lot of materials online that you can watch and read as well. If you are worried about the thought of a higher choking risk in BLW compared to the traditional feeding, then you should know that it's quite the contrary. In traditional feeding, when you feed your baby mashed or puréed food, the consistency is not much different from their milk, the food can easily slide (or sometimes forced) at the back of their mouth. It does not allow them to chew first before swallowing. In BLW, babies learn to gnaw/bite, chew and swallow at their own pace. In between six and eight months, the gag reflex in babies are particularly sensitive. This reflex in babies prevents food from moving too far at the back of the mouth when they aren't ready to swallow. That's why it is important that you learn the difference between gagging and choking. Basically, if your baby bites a huge chunk and started making a lot of noise and if her face is turning red, that's gagging. Just allow her to manage the food and wait for her to spit it out. But if she's not making any noise (completely) and starts to turn blue, then your baby is choking. Give first-aid immediately and then call for help.

Ditch the Mama Guilt

I have been working for nearly a decade now. Two companies, almost two years in the first one, and I'm on my 6th year here in my current office with only 2 or 3 months of unemployment in between. In case you're not familiar with what I do, I work as a designer in an architecture and interior design company. In our industry, regardless if we are designing residential houses, offices, commercial spaces, etc., all have something common. It's the flexibility and the long working hours needed to complete a certain project. In my previous job, I have experienced staying in the office for two-three days straight to finish a project presentation. But things are better where I am currently working, our company encourages maximizing our office hours instead of rendering overtime work. But as I have mentioned, our industry goes hand in hand with the need for extended work hours so there are days that I still need to stay a little longer just to get things done.

If you are unattached, single, in a relationship or even married without children, your time is pretty much your own. So working in the office until late at night or until the wee hours of the morning even, is really okay as long as you're able and and willing. But when you become a Mama, a baby enters the picture, then poof! Every second will count. Literally. And when the seconds add up to minutes, hours or even days for some, that's when the guilt starts. The guilt doubles up if you're coming home late not because of work, but because of some leisure time with your husband or with your friends. Trust me. I know how anxiety can get to you in the middle of a movie, or in the middle of a good conversation with your friends. It sneaks from below your spine up to the back of your neck. It will even give you goosebumps some times.

But here I am now, having a hot cup of hibiscus tea and a plate of sticky cinnamon bun while waiting for Mr. T to come off of work. I could have gone home earlier but since it's raining, traffic's bad for sure. I'm not that brave to commute at this time. Instead, I'm going to spend the next hour blogging and reading. Do I feel guilty? No.

Internet, hear me. I'm not guilty. Lol. :P

Ok, sometimes I still do feel guilty but not as much as before. And I know Mr. T has completely different views about this, he already knows that going home an hour or two later than usual is already ok. No need to beat ourselves up for it, just make the most out of it. After reading more about attachment parenting, I have come to realize that spending most (if not all) of my time and energy with and for my daughter brings no balance to my personal and our family life. I have to make time for my husband, myself and other things too. In order for me to do this, I needed to do some changes and I am sharing some of them to you.

On Poops and Pees

As I was fixing Ava's diapers early Sunday morning, I realized how much she's grown. I wonder how much longer we'll be using these diapers. Our little girl has begun showing signs of readiness physically and emotionally.

For the first time, Ava said "poopoo" about a month ago. We thought it was just coincidence, then it happened again, until it became a routine without us even training her to say it. About 80% of the time we check, there's poo on her diapers. And about 60% of after doing no. 2 she would actually say "poopoo". We've also seen other signs of readiness like there was this one time, about a couple of weeks ago, when her bum was red (without rashes) all over. We let her sleep without diapers and woke up to a dry and clear bum the next morning. Predicting when to use liners (to catch poo) and what type of inserts and boosters to use for a specific time of the day are both easier now.

Ever since we learned and understood a baby-led approach into feeding Ava, our whole parenting style kind of followed. Instead of the parent-led ways that we both grew up with, we are following Ava's cues instead. We didn't do sleep training, we didn't schedule her feeding time, we didn't even made a special schedule for her activities. Surprisingly, she lead us to our own routines that fit our lifestyle as a family.

18-Month Sleep Regression

About two weeks ago, Ava's sleeping routine went haywire. From sleeping soundly through the night, she went back to refusing sleep and to waking up every two hours just like when she was just a newborn baby. She refuses nap times or only sleeps when carried. We know she's already tired and sleepy but she won't sleep! With a toddler weighing 12kg (or probably more?!), imagine. Lucky for me, Mr. T takes the graveyard carrying shift. But most of the time, she wakes up just to nurse. It's pretty exhausting for both of us when we still need to wake up early the next morning and go to work.

So I looked it up. Thank you Google! Mamas experiencing the same with their toddlers, take a deep breath, what we're all going through is normal. I repeat. IT'S NORMAL.

Celebrating One Year of BLW

It was exactly on Ava's 6th month celebration when we introduced her to solids. Her first food was avocado. That was one year ago already.

When we started out with the whole parenting thing, we were basically relying on our doctors, parents and siblings for advises. That meant doing everything the traditional way. As we adjusted a few months later, we began to have a better understanding that we are already building a family of our own. I, particularly, wanted to break from my family's norm of raising up kids. Don't get me wrong, I am forever grateful to my parents and I respect my siblings' decisions in raising up their own kids. It's just that I think, our generations have evolved immensely and there are significant information that we didn't know back then that we know now. That's where our choice for Attachment Parenting (AP) came in.

Back to Basics with a Twist

One year of cloth diapering, we have 35 cloth diapers in rotation, plus boosters and extra inserts and other cloth diaper accessories. And oh, we're still expecting a fluffy mail coming in soon. No, that wasn't bragging. If you've been into the whole cloth diapering community, you'll know that that's the average number for an ideal stash.

Let me share our cloth diapering story. :)

We were typical new parents when Ava came along, we had problems with breastfeeding, we were bickering because of exhaustion from the lack of sleep and other typical issues. Getting myself together after the CS operation, taking care of a newborn without a Yaya, going back to work and managing my milk supply were just some of the things we had to overcome. After a couple of months, we eventually got our rhythm as parents and things started getting easier. That's also the time when I found ways how we can go about the whole new world of parenting.

The answer: Fellow parents, especially Mothers, with newborns and toddlers alike from different online communities. One of them was the MCNP Facebook Group.

Before I gave birth to Ava, I've been reading a lot about cloth diapers but the whole thing seemed to be a little too overwhelming with all the do's and don't's so we decided to just skip the whole thing and go for disposables. We were buying a disposable diaper that was 14Php a piece that only lasted for a maximum of 4 hours depending on whether Ava's gonna poop on a new one or not. After a couple of months, we downgraded to a brand that's a little cheaper but still at 10Php a piece. Apparently, the bigger the size the more expensive it becomes. It was about the same time last year, summer time, and the heat was as bad as what we are experiencing right now. And that, is an instant recipe for baby bum rashes. Ava was five months then. Luckily, an Expo Mom was happening that time and we were able to get 3 cloth diapers for trial. A week later, we were exclusively cloth diapering Ava. And as they say, the rest was history. :)

Summer Time is Travel Time

It's summer time and it goes without saying that family trips are also here. For first time parents like us, travelling with a toddler could be a great challenge. Not that we have been travelling, but I've been thinking about it and thought about ways of how we'll manage when the time comes.

Just recently, we were able to travel and visit my parents in Nueva Ecija. It's usually a 3-4-hour-drive from Manila via NLEX, but it seemed like everybody was headed the same way. It took as 6 hours. Our fambam's first time to travel with Ava the toddler that long.

Luckily, our little happy belle didn't seem to bother the long drive. And it also helped that we brought some stuff that kept her busy.


Here's my take on what you can do while travelling with your toddler:

Carseats

The use of carseats in our country is not as strict compared to others. I am also guilty of this, most of the time, we're good with Ava just sitting on my lap either in the front passenger seat or at the back. But I think we should all practice safe travelling especially when we are with our children. Make sure they are all buckled up comfortable and secured. Unlucky for us, we just realized that our darling daughter already outgrew her infant car seat. So we had to take her out from it and just settle at the backseat while Mr. T drove carefully. That's why we're already looking at getting front-facing carseats so the next time we go for a long drive, Ava is already safely buckled up. :)

Left: Ava in her infant car seat. Right: Britax Front-Facing Car Seat.

Baby's Safety Online

This has been an on-going topic amongst parents and it seems like it's going to continue along with the evolving virtual world of social media internet. And ever since our very own little belle entered toddlerhood, this has become a part of our discussion as parents as well.

Amongst the articles I've read discussing/debating this issue, I've come across two questions that are always being asked. (1) Are you violating your own child's right to privacy? (2) Is it safe to post photos of your child?

And these are my takes.

(1) Violation of my child's privacy. This sounds silly to me, trying to imagine my toddler, who can't even control her bladder yet, invoking the right to control her own photos.

"The violation of personal privacy doesn’t start until an individual has the ability to understand what the violation means." - New York Times

Makes a lot of sense to me. That's why it becomes part of our many responsibilities as parents -  to make sure that our children are safe and protected - whenever, wherever. For me, bum-naked is already a violation of my child's privacy. I once posted a photo of her right after birth, blurred out except for her face. But eventually took it down after a while because I find it too much for sharing. The context of how photos are being shared should also be considered.

(2) Safety of my child. This one I find a bit too much.

“Research shows that there is virtually no risk of pedophiles coming to get kids because they found them online,” said Stephen Balkam, chief executive of the Family Online Safety Institute. While the debate makes this crime seem common, he said, all the talk is really just “techno-panic.”

Exactly my point. Of course protecting children from dangerous people should be a concern to all parents. However, these people are more likely to target children they know and who trust them already, instead of those they have only seen on the Internet.