The Merry Munchkins Chronicles

       It's quite sometime when I last wrote a blog entry. My last post was November 2013. Three years have passed. A lot, and I mean A LOT has transpired since then- from a failed relationship to getting my crap together which then led to self realizations, new beginnings and a whole lot of new adventures. So now I ask you again to join me in my journey as a single mom and how me and my  Little Munchkin face our life's new adventures and misadventures. All aboard! 

Photoshop has always caught my interest. Unfortunately, even if I want to study photoshop formally, I don't have enough budget to enroll... So with the help of Youtube, exploring, experimenting and practice, I managed to pull off some creations. My very first “successful” project is the baptism invite of the little munchkin. Simple and amateur, yes but  I’m happy about it because it’s my labor of love. Steffy's baptism invitation. My second (and latest) work is an invitation (again). This time, it’s a “virtual invitation”. It is for a company Christmas party, to be sent to the emails of the employees. I’m glad that my masterpiece received positive feedback. As of this moment, it has probably been sent and has already been read by most, if not all employees. Teledatacom Philippines, Inc. Christmas party invitation to employees. I am looking forward to more pro bono photoshop jobs that can serve as my practice. So for those interested, just message me. Hehe...

Must be the gloomy monsoon rains (or the recent breakup) that refuelled the artist in me.  With this kind of extended vacation, there is not much I can do. Well, cuddling with the little munchkin is a given, of course. So instead of sulking, I decided to do the “drawing therapy” to channel all the pent up emotions. Surprisingly, it works wonders. I prefer drawing portraits or caricatures and for the longest time, I had been creating most of my artworks using pencil (regular or charcoal). And oh boy, how they lacked vibrancy! Thus, I tried oil pastels because I find blending colors fun but it turned out too sticky and messy for my liking. Colored markers did not work either coz it came short to the blending part. The same is true with colored pencils. So for an amateur like me who is used to pencils, what possibly could satisfy my hunger for more vivid artworks? Alas, epiphany! I remembered that Faber Castell has this watercolor pencil product line! I watched some Youtube ...

Disclaimer: This post is in Filipino… With beki language on the side. Hahahaha! :D My dear Steffy, marami man akong na-miss na mga "firsts" mo simula nung nagwork ako, proud pa rin ako na kung hindi man ako ang solong nagturo sa'yo, malaki rin ang parte ko sa mga sumusunod na milestones sa buhay mo: 1.    Kumanta - obviously, sa akin mo namana ang hilig mo sa pagkanta at pagiging nasa tono mo (thank goodness!). At ito, inaako kong ako ang solong nagturo sa'yo nito dahil nasa tyan pa lang kita, kinakantahan na kita ng mga birit songs, classical songs at senti songs. Hahahahaha! 2.   Tumalon - kahit lately ka lang natutong tumalon, ang importante, marunong ka na... kahit 2-3 inches lang ang iniaangat mo sa sobrang bigat mo... hahahaha! (special mention sa kutson na hinihigaan natin ni ninong Benjo  na kung hindi dahil dun, hindi mo magegets na ang tunay na talon, dapat umaangat mula sa sahig ang dalawang paa mo at hindi isang paa lang ang umaangat) 3....

I know it’s kinda late for this post but nonetheless, it’s better late than never, right? *wink* S.Y. 2013-2014 has begun. Again, the corridors of our school came to life, teeming with energy-filled students and “supportive” nannies, guardians and parents. It’s my second year at Multiple Intelligence International School and I’ve been (genuinely) enjoying my stay so far. As a Reading Clinician, my load is not that heavy compared to classroom teachers. I get to teach 5 students max per day, 1 hour each. You may think my job is easy peasy but it’s the other way around. Our department is under the Learning Support umbrella thus, the improvement in class performance of those enrolled in our program lies in our hands. We have to tailor-fit our activities and goals depending on each student’s needs. We work on the student’s pace, not ours. And yes (oh yes) there are a lot of times that clinicians also get frustrated. But it is part of our job to be patient (no matter how hard it can g...

     Since the last school year ended, I realized that time is really coming in very fast. My little munchkin will be turning 3 on September and not long after that, Edmund and I will be obliged to *cough cough* enroll her already in school. There’s no doubt that Steffy is a smart kid. Her memory is so sharp she can recall a tune from any commercial even if she only heard it once (not to mention memorizing the script and acting it out with feelings). No problem also with her social skills. She can win the Ms. Congeniality award with a unanimous decision. But the big question is, how prepared is she for school?        I’ve been contemplating on the question from quite some time now. Counting from 1-20, check! Knowing the basic shapes, check! Knows her nursery rhymes, check! Roughly knows a range of animals from every species, check! Her vocabulary is, in my opinion, a bit advanced for her age. However, there are areas that I’m a bit worried a...