Lavender & Coffee Stains

Dear Me,

Last November 23, 2010, I was extended an invitation to attend the formal opening of a breastfeeding photo exhibit entitled "SPOTTED: Mommy, Mama, Inay and Me" at the SM Mall of Asia.



The four-day exhibit (will run till the 26th) is presented as a joint program on Children Food Security and Nutrition of the Millennium Development Goals Achievement Fund or MDG-F together with the Department of Health-National Nutrition Council. The MDG-F joint program also called MDG-F 2030: Ensuring Food Security and Nutrition for Children 0-24 Months Old," aims to increase exclusive breastfeeding rate in the country by 20% annually. This endeavor is also made possible in partnership with SM Cares, LATCH Inc., Breastfeeding Patrol of Mandaluyong City and the School of Design and Arts of De La Salle-College of St. Benilde.

The photo exhibit showcases mothers breastfeeding their children in various locations and situations, demonstrating that breastfeeding is part of everyday life. The exhibit aims to communicate the idea that a mother can breastfeed her child anywhere and anytime, and highlights the supportive environment moms need to help ensure that their children receive proper nutrition. It presents breastfeeding as a natural, normative, positive and healthy part of everyday life at home, in the community, and in the workplace.

While listening to keynote speakers, I could not help but gaze around the big photos and I felt a certain pride. Truly, I consider that particular event a milestone. The fact that breastfeeding is being publicly supported, promoted and protected is already a stepping stone towards acceptance of a growing breastfeeding culture in the country.



My little Miguel is now three years old and had been exclusively breastfed for six months. Thereafter, he was given complementary food with continued breastfeeding up until he was 1 year and 6 months old.



I am so pleased to know that SM Supermalls is being part of this great initiative. I am most exhilarated by the fact that SM Mall of Asia has been a great part of my bonding experience with my little boy. When I had Miguel, the only mall that my husband and I could go to was MoA for they had a breastfeeding station. I always felt so calm when we were out malling at MoA for I knew that when my little angel needs me to feed him, I could always find our way to the breastfeeding station. It was not so long ago that people would look down at you just because they saw you breastfeeding your baby in public. That time, I could not care less. But great thanks to this mall, I did not have to endure those kind of stares.

I enjoin other moms to support this wonderful advocacy event. It is not only for us moms but also for our babies. "As the standard for feeding a newborn, breast milk contains all the nutrients that a baby needs, and protects the mother's health. It is easily digested and efficiently used by the baby. It also reduces risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer, helps the uterus to return to its previous size, and reduces bleeding which helps in preventing anemia," according to Health Assistant Secretary Maria-Bernardita T. Flores, Executive Director of National Nutrition Council.

Flores also empahasize that breastfeeding "is important for the welfare of the mother and the baby, the family, the community, and the nation." Thus, "as a community, we should regard breast-feeding as a norm, where all members of the family would provide support and encouragement to the breastfeeding mom."

Breastfeeding is a natural and healthy experience between a mother and her baby. It is free and that you can breastfeed your baby anytime and anywhere.




About the MDG Achievement Fund
The MDG Achievement Fund is an international cooperation mechanism whose aim is to accelerate progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) worldwide. Established in December 2006 with a generous contribution of €528 million Euros ($US710M) from the Spanish Government to the United Nations system, the MDG-F supports national governments, local authorities and citizen organizations in their efforts to tackle poverty and inequality.

With 128 active programmes in 49 countries spread across 5 regions of the world, MDG-F is helping over 3.5 million people, with another 20 million people impacted indirectly. For more information on the MDG-F, log on to http://www.mdgfund.org/.




Many thanks to Omar (left photo)
and to Ms. Cindy (right photo, girl in white dress) for the invitation.

Dear Me,

I never got to blog that much while I was pregnant with Carlos Miguel, even after I gave birth to him. Taking care of my newborn is number one priority. Blogging is even not in the list; sneaking a few winks of sleep is a mere luxury for number two in that mental list of to-do(s).

While doing this recent entry, I felt nostalgic while searching through the photo archive in my laptop. I discovered so many wonderful photos of my little boy.

I also realized that I had been missing his photos from the time he was born till his fifth month. Hubby probably kept them in his desktop in the bedroom.



Like any newbie moms, taking photos of Miguel was a given. And oh boy, you could see the transition of his facial expressions from beginning till end. It would start like he was curious what you were doing with the camera then he would found out about the flash. Later on, you would try so hard to catch his attention to have a working shot. All through the session, you would be rewarded with an adorable smirk or smile. Hahaha. Kanino ba nagmana ang batang ito? Hehehe.


1st shot

notice the eyebrows?

now, see those eyes?

the frowning baby with Tita B

what is she doing? *thinks*

imitating...big nose...hehehe

aunt and nephew



When taking photos of Miguel at that age, we found it a challenge for him to look straight in the camera.


lots of shots were taken before this one came decent

and now facing the camera!

father and son


poster at the breastfeeding station

I am certainly a breastfeeding advocate. I know and understand the benefits of breastfeeding my baby. Thanks to SM especially the Mall of Asia branch, they made our malling experience with Miguel a lot easier and convenient. During that time, we discovered that only MoA had an existent or decent breastfeeding station for moms and babies. So you see, MoA had been (and still is) our favorite SM mall for they have always been an integral part of our family bonding (when it comes to feeding Miguel and spending time at the mall).



To celebrate his sixth month, we bought a cake from Goldilocks Bakeshop called Triple Delight. Layers of chocolate, vanilla and mocha chiffon cake filed with luscious chocolate frosting and vanilla cream icing. The whole cake is iced with chocolate cream icing and adorned with festive chocolate decors.


something is wrong with this picture

presenting...

looking at...

ehem
Happy sixth month birthday, my dearest baby!

Dear Me,

Mommy Journey is featuring the 'before and after' looks of our kids while growing up via Mommy Moments. I'm sharing the photos of my little angel, Carlos Miguel. :)




Carlos Miguel @ 3 months old
enjoying rolling over and crawling

Just turned 3 years old earlier this month
all dressed up and ready to go out

And yes, Mommy Chris! He grows up so fast that I was amazed while browsing our digital photo archive. I had a hard time combing through folders and subfolders for there were a lot of them to choose from.

But there is one thing that I realize, time really passes by so fast! While he is still young, I will spend more quality time with him and enjoy the things a little boy like him loves to do.

Dear Me,

Yes, it's my favorite day of the week. Here we go and be wordless on a Wednesday.



my little boy, Carlos Miguel reading with...

For more Wordless Wednesdays,
take a peek at the WW Hub and 5M4M.


View More Wordless Wednesday Participants

Dear Me,

Yes, it's my favorite day of the week. Here we go and be wordless on a Wednesday.



my 2-year old son, Carlos Miguel
with his lovely cousin, Khloe

For more Wordless Wednesdays,
take a peek at the WW Hub and 5M4M.


View More Wordless Wednesday Participants

Dear Me,

After my little boy's pedia check-up at the Chinese General Hospital last week, I thought it would be a nice change for him to have some form of entertainment afterward. We hopped in the nearby mall, at SM San Lazaro.

Well, I first did my bank errands to eliminate them from my to-do list for the following week. It was shooting two birdies with one stone, so to speak.

I was not really familiar with the mall's entertainment scene but as we meandered around, we caught up with LG's Cookie Mascot. A friendly-looking mascot wandering around the mall surely got my little boy's attention.


very game with the shoot
Heading on, we bumped into Johan's Motortown. This kiddie place rents out motorized cars for the little boys and girls to enjoy. Instead of the usual car that Miguel rides in, I chose the bulky motor bike for a new kind of experience for him. I was a little shilly-shally at first because the thought of my little boy falling off the bike scared me. I asked the guy in-charge if I could follow him around while he drove. I got an affirmative.



Usually, hubby is the one engaging the little tyke to do this thing. Since he's now out of the country, I have to take his place. When Miguel was firmly settled in the seat, I was waiting for the guy to give me a go-sign. When it did not happen, I checked out the bike on how to make it move. There it was, Miguel was stepping on the switch, which acted like a pedal. If you stepped on it, the bike would move forward and if you rested your foot off the switch, it would simply stand still. Yeah, embarrassing moment for me!



After a few trials, Miguel got the hang of it. He could drive straight within the allocated space. The next thing he needed to learn was how to turn left and right and so I thought him how. I told him to swerve the handle bars to the right if he's going to the right and to the left to turn to the left side.





He seemed to enjoyed it so much that I had a hard time telling him to look at me so I could take nice shots of him facing the camera.



When I knew that he would be safe and not afraid, I walked in front of him instead of beside him. Later on, I playfully ran and he was giggling so hard of the idea of him chasing me around.

After a few turns, I was catching my breath from the running and laughing. I told him to take it slow so I could catch up. Hehehe.

A few more minutes and he was off the bike. He still wanted to go on but I told him that we could do that again soon. Fortunately, he believed me. :)

Dear Me,

My little boy never ceases to amaze me...and with hilarity. It just did not happen once but many times. He has a new talent to show and that he is unaware of it. I always catch him doing this and everytime I point it out, he will simply brush me off.



We were in the bedroom one hot afternoon (with the a/c on) and while I was doing my thing, he was playing with his toys while watching Blue's Clues in his father's desktop. It was like this for an hour or so and the next time I looked at what he was doing, he had his toys moved away to his side of the bed. And what about him? Well, he was facing the desktop and slouching on the side of the bed. I assumed he was watching.

I called him out and asked if he was done playing. When I did not receive any kind of reply, I stood up and checked him up close. To my surprise, he was doing it again for the nth time!



Sleeping while standing!

I tried to wake him up and he opened his eyes but closed them again.

I tried to wake him up and just told me that he wanted to sleep.

I tried to wake him up and he threw a tantrum for a few seconds.




It went on and on and a thought struck me. Take a photo and next time, show it to him. Maybe when he's a little older, he will laugh at it.

Well, I was successful with my final attempt. I carried him up and despite the minor resistance, he gave up and I was able to settle him down to bed for a nap. :)