Shameless Plug Season 2

Paco's show premiers this Sunday, January 29 at 9 a.m. on GMA News TV.  Two Stops Over's What I See is for all you photogeeks and it's more fun in the Philippines believers.

What's That Weird Feeling?

You know that feeling of sadness when your child has a birthday? I never really got what that was all about.  Every year I am beyond excited to celebrate the birthday of the earthlings.  Birthdays are fun and happy days when you get away with a lot of shit people wouldn't take from you on any other day of the year.  Plus you get treats, presents, calls, texts and an avalanche of Facebook greetings.  Kids get to celebrate their birthdays in school, at home, with a party and for our family a series of Skype video calls.  We all know that a party can only mean two great joys in life - party spaghetti that only we know how to make in the Philippines and birthday CAKE dangerously loaded with icing.  So what's the sulking all about??? What's there not to enjoy about your child's birthday??? They are obviously thrilled and bouncing off the walls with sugar overload.  It doesn't get any better than that.

Then the strangest thing happened to me.  The most uncharacteristic and peculiar emotion swept over me.  No, that's not dramatic enough.  It was more of a steamroll than a sweep.  Last week I took a look at Aiden and felt this unexplainable feeling of heartbreak and nostalgia.  Heartbreak and nostalgia?  What the hell is going on here???  I certainly am not pregnant but could I possibly be menopausal?  It wasn't Aiden's birthday or it isn't his birthday anytime soon.  It was his face.  His face has changed.  Gone is his toddler face that I could cup in one hand.  Gone are the chubby cheeks and baby rolls that jiggled when he laughed.  Gone was his little head that fit perfectly in the base of my neck when I'd carry him to bed when he fell asleep in the car.  He actually has cheekbones and a jawline when he smiles now.  When he smiled that first time I noticed I there was that tug in my chest.

You know all those illogical questions/thoughts I ridiculed you sappy moms for?  Well they came came rushing in.

How can this be happening?
My little Aiden is no longer a baby?
Where has the time gone?
Will he not be in love with me anymore?
Is he going to prefer his friends over me now?

So for all those times I made fun of your mushiness, for all those times I though you were being selfish, for all those times I deemed you as idiotic, for all those times your drama made me sick, for all those times I wish you got a grip.  I apologize.  I now understand that it is simply the other end of the same spectrum.  The mothering end I usually am on is where I constantly have inappropriate, mean and scary thoughts.

Grow up!
I swear the next tantrum will be thrown by me.
What a selfish little brat.
Will you puhleez SHUT UP! 
I need a fucking drink.

 
I hope I'm not on the cheesy side for too long though.

Football Again

As if living with a penguin obssesssed child isn't enough to drive me insane, my other one is a football crazy one.  Gael's thoughts and actions never stray much from this game.  Football is a constant theme in his conversations, playtime, homework, books and even his clothes.  He rarely ever wears a shirt that isn't a jersey, football inspired or from the Collezione collection of the Younghusbands.  At home he spends a lot time practicing his slide tackles, reading up on his favorite players and figuring out the coolest way to celebrate a goal.  Determination is key, right? 

Vadge

A cousin of mine had his first baby last month.  I can only assume that Gael was all excited about the thought of a new cousin when he asked me in the car last week "So did the baby come out of Tita Hannah's vagina?".  So far that is the only part of where babies are made that Gael's gotten to.  Questions about sex always revolve around how you get the baby out.  You can read more of our fun sex education talks here and here.

That would have been the end of that conversion had Gael actually said vagina.  What he really said was bagina.  It was more like BUH-gina.  Being the daughter of an English Literature teacher there is no way I could let that slide.  It's bad enough that he goes around telling his friends that babies come out of their mom's vagina's but it's absolutely horrible that he would say something along the lines "Hey, did you know that you came out of your moms bugina?".  So the rest of the car ride went something like this.

ME:  Gael, it's pronounced vagina.

GAEL: Bugina.

ME:  No.  Not BUH-gina.  VUH-gina.

GAEL:  BUH-gina.

ME:  VUH-gina, sweetie, VUH-gina.

GAEL:  That's what I said.

ME:  No, you said BUH-gina.  It's VUH-gina.

GAEL:  VVVVVVVVVVUH-GINA!

ME:  You got it!  Good job.

Paco in the meantime is driving and giving me a WTF look, shaking his head and all.

21 Again Sale

I love my birthday.  I don't really know why I just do.  This Saturday I turn 21 again and to celebrate I'm throwing a birthday sale over at the Mothering Earthlings shop.  Stuff goes back to regular price in two weeks so hurry.

2012

I stopped making New Year's resolutions a long time ago.  Every single year I break it by February 22nd and by March 15th I've usually forgotten what it was I was supposed to be doing in the first place.  Like that year I said I would work out three times a week and get some abs.  Yeah right!  Or that year I said I would stop eating rice.  Who was I kidding?  There also was the year I said I would be all namaste and not lose my temper.  Never happened.

This year I got inspired by James Nave's words instead of resolutions.  His is live and I want to DO!  In 2012 I will be a doer.  Don't mark my word though, I just wanted to put it out there for added embarrassment when I slump back to being a planner and forget about the doing bit.

Here's to a year that is bigger, better and brighter from The Guerreros.