We had our first picnic Saturday last week, June 23 at the the Brushy Creek Lake Park.  I was supposed to blog about it immediately the day after but then, I got overly excited about Abby finally having a haircut and finding a preschool for her that this entry got put on hold.

The park is just a very short drive away from us, just 5-minutes!  We were joined by our friend Bet-Bet and her kids - wonder twins Miyo and Mico and cute little Milo.  It was also their first picnic in Austin!  Too bad Tony (Bet’s hubby) couldn’t join us because he’s on a business trip. :(  Bet and the kids picked us up from our house.  It really is more fun to travel in one vehicle, and sitting between Milo and Abby who were in their car seats, I got front row seat for Blue’s Clues, which was the “in-drive” movie.

It almost literally rained on our parade…well, just a drizzle, which started just when we were about to enter the park.  Thank God it didn’t turn into a big downpour as the kids would have been really disappointed, us adults too!.  From the van, we had a clear view of the fun that awaited us and the kids were raring to get out.  We waited it out in the car for about 10 minutes and then, the light rain stopped.  Yipee!

There’s so much families and groups can do at Brushy Creek Lake Park: have a picnic on any of the tables or on the grass, have a party in one of roofed pavillions, play beach volleyball, go fishing, take a walk, play in the playground and best of all, get wet in the splash park!

We brought sooo much food!  Bet volunteered to bring “lunch”: Popeye’s fried chicken, corn on the cob, coleslaw, mashed potato, macaroni salad and fresh watermelon plus the disposables and the table cover.  She just told me to bring “snacks and drinks”.  Not fair, ‘no?  For our part, we brought the kids’ favorite original Ruffles and Lay’s chips, a loaf of bread for merienda with ham, mayo and cheese to go with it, fresh cantaloupe, juice, soda, water and cookies.  I told Bet that next time (and there will definitely be a next time!), ako naman ang magdadala ng lahat ng laman ng kusina at ref namin!

I would say that the highlight of our day was splashing it out at the splash park.  I don’t normally want to get wet because it’s too much hassle (kj!).  But this time, I was really game as the whole thing looked like so much fun and I sure didn’t want to miss out on it!  Just as I had imagined, the splash park was a hit with the kids and us adults as well.  The water was a little cold but once our bodies adjusted to the temperature, there was no stopping us from having fun. :)  At first, Abby was content with just filling her watering can along the sides of the splash park, but after a while, she was soaking wet and running around like a headless chicken!

Since they say a picture paints a thousand words, here are some pics from that fun-filled afternoon.  The pics, by themselves, can very well tell the story already.

I’ll include a video as well, which will give a better feel of how the splash park was like. It’s a little blurry though, because we only used the digicam to take the video.  Kami na lang yata ang walang videocam sa mundong ibabaw.  Isa pa pala, paki pagpaseniyahan na lang yung bruhang naka-printed top at yellow shorts na nagpadaan-daan sa harap ng camera namin!  Take a guess kung taga saang bansa siya!

There. :)  We hope to do a lot more fun outdoor stuff this summer.  Anyway, I heard it’s summer all year-round in Texas! Nyahaha!  And before I forget, I’d like to thank Abby’s Tita Meeya, Tito Allan and Ninna for her cute swimsuit (make that splashsuit!). :)  We were saving it for Schlitterbahn but we couldn’t wait to have her wear it already!

Happy weekend, y’all!

I tried my best to keep this short…but failed.  

Abby will be turning 3 in a couple of weeks and if we were in the Philippines, she would have started going to pre-school already this month.  Hubby and I agree that our change of location shouldn’t stop us from sending Abby to pre-school as we have originally planned.  We thought it’s even more important for her to go to school now so that she’ll make more friends and learn at the same time.   

I’ve spent the last month or so checking out the Austin preschools listed in The Savvy Source for Parents.  Most of these schools have their own websites, which I made sure to visit, one by one.  This little project of mine turned out to be a lesson in “American Pre-schools 101″ for me and gave me a better understanding of the American culture as applied in pre-schools and why things are the way they are around here. :)  As I got deeper into my school search, the difference in school culture between the Philippines and the US became more and more evident.

One big realization for me is that pre-schools here are actually preschools-slash-daycare and are open from as early as 6am to as late sa 6:30 to 7pm.  All have all-day programs and some have half-day, 3-day and 2-day a week options.  Some are very high-tech and boast of cameras in the classrooms which will allow parents to monitor their children from work through the internet.  There’s computerized log-in and log-out.  And many have more than 1 playscape.  Another point that has put a little pressure on me is that children are expected to be already fully potty-trained by age 3.  That means, they are able to pull their undies up and down on their own and able to “wipe”.  Abby has never attended school and isn’t potty trained….YET.

Knowing now what I didn’t know then has allowed me to formulate a set of criteria so I could narrow down my search. It’s a given that as a parent, I want a quality school with quality teachers and with very nice facilities.  Other than these, following are what I came up with:  (1) It has to be more of a pre-school than daycare if not preschool, period.  (2) It has to either be Catholic or non-sectarian. (3)  It should have a half-day option.  (4)  The teacher-student ratio should be no more than 1:12.  Less would be better.  (5)  It should be no more than 20 minutes away from our house.  (6)  Tuition should be “within reasonable reach”. In a nutshell, these are basically it.

Abby, hubby and I have visited and toured 4 pre-schools.  All had good and not so good points going for them.  School #1 was but a 2-minute drive away.  It’s pretty high-tech and the facilities are really very nice.  The school staff seemed to be very enthusiastic about what they do.  But they don’t have a half day option.  Kids should be in by 8am and pick-up time is from 3pm onwards.  I had to hold on to the reception desk for balance when I found out how much one month’s tuition costs!  It’s enough to pay for a Filipino child’s tuition for an entire schoolyear at a respectable school. :)  It was clearly not for us.  School #2 is a montessori and is 15 minutes away.  I did a little research on the montessori method and found that I actually liked what it’s all about.  The school was but a quarter of the size of School #1.  What I like about this school is that it’s run by a family and they are truly passionate about and know what they do.  The tuition was more acceptable to us, too.  I just wished they had a more attractive interiors and a bigger playground.  But we liked this school and we thought this might be the one.  We visited School #3 right after School #2.  It’s nice and all and the most affordable so far.  What I didn’t like was the administrator/director.  She wasn’t very enthusiastic in introducing her school and seemed content in having us fish out whatever information we needed to know.  Talk about bad PR skills.  We scrapped this school off our list.

Since we liked School #2 so much, I limited my school search to montessoris.  This led us to School #4, which I chanced upon in the Austin Family Magazine, a free mag available in the supermarket and libraries.  I was hoping this would be as good as if not better than School #2.  The school was from 15-20 minutes away, depending on the route one chooses to take.  The moment we walked in, I liked the school already.  The reception and entry hall was well lit and there’s just this “feel good” sense that immediately came upon me.  It was formerly a house which was converted into a school.  The owner was a public school teacher for 10 years and earned a number of distinctions during those times.  She put up the school because she couldn’t find a montessori school that was warm and welcoming with nurturing teachers and staff.  What can I say?  I’m a sucker for family-run organizations! The facilities are way better than those of School #2.   :D  They have 2 playscapes, one of which was covered and would allow the kids to play during light showers and very hot weather.  They offer a variety of extra curricular activities at very reasonable prices.  All the teachers are montessori certified.  And the teacher to student ratio is usually just 1:10.  As far as I was concerned,  it has everything we were looking for.  And at just 30 dollars pricier than school #2, we made up our minds right there and then and decided to enroll Abby for Fall. 

Abby will be attending half-day classes starting August.  This is an entirely new level of stage parenting for me.  I’m excited for Abby and for myself as well.  I’m bracing myself for the separation anxiety bit…on my part! :)  Before the schoolyear starts, Abby and I will have to work together for Project Potty Training.  I wouldn’t want her to be dropped from school because she’s not fully potty trained!  So wish us luck on this one, as we have only a little over a month to accomplish what parents know can be a very challenging task.
Project Pre-School : Mission Accomplished

Alleluia!  Abby finally agreed to have a haircut.  I’ve been trying to convince her to get one way before we left Manila.  I’ve waited so long for her to say yes every time I asked if she wanted a haircut, but her reply was always in the negative.  A few days before we left Manila, I brought her to the Kid’s Spa in Tiendesitas with my Mom, Claire and pamangkins in tow.  But she ended up making a scene inside by crying!  That left me annoyed and really upset.

Fastforward to a few weeks ago, through the webcam and YM with Voice, my Mom and Claire told Abby that she does need a haircut already as her hair was already at it’s longest and there’s no Yaya Amor here to do the cutie cutie hairstyles she has gotten accustomed to. :)  I took that as a sign that maybe, it’s time for hubby and me to take Abby for a trip to the salon.

On June 9, we brought her to this salon’s Cedar Park branch only to end up going home because Abby started crying when time for her haircut came.  That was after we were tricked into buying her a 3-pc to a dollar lollipops (she ate only 1 and I kept the other 2)!  I was every bit annoyed and upset…again. Grrr.

My friend Bet-Bet suggested another salon.  After browsing through it’s website, I thought it may even be more perfect because it appeals to both boys and girls.  Determined parents that we are, a week after the unsuccessful Sweet and Sassy visit, we brought Abby to this salon’s Round Rock branch on June 16.  As usual, I prepped Abby for this visit by going through its website with her.  After looking at the different girls’ hairstyles, Abby even decided she wanted “the bob” for herself!  I’ll spare you from all the unpleasant details and say outright that again, we ended up leaving the salon with every inch of Abby’s hair still intact. I was annoyed and upset and I almost convinced myself to just let Bet-Bet shave off Abby’s hair like she does with her boys!  Grrrr.

I told myself that Abby will have to come around and ask for a haircut on her own, of course, with a little mind manipulation on our part. :D And the entire week after that last salon incident, she would always tell hubby and me that she wanted a haircut.  Maybe she did want it already, or maybe  not.  After consistently asking for a haircut for several days in a row, we were back at Snip-its last Saturday, June 23.  We were planning on having lunch first after hearing mass, but Ms. Abby said she wanted to go to the salon already.  On our way to the salon, she closed her eyes for but  a few mintues and when she opened them, she was cranky and a whole different person again who wanted to have lunch first!  Grrr.  We did as  her royal highness requested, we had lunch and checked every now and then if she still wanted to push through with the hair trimming thing!  She said she did.

Exactly a week after our first Snip-its “almost but not quite” visit, we found ourselves waiting in the reception area again.  Abby was having so much fun playing with the toys.  That got me hopeful.  She eagerly watched as each kid came to the reception desk where there’s this cute atm-like machine where they insert a big plastic card in a hole and a prize comes out in another hole.  We called her attention everytime one of the stylists give out a lollipop after a hair cut.  I even promised I’d get her a lip gloss (bad mommy!)!  She picked “her shade” of lip gloss before she finally sat down for her hair cut.  There were a few compromises.  She didn’t want to be buckled down to her seat and wanted to play a computer game instead of watching a video.  We would have given her gold if she asked for it just to get everthing over and done with!  After the first snip, I knew there was no turning back.  And because Abby was busy with her game, hubby and I took turns holding down her head to the front, left or right just so the stylist could do her job properly and so Abby won’t look as if I was the one who cut her hair.  Needless to say, everything went smoothly, except for the part where Abby almost jumped off her seat because she didn’t want a blow-dry, but decided she did want it after all.  Haaaay!

Abby’s hair cut saga finally ended.  Whew!  The damage: 15.95 for the haircut, 1.00 for the lip gloss, 2.86 for the kiddie-cone ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s (which was just next door), plus taxes and tip.  You do the math.  Grabe!  Anyway, I made sure that Abby’s hair is short enough to allow hubby and me to regroup and save for the next hair cut.  Thank you, God!

Abby loves her new hair style, bangs and all.  She’s even very self conscious about it, touching her bangs once in a while as if to check if they’re still there.  As we were walking out of Ben & Jerry’s, we were met by a gust of wind, which brought about this exchange between hubby and Abby:

Abby:  Daaaaaddeee!

Hubby:  What’s wrong?

Abby:  My hair!  Wind blow it!

Project Haircut:  Mission Accomplished.

Just mouse over the pics for the descriptions.

I’m dedicating this entry to my nieces, Kylah, Macy and Sophie.  I can’t help but think of them after and during each of our salon visits.  They would have loved Sweet and Sassy and Snip-its.  I miss my girls.

p.s.  I’ve also accomplished one other project of mine.  Tell you more about it next time.

This is for everyone who read my previous entry and wondered if Connie Talbot won the finals of “Britain’s Got Talent” (Hi Pinky!).  Well, Connie didn’t win. :( But let’s not feel bad.  The winner was a very deserving man, Paul Potts.  Before I knew of Connie, I saw Paul’s audition and semi-final video clips first and was genuinely happy that he won.  But hubby spoiled everything for me when he told me he found the clip of a 6-year old girl who was in the contest as well.  Grrrr!

So, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen….Paul Potts.

[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=1k08yxu57NA]

That video gave me goosbumps and left me teary-eyed!  What can I do?  Iyakin talaga ako eh!  Here’s Paul at the semi-finals….

[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=6jp0s1BxtN4]

And here’s his winning moment…

[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=cJ0nS7jVE3A]

 There you are.  I know, he’s not half as cute and adorable as Connie is.  :)  But you gotta admit, he’s really got talent!

oOo

Human Tetris

For a change, here’s something hilarious.  You’ve got to leave it to the Japanese to come up with something totally outrageous.  Remember Takeshi’s Castle?  This one’s in the same league as that show.  I hope this tickles your funny bones after all the goosebump overload since my last post.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll2kajMH2u0]

Kaloka, diba?

This is gonna make you cry or at the very very least, get you misty-eyed.  If it doesn’t, I suggest you make a dash to the nearest  hospital and have them check if you’ve been walking around with a “beating rock” all along instead of a heart. :D  I’m betting that the first to give will be the mommies and grammies. 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqVqJ1HLHNo]

That was Connie Talbot, my new favorite 6-year old.  She just made me make Somewhere Over the Rainbow my favorite song.  Here’s another one of her at the Semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtQ6nzN0ejM]

And for the grand finale, Connie at the grand finals.  Get your Kleenex ready!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkcE6Vy-e6c]

Was I right?  Did you get a good cry?  I sure as hell did!  :D  Thank you for this, Munchkin!  Mmmmwah!