by The Happy WAHM
26/365Challenge:Â Today’s a happy day! Â Never thought much about Valentine’s day. Â It’s not a day I got used to celebrating, but my son changed that for me.
Three days ago, he asked me if we still have origami paper. Â But unfortunately, we’ve run out. Â So next he asked If I have colored papers. Â And I gave him what’s left in the ream that I bought last year. Â I knew there’s something he’s trying to follow on YouTube, but I’m not one to go where I’m not invited, so I just let him be. Â I would hear him getting frustrated. Â And I would just shush him and say, “Patience, Jude.”
Then yesterday, he finally admitted that he could not finish it all by himself. Â He needed someone to hold the folded paper with two hands, while he used his hands turning the paper to its shape. Â When I commented that it’s looking good, he said, “It’s for you, Mommy.”
By afternoon, he asked me if he could borrow my glue gun.  He needed it to attach the wire stem to the leaves and the flower.
Again, he was frustrated.  He’s not used to using a glue gun, and it hardens before he could attach.  So his dad finally offered to help him.  We don’t normally offer to help.  We have to be asked.  That’s what we teach them.  Figure things out by themselves, and ask for help when they can no longer do it on their own.
So Daddy showed him how to simply use the white glue and roll the paper around the wire.
This was the photo I posted on Instagram.
And this is where it is now, holding that special space on my lap table which also serves as my crochet project table. Â The crane is from my middlechild. Â I wonder what our firstborn will have for me this Valentine?
Do you have questions, comments or feedback about this post?
Please leave me a message, or post them, at my Facebook Page.
Or you can be my writing challenge partner.
Send me a topic that you want me to talk about.
by The Happy WAHM
I always write when Iâm emotional. And this morning, Iâm feeling just that.
I have just turned over my cross-stitch hobby kit to my middlechild. Out of nowhere, the thought just came that itâs time. A decision was made. She will have my cross-stitch kit.
A few days ago, we were [again] at National Bookstore to pick up a book I had them keep for me. It was a book I saw during their warehouse sale. I thought of getting it for my friend and partner, as I know that her family is into Star Wars. But knowing that they also frequent the bookstores and are avid collectors, I did not buy it outright. I first wanted to find out if they donât have a copy of it yet. But she took a long time replying to my text message [like I texted her about lunchtime, asking if she would like to have this Phantom Menace book, and she replied early evening that yes, her husband and son would love to have it]. So suffice it to say that I lost the opportunity to buy that book for her. But, persevering soul that I am, I called up NBS to ask if they still have a copy. Alas, hardbound Star Wars books on sale go in a flash, so no, they no longer have a copy. But because Iâm social that way, I was able to make a teeny-tiny request of them calling their other branches to see if there are other copies lying around, and if they can have one reserved for me. So a few days ago, I received a call from NBS, telling me that they have found a copy for me, and that they have it reserved, waiting to be picked up.
But thatâs not what this entry is about. đ
On that trip, my son asked for a fresh supply of clay and some popsicle sticks for his project. You know that feeling of being unfair to the other child when you buy something for one? I had that exact feeling. I just felt that it was unfair not to have something for Bea. So I asked her to choose one from the shelf, as we were on the arts aisle. She picked a cross-stitch kit.
And here is that kit now. Still unfinished, but you can see that for a first project, sheâs doing a great job at it. Not to mention that sheâs enjoying the craft.
So why choose today to give her my collection?
Well, today, Iâll be meeting up with former officemates at the mall. As is my routine, each time I need to be out of the house, I ask my kids who would want to go with me. Itâs my way of involving them in my activities, and at the same time giving them the opportunity to go out and socialize.
This morning, my favorite middlechild joined me in the bed for a cuddle. I always have that time in the morning, before getting up, of cuddling with any one of the kids. This morning, it was Bea.
She knows about my afternoon out with girlfriends, so I asked if she wants to go with me. Surprise, surprise! She did not want to go. When I asked why, she said sheâd rather stay home to finish her cross-stitch project.
And so I got up, opened the drawer where I keep all my hobby kits, and showed her my collection of cross-stitching books, aida cloths, skein threads, patterns, finished and unfinished projects and in between, told her stories of how I chose a particular pattern to work on, how I got into the hobby, where I got my first crosss-stitching book, etc. Most of my projects have dates on them, dating back to 1994. And then I showed her how I use old magazines to tape each pattern on, so that individual patterns that I buy are organized and kept like a real book of patterns, and how I make markings either on the cloth or on the pattern as a technique in making my life easier. đ
We spent half of the morning just talking about the hobby. And while I’m writing this post, sheâs busy finishing her first project.
I donât know if her interest in cross-stitching will last, or if it is just a passing fancy to match the crochet projects of her older sister. But whether this is just a phase or a life-long passion, I commit to support and encourage her all the way.
Meanwhile, I still have my quilting and sewing kits left in the drawer, waiting for the next set of hands to own them.
Do you have questions, comments or feedback about this post?
Please leave me a message, or post them, at my Facebook Page.
by The Happy WAHM
One fine day in May, less than two weeks before my sonâs 9th birthday, I asked him. âWhat would you like Mommy and Daddy to give you for your birthday?â He answered, âJust a hug, Mommy.â I asked why, have I not been hugging him enough? Â He said, he knows we donât have money for gifts, so a hug would do.
My husband lost his job in March, and we have always been honest to our kids about our economic standing. We always tell them, we are not rich. We only have enough. But know that you are loved. And we will do everything we can to provide for your needs. The wants will come later.
And on that day, my son didnât want anything, just a hug for his birthday.
But I insisted. I told him, itâs his birthday, and if he wants something, he just has to tell me, and weâll discuss if itâs something that we can afford.
So he said, âWhen we have money, Mommy, can I have KEVA Planks?â
KEVA what!?
I totally had no idea what it was. Have not heard it before. So, after he went to bed, I Googled it, and found the KEVA site, and fell in love.
My son knows quality when he sees it. Apparently, he found it on YouTube. Heâs been fascinated with structures, which started with the Twin Towers in New York, when he was researching on what happened in 9/11. Heâs been building structures using his number sticks, in the process learning Math and History.
Below are photos of some of them.
New York City
The Pyramids of Egypt
The Stonehenge
Somehow, he stumbled on a video featuring the KEVA Planks, and heâs been dreaming about it since.
I showed the site to my husband, and we agreed that it would be good for our son to have, that it would be a good investment to further nurture his dream of becoming a structural engineer. We also agreed that itâs too expensive, and that shipping might be a concern.
We decided to sleep on it, and talk about it again another day. Had we found the site a year ago, we could have just have gone ahead and placed an order. But our situation is different now. We have to justify every expense, and however much we want to provide our son with something educational, itâs still too expensive for us.
The following day, I could not focus on my work. I kept on thinking about the planks, and how happy my son would be to have them.
Who am I kidding? I know I will be ecstatic to have them. And so will my husband, and our daughters, too. So I posted a shout-out on Facebook and asked if anyone knew where I could get KEVA Planks in the Philippines.
Sadly, no one (at least, not in my network) has heard of KEVA before. I described the product, and some replied with suggestions of variations of building blocks and Lego.
Nah, those will never do.
So, I went back to the site and inquired about shipping to the Philippines. No other than the Founder of KEVA replied to my inquiry, and he pointed me to the Sales Director of MindWare, the company that distributes KEVA, among other brainy toys. It turns out that MindWare has a distributor in the Philippines. I was given a link to the local site. Unfortunately, they donât have the particular item that we want. My husband and I decided that we would get the structures set, but the site only offers the contraption set. I repeatedly tried calling for 2 days at different times, but no one picked up. I decided to leave a message on the contact form, asking if I could order the structures set in maple, and I received a reply with a link to the contraption set in pine.
Sigh!
We celebrated my sonâs birthday with a simple cake, and a promise that Mommy and Daddy are doing everything we can to get him the planks.
After a few days, I received an e-mail from the local distributor, and he asked if we could meet. Me being from the boondocks, I could not commit to a personal meeting, so I sent him a lengthy e-mail instead, detailing our desire to have our hands on that particular box, the 400 Maple Planks. Well, truth is, we actually wanted the 1000 Maple Planks, but that would be too risky on our dwindling finances.
Never heard back from the distributor after that. đ
We considered buying from Amazon, but we were deeply concerned about customs fees. I went back to the MindWare site to see if I could at least get an estimate of the shipping cost. Quite unfortunate though, that they donât offer international shipping for online orders. So, I wrote to MindWare again, and asked if I could order from them directly. We considered buying from them and have the product delivered to my mom-in-law so she could put it in a Balikbayan box and somehow save on customs fees. But my mom-in-law is elderly, and we really hate to put her to so much trouble over some pieces of wood.
I think by this time, Angela, the kind-hearted and ever so patient Director of Sales, was tired of me and my e-mails, and I further aggravated it by asking her for a coupon code. I just thought it wouldnât hurt to ask, you know? A little discount will go a long way, especially with the dollar to peso conversion rate. Â I do this almost everyday in my online work, managing an online shop – create and give discount codes to those we feel deserve to have them. Â Our mantra in the business has always been it’s easier to keep old clients than find new ones. Â So I thought of giving it a try.
You believe that if you pray hard enough and sincerely enough, God will answer? I do. And He did.
I prayed for it as a gift to my son. I prayed for it as a gift to me. On my birthday, I created an online wishlist. Two days after that, I received an e-mail.
She, Angela, wanted to know what particular set my son wants, and asked me for my shipping address.
She was going to send me a set, at no cost.
BUT, I did not see that e-mail until after Typhoon Glenda.
From the day I started my quest for KEVA, Iâve checked my e-mail daily – morning, noon and evening. And always, Ken, the KEVA Founder, and Angela, have been prompt in replying. But after Iâve asked Angela for the coupon code, I did not immediately hear back from her. I was counting the days, and on the fifth day, I just thought maybe itâs not going to work. So I just stopped checking my mail.
Then Glenda happened, and I got so dangerously close to losing my job, too, because we had no power and no internet and my client had to hire someone to take my place while I was offline. I thought, thatâs it. I, too, was going to be out of job. I was on the verge of depression then, but thankfully, I was strong enough to ward off the negative thoughts, and instead focused on improving my coaching module so I can offer it to a wider target market, and used my time offline writing new, and tweaking old, business plans.
And then in early August, just as I was getting my groove back, I decided to check on that e-mail address, and there it was.
I was in shock. An answered prayer! From a total stranger.
I replied, and did not ask why she was doing what she was doing. I just thanked her, profusely, and gave my address.
That night, I posted a status on Facebook about the kindness of strangers. It was cryptic, as I was not even sure if we would actually get the planks. I was trying to contain my excitement and my expectations. I told my husband about the e-mail, but we agreed not to let our son in on the secret yet.
On August 19, at dusk, a delivery van of 2Go stopped right in front of our gate, and my heart stopped. I thought I was going to hyperventilate. I donât know how I managed to open the box without cutting myself in the process.
KEVA Maple 400
And for the first time in a long time, my son, whose bed time had always been 8:00PM, was allowed to stay up way past 10:00PM.
You will surely be seeing a lot more photos in the days, weeks and months to come. Â But for this time, I’m sharing what we have built, so far.
Jude’s Boat
Bea’s English House
Xia’s Contraption
Jude’s Tower
So, what do you think? Â Do you want to have your own KEVA Planks set? Â Please send me a message on my page. Â đ
by The Happy WAHM
Today has been really productive for me and my third grade homeschooler. Â I took time out from my regular WAHM routine and focused on working with Bea on her English lapbook. Â Since we are still waiting for our Science and Math books, we were able to finish our first quarter lessons for English last week, and as our output for the quarter, we decided to make a lapbook of lessons we have covered for the period.
Pictured below is our project we decided to call Bea’s English Garden. Â Remember that we have lots of left over flower cut outs from the Teachers’ Day cards? Â We originally planned of putting them to good use with this project, but like any other plan, changes happen. Â We stuck with the garden theme, but better ideas came up as we were working on the components.
All the papers we used in this project were from our binder of printed lectures and activity notes from the past years. Â We really have used so much bond paper in the past two years that I promised to just re-use them this year. Â And do you know how much broken crayola can accumulate in 6 years? Â That’s another item that I’m not buying this year. Â And maybe in two more years. Â Ha ha! Â I collected all the broken (and some still whole) crayolas around the house and I was able to fill Xia’s old lunchbox with them.
Bea worked so hard on this project, staying up late in her excitement to finish the whole thing. Â She applied the trick she learned from Ate Xia, that of rubbing off the color with tissue paper after applying it on the drawing. Â The effect is a glossy finish and really even coloring. Â It really helped that she is ambidextrous, as she had to cut out all the mango fruits, 48 of them, and then writing 5 examples for each of the 8 types of nouns we have covered. Â She would start to say, “I’m tired,” but she would still push herself to work on it, simply transferring the pen from her left hand to the right.
In creating this lapbook, we went through the process of agreeing on a theme, and then brainstorming on the components that would form part of that theme. Â After deciding on the garden theme, we listed down all the things that we’d like to see in our garden. Â The mango tree was the first to be put up, and so I thought, “there goes the garden, now it will be just a tree.” Â I was thinking that maybe we’ll just put everything in different branches. Â But then she wanted to have the clouds and the butterflies and the flowers. Â So I made her line drawings of everything and she took care of coloring and writing down the topics.
I’d say that mounting the garden has been a resounding success and really quite a great way of completing our first quarter for English.
