OMG, July is almost over?!

I thought I would be able to blog more during the summer since I didn't have to study but I was so wrong. Miles has been keeping me busy 24/7. I'm gonna miss being at home with him and planning out our days together! But thank goodness for this summer break! Once school starts it is back on the grind and I really appreciate having had this summer of quality time with my big boy.

Oh and about his nappy intervention--which lasted for a lil over a week, Justin and I caved! After that week, we realized that we were torturing Miles and ourselves more than helping him! He doesn't use it as much as he did--only for sleeping--so we are going to keep encouraging him to go to sleep without it but we will not take it away. I'm sure he will be able to ween himself off slowly as he did when I was nursing him. Let's cross our fingers on this one!

Here are some pictures of Miles' summer:


This is his Iron Man mask which he insists we draw on him regularly.

This was one of his favorite things to do.

He finally got to open his Christmas gift from his Aunty Tintin & Aunty Maritess...'tis the season for shave ice!

Darrien gives Miles a bear hug @ the Cache Creek hotel room.

Miles takes a picture of nanay & papo @ Cache (he's a photographer in the making)

Miles & his daddy are in the kiddie tunnel of Splash Zone @ Monterey aquarium.

He loved trying things out at the exhibits.

Big head Sr. & Big head Jr.

He loved watching sardines swim in circles.

And he got a good laugh watching the sardines swim with their mouths wide open, eating.

Our touristy family picture--thanks to the man who took it!

"fine dining"...at Denny's. Hahaha!

Water play @ Dangdang's house.

Aunty Teresa & Uncle Tom with all their children!

Cousin Lucy & Miles keeping each other company @ Oxbow Market.

The Elacio/Sano/Ejanda/Cadabes cousins--Miles, Lucy, Darrien, & Wicket.

Lucy hanging out in the pizark.

Miles is trying to swoop on Lucy's scooter.

Dangdang doing his favorite thing, grubbing!

Nappy Intervention

This was something that I had been avoiding. Besides the obvious fact that Miles is not a baby, why take away something that has been keeping the peace?! I remember watching something on TV and the subject of the pacifier came up and one lady goes, "Well if it keeps my son happy and quiet, I'll keep him on it 'til he's 14--it don't matter!" Hahaha!

It's been 5 days since Miles has been weaned off of his most loved object in the world, his nappy aka pacifier. He has used it to put him to sleep since I had weaned him from nursing. It's a lot of work to put him down for his afternoon nap cause he tries to avoid going to sleep as much as possible. But at night, after we read a few books, he asks us to tell him more stores which we make up, usually involving transformers per his request and he'll fall asleep listening.

The first 2 nights were a nightmare for all 3 of us. I have to admit feeling guilty for taking away his comfort. He would cry and scream for over 2 hours during the day and also at night. It seemed as horrible and difficult as getting a drug addict off of a drug! Seriously, the screaming, crying, tossing, turning, sweaty, sleepless night and day reminded me of a scene off of Trainspotting or Requiem for a Dream. Miles was moody & grouchy all day long--he seemed like another person! I had to wonder where my easy-going son went!? But after we got over that 2-day/2-night hurdle, it has been A LOT better. I actually just hid the pacifiers "just in case." I remember the first night, he actually said to me, "Mommy, why you don't want to share my nappy to me?" And then he asked, "Are you mad at me mommy?" And I responded, "No." Crossing his eyebrows and frowning he tells me, "I'm MAD AT YOU!"


(that was the expression on his face!)

Omg, I wanted to laugh but I just put on my poker face and said, "It's OK if you're mad at me, I still love you." And of course he jumped to the other side of the emotion spectrum and smiled and said, "I hug you mommy." In the morning aftermath, Miles wakes up so proud that he did not use his nappy and loves to tell us that he is a big boy. He's totally associating his big boyness to everything else, including the potty.

This morning, when I took him with me to use the bathroom, he said, "Mommy, pull my diaper down please." So I did, not thinking too much of it. But then he tries to sit on the potty but looked uncomfortable, so he stood in front of it, waited a bit, and the next thing you know I see him peeing in his potty!!!! OMG, that made my day! I was so proud of him, I woke Justin up and we both hugged him and you know the deal...And all Miles had to say about it was, "I'm a big boy--I pee in the potty."

Before, it use to take a really good Hip hop show (like the Blackstar party I went to on Saturday, OMG MOS DEF is the best btw) to make me sooo happy. It use to take finding a few really good records to satisfy me. But now, as a mom, I'm just as ecstatic and more satisfied to watch Miles hit a milestone, like going pee on his own.

Oh, the joys of motherhood!


Miles and Justin like to dress up as ninjas.

Happy Father's Day

Thanks to Bobawts, we (the 10 of us--Bob, Awts, Jen, Eric, Dangdang, Miles, Jus, mom, dad, & i) had a mini-road trip/getaway for the family at my parents' favorite place-to-be, Cache Creek. It is to them what Disneyland is to kids, "the happiest place on earth." So for father's day, in celebration of the fatherly work by dad, Eric, & Jus--as well as celebrating Eric's 26th (OMG! I thought I was 26?!) Birthday--we had rooms and enjoyed swimming with Darrien & Miles. What a family affair--we kept running into more... Miles' Aunty Angela & Aunty Rhea even stopped by at night for dinner while their parents gambled a bit. Performing Saturday night was also Justin's Uncle Tony from Society of Seven so Miles got to meet him along with the other band members who all knew Justin since he was Miles' age.

And while we (Jus & I) did not care to gamble, we still enjoyed the yummy food, the pool, and lounging in the hotel room. Darrien and Miles had so much fun in the pool. It was so nice to have a view over looking the mountains surrounding the hotel. Miles was like, "Yook (look) mommy, Diamond Head!" Poor kid thinks every mountain peak is Diamond head.

After Cache Creek, we chilled at the Elacio crib and had some birthday cake.


Dang dang has his eyes on the prize.


Happy Birthday Uncle Ewick!


Mission accomplished!

Aloha!

Miles and I are have been back from Hawaii for a week now. We really do miss it there! But most of all--Miles is missing his grandparents terribly. Last night, he wanted to play pretend. So I told him I was the baby and he was the daddy and he needed to put me to sleep. So he put his quilt over me, offered me his nappy, hummed, and next thing you know he says, "do you miss papa, baby? how about granma? cry for granma!" And the little sadist is so amused to see me pretend to cry.

Hawaii was so much fun. I hung out at the beach with mama Susan and Miles, I ate food from zippy's and side street inn (omg, i wish there was one of those here!). It was ono! Miles had a good time with his grandparents. He was so at home and before we left he told grandma, "the house is going to be sad cause I'm leaving."

The plane ride back was smooth sailing. I almost panicked when the dvd player did not work after I had promised Miles I would let him watch transformers on the way back. But thanks to the playdoh and markers--we were ok.

When he's not busy with his transformers, he's dressing up as Iron Man. Right now, he's into robots --especially transformers--and super heroes. Iron man, spider man, and batman are his faves.

I got a few short funny stories of the boy, including the very poignant words that come out of his mouth. I will update more but for now, here's some photos:


Miles at the 50th State Fair enjoying his treat!


Miles daily music time fun.


This is how he spent part of his "toy money" from grandma Rosey...he believes he is a super hero!

Here are more from what Miles was busy with in May...


Miles' schools' trike-a-thon


Hangin' with Uncle Eko @ Dolores Park


Kasama + Miles find a treasure!


Visiting Uncle Arjuna, Aunty Christina, & Mousey


Another fun day w/ Kasama @ Train Town


Lunch with Cousin Lucy

I'm going back to Hawaii...

...to pick up the boy! Yay! In the meantime, here are some pictures taken during Lucy's visit to the Bay in May. Justin was able to catch the cousins having some fun at Aunty Lea's:







Miles got to go walking through a forest in Hawaii. He also went to the 50th State Fair which I heard was pretty fun--a place that Justin would go to as a child. Here are a few pictures of Miles on his summer vacation with his gamma & papa:

idle.

Finals is over, thank goodness, and here I am with everything and nothing to do. I'm just waiting around for Justin and Miles to come home already! I'm missing both arms & legs without them. Sometimes it's as if they are just out somewhere (like Wal-Mart), and I'm just waiting for them to return home. I take comfort knowing that they are both having new life experiences on their own! I talked to Miles on the phone last night and he sounds like he is older. He told me, "I'm a bad boy mommmy. Not a good boy!" He really emphasized the "not." And later found out from his gamma that he has been having tantrums when he doesn't get his way--very typical of a 2 year old. I also heard that his papa is not giving in but being stern with his discipline--which is basically taking away his transformer toys until the next morning. He is totally comfortable with his grandparents to show them all the many sides :) Being with his grandparents is also a learning experience for him because they are so great at teaching him new things, introducing him to new words, ideas, and activities.

I miss the big nerd, Justin. He could not get a phone in Korea, so I haven't spoken to him since he left on Tuesday morning. He's in Korea DJing for a HUGE BGirl/BBoy international battle R-16. You can check him out here: http://www.r16korea.com/r16korea_eng.p

It's such a big deal especially since not only is it a collosal jam that gets Korean coverage like how ESPN covers sports events over here, but it's also Justin's first time to go international. (Speaking of go international, I've had so much time to hang out at Target and I love the go international line by Rogan yo)Anyways, back to Justin---I'm so happy, excited and proud of him--he gets to experience something amazing--and have a nice vacation before starting his new job at the Boys & Girls Club. I really appreciate how hard he hustles with DJ gigs. He was born to hustle.

I guess since I'm here in the 707, Justin's in Korea, and Miles is in Waipahu, this is just our time to miss and appreciate each other, and enjoy hanging out with other family members and friends. And, press the reset button.

From now til the morning I leave to Hawaii, I plan on cleaning (what fun!), organizing (even more fun!), watching Sex & the City (yay!), and going hiking somewhere. I'm excited for Hawaii!! :) I will be reunited with Miles and hang out with our ohana. I also hope to just hang out all day long at the beach which is nature's spa, exfoliating my feet with the sand and getting a sea salt treatment in the clean Hawaiian ocean.

Justin has our mac, and I went a few days without the internet. It felt like I was cut off from the world! How sad...so my pops is letting me borrow his mac which I'm using to blog with. Thanks to Christina, she sent me a picture of my boys during a moment when I was missing them badly!

Mama's Day

On Thursday, Miles handed me this for mother's day...


He had painted the pot before he planted the flowers. His teacher has the best activities for his class!

Mother's day will always remind me about the day when I first found out that I was pregnant with Miles. 3 years ago, I got up really early to whip up a huge breakfast for my mom and my aunt. I remember feeling unlike myself--something was different. It was the first time I felt so nauseous but was determined to finish cooking that breakfast for the mothers in the household. I slept for the most of that day and when I woke up the next day, I decided maybe to take a pregnancy test. And that was the beginning of all the changes and joys to come!

Here I am 2 years later, with a bright and silly son. Nothing makes me more happy then spending time with him and Justin, doing something as simple as taking a walk together or drawing pictures, seeing what Miles comes up with. Being a mom was really an on-the-job learning experience! Miles was kicking my behind in those first days! Thank goodness for Justin, he was a natural mom, uh--i mean, dad. I learned a few things from him, from changing diapers to calming a crying baby down. But eventually, I learned on my own with Miles leading the way. It has been such a beautiful experience to just go with the flow of motherhood and truly follow my own intuition in raising this happy toddler, Mileskiii.

I totally appreciate all the hard work my mother has done for my bro, sis, and I growing up. She will still get up early to make breakfast for us when we stayed over. I now understand why my mom got up so early before work to cook us breakfast. She could have easily left us with a box of cereal and milk but she always made it a point to make us a warm meal...rice, turkey bacon, eggs-over medium...I am sooo like her now. I feel like its so important to make Miles a savory and hearty breakfast to start the day.

Anyways, being domesticated is not the only joy of my role as a mother to Miles! Moments like the other night when he's about to fall asleep but rolls over to tell me, "I wuv you mommy" is priceless.

Here's to all the mamas and the kids who give us the best work ever!


Justin & Miles (and I behind the camera!) at Golden Gate Park after mama's day brunch with family.

Gamma & Papa

A week has already passed since Milesʻ grandparents visited last week. He was in heaven with them here. Itʻs amazing how much he remembers from over a year ago--when he was only 1 years old--visiting his grandparents in Hawaii. He was anticipating the time when he would get a visit from his Cadabes grandparents and surely it happened! I swear, the other month, when Miles and I dropped Jus off at Oakland airport, Miles was looking around for his grandparents, thinking that we were picking them up. He totally associates the airport with his papa & gamma! I heard that while I was at my gig, and Jus and Miles were picking up the grandparents from SFO, he was all ecstatic and in shock when he first saw them.

Itʻs a vacation for Justin and I when mom & dad are here because itʻs like the only times when we donʻt have to worry about Miles and interact with him 24/7 because he is so preoccupied with his gamma & papa! What a great break it was! Thanks for everything mom & dad if you happen to read this!!!! We truly are blessed to have such supportive sets of parents on both sides. We all really miss them when they leave--especially Miles. When he woke up in the morning the day they left, he starting crying looking for them! Oh my gosh, itʻs such a sad cry too. I have to keep reassuring him that he is going to see them this month. I started showing him the calendar and explaining to him the days of the weeks, showing him where today is and when gamma will come back. In the meantime, heʻs been reading his "Mele the crab" book he got from gamma & papa and I swear heʻll have me read it 5 times in a row! Itʻs such a cute story so I donʻt mind at all :)

Miles eating his favorite (and his daddyʻs favorite) breakfast..Captain Crunch. I never got to eat this stuff when I was a kid.


Hanginʻ out with Daddy at the record store.


Miles goes digginʻ for wax too!


Happy to be on his mini-vacation in his old stomping grounds, SF.


He loves his gamma!

Appreciating Miles, Jus, & Motherhood

This past week has been nuts. With the passing of Anthony, I am remembering lessons that I learned in 2002-2003 when it comes to lifeʻs impermanence. Hearing the pain in the cries of Anthonyʻs mother and his family, I feel those same pains and think about how precious Miles is to me and I could not even imagine or want to imagine a life without him. I am so thankful for sharing this life with my boys, Justin and Miles. I am going to take more time, each day, to just soak everything in and be in the present, enjoying my life with Miles and Jus. I will stop doing the dishes, take a break from studying, when Miles calls out to me saying, "Mommy! Yook (look)!" I will shut off this mac when Jus yells out to me, "Come here, listen to this new beat I made!" Tonight, I will just take a few more minutes to just watch Miles sleep in his peaceful state and appreciate him. Iʻll take a few seconds to listen to Justin and appreciate his snoring! Haha....

Life really is full of a range of emotions and situations and changes. The good and the "bad." It all balances out somehow. Itʻs funny how one day, I thought we had it bad but we really have it good, being able to share this life with each other. Who cares if I donʻt get an A on the next BIO test. Big deal! There is so much more to life. What I care about most, is making sure that I make Miles laugh a couple times a day. If Iʻm lucky, Iʻll get Justin to laugh too (for the most part, he makes me crack up!). I care about making sure they both know how much I love them every chance I get. Saying "I love you" never gets played out. You really canʻt hear it or feel it enough. I am such a pisces.

Miles is asleep now after a long day of playing and whining. Heʻs been sick with a fever since Saturday. It actually went away last night and early this morning but when I got back from the funeral, his temperature was up again. Thank goodness for motrin. Iʻve also been giving him honey for his cough. But despite being sick, he still manages to play up a storm. The playdoh tools we bought over the weekend has been his favorite thing to do. Heʻs been making pizza pies and cheese, calling himself the "cheesemaker." We really got to slow our roll as far as in buying him toys though! He really thinks he can get anything he wants as long as he adds a "Please mommy?" or "Please Daddy!"

When we watched a bit of Cars today, he was goin off--"I want.....I want...mommy get that! ....daddy buy that for me...please?...please...I want the blue one! the red one!!" oh my goodness it was irritating but amusing! I was thinking "oh no--weʻve created a consumer!" So Justin was real nice about it saying, "Miles, I donʻt think Wal-Mart has the blue one. Watch I will call them to check." He pretends to dial and goes, "Hello? Wal-Mart? Do you have the blue one?...oh, no? how bout the red one?...oh, ok thanks." And Iʻm listening, trying hard not to laugh. But then he goes, "Miles, I talked to Wal-Mart and..."

At that point, I start cracking up so hard...Justin starts laughing. Oh my goodness, I messed it up! Miles was upset, yelling, "the blue one?! the red one?! Please daddy!" I just tell Miles straight up, "Miles we are not going to buy you the red one or the blue one. I know you want it so bad. We are not going to buy it for you."

OMG. To even try to reason with a toddler is ridiculous sometimes. I do it anyway! Miles is so funny that way. He reasons with us. He amazes me with how critical he is already. I forget he is 2 years old sometimes until its time to change his diaper! He was just crying saying, "Iʻm sad!" Then I tell him, I know youʻre sad! Miles is sooo sad!" and then, he throws something at me. I tell him, "Youre sad! Youre mad! You threw something! Time out." And int he corner after he cools off a bit, I tell him, "Miles I know youre sad. Iʻm sad too when you donʻt listen."

But ofcourse, Miles reasons, "No mommy. Youʻre mad. Youre not crying. Youre not sad...Iʻm sad! Iʻm crying."

Ay dios ko! All in all, Iʻm so happy to have a dialogue with this boy. Parenting with Justin has its ups and downs when weʻre stressed, tired, or happy and excited. Iʻm just so thankful to have a great partner to raise a child with. Thanks be to God!

Spring Break

Milesʻ 1st spring break and it started off right with Hiphop weekend to the max. While Jus and I had gigs Friday night, he got to spend the night with nanay & papo. Darrien was off chillinʻ in Hawaii (the place to be for spring break!) but he had a lot of fun hanging out with his grandparents. The next day, he got to go digging with his dad and Uncle Lean who came from Miami for the Renegades 25th anniversary jam. Saturday was the jam so Miles got a chance to go off after he warmed up to the club full of hundreds. Oh by the way, it was his first time to be in a club! Haha...the jam was actually held at city nights, mommyʻs first 18 & over club in SF. Anyways, Miles got to show off his styles and before you know it there was paparazzi gathering around him as he got on the good foot. He was so excited and surprised to see his ninong Dre and Uncle Arjuna. After a long day of sweaty Bbboys and Bgirls, battling, and breaks, we headed back to Vallejo to sleep at nanayʻs house while they were in Vegas. Sunday was full of more fun cause his Uncle Ron and Aunty Rachel aka Kid dragon & DJ Raichous kicked it at the pad and spent some time skratching and dancing with Miles. When they left for SD, Miles was wondering where did all his cool uncles & aunts go?!

Miles is so happy to be home, playing at his playground, sculpting his playdoh, and shooting imaginary guns.

We had to hide the transformer cartoon with all that shooting goin on. it didnt help that i have a hoodie with gun prints. he got all excited when i wore it, now that he realizes and knows what guns are. he was like, "mama! got guns?!" then he pretended to pick the little guns off my hoodie and shoot me with it! maybe i should just put that hoodie away but it is my favorite one! :( the compromises we make for this lil guy.

Thursday is our FRIDAY!

I should be studying for my BIG BIO exam next week, or writing my research paper for Sociology but here I am, procrastinating. Today's our Friday but studying never ends for me. I have been feeling so overwhelmed with school & education planning--I WISH it could all be a little easier. But I learned today that mercury is in retrograde which I'm sure is one of the reasons why I am feeling so off balance and crazy. I wish I could just play with Miles all day and then go skratch at night as a career. Life would be so simple and so sweet. I'd say that Oprah is the one with it all but now that I think of it, she doesn't have a MILES. She's the one missing out, really.

Anyway, today the Cadabes Crew celebrated our "Friday" by doin the suburban thang...going to the mall. Oh yes, what a highlight.


Miles got to ride the carousel 2xs--and hang out with the Easter Bunny. He was so fascinated by this 6" bunny, being hypnotized by the egg that the bunny was waving to him as bait. Funny thing was that I think the bunny lost patience cause Miles was super cautious, literally inching slowly towards the bunch, inch by inch. He barely picked his feet off the ground. Miles even wanted to take a picture!

When we got home, Miles wanted to play dress-up and put on what he calls his "Chinese dragon" clothes. He remembered what the outfits looked like--on the guys controlling the Chinese dragon in SF. He was so happy to be wearing the silky pants and vests. Oh i got a good laugh. It was so cute. And I still remember when his gamma bought it for him--he must have been 2 months old! He looks like a little prince, the golden child!




Oh, and here's him playing dress up earlier this week. It was Halloween in March!

De-de cup

On Friday after visiting Uncle Ruben, Miles got to have a late night playdate with his homie, Jayden, 18 months--he's such a cutie with a raspy, big voice. Sabrina, Jayden's mama, was telling me how she weaned him off the bottle at 12 months. I was pretty impressed! I mean, Miles was already 2 and I still had him on his bottle aka de-de (pronounced deh-deh). Anyways, I left feeling inspired to get the boy off the bottle (yeah, finally right!?). I guess we had him on his bottle still cause we didn't have a problem with him drinking from it really. We didn't have any issues with him and his de-de since he only really drank from it once at night and maybe in the morning if he asked. We knew he would have to stop using it soon but it was just a matter of when we would intervene (in de-de prevention). I guess we didn't see anythang wrong wid partly because it was one of the last remnants remaining from his baby year--our baby year. I still see him as a baby. But in comparison to Jayden who is already off the bottle, I was thinkin, "Yo! Hello! He ain't no baybay!" I really need to check myself and not be indenial of anything so early on! Hehehe...So anyways, that night, he cried a bit when I offered him his sippy cup with soy milk but he took it, being too tired to argue with us. The next day, I explained to him about how baby Ayana, needed his bottles more than him since he was a big boy and doesn't need bottles since he can drink from sippy cups. He totally agreed, wrapping his bottles up in tissue paper, sticking it in a box. He even colored on the box and drew pictures of his de-de and a picture of milk for Ayana to know what was inside (of course, his de-de drawing looked more like a curved line and the picture of milk looked like a long straight line). Anyways, he helped tape up the box and then he parts with it, "bye bye de-de! Baby Ayana's!" Justin makes it seem like he is going out to give it to Ayana who we pretend is waiting outside for her gift from Miles. After that, Miles was real cool about not havin his bottle. Last night, I handed him his sippy cup when he asked for milk and he remembered, "No more de-de. Miles gave it to Ayana."

In a few weeks, let's hope this works with his pacifier aka nappy!!!

Fun February

Miles has had a busy month, spending time with family and friends. Highlights of this month included a friday night out in Frisco for Aunty Christina's birthday, going hiking in the Presidio forest with Lorraine & Diego, and celebrating Ninong Bob's and Aunty Cheryl's Wedding. He got to enjoy a huge piece of chocolate cake afterwards. I'll post more pictures later--but for now here's the new members to our married couple club:



Being in school 3 times a week is a lot of time away from home for Miles. He prefers his time off staying at home, playing with his pixar cars, bboying, sculpting with playdoh, cookin with his ikea pan & spatula, and ofcourse--watching Uncle Qbert's Wavetwisters. I think this is by far, his most favorite cartoon. It's no wonder why though cause it's Hip Hop. (Oh, and it's also psychedelic).

Its been challenging to get him to eat his veggies. Lately, all he's been willing to eat is his granola & yogurt, applesauce, fruits, and sometimes eggs and turkey bacon. Oh, and ofcourse, he loves his udon.



I bought him some Omega 3 gummy vitamins to take along with his multigummyvitamin. Justin has been taking his vitamins also. It's a family affair.

I can't believe it's already March in a few days! I hope to do something fun during our spring break. Maybe a monterey trip or a drive to Yosemite with Lorraine & Diego?.

Miles' decision-making skills

Miles has been making his own choices and decisions, picking thomas shirts over long sleeve knits, hoodies over jackets, yogurt over icecream, Jordans over dunks, etc. The other week, we were chillin' in the studio and he sees daddy's clipper box. He picks it up and tells us, "Cut Miles' hair--like Dang Dang!" (he witnessed Ninang Jen shave Darrien's head the other week).

Ofcourse, I'm thinking, "NO!! I want it to keep growin until its a rice bowl! It's gotten so long & thick!" And Justin is also frowning but shrugging his shoulders. Miles keeps insisting to use the clippers, even though I tried to fool him & just trim his bangs a bit to show him I cut his hair. But Miles still was pretty adamant about it and he says, "like daddy's!"

So today, he's looking more like an overgrown baby or miniture Justin.

Here's the before:


And here's the calbo (bald-headed) now:



Oh well...He is one happy camper with a cold head when he's outside. Another reason to buy more head gear for his dome. His teacher told me the day he came in with his bald head he greeted her with an, "Adrianne! Miles' haircut!", taking off his cap to show off his baldness.

:)

Miles Chapelle

Miles has been messing with us lately. He is really into labeling people into either a 'man' or a 'woman.' The other day, he was like, "mommy...woman...daddy man," and when asked what gamma or nanay was he'd joke, "man!" and say that Uncle Eric was a "woman." It's funny how he gets a kick out of his lil jokes.

Jus and Miles are in Oakland right now while I am home sick with somethin! This is the first time I can just lay here or sit up and type and just listen to some Freestyle Fellowship. I really need to find my cds so that Miles can listen to some real emceein. On another note, OBAMA for PRESIDENT! I registered myself and had Justin register (his first time to vote) for this upcoming Feb.5th election. I am hoping for the best so that Miles and our future children can prosper!

Happy New Year! Miles' 2nd Birthday...

All in all, Miles had a good time--so excited to have company...I think all he ate the whole day was yogurt, ice cream cake, and crackers. Justin and I were just thankful to everyone coming out to celebrate Miles' bday and even sending him cards and presents in the mail (all the mail we've been getting has been for Miles!). Living in the country, it was a drive for many and a plane ride for Miles' gremma and papa! Nanay hooked up the Pilipino Vegan food, my paborite kind, and man--was that cassava, pineapple cake, and icecream cake delicious..MMmmm...







Miles is currently going through papa & gremma withdrawal and imitating gramma, sayin "Aya!" and doin' his "ratoo-ee" (as in ratatouille) dance that he would do for papa. We have been veggin' out and hanging low because in another week--Miles and I will be back in school. He enjoyed a whole week with gramma and papa and a weekend with Rohawn. The morning they left, he woke up looking for papa, making his kuwawa ('sad') face. He really understands that they are here for visits telling us that they are back on a "airpane to Hawaii." By the way, he is a non-stop talker (gets it from his mama). I can't believe my ears when I hear complete sentences--I'm use to one word or two word convos but something really has picked up since the past 2 weeks...He enjoys making Justin and I laugh. Last night, he got into a freeze, facing towards us and yells, "Wassup?!"--callin us out. Hehehe..it's too funny. He also insists that he is a "big boy," correcting me when I tell him that he is my baby. I will try to ween him off his pacifier--which he calls "nap" or "nappy"--by using this whole 'big boy' vs. baby thang on him. My plan is to tell him that his cousin, baby Ayana, needs his nap because she is the baby now and he's grown into his bigboy self. Maybe I'll have him put his naps in a box and have him give it to Ayana when we visit. What do you think? Any suggestions?

Merry belated Christmas!

Been busy unpacking and organizing so here is my lazy blog...a link to Teresa's blog...hahaha!

http://dearestlucy.blogspot.com/2007/12/funny-face.html

and then after you look at that...peep this (another post from the Dearest Lucy blog)...

http://dearestlucy.blogspot.com/2007/12/happy-holidays.html

...that one is special cause you get to see Miles and Lucy git down wit the git down...

...on another note, OMG--Miles is turning 2 in a few days....has it been that long since I gave birth to him?! Where did all that time go?!!

I will update more after his birthday....Happy New Year!

Sponge Miles Square Pants

Miles' teacher Adrianne shares a story with me about her lil convo with Miles:
Last week, she was trying to ease Miles worries when Justin dropped him off, "Don't worry Miles-you'll see daddy soon after naptime-- today is your short day." And so Miles is all sobbing and pouting but he looks down at himself and says, "No. Pants."

And earlier this evening at dinner, Jus, Miles and I went out for some pizza. Miles is all juiced cause he loves his pizza, dancing around on the seat, chewing his food. Jus and I are busy eating too. Next thing you know, Miles is swayin his body, and rollin his neck, mimicking a word he must have overheard me say to Jus some time ago... "Aaah-co-hawwwwl!"
And he says it exactly how I would say 'alcohol' in a drunken stupor: Aaaah-co--hawwwwwl! Jus and I start crackin up and he keeps sayin it, imitating me really well..hahaha...then he starts sayin, "Flaaava!" and interchanging the words.."Oh no", I'm thinking, "I need to censor myself around this boy."

Lil midget got witt.

They really do absorb everythang--like a sponge...bobsquarepants.

post-give thankin'

Happy thanksgiving! I was busy being domesticated, helping my mom in the kitchen all day. Some of the things I whipped up in cluded crab-sushi (Mama Susan's recipe), garlic mash, and sangria...yummy. Aunty Daling even enjoyed a glass telling us over and over, "Before I was cold, but now I feel warm and I feel good!" Hehehe...So for dinner last night, Miles enjoyed gravy and pumpkin pie while Darrien grubbed down on some turkey. Today we are getting ready to visit Ninang Lea, Aunty Theresa, Uncle Tom, and Lucy! Hooray!

Today Miles woke up and I gave him a haircut. It was about time cause he was growin hairflaps over his ears. It is real tricky trying to get him to do anything these days. The haircut compromise was that I would give him some icecream afterwards. Thank goodness for macapuno-- what a healthy breakfast!







The boys' favorite show on demand is Hip Hop Harry. Here's one of them gettin' down...