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...

Goodbye City & Hello Country!

Real quick, just wanted to share some pictures via justin's cellphone--they are easier to load but I will get some pictures uploaded from our camera as soon as I find the USB cord. the first two were the last pictures taken of our p-side apartment...can u believe that this dining area was storage for thousands of records?!



i miss our old bedroom and hearing the ocean at night...



Although we are less than an hour away, we miss the city terribly! I am so motivated to go back as soon as I finish with all this schooling. Most importantly, Miles misses his besthomeboy, Diego. He was asking for him so much and we finally got to hang out with Diego, Lorraine, and Helen over the weekend at the Halfmoon bay pumpkin patches.

Miles has been enjoying country livin at its finest at a playground where you have to pay to get in!?! It's actually one that I use to go to as a kid but it was closed down for over a decade and it is now fully remodeled..just in time for the two monster boys. Miles and Darrien are chessboxin masters already...its a mental workout for these boys.




...and a physical one too!



and check out this cute country pumpkin....



It's been good for the boys since they are together more often. They have their ups and downs, fighting like brothers but cracking up together like little hyhenas. For halloween, we wanted to dress them up as Bert & Ernie. Guess who would play Bert? Hahaha...

Fall Updates

ok it's been challenging to update this thing since I started my semester of good ol college. But, just wanted to fill in a few fun facts about Mileskiii:

1. He's still adjusting to toddler school aka daycare. His days get easier when we part but he still insists on bringin his giraffe--which he calls "Gee-raff" with him everywhere..including down the slide.
2. He sometimes prefers reading books over playing with toys. His favorites include: OhmyohmyDinosaur!, Goodnight San Francisco, Turntable Timmy, and Yum yum dim sum. Oh yeah he also loves The very busy Spider.
3. When he's hanging out with Diego or Dangdang--all rules & manners go out the door. He made Haight St. a playground (kinda scary when you think about how filthy it is there!) and also Red Lobster.
4. He had his photo session with Diego & Gabriel on our last weekend living at our lovely baker beach pad...so sad..we are so sad to leave the city!Anyways, during the shoot, a school of dolphines were swimming just 30 feet away from us and he got so excited (as did I!)and yelled, "Shark!" (hehehe...he really loves Nemo)
5. He is pretty much familiar with most of the alphabets and spells as he reads letters when I'm driving! Ain't that amazing?! I'm still shocked! His favorite is 'W' and he says it with a thick Pilipino accent, "Dawbull-yooo!"
6. He is officially a Vtown boy for now..and went from city to COUNTRY!
7. He is beginning to verbalize what he is feeling. For example, at night, he will lay down and say, "Tired! Sleepy!" This is another thing that makes parenting so much easier.

We are off to Vegas for Miles' Aunty Lesle & Uncle Steve's Wedding! I'm sure I will have more stories and pictures by then! PEACE OUT.

Back to School

I apologize for not updating Miles' blog as regularly as I use to. August has passed us by so quickly and so many changes have taken place. I started taking my prereqs (back to college!), getting ready to apply for nursing programs. I got really lucky and put Miles on the waiting list for the child development center at the school and he got in! His first day of class was on Thursday.

I can't believe he is at this point in his toddler life. I thought his first day of school would be on the day he entered kindergarden but I was wrong. I remembered to bring my trusty camera to take some shots of this very special day :) Anyways, I had to get him up early ( I have an 8 am class--he begins at 7:45am) and get him all geared up. As soon as we arrived, he was a bit hesitant to walk in but immediately sprang forward as soon as his teacher offered to read to him a book on airplanes. Anyway, Miles was preoccupied within the first 3 minutes and I had time to say a quick goodbye & give him a kiss and I was off to my chem class. After a day of studying, I headed back to the Toddler room by 2ish so that I could catch a glimpse of Miles' new weekly schedule will be like. He was super excited to see me (and you know I was too!),screaming, "MAMA!," dancing around and everything. He wanted to show me all the things he played with and he also showed me his new friends. There was about 7 toddlers and 4 teachers. I felt so proud of Miles, hearing from his teachers how cooperative and well behaved he was the whole day. No crying, no fighting, no whining, napping on schedule with the rest of the bunch. They were swearing that he must have been in daycare prior to this but he has seriously been a homebody with me. They also mentioned how "advanced" he was in his speech and social skills, telling me that he was sharing with his new friends throughout the day, talking nonstop. Miles felt at home with the other kids, playing in the sprinklers, eating chicken adobo for lunch, having music time. amongst other activities. One great thing about visiting was seeing how well the teachers interacted with each of the toddlers. They were really patient and great at guiding each one--I felt really good about Miles being apart of this new class. Another good was that Miles did not want to leave. He seriously kept dragging me away from the door, wanting to keep his play going with the other tots. So we ended up staying for over half an hour longer. Anyways, I learned about a parent group for the toddler classes and I think I better get started in my involvement in his education and join. Here are some pictures for your enjoyment:

Double Trouble in July

The safest way to get high..in the sky!


Yeee!


Hanging with Unc Bob and daddy.


Fine dining with daddy and Unc Mikey.


Crusin!


Exfolilating in sand


Waterworld at Papo's frontyard


Unc Mikey hooked me up!


So fresh and so clean, clean.


Attacking daddy with Dangdang.


Miles is pooped!

Word Explosion

So I've read that between 18 months-22 months, toddlers experience what is called a "word explosion." All of a sudden, they are spittin out words like a playa spits game (ok bad analogy--but u know what I'm sayin'). But seriously, Miles is on a roll. It has gotten 1923847928374 times more easier with him being able to verbally communicate with us. Oh my baby is a big boy now!

Miles has even been learning some Spanish and Tagalog. His favorite Spanish word is, "Parque," (translation: his favorite place to be--the park) which he learned from his homeboy Diego. And his first Tagalog word is............."Carga"---which sounds like Cah-ga (translation: carry me!)

He's been doing very good communicating putting together words that he has mastered--meaning & everythangl. For example, every morning, when I'm cooking his breakfast--he says, "Cook?...Carga!....See, cook!" Translation: Are you cooking me for me? Carry me so I can see you cook.

Today, he got so excited that he hit Justin in the face, pretty hard. Justin whined to him and told him he was in pain. So Miles turns to him, holds his arms out wide and says, "Hug." Well, actually sounds more like "ug."

Everything he says is always in the tone of asking a question.

Miles Got Styles

Yesterday, at Bboy practice at Cellspace, Miles came in wearing his baseball cap. I noticed he was looking at the other Bboys--who were also wearing baseball caps, beanies, kangols. He kept touching his hat, identifying with them and gettin' loose on the floor. Everytime he puts a hat on, he starts dancing! It's like everytime he has one, he suddenly becomes too cool to be held by mama or daddy. He's actually progressing on his own, watching them do footwork and he somehow managed to coordinate getting his left leg around, under his right leg. It's not quiet the 6-step yet--more like the 3-step! I guess he really is just a natural born Bboy!

So July has flew right passed us. I can't believe it's our last month at this beautiful apartment! OMG! I'm definitely going to miss this place--the city period. Kimmy, I feel you girl. But at the same time, we will be back. We've been trying to enjoy the easy access to all the great kid-friendly places here, spending more time with Miles' homeboy, Diego, his mama Lorraine, and their other homeboy, Gabriel. Last week, we finally went to the Children's Discovery museum (at the other end of the Golden Gate bridge in Marin). Oh boy, those boys had too much fun. Miles was all soaked from splashing at Tot land's stream. We've also visited the newly renovated playground at Golden Gate Park (next to the Carousel). That place feels more like an amusement park with the crowd of kids going wild. Funny thing is--is that Miles is content with just playing by the large rocks. He has an obsession for rocks and fruits at this point. He is more excited when he sees a watermelon or a stone on the ground than when he sees a new toy. I think he is a 'crystal child' or 'rainbow child.' Google it and you tell me what you think!

Over the weekend, we had the surprise party for Awts. It turned out to be really fun, especially for Miles and Darrien. Miles was barely at my side the whole time, being so preoccupied with his cousin, Victoria, as well as Andre and another little boy. And when he wasn't playing with them, he was with Ninong Bob or Dang-dang. It was a bit hard to get him down for his afternoon nap, with all the loud noises, he was so wound up. But he ended up falling asleep, holding the orange he picked from Papo's tree with Ninong Bob, saying, "Unk Bob...Oran...unk Bob..oran....unk bob...." next thing you know he's out.

Today, Miles spent the day with Justin as I ran errands. Justin calls me to tell me this story about the boy. They were on Clement St., walking around. Miles spots the fruit stands and starts yelling for apples and watermelons. Jus busts out the snacks he packed for Miles, including watermelon chunks. So anyways, Miles starts eating the watermelons...and then starts spitting them out. Next thing you know, a flock of pigeons come down and start eating the watermelons on the ground. Miles tries to chase them away but they keep flying back for more, yelling, "No, no, no, no!" He then looks at Jus and starts whaling, so upset that the birds would not listen to him, eating all his watermelons. And it was the kind of whale he does when lets say, Darrien starts playing with Jus and he wants all of his daddy's attention. Miles is pretty aggressive and territorial. And he's just a little boy! I'm trying not to think too much about the teenage years to come....right now ,everything is pretty manageable and enjoyable!

Btw, 'no' is his favorite world.

Summer Time in the SFC

Miles enjoyed his vacation time in Hawaii-- and so did Justin.

Jus made it in time for dadʻs birthday.

Miles got to spend his last days with all the family and even with his local homeboy, Paulo.




Itʻs been about a week since heʻs been here. Last Thursday, I waited for Jus and Miles to arrive by the magazine stands at SFO. I was so excited, feeling anxious and all jittery. After watching many passengers pass by me, I saw a big long head, Justin, and a little long head, Miles walking down the path. I called out to Miles and he spotted me, running towards me with the cutest smile ever, I was all teary-eyed! I missed him so much! He was so funny, pointing out everything he could name, avoiding eye-contact. And when he finally looked at me, he screamed! Miles had so many words and tricks to share with us, learning so much from grandma and papa in Hawaii. His favorite thing is counting everything but from 1 to 2 (haha!), and pointing out trucks or "chucks" and buses or "bas" and "bikes." We know he misses his grandparents cause everytime he sees pictures of them, he yells their name and looks around to see if theyʻre here. Poor boy! Justin said he was well-behaved on the 5-hour flight back to the bay...




Since then, Miles got to see the Elacio bunch. We took him out Friday night for Ateʻs surprise bowling-welcome-back function at Presidio bowl. Miles and Darrien had a lot of fun, amazed everytime they knocked over the pins.

Then on Saturday, we left Miles with Papo, Lola, and Darrien cause Jus and I DJed Neil & Antoinetteʻs wedding. Check out DJ JusformalJones:


It was painful to leave him again, even if it were just for a day. Even though we came home by 11:30pm, he was still up, waiting for us. The next day, we all decided to go bowling since the boys enjoyed the alley Friday but this time we were at Vallejoʻs Kentwig. The place felt nostalgic! It was dadʻs first time bowling and he even managed to strike! It was women vs. men and unfortunately, we lost by a few points. We had a lot of fun. It felt kinda funny having a family day like that cause I donʻt remember ever doing these things when we were kids but what a great way to make new memories for Miles and Darrienʻs childhood. Iʻm telling you, it feels like we are re-living ours with our kids, and making up for growing up too fast!






Miles is already catching up with his Frisco homies, having had playdates with Isagani at the cool lilʻ Vicente park. And yesterday, he had lunch at his Aunty DJ Bevʻs house, playing with Jacob. Sometime this week, he is going to visit Diego because its been over a month since they played! Time has been going by way too fast!




Our summer days are even better now that Miles is back with us. We got lucky with some sunshine here in the city today. Jus was off so we got to spend the day outdoors. First, we headed to the civic center to buy Milesʻ weekly groceries--organic fruits--you know, this earthboy likes to buy local. He is killinʻ the strawberries already. I should have bought 2 boxes. He had a lot of fun people watching and chillin by the water fountain. Afterwards, we went to the mission where it is always nice and hot, hanging out at Dolores park. Justin and I were big kids, swinging with Miles and climbing the monkey bars and everything. Miles agreed to leave the park when we told him we were going to get ice cream at Mitchellʻs.



He is finally out for the night, still on Hawaii time, and now itʻs time for me to get records together for my gig this Saturday.