Technically, today is the last day of my maternity leave. I go back to being a corporate slave employee on Monday.

That's another reason, actually, why I haven't been able to update regularly. I'm trying to make the most of my time with my kids while on leave because I will be missing them terribly when I'm back at work.

I still have a couple of days, but I miss them so much already.

Labels: about me, family

Apologies for this delayed announcement, but FINALLY...



Read the detailed birth story here.

Labels: baby, family, frosts, kobe

I wasn't able to post on this blog for two days because I was too busy preparing myself for the approaching D-day of Kobe.

And I can't believe I haven't posted about Baby Frost #2's name! What the hell is happening to me?

Baby Frost #2 will be known to the mortal world as Corvinus Keith, or Kobe for short. For the benefit of those who doesn't know yet, Mr. Frost has a couple of demands when it comes to naming his sons:

1. The full name must always include Keith as the second name. He didn't used to care if it is used as the first or second name, as long as it appears in the child's birth certificate. But apparently, that changed and now he wants his sons to share his initials.
2. The first name should start with a letter "C". And it should go and sound well with Keith.

Issen's full name is Constantine Keith. Actually, we were dead set on naming him Corvinus Keith, but God knows why we changed our minds a couple of days before he was born and wrote Constantine Keith on his birth certificate instead. Probably because John Constantine was way hotter in the movie than what I pictured him to be while reading Hellblazer. I could already see Mr. Frost rolling his eyes, with a thought bubble above his head saying, "What a BS!"

Now where did we get the name Corvinus?

I loved the movie Underworld. Need I say more? For more details, check out this Wikipedia entry.

And where did the nickname Kobe come from?

No, we're NOT fans of Kobe Bryant. In fact, I hate the guy, but Kobe is just the perfect nickname. If a kid who can barely talk will say the name "Corvinus", it would sound something like "Ko-be-nu". And it sounds Japanese, because it is actually a name of a Japanese City.

And yeah, for the last time, we got Issen from a video game, Onimusha 3 to be specific. That's what you get for having geeks as your parents.

Judging by the way we name our kids, you might think we're weird. Wait till you meet us in person.

Labels: family, frosts, kids

Both my husband and my son are sick.

I'm not feeling very well, either.

And there are stuff at work that need my immediate attention.

Talk about wishing to be at several places at one time. And to feel a lot better.

Labels: about me, family, frosts, Issen

Just sharing Issen's most recent video. No words can describe how I feel watching him grow and learn things like this.

Labels: family, Issen, kids

Apparently, none of you wished me luck in my attempt to get my new PC running smoothly over the weekend that's why until now, despite spending a couple of sleepless nights and several restless hours at the office, there are still glitches in my new PC.

It's running okay, but I can't use some necessary programs because (1) I encounter errors while installing them, or (2) they won't run after I install them. Either way, my obsessive-compulsive side won't let me rest until I got everything straightened out.

But since there are more important things I need to attend to, I had to let Mr. Frost do his magic on the PC. He's got something up his sleeve and he promised the PC will be running smoothly by this weekend.

Let's hope he's right.

Let me catch up on some deadlines first, then I'll spill the news on the goings-on on the home front.

Labels: about me, family, toys, update

IT'S NOT MY AGE, FOR GOODNESS' SAKE! (Not that I'll deny it when I really turn 35 seven years from now)

It's how long my parents have been married.

Today is my their wedding anniversary. They've been married for 35 long years. Of course, the ride wasn't smooth every single day, but they stuck together and are good examples of a lasting marriage. They are the living proof that despite , love, commitment, and faith can absolutely help a couple can stay together and withstand all the external factors that many nowadays claim to be factors of a broken marriage.

Anyway, I was thinking of what to give them as a gift. We're not really into giving fancy material gifts, but I really want to have something for them. Like me, they appreciate life's simple pleasures, so it shouldn't be hard to find a gift for them, right?

Not quite.

They're not hard to please, but if I'm gonna give them something, I might as well take their breath away, right? Well, I know they would appreciate a simple all-expense paid movie and dinner night, but unfortunately, my mom's health doesn't allow her to leave the house. Nothing serious, don't worry. It's just that she prefers to rest at home when she has cough, colds, and a little fever.

Having said that, I crossed another option off my list: casino night. My parents aren't big gamblers and they hardly go to casinos, but I'm sure they would enjoy a one-night experience at a casino. A friend suggested I introduce Online Casino to them. However, my parents are not so familiar with computers, much more the Internet, being in their late 60s. I can probably introduce them to this "new" technology, but I don't think they'd enjoy it anyway. They're among the many "seasoned" individuals who refuse complications and modern changes in the simple lives.

Oh well, I'll just have to come up with something. Something that won't burn a hole in my shallow pocket. And I need to do this fast.

Labels: family, sideline

Last night, I had one of the weirdest, yet pleasant, experiences in my life.

For the past several days, it's so hard for us to put Issen to sleep at around 9pm as the holidays messed up his sleeping routine (Read details here). Last night, we finished his "goodnight" video around 930pm, so I turned off the lights and I braced myself for another possibly hour-long battle of authority with the little tyke.

Surprisingly, I didn't encounter any resistance. As soon as the lights went out, Issen voluntarily lied down and had his milk. In about 5 minutes, his eyes are closed and he was lying still already. Usually, it takes about 45 minutes of imposing "No more playing, it's sleeping time already" authority before we reach that stage. I was lying beside him, delighting in Issen's habit of caressing my face while still not believing how quickly he slept.

Suddenly, he took of the bottle from his mouth, eyes still closed, and reached for something in front (or above) us, then said, "Ma-mi ba". He put the bottle back to his mouth and his hand to my face right after saying those words, as if nothing happened, all along his eyes kept closed.

I swear I had goose bumps all over when I heard what Issen said. The first thing that came to my mind was Mommy Val, Mr. Frost's late mother. I was stunned for about 5 rounds. I quickly sent an SMS to Mr. Frost about what happened (he was working out in the garage).

After a few minutes, as soon as I recovered from the initial shock, I concluded that Mommy Val was probably saying goodnight to Issen in his dreams. I began to think (wishfully) that she was indeed with us at that moment. I even went further into thinking that she was the one responsible for Issen's "submissive" attitude when I was putting him to sleep, that she helped me put him to sleep.

I said a silent prayer, then thanked Mommy Val for making her presence felt by Issen. At least that's what I'd like to think about what happened.

Oh the things I'd do for a chance to meet her.

Labels: family, frosts, Issen

I can't believe the holidays are over.

I had fun catching up some sleep and of course, spending more time with Issen. It was great to be with my brothers again. I kinda miss how much fun we have every time our family gets together. It was also a blast spending time with Mr. Frost's sisters, especially Ate Jenny whom we seldom see because she lives with her family at the north end of the country.

I also feel good for Mr. Frost. He seldom gives gifts to his sisters, nephew, and niece due to budget constraints, but this year, we were able to buy them their requests. They all loved our gifts, especially Jewel, who's been bugging Mr. Frost to get her a DVD player.

If there's one thing that I don't like about the holidays, it's how it wreaked havoc to Issen's body clock. Seriously, it's driving me crazy.

He used to serve as our alarm clock and wake up at around 7AM. We'll play for a few minutes on the bed then Mr. Frost will go and prepare breakfast. I'd bring Issen to the garage for his morning walking exercise and when breakfast's ready, we'll go in eat with Dada. After breakfast, he'll go back outside to play some more, this time with the sitter, while Mr. Frost and I prepare for work. Issen usually is ready for his morning TV time and nap (after taking a bath) by the time we leave for work. When we get home at around 8-9PM, Issen is either getting ready to sleep or asleep already. That gives me time to rest from a long day at work and be ready for his nighttime feedings.

During the holidays, though, Issen's almost perfect routine (at least for us) was ruined. And it still hasn't gone back to how it was before. He now wakes up at past 8AM. We still play with him but we have to rush lest we get late for work. He'd take a nap from 11AM till 1PM, sometimes until later. He'd play the whole afternoon and sleep at 7PM, only to wake up before 9PM. Then, when we come home from work at night, he's still wide awake and won't sleep until almost midnight.

That leaves me dead tired and lacking in sleep. As if I don't already lack sleep as it is. Come morning I find myself wanting to stay in bed all day. I certainly hope this is just a phase that we'll get over soon. Either we be able to adjust or Issen goes back to his more sane sleeping routine. For everybody's good, that is.

Labels: about me, family, frosts, Issen

Note: Long post with pics.

And now I've posted batch 2 of our holiday pics, the New year celebration. Check them all out in this album. I've uploaded videos as well, and you can find them here.

Read on for the lowdown on our celebration with Mr. Frost's side of the family.

Brief Notes:
December 26, 2007, Wednesday - Jewel gave birth to VALERA YZABEL MORALES-JOVEN at around 7AM, making Ping, her husband, a very proud father. (The JOVENs)

December 27, Thursday - Ate Jenny, their eldest, arrived at Manila in the afternoon all the way from Laoag City, Ilocos Norte with her husband, Kuya Franz, and kids, Jem and Cheska. (The FELIPEs)

December 28, Friday - Jewel was discharged from the hospital and they brought baby Yza home.

Ping picked us up at Fort Bonifacio in the afternoon. We loaded up and went on a long drive to the far end of Quezon City. We had to stop over at the University of the Philippines (UP) campus, though, because we had some engine trouble. After about an hour, we went on and arrived at their house a little past 5PM.

I let Issen rest for a bit, then I gave him a quick bath. After that, Mr. Frost and I went to SM Fairview with the Felipes for some last minute shopping. Mr. Frost and I have been wanting to buy Issen a small chair and we did buy one at Toy Kingdom. Here it is being used by the tyke when we got home. I chose this one because of its bright color and because it has a picture of a cow, one of Issen's favorite animals these days, at the back rest.

Reading with his Ate Cheska, sitting on his new TV seat

Anyway, he's at a stage when his stranger anxiety is at its peak, but surprisingly, he warmed up very easily to his Ate Cheska. The sweet little girl read to him while he was on his new chair and voila! Instant best friend! Look at him so comfy while Cheska was reading to him. All throughout our stay there, Issen was giving Cheska hugs that he usually reserve for people he likes very much.

The next day, we were supposed to go with the Felipes to the Global Fun Carnival and the Science Expo at the SM Mall of Asia. However, I wasn't feeling well so we just stayed home. I took a couple of pics of baby Yza, and here's our pretty baby girl.


Next morning, Sunday, Kuya Jem greeted Issen "good morning" with his Christmas gift: a classic Thomas and Friends train set. Jem got it as a gift 12 years ago, when he was just a year old himself. Amazing how he (and his parents) took care of that toy for 12 long years! And because of that amazement, I was not able to take a picture of the assembled set. But I did something better: took a video of Issen and the moving train! Click here to see the short video. And here's a pic that Mr. Frost took of Issen's amused face while watching the train move.

Reaching for the train

Monday, we prepared for that night's celebration. My body still felt like lead and I can't move around much. Anyway, we heard mass at around 7PM then we pretty much waited for 12 midnight. I was able to take a picture of Issen fooling around with his Dada at the gate. Look at that precious smile.

Behind bars and happy about it. Should we start worrying? Or saving for bail money?

Unfortunately, Issen fell asleep at around 930PM. He woke up a few minutes before we start opening gifts, but that meant we have a cranky little monster with us. He won't go with anyone else but me, and you can imagine how hard it was for me considering the other load I have to carry inside my body.

Anyway, here are pics of Mr. Frost and his sisters with their respective families.

The Felipes: Tito Franz, Tita Jenny, Kuya Jem, and (in front) Ate Cheska

The Jovens: Tito Ping, Tita Jewel, and Baby Yza

The Frosts: See the cranky little boy?

And here's the whole lot. Nope, no chance of Issen smiling in this one.

Our growing family

We then moved on to the opening of the gifts. Issen was still cranky, but he calmed down bit by bit while we were opening his presents. He finally got his good mood when he saw his new musical hippo toy. Check out in this video how he went around chasing after the toy.

"I own you, Hippo."

We got that gift from the N@W Christmas party, but we opened it just now because we wanted all toy gifts (I kinda figured it was a toy) will be opened during our stay here.

At 11PM, Issen was ready to go back to sleep, so we cleaned him and put on his jammies. His Dada sat beside him as they watch his Sesame Street videos while I get a decent meal. A few minutes before midnight, Issen was fast asleep.

Look at Dada so proud to have put Issen to sleep.

We transferred him to the bedroom and watched the fireworks outside. I kept on going inside to check on him and fortunately, Issen was not awakened by the noise that the midnight firecrackers brought.

We just had several "kwitis" that the kids enjoyed lighting up with Jessa, Issen's sitter. We also had an improvised bamboo cannon that Ping made. Here's a video of how the cannon worked. Other than that, we contented ourselves watching the neighbors' fountains and other types of fireworks and firecrackers. It's a kinda nice feeling being entertained by expensive fireworks and firecrackers and knowing you didn't spend a cent on them.

That pretty much summed up our New Year celebration with Mr. Frost's sisters. It may not be much, but for us, those four days meant a lot. They only have the three of them left for a family, and it brings us great joy that we can all be together at least this time of the year.

More pics in this album, in case you wanna see more.

Labels: family, frosts, holidays

Note: This post is loaded with pics.

Finally, I was able to post our pictures during Christmas! What I've posted in this album were taken from December 24 to 26. Now here's the brief story behind the pics.

My dad chose to clean the car trunk the day before Christmas, during the afternoon, when Issen just woke up from his afternoon nap and his energy level was high. I saw the open and empty car trunk, and this is what I thought I'd do.

Issen the car trunk invader

Whaaat? I thought he looked so cute inside, don't you? I also took a video while he was there. When I took him out and Lolo went on to clean the trunk, we discovered that Issen left his "mark" and peed inside pala. Hehehe. Check out the video here.

When I put him down, he went on and started playing with his Lolo's car maintenance things.


Later in the evening, only four individuals (and a half, if you include Issen ) remained in the house: me, Mr. Frost, and my parents. My brother went with his family and spent Christmas Eve with his in-laws. We didn't bother preparing a fancy dinner since there are only four of us. And since the house helps were on vacation too, we decided to take it easy on Christmas Eve and save our energy and prepare something fancier for Christmas Day lunch, when all my brothers will be with us. Here's us during dinner.

Mr. Frost, me, Papa, and Mama

And yeah, we saved opening of gifts for the next day. So after dinner, we called it a night. And oh, Issen fell asleep hours before dinner so we were able to eat in peace.

The next day, the kids were so excited about their gifts that they didn't bother much eating. They played around the house, waiting impatiently for the grownups to finish eating so we can start the gift-giving. Mr. Frost and my brothers set up the barbecue grill at the yard and cooked the marinated one of my brothers brought.

Christmas Day lunch with my brothers and newphews

Anyway, come gift-giving time, I was the one tasked to get each gift from under the Christmas tree and call out the name of the recipient. Nobody was supposed to open the gift right away. We all waitrd until all the gifts have been disposed off, then we moved on outside to the garage to open them.


I forgot to take a picture of Issen's loots. But it was fun looking at his face as he watch me unwrap his gifts one by one and the way his eyes brighten up each time I hand him an unwrapped gift.



Here's our family picture just before Issen jammied up and prepared for bed.

Am I the only one who wants this picture taken? I'm the only one smiling!

Here's the link to Issen's video while having lunch the day after Christmas. It's a little dark, but he looked so adorable trying to eat on his own. By the way, there are more pics on this album about this particular meal time where Issen showed his secret for a smooth skin.

There. Now watch out for my update about our New Year celebration. I should be able to post it by the end of the week.

Labels: christmas, family, frosts, Issen

With the anticipated coming of Baby Frost #2 on April, there's no doubt our family is growing. Mr. Frost and I have been planning on getting a place and settling down on our own again, just like during the first few months of our married life. No apartment rentals this time, though; we want to own the place we'll be living in.

My dad suggested that instead of buying a brand new house and lot from real estate agents, we could just renovate the garage area and build something on the garage's second floor since part of the lot our house is standing on now is mine anyway.

It's a nice idea and would be advantageous for us in many aspects. One, we could cut down on costs and save a lot of money compared to relocation to a new city or subdivision. Two, lifestyle change would be kept to a minimum since we don't have to adjust to a new route going to and from work. And three, we could enjoy the advantage of having our own house, albeit in the same compound, and still have my parents around at the same time.

I want to stay with them, or at least very physically close to them, for as long as possible because I want them to enjoy the company of my children.

There are disadvantages, of course, and we are still weighing our options. Hopefully we make a decision before it's too late and my dad changes his mind. :)

Labels: family, frosts, sideline

A rockin' and rollin' New Year to everyone!

As usual, I let the New Year greeting rush to pass before I send off my own.

I just got back from our New Year holiday vacation which we spent at the place of Mr. Frost's sister, Jewel, who just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, as I mentioned in this post. And yes, I got the spelling of the baby's name right, VALERA YZABEL, Yza for short.

I'll be uploading our holiday pics within the week, and will be posting the respective stories along. For now, let me catch my breath, settle down, and meet some deadlines.

See yah.

Labels: family, frosts, update, vacation

Just a quick update and newsflash...

First, I'm still resizing our Christmas photos for web posting. The Frost family had a very simple Christmas Eve dinner with my parents but my brothers came on Christmas Day with their families.

Second, Mr. Frost's baby sister, Jewel, gave birth to a healthy baby girl yesterday morning! Welcome to the world, VALERA YZABEL (am not sure about spelling of the second name, but it's something like that). We're spending New Year's weekend with them, along with their eldest sister, Ate Jenny, who's coming to Manila tonight all the way from Laoag City, Ilocos Norte. Will definitely post pics of the new baby here.

Gotta go, will post more later.

Labels: baby, christmas, family, frosts

Another exhausting yet fun weekend for me.

Saturday, Mr. Frost and I were supposed to go to the monthly meeting of breastfeeding support group La Leche League International - Philippines, but since Issen still has cough and colds, we decided to just stay with him instead. I'll attend the next one, Abbie, promise!

I finished wrapping the gifts and rested. I needed to get some sleep but I wasn't able to take a nap because Issen goes berserk whenever he sees me and I can't resist playing with him.

Sunday, Ate Jessa (Issen's nanny) took a day off so Issen has me all day. I was still sleepy when Ate Jessa has to leave at around mid-morning, but I had no choice but get up and attend to Issen, who, by that time, was all bathed up and ready for his morning nap. Alas, the kid didn't want to sleep even after watching his routinary Sesame Street video. Funny because my mom says he always falls asleep after one video. We already watched two, yet he's still up and about. Mr. Frost says he's making the most of our "bonding" time. I couldn't agree more.

Anyway, around lunchtime, when my energy picked up and I finally gave up trying to put him to sleep, he just picked up his feeding bottle, lied down on the bed, and closed his eyes. A few minutes later he was asleep. No videos, no ceremonies, no sign whatsoever of what he's gonna do, he just went right ahead and slept. He went from to in a snap of a finger. Not a hint of warning, even just a single .

He woke up about an hour later, while Mr. Frost and I were having late lunch with SkyClad and girlfriend Crystal. Then I spent the whole afternoon walking after him, making sure he doesn't put in his mouth whatever he picks up in the garage. Then I put him in his bike and we strolled around the neighborhood. I was tired, but I had no time to feel so because I was having too much fun with him. And I know he's having fun too. He had this contented smile on his face that we only see when we spend long quality time with him.

Here are some pics I took last weekend. More pics here.

This is called "gassing up" your bike. Hehehe.


From his upcoming movie, "Batang Gusgusin" (Dirty Kid)


A few more hours and it's Christmas already! Gift-opening time! Yeah!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Labels: family, Issen, weekend

It's been a while since my last Issen post. Got busy doing Christmas stuff like getting gifts for the family.

I don't really give out presents every year because like I said, I'm not really a Christmas-y person. But this year is different. I'm not off buying fancy stuff for every single person I know because we haven't recovered yet from our recent financial struggle (flashback here and a bit more here).

Instead, I decided to make use of what little "talent" I have in graphic design and came up with this.



I did the collage on the left weeks ago for myself. I wanted to have it printed and framed. I just had this idea to use it for the calendar. I had it printed at a local photo studio in 8R and 5R sizes. It will be my gift to some family and friends. At least, those who I know will appreciate my son's charm.

I can give out copies to anyone who want one, just let me know what size you want. Better yet, I'll give you the JPG file and you can have it printed yourself, letting me save from printing fees. Hehehehe! Just kidding.

For my parents and brothers, I made something that I'm sure everyone (in the family) will appreciate.



That's actually one of the pictures taken on Issen's birthday. All of my parents' grandchildren are there and they looked happy. I made it into a motivational poster and had it printed in 8R photos. I'll just attach monthly calendars below and voila! Instant useful gift. By the way, the monthly calendars I'm printing are marked with everyone's birthday and wedding anniversary. Everyone in our immediate family at least.

Also, I've been a regular again at Ebay.ph since I decided to buy something for my nephews and nieces. I can't find anything within my taste and my budget at the malls and I'm in no shape to brave the wonder called Divisoria, which is considered as the shopper's heaven in the Manila, so I took advantage of the other wonder called online shopping. And boy did I get a lot of nice presents for a low price, in the comfort of my desk. And I don't have to go around lugging heavy bags as my purchases will be delivered right at my doorstep. Very convenient indeed.

I discovered and got hooked on online shopping last year, back when I was still pregnant with Issen. I was able to lots of stuff for Issen that time, really cute and inexpensive ones. It didn't matter to me that most of them are second-hand because I had no intention of spending so much on something that my son will use only for a couple of months. Besides, I was picky with the items I purchased.

Anyway, I found more stuff for Issen again this time. I got him playclothes that are brand new but are sold in very low prices as they are export overruns. I also got him pajamas for only Php10 a pair! And other stuff.

That's it for now. I didn't reaize it's so late already. I have to get up extra early tomorrow (or later, as it's way past midnight already) to prepare breakfast for Mr. Frost. He has to undergo a laboratory procedure in the afternoon that required fasting from 8am till 4pm, and the only way I got him to get on with the procedure is my promise to prepare his heavy breakfast.

Mr. Frost is making me practice the "art of bribing," telling me I'd definitely need that for when the kids grow older. Mr. Frost's and my genes are lethal when combined, and since they are defintely well-blended in our children's DNA, we're already preparing for the worst.

Labels: christmas, family, friends, frosts, Issen, kids