Category: parenting

Summer 2023

Kicked off the summer vacation with some fun family activities and sewing!

  • Myka’s Hip Hop Dance Recital, which her K teacher attended
  • My work trip
  • Daddy-daughter date
  • Connection Church’s Mega Sports Camp
  • Date night at the gym and Casa Garcia’s
  • San Antonio Riverwalk and Alamo visit

Myka’s Progress

Myka has been going to school for 3 months now and she seems happy and excited to go. When I wake her up around 8 to 8:30 am and tell her she is going to school she would happily get up and say ‘School! School!’ in a British way (shool). 😀

Lately after bath time she would snatch her diaper and pants from me and run to the other room. Apparently, she wants to be put her diaper and pants all by herself. I can hear her grunting and getting frustrated but she doesn’t give up. Often times I feel the urge to come to her rescue and help her but she won’t be happy and push me away. So I help her by not helping her. I need her to feel more confident about doing things on her own and be more independent. 🙂

I realized that it is smart to raise an independent child. One of my former students who visited us this summer was very surprised that Myka eats on her own without being spoonfed. This also encouraged her son to eat by himself because they used Myka as his role model. That was nice 🙂

Daughter finally called me Mommy!



Exactly 1 week ago when we had the introductory class at Little Gym.





They started with the “Hello” song (I think that’s what they called it). The teacher had all the parents and kids in a circle, and the kids take turns saying their names and make the phonics sounds of the first letter of their names. Well, of course my daughter still can’t say her name yet (she’s 2 years 4 months now). So us parents would do it for her. She is also inattentive at this point, wanting to go and explore…





Then we:
– went around doing actions with words that teacher say like Gallop, Run, Hug, etc.
– went jumping on the bouncy “bed”
– teacher showed some skills and made the kids do it
– gathered round again for the “goodbye” song

During the last part of the class, the kids were playing with the balls when I heard “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!”. Husband and I looked at each other and then at our daughter. I was thinking maybe it was some othwr kid but my husband also heard it from our daughter. Husband and I were teary-eyed that our daughter finally said Mommy! She didn’t say Ma, Mom… just Mommy!

We tried to make her say it again but she would not say it anymore…

Then when she woke up from her nap and she heard us talking about it and she just started saying Mommy again! I was so happy! Oh, who could have thought these little things can bring so much joy to a parent’s heart!



Insomnia Diary: Feeling Like Crap at Work Today

We started the night preps really early yesterday, Sunday. Ate dinner early, gave Myka a bath early, read books and we were in bed by 10pm. Still an hour late than scheduled but was still earlier than usual.

I was already feeling sleepy but my dear daughter was still wide awake. She kept on picking her lip and I tell her no, taking off her hands from her lips. I would tell her to hug me and I would hold her hands to prevent her from picking her lips. I would close my eyes and then hear a “pulling sound” and catch her pulling her lips again. I finally spanked her, she cried and I felt bad. Then when I checked, it was already 11:30pm! I got upset and anxious.

She finally fell asleep (I just let her pick her lip because that’s how she puts herself to sleep – but I really just feel bad seeing her bleeding lips/blood-dried lips the next morning) but then now I was wide awake!

I did all I can to fall asleep including:

  • breathing techniques
  • reading an actual book (7 Habits of Highly Effective Families)
  • listening to Sleep stories in my Calm app
  • breathing techniques again
  • drinking water (and peeing again.. and again)

At 4am, I finally decided to text my bosses that I might be late for work the next morning. And then somehow, I fell asleep.

I woke up at 8am, pondered on going to the office or just working from home… then just finally decided on driving to work.

Now I feel like I have a dull headache and my brain is just trying to shut down. 😦

What to do after a sleepless night?