What is Your Child Most Grateful For?

I came across a Facebook post of a friend and thought that it's an interesting read. Since my eldest son and I are already finished with our homeschool lessons and he was already playing with his toy cars, I thought of asking him at least the first question in case he's in the mood to answer.

He was hesitant to answer the first question at first. Then, he would whisper his answers into my ear. I encouraged him to say them out loud but he just laughed. 

Anyway, he seemed game. So, I proceeded in asking him as many questions as he was willing to answer. I copied and pasted the questions on a Word file and typed in his answers. I wanted to remember his answers to these questions at this time of his life. He's currently six years old.

His answers gave me a lot of insight to what was going on in his mind and more importantly in his heart.

I believe that it was a wonderful way to cap our afternoon after completing our homeschool lessons. But little did I know that his answers to a couple of questions, particularly question number 8, would bring happy tears to my eyes.

As I've mentioned earlier, while he was playing with his toys, I was asking him questions. He was relaxed and in a good mood. I wanted to seize the opportunity to know him more through these questions. I just kept asking and typing answers as he blurts them out.

But there was one question that made me stop and ask him to come near me so I could kiss and embrace him.

It was this question.

"What are you most grateful for?"

Without batting an eyelash or looking anywhere, he said these words while looking at me...

"Being with you!"

Wow! I was speechless. I just felt the tears roll down my cheeks. Then, I drew him close, kissed him and embraced him. I told him, in my broken voice, that his answer made me very happy. I also added that being with him is one of the things I am most grateful for in my life.

Three words. Three powerful but loaded words from a six-year-old. Suddenly, I felt overwhelming joy for making the choices I have made in the past 7 years of my married life. I'm so grateful too that my eldest son appreciates my decision to be present to him and to his brothers, that it makes him happy and grateful, that he likes me to be with him. Wouldn't all parents want to hear that from their children? I think parents would want to hear that from their children regardless of their ages.

He was and still is one of the reasons I have chosen to work from home and to prioritize my Mommy duties over my work duties. I sometimes get frustrated when I don't meet my personal deadlines or when I am not able to do certain things I am passionate about because there are still MANY things that I need to attend to as a wife and as a mom. Yesterday, however, all those frustrations simply melted away. I felt like I was just handed a BIG REWARD that no amount of money can buy. 

I don't know about you but when I became a parent, so many things in my life changed. It was like my life was overhauled. I personally chose to stay home with my kids most of the time. I prioritized spending time with them over spending time with other people including my friends because my kids are still very young. I thought that my true friends would understand my new priorities and if they are parents themselves, the more that they would understand why it is extra challenging to go out of the house with small kids or a baby in tow, especially when you don't have a helper or nanny to help you out and you don't know how to drive.

So my days were mostly spent being with my kids... Attending to their needs, singing to them, listening to their stories and songs, reading to them, teaching them many things, praying with them, playing with them, cuddling with them, eating with them, etc.

Being a hands-on parent is no easy job. It's exhausting especially if you have more than one child to attend to. But it is also very rewarding like what I experienced yesterday. 

I was grateful that I took the time to ask those questions to my child and that I patiently waited for him to answer. I got to know him more. I gained insight into how he sees himself, what makes him happy, what makes him sad, what his dreams and plans are, what he wants to teach other people and many more.

There was another question that he answered that made feel really loved by my son. 

I asked: "If you can help one person today, who will that person be? And what will you do to help that person?"

He answered, "You! I will help you by playing with Geordan. (Geordan is his baby brother.)"

Isn't that sweet? 

Pondering on his answers confirmed what I have read many times in numerous articles and books. Children want our presence more than our presents. I'm glad that yesterday, my eldest son proved that to me to be true. He did not mention any toy I gave him or any play center that we visited. I'm grateful that my son has learnd a valuable lesson from the choices I have consistently made over the years and that is: People are more important than material things. 

Yesterday, I discovered that my son values my presence more than the toys that he likes to have or the places he wants to visit. I'm delighted to know that something as simple as being with a parent can make him happiest and most grateful.

Photo source here.

How about you? Do you know what your child is most grateful for? I encourage you to take some time to ask. You might want to use the same list of questions I used. Who knows, you might also get a very wonderful surprise like what happened to me! Here is the link to the article I was referring to in this post.

If you want to be with your child more often and you are dreaming of working from home or having a home-based business but are not sure how to transition to this kind of lifestyle or what you need to do to make it happen, I can help you through my coaching program called iHOPE. You can read more about it here.

Does Your Child Run To You?

He ran to me! 

My 8-month-old baby ran to me from the other end of his crib. He is just starting to walk. He can only make a few steps on his own before he would fall again. 

Last night, he ran to me with so much excitement and joy!

His joy was evident and contagious! His smile and excitement were contagious! I could see it in his eyes. I can see it in the way he smiled and moved forward with eagerness. I could see it in his outstretched arms.

Look how big my baby's smile is!
We can see his two lower teeth (his first two teeth) already!

He fell before reaching my hands at the opposite end of his crib but it's okay. His spirit was not dampened. He was simply happy to see me there... present to him... watching him... cheering him... encouraging him... lovingly gazing at him and celebrating his every step.

He was happy, confident and brave enough to run even though he is still struggling with this new skill simply because I was there. My presence spurred him to do something that is beyond his current skill set. I am pleased that this was the effect of my presence to my son.

I am blessed to have these moments with my baby. Actually, I had been so blessed to have these kind of moments with all of my children.

I had been home since I got pregnant with my first child. Thus, I was there to witness and celebrate almost every single day and moment in their young lives.

Then, it dawned on me that my children will not always run to me. So, it's good to seize each and every opportunity to embrace them every time these opportunities come.

I realized that as our children grow older, they will run to us less often. I have seen this in my eldest child who is now 6 six years old. He still runs to me a lot but now that he's older, he runs to many other things as well and to other people. He runs to his toys and his books. He runs to his playmates. He runs to things that make him curious and that excite him or make him happy.

But he still runs to me many times each day. He runs to me to show me the products of his wild imagination. He runs to me to show me something he built using his building blocks or wooden blocks like the very detailed car park building, house or robot he designed. He runs to me to show me his drawings or art works. He runs to me to share something new he has discovered or learned. He runs to me to show the worksheets he has answered. He runs to me to share his accomplishments like the "books" he finished writing and illustrating. He runs to me to share his stories, his plans and his dreams. He runs to me when he is excited, happy, hurt or afraid. He runs to me for help. He runs to me when he has questions.

The same is true with my younger child who is 3 years old. He runs to me to do most of what his big brother does and so much more. He runs to me when he wants to listen to a story or read a book. He runs to me when he wants a kiss and a hug. He runs to me when he wants to be defended or protected. He runs to me when he wants to learn or know something. He runs to me when he wants someone who will listen to him. He runs to me when he wants to sing and dance. He runs to me when he wants his picture taken. 

My children run to me because of many reasons. When they were still babies like my third baby now, they run to me for milk most of the time. They run to me for assistance in doing many things. But as they grow older, they run to me less because they had been learning to do things on their own and to discover new things on their own. But I love that they still run to me to share their new learnings and discoveries afterwards.

I think that running to me has become their default because I have done three things consistently over the years that made them behave this way. And if you want your children to run to you as well, I suggest that you also do these three.

3 Things To Do So Your Children Will Run To You

1. Make running to you an option. Your children wouldn't consider this an option unless you make it known to them that this is something they can do. Let them know that they can run to you through your words and through your actions. Call them or tell them that you are there and that they can approach you. If your children are not used to running to you, encourage them. Don't force them. But keep inviting them. 

2. Be consistently present to your children. You need to be present to your children most of the time especially when they need you the most. That would powerfully convey to them that they can run to you when they want to or need to. Your presence is the most poignant proof that they really can run to you. Your presence will give credibility to your words that they can come to you. When you are not consistently present, they may think that you will not be there next time they want or need to run to you.

3. Make them want to run to you. There are many ways to make your children want to run to you. But these are all rooted in how you make them feel when they run to you. I do not claim that I do all these perfectly all the time. But I do strive to make my children feel this way as often as I can. 

Here are some ways:

• Make them feel welcomed. We parents are always busy and it can be very           challenging for us to make them feel welcomed all the time. I have learned that when we are busy, it's alright to be honest with them by letting them know what we are currently doing and why we are doing the task at hand. But it's also crucial that we still make them feel welcomed most of the time and when they are still little so that when they are older, they know that they are welcomed. Mom/dad is just busy at the moment. When you have deposited much in your child's emotional bank account and made your child feel welcomed early on in his/her young life, your child can accept more easily the times when you will tell him/her that you are currently busy doing something and that you will spend more time with him/her later when your current task is done.

• Make them feel loved. You can make them feel loved with your words. The way you speak to them also communicates your love. Make your actions or gestures communicate love as well, including your facial expressions when they turn and run to you. Children notice a lot of things. You'll be amazed to discover what they usually notice if you take time to ask them and listen to their answers. So do your best that your words, tone of voice, facial expression, gestures and actions all communicate love. 

• Make them feel important. Children feel important when their parents make time for them and the things that matter to them. If your kids are still small, their play time matters to them. Their stories matter to them no matter how trivial these stories are or even when they do not make sense to you. Your presence and willingness to make time to listen to them and to their concerns make them feel important. Your willingness to help them when they need assistance on something or when they have questions communicate to them that they are important enough to be heard.

• Make them feel happy. The wonderful thing about children is that it is easy to make them happy. The simplest things make them smile, laugh and bring them joy. A lot of times, if we just allow ourselves to spend more time with them, we will also catch their joy and find humor in ordinary things or situations. When we regularly make time to pause and make them happy, we teach them to associate happiness with our presence or company. That makes them want to run to us more and often.

• Make them feel safe. One way to make them feel safe to run to you is by being open to them and their feelings. Let them get used to expressing themselves to you whether they are experiencing positive or negative emotions. When they know and have experienced this with you over time, then they will automatically run to you because they know that it's okay to be honest with you. They are safe to be themselves when they are around you. They will feel comfortable with you. Your presence will be a source of comfort in times of trouble and distress. 

Our children will eventually grow up and need us less but if they experience having you as someone they can always run to for anything, they will remember you not only with fondness and gratitude but they will continue to run to you even when they are already adults and parents themselves.

Does your child run to you? What moves your child to run to you?

Do you want to be remembered by your child as the kind of parent he/she can always run to? 

I believe that most parents want to be present to their children but are struggling to do this because of financial concerns. If you are serious in becoming a parent whom your children will always want to run both in good times and in bad, I invite you to take a look at my coaching program called iHOPE with Teresa Gumap-as Dumadag. It's a 3-Step Success System that can help parents like you to become present to your children while at the same time earning money for your family. You can read more about this here.

From Vision to Reality: The Hands-On Parents while Earning (HOPE) Summit

It started as an idea... an idea that did not leave my mind until all the relevant details were so clear to me, I could almost touch them.

I believe that this idea was God-inspired for it was well-aligned with my vision and mission in life. The idea was planted in my heart and was rooted in my life purpose.

What started as an idea blossomed into a beautiful vision. The details seemed to jump out of my head and heart in the days that followed. 

Excitement filled my days as I started to pursue this idea and worked towards making my vision a reality. But my days were not always sunny. I was not always hopeful and sure. There were days when clouds of doubt slowed me down or hindered me from moving forward. There were also days that were so dark, I felt like I was running blind. 

What helped me carry on was my certainty of WHAT I want to see turned into reality (MY VISION) and WHYs I want it to happen. Because my reasons for working hard to make it happen is very clear to me, I was fueled with passion even in the most trying circumstances. My WHYs for choosing to pursue this vision and dream enabled me to remain committed all throughout. 

I did not stop believing that it's possible to turn my vision into reality even in the midst of adversity. 

And so it happened. Maybe not exactly as I originally imagined it to be... But the event I imagined unfolded before my eyes almost as I envisioned it to be. 

As Arnold Schwarzenegger once said, "If you want to turn a vision into reality, you have to give 100% and never stop believing in your dream."

Photo source here.

My reasons for wanting this event to happen far outweighed the challenges that came my way. Thus, instead of letting them to become obstacles in my path towards my dream, I used these challenges to push me to work harder to turn my vision into reality. My WHYs were burning fiercely inside my heart and my VISION was so clear, attractive and exciting that I couldn't help but be pulled towards it even on days when my eyes seemed covered with dark clouds.

I love this quote from Steve Jobs.

Photo source here.

Today, I'd like to take time to thank every one who helped me turn this idea, this vision into reality. I'd like to thank the companies and brands who chose to believe in me and my advocacy and chose to support parents who want to be hands-on with their children while earning for their family.

First, I'd like to thank my friends from Sun Life Financial, particularly my advisor/agent Jackie who introduced me to the wonderful people of PLDT. Through the help of Jackie and Eden, PLDT home became the venue sponsor of the first ever Hands-On Parents while Earning or H.O.P.E. Summit. I am honored to have these companies as co-presentors of the H.O.P.E. Summit together with my own company Full Life Cube.   

Second, I'd like to thank JV All Events for sponsoring the photo and video coverage of the HOPE Summit's morning session and giving me a discount for the afternoon session's coverage. I first met their owner when I was planning for my second child's first birthday party.

Third, I'd like to thank my friends and fellow members of the groups I am a part of who chose to be part of the HOPE Summit by being speakers and guest panelists: Martine De Luna of Make It Blissful, Ginger Arboleda of Manila Workshops, Jomar Hilario of Ideas That Prosper, Katrina Ambion of Mommyfide PH, Denise Bernardo of Indigobaby, Angeli Del Rosario of The Beadlady and Cherry and Jay Castillo of Foreclosure Philippines. Thank you to all of you for sharing your wisdom and inspiring stories to the parents present at the HOPE Summit.

Thank you also to Indigobaby and The Beadlady for the items you provided for our raffle.

I also thank Chef Jon Chua for agreeing to be one of our guest panelists and Chef Raquel Chua of Mama Chows for sponsoring our morning snack during the event. Mama Chows has been sponsoring the snacks in my previous events but it was my first time to meet the couple behind this company last weekend.

I also thank my friend Angelo Yaneza of Balai Pandesal for choosing to sponsor the afternoon snacks during the HOPE Summit.

I'd like to thank Arts by Ayerie for providing the lovely keychain and bag tag giveaways during our event.

I'd like to thank the following sponsors for the freebies and gift certificates they provided:

• Bert Lozada Swim School
• Gymboree Play and Music Philippines
• Halo Philippines
• Kids Acts Philippines
• Kindermusik with Teacher Suzette

I also want to thank the companies/brands who chose to support the HOPE Summit through their booth sponsorship, giveaways and raffle items. 

• Filway Marketing
• Fluffy Pwets
• GPG Bulilit Bookstore
• Heart Shapers Videos
• Mom and Milly 
• Moringana by Organica Asia
• OMF Literature
• Shepherd's Voice Publications

All these brands helped me make my vision of having a bazaar of products that support hands-on parenting and family relationships become reality.

Aside from having a bazaar of products and services at the summit, I also envisioned the following:

• a room where kids can wait should they need to go with their parents;
• a breastfeeding area;
• and organized activity for the kids while waiting for their parents.

All these were realized and I'd like to thank PLDT for providing us with an extra room and Ask Sheryl Today for facilitating the arts and crafts session for the kids.

I'd like to thank Smart Parenting Online for being my media partner again for my event. I'm very grateful for their support for all my previous events and I'm honored that they choose to promote my events in their website.

Last but not least, I'd like to thank the parents who went out of their way to attend the HOPE Summit. I was moved when I discovered that some of them are not from Metro Manila and that there was even a parent who came all the way from Mindanao to attend the workshop. Hearing their stories during the small group sharing inspired me as well.

I am amazed at how all these people and brands/companies helped me make the Hands-On Parents while Earning Summit possible! Truly, when we are clear on what we want, we attract into our lives the very ingredients that will make our dreams come true and turn our visions into realities.

I believe that that's what happened to me as I organized the HOPE Summit.

Are you also holding on to a vision? That vision could be your future. Hold it close to your heart and let it fuel your every move.

Let me end this post with this quote:

Photo source here.

Photo credit: All of the HOPE Summit photos (except the group photo) used in this post were taken by Christopher Salgado.

Check out Hands-On Parent while Earning on Facebook for more photos during the HOPE Summit.

How Conversations in a Child's Home Shape a Child

"The most influential of all educational factors

is the conversation in a child's home."

I shared this quote by William Temple at the Hands-On Parents while Earning or H.O.P.E. Summit last Saturday, wherein I was the main speaker and facilitator.

I shared that one of my ways of being a hands-on mom to my kids is choosing to homeschool them. But I also believe that homeschooling is not for everyone.

You may not choose to homeschool your child. But you can definitely influence the conversations that your child is exposed to. That is one way of being a hands-on parent.

One of the reasons I chose to stay home full time with my children is because I want to have a lot of conversations with them. I also want to monitor and influence the kind of conversations my children would be exposed to.

The kind of conversations that a child engages in or hears at home and even outside the home will shape the child’s mind, heart and soul.

Let me share with you some of the topics that were the subject of my recent conversations with my kids.

Yesterday morning, while having breakfast with my 3-year-old son, we talked about Moses and the parting of the Red Sea. We've read this Bible story countless times and we have done a lot of activities related to it. This story made a positive impact in his young mind and heart. He actually loves pretending to be Moses (complete with costume and staff in hand).

My 3-year-old son during breakfast with him the other day.

The other day, during my conversation with my 3-year-old son, he said that it's good that it rained because plants need water, air and sunlight. That same day, he answered my question correctly when I asked him if he knows who the Bread of Life is or the Bread that came down from heaven. He immediately answered, "Jesus!"


That same day also, my eldest son who is 6 years old, my second son who is 3 and I talked about the books of the Bible. We also talked about trusting God's Word. This was inspired by the story where Jesus asked Peter to step out of the boat and walk on the water.

During breakfast with my eldest one morning, he talked about the rain and how it goes to the dams and goes to the pipes that households get water from. He kept talking about the importance of rain to help maintain the water supply of households. This conversation was triggered by the scheduled water interruption in our area and by the preparations that we made for this (filling up our water containers with water).

The people that your child converses with are powerful influencers. Thus, the quality of conversations that a child is exposed to is a big factor in the formation of a child.

It would be good to ask yourself who it is that your child converses most of the time when he is at home. Is it you? Is it your maid or yaya/nanny? What is the usual topic of their conversations?

I noticed that when my children and maids converse, the maids usually tell stories about the showbiz personalities they watch on tv or movies. They talk about the shows they have seen. They teach my kids the popular songs they like to listen to. These are not necessarily bad but I do not like my kids to be hearing about pop culture all day long. There are also concepts and topics that I would rather my kids learn first instead of these unnecesary information.

That is why I make sure my children spend more time with me and converse with me longer. I also suggest the kind of music they can listen to or songs they can teach my kids to sing. I provide them with books that they can read to my kids while I am working or doing something else. These books serve as spring board to better conversations between my children and our maids.

Now, let me enumerate some of the advantages of having frequent and quality conversations with your child.

1. You provide adequate mental stimulation to the child. Children are always learning. Even simple conversations with them are learning moments for them. They are like sponges when they are young. That is why it is recommended that caregivers talk to babies even before they learn to speak. And once children learn to speak, engage them in conversations so they could practice articulating their thoughts.

This is particularly important in our family because I have a gifted child and a potentially gifted younger child. Since my eldest son is gifted, he usually likes to talk about things or topics that are not the usual subject of conversations for kids his age. If I put him in a traditional or even in a progressive school where he is forced to interact with kids his age, these kids might not be able to discuss the topics he likes to discuss with them because his intelligence is already at a higher level even though he is only 6. 

For example, he likes classical music and he talks about the music of the masters (Bach, Beethhoven, Mozart) a lot. If I let him converse with kids his age or our maids only, the amount of mental stimulation that he needs would not be satisfied. So, I make sure that I get to talk to him about his interests and that I find other people he can talk to about these things. 

My 6-year-old playing the piano as soon as he woke up
even though he had a fever.

2. Your conversations with your child gives him an idea of what he can discuss with you or what topics he can bring up with you. You also fuel your child's curiosity and thirst for knowledge or learning. I do my best to maintain very open lines of communication with my children. I let them reason out with me and I do my best to explain things to them. We talk about almost anything that they want to talk about. That is one of the advantages of being home with them. When they have a question, they can come up to me right away and ask me about it. I can also pause from what I'm doing (most of the time) to answer their questions.    

The conversation I shared earlier about our faith is an example. By discussing these topics in our daily conversations, I'm communicatiung to them that they can talk about their faith anytime. It's not something that they can talk about only on Sundays or when they are in prayer meetings or in retreats. I love that this is the kind of culture that we are building and experiencing in our family because I want my kids to know that our faith should be lived out in every area of our life.

When my children ask questions, I do my best to answer them to the best of my ability. Sometimes, I research or look things up so I can get back to them with adequate answers. When you leave your kids in the company of maids or yaya/nanny most of the time, their questions might not be answered to their satisfaction or not at all. Some maids or yayas/nannies do not have the patience and knowledge to answer the questions of the children entrusted to them. 

3. You can build your child's self esteem through your conversations with him. I read somewhere that the way you talk to your child will become his inner voice. You can use your conversations with your child to make him believe in himself or his capabilities more.

One of the main messages I like to communicate to my sons everyday is that they can do whatever they set their minds on. I let them explore beyond what is typically expected for their biological ages. I don't want them to be limited by what was considered the norm.

For example, I let my 3-year-old play with puzzles that are recommended for kids double his age. I encourage him with my words that he can try if he wants to. We also let him play piano in a real keyboard.

We do the same with our eldest son who is a piano prodigy. We encourage him to play the pieces or songs he fancies even though these are pieces that are usually played by piano students much older than him or by adults already. We encourage him to try and learn. The amazing thing is he is able to do things way beyond what is expected of someone his age. This gives him greater confidence to keep trying new things even when he hears other people say that these pieces or songs are difficult. He doesn't easily give up. 

4. You get to know your child based on your conversations with him. I think this is one of the greatest benefits of having frequent and quality conversations with your child. You get insight into the mind and heart of your child. It has been said that the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Naturally, your child will talk about the things close to his heart or what he thinks about a lot. If you hardly talk to your child, you would not have an idea of his likes and dislikes, what makes him sad or happy from day to day, what his dreams or plans are, what his current concerns are.

I know that my eldest son loves his younger siblings very much because I get to talk to him and in our conversations he tells me that he is learning the songs he is playing in the piano because he wants to play them for his brothers. I know that he loves God and that he has a heart for service because he told me that he is learning to play the songs in the Mass because one day he wants to serve as pianist in the church. I know that it makes him sad when there is no music during Masses and when there are no musicians serving because he whispers to me during Masses that he wished he could play the piano when there is no one to play in church. I know that he has genuine concern for his playmates and friends because one time he prayed and told me that he wished that it wouldn't rain because it was the house blessing of his friend's (our neighbor's) house.

5. Last but not least, your child will pick up or imitate the manner by which the people around him speak. He will imitate the words being used in conversations as well as the manner by which the people around him speak.

I encourage you to take time to observe your child and to listen to him speak and to really pay attention to him as you converse with him. Notice whose influence is evident. Is it your influence or someone else? Are you happy with what you are witnessing or not? In case you're not satisfied, what actions or adjustment are you willing to make?

Investing time in your conversations with your child will surely reap many benefits. But the main benefit your child will get from your regular conversations with him is the knowledge that he is worth your time and attention.

If you want to learn more strategies and tips on how you can be more present in your child's life and have more conversations with him, I invite you to check out my online coaching program called iHOPE. You may read more about this program for parents here.

On Learning New Things for the Ones We Love and Last Call for the H.O.P.E. Summit

My eldest son loves to play the piano. He taught himself to play the piano. He could play by ear once he becomes familiar with a tune or a song. He started doing this when he was 5 years old. Just before his sixth birthday last year, he accomplished his goal of learning how to play the songs usually sang in the daily Masses in our parish. His dream is to one day serve as pianist in our parish so that there will always be music during daily Masses. It makes him sad when there is no musician who can accompany the choir or congregation in the singing of songs.

Aside from playing Mass songs in the piano, he has also learned other songs... classical music, worship songs, nursery songs, the Philippine National Anthem and recently Brahm's lullaby.

He learned how to play nursery songs in the piano even though he was no longer fond of singing these songs because he wanted to teach these songs to his younger brother Mateo who is a toddler. He learned to play the minuet by Bach and Brahm's lullaby because he wanted to play soft music that can lull his baby brother Geordan to sleep.

For my 40th birthday celebration at home, I planned to have a time of prayer and worship with my closest friends. I asked him if he can learn to play a worship song for me so that he can accompany us during the prayer meeting. Days before my party, he started learning it. Then, he played it during the actual celebration. He amazed not just me and his Dad but even our guests!

This boy is consumed with passion in learning the pieces that he needs to learn to accomplish his goals. He sometimes spends hours just tinkering with our piano and watching YouTube videos just to become familiar with the songs he wants to learn. He keeps on trying and practicing until he learns the piece.

This boy is passionate to learn new things because of the people he loves: God, his brothers, his parents.

When I became a mother, I realized that many of the things I used to do and love doing are things that I can no longer do often. One of these things is conducting trainings and workshops. So I searched for other ways to express and practice what I love doing, which is sharing my knowledge and expertise to help people grow and reach their goals and dreams.

I learned new skills also like blogging, publishing, internet marketing, social media management and marketing, running an online business and e-commerce.

I spent countless hours reading as much material as I could lay my hands or eyes on and watching webinars and videos that enable me to learn and grow in these areas.

Just like my eldest son, I was passionate to learn in these areas and to acquire these new skills because of the ones I love... my children and my husband.

I knew that learning these new skills would enable me to spend more time at home with them while still contributing to the family income.

Learning new things is not easy. It's challenging. It can be frustrating sometimes.

But it's also fulfilling especially when you start practicing or using the new skills that you've learned.

I love seeing the look on my eldest son's face whenever he tells me that he has learned a new piece.

He proudly plays his new piece to us and he would do it repeatedly demonstrating his new skill with greater confidence each time. He is so full of joy as he plays the songs that he has mastered for the object of his affections.

I am also filled with joy whenever I learn a new skill and I am able to use it to accomplish tasks faster or I am able to earn through them.

Do you also want to learn new things and acquire new skills so that you can become more hands-on with your children and have more time to bond with them while earning money for your family?

I invite you to JOIN US on August 8 from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM at the AVR of Teltech Building, Boni Avenue, in Mandaluyong for the Hands-On Parents while Earning or H.O.P.E. Summit. Click here to join the event and to get updates on what to expect. It's a whole day workshop where you can learn new things and skills that can help you to become a better parent and move closer to your financial goals without sacrificing your relationship with your kids.

It will be a day of learning and networking with other parents who have the same goals and who have been successful in their chosen niches.

You can even bring your kids with you since we will have a kids' room during the event. All my kids are coming with me actually.

There will be booths where you can shop for books, toys and other learning materials.

You can win exciting prizes also during our raffle. There are also freebies for all workshop participants!

It's exactly a week to the H.O.P.E. Summit! You can still buy your ticket to attend this life-changing event! Hurry! We only have limited seats because of the capacity of the venue.

REGISTER HERE. 

BUY YOUR TICKET HERE.

See you at the H.O.P.E. Summit on August 8! Together, let's learn new things and grow for the ones we love!