Lessons Kids Learn with Farm Pretend Play

It all started when I began preparing for my second child’s first birthday party.  We chose the farm as a party theme.  Then, I used the theme as inspiration in coming up with games and activities during the party.  Our guests loved the theme and the games.  But I guess our kids loved the theme so much that months after my second child’s first birthday party, my kids are still playing and enjoying farm-related games and activities inspired by the games we played at my son’s farm-themed birthday party.  You may click here to read about our farm-themed birthday party program in detail.  Our farm party theme turned out to be a seedbed of many wonderful pretend play scenarios and home school lessons.

The kids actually started learning about the farm even before our second child’s birthday party.  We had been reading books about the farm to them and they really enjoyed it.  Their curiosity about the farm was intensified when we started preparing the materials and props for our farm-themed kiddie party.  We bought plaid tops and farmer hats, plastic fruit and vegetable toys and baskets.  We made farm-related crafts and art projects.  You may click here, here, here and here to see some of them.  We sang and danced to the music of songs about farm animals.  I also taught my kids the barn dance.  My youngest son (the birthday boy) loved it very much especially the tap-tap-tap and clap-clap-clap portion of the dance.  My kids and I still use our costumes and props when we play at home.  It makes us enjoy our pretend play even more.

Here are activities/scenarios that they like to imitate and the lessons they learn while engaging in these activities.

Planting and Harvest time – Reading books about the farm paved the way for our discussions about life on the farm.  One of the things that I was able to discuss with them is the concept/law of the farm that when you plant, you harvest.  But it takes some time before you can harvest.  So, it would be good to be busy with something else while waiting for harvest time.  One time, we drew a farm scene in a manila paper.  My eldest son asked me to draw the vegetables in our vegetable garden.  He and his younger brother colored it.  Then, I scattered the plastic toys in the house and gave each one of them a basket.  They went around “harvesting” fruits and vegetables.  This was similar to the game we had in my youngest son’s birthday party where the kids raced to harvest farm produce.  Talking about harvesting and planting enabled me to introduce farm machines as well.  I read books to them showing these things.

Farmer’s Market – Through our farm pretend play, I was able to share with my kids that farmers sell their farm products in the Farmer’s Market.  They love this pretend play!  Since my youngest just turned one, he’s the customer most of the time.  My eldest is the farmer selling his produce.  Sometimes, he also pretends to sell other farm products like eggs and farm animals.  They use play money in their transaction.  My eldest gets to practice his Math skills in counting, addition and subtraction.  He also gets to practice his writing skills because he puts up signs in his stall.  He learns about the farm business as we play.  My youngest learns to identify objects through their pretend play and to differentiate between fruits and vegetables.  Sometimes, he helps his brother set up his stall by separating the fruits from the vegetables in the display.  We like playing “bring me” games with my youngest son, too.  We’re delighted every time he brings us the correct fruit or vegetable.

Restaurant in the Farm – This is also one of their favorites.  They pretend to cook the vegetables that they harvest from their farm.  Then, they pretend to make fruit shakes.  I teach them simple recipes as we pretend to cook dishes using their plastic toys.  It helps my eldest to become familiar with the ingredients of some dishes.  We use some of my youngest son’s books and pretend they are our menu.  This pretend play teaches them that when they plant, they will not go hungry because they can cook what they harvest.  Moreover, it influences their real food and drink choices.  Pretending to eat fruits and vegetables at play prepares them for mealtimes.  Kids also get to practice their Math and Applied Math skills in this activity as they pretend to run their restaurant.

Caring for farm animals – One of the games we had at my son’s birthday party is to ask the kids to help the farmer/birthday boy to gather his animals back in the farm.  Two teams raced to round out the animals and bring them back to the big red barn.  At home, we read more about farm life.  We talk about where the animals live on the farm, what they eat, what they do, etc.  We also color some cut outs or coloring pages.  Both of my kids loved imitating the sounds that farm animals make.  Sometimes, we imitate their actions, too.  Recently, we went to a zoo where they saw farm animals too.  They enjoyed that field trip very much!

I plan to bring them to a real farm this summer.  I’m excited to see how they would react as they see real farm animals in action and different fruits and vegetables that we usually talk about in our farm pretend plays.  I’m sure they will find that experience fascinating as well. 

School is already over for most kids but it’s still possible for kids to keep on learning this summer.  These kinds of pretend plays can mean hours of fun and learning for your little ones.  Try them and have fun with your kids pretending to be on the farm!

Here are some of the books we have about the farm:

• The Three Little Pigs (with house and finger puppets)
• Clifford’s Animal Sounds
• Big Red Barn
• On the Farm
• Farm (Lift the Flap)
• Click, Clack, Moo, Cows that Type
• Animals by Brainy Baby
• Fruits and Vegetables Lovely Mini Padded Board Book
• Farm Animals (A Mini Magic Color Book)
• Farm cloth book by Fisher Price

* This was originally published at Smart Parenting Online. 

7 Benefits Kids Get from Pretending to be a Doctor

One of my eldest son’s favorite pretend plays, aside from his all-time-favorite of playing store, is pretending to be a doctor.  He would borrow some of the things we have in the house that he often sees in his pediatrician’s clinic or what he sees doctors use during our visits to the hospital (i.e. cotton balls, band-aids, digital thermometer).  Sometimes, he uses other household items and imagines them to be doctor’s things.  Recently, I bought him his own set of doctor toys to help him get into character during his dramatic plays. 

He used to pretend doctor before with me, his dad or our maids as his patients.  Since I have already given birth, his new favorite patient now is his baby brother.  He loves to imitate what their pediatrician would usually do during our visits to her clinic and do the same things to his brother.

I encourage pretend play a lot in our household because I recognize the many benefits that it gives to kids.  I was inspired to mentally take note of the specific benefits that kids get from pretending to be a doctor a few weeks ago while playing with my son.

Let me share some of them with you in this article.

1.     It allows the child to put himself in his doctor’s shoes, try out doctor duties, and consider the possibility of becoming one in the future.  When a child imitates what a doctor does to his patients, the child gets to experience being a “doctor” even for a few minutes or an hour.  His pretend play somehow transports him to the future.  It allows him to imagine himself as a doctor and carrying out doctor duties.  This kind of pretend play can actually be the child’s first step to walking towards his dream profession.  One of the questions I ask my son when he pretends to be a doctor is if he wants to become one someday.  He would always say yes.  I think it boosts his confidence as well that he can indeed become a doctor when he grows up.  I think he also likes what doctors do that’s why he likes to imitate them and become like them someday.      

2.     It makes the child more comfortable with visits to the doctor and the procedures usually done during these visits.  Although my eldest son is not afraid of going to his doctor’s clinic, pretend plays help him become more comfortable with whatever will happen during our next visits especially if he would have to undergo procedures he hasn’t experienced in the past.  Our pretend plays serve as simulations of what can or will happen next time we go to the doctor.  For kids who are afraid to go to the doctor, this kind of play can allow them to experience and realize that doctors are our friends because they help us to become well and that going to the doctor can be pleasant.  Therefore, they need not fear or cry every time.  This kind of dramatic play can help make kids become more cooperative next time they go to the doctor’s clinic when they simply need to drink a vitamin or medicine, or you need to clean their wound.

3.     It provides an opportunity for the child to role-play different medical scenarios including basic first aid and other medical emergencies.  Kids thus learn not to panic when these situations happen and learn how to handle them in the process.  Moms and Dads can use these pretend plays to teach kids what to do when they or someone else gets wounded, injured or sick.  That way, kids can learn the basic concepts of first aid or at least be oriented through play of what to do or whom to call during medical emergencies.  Knowledge of these basic life skills equips the kids even through play and lessens their fear of these medical emergencies since they somehow know what to expect and do during these situations.     

4.     It helps the child practice his communication skills as he pretends to talk to his patients.  Pretend scenarios give us insight into what the child understands about the situation he is trying to imitate.  His words and how he talks to the other kids or people he is playing with allows him to manifest his communication skills.

5.     Pretending to use doctor tools helps increase the child’s vocabulary as he learns the names of the different things used by a doctor.  One of the things I did with my son when I bought his doctor toy set is to tell him the name of each item in his medical kit.  I also told him and explained to him the different uses of his tools.  After some time of playing doctor and using his tools, I eventually hear him use their names as he refers to them during play.

6.     Pretending to write on prescription pads enables children to practice their writing and spelling skills.  During one of our play times, my son got a pen and a small pad of paper.  He said he will write the name of the medicine and vitamin for his baby brother.  I took that as a cue and an opportunity to encourage him to write his full name as well with the word doctor before it just like in his pediatrician’s prescription pad.  He liked the idea instantly.  That has been our daily writing practice in the past weeks.  There are days when he would copy the word doctor and write it in his pad.  But there are also days when he would try to write words from memory aside from his name.  I also searched the web for coloring pages on doctors and printed some so my son can practice his coloring skills too.  You may click here and here to check them out.

7.     It teaches the child empathy for people who are sick or who are not well and encourages and inspires the child to do something to help them.  Through these kinds of pretend play, kids can learn to be extra caring and sensitive to the needs of people who are sick.  Moreover, it allows them to practice the ideal behavior around sick or frail people and in clinics or hospitals.

I plan to buy my son some children’s books about doctors too and maybe a small scrub suit or lab gown that he can use during his pretend plays.  I know that these would further enhance his imagination during his pretend plays.  If you happen to know some good children’s books from our local bookstores or stores that sell small lab gowns or scrub suits, please leave a comment so I can check them out.  Thanks!  Now, I need to get back to our clinic and be my little doctor’s assistant.

* This was originally published at Smart Parenting Online. 

Learn How to be a Hands-On Parent while Earning at the HOPE Summit 2017

Do you ache to bond with your child/children but could not, because you are too busy at work or in your business?

Do you want to know how you can be a hands-on parent even when you feel that you don’t have enough time in your hands to make that happen?

Do you want to learn how to achieve balance in juggling your time between being a parent and an employee/freelancer/entrepreneur?

Do you want to be successful both in your family life and in your career/business?

Do you want your visions for your family life and finances to become your reality?

Do you need help in structuring your time so that you can spend your precious time bonding with your child/children and still move closer if not achieve your finance goals?

I have great news for you, fellow parents! We're having the second run of the Hands-On Parents while Earning (H.O.P.E.) Summit on April 22, 2017, at the Bulwagang Haribon, Insular Life Corporate Center in Alabang. It's a whole day workshop where parents like you and me will have a lot of opportunities to learn.

God gave me this burden in my heart to ache for families who are disconnected and children are lost and confused because their parents are not able to connect with them and guide them well in their growing up years. I'm thankful to God that He gave me the grace to do something to help solve this problem in our society one family at a time through my iHOPE Coaching Program and through the H.O.P.E. Summit.

Here are the 5 main benefits that parents can get out of this learning event/workshop.

1. Parents will have an opportunity to clarify their priorities at this time in their life and align their schedules with their priorities.

   People sometimes think that they know their priorities. But surprisingly, when I run these workshops, people take some time before they are able to write down and rank the top 5 things that are important to them. Moreover, during my workshops, they discover that they are not using their time wisely so that it reflects their priorities in life. Thus, with these realizations, my participants usually become eager to learn strategies and tips that would enable them to live out their priorities through better use of their time.

2. Parents will learn to come up with a list of new habits that they can easily and consistently implement after the workshop so they can be more involved in their children’s lives.

   I like handling workshops because I like my participants to learn by doing. It's a better way to help them learn. Through the exercises that I ask my participants to answer, they get insights into their own lives. The exercises also help them to use the strategies and tips that I share with them. That's the advantage of workshops over seminars only where the speaker just talks and the audience simply listen. That is also why I do my best to make my learning events interactive. We learn more by doing.

3. Parents will discover ways to work smarter so they can free up more time in their schedules to bond with their children.

   I've always advocated for this. I believe that if people know how to work smarter, they would be able to maximize their time. I had been an HR practitioner for decades now. I have seen many employees work long hours but not produce the desired results required of them. I have also seen many employees work efficiently in less the time. I like hiring and keeping employees who are more productive than those who spend too much time and the company's resources but are not efficient in their jobs. I'm glad that I found a way to teach these principles and skills to parents also through learning events like the H.O.P.E. Summit.

4. Moms and dads will be inspired to be hands-on even while earning for their families and will learn tips and strategies on how to be successful in their careers/businesses through the stories of the featured moms and dads (guest panelists) in the H.O.P.E. Summit.

   Like in the first H.O.P.E. Summit, we have invited parents who are already living out the H.O.P.E. lifestyle. There will be work-from-home moms and dads and business owners in our panel again this year. I'm excited to hear their stories, strategies and tips!

5. Parents will have a chance to meet and interact with like-minded parents who also desire to become hands-on parents while earning to their children.

   On top of learning from the speakers and guest panelists, parents will also learn from their interaction with fellow parents. In HR, we call this benchmarking. Since this is a parenting event, this will be called networking with fellow parents. One of the benefits of attending workshops and learning events like the H.O.P.E. Summit is that participants learn through their discussions with fellow participants as well. Sometimes, we learn by talking about our experiences and insights more. Plus, we get inspired and encouraged when we hear the stories of other parents.

I had been running time management, goal-setting and work-life balance workshops for decades. I've always enjoyed and looked forward to these workshops because I know that every time I run these kinds of workshops, I'm making a big difference not only in the lives of my participants but also in the lives of their family members.

So, let me invite you to join me and our guest speaker and panelists at the H.O.P.E. Summit 2017. I assure you that it would not be only worth your time and investment but it would be life-changing for you and your family!

Here's a testimonial from one of the moms who attended the first H.O.P.E. Summit.

Here are some more from previous participants:

“I am inspired to pursue my dream while spending time with my kids.” – Cleesa Bumatay-Soriano

“It gave me inspiration to become the parent that has freedom from corporate work while providing for our family through an entrepreneurial pursuit I am passionate about.” – Dennis Anguluan

“The lessons are inspiring.” – Ging Jusi

Read more testimonials here.

This learning event is highly recommended for parents who:

• want to achieve, experience more, or maintain work-life balance.
• feel overwhelmed, stressed, discontented, or lacking control in their lives most of the time or a lot of times.
• want to be intentional in living their lives and want to take the necessary, concrete steps towards living the life they want or the life of their dreams.
• want to experience order in their lives.
• want to make sure they spend quality time with the people who truly matter to them.

Register here now!

I will give two talks. My talk in the morning will be How to Manage Your Time So You Can Be a Hands-On Parent while Earning. The one in the afternoon is How to Earn Full-Time Income Through Freelancing. I have been a freelance speaker, writer, editor and consultant for almost a decade now. I will be sharing tips on how parents can earn a good income while enjoying the perks of being a freelancer.

My friend Mariel's talk will be How to Practice Positive Discipline. She's also a homeschooling mom and a mompreneur like me. I'm excited to learn from her, too. Her talks on this topic were usually in Quezon City. That's why my husband and I are not able to attend most of the time. So, I took this chance to invite her to speak at the H.O.P.E. Summit which will be held in the southern part of the metro.

You can read more details about the H.O.P.E. Summit 2017 here.

Another good news is that you can still avail of the early bird rate. You can save P500 on your ticket if you buy your ticket on or before March 31, 2017. If you are coming as a couple, you save as much as P1,000!  Click here to secure your seat. If you are coming as a couple, you may get your ticket here. You can also avail of our group rate. If you are a group of four (4) parents, you can pay P8,000 only and that would be savings for each one of you. 

You can pay via Paypal (using your credit card or as a guest even if you don't have a Paypal account) or bank deposits (BPI or BDO).

The registration fee already includes the hand-outs, lunch, light snacks and giveaways from some of our sponsors. Merry Macarons will provide our snacks in the afternoon.

More Reasons to go to #HOPESummit2017

The first 20 parents to register and pay will receive a gift certificate worth P3,000 from Kids Acts Philippines, a performing school for kids who love theater. Noel Comia Jr. who won in the previous Aliw Awards and a semi-finalist in The Voice Kids PH was trained in this theater group. This is timely since it's almost summer time and theater classes will start soon.

We are giving out Hands-On Parent while Earning customized bags to the first 20 parents who will register and pay. This is courtesy of our sponsors My Little Ikbi. This bag would be perfect for the giveaways that participants will get from our sponsors like Moringana and Shepherd's Voice Publications.

Insular Life is also giving away one (1) storybook per parent who will attend the event.

We will also raffle off books from Shepherd's Voice Publication and gift certificates from Kindermusik by Teacher Suzette and Friends.

We encourage you to register for the H.O.P.E. Summit 2017 before we run out of slots. Register here now.

This event is co-presented by Full Life Cube and Insular Life. It is supported by Payoneer, Shepherd's Voice Publication, My Little Ikbi, Kindermusik by Teacher Suzette and Friends, Moringana, Merry Macarons, Mom & Milly Educational Toys, KANSIS Made, Experience of a Super Mommy, Lally's Reflections, Mommy Bares All, Mommy Practicality, My Metro Lifestyle, My World by Mommy Anna, Roller Coaster Ride, Seminar Philippines, The Filipino Homeschooler, The Vine that Writes and WhenInManila.com.

See you at the HOPE Summit 2017!

Is Your Child Gifted? Find out at the Giftedness 101 Talk on February 25

Some say that all children are gifted. Is that true?

What does it mean to be gifted?

If not all children are gifted, how do you know if a child is gifted? What are the signs?

Can children with disabilities be gifted as well?

Is giftedness something acquired through study techniques or learned through mental programming?

Or is giftedness something that a child is born with?

What if a child is gifted? What does a parent need to do?

What's the difference between typical children and gifted children?

Do gifted kids have special needs?

Do you have all these questions in your head as a parent? Are you wondering if your child is gifted?

When you become a parent, your world expands. When I learned that my eldest child is gifted, I devoured every literature I could find on the topic. I attended whatever seminars, workshops or conventions that fit my already busy schedule. I was eager to learn and I was motivated to learn for the sake of my child and for my sake. When I discovered that my second child is also gifted, the more I became determined to learn more about this field. This is because I am a parent of gifted children and I need to learn how to support my children’s special needs and to help them reach their full potential.

Because of this also, I have chosen to help raise awareness on giftedness and to help my fellow parents understand their gifted kids.

On February 25, 2017, I will give a talk titled Giftedness 101. This will be at Playworks, SM Aura Campus from 2 -4 PM.

The topics that I will cover are the following:

• Are all children gifted? What does it mean to be gifted?
• What are the signs of giftedness or twice exceptionality, especially in young children?
• What are the advantages of finding out if your child is gifted or not?
• What are the advantages of hands-on parenting to the gifted or twice exceptional child?
• What should you do when you see signs of giftedness in your child?
• What are the advantages of homeschooling gifted or twice exceptional kids?
• How do you homeschool a gifted child?

Aside from learning more about giftedness and twice exceptionality, parents will also have the opportunity to meet other parents of gifted and twice exceptional children and thus find a support group who will understand the same challenges and joys that they experience.

The registration fee is Php 750. The Early Bird Rate of Php 650 is available until February 14, 2017 only. The parents of students from Playworks get a discounted rate of P500. The registration fee already covers the handouts and light snacks. The snacks will be provided by Mommy Bakes PH.

I'm very excited for this! We're also giving away to the first 20 parents who will register and pay for the GIFTEDNESS 101 talk Gift Certificates worth Php 3,000 each courtesy of KIDS ACTS PHILIPPINES (KAPI). This performing school has been the training ground of the Aliw best Child Performer and The Voice Kids Philippines semi-finalist, Noel Comia Jr.

We will also raffle some prizes from Filway Marketing Inc. who is one of our sponsors. Filway provides good quality learning materials for children. I especially like their product called A Child's First Library of Learning.

Participants get a chance to win this during the raffle at the Giftedness 101 talk.

We will also raffle off several educational toys and materials from Mom and Milly Educational Toys.

This is just one of the toys we would raffle off.

Click here to register for this talk. We have very limited slots so I suggest that parents secure their tickets fast. Buy your ticket here.

I am blessed to get the support of the following sponsors and media partners: Playworks Early Childhood Center, Kids Acts Philippines, Inc. and Filway Marketing Inc., Mom and Milly Educational Toys, WheninManila.com, Experience of a Super Mommy and The Filipino Homeschooler.

My Mommy is Famous: A Book That Made Me Cry

I was in a bookstore and looking for a certain book that I wanted to buy for my kids. While going through the display of books, I saw this book (My Mommy is Famous) and immediately picked it up. I leafed through the pages quickly to see what it is all about. As soon as I got the gist of the story, I decided not to let it go. Yes, I bought it that day even though it was not part of my plan. I still found and bought the book I really wanted to buy. But I added this gem that I found because the story resonated with me.

When I first read the book to my kids aged 8, 5 and 2, there were parts when I could no longer read well because I could not help but cry. I could very much identify with the mom in the story. The other day, I read it again to my kids before their nap time, along with other books. Still, I could not help but break into tears. Well, not as much as the first time, but my eyes welled up fast just the same.

The book My Mommy is Famous and a calendar with Mama Mary in the cover. Mama Mary is one of my role models on motherhood.

Let me tell you why.

The mom in the story is a hands-on mom to her daughter. She did not get a nanny or yaya for her because she wanted to personally take care of her. She attends to her needs. Towards the end of the story, it was revealed that she left her prestigious and high-paying job to focus on motherhood. Her child, at first, did not understand this. She was wondering why she didn't have a yaya and was even envying her classmates who had nannies. But in the end, she realized that she is one blessed child for her mom chose her over her own career.

That's where I always get emotional. When the mom explains to her child why she doesn't have a yaya and when the child finally understands why and appreciates her mom for all that she does for her.

If you have been following my blog, you would know by now that we have a similar story. I also resigned from my prestigious and high-paying job so I can focus on my family. I made this decision a few months after I got married. When I tendered my resignation, I didn't know that I was already pregnant. Actually, it was also the beginning of February when I did that. Weeks after that, we found out that I was pregnant with our first child. I really felt led to make that decision because I was put on bedrest as soon as my pregnancy was confirmed.

Since then, I did not work outside the home anymore as an employee. I only accepted freelance projects or gigs mainly because I wanted to ensure that majority of my time is spent building our growing family and investing in my relationship with my husband and children. I wanted to build a strong foundation for my family and since we were newly married then and our firstborn was on the way, I concluded that that's the best decision to make.

Fast forward to several years later, I'm still working from home and doing home-based business for the same reasons. My kids are still young and need much attention. I want to be present to them most of the time during their formative years. I want to be part of their childhood memories. I want to take an active role in their values and character formation. I want to be the primary influence in their young and tender lives. I want to give them the best care and education we can afford. That meant I would be the primary caregiver and teacher.

One of my latest photos with my 3 kids, all boys.

I liked how the book helps kids understand the lesson in the story and the love and devotion that the mom has for her child. I liked that it helped me communicate and share with my own kids my own reason for choosing to be a hands-on mom to them. The other day, I also emphasized the advantages of having their own mom take care of them as opposed to having a yaya. We've had our own experience of having helpers at home. Their main job is to do household chores. Then, when I get tired taking care of my kids and when I need to work on my laptop in my home office, I let them watch over the boys while I do my job. But these maids proved to be unreliable even for a short while. I would find them just talking to each other and not really engaged in play with my kids or ignoring the kids.

One time, I was surprised to see my kids already climbing our gate while the two maids were chatting with each other. Good thing that I got curious when my kids' voices got a bit loud. This prompted me to look outside the window of my home office and I saw my boys up on our gate. I rushed downstairs and out into our garage and hurriedly put my boys down. I reprimanded the maids for not keeping the boys safe. Their excuse, the boys would not listen when they told them not to climb. Hello! Those are kids! They do no grasp yet the danger of what they were doing. That is why they need to be supervised by adults. That is why I asked the maids to watch over them because I wanted their eyes on them while my eyes were on my work. Sigh.

After several occasions of these maids not really being responsible either with household chores or with occasional child care, I fired them. Actually, even when we had maids, I still do almost everything for the kids. I feed them, breastfeed them, put them to sleep, read books to them, bathe them, teach them, etc. The maids simply assist in cutting their food, cleaning their toys and in watching over the other kids when I am attending to another.

So, these days, when I need to work and the kids are awake, I simply make them play near me where I could easily glance at them and hear them while they are busy playing. At least now I know that they are truly safe.

I don't know if we will ever find a reliable maid in the future. But one thing I'm sure of is that I love being a hands-on mom to my kids and I think I'm going to stick to this lifestyle as long as God permits. It's not easy, but it's surely rewarding. I think that as my kids grow older, they are beginning to understand and realize the value of my devotion and the sacrifices that I do for them. Maids come and go but I will always be here for them as long as I'm alive. Most of all, nothing can be compared to a mother's love and devotion for her children. I think it's the best kind of love next to God's love for us. Do you agree?

I highly recommend this to moms who have a similar story. Although the mom in the story had great achievements and was famous, I think ordinary moms can relate to her reason for choosing to leave her job to prioritize being a hands-on mother to her child. I'm glad that I found this book by Lampara Books. It's part of the Kuwentong Nanay Series. I plan to check out the other titles in the series, too.

Do you have other recommendations of good books about motherhood that can help us parents teach kids to value what their mothers do for them? Feel free to share with me in the comments. I would love to discover more wonderful books. Reading is one of my favorite bonding activities with my kids who are also bookworms like me.

Give Love on Christmas Day Year 5

My family and I watched the movie Christmas on Division Street yesterday morning after having a pancake breakfast that I prepared at home. It is one of the movies I recommended in one of my previous posts here that families can watch to bond this Christmas season. Yes, we're still in the Christmas season. Today is just the 10th day of Christmas. So, don't take down your Christmas tree and decors yet. Savor the season at least until the Feast of the Epiphany of the visit of the 3 wise men or more popularly known as the 3 Kings.

I read some short reviews about this movie before I included it in my previous blog post. I'm really glad I did that. Moreover, I am glad we watched this movie yesterday. It's a beautiful and touching movie. I could not keep my tears from falling minutes after the movie is over. I felt affirmed that my family and I did the right thing on Christmas day this year. (If you want to watch the movie on YouTube, you'll see the link here.)

We have a Christmas tradition that is already five years old. We first did it in 2012. You can read about the first time we did it and what moved me to suggest it to my husband here.

So, what is this Christmas tradition I am talking about? We give out brown bags to street kids.

This was my eldest when we first started this tradition.

I recently shared in my blog post Birthday Cake for the Birthday Boy that we make sure that we have a cake for Jesus as part of our Christmas feast. Aside from having a birthday cake, we go all out by making loot bags for Him, too. We give these loot bags (brown bags) to Jesus' favorites, the poor around us. We've decided to give it to street kids.

Our 3 wise boys or 3 kings ready to bless street kids! 

This photo was taken last year on the Feast of the Lord's Epiphany.

We've been doing this every year, usually on Christmas day. But there was also a year when we gave out these brown bags on the Feast of Holy Innocents (December 28) when we celebrated the first month of our youngest child. Last year, we got very busy and tired on Christmas day so we gave away brown bags and toys on the Feast of the Lord's Epiphany or 3 Kings with our 3 boys wearing crowns pretending to be the 3 Kings.

Our two Kings, Yanthy ands Mateo, giving away brown bags to street kids last year.

Every year, we usually think that we might not find street kids or a lot on the streets on Christmas day because the DSWD also exert effort to clean up the streets by finding shelter for these kids. But we are often surprised that we still find many homeless people, not just kids, roaming or sleeping on the streets on Christmas day. This makes me sad. I always wish each time that we had packed more brown bags.

Yesterday, after watching the movie which was about homeless people, God moved my heart again to ache for these poor people. I wished to have more resources so my family and I could help more homeless people. But God was quick to affirm me by telling me that my family and I already made a difference to the people we gave brown bags to. We may not reach all the homeless in the Philippines or in the world. But we definitely touched the hearts of those who received what we gave away. And as I write this post, God whispers into my heart that writing about our family tradition and experience can inspire and move others to do the same on Christmas day or any day of the year.

I'm so thankful to God for this beautiful family tradition and meaningful family bonding activity. It's a reminder to our family of the true meaning of Christmas... following the example of Jesus Christ and giving Jesus a gift through the poor around us. One of the priests who celebrated the anticipated Simbang Gabi in our parish asked us this question during his homily. "It's Jesus birthday, right? What is your gift to Jesus this Christmas?" Those were some of our family's gifts to Jesus on His birthday this year. But as we gave these gifts, Jesus gave us more. He gave us joy and inspiration.

Let me end this by sharing these words of Jesus in the Bible:

"Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." Matthew 25:40

How to Raise a Prodigy: Lessons I Learned From Parenting One

I bumped into one of my mentors one night in a coffee shop. He asked about my me and my family and I happily shared some updates, including my eldest son's latest adventures on the piano. He and his sons were amazed at my story. He said that my son is a prodigy. It was the first time I considered that. He's right. We have a musical prodigy in our house.

He makes learning music, whether singing songs or playing songs on the piano, look so easy. To him, these activities are as natural as breathing.

I used to play a cd of nursery rhymes/songs to him when he was still a baby. Then, we would dance to the tune of those songs. I would also teach him the actions for those songs. When he became a toddler, he started showing remarkable developments in language and music. He started saying some words before he turned 1 year old and he started singing songs when he was over a year old. When he was already 2 years old, he could sing not just nursery songs but even other songs that he doesn't hear every ay as long as heard them a few times. We loved asking him to sing songs for us and he would sing a song we request him to sing at the drop of a hat! He was an adorable baby!

He liked playing with musical instruments. His first favorite was the guitar because that's what he saw his Dad playing. We also got him a small guitar. He would imitate his dad every time his Dad practices. During Masses, he would sit beside the other guitarists in the choir. He wants to be part of the choir too. He also wants to have his own chord book even though he was only 2 years old then! It looked so funny. But we kept on letting him do what he wanted to do and what made him happy. Eventually, he shifted to our small keyboard because he was having a hard time doing the chord on his guitar with short fingers. It was easier for him to play the piano because he only needed to press the keys.

In the above video, Yanthy was only 3 years. He was singing a song (Only a God Like You) by Tommy Walker, one of his favorite Christian artists. He was trying out the new guitar that his Dad gave him as a gift for his 3rd birthday.

Then, when he was around 4 and half years old, we move to a new house near a Catholic church. We started going to Mass daily. I noticed that he would always look at the pianist serving during Masses.

One day, I got the surprise of my life when I heard someone play some of the Mass songs on our keyboard. It was my little boy! I was amazed because no one taught him. My husband and I do not know how to play the piano. I bought our keyboard just before I got married because I wanted to learn how to play the instrument. But I didn't get to have formal piano lessons and I found the books my husband gave me challenging. In short, I didn't learn. Then, here comes my little boy, playing on our piano one day. He learned by simply watching and listening.

Last night, he served in the Mass again in our parish. He has been serving as a pianist in this church since he turned 7 years old last year (October 2015). He played a new song titled Here We Are. He just learned this song yesterday. After a few hours, he played it as the entrance song in last night's Mass. If he is in the mood and we provide him with the needed resources (like chords, music sheets and ample time to play on the piano), he would learn at least one new song each day.

After the Mass last night, he mentioned to me and a few of our friends that there are now 62 music sheets in his tablet. I was amazed! That means that 62 is the minimum number of songs he has learned to play on the piano! And he only started formal piano lessons around 1 year ago! But that's not all, I said minimum because that number does not include the songs he learned without a music sheet, which is so much more because he first learned to play oido (by ear). He also learned some songs by using the chords only and he improvised on the accompaniment. That number also does not include the nursery songs, classical music, Christmas songs, worship songs, folk songs and many other songs he learned! He said that if we list or count all the songs that he has played since he started, it must be more than a hundred. I think he's right. Wow!

Now, let me share with you the definitions of prodigy that I found.

What is a Prodigy?

From Dictionary.com: a person, especially a child or young person, having extraordinary talent or ability: a musical prodigy.

From the British Dictionary: a person, especially a child, of unusual or marvelous talents.

From Mirriam-Webster.com: a young person who is unusually talented in some way.

From Cambridge Dictionaries Online:

(Prodigy in American English) a child who shows a great ability at a young age: a child prodigy on the piano.

(Prodigy in British English) someone with a very great ability that usually shows itself when the person is a young child.

From Oxford Dictionaries: a person, especially a young one, endowed with exceptional qualities or abilities.

How Do You Raise a Prodigy?

1. Be observant. 

It's so easy to dismiss a child's accomplishments when a child is still growing. This is because a child's accomplishments look ordinary in the beginning. What children exhibit at an early age are skills that most adults already can do; and so, the adults around the child can easily ignore these milestones as ordinary or typical. But when one looks closely and uses the guidelines for achieving milestones, parents can sometimes notice what is extraordinary in their children's milestones or development. This is what helped me discover early on that my eldest son is gifted. I would regularly review the milestones for babies and toddlers from a book that my husband gave me. I would check what things my baby was already capable of doing. I would do this month after month. I would do advance reading also. When I did this, I realized that my eldest was hitting his milestones quite fast, not just in months but in years sometimes. At two years old, he has already mastered concepts taught to pre-schooler and kindergarteners. He was also reading at that age and had a vast vocabulary.

This is a video of Yanthy playing the song Immaculate Mother, which is sang during the novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help. He learned this oido.

2. Believe in your child and in his capabilities. One of the traits I noticed in gifted children or child prodigies is that they have self-confidence. They are risk-takers and they like challenges. They are not afraid to try new things especially in their area of interest. As parents, we can help build their confidence by believing in them,  in their potential and their capabilities. When my son was just starting to play in the Mass, I was so nervous. I kept praying that he would not mess up the Mass by playing the piano. I would ask him repeatedly before the Masses if he is sure he can play the songs right. I would listen to him practice at home. When I hear him play the songs perfectly at home, I am less nervous. If not and he decides he will still play it in the church, I would be praying fervently at the pews. So far, he has been playing well. I'm glad I supported his decision to try and believed in his potential and new-found skill. These days, I still get nervous when he plays new songs. But my confidence in his has also grown in the past year that I saw him improve a lot on his chosen instrument. I noticed that my confidence in him helps build his confidence also. He searches for my look of approval whenever he plays. He feels happy whenever I praise him and his talent.

At my eldest son's first solo piano concert and 7th birthday celebration.

This next video is just last month. It was his first time to play this song for the Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He started learning it around an hour before the Mass. Then, he played it as the recessional.

3. Provide for your child a nurturing and supportive environment. It helped a lot that we provided for our son a number of musical instruments he can play with when he was growing. Since we noticed that he likes making music, those are the kinds of toys we gave him. We also gave him a keyboard or digital piano with 88 keys when he asked for it and we got confirmation from his first piano last summer that he quickly outgrew our small keyboard. I also watched him most of the time when he practices and I even take videos of him practicing. Whenever he has learned a new song, I would document it by taking a video of him. He feels happy that I show him my support by doing these things. I praise him every time I see him practice, try to learn a new song or when I hear him play a song well or perfectly. I let him hear me praise him in front of other people. I share his videos to our relatives and friends. I tell him the compliments that other people say about him. My husband and I provide him with books and opportunities that help him achieve his goals.

One of my ways to destress daily is to listen to my eldest son play music on the piano.

4. Find mentors for your child. 

Since I am not as gifted in music as he is and my husband is not a piano player also, we looked for possible mentors or teachers for our eldest son. Good thing, the church pianist happily mentored him. Also, I found a Yamaha teacher who lives in our village too so we asked her to go to our house to give him formal piano lessons. then, I discovered a performing school that helps children get ABRSM certification for their lessons. We decided to enroll our son in their piano class last year and this year during the summer months. (You may read about our summer experience here in my previous post.) Right now, he's still preparing for Grade 1 certification on the piano.

This is the pianist in our church who inspired in my son to dream of becoming a pianist in our church one day. He not only inspired that dream but he also helped make that dream become a reality. He also taught me and my husband to believe in our son and his abilities more. We owe him a lot!

5. Get out of the way. This is one of the hard lessons I am learning as I raise a prodigy. My natural tendency as a parent is to protect him. I don't want him to be too stressed. I don't want him to be embarrassed. I don't want him to be frustrated. I tend to throw a lot of caution to him. It's not that I believe in him. I do. But I just couldn't shake the fact that he's just a child. He's my little boy. But time and again, he proves that though he has the body of a little boy, he possesses great talent in music. What stresses me or terrifies adults like me, can challenge him positively. I think this comes from his innate desire to learn and do good in his field of interest and in his knowledge of his own capabilities. I remember when he first told me that he wants to have a piano concert for his 7th birthday. I could not believe my ears the first time he said it. I thought he was not serious. But he turned out to be; so, I supportive him and he did get what he wanted. (You may read about it here in another blog post.) Another example is when he tries to learn pieces that are above his level. He doesn't care if a song is for more advanced piano players. As long as he likes the tune, he would start learning it. He is unfazed even when we or his piano teachers would tell him that those pieces are played by those who have been playing the piano for years. I'm glad that over time, I have learned to get out of his way more and more. This has allowed him to soar and do the things he is most passionate to spend time on. Of course, I still give him a lot of reminders, but I give him more freedom now after realizing that he is indeed no ordinary child.

My eldest son and I at his latest piano recital.

I'm really grateful that I made the decision to leave my full-time job years ago. Otherwise, I'm not sure if we would have noticed right away that our son is gifted. I'm thankful that I was able to find and provide the necessary interventions that helped us support his unique needs. I'm also happy that I'm still able to contribute to the family income even as I stay home most of the time because this raising a prodigy can also be costly.

* This post was first published at HandsOnParentwhileEarning.com.