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Make Time

11:22:00 AM

It's a mantra not known to many and would be confused with the saying "Take Time.." but Making Time is rooted on a very different idea.

All our lives we are bound by our responsibilities, obligations, relationships, tasks and ties. We are even bound by our passion and abilities. There is always a point when there never seem to be enough time for it all.

When you are at your career's peek, relationships dwindle and time for yourself withers away. And when you find that solace, your work and responsibilities falter and imbalance occurs. We always find ourselves rushing to save a tipping glass somewhere in the hopes of finding time to relax. What people often forget is that There is a Time for Everything.

We only need make time for it.

If you know how to manage your time well enough, you will soon find yourself abundant with it. It's not about rushing things to get done or squeezing in schedules to fit everything in. It's about prioritizing your goals over your indulgences and keeping a straight line of work. Putting boundaries for working hours and setting aside family time makes everything simple.

Making one day a specific day for something helps:

Tuesdates for my hubby.

Sunday for my family.

Saturday with my friends.

Friday for myself.

And every weekdays' morning to work.

You can make time by allotting time. It's like playing Tetris on your day, rotate the tasks and fit them into your hours where they won't block others that might come. When each task fits in, you eliminate the clutter and gain enough room for other activities.

When things are crushing in on you and you feel like tossing in the towel or bombarding the bedroom for hibernation, reset your clock. Game Over is never really over, you can always restart and do better based on experience. Make your schedule, make your priorities and make time work for you as you make each day easier to live through.

Balancing your day, your week, your month, your year and your life all begins in making time. So stop fighting time or avoiding the pending tasks, fit them where they should and enjoy the excess you receive for a hard day's work.

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Teething: Much Ado About Teething

4:34:00 AM

Babies don't grow their teeth until they are about 5 months or more. Some babies will grow their tiny buds at 5 months while others will just start at 9 months or even 11. Babies who start budding after they turned one are called late bloomers.

There's usually nothing to worry about when it comes to a baby's teething schedule. Remember, all babies are different, grow differently and learn in their own pacing. Their milestones don't have a specific schedule so teething is no different.

Late Tooth Bloomers
Either early or late teething is usually hereditary. If you or your partner, as a baby, started teething early there's a high chance your baby will too. If it's common in the family for babies to get their buds at 12 or even 18 months even pediatricians won't jump to conclusions. On some rare occasions, however, late teething could be a sign of a form of malnutrition. Otherwise, it is just all about your the body's pacing so all you have to do is wait and be comforting. Teething can be irritable for some babies.

The Signs, The Symptoms
The symptoms for teething differ each baby so it can be difficult to assume or predict when teething starts happening, until you see a pearly edge protruding from the gums. You also can't tell how long it will last since some babies have faster growth than others. But for the sake of helping parents come close to determining whether or not your baby really is teething, here are some of the most common symptoms:

Swollen and/or Bulging Gums
Drooling (more than you've gotten used to)
An Increased Habit of Biting, Sucking and Chewing on stuff
Fussiness (it comes and goes, but some babies get fussy up until the buds start showing)
Wakefulness (sleepless nights for the both of you)
Rashes on the face (but some babies still don't have it)
Loss of Appetite (seems moodier than usual, and irritable for baby food)

Since not all babies show the same signs the Diarrhea and Fever thing doesn't apply to everyone. Personally, I do believe that Diarrhea and Fever could be signs of teething. My baby showed them a week and a half before his buds poked through his gums.

Is Diarrhea and/or Fever a Sign of Teething?
I asked my husband (a licensed nurse and medical technician: yes he wants this mentioned) about this matter and he explained his opinion. He felt that the reason why these are not considered symptoms is because parents might make a habit of dismissing them as just signs of teething and not a possible sign of an illness.

As common as it is among most moms to claim that Diarrhea, Fever and Rashes (bodily ones) are caused by teething, pediatricians strongly advise parents not to make this assumption . It's still advisable to get your baby checked when he gets a fever or diarrhea, an underlying sickness could be the culprit.

The only explanation my husband could think of as to why some babies do experience Fever or Diarrhea when teething is because their bodies are unfamiliar with the growing tooth. The immune system then acts up to protect the baby from this foreign object. In addition to that, teething usually happens at a time when the baby starts losing immunity from disease, virus, etc. (courtesy of mum's breast milk).

How to Tell if Fever/Diarrhea is from Teething or Not
The only way to determine whether or not the fever or diarrhea is caused by teething is to observe. My baby had his fever for two days (1 and a half, technically) and diarrhea for 1 day. If it had continued on beyond that my husband and I would have brought him to the clinic for a check-up. My husband did notice that our baby's gums were red and swollen which led us to believe he is teething; which he really was.

How Long Does Teething Last?
Around 3 weeks on average. The first few days usually begin with irritability because the gums start swelling up, getting red and bulged. The following weeks focus on the bud rising up to pop out of the gum line. This gum explosion takes a week or so in motion but the period length for the whole tooth to be fully visible varies for each baby.

When the buds start tearing out of the gum line it starts getting painful for some babies and for others, just really irritating and itchy. The reason why babies drool a lot while teething is because when their gums swell they feel uncomfortable closing their mouths completely. They spend their days jaw-dropped because of the feeling of throbbing gums and therefore cause wet, slippery floors.

Where Does the First Tooth Come Out?
The central parts. Check the up and down part of your baby's gums. Usually, it's the "rabbit teeth" that comes out first, but some babies show their buds at the bottom center. The side teeth" only come out when the baby is around 9 to 16 months. Here's the usual schedule for teething and their positions:

Central Incisors (bunny teeth) - between 5 and 12 months
Lateral Incisors (side teeth) - between 9 and 16 months
First Molars (end teeth) - between 13 and 19 months
Canine Teeth (vampire teeth) - between 15 and 23 months (1 and 2 y/o)
Second Molars (next layer) - between 22 and 24 months (1 and 2 y/o)

The Third Molar better known as our Wisdom Tooth don't come out until we are a bit older, and they are permanent ones. The teething tooth buds babies grow are Milk Teeth and will fall off during their toddler years and be replaced with permanent ones as they reach 12 year of age, or younger.

When to Start Worrying

You might want to get your baby checked if he/she hasn't started teething after turning 1 year old. Unless it runs in your family, you shouldn't pass it off as a Late Bloomer syndrome. You baby might not be having enough nutrients or there's an underlying illness causing a delay. Regardless of the reason, you need to act on it to prevent risks.

You should also ask the pediatrician about missing teeth or your baby skipping growing his central incisors and advancing to his canine or molars without it. Some babies even have teeth or a tooth at birth already. There's no direct known cause for this yet but these usually fall off after a day or two. It might need to get removed if it doesn't grow out and poses a threat for the baby's health. In any case, your baby's pedia should know what to do.

Now that you know enough about Teething you can learn to expect properly without panicking over the signs of it or being too relaxed. The next step is going to be a little difficult though when baby starts feeling his buds growing.Stay tune for tips on how to handle a fussy little baby with serious teething issues.

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How to Save More: Shop and Buy Online

12:34:00 AM

Around two years ago, I would go to a mall to shop to pass the time and spend half a day just browsing at stores. Sometimes I find what I'm looking for but sometimes I end up settling for something good enough, but not exactly what I wanted.

Shopping at the Mall as a Mom
Right now, I am not as confident or as excited about malls as I used to. Ever since I gave birth to my baby boy I haven't found the time or money to spend more than three hours at a mall. The longer I spent my days as a new mom, the more I realize there are more drawbacks to shopping than I expected, before giving birth:

Unlike my pre-motherhood shopping bonanza I can only visit up to three stores and only buy one item or none.

Having a baby in tow spells distraction, shortened browsing and a possible diaper call. Now that my kid is a toddler, it's not shopping anymore but chasing.

It's frustrating because the target item should be affordable or on sale. If anything, discounts are the best part about shopping. Honestly, who wouldn't want to pay a few bucks less than what it's really worth.

Getting a drink and some snacks become compulsory. My toddler is always thirsty, always hungry and always wants to ride that car at the activity center. Expenses don't just bloat on a 1-time shopping afternoon, it explodes into an "I-don't-know-where-the-money-went" situation.

The commute is punishing, if you're like me who does not own a car. Either way, the chances of a heavy traffic is like tossing a dice and hoping for a double 1. It hardly goes in your favor and honestly, I feel I spend more time waiting in a vehicle than actually strolling at the mall or park I waited to go to.

Bought the item or not, when I get home it's thrice as tiring as any normal day with a toddler, and I swear if I ever get an urgent email from work I'd effin' toss the laptop out.

Of course I never do it....though I imagine it a lot. You can't blame a tired mom.

Shopping Online from Home
Having listed out my drawbacks from buying at the mall, let me tell you about online shopping. So there's really only one big difference between the two: the other is physical while the other is virtual. To be fair, here are my personal issues with online shopping:

You can see both but you can't touch or asses the other through your 4 other senses. This is a big enough deal for picky shoppers, or if you don't know what you want to buy yet.

It takes a while for the items to arrive, especially if you're in the province. Delivery time takes 2 to 3 working days, sometimes up to 5 days if the online store or seller is busy, overworked or just downright stupid.

Your product might not look exactly like in the photo or you've absolutely been duped and got a fake.

Then there are the benefits of shopping online, right in the comfort of your oooown bed while your toddler is busy writing on the walls, with a clutter of toys spread on the floor and a pile of work buzzing in your mail....home sweet home.

There is no need for you to commute or pay for gas to go to the mall and try your luck on a "possible sale". You can simply check on a promo site or at the online store itself. Try it with Lazada they always have something on sale or promos.

You save money by not having to dish out on extra curricular activities like eating, playing arcades with the kids or ending up at the cinema. Miggy is 2.5 years old so his ticket is already full price. It's expensive because he sleeps halfway through the movie almost all the time.

When you do find something you like online you can delay buying it to look for a cheaper deal elsewhere or just to save up for it. Since you're not pressured you can drop shopping and check back in whenever you like.

Most people would think you could lose it and go all-out when you come face to face with a set of promos. On the contrary, I find myself thinking, rethinking and reconsidering which item to purchase, when and if it is a priority. Because online shopping doesn't provide buyers the chance to hold or experience a certain product, there's hardly any "temptation". If anything, trust issues become your "saving" grace.

You can pay online. Sometimes you'll have to go out and pay at the bank if your client is an independent seller. Most of the time, with online shops, you only need to pay using a credit card or your paypal account.

Online stores deliver straight to your home....so... yeah... serve me beetches! hehe.. The whole "you come to me!" aura of it is kinda nice.

So basically it's all about the freedom to change your mind and the privilege of not having to bear hours of juggling shopping with chasing your kid. Personally, I still love shopping out at the mall, but only when we're going to the movies. Going out for the sake of shopping has become obsolete for me, it's just not practical anymore.

If I'm eyeing something I'll look for it online instead and maybe score a better deal with so many sales and promotions this rainy season.

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