Last Call for Summer

Tomorrow is one of my sister's birthday.

Growing up, it somehow felt that days before her birthday marked the last few days of summer. As a child, I remember how it always rained on her birthday (I swear!) and some of her birthday parties had to be cancelled or postponed because of a storm.

Friends and classmates found it amusing (and quite odd)that I almost always say that it'll rain on the 20th of May

(Example: a school mate in post grad was planning a trip to Enchanted Kingdom and I was like, "Nako,wag sa Friday! Uulan non...May 20 yon, diba?")       

 

Anyway, Alonzo has been taking his day baths outdoors in his foldable tub

(the dog chewed up his inflatable pool last year and we haven't been able to replace it yet) and I randomly thought it might be fun to make a water bottle sprinkler for him.

 

 

This is a modification of the original procedure though.  Since this was an out-of-the-blue idea I didn't have time to look for  most of the materials needed, especially for an adaptor for the hose to fit into the water bottle.

 

Here's all that I used:

Hose

Empty plastic soda or water bottle

Nail

Duct tape

 

Step 1: Heat the tip of a nail over a stove or candle and use it to bore holes through the plastic bottle (instead of using a drill) 

 

Step 2: Remove the bottle cap and attach the end of a hose on to the opening (the hose didn't exactly fit on to the bottle so this is where an adaptor would be helpfull)

 

 

Step 3: Tape around the joint between the bottle and the hose

 

Step 4: Turn on faucet

 

I'll have to admit that I kind of semi failed on this one. The water didn't sprinkle out more than I thought it would. The tape around the bottle and hose held up pretty well and didn't leak at the junction. So I'm guessing we just didn't have that much water pressure to produce the same effect as in the tutorial.

 

 

  Well, Alonzo didn't seem to mind and had a lots of fun anyways.

Advanced happy birthday, sis!

 

 

Children's Book for Moms

This may be a late Mother's day post but I am excited to let you know about these 2 Filipino children's books for moms that I realy like.

 

 

This first one is "Hold on Tight" by Peachy Conception.

I bought this before I even became a mom. It is such an endearing and touching story about a mom who suddenly realizes that her son is all grown up.

 

The other book is "Inay, Inaay Ko!" by Segundo Matias.

The story revolves around a boy who wonders to himself why his friends always cry out for their moms. He suddenly finds himself shouting out for his own mom when his school gets all flooded and was put in danger.  

 

I tried to read both books to Alonzo but he said that the stories makes him sad. The little guy is becoming more and more expressive of his feelings right now. He tells us that riding his bike makes him happy and that he gets upset whenever his friends play with his toys without asking.

 

I have a couple of books lined up for me to read to him. At the moment he loves to stick to his favorites: "Guess How Much I Love You", "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom", "I Like It When", etc.. and I could not get past the first few pages of the books I want to introduce to him.   

"The Gruffalo" by Julia Donaldson and "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" by Judi Barrett, he said, make him scared while 

Virginia Lee Burton's "The Little House", Don Freeman's "Curduroy" make him sad. I find it amazing how books could affect a child's emotion.

Hmm...I wonder what "A Wrinkle in Time" would make him feel?

 

Inked!

Alonzo got all curious and excited to see his dad's marked finger after voting. You may already know that purple is his favorite color so it wasn't surprising that he asked if he could also have his finger marked the same way. 

 

 

We simply dabbed his finger with a purple, non-toxic pen. 

Mother's Day T-shirt Project

Last year I stencilled a shirt with a sillouette of my mom-in-law for Mother's day and I forgot to share with you here.

For instructions on how to make this please click here. 

Reusing Alonzo's Diaper Bag

When we had to shop for a diaper bag (wow, this seems like such a long time ago!)I specifically looked for a style that doesn't look anything like a diaper bag and for something I could use after my son graduates from his nappies. 

 

We didn't have to look far as I immediately found what I wanted. Alonzo's Skip Hop diaper bag has served us well for the past 3 years.

 

 

 

 Surprisingly, it still is in pretty good shape considering all the abuse it had been subjected to. 

 

 It is what I use now for my laptop and other stuff!

Toilet Paper Craft: Little Village

If you have been following my blog you probably know by now how much fun I have crafting with toilet paper tubes.

 

My toilet paper roll vintage plane together with my pretend canned food seem to be one of the favorites. (click here, too for another vintage plane version!) 

 

Here’s another toilet paper tube craft that you’ll also enjoy.

 

 

Materials needed:

Toilet paper tubes

Scissors

Glue

Fine point pen

 

Step 1: Fold tissue paper rolls lengthwise 2 times to form a “square cylinder”.

 

Step 2: Make 4 flaps on one end by making vertical cuts on each corner.

 

Step 3: Take 2 opposite flaps and cut each of them to form a triangle.

 

Step 4: Take the other opposite flaps and glue them together.

 

Step 5: Draw out details with a fine tip pen.

 

You may keep the design basic and simple or as elaborate as you want. Either way, you are likely to make more than one!

Orange, Beet and Spinach Salad

My sister made a large order of organic spinach from the ISIP market a few days ago. Spinach isn't something that I regularly find at the supermarket so I get a little excited whenever it is available. Here's a light and refreshing salad that's super easy to assemble.

 

 

 

Ingredients:

Spinach leaves

Beets (boiled and cut)

Orange slices

 

Dressing:

Dijon mustard

Maple syrup

Juice of an orange

Olive oil

 

Just eyeball and combine and mix all the dressing ingredients together, pour over salad and enjoy!