Pooh from London

I almost forgot to tell you about the latest addition to my collection of Pooh stuffs. Hubby got this Pooh teapot for Luke and me as a souvenir from his recent trip to the UK, more specifically to London and Canterbury.

Guess everyone knows that London is as pricey as in Tokyo. So you can just imagine how much this teapot cost that hubby bought it with eyes closed ... and thus left the teacups behind. ;)

Nevertheless, the teapot alone is already a one-of-a-kind possession for a commoner like me. In my own creative imagination, with Pooh bear, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet happily joining us in our tea time, nothing beats the soothing feeling as we sip our brisk London tea. ;)

It's Dadi's b-day today!

Happy birthday, Dadi! Well, you're not getting any younger. ;) But the good side of adding one year to your age is that you're getting wiser each time. ;) Count your grey hairs, and you'll know how much wisdom you've got. ;)

Why is it that as we grow older, celebrating birthdays is no longer a thing to look forward to? I mean, no more grand celebrations, no more parties, no more crowded guests, no more big and alluring gifts. Hmm, I wonder what it would be like come my birthday next month? ;)

Dadi's spending his big day just like any normal days we have. He's not going to the lab today, and he's not working from home either. He just said that we'll spend the day at our favorite hangout, and have a sumptuous lunch together. Well, as normal as it seems, the most important thing is that we are happy on this day, together, thanking our Creator for giving him another year of blissful life.

P.S. Hey, click here for pictures and find out how Dadi's bday went.

New stuff

Yesterday, before going home, Luke and I stopped by Ito Yokado (our favorite hangout). And I got him a new brown kiddy casual cap, which he likes it very much. He's all smiles when I tried it on him. I have been eyeing to buy that cap for him (a birthday present, in fact) but is a bit pricey (well, I am buying it in a shopping mall). I got it this time at my son's delight -- and mine, too, coz it's 30% off. ;)

On our way, we passed by a bag bazaar where I got myself a light grey hand bag for only 150yen. Simple and light, and the size is neither big nor small. Just right for me, and for the season. ;)

Luke and I are both happy with our new stuff. I am even happier coz we got them at a lower price. Hope there are more "best buys" around.

Strolling at Ario

Ario is a newly-opened mom-and-baby-friendly shopping mall located just 5 minutes on foot from Kameari Station. Unlike in other chains of Ito Yokado (the 16th largest retail conglomerate in the world), this 3-storey shopping center is sooo Western-y. Almost all signages are in Romaji (Japanese roman script) and you can see mostly Western shops.

Except that it is more classy, Ario's overall ambience can be fairly compared to the Philippines' SM Megamall in terms of its sweet appeal to the masses. Since its opening last March, Ario is always crowded with families, mostly moms and babies/kids on weekdays, and with daddys on weekends. Once you get inside, you'll probably think that this place is a home away from home. There is really no need for the mothers to bring strollers as the mall provides cozy character-based kiddy cars. Here, Luke is proudly sitting on a Pooh bear-designed car (Ario is proud to have about 100pcs. of these in various characters). He enjoys it, as most kids do, but then later on, he got sleepy so we have to use the usual baby cart.

And oh, before I forget, Ario has an equally big foodcourt in the ground floor, and a 10 widescreen all-surround MOVIX (cinema/movie theater) at the 3rd floor. As for me, I'd rather venture on tasting what the foodcourt has to offer me than watch a 1.5-hour movie for about 2,000yen. ;)

Separation anxiety

I have read for so many times about separation anxiety. I thought it was easy to handle. Coz everytime I leave my son to Dadi, he would just cry for a moment and then indulge in playing.

Last Tuesday was a different scenario. I left my son to a friend so I can go to Hello Work. I was away only for about an hour. My friend says that Luke cried for about 80% of the time I was away. She could not pacify him, no matter what she and her son did to stop him from crying. And he was crying hard, mimicking "mama, mama." The moment he saw me when I came back, he beckoned for my embrace. His face was red, eyes weary, and was sobbing, a clear indication that he really cried so hard. His embrace was so tight as if saying NEVER let me go away again. From then on, he didn't want to let go of me. He was so afraid that I might leave him again. I could not even get him to sit in the stroller anymore.

He was so tired when we arrived home, and went to sleep right away. At 3am the next morning, he woke up crying. I thought he was just hungry, but then I realised he had colds and caugh. He didn't want to eat nor drink his milk. What more for the meds?

Could it be that his sickness was triggered by his separation anxiety (aside from getting tired from roaming around the whole day)? I know it was a bit traumatic for him, and it will take some time to forget it.

That was just one hour, and it already caused him so much distress. What more if I start working, and be away the whole day? What more if he starts schooling? Will he survive the first few days of adjustment? I know he will. He is a strong boy, and he'll overcome this undesirable experience in due time. If other kids can, why can't he?

To those moms having similar problems on their kid's separation anxiety, check out a few suggestions from Baby Center. I, myself, will try to do some of those which will hopefully work for my toddler.

Where's Dadi?

Last night was our first of ten nights without hubby by our side. He flew to UK for a conference. He may have arrived there by this time, after a 12-hour plane ride. We're still waiting for his call. ;)

It's not our first time to be alone, though. Hubby had a few out-of-towns before, but those were only short. But this one is a bit longer, and we miss him already. ;)

I wonder what's it like to be on the plane for half a day? It must be boring just sitting in there (occasionally standing to pee probably). Philippine-Japan plane ride is just about 4 hours, and it already is a very long journey for me. What more for the 12-hour Japan-UK ride? Ahh, I'll just wait for hubby's stories. ;)

In the meantime, Luke and I went out yesterday but it was rather a gloomy day do we didn't enjoy much. In trying to explore this place, we took a a different route, and I'm glad we didn't get lost. ;) Today, we'll probably go out for some strolling (again) and hope to explore new places/shops.