Benett's Birthday Party

Tonicci and I went to the birthday party of his classmate from daycare, who just turned 3. It was a nice experience for him to see his friends outside of school. It was a very simple party, but the kids really didn't mind at all.

Christmas Tree

Last year, Tonicci was too young to help us put up our christmas tree.This year, we asked him to participate and hopefully make it a family tradition.

He was really excited to help! Of course, with him pitching in, it was more messy and he even broke a christmas ball! However, we know that the experience will make him more excited and look forward to the holidays.

Since we live in a small condo, we opted for a small tree

Finished product- our simple tree

Crib to Car Bed

One of the signs that your child is growing up is when they transition from the crib to an actual bed. In the case of Tonicci, we felt the need to buy him a bed when he kept on waking up at night and Jet had to bring him over to join us. I thought that he was probably not comfortable in his crib anymore. Who would be? The crib he slept in was actually a fold-up play pen!

At Walmart, we found a Lightning Mcqueen car bed which Tonicci fell in love with. While Jet was assembling it, Tonicci was so excited that he would even assist his dad so that he could finally see the finished product. After what seemed like hours of putting it together, Tonicci tested it and he was very happy. It was priceless! Imagine being so excited about a new bed?!

The first night he slept on it, he didn't even wake up at all- as he slept through the night! It was a first for us after so many months of interrupted sleep. On occasion, Tonicci still sometimes transfers to our bed. Maybe because he had a bad dream, or simply because he misses his mommy and daddy. Often we would be surprised to wake up finding him already beside us! We can't complain though, because it's always nice to snuggle up with him.



On his playpen/crib, when he was still a baby

His new bed

Buffalo, New York

We decided to do our christmas shopping for friends and relatives in Buffalo, New York- where the sales tax is lower. It was a tolerable 1 1/2 hour car ride from Toronto.

We rarely go to malls with Tonicci- since he gets really bored, but fortunately we survived this shopping experience, notwithstanding the crowd at the outlet mall. It wasn't a sightseeing trip so we only have a few pictures of him.



At the hotel room

Entertaining himself

Restaurants

Whenever my mom tells me about the new restaurants they've tried in the Philippines, I can't help but wonder when we can finally dine out with Tonicci and actually enjoy the meal. You see Tonicci is a very active boy. He can't sit still in one place and just be quiet or behave properly. He has always been like this ever since he was a baby. My mom can attest that since the moment he was born, he often cried a LOT! When he was  little, I was so worried about his behavior that I researched about hyperactivity disorder, because I seriously thought he manifested it's symptoms. Thank God everything is okay.

Anyway, I'm not saying that we haven't been to a restaurant with him. Of course we have, but we can count those occasions on our fingers. The problem is I can never enjoy my meal, as I'd be too busy telling Tonicci to sit down, not to touch this or that, praying that he won't spill hot tea on himself, pick up things that fell on the floor, etc. Jet offers to help so I can eat. But as any mother would know, you just can't tune out your child. Even on a special occasion like my birthday last September, we had to content ourselves with take-out food. We're keeping our fingers crossed that next year, his manners will get better :)



One of the few occassions we were able to dine out

Long or short hair?

The last time my mom and I spoke on the phone, she complimented Tonicci's haircut. She said it suits him better than how he use to wear it (which was VERY long). Jet never wanted to cut Tonicci's hair but I told him it's worth a try. We can always grow it back anyway. Whenever Jet sees photos of Tonicci with long hair, he complains that the old hairstyle was better.

I really have no specific preference, but the thing is I like to get things done fast. When combing Tonicci's hair (a part of his regular grooming that he really hates) - the shorter the better.

Which do you think suits him better?

"I can do it by myself!"

Time goes by so fast, and now that Tonicci can practically do everything on his own, I feel that we're 'losing' our baby boy. He started uttering the words "I can/wanna do it by myself" 6 months ago. Nowadays, he gets upset whenever we help him! I'm not complaining since he's learning to be more independent, but there are instances when he takes too much time to do everything, and I'm restraining myself from intervening and helping him - such as when he's eating or washing his hands.

Whether it's pressing the elevator button, putting on his briefs or getting in and out of his car seat, he wants to do it all by himself!

Library

Recently, our family discovered the joy of going to the library. With the freezing temperature (it's almost winter), we prefer to go somewhere indoor with Tonicci. Here in Toronto, the library is state of the art! If you grew up in the Philippines like my husband and I, where libraries are not a typical 'leisure destination', you would be surprised at the wealth of material you can access, and the number of facilities they have all over the city.

Almost every Saturday, that's where you would likely find our son, scourging the shelves for Thomas the train DVD's and flipping through different kinds of books. The best part is that it's free!

Returning the Thomas dvd (which he watched numerous times)

Trying to find more dvd's and books to borrow

Potty training

Whoever thought that potty training is easy must have had some help from a nanny, or was simply just lucky because so far, it's been THE toughest thing that I had to teach Tonicci! There were moments when I was ready to cry out of frustration! Tonicci is a very tough and strong-willed boy. Sometimes, it's hard to persuade him to do certain things - especially when he has his own ideas on how to carry them out.

I read somewhere that you must let your child pick a potty seat and that's exactly what we did. With all the options available, he finally chose an Elmo potty - which even talks when you press it! The first day that I put him on the potty, things didn't go very well. Weeks passed and he still didn't want to use it. Finally, I had to talk to different moms to seek advice.

They shared common tips like rewarding him with something, preparing a chart where he could put stickers whenever he uses the potty, reading potty books together, etc. Believe me, I tried all of these methods hoping that he would finally learn how to use it.

Then one day, a friend suggested to put the potty in the living room so that it would be easier to access - compared to going all the way to the bathroom. Et voila! It worked! I can't say that everything went smooth sailing after that- but it was a start. I'm happy to say that now, he graduated from the potty and is now using the toilet. He's also diaper free- except when sleeping or napping, just to be safe.

Has it been a happy ending? I want to say yes, but right now we still encounter accidents. He still pees in his briefs once in awhile - esp. when he's engrossed in play. Oh well, who said that life with a toddler is perfect?

Girlfriends or Girl friends?

Sometimes when Tonicci sees the telephone he would say " I want to talk to Adele." So I'll pretend to dial Adele's no. and pass the phone to him. He would often say "Hi Adele! I miss you." He is such a sweetheart!

Over the years, Tonicci gained a few close friends and the majority are girls! They love playing with him since he's not your typical rough boy. I would love it if he would play more with boys of his age. But for some reason, the moms I get close to only have daughters. Oh well. Good thing in daycare, his bestfriends are these boys named Cassidy and Benett. I feel that it's more balanced that way.

Anyway, here are some pictures of Tonicci with his girlfriends.

With Rose (from Montreal) - his first, unfortunately toddlers aren't good at long-distance relationships

Georgina, his first friend in Toronto,

Having lunch with Adele (her nanny, Agnes is a friend)

Acting silly with Charlotte

With the twins Zena and Zara.

With his good friend Dawn

Christmas is around the corner

I told Tonicci that Christmas is coming up so we should write a letter to Santa Claus as early as now. I asked him what gift he wanted, and he immediately replied "Thomas and Percy!" He adores Thomas the tank engine (and his friends). He knows each and every name of the trains! That's how obsessed he is. Maybe it's a boy thing. His Mama Marissa gave him 4 trains when she came last August for a visit. Unfortunately we lost two of them. Whenever we ask him where his two trains are he always says "We lost Thomas in Ontario Place and we lost Henry in the street car. Poor Thomas. Poor Henry."

So it's no surprise that he wanted more trains this Christmas.




The letter which we wrote together

We placed the letter inside our christmas stockings

He's hoping to add more to his train set

Happy Birthday Mommy Nards!

Today is the birthday of Tonicci's great grandmother, Mommy Nards. Here's a short clip of him singing...

Happy Birthday Mommy Nards!

Halloween

In Canada, Halloween is the second most celebrated holiday (following Christmas). We've been celebrating it for 3 years now. This year we decided to put Tonicci in a Tiger costume. I figured, since it's going to be cold, we can easily put it over his layer of clothes. We brought him to Walmart for costume fitting and between Pooh Bear and Tiger he decided on the latter. Perfect! I could now cross this off my to-do list.

That's what we thought. Living with our 2 1/2 year old son consists mainly of meltdowns and tantrums. Not a day goes by that we don't experience this. On the first chance that he gets to wear his new costume at the Parenting Centre we frequent, he told me "No! I don't want to wear it." I pleaded with him but he was firm -so I didn't push it since I didn't want to make a big deal out of it in front of the other moms. The second chance that he got to wear it was in daycare (where he goes twice a week). The teacher told us that we can pack the costume and they will take care of everything. When my husband picked him up after school, his teacher told him that Tonicci refused to wear it.  Okay fine. I thought to myself that on Halloween, I will get him to wear that costume even if it meant bribing him with chocolates! The costume cost us $24, and in our household where everything is tightly budgeted, I was not about to let this small investment go to waste.

 As it turns out, toddlers also respond to incentives. In exchange for holding the bag of caramel popcorn, he acquiesced...

Had to wear a  jacket since it was freezing outside

With some of his friends

Door to door trick or treating

His loot bag was so heavy by the end of the night

Happy with his 2 months worth of treats

Some of his past Halloween pictures...

His first taste of Halloween

Our little incredible hulk

On his second year, he came as a Storm Trooper

The Start

Jesus Antonio Reyes was born on December 13, 2007. Our lives were never the same again. From the moment he was born, there wasn't a day that we didn't cuddle, hug, praise or smother him with kisses. He probably gets a hundred kisses a day just from me and my husband. I even had to research if there is such a thing as too much cuddling and affection ...and there isn't! You can never love or spoil (emotionally) a child enough.

Tonicci was born in Montreal and sees his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins on each side of the family, only once a year since they all live in the Philippines. Sometimes when I think about it, I feel sad that he's growing up and not spending enough time with the people who love him the most. Thank God for technology like Skype!

Everyday with Tonicci is never the same. He gives us so much laughter, tears, joy, headaches and love! His journey in life is just beginning and as parents, we hope that we can document all the important milestones  along the way through this space, then share it with people who care and love him.