Caught Attempting An Arabesque

This is  The Arabesque. 



Now look at this radish we saw at the grocery yesterday. Wicked!

#1001NannyChallenges

Here is a little backdrop to this anticipated recurring theme of my #1001NannyChallenges post. We have been relying on nanny assistance since  2011. There was a 2-year long wait to find a nanny for TLO who was born in 2009. We have, time and again, questioned a lot of nanny hiring and management decisions we made as they have proven to have had permanent life changing impact (and damage) to our kids and our family.

The hubby and I are both full time employees. I work late afternoon or evening shifts while the hubby does the regularly more painful day schedule. We live very close to work and a couple of hours away from our child-rearing support system (our family aka doting grandparents and aunts and uncles). Simply put, we are on our own in Makati city. We don't own a car so this means access to our support system can be very expensive, time consuming (spell shitty t-r-a-f-f-i-c), stressful (cabs and cab drivers) and an overall ginormous logistical nightmare.

If you are on the same boat of harrowing concerns and considerations, you will most likely know that challenge#1 of #1001NannyChallenges is finding a nanny. We had to sacrifice being away from TLO (The Little One) during the first two years of her life because we took this advice to heart - whatever happens, do not hire from employment agencies. This led to two long years of weekend parenting. Eventually, we couldn't take it anymore and took the plunge. We actually used employement agencies and this led us to more mindfuck, mean-world-syndrome-inducing situations. I will write about these in the days to come.

For now, I would like to post a big shout out,  a dedication of sorts to fellow parents who are going through the same pains and woes. This series is for you and I'd love to hear about your stories too.

#1001NannyChallenges by the YummyliciousLady starts today. Apologies in advance for profanities and darkest of dark humor that may come your way.

I have a dream.

Bentang benta ito sa akin. Sana magamit ko isang araw sa kahit sinong etchozerang bullfrog na maraming sinasabi kahit di tinatanong. Iwawagayway ko ang aking hintuturo sa mukha ng hulas na iyon, in big movements na parang sa wiper ng truck ng basura. Tapos nakapamewang ako ng isang kamay at sasabihing... ay, iyan ay isang error!

Weekend Pasyal

Ito si TLO at ang pinsan niyang si Melaychu noong Sabado. Minions! Palalampasin ba namin ang mga kaibigang dilaw na nonverbal pero minsan ay spanish speaking? Epkersnot! Sine tapos tambay sa food court para sa french fries at Zagu. Ayan, mabuhay ang junk food!







Ito naman si TLO2 noong linggo. Hindi pa namin kaya na sabay silang bitbitin sa gimik kaya hiwalay muna ang lakad. Salamat sa mga palaruan ng Puregold at mukhang natuwa naman itong masungit na bata.

Walang Gawa? No Problem.

Naririnig ko ito dati sa mga kapitbahay namin at sa mga piket line. Kapag "walang gawa" sa pabrika ay pinauuwi ang mga trabahador. Walang gawa, uwian na, walang bayad.

Kahapon ay nag-agaw buhay ang work laptop ko na si Oxy. Naniniwala akong buhay pa siya. Kaya lang in coma, ayaw sumindi. May mga loaner laptop na tinatawag sa office, ginamit ko ang isa. Ang mga loaner laptop na ito ay ginamit ng dinosaurs bago nadale ng ice age ang earth. Hindi rin umubra ang loaner laptop para sa kailangan kong gawin.

Sa gitna ng maraming nakapilang deadline, nagdesisyon ako na umuwi para gamitin ang aming conjugal laptop na si Jakobo. Matanda na rin si Jakobo. Buhay na siya noong World War II. May ilang mga bungi na keys na rin, mga letra na napagkatuwaang tungkabin ng aming mga anak.

Nagbubuhol buhol ang bituka ko sa pag-aalala pero nakaraos din ako. Ibang iba talaga ang buhay sa hanay ng mga manggagawa. At napatunayan ko na hindi uso sa aking trabaho ang walang gawa. Ayus lang kasi wala ring kaltas sa sahod. Suwerte pa rin kahit paano.

Kapit lang. Holiday sa Biyernes! Oyeh!