Author: smartandpracticalparenting

I work 40 hours a week but i only work 4 days. One day, while i was making a budget, i was in deep thought, my son was observing me and out of the blue, he said…

son: i wish we are financially free

i: amen! (i didnt know what to say at that time because i was surprise by this comment)

son: if we are fiancially free, you would not be spending much time doing that, you would be playing with baby and i and we wouldnt be thinking much about spending..

i: true, but even if we became fiancially free, we still have to have a budget because that is the right thing to do, you need to know where the money goes. You need also to make sure, you put money to help other people…

son: yeah, i know…that is for the charity… You need to give back to others and to God, the blessings He gave to us. Financially free or not, you have to do that…

i: thank you son…you made me so happy…im glad you understand the value of charity.

One day while my son was learning how to bike he said..

son: i am scared to fall

i: its ok to be scared and to fall…you can just get up then try again

son: i know i know, i also know that in order for me to learn something, sometimes i need to fail a lot of times… its just like learning how to play chess, every time i lose, i learn a new strategy…

i: yes, you are right.

son: i also know that it is always hard in the beginning  but as you try and try and push through…it gets easier each time…

I celebrated our mothers day at Niagara falls with my family and my mom and dad. It was one of our memorable moments being up close to one of the wonders of the world— the Niagara Falls.

Just like the Niagara falls, our love for our mother is one of the most precious experience on earth. It is one of those love that is hard to explain in words.

While at the boat, my son said…

son: please do be careful…i dont want you to slip especially on mother’s day. I love you so much. I want you to have a very enjoyable mother’s day.

He told me happy mother’s day at least 10 times today — since i woke up, up until we were at the falls, at the bathroom, at the restaurant, at the car and even up until going to bed.

It is the best mother’s day ever… (hope all the mother’s have/had one too)

As i was talking to my son about the story of Adam and Eve, this is what he said.

son: I guess the world would have been different if they didnt eat the fruit. We would probably get to grow old and not die. But maybe that is how it was meant to be because it will be too many people on earth and we will run out of space. Everything really has a reason.

i: maybe you are right, we wouldnt know though because we are on this path.

son: yeah! I think it is just like a maze, if you go this path, this is how you end…if its a different path, u could get stuck…

i: that is what u call “consequences.” Every action we do, whether good or bad, there is always a consequence…

As we were preparing early to go to new york for an important transaction, i was trying my best not to get annoyed. It is hard to make my kids move/eat faster so we wont be late. Normally in cases like this, i get to make sure they are prepared and ready before myself. Of course, this is the time when the kids ask me a lot of questions like, why do we have to go there early, where are we going,why now why not later etc. Finally, i couldnt help myself anymore…i just said:

i: i am trying not to get late, please help…i am tired…i havent even prepared for myself…

son: oh, we are sorry…i wish you will get a reward for this…

i: what do u mean? what reward?

son: you always get us ready, u and dad but you never get rewarded…you should be rewarded, this is hard to do…

i: thank you, i dont have to be rewarded, u and baby are the reward…please just listen and im sorry if i yell at you and baby…

son: its ok, we understand….

My daughter always pray before sleeping. One night, i heard her pray:

daughter: Jeus (she is having a hard time saying Jesus), keep us happy, safe and healthy…Please remove the booboo in nanay’s (our language for mother) eyes.

I almost cried while listening to her prayers…She knows that i was having some issues with my right eye…I guess that is one of the reasons why the issue i was having with my eye got resolved quickly…I guess God wasnt able to deny her request especially knowing that it came from her heart…

One afternoon, i was home with my 2 year old daughter while my son and husband were out on a chess game. We were playing and bonding when all of a sudden she stepped unto my slipper while we were playing TAG which resulted to a broken slipper. My reaction was:

i: ohhh, what happened? i dont have an extra pair…. (whispering to myself)

daughter: oh no! im sorry nanay (“nanay” means mom in our launguage)

i: it is ok, we cant do anything about it…

daughter: Papa Jesus, please fix nanay’s slipper please…thank you thank you…

I was surprised and humbled by this experience, i have never expected her to say those words. We pray but we are not religious. We dont say these things naturally. She was nonchalantly teaching and reminding me about FAITH. To be honest, i was embarassed because at my age, i sometimes forget that i can always rely on God no matter how small the matter is…I sometimes rely first on my own strength. That is probably why i am so tired most of the time. 

I hope whoever will read this will be reminded that we dont have to rely on our own strength, we have to make it a habit to rely and surrender to GOD at ALL times no matter how significant or insignificant the situation is. And that we should have faith, the faith like that of a baby. …so innocent yet so trusting….