Together Forever

I copied this from Nissa’s timeline. I love the caption she put in the picture, Nate’s and her hand  linked  together. She said and I quote “Hawak kamay, di kita iiwan sa paglakbay dito sa mundong walang katiyakan.” It’a  line from a song  that loosely translated means, “I will always be here for you”. 

I did a similar shot when Nate was barely a month old and called it Touches  and posted it here earlier. Notice the difference in Nate’s grip, whereas before his tender grip just simply means he trusts  us that we would take care of him and love him the rest of our lives, this picture speaks of that unconditional love, his way of showing that he loves us back in his own little way.

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Spending Precious Moments With The Family

I am back, after a long, long absence from this blog. Our baby has grown, he will be turning one year and seven months in a week’s time. The days are definitely moving so fast.

Yesterday, we had lunch at Gumbo, an American style restaurant much like our favorite Burgoo. I had a grand time bonding with my super, super “kulit apo”. Take that to lovingly mean, he was curious about everything, repeating words that he hears even to the point of calling his dad “honey” after hearing his mom call him that way.  I say, he is a great explorer now. I took pictures and some of them made me laugh.

Tender moments between father and child.

The favorite ninong, there is never a dull moment when the two of them are together.

Camera shy? No, he is not. He is just being playful . That’s a typical Nate smile.

We were having fun, trying to make those socks and shoes stay in place. Poor Ninong!

Look at the two of them. He was persuading his Ninong to go and explore. Don’t you ever get tired baby?

My knees tremble at the thought of running after Nate. His typical walk is running around, left, right, straight up. Looks like he is practicing for the marathon 🙂

And this completes the day, time spent with the family.

Thank You Lord for all the blessings.

Nate is now at that stage where he imitates every word he hears.  Most of the time, he calls his Ninong Josef “kuya”.  I laughed out load when I heard him say honey/daddy to his Dad because he also heard Nissa call his dad honey.  You also discover something precious from the wisdom of a child. And you feel happy when you see his smiles.

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Grow Tall Little Man

I simply love this pic. That’s our baby Nate with his dad. Nissa shared it at Instagram. He is really growing up fast. She captioned it “Walk Like A Man” 🙂

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Before 2013 Ended

I miss my darling Nate. I haven’t seen him since we visited the family before the  year 2013 ended.  Nissa says  he can walk straight now, not the kind of baby steps that he used to do. I always take photos every time we get to see each other,  and I haven’t  uploaded them here. The times he discovered that he can go up and down the bed on his own…priceless! He is getting to be more independent.

The last time we visited them and the last time they came over, his Ninong Josef has become a favorite.  Too bad they won’t be able to see each other often now because of the changed work schedule of his Ninong.

See what I mean?  Nissa says he is “makulit“. I told her  he is just starting to appreciate things, what he can do and what he is capable of.

We visited  the mall before Josef and I  went back home to meet the new year. Hopefully,they will visit us this coming Saturday and I am looking forward to seeing Nate again.

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Cooking With Chef Nate

I was trying to look for something different to prepare for Noche Buena,  a simple menu that the kids would enjoy including Nate of course since he is now eating solid food. Then I saw one of Nate’s pictures which is part of the studio shots they had earlier at Picture Company. Can’t resist  posting it here.

So what’s it to be Chef Nate? I know banana and porridge are your favorites but we have to cook something substantial and yummy.  Will you help me?

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Learning To Walk And Loving It

It must be really, really good to finally feel your feet touching the floor and walking on your own.  It must be really nice to see the world as far as your eyes can, curious about  everything. The baby steps finally turning into joys of discovering you can stand on your own two feet….what bliss! And I know you are excited. One of these days, you will hold my hands and we will take those precious walks and see what nature has in store. Can’t wait baby, I am as excited as you are.

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Our Baby’s First Haircut

I’ve meant to post these pictures yesterday but I was a little busy. It’s another milestone in our baby’s life, having his first haircut, that is. They brought him to Cuts 4 Tots Hair  Salon at Robinsons Ermita before his first birthday and Nissa took some shots. Someday, when he is old enough to read and see his pictures, he would surely appreciate them all.

Look at how long his hair is.

Good boy Nate, love that barber’s chair…….

Looking good baby, gone are the long bangs.

And it comes with  a cute certificate with his lock of hair inside.

And here’s a closer shot of “before” and “after”.

See you soon baby. Love you so much. Nonna could not get enough, right?

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Oh, He Is Walking

The last time they came here for a visit two weeks ago, we coaxed Nate to walk a few steps.  I think we were more excited to see him take  a step or two without his hands reaching out and without our arms waiting to catch him. During his birthday celebration last week, he was probably amazed with all the children  playing and shouting and seeing  the warm glow of his birthday candle while we told him to blow it.

Last Saturday, they went back to the Picture Company at Mall of Asia for some free after birthday shots. Nissa told me that while they were quietly waiting for their turn sitting in a corner, Nate got up from his seat and walked on his own, unaided. They laughed and cherished the moments. Nate is walking 🙂

He had his first haircut last November 17.  Our baby is growing up fast. I wonder what  he would do next. He is now beginning to enjoy the different tastes of food that he is allowed to eat.

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It Was A Lovely 1st Birthday Celebration

Thinking about Nate’s birthday party the other day, I can’t help but smile. Young and old alike, (more on the older set, I guess) we  joined hands in thanksgiving. We smiled, we shouted, we clapped  and acted like kids in front of  everyone. The joys of celebrating a first birthday 🙂

It’s another chapter in our baby’s life. He won’t probably remember it now but in a few more years, he would cherish the memories and may smile at the thought of seeing both kids and adults having fun on his first birthday. It was held at Shakey’s Malate just across Manila  baywalk. The rain didn’t stop us from having  fun, meeting old friends and relatives whom we haven’t seen for quite a while. They have an official photographer but I took some shots of the occasion. I admire Nissa for planning it, making sure that everything would be okay just like what she did with her wedding two years ago. She is a bit OC when it comes to family occasions  like this, attending to every detail of the event.

Nate’s tarp. Love how they arranged all those superhero characters.

Prize giveaways and loot bags for the kids.

Look, they are all wearing costumes 🙂

Go, go  Batkid, let the party begins.

And Spider boy (Nate’s cousin) is more excited than the birthday celebrator.

The guy in orange shirt was their program host. He was good, motivating the kids to participate and he could really sing…hahaha!

Waiting in anticipation for the games to begin.

Ready, set, go!

The proverbial question is “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

And the kids really came in their lovely superhero costumes.

Look at that lovely baby girl in her eye-catching Darna get-up. She could give Vilma Santos a run for her money….hahaha!

Nate’s birthday cake which was delivered a little late for the start of the party.

Marisse, Nissa’s college classmate, best friend and Nate’s Ninang.

Their cupcake giveaways were designed like superheroes too.

Let me walk Daddy. Dad and son and they even have identical shirts.

That’s Shakey’s mascot dancing to the beat of……..?

Time to make a wish and blow the candle Nate.

Look at that serious expression on his face. He was fascinated by the firecracker lit up on top of the cake.

Nate, where are you? He really can’t decide which gift to open first.

You love that blue bag baby? Let’s see what’s inside.

Ah, brand new pair of shoes. It looks  as if he could read the label on the shoes. I guess they’re still too big for you.

And the loot bag, Superman cape, drinking bottle and  puzzle inside the bag plus my prize (the blue plastic carry all) which I’m planning to use for my stick on paper collection.

These high-res pics are all from my camera. The official photos are not yet delivered.  It was a lovely 1st birthday celebration, nothing but the best for our little Nate. I love you baby 🙂

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A Letter To My Darling Nate On His First Birthday

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY darling baby Nate. Yeay, and you are counting 🙂 How time flies, now you can walk on your own even if they’re just baby steps. It’s  time to see the world from a higher place and discover many, many things dear to your heart.

I can’t believe it, was it only a year ago when your Dad and I patiently waited for you to see the world and hear your first cry? Was it only a year ago when your mom excitedly showed us your pictures while she was in the delivery room  even if she was groggy from anesthesia? And I promised myself I would write about your growing up years. You’re one year old now and we’ll have more days, months and years to discover the world through your eyes. And may you grow to be  strong, smart, healthy  and loving and  may you continue to possess that innocence so endearing to see in a lovable child that you are. And I wish you all the precious things that a loving Nonna could wish for.

I love you baby, you are God’s greatest gift to us. We are indeed blessed having you in our lives. Again, happy birthday!

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