What About a Hammock for the Baby?

Here's my Angel Reign's hammock years ago ...

Hammocks are the favorite child's bed here in my country.  I think it is this magic that when you start swinging it gently, it resembles a pendulum that makes the baby relaxed enough to fall asleep. Even me I would still enjoy swinging and wanted to have a sturdy adult hammock for a nap.

Hammocks come in different sizes and materials. There are these ones made ​​from abaca, Clothlike braided rope.   I prefer the braided rope for my first child, Angel Reign because it is deeper and with rattan ring on top and on the bed part. 

The CHOICE that Means LIFE

I am the eldest of three children in our family. When my father and mother went abroad, I was left in the custody of my paternal aunts in Pandacan, Manila. My three aunts were all spinsters. It explains their profound consecration with my former religion -Catholicism. I really admired them for being so religious and conservative, honestly. They have always spent most of their free time in the chapel; all they brought me along with them. They taught me all the prayers of the rosary -I even memorized them, thinking that God might be happy hearing those words. Every six in the evening it became our habit to recite the holy rosary when my grandparents are still alive.

As devout Catholics, we go to church every Sunday. I am receiving "holy" communions and also doing my confessions with the priests. I also knelt down in front of "graven images" then what we call "Mother Mary" and the different saints. We are even among the people who tried so hard to complete the Untitled for the belief that our wishes will come true. Another thing that I grew up with the fallacy that Jesus Christ is our Almighty God. The Black Nazarene, I can still remember me and my aunts forcing ourselves in the mob just to get near it; to touch the image and wipe that same hand on any aching body part to heal but there really seemed no effect at all ... I just go with the flow being just a young girl at the age of nine. I even looked at the statue closely trying to assess how true it has healing power, the mere fact that it is just a "piece of art" no difference with the other figurines that are hand-crafted by man - I have all that in my young mind. But really, I do not have the guts to ask, I just follow-through ... I am only puzzled when I think why I am doing such things. I just leave that way everything NOT in any way hoping that somehow, someday I will get to know the answers ...

My mother came back after a year abroad and retrieved me from my aunts and we lived in Marikina then four years later, in 1990 we transferred in Nueva Ecija Cabanatuan cAMP. Another religion is introduced to me, the Baptist . My neighbor, my former teacher always invited me to attend their Bible studies , so I joined them for some time. During the study, we sing, dance and clap hands. It's really enjoyable being in their company although I did not pursue officially joining them. 

Ang Pagpaplano ng Pamilya

Ang pagplaplano ng pamilya ay hindi lamang makabubuti sa mismong ina na nagluluwal ng sanggol kundi higit sa lahat sa kapakanan ng mga anak at ng buong pamilya.  Isa po ako sa naging representative ng USAID(United States Agency for International Dev't.) sa isang Medical Detailing Project on Family Planning way back some years ago. Dinadalaw po namin ang mga midwives, General Practitioners (GP) at Family Meds(FM). Sadyang hindi kasama ang mga OB-gyne sa aming binibisita sapagkat maaaring hindi lahat sila ay kumbinsido na dapat magplano ng pamilya – mababawasan ang pasyente nila. Ipinapaliwanag namin sa kanila ang mga myths on artificial methods ng FP at pati ang bawat method mismo. Nagkaloob din ng mga standees, posters at aklat ukol sa FP mula sa JOHNS HOPKINS’ University.

Butil ng Kaalaman:

*GP – o General Practitioners, family doctor din sila ngunit may advantage ang mga FM (Family Med) kung rigid training ang pag-uusapan. Naitanong ko ito sa isa sa mga kino-cover kong FM, nakaka-curious kasi kung bakit magkaiba pa ang tawag, pareho namang doktor ng bata at matanda.

Ang madami sa Artificial FP Methods ay REVERSIBLE, pwede nitong maibalik nang muli ang kakayahang makapag-anak pero mayroon ding mga permanenteng pamamaraan. Malayang makapamimili ang mag-asawa. Ngunit sa pagkakaalala ko ang mga edad 35 pababa ay hindi pinahihintulutan ng mga doktor ng permanenteng method sapagkat lubhang napakabata pa, maaari pa raw itong pagsisihan, may ilang kaso lang siguro na pinapayagan lalo at kung sobrang dami na ng mga anak. May posibilidad daw kasi ng child mortality kapag bata pa ang mga anak at gayundin sa asawa. May mga kaso daw kasi na maagang nabiyuda nang muling magka-asawa paglipas ng panahon ay hindi na makapag-anak muli.

Menudo Recipe, My Style

Here is how I am cooking Menudo, my style. I found a way to make the meat tastier thru my friend Cielita Cruzada-B. and some other tips I learned as years go by...