MOTHERHOOD ACCORDING TO... MAMA

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY MINI-PEAVES!!

Hurricane Myla turned two today.  Two years ago today, we were in the hospital wondering when the heck she was going to come out.  I had to wait two weeks of her kicking and turning at a full grown size in my belly.  We couldn't wait to meet her, and see her and see what she was like.  And of course since then, the voids in our hearts were filled even though we didn't know there were holes to begin with!  

Yesterday, I was kinda weepy... but overall, elated we get to nurture and know this wonderful human being that we made!  I can't believe it's already been two years!  Celebrations were complete with cupcakes and a chocolate mousse cake from Lola.  Myles got 3-D Street Chalk, Sidewalk Paint (from Chelly!).  So we spent the cold and rainy day on the patio, drawing with sidewalk chalk.  I am sick with a 102 fever and a horrible sore throat.  Yuck.  But we still had a fun day.  We spent it with family and had such a great time.  MP's face when we sang her Happy Birthday was the best.  We love you Mim!  Many, many, more to come!

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Have 30 Minutes Tops to Blog Today

Hi peeps!  I can hear Myla squirming around and it's just a matter of time.  Oh, I mentioned my kid's real name.  I don't care.  Dunno why their first names, even their last names have to be secret if I really think about it.  Suri Cruise.  Violet Affleck.  Kingston whatever the hell his last name is, Myla Keith... what's gonna happen?  I was worried about preverts, but if they find something disgusting to do with a name, WTF??  Preverts can find anything anyway.

So, it's been awhile and I can't find the pictures from the Philippines... they are lost between our desk top, the back up hard drive and the other camera.  If I tried really hard, I could find them.  Hmmm, brush my teeth or look for those pictures?  For the sake of mankind, I brush my teeth.  

We have been so busy as usual.  There are a few things in the works, and I am working on Myla's Birthday party (it's so liberating to say her name) which is going to be just family, picnic, giraffes and cake.  We plan on doing the Wild Animal Park for the day.  FUN!  Anyway, I haven't done any planning.  But I will.  

Few things:  I hate working from home, when it isn't writing.  I'm transitioning everything now.  Travel business, although lucrative is going in the direction I did not want or plan which is booking airline tickets.  Yuck.  I have a lot of transitioning to do this year, and by next year, should have it all squared away.  I deleted the Myles To Wander Blog, and am going to reboot.  Everything.  

Emmy:  She is growing so fast!  She is rolling, laughing from a few months ago, playing with toys and soon I think, will be crawling.  She is also a big girl!  We started her on rice cereal the other day and she ate it like it was 1999.  She has her own, pensive little personality and when I look at her, she looks like my Lola Naty.  

Although I know this conversation "on the shelf" I can't help feeling there is someone missing from our family... not really in a bad sense of missing... but there is still room in my heart!  A dog maybe?  I dunno.

Don't want to jinx it by saying it by saying too much.  But...

BIG NEWS.

Don't ask, I won't tell for awhile because there is a lot of work involved.  No I'm not pregnant again.  Have a nice day ya'll.

      

I loved the Philippines... it agreed with me.  First I write on this silly machine to explain to you, that before I left for this journey, I was but a meek 2 month old.  I came back, a strong- vibrant and alert 3 month old.  I am ready to take on the world.  I started with the Philippines, this will not end well for mere mortals.   Of course, I'm not that stupid that I would divulge my taking over the world to this pitiful little band.   -Emily Mairin Keith

Philippines Part 2 By Mini Peaves

Oh my!  I had such a great time, I wasn't sure what I wanted to tell you...anyway, the plane stopped and we got out right before I freaked out about being in it too long.   I was sleepy the whole way and I ate a lot of the yummy airplane food.  I also watched Stitch a couple times on the plane and slept a lot.  Anyway, when we got out, two guys in suits were waiting for us, and kept trying to help Mama & Papa with the boxes and the bags, out of the merry go round thing.  Mama was getting stressed out because she doesn't like to be helped like that at first.  We were waiting for a bit, and I couldn't help but notice how different it smelled in the Philippines, it was this humid, tropical smell that I liked right away.  I kept on looking around and I saw an eepis underneath the pay phone when Mama tried to call Lola Naty.  The first week, all I did was sleep at weird hours and we visited the mall called Trinoma a lot.  There were horses on a Merry Go Round that I rode about 6 times, and Mama and Papa kept making funny faces like they were going to barf.  (My parents are weird.).

Anyway, Memmy didn't make a peep and I got to hold her on my own, sitting on the bed this first trip.  Sol, the lady who helps my Lola is very nice and Uncle Raul has a giant German Shepherd named Max, who was always dancing.  My Lolo Ben kept on teasing me that I am going to live there in the Philippines and I was a little worried about that my whole trip.  Mama seems very happy because she tells me that Lola Naty is MY Lola at home's Mama, and I don't believe her.  Mama tells me she loves to see her Lolo & Lola, and snd she cries when she has to go home.  I don't believe Mama cries- she only cries as a joke sometimes.  I got to meet my cousin Miguel took me to the park in Tagaytay, and he made sure I was safe when I was playing in the playground.  I got bitten by mosquitoes no matter how many times Mama sprayed me and put lotion on me.  I also got bitten by Papa.  (OUCH!).

I also got to meet my cousin Bianca, who has a big basket of toys, that she was instructed to share with me.  I just couldn;t take them too far out of her site or she would get mad.

At the Tagaytay Zoo, a man put a bird like AFLAC on my arm, and when it crawled up, I got scared and threw the bird into the bushes.  Mama says, the bird's face was confused.  I said sorry to it, because I felt embarrassed that I threw it and felt sad for the bird.  But Papa said, the bird was alright.  Auntie Nora kept taking pictures of Papa when the man put a green snake around his neck and a bird on his shoulder. 

We saw Sea Turtles and I got to touch a baby that had just hatched out of its shell about 12 hours before.  We took a picture with the baby tiger also.  Papa keeps saying, "only in the Philippines..."

Anyway, I made friends with relatives I had never met before, and I loved them.  It was a great time and I can't wait to come back next year.

I also saw Crocodiles, and those were my favorite.  I am going to have Memmy tell you what she saw next...

Philippines Part 1 By Mama

We are back!  This is going to be a long post because there is so much about our trip we want to share.  We left for our trip on: January 29th and luckily, our flight departed from LA at 1155pm, which meant that the girls were somewhat on a good sleep schedule.  We got to LA, my parents drove with us up in a rented minivan and there was barely any traffic.  Memmy was cute and not fussy at all, and MP was her usual adventerous self.  I kept telling her we were going on a plane and we were flying across the ocean, and she nodded in understanding.  Weeks before, she would hear or see a plane and say, "Plane? Ride?"  Anyway, we got there 5 hours early, so my mom and MP and I went to go snoop around the gift shops.  MP is at the stage where she is starting to put two words together, sometimes three... and here is the conversation I heard her and my mom having at the gift shop...

LOLA:  No baby, I don't think you can have that...put it back.

MP:  Uhhhhhh, no....

LOLA:  Can you even eat those?  I don't think you even know what they are... (holding up a bag of Jelly Bellies)

MP:  Yes!

LOLA:  really?  your mom let's you eat those?

MP: Yes!

LOLA:  Are you sure?

MP: YAH!  I LIKE IT!!

She said, "yah I like it" so clearly, and so determined all my mom and I could do was laugh.  This is the first time she has spoken a full sentence- of course, we were mean and didn't buy her the jelly bellies.  But, we suck like that.  Anyway, believe me, she got enough stuff.  

We checked in to China Airlines without any problem, except that the airlines noticed my passpoert expired in July and informed me that the Philippined immigration was going to charge me 200 USD because I wasn't traveling within six months of my passport expiring.  This pissed me off.  Anyway, it was fixed later on in the ride.  But just an FYI for those of you traveling.  Just check your passports.

So, we said goodbye to my parents who were hesitant in letting go of the kids and we assured them we were coming back in three weeks.  

We rode a shuttle bus, to get to the terminal where our plane was, and there were two monks clothed in a vibrant, bright orange.  MP was dazzled and they smiled and waved to her.  I instantly felt at ease about the flight.  I don't know why- it just felt like the passengers' chis would be in order.

We finally boarded the plane after waiting a couple hours, and Memmy was sleeping in the carrier, which we ended up checking-in along with the stroller.  MP was all over the place but we made a pen where she could run in circles, dressed her in her pajamas and she finally settled down.

People kept on asking me before we left if we were going to give the girls' bendaryl or something to make them sleep during the plane.  I am very weary of this, only because I am a very paranoid mom- as far as dosages are concerned.  Anyway, we were trying to go this ride as drug free as possible.  We packed MP a small backpack that she could carry like ours and filled it with magic pads, stickers, a fuzzy worm puppet, a disposable camera, snacks, crayons and small books.  We didn't let her look in it until we were on the plane.  Oh, and we also bought the portable DVD player when we had a good deal for it.  So, we were set.   

During take off, Memmy was asleep and didn't bat an eyelash as we took off.  MP drank a baba, and fell asleep- the ride was 14 hours from LAX-Taipei.  The girls slept about 8 of those hours, and another two by the last 6.  We barely opened the backpack, they were absolutely brilliant during the ride.  The last five minutes, while the plane was in taxi-mode, MP started to freak out.  She cried a little, but was acting more like she was clausterphobic (as we all were.)  

Taipei layover (was about 8 hours).  Everything (except the vending machines) took US Dollars, and we ended up at a cafe eating noodles.  MP enjoyed this, and the baby carrier/carseat was a hassle to lug around.  The stroller came in handy.

All the restrooms in the Taipei airport were clean and the baby rooms had nice, hot water out of a water dispenser.  This came in handy for Memmy's bottles.  The duty free stuff had tons of Scotch and it was tempting not to buy any of it.

Anyway, our layover was over and we were two hours away from landing on Philippine soil.  I was really excited and couldn't wait for my Lola & Lolo to meet the girls.  The flight from Taipei to Manila was nearly empty and they moved us to two rows of our very own.  MP ate her in flight meal and was happy.

We landed and right when we got off the plane, two guys in suits with Ninoy Aquino International Airport tags were holding up a sign that said, "Melissa & Audi Keith."

LOL!!  My husband, the middle-eastern car.  

They immediately took our stuff and our landing card and passport and we got front of the (very long line) priveleges.  I never knew what to do in this situation, only because they are so fast, I am not always sure they are people who are helping and sent by my Lolo or people stealing our stuff.  At any rate, as long as we had the girls I didn't really care.  They waited at the baggage carousel with us, bypassed the customs officials and we walked out for our ride.  One problem, we had no cell phone.  No one was there to pick us up.  I only had the house number memorized and wasn't sure really who was picking us up.  I called the house and Lola said my Uncle Raul was going to be there... and that he went to the wrong airport.  LOL!  So we waited a few extra minutes, kids tired but in control.  And we finally saw Uncle Raul with our family driver, Nelson.  And so our adventure in the Philippines began...

Next post?  Our first week as told by Mini Peaves herself with pictures!