Yoga: a unique way to bond with your kid

"Mommy’s going to yoga class, and so are you?" No, not my Princess, yet. This is recommended for kids 9-12 years old. And Mom's age? No limit, for as long as you can afford to concentrate, do some turning and twisting!

Yes, bond with your child in a completely new way through Mother's Day Yoga with Maritoni Tordesillas. Watch as the energetic little ones learn to be as still as the night, and even have loads of fun twisting and turning upside down-with their moms as their "playmate," no less. Indeed, trust a child to look at an hour's yoga as fun play; leave the adults to sweat through the challenging poses.

"Children are naturally flexible so the poses come to them fairly easily. It's when they turn 9, 10 or 11, when they begin to just sit in class or spend extended periods studying, that they lose their flexibility," Tordesillas said.

Open even to beginners, mom and kid alike, the Mother's Day Yoga will be held on May 10 at the Century Plaza Penthouse,

120 Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati. Kids between 2-5 years old can join the 4-5 p.m. class, while a 2:30-3:30 p.m. is open for ages 6 and above. The tandem should comprise of one mother and one child, or one grandmother and one grandchild. (Reservation is required. Call or text 0917-522YOGA for inquiries.)

Tordesillas discovered yoga seven years ago when she retired from professional ballet dancing. She has been training her 3-year-old daughter Tessa for almost a year now, who also learns from her mom by watching her personal practice.

"We have to show and teach our children healthy lifestyle by example. That's the best way for them to really [incorporate it] into their young lives, and hopefully it stays with them until they become adults," she said.

Yoga also teaches children discipline, said Tordesillas, and the confidence to face challenges they might encounter, however petty those "challenges" might sound like to an adult. She said children also learn to become aware-of the breath, its relation to their bodies and the bodies' movement.

Peachie Kilayko, who teaches Yoga Ed., a program especially designed for children, said children also become more focused on the moment. Executing the yoga poses is challenging even for a pliant child. This "forces" a child to think and concentrate on that moment.

"Their minds no longer have the luxury of drifting from one thought to the other. Of course, we let them run and play first so that by the time classes start they'd be ready to stay put in one place," Kilayko said.

Kilayko's son Pancho, 10, and daughter Danya, now a college student, have been regularly attending her yoga classes for two years now. Danya, who first learned yoga in high school, said yoga helped her be content with who she is and what she could do.

"Yoga has also helped me not to succumb to peer pressure very quickly," Danya said.
One of the benefits of bonding with your kids through exercise is having something you can do together even as they grow up and become independent, Kilayko said.

Christine Jacobs-Sandejas, who turned to yoga only late last year when she injured her knee playing tennis, is excited to do yoga with one of her daughters. Her children CJ, Nina and Gabby attend Yoga Ed. classes in Alabang.

"This will be the first time I will be in the same class as they are. I really can't wait for that day to begin," she said.

Tordesillas assures participants that the classes are safe. It's not like students will be required to stand on their heads on the first day of class.

"Bonding with your child is important. Teaching your kids to be fit for life is the added benefit," Tordesillas said.

How's that Moms and kids? Wanna try just for fun? Maybe, try it. The bonding thing will set in naturally as one of the many benefits of Yoga. There a few Yoga classes here in Davao that you can visit if you wish to. Will it correct and fix my waistline too? Maybe, why not? Hehehe..!

A Tribute to Mothers on Mother's Day

Words are appreciated for their meanings, and when they are put together to form phrases, sentences, paragraphs, and so on.. they express a variety of feelings, emotions, infatuations, purpose, motives, and what have you..

May 11 this year is Mother's Day. As a mother myself, I love to be loved, remembered and pampered especially on a special ocassion like this. But maybe I can't expect much of that sort of thing from a six-year old like my Princess. For me, it's more than enough that we have each other everyday of the year and every mother's day.

Below, I endeavoured to put together words that express every meaning that symbolizes that special attachment, reverence and tribute that mothers deserve on Mother's Day. They are intentionally shortened, and in some cases paraphrased, so that they can be transmitted in SMS - the now considered state-of-the-art way to send messages in leiu of the letter written on specially decorated perfumed paper. I won't expect my Princess to copy and send these prepared messages for me, though she knows how to manipulate the cellphone. No, not yet.. she's not yet a responsible 'texter'! This brings me to imagine: "how old will a child be to be considered a responsible texter?".. Gives me one piece of material to consult my 'expert' on the matter.

Anyway, here are the sample messages that you can send to your mothers through the SMS:

1. God's omnipresence is made more manifests when He created mothers. Happy Mother's Day!!

2. "M" is for the million things she gave me,

"O" means only that she's growing old,

"T" is for the tears she shed to save me,

"H" is for her heart of purest gold,

"E" is for her eyes, with love-light shining,

"R" means right, and right she'll always be.

3. Once upon a memory. Someone wiped away a tear. Held me close and loved me. Thank you, Mother dear. Happy Mother's Day.

4. The Miracle of Life nurtured by a woman who gave us love and sacrifice...MOTHER. Happy Mother's Day!!

5. For the best mom who always had a smile for me, I know we may be far apart right now. So here's a great big hug and kiss. Happy Mother's Day.

6. When you feel you are alone in the crowd, When you think No.1 can understand you, When your love is rejected by others, & when you hate your Life, Just close your eyes, & see, her face who loves youmore than any 1 else, who care for you in loneliness, & dies when you cry. She is no 1, but your sweet loving mother. Love your mom first and always. I take this opportunity to thank you for your immeasurable contribution to my life. Thank you Mom! And wish you a Very Happy Mother's Day!

7. You've seen me laugh; You've seen me cry; And always you were there with me. I may not have always said it, but thanks and I love you very much. Happy Mother's Day.

OK guys? If you can't say it with flowers and cards, say it through text, or better still, buy her a brand new cellphone - the latest from her favorite brand.. hehehe! Isn't that the best way to pamper your Mom on Mother's Day??!!

Guide to understanding a six-year old child

As I said, my Princess turns six this 3rd of July, and so, I endeavoured to research on what best to do to guide and understand a six-year old child. I thought that the best way to do that is share them with you through this blog page in the hope that mothers of six-year olds, who may happen to drop by, may also benefit.

Some of these may not really be the case in your six-year old child. We acknowledge that there are slight differences from one child to another, but generally speaking, these are the most common in almost all six-year old children.

And so here we go..

Routines

At mealtimes, the six-year old has a very good appetite, though she tends to ask for more than she actually eats. Lunch is the favorite meal and she often wants a large bedtime snack.

Very few six-year olds will nap, but they will go to bed early. Six still needs at least ten hours of sleep each night. They enjoy the quiet time before sleep to hear a bedtime story and talk about their day.

Bathing is a bother to most six-year olds, especially boys. They have to be reminded to bathe thoroughly, to brush their teeth, and to wash hands. Six is not neat with his clothes and usually leaves clothes and shoes scattered everywhere. It might be a good idea to invest in some baskets that he can use to begin to learn the habit of keeping clothes off the floor.

Character

Six-year olds have to be right. The early self is fragile when it begins to recognize the perspective of others. Six doesn't accept criticism or blame with composure. Instead, she argues or even lies to avoid blame. He also hates losing and will blatantly cheat, or change the rules, to win in a competition. This is especially true in the case of boys.

This difficult period can be a learning opportunity when parents approach these behaviors with gentle firmness. Don't push competition on your six-year old. Instead, provide opportunities for non-competitive games and activities this year. Be matter-of-fact about lying and cheating. Don't let them slide; add a consequence for lying and explain that cheating spoils the game.
Six-year olds need encouragement and praise. They need to know that it's okay to make mistakes and how to be a gracious loser.

Too much pressure for perfect grades and model behavior increases six's tension and is not appropriate at this stage of development. Focus on being attentive and accepting to help him feel good about being who he is at age six.

Discipline

Six-year olds go through a period of non-compliance and opposition to parents' instructions. They may act like they don't hear you or dawdle before complying. If you don't follow through, they will take advantage of your inattention and ignore your request. This period passes rather quickly and is an expression of the developing self. Don't panic. Use effective strategies for giving instructions, i.e. call them to come to you, make direct eye contact, give the instruction and pay attention to ensure that she complies.

You may notice signs of tension in your six-year old. Twirling hair, foot tapping, scratching or picking sores may be common, along with irritability and crying easily. Help your six-year old cope with tension through talk time to identify feelings and talk about fears.

Physical activity helps tension in a positive way; cupcakes don't.

Finally, don't offer your six-year old choices that he/she can't handle. She's more comfortable with clear rules and prescribed routines. Keep choices very simple; for example, let her choose between the red shirt, blue shirt or white shirt. Don't make her responsible for choosing her entire outfit but you may give her choices on minor ones like pair of socks, panties and other underwears. The child enjoys picking her choices but she has no idea yet on how she would look like in her entire outfit.

OK? So long guys; till next issue, fans.. hehehe!

Preparing Princess for the First Grade

My Princess will be entering the first grade very soon and I'm quite apprehensive as to what to prepare, or better yet, how to prepare her to take this new stage in the educational ladder. She is not the promil wonder kid but she is very much above average as shown by her feats in the kindergarten school. She'll be turning six this 3rd of July (2008).

I tried to scan some tips from magazines and the internet but there are only a few and scanty ones. I mean, nothing really was specific and tailored fit for her as far as I am concerned. Nevertheless, there are some few that I can put together to work on and add my thoughts to it.

One says, it helps to prepare a family work schedule in terms of balancing the attention for the child within the work schedule. I think I've been doing this already and I'm doing it quite well as in - I don't have to jot them down. They just come in naturally as it has been the normal routine in my life, hence.

Another source said, that traditionally, first graders learn how to read, but they also acquire other skills during this exciting year. They seem to be chatterboxes who talk non-stop and that contributes to their reading skills as much as any other activity they willl indulge in.

This is absolutely correct. Princess is such a chatterbox that I feel I just have to be a good listener to complete our communication. Then, I don't have to say her routines every now and then. I think she is smarter than what is to be expected of her age. Thank God that I did not experience to be jittery in raising her.

Below are some trackers that will guide any child getting ready to enter the first grade:

1. On developing langguage skills:

Your child will

• Be surrounded with materials to read, including books, poems, shared chart stories.
• Spend time in small groups reading interesting books with lots of pictures to enhance the story. • Write original stories. These will start out being very simple, with only one or two sentences at first.
• Look for familiar words that appear in everyday objects, from signs on the streets to the library books they brought home.
• Read and write poetry to find similar word patterns such as bat, pat, sat and hat.

2. On developing Math skills:

Your child will

• Use the manipulatives to begin to develop concepts of addition and subtraction.
• Substitute numerals for the manipulatives and write the problems on paper.
• Develop an awareness of time and money by using instructional clocks and lifelike play money in games.

3. On developing social skills:

Your child will

• Play group games, showing an increasing ability to take and wait for his turn.
• Respect other children's property and space.
• Recognize different emotions in others and respond to them in appropriate way. For example, a story about a lost puppy would make children feel and look sad.
• Be able to plan ahead; for example, they may decide to save a snack for later.

4. What else you may do to help:

• Continue to read to your child each night even after he or she has begun to read.
• Encourage him or her to find words that are familiar and read the word when he or she is stuck. • Place value on new writing skills and ignore misspelled words for now.
• Play simple board games that reinforce counting skills.

Finally, and I think, the most important thing: follow-up your child's performance in school. This is the best tracker that you will have to do to check on the child's educational development. It pays to talk to the teacher who, I'm sure, is very much willing to share with you about your child's performance in school and what else needs to be done. As they say, there is always room for improvement.

My time has come!

Yes, indeed. My time to blog has come, and there's no way, I think, that I should let this wonderful opportunity pass me by..

I have so many reasons to get excited for this first blog of mine. And so with this first post, I get to let go my excitement, or say, the euphoria for having a site I can finally call my very own!

First, my heartfelt thanks to Tito Mau for creating this blogsite for me. Second, for eliciting the interest in me to try the blogging career, if I can call it that way. And third, this blogging thing opens up a new level of enhancement in my personal and professional development. Writing, for a lot of people to see and read, is something only very few select, and I would say, seasoned ones in the profession, shall be able to do. Wow, and am I really one of them? (LOL!) Yes, I'm really excited to the max and I can't hold it any longer.

So, here we go guys.. Blogging is real fantastic! And what else do I have in mind right away but to post the most beautiful image I know..

My beautiful Princess, the gem of my life. She's everything I have.

So, please get ready and hold on.. Till next issue friends..