2009 was a very busy year for me as a mom because my son officially started going to school in April. Although I work at home, I have a fixed schedule to follow, and dropping my son off at school and picking him up from school made my schedule even more hectic. It didn’t help that I had to change helpers five times last year only to lose the last one after Christmas. I didn’t even know how I survived 2009. Also, my son got sickly towards the end of 2009, so I was really hoping that 2009 would soon be over. I hope 2010 will be a better year.

Here’s a list of what we hope to accomplish in 2010:

1. Get rid of Justin’s feeding bottles and diapers altogether because he’s already turning four this July. He wears briefs in school and at home already and pees in the potty, but poops only in a diaper.

2. Train our son to become independent so that even without a helper, I will be able to work at home with little to no distractions and still see to his needs.

3. Expose our son to new places and new things to hone his social, emotional, behavioral, and artistic skills. A visit to the zoo and Manila Ocean Park is a must this year.

4. Schedule a family trip here or abroad to get away from the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives.

5. Find out what’s causing our son’s repeated UTI and put an end to this problem once and for all. He’ll be undergoing VUCG (voiding cystourethrogram) at Makati Medical Center tomorrow afternoon.

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Even before December 2009 came, our helper already informed me that she’d take her days off on December 25 and December 31. She didn’t even ask me if we would need her on those days for our own Christmas and New Year family celebrations. I yielded to her demand again.

When she took one of her scheduled day off in November, she crossed the line again by going beyond her allowable time. She left at 12noon on a Saturday, but came back the next day at around 5pm. Because I was doing my weekly grocery shopping when she came back, my husband was the one who reprimanded her. My husband even told our helper that she shouldn’t be the one choosing when her days off would be, clearly alluding to her December days off.

Our helper wasn’t her usual bubbly self when I got back from the supermarket that night. We already thought she would leave us after the dressing-down she got from my husband, but she did not.

On December 24, we were off again to my sister’s place in Laguna for our family Christmas get-together on the very same day that our helper was taking her day off. As expected, we had a difficult time carrying our things just like what happened to us on October 31. This is because our helper wasn’t available to help us on that day. Ergo, we were not able to bring home all the gifts that our son received on Christmas Day.

My husband was really pissed off this time. Our helper went home on December 26 with a very big luggage, enough to carry all of her things. I asked her, “Why do you have that? Are you going home already?” She said, “I got a bargain on this luggage in Baclaran. I only paid Php500.00 for this.” My husband, utterly dismayed, retorted, “You can go home now if you want. The next time you take your day off on the very same day that our family is also going somewhere, you better not come back.”

That was an ultimatum, not a threat. The next day, our helper resigned. She left after receiving her Christmas bonus, not to mention the other things I gave her: a pair of jeans, a silver necklace, a T-shirt (my Christmas gift for her), and assorted foods that I gave her to bring to her relatives as pasalubong on December 24.

Next time, I won’t be too kind to helpers again.

I’m sorry this post is too long, but I simply have to vent my disappointment.

It figures that our helper would leave us before 2009 ends. I’ve seen it coming, but dismissed the idea. Our helper was young, has many friends (call her Ms. Congeniality if you must), has many relatives here in Manila, has many callers, and therefore, has every reason to anticipate her days off and meet up with her friends and kin.

I interviewed her on October 14, 2009. Right there and then, she told me (not requested) that she would have her day off on Oct. 31, and she would be gone for two days, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, because she said her former employer allowed her to do that. Our agreement was two days off in a month, but the day we hired her (October 15) until October 31 is only 15 days, and there she was already demanding for two days off! The problem was I consented.

I only realized my mistake when we had to go to my sister’s house in Laguna with a three-year-old in tow on October 31 and had to bring a lot of personal stuff (mostly my son’s) that was more than what my husband and I could handle. We don’t have a car, for goodness sake, so you could just imagine how hard it was for us to be carrying all these things while tending to our son at the same time.

Our helper got sick in November, and being a benevolent employer that I was, I offered her an unscheduled day off. She said she went to consult a doctor about her condition. It turned out she’s showing early signs of an ulcer, which she said she might have developed in her previous place of employment.

She had a follow-up checkup the following Saturday, and again, I allowed her to go to the doctor. We all left the house at 10am on that day, but went our separate ways. Our helper arrived home at 5:00 p.m., and she apologized to my husband for being gone too long. Imagine, she was out of the house for 7 hours just for a visit to the doctor!

To be continued…

This New Year is extra special for us because for the first time, we celebrated it with my entire family. We usually spend Christmas with my side of the family, but we (my siblings) hold separate New Year celebrations annually. It was a last-minute decision to hold our New Year’s party in Tagaytay where my eldest sister lives. Because it was an impromptu family affair, we ended up serving simple dishes (mostly grilled food) during our Media Noche. Justin had a great time playing with his older cousins, blowing a horn, and seeing live fireworks for the first time.


Tetcha, Justin, Tatay, Tito O. and Tita Meme


Justin with Kuya Ron


Back to front: Tito Jhun, Tito Dennis, Kuya Ron, Justin and Justin’s daddy


Tita Meme and Tito O. doing the steps of “Nobody but You” by Wonder Girls


The siblings, back to front: Tito Dennis, Tita Cristy, Tita Meme and Tetcha
We should do this again next year!

Here's wishing everyone a happy, peaceful and abundant 2009!