Archive for the Category »Alyanna Dialogues «

28
Feb
A Banana a Day…
thammie128

WARNING: This post might gross some of you out, but this story made me laugh so…. *read at your own risk*

Alyanna: “Mom! Mom! Can I eat banana so that my poo-poo will become long?”

Me: *laughing at the “logic”* “Ha? What??”

(Okay, let me pause here for a minute, for the sake of some, let’s change little poo’s name to p–p– okay?)

Alyanna: “Yes, please mom? because Amah (her grandma) said that if I eat banana my p–p– will become longer and it’s nice to have a long  p–p–”

Me: *thinking, wow. seriously?? that’s a concern to you??* …(i just laughed)

Alyanna: *still serious* “Mom, please? I want a long p–p–. Just like when I went to Achie Bianca’s (her cousin) house and I made poo (oops! sorry, slip of the fingers) p– there, and she looked and said “wow! Alyanna you’re p–p– is so malaki!!” (at this point she gives a huge grin of pride in her so-called accomplishment) …and I want it to always be like that. please mom?”

Me: (Still laughing) “Okay, Alyanna. If that’s what you want, then go ahead and eat banana!”

I’m sorry, I know I should have taken her seriously, but it was too funny for me. What a concern my daughter has! Maybe I should start to give her more responsibilities around the house… ??? :D

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  2 Comments
27
Feb
Alyanna’s Fashion Sense
thammie128

While we are still on the subject of Disney movies and Disney princesses (well, at least I still am, since I’ve been mentioning Disney in my past two blogs), allow me to share this short dialogue I just had with Alyanna:

ALYANNA: “Mom, why is Princess Jasmine wearing a shirt that’s too short for her? She’s showing her tummy and belly button. Why??”

ME: “OO nga noh?? You know Alyanna, maybe she doesn’t even realize that what she’s wearing is NOT appropriate, or maybe she forgot to add more cloth to her shirt that’s why there’s not enough to cover her whole body. What do you think?”

ALYANNA: “Mom, when we go back to Disneyland Hongkong we have to look for Princess Jasmine and tell her to buy more cloth so she can cover her tummy and belly button, okay mom? Don’t forget ha?”

Whew! I’m glad she didn’t start to connect that Jasmine’s supposed to be the daughter of the very wealthy sultan and should therefore be able to have anything at her disposal— including the right set of clothes….

Buti pa ang bata, marunong manamit! :)

PS: I walked into our room one morning (this was last week), and Alyanna started singing “I can open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder….” with matching hand gestures— again, in her sleep! :D

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  Tags: , ,  One Comment
28
Oct
The “D” Word
thammie128

I am so happy our helper came back from the province today. Two weeks ago she got a call from her aunt that her lola had just suffered a stroke. It  didn’t even take long before she got another call informing her that her beloved lola, who raised her, already passed away. I was with the kids at that time singing “Part of Your World” to them while feeding them dinner, when we heard some noise from the maid’s room. We immediately ran to see what was going on and when we went inside we saw our helper on the floor, crying her heart out. Both Alyanna and Mika saw her and were confused as to what was really going on.

After our helper left, Alyanna kept on asking us why her ate had to go home. Initially we explained that it was because her grandma was sick. Days after that, she still kept on asking us about our helper’s grandmother, about why she was sick and why she had to go to the hospital, and why her ate had to go be with her. At that time we didn’t really feel the need to tell her that there was no more sick grandma…there was however, a dead grandma– and that’s why her ate had to go back home. So we let it be…

….until one day, while in our car, she brought the subject up again. I think she was very affected because she saw her ate crying so hard. She felt her pain and needed an explanation for what she had just witnessed.

ALYANNA: “Mom, why was Ate Mira crying? Because her grandma is sick? Why she has to go home?”

ME: “Alyanna, Ate Mira’s grandma was sick…but now she’s not sick anymore…(not wanting to say the “D” word, I ask for help from my ever-so-wise husband)….uh, love, how do we explain this?”

DENNIS: (focused on driving, so probably not giving it much thought) “Alyanna, Ate Mira’s lola is now in heaven. It means that when she sleeps she will not wake up anymore.” (goes back to just driving)

ME: “ah! that’s right… that’s why Ate Mira is very sad, because she will miss her grandma.”

….And that was the end of the conversation. :)

…or so  I thought.

The next day, Alyanna once again brought up the subject of her Ate Mira and why she was crying so hard and why she had to go home.

ALYANNA: “mom, why is Ate Mira sad? Why is she crying? Because her grandma is sick that’s why she has to go home?”

ME: (not really knowing how to explain it to her, I resorted to using the “D” word) “Alyanna, ate Mira’s grandma used to be sick. Now she’s not. She’s dead. okay? She’s already dead, which means her body stopped working already because it’s too tired…Uh, she won’t be on this earth anymore, that’s why ate Mira will not be seeing her anymore and she’ll miss her so much. Uh….she….uh…yes, like what daddy said yesterday right, when she sleeps she won’t wake up anymore. And if she had Jesus in her heart then she will be with God in heaven na.” (*hay this is so hard! i should have read up on this, on how to explain death to little kids! pano ba to without sounding morbid??!*)

ALYANNA: (in a very nonchalant tone) “Oh! You mean she passed away already??” :)

….What??! Alam mo pala ang “passed away??” Ba’t di mo agad sinabi??

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  8 Comments
19
Sep
Alyanna swallowed a plastic balloon?!?
thammie128

Alyanna got an old-fashioned “plastic balloon” from a birthday party. I know kids her age aren’t really supposed to play with these things, but I too, got excited. It’s been years since I last played with one! So yes, I allowed her to play with it also. Both of us were ecstatic as we blew into that short and tiny straw, and as we saw the transparent little bubble inflate.

A few minutes into our playtime, I had to get something from our room and so I left the girls to play by themselves. I trusted that Alyanna was smart enough not to ingest anything potentially harmful, particularly the plastic balloon we were playing with.

I was in my room for a few minutes, unable to check on the girls, but within earshot. I could hear both of them playing with glee and even heard Alyanna telling Mika about a “bubble”. She then started calling for my attention saying, “Look! Mom! A bubble!” –with matching giggles.

I decided to check on the two little ones, also to see the bubble Alyanna was so excited about. I took my time since I knew she was just talking about the plastic balloon. When I got back to their room, I thought I saw Alyanna put a tiny transparent thing into her mouth.

ME: “Where is it?”
ALYANNA: *just stares at me and shrugs her shoulder*
ME: “Alyanna, where is it?”
ALYANNA: *still having that look on her face, slowly points to her mouth*
ME: *nervous* “Did you swallow it??”
ALYANNA: *just stares again*
ME: (not sure if Alyanna’s stare means she’s guilty or clueless) “Alyanna, did you swallow it??”
ALYANNA: *slowly…nods*
ME: “Alyanna! You swallowed it?!?”
ALYANNA: *nods again*
ME: (over-reacting) “Alyanna! You swallowed it?! You can not swallow it! You should not swallow it! Next time, please remember you can NEVER swallow a plastic balloon!”
ALYANNA: *as if a light bulb turned on in her head* “huh? …Ah! No, mom! the plastic balloon is there in the CR o!” (she shows it to me)
ME: *relieved, but still confused* “Ha? Eh, what did you say that you swallowed??”
ALYANNA: *in a matter-of-fact, ‘duh,mom’ tone* “My laway.”

….There, mommy. That is what happens when we overreact. :)

Category: Alyanna Dialogues, parenting, random  9 Comments
15
Aug
The Princess and the Prince
thammie128

Dennis and Alyanna were role playing earlier tonight, before going to bed:

DENNIS (as The Beast): *in a…beast-y voice hehe* “Why have you come to my house??”
ALYANNA (as Belle): *in a soft princess-like voice* “Because the BEANS is not here yet.” (I think she meant “Beast”)
DENNIS: “I am!! I’m the beast! you cannot stay in my house!! See your dad?? He’s locked up inside..” *points to our lazyboy* “That’s the prison cell.” ….*Dennis coaches Alyanna on their script* “Alyanna, say ‘take me instead’!”
ALYANNA: *Still in a sweet voice* “No please I don’t like…..Can you find me a house where I could stay please?” (Aba, quite refined ha…)
DENNIS: “Okay, stay here with me!!”
ALYANNA: “Oh, is this your house?”
DENNIS: *up to now, still in character* “Yes, come in!”
ALYANNA: “Oh, now I’m Ariel. Let’s magine (imagine) that I’m the princess and you’re the prince…”
DENNIS: “Okay, what happened to them? What did the princess and the prince do?”

–STOP!!! In my mind, “Oh no…why does she know these things about princesses and princes?? She’s too young to know about ‘love teams’ ah!!”

ALYANNA: *thinks long and hard* “They will…go swimming together! Come on prince!”

—WHEW! Okay, I guess she didn’t get to watch the later part when they got married…good, good… still safe. :)

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  Tags: , , ,  One Comment
12
Aug
“No! I’m Not Fat!”
thammie128

My father-in-law came to visit us earlier today. Alyanna does love him, but for some odd reason, she just isn’t warm and sweet to him…not like how she is with my mother-in-law, at least. Anyway, as I was coming down the stairs, I overheard my father-in-law persuading her to give him a kiss. When I got to our living room, I took it upon myself to help him persuade Alyanna into obliging him with a kiss…or a hug, at the very least. I took her aside, and after a few minutes, she finally gave in and agreed to give him a hug….but she insisted that I hold her hand while she did it. I went with her, and she slooowwly walked up to her grandpa and stood there in front of him, her body somewhat inclined towards him as if it was saying “If you want a hug from me, then YOU come and get it from me.” I think my dad-in-law got the message and knew it was the closest thing he could get to a hug from her so he happily took her in his arms and hugged her– Alyanna remained still and somewhat stiff (the “shy” kind of stiff, not the scared or indifferent kind). What came after took me by surprise and just made me laugh…

GRANDPA: *Hugging her tight and cherishing the rare moment* “Alyanna, you’re so fat fat na ah!” *rubbing the sides of her tummy, perhaps implying that her tummy was getting bigger*

ALYANNA: *Quickly forced herself out of those loving arms and hands* “No! I’m not fat!!”

GRANDPA: “Yes, you’re fat na, see your tummy? very big already!”

ALYANNA: *Now very disheartened by the comment, swiftly moved away from her grandpa and sat on our coffee table with both arms covering her tummy, frowning* “No! I’m not fat. I eat healFY (healthy) food! I always eat healfy food I can’t be fat! I’m not fat. You’re fat, not me!”

…At this point I knew I had to intervene….

ME: “No, Alyanna, what Ankong meant was that you’ve gained weight since the last time he saw you, but of course, you’re still not fat….You just got bigger because you’re a growing girl remember?”

ALYANNA: *Walks away from the table and moves to the other couch, still frowning*

GRANDPA: “Yes! Alyanna, you’re not fat! you’re still thin, but you’re fatter…but you’re still thin..just fatter….but thin!”

ME: “Remember? Before, you just weighed 20 pounds..now, you’re 30 pounds already! You’re bigger! But not fatter….because you always eat healthy food right?”

ALYANNA: *Feeling better now* “Yes.”

*She now smiles…and she starts pretending to be a baby and talking like a baby*

….I would understand why she reacted this way if her parents (that’s me and Dennis!) were the type who cared a lot about not getting fat….but obviously, we’re NOT! So I wonder, where’d she get this sudden body image issue??? I thought this was an adolescent thing…She hasn’t even turned four yet! Oh, dear…

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  Tags: , , , ,  One Comment
05
Jul
Pastor Alyanna
thammie128

Dennis and I had quite a day— Both of us had to be in Greenhills by noon because call time for the worship team (which I was a part of today) was 12:30, while Dennis also had to finalize everything for his preaching. The whole afternoon and night was work, ministry, work. We both had a great time serving God and the church today, but I was also looking forward to going home and just relaxing after a day’s work. I was looking forward to maybe a movie treat while muching on some snacks in the comfort of our bedroom (using a laptop, of course, since we don’t have TV in our bedroom anymore).

Can I just share this??  We were about to go upstairs just earlier tonight when Dennis and I got a very cute treat from our daughter, Alyanna. She saw her dad’s Bible on the coffeetable and started to open it……

ALYANNA: “I’m just going to preach to the people, okay?!” (With a very excited tone, both arms in a “Hi I’m Alyanna, I’m from quezon citeeeey!” gesture)

“Okay, everyone! Let’s just praise God….Let’s make God happy okay??” (one arm raised, as if asking for the people’s amen…of course, by “people” I mean, me and Dennis)

ALYANNA: *points to the Bible which was facing us, just as teachers do in storytelling time*  “So, this is Jonah…and he said to the bad guy…to make Jesus happy, okay?”

(The Bible starts to slip off since it’s too big for her)

“Uh..I just need to get a table and a stage okay? wait….” *Puts her Bible on our coffeetable*

“Okay, mommy will sing and praise Jesus and then I’ll come back and preach after mommy worships God okay? Mommy sing!” (she calls me to the “stage”)

“Here mom! on the stage now…..worship God people!! Clap your hands!”

—-*clap!clap!*—-

“Okay, I’m just gonna preach but first everyone let’s watch this movie…” *walks off to the side and watches, just like the pastors do whenever a video starts to play*

———————-

“Okay, now the kids will be singing. They will wear a skirt just like a princess and then sing and dance and take a bow…Okay kids!” *calls the imaginary kids to the stage and walks over to the side so the kids can take the stage*

“Oh, they’re not yet starting because the teacher is still talking to someone…….oh, now they’re starting already!!”

……..”Okay, thank you kids!” *goes back to the center of the stage*

“I have a mic here, only one on my face okay?” (describes the kind of microphone her dad uses to preach)

“Okay, preaching time!…. God said to the kids….they will go to a princess store…..and they will go up and down but Jesus is still up and He’ll go down to the kids…..” (and she “expounds” on this topic, which I totally don’t get)

———this part is all jumbled up in my mind….all I get is a princess, a princess store, a castle, the kids’ skirts…..———-

“Oh no, the boy grabbed the toys and it’s broken and God said, Do not grab because if you grab it will get sira already….and God said we have to share our toys and if we don’t we will get a rod because we have to obey…..”

———and for another five minutes it was a series of mommy leading praise and worship, watching a movie clip, and Alyanna preaching again——

“Okay, let’s pray. *Raises one arm up towards the people*  “Lord, thank you for those that will eat food, and then after mom sings, we’ll eat already our snacks, okay? Amen.”

————————-

Alyanna never fails to amuse us…and amaze us. Just when we thought that our kids don’t pay attention in big church (what we’ve coined our adult service), they do this! :)

ps; video to follow

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  Tags: , ,  15 Comments
29
Jun
Met An Accident
thammie128

I had set a salon date with my sisters-in-law today. Dennis decided that he would drop me off at our meeting place, bring Alyanna to school, then have a date with Mika. Our day was all planned out. It was going to be a great day-off for Dennis, and semi-day off for me. :)

We were nearing the salon and I was getting ready to get off the car when I suddenly heard a thump and a screeching sound from the back. I thought it would be a short screech but it wasn’t. Well, it lasted for more than two seconds and if you own a car, you know that even one second is long enough to stir up some anxiety in you. I guess Dennis was thinking the same thing because when it kept going on he said “UY!” then blew the horn *BEEEEEEEEEEPPPPP!!!!*  It was at that time I realized we had just met an accident.I was ready to be all panicky, but as I looked out the window, I saw a HUGE container truck right on the side where Mika was. We now drive a Toyota Vios, so you would understand my sentiments when I say that the first thing that came to my mind was “Whew! Thank you Lord for protecting us!” I didn’t even bother to look at the extent of the damage that accident left on our car. I was just relieved that it wasn’t big enough to warrant any medical attention for our precious girls. :)

Anyway, the point of my telling you this story is really this:

As soon as Dennis blew the horn, Alyanna insistingly told Dennis, “Daddy, please drive carefully okay??” Dennis, obviously preoccupied, ignored her comment and got off the car. Alyanna fell quiet for a moment (as if processing what just happened) and asked me, “Mom, why is daddy sad?” with a very sympathetic voice. I just invited her to pray with me. All the while, she kept silent, observing my reaction as well as Dennis’.

Dennis told me to go to the salon in a very commanding voice so without thinking, I obeyed. After a few minutes I realized I couldn’t be at peace leaving them so I excused myself so I could go get the two girls (there were with our helper). I had the feeling Alyanna would be watching Dennis from inside the car and I didn’t want to take any chances–not that I was expecting Dennis to get mad at the truck driver–he’s usually calm and composed even under pressure, but like I said, I didn’t want to take any chances. As I opened the door, the first thing Alyanna said to me was, “mom, I’m sad also…” I’m guessing she saw her daddy in a somewhat unhappy disposition (obviously).

I’m amazed at Alyanna. She is not the most affectionate person at times, but she is always very very keen on other people’s feelings. She is also very quick to see and copy our responses in every situation.

Today I was reminded of how our children are like sponges. We could lecture all we want about self-control, patience, and forgiveness–but if they see us acting otherwise, all those words would mean nothing to them. Perhaps at best, our lectures would just bring confusion.

I am so blessed to have a husband who can handle sudden unpleasant events very gracefully. I am glad that he practices what he preaches to our kids. I most probably would not have responded that way if it was just me in that car. Generally, I do not respond to the unexpected very well. Good thing I have a lifetime to learn from my best friend. :)

Category: Alyanna Dialogues, parenting  Tags: , , , , ,  6 Comments
28
Jun
Am I Beautiful??
thammie128

I was having a peaceful time reading my Bible when I heard Alyanna whining and demanding for something in the other room. At that moment, I was tempted to ignore her and thought, it’s supposed to be my “quiet” time with God, anyway. A few seconds later, however, I just knew I couldn’t go on with this alone time if I did not deal with her behavior right away.

I called her into my room and asked what was wrong. She continued to use her whining tone despite my reminder of the consequences that tone would bring about. She was whining because she wanted to wear a hair clip. I’ve told her a  few times before to wait until her hair was dry before wearing one, so this time I reminded her again. She then told me she did not want to obey. As petty as the issue at hand was, I had to deal with her heart so I disciplined her.

Usually, Alyanna would apologize, change her tone, and decide to obey after I discipline her–but this time, she didn’t. Instead, she looked at me and said, “I still don’t like to obey.”

This was not the Alyanna I’ve come to know, so I asked her why she was willing to get the rod from whining, just so she could have her way and wear that clip. She then started crying and said “I have to wear a clip so I can be beautiful! Because I want to be beautiful!”

In my mind, “WHAT?!? You’re three years old!! When I was your age……..I couldn’t even remember how things were when I was your age!”  ……..I decided to take this as a teachable moment.

ME: “Alyanna, do you think wearing a nice hair clip is what would make you beautiful?

ALYANNA: *sobs* “yes!”
ME: “Sweetheart, you know what? Even now that your hair is messy and still wet, I find you beautiful. You have to know it’s not what’s on your hair that makes you beautiful; it’s what’s in your heart–that’s what makes you beautiful. Do you understand?”

ALYANNA: *nods*

ME: *relieved that she got my point* “Okay Alyanna, let’s just fix your hair later when it’s dry okay?”

ALYANNA: “Okay…..” *smiling at this point* “Mom, can I wear my new dress nalang??”

ME: *thinking of the laundry–soap, water, time, effort…plus the wear on the new dress if she used it to play around…plus it was too hot and I was sure she’d get all sweaty as soon as she put on that dress* “Why? We’re not going out…”

ALYANNA: “Mom, because I want to be beautiful!”

ME: *withdrew from the place of relief* “Sweetheart, you know even if you’re wearing worn-out clothes, I still see you as beautiful! You know why? Because it’s not what you wear that makes you beautiful, it’s what’s in your heart. What makes you beautiful is if you have a heart that makes God smile. Do you understand?”

ALYANNA: “Yes, mom…but can I wear my new dress? I want to look beautiful!”

ME: *thinking: naku you better not be like this when you’re sixteen!*….. “Okay, love, but you have to know once you wear that it’ll be hot and you can not complain. You’re okay with that?”

ALYANNA:*excited* “Yes!”

…So off she goes to get her outfit. As I was putting it on her, she was beaming with excitement and when we were finally done, she asked me, “Mom, Am I beautiful??”

—————-

Amazing…this three-year old is already craving for someone to assure her that she’s beautiful.

I want to make sure she grows up knowing that she is– not because of the clothes that she would wear, nor the hair accessories she would put on…but because she would have a heart that honors God. I want to raise her up and guide her towards becoming that beautiful lady God has destined her to be–not just by teaching her how to dress well, but by training her to live a life that would make her Heavenly Father smile. :)

—————-

PS: Now, when I ask her “What makes you beautiful?” She gives me two answers: one, “If I smile.”, and two, “If I have a heart that makes God smile.” ….So far I say we’re on the right track. :)

Category: Alyanna Dialogues, parenting  15 Comments
25
Jun
My Failed Attempts Today…
thammie128

** Oops, I wasn’t able to publish this yesterday…

*Earlier this afternoon*

While Alyanna and Mika were both playing on our bed, I went to Alyanna and started hugging her GENTLY and kissing her GENTLY (meaning, no “gigil” involved)—many many many times. Alyanna then started squirming and was trying to “break free” from this plight she was in.

ALYANNA: “*grunts* mommy, I’m having a hard time!”

ME: “Huh? How come? I’m being gentle Alyanna!”

ALYANNA: *grunts again, and starts trying to pull my arms away from her* “mommy, I’m having a hard time! You’re kissing me a lot! Tama na please??”

*a little later…*

I was in my room, lying down on our bed while Alyanna was getting something from her room…

ME: *pretending to be in pain* “Alyanna, please come here?”

ALYANNA: *responds right away and comes to my rescue* “Yes mommy, what is it?” (ah, yes…i love these moments she has when she’s super obedient!)

….she sees me lying down and looking weak (actually, i was just sleepy) and asks, “are you okay mom?”

ME: (wow, she must be in her sweet mood! yey!!) “I’m not…Alyanna, can you please come here and hug me? I need you….” (still internalizing my role)

ALYANNA: *dismisses my drama and decides she’s not in her sweet mood after all* “uh no mom. you’re ok na. Bye mom!” ….and she rushes off to get more toys…

*Tonight*

I was lying down with my head on a breastfeeding pillow (for those who are not familiar with it, it’s simply a U-shaped pillow)…

ME: *in a weak, yet dramatic tone* “Alyanna, I’m weak…please come and hug me?”

ALYANNA: “I’ll just stay here on this side  (points to one end of the “U”) and you will stay there on the other side (points to where I was, on the other end) okay mom?”

ME: (now frustrated with all the failed attempts of the day) “But I still need you! Don’t you want to “lambing” me Alyanna??”

ALYANNA: (as if sensing my frustration and trying to appease me) “I want mom, but I’ll just lambing you by myself okay?” …. and lies down on her end of the pillow…

*sigh*… oh well, I’ll try again tomorrow… :)

Category: Alyanna Dialogues  Tags: , , , , ,  3 Comments
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