Kids Ain't Cheap

But They Sure Are Worth It

Decorating Your Child’s Room

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Decorating a CribA child’s room needs to feel like it’s theirs.  When you bring home the baby, you never quite know what their personality will be.  You probably make the room either pink or blue, depending on the sex of the baby, and you also probably put your own spin on the décor.  However, as they grow up, their tastes will change, and you will need to keep up.

The Baby

The baby and young child is the easiest, because what you say goes.  You just need to keep it basic with a child’s bed, a dresser, a nightstand, and a place to store their clothes.  You may even want to store their toys in their room as well (less mess in the rest of the house).  Depending on the size, you could even have a place for them to do homework, unless you want them to do it out in the kitchen or other central place in the house.

The Tween

As your child grows into a tween, you will really start to see their taste in things shine through.  Now is a great time to give them a little freedom to start decorating their own room.  You probably should keep a little say, but there is nothing wrong with a little paint and some new wall decorations.

In fact, they’re probably growing out of their baby bed and will need something a little bigger and they could choose from the number of childrens beds that are available.  If you get new furniture now, make sure that it is designed to grow with them into adulthood.

The Teen

Finally, you’re eventually going to have a teenager, and they will probably not want you going into their room very often.  They will also want the leeway to do whatever they want to their room.  If you trust them, let them do it.  Just make sure that they’re not going to cause permanent damage to the house.  Also, for your teen, consider investing in furniture that they can take with them when the leave the house.  It can be a good investment for both you and them.

How have you handled your children’s changing needs and desires for their room?

Redecorating on a Budget

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Painting a room is one way to redecorate on a budgetWhen considering moving to a new house, I am sure your mind will be filled with images of what new and beautiful things you would like to be surrounded with. I know for all three times that I have moved, I have bought one or two decorating magazines to get ideas about how to spruce up the place, add my touch, and make it at least a version of the place of my dreams.

I have also found though that moving on a budget is a trying and frustrating endeavor.  Imagine wanting all these pretty things, and some not even so expensive, only to add up all costs and find that you can afford maybe two of the twenty items you want to implement. If that is not an exercise in frustration I do not know what is.

Again, I have come up with my ways to redecorate on a budget and not only to save on money but also to save on feeling bad that you cannot get everything you want.

1. Recycle, recycle, recycle

This might be making bells ring in the heads of conservationists and environmentalists and, while I am all for saving our planet, I have to admit that that is not the first reason for this point.  When I moved into my second house, I found I greatly lacked in storage space. So, with the help of family, I was able to have new shelves and cabinetry added. Of course, my current house also lacked storage space (as most rental places seeming suffer from) so I ripped all this out and recycled all the wood. I didn’t stick them all in looking the exact same way, naturally, and I had to repairing them to match the paint of my new place, but it was still a whole lot cheaper considering I saved on the wood, the glass, and the fixtures.  I was also able to create a lot of new kinds of shelves and storage apace with all the wood as well.

2. Do-it-yourself

A lot of people need to have professionals do things for them.  I have to admit, my mom is one of these people. I watched as she sat and started mentally computing all the funds needed to pay pro’s to create an office nook, redecorate a certain Room, etc.  I had to break to her gently how she all of moi as her professional everything for this move. So, I put together an office nook by myself (using again old furniture, some repainted, some fixed up) and with little to almost no cost.  She was quite inspired because she was able to create a clothes line for laundry all by herself using my old lines and some handy foliage in the lot beside us. So now I don’t even need to buy steel racks for hanging!  Those cost about 4k rounded off per piece. That is a lot of money.  It is 2k shy of the cost of a .5 HP air conditioner.  But I digress. The point is, whenever and wherever you can, with whatever you have on hand, try to make/create what you need on your own. All you really need is a little creativity, your two hands, and some basic office tools.

3. Reinvention

This point is connected to points one and two.  As you recycle and start on your D.I.Y. tasks, you can also reinvent.  So, as I mentioned previously, I was able to create new kinds of storage from the old cabinet wood I brought with me from my old house.  And you can get as creative as you want.  I used old storage boxes as the table for my printer since my office is under the attic stairs and requires low and small furniture.  I used old plastic shower or bathroom racks as spice racks.  I just needed to take them apart to make them separate pieces, then paint them.  I used an old plastic trolley, took it off its wheels, took the three levels apart and created two separate, small shoe racks for the kids shoes- again, something that would fit a smaller space.

The point is, to save on professional fees, to forgo the heartache of letting go of signature pieces that you love but just cannot afford, try to look at what you have and get creative.  Priming, repainting, and reconnecting parts can all be done for a very minimal cost and taking things apart to make new things costs nothing at all.

What budget tips for redecorating can you share?

How to Have a Healthier Easter

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Easter Egg HuntMy son happens to be one of those lucky people who can eat whatever he wants and never gain weight, something he certainly didn’t get from me. Although he constantly reminds me of that fact around Easter each time he grabs another jelly bean, I remind him that not being overweight doesn’t mean you can eat whatever you want.

Candy is fine in moderation, but you have to resist temptation around holidays, especially Easter. Of course, like most kids, whatever I say goes in one ear and out of the other, so I learned that distracting him from the candy using Easter activities was the best bet to avoid a sugar frenzy.

 

Easter Egg Animals

I’ve personally done chicks and dinosaurs, but you can make nearly any animal out of dyed eggs. Simply dye the eggs according to the color of the animals your kids want to make. Get some modeling clay that dries in the air and non-toxic glue and paint.

Use the modeling clay to make the animal’s feet and other features, such as beaks and ears and attach the pieces to the egg with the glue. Once the glue dries, have your kids paint other parts on the eggs to complete the look, such as eyes or color patterns.

 

Basket Decorating

Baskets can be decorated using whatever theme your kids chose. My son loves cars, so we went out and bought foam shapes. We painted the shapes and made cars by cutting pieces to sizes we needed and gluing the pieces together. Once the glue dried, we painted each one. After the paint set, we glued the cars all over his basket.

Foam shapes will work for most projects. You can make a princess theme and flowers for girls and dinosaurs and cars for boys using foam shapes. Talk to your kids to get other ideas for basket additions, such as stickers and glitter.

The baskets can be used around the house for holding different things; we keep an especially good one by the front door as a key dump, and there’s another in the bathroom which holds fruity soaps.

You could also decorate an Easter tree, which is another craft variation that is popular in many places, especially Canada.

 

Easter Savings

A lot of family members give my son money at Easter. Putting change in a plastic Easter egg or at the bottom of the basket in the grass is considered good luck. However,  I prefer to use these Easter windfalls  to teach my son about saving money.

Get a plain, unfinished piggy bank or other coin bank from a crafts store. Use stickers or glue on foam shapes representing items he wants to buy onto the bank and have your child put all his Easter money into that bank. Talk to him about saving for items he wants instead of spending his money all at once.

Since Easter happens right around the ISA season, it’s a good time to think about opening a junior ISA for your kid and it fits with the saving theme. Even though your child may not understand the reason behind a tax-free savings account, they will understand you’re using a junior ISA to save money for them for the future.

A junior ISA allows you to save money tax-free and invest the money in the stock market if you want to do so, so you can help your child pay for their education and other life necessities later.

What other tips do you have for a healthier Easter?

Well, It’s Official, Christmas is Finally Coming

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Found on CAPL

Found on CAPL

As far as my kids are concerned, it’s not Christmas until the tree is setup and decorated.  I feel the same way but for a different reason.  I love the smell of it, the way it looks and the spirit of the holiday that it creates.  My kids on the other hand, can’t wait for the tree to go up because they know once we are done decorating it, I will finally setup the train that we put under it.   My oldest son, Harrison, starts asking in March whether Christmas is coming soon and if we will be able to setup the train again.  He is only 4 but doesn’t miss a thing and is quite persistent.   He waits all year for it!

As his father, it’s a pretty fun and special day for me when I finally get to setup the train, grab some drinks and snacks, sit on the floor with my two boys and play with the train.   The process will be repeated just about every night from now until we take the tree down.  It takes real effort for me to keep up my enthusiasm for it, especially after a long day of work. There are days where I just want to go home, eat dinner and relax but then I walk through the door to see two very excited boys, yelling hello over their shoulder as they run in the opposite direction  to get the trains ready for me that makes me feel like a kid again and re-energizes me for the task at hand.

Has the Christmas season started in your house yet? What traditions do you use to start the season?

Christmas a la Manila

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Christmas is my personal favorite time of the year.  And there is nothing like a Filipino Christmas.  Let me try to illustrate what the season is like here in the Philippines.

Christmas in Manilla, Phillipenes

Trivia to ‘Set the Scene’:

  • The Philippines has the longest Christmas celebration in the world.  As soon as September hits (known here as the start of the ‘ber months’), you can already smell the season of giving.
  • Philippine fiestas are legendary. This no-holds barred party is a reason for the poor man to celebrate, eat, drink, and be merry, all wrapped up together with song and religion.
  • Filipinos LOVE TO EAT. Ask anyone who has visited the country and they will tell you that a staple in any Filipinos welcome package is a large meal. Many large meals.
  • Filipinos LOVE TO SING!  Think Charice, Lea Salonga, Jamie Rivera, Monique Wilson, Billy Crawford, among some of the artists who have gone on to world fame.  You will find a sing-along machine (karaoke) around every corner. Seriously.
  • Filipinos have always been family-centered- a big factor in the strong yet gentle, kind, giving, and hospitable nature the Filipino is known for. Case in point, Manny Pacquiao.

These are all facts you need to know to understand what a Filipino Christmas is like.

Fun, Fiesta, and Family

Philippine history is peppered with influence from Spain and the United States. After 300 years of Spanish colonization, Christianity was firmly rooted in Philippine soil mixing with an already strong belief in a higher being.  The 50 or so years of American rule in the 19th-20th century left lasting imprints that are clear in our language, style of dress, educational system, and some traditional symbols.

Christmas Ambiance

You will definitely see a mix of the Western and the traditional in the Philippines.  You will see Christmas trees, of varying heights and color. Yes, color. I don’t know about the US but in Manila we have pink trees, blue trees, white trees, silver tress, and the typical green tree.  This will decorated with lights and ornaments as is the Western tradition and is topped alternatively with a lit star or an angel.

In addition to the Christmas tree, we have beautiful lit lanterns known as ‘parols’.  These are typically made of capiz shell, white or of varying color, with lights inside.  A parol of some size and design is usually found hanging outside the house.  This lantern symbolizes the star the three kings followed to the barn where the baby Jesus was born.  So, in addition to the Christmas tree and the lantern, you will often see a nativity, or statues of Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus, as home decor as well during Christmas.

You can find instructions on making one of these yourself on our Making a Parol post

Christmas Spending

You will start seeing bazaar after bazzar spring up in village club houses and church halls starting in October and these bazaars will showcase any kind of gift under the sun from the native item to food to clothes, etc.  All at slashed prices making it impossible for anyone to stick to a reasonable budget.  No where else will you see a financally struggling populace spend with abandon as some Filipinos do during Christmas.

There is a reason for this spending though.  In the Philippines we also have the adopted Santa Claus. So parents save months in advance to be both Santa and mom and dad. Frenzied shopping with a purpose is perhaps an apt way to describe the buying of the season.  There really is nothing like seeing the joy on your child’s face upon waking up to find Santa visited and was generous. I know this for a fact.

Eating and Making Merry for the Season

Christmas in the Philippines will showcase some of the country’s best native food.  There is the roast pig (lechon),  sweet meat loaf (embotido), smoked ham, fruit salad, quezo de bola (a round, aged cheese) and delicacies like puto bumbong. This purple colored dessert is made of sweet rice cooked in a hollow bamboo tube.  Once cooked they are removed from the bamboo tube and served with spread butter, sugar, and coconut.  This dessert, and most of the dishes I mentioned, are only served during Christmas making them eagerly anticipated and all the more special.

Of course, food always goes with song in the Philippines and starting the end of November calendars are filled with party after party, all of which have some form of singing to live bands, sing alongs, and Christmas caroling.

The Religion of Christmas

And again there is the religious aspect.  Starting December 16 there is a 9 day novena which most people attend. A novena is a Roman Catholic period of prayer lasting 9 days.  So a person attends 9 consecutive masses, praying for a special intention at the same time.  The novelty of this novena is that the masses are said in the wee hours of the morning, from 4 am to 6 am.  You will see flocks of people, young adults, working folks, etc all attending mass in the early morning.  This mass is capped off by an early morning breakfast of hot chocolate, coffee, and Philippine native delicacies.  A main mass is celebrated on Christmas day to mark the birth of Jesus Christ. Have I mentioned how Christianity is firmly rooted in the Philippines?

Family is Everything

All the decoration, masses, gift buying, eating, drinking, and signing are geared towards one thing- being with the family at this special time of the year.  Yes, the birth of Jesus is the reason for the season but it is also the one and only time that family is expected to set aside all things, all worries, all animosity just to be together.  No other occasion or holiday matches Christmas in that objective.  So if you are visiting the Philippines during the season, you will not miss a celebration that has some relation to family.

Perhaps Christmas in the Philippines is no different from Christmas anywhere else.  I guess you have to be here from the beginning to the end of the season to understand and feel the full flavor of what I’ve tried to do justice to with words and pictures.  Come and visit next year and really see what it’s like.  I assure you, you will have a great time!

In the meantime, Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays to you all from Manila!

What are the Christmas traditions for your country?