WHEN I MET YOUR MOTHER

The boys asked how it was when I first met their mother:
Nicolas:  "What did you feel when you first saw my mother?"
Savion:   "Did you faint?"

THEN & NOW: GRANDCHILDREN

SCIENCE AND RELIGION

After a school day's work, Nicolas stated, 

"Science and Catholic Formation - it's so confusing."

TO CONTINUE THE NAME

Nicolas:  "Will the family name end if I don't marry and my brother doesn't marry? Okay.  I'm getting married."  And in a bit of hesitation  "Dad, I'm scared to get married."

EROS

Savion remarked, "Eventually, boys will like girls."
Nicolas then clasped his hands, looked to the sky and shouted, "Eros!!!"

LECHON FLAN

Teacher: "What do you put on top of a halo-halo?"
Nicolas: "Lechon."  
Nicolas: "I wanted to say Leche Flan but it sounded the same."

Halo-halo (from Tagalog word halò, "mix") is a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shaved ice and evaporated milk to which are added various boiled sweet beans and fruits, and served in a tall glass or bowl.  Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo-halo

Lechón is a pork dish in several regions of the world, most specifically Spain and its former colonial possessions throughout the world.  Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lechon

TEARS IN SPACE

Savion asked, "What happens when we cry in space?"

CAMEL FASHION

Savion asked, "What's a baro't saya? Is that the one with the 'humps' on the sides?"

UP IN HEAVEN

"Did she lose the baby?"

"Did she die?"

Questions of the little ones from the opening scenes of the movie "UP".

ABBREVIATION

A friend pondered an answer to his niece's question, "Why is the word abbreviation so long?"

Snippet from Mhel: http://mhelgarrido.blogspot.com

ALARM GLOCK

I asked Matthew, my 6-year old, to wake up his two sisters who were still sleeping past 9 a.m. He happily said, "Sure Mommy!" Moments later, I heard the girls shrieking. Matthew was waking them up by firing his Nerf gun and foam bullets at them! "Hay, pilyo talaga (Really mischievous)."

Snippet from Cay

AUGUST GREATS

Savion, asked, "Dad, can we go visit Cory on Wednesday? I want to see her because she made my birthday special..."

Savion Garcia, born February 25 (Anniversary of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution; Cory was inducted into office as the Seventh and First Woman President of the Republic of the Philippines)

Benigno "Ninoy" S. Aquino Jr. (November 27, 1932 - August 21, 1986)
Ma. Corazon "Cory" C. Aquino (January 25, 1933 - August 1, 2009)

MAGICAL MOTHER

IMMORTAL BELOVED - People Born on July 31

* Lansing, Sherry (1944) - scriptwriter, producer "The China Syndrome" / "Kramer vs Kramer"
* Cuban, Mark (1958) - owner, NBA Team - Dallas Mavericks
* Snipes, Wesley (1962) - actor, "Blade", "Passenger 57"
* Fatboy Slim (1963) - British DJ, big beat musician, producer and pioneer of the electronic dance genre
* Rowling, J.K. (1965) - author, Harry Potter series
* Potter, Harry (1980) - fictional character, wizard
* Michels, Ana Claudia (1981) - Brazilian model
* Cain, Dean (1966) - actor, Superman, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (TV)
* Biehn, Michael (1956) - actor, "The Terminator", "Aliens", "The Rock"
* Goolagong Cawley, Yvonne (1951) - Australian tennis player, winner of 14 Grand Slam titles
* Van Dyke, Barry (1951) - actor, "Diagnosis: Murder" (TV)
* Corr, Jim (1964) - musician, member of "The Corrs"
* Chaplin, Geraldine (1944) - actress, daughter of Charlie Chaplin
* Cassidy, Ted (1932) - 6' 9" actor, played "Lurch" the butler in the tv series "The Addams Family"
* Gowdy, Curt (1919) - sportscaster, the voice of the Boston Red Sox
* Friedman, Milton (1912) - Nobel prize winning economist
* Garcia, Mimi (1973) - tap dancer, mother to two boys, beloved wife

SOLAR ECLIPSE

The clouds broke just in time for the kids to see their first solar eclipse. They used old x-rays.

BACK to BACK to BACK

Today, the kids watched the "Back to the Future" series. Nicolas asked, "Can I get a 'hoverboard' when I grow up?"

"TANK YOU!"

And after 1 year, 2 months and 18 days, Savion shouted, "Finally!" after completing the Final Mission of the Wii Tank game in tandem with his father.

THE THRILL of VICTORY and THE AGONY of DEFEAT

Savion shed a tear as he empathized with Andy Roddick's heartbreaking loss to Roger Federer in the 123rd Wimbledon Championship.

When Federer got to match point, Savion said, "This is the Sampras Point."

JAM

"Keep your arms and legs inside. Hold on tight!"

- Nicolas Garcia-

SLOW MOTION

Savion discovered the theme from the 1981 movie "Chariots of Fire".
These days you can catch him and his brother walking or eating in slow motion; mimicking the runners in the opening sequence of the movie.

SUN BURNING QUESTION

Nicolas asked his father, "If you and mom were sunbathing and accidentally used cooking oil instead of tanning lotion, would you burn up and be cooked?"

TO INFINITY and BEYOND...

"I love you very, very much. And my love is endless."

- Nicolas Garcia -
(a message for his parents)

FATHER'S DAY COUPONS

Dear Dad,

Happy Father's Day!
Thank you for caring for me and helping me in all kinds of danger.
I love you.
Love: Savion

COUPONS:
* 1 free song coupon
* 1 free 100 pesos (Look at back)
* 1 free King of the Day coupon (boss us around for 1 day)
* 1 free back/foot massage coupon
* 1 free car clean coupon

GOT MILK?

After seeing the video above, Nicolas concluded,
"Maybe he did not get enough Calcium."

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

"Does 'The Thinker' only think but not answer?"

- Nicolas Garcia, 6 years old -

HEART TRAIN for MOMMY

ESTAMPITA

JOLLIBEE and Wii

"...I love you because you bring me to Jollibee
But I love you better than Jollibee..."

"I love you so much because you give me stuff
that I can't afford like the Wii..."

FIRST TEXT

"Dad are you okay . nic"

(Nicolas' 1st Text Message)

HANDS

PSYCHEDELIC FIRST

"I feel like I'm in heaven!"

- Savion Garcia, 9 years old,after his 1st Sacramental Confession -

NOT-ATOUILE

"Dad, have you ever seen anyone die? Right in front of your eyes? Was it sad?", Savion asked.

I told him that in death, there is both sadness and joy as the departed is now free of pain and is in a better place - like heaven.

"Except if you're a Buddhist. Then you will be reincarnated.", remarked Savion.
"What does that mean?" asked Nicolas.
"You get brought back to life in a different being." answered Savion.
"Like an animal or an insect.?", Nicolas asked further.

As he turned to his mother, Nicolas assuredly exclaimed, "Well, I don't want to come back as a rat because I don't want to scare Mommy."

WE WEE ROCK YOU!

The kids sung, "You got mud on your face, you big disgrace! Kicking your BLADDER all over the place!"

MY BOYS

Wore this helmet on the "11th Tour of the Fireflies".

I SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM

Due to an allergy, Savion could not get an ice cream cone on this hot sunny day. He generously remarked, "Dad you can go have some ice cream. But please, don't show it to me. That's Torture!"

BATCH 2023

Fr. Daniel Mcnamara, S.J.
with future scientists, Nicolas and Savion.

Photo courtesy of Genie Lorenzo

EARTH HOUR CHECK

GENIUS GENES

After spending a lot of time on a particularly difficult advanced level of the "Rush Hour" game, Nicolas shouted for joy, celebrated and embraced his mother saying, "Mom, thank you, thank you, thank you! It's your genes! It's your genes!"

BIKING GODCHILDREN

Today, the kids learned to ride a bicycle after their godfather Boyette taught them the "push-off" technique (push-off with your feet and get a feel for the steering).

Photos courtesy of godfather Badong

PAUSE PLEASE

The kids were watching a digital movie file on the computer. Unfortunately, the movie file was not working properly (if the movie file was stopped or paused, the audio stopped working). This meant the kids had to watch the whole movie in its entirety. Nicolas remarked with a bit of worry and frustration, "Awww. That means we can't go to the bathroom."

COMPLETE ADDRESS

Savion excitedly showed us his "Math Equation Book" and joked about his complete address. He wrote:

If found, please return to this address:

Winsor Bldg., 123 Lake View Manors, Barangay, Ususan,
Taguig City, Taguig, Metro Manila, NCR, Philippines,
Asia, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, Universe

His mother jokingly asked, "But what's your zip code?"

SCREAMING HELPS

On his 4th time on the ride, Nicolas confidently decided not to scream on one of the Log Jam drops (screaming helps stop the stomach-dropping feeling). I complimented him on his bravery and asked him if he would also hold back on screaming on the last and highest drop.

Nicolas smilingly shook his head and said, "Dad, if I don't scream, I might fart."

SABINE'S COMPLETE NAME

My friend's niece looked at me and said, "I don't remember you. I have not seen you for a long time." I said the same thing and asked her for her name. She said, "My name is Sabine Campos." She followed up by asking, "But do you want to hear my long name?" I nodded in agreement. She then said, "Sabiiiiiiinnnnnne Campos!"

VALKURRY

Two-year old Miguel saw a book about Anne Frank and asked his mother, "Who is she?" To avoid the heavy topic of the cruelty of war and its effect on innocent people, his mother explained in the simplest possible way that Anne Frank lived in Amsterdam and was one of the Jews imprisoned by German soldiers.

Miguel gave a moment's pause as he scrunched his eyebrows together. Apparently in deep thought, he asked, "So Anne Frank lived in Hamster-dam? And the bad soldiers put her in jail because she spilled her Juice?"

Story from a friend who is currently in curry country, Singapore

HEART CARDS

ON OUR OWN

During bedtime, I always stay with the kids until they get to sleep. They always request for me to be with them and guard them. There have been times, though, that I wished they would fall asleep quickly so that I could go watch T.V. or dabble with the computer.
Tonight, as I dutifully went through the bedtime routine, Nicolas whispered, "Dad, can you leave the room?" I asked why. He continued, "We are going to try to sleep on our own." His brother Savion nodded in agreement.
As I left the bedroom, I felt glad to immediately have my time to watch T.V. This was instantly replaced with a bit of sadness, and this realization -- My little loved ones are growing up. They will be going on their own. I wondered, "What will be their next request for independence?"

NO NO NO

The children learned not to start sentences with a 'No'. Nicolas agreed and remarked, "That's right. My girl classmates, they always say no." He then turned to his brother and quietly said, "They always say 'No' when I ask them, 'Can you be my girlfriend?'"

BIRTHDAY CARD for LOLA LINDA