Most of you know that my world revolves around writing, blogging and my 3-year old nephew Keoni. I've been taking care of him since he was born and I just can't picture my life without him.☺

Anyway, we were watching an episode of Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney Channel the other day. I guess it was a rerun or something. In the episode, the wizards diner suddenly found itself with competing with a diner that's run by vampires.

So Keoni sees the vampires in their costumes and he tells me he wants to wear a costume too. I told him he already has a Spider Man costume but he answered that it's not a costume but rather a sleepwear. I tried to reason that it only became a sleepwear because he wants to wear it to sleep. But this little boy won't simply rest. He insisted I should buy him a costume. When I asked him what kind he liked, he told me, without batting his eyelashes, that he wants an Incredible Hulk costume!

Oh my! Now I'm trying to scour the net for Incredible Hulk Costumes. I've seen some already in one website I chanced upon but they only have big sizes. So aside from writing an article that's due tomorrow, I'm also trying to look for an Icredible Hulk costume for my dear Keoni. Oh the joys and sorrows of being an aunt!

 

The other just before my brother and his family left for their mini vacation, they went to the mall to buy some clothes for my nephew. He actually has a lot of clothes but when my SIL tried them on Keoni, she realized Keoni has outgrown most of his clothes, to think that he hasn’t even worn some. My SIL’s convinced that her son grows by the minute. So off to the mall they went in search of Keoni’s vacation garb.

When they got back, my SIL was telling me that they had a hard time finding clothes for Keoni. He’s only 39 months old, practically a toddler, but they couldn’t find clothes that fit him in the toddler’s section! They finally found clothes for him at the boy’s section. The clothes they got for him were all in size 8 and according to the sales lady, a size 8 was normally for 7 or 8 year old kids. 

Keoni isn’t obese and neither is he fat. He’s just a little bit big for his age. I think he’s got big bones that’s why he weighs so much and he looks chunky. But he does have a hearty appetite.

Anyway, after they finished shopping for Keoni’s clothes, they decided to look for matching shoes. Like his clothes, Keoni has outgrown most of his shoes. He prefers wearing flip flops but his mom wanted to buy him a pair of formal shoes and a pair of boots. I don’t know where he’ll use the boots, but his mom wanted them, so be it. I would’ve suggested that they look into buying John Deere boots for Keoni because I know for a fact that those boots are sturdy and durable. They would be the perfect pair for Keoni. Unfortunately, I don’t think there are stores here that carry boots by John Deere.

Time surely flies when you’re having fun. I can pretty much attest to that fact. It seems like only yesterday when my nephew Keoni made his grand entrance to the world. I can’t believe it’s actually been three years since then.

When Keoni was born, the doctors told us he had a weak heart. They deduced that it was because of his birth weight. He came out weighing 11.22 pounds! We even had to leave him at the hospital after his mom was discharged because he had to undergo several tests. It was heartbreaking to see a tiny little boy with all those needles stuck to his legs.

Anyway, it was a good thing that the doctors were able to detect it right away and ever since he was given a clean bill of health, I can say that he’s at the pink of his health. Of course, we’re still monitoring his condition. So as much as possible, we don’t allow him to overdo himself. Keoni does engage in some physical activities but what’s great about him is that when we tell him to stop, he obliges.

Educational kids toys are what normally keeps him busy most of the time. His grandma (my mom) bought him a toy laptop that has lots of interactive features and currently, he’s starting to learn his upper and lower case letters. He also has several activity books, most of which feature his favorite characters like Mickey Mouse, Barney, Thomas the Tank Engine and The Backyardigans.

It’s amazing how much he’s absorbed through his educational toys. Children’s development nowadays is so overwhelming and I’m just so happy that Keoni is turning out to be one smart boy. Playing with his toy laptop has even taught him how to navigate my own laptop and on days when I’m not so busy, he asks if he can play interactive games there. Of course, I let him and boy, does he know how to use a real laptop! I can't help but smile and be amazed when I see him ably controlling the laptop's touch pad and knowing which icons to click on. 

Geez, I can't believe how time flies. Three years ago, I was still working my butt off trying to pacify irate auto finance clients of HSBC. I had to calmly deal with them even if they were the ones who owed HSBC thousands of dollars worth of car loans. It was also three years ago when a welcome addition to our small family made his entrance to the world.☺

 

He was born around 6 in the evening of 1st March 2007. It was funny because his mom and dad were in the parking lot of Gateway Mall trying to look for a parking space because they were going to buy more things for the baby when Shierley's (my SIL) water broke and my brother had to drive all the way from Cubao to Parañaque in lightning speed because SIL's obstetrician was in Parañaque. 

When my SIL underwent a Caesarian operation, the doctors were all amazed at how big the baby was. He weighed 11.22lbs. at the time of his birth! But however healthy he was, he had to be given medicines intravenously because his heart was beating way too much fast. He had some defect and he was left behind at the hospital for further tests. Imagine how heart-wrenching that time was for all of us, more so for his grandparents (my mom and dad) who were miles away and could only be updated through phone calls and IM.

But that was three years ago. My dear nephew Keoni turns 3 today and as you can see in the pictures, he's grown to be a very healthy kid.☺ Because of Keoni's birth, I decided to leave my job and just concentrate on working from home because I didn't want to miss a moment of Keoni's development. He's not mine but that's how much I love him. I'm just wishing and praying to God for Keoni's health and that he grows up to be a very loving, fun, kind and smart kid.

Your Tita Babam loves you so much Keoni!☺