The American President

We recently got Charly a children's book on famous American Presidents.

I realize that at three years of age, she is a tad too young to fully understand what it means to be a president, much less the American President. But as I watch this historic Inauguration live, it hits me that when it does, Charly will come into that knowledge with President Obama in office.

And while our generation can appreciate what a big step it is to have the first African-American U.S. president, Charly's generation will wake up with one already in office.

And for them, it won't be such a big deal because the Obama years will be all they'll know when they are old enough to be discussing the American President in school.

I think about it and realize that that's a really, really good thing.

And I'm so glad that though Charly was born during the Bush years, the Obama administration is the first one that she will truly experience.

Charly's "25".

As originally posted in Facebook's ubiquitous '25'...here is Charly's version, for all her godparents, aunts, uncles and close friends of mom and dad as she turns 3 today:

1. I like music and always check to make sure mom has Hi-Five or Disney's Fresh in the car's CD player or Ipod.

2. I sleep with the scent of aromatherapy oils from Body Shop (preferably peppermint or grapefruit) and background music of Vivaldi, Bach, Tschaikowsky. Sometimes I request for Benny Goodman and Miles Davis. I also like John Mayer, the Beatles, Billy Joel, and old school rap music. I also love when dad puts on Elton John (Bennie & the Jets) during bathtime. My dad is the coolest, he downloads all sorts of music for me.

3. I'm a leftie.

4. I LOVE books and literally grew up in the kids section of Fully Booked. It's cool that the staff know me by name so my mommy knows where to find me if I run off on my own. Recent book favorites include all things Eric Carle, Dr Seuss books, Maisy (I love that the alligator's name is Charley), Madeleine (I can memorize "In an old house in Paris, covered in vines..."), and Billy Crystal's I Already Know I Love You.

5. My favorite shoes are my baby blue Crocs with Dora, Blue, and Mickey Mouse jibitz on them. Sometimes I'll wear my red Mary Jane Crocs or black Converse hi-tops but only if mom and dad ask really really nicely :)

6. Mom and Dad say I take pretty decent photos (hey, I'm three!) with my kids VTech digicam and our Olympus point and shoot.

7. I wear my baseball caps with their backside to the front.

8. I love pumpkin soup. Especially from Cibo, Press Cafe and Claw Daddy's.

9. I love munching on breadsticks. I like eating Nestle Strawberry yogurt and FIC Butterscotch ice cream!

10. I like bathing with Johnson's Baby Top to Toe Body Wash but prefer Nivea Baby Body Lotion after a bath.

11. My mommy is Filipina. My dad is South American. Although I'm a Philippine-born American citizen, I've got a smattering of Spanish, Portuguese, Indian, Japanese and Chinese blood running in me. Just like mom, dad, and Pepe - I'm a mongrel :) Riggs is the only one with a pure pedigree in our household!

12. I love going to the arcade after Gymboree art classes. I always ask teacher to give me a stamp because my mommy says it's what gets us into the arcade.

13. Pepe and Riggs are my brothers in arms.

14. I don't mind going to the dentist. I always ask Dr. Eric if he has free toys to give me at the end of check ups.

15. I love online shopping with mom, especially for books that we can browse through. The best thing about online shopping is that it all arrives in a balikbayan box with lots of other goodies from Gramma Resa that smells like the USA :)

16. I love watching Word World, Bunnytown, Strawberry Shortcake, Hi-Five, My Friends Tigger and Pooh, and of course Dora. I still can't relate to Barbie and the Disney Princesses and my dad thinks that's a good thing.

17. I'm slow to warm up to people, but talk a mile a minute once I do. I'll even share my cookies with you once we're cool.

18. I love love love my ninang Bev :) I think Ninong Mark has more tech stuff than Inspector Gadget. I think ninong Mario is tall as a giraffe. Tito Manolo is cool for liking Elton John and knowing sorts of music trivia. Ninong Raymond rocks for flying that paper airplane smack on that woman's lunch plate at Fely J's. I know one of these days Ninong Louie will change my nappies. I love when my godparents spend time to get to know me...I know I've got lots of others in the States that I haven't met...

19. I can't decide whether I want to be like Michael Phelps (without the drug suspension) or Dr Cheng when I grow up. Hmm. Sports star or doctor?

20. I get my hair trimmed at Kids Hair in Rustan's. Only Gio or Rustom will do.

21. I'm cheap with my kisses and hugs and only give them to people I really do know.

22. I like cupcakes!

23. I love the impressionists. I know Monet from Van Gogh and Matisse and Picasso. My mommy likes Cafe Terrace at Night, I like the Starry Night more. I want to go to the Musee D'Orsay for my 7th birthday.

24. I dearly love a bearwich (that's a group hug with mom and dad and me in the middle).

25. I love seeing babes and gramma resa shake their booty and dance! One day, I'll teach them to do the pretzel twist just like Jojo :)

Happy Birthday, Charly Bear! We love you for all these and so much more...

Happy Birthday, Riggs.

Riggs.

Named for Mel Gibson's character (Martin Riggs) in the Lethal Weapon series. The guy with the crazy, manic eyes. Incredibly high strung. Totally wired. A guy with a death wish who was loud, yet totally charming. Any movie buff familiar with the character will think oh yes after spending a few minutes in our boy Riggs' presence.

It took us some time to finally hit upon the name for our mini pomeranian. David and I are firm believers that a dog's name comes to you. It's not something you pull out of a hat or randomly assign, just because it sounds cool.

And so, as we welcomed the tiny (yes, less than a pound and fitting comfortably into my two cupped hands) adorable fellow into our lives exactly 3 years and 11 months ago, we watched him keenly for signs as to what we would name him.

When we first saw him, tiny thing that he was, we thought it would be fun to call him Samson (the name we officially had printed on his pedigree papers). But it didn't seem to fit. Neither did other numerous names that we tried out.

Then one day, he tried to jump off the kitchen sink. For a pup less than a pound, and barely 6 weeks old, such a fall could be dangerous. Nevertheless, the little guy did it again. And again.

And his yapping was incessant. The sound of the softest footsteps in the hallway could trigger a bout of barking. Clearly, this was one high strung puppy.

He also became very attached to David (to this day, he thinks David is his mommy). Separation anxiety translated into high pitched barks.

One day, I came home to the sight of David and Pepe looking shell shocked from too much barking. No amount of shouting could shut the little guy up. He was wired and manic.

But did he ever love being cuddled. He was very well behaved in public and was a natural people magnet. A total charmer.

Thus the name, Riggs.

Not much has changed in four years. I can't be sure if his barking has lessened or we've just become more immune. We try to keep him as calm as possible. Some doggie training aids have helped us calm him down a bit. We've learned to adjust our movements so as not to trigger an anxiety attack.

And the charm thing is still going strong. When we have him groomed, it never fails that people stop by to pet him. Numerous times, random people have even asked to have their picture taken with him. He now has 2 print ads under his belt.

And is he ever a ham in front of the cameras. In some ways, it's like living with a movie star. A diva.

Happy Birthday, Riggsy.

Crazy dog that you are, all of us - especially Charly - loves you to pieces.

Studio Shot.

This shot was a little too Brokeback Mountain for us.

And I thought by limiting Riggs to gender-specific outfits (no pink tutus, no ribbons), that dressing him up wouldn't make him look gay.

Hmm.