Okay Ka, Yaya Ko!: A Quick Review

The Okay Ka, Yaya Ko! workshop for household helpers was held more than a week ago. Auntie Emma (we call her Auntie since I'm not really comfortable calling her yaya) and my husband were late - well, they got lost. Di naman defensive, no? As much as I wanted to join them, we agreed that I will stay at home to take care of the little one.

Why so serious, auntie? via Manila Workshops Facebook page

When they got home, my son was as relieved as I am. And the first thing that we talked about was the workshop. Both of them had a lot to say about the event. Even if I wasn't there, I could tell that the money spent was worth it. I know, because the next day, our yaya can't stop talking about the things she learned. :)

Her very own certificate, wohoo! via Manila Workshops Facebook page

Based on what I gathered from Auntie and my husband, here's a quick review:

Plus

• She made new friends.
• She learned helpful tips especially on what to do during emergencies.
• According to her, the demonstration part was fun!

Minus

• The venue, It wasn't ideal for those who had to commute. It's difficult to find a cab within the village. And Auntie Emma had to share her lunch with my husband because there aren't any restaurants or turo-turo nearby.
• The morning session was uneventful. Okay, her actual term was "laay", which, in our dialect, would be akin to bored. No, the resource person wasn't boring, but to Auntie, the topics covered were already familiar to her. After all, she has almost 20 years experience under her belt.

Group picture via Manila Workshops Facebook page

If Manila Workshops will have another seminar covering advanced topics, I would enroll our yaya again. I do hope that they will have another venue that's more accessible.

Thank you, Manila Workshops, for making this happen :) Looking forward to join your upcoming events!

Fund Raiser for Let It ECHO

This is it, pancit!

For months, I have been planning to dispose of unused items at home. But every time I plan to create listings in ebay, I come up with a lot of other higher priority tasks. The boxes filled with books looked to sad. They're practically begging me to let them go.

And then, I saw my friend's post about their fund raising activity. Eureka! I volunteered to hold an online garage sale. The setup is perfect. I get to free up some space. My books (and other items), find new homes. And an organization gets additional funds-hopefully!

To maximize exposure, I asked my BFF (and business partner) if I could post the items in our Facebook page. She said yes, so we're hoping our clients are book lovers too!

 For the benefit of those who just chanced upon this post, these are the items for sale. If you wish to purchase, kindly email me at themadolins@gmail.com. Please don't forget to specify the subject as "Let It ECHO".

Our preferred courier is Xend. To know more about their shipping rates, kindly go to: http://www.xend.com.ph/DomesticRates.aspx.

We're aiming to raise at least Php2,500. To help us keep track of the progress, I've added a fundraising thermometer. It looks so cool!

Keeping our fingers crossed! -_-

Let it ECHO's Garage Sale

In 2011, I was around 5 months pregnant when a routine ultrasound revealed that there's a possible cyst in my unborn child's left kidney. That got me worried, but I forced myself not to dwell on it too much. After all, stressing myself out might cause further problems.

image from http://emedicine.medscape.com

A few weeks after my son's birth, we learned that my son has solitary kidney. His left kidney was missing in action. I got overwhelmed by emotions. Fear. Guilt. Anger. You name it. But the worst emotion was really guilt-I spent hours thinking what I might have done during my pregnancy. For months, I became too paranoid. I would stay awake just to check on my son's breathing. In short, I became paranoid.

And then last year, I saw a friend's post on Facebook. Her son, who is just months younger than Lucho, was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease. Tetralogy of Fallot, to be specific. And they needed to raise 1 million pesos within three months so that Maven can have the much needed surgery. To set things in motion, they created a Facebook page called Maven's Heart Fund.