If you have watched the movie Coraline Jones then you know exactly what the tittle means. From the word itself, she is Coraline Jones’ “Other Mother”. Other Mother is living in the Other World, a place that every kid dreamed of. Everything seems to be perfect but the only way to stay in that world is to sew buttons in your eyes. How’s that sound?

Every kid wants a perfect house and family. They always feel bad when their parents don’t give what they want or think that parents don’t love them anymore. Kids will search for a better family and this is the time when Other Mother will come out in the story.

In the real world, Other Mother can be in the form of friends and vices. You thought that everything’s okay because you are enjoying it a lot not knowing that it is taking you away from your family little by little. You can stay in the Other World which you think is perfect but face the fact that you will never gonna find your way back to your real family.

We always want a perfect life not knowing that a perfect life can only be achieved through imperfections.

I hate my parents when I was a kid. They don’t allow me to play outside every time I want and I have to sleep every afternoon. There are times that I wanted to run away from home and live my own life so I can do everything I want. I curse them when they scold me, I disobey them all the time, I became rebellious and do things that will surely disappoint them. I hate my mom for not doing anything to bring our family back together again. I close my mind for any possibilities that may happen to us.  I thought all I needed was a financial assistance from them and nothing else but I was wrong. Now that I am a mother, I can clearly see the hardship my mom gone through to raise all of us. She is the only one to support our school because my father left us when I was in grade two.

I can never understand my parents until I become one. If only I can bring back the time, I will show my family how much I love them. I am not going to hurt them again. Kids may think that they are restricted for no reason that usually lead to rebellion. We, parents, should let our children understand the things when we don’t allow them to do a certain thing. We have to be open on every issue our family is facing and make our children feel that we know what they are going through. Let us be a parent that they will respect and obey, a friend to share their problem with and a brother/sister to play with.

I have to bookmark sites like Yo Gabba Gabba, Sesame Street and Moshi Monsters so he can play without asking for my help. He is fast and can easily identify the icons so I don’t have a problem going back to the sites when he suddenly click the exit button. Spending too much time on the internet is not that bad. He is able to learn new things while playing. I let him watch videos like Mother Goose Club nursery rhymes and EvanTube on the internet.

His love for Angry Birds started when he was browsing through YouTube videos and saw Evan, the kid who has Angry Birds collection. It was fine with me to have his own collection too. I am glad that he finally knew what he wants. If we have to give him that’s really special then it is something that has to do with Angry Birds.

Letting your kids spend sometime on the internet is fine as long as you know what are they browsing and playing. Never limit them if they want to play outside and explore. They need socialization to develop not only their social skills but also their physical, intellectual and emotional needs which is very important.

I do the household chores. It’s one of the benefits of staying at home. There is no need to rush because I can have all the time I need unlike those who are working on a day job, they only have the time to clean the house every weekends and/or t night when they come home.

I am a hands on mum. I have a quality time with my son 24/7. Elijah will only be young once and I want to take advantage every moment with him. I want to see all the milestones that he had and he will have. Nothing beats unlimited hugs and kisses during the day. I want Elijah to respect and obey me as his mom but I also want to be a friend and a sister that he can play with and share secrets when he grows old.

Staying at home means more work opportunity at the online world. I prefer freelancing than to get a regular and stable online job. I can join bundling network and affiliate marketing without using my 8 straight hours for working. I don’t want to focus too much on earning money because the reason why I stay at home is my son. I only work to pay bills and buy the things we need and want and that’s all. I can work double time after a year or two if needed but not now because I want to spend each second with my son.

Staying at home is fun and difficult at the same time. I am happy to choose this kind of life because I get to see my son as he is growing.

• Child Development – Mothers spend the greatest amount of time with their children. This is truly a rewarding experience, especially in the infancy period. You get to observe, first-hand, all the developments that take place in your little one. It is amazing when, today, you note abilities in your baby that they weren’t able to demonstrate yesterday. Being able to closely observe the growth and development of children makes it all the worthwhile being a mom.
• Developing Your Capabilities – Mothers are great at multitasking. They have to cook for their kids, take care of them, do household chores, run errands, go shopping, and even earn a living. This is quite a full plate for most people. However, the reward in all of this is that it allows you to develop your capabilities. You learn to be patient, become a good listener, develop organizational skills, and even engage in counseling. Being a mom allows you to tap into your capabilities and live life as fully as you can.
• Expressions of Affection – Granted, kids don’t always give you a warm hug or say “I love you, mom.” However, when they do, it is spontaneous and genuine. It touches your heart, absolutely, as a mom when your kids express their love and appreciation for you in their own childlike ways. It makes all the trying times and challenges that come with being a mom worthwhile. The surprise gifts they give you or acts of kindness and consideration that they display are simply precious. My son brought me a flower on his way in from school the other day. As he gave it to me he said, “This is for you, Mom. It looked pretty so I thought you should have it.” It melted my heart.
• Getting Hugged – We all could do with a hug, every now and then. There’s nothing quite like the hug you get from your child. It is spontaneous, sincere and simply adorable. They don’t even need to accompany the hug with “I love you.” Just having your child come up to you and hug you is enough reward for the rigorous job that being a mother is.
• Reliving Youth – One of the greatest things about being a mom is that you’re constantly able to relive your own childhood experiences. You have to engage with your kids in the games they play, read their books, watch the cartoons with them, and do lots of other stuff together. When I bring myself to be at the same level as my kids, it allows me to understand the psychology of children better. It also helps to keep me young at heart.
• Sharing Their Success – When you see your kids accomplish a goal, whatever that may be, it gives you such a feeling of triumph. Maybe it is managing to read a tough word right, scoring a goal in a soccer game or just conquering a fear. It is great to be able to share the success of your kids. It is truly a moment of shared growth as goal achievement usually involves overcoming obstacles. When kids triumph over an issue or manage to grasp what was previously beyond them, it truly lifts you up as a mom.
• Teaching – I love the informal teaching role that comes with being a mom. You have to show your children how to accomplish tasks, teach them about life and guide them through situations. Mothers have to enrich their children emotionally, physically and socially. This includes teaching them to share, how to show kindness, forgiving others, saying sorry, thanking others, and so much more that helps to make the world a better place.

I feel bad whenever I remember that Angry Birds skateboard/fingerboard I saw in market that I didn’t buy. I hope to see one sooner because Elijah loves to play fingerboard. T.T

How about you? Do you have a collection when you were a kid? Do you allow your kids to have their own collection too?

My 10 year old sister had her very first cellphone when she was 8 while I had mine when I was a  third year high school not to mention that she has a dual sim cellphone with music player, camera, video player and so on. I have nothing against it and to be honest I am happy for what she can get because I know we can give the best for her. We give her what she needs as long as we can and we tell her not to envy her friends.

As a mom to Elijah, I also want to give everything he needs and wants but not to the point that I am already spoiling him. We, parents, don’t have to compare our childhood to them since their world is no longer simple anymore. We can’t tell them to ignore what they see or hear because they are already surrounded with high technology. Our role is to teach them appreciate what they have already.

I wanted to be like her. She is a real public servant. She finds time for us despite of her busy schedule. She raised us and brought us to school without asking for anything in return. She just want us to be happy with our lives and always remember all the things she taught us. With all the heart aches and head aches that I gave to her, saying sorry won’t be enough. I will try to be the best mother to Elijah just like what she does to us.

I am not sure if kids nowadays are still playing this kind of toy because there are no kids in our neighborhood. I would like to buy Elijah a profire yoyo when he is old enough to know how yoyo works. It is much cooler than watching kid’s show all day long.

There’s this kid’s show that is about yoyo tournament that I am fond of watching because I think I can perform the tricks they are showing us. It takes patience and speed to to some of the tricks. Maybe I can buy two so Elijah and me can play at the same time.

It only takes him half an hour to sleep because he didn’t sleep in the afternoon. He didn’t ate rice that much. I cooked fish and tofu which are his favorite but he ignored it. It seems he is not in the mood to eat. Waaa! He asks for milk during midnight. I hope tomorrow will be a different day for us. Hoping that he will stop totally but we are only on our fourth day so I don’t want to expect that much.