At Home With MrsC

Raising a family, making a home.

Summer

A Movie a Day for Summer

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Confession: I am on a boredom-busting mission this summer.

It’s the first time that we are summering in our own home, which means that the task of keeping Little MrC busy and happy all day falls entirely on my shoulders. We are on day three today, and it’s been good so far. 

I have an entire list of things planned for the summer, including picnics and building our garden. Yesssss, lots of outdoor stuff! Even as my son grows older, I still want to make sure that his gadget time is regulated. I’m already having a tough time as it is, now that he has his own phone. Things will get harder once they shift from books to iPads in school. So, gadget-free activities are super musts for us this vacation time.

I feel like, in order to keep boredom at bay, I need to be able to establish a nice daily routine for us, then sprinkle in fun activities to keep things fresh. I got lucky this week as far as fun goes. On the last day of school, my friend Mish had us over for snacks and some play time for the kids. We left early, though, but the kiddo still had fun.

 

How aliw is this little popcorn machine??? ?

A video posted by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan (@mrspcuyugan) on

 

Then there’s routine. This will be the real challenge. I’ve said it before, I’m not good with routines, even for myself. But it must be done!

I’ve decided to anchor our daily schedule on meals, just because those are constant, must-haves during the day. Makes sense, right? Then, we will do different things in the afternoon. So far, we’ve gone to the mall, the supermarket, and my mom’s house. I think it’s a good idea to keep our afternoon schedules free so we can randomly choose to stay at home and lounge, or hang out somewhere.

alabang country club
Since it’s summer, there will be swimming!

 

It’s our morning schedule that I’ve focused on this first week because I believe that a good start will dictate the rest of the day. The kid and I start with breakfast, and see MrC of. After this, we each get our quiet time. He either plays recorder, chats with his friends on Viber, or plays games on his phone. I’ve been using my quiet time to write (like right now!)

After quiet time comes the highlight of our mornings, movie time. A movie a day – That’s my big plan for summer mornings. We like slow mornings around here, which is why I picked an activity that doesn’t require us to move around. Or shower beforehand. Lol.

Movie time also buys me extra time, truth be told. The kid is quiet and occupied, so I can crochet or write my grocery and to-do lists while we watch.

 

#threadcraftthursday #notagoodcameraangle

A video posted by Crochet by MrsC (@crochetbymrsc) on

 

I’ve been excitedly doing my research for movie time. I got to see a lot of great films growing up, and I can’t wait for my son to see them, too. I’ve also asked him to come up with a list of films that he wants to watch. Our must-see list includes:

  • The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – Can you believe I have not seen this???
  • The Sword in the Stone – A childhood favorite
  • Matilda – MrC’s special request hahaha
  • Fantastic Mr. Fox
  • Where the Wild Things Are
  • Little Women – Just because this is one of my favorite stories of all time
  • All of the Harry Potter movies – So perfect coz the kiddo is reading the books now!
  • The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh – We’ve already seen this, but I truly could watch it over and over and over again, forever
  • Enchanted – Because McDreamy
  • The Princess Bride 
  • School of Rock – For my little music lover
  • The Labyrinth – I tried to make him watch this a couple of years ago, and he got scared lol. Take 2!
  • An American Tale
  • E.T.
  • The Goonies – Another one requested by MrC
  • The Land Before Time 
  • My Neighbor Totoro
  • The Iron Giant
  • Hugo

I’ll be constantly updating this post with a list of the movies that we’ve been able to watch, just in case any of you choose to do movie time/day/night, too. Quick note: Little MrC is 10 years old, so most of these are movies for bigger kids. At times, though, we will pick films for younger audiences just because. Ok, fine, it’s because I like them. Lol.

Here’s our summer 2016 movie list:

  1. Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip (Rated PG, suitable for kids 6+)
  2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Rated PG, suitable for kids 7+)
  3. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (Rated PG, suitable for kids 10+)
  4. Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (Rated PG-13, suitable for kids 13+)
  5. Inside Out (Rated PG, suitable for kids 6+)
  6. Capture the Flag (Rated PG)
  7. Flushed Away (Rated PG, suitable for kids 5+)
  8. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rated PG, suitable for kids 8+)
  9. Big (Rated PG, suitable for kids 13+)
  10. The Neverending Story (Rated PG, suitable for kids 8+)

On weekends, I hope that the boys and I can go out to catch new movies, too. This weekend, I know we are watching Batman vs Superman for sure. Can’t wait!

Can you guys suggest any good movies for us to add to our list?

My Summer Plus Size Closet Essentials

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With only two weeks to go before school officially breaks for the summer, the kiddo and I are officially, already, feeling the heat. My nasty pink rashes are proof of that. Yup, underneath my shirt I look like a pretty pink leopard. Or half human-half pig. It’s a good thing pink is my favorite color. But anyway, that is not the point of this post!

With summer comes lots of family swimming fun, vacations and other activities. One sure way to beat the heat during these fun times is to dress appropriately. This was a total challenge for my plus-sized self growing up because there were only a few stores that sold larger sizes, and most of them were quite ugly, too. Sorry, I’m just telling the truth! I always say how happy I am now that these amazing plus size stores have popped up online, in malls and in bazaars. We no longer need to dress in tito shorts, in lola prints and in nightgown-looking dresses just because there is physically more of us to love than your average Filipina. One of these days, I promise to look for photos of the silly clothes I had growing up, and I’ll post them here. That’s what happens when a skinny mom gives birth to a chubby child. But that’s okay, I love my mommy anyway.

So, now that summer is here, it’s time to switch the stuff around in my messy closet again and unearth my favorite plus size summer pieces. Here are my closet essentials for the season.

1. Maxi Dresses

I am probably over-sharing, but maxi dresses are great for those days when you’re preparing to get a wax or to shave your legs. Tell me that isn’t true.

Some of my favorite maxi dresses. Both are overruns I bought  super cheap in Subic.

2. Shorts

A comfy pair of shorts plus a cute breathable top is great for a relaxing summer afternoon. I would wear this to hang out with friends, a quick grocery trip or a day at the pool.

On the left, shorts by Erzullie. On the right, shorts by Ward88.

3. Short Skirts

Short skirts are great in the same way that shorts are great, but with the added perk of being girly.

The skirt on the left is from Moda Plus. The one on the right is from Ward88. And yes, short na yan for me hehe!

4. Dainty Printed or Pastel Skirts 

Cute florals and prints are great for the summer, as are pastels. I love skirts that go below the knee paired with a nice top and sandals or ballet flats. These are nice for summer date nights, trips to the mall or to the movies.

Mint green skirt from Marks & Spencer. Floral skirt from Debenhams.

5. Summer Dresses

Yes, maxi dresses can be summer dresses too, but I just had to give my favorite beach dresses their own line. K, moving on…

Summer dressing in El Nido with my friendship, in a green Daisy Fuentes dress from Big Deals, and summer dressing in Boracay in a grey People Are People dress.

6. Cute Beach Cover-ups

This is a must for any beach trip. Sometimes I wear maxi dresses over my swimsuits, but they take forever to dry. That’s why I’d much rather have a nice cover-up.

The one on the left is from Cococabana and the one on the right I got from a beachfront stall in Boracay.

 7. Tankinis

I love tankinis! One-piece suits may be nice, but I hate how it’s so hard to pee when you’re wearing them. I also am not the type to wear a bikini, though I know a few plus size ladies who are so comfortable in their skin that they do. I just never did, not even when I was a few sizes smaller. I’m a little bit of a manang. Hehe.

As you can see, I love tankinis with skirt bottoms. I got both of these from Big Deals in Alabang Town Center.

What are your favorite summer outfits? 

This post has been submitted to the Pinay Curvies Swag Link-up Party!

Mom Tips For Surviving the Summer

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Let me just clarify that by “Surviving the Summer,” I don’t exactly mean the summer heat or sunburn. I actually mean summer boredom, which apparently a lot of kids go through. It was something I don’t really remember experiencing when I was a kid, but then again I had two siblings to waste time with. My little boy, on the other hand, being an only child, is often bursting with unused energy and unsure exactly what to do with it. This is my first summer at home as a WAHM, so I am relatively new to the idea of keeping the kid entertained sans his regular school schedule, homework and outdoor play with classmates.

It’s been about three weeks since the end of the school year. So far, we’ve had quite a number of activities, with the holy week and Easter holidays, our short and unexpected visit to the hospital, visits to Fishville, etc, etc, etc. But to be honest, I’ve pretty much run out of ideas for the coming weeks, and we still have about two months of vacation left! I was planning on enrolling Little MrC in soccer camp, but since he is still recovering from his infection, and on home treatment, he won’t make it to the start of the classes. I figure I’ll just enroll him in soccer next summer, and have him take swim classes this year. But that’s not happening until mid-May. So there, I still have about a month’s worth of kid-friendly fun to plan.

Oh dear.

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