The most awaited time of the year but of course, Christmas went by so quickly. Thank God for photos and memories that allow us to savor that joyous occasion once a year. This holiday season proved to be very hectic once again for our family as both sides of our clan got bigger. We’ve also been blessed with many friends throughout the years and new acquaintances, especially in business, and we want to make sure we connect with them one way or another especially through our Christmas gifts. We try our best to come up with gifts that are handmade and those that deeply reflect who we are and hopefully cater most to our recipients’ needs. We always keep in mind that the more personalized the gifts are, the better.
One thing for me that tops any gift list would be our presence. This year, my parents made my Christmas wish come true when they made it possible for me and my five-month-old baby Solana to witness my youngest brother’s graduation at St. Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri. My brother Mikhail and I have an age gap of 18 years and I’ve always been like a mom to him. I used to tease him that I was really his mother and for a while, when he was a kid, he kind of believed me. My mom was 39 when she had him. It’s funny because now I find myself with a baby in my early 40s.
Initially, the thought of attending the graduation was so exciting, but I had some apprehensions after realizing I would be traveling with my baby because I couldn’t leave her behind as she survives purely on my breast milk. I have in the past traveled with my babies, but Missouri would be the farthest trip yet for any of them. Wintertime, of course, is a bit tricky as we would need to be dressed in layers of clothing. Thank God for having discovered, with the help of my sister Mutya, a winter clothes library through an expat community of mothers called M.A.D.S (Mothers and Darlings). I instantly became a member and solved my concerns about how to keep my baby warm for our winter travel.
The Delta plane trip was long and tiring but made extra special by the great customer service team headed by Henry Liwanag who looked after my needs and Solana’s most of all. I was not as organized and brought too much than we could handle. I was blessed though to have traveled with my brother’s long-time nanny Susan who proved to be such a great help. One of the best things that I was armed with during the trip was an Ergo baby carrier which was lent to me by my newfound friend on Twitter, Jenny Tan, who happens to run a baby line company called Next9Baby. I just posted on Twitter my need for a carrier and she replied right away and had hers couriered to my home! Amazing because I found out later that we were headed to the same place in Missouri! Her husband also graduated from a neighboring school at Washington University. Connection is indeed the key!
Having finally arrived in Missouri, we found ourselves in the utmost care of my parents who have the tendency to be overly doting but hey, they get to do such things only once in a while so I let them take care of us. From them, I learned so much about efficient travel and survival with a baby in the winter! In the end, it was what prepared me and Solana for a perfect travel experience back as it was just me and her this time.
A few days with my brother, who is off to a new journey in life, was a great gift. It’s been a joy to see him grow up to be a fine young man and truly an honor to have met his friends who have wonderful stories to tell about him. He has found himself a girlfriend who seems to have grounded him, too, and that’s a very good thing. Time quickly passes and nothing compares to having been there to witness such a momentous occasion for my brother and our family. And I love that it happened during Christmastime! It makes me remember what matters most in life — people.
That’s also why Jesus, our savior was born — -for us. It’s about Jesus loving us and the least we could do is love others in return. This makes His birth so much more meaningful.
As we enter the New Year, may we invest our lives in people and may we all look forward to a brighter and more meaningful times of seizing every single day of 2012.