19 months with Don Keko Part 2

On his Pedia

"Maton!" That's what Don Keko's pedia calls him. Why? Because all, and I mean all of her patients, when given immunization shots, always cry their hearts out the moment they see the lethal syringe. From the infants to the seven-year-olds, nobody can stand that one-inched killer needle. Except of course, Francis. Oh yes, he gets startled big time, then will do all he can to free himself from us, kicking and swaying. But, he never cries. And once it's all over, he'll just go to his favorite corner, ride Dr. Ortega's playhorse by the door, as if nothing happened. Then, the pedia would recite the usual "he may be irritable later", "put some hot compress over the shot","blah blah blah", which since I've gone to ignore because none of these ever happened. In fact, as soon as we leave the hospital, Don Keko himself takes out the band aid because it "annoys" him. Maton indeed.

On baby talk

"Mimi", "Dada", "Yaya", "Broom-broom", "Fish"... his first words. They said that boys usually talk a little later than girls. Francis' cousin, a girl about a month older, can already speak quite clearly certain words. Don Keko, talkative as he is, cannot speak clearly yet. However, he mumbles pretty well. Sometimes he just talk and talk and talk for lenghts of time without us understanding a word he's saying.

On character

When Don Keko just turned one, he woke up from one of his morning naps and was carried out of the room by his grandma. Once outside, he suddenly wanted to be put down and when his grandma did, he held her hand leading her back towards the room. My mom-in-law thought Francis wanted to sleep again so she followed and opened the door for him. But once inside, my mom-in-law was amazed when Francis went towards the electric fan (which she noticed was still running), turned it off, smiled and clapped his cute little hands. With the cost of electricity sky rocketing, my mom-in-law was more than just happy to have Mr. Energy-Saver on the house...

Next up.. Of Baptismals and Birthdays

19 months with Don Keko

I wish I had it all down. From the moment I held him in my arms until about 3 hours ago, I wish I had a 24/7 camera that recorded his every move, every smile, every single tantrum.. everything.

We kept a sort of a momento album for him. You know, the usual. Pictures, fingernails, first-cut hair, ultrasound templates, etc. But, as sentimental as I am, they're just not enough. And, 19 months is a whole lot of time.

First of all, I thank God for giving us a healthy child. He did get the usual fever and occassional colds but otherwise, his perfectly healthy not to mention, very, very active! Super, super kulit.

On sleeping

Jumping up and down the bed (for a minimum of about a hundred) before going to sleep is his normal routine. He usually sleeps between Lynette and myself but it wouldn't be a surprise if in the middle of the night we find him on our feet, sometimes on the edge of the bed, slumped head first with his butt sticking out! Yep, that's how he is in bed. On his back, sideways or upside down. He fell a couple of times and saved from falling a few times more. I guess we couldn't hold him down even while sleeping. On his milk, no problem. All we have to do is mix a formula and place it beside him. When he needs it, he'll find it wherever it is, even with his eyes closed.

On Sunday Mass

You can never hold Don Keko down at Mass for even a couple of minutes. He has this habit of pointing to each of the images then shouting "Eeesu!, eeesu!" (yep, Jesus.. Jesus) while making his version of the sign of the cross. The pews and the confessional are his favorite playground and, if you happen to see a 36 year old man sweating and running in and around the church (sometimes even in the middle of consecration), it's me running after Don Keko.

On Toy Story

Just like his father, Don Keko is a film nut. As early as now, he has his own favorite films: Finding Nemo, A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc. and of course, Toy Story 1 & 2. I've lost count on how many times we've seen Toy Story (he has preference to part 2). From start to end, his eyes are glued to the screen making gestures mimicking space ranger, Buzz Lightyear. Watching Toy Story is probably the only time we can hold him down (a good couple of hours if Lynette and I need to do something). More important, watching it WITH him is probably one of the most cherished moment of my fatherhood. Me and him and Toy Story to infinity and beyond..

Next up... 19 months with Don Keko Part 2

Francis, the name

Francis. Picking the name was the easy part.

Very early on, in my High School days in fact, I'd already planned to name my first-born, Francis (doesn't matter if the baby was a boy or a girl, it will be Francis and it was non-negotiable).

I got it from several of my favorite personalities:

St. Francis of Assisi - My personal patron saint. The BROTHER SUN, SISTER MOON dude (the Franco Zeffirelli film which inspired most of my youth).

Francis Ford Coppola - Director of The Godfather films, The Conversation, etc.

Frank Sinatra - Who doesn't know this guy?

Frank Herbert - Author of Dune and other science fiction classics (The Jesus Incident, The World of FH, etc.)

Just a single name, Francis. While most couples name their sons with a two-name combination: John Paul, Paul John, Michael Andrew.. not us. Francis was enough. It's simple and yet there's a nice saintly and quite notorious sound to it. Profound if you asked me, quite deep.

After a year and a half though, the name kinda evolved. From Francis, it became Kiko. And then, because we spoil him a little bit, it became Don Kiko. His yaya eventually called him Keko then Don Keko (hence, the name of this blog). But recently, we call him Kokiks, and now it's simply KIKS.. and he's only 19 months old. I wonder what would we call him years from now.

Kids are like that. Full of wonder and surprises. As Gump said, life is like a box of chocolates.. well, you know how it goes.

Next up.. 19 months with Don Keko.

17th of January 2003

I'd been up for 26 hours straight (the longest I can remember), standing outside a door with a "DELIVERY ROOM" written on it, waiting for someone who would change my life forever.

I hadn't seen Lynette, my wife, since the night before. But even then, she was already heavily sedated so we hadn't had a chance to talk. It was early the day before when we noticed that water was dripping from her legs. We immediately called Dr. Prudence Aquino, our O.B., and she told us to go to St. Luke's right away. When we got there, they immediately conducted some tests on her and then, they took her instantly to the delivery room.

26 hours or so later (billions of pregnant women literally passed by me going into and out the delivery room with babies on their arms), finally, a nurse came out of the room, carrying what looked liked a small pillow covered by a blue towel. She smiled and asked, Mr. Santos?

I can't even remember what my response was, if I ever did say anything. All I can remember was she handed me this little thingy covered by the blue towel.. and there he was.. a small, very fragile-looking guy.. Francis. In my arms. My first reaction? Of all the newborn babies I'd seen before, I knew that they're not suppose to open their eyes yet. At least not that early. But hey! This little guy in my arms was fully awake and was staring up at me! It was as if he was telling me.. "so, you're my father ah.. wazzzup dude?!"

As the nurse kept snapping up pictures, my world was changed forever. Words were not enough to express how I felt that very moment. If you're a father too, you'll understand perfectly.

Next up.. Francis, the name.