What's best for your kids?

When mothers say that their children mean the world to them — they mean it with all their hearts. As a mom myself, I always try to give my children what is best for them. Quality education, setting a good example and being the best I can as a role model are my priorities. To others, what’s best for their kids may be proper nutrition or integration of Filipino values. To some, it can be the true meaning of faith and religion. What’s the best thing you’d like to give your kids?

Angelie Valenciano, artist, manager and producer

The best is to train them to develop a personal relationship with God and discipline themselves to pray daily and read God’s Word. Nothing compares to hardcore Biblical values. They’re the best!

Xandra Ramos-Padilla, purchasing director for books, National Book Store; GM, Crossings and The Ramp Crossings

Reading to my kids every day is the best thing I can do for them.

Angela Medella-Yeo, makeup artist/model

A happy, loving, and encouraging environment wherein she can develop her full potential is best for my daughter.  I want her to take on the world with great confidence and a smile on her face.

Vina Morales, actress, singer, TV host

My best for my Ceana is to spend quality time with her and to always let her know that Papa Jesus and her family love her so much.

Honey Valencia Carlos, senior consultant, One Finanz

I believe what is best for our children is to provide them with the proper set of values, raise them with a meaningful relationship with God and ingrain into them a strong moral compass that can be applied to all their decisions — from everyday choices to the most significant ones. We want our boys Augustine and Seve to flourish on their own, and be driven to excellence out of righteous motivation.  That way, when they achieve success in life, we can be assured that they took a virtuous path to get there.

Denise C.S. Gonzales, entrepreneur (co-founder of Indigo Baby)

Allowing my child to be a child and enjoying every aspect of that — to play, create and explore the world of worlds, to breathe clean fresh air, to see the wonders in the little joys of life and share this with others, to go with the flow and take each day as it comes with confidence knowing that we are there to support him and hold his hand along his many adventures, and at the end of it all — to sleep blissfully in our arms and dream grand dreams and whisper this to the angels.

Inna Gimenez, brand manager, Jollibee

I think it is best if my daughter enjoys her childhood to the fullest.  So I always make sure to give her the best of both worlds: what she likes the most and what I think is good for her. So when it comes to food, I give her something that is delicious, nutritious and fun to eat like the Jollibee Chicken Nugget Crunchers.

Anna Amigo Antonio, entrepreneur

Like most moms, I am the No. 1 cheerleader of my kids, Raine and Cy.  As parents, we work hard to give our children the best tools to prepare them for their shot at a bright and wonderful future. So on our list is a great education, a good set of values to live by, proper nutrition and a happy, healthy lifestyle. I believe that by giving them these, along with a whole lot of love, they are on the right track to becoming confident, respectful, responsible, blessed-with-success adults.

 Migs A. Villanueva, artist/writer

Nothing beats a good education.  I tried to instill in them a thirst for knowledge from the beginning. We read books together at home before they were in school, we took them places ( travel is a very good, very subtle, education), and sent them to the best schools we know (or could afford). Knowledge won’t leave them; it’s something they won’t lose, whatever happens. They’re tooled for life.

Dr. Rebecca B. Singson, chairman, Dept. of OB Gyn, St. Luke’s Global City

What’s best for kids is raising them with correct food associations. We Filipinos tend to celebrate and reward with food. We have birthdays and feasts with potato chips, cake, ice cream and soft drinks. We reward them on weekends or for any good deed with candies and chocolates. Even pediatrician reward kids with a lollipop to pacify them after injecting them. But kids only learn what we teach them! Their associations with food like breakfast with Spam, red hotdogs, and corned beef is what we have taught them to be comfort food! I never introduced sugar and preservative-ridden foods to my twins so when they were kids, if you handed them a chocolate bar on one hand and a banana on the other, they’d choose the banana. Being healthy starts from childhood. If we teach all kids to eat right, right from the very start, we’d have fewer adults with hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.