As everyone is still encouraged to stay at home, many families have had to adjust to their home as an all-in-one hub of work, entertainment, and learning. Mom of two, Sheila Osmeña-Go has led her family in making the most of the new normal since the quarantine started.
Sheila, who hails from Cebu’s renowned Osmeña clan and great granddaughter of former President Sergio Osmeña Sr., is a supermom who knows how to creatively turn things into artistic creations. And with the prolonged lockdown, she found it as an opportunity to keep her children busy through enjoyable activities and fun moments at home. The children have found staying at home 24/7 to be a blessing because she encourages them to use this opportunity to embrace their passions, experience new things, and explore their world with the help of technology and a strong and stable internet connection.
(L-R) Sheila Osmeña-Go and Howard Go with their children Cadence and Ethan
An inspiration to the family
Sheila sets a good example to her kids as a multi-faceted individual—juggling being an artist, licensed real estate broker, entrepreneur, and a full-time mom who has found new passions to nurture even during this time. She makes time at home for her talent as an artist, setting aside afternoons in her studio to paint and do commissioned work. It was just last year when she held her exhibit where she sold 14 of 16 paintings. She believes her family played a big role in her success.
“Soaring High,” one of Sheila Osmeña-Go’s masterpieces released last August 2020
“Soaring High,” one of Sheila Osmeña-Go’s masterpieces released last August 2020. “My husband, and especially my kids, inspire me because they always compliment my work and show their support. They ask me to put paintings in their rooms and my daughter Cadence would sometimes go up to my studio and we would paint together,” Sheila says, adding how proud she is that her children share a mutual love for the arts.
Sheila’s husband Howard has also become an inspiration to their children in pursuing their passions and learning new skills while at home. A co-founder of MochiBits, a Mobile Game Development company, and the General Manager of Go Rewards, the loyalty program of Data Analytics Ventures, Inc. (DAVI), Howard imparted his knowledge and tech skills to their children at a young age.
Ethan and Cadence love to learn and discover new skills while in quarantine
Since the lockdown, the Go family has had more time to spend together and, naturally, this inspired the children to discover new skills. Sheila shares, “My 9-year-old daughter is learning to do sculptures and Ethan, who is 12 years old, is developing online games while creating some of his own 3D graphics and digital animation. He also has a couple of YouTube channels where he posts his animation and cooking videos.” One of his joys is getting one of his favorite developers and YouTube content creators to give positive feedback to his videos.
Pursuing passions
Having a strong and reliable internet connection really helped fuel their family’s interests. Sheila developed a liking for hydroponics and aquaponics through research, reading e-books on gardening, and watching videos on YouTube. Through this, she was able to set up a solar-powered battery support, a rainwater catch basin, some water pumps, and a homemade filtration system to create a complete self-sustaining aquaponic garden.
Cadence and Ethan learning aquaponic gardening
“I was able to research more tips on planting and sustaining my own garden. Then I thought I could challenge myself to do an upgraded version which was aquaponics, wherein I learned to grow fish that can sustain the plants,” she shares. Now, the family has aquaponic system filled with different plants and various kinds of freshwater fish, snails, and crustaceans. Her kids also enjoy their mom’s newfound hobby, as Cadence and Ethan often find themselves wandering into the aquaponic garden to feed the fish in the pond.
The children also made good use of our PLDT Home Fibr-powered internet as they kept being productive online, with Cadence developing her sewing skills as she watched videos on YouTube to help her use her new sewing machine, and Ethan studying how to code and work on his original video game.
“When I grow up, I want to be an indie game developer. During quarantine, my dad gave me tips and I was able to talk with fellow animators and game developers online, who all helped me finish my game,” Ethan shared.
And with online classes finally starting for the two kids, Sheila talks about how the internet has helped them adjust to home-based learning, “It has really been a big help to have PLDT Home Fibr at home because it is fast and reliable, and the kids can seamlessly attend their classes and do their homework, without any disruption.”
Rediscovering home learning
To prepare the kids for online learning, Sheila made some changes in their house, setting up desks in their dad’s home office where they have their own cubicles. “We made sure that they have their own corners where they can focus on their classes and study comfortably.”When asked how they were adjusting to remote learning, both Cadence and Ethan echoed that they were getting used to attending their online classes, sharing how they liked staying at home because they got to spend more time and eat lunch together as a family.
The Go family turned their quarantine time to quality time by bonding and learning new things at home
But if there is one thing that the kids miss about physical classes, it is being able to see their classmates in person. Cadence reminisces the moments she spent with her friends, sharing, “I miss walking around and hanging out with them in school. Now, we talk and exchange messages online.”
As a doting mom, Sheila allows her kids to have some time to chat with their friends online. She believes in allowing them to freely use their social media account on their own, while constantly reminding them about the rules and dangers of talking to strangers on the internet.
“Kids should be able to use different platforms but with the parents’ supervision, of course. Whether it’s for their classes or leisure, it’s best to keep tabs on them so they will be safe online,” she shares. Sheila also mentions that one-way moms can further help their children adjust faster to their online classes, and in general, internet activities, is by learning the
applications that they always use, themselves.
“I think it’s important to know what the kids use, whether it’s Google Classroom or Meet, so that we can guide them and help troubleshoot, if there will be any problems,” she says. Sheila also mentions that it is essential that the home is equipped with the most reliable internet connection from PLDT Home Fibr.
With the strongest connection of PLDT Home Fibr, families can rediscover ways to bond at home, pursue their passions, and enjoy online learning without worries. Know more about PLDT Home Fibr plans at www.pldthome.com.