Pop Goes My Heart!

Y is so tamad to hold her food, her feeding bottle or anything. She would just mush the food or just hold it in her hand. Sometimes she won't even let you hold her hand. Sungit!



Last week, I saw a twitpic of Basti (The Painter's Wife cutie baby) eating Magic Pop. I said I want Y to try it too! Last Sunday, I bought a pack and Y loves it! And she's holding it and feeding herself! So cute! Aww.. My baby is growing up na... *Mommy moment there* She likes munching on it.

Over at Twitter the other night, I asked fellow twitter/blogger mommies about snacks to give Y. She's been picky with food lately. They gave a lot of suggestions. I had to list it down or I might forget it! Must drop by Healthy Options and the grocery soon. And grazing! Give baby snacks every hour and no force eating!


Twitter has been helpful! Thank you to twitter and blogger mommies who answer my tweets! :)

A&D's Weekend

Our weekend in tidbits...

I spent the morning with Y. Playing, reading, dancing, babbling...

I went out in the afternoon with my mom, went to the designer's place to have our measurements taken for shobe's wedding. My measurements are depressing! Ha! I'm slowly dieting...

Sunday, we had lunch at my parent's place. We brought Y with us. A-thai (great grandmother) likes to feed Y with anything! She fed her longgan, she liked it. 

Later she gave her sugary crackers, I said not give her that because it has sugar. Tinarayan ako! I should be more lenient and have her taste food with sugar or salt daw!

In the afternoon, we went to the nearest SM to our place because The BOS needed to make payment and BDO is open so off we went! I went to Super Bench with Y because I need new jeans! Yes all my jeans won't fit this big hips of mine! I bought a dark slim jeans for 249.75 only! Ha! I used my Bench points to pay for it. :)

After buying what we needed, we went home to have dinner. Tipid mode! Yesterday was particularly a very lazy and rainy Sunday! We were supposed to go to a farther mall but we're tamad so we went to a jejemall the nearest mall instead. LOL!

Mothering Earthlings

This came in the mail last week! I ordered a set of Next9 Cloth Diapers and Handy Dandy Tie Chair for Y!

Shopping at Mother Earthlings is easy breezy! (Sorry Rone for taking a week before paying! I was busy in the office. Thanks for still accommodating my order!)

There's still a few more things I want to buy but I'm putting it off until after my trip to HK!

Picasa Sucks

I've got blog entries ready to be posted but Picasa won't resize my photos. It keeps on hanging! Grrr... Oh well, I'll just sleep this off and hopefully Picasa is working fine tomorrow morning!

I'm Going to La La Land... and a Challenge!!!

La La Land means Hong Kong!!! Well, in two months that is. Sounds like I'm more excited with this trip than Y's Birthday Party noh? Haha.. Of course not! And by challenge.. I mean a boobs challenge!

Ok, that means, I'm on a shopping ban (actually, matagal na akong banned!). I can only buy Y's needs and of course for the house. The rest will have to wait! Oohh I can imagine myself going wild at H&M! But of course may budget! Can't wait to eat, shop, eat, shop!

I'm not bringing Y with me. :( Yeah, maybe when she's older and maybe when I'm ready to take her traveling with me. Ngayon, mall ka muna!

Not bringing Y with me means I have to have stock of expressed milk. Hmmm.. How will I do that??? Yan ang challenge ngayon! I've got to have at least 100oz of expressed milk stored by the time I leave for HK. Possible? YES! Doable? EWAN KO! I have to deal with a week of low milk supply a month. But I'm up for it! I've got two months to do it!

Let's see if I can do it! I hope I can. I CAN!

What I've Done to Promote Breastfeeding and Some Thoughts...

I was supposed to join this month's blog carnival but I got so busy that I only got the chance to write this now. Warning: This is a lengthy post!

When I first learned I was pregnant, breastfeeding was not the first thing that crossed my mind. I was so into reading what I have to eat/do to have a healthy pregnancy. Honestly, choosing to breastfeed or formula-feed did not cross my mind at all until my husband said that our baby should be breastfed, as he was breastfed.

Having no idea on breastfeeding, internet became my friend. I didn't know anyone who breastfed or was breastfeeding. I was the first one to get pregnant both in my family and circle of friends so I was on my own. I read Girltalk everyday in the office until it got BLOCKED (yes, I was on it the whole time I'm the office, of course while I'm not swamped)! Reading experiences from moms who did it inspired me and made me determined to do it for as long as I can! I actually learned about Fabnaima and Kellymom while reading the forum. I bought books and armed myself with all the knowledge I can absorb.

When I gave birth, my baby was latched to me for a few seconds right after delivery and while I was in the recovery room. I'm lucky that I was producing milk right away. But when she was roomed-in, she didn't sleep well the first night and I stayed up the whole night! She would latch then cry! My confidence on being able to breastfeed my baby went down the drain! The next day, I messaged Abbie Yabot if she could do a hospital visit and the rest was history!

Ten months into breastfeeding, I know I somehow promoted breastfeeding to my family and friends. Many are surprised/amazed that I'm still breastfeeding, some are cheering on and some are telling me to stop or supplement. I'm not blessed with a abundant milk supply but I thrive and sometimes I have to supplement when I'm having low milk supply.

I always tell my friends (pregnant or not, single or married) to breastfeed their baby. It's the best, it's natural and healthy, and very economical. The benefits for both mom and baby plus you lose weight fast! You can't beat that. Since all of them don't have kids yet, I feel that my only way to promote is to educate them about it. Find a breastfeeding-friendly hospital, breastfeeding advocate OB and pedia. One friend even laughed at me when I told her that I consulted a lactation counselor, she thought I was bluffing that there was such a profession/person. It might be awhile before my friends will have babies but when that time comes, hopefully my being "makulit" on breastfeeding, they will decide to do it.

With my family it's different, we were all formula fed. That's why when I decided to breastfeed, it was alien to them. They would tell me to supplement, wean her all together and have her start drinking formula just because she's lean. But eventually they stopped with all the advices and encouraged my younger sister to breastfeed when she gave birth. I was really happy that she decided to breastfeed but she was traumatized by her sore nipple. I really tried my best to encourage and inspire her to breastfeed. I bought her Mommy Treats, gave her my Medela Lanolin Cream, offered Abbie's services (she was there when Abbie visited me in the hospital) but she gave up. Now my older sister is pregnant, I'm lending her my breastfeeding books. She has friends who breastfed. She saw me breastfeed. She probably knows few things about breastfeeding but I plan to take her to LLL meetings so she'd be more exposed to information and hear from other mom's experience.

In my office, I'm the only one breastfeeding and pumping. I've heard stories of other moms who did breastfeed and pump. Some gave up, The others I don't know the story. But if they would ask me to do a talk about breastfeeding, I'd be happy to do it. Although I'm not an expert, I'd gladly tell them about my experience, and some basic knowledge.

I, myself, can't promote breastfeeding all alone. I'm glad there are blogs and forums that I can just go and read but what about other women and families who doesn't know anything about breastfeeding? We all know that the Philippines is influenced so much by showbiz and celebrities. With all the big star celebrities endorsing formula, people would really be enticed to buy them. I hope these big stars would rather promote breastfeeding rather than be blinded by the big bucks these milk companies are offering! I remembered one of Daphne's tweet, something like she would rather earn money from her brands (Daphne Linens and Furniture) than from formula milk endorsements. I really hope that a private company would support the government in promoting breastfeeding and launch a big campaign! Billboards on EDSA, SLEX, NLEX, C5! I really do hope to see some actions in the near future...



I have mixed thoughts kaya sorry if this is all magulo..

Varekai!

All I can say about Varekai is... it's money well spent! You get every peso worth for the show! It's amazing, breathtaking, amazing (yes, I said it twice), hair-raising, heart-stopping, thrilling and awesome show EVER! Yes, OA na kung OA pero really, IT IS! Live band, live music, great singers, great performers, great show, plus may comedy pa!

I heard about Cirque Du Soleil coming to Manila months ago, I told BOS that I wanted to watch! Pinalampas ko na si John Mayer, Kylie Minogue, Justin Bieber... but hindi ako papayag na hindi ko mapanuod ang Varekai! And the show didn't disappoint! We bought ticket one or two weeks after the premier! I was chatting with one of my college barkada G who's in bedrock (her term for the province) about Varekai and that we wanted to watch! It's a once in a lifetime experience as they might not come back or will I ever get a chance to go the US or Canada to watch them. (Mas mahal yon! LOL)

So BOS, I, and G watched the show last Thursday! We watched on a weekday because the tickets are cheaper than the weekend shows. When I saw the Grand Chapiteau, I got so excited, parang bata lang! Seriously! I don't remember the last time I watched anything that is not a concert nor a show like Varekai. Cameras were not allowed inside. They are very strict about that! We get to take pictures outside but not inside and during the show. So tama na ang dakdak, enjoy the photos!

The photos don't do justice! If you haven't watched yet, go and watch na! Sulit! Pramis!

What I've Been Up To

In between the mid-life crisis, the busy home front, is us planning Y's birthday. I started planning in April then got tamad then continued planning last month. It's less than two months to go! At first, I was planning to get my friend as the party planner. At first, she was replying to my SMS and emails, then she disappeared like a bubble! She's planning her own wedding so.. the BOS and I decided to do it on our own. Though, I still got the service of a party planner to do the decors and look for a host.

I won't mention any details right now. After the birthday na lang, para SURPRISE!!! :D I can't wait to see the outcome of it! I spent months looking for the "right" venue, cancelled on a host we really wanted (Sad!), called churches, browsed thru blogs to get the theme of what we wanted, went to Divisoria... whew! There's still a lot!!!

No, we're not having a bongga party. We're also not having a character themed party. It will be a simple event for family and friends only!

So far we have the ff:
Venue and Food
Church
Cake and Cupcakes
Decor
Giveaway containers
Ninongs and Ninangs

Ang konti pa lang pala! Haha.. Anyways, that's it! Will blog our Divi Day and Varekai on my next entry!

Things I Love

#1 Instagram
I love how I can take pictures, tweet it, play with effects, and upload it to my laptop.

#2 Pinterest
It's my virtual mood board, inspiration board, DIY ideas, and anything under the sun. Thank you to Dainty Mom for the invite!

Follow me on Pinterest! Just click here. If you want an invite, just comment below!


#3 Linkin Park's cover of Adele's Rolling in the Deep! Promise nakakainlove!

What's are the things you love right now? Care to share? :)

Finding My Passion... AGAIN

Note before reading: This might be a boring post as I'm going to talk about myself. Skip this post if you don't want to get bored by me or my job.

I think I'm having a mid-life career crisis. YES you read that right.
I want to be a stay-at-home mom, I want to have my own business, I want to do what I love.. that means finding my passion.. AGAIN.

I used to have/own a multiply store, a very successful one at that, maybe five years ago. I was selling clothes, shoes, accessories. Then I got a job, I was a fresh graduate. Thinking that I should put my degree into use, I took the job, I stopped selling. I had no time to restock, work took over my online shop.

Five years and two jobs later, here I am. Many times I was asked during job interviews, how do I see myself in five years. None of my answers I am now. Maybe it's a sign for me to move on to better things.  I missed having an online shop. I miss being my own boss. I gained friends from shoppers/buyers. I miss being busy taking pictures, packing stuff for shipping. Yes I was happy doing those. Maybe I missed being busy running around, buying stuff to sell... Maybe I'm bored sitting down for nine hours in front of a monitor doing this programming/debugging/testing stuff. I feel my brain cells are dying from my work.

Photography is one of my passions too. Got it from my dad. I take good portraits. I considered going professional but I lost that passion too. I still like taking pictures, I hope I find my way back to photography.

So here I am, finding my passion again. Rone's Brand Me Talk got me into thinking. If I want to be my own boss, I have to start right now. I've got so many ideas that I want to work on. But everyday when I got home from work, I just want to rest my brain and my body. I want to free myself from that.

Mid-life crisis, itdatchu?

Y and G's Weekend Bonding!

Another great weekend has ended! Little G was in town again for his monthly check-up and they stayed again for the weekend. Yay!

I'm always looking forward when they come over. It's rarely that Y gets to bond with her cousin. Though G's just turning five months old, he's such a delight! He now can roll over, laughs when you make a sound, slam a pillow to the bed... such a cutie! Makes me want to have a baby boy! He's a chubby little boy, heavier than Y! Haha.. Sarap yakapin! At kakagigil! I wish they could stay longer.. a weekend is too short! Anyways, enjoy the photos! :)

They're so cute "hangin'" in the bed together. Haha! I hope they grow up to be close!

Funny Weekend Conversations

My weekend was great! I'm too lazy to post everything so I'm posting in snippets muna!


Conversation #1 - I was telling my friend that she'll be one of Y's ninangs on SMS.
Me: G, I'll get you ninang ni Y ha!
G: Kabowg!!! my honor! Bawal daw tumanggi eh! hahaha!
Me: Bawal talaga! hahaha
G: Oo na ok, umoo na nga ako. Sabihan mo ako kung ano kelangan nya yun nalang bibigay ko. :) Hoy! Hindi educational plan ha!
Me: Ay sayang! Life insurance na lang hahaha
G: Loka loka! :)


Conversation #2 - I was telling my sister that me and BOS are watching Vareka on Thursday.
Me: Achi, manunuod kami ng Varekai sa Thursday!
Achi: Wow, sosyal!
BIL: Sino pupunta ng Boracay?
Ikaw na, BIL! Panalo hirit mo! Hahaha.. we were laughing for a long time!


May conversation #3 pa, but I forgot na. I wrote this last night but was so sleepy.. LOL!

10 Months Old!

Happy 10 Months Old bulilit!

Bird's Party Blog: Friday Giveaway: $100GC to Casa Divertida!!

Bird's Party Blog: Friday Giveaway: $100GC to Casa Divertida!!: "For those who don't know them yet, Casa Divertida is a trendy Home Décor and Furnishings online store , specializing in fun, uniquely sou..."

Look Who I Found inside the Crib?

I was busy fixing the stuff we bought yesterday, then I went into Y's room and look who I found! Y with her papa in her crib! LOL. The BOS was cleaning Y's nose haha... 

I do climb into the crib too. Not all the time ha. Minsan lang! I love weekends with my family!

HK Loot: Milk Tea, Mother Love, Eye Drops, and H&M

I've been busy the last two weeks doing this super detailed report. What took me so long was adjusting the lines and spaces... But I won't dwell into that! Let me blog about something light and shallow.. LOL!

My mom and sister went on a four-day vacation in Hong Kong last week. Two things I asked them to buy for me were Lipton Milk Tea (addict kasi!) and my eye drops and to look for shoes for Y.

Last Sunday we had lunch at Amma's house and after lunch my mom said she bought something for us so we went to my parent's house so I could get our pasalubong! Yay!

Clothes for Y! All from H&M and they were on sale! Thanks Gwama and A-e!

Clothes for me and BOS!

AND... Lipton Milk Tea, eye drops (will do a separate post for this), and Mother Love,,,. My mom bought the Motherlove for me, it's much more expensive in HK! Still,Thanks mom!

I'm so happy with our HK loot! Sabi ko sayo, shallow eh.. LOL!

Sale Away!

Too many sales around... But I can't shop. I'm saving for Y's birthday plus I still got some unpaid credit card bills. So.. But.. I can still go and window shop right? If only I have the time!


As you for all my dear readers, you can go and shop away!!!

and MORE! GO GO GO!