Sunday, December 12, 2010

Payless... Shoe-more!

*wide grin*

payless - now closer to home.




opening soon (i hope) in market! market! woot!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

a small town in a little corner

i wish all fitting rooms were as colorful as this...







this is the children's fitting room at the 3rd floor of the gaisano department store in market market. each cubicle is as colorful as the next. too bad i didn't take more pictures. but i'm sure glad i saw it. if all fitting rooms were like this, i think kids will be more cooperative. ;-)

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

24 carrot gold

3 days after uno got his first taste of solids, we tried bugs bunny's favorite snack.

with still no food processor on hand (and no real carrots inside the ref), i bought another earth's best product from healthy options.

 
earth's best organic first carrots (2.5oz or 71g) php39.
sorry for the poor quality of photos. i'm only using my phone.


i think he enjoyed it. 





what do you think?


oh, and that's the famous nanny by the way. hehe...

breakdancing

ever since uno had his first taste of solids, he sticks out his tongue a lot.



does that mean he really enjoys eating solid food?

now, here he is playing with his toes.



he's so flexible that his toes often find its way to his mouth. lol. or maybe he just got tired of his hands' flavors and now enjoys his sweaty feet. eww... ;-)

ok, so let's put the two together and what have we got?



all that's left to do is spin him around and he'd look like he's bustin' a move. hehe, i just love it when he does news things.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

solids time!

uno already turned 6 months old! half-fy birthday my baby! wow, it's been 6 months already? where did the time go?

well, this is it! it's solids time. i've been looking forward to this day. as soon as uno's pedia gave the go signal, uno's nanny and i discussed a game plan. although cerelac is good and all, i would want uno to eat real fruits and vegetables. since i don't have a food processor yet, i decided to buy something from an organic store. enter, healthy options. 

i have a cousin who really loves this store. ever since my aunt was diagnosed with cancer, they've been getting almost all their stuff here. so i figured, this would be the best place to get something healthy for my baby. but, what do i get?

the book what to expect the first year recommends the following first foods to give your baby: rice cereals, barley cereals, and oat cereals. luckily, healthy options has whole grain rice cereals...and organic at that! 

   
earth's best organic whole grain rice cereal (227g) for only php139.


prior to purchasing this good stuff, i already bought uno's feeding spoons. it took me around an hour to decide what spoons to get (coz frankly, i didn't know feeding spoons can be expensive). i finally settled on these:

got these from market2 for php159.75 only.


it's time to eat!

first, i transferred the rice cereals to an empty milk formula can. after washing and drying the blue spoon, i put 3 spoons full of cereals to one avent via cup. mixed it with uno's milk until i got the consistency i was looking for.

uno's nanny let him sat on her lap and put a bib under his chin. i got my older brother's iphone, got a teeny-weeny serving and said, aah!

to my delight, we didn't have any problems feeding uno his first solid food. yey! the cereal may be bland in taste (yes, i tasted it after), but i would have to say, he enjoyed it! good thing we had water on hand coz boy, was he thirsty. ;-)

uno didn't seem to have an allergic reaction to the rice cereals. so we moved on to something else...watch out for it.

i will post the video as soon as i get it from my brother.  enjoy the rest of your sunday!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

i'm missing a lot

just a quick all-text update.

when uno woke up yesterday morning, he turned over and bent his knees! sooner or later he'll be crawling left and right, forward and back. time does go by so fast. i guess that means more bed railings.

ooooh, i hope i'd be the one to see it first. ;-)

in other (old) news.

i've been meaning to write about the other things that i noticed uno can do.
1. he definitely knows his name already. but there are times he just refuses to turn and find out who's calling him.
2. his talent is 1-2-3 smile. yes, everytime i say that, he'd smile. or giggle. or laugh. maybe i can get talent fees from his godparents and grandparents. lol.
3. he can sit down but he still needs support.
4. he eats his hands a lot, which can be a bad thing eventually, if it becomes a habit. i bought teethers to help with that but for some reason he still prefers his hands. i wonder what their flavors are. and even if i let him hold his teethers, he makes it seem like his gnawing on them but really, he's thumb sucking. genius!
5. he's now very talkative and likes to shout a lot. he eavesdrops too. hihihi, just like me.

uno's turning 6 months on the 8th and i'll miss out on a lot of his milestones coz of work. i think i have to buy a flip video and teach uno's nanny how to use it. i may not be the 1st one to see it (whatever milestone that is), but at least i'd see the 1st time he did it. that's a-ok with me.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

oh wow

i just realized that it's been more than a year since i last had my period. haha!

that means...

1. no pms-es for the past 12 months.
2. i saved (and can still save) a lot of money coz i don't need sanitary napkins.
3. i have not experienced cramps, dysmenorrhea, headaches, or any other symptoms related to menstruation for 1 whole year.
4. no stains. no accidents. no worries.
5. no advil. lol.


they say this is one of the benefits of breastfeeding. i think i should add this to my list.

i just hope that once the period is back, it's not back to abnormal -- you know, having an irregular menstruation cycle? i don't want to start from scratch and always have a sanitary napkin in my purse just in case.

Saturday, September 4, 2010

waking up to a new day

to wake up and see this is just a proud and happy moment!



but at the same time, scary too.

yes, he can finally flip over! but look at his neck and left arm? that also means, you cannot leave him alone and without any barriers (like pillows). 

i'm excited, ecstatic, and extremely worried.

momma dilemmas

just when i'm starting to appreciate the real benefits of breastmilk, i am faced yet again with another challenge. i've heard so many good things about breastmilk but i didn't know it would give me so many headaches as well.

my first dilemma was i didn't have milk when uno was born. they didn't want him to take formula so to feed him, we just gave him this water solution of some sort. no wonder he was crying all the time and just wouldn't sleep. i really thought he was getting his nourishment. that's when i told myself, it's time to drink more than 8 glasses of water a day. (still struggling with this rule actually.)

the 2nd problem was my boobs were too big. i think i went from 32b to 36c! i swear, the girls were just too heavy for me during the first few months. i already had back problems and they just made it worse.

then came the third, bml (breastmilk leakage). disposable pads are a big help -- when you're dressed. getting a leak just when you are about to towel yourself dry was too darn frustrating.

on uno's 3rd and 4th months, i struggled with him. why? coz he had breast preference. my left boob had more milk but for some reason he liked my right more. that left me with one boob bigger than the other on most days. not a pretty sight!

going through all that was worth it, knowing that uno will benefit from my milk. but to face another dilemma that i think i cannot handle, would be too much.

so what is it? well, he still wants my milk that's for sure, as long as it's from a bottle. seems like he prefers silicone than mine. grrrr. why would he want a hard teat in the first place?! 

ever since i introduced uno to formula, i have this rule that whenever i'm with him, he will only "feed" from me. nowadays, that's a daunting task. he just wouldn't. the only time he feeds from me is when he's asleep. maybe coz he's too sleepy and hungry to care.

the more he rejects my milk, the more my milk will diminish. until eventually, he'd prefer formula and i'd stop producing milk. noooooooooooooooooooooooo! that's just too much. initially, i only intended to breastfeed uno until 6 months. but after realizing what the real benefits of my milk are, i want to breastfeed him for as long as i can. 

i don't really know what the benefits of breastmilk are to uno. from what i've read, experts say it's better than formula. honestly, i wouldn't really know. all i know is:
  1. i can save a lot of money from breastmilk because it's free! it comes from me.
  2. when we're not at home, we don't need to lug around a very heavy bag with milk bottles. i just whip out my nursing cover and snap open my nursing bra and we're good.
  3. my milk has just the right temperature -- not too hot and not at all cold. just warm and perfect.
  4. my many sleepless nights are less stressful coz i don't need to get up every single time uno wakes up and needs to feed. same as #2, i just snap open my bra and that's it. i can continue with my sleep while uno eats at the same time. (if i haven't mentioned it, i practice co-sleeping).
  5. breastfeeding time is bonding time. it's uno's time with me, myself, and i. no one else.
  6. and last but not the least, i cannot keep uno all to myself. he needs to interact and play with other people. he needs to build relationships with his cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. uno needs friends and relatives so he can learn how to play, laugh, and love more. what's the connection with breastfeeding you ask? the activities that we do together, he can do them with other people. but i am proud to say that breastfeeding is the only activity that i do not share with anyone else. it's that one special thing that no one else can provide him but me.
i really would like to breastfeed longer. i just wish he'd prefer my soft (you know), than the silicone ones. i don't think i ever experienced post partum depression but if uno stops feeding from me, i think that would be the day.

momma dilemmas aside, seeing this just makes me smile and stop worrying for a bit.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

closet raider

i saw this shirt from my brother's closet and decided to wear it to work.

   

           


it has such a macho appeal to it that i opted to pair it with boots (those boots by the way, are from parisian). ;-)

i can't wait to raid my other brother's closet. or maybe it's time to scour sm's men's department. let's see if i can spot any fab finds there. race you to it!

no magic, just an illusion

i've been frequenting sm makati lately. there's the 2nd floor for their parisian shoes, the babies' department on the 3rd floor, there's also the surplus shop, and of course, the ladies' deparment. sm has a lot of good stuff nowadays -- and most of them at budget friendly prices.

take for example coco cabana. i know it's beach wear but they have pieces that can be worn somewhere else. and their prices are really good. look at one of my recent finds:

       




nope, it's not a skirt. i love the illusion of the skirt when it's actually a pair of shorts! bought it for only php399.75! the skirt effect gives it a girly feel without making me too conscious or anything. skirts make me iffy sometimes. you know, those skirts-tucked-in-panties moments? i've seen a lot of those in high school. eeep, don't want that to happen to me. that's why skirts make me nervous. but with this, i'm a free-spirit! dance. dance. dance. lol.

and guess what? i so love this skirt, that i also have it in olive.

(sorry for the pic. my camera's busted so i rely
on my laptop camera nowadays.)


love the military-ish color! manly-girly shorts. <3. <3. <3.

go. get yourself one. *wink*

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

it's here!

yehey, look what arrived today!





it's my new avent isis breast pump body and cover! nope, i didn't get it for free ( i wish). nonetheless, i'm so happy it's here. 

these are the parts of the old model.



the new one has a built-in bottle adapter and locking ring -- less parts, less hassle! 

i desperately need these replacement parts coz my current pump body now looks like this.



my old pump's neck (left) came loose and you cannot screw the adapter to it anymore. 

department stores that carry avent products do not have replacement parts. you need to call ljs (avent distributor) and order from them. the pump body costs php1,200. i had to buy a cover coz the old one won't fit the new pump body model and that costs php300. since their office is in sta. mesa, i added 100 bucks so they can send it to me via courier.

i deposited the payment to their bdo account and sent an email (with the scanned deposit slip) monday afternoon. the package arrived this morning. i was expecting it to arrive tomorrow since i was told it usually takes that long but i'm so glad i got it early. 

i heard that avent (u.s.) has great customer service. it's good to know ljs has the same!

if you need replacement parts, you may call (02)713-9438 and look for rachelle or rina of the avent department. they'll take care of your concerns, that's for sure.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

thir-tween again

i've been looking for a cardigan ever since the somewhat-rainy season has started. too bad, i couldn't find something simple...and affordable. yes, if you're a single mom and on a budget, affordable is the name of the game.

so, i was in sm the other day looking for one. who would've thought i'd find one in the teens' department?






i got the gray cardigan for only php399.75. i paired it with my boots coz it was raining yesterday morning. i'm still thinking if i should get it in black. since it's made for teens, the sleeves are a bit tight on my arms. i opted for the gray one coz it has a more stretchy fabric than the black version. what do you think? good find, right?



hmmm, i think i should still get the black one. =D

the great aventure

happy breastfeeding awareness month!

i know, i know...i'm probably the only  mommy blogger out there who has not posted anything about this special month. but, better late than never, right? and besides, we still have a few more days to go. ;-)

you may not know it, but i am an advocate of breastmilk. uno was exclusively breastfed for 3 months.  the 1st 2 months were easy coz i was on mat leave -- we were practically together 24/7! the 3rd month was a bit difficult since i already had to go back to work. if only i could supply his demands, he wouldn't be taking any formula until his pedia tells me to do so. it just so happened that when he turned 3 months, "harvesting" at least 10 oz a day at work has been a challenge. 

still, i am happy to say that even when at work, i can breastfeed uno. and nope, i don't bring him to work. i can still provide him the breastmilk nutrition all thanks to my bffs (breast feeding friends).

and here they are...

 avent isis manual breast pump. never been used
hand me down from my sister. budget saver!
(sorry about the recycled photo from this post)

 avent via storage system


uno may not be feeding directly from me but my bffs have been a great help in my goal of breastfeeding him for as long as i can.

avent is just the best. i simply love it. they're like mommy's little helpers coz they make our lives easier and cost-efficient. see for yourself.

source: avent 2008 product catalogue from ljs.com.ph


awesome isn't it? i love the idea that a 4 oz feeding bottle can be changed to a sippy cup and a via cup can turn into a feeding bottle. bonkers! (sorry, just shallow like that and you know, still experiencing the 1st time-mom excitement)

what's even more awesome is that avent has a promotion this month!


source: ljs.com.ph


just to give you an idea...

this retails for php8,199.75


source: avent 2008 product catalogue from ljs.com.ph


now available for only php5,739. 

or how about this...


source: avent 2008 product catalogue from ljs.com.ph


for only php3,709?

if you've been eyeing an avent product for the longest time, i think now's the best time to grab it. *wink*

happy shopping! and again, happy breastfeeding!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

tricks of the trade

finally!

if carrying proves to be exhausting at some point, there are other ways to help with baby's crying.


a mobile in a rocking playpen.

a baby hammock.

and lots, and lots of love (and patience).


the 3rd one is a given. we love our babies! but before you resort to the 1st two, check if:

1. your baby's hungry.

2. his diaper is soiled.

3. you didn't forget to burp him.


i hope this helps!

care to share more tricks of the trade?

Friday, August 13, 2010

the turn of the century

i was ecstatic the 1st time i saw him do it.

but i didn't see him do it again until the other night. i thought, maybe the bed's just not even. to my delight, this is now one of his favorite moves.







isn't this exciting?!

i've only seen him turn to the right and he likes sleeping in this position, just like me! actually, he can now get himself on his tummy but he can't pry his right arm loose. *scary* 

i'm still trying to figure out how to help him. any tips?

Saturday, August 7, 2010

to havs and to hold

i think it's time to get a new pair...



...but not for me.

this is love.


i so want the havaianas baby whale and havaianas baby spiderweb for uno. who wouldn't want to see their babies wearing those? cuteness factor up by hundred points, don't you think? ;-)

my mini-collection has not seen a new pair for the longest time. i think a tiny collection is in order instead. can't wait to get his first pair! 

oh, what happy soles we will be! just like these vibrant pictures:

 


check out the havaianas special limited collection here. or why not change your profile pic (just like the ones above) by creating one here.

gotta havs a new pair...a.s.a.p.

sigh. love.