Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Yes, you heard that right! One laptop is not enough for all three of us: me, Justin, and his dad. From Mondays to Fridays, all three of us take turns in using our HP laptop. I work from 9am to 5pm, Justin’s turn is from 5pm to 8pm, and 8pm onwards is his Dad’s designated time to sit in front of our laptop. We have a more flexible laptop schedule on Saturdays and Sundays, though.

However, since Fall Semester in the U.S. just started, this will mean very busy months for me managing my growing number of online tutors, corresponding with our U.S. client, preparing monthly production reports, and doing online tutorials as well. This actually means I need to work longer hours, which means the laptop schedules of both father and son will be affected, too.

That made my husband decide to buy a smaller Fujitsu laptop that he and Justin alternates in using. That’s where a huge part of his September bonus will go. The new laptop was purchased using one of his credit cards with a zero percent interest and payable in 6 months.

In just a matter of days, Justin and our new laptop have become inseparable. One look at the picture below will tell you that Justin really enjoys tinkering with his newest “toy.”


What are you smiling at, son?



Sunday, August 29, 2010

I’m a low-maintenance woman as far as makeup is concerned. Pressed powder and lipstick are enough for me. Being a busy work-at-home mom has a lot to do with this because I don’t really have the luxury of time to stay in front of the mirror for more than 15 minutes every day.

I am also a brand loyalist. Once I found a product that works for me, I don’t change brands anymore. I’ll use the same brand for as long as it’s available in the market. When the product is out of stock or when it’s already phased out, that’s the only time I switch to another brand.

But I’m always amenable to trying out new products only when there’s a sound reason to do so. I’ve been using a particular brand of pressed powder for the longest time, but I simply couldn’t resist to see how Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder would fare against my preferred brand.

My preferred brand and Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder are similar in many ways. They are both fragrance-free, hypoallergenic and dermatologist-tested. Both also give protection against the sun’s harmful rays. Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder, however, has SPF 15, while my preferred brand only has SPF 14. Another thing that gave Myra E the advantage is that it is enriched with Vitamin E. As we all know, Vitamin E helps repair the skin.

I conducted a simple test to see which of my preferred brand of pressed powder and Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder is better on my skin. Before I went to church today, I applied my preferred brand on my face. When I arrived home after church, I got rid of my preferred brand on my face and applied Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder. I know I violate makeup rules, but it has never been my practice to apply powder on my neck, too. This actually made it easier for me to check which brand is closer to my skin tone.


Donning my preferred brand of pressed powder before I went to church today



Wearing Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder after church

If you will notice, my preferred brand is one tone lighter than the color of my neck. Myra E, on the other hand, complemented it; it actually looks and feels like second skin!

Am I happy with my discovery? Absolutely! I’m actually not surprised that Myra E Shine-Free Face Powder is this good because it’s made by UNILAB, the name behind most of the health and wellness products we have at home.


If there’s one thing I envy medical professionals, it’s their scrubs clothing.
Medical scrubs, nursing scrubs, and hospital uniforms make doctors, nurses, dentists, and other health and medical workers anywhere in the world look clean, respectable, and professional-looking. I particularly like chic-looking scrub tops and scrubs pants; they’re really nice to look at! I’m sure the ones wearing them feel really good about themselves as they go about their work. Did you know that there are also surgical scrub hats/caps that go well with these uniforms?

A great place to look for stylish yet affordable scrub suits is Blue Sky Scrubs. They offer a wide selection of fashionable scrubs for men and women in different colors, such as chocolate, pink, crimson, and lilac, among others. Truly, the look and feel of scrubs has never been better! Go check out their website to find scrubs for cheap.


Saturday, August 28, 2010

After reading Mylene’s post “Battle With Bottles,” I have decided to finally get rid of all of Justin’s remaining feeding bottles because like Mylene’s daughter, my son is more than three years old already. He turned four last July, but he is still drinking milk from feeding bottles, well, not all the time, but at least once a day. He already knows how to drink milk from a glass or cup, although he still prefers bottle-feeding most of the time.

Last week, I already discarded some of his feeding bottles, but I left a few at home just in case he asks for them. I’m still a consenting mom, you see, so I’m partly to blame for his continued dependence on feeding bottles. LOL!

Last Wednesday before he went to school, I told him, “Justin, no more feeding bottles for you today; I’ll throw them away later.” He nonchalantly answered, “Okay.”

Later when he arrived from school, had lunch, and got ready to nap, he asked for milk. I said, “You’ll have milk in a glass.” I actually forgot to hide his feeding bottles while he was away, and he was quick to notice that. When he pointed to his bottles, I said they were still dirty and so he agreed to drink milk from a cup.

Now, all of his remaining feeding bottles are out of sight. He hasn’t been asking for them for four days now, and I don’t intend to bring all of them back even if he whines, so yes, I can finally say that my son is now totally weaned from bottle-feeding!

Thanks, Mylene! Your post inspired me to follow suit.


Friday, August 27, 2010

mommy moments

It’s a known fact that my son loves toys, especially trains and cars. I have written about some of his favorite toys in the past, so for this week’s Mommy Moments’ theme, I’ll focus on my son’s love for gadgets.

Because my son is a curious lot, he is interested in many things, and gadgets are one of them. It used to be just my cell phone. He would borrow my cell phone to take pictures, to delete a game, to add a folder, and to add new contacts to my phone book.

He didn’t stop with my cell phone, however, because soon he started using our desktop and later on our laptop. When his Dad bought an iPod Touch, that became his newest preoccupation. He would play Plants vs. Zombies there and watch videos in YouTube.

Now, that iPod is in a repair shop and currently waiting replacement. Good thing it’s still under warranty! Is my son to be blamed for this? Perhaps. If there’s one thing I’m sure of it’s that my son will grow up to be a techie, so unlike me. Come to think of it, exposing our kids to gadgets early has its advantages, too.


Watching Thomas & Friends in YouTube



Recording his voice using my cell phone



Tinkering with his Dad’s personal digital assistant (PDA)



After 5pm Mondays to Fridays, it’s Justin’s turn to use our laptop



His newest preoccupation, his Dad’s iPod Touch

Click on the badge above for more Mommy Moments’ entries.


Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Because we aren’t sure what tomorrow brings, we should always be prepared for the unforeseen events in our lives. Death, sickness, accidents, and unemployment are some of the things we don’t want to happen, but they do happen, and when they do, these things can cripple us in more ways than one.

Consider this scenario: A head of the family is fired from his job. He is the sole breadwinner in the family, and he has three kids who still go to school. He doesn’t have insurance to help him cover the cost of his children’s education while he’s still looking for work. How will his family survive?

Getting insurance is one way of preparing for the inevitable. Various types of insurance include health insurance, life insurance, home insurance, and auto insurance. A good online insurance resource can make things easier for you as you can get multiple quotes from insurance agents who serve your state in just a matter of minutes.

If you live in Texas, for instance, you should know that insurance laws in that state are quite complicated. You should be well-informed about TX business insurance for you to find the best business insurance rate for your company. The same is true of California insurance laws. You need to know more about California auto, home, health, and life insurance before deciding on a policy.


Tuesday, August 24, 2010

We were all glued to the television last night watching the hostage drama that was taking place inside the Hong Thai Travel bus at Quirino Grandstand. We awaited with bated breath what was to become of the hostage taker and the people held captive inside the bus.

Photo courtesy of www.allvoices.com

According to reports, there were 22 Chinese nationals and three Filipinos inside the bus when Rolando Mendoza, a dismissed policeman, took over the bus yesterday morning demanding his reinstatement into the Metro Manila police force. The 12-hour hostage drama ended in bloodshed when Mendoza was killed by a sniper. Mendoza gunned down eight Hong Kong tourists inside the bus before he got killed. There were 17 hostage survivors.

In his official statement regarding the hostage crisis, President Benigno Aquino III conveyed his deepest sympathies to the families of the victims of the hostage situation at Quirino Grandstand. He also identified three reasons why the hostage-taking situation worsened, namely: (1) the letter of the Ombudsman to Mendoza promising him that she will review his case, (2) the presence of the hostage-taker’s brother, and (3) media coverage of the hostage-taker’s brother being taken into custody. He also ordered a thorough investigation of the incident.

Now, who do you think is to blame for the bloody end to the hostake-taking crisis at Quirino Grandstand?


Monday, August 23, 2010

I love attending blog events for many reasons. First, I get to meet and mingle with fellow bloggers, most of whom are moms like me. Second, blog events are good sources of information; some offer helpful tips on parenting, health, beauty, etc. which are quite enlightening. Third, they usually hire celebrities or TV personalities as hosts, which makes attending blog events more fun and exciting. Blog events usually offer free breakfast, lunch, snacks or dinner to attendees, too. Last but not the least, they usually give away freebies. Most of these giveaways are their own products and some are promotional items.

Some promotional items I received in the past for attending blog events were tote bags, umbrellas, raincoats, wet tissues, memo pads, caps, and ballpens. I also received a personalized medical scrub suit from a recent pharmaceutical plant tour I’ve participated in recently. I sure would love to bring home a custom tshirt, sports tshirts, or Death by T-Shirt from these blog events one day.

Now, this leaves me wondering how much money the people behind these blog events are spending for their promotional items. I’m sure they’re spending a lot, and for that, they should hire a trusted company to do their promotional items.


Sunday, August 22, 2010

Yesterday morning, we made an unplanned visit to my son’s pediatrician because he was coughing so badly his throat hurt. He’s been coughing for more than 10 days now, and I already gave him two different cough medicines, but they didn’t seem to work. That’s when I decided to discontinue his cough medication, and that’s when his cough worsened.

Before going to the doctor’s clinic, I was texting her to ask for an antibiotic for my son, but she said she needed to see Justin first. Upon examination, she saw no sign of infection that may require antibiotic treatment. She also said Justin’s lungs were clear. This only meant one thing: Justin was suffering from allergic cough.

The doctor didn’t prescribe any cough medicine but says when Justin’s cough becomes too bothersome, then we should nebulize him. She also reminded us to continue Justin’s Montelukast and Seretide. I paid the good doctor Php600.00 (less than $14) for this visit. In reality, I paid this amount for my own peace of mind.


If you’re looking for a web hosting provider for your blog or business site, you might want to check out Web Hosting Fan. This website provides the latest trends in web hosting, reviews of the best web hosting providers, and practically everything you need to know about the web hosting industry.

You’ll definitely learn a lot by browsing through this website. For instance, they have this article that compares managed web hosting with VPS hosting. Here, you’ll learn that the two web hosting services differ in terms of support, performance, reliability, and cost. Knowing this information can help you decide which web hosting service is best for your needs.

Do you also want to know how you can improve your site’s page rank? Web Hosting Fan has an informative article about the importance of backlinks in increasing the popularity of a website and improving its search engine ranking. Are you a fan of Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or YouTube? You’ll be surprised to know that you can use these social networking sites to your advantage. Studies reveal that social media and social networking has considerably increased the amount of links on the Internet.


Friday, August 20, 2010

I was fortunate to have been part of an exclusive group of mommy bloggers who were invited by UNILAB for a tour of their Amherst pharmaceutical plant in Mamplasan, Laguna and an afternoon of pampered relaxation at Nuvali, Sta. Rosa yesterday.

There were three pickup points for the mommy bloggers: one in Alabang, another in Quezon City, and another in Pasig City. The pickup point for Pehpot, Michelle, Steph, and I was at Starbucks near Home Depot in Julia Vargas, Pasig City.

At Amherst, we were welcomed warmly by Rochelle, UNILAB’s Corporate Affairs Officer. They also prepared a sumptuous breakfast for us.


Michelle, Pehpot and Tetcha



Breakfast!

There was a short briefing of what we can expect to see inside Amherst, but that came after a short introduction from all of the people present in the conference room. We were asked to introduce ourselves in a non-traditional way, that is, we were assigned a partner to talk to and our partner would be the one to introduce us to the group and vice versa.

Celebrity sportscaster and mom Patricia Hizon (wife of former basketball player Vince Hizon) facilitated this activity and took us around the Amherst plant. The purpose of the plant tour was to show the mommies present the quality and care that goes into making each UNILAB product.


Ms. Patricia Hizon






Getting to know each other

Mr. Jack Orendain, UNILAB’s Corporate Affairs Senior Manager, gave the welcoming remarks and explained to the group what the Discerning Mommy Advocacy is all about. Dr. Lourdes Genuino, a pediatric gastroenterologist who works at UNILAB’s Medical Affairs Division explained the many choices that moms encounter everyday. Ms. Adi de Leon, UNILAB’s plant director, discussed what can be expected of the plant tour.


Mr. Jack Orendain, UNILAB’s Corporate Affairs Senior Manager



Dr. Lourdes Genuino, UNILAB’s Medical Affairs Division



Ms. Adi de Leon, UNILAB’s plant director

Before we started the plant tour, all of us were made to wear hair caps, shoe covers, and scrub suits, and we had to wash our hands well to avoid contamination.









UNILAB plant tour

We were all amazed at how well-kept the place is. The plant also uses top-of-the-line machines to produce high-quality drugs. Strict measures are being observed, too, at every step of the manufacturing process to ensure that the drugs they’re producing are safe and effective.

After the tour, we all went to Conti’s Pastry Shop & Restaurant in Nuvali for a hearty lunch.




Conti’s Bananalicious! Yum!

Then, we went to Indulgence Spa for a one-hour full-body massage. According to Nalyn, my masseuse, what we’re having was called a Balinese massage. She said it's a combination of Swedish massage, shiatsu massage, and stretching. It was very relaxing!


Getting ready for my Balinese massage



At Indulgence Day Spa with Patricia Hizon



Chats, Patricia, Michelle, Pehpot, Tetcha, Earth, and Jing

And we went home with a bag full of UNILAB products!




At the end of the day, we all went happy and content--HAPPY that we have discovered UNILAB’s world-class manufacturing standards and its commitment to provide quality healthcare products and CONTENT that we have made the right choice for our families. Thank you, UNILAB, for staying true to your promise of Trusted Quality Healthcare!

You, too, can experience the same plant tour and pampered relaxation and receive the same freebies as UNILAB will be having online promos pretty soon. You can subscribe to this blog for updates and follow UNILAB’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.


mommy moments

Justin’s first time inside a movie house wasn’t very successful. He was only 2 ½ years old then, and we just happened to pass by the cinema area of Robinsons Galleria mall. The big numbers at the entrance of the movie theaters piqued his curiosity to get inside the movie house. Thinking that he was ready for his first movie house experience, his Dad bought two tickets for Adam Sandler’s film Bedtime Stories.

Because it was his first time, my son thought it was okay to roam around the movie theater, so his Daddy had to scoop him up every time he did that. He also pooped while inside the cinema (he wasn’t potty-trained yet at that time!), which made his Daddy decide they needed to leave pronto! They only spent 30 minutes inside the movie house.

This year, all three of us watched Toy Story 3. While my son became bored at some point during the movie, we finished watching it. Success! We also watch movies at home. Below are some of my son’s favorites.


Click on the badge above to see more Mommy Moments’ entries.


Related Posts Widget for Blogs by LinkWithin