Bustling Bangkok

Last month, I went with hubby to Bangkok during a 3-day work related trip. I've been to Bangkok twice before (and both times when I was pregnant! so technically, Miley and Sabe have been there too ;p) and have already done all the touristy things like the city tour, temples, floating market, dinner cruise, etc. So this time, I just wanted to spend some quality time with hubby and of course, to shop til I drop hehe! And besides, tagging along on business trips are always the best since we just paid for my airplane fare. Free na un hotel then may per diem pa si hubby hehe!

We were booked at the Arnoma Hotel, which was excellent location wise. It was right across CentralWorld Mall and beside Big C Supercenter, which was a grocery and department store. It was also a few minutes walk from Platinum Mall, the best shopping place ever! And it was also walking distance to the train station.

right across the hotel, CentralWorld, one of our favorite malls in BKK

of course, hindi pwede palampasin ang picture in their mall photobooth ;p

Hubby and I split up during the afternoon and I immediately went to Platinum Mall, which is my favorite place to shop here. During my first time in BKK, I swear, my sister and I practically spent the entire trip here. I've been to markets like Pratunam and Chatuchak, but it's Platinum I keep coming back to. I like the fact that it's aircon and clean and I just find the clothes and accessories so much better. It can get overwhelming though since it's 6 floors of pure shopping paradise (most of the floors are dedicated to ladies wear, but there's a floor for the guys and kids too ;p). Sorry I don't have photos of the inside since bawal to take pics, although I think that's the last thing you'll think of once you go through the entrance lol! Take note, their prices are usually final (you get discount though if you buy wholesale, which is 2 pieces or more), you can't fit the clothes, and no return / no exchange.

my happy place!

Even though I did quite a bit of damage to our pocket money here, I think I was much smarter and controlled this time compared to previous trips. Before, I wouldn't even think twice about buying something as long as it was cheap, even though I didn't like it so much or it didn't fit properly. Plus, since the price drops significantly if you buy at least 2 pieces, I'd always get 2 or more of something para lang may discount. This time, I made sure I was really going to wear it before I bought it. And I wasn't afraid of spending a little more if I knew it was a classic piece and of good quality. I'm happy to say I love everything I bought and they all fit perfectly (whew!).

The nice view while walking from Platinum back to our hotel (sa kabilang side kasi puro traffic and squatters ang view)

The next day, hubby and I checked out Terminal 21, a mall we had never been to before. We took the train and good thing hubby knows his way around or I'll probably get lost by myself. I'll blog about the mall separately since it has quite an interesting concept. Anyway, we spent a good couple of hours here since aside from exploring the place, there was also an H&M store which was on SALE! What was funny is that it was hubby who ended up shopping so much here! Nung una, kunwari titingin lang daw, then before I knew it, ang dami nang hawak na hanger! I bought just 3 items (a dress, a top, and pants), while hubby practically bought an entire wardrobe! May suit pa ha! Pero it was all good, I love it when he gets excited shopping for clothes. ;p Besides, according to him, he only shops when he's with me naks!

ready to do some serious walking

the Bangkok Skywalk (their pedestrian walkway)

BTS

next stop: Terminal 21

rain, rain go away

look who's shopping now!

We were supposed to go to Asiatique after, a night bazaar by the river where you have to take a boat. But since it looked like it was going to rain, and the fact that we were so tired and tamad already, we just went back to the hotel to rest and have dinner at CentralWorld.

trying on the stuff we bought hehe!

The next day was mostly spent in Platinum again and then just eating and chilling out while waiting for our flight later that afternoon.

Sawadee Kha

at the airport, with the only cultural picture I have from this trip

It was a short and sweet vacation, but in my opinion, just the right amount of time if shopping is the only thing on your itinerary. Another day more and ubos na talaga ang pera namin hihi! Anyway, goodbye Bangkok and see you again soon! :)

BellyBlessed Fest: July 12-14, 2013

For all expectant moms out there, don't miss this event this weekend by MommyMundo at the Podium Mall :)

Miley's 1st magazine appearance!

Guess who's inside Disney's Princess magazine's June 2013 issue? Our very own little princess Miley! :)

I sent her picture last March to be featured in the Princess Postbag section and have been checking the newsstands monthly for the next issue of the magazine. When we went to the grocery yesterday, I finally saw the magazine and eagerly opened one up to see if she had been chosen. And when I saw her photo, I was so happy I was literally jumping up and down at the cashier hehe! Miley was there too and she couldn't believe she was in the magazine! She kept saying "It's me! It's me!" Daddy and Yaya were so excited too when I showed it to them, I swear we were so noisy while we were paying for our groceries! ;p

We bought a couple of copies for the grandparents and of course to keep as a remembrance. It's so funny how excited we were over this, what more if she was featured in a print ad or in a TV commercial kaya? Haha super stage mom! I'm just so happy that she can see herself in her favorite magazine and dressed in her favorite ball gown too, since I'm sure that every little girl dreams to be a princess right? :)

CHAMPS Multivitamins: chewable tablets for kids

One thing we struggle with everyday at home is making my kids drink their vitamins / medicines. They hate it so much (especially Sabe) that we literally have to hold them down and force it into their mouths most of the time. It's so heartbreaking to see them crying, kicking and screaming, but you know it's for their own good. One thing that also happens a lot is that they spit out the syrup or throw it back up so we're not sure if they got the right dosage into their system.

Well, good news to parents out there - introducing... CHAMPS® Multivitamins!

The CHAMPS line, from Chemical Company of Malaysia International Philippines, Inc. (CCMIP)*, consists of vitamin preparations for the pediatric age range. It comes in several variants which have been formulated to address the specific needs of various segments of the pediatric population. These variants include CHAMPS Vitamin C, CHAMPS M, CHAMPS M with lysine, CHAMPS C plus lysine, and of course CHAMPS OMEGA 3.

What is unique in CHAMPS is that these multivitamins come in small chewable tablets and in various shapes (hearts, triangles, donuts) and tasty flavors (orange, tutti-fruitti and pineapple). This is clearly an alternative option for mothers like me who have been having headaches in struggling with their children in taking their vitamins in liquid or syrup preparation. No more spills and you can be sure of the exact dosage. :)

thank you to the company for sending these over :)

*CCM is Chemical Company of Malaysia which is the No. 1 generic pharmaceutical company in Malaysia. It has more than 400 products in over 800 SKUs or forms.  It is a public-listed government corporation in Malaysia. The company has received several citations as attestations of quality of its products like cGMP, certificate of manufacturing facility by TGA of Australia and HALAL certification from JAKIM since 1999 to name a few. The company is present in the South East Asian countries and in the Philippines CCM established its office in 2007. 

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Photobooth addicts

One thing my kids love these days is playing with the photobooth app on the iPad. These are just some of the hundreds of pictures they've taken of themselves! ;p

Hope your enjoying the weekend so far! ;p

Miley's 1st movie experience

We finally took Miley to see her first movie, Monsters University, at the cinema yesterday! :) I've always wanted to wait until I felt she was prepared enough to sit through an entire movie. The last thing I wanted was for her to want to go out halfway through the show or something. Or end up crying and making a scene. But we were pretty confident that she was ready for this!

She was really excited when we were buying tickets and snacks. And when we entered the cinema, she immediately sat down on her seat (with the booster seat of course). At first, she was covering her eyes and ears during the previews...

But after a while, she was all ready to watch the show! While eating her favorite snack Pringles too! ;p Well, about halfway through the movie, she started to get restless and wanted to stand up and move around. I brought her to the back of the theater (a lot of parents were also carrying their restless kids here haha) where we sat down on the floor. After a while, she wanted to walk around so we went to the side aisle and sat down on some seats on an empty row. She was really hyper by this time and she kept wanting to change seats and run around hehe! And she kept saying stuff like "we have to hide! we have to find Daddy!" ;p Good thing there weren't that much people near us so I don't think she bothered anyone. But I was able to keep her in place all the way till the end of the movie and we couldn't be more proud of her for finishing the show. Big girl na talaga! :)

When we got home, she was so excited to tell her brother Sabe all about the movie. And we ended up doing "scare games" in their room! So funny!

Our first movie date with Miley was a success and we can't wait for the next one! Hopefully, we can bring Sabe too when he's a little bit older. :)

DIY Stencil Art (and other things you can do using a black marker!)

We're currently redecorating my sister's room, which used to be my room (together with hubby and the kids) back when we were still living with my mom. Anyway, I almost forgot about this little wall art I did 3 years ago which I believe is actually my very first DIY home project! This whole thing was done with black markers and I did this when I was pregnant with Miley so it holds a special place in my heart. Unfortunately, it's not my sister's style so she insisted on painting over it (despite my objections!). ;p

I remember back then when wall stickers were so expensive, which is how this project came about. I figured I can just draw this on the wall myself! What I did was search for a photo of a cherry blossom stencil online like the one below (sorry, I couldn't find the exact one I used back then). Then, I printed an enlarged version which I made sure fit the area on the wall perfectly. Don't worry if the print out is all pixelated or blurry after enlarging it. You just need it as a guide anyway. Then, I cut out all the black shapes, taped it to the wall, then traced it using pencil. Then, I just filled it in with black pentel pen after. :)

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It took me a couple of markers and hours to finish it, but here's how it looked after:

I'm going to miss my cherry blossom wall art, but at least I can always recreate it since it's so easy to do. Here are other projects I found online using black markers. I love the first one since it's like what I did only it was done on the whole wall like wallpaper. Brilliant!

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Don't you just love easy and cheap projects like these that make a big statement? :)