Watsons Bath to Basics

I was really excited when I was invited to the Watsons Bath to Basics event last July 10 at the Ki Neo Day Spa in BGC.

Watsons Philippines’ Bath to Basics campaign aims to educate people about the importance of maintaining or boosting their bathing habits to achieve better health and skin. It’s also a chance for people to learn more about the different body care products that can complete one’s bath regimen – from the typical bar soap to body wash, body scrubs to bath salt and more.

with fellow bloggers Anne, Yuki, and Sarah

beautiful bloggers ready to get pampered for the day!

Guest speaker Ms. Olen Lim opened the event by talking about bathing rituals, looking good and feeling great. According to her, grooming is an essential part of our daily routine that affects our confidence and self-esteem. An indulging bathroom ritual every morning goes a long way. We need to make it a habit to pamper our body daily and make our bathroom a sanctuary. This sets our mood for the day and lets us start our day right. Because really, when you love your body, you love yourself. :)

Then it was time for our spa party! I was part of the group that had the full body scrub while the other group had a body massage.

We were asked to choose what scrub we wanted to use among the following: whitening milk & salt scrub with papaya extract, whitening milk & salt scrub with collagen, anti-ageing milk & salt scrub with carrot extract, and moisturizing milk & salt scrub with avocado extract. I decided to chose the one with collagen since it says it will reveal your skin’s natural radiance. ;p

Then it was finally time for my body scrub! I was pampered for 1 whole hour then was treated to a very relaxing shower. I felt so fresh and my skin felt so silky smooth after!

But the fun didn’t end there. After our spa experience, we still had a shopping challenge! We were all given a shopping box and P1000 worth of Watsons GCs . Whoever is able to buy the most number of Watsons label bath products will win a free Ki Neo Day Spa Gift Certificate.

You all know I love shopping so this challenge was right up my alley! I love Watsons’ buy one take one deals so I grabbed a lot of those, especially the body wash and scrubs.

I'm a happy Watsons shopper!

Watsons also has a promo right now where they’re giving away a FREE 750mL Limited Edition Body Treats Anti-Bacterial Hand Soap when you buy any of the participating bath products (body wash, deo, body scrub and bath soap) worth P500. But if you’re an SM Advantage Card member, purchase requirement is only P400. This promo is also available in the SM Store Beauty Section.

Check out all the goodies I was able to take home! I can’t wait to use all these products to pamper myself. Thank you so much Watsons! :)

Watsons also has the Bath to Basics activation booths in the following malls so go check it out to score great deals and offers: SM Fairview (July 17-22), Festival Mall (July 24-29), SM North Edsa (July 31-August 6), and SM Manila (August 14-19). Or check out their Facebook page for more details: www.facebook.com/WatsonsPH.

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Happy half-birthday Skyler!

My baby Skyler is now 6 months old! And to celebrate, we had a little photoshoot with his cake. :)

He's really growing up so fast! He can now semi-crawl and he moves from one end of the bed to the other side at lightning speed. And usually, he does this to get his favorite toy - the remote control haha! He also started solids a few days ago, having mashed banana and potato (mixed with a little breastmilk). And he loved it! I'm beginning to teach him sign language too (starting with the word milk) so we'll see how he picks it up. Definitely can't wait for more milestones with this little one. :)

My Breastfeeding Journey

Today, my baby Skyler turns 6 months old. Wow, where did the time go? I still remember like it was yesterday when I was still pregnant and about to give birth. I can’t believe it’s been half a year already! It’s definitely a milestone for both of us because I have been exclusively breastfeeding him for this long as well. This is a HUGE accomplishment for me, because despite having 3 kids already, this is the first time I’ve been able to successfully breastfeed.

I haven’t really shared much about my struggles in the past because I feel that there are some advocates who are so quick to judge and criticize moms who decide to give their babies formula. I’m by no means an expert and I just want to share my story since there might be other moms out there who can relate to my experience.

During my first pregnancy, I’d assumed that breastfeeding would happen naturally after I gave birth. After I delivered my daughter Miley, she was immediately placed on my chest to nurse as is the practice in hospitals. She didn’t really latch on then, so I just assumed she was sleepy and would eat when she got hungry later on.

She would be brought to me for feedings and the nurses would teach me how to make her latch on. It seemed easy enough then. She would suck for a few seconds, even minutes and then doze off. Based on the books I read, this seemed normal as the baby still had “reserves” from being in the womb and wasn’t really hungry yet. I also figured we were both new to this so in time it would get better.

Anyway, when we got home, that’s when the problem started. She just couldn’t latch on properly no matter how hard we tried. It was so frustrating and I just felt so helpless. I was steadfast in that I didn’t want to give her formula despite protests from my mom, mother-in-law and even yaya that I was starving my baby.  Apparently both hubby and I were formula fed and we turned out fine so both our moms were insisting we give her formula already.

This continued on for a few more days until it was obvious she was losing weight, her lips were so chapped (probably from being dehydrated already) and she just kept crying most of the time. I thought motherhood was supposed to be this wonderful thing, but I honestly wasn’t enjoying it during those first few days. I guess I had slight post-partum too, since I felt like my life was so different after giving birth. I didn’t feel good about myself, I couldn’t even take a shower, meals were rushed, and I just wanted to sleep!

All I know is I kept trying and forcing to direct feed. I did all the tricks - malunggay capsules, drinking lots of water, relaxing myself by listening to music before trying to feed (since I read the baby feels when you’re stressed too). But it just wasn’t happening. I couldn’t even feel any milk in my breasts. I was just tired, cranky, stressed, and depressed!

At this point, I was beyond hopeless so I finally gave in and gave her formula. I’m not much of an emotional person, but this really made me break down and cry. I felt like such a bad mom, that I was a failure. But to be honest, another part of me felt relieved to finally see my baby eating.

I kept reading so many articles after and found support groups of mom who just decided to pump in order to give their babies breastmilk. So that’s what I decided to do. It was funny because I didn’t even buy a pump beforehand because I just assumed I would be breastfeeding exclusively and wouldn’t need it. I guess I also didn’t have as much information and support as I should have from the start as well.

Throughout it all, hubby was so supportive. He went out to buy me a pump and whatever else I needed. After initially pumping for a few days, my milk finally came in but I was only able to pump about 2 - 3 oz at a time. Still it was something! I gave Miley whatever breastmilk I could pump and when it wasn’t enough, she drank formula. I still continued to pump when I got back to work but with extremely hectic schedules (and no decent place to pump except the bathroom), I stopped after 5 months.

Same thing happened with my second baby Sabe. I don’t know why but he couldn’t latch on as well! This time, I immediately turned to pumping and I was able to give him my breastmilk for about 8 months. But he was also drinking formula when my breastmilk wasn’t enough.

When I got pregnant for the 3rd time, I was just praying that I’d be successful in breastfeeding this time. I don’t know if it was because this was my 3rd pregnancy or maybe a change in mindset, but I could already feel my boobs had milk as my due date came nearer (which wasn’t the case with the previous pregnancies). And I guess my prayers worked since I had milk a few days after I gave birth and Skyler finally knew how to latch! Alleluia!

During the start, there were times when I doubted myself though. I was in extreme pain from engorgement and there were times I would really scream when Skyler would latch on! I was feeding on demand so I hardly was getting any sleep at all too. Not like before when hubby (or even my mom or yaya) could help feed the baby from the bottle. Now, I was literally attached to my baby at all times. I kept saying I’d take it one day at a time since it would eventually get better. And in time it did! And now, it’s been 6 months already and I plan to keep on going for as long as I can. :)

One thing I know for sure is that us moms only want the best for our babies. I personally think that breastfeeding shouldn’t be the judge if one is a good mother or not. There will be lots of opinions out there but I guess just do what you feel is right for you and your baby. Happy mommy = happy baby right? In my case, I’m just really grateful the 3rd time was the charm. So again, happy 6 months to my baby Skyler and here's hoping to be able to continue breastfeeding until he at least turns 2! :)

Breakfast at Ritchie's Diner

We happened to stumble upon Ritchie's Diner one time while looking for a place to eat around BF. We were happy to find out that they served breakfast since we wanted to eat somewhere other than the typical fast food place.

opens daily at 7AM

I love the whole classic American diner look and ambiance, since it makes me feel like I'm transported back in time. I especially like the checkered floor and bright colors - so fun and cheerful! They also have two TVs mounted on the walls so you can watch some shows while waiting for your food. And they also have lots of magazines to read too.

This visual is so cute hehe. Can you tell who these actors are? ;p

say cheese!

refillable coffee

oops not too much sugar baby! ;p

They have an extensive menu which includes an all-day breakfast from pancakes, waffles, omelettes, french toast and Pinoy rice meals. They also serve specialty burgers and signature sandwiches, ribs, steaks, pork belly, pasta, quesadilla, fish tacos, kids meals and more! And since this is a diner, they offer hot brewed coffee, milkshakes, homemade cakes and pies, ice cream and sundaes too.

menu from their website

It was a bit overwhelming at first since they had sooooo many choices! They practically have everything on the menu! It took us a while to order since everything looked good. In the end, I got the beef tapa, hubby got an omelette, and we ordered pancakes for Miley. :)

beef tapa with garlic rice & eggs (P138)

egg omelette with toasted bread (P185)

red velvet mini pancakes (P80)

Everything was really good and surprisingly very affordable! I have to say that the servings were very generous for the price. The service was excellent too. Our waiter was so nice and helpful with suggesting what to order. And plus points for whenever a restaurant has a kid-friendly menu. We will definitely be back for lunch or dinner to try more of their other offerings. :)

RITCHIE'S DINER
No. 303 Aguirre Avenue, Phase 3, BF Homes Paranaque (beside Puregold Jr.) 
748-8733
Website: http://www.ritchiesdiner.webs.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ritchies-Diner/288996811228466

Our monggo plant

About 2 months ago, we received the Breeze Sige Sabado Playbox which included, among other things, materials to raise a monggo plant.

My daughter was really excited to plant the monggo seeds in the small plastic pot. I don't really know if there's a correct way to plant monggo (like soil to seed ratio?) but I pretty much just let her decide how many seeds she wanted to put in the soil (she placed a lot!). And then she was even more excited to water it after (I think she might have drowned the seeds too haha!). ;p

There were still a lot of seeds left over so she decided she still wanted to plant more in an empty space in the garden. I just let her dig away and plant as many monggo seeds as she wanted...

The seeds in the small pot grew really quickly and then died after a while. I honestly forgot all about the other seeds my daughter had planted until our helper excitedly called us out one day. We didn't even notice that a full-blown monggo plant had already sprouted! :)

look at the ripe seeds ready for picking!

and more are growing!

So cool right? ;p I don't have a green thumb, but this makes me excited to plant other stuff in our garden like basil or calamansi. Hope it grows! :)

The Farm Organics Resto

Finally, I got to try The Farm after all these months! Hubby and I would always think of eating here but then for some reason, we'd always end up somewhere else. But one night, hubby was really craving for a burger so off we went. :)

I really like how cozy the place looks with all the wood and leather

nice place to just chill and relax

hubby's favorite part of the resto haha! ;p

According to their website, The Farm Organics - The Healthy Meat - is the first to offer fresh certified organic grass-fed beef in major supermarkets in the Philippines. The Farm Organics' cattle are pastured-raised cattle, which are NOT given antibiotics and growth hormones (rbGH).

The Farm Organics beef is a nutrient-dense, health-promoting food which contains more CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) which supports the immune system and helps fight cancer. It also contains omega fatty acids, and vitamin E. Both the Omega-3 fats and CLA in grass-fed beef actually reduce the risk of heart disease.

with my handsome dates while waiting for our food! ;p

Hubby decided to get the Kesong Puti Burger. I tried it and it was really good! The patty was super tender and juicy. I just wish it was bigger though. ;p

Kesong Puti Burger

Of course, we had to order fries, which is a must for my 3-year old son! And hubby tried one of their beers too.

Kesong Puti Burger and Fries

I decided to get pasta just so we could try something other than their burgers. The Truffle Mushroom was ok, but the ones I've tried from Mamou and Mama Lou's are definitely far superior. It made me wish I'd just gotten a burger too hehe!

Truffle Mushroom Pasta

We also ordered their brick oven pizza and decided to get Four Cheese. It was small at 10" and again, I've had better. Towards the end, all that cheese was becoming too bland so we used the mushrooms from the pasta as toppings haha! ;p

Four Cheese Pizza

Next time, I will definitely stick to ordering a burger or steak! :)

THE FARM RESTO - Certified Organic Steaks and Burgers
One Legacy Place, Don Jesus Blvd., Alabang Hills, Muntinlupa City
828-2896
www.thefarm.ph
www.facebook.com/TheFarmResto