Must be the Coffee

A Day in the Farm

2012-12-01T23:51:00.000+08:00

My Dad and his officemates celebrated Tita Aida's birthday in Mayor Edna Sanchez' farm in Sto.Tomas, Batangas. We were on tag along mode since there were horses, ostriches, and miniature horses in the farm - and we thought Leanne would enjoy.

Groovy Tita Aida by the door (in glasses). It's the only clear photo I saw.

True enough, Leanne super enjoyed the animals! Almost all her photos had her face turned away from the camera because she's busy looking at the horses or ostriches!

Smile for the camera, babe!

The ostrich in the background. I had to hold her face to make her look at the camera even for a bit!

Daddy, there's a horse! Look!

Wow! Thrich! (Ostrich) with my mom.

Why is that horse small??! Can I ride that one?!

Daddy's wacky pose with a horsey

We had lunch a-la boodle fight. While I've had a lot of boodle fights the past five years (my current office loves boodle fights), it was my mom's first! So... good job, Mom!

That's my boodle tummy bulging. Sigh. Food. Oh, food.

Overall, it was a well spent day with the family! Cheers to long weekends!

Happiness!

Love you, Babe!

Early Christmas Present!

2012-11-27T22:30:00.000+08:00

So, on the 25th of November... Just 30 days before Christmas... the husband got me an early Christmas present...

*drum roll please*

A Samsung Series 5 laptop! *insert applause here*

I have an awesome husband!

Erhm... am not sure of the exact model, specs, etc. But it works and does the job well!!! Hopefully this inspires me to write more and more - given that them creative juices a-draining.

Cheers to wonderful husbands!!!

Now... the ball is on my court... how do you match such an awesome present? Hmmm...

How to match an awesome beauty? Rawr!

Chicken and Fries and Everything Nice

2012-11-12T16:03:00.001+08:00

We went to SM Southmall last Sunday and decided to have a late afternoon snack, Agave took our eye. It was actually a showdown between going Japanese (SumoSam) or TexMex (Agave). And since it was a long time since JP and I had a decent Mexican fix, we decided to go with Agave. Good news! When we got in, we found out there were free meals for kids during weekends! Yay!!! And they had chicken and fries! Leanne's favorites!

Three cheers for Agave!

BEFORE: The Free Chicken Fingers and Fries

AFTER: One Full Baby!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Dear Leanne!

2012-11-11T08:28:00.002+08:00

We made it! With flying colors --- almost.

The birthday began with the little girl being in a very, very wonderful mood - for a change.

Someone woke up sunshiney!

Super good mood she even let me braid her hair

Our caterer, Jaymin's Kitchenette, is actually the canteen from my office - so pretty much I already knew how everything worked - the taste, serving, service, and the works. I just didn't know they start preparing super early! Good thing we just came from church so we were able to welcome them at 7AM.

This streamer is the off-shoot of the invitation. I blogged about that here.

I chose red accents over white to make it festive yet simple and clean.

For lunch, the caterers prepared beef caldereta (middle) and fish fillet fingers with tartar sauce (rightmost). The pancit (noodles) on the leftmost was brought by my mom. She got it from Bermuda in Shaw Blvd. and then the barbeque we just got from a local store around our area.

Cranky and sleepy!

No more crying, babe!

My little girl is sleepy just before the lunch started... So she got super cranky, she didn't want me to put her down. Decided to let her sleep and miss the rest of her lunch party. But as soon as she woke up, she allowed a photo with me together with her Minnie ears.

Speaking of "ears..." I made giveaways with Mickey ears (with the help of Ate Dong, Maricel, Maria, and of course, my loving mommy) as giveaways.

Just before the afternoon party, my husband, JP picked up the Goldilocks cake we had made. It has a Mickey Mouse and friends theme. You just need three days to order this and there are a lot of flavors to choose from. You can visit this link to know more about the cakes.

Mickey Mouse cake from Goldilocks

JP's boss, Rico came in the afternoon with his lovely wife and the yummy and super beautiful Hello Kitty cupcakes and tower she made. Leanne loved the Hello Kitty toppers! I cut one in half because I thought she wanted to eat it. She got mad at me. I think she thought it was a toy.

Yummy and beautiful cupcakes

Lala, Hello Kitty please!

This is Rico and his wife

We had super lots of family and friends who spent time with us - and with that, I feel that our family is really blessed with the best people around.

We are awed with the love and support!

Although, I think the numerous guests triggered the sad part of Leanne's 2nd. But, no space for sad stories in this blog! Will blog about time next time - whenever that will be.

From the bottom of our hearts to the tip of our lips... Thank you!

A Whole Year?!?

2012-10-18T12:57:00.000+08:00

It's been almost a year since my last post... And yes, it's Leanne's birthday again. Argh. My baby is turning into a toddler... I don't know if I should say "time flies fast!" with all the happy-sad rollercoaster-like journey we've had over the past year.

All is good, nonetheless.

Now, I am busy preparing for Leanne's 2nd birthday party slash housewarming party next weekend. Luckily, her birthday falls under a long weekend, with October 26 being declared a holiday.

For this year, we are keeping it low. We're having lunch with the family and an afternoon get-together with friends. No games, shows, or whatever. Just pure company and fun.

So far, I have only contacted the caterer and prepared the invitations. My mom has bought some stuff already for the "loot bags" - which is basically just some sweets for the sweet tooths.

Just took out the address and contact info.
Photo credit: Elbert L. de Guzman, my boss.
This was taken during the wedding of my friends Ferdie + Kate Ortega

I am working on a Mickey Mouse themed party, with Leanne being a big fan (well, her mommy is too!)

Here are some pegs that I am currently working on for the party. I got all these a long time ago via google images. Grrr... So sorry wasn't able to get the exact links of all these! Am not taking credit for these photos. Just was able to research them a long time ago without being able to get the exact links.:

This one I got from pinterest via google. Wasn't able to get the exact link though :-(

Super love this set-up! Can't recall though where I got it. Sigh.

I got the one on the right from http://ambershirk.blogspot.com.
The one on the left is from google images. So bad of me to have not remembered the link.

Fingers crossed that everything turns out well! If I find the sites where I got the photos from, will update for credits :-)

Making the Birthday Bags... Really Good!

2011-11-07T19:59:00.000+08:00

When I said in my previous post that Jollibee covers everything - this already included awesome party favors. There are choices depending on your budget and the age group of your expected guests. We got the one with the backpack and toys inside (costs around US$2 each) because I know for sure that it is something that I would personally want to take home for my little angel (and mommy too!).

The 1derful Jollibee Giveaways!

But a few days leading to the party... I thought, what kiddie party will be complete without... CANDY! Yes, we should all go for healthy things for our little tots ALL THE TIME... but well, this is a SPECIAL OCCASION... and it's supposed to be a 1derful birthday... So, I guess... CANDIES ARE A GO! After going over our guest list, kids are only a handful and they are either quite young (below 7) or bordering teenage years (10-12), so we planned to make a "minimalist" type of candy loot bag.

Me want one also

What's in the BAG?

All in all, we spent around PhP 1,800 (US$42) for the kids' loot bags (good for 30 happy kiddies). We didn't want it to be too extravagant to avoid sugar-fueled, cavity-laden kids to be carried off by mom and dad after the party - we just wanted it enough for everyone to munch on.

I tried my best not to gobble'm all up

For the grown-ups, we wanted to give them something to take home as well. A small token of thanks for their wonderful presence in my little one's special day. Thinking aesthetics and functionality - I had the idea of giving away personalized hand sanitizers.

Visit Pixie Pen for your party needs :-)

Browsing through the net, I found Pixie Pen. They had just what I wanted at the price I wanted... AND at the quantity I wanted. Talk about a match made in heaven... There minimum order is 30 pieces with each costing PhP55 (US$1.30), I ordered 70 pieces and was able to choose two scents - Angel's Breath and Vanilla Lace - and two colors too - I got red and blue.

So happy with these! Christmas gift ideas, anyone? Hmmm...

When I finally placed my order, it was only then that I found out that the proprietress of Pixie Pen is my office mate's wife! Talk about small world!!! So, I got to waive the delivery fee for the items. Great job! The website says that they need around 2 weeks lead time for your orders, but since I already knew what I wanted - the colors, photo, design - it took me only a day or two to finalize everything. In around 3 days I got my items already. Woo-hoo!

Happiness!

Jollibee Saves the Day!

2011-11-02T22:14:00.003+08:00

For a working mom, planning for your one and only angel's first birthday party is quite a struggle. Struggle because you need to squeeze in tons of extra hours before and after office hours to be able to piece together every small and big detail needed - the venue, food, party host, invitations, giveaways, fun & games, and the list just goes on and on.

To top it all, since am in marketing communications and I have a hand in planning, leading, and organizing events of all sorts, you'd think (and EXPECT!) that working on my Yanyan's birthday would actually be a piece of cake (lol). Aaaaargh! But on the contrary, since we are talking about my little bundle of joy here... this should be the most perfect event I'd ever organize in my lifetime (insert heavenly music here). Ay, Caramba! Much stress!

So... welcome to my 1derful birthday preparations.

My Savior

We started with the thought of doing the birthday at home and have it catered and stuff. But like I said, being a working mom can be a struggle - so immediately, as early as the middle of the year, I knew it was already too late to find a caterer, get a host, find a supplier for the invites, party favors, sound system... Okay, don't get me started again. ANYWAY, since I'm very strict when it comes to these details, I immediately knew I wouldn't be able to make it. Work was pretty toxic during those times too. So... Enter... the Bee.

The Bee! The Bee!

Choosing Jollibee was quite simple: (A.) Leanne loves their spaghetti and palabok; (B.) Venue near our place and convenient for commuters; (C.) Leanne just ADORES Jollibee; (D.) Who doesn't like Jollibee (Erhm... Some but not all).

After scouting websites of other fast food restaurants for kiddie parties, I bestow Jollibee with the most "Mommy-friendly" site (I tried one pizza place and two chicken restaurants). It's a click-click-click heaven! Costs are all there, packages, options, add ons, and it computes at real time! The Party Planner is heaven for working moms!

My Party Planner is the way to go!

Basically, we chose our own meals and other details, had it computed so we already had a figure in our head. We then chose the best Jollibee venue, went there, and everything was done in a jiffy.

Go-go-go, Jollibee! Go-go-go, Mommy!

Now, if Jollibee delivers flawlessly as its pre-party preps does... That's another story altogether.

Yummy Banana Baby!

2010-12-20T21:14:00.000+08:00

Leanne had her first bath just three-days after she was born. My parents and in-laws were already surprised because they said, "back in the day," newborns were only bathed after their stump has fallen out. Well, the nurses of Manila Doctors said, it was different now and it was okay especially since it's always just a quick bath and the water has alcohol so the baby won't get infected.

I remember how super impressed we were because my three-day old daughter was so tiny, the nurse could carry her with just one hand and rinse her with the other. She was still so red then and her crying was so loud, you wouldn't think that a premature baby was taking a bath! It was super loud, nurses in their station would have panicked!

Leanne's first bath. So tiny and fragile!

Imagine how surprised I was to know that my little baby will stay little for only a short time! Now, I can bathe my two-month old only if I had someone with me to help me out! My mother and mother-in-law can do it best though. They can bathe Leanne on their own, with us just waiting on the sides with her clothes, mittens, and socks on-ready.

Before, we used Johnson's White Baby soap for Leanne's hair and body. But we noticed that her scalp was becoming dry. Fortunately, my grandmother, Tita Sebing, (we all call her Tita, she's the sister of my dad's mother. Go figure!) got us the Avon shampoo. It had a super nice smell, and immediately after the first use, we noticed that the dryness had improved already.

Avon's Baby shampoo (left) and Kids Heart Nature Organic Shampoo and Body wash
photos borrowed from www.pensivethoughts.com and www.humanheartnature.com

After a few days of use, my officemate, Sarah, gave Leanne a Christmas present! It was Kids Heart Nature's Kids shampoo and body wash with a Banana scent! Since it's all organic, we also decided to give it a try. Now, my baby has a healthy, sweet-tasting, and maybe yummy to eat scalp! We all now can't get enough of Leanne's head, neck, ears, and her whole body!

Our yummy-yummy and clean baby!

From feeding cup to bottle feeding

2010-12-19T23:51:00.001+08:00

New mommy in me found it really difficult to absorb all the new knowledge needed to take care of a newborn! But now that Leanne is turning two months old on the 28th, I can honestly say I have learned a lot through experience.

When we were in the hospital, I remembered walking out of my room one night, struggling to walk because I just gave birth through CS, crying my eyes out, because my baby couldn't latch on my nipple and she finds eating through her feeding cup difficult. I could sense that she was really hungry and was getting frustrated because of the little to almost zero milk that she is getting. That is why, immediately after we got home, I've decided Leanne must be bottle-fed. A challenge plays!

Daddy and Leanne's bonding time (left); my baby Leanne holding her own bottle at 38 days old

The first month, I was inter-changing breast milk with formula. No matter how much soups, malunggay leaves I ate, my breast milk wasn't really enough for Leanne. Fortunately, I was able to give her the colostrum she needed while we were in the hospital. So that already made me feel good. Over a month, I stopped pumping breast milk and shifted to Nestle's Pre-Nan.

Leanne gained weight and grew fast with Pre-Nan so on her 6th week, she shifted to Nan H.W. One. For a week she's been adjusting to the milk change so she poops a lot. But the doctor said as long as she has no fever, is not vomiting, and as long as she isn't feeling weak or having poor suck, then she is fine.

From 1oz. per feeding, Leanne upgraded to 2oz. per feeding, and now, she's shifting from 2-3oz. per feeding. And because of her bowel movement, she has to take Pedialyte for infants. We got the strawberry flavor and she super loves it! She can finish up to 4oz. in one feeding! But since we alternate it with milk, we give her 2-3oz. as well. I am already tempted to taste it because she surprisingly loves it!

It's really scary when something new or extraordinary is happening to my baby, but I have come to realize that if there is anything wrong with her, she would tell us - one way or another. It's just important to keep an open line of communication with your pedia. So it is important to make sure that the pedia you get is really someone you can trust. Super thank you to Dra. Rosa Maria Hipolito-Nancho, our pedia, and of course, my good friend, Aisa Hipolito for referring her to us!

I visit Dra. Nancho in Manila Doctors Hospital. Let me know if you need a good pedia and I can give you her contact details and other clinics :-)

The New Mommy

2010-11-28T19:37:00.001+08:00

The truth about being a first time mom is that no matter how much research you do, no matter how many questions you've asked the people around you, and no matter how much prepared you think you are - at the end of the day, nothing beats experiencing the real thing.

Which shouldn't be scary. Actually, it should be an event you will look forward to. When I found out that I was expecting, I did all the research online, magazines, books, gathered all the solicited and unsolicited pieces of advice from friends, family, my OB-GYNE, and acquaintances. I always thought I new enough until the day actually came.

Well, the day did come, but oh boy, was I in for a surprise! It was a month earlier than expected!

Wait... am sounding pretty scary to new moms already. lol.

Seriously though, I guess what I'm just trying to say to newbie moms like me is that - DO NOT BE AFRAID. Sure, it's going to be scary and all that, but it's only because you want what's best for your baby and your family. That being said, it is safe to say that everything will fall perfectly in place in time especially because your intentions from the beginning are pure and true. Who can go wrong with that, right?

Take everything in - all the information you've learned - but always keep an open minded and heart. I'm telling you, your baby will be your best teacher on your journey to mommy-hood.