As an entrepreneur, I can’t easily say no to meetings with clients, even if it is my birthday.  I have that need to check emails.  I will still have that task in my head that needs to get done.  It especially got harder when I became a mom because I’m on all the time.

However, Juni is right.  I have to take a day off.  Heck, I have to take days off.  Hence,

Task #8: Create a perfect day for yourself when the world gives you the excuse to do it — like your birthday and Mother’s Day.

This year’s Mother’s Day, I was given the best excuse to treat myself because the SoMoms were invited to participate in Ayala Malls’ Mom’s Perfect Day.  We were asked to come with our kids in complementary outfits thus, I needed to go shopping.

Day 1:

I chose to do my pre-perfect day at Trinoma where Painter’s Wife and I had Hainanese chicken and Cereal prawns at Wee Nam Kee.  (You cannot shop on an empty stomach!  That being said, you must also make sure you’re wearing Spanx!)

Then after 2 hours of chika, we went on attack mode to search for the perfect outfits for ourselves and our kids.  The third floor of Trinoma was all we needed to hop from Mango to Promod to Zara.  Notice the themes in my choices?  I felt uncomfortably tummy-conscious though and I was thinking I had to suck my stomach in the whole time, despite the Spanx already cutting off my circulation.

I couldn’t make up my mind (even though in hindsight, I should have bought those dresses in Mango and Zara – both e!).  So we were off to Gingersnaps to get clothes for the kids.  Gingersnaps is such a wasteland of cuteness (and age-appropriate chicness too).  I wanted to buy everything for the girls.

After my purchase (see photos below for the final choices), I decided to also get myself Mac make-up to complete the look (see Painter’s Wife’s post on my loot).

Then it was dinner time so Eliza and I decided to finish off our 7-hour Trinoma day with some pasta and pizza at Italiannis using my discount coupons.  (As you can NOT see, we were too tired to take photos and I had run out of battery from posting on Instagram.)

DAY 2:

Less then 24 hours later, I found myself in another Ayala Mall, Greenbelt 5.  This time I was with MyMommyology.  We started off with lunch at Chateau 1771.  We ordered gambas, beef tenderloin linguine, ravioli with oven-roasted tomatoes and for dessert, coffee pie and a cafe latte (there were three of us ok!).

Then we were back at it at Promod, Mango and Zara.  I have become an expert on their stocks (and which ones you can find in each mall)!  Two of the outfits I tried on are in the small pictures in my outfit shots above (they’re small because I wasn’t wearing Spanx!).  I also went to Banana Republic and Adora.  After an hour, I finally found the perfect outfit(s) back in Promod

Lesson: you have to go back because someone could be trying on the dress that was meant for you when you were there 30 minutes earlier.

Corollary to Lesson Above: Must wash clothes before wearing them.

Mother’s Day:

Ayala Malls prepared a really special treat for us and the moms in their malls that day.  Greenbelt 5 had a butterfly garden, free mani-pedis and a Bizu dessert buffet.

M had a talent for being able to catch so many of the butterflies.

The SoMoms went to Gingersnaps as a group and see the kids in their natural habitat (haha).

They were just too cute, all in Gingersnaps.

We felt so special getting treats from Lancome — I want to try the Lancome Absolue, which they said has millions of stem cells to regenenerate your own cells.

Then we went to Kiehl’s where I finally admitted to myself that yes, I need to buy their Powerful Wrinkle Reducing Eye Cream.  It hurts but denial will only make me lose precious time (hahaha).

We had so much fun (and I think I gained so much muscle because N didn’t want to be put down the whole time … except for picture-taking with her friends).  She looks so prim and proper in this photo.

Finally, here are the outfits we chose from Gingersnaps and Promod.  N was very tired at this point that she decided to remove her shoes already (She wasn’t using them anyway.  I wish someone carried me too that day).

In the end, I ended up with 1 whole and 2 half perfect days for myself.  Thank you Ayala Malls for forcing (forcing!) me to take time off.  Next one will be in January.

©OCMominManila

This inspired me for my 7th task.

Task #7: I will show my mom I appreciate her for everything she’s done for me.

And I will start with this blog post.

My mom had seven kids, all within twelve years.  Now that I’m a mom, the thought of more than two stresses me out.  The thing is, I hardly remember any yayas, only those from a few pictures but none I can really recall in my memory.  I remember being with her a lot: shopping, doing the groceries, collecting rent from tenants (haciendera daw! hahaha), going to the palengke (ok so maybe not a haciendera), manning our clothing store in Dau Edsa Central, or just playing with the metal sharpener (the kind that was mounted on the desk) and the dry seal in her office  (which was on the ground floor of our house).  She said I always clutched the back of her skirt wherever we went.  In Kindergarten (Humpty Dumpty SY 79-80), I wouldn’t let her out of the room for 1 week (hello, the woman had 6 other kids!).  Obviously, I was attached.

That’s me in the middle clinging to my mom.

She expertly handled 7 sets of feeding, diaper-changing, potty training stages.  I cannot imagine the planning of activities, crazy summers, teaching handwriting. (Good thing at that time, she didn’t have to worry about Filipino!).  Despite her already horrendous schedule, she also managed the family construction business and her own business of being an exporter’s subcontractor for children’s clothes.  She took care of all of these without missing a beat.  I don’t remember any bouncing checks, any calls from the admin office saying I didn’t pay the tuition yet, any forgotten lunch baons in my bag.

She was very protective.  I never rode the school bus (maybe because we were a school bus on our own).  I don’t remember playing much in the street (because we had a backyard where my dad built a tree house and I had all the play mates I needed, whom she “manufactured”).

I remember an incident when I was 12.  It was 8pm and we (Mom, myself, my younger cousin, and the driver) were going home after closing up the store in Dau.  We were in our Hi-Ace on United Street when a car blocked us and 3 men armed with high-powered firearms came down.  I was so petrified, I couldn’t even open my window even if the hijacker was pointing his machine gun at me and shouting at me to open the window.  My mom had the presence of mind to throw her bag to the back of the car, talk to the men calmly and give them a bag with some notebooks in it, (as well as a plastic bag with suha, which was our comic relief when we would retell the story). In hindsight, she was fast enough to show she was complying but slow enough to waste their time and make them rush to go away.  The hijackers got our car keys so she made sure we immediately leave the crime scene but lock the car doors.  She flagged a tricycle and put us all in, including our driver, who was very scared.

If there will be a zombie apocalypse, I’d call my mom (and my brother in Vancouver).

I’ve seen her go through more than five separate car accidents of my siblings, stay for two months in the ICU of Medical City watching over my sister in a coma and take care of her and her disability over two decades.  I’ve seen her spend all her life savings just to give us what we needed.  I’ve seen her lose a child, my older sister.

In all these years, I don’t remember her being anything but amazing. If I can be there for my children and protect them the way she has done for us, I know I would be amazing too.

Salamat sa pamana, ma.

©OCMominManila

Selecta sent me this ice cream cake kit the other week and it actually made me think about traditions again.

We need a regular family tradition.

The Selecta idea is nice — making an ice cream cake together and eating it for the weekend movie night.

If you can’t read the instructions from the photo very well, here they are:

INGREDIENTS:

1 Selecta Super Thick Classic Chocolate-Mantecado-Mango

1 MY San Graham Crackers Honey 2006

DIRECTIONS:

1. Start with a layer of Graham Crackers

2. Add a half-inch thick layer of ice cream

3. Repeat layering until you have a delicious ice cream cake

4. Put in the freezer overnight

So my Task #6: I will create a regular weekend family tradition.

What’s your weekly tradition with the family?

©OCMominManila

Every year, my husband makes these really nice videos for the kids on their birthdays.  The videos summarize the year’s events in 7 minutes.  He almost always cries when he edits the videos (admit it, J).  I guess writing that letter was a similar experience — personal, emotional and well, it’s about the kids.

So my self-improvement task is inspired by this activity from the Philips Avent event

Task #5: I will write a letter to my girls on their birthdays.

It’s like my personal time capsules of them in written form.  It shouldn’t take the place of me telling them how I feel face to face but it will be a nice way to capture the events and emotions in my written hand (maybe even have some dried tears preserved on the paper).

©OCMominManila

Hence, Task #4: I Will Have More Lunches with My Girlfriends

More often than not, lunches with girlfriends have a tendency to stretch out to merienda and even dinner so if I will do this regularly, I will have to learn to set a time limit lest I forget that I do have responsibilities.

One of the best lunches I had with the SoMoms recently was the unlimited dim sum at the Jasmine  Restaurant in New World Makati.  The inside of the restaurant was pretty and they had these cozy sitting booths by the windows.

They also had function rooms that could seat 12-20 — great for big families and meetings.

The unlimited dim sum was prepared by the 2 Chef Wongs (the running corny joke was 2 Wongs definitely make it right!).

The 2 Chef Wongs look so cute, they can be inspirations for the next Disney feature.

Ooooh, the dimsum, super good ….  and can you believe it’s only P660 for this?  That’s with soda!  For weekends, you can have sparkling wine with your dimsum for only P950!  This is only for lunch and only until May 31, 2013 so you still have a few weeks left to keep coming back.

I had not been to New World in quite a while and was surprised.  It looks amazing.  It looks very modern yet still Asian.  They even changed the concept of their function rooms to have these open kitchens.

Who needs to go to Hong Kong when you can have a dim sum food trip in Makati?  Thank you Nini Icban, and New World Makati for having lunch with the SoMoms!  Thank you to our newest SoMom, Patty of Nonstopbabble for organizing.  When are we going back?

©OCMominManila

May 3: I Will Only Play Candy Crush When the Kids are Asleep

It sucks all your time away and makes you obsessed with lives.  I don’t think I should quit cold turkey (well, not yet) but I should just play when the kids are asleep so it doesn’t take time away from them.

©OCMominManila

So my May 2 challenge to myself:

I will relax.

I have decided that when I am about to nitpick on something that will not have any significant impact on making my life better, I will breathe in, pause and think of the beach in my flip-flops.  At the beach, you leave the laptop behind, you walk around in a bikini and you wear your Havaianas everywhere – even to weddings.

Flip-flops c/o Havaianas. Kalyo on big toe c/o rubber shoes during track team training in high school.

These were the Havaianas I made at the Make Your Own Havaianas event last Tuesday (the first time I went out at night with my SoMom friends! – buhay nanay!).  Those pins are only available during the event.

My assemblers with their boss Gary Villanueva of Creative Juice.  You can make your own Havaianas from May 2-May 5 at the Rockwell Tent.

Today, I wore my Havaianas to the mall while working in a coffee shop.  It was relaxing until I realized my car was coding and it was 3:30PM!

Breathe. Pause. Image of the beach in my flip-flops.  There is no MMDA guy up ahead.

©OCMominManila

I will work on a few things which revolve around being a better mom and person, which also includes taking better care of myself.  I will try to pose 1 challenge a day to myself.  I don’t need to address the challenge immediately.  I just want to list them down (and if I can do half before the year ends then i’d be happy).

MAY 1: I will participate in more advocacies where I can share [the little mom knowledge and experience I have] with other moms.

This challenge was sparked by a SoMoms visit to Fabella Hospital a few months back.   In the visit, Rezel Aquino, the marketing head of Johnson’s Baby for most countries in ASEAN, said something that struck a chord.  Rezel pointed out that most of us probably gave birth in the top hospitals — Makati Med, St. Lukes, Medical City, Cardinal, etc. — and what we experienced was indeed so different from the situation of the moms giving birth in Fabella (having our own bed for one!).  However, one thing binds us moms regardless of how or where we gave birth — we long to share our experiences with other moms and we long for information to give our children the best care.

Rezel is the one in yellow (Side chismis — she is also the SIL of Bam Aquino!)

When I would hear about Fabella before, I would just hear of how crowded it is, how stressful it is to share hospital beds with 3 moms and their babies.  The general sentiment was “Kawawa sila.”  After visiting though, I actually realized that the moms couldn’t have picked a better hospital given their financial capacity.  Mainly, they hardly paid anything to give birth.  More than that though, they really had support.  The doctors and staff had regular mothers’ classes teaching them how to breastfeed, kangaroo-carry, bathe, and care for the babies.  The classes were held in the Johnson’s Baby Touch Therapy room and each mom got starter kits of Johnson’s Baby Products as well as written information.  That’s more than I can say for some of the big hospitals.  I don’t remember getting free classes or support post-birth.

Dr. Imperial demonstrating kangaroo care which they teach the moms (and dads!)

Even the dads were involved by the hospital in the care of their babies.

The moms and babies were sharing beds but the close encounters-situation served as a venue for their support group.  They had batchmates (which is inevitable in a hospital where the birth rate can reach up to 70+ a day!) whom they got to share their birthing stories with.  It’s like their kids had instant aunts.

Beds put side by side to accommodate multiple moms and their babies.  Jenny of MyMommyology shared her own mom stories with them.

For our part, the SoMoms went around the ward and talked to the moms who just gave birth.  The questions and discussions were the same as in my birthing class — breastfeeding myths, sleep concerns, baby care.  We were there to share the little we knew from experience or just to listen.  They appreciated it.  I felt good about it too.

And thus, I hope I can do more advocacies like this J&J Fabella event.  It’s great that even if the brand managers change in Johnson’s Baby, the advocacy to support moms remains.

As a side note, J&J is probably the most sincere company I know who supports its consumers and communities in this way.  This is the reason why I loved working for J&J and why I continue to trust Johnson’s Baby, despite all the hype recently thrown their way in the news.  (When I worked there, it took us years to get new products out because the company’s product safety policies were so strict.  Even the toys we gave out for promos had to be checked for safety!)

 So there, Self-Improvement Task #1 listed.  Hopefully, I can challenge myself everyday again for the next 30 days.  See you tomorrow (?).

P.S. Thank you Lawrence del Mundo for the great photos as always.

©OCMominManila

Day 1: I remember my dad (btw, happy birthday dad!!) would always tell us to wear a coat whenever we travel.  Here is M all suited up given Lolo’s advice: Gingersnaps coat (Size 3!) and shirt inside.  Zara Kids scarf.  Gingersnaps tutu.  Old Navy leggings.  Payless glittery slip-ons.

Day 2: It was pretty cold that day, around 2-5 degrees.  Underneath she wore thermals borrowed from Suzi Abrera’s girls (Thanks Tita Suzi and Ninong Paolo!).  Hat from Circo.  Zara Kids dress.  Gap fleece vest (part of her Lalaloopsy Halloween costume). Puffy jacket (again from the Abrera girls).   Gap Kids scarf.  Mothercare tights.  SM Kids boots (also part of her Lalaloopsy Halloween costume).

Day 3: (Left photo) Still cold but not as much.  Beanie, sweater and puffy jacket from the Abreras.  Carters dress shirt.  Mothercare tights.  Payless slip-ons.

Day 4: (Right photo) Red hoodie from Zara Kids. Gingersnaps tutu. Mothercare tights.

We traveled during the end of fall (right before the cherry blossoms bloomed, shucks).  Here are my tips for dressing up kids for fall in Seoul (may apply also for similar climates):

1. Thermals help.  M doesn’t like jeans (and honestly, I forgot the Gap jeans I just bought in the wash!!  Sacre bleu!). Good thing Suzi had 3 girls so she lent M thermals.  She wore them underneath her tights and they kept her warm.
2. Hats and bonnets are more useful than ear muffs.  Ear muffs bother M (and me too!) so get a hat that protects their ears as well.
3. Gloves!  The fingers are the first to freeze.  That said, bring clothes with pockets.
4. The puffy jacket helped a lot.  Inside, M had a sweater over a thin dress or shirt so it was easy to just remove if she got hot.
5. M liked her scarves but they didn’t help much.  They were more of a hazard in catching on the wheel of the stroller or escalators so I don’t recommend them.  Maybe just for photos in the room.  Hahaha.
6. Choose good boots, not cheap boots!!  M ran around in her boots and her feet hurt after.  You get what you pay for.
7. Bring a thick shawl or blanket to act as an additional cover while they’re in their stroller and the wind is coming at them.  Our Maclaren’s hood was pretty protective though.
8. For those days when you’re traveling in and out of a cold country, make sure the layers are studied so you can pack them on in the cold country and take them off when you get back to hot Manila.  (This way, you don’t have to keep changing outfits.)
9. Bring a big eco bag (like those from beansprout) to store all the shawls, scarves, etc. when you go indoors.

If you have other tips for fall fashion, feel free to feedback (yes had to alliterate some more) in the comments section.  Where are you traveling to this summer?

©OCMominManila

I try not to pass my neurosis onto my kids (try being the operative word). I feel good whenever M’s former teachers from Explorations always say M has no issues exploring different textures and art materials. She doesn’t get grossed out or refuse to try them out (whew!). That’s in school. At home is a different thing.

I have to admit I hardly make them do messy projects. I’d rather they read books, do worksheets, use blocks and do pretend play rather than get messy with paint. However, I know (I know, I know) art is the foundation of creativity. Creating something from nothing, using your imagination, using your bare hands — those are what create connections in the brain, those are the things that make them feel more confident and empowered, those are the foundations of personality and leadership down the road.  So this video actually spoke to me.

This video was the thought-starter for Breeze’s #SigeLangOPigilan campaign. I actually felt guilty because I can be the latter (Pigilan Mom), even though I know it’s not the progressive thing to do. So yes, it took a commercial detergent brand to make me tap into my soul and realize that I can be a better parent, that the right thing to do is just let them experience, enjoy and learn. It doesn’t matter if they get messy as long as they’re not in danger.

So with that realization, I broke out the finger paint kept in storage for about a year already (haha) and let N do whatever she wanted with it. I kept my mouth shut, smiled and just took photos. I didn’t let her use an apron even (talk about extreme therapy!).

The result: something really amazing from an 18-month old.  I think I’ve seen similar-looking paintings in MoMA (stage mother alert!).  My Mom has a Pacheco hanging in her living room that looks like this (sorry, Mr. award-winning painter).

In the end, I didn’t know where the artwork ended and the onesie began.

Who knew I had it in me? I did realize that I can prioritize when it comes to OC-dom. My new rules: If it will help my kids learn, will not put them in danger and there’s a solution for the stress anyway, then just let them go with it. Sige lang.

LEFT: #SigeLangSaMantsa Onesie   RIGHT: After it was washed with Breeze.

Sincerely, I want to say thank you to Breeze. It’s a commercial detergent brand but its advocacy is in the right place.

♦

Follow Breeze on Facebook and Twitter @BreezePH.

©OCMominManila