Tuesday, January 31, 2017

The History of Being a Productive Mom

According to an article I have read, we are one of the most productive generations that have ever lived. The amount of technology that has been developed over the past couple of decades has been astounding; we are able to live our lives with relative ease and for as little output as there has ever been. Yet, as Moms, we are craving more productivity, more stuff going on and we don’t seem to have figured out how to have gotten there already - even with the added extras that we have in the 21st century. How did people (especially women/mothers) in the last century get on without all that we had? Comparing days gone by with the goings-on of today may just surprise you… 

Hot Momma! Staying in Shape During Pregnancy


We all know by now that when we get pregnant, our bodies quickly get out of shape and it takes a long time to return to our former figure. So if it’s your first, then take heed! 

Monday, January 30, 2017

Bundle Up! Keeping Kids Warm In Winter

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Here in the Philippines, we only have two seasons, the wet and the dry season. The dry season which is also called as summer, starts in late November and ends in May. The rainy seasons on the other hand starts in June and lasts till October. Other countries have four seasons namely- Spring,, Summer,
Fall (autumn) and, Winter. At this time, it's already the Winter season in the Northern Hemisphere, it started in December and lasts until February.  While the  Southern Hemisphere will have the Winter Season on June, July and August.

My kids would often ask me if we have snow here in the Philippines. For them, Winter is fun as what they see on TV and photos of their cousins in Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Making snowmen, snowball fights and marveling over the beautiful icicles that have dripped from window ledges. But cold weather can also be dangerous, in children and vulnerable people, conditions like hypothermia are a real risk to their health (and it doesn’t have to be half as cold as you might think!) To keep your precious kids safe over the colder months, here are a few things to bear in mind.

Keep Your House Cozy

Keeping your house warm in winter and cool in summer is essential, but especially so when you have babies and kids. Their smaller bodies can’t regulate temperature as well meaning it’s easy for them to overheat (or lose too much heat). Invest in a couple of thermometers for your home to keep an eye on the temperature. An efficient heating system for the winter and air conditioning for the summer is extremely important in the home. Call out a gas engineer for heating and a residential A/C repair for air conditioning if either system isn’t performing as well as it should. On top of this, you can keep your home cozy by having plenty of blankets to wrap up on while you’re watching tv in the evenings, and making sure you’re using duvets with the correct tog rating on your kid's beds. Ideally, you should have two duvets. A lighter one for spring and summer use, and a thicker one for autumn and winter. 

Choose The Right Clothing

When it comes to clothing, it’s important to get it right. You want to keep your kids warm but without them overheating which will only make matters worse. Since kids are up and about more and running around more than adults, they can quickly warm up. For this reason, lots of thinner layers are better than a few very thick ones as you can adjust depending on what they are doing, or if the weather and temperature changes. On cold days a good thermal base layer will really help to keep the cold out, this could be thermal leggings and a long sleeve thermal top or vest. Regular clothes then go on top of this, but avoid fabrics like jeans or heavy cotton as if they get wet they’re not going to dry out easily. A jumper, light jacket and then a winter coat on top will keep them toasty, but the coat can be removed if you’re sat in the car or go inside at any point. Don’t forget thick socks and waterproof footwear, hats, gloves and scarves. 

Fuel Them With Snacks

When it’s cold, your body burns more calories to keep you warm. As soon as your child starts running out of calories, they will start to cool down. Having some snacks on hand when you’re out and about can help to keep them fuelled up and reduce grouchiness in general as well as keep them warm! If you know you’re going to be out of the house and it’s cold outside, you could pack some flasks of soup or hot chocolate which can help to warm them up. You can also buy ‘food flasks’ for things like pasta dishes- perfect if you’re out for the day but finding somewhere serving hot food will be tricky.

Get A Taste Of Baskin-Robbins’ Lucky Scoop


Good news Baskin-Robbins fanatics, in celebration of Chinese New Year, Baskin-Robbins, the world’s most loved ice cream brand, lets you try your luck to enjoy an extra junior scoop of your favorite flavor for free! Simply buy any of the participating Baskin-Robbins’ delicious treats and get a chance to crack open a fortune waffle for your free junior scoop. The Baskin-Robbins treats included in this promo are the Double Value Scoop, Sundae, Banana Royale, Banana Split and Milkshakes. This fun offer is ongoing from January 22, 2017 until February 5, 2017. Visit Baskin-Robbins shops at the Central Square, Bonifacio High Street, Uptown Place Mall, and SM Aura in Bonifacio Global City; Greenbelt 5 and Glorietta 5 in Makati; Fairview Terraces, Trinoma Mall, SM North (Main Building and The Block) in Quezon City; SM Southmall in Las Pinas; Solenad in Sta Rosa, Laguna; SM DasmariƱas in Cavite; and SM Pampanga. For more information, log on to www.baskinrobbins.ph or check out their social media accounts: facebook.com/baskinrobbinsph, Twitter, and Instagram @baskinrobbinsph.

Saturday, January 28, 2017

Life Lessons We Need To Know


There are so many valuable life lessons which we teach our kids, but sometimes they may not be the right ones. It’s hard to let them know how great it is to use our imaginations when we are sitting down in front of the television every day; how brilliant it is to meet up with friends when we would rather send a text or place a call; and how to budget money when we ourselves spend it on things that aren’t really necessary. 

There are lifestyle choices and changes that can be made in order to teach your children the things that they need to know. But there is one catch to executing them perfectly and helping them to grow up with these values - they need to be made before your children know any different… 

The elements are our friends

Wastefulness is one of the biggest crimes against nature that our generation commits. Keeping lights switched on in rooms we haven’t been in in over half an hour, staying in the shower for longer than we should because we can’t be bothered to get out and throwing out packets upon packets of food that we have allowed to go off (or simply not checked to see if are alright, instead judging the Use By date). So why don’t we try and curb those actions? Not only that, but how about we use the elements outside to help us? There are solar panels available in a variety of places online, such as Semper Solaris. These can not only be used to power the lights and appliances in your home (any excess energy that you don’t use and is stored in your batteries can then be sold back to the electricity grid at a discounted rate) but can also be used to heat up the hot water for your baths, showers and general day-to-day usage. 

Water of life

As well as using the sun to our benefit, consider how much rainfall there is where you live. It could be worth putting up a water butt to collect water which can be used for a variety of things to stop you using your hose and paying for the privilege. Paddling pools can be filled with it during the warmer months (make sure that it hasn’t had the chance to grow any algae on it; you may want to consider putting in some water conditioner), gardens can be watered with it and you could even put it to good use by cleaning your car. Get the children involved and make a science experiment out of it to keep them interested; a little logbook to note down how much rain has fallen each day could just win them the science fair prize - you never know! Ask them what else you could use the water for, and see how much you will be saving in money on your bills by putting it to good use. The lessons kids can learn from nature are ones that they’ll carry with them forever...