Lunch with Cheska Kramer for Cycles Sensitive + Giveaway

It's the last day of the love month and let me end it with another giveaway from Cycles Sensitive.  Cycles Baby has been a part of our life for the past 7 years.  When we had N, we were conscious about the products that we use on her body and her clothes.  My early research showed Cycles Baby laundry detergent to be the mildest product for baby's use - and so we chose that laundry detergent for N's clothes.

Eventually, I was surprised to find out that Eveolution, Inc., the company behind Cycles Baby, is owned by college batchmates - Dennis and Emily.  With 5 kids, they found themselves having had to import products from abroad to suit their sensitive kids.  They decided to expand Cycles Baby and develop a bath and body line to meet their needs - and so, Cycles Sensitive was born.

Cheska with Dennis and Emily

Bebe Chic Diaper Bag Giveaway

It's time for the long over due Bebe Chic Diaper Bag Giveaway! The owners of Bebe Chic, Catherine and Mike Dy are long time friends who I met during the first bazaar I joined.  As I was going through my draft posts, I realized that Catherine had first asked me to do the giveaway back in May 2012 - almost 2 years ago!  (Sorry Catherine!!)

Gingersnaps is 20 years old!

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have noticed several recent posts I shared showing N in this floral Gingersnaps outfit.  This outfit was chosen by Stan on occasion of Gingersnaps' 20th year anniversary!

We Love Mustela!

If you follow me on Instagram, you will definitely notice that my favorite brand of skin care products for my kids is Mustela.
I first discovered this brand when my daughter was diagnosed with lichen striatus.  I was using another product recommended by her pedia-derma.  However, the product did not have any list of ingredients. After further investigation, I found that it contained parabens!!  No wonder the company didn't list any ingredients on its label!  Sadly though, other products under this same brand is being marketed as being the best product for newborns.

Mustela Display at one of the bazaars

Pofuff - Art Alive!

N takes after her dad and loves to draw. Pack rat that I am, we have folders and folders of her drawings stashed in S' office. N also regularly inserts her drawings in my bag for me to bring to office to be used as decoration for my office cubicle.

So when my college dorm mate Lei contacted me about their new project, I was more than excited to try it. Lei’s project all started last September 2012 when Lei shared with Ziggy (her husband) about how delighted Lilly (their 4 year old daughter) was when Lei used a stuffed toy to animate what she was reading from her story book.  Lei and Ziggy were also encouraging Lilly to draw to improve her fine motor skills and develop problem solving skills. Lilly eventually asked her parents to turn her toys into stuffed toys and so Pofuff was born.

ERGO Review: Performance v. Sport

I purchased my Ergo Performance in Brandsfever Singapore before the brand was brought in the Philippines by Richwell Phils, Inc.  However, when Richwell brought Ergo in, they brought in Original, Organic, Designer and Active.  Performance is not locally available.  Basically, the Original, Organic and Designer all have the same features - the difference is just the material used.  In this page, you can find a technical comparison of the Ergo Original (Standard), Performance and Active.

For this review, I will focus on the specific functions or features that we liked or didn't like about each carrier.  I took the measurements of the body of the carrier. There is a minimal difference - the body of the Performance is a little bit bigger than Active.

width

Family Fun - Art with Crayola

Who didn't grow up with Crayola?  I'm sure we all did!  I still remember that 64-crayon box with built-in sharpener that I loved when I was younger.  A couple of Saturdays ago, the #SoMoms were invited by Crayola to introduce their new brand - T-Pencil.  Apparently, Amspec has been making pencils for other brands for several years but finally decided to make their own line, given their long experience in manufacturing kid-safe, quality pencils. 

The event was held in Gymboree Shangri-La.  E is a Gymboree regular and happily, the event was facilitated by someone he was familiar with - his Art teacher - Teacher Rain.  Meanwhile, since N loves art and craft, she excitedly got to work on the materials laid out.

coloring Gymbo with Crayola

Personalized Books - Look It's About Me

To say that N loves books is an understatement.  Our small condo is filled with all sorts of reading materials - hers and mine, to be honest.  If there was one thing that my parents never said "no" to, it was for the purchase of books.  I have adopted a similar attitude with N.

Early this year, Rone of Mothering Earthlings introduced me to Tatiana Pena.   Together with her partner, Kimmie Lamata, Tatiana publishes personalized children's books under the company Look It's About Me.  I really got excited when they contacted me because I had previously bought a personalized book for N from a US company.  I was thrilled that a similar product was locally available.

Feature + Giveaway: Lotus Bloom Handcrafted Soap

Fellow Dabawenya Joanne and I when she had her little boy, Diwa.  Joanne became active in breastfeeding activities and participated reconnected when LATCH was looking for moms to participate in the 2010 campaign of LATCH entitled Mommy, Mama, Inay and Me.

Joanne & Diwa.
Exhibit photo taken by Stan.
Mom/Baby photo take by Paolo. 

Before having a baby, Joanne is a trained yoga teacher and set up a yoga studio - Diwa Yoga Shala and an online store - Yoga Baby Bliss.

Road Testing the Swing Maxi and Thoughts on Medela's Non-repair Policy

In early December, Mamaway Philippines invited me to share my experiences as a working and breastfeeding mom in their crash course for moms - "What to Expect at the Hospital and Beyond" which Mamaway co-organized with Medela Moms.  E was sick so I had to leave him home while I attended the event.

Since I wasn't going to bring E, I decided to take this opportunity to road test the new Swing Maxi.  Medela Moms were also collecting milk for UP-PGH's Foster Milk Program.  Note that the pump horns at Medela House are cleaned but not sterilized.  However, the milk is going to be pasterized at the UP-PGH Milk Bank so no issue with storing the milk.

VitaPops: Candy or Health Supplement?

One of the activities we attended last August was the launch of an innovative product from Unilab - VitaPops - the first & only pop rocks Vitamin C.  The event was held in Active Fun, Global City and was hosted by Donita Rose. Another guest was Daphne Osena-Paez, who like Donita, was an endorser of VitaPops. The theme of the event was "Pop Rockin' Field Trip".  I loved how the organizers included activities for the kids, to allow the moms to participate and listen to the speakers and main activity.

Transporting Milk? A Fridge to Go Giveaway

One of the popular posts in this blog is entitled "Tips on Expressing Milk While Traveling Without Baby".  It was written as a guest post by the local Fridge-to-Go distributor Stephanie Co.  She pumped exclusively for 13 months for her firstborn and is currently breastfeeding her 2-year old second child.  Steph shares that Fridge-to-Go made it much more convenient and hygienic for her to continue pumping while working full-time, traveling abroad or even going about the city on errands.  Here's what makes FTG special and especially useful for working moms:

With its Surround Cooling Technology and space-saving refillable cooling panels, Fridge-to-Go keeps its contents so that pumping mamas need not worry that their milk will spoil before they get home.  Fridge-to-Go gives unbeatable cooling for the most precious product of all - your breastmilk, which will be given to your most precious bundle - your child.  It is really worth every peso!

Praises for the Freestyle

As a working mom, expressing milk is a regular part of my daily routine.  Unfortunately, I never learned to efficiently hand express milk-  hence, my reliance on electric pumps.  For my previous nursling, I used an Ameda Elite at the office and a Lansinoh pump at home.  For this nursling, I was able to purchase my Freestyle as a special deal from the exclusive Philippine distributors - MedelaMoms - and I have to say, this product is my top favorite pump! Honestly, I don't agree with the marketing ploys and strategies of Medela - particularly Medela USA.  However, I have to say that Swiss technology is indeed superior and the Freestyle pump rocks!

just pumped

tiny Freestyle at work

Since I bring the pump to and from the office, what I love most about it is its portability.  You can see here that the pump fits on the palm of my hand.  Although it is small, it packs a lot of power in terms of stimulation and suction.  I love Medela's 2-phase expression, too.  The two-phase expression mimics the suction style of babies - from fast short sucks to encourage milk flow to slower, gulping sucks once the milk has started flowing. 

packing my liquid gold for my hungry E

As with most Medela pumps, the Freestyle comes with its own bag - in utilitarian black plus a small bag with blue cooling element and 4 storage bottles.  Since I pump four times a day, the 4 bottles are enough to hold my expressed milk at the end of the day.  Also, I live close to work (15-20minutes away) so I don't really maximize the use of the cooling element.

getting ready to go home

What I don't like about the Freestyle? The noise!  It is definitely a machine and you can hear the "rrr, rrr, rrr" sound it makes especially when I'm at the highest speed or suction setting.  I usually put it inside the bag or cover it with my nursing cover (when not in use) to drown out the sound.

And of course, compared to other pumps, the price of the Freestyle is higher.  I would think that this price tag comes with the portability and the digital design of the Freestyle.  If you are a stay at home mom or a work at home mom, you don't really need to pump frequently, so you can choose different, less expensive pump.  There are also other pumps which are also suitable for working moms - which are not as expensive - but are also not as portable.

To be honest, I had long wanted to buy the Freestyle.  However, I had issues with Medela USA especially on marketing strategies.  They had just introduced the Calma at that time and I wasn't too happy with how it was marketed.  Don't get me wrong - I love the products - E uses a Calma nipple!  It's just the marketing ethics that I had issues with.  Medela Philippines is actually a different company from Medela USA and I am happy that the MedelaMoms are doing their own projects and activities to promote breastfeeding and not just their pumps.  I previously did a post on The Medela House which needs an update in view of the increased activities/projects they now have such as a milk bank and seminars, among others.

Ok, I digress - as a pumping and working mom, I use my Freestyle 5x a day from Monday to Friday and once a day on Saturdays and Sundays. Plus, with my experience with N, I expect to pump at work for at least 2 years (of course, with reduced frequency). Hence, I definitely need a sturdy and durable pump.  When I stated this concern to MedelaMoms Maricel, she assured me that the Freestyle was most definitely a workhorse and could keep up with my pumping demands.

So far, I have been using the Freestyle for 3 months and it is serving me well.  So would I recommend this pump? Most definitely yes to a full-time work out of home mom!  It is small, very portable, easy to use and efficient.  But if price is an issue, there are other pumps that a working mom can purchase so she can still continue giving breastmilk to her child even if separated for more than 8 hours a day.

To purchase the Freestyle, email Medela Moms or contact them at 09175614366.  From Medela Moms mailer: Our products are suited to the Philippine setting of 220v, 60Hz.  Don't unduly tax your motor or suffer through sub-optimal pump performance with power sources that are 110v, 50Hz.

Review and Giveaway: Changing Diapers

My first born N had been semi-cloth diapered and I do admit that at that time I thought that cloth diapering a baby at night and when going out was quite impossible.  The book Changing Diapers was released in October 2011.  I waited for the Black Friday sale and hurriedly purchased 3 copies - for myself, E's ninang Jen plus 1 more extra copy.

New Product: Arms Reach Co-Sleeper

Sometime in February, Pam of Perfect Pieces contacted me and asked me to post about Arms Reach Co-Sleeper.  I got quite excited that this product is now locally available.  I had been wanting to buy it but thought that the shipping costs from the US would be quite prohibitive.

Ruxpin - A First Look

I got into babywearing with N quite late - she was already about 18 months old.  During this time, Buding's new product - Saya - was introduced and I lined up to be one of the first customers.  I purchased the SSK Brown Floral, replaced my existing pouch and happily wore N until my back couldn't take it anymore.  Now that E is a little bigger, I have started using the Saya for him and E is loving it the same way his Achi did!

Get ready for a FAB event!

Guess what's coming up on the last day of March?

Delectable Lactation Brownies from Mommy Treats!

It has been more than 1 year since Paola Loot of Mommy Treats launched her lactation goodies especially made for nursing moms.  Since then she has developed new flavors for her lactation cookies and muffins.  Her oven has been groaning, her mixer has conked out and business has been growing!  
Paola and I often see each other during La Leche League meetings.  I really admire how she is able to maintain a personal touch with her clients despite how much her business has grown.  Paola also regularly reviews comments from her clients, allowing her to develop new flavors and adjust her current menu to suit the mommies' tastes. 

New product: Snuza

One of my online store clients, Sheryl, recently started a company - Momhattan Corporation to bring in Snuza.  Here is her story:

While I was struggling with my baby paranoia and sleepless nights, I stumbled upon Snuza, an innovative baby monitor which detects movement and breathing.  I was so impressed with the product that I decided I wanted to bring it here in the Philippines and eventually was awarded exclusive distributorship.  This has seriously saved my sanity! :)

Giveaway: Marshmallow Mama's Milkin' Cookies!

Congratulations to Cyrene Ng and Michelle D Boras for winning the giveaway!

Early this year, fellow lawyer Joyce contacted me and asked me if I wanted to sample her milk-making goodies.  Joyce previously posted as guest on this blog while I was on extended vacation in April.  Joyce shared how she decided to move from being a full time lawyer to a full time mama.
Joyce has now ventured into a new business - baking - and has been making Mango Malunggay Milking Cookies since October 2011.  She has asked her breastfeeding friends to sample her products and was met with success!  Her friends reported that their milk output increased after 2 days of eating 3-4 cookies per day.  The main star of her cookies is the local malunggay, instead of the usual fenugreek and brewer's yeast.