As promised, I raffled off the winner of the BabyBond Couture Giveaway first thing today!

For my sanity’s sake, I used the comments section and assigned the number IDs following the contest joiners and entered the numbers 1 to 59 and clicked the generate button. As opposed to  having to jot down all names and use the list randomizer.

Congratulations to Elinor Semira! She has 11 entries in total and she sure made use of that ‘one person, per day entry’ to her advantage!  Our sincere thanks to others who joined too! Remember, we are only 100 likers away from raffling off $20.

Enjoy being an undercover mom with BabyBond Couture! It will be shipped to your address straight from Slurp & Burp LLC in New York. Meanwhile, continue sharing Marriage and Beyond’s Facebook Page for grander graduation announcements just like this. We will be raffling off $20 when we reach 1,000 likers! It will be sent via PayPal!

Be an Undercover Mother with Baby Bond Couture.  In a nutshell, the benefits of breastfeeding for the baby are: breastfeeding protects the baby against illnesses and allergies, improved vaccine effectiveness, enhances development and intelligence. For the mother, delays fertility (for some), decreases the risk of breast, uterine, ovarian, endometrial cancers and financial savings to the family. The cost to supply artificial baby milk (ABM) to one child is between $800 and $1,200 per year depending on the brand and area of the country. You don’t need to be a lactivist to figure this out.

BabyBond Couture – Cover mom, not her baby!

BabyBond covers the mom, not her baby. Mom is able to maintain her modesty. Baby remains uncovered benefiting from the infinite opportunity to make eye contact, interact, and communicate. After all, dining is social. Preverbal skills, eye contact and attention are vital to a baby’s cognitive and language development.

I learned that nursing tops are not really the cheapest when my son was still a baby. Here’s the better alternative. One lucky mom will be receiving this nursing accessory, hopefully, by the month of August. This contest is running from today until July 31, 2011 at 11:59PM.

Step by Step Instructions for both “Nursing from the top” or the “bottom of your shirt” is stitched right on the inner portion of the BabyBond Couture.

Nursing from Top

Nurse from the bottom of your shirt without having to expose your belly.

BabyBond Couture is adjustable and can be worn with shirts that are accessible to nurse from the top or the bottom. It rolls up into itself to store. BabyBond is machine washable, 100% cotton, and made in USA.

Contest Mechanics: 

1. You have to be a liker of Marriage and Beyond on Facebook.
2. Share this contest on your Facebook wall. To share, click on the Share button located either top or bottom of this post. On Facebook’s “what’s on your mind” status update box, tag Marriage and Beyond. Then post: “Marriage and Beyond is giving away a BabyBond Couture nursing wear via its Be an Undercover Mother with BabyBond Contest. JOIN NOW!”    (To tag, type the “@” symbol then follow it with “Marriage and Beyond.” Wait for the menu box to appear and select “Marriage and Beyond” Then type in the rest of the required phrase )
3. When you’re done with the Facebook status wall update, go to the comments section of this post and  enter the link of your Facebook entry with your name and email address.
4. Contest is open to all (international and local) and NOT RESTRICTED TO MOMS ALONE. I’m sure all of us know a mother or two who  can benefit from this fab nursing wear. The BabyBond Couture nursing wear will be sent to the shipping address of the contest winner. One entry per person, per day only.
5. Deadline for entries is July 31, 2011 at 11:59PM. Winner will be raffled off via random.org.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. Sponsored by Tomoson.com

My son and I got Spoiled! yesterday. When Mommy Earth emailed a few weeks back about having our kiddo model for clothes carried by Spoiled! Store, I was one giddy mom. There was no way I was to refuse that.

We arrived at Spoiled! The Baby and Me Store rather early. So the little guy got to try on a few sets of Motion Wear clothes.

choosing from the row of collections. Jed’s first choice was the green checkered long sleeves ala Woody

my little cowboy

squirmy as squirmy is

the next outfit he tried on was a hoodie

make way for this fierce looking boy

turned little debonaire

Jed with Ate Joy. Spoiled! Store’s super friendly assistant. She patiently looked into every size. We went to check the size for 5 year olds, then switched to size 6, and 7, just to later conclude that our 5 year old can only fit 8 year old clothes! Yikes! That’s how huge our little guy is. But no fussing about best weight loss supplements just yet. With all the eating machine frenzy he’s been into, I should not really be surprised, right?

Brands Spoiled! Store  carry:
1. Motion Wear clothes and shoes
2. Spoiled! diaper bags, nursing wear, nursing bib
3. Mamaway nursing wear, Slimming tanks, & Nursing bras together
4. Two Tots Home Accessories
5. Baghook Lady
6. The Organic Factory
7. Babinski
8. Indigo baby
9. Proud Mama
10. Mommy Matters
11. Cuddle fish swim wear from Australia
12. Pinoy baby
13. Cradle & Cycles
14. Summit Magazines

Other products:
1. Babylicious blankets and bibs
2. Bumkins water proof bibs
3. Avent magic sippy cups
4. Lamaze and Sassy toys
5. Biodegradable/Organic disposable diapers
6. Sippy grip
7. Graco Playpen
8. Wooden crib that transforms into a toddler bed
9. baby plus
10. victoria secret
12. flat sandals for pregnant moms
13. tiny love stroller toys
14. shopping cart and high chair seat covers to protect kids from germs of public chairs

with fellow moms and our kids and Spoiled! Store owner Funfy Basa (standing, second from right)

Spoiled! The Baby and Me Store is located at Mezzanine Floor, Goldland Millenia Suites, Escriva Drive, Ortigas Center, Pasig City. www.SpoiledStore.com.

While our little guy might be well over his diapering years now that he’s four, I cannot emphasize enough the fact how Pampers played a major role in the first two years of his life. Yes, I have always been partial towards leakproof cloth diapers. In fact, it is the one thing I made sure I use on my son majority of the time when we’re at home. But overnights and whenever we leave the house, disposable diapers it is.  

Today, my little guy and I had such fun time as we attended Pampers Yoga Stretchycise Press Launch held at the Manila Polo Club. Above are pictures of myself and fellow mommy bloggers who attended.  

Free to play all day with new Pampers Active Baby with Elastic Sides. Crawling, tumbling, walking… when your baby hits 9 – 18 months, it seems he’s always in motion. You see, that’s how he learns all about the world – by exploring and investigating everything around him. But with all that bending and turning, research shows that baby’s tummy can actually stretch up to 5 cm! That’s why he needs a diaper that not only fits just right but can stretch and move with him – like Pampers Active Baby. It has elastic sides that expand and contract, following baby’s body shape. Combine that with absorbency that lasts up to 12 hours and you have a diaper that gives baby the comfortable fit he needs to play and learn all day! Now available at supermarkets nationwide.

I would sure use those fun and hip new exercises routine that baby yoga instructor, Maritoni Tordecillas demonstrated – in the event that we will be blessed with another baby again. Yes, we’re TTC and whatever is God’s will for this particular desire in our hearts, we will heed. All right, that deserves another blog post altogether. But yes, I am pretty sure that the things that I have learned during this Pampers Yoga Stretchycise event can come in handy as I plan to use it alongside the infant massage therapy techniques that I have mastered on my then little guy, when he was still a teeny weeny baby. If feels so long ago, now I can barely carry him!  I will write another blog post on the baby yoga exercise details and benefits later.

Here is a collage of a few of the pictures I took when the kids were having the time of their lives in the Gymboree play area.  Thanks to Pampers and Gymboree for such a fun event for kids and mommies alike.  What makes it even more fun was when my name was called during the raffle and I got my little guy an annual membership GC for Gymboree.  

Mommies very well know how babies and toddlers tend to smell rather sour after a few hours, or even minutes (during extra humid days) after we have given our little cutie pies their baths. I happily report that my son has been sweet smelling practically all day since he started using GIGA baby soap. He would still sweat all right, but nothing like how he used to. I love it so much that I use the soap on his hair too.

The GIGA brand has been a staple in our household since 2005. And I wouldn’t even start telling you about NO ITCH. It magically clears away any trace of itchiness. They both have a permanent place in my dresser. NO PAIN replaced my former pricier Origins’ Peace of Mind. When migraine attacks, my instinct would be is to grab NO PAIN.

I have recommended GIGA to friends and relatives.I remember getting hold of a handful of GIGA products for my bestfriend, Gina who is in London, a few years ago. This is just about the neatest thing so far GIGA has come up with. My baby and I love GIGA’s brand new baby line (baby soap, insect repellant spray, cold rub, baby balm, baby cologne and baby oil) Everything caters to pampering your baby. The cologne is formulated just right, with its own original scent. My son loves it, I do too.

The baby balm is made to help soothe and protect baby from diaper rash and minor cuts. But since my son has been over his diapering years for more than half of his life, I use it to prevent chapped cheeks or lips and moisturize dry skin. It can also be used to hydrate lips, hands and feet. It’s a multi purpose balm, that it has become mine and baby’s. But if you have a baby, this will be perfect to soothe diaper rash and treat cradle cap. I’m currently using this fantastic tub for my son’s sunburn and mine too from all those beach sprawling we’ve done in Boracay last week.

Another favorite that I have from their baby line is the Insect Repellant Spray. We even brought this with us to Boracay last week. Our household has been practically bug free because of this JML pest shield that we have had for more than a year now. But the thing is, as soon as my son steps out of the house, we’ll never know what’s out there.
I always make sure he gets sprayed all over first with GIGA’s Baby insect repellant spray and it has been very handy even in our trip to Boracay. He already knows that it’s part of the routine. It’s funny how kids get themselves into a routine quite easily. Now, whenever he wants to go out to the garage and ride his bike, he’d hand me this spray bottle and he would instinctively close his eyes as I spray it over his body. Very effective. Not one insect bite whenever he gets sprayed on. Prevention is so much better than cure. After having heard the cases of Dengue not exactly dwindling down, there is no way I am ever going to get my guard down.

And because it’s from GIGA, this insect repellant spray I speak of is formulated with all organic ingredients, just like their other products. It’s gentle enough to be sprayed directly on babies’ sensitive skins. Our family so loves GIGA!

It is natural for proactive parents like me to check out great deals for mothers and their babies. Right from when I was still pregnant with my now active toddler, I would grab a hold of all the possible mother and baby program available. My two birds in one stone goal was to get myself educated on the basics of motherhood and taking care of my baby even as I was going to be a brand new mother and to learn about the best products that I should be giving my son.

It is interesting that there are sites like While Supplies Last. Their network practically gives mothers like me the best deals in baby products and services. They have a wide range of products with prices that are decreasing. It just allows for mothers like to me to make great savings in otherwise pricey products. They make sure they scan daily the inventories of major retailers available online, that basically guarantees us parents that we are only given fresh marked down prices, not yesterday’s prices as others would have it. When you pick out the products you wish to purchase you get redirected to the store’s website. I honestly love going shopping for baby items and looking into good products. This is just a neat way to enjoy motherhood.

I have been very particular with regards to things my son uses right from when he was in utero. I have not stopped in my discovery to giving him only what’s all natural. Because I believe it will benefit him the best. My latest discovery is Smartwool socks and how beneficial this is going to be for my son. Unlike the regular cotton socks which, these days, would hardly come from organic cotton.

Smartwool socks are delicately manufactured from a special breed of sheep from New Zealand that is made of 90 percent keratin, a resilient protein. It makes the material resistant to bacteria. It has made to be very durable in all conditions, withstanding wear and tear. But what I like best is the socks being anti bacterial so that means no itching. No bad smell like the regular wool socks and they are 100% natural fiber. Best of they look good!

As a modern consumer, I’ve only been made aware of what’s commercialized and what people consider as effective and basically the “only” thing that exists, such as the famous Off lotion to repel insects. Little did I know that its ingredients can jeopardize my very health and the rest of the consumers’. Most commercialized insect repellents contain DEET. Most of these well known products like Off! claim that the DEET content is negotiable and safe. I wonder then why pregnant women are told to keep away from using these products. I checked wikipedia and here’s what it says …

“However, recent studies by Duke University researchers have shown that frequent and prolonged exposure to DEET by topical application, especially when in conjunction with exposure to other pesticides or chemicals, causes serious, diffuse brain cell death and behavioral changes in laboratory rats. The researchers warn the public to use DEET with caution, especially among populations like children who are more vulnerable to brain defects.^[1]“

I have made these realization when I got pregnant with Jed more than 2 years ago. The place we were renting was plagued with mosquitoes and I just had to get something to get those pests off me. So I bought a bottle of scented pink Off! Along the way, I read about DEET and I stopped using it and my doctor talked me off using it. So, I tried to find ways. I bought a bottle of DEET-free commercial product also I forgot what that is already. To cut the long story short when Jed came I had to come up with the best ways to protect him from this insect infested country we live in. (I don’t know if it’s the climate) Bugs are just everywhere wherever part of the Metropolis you are. No wonder Dengue has found its haven with us for some years now.

I have also used Enfant Mosquito Repellent but got turned off eventually with its sticky after feel. We are now using VCO-based repellents with citronella extracts for its effective, natural and its being most economical.

Far left is the VCO and pure citronella oil Bounty Forest Brand bought from ISIP near Rockwell.

The one in the middle is I think the coolest find yet. Deet-free stinger charged with citrnonella Bug Off! a non-toxic, nothing to apply, longer lasting rechargeable glow. Yes! It glows in the dark! Plus you don’t have to buy over again, it doesn’t ran out. What you just need to do is recharge it! It was a great find from ACE Hardware for 199.75. It saves you that application time and it’s best for outdoors. I haven’t seen a bite on Jed since I got him to use this. I don’t even apply anything on me anymore more often than not because I lie beside him at night. (Yes, we co-sleep!) So that makes us two being protected. Save for one night when I felt there were more mosquitoes than other days. I still use the lotion for reinforcement sometimes. Our home is screened from windows to doors, but the bugs just get their way in somehow. Tidy inside out as well.

Far right is Sting-Less Mosquito Repellant by Ilog Maria. Repels mosquitoes without chemicals. Citronella, lemongrass and other plant oils naturally repel mosquitoes all day.Dab a few drops on clothing, exposed parts of arms, legs and neck.

So there, a list of wonderful alternatives. Safe, effective and economical.

My son Jed is going 17 months and even as I was told recently by his pedia that he’s healthy and as big as an average 2 and ½ years old, not being an 18 month old at that, I just felt overwhelmed with blessings despite the many things I had to go through recently, healthwise and otherwise.

One of the few things I am blessed with as a hands-on mother is getting across a reliable leakproof cloth diaper called TushyWushy when Jed was around 6 months old. It was exactly what I was looking for! It’s economical and environment friendly. I can never emphasize enough how helpful this innovative product has been to me even as I juggle parenting, reign as domestic goddess of our abode, and everything else I do in between.

Tushywushy is so convenient and since the time I switched Jed to Wushies, there wasn’t a trace of rash on him. Why should I be surprised when using these cloth diapers would mean not having those chemicals come near my little one’s tushy? I am vouching for this product and I strongly believe that even as we nurture our little ones, we should also be reminded and get ourselves to imagine where all the those soiled diapers end up in. Earlier, I read that a disposable diaper actually would completely rot in 50 plus years. That’s just something so alarming! Even as we parents choose only what’s best for our babies, the more that we should choose to contribute to the slowing down of mother earth’s depletion, which will eventually benefit them.

Plus who could beat this practicality and all.

Disposables:

Pampers comfort: Php 7 x 12 (if you change every two hours) x 365 (days in a year) = Php 30,660/year

Pampers Baby Dry Php 8.25 = (same computation as above) Php 36,135/year

Prokids Php 6 = Php 26,280/year

EQ Dry Php 6 = Php 26,280/year

Huggies Php 9 = Php 39,420/year

Kimbies Dry Php 6 = Php 26,280/year

Drypers Dry Php 7 = Php 30,660/year

And even if you don’t change every 2 hours, it still amounts to a lot of money.

And that’s just one of the advantages! There is really no excuse for not using this diapering system. It may not be as easy as getting the nappies out of the bag and getting it under your child’s diaper area. The inconvenience of putting the absorbent pad inside the leakproof cloth with extra inserts for absorbency amounts to nothing if you’ll see all the advantages to your baby, pocket and to mother earth!

Here’s what I do. When I get the diapers washed and dried, I prepare them right on in a jiff and pile them up for next use. At first I was hesitant with having all the poop on a cloth and washing them so I used diaper liners, but now that Jed’s poop is not sticky anymore (I stopped using liners), it plops right off the cloth and I flush it right in the toilet.

After close to a year of using this diapering system on Jed, I know I will always be an advocate of it, even as I continue to encourage young mothers like me to use Tushy Wushy. Now, it’s possible. We can divert that disposable diapers budget to our child’s future expenses. This really is a very wise way to economize, and believe me I know what I’m saying. I am a Filipino pastor’s wife living by faith. So I know this really came as a blessing to unburden our family from needless expense.

For more info on this product visit their website at:
http://next9.org/

For the first 11 months of my ds’ life, my dh and I have endured the splatters of boiling water, the tedious task of waiting, making sure the bottles were done by the ideal time (but have never gotten to-we forget). Either they got over boiled or extremely overboiled. Sorry for the teats and the bottles, their ultimate fate was to get scarred and get busted. Too bad for us for these items aren’t all that cheap. Especially, Pigeon’s, Avent’s and Dr. Brown’s.

My journey to the discovery of this ingenious sterilisistem was when I was cruising through the baby’s section of the department store in Market!Market!, hoping to find a teat and a bottle detergent. I was planning not to boil the stuff anymore given that Jed was about to turn one year old. So I was ready to step up to the next level and let go of sterilizing, but still I had to make sure I was using the right detergent for zero microbes of sorts. But I was in for more than what I was looking for. This was way easier to use and way antimicrobial than I have ever expected.

I just use regular dishwashing detergent then plop the items (yes, even teethers and pacifiers-although I don’t have my kiddo use the latter) and immerse them in the diluted solution for 30 minutes. I actually just forget about it and get them out when I’m free! Then just rinse the items using tap water and they are ready for use! This is so handy and convenient especially for moms who are on the go and have got no extra time in their sleeves to spend for boiling.

One thing I wish though, I wish I got a hold of this from day one. It could have spared me so much time, and all those wasted gas and ouch from the splatters! I hereby give this a F-I-V-E!