Hooray!

(I am so sorry for this long overdue post. So many things happened during April.)

I got invited last April 3 for Smart Parenting’s Baby Shower at the Discovery Suites in Ortigas. It was one of those I-wish-I-knew-about-events-like-this-when-I-was-preggy days.

Smart Parenting is the Philippines’ largest parenting news and lifestyle brand in the country, and they organize the baby shower annually for the beautiful soon-to-be mums out there.

For this year, SP partnered with Downy as they introduced their latest innovation in fabric conditioner with the new Downy Baby Gentle. There were baby clothes and linens in the centerpiece on each table. We had a pink bib, and true enough, it was soft and smelled wonderful.

The host for the event was DJ Delamar. It was my first time to see her, and she was so bubbly, no dull moment at all. She even shared her own pregnancy tips.

Dr. Jamie Isip-Cumpas who shared the importance of gentle softness on baby’s skin led talk 1. Apparently, the vernix (cheese-like) that covers the baby is important and I don’t even remember if I ever saw my son covered in it. She also shared that a baby should not be given a bath for at least 6-12 hours after birth.

We had a working lunch in between the two talks. Thanks to Discovery Suites for catering such a sumptuous lunch. I was not able to take a photo because I was too excited to eat. The cookies and cream cheesecake was the bomb!

Talk 2 speakers were husband and wife tandem, Manny and Betty San Luis. Betty is a doula and considers her husband as her birth partner. I loved this segment because it talked about birthing options and gentle birth. I am a CS mum and is looking forward to a VBAC (in the far off future, iff) plus it satisfied my #doulatraining goals after I get my certification for breastfeeding counseling.

Talk 3 was about Baby Sign Language by Sharon Agoncillo. You know, this was really interesting and mind-blowing. I am still not getting over the thought of the possibility of teaching this to babies. Popy’s already able to call me, my husband and milk, so I feel like it’s unnecessary to teach him signs at this stage. Still, while watching the video, it was wow.

Breastfeeding Straight from the Coach’s Zenaida Feliciano (also know as Coach Z) discussed breastfeeding for talk 4. She will be celebrating her 10^th year anniversary as a breastfeeding educator. I was glad more and more mums are planning to breastfeed while still pregnant. Preparation is very helpful for successful breastfeeding.

It was announced that there will be a surprise guest speaker. It was…

Drum roll…

New mum, Bianca Gonzales-Intal!

My goodness, I’d die for her postpartum figure. She happily shared her pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum stories. Her trip to the hospital had funny moments. I was glad to know that she’s breastfeeding, but I wish someone could educate them on the advantages of cupfeeding.

We were also treated to designing our own bibs conducted by Coni Tejada (writer, stylist and travel blogger); while some of the mums had pre-natal yoga in another room with Urban Ashram.

It was a day filled with a lot of games, surprises, and helpful tips and information for the soon-to-be mums. We all got to take home Downy Baby Gentle Goodies in our loot bags.

For more information on the importance of dermatologist-tested fabric conditioners, as well as Gentle Softness Tips and How-Tos, visit https://www.facebook.com/DownyPhilippines/

Visit Smart Parenting for vital parenting information and 24/7 relevant content and follow SP on Facebook via https://www.facebook.com/smartparenting.ph/, and @_smartparenting on Twitter, and @smartparentng on Instagram.

Last April 10, I was able to score a father and son activity for Gab and Popy through Mommy Bloggers Philippines. I was so thrilled.

Why?

Because I usually have extracurricular activities for me and Popy; and next to none for the father and son tandem. So this was particularly special for them.

The event was to start at 10am. We came from Makati and commuted via train to Shangri-La Plaza Mall where Crafter's Marketplace was. We were so early (and excited) that we even had enough time for breakfast and to do a trip to the grocery. The workshop started about half an hour late, too, but it was fine.

I wanted to color the walls.

We met Phoebe of Charley's Mommy blog and her husband and adorable Charley who was such a ball of energy.

Phoebe's family

Their workshop teacher was Veve Basbas, accountant by day and doodler in between. She even invited Phoebe and I to join the doodling. I really wanted to. Thank goodness!

Teacher Veve and her students

We had our introductions. Gab felt like a challenge. Oo, s’ya talaga yung challenge. He’s an advertising arts graduate and works as a graphics and 3D designer. Kahit si Teacher Veve na-pressure! But he was very cool about it. Nahiya pa tuloy s’ya.

Serious dads :)

Teacher Veve showed us some of her works. They were beautiful. She had mandalas. I swear, I had my husband explain what a mandala is. I wish I was able to take a photo of the ones that she made because they were so intricately designed.

We were given workbooks. Zen doodling helps calm a person; hence, the name. We were lent four Faber Castell pens, which I wished we could take home (but they were just lent). However, I have to mention that I find it a bit difficult for an obsessive-compulsive such as myself.

We had to copy the MSST design on the upper left. I ended up doing curly lines with same lengths on the lower left! I had to go back to it and add a few millimeters each.

The Perezes busy with art.

To conclude, it was enjoyable. I could only wish Popy was big enough to appreciate it, so he could actually join us and doodle. Gab can teach him from what we learned in the workshop. I have tried doodling using a gel pen. It wasn’t the same. L

Verdict: I need those Faber Castell pens!

You can invite Teacher Veve for doodling. See her a doodles in her Instagram and drop her a message at her Facebook Account.

Our class picture! :)

Photo credits to Teacher Veve. My phone acted up and I lost the ones that I took.

For those who have not read the “About Me” section of this blog, allow me to make an introduction.

I resigned from work during the first trimester of my pregnancy. Last year, when our son was three months old, my husband and I came up with the idea of putting up an online retail shop for pregnant and nursing mothers. After months of studying the market and the hulabaloo, we opened it in 2016. It’s called Posh/Mum.

Luckily, I was able to grab hold of this e-book on Passive Income by Samantha Connor on Amazon straight to my newly-downloaded Kindle. It was quite timely.

Apparently, our new business not passive income. Aha! I learned something from here, and our start-up venture kept me busy when it launched last April, so I couldn’t get myself into reading and writing for the entire month.

Let’s define passive income.

According to the e-book, it involves a profit-generating source, which does not necessitate you to work as hard as you usually do in order to earn money.

The book is great for those looking into having something on the side. From renting out to blogging to selling, it gives a couple of suggestions on what you can do to have passive income rolling in,

Selling? I mentioned earlier that my online retail shop wasn’t classified as passive income, so why am I talking about selling now?

My shop, in particular, requires marketing; communicating with the customers and potential ones; preparing the items (washing and packaging them, on my part); scheduling deliveries (and sometimes, following-up, too); and then stocking. As our team makes our clothes, I cannot begin to tell you what we go through to manufacture the items. We’re a happy bunch of commuters. My husband carried thirty-three kilograms of fabrics from Point A to D, one time, and Point A to B was six-storey high. That being said, it’s not a source of passive income because it takes a lot of time and effort.

So, what can you sell for passive income?

I am taking this with a lot of consideration. A couple of people are prodding me to write a book on breastfeeding (although, I don’t think my experience makes me author-material just yet), but that’s one example of what you can sell. Write a book. Put it for sale online. You write one time and reap the income from downloads. This is continuous for as long as people are downloading the book. Plus, there’s no need to spend time with the delivery since it’s available online. I just wish I have the time to write now.

Other suggestions include selling software, apps, designs, stock photography and music, e-courses; renting out residential space, real estate leasing, reception, storage, equipment (although the most needs high capital); secondary value like membership sites, affiliate marketing, guest post space, e-mail marketing; and investing through peer-to-peer lending, dividend investing, real estate investment trusts.

There were a couple of things that repetitive like the “secondary value”, which was discussed twice. Overall, the e-book had been very educational and eye-opening despite the few pages.

You can get the book via this link for $2.99.