Parenting to Build Family Resilience

Parents and soon-to-be parents, here's one productive way to spend a Saturday!

You might want to consider attending this parenting talk by Dr. Honey Carandang with the country's leading psychologists, happening at the Henry Sy Auditorium of St. Luke's Global on February 27th, from 8 am to 4pm.

I think resilience is something that we and our kids ought to learn and take to heart. 

In this day and age where people feel suicide is an option in the face of hardship and struggles, it has to be stressed that the ability to bounce back from trying situations has to be ingrained in our mindset.

She touched upon this briefly at a BrainRX talk I attended recently (I'll tell you more about BrainRX soon!) where Dr. Carandang was the guest speaker, and her insights into parenting today, as well as her stories and practical tips and points of view are worth their weight in parenting gold. 

You'll have to attend this full day talk, for you to know what I mean. 

Try to go and invite your fellow parents too. Because as Dr. Carandang likes to say, "Parenting is Nation-building." Our country's future leaders might as well be living in our own households. Let's do right by them.

I might as well share with you this insightful article, The Secret Formula for Resilience, from The New Yorker. Great read! 

For more on Dr. Honey Carandang, the talk on Saturday, and the MLAC Institute, visit http://mlacinstitute.com

Transformers & OREO: Better Together

What is it about an Oreo cookie that makes me crave for their crunchy chocolate, cream-filled cookies when I start thinking about them?

I mean, here I am, seriously going through a pack, ok three, as I write this post. And to think this post is really about Oreo and their partnership with the Transformers franchise.

Oreo has in fact gone so far as to come up with two limited edition Transformers flavors - Action Fruit Creme and Prime Berry Creme, which I will tell you more about later, heehee.

these new flavors are not just for reel, they're for real!

But first, let me tell you what I think about the movie, Transformers: Age of Extinction. Don't worry, no spoilers here. 

But yes, there's an Oreo cameo in the movie, and no, it wasn't as horrible as all the reviews made it out to be.

I mean, even if the SoMoms & I  weren't invited to Oreo Philippines' official screening, I would have gone to see the movie still. It was entertaining, there was never a dull moment, and it was overall, fun! All three hours of it!

Dada, Berry & I had a great time watching. I don't know if it's because we went expecting the worst, but it wasn't a total waste of time as some people said it was.

In fact, even if we missed out on the big shebang that the folks from Oreo set-up just right outside the cinema (a photo booth with some of the Transformers in the uh, flesh?, an Oreo themed dessert table, etc.) because the wait for a parking slot at Resorts World was just insane (we actually ended up waiting at the valet line too, ugh) Berry was quite happy with her photo taken with a cardboard Optimus Prime. Teehee.

If you have three hours to kill, go and watch Transformers: Age of Extinction. Just don't over analyze it na lang and take it for what it is - pure entertainment.

Of course, the more exciting thing about Oreo tying up with Transformers are their limited edition flavors which I told you about earlier.

Cool blue Prime Berry Creme comes in the delicious Blueberry Ice Cream flavor and the Action Fruit Creme flavor is filled with the unique taste of Orange Ice Cream. These two new flavors are available in leading supermarkets for a limited time only.

When you buy a pack of these limited edition flavors, along with the classic Original and Chocolate Creme flavors in Transformers packaging, you and your kids may join the Oreo Lab Grab Game over at http://oreotransformers4.com/.

The Oreo Lab Grab game over at http://oreotransformers4.com/...

...allows you to win instant prizes such as water bottles and Transformers themed luggage, even an experience of a lifetime - a Trip for 4 to Universal Studios in Hollywood! 

So start grabbing those cookies!

Promotion ends August 25, 2014.

PS - The fun doesn't stop online. Also check out Oreo's Do It Together App which you may download at the Apple App Store. 

Oreo wants to support families in choosing each other over varied distractions in life and encourage family togetherness by suggesting fun activities every week to complete as a family, capturing those precious moments and rewarding achievements.

 

Because with Oreo, everything is Better Together!

Mamon it Yourself with Monde!

What happens when your Monde Mamon made with real fresh eggs, imported wheat flour, and milk...

Meets bowlfuls of choco chips, mallows, sprinkles, nuts and all sorts of toppings...

Sweet, colorful icing...

And fresh, chilled fruits and cheese?

A rolling good time and the prettiest and yummiest of mamons, that's what!

Last weekend, Berry & I attended Monde's Summer Mamon it Yourself event at Yardstick Coffee, where our eyes were opened to an easy to do, budget-friendly family activity that is guaranteed to get kids occupied and entertained during a summer downtime.

I know the most uncompromising of moms will love this, because this is the stuff that building memories are made of. Rather than just spending on a new toy that kids will tire of in a day, Mamon It Yourself is perfect for summer family bonding, where you can while the hours away without even noticing it pass. 

Chef Mitchie Sison taught us how to make different kinds of icing - from cream cheese frosting, to cookies & cream frosting, to swiss butter cream icing.

Of course, she also demonstrated how to hold an icing bag correctly, as well as different icing techniques. As with any skill, she encouraged us to just start again if we make a mistake, because practice makes perfect!

Aren't these pretty?!

Berry of course wanted to frost her own mamon at the event. Very minimalistic too with just a couple of red gummy bears here and there.

Next up was the ultimate donya, Grace Baja aka The Spoiled Mummy, who shared with us how to use our everyday pantry staples like peanut butter, chocolate and fruits to make healthy, delicious snacks that kids will love to put together as well as eat for merienda.

From a cheesy mamon topped with butter, queso de bola and muscovado sugar, to a peanut butter & jam mamon sandwich sneakily sprinkled with toasted almonds and chia seeds inside, to a peanut butter/banana mamon loaded with mashed bananas and banana chips, all three elevated the usual mamon snack to something the looks and tastes a little more special.

Of course, Grace also made a chocolate and strawberry version, which I nicknamed Spoiled Mumon. It’s chockfull of her favorite snacks - like chocolate and strawberries laced with pistachios!

After Chef Mitchie and Grace's inspiring demos, we got to work on our own mamons.

It was such a cute idea to group the toppings into muffin tins, not only did it look so festive, less washing required after too, haha. 

I let Berry have a go, letting her imagination take its course. 

She started off with some chocolate syrup, gummy bears, marshmallows and candy sprinkles.

While watching Berry, I couldn't stop myself from picking up some icing, and doing a Death by Chocolate mamon, decorating my chocolate mamon with chocolate icing, a Bingo sandwich cookie, chocolate chips and crushed chocolate cookies.

Of course, Berry chose pink icing for her mamon. And we happily decorated away until it was time to leave.

Before we did, a heart-tugging video was shown to us:


Early the next morning, Berry was still on a Mamon It Yourself high.

She was like, "I want to decorate mamon, Mom! I want to decorate!" Like twenty thousand times.

Thankfully, we got to bring home this hefty Mamon It Yourself at Home kit, replete with a host of toppings as well as a generous supply of mamon to while our time away.

During breakfast, I gave Berry a can of whipped cream, and Nana got her some fresh strawberries. Of course, we both ate her strawberries & cream mamon before we could take a photo. That was pretty, and delicious, trust me!

Then, she said she was going to make cake for her doll Alessa. 

She carved out a heart-shaped mamon with a dinner knife and topped it with Sarabeth's Raspberry & Key Lime jam and her favorite mini marshmallows.

Berry asked for a candle and lit it up, after which, we sang a Happy Birthday song for Alessa to the top of our lungs.

Then Xavi eagerly blew out the candle for Alessa, we clapped for Xavi, and collectively dug into Alessa's birthday mamon while discussing our next Mamon it Yourself ideas for the days to come. 

It was a great way to start a lazy summer day! Yummy too!

Bond with your kids by buying a box of Monde Mamon, whip up some icing and bring out the sprinkles so you can Mamon It Yourself too! For more inspiration, check out http://bit.ly/Mamon-It-Yourself. 

Don’t forget to share with all of us what you’ve created by posting it on your social media accounts using the hashtag #MamonItYourself! I wanna see!

Hold that TIGER!

When I hear TIGER, the first thing that pops into my head are these black boxy lunchboxes of the 80s. It seemed like every other kid who ate lunch in school had one.

Today, TIGER still makes lunchboxes, but they're less bulky and updated to look sleeker and less lunchbox-y now.

LWY-W046

LWU-B170

LWY-EO46

They've actually gone the way of cute too, with colored soup cups and thermal bottles, like Berry and Xavi's:

But let's go beyond lunchboxes and thermal bottles. Because TIGER has something that will change your life, promise. 

But before that, can I show you my friend Lorraine's Valentino Rockstuds? Lorraine's family distributes TIGER here in the Philippines, and we can talk hours about shoes and shopping. I love her! And her TIGER products of course!

And now, let me tell you about the TIGER tacook (tacook means "cooking rice" in Japanese). It's a rice cooker that allows you to cook your ulam at the same time. It works as a slow cooker too. It can also make chahan using the Sweet/Mixed setting.

This orange plate is where you cook your main dish, where it gets cooked by way of the steam rising from boiling rice. 

It's quite versatile really, because it can cook anything from gyudon and nikujaga to even good old sinigang. Even healthy steamed veggies for the little ones.

It comes with a cookbook so you have an instant foundation of recipes to start with. 

We've tried to make steamed fish and beef gyudon with our tacook, and they were pretty good, if a bit soup-y, maybe because of the steam. Then again, that's better than dry and makes for wonderful rice topping dishes. I can imagine shrimp sinigang would be great on a tacook!

On another note, I ordered a TIGER water kettle from Lorraine because I had used a TIGER water kettle at Mandarin Orchard and I loved how safe it is to use, especially with kids around.

The vacuum sealed lid can only be opened by pressing those two metal strips at the same time, and hot water won't pour out unless the dispense lock button is unlocked.

And you know how gross steel water kettles can look like after some time because of water scales right? You won't get that with this water kettle because the inside is not metal.

It is so safe to use, even if the kettle falls, hot water won't spill. It's fantastic.

You know what else is great about TIGER? They have lifetime warranty. TIGER Philippines keeps spare parts even for old models, up to 7 years from the time a model is discontinued, so you don't have to worry about servicing. Galing diba!

TIGER Corporation is a 91 year old Japanese company, and is the leading household appliance manufacturer in Japan with a 23.5% market share. Today, TIGER products are exported to 60 countries worldwide.

In the Philippines, TIGER products are available at SM Stores, Rustan's, Metro Gaisano, Landmark Department Stores and Fisher Mall.

The Picture Company Promos + Our Annual Family Photo

Each year, it has become tradition to have a nice family photo taken for us to remember each holiday by. This year, our family photo was taken by Ishee Sayson of The Picture Company in Podium:

The Dychiaos, Christmas 2013 

Thanks to The Picture Company, you can start/continue your own tradition too.

They are offering a FREE photo session for you, my dear readers. Just screen cap and print out this coupon below, call your preferred branch to set an appointment and remember to bring the print out of coupon on picture taking day. This offer is valid until December 15, 2013 only, so better book that session stat!

talk to a The Picture Company staffer for more details on this promo

That said, I would have to share with you how we enjoyed having our photo taken with The Picture Company this year.

The Picture Company at the 3/F Podium Mall

Let me count the ways (parang Hallmark card heehee):

1. They're organized and very professional. Our photographer Ishee called us days before to set our appointment. She then emailed me a booking confirmation, along with it some pegs on how she'd like for us to pose, how we can color coordinate our outfits and a reminder to bring favorite toys and outfits for the kids to wear.

On the day of the shoot, we didn't have to wait too long as they had the studio set-up ready and waiting for us. They were very patient, understanding how hard it is to get kids to cooperate, and obliged Berry's need for several costume changes, haha.

2. The studio is big and very neat. We had to take off our shoes when we stepped into the white backdrop but that was ok, the studio was neat and clean and all the props were organized on shelves  and costumes were hung neatly on racks against the wall. There's a changing room where you can change outfits in privacy, and a mirrored area where you can touch up your makeup.

3.  They work fast. We were in at 1:15 and out by 3:30 pm, and that includes the time where I stepped out to do a bit of shopping while they went through all the photos and edited them so I can just choose the ones we wanted for printing. I got our prints in about a week. 

4. Our pictures turned out great. I will let these photos speak for themselves, heehee.

5. They've got Christmas cards and gift tags! We used to have our family Christmas cards made through Snapfish, but with The Picture Company offering the service, there's no need to get it done elsewhere. Talk about a one stop shop!

The personalized cards & gift tags offer is available only until December 15, 2013 too!

For more on the The Picture Company, visit their website, like them on Facebook and follow @ThePictureCoPH on Twitter!