Lessons on Breastfeeding

I have a draft on how I celebrated my 31st birthday. But who really cares about a 30 something mother turning another year older right? So it's still in my drafts. Let me just tell you that I love birthdays. I love celebrations. Heck, I love anything that would allow me to celebrate. But just to sum it all up. I am happy that it was my birthday and I am glad I was able to celebrate it with the people that truly matters to me.

So let me just talk about what I have been up to lately -- I gave birth! To a beautiful, perfect, sweet, little baby girl we named Sam. Oh she is such a sweetheart. And so I am spending about 70% of my day now breastfeeding her. And since my newsfeed (in facebook) is now filled with friends who just gave birth or who are just about to, I decided to do this piece instead.

I just thought it would be nice to share my thoughts on this as I have done here (<--click) initially. Being a second time breasfteeding mama, I am more mature now. There's less drama this time. You will not believe how such of a drama queen I was during the first time. I even called my Pedia, weeping in the middle of the night.

Which brings me to now. Doing this for the second time, I will definitely not declare that I am an expert on this. I am not a formula hater as well. I will never look down on a mom who decided to bottle feed their kids. Nor will I declare that breastfeeding is for everyone. It is still your body, your life, and your child. Ultimately, you will know what will be best for your kids. Let no one take that feeling away from you.

So who am I? I am just a mother who is very, very determined to breastfeed her children. I will not enumerate the health benefits of breastfeeding anymore plus all other numerous advantages (I mean it's free, is there anything cheaper than that?!). I am here to tell you the things that helped me stay committed to my decision.

1) Breastfeeding is something you learn. I took all three breastfeeding classes offered by Medela Moms. I bought books, browsed the internet, read tons of mommy blogs for inspiration, attended a La Leche League meeting, even went to the classes offered by The Medical City. The more you know the less likely you will give up when you hit a roadblock.

2) Arm yourself with the right tools. As it will hurt (extremely - for me at least) during the first week, get a good nipple cream. I used Lansinoh. I also bought Avent Breast Shells. Good pairs of nursing bras. A nursing cover so you can continue to breastfeed even if you have visitors. That's basically all there is to it. (Note - especially to first time moms: try to limit your visitors in the hospital. As you are still trying to learn the ropes of breastfeeding and you might be more self conscious ask your well meaning friends to visit you about two weeks after giving birth already so you're sure you've already mastered breastfeeding by that time.)

3) Educate everyone that is close to you on your decision. Get their support and buy in. The last thing you need is a voice discouraging you. Although, since it is not a perfect world you will always have people telling you things you do not need to hear. During these times, just smile and ask them to get you a glass of water. :)

4) DO NOT BUY FEEDING BOTTLES (yet). Lest you be tempted, stay away from these until you are a few weeks away from returning to work.

5) Don't be insecure with your milk supply. Size does not matter. Never compare yourself to other moms. Keep telling yourself that you have more than enough for your baby.

6) Just to reiterate. It will hurt. I just squeeze and break my husbands fingers whenever it hurts extremely  to just release some of the anger 'energy'. Do believe that in a few days it will go away. (Also, this would be a good time to go back and read all the wonderful benefits of breastfeeding just to push yourself. 90% of the time it hurts because of an incorrect latch. So have the patience to teach yourself and the new baby the proper technique. In a few days, it's going to be smooth sailing believe me.)

7) Do not forget yourself. Eat! (Breastfeeding moms burn approximately 500 calories just by breastfeeding). By eat, meaning a proper balanced nutrition. Drink plenty of fluids. I was eating plenty of galactagouges (foods that help increase milk supply) like oatmeal, halaan, warm soup, malunggay leaves, and the like. Oh, and also indulge every now then (go eat that sundae you've been craving). :)

8) Breastfeed on demand. Nurse as frequently as you can. Both Eli and Sammy are forever attached to me during their first weeks. It's okay. They like to nurse for plenty of reasons and it's NOT because they are not getting enough.

9) Finally, so you can also get that much needed sleep during the night: master the side lying feeding position. :) Believe me, this will save your life!

Okay what else? I am pretty sure there might be a couple of things I might be forgetting but those above are pretty much the most important things that I can remember. Oh, and here are the sites that I frequent to the most: Kellymom, Dr. Sears, La Leche League International. Also some blogs: Chronicles of a Nursing Mom and The Leaky Boob. And there's plenty more, numerous forums and website all dedicated to this. Just have the patience and determination to stick by with your decision. And hey, take it one day at a time to enjoy this period of your life to the fullest.

Cheers mommies!

My 31st filled with my favorite things

**Found this lying on my drafts. Now I could never remember why I did not bother publishing this. Oh well, here we go. This is more than 8 moths delayed though. But the message of the post still counts. :-)**

This post is a week old delayed. I lost my mojo in blogging. Somehow sharing my nonsensical thoughts didn't have as much appeal as it had a few months back. Too bad because 2012 was a pretty impressive year for me. A lot of ups and downs. Hard decisions, sudden changes, weight loss journey, some welcome surprises, and abundance of blessing. I wish I was not as lazy as I was in documenting my year because it was a pretty fun year for me and my little family.

But enough about that. So, I turned 31 last Friday. I am repeating that number in my head right now and it is not making any sense. I mean it is just a number. Same old me. In my head I am forever stuck at the age of 19. I am the same forever giddy, excitable, highly emotional same old me. 

Physically, I like the look of the older me. That and plus I like the fact that my favorite things in life still has not changed. The smell of a newly opened paperback. The smell of leaves when it's raining. The look in my husband's eyes when I cooked something. And now add the laughter of my children. Family. Still nothing beats the love of a family. That is perhaps the reason why I shall remain forever young.

So speaking of birthdays, I went that morning in the office to surprise a teammate. I gave him a pillow (because he loves to sleep and I have scolded him several times for sleeping hehe - hello Lei, I miss you to bits). Only to be surprised back by my team with a chockfull box of baking supplies! I immediately used them the very next day! Thank you guys that was so sweet.

And then I went home to prepare for my simple birthday dinner which I filled with all my favorite foods.

Maki, Sushi, Sashimi platter (I still believe I am a Japanese at heart)

Sabroso Lechon

World's Best Laing (by me - self proclaimed)

Pancit Canton (because no birthday is complete without)

Nathaniel's Buco Pandan (simply because it is THE BEST buco pandan there is)

I was supposed to get Estrel's cake but they are closed from Jan 1 - 16 (what gives?!). So we settled for Quatro Leche by Cake to Go. (Thank you sister!)

My lovely guests. My heart soars because I just love them very much.

That's all there is to it. Baking. Food. Family. Laughter. I am a very contented 19 year old. :D

Guest Post: How you can start investing in the stock market

I don't always come up with posts that makes a lot of sense. Primarily because my intended audience is always just myself, hubby, and our children (when they are old enough to get embarrassed by my posts hee hee). I also would like for my son and daughter to have an idea what their mom 'sounded' like back in the day.

So, sometimes it amazes me why certain demographics (don't get me wrong they are still a very few) outside my family bothers to read my musings at all. Okay, so now to my point. You may not want to read this little blog BUT I urge you not to let this one pass.

My husband is my guest blogger. And he will talk about something that might change your outlook when it comes to your finances. No strings attached just pure unadulterated sharing for the sake of passing on something good. Read up. ;)

Note to hubby: I hope you can do more of this to add more sense in this blog. Haha. As always I am prouder of you than anyone else in this earth could ever be.

How you can start investing in the stock market

Introduction

I believe that the fear of the unknown is what prevents many Filipinos from investing in the stock market.  I think the two most common misconceptions about the stock market are: (1) too technical for ordinary people to understand and (2) too risky to put your money in.

It has become my personal advocacy to reach out to as many friends as I can and introduce them to stock market investing.  I started with it when I came across Bo Sanchez's book "My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... and Why You Should, Too!"  Catchy title right? 

But first let me just get these things out of the way: I'm doing this for free and I won't get an income out of this (well probably a little if you use the affiliate link I provided at the end).  I just want to make people aware of this option on how to grow money.  Also I'm subscribed to Bo Sanchez's teaching on stock market investing, so what I'm telling here is just my interpretation of that.  His teaching made a lot of sense to me, and my purpose is to just relay the message.

So how can you get started?  Read on.

What You Need to Get Started

First you need to understand and appreciate the following simple concept, discipline, and attitude in order to do stock market investing:

1. Compound interest
2. Consistent, regular setting aside of a portion of your income for stock market investing
3. Knowing the difference between stock market trading and stock market investing

I’ll discuss items 1 and 2 first, and then proceed with item 3.

Compound Interest and Consistent Saving

Albert Einstein once said, “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world.  He who understands it, earns it ... he who doesn't ... pays it.”


Did you know that that P50 can become P50 million and make you insanely wealthy because of compound interest?  Consider the following tables:



Above are different investment vehicles.  You need an investment vehicle to grow your money. 

Some people put their money in banks under a time deposit account, like in table (i).  As you can see, the initial P50 becomes P50 million because of compound interest, but it takes 469 years.  However, smarter people put their money in, e.g., government-issued bonds (table(ii)) or invest their money in the stock market (table(iii)).  They use a faster vehicle to grow their money.

The investors in the tables above ONLY made a one-time investment of P50 and let compound interest do its work.  But are you only capable of such a similar move? 

I’m sure you can do better than putting in a P50-savings once in your lifetime right?  You can instead put in P50 every year, yes?

But you can do better than P50!  Why not put in P100?  Why not put in P1,000?  Why not P2,000?

And of course you can do better than a once-a-year saving!  Why not instead of putting in P2,000 every year, you do it every quarter?  Or why not do it every month?

Let’s say you decided to put in P2,000 every month which makes P24,000 per year.  Using the rate in table (iii), see computation below how that very doable effort can bring you faster to a wealthy status:

Which is what drives the next point after compound interest – consistent and regular setting aside of a portion of your income.  It doesn’t matter how much you can set aside (but if you can set aside more, you can reach your wealthy status faster).  What matters is that you do it regularly.  If your age now is 40 it’s possible you still have another 42 years ahead of you, and if you start investing now, you will be P56 million richer by 82!

Knowing the difference: Stock Market Trading vs. Stock Market Investing

To earn from the stock market, as you may have heard, you need to buy low and sell high.  Both stock market trading and stock market investing essentially subscribe to this principle, but they differ in the time period wherein this principle is being applied. 

Stock Trading or Active Trading

In stock market trading, the buying and selling activities happen in a span of a month, weeks, days, or even hours.  Trading within these short time spans often necessitates a lot (really a lot!) of effort and makes use of very complex statistical analysis and forecasting tools.



Figure 1: Stock Market Trading

Figure 1 is as sample stock price movement.  The green bars mean that the stock price is in an upward movement, while the red bars mean that it is in a downward movement.  So to be able to use the “buy low, sell high” principle, stock market traders try to place a stock purchase at each of the bottom-most portion of the red bars, hold a bit, and then sell at each of the top-most portion of the green bars.  

   

In media portrayals, those involved in stock market trading enjoy very high returns or suffer very big losses.  To beat the market, they pour over a lot of data analysis on the fluctuations in stock prices.  They are celebratory when they beat the market or suicidal when the market beats them. 

I think this kind of media portrayal is what scares most people from being involved in the stock market. 

Stock Market Investing or Passive Investing

In stock market investing, the buying and selling happen in a span of several months, a year, or several years.  Short-term fluctuations do not matter and so one does not need to put in a lot of effort in predicting when to purchase or sell a stock.  

Figure 2: Stock Market Investing

Using the illustration above let’s assume that you don’t have time in closely monitoring the stock prices and decided to just passively purchase shares at regular intervals.  Let’s also assume a very unlikely worst case scenario wherein you placed all of your purchases at each of the bottom-most portion of the red bars.

If you average out all of these stock purchases in a span of several months or years, you still earn if you decide to sell in the end.  This is called “cost-averaging.”  The important thing here is there should be consistent stock purchases at regular intervals. 

As you can see, you don’t have to predict when the stock prices will fall at its lowest or rise at its highest (that is a very complex science).  You just have to pick big, well-managed companies that are very likely to maintain its profitability (can you imagine Ayala, SM, or PLDT not being profitable?).  Then you just do a piggy-back ride on their profits by buying stocks from them.

Parting words

Before you get to pick the right companies where you can buy your shares from, you should have a broker that will serve you with your stock market investing needs.  I use the online stock broker COL Financial wherein I have an account.  For details, visit this link: https://www.colfinancial.com/ape/Final2/home/open_an_account.asp

Understanding and appreciating the three items I have described above is I think already 90% of the strategy that you need to apply in stock market investing.  My goal in this write-up is to convince you that you can do stock market investing.  I hope I was able to do that.  This is the basic level – knowing that you can do it.

On a side note, I have and still am subscribed to Bo Sanchez’s Truly Rich Club which is where I get directions on how I can maximize further my stock investment earnings.  In this on-line community, members regularly receive stock updates that include which good companies to buy, when to buy, until when to hold, and when to sell.   This is the remaining 10% of my strategy.  You can visit http://bosanchezmembers.com/amember/go.php?r=19813&i=b0 for details.

Elijah 2nd Birthday: Jollibee Kiddie Party

This blog post has been delayed for over two weeks. I cannot even begin to describe how hectic our schedules have become. I am eight months pregnant very round belly, chasing after a now very curious and assertive toddler. You can just imagine. But I cannot let the season pass without talking about my son's 2nd birthday party. When he's twelve and he asks me what was his birthday like at least I have a reference hehe.

I cannot believe it's been a year since I organized Eli's Rockstar themed 1st birthday party at Centerstage (read about it here). The second birthday party was more low key. Party planning took only less than a week. For one, I had lesser suppliers to think about this time and I really had no actual theme I needed to stick by. I just knew I wanted the color scheme of orange, blue, and green.

Lower maintenance but equally fun nevertheless. The important thing is I felt the overflowing love for our baby boy. I mean that's what parties are all about right? To celebrate the precious gift that is the celebrant. I am really thankful to everyone who came to the party. It was simple and people went home happy. Thank you for your time, and precious gifts.

Here are photos to give you an idea on how the event went:

Photobooth courtersy of Fotostyle
Affordable and very professional. Party proper started at 11am
and they were at the venue as early as 9am. I loved the quality of their outputs.
(Thanks ninang Cookie and kuya Keith for your gift!)




Candy buffet: courtesy of Kendi Cart
This was a hit among kids and adults.
I highly recommend these guys as well. Sulit for the price.
(Thanks ninang Belet for this! =))



Another shot of the candy buffet.
Simple design just the way I like it.



Balloon centerpieces c/o Smile Party Events & Balloon Decor.



Balloonderitas and Balloon Pillars
also from Smile Party Events & Balloon Decor

We got the Jollitown cake from Jollibee.
Their supplier is Red Ribbon. This was a mocha cake. Yum!

Snap watches given as souvenirs for kids (gift of my mom).
The rest of the prizes I bought from Landmark and SM.

Daddy Jp and the very pregnant me.
Eli hated having his pictures taken!
Outfit me: Dress by Forever21, Cardigan from my friend Jen.
Outfit daddy: FUBU shirt, some jeans. =)

This was what the venue looked like.
Quite spacious in my opinion and easy lang magkita kita ang mga tao.
However, when the guests started pouring in (about 90 persons)
it became a bit crowded also. But it's all right in my opinion.



This was during the prayer.

Daddy and the birthday boy looking at his guests.
Outfit Eli: shirt by Mossimo kids, short pants by Moose Gear

Just because I love pictures of other people taking pictures of other people.
Haha.

 

Opening remarks by daddy JP.

The party wouldn't be complete without Jollibee's
signature balloon popping game.
Thank you tita Tanya and ninong Mon for being so competitive.

We did not have that many kiddie guests kaya the games was for the
kids at heart instead. The games were lively and fun.
Especially if nanood ka lang hehe.



One of the rare times na nagpakuha ng picture ang birthday boy.
With daddy and his lolo Oca.



Again competitive ang games ng adults.
Akala mo Olympics diba?

Since the girls lost they had to dance with Jollibee
to the tune of... "Gangnam Style" of course!
(Note to Eli: you probably won't remember what Gangnam Style is
but during your second year national anthem yan sa mga parties!)

Eli and 2nd cousin Enzo.
Eli just adores Jollibee.



I bought these non toxic bubble toys so that the kids had something
to play with when they are bored.



Here are the kiddie guests.
Aren't they all cute?
(Look at Jollibee naka beautiful eyes sa likod hehe.)

See? Love nya talaga si Jollibee.



I think he wants to take home Jollibee.

Sulit the Jollibee party just for this adorable picture.

I was saying to Eli:
"Anak, say good bye na to Jollibee because we can't take him home."

Kudos to the mascot assigned to us.
Super hardworking and kwela. I think he stayed for more than an hour.

He performed three songs!

Blowing of the cake. Mainit na ang ulo ng birthday boy.

I just love this candid shot!
Ayaw nyang paalisin si Jollibee LOL. =)

Kudos to the staff of Jollibee Sheridan. I know we had some issues at the beginning during the booking process but your guys made up for it in many ways.

 

Just send me a message if you have any questions on the suppliers I booked.

 

=)

 

Hooray for Two!

Hi Eli, you are 2 today! You hear that? Those are 2 wonderful years of getting to know you and discovering ourselves as your parents. From day 1 I just resolved into loving you in every way I know how. That is rejoicing every ordinary days that I get to be your mom and take care of you. Your dad though, was such a discovery.

I knew from the moment we married that he’s going to be a great dad. But he even surpassed my high expectations. Ever since you were born I see him becoming more and more devoted to you. I see you holding hands while sleeping and it’s enough for my crazy little heart to overflow with joy. He loved giving you massages (and you love receiving those), he reads stories to you that sometimes bores the two of you but you listen along anyway, you sing silly songs with daddy of lyrics and notes that only your souls understand.

So you see, every day has been filled with quiet contentedness like this. Oh, I can’t even begin to just express how happy you made us. But know for sure that we love and adore you unconditionally. We can’t wait to travel the world with you. To bring you to your first Disneyland adventure (HK perhaps? Or Tokyo or Paris if mommy and daddy gets lucky). To witness you take your first elephant ride. Or build your first snowman. For you to experience and see the world as your playground. Where you will work hard on your passion and at the same time have the best fun with things that excite you.

One more thing I am so excited to see you one day (and that’s happening really soon) as a big brother. With a little sister to care for. With a little sister to fight the world for. And a little sister to be with no matter what.

You made us better persons. You made me appreciate more the man that is your dad. You have expanded our world so much.

I love you sweet, silly, little boy. Someday soon, you will choose to build a family of your own but until that day happens we’ll cherish every moment that we have with you.

Love, Mom.

PS: I hope you enjoyed your simple party yesterday although you hated having your picture taken. Today, we'll go to the zoo to see animals that you are just so fascinated at. We love you and happy birthday. :))

 

 

 

To Party or not to Party

Some mababaw nanay problems. But believe you me mga muthers, I have been having sleepless nights just debating in my head whether Eli should have a party for his 2nd birthday.

Filipino tradition dictates (dictates talaga?! haha) that normally the bonggels parties are during the 1st and 7th birthdays, then followed by 18th (if girl) and 21st (if boy). But not for this mom. I just love parties! I just love the thrill and stress of it all.

But. But. But. Since I will be going 8th months preggers by the time November rolls in I cannot afford any stress. Also, financially speaking mas practical din not to have a party anymore because the money that we can save can go to just buying Eli wonderful stuff and some of it can go to my panganganak fund (read: pang-CS sa The Medical City).

However. However. However. This is the last year na Eli will be celebrating his birthday na he is still our only baby. And his exact birthday fell on a Sunday, so I took it as another sign from the high heavens.

Oh but the stress of guests not doing RSVP.

But the happiness of me choosing what Eli will wear for his party.

And what if it rains and no one goes?

Pero, I already found this really nice location where he can celebrate a low-key party.

But hubby is being oh-so-strict with the 'budget'.

Seeing our closest relatives and friends on that day will be fun though.

See I am ever so torn.

This mama is so confused.

Nevertheless, I love our son that I am sure of. Ultimately, the day is about him. I know whatever we decide on he's going to be happy anyway knowing he is loved by his mom and dad primarily and so many more.

Will keep you updated sisters. =)

Adventures in Baking: Red Velvet Cupcake (dry run)

My mama's birthday is on Sunday (I love you mama!). I plan to make her the moistest Chocolate cake with thick choco ganache and red velvet cupcakes. Between the two cakes I am more scared of the later. One can never go wrong with a chocolate cake. Slather anything with chocolate and it will automatically taste good.

Thing is cupcakes are so dainty. And I am far from dainty. And I am bit nervous, as this being only my fourth time to bake. (Super novice baker here!) Hence, I needed a dry run before my mom's actual birthday on Sunday.

As luck would have it, the cupcakes were a success. Judged by me. And because I can't go to Sonja's I brought Sonja's to me. (Lumi-level sa Sonja's promise. Hehe.)

Special thanks to my friends who sent their recipes Dits (mommy behind this awesone blog), Lia (she makes iCakes), and Oli. Ultimately, I followed recipe from Joy of Baking.

What I loved about it:
- The cupcakes came out moist, although I tasted a hint of baking soda so for my second batch instead of 1/2 tsp. I will reduce it to 1/4.
- The frosting was not too sweet. Just enough blend of tangy-ness and sweetness. I will reduce the amount of cream though from 2/3 cups to just 1/3 because I found the frosting a bit runny.
- Among all the recipe's I've read this used the fewest amount of flour and sugar yet it still yielded to a perfect equal 12 portions of 3 oz. cupcakes.
- It was yummy. Enough said.

Red Velvet Cupcakes:
1 1/4 cups (125 grams) sifted cake flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoons (10 grams) regular unsweetened or Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cups (150 grams) granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (120 ml) buttermilk
1 tablespoon liquid red food coloring
1/2 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (I will reduce to 1/4 next time)

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (60 grams) confectioners' (icing or powdered) sugar, sifted
2/3 cup (160 ml) cold heavy whipping (I will reduce to 1/3 next time)

Red Velvet Cupcakes:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and line 12 muffin tins with paper cupcake liners.
2) In a large bowl whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder.
3) In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the egg and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
4) In a measuring cup whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.
5) In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter. 
6) Working quickly, divide the batter evenly among the 12  muffin cups and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 18 - 23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.
7) Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes and them remove from pan. Let cool completely before frosting. Either spread the frosting with a knife or offset spatula, or use a large 1M Wilton open star decorating tip to pipe the frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1) In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth.
2) Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar and beat until smooth. Using the whisk attachment, gradually add the heavy cream and whip until the frosting is thick enough to pipe.
3) Add more sugar or cream as needed to get the right consistency.

Some pictures to show you:

Note - sorry for the crappy pictures. I am using a very old camera plus my lack of photography skills.

Some of the raw ingredients for the red velvet cake
(Hubby lovingly procured some of the ingredients for me from Sweetcraft)

Some of the raw ingredients for the cream cheese frosting
(Make sure that the cream cheese is at room temperature before whipping)

Le tools =)
(Nothing fancy there.)

The red velvet batter. So RED!
(do not over mix or you'll end up with bread instead of cake)



See I am a very messy baker.
(Kevs, di na halata pag naluto na.)



The frosting, a bit on the runny side. But very yummy!

Didn't get to take much pictures of the finished product because
my son was in a hurry to eat all of them. =)