Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Don’t miss these little bonding moments with your toddlers

PRESS RELEASE - The bond between mother and child is unique and lasting, starting from pregnancy and influencing life well into adulthood. A mom is often the child’s first friend, playmate, and teacher.

But a modern working mom’s time with her child is incredibly limited. As such, moms must set time every day to bond with her child—and take every chance to turn regular activities into quality time for herself and her kid.

There are various fun and educational activities moms can do with their kids every day. The kids will not only enjoy these activities but will also develop valuable skills and habits needed for life.

Arts & Crafts
A child’s imagination and creativity know no bounds, that’s why it’s important to do activities that will help develop their artistic skills. Doing arts and crafts projects with your child will expose them to a world full of visual imagery, which can be a new channel of communication between parent and child.

Always a pleasure seeing my sons draw! They draw every single day!

Gardening
Growing a garden is a surprisingly relaxing way to teach kids about the importance of nature and the environment. It also teaches them to be responsible, as plants are placed under their care.

Playing Sports
Kids need to have fun and be active, and sports enables them to experience both. Physical activities such as running and playing badminton will give kids the energy and strength they need as they grow. Playing sports with your kids will also teach them how to play fairly and win a game with a ‘teammate.’ 

My kids and I don't do sports. What I do is just chase them around and let them run, run, run!

Cooking
If there’s one thing kids love doing, it’s eating. Since they already love to munch on their food, teaching them how to cook will make them appreciate what goes into their meal. This activity can make kids realize their dreams of becoming a chef—or help establish healthier eating habits at least.

Bath Time
One of the most relaxing and intimate bonding moments between a mom and her child is bath time. Bath time with the kids can be used as another means of communication between mother and child, creating conversations that both of them will fondly treasure. 

In our family, it's my husband who takes care of bath time. He's more fun kasi!

An activity as simple as bathing your toddler can create a lasting bond between a mom and her child. Cetaphil Baby further strengthens this bond thanks to their line of products that gently touches your toddler’s skin. 

Bath time with the kids isn’t only a great bonding activity, as it’s also one way of showing your kids the importance of taking care of their body, keeping their skin clean and from acquiring unwanted skin diseases. The Cetaphil Baby products are made up of ingredients that keep your child’s skin moisturized while also soothing sensitive skin, making it an ideal bath time essential for kids.

When I do bath duties, I give my feet a good scrubbing while Piero pours water over them!

 Cetaphil is a skincare brand that has been recommended by dermatologists for over 70 years and is today used by millions with delicate skin from all over the world. Recently, the brand carried its gentle cleansing ways over to baby products with the launch of the Cetaphil Baby line. For information, visit www.cetaphil.com.ph 

*To be featured on Press Release Tuesdays, send it to frances@topazhorizon.com.

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Friday, November 22, 2019

Let’s go crazy shopping at the Metro Crazy Sale!

Hello, fellow mamas! I have exciting news for you! A few weeks ago, The Metro Stores invited me to their Market! Market! store. Why? For a sneak peek at the insane discounts they’re giving at their Metro Crazy Sale on Nov. 30, 2019! Normally, I don’t get excited sa mga sales but ibang klase ito kasi nakakaloka talaga ang mga presyo. Ibang klase ang mga discounts! Kaya when I made my video below, talagang enthusiastic ako. Totoo yan!


Because I’m a mommy, I checked out the toy section of The Metro Department Store and of course I had to see the deals at The Metro Supermarket. Because I’m a wife whose husband has been looking for a new TV for our bedroom and maybe a new air-con, I just had to check the appliance section.

Actually, ang dami ko talagang nakita sa Metro Store. For example, T-shirts for the kids, towels, mga bedsheet sets, Christmas decor, bags, shoes. And soooo many gift ideas for the holidays! Yung mga fruits and veggies were really nice and fresh. Bibili na nga sana ako kasi andun na ako, right, but because they told me that the stuff I want are discounted up to 70% off, well, talagang hihintayin ko ang Nov. 30 to shop, mamas!

One week na lang! Happening for only one day from 7 AM to 12 midnight, the Metro Crazy Sale is promising slashed prices to an all-time low. Up to 70% talaga! Yung iba, buy 1-take 1 ang gimmick. I can’t wait for Nov. 30! 








Now, here’s good news for Metro Rewards Club Cardholders: You will also receive 3x more points per purchase during the Metro Crazy Sale. There are also extra freebies for you when you every minimum purchase of Php 1,500 or Php 2,500 for MRC Cardholders and Php 5,000 for Metro Business Club Cardholders when you buy your groceries at The Metro Supermarket. 



When I went home after making my promo video, I told my Grab driver about the Crazy Sale. He got excited talaga. He said that Metro malls are always so sulit and favorite ng misis niya. I actually also like buying clothes and toys there. Shoes ng boys ko also! Mas maganda ang stock nila. Maganda ang curation so I always find something that’s quality, affordable, and hindi available sa ibang department stores. Promise! Favorite kong Metro Store is the one at Feliz Ayala Mall. But you can go to your nearest Metro Store nationwide if you want to be at the biggest shopping event of the year! 


For more information on Metro Pre-Christmas Sale, visit their website at www.metroretail.com.ph. You can also like and follow their Facebook page at <facebook.com/TheMetroStores>, and Instagram <@themetrostores.ph>

*This post is brought to you by The Metro Stores.

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Monday, November 11, 2019

Homemade recipe: Sinigang na Salmon

I'm going to share with you my favorite food discovery this month: SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon! I love salmon. But strangely enough, I never buy it when I'm doing the grocery mostly because I like my fish super fresh and I don't trust a lot of fish sold in the supermarket.

My friend Rowena Lei of Animetric told me about SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon. She said it's real wild salmon. Yung tipong tumatalon upriver kind of salmon. This fish isn't farmed at all. Why does that matter? Wild salmon has better good fats so it’s healthier. It's that simple.

So imagine my extreme happiness when SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon sent me enough salmon to stuff my freezer full! The first thing I cooked was the salmon chunks. I just lightly salted them then fried them. I like it simple like that so I can judge the freshness, taste, and quality of my meat, fish, and vegetables. When I'm convinced na fresh at masarap talaga siya, that's when I trust the product enough to play with it.  

SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon was firm, smelled like the sea, and tasted clean and fresh. Really delicious! I love it! So my next dish was a Pinoy classic and one of my absolute favorites: sinigang! Here's my recipe for sinigang na salmon.


Sinigang na Salmon

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
2 medium onions, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 native tomatoes, chopped
1 small sachet sinigang na sampaloc mix
500 grams SeaKing salmon steaks
1 medium labanos, sliced
2 bunches kangkong leaves 

Procedure:
1. Heat oil in a saucepan.
2. Sauté onions and garlic until onions are translucent.
3. Add tomatoes and sauté until soft.
4. Add 5 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer.
5. Add SeaKing salmon steaks, labanos, and sinigang mix.
6. Simmer over low heat until fish is cooked, or about 10 to 15 minutes. Fish cooks fast!
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Once fish is almost cooked, add kangkong leaves, and cook uncovered for 2 minutes.

Serve steaming hot with rice!

Super easy. When I'm really lazy, I just put all the ingredients (except the kangkong) in a pot, bring to a boil, then down to a simmer for 15 minutes. May sinigang na salmon na ako! The salmon I used pa is really good and ganda ng quality so hindi siya nadudurog. Sarap!


SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon comes in four (4) different cuts: Chunks (500g), Belly (500g), Steak (200g), and Slab (200g). Each pack is around P200+ to P300+. Sulit na considering galing pang ibang bansa sila, diba?   

You can get SeaKing Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon at leading supermarkets nationwide. For more information, log on to https://www.seaking.com.ph/.

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Monday, November 04, 2019

My grape sorbet recipe


What is a sorbet? It's a frozen dessert made from fruit juice or wine. You can add sugar to it. If you add milk or cream to it, however, it's now called sherbet. It's an excellent way to refresh yourself on a hot day. And if you use Welch's 100% Grape Juice, it's a great way to get your vitamins, too! Let me share with you my grape sorbet recipe!


Ingredients:
Welch's 100% Grape Juice
Simple syrup, to taste

Procedure:
1. Pour grape juice into a shallow container with a flat base.
2. Mix in simple syrup to desired sweetness. Welch's 100% Grape Juice is already naturally sweet so if you're avoiding sugar, don't add the syrup anymore. But do note that frozen stuff will taste not as sweet so you might want to add a bit of sugary stuff.
3. Put in the freezer.
4. After an hour, take it out and fluff it up with a fork. Put it back in the freezer. Note: If you fork the sorbet, you get grainy crystals. If you have an ice cream maker, the sorbet will be smoother.
5. Repeat every 30 minutes until there is no more liquid left.

Serve this in a nice glass with grape slices and you've got a tangy-sweet refreshing treat!


Sorbet is great for vegetarians and vegans, or for anyone avoiding dairy but would still like a sweet frozen treat. It's so simple, with just fruit or fruit juice as the ingredients. You just blitz the fruit/s with juice or water and syrup, then put in the freezer. Simple and healthy!

 

I like using Welch's 100% Grape Juice because it's made of whole Concord grapes—skin, flesh, seeds. The farmers just ground it up really fine and put it in the bottle! So the blitzing's been done for me already. All I need to do is sweeten it a bit for the kids then freeze it.

The 100% grape juice made from the entire Concord grape also contributes greatly to heart health. It promotes strong blood vessels for improved blood circulation.

Thanks also to Welch's for my birthday gift of grape juice and cranberry juice! I'm starting my 43rd year with my heart healthy!
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Wednesday, October 30, 2019

On our wish list: a tabletop dishwasher!

In our home, I cook and my husband does the dishes. This year, because I was juggling 3 jobs on top of motherhood, I've relied on a meal delivery service so I won't have to cook anymore. So I don't cook but my husband Vince still does the dishes hehe. So he's decreed that he wants to outsource dishwashing, too. He wants a dishwasher and I found him two!


I was at the opening of the BGC branch of MY MC Home last month and I literally stumbled onto the dishwasher. I was trying to get a photo of a beautiful dining table and backed up into the dishwasher. And it was like a scene from a movie. I turn to say, "Oops!" And then I saw the words TABLETOP DISHWASHER. And I breathed, "I've been looking for you!"

The little one and the full-sized one.

Since I was at an event, I didn't get to investigate so I went back this week to really learn more about it. Here's what I found:

1. Dishwashers wash at very hot temperatures killing bacteria. So it's more hygienic.

2. Because the dishes aren't held by soapy hands, they don't slip and break. So less breakage!

3. Dishwashers actually use less water than when you handwash plates. I had a hard time believing this but the designers said they made sure to use as little water as possible.

4. Best thing about dishwashers? They save you time and energy. We are a big family and my kids eat a LOT. And often. The sink is always full. Because Vince and I have work during the day, the dishes pile up and only after work can he wash up. He spends up to an hour or so washing dishes, pots, pans, utensils, glasses, cups, bowls, everything!

I should get this instead since our kitchen appliances are all stainless steel.

I also found out that MY MC Home is the only store in the Philippines that carries Maximus tabletop dishwashers. There are the big dishwashers available in other stores but we don't want to install those big machines. We don't want the hassle of destroying part of our kitchen, you know. A tabletop dishwasher just sits on the counter. You just plug in one tube to the faucet and let the other tube run down the sink and it's done.

The tabletop dishwasher can fit enough dishes used for one meal.
The big one can fit a lot more. Hmmm.
Maybe we should get the big one instead...

I LOVE IT!

It's a bit over my Christmas gift budget, though. So maybe if I buy this for Vince, I'll have to tell him it covers Christmas, Valentine's, birthday, anniversary, and Father's Day haha.


How about you? Would you like a tabletop dishwasher, too? Go check it out at MY MC Home!

MY MC Home has 3 branches: Level 3 MET LIVE Mall, Diosdado Macapagal Blvd, 1302 Pasay City, at MC Home Depot San Fernando Interchange, Jose Abad Santos Avenue, 2000 San Fernando, Pampanga, and at MC Home Depot BGC, Taguig. You may also find more furniture and promos on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/mymchome and Instagram www.instagram.com/mymchome.

Join the MC Home Depot Build & Drive Raffle where you can get a chance to win a Toyota HIACE GL Grandia. Just a P2000 single-receipt purchase earns you a raffle coupon. You have until December 31, 2019, to shop and join!

*This post is brought to you by My MC Home.

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