Create a better workspace. Right now I write my articles on a sturdy folding table. There’s a camera behind my laptop, a bottle of children’s medicine beside it, and the gang from Toy Story peppering my workspace. There’s also a clutter of DVDs I meant to watch this year while the baby napped, a Spiderman figurine and a scrapbook I meant to complete. Holy clutter, Batman. This WAHM needs a better place to work! Some of my fellow WAHMs have their own rooms at home. Good for you, ladies! I don’t have that luxury, so I will need to make what I have better. Right now it’s comfortable and has some inspiring touches, but it needs to see better days!

Find a healthier schedule. Time management is hell for a WAHM. I can only work while I’m at my workspace – that’s a rule I set for myself. With a toddler running around the house, being tied to my workspace is a very unlikely scenario. My work schedule currently consists of researching while the toddler naps, and writing or doing consulting work when he goes to bed at night. So far it’s been working, but I’ve been terribly lacking on sleep. With lack of sleep comes weight gain and crankiness. With those two can come a lack of productivity and energy to chase the toddler. There must be a healthier way to do this! So far the solution I have come up with is to stagger my deadlines. DUH, right? Girl, it’s harder than it sounds.

Disable distractions. My biggest distraction is Facebook, followed by sites like 9GAG and Daily Candy. Don’t even get me started on Psychology Today or the folks I follow on Tumblr. BLACK HOLES, I WARN YA! I promise I will try not just minimizing tabs but completely not having any of those sites open while I work. It’s very hard though when you’re researching a topic and your research trail takes you to awesome sites. Before you know it you’ve signed up for a Polyvore account and creating a wardrobe you wish you had. Must. Disable. Distractions.

Dress for success. I’ve learned that working in pyjamas can be an advantage or a disadvantage. On the plus side, it’s more comfortable. No need to put on fancy clothes for a meeting! The down side is that dressing sloppily makes me feel sloppy too. Even if I’m working from home, I have to dress presentable enough. A little lipstick, perhaps. No more bedroom hair all day. That will be a challenge, especially when you get all frazzled after dealing with tantrums from someone going through the terrible twos.

These sound pretty simple, but they sure are hard to implement! Hopefully next year it will be smoother sailing for this WAHM. I hope these tips help you too! Happy new year!

21st Century Child” by « м Ħ ж », c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved

This New Year campaign by the Department of Health makes a lot of sense to me: SFX: The Safest Firecracker Experience. It’s a track of nine sound effects made by the most common firecrackers lit up during New Year’s Eve: 5 star. Super Lolo. Judas’ Belt. Watusi. Whistle bomb. Kwitis. Luces. Trompillo. There’s even a countdown with a Fireworks Symphony (my favorite of the bunch).

All the loud sounds firecrackers make were used (are being used?) to drive away bad spirits, right? Play up these sound files on your computer. There’s no smell of gunpowder to accompany the experience, but I say that’s a good thing.

Click the image above to get to the site and start listening to the fireworks.

Have a safe and happy New Year’s celebration everyone!

The next time I went to the drugstore, I looked for it. Voila! A tube cost around P450.00. Hmm. Okay, I have to invest in my skin anyway, right? My apprehension to use it was tamed by the fact that it was highly recommended, so the next day I decided to try it.

I’ve been using it for a couple of weeks now. I love it!

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Waterlight SPF 50+ facial sunblock

What I love about it:
It’s so light on the skin. My fear of sunblock being greasy? Not present here. I could spread the lotion easily over my face and neck without looking shiny afterwards. It has a clean finish which I really liked because I abhor feeling anything on my face (ergo my dislike for make-up). Because it feels light on the skin, it makes me feel fresher. Naks. I really hate anything make-up! I don’t like mascara, blush, eyeshadow, etc. I feel like they weigh my skin down. It’s the same with sunblock, but thank goodness this particular brand was awesome for me. Apparently it’s oil-free. Perfect.

It’s still effective with its SPF 50+ factor. Protected and still looking fresh? I love it. You can apply it several times during the day (particularly after staying out in the sun for some time or after a workout) and it’s fine. No greasy look or stinky sunblocky smell.

You can get Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Waterlight SPF 50+ in beauty and personal care stores, department stores or supermarkets. I got mine from Mercury Drug.

Nothing like a solid recommendation from a reliable colleague with convincingly good-looking skin. THAT was the clincher, not a magazine article or even just seeing the product in-store. My colleague’s skin did all the convincing. He is like a walking billboard for awesome skin care. I hope my skin stays as fresh as his when I’m his age!

What does she carry in her bag? Take a peek:

Her Kindle. Reading glasses. iPhone. Charger. Pens. Glue stick (for stray pages on her piano pieces and other crafty stuff). Not in the picture: A notebook.

I think it’s a good idea, especially if you live in a home with two floors. It’s a hassle having to run all the way back to your room if you left your cell phone there. It’s even more of a hassle especially if you’re a senior citizen (Exhibit A: My Mom), who may not have the spryness of a kid. So here’s a solution — the house bag! Just don’t forget to put the cell phone in the bag before leaving your room.

Sanity saver #1: Playing video games
“You have time for video games?,” my friend asked in disbelief, knowing how packed my day usually is. “Oh honey, I make time for video games,” I replied. Since the day is all about the baby, my personal time comes in during his naps or when he’s finally gone to bed at night. If I don’t use that free time to work at home, I use it to play The Sims 3. It’s a form of escape.

In the Sims world, everything is perfect! Weeeee!

Sanity saver #2: Being stuck in heavy traffic
“How on earth can you enjoy being sandwiched by so many cars and being glued to your car seat for hours?,” my good friend asked.

Here’s why it’s good for my sanity: During those hours, there are no chores to run. There’s no chasing to be done. There’s no poop to wash. The baby is home safe with his grandparents, and I’m in the car alone with my thoughts (and sometimes a bag of M&M’s). Peace and quiet = recharging my sanity batteries. Never mind if there’s a jam of cars and trucks outside. In that little cove of a cab, I have achieved inner peace. Master Shifu would be proud of me. (I told you I watch too much Kung Fu Panda.)

Sanity saver #3: A loooooooooooooooong shower
A typical day’s shower can be accomplished in three steps: (1) Shampoo (2) Soap (3) Rinse. It can take place within 3 minutes max. I’ve done it. A 3-minute shower is just the right length of shower time. See here:

Minute 1: Baby is left with Grandma to play and begins choosing his toys to play with or books to read.
Minute 2: Baby is engaged in whatever activity he’s decided on.
Minute 3: Baby’s attention begins wandering, then realizes I’m not beside him.

Before he can scream WHERE’S MY MOMMY?!?!?! in baby babble, I’m out the bathroom, dry and fully-clothed. Mommy’s here! Do that everyday and it can drive you crazy bit by bit. That’s why a loooooooong shower is a major sanity saver. Finallly, I’d be able to use that creamy body wash! That body brush! That body puff! Heck, maybe I’d even have time to moisturize! Oh, to have a long shower, perchance to dream.

Sanity saver #4: A walk in the neighbourhood with the boy
Duh, you might think. Walking can bring down anyone’s cuckoo level. True, but try walking with a hyper toddler in tow. I could just leave the little spark plug at home with good company and go on a solo walk, right? Right! But I like taking him on walks with me. The fresh air invigorates me. The warm sun relaxes me. Most of all, seeing my kid explore the outdoors with such wonder recharges me. Never mind if I’m chasing him almost every step of the way.

Sanity saver #5: Reading anything that does not have topics on cleaning, parenting, marriage, poop, snot, picky eating, toddler troubles, household management, and motherhood
Thank you, Archie Comics.

These five things keep me from joining the Mommy crazy house. What are your sanity savers? Do share and let’s learn more ways of turning down the craziness!

Credit: Image by origami potato c/o Flickr

Little Red Riding Hood cape – tulle and satin
RRH never looked this stylish.

Etsy shop: KarolinfelixDream

Coque feather collar
Reminds me of stories written about fallen angels. If you’re familiar with Becca Fitzpatrick’s book “Hush, Hush”, you might like this one!

Etsy shop: Kathycoleman

Upcycled girl’s fox costume tail and hat / handmade for halloween
So cute for the clever little girl.

Etsy shop: Sewnatural

Want to see more Etsy Halloween costumes?

Swirly leather mask in violet
This looks really elegant. According to its Etsy page, this mask was worn by Lois Lane on one episode of Smallville.

Etsy shop: Tom Banwell

Yoda Hand-Knit Hat
I’d let my baby wear this Halloween or no Halloween!

Etsy shop: LittleBirdLucy

The Heart of The Ocean Necklace – Titanic Inspired
Go to your Halloween party wearing this… only this.

Etsy shop: LadyDangerDesign

Yummy Pie Baby Costume
Aaaaah!!! So cute I can eat her up!!!

Etsy shop: NotTheKitchenSink

Dinosaur Cape with 3D scales
RAWRRRRR!

Etsy shop: pipandbean

Tutu Dress, Snow White
Snow White never looked this charming.

Etsy shop: lilyjillbowtique

JackJack Incredibles Baby
Does the baby come with the costume order? SO CUTE.

Etsy shop: BasilandButtons

Tinkerbell Adult Costume Wig
Wings, green dress and pixie dust not included.

Etsy shop: littlepennylane

Aren’t they all cute? I’d love to put Timmy in a JackJack costume but he’ll probably keep tearing the mask off. Did you get any ideas from this list? Share!

Photo credits: All images belong to their respective owners, as shared in the links to their profiles.

If you’re a newbie to online discount coupon sites like I am, I’ll help you out. I had a very pleasant experience with Ensogo. Here’s what I learned, step by step:

Head on over to http://www.ensogo.com.ph. Ensogo offers a lot of daily deals including food discounts and restaurant vouchers. Scroll down the site to check out the day’s special deals. My eye went straight to this deal from Soy Yummy. Only P150 for 5 regular-sized smoothies? I’m game!

Once you find the deal you want to go for, in this case I wanted to avail of food savings on Soy Yummy, click on the BUY button. Choose your mode of payment. You can pay by credit card, Paypal, Bancnet, Bank Transfer, pay at the Ensogo office, or use Ensogo credits. Ensogo credits can be earned through the referral program. An added feature which is no burden to any buyer is that 3% of each Ensogo sale is donated to Children’s Hour.

You’re done! Really, you are. After I closed the deal on my voucher, I got a note saying they’re processing my order.

Easy peasy, right? I liked that I didn’t have to use the voucher right away. Short expiry dates on vouchers are a real pain. In this case, I could use my Ensogo voucher for Soy Yummy till October. But why wait? I wanted to see if using the voucher “live” was just as easy as the online experience. The coupon lists down the branches where you can avail of the promo. A few days later, I went to SM Megamall to use my food voucher.

Ah, there it is!

I presented the coupon to the salesgirl, who neatly folded out my crumpled coupon. (Whoops, sorry!) She then asked me to choose which Soy Yummy smoothie flavours I wanted. I was in soy smoothie discount heaven! After giving her my choices, she proceeded to prepare my orders. After a few minutes of waiting, I was done! I had just completed my first Ensogo experience and was a happy smoothie-toting lady.

Let’s drink to that!

My family was surprised when I met them for lunch at HK Choi carrying three bags of smoothies. Yum, one for each of us! Hmmm, come to think of it, maybe I should have checked if Ensogo had restaurant discounts for HK Choi.

In a nutshell: I was relieved everything turned out fine. Yes, relieved because I was scared I was going to mess up the process. I’m very happy that using Ensogo was super easy — from online buying to using the coupon. Will I do it again? You betcha. I want to try out their hotel deals next!

If you want to learn more about the best restaurant deals and yummy food deals, head on over to Ensogo’s Facebook Page or follow them on Twitter. I hope your experience will be as pleasant as mine!

The mechanics are easy to follow. Grab on to your own tube and straw. At the game master’s signal, create the biggest plastic balloon you can with only that tube. Whoever has the biggest plastic balloon wins.

The last time I probably played with plastic balloon was in gradeschool. Eons and eons and eons ago. I had so much fun trying to create the biggest balloon I could from this little blob. Good thing I had fun because I failed miserably! Here are the winners of our challenge:

Once the winners were awarded, we all put out plastic balloons together and created a snowman!

There were still some tubes left over, so I went for my second attempt. HA! I should have won. Competitive!!!

The plastic balloon challenge is quick to mount. It’s also cheap. Each tube costs only P1.00. Grown-ups and children will enjoy the game. Just don’t forget to clean up afterwards!

Are you in a bind because your office Halloween party is in a few hours and you don’t have a costume yet? You probably (a) forgot about the party, (b) were too busy to put a costume together, or (c) were dreading the party and were wishing you could get out of it but sorry, no luck, you really have to go. Whether it’s a, b, or c, the fact is you don’t have a costume. Here are some ideas to help you out with your costume dilemma.

Minimal Effort Required: The following costumes take very few props to create. You probably have some of the props lying around at home or in the office anyway.

Know those lotions that come with glitter? Rub that on your face and you’ll be a sparkling vampire from “Twilight.” Got an index card? Write a random word on it and tape it to your forehead – you’re now a “Pinoy Henyo” contestant. If you’ve got an extra roll of toilet paper, wrap it around you many times until you look like a mummy. Wear a name tag that says “MAN OF YOUR DREAMS” or “YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE” – simply point to the name tag when people ask you who you’re dressed as. If you wore a red shirt, jeans, and sneakers to work, just keep singing “Don’t Stop Believing” – you’re one of the kids from “Glee.” Change into your gym clothes, print a number on bond paper and pin it to your shirt – you’re a marathon runner. Bring a flashlight with you to the party and when people ask who you are, simply shine the light under your chin and say you’re a mumu. Stuff a pillow under the front of your shirt – you’re pregnant. Stuff a pillow under the back of your shirt – you’re Quasimodo. Stuff a pillow down the back of your jeans – you’re J Lo. Feeling superhero-ish? Carry an iron around with you. If people ask, you’re Iron Man. Wear your camera around your neck and you’re Peter Parker. Wear dark shades, put a beauty mark near one corner of your lip and you’re Randy Santiago. Stuff your nostrils with cotton balls, wrap a scarf around your face and you’re a walking corpse. Powder your face till you’re completely white and say you’re a ghost. Powder your face till you’re completely white, put a red dot on your forehead, voila! You’re a siopao.

No Effort Required: You must be really busy or really dreading your Halloween party if you’re considering these! No props required.

Go look for another officemate who, like you, is looking for a last minute costume. Simply wear each other’s clothes. Ta-da! Now you’re her, and now she’s you. Show up at the party in your work clothes – you’re a workaholic. Don’t show up and say you did — you were the Invisible Man.

Whether last minute or not, you can carry off any costume with a sense of humor. If you’ve got other ideas, feel free to share them. Don’t forget to bookmark this page in case you do find yourself without a costume on the night of your Halloween party.

Did you know that the last Monday of January is annual Bubble Wrap Day? I missed it by eight hours, but it’s not too late to celebrate by sharing this video with you guys! Happy Slip’s tips are funny and practical. I particularly like the line your crisper with bubble wrap tip. I just don’t know if the bubble wrap will make it to the refrigerator intact. Must. pop. bubbles.

So thanks for making my morning better, Happy Slip, even if I didn’t have any bubble wrap with me right now. Must. search. for. bubble. wrap.

And, uh, Christine? Where’d you get all the bubble wrap you used for your shoot? That’s enough to make anyone go bubble wrap crazeh!