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This Big Baby Loves Belo Baby!

May 3, 2016 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan Leave a Comment

Fun fact: MrC calls me the biggest baby ever. Sometimes it’s because I act like one (and I’m not ashamed to admit it,) but most of the time it’s because I smell like one.

I kid you not, guys, amoy baby ako, especially when I’m fresh from a shower. The truth is, I don’t own a single bottle of perfume, and most of the products that I use are for kids. Hello, sensitive skin!

Guys, I cannot even begin to describe how good this smells. And I’m using it for myself ha. Yes, I only use baby cologne and body spray. No perfume for me coz my skin can’t handle it. So, I splashed some of this #belobaby cologne on myself yesterday, and when I got into the car MrC actually asked what scent I was wearing. Super amoy baby, ang sarap sarap!!! I’ll be talking more about the different Belo Baby products #ontheblogsoon. I absolutely love them. They are great for babies, for bigger kids, and even for big babies like me. ??

A photo posted by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan (@mrspcuyugan) on Apr 30, 2016 at 7:58pm PDT

It’s not easy being allergic to sweat, especially on hot summer days. Unfortunately, my son suffers from the same fate, so, it’s really not uncommon for me to be seen sniffing bottles of baby cologne and reading labels on kid-friendly soap boxes and shampoo bottles when I’m out shopping.

Whenever I buy bath and body products, my brain is already wired to look for key phrases like safe, all-natural, gentle, and alcohol-free. It’s funny that even my shopping involves search words, but that’s really what it takes to keep our skin healthy and happy.

When I was growing up, I didn’t have that many product options to choose from, and most of what was available back then was either super expensive or not so nice. These days, I feel so lucky because I get my pick of whatever I need, from soap and shampoo to lotion and cologne.

Trying out new products that won’t harm my skin is always fun for me, so you can imagine my excitement when this bundle of goodness from Belo Baby arrived at my doorstep. This, for me, is a hundred million times better than receiving a box of designer bath products because this works for my son and I.

Safe. Natural. Gentle. These three words describe the Belo Baby product line. It is great for baby’s skin, and is clinically proven to be gentle enough for everyday use. These work super well for bigger kids (and even big babies like myself), too, who have sensitive skin.

The Belo Baby guarantee says it all: 100% certified natural ingredients” and “0% harmful ingredients. These are ingredients that were meticulously selected to ensure that they are safe for even the most delicate skin.

So ok, Iet’s talk about the Belo Baby bath products. I didn’t hoard them all for myself, ha. I used the hair and body wash, and lotion. I gave the bar soap to Little MrC.

Now this kid, he gets itchy immediately after taking a shower with certain brands of soap. As soon as he got out of the bathroom, post-Belo Baby bath, he said, “Mom, it’s so nice. So smooth, so soft, and not itchy.” He meant his skin, of course, and I super agree with his feedback.

I’m so happy because it has been a while since I’ve found soap that works for him. He is a growing boy, so the baby soap we used to use now leaves him smelling like a growing boy after a couple of hours. So far so good with Belo Baby, though. No itchiness, and he stays nice-smelling longer.

I think that the smell is really my favorite thing about these products. I don’t even know how to describe it, other than they smell just like the skin of a freshly washed baby. Promise, yun talaga ang description ko.

Speaking of smell, the Belo Baby cologne is something I really cannot stop raving about. I just ran out of the (rather expensive) baby cologne I’ve been using, and have been desperately seeking a replacement.

My search is over! Belo Baby Cool Drizzle is now, officially, my signature scent. Lol. It’s so fresh! Reminds me a lot of a baby cologne from my childhood that no longer exists, so not only does this make me smell good, it makes me feel happy, too. Winner, winner!

The Sweet Snuggle scent comes in second for me. I love how it smells sweet and girly. I find the Happy Tickle variant to be a little more strong-smelling than the other two. This one naman is amoy bagong ligo.I love that these colognes are so gentle, and don’t sting the skin. They also contain glycerin that moisturizes, and a chamomile-derived ingredient that soothes the skin.

Everything in the Belo Baby product line holds true to its promise of being crafted with care for the most delicate skin, for the most meticulous moms. I’m so glad we got to try them.

To learn more, check out the Belo Baby website, as well as their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.

If you want to experience Belo Baby goodness, too, you can find these products in all leading supermarkets, groceries and department stores. They are also available online via Lazada, Cudsly, and Zalora.

MiLi Pure

June 23, 2015 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 12 Comments

Fact: Each time the weather changes, my skin is affected.

There are days when my sensitive skin really annoys me. Now that the weather is confused, for example, I have dry patches, oily patches and rashes all at the same time. It’s bad enough having to deal with the summer heat then the humid, rainy weather we get the rest of the year. When it shifts from hot to humid to rainy all in one day, my skin complains, big time.

Wanna know what this can do? (But wait, doesn't it look like Eve from Wall-E???) — Wanna know what this can do? (But wait, doesn’t it look like Eve from Wall-E???)

One issue I have always had to deal with is dry skin. I do drink a lot, but I don’t moisturize as often as I should. I keep getting skin care reminders from ~~older~~ more seasoned women, so I know that my bad skin habits can and will eventually result in wrinkles. Lots of them.

I’ve just confirmed that my skin is dry. Every bit of it on my face, neck and hands. Waaah! Gotta fix that. #milipure #milipureapp

A photo posted by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan (@mrspcuyugan) on Jun 7, 2015 at 5:46pm PDT

Then came a friend who asked me if I wanted to try a nifty new gadget. I’m not a tech blogger, obviously, because I’m not techy at all, but when he said it could help with my dry skin problem, I said I’d go for it.

If you know me, you’ll know that I don’t have the makings of a beauty blogger either, but the nice thing about this device is that I don’t need to know much about technology or beauty to use it, and to make it work for me. Curious now?

It’s called MiLi Pure, a super tiny thumb drive looking thing that can tell you if your skin is dry, oily, or a-okay. All you need to do is install the app into your smartphone, clean the device (of course!) and press it onto your skin for a few minutes. It will then tell you the current moisture level of your skin.

A few minutes of playing with the MiLi Pure showed me that my entire face, and my hands are dry, dry, dry. I’m not surprised because we’ve just come out of a scorching hot summer. But I suppose I should take this as a stern reminder to moisturize.

As far as I know this gadget isn’t available for sale in the Philippines yet, but it will be soon. It’s really handy, especially for the skin-obsessed. So, abangan!

The question now is, which is the best, most effective sensitive skin moisturizer out there? Any recommendations?

Well hello there, my beautiful neglected blog

March 9, 2015 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 11 Comments

Fact: Ever since the year started I have not been in the mood to blog.

Why so? Well, I really don’t know.

It could be that I’m suffering from the blogging burnout that a lot of my close blogger friends were complaining about at the end of 2014. Maybe it has nothing to do with the blog, but it’s more about not wanting to write in general. I still write every day, after all that’s what I do for a living, so maybe I just am all written out. That’s a sad thought, though, so I think I will choose not to believe it.

I definitely have no shortage of things to write about, so it’s not that either. My long list of topics and pending post submissions will tell you as much. At the same time, as days go by I keep adding more new topics to that already long list. Not that I’m complaining. It only means that I have been living my life, and that is a good thing for sure.

mrspcuyugan — Maybe it’s because I would rather daydream of summer with this guy!

For whatever reason, my writing mojo seems to have taken an early summer vacation, and I’m not too happy about it. I need for it to come back, stat. So now the question is, where to begin? The answer there is simple – here and now.

So hello, I am back. I’ve finally transferred photos from January and February to my computer from my camera, and that is a good first step. Just to give you a sneak peek (and as a reminder to myself), here’s a quick rundown of what I should be writing about soon:

Family dinners at Butamaru and Your Local, brunches/lunches at Wildflour and Meat Depot, a coffee break at Toby’s Estate, my birthday dinner at home, and a roundup of my January-February lunchboxes.

Our relaxing Sofitel staycation, the DMC Handcrafted Fair, our fun night out watching the Paddington movie, super fun Valentine game night with friends, and the Stabilo afternoon tea party.

Our amazing Boracay weekend and our friends Apple and Quincy’s gorgeous beach wedding, complete with the most perfect sunset.

My first-ever attempt to invite people to #craftambay, the #crafternoons that Michelle and I have in the pipeline for this year, my yarn addiction and how I hope to cure it, and my goal to give away one crocheted item each month on IG (which I’ve already technically failed at because there was none for February!)

Finally, and still a work in progress, our much awaited, highly anticipated, dream come true new house, and how we will slowly but surely turn it into a home.

Life has been great, and it’s gonna continue to be great. I can’t wait to share each of these stories with you guys.

Now make me kwento. What amazing things have been going on in your lives these past few weeks? 🙂

I know it’s late, but here are a few Christmas gift ideas

December 19, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan Leave a Comment

I have not done any Christmas shopping! As in wala. Okay, no, I just realized I bought presents for my family (mom, dad, siblings) at the Cuenca bazaar last weekend, but that’s it. No gift yet for MrC, no gift yet for the kiddo. December has been crazy! But it’s a happy kind of crazy that I’m grateful for, so that’s okay.

I now know how I can fix my schedule better next year, but alas that is another 12 months away. Guess I will just have to make the most out of these last 6 days before Christmas, and see what I can buy and make, super duper last minute.

If you guys are as delayed as I am this holiday season, you should check out these gift guides that we’ve put up on The Asian Parent Philippines. They’re helpful, I promise! Click on each photo and they will take you to the articles.

Ideas for everyone in the family, all below P500 – great for the budget conscious!

Gift ideas for babies and toddlers – for all your *inaanak* needs!

Something for the most important woman in your life.

Gifts for foodies (Kalookies will be in Alabang this weekend, Dec 20-21 at TUFC!)

Thoughtful gifts that don’t cost any money at all!

So, what are you giving as gifts this Christmas? Happy holidays, you guys! Don’t let traffic bring you down!

Filipino Moms Create Excellent Lifestyles at Home with Taiwan Excellence

December 17, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 1 Comment

It’s not easy being a multi-tasking, responsibility-juggling, stress-eating mom. Believe me, I know. My schedule revolves around my own my son’s, MrC’s, and our household’s. It can get very challenging figuring out what to do, when to do it, and how to do it best. At the end of the day, all of us moms just want what’s best for our loved ones, and for ourselves, too. As in, the best food, the best service, the best products. Why should we settle for anything less after all?

Like I said before, I really go for quality over anything else when I shop for a product. This is why I appreciate the Taiwan Excellence campaign, which was organized by the Bureau of Foreign Trade of Taiwan together with the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), a non-profit, semi-governmental trade promotion organization in Taiwan.

The entire campaign provides a symbol of quality that guarantees the superior value of Taiwanese lifestyle brands across Asia. With this seal of quality, us Moms have an easier time identifying which products are really superior, and therefore good for the family.

It also gives us an idea of which products we can really rely on for ourselves, to help us get our jobs done. After all, just as our family relies on us for a lot of things, we also rely heavily on things like our kitchen equipment, our cleaning tools, and even our laptops, to make sure that we are able to keep our households running smoothly and efficiently.

Some examples of brands with the Taiwan Excellence seal

The campaign presently carries 56 different brands for home and living, sports, transportation, and personal care. We already use some of these brands at home, like HCG, ASUS, KingCom and Transcend. After reading up on this campaign, it really made me feel good to know that we’ve chosen our stuff wisely.

To learn more about the Taiwan Excellence campaign, visit http://taiwanexcellence.ph and #/TaiwanExcellence.ph.

Tanzan atbp

December 9, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan Leave a Comment

I haven’t been bazaar-hopping much over the past couple of months because the traffic and parking situation just drives me crazy. I miss the days when the bazaars here in the village were more of a neighborhood thing, but then there really was no stopping the whole Alabang bazaar season from growing into the huge annual event that it is now.

So anyway, let’s rewind back to the day when I saw Bend Accessories at Cuenca. Francine was sharing her stall with another crafty mommy from the south, Sheryl Fernandez. I ended up spending a few minutes on Sheryl’s side of the booth because I was so interested in her Tanzan atbp display.

Sheryl makes accessories like key chains, bookmarks and magnets out of bottle caps. I love that she makes each and every one by hand, and that you can request for the designs to be personalized to your liking. So Pinteresting!

She made me one, and it’s been hanging on my purse ever since I got it. I don’t know if it’s the 90’s kid in me, but I like hanging key chains on my bag zippers. Lol. Do you guys do that, too?

There's my tanzan! It's next to a reusable coffee sleeve I got from CraftAvenue — There’s my tanzan! It’s next to a reusable coffee sleeve I got from CraftAvenue

Cute, right? These make really nice personalized Christmas gifts. They are affordable, too, at PHP80 to PHP200 per item.

As if the Tanzan accessories aren’t cute enough, Sheryl packages them in matchboxes covered in decorative paper. So all you need to to is add a ribbon and a gift tag, and you’re all set for Christmas. Scroll back up to the first photo, and you can see the boxes in the upper right.

Thank you, Sheryl, for my bag bling! I really love it!

For orders and inquiries, you can contact Sheryl Fernandez of Tanzan atbp at 0977-1445573 or tanzanatbp@gmail.com. You can also find Tanzan atbp on Facebook and Instagram.