Having a male-dominated family means there are so many movements going on in our lives. That just means that we're always out and about.  We love the outdoors, we love traveling, we love activities, they love sports, and we love swimming. In short we love the SUN! But we all know that too much sun exposure is highly dangerous to our skins.  That's why it's important to always apply sunscreen that's safe for our skin and doesn't contain harmful ingredients as well.

Gladly, we discovered a brand that protects both the skin and the environment as well with Banana Boat Simply Protect.  It's now even better as it's available for babies, for kids, and adults as well.
Banana Boat, the brand synonymous to skin protection just elevated the playing field to a new level with this latest sunscreen lotion – the Banana Boat Simply Protect.

Banana Boat Simply Protect provides SPF50+ broad spectrum of UVA/UVB protection. It is made with 25% fewer ingredients making the phrase “Less is More“ literally appropriate for the product. It is very light on the skin because it is formulated with no additional fragrances and oils and stays on skin in 7 conditions – sun, heat, wind, pool water, ocean water, sweat, and sand.
Banana Boat Simply Protect also replaced Oxybenzone and Parabens – ingredients that are said to create cellular damage in coral reefs with natural ingredients that are safe and effective in filtering out the sun’s harmful rays but are environmentally friendly.  “ Banana Boat Simply Protect is a product that gives maximum sunscreen protection with very minimal ingredients, making it safe for everyone in the family. It is also micro-plastic free and does not contain Oxybenzone and Parabens making it safe for the environment as well “ said Maricel Quevedo, Banana Boat Brand Manager.

In the Philippines, Banana Boat Simply Protect comes in three (3) variants - the Simply Protect Sports, designed for those who enjoy the active outdoor lifestyles. Simply Protect Kids for kids 4 years old and above, Simply Protect Baby for babies 6 months to 3 years old. Both variants are sting-free and tear-free product made mild and gentle enough even for the most delicate and sensitive skin.
Simply Protect Sports and Simply Protect Kids are available in both Aerosol Spray and Lotion forms while Simply Protect Baby is available in the same lightweight lotion form.  Banana Boat Simply Protect is a product that it is highly recommended by The Skin Cancer Foundation when it comes to protection against harmful rays of the sun. Banana Boat Simply Protect is a global brand manufactured by Edgewell Personal Care and being imported, marketed and distributed in the Philippines by Getz Healthcare.

Would you agree that moms love preparing ahead of time?  That's why even if it's still summer, at least in my calendar, almost everyone seems to be busy with back to school stuff.
I admit that just like you, it's one of the seasons I am most excited about because it means shopping for new school supplies for our student children.  I have a fascination with smelling new papers, feeling the leaves of crisp notebooks, appreciating perfect edges of fragrant erasers, and testing mechanisms of unused pencil cases.  It brings so much joy to me because I am reminded about my childhood whenever I shop at National Book Store with my mom.

National Book Store, it's everyone's book store right?  I don't know anyone who didn't grow up with NBS.  Good timing for shopping because they are having a Grand Back To School Fair on May 24 - 26, 2019 at Glorietta Activity Center Palm Drive!  This then is a perfect time for mommies to shop for their children's school needs.

National Book Store Grand Back To School Fair

What's in store for you:

• Variety of school supplies and More from different brands! 
• Special offers from brands available only during the fair
• On -stage program for three days like workshops, demos, games, and more! 
• A chance to win up to PHP10K worth of National Book Store Gift Card and PHP 1000 worth of school supplies

List of on-stage demos, workshops for the 3-day Grand Back To School Fair

Raffle promo for a chance to win up to Php 10,000 worth of NBS Gift Card!

All moms have the same prayers for their families, to have a family that’s complete, safe from harm, and a family that’s healthy.  To live a highly comfortable life is secondary for those who know better.  When we talk about health, the first thing we think about is usually food, then hygiene.  We can make our husband and kids eat healthy food by following the food pyramid.  On hygiene, washing hands before and after eating or using the restroom make us less susceptible to sickness.  Good hygiene also includes regular bathing, brushing teeth, and sanitizing some body parts and even our surroundings.  Why do we do that?  Because we all believe that having a tip-top hygiene will save us from getting ill such as getting worms.
When I was younger, panakot ng parents ko sa akin ang worms when she would tell me to take a bath.  I would be really scared and get disgusted at the thought of crawling worms inside my body.  But now that I know better, I don’t use the same panakot to my kids.  Because I now know better that it’s a misconception that worms can only be obtained by having poor hygiene.  Guess what?  WORMS ARE EVERYWHERE!  Now that would be scarier to my kids if I use that line right?  Walang pinipili ang worms, kasi napapasa siya!

Moms are the ultimate homemakers.  Moms are managers of the household.  Moms handle the budget.

Agree ba kayo dyan?  That being said, moms are the major decision makers when it comes to prioritizing and scheduling expenses, purchasing grocery items, and even buying from the wet market (because she also has the meal masterplan).

When we handle and manage the hard-earned money for the family, it's a no-brainer that we always choose products and services which are value-for-money but not sacrificing quality.  Personally, that's my definition of practicality.  Lahat ng ito, I saw in Super8 Funfest 2019: Bayan Ng Mga Bida, when I went there during the first day of the expo!
I've been doing groceries even before I became a mom.  I love doing groceries because it has become my me-time and it's a therapeutic activity for me.  So you could say that I am a well-versed grocery shopper.  And as a consumer myself, I can say that Super8 Grocery Warehouse is where you'll get big savings with all the bundles (like Buy1 Take1 deals) discounts and promos in their stores.
Just like last year, Super8's Funfest 2019 was a fun and eye-popping experience because of all the in-booth activities and jaw-dropping discounts of different participating brands that resellers and end-consumers or momshies like me would go crazy for!

Take a look at some of the booths I got to visit in the photos below.  Some of the awesome things I observed which were consistent with almost all the booths were the following:

• Participating companies or brands took booth set-ups to great heights.  They're not your normal square plain booths with their products on display.  There were moving mechanisms, colorful lights, light boxes, and were all distinctively noticeable.
• All the items featured were on huge discounts.  Super8 really means it when they said Discounted Na, Discounted Pa! :)
• Each booth has its own gimmicks like having its own show host managing their programs, celebrity appearances, dance contests, singing contests, variety shows, roleta, pick-a prize, sales professionals in costumes, free tastes, and many more!
• People really patiently lined up to get dibs on discounted products for sale.  It was inevitable that some of the offers became out of stock quickly!  It was a sure hit for personal or family consumption more especially for business owners.

• Attendees to Funfest 2019 don't have to worry about getting hungry for the shopping they did because there's a dining area where a number of good food stalls were located.
• It was spacious and the dining area was well-kept by maintenance personnel.

• Super8 do not only have sales in their minds but they have sincere customer service at heart.  They had designated booths for Help Desk, VIP Customer Relations, Customer Service, Rewards Cards Registration, and even for those using Debit or Credit Cards in their shopping transactions.

A Look At Super8 Great Buy
I'm not surprised that they have their own brand of goods and merchandise like how other supermarkets have.  What surprised me was the price points of the items available during that time.  I gave it a second look and a third visit (fist was for photo op, second was official tour, third for personal shopping time!) to fill my reusable bag for items on sale such as the following:

• Medium Eggs
• Raw Sugar
• Mushroom Pieces and Stems
• 2ply tissue rolls
• Cooking Palm Oil
• Distilled Water (their fast moving item)
• Macaroni/Spaghetti noodles
• Pancit Canton
• And many more!

SUPER8 NEGOSYO CARD LAUNCH
This year, the growing supermarket business has also grown its market with a healthy split of almost 50-50 resellers/business and end consumers.  This just means that more than reaching out to their main target market which are the sari-sari owners and mini-grocery owners, the emerging end-consumer - mostly tayo mga nanay, have now became a large part of the pie. 
This then was one of the reasons for the launch of their newest NEGOSYO CARD, an exciting program for their resellers that enables them to earn up to 2% Negosyo Rebates and avail exclusive reseller promos!

What's more, the Discounted Na, Discounted Pa Super8 Grocery Warehouse gave away a brand new Toyota Avanza car to one lucky bidang shopper!  They also showcased thrilling performances by the HEROES and HEROINES of Philippine Entertainment: the BIDAs like Jericho Rosales, Vhong Navarro and more. Indeed, led by the high-flying, resourceful and wise SUPER 8 BIDA herself, all the Bidas in the Suoer 8 Universe shopped and were entertained.
I was one of the selected guests to get a chance to interview Mr. Alvin Lim, CEO of Super8 and Mr. Armand Mendoza, Super8's Business Group Director to talk more about Super8's history, successes, what sets it apart from the competition, and where they intend to be a few years from now.

He shared that when they put their customers first, there will be returns inevitably.  When a company makes their customers happy, like in any relationship, they will stay loyal.  That's why Super8 keeps on expanding to serve more customers and spread their genuine customer service to both resellers and business owners.

A lot of these business successes stemmed from his experience as a young Alvin who grew up surrounded by their family grocery business (Suy Sing Corporation), took his vast experience in grocery distribution and trade, and bringing all these to Super8 and become the Philippines' leading supermarket and grocery operator.

He said,

“A local retailer, Uniwide, became insolvent and I rented out seven stores from them. That is how simply and quickly Super8 began. At the time there were not that many retailers around, but there was plenty of demand. Because I began by renting and only supplying the staff and goods, we broke even after 6 months.”

“From day one, we kept investing in the future,” he says. “I have never taken anything out of the company. This challenge was never about maximizing profits but more about doing the right thing from the onset and investing in our team and our infrastructure.”

He also shared that what makes Super8 reach its status today is because of these three Cs he inherited from his family- Character (keeping a good name and reputation), Culture (being fair and keeping a corporate discipline in the company), and Competence (employing highly competent people).

When we asked about what to expect from Super8 in the future:

• Faster and more direct delivery options through the help of a number of couriers to make it happen.
• Warehouse-to-customer business model
• Expect more automation in grocery services
• May possibly have a mobile app
• Yearly Funfest Trade Events
• More stores

It's true, that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  But one thing's for sure, in God's eyes, we are ALL beautiful.  Dark or white, short or tall, long or short hair, we're all beautiful.
In one of the brand marketing workshops I attended, a notable speaker said that one of the best-selling products (thanks to marketing and knowing exactly what its market wants) are skin whitening soaps and lotions.  Filipinas have a mentality that becoming light-skinned is beautiful.  I used to believe that when I was younger because I was really dark then due to my swimming lessons and training.  I've always thought I was ugly because I was dark.

Thankfully, I am past that stage and skin color shouldn't be anyone's standard of beauty.  I agree that dark or white, we're beautiful!  Dark Skin versus White Skin. Does it really matter? Does one always have to be superior over the other? SkinWhite is saying otherwise.

Dr. Rolando Hortaleza, Chairman and CEO, Splash Corporation

SkinWhite recently launched their newest campaign about women making their own choices when it comes to beauty.  And each of our choices should be respected and unquestioned.  Whether you go dark or white, skin color shouldn't be a characteristic to determine that one is better than the other.  I've witnessed friends and even celebrities get bullied or bashed online for their skin color.  Too white or too dark - they got body shaming.  It's a good thing that these women stood up for themselves and the choices they made.  I am with SkinWhite on no to body/hair/race/gender/skin shaming.

SkinWhite used real twins in their campaign to represent beauty, whether one is Dark or White.  It doesn't really matter.  It sent a powerful message that people should be well-respected for the choice they make on what beauty is.

Joy and Jean Negosa

Sheena and Brigitte McBride

Bianca and Diane Danga

Louise and Shen - not ad models, mukhang models only, event attendees

Louise and Michelle, again, not ad models event attendees only.  Michelle could pass as a celebrity and model!

Watch SkinWhite's boldest ad yet which sends a powerful message about beauty - whether you're Dark or White.
“It’s all about choice”, says Rachelle Layda, Marketing Manager for Whitening
of Splash Corporation. “SkinWhite is a brand that empowers women to choose. A choice to
define their own standard of beauty. If you choose to have dark skin, you are beautiful. If you
choose to have white skin, you are just as beautiful. The choice is yours, and SkinWhite
respects that choice”.

Remember, Dark or White - You are BEAUTIFUL!