It was a rainy afternoon when we braved the bed weather to go shopping for the little one last weekend during Mommy Mundo's Ultimate Clearance Clearout Sale located at The Great Big Room of Fun Ranch in Pasig City.

Me and my shopping finds.  Value for Mommy, Value For Money

The Mommy Mundo Ultimate Clearance Clearout Sale Event

It's that time of the year when people think more of other people and what they want to receive for Christmas.  The people on my list are categorized into four: children, colleagues, friends, and family.  It's actually easy to personalize gifts and it can be practical too if you go to just one store such as SM Store.  I do most of my Christmas shopping in SM because it's true when they say, they've got it all.  Not only that, the experience of shopping and having it wrapped for free is such a convenience for me as a busy mom.  It's so practical

As promised in my previous post about Practical Christmas Gift Ideas for Moms, I will be doing this as series.  Next up, Christmas Gift Ideas for Dads or Husbands.  Did you notice that I didn't include practical there?  Hahaha!  I have a back story for this.  I made a quick survey on my personal Facebook Page among my daddy/guy friends asking them their Christmas wishlist.  I even included this phrase: "Think #Practicality please?"  

Guess what the results were?  These are functional, big and important (at least for them) things which they went on justifying why they are practical.  The thread was long and some even posted photos of what they want.  Let me share with you a few:

Few more days and it's Christmas loves!  Time to also put up your Christmas decorations at home if you still haven't.  What a perfect timing it is as well to prepare your Christmas Gifts lists and do your shopping.  I admire others who started shopping for their Christmas gifts as early as the first quarter and who also take advantage of the sale season at malls to buy their early Christmas or Birthday gifts. It isn't only practical, it also saves you from the shopping rush.

I'll be doing a series of Practical Christmas Gift Ideas from this day onward.  To be featured are lists of Christmas gift ideas for Moms, Dads, Husbands, Children, Friends and Colleagues.  Don't forget to come back to my lists because I'll keep on updating them.

Practical Christmas Gift Ideas for Moms

1. Scarves or Shawls- Give Mom a scarf or shawl and watch her turn an ordinary outfit to something sophisticated!  Plus it will also give her the warmth she needs on cold days. Make sure you choose her favorite color or print!  Price range: Php 150 to Php 1,000
2. Health and Beauty Items or GCs- For all of mom's hard work at home or in the office, she needs a well-deserved break!   This season is the best time to show her your appreciation and love by giving her health &  beauty items or service GCs such as massage, hand &  feet pampering or facial treatments.   For items, this could be anything from cologne, three-step-facial-care, lotions, hair products, vitamins or supplements too! :)  Moms need to feel beautiful and rejuvenated so she'll come out fresh and ready to take on any work load with a beautiful smile! Price range: Php 50 to Php 1,000
3. A New Mobile Phone with SUN Postpaid Plan - Give mom a new phone bundled with a SUN Postpaid Plan!  Choose from Regular Postpaid Plans (as low as Plan 350 to Plan 600), Fixed Load Plans, Unli-data and SUN Elite Plans (choose from Plans 999/1399 a month to Elite Plan 1500) or Tri-Net or Group Plans!  To add to the experience, register her new SUN Postpaid to FREE Internet for unlimited Facebook, unlimited surfing, likes and sharing! Price Range: Php350 to Php 1,500 a month
4. A Chic and Multi-functional Sac Manille Bag - When moms are out with kids, we want to bring the whole house in our bags just be sure, we don't forget anything.  But at the same time, we want to still look chic and fashionable.  Give her a bag that does that both!  I have been using David Jones (Paris) bag for years and not only it looks pop, but it's durable because it's made of quality materials!  Available at Sac Manille.  Price Range: Php 1,500 to Php 2500
   
5. AVON Home Plate Set (add Placemat and Coaster Set, and Flatware Set) - Mom would always find happiness in new dinnerware or kitchenware!   She will be more excited to whip up delish meals for the family!  Price Range: Php 550 to Php 1500.
   
6. Planner or Notebooks- Almost all moms, including me, love making lists (spell things to do, grocery list, gift list, school needs, etc.) plotting schedules (like birthdays and children's school activities.)  A really nice mommy planner would be a perfect gift for any moms!  I assure you, this gift will be most used the whole year!  This Mom 24/7 2015 Planner is a great buy with many discount coupons carefully selected for mom!  Available at Mommy Mundo Shop for Php 395.  There are other beautiful planners or notebooks available at leading book stores nationwide from Php 100 to Php 500 each :)
   
7. Heart-felt Christmas Card or Letter- Last but not the least, the most inexpensive (almost free) and most heartfelt gift is a Christmas love letter for the most beautiful and loving woman in any person's life.  You could never ever go wrong with a personalized message of appreciation and holiday greetings with this.  Moms will not only read the content but they could read through all the effort you put into creating this wonderful gift.  Tell her everything you can't say in person in your letter and watch her cry buckets of tears.  Price Range: FREE but one that will last a lifetime!

There you have it!  The key to giving a really special gift to your mom is to know what she really likes, her hobbies, what she really fancies or what she needs.  Some moms, like my mom, prefer to receive cash!  Hahaha!  Now that's practical!  But whatever you give your mom this Christmas, make sure you write her a message of appreciation and express how much you love her!  Make it a habit to tell and show your moms your love, not only on special occasions, but everyday the whole year!

Hello Loves!   No matter how life is throwing me a lot right now, of course life should go on.  There are a lot other aspects in our lives that we should not give attention to.  One of which is our back-to-school shopping.  While most of the students had started classes last Monday, my elder son will start his next week.

But before anything else, let me just say this ha: WAAAH, ang LAKI ng TAAS ng tuition fee this year!!!  Okay na.  But seriously, 10% increase is a BIG increase.  That's why I kind of enrolled him a little late because I had to pull more powers (Spell M-O-N-E-Y), not to mention the cost of books and other school supplies.

To prepare him for school, we had a back-to-school shopping last week.  But unlike our shopping last year, we bought lesser NEW stuff for him.  This is good news to me as a budget-conscious and practical momma.  Don't get me wrong loves, it's not that I'm being too frugal about my children's expenses to the point of having incomplete materials for school, but it's just that we bought quality materials for him last year that he still can use them this year.  For me, that is the real sense of practicality.

Just look at this bag:

Back-To-School Tip: Buy a brand of school bag that is made of quality materials and one that's durable.  This bag may be a little expensive to some, but you're assured of its quality.  Heavy books/notebooks?  No problem.

You may think, that's an expensive bag.  But loves, I divided the cost of the bag by two years (because he is using it again this year).  That's the thing about quality materials, it's really durable.

Next, I swear by this brand of shoes for kids: HARDY TOGS (available at any SM Department Store).  My son has been using the same brand and even the same shoe style since he was in Grade One (1).  Unfortunately, the style that he wanted is no longer available to bigger sizes, which made him chose a different style, but the same brand.  All his Hardy Togs shoes lasted the whole year and mind you, he ran the school field with it, he kicked ball with it, he sometimes folded the back part to make it like slippers (I know, I know it's not good, but boys will be boys) and he sometimes played basketball with it!  Still his school shoes last year is still intact!  He has developed brand loyalty since he was six years old.  We love Hardy Togs!

Back-To-School Tip:  Choose a brand of leather shoes that has double sole stitch to last it the whole year!  Perfect for very active boys such as mine!

The other back-to-school essentials we bought were his undies, micro-fiber towel (because he sweats a lot!) and his socks.

Back-To-School Shopping Tip: Microfiber towels are good for absorbing sweat! For socks, you could buy 3-in-1 socks, they are more practical than buying solo socks.

Last year, we bought the brand Nelson for his school uniform both polo shirt and long pants.  It's more expensive than other school uniforms, but then again, we swear by it.  He could still use all of them this year.  No loose stitches, no missing buttons and no tears in his pants.

Back-To-School Shopping Tip:  Buy a quality-made uniform like Nelson!  It's value for money!

Back-To-School shopping is always a therapeutic activity for me and a great bonding time too with the kids.  As always, to make shopping a practical and pleasurable one here are some quick tips.

PRACTICAL SHOPPING TIPS:

1.  It's always best to come prepared with your shopping list and a pen to tick off those already in your basket.
2.  Set your budget and stay within it.
3.  Shop during the morning to avoid large crowds or few hours before closing.
4.  Don't bring big and heavy bags.
5.  Enjoy.

Happy Back-To-School Mommies!  :)

Hello loves!  How is everyone?  If you have noticed, I haven't posted as much as I used to recently.  Super namiss ko kayo, so please forgive me.  I really have been busy with a lot of things at work, with family and back-to-school matters, with our band's weekly gigs and finding time to rest.  Anyway, the closest thing to me next to my undies (err excuse me, hihi), is my mobile phone.  That's why my Instagram and my Facebook Page are always updated naman.

Anyhoo, remember what I told you before, aside from working full time, I also have an acoustic band?  Yup yup, I love singing and I am so fortunate that I still get a chance to do what I love on the side and get paid for it.  One of the requirements in singing in a band is to look good and have presentable clothes.  Waaah!  Which means, just like a celebrity, I can't be seen with dresses that I've already worn in my past performances.

Oh muders, I got a shock of my life one time when I searched for a dress (that still fits ha!) in my closet a few weeks ago after coming home from work to prepare for a gig.  WALA NA kasya sa akin!  I panicked literally, luckily, there's still one piece of clothing that was hidden somewhere and it still fits.

The following work week I went out to shop for clothes.  But I promised myself that it should be less than P1,000.00, better if less than P500.00, otherwise, dun lang mapupunta ang TF ko for singing! :)

True enough, I unleashed my practical shopping powers and voila, I got really fab dresses for less than P500.00 beat that! :)

Here they are:

White and Black jumpsuit that magically elongates me!

Dress that magically hides mommy tummy!

Lakas maka-sexy the off-shoulder dress

I still have two dresses, but I haven't worn them yet so I'm a bit shy to share it, but I'll share it in another post once I've worn them.

Apart from dresses, I also found a super duper fab DONYA shades for less than P100.00!  I shared it earlier via my Instagram account.  Here's how it looks:

I love wearing DONYA shades, make me feel so Donya talaga!

Less than a hundred shades

The tags that made my eyes popped!

Here's where I scored these purchases:
White and Black Jumpsuit: Cinderella, Glorietta Branch - P465.00 only (originally P799.00)
Gold Off-shoulder cocktail dress: People Are People - P499.00 only (originally P1299.00)
Donya Shades: Saizen - P88.00 only! (Everything's P88 at Saizen!)

I love bargain shopping and sale hunting super!  It's where you get super fab stuff for super low and sometimes unbelievable sale prices!

Til next shopping loves!  How about you, have you bargain-shopped for something recently?  Share please?

Are you done shopping for your children's back-to-school needs? Honestly, I'm not yet done, but I already started. After almost experiencing a heart attack when I enrolled my son, we went to SM Manila to do some shopping using the SM Accessories gift vouchers I received in the mail and of course our budgeted back-to-school shopping money.

In my recent post about SM Accessories Kids Cool School Savers, I mentioned that they've got discounted merchandise which will give any moms big savings! I've bought the big ticketed items for him such as his school bag, lunch kit, uniforms, shoes and other accessories. I haven't ticked any item yet on his books and school supplies list. :)

I just want to share the great deal I got from my recent shopping at SM. When they said, "We've got it all for you" they really weren't joking.

School Bag
Since my now Grade 4 student son is no longer fond of character-designed bags, he spotted this plain trolley bag sitting at one corner.  When I picked it up, I was so surprised that it was on 50% discounted sale!  From P1,700.00 it was down to P800.00 +!  Imagine that huge drop in price?  If I were to buy him the character-branded bags of this size, it would have been a slash of P3,000 on my budget!  The material of the bag is very durable and made of quality.  You could tell with the stitches and the canvass used.  I'm so glad we noticed this bag!


Lunch Kit.
My son's a basketball player and aspires to be a member of their school's varsity.  Since his bag is already plain, he chose an insulated lunch kit with a basketball design.  This is the closest we got to the basketball themed lunch kit.  Why is this value for money?  It's made by quality bag manufacturer, Hawk Bags.  It has a lifetime warranty.  Wow!  Lifetime!  I could just bring it to ANY SM store if there are problems with its stitches, zippers and have it repaired.  Another winning factor is that, it came with a free 300ml water jug! :)  Got it for P600.00 only.  Other quality insulated lunch kits (without warranty) cost P1,000 and above.

School Shoes.
Would you believe, that this very EXACT brand and design of school shoes is what we've been buying for the last 4 years?  Yes and it's my son's choice to begin with, and because it's really durable, it has become my favorite as well!  Hardytogs Shoes is my choice for active kids such as mine.  Imagine, my son had ran (spell r-a-c-e) with it, kicked ball with it, slid with it, walked it in puddles/mud during rainy season, and had been through hell with it.  But still at the end of the school year, it's still in one compact piece!  Talk about durability and quality talaga!  But I guess, this will be the last year that he'll get the same design, because we already got the biggest size for this SKU.  His feet grow big really fast!

Take a closer look at the stitches of this shoes.  It's double-stitched and the rubber used for the sole is the non-slippery but really thick one.  I'm so glad I saw this shoes back when he was in grade one and he's had happy feet in school ever since. :) Oh this quality shoes is P1,200+ only.

School Uniform.
Nelson is the brand of choice when it comes to school uniforms.  I used to look for them in Divisoria and each time I wanted to buy him Nelsons there (it's cheaper in Divisoria) they're already out of stock.  They say that the sewers of Nelson are the original but really old ones.  So whatever production they have, they just distribute it to SM branches and the quantity left, are sold in stalls in Divisoria.  They don't over-produce because they say the sewers get tired easily.  That's what I was told. :)

I bought him five polos, last time I bought was when he was in grade 2.  He has grown so big since that time.  As for the pants, I bought him three for now.  The polo costs P229.00 each while the bottoms were at P349.00 each.

Undergarments.
I always buy him this brand because of quality, durability and comfort.  No need to expound. Each pack of three, costs P320 each.

Socks and other Accessories.
The socks were on sale as well as this canvass wallet with chain.   Not shown in the picture is his ala-Aviator Sunglasses.  Pumoporma na si Kuya! :)

So there you have it my back-to-school shopping where I scored huge discounts and got myself great deals! How about you?  Did you find any exciting deal like I did during your back-to-school shopping?