Mommy Pehpot, Author at Mommy Pehpot

Holiday Trade Show 2011 (Richwell and Europlay)

Last July, I got an invite from Richwell for their Holiday Trade Show 2011, no idea what it was but since I love most Richwell exported toys, I just said yes. Come August 17 and my day was packed. My initial plan of a quick visit turned into an afternoon of fun with Levy of Living Life to the Fullest and Karen from Richwell. It”s in WackWack Country Golf Club and just imagine the whole club house filled with Barbie, Hot Wheels, Cars, toys, toys and toys. This was actually their showcase of their Holiday toys collection, merchandisers are welcome so that they could choose the toys they will sell this coming Holiday. OK I have no idea how it goes, but for sure you don’t want details on that right? So let’s get on with the fun fun fun part.

Err, that’s just us having fun. OK so here is the real FUN for all of you..

This is the Barbie Collector for 2011, Barbie Basics in jeans (12 collections), Holiday Barbie 2011 and Barbie The Museum Collection featuring Vincent Van Gogh, Gustav Klimt and Leonardo da Vinci.

Barbie dolls, accessories, Barbie make up 9safe for 3 years old and above) and even Barbie Adult shoes.

Cars 2, Hotwheels with its newest collection (right side photo), Bakugan perfect gifts for the boys.. and I will definitely buy the Hot Wheels wall track. Moon Dough (not your ordinary dough.. it is super soft!), Dora and Thomas and of course Mega Blocks! And look, Smurfs!

Items for the babies, Fisher-Price toys and Chicco feeding necessities.

Most of the items displayed will be available this coming Holiday.. now Mommies, start creating yuor checklist and get ready for some Toy shopping this coming Christmas.. It’s never too early to plan right? as for me and for the boys, this is what I promised them:

That’s a Hot Wheels track that can be attached on the wall.. I really love Hot Wheels cars and we have more than a hundred of it and I wish I can buy as much race track as I can but we lack space.. the dilemma of where to put the tracks stopped me from buying race tracks.. but this track.. ohh it solves any space problem we have!

Pasig City Ordinance Banning The Use Of Plastic

sadly, all the supermarkets near us don’t sell blueberry preserve… just when we were both (me an Nina) craving for No Bake Blueberry Cheesecake… so yesterday I asked hubby to drive us (with Sati and Chico) to SM Hypermarket at Pasig. Just as expected, I found our supplies there along with other goodies that’s hard to find. I only bought one ecobag with me since I only planned on buying the ingredients I needed for our cheesecake. We end up buying more than what we should and was really worried on where to place it without having to use plastic.. Then I noticed, SM Hypermarket is actually following the Pasig City Ordinance on Plastic use.

Pasig City Ordinance Banning The Use Of Plastic

“An Ordinance banning the use of plastic/ styrofoam.”

We got 2 brown paper bags and one ecobag and a Holywood inspired scene:

That’s one of the most used scene on Hollywood movies and foreign TV series right? A mom carrying a brown paper bag with some parts of the veggies sticking out. cute di ba? hehe

Seriously, the use of brown paper bag is also damaging to the environment as production of papers need tree, the only good thing about it is, it is biodegradable and can be recycled to make into another paper.

But I wish supermarkets, specially SM, will encourage their shoppers to bring their own bags. Offering discounts does not seem to be that effective… for me, offering a freebie every time they shop with their own bag might be more encouraging.

Say, for a minimum purchase of 500 PhP, put your grocery on your own bag and get a chance to pick a prize. Prizes can range from pens and other small items that won’t hurt the pocket of the company. They can even use promotional items, pens with their logo on it, cheap mugs or even umbrellas for premium items.

The Dengue Paranoia

oh let me rephrase that, the Dengue Epidemia.

Dengue has been on the news for the past few weeks. August and September are months where Dengue cases rise. As of date (heard from the news), there are already 40,000 cases of dengue for this year, 10,00 of which coming from Metro Manila and the saddest part, almost 300 cases led to death.

Early this year, we lost a love one because of it. My husband’s nephew. Just like any dengue story, the child got fever and on the third day, he was admitted to the hospital. He got a stronger type of dengue and few days the infection got his brain, a few more days and he’s gone. It was one of the most difficult time in the family. It’s the first time that it happened and from a disease that is curable.

I cannot say what happened during those times but I can say that knowledge can be one of the best armor against this disease.

Dengue is a disease that can lead to death BUT it can be cured. It has 4 strains so a person who experienced it, can experience it again.. and can happen 4times. Don’t be afraid though, as mentioned, Dengue can be cured.. but we need to know how and what to do in order to fight Dengue.

This disease, as we all know are transferred through mosquito bites. There is a type of mosquito that carries the dengue virus. And when a dengue carrier mosquito bites a dengue infected person, and sucks a blood from the person, then bites another person, that’s when the virus is carried. I know we have to very vigilant about dengue but to save us from paranoia, keep in mind that, if there is no dengue case in your area, it is very little that a dengue virus is being carried out by mosquitoes on your area.

But if there is a dengue case in your area, you have to be very cautious and of course be very observant with the condition of your kids.

What are the symptoms of Dengue?

consistent fever
vomiting
diarrhea
bleeding of the gums
stomach pain and muscle pain

We don’t have to wait for the symptoms, do we? as far as I know or based on reports, there are cases where in when the virus is detected, it is too late to be cured..and I know all of us do not want to hear the term, too late..

So what must we do?

For one, when your child has a fever, make sure that you will only give them doctor recommend medicine, stick with paracetamol such as Biogesic as this is safe for dengue fever. Some meds for fever can actually worsen the case (like Ibufropen or those that targets inflammation).

Water. Water. Water. This will be your cheapest ally. That is why people use Tawa Tawa to treat dengue.

Dengue NS1 or NS1 antigen test (Platelia Dengue NS1 Ag assay) is a test that can detect dengue virus on the first day of fever until 3-5 days. It’s pricey but, we cannot put a price tag on our kid’s safety right? So when you are suspecting dengue, go to your nearest hospital and asked about NS1.

Always remember that this kind of virus targets our immune system so the best way to fight it is to strengthen our immune system. And during this time where dengue is very rampant, increase your vitamin c intake specially with your kids. Other things that we can do to prevent dengue:

Dark colored clothing attracts mosquitoes while light colored tend to blind them. As much as possible, put your kids on white pjs.
Clean your place, dark and messy corners are mosquitoes favorite hiding place and they breed lay eggs on water.
Use insect repellent, use citronella oils or Mosquito patches.

As a mother, seeing the news with parents losing their child due to dengue breaks my heart. And I want to educate people about dengue, because I know, with proper education, we can battle this disease.