A Family Affair: Today We Went To The Grand Baby Fair!

At 39 weeks and 2 days, 1cm dilated, and with some mild contractions, fortunately I still managed to visit Baby Company's Grand Baby Fair today at SM Megamall with Hubby, Lady M and our household helper before heading to my weekly check up appointment with my OB late in the afternoon.

The Registration is free and you are not required to purchase anything, so if you have spare time tomorrow until Sunday, you can drop by there and join the activities at the activity area since they have talks like breastfeeding, baby care, etc., and fun activities for toddlers and kids. And if ever you got thirsty they have free water stations too, sponsored by Wilkins, scattered around the hall. Here's the program line up(you may click the images to enlarge them):

Most of the items there are discounted from 20-50% off, a few 70%, so it's really worth it if you haven't yet started shopping stuffs for your baby.

Here's a list of the participating brands(good luck to my memory, I should've took some pics of the booths or at least jot them down, well that's a lesson learned today ^_^):

- Ai-Non
- Avent
- Baby Company
- Bebeta
- Bright Starts
- Canadian (pillows and beddings)
- Canon
- Ceelin
- Charlie Banana
- Chicco
- Cradle (baby bottle and nipple cleanser)
- CryoCord (a stem cells bank for infants)
- Disney
- Dr. Browns
- Enfant
- EQ Dry
- Farlin
- Fisher Price
- Goldilocks (discounted party cakes)
- Graco
- Gymboree
- Huggies
- Johnson & Johnson
- Lactacyd
- Lassig
- Mac Laren
- Mamaway
- Mamy Poko
- Medela
- Mimiflo
- Mommy Matters
- Next9 (cloth diapers)
- Nivea
- Nuby
- Pampers
- Pigeon
- Playtex
- Quilted Giraffe
- Safety First
- SansFluo
- TinyBuds
- Wet N Wild Cosmetics
- Wilkins

That's a pretty long list right? Good thing I was able to get some brochures from the booths I visited, so I don't really have to rely mostly in this pregnant memory of mine.

After strolling around, checking my list, canvassing prices and comparing quality, I end up with these stuffs:

And while I was doing my shopping, Lady M was also having fun at the activity area.

The good thing is, aside from the discounted items, they are also giving you a swag bag and a free Mom Card if you purchase at least Php2,000.00.

These are the contents of my swag bag that's a lot of freebies right?

So if you're thinking of spending the rest of the week with your kids and family try to drop by there at SM Megamall, who knows, you might learn something new from the talks they are giving or you might even find stuffs worthy to be bought at discounted prices.

Sources:
* program line up images from Baby Company Facebook page.

Giving Birth at SLMC: The Maternity Packages, Estimated Costs and Room Rates

As promised, today I'm going to write about the Maternity Package we availed at St. Luke's Medical Center-Global City.

For NSD here's the sample agreement:

----------------------------

NORMAL SPONTANEOUS DELIVERY (NSD) PACKAGE AGREEMENT

This Maternity Care Package is designed for those who have had previously uncomplicated delivery. 

1. INCLUSIONS
    a) Use of Labor Room for 24 hours
    b) Delivery Room services:
        - Surgical and Medical Supplies
        - Equipment
            = Fetal Monitor
            = Doppler
            = Pulse Oximeter
        - Anaesthesia service (Epidural)
    c) Post-operative care
        - Use of recovery room
    d) Room and Board accommodation for two (2) days
        - Room type
            = 4-bed Standard Room
            = 2-bed Standard Room
        - Admission kit
        - Nursery kit ( includes blanket, mittens, socks, bonnet)
        - Standard nursing service
        * Newborns are roomed-in with the mother.
    e) Post-delivery medicines and medical supplies
        - Antibiotic Medicines
        - Analgesic Medicine (pain reliever)
    f) Medicines and medical supplies for the baby including vaccines such as:
          -  Vitamin K
        - BCG
        - Hepatitis B
        - Eye ointment
    g) Ancillary services for the baby such as:
        - Newborn screening
        - Hearing test ( Otoacoustic Emission)
    h) Professional Fees
        - Obstetrician
        - Anaesthesiologist
        - Pediatrician

2. PACKAGE RATES
    a) 4-bed Standard (2 days) ............................ Php 56,000.00
    b) 2-bed Standard (2 days) ............................ Php 58,000.00

Note: The above package rate must be paid before expected delivery date and at least thirty six (36) weeks into pregnancy.

----------------------------

For CS here's the sample agreement:

----------------------------

CESAREAN SECTION DELIVERY (CSD) PACKAGE AGREEMENT

This Maternity We Care Medical Package is designed for uncomplicated repeat Cesarean Section Delivery (CSD) and uncomplicated primary CSD.

INCLUSIONS 

Use of delivery room

Surgical and Medical Supplies

Equipment

- Infusion pump

- Cardiac monitor

- Fetal monitor

- Doppler

- Pipeline suction

- Spinal set

Anaesthesia Service and Supplies

Standard medical supplies for CSD

Post-operative care

Use of recovery room

Room and Board accommodation for four (4) days

Room type (please tick one)

□ 4-Bed Standard Room

□ 2-Bed Standard Room

Admission Kit

Nursery Kit (includes blanket, mittens, socks, bonnet)

Standard nursing service

Note: Newborns are roomed-in with the mother.       

Post-delivery medicines and medical supplies

Antibiotic Medicines

Analgesic Medicine (pain reliever)

Medicines and medical supplies for the baby including vaccines such as:

Vitamin K

BCG

Hepatitis B

Eye ointment

 

Ancillary services for the baby such as:

Newborn screening

Hearing test (Otoacoustic Emission)

Professional Fees

Obstetrician

Anaesthesiologist

Pediatrician

PACKAGE RATES

                 □ 4-Bed Standard (4 Days)……………………..Php 94,000.

                 □ 2-Bed Standard (4 Days)……………………..Php 98,000.

Note: The above package rate must be paid before expected delivery date and at least thirty six (36) weeks into pregnancy

----------------------------

For Payment Scheme, Refund Policy, Exclusions and PhilHealth see the images below(you may click the images to enlarge them):

Now for those who want to use a private room, of course you can't avail the packages if that's your choice, for uncomplicated NSD and CS deliveries the estimated costs would be as follows(this is a part of an email I received from SLMC Customer Relations as of June 02, 2011 so you better call SLMC or email them for updated rates):

NSD = Php40,000-Php75,000.00(2-3 days hospitalization)
CS   = Php70,000-Php100,000.00(4-5 days hospitalization)

These rates includes: approximate delivery, recovery, and nursery room charges, basic medicines and supplies used in the delivery room and room charges for a Regular Private Room.

As professional fees (OB-Gyne, Pedia, Anesthesiologist) vary, it would be best to discuss this directly with your attending physician.

Roughly, for NSD, the OB-Gyne will charge anywhere from 25-50 thousand pesos depending on the circumstances. The Anesthesiologist will charge around 40% of the OB's bill and the Pediatrician will charge around 5-10 thousand. For CS, the OB will charge around 70-120 thousand, the Anesthesiologist will charge around 40% of the OB's bill, and the Pedia charges around 10-20 thousand.

Here are some of the possible rooms you can avail from SLMC-GC:

Room Rates and Amenities as of January 1, 2012

Here are some of the rooms available at the 8th Floor (Maternity Unit):

Regular Private

Regular Private rooms has:

• 4ft refrigerator
• wall mounted flat screen TV
• daybed
• overbed table
• patient controlled bed
• wall mounted BP apparatus
• bedside table
• telephone
• closet
• safety deposit box

Regular Private Room (Php3,500.00)

Toilet and Bath is clean and pretty spacious for me (my wild guest it's around 6'x8'), with cold and hot water, non-skid mat, bidet sprayer.

Regular Private Room - T&B

Deluxe Private

This is the cheapest birthing room in SLMC-GC. Amenities here are much like the Regular Private room except that it's bigger and fancier and it has a pantry area, a couple of chairs, birthing equipments, and an infant radiant warmer (lower right-hand side pic beside the patient bed).

Birthing Room: Deluxe Private (Php8,000.00)

Birthing Room: Deluxe Private - T&B

Executive Private

This birthing room is a bit bigger (and fancier ^_^) than the Deluxe Private. I forgot if this one has a microwave oven provided in the pantry but surely this room has a Lazy Boy chair. The room's window overlooks a Chinese Garden.

Birthing Room: Executive Private (Php9,000.00)

Deluxe Suite



This is the biggest of the birthing rooms available in SLMC-GC. The pantry and receiving area are separated from the patient's room. This has a microwave oven, a refrigerator, a flat screen TV and a set of desktop computer (I wasn't able to take a pic of the PC but it's located inside the patient's room). The best thing in this room is that the T&B is spacious and it has a birthing pool (which is very useful for those who prefer natural childbirth). The window at the patient's room overlooks a Chinese Garden.

Birthing Room: Deluxe Suite (Php12,000.00)

At the 8th floor Maternity Unit there is also a common pantry, located near the Nurse Station, where there's a microwave oven and a hot/cold water dispenser.

l

St. Luke's We Care Medical Packages

Starting last year, 20th of July, maternity packages are already available at St. Luke's Medical Center (Quezon City/Global City).

We're planning to avail SLMC's maternity package for Normal Spontaneous Delivery so keep posted, I'll be writing an entry about the package's inclusions and other details this coming week. (That's if Baby won't decide to make an early checkout, I would probably be too busy by then.)

Sources:

* image from St. Luke's Medical Center website.

Baby and Me Club Expectant Parent Event

Mothercare is inviting all expectant parents to come and join the Baby & Me Club Event on January 28, 2012 (Saturday, 3:00pm-6:00pm) at Mothercare Active Fun Global, Bonifacio High Street.

To register, please click this link http://www.tfaforms.com/230337

Please note that only the first 100 registrants will be accommodated.

For more info visit Mothercare Philippines.

 

Sources:

* image from Mothercare Philippines Facebook page. 

Best Friends in Breastfeeding by La Leche League International

WHAT:  Best Friends in Breastfeeding by La Leche League International
WHEN:  11:00am-12:30pm, January 21, 2012 - Saturday
WHERE: Mothercare Active Fun, Bonifacio High Street

Note: No registration needed. For more info visit Mothercare Philippines.

Sources:
* image from La Leche League Manila Facebook page.

Mothercare End of Season Sale

Mothercare's End of Season Sale is currently ongoing!!!

Visit your favorite Mothercare store!

Sale is only until supplies last.

Special offer on Mothercare pushchairs and IQ Air is only until January 31, 2012.

Sources:

* image from Mothercare Philippines Facebook page.

Baby Company's Grand Baby Fair-Year II

WHAT:  Grand Baby Fair-Year II by Baby Company

WHEN:  Jan 27-29, 2012

WHERE: SM Megamall, Megatrade Halls 2 & 3

Up to 70% off on selected items.

With over 100 exhibitors, new products, learning sessions with celebrity moms, exclusive offers, and free gifts and raffle prizes.

Sources:

* image from Baby Company Facebook page.

Pregnancy And Motherhood Prayers

I'm not pretty well today since I have a mild dry cough but nevertheless I'm grateful to God since this day marks my 37th week. I can give birth anytime and Baby will be considered full term already! Now, my prayer will be for a safe delivery!

The following prayer is the Pregnancy Prayer I've been using since my first baby. I got the lines from A Prayer to St. Gerard For Safe Delivery, Prayer For A Safe Pregnancy and another prayer which I've lost track. (I do hope someone will remind me someday.)

My Lord and My God, Giver of life, I praise and thank You for the child in my womb. You have willed it to happen that I bear this child and so mercifully grant your help and protection until You have finished the work You have begun.

This life you have given us is so tiny, fragile, and vulnerable,
safe in the womb of flesh and hope, yet subject to danger and death.
O God of love, creator of life, hear our prayer.
We want this baby so much.
Please grant this child of ours a full term of nurture,
the joy and mystery of life, and the blessing of your love.

With humility and trust, I am manifesting all my needs to You.
Preserve me from danger and from the excessive pains accompanying childbirth, and shield the child which I now carry, that she may see the light of day and receive the purifying and life-giving waters of baptism through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Grant us the fulfillment of our dreams,
a baby to cherish and protect,
a child to teach and guide,
a blessing to our family.
Amen.

Then I encountered these prayers today:

Prayer to Our Lady of La Leche for Motherhood

Lovely Lady of La Leche, most loving mother of the Child Jesus, and my mother, listen to my humble prayer. Your motherly heart knows my every wish, my every need. To you only, His spotless Virgin Mother, has your Divine Son given to understand the sentiments which fill my soul. Yours was the sacred privilege of being the Mother of the Savior. Intercede with him now, my loving Mother, that, in accordance with His will, I may become the mother of other children of our heavenly Father. This I ask, O Lady of La Leche, in the Name of your Divine Son, My Lord and Redeemer. Amen.

Prayer to Our Lady of La Leche during Pregnancy

O Lord Jesus Christ, through the intercession of Your tender Mother, Our Lady of La Leche, who bore You close to her heart during those long months before Your birth, I place my baby and myself entirely in Your Hands. Free me, I beseech You, from useless and consuming worry. Accept the sacrifice of my aches and pains, which I unite to Your sufferings on the Cross. Above all, most merciful and loving Jesus, protect this child You have given to me from all harm, bestowing the health and vigor every baby needs. Implant in my heart and on my lips the words and prayers of Your Mother and mine, our Lovely Lady of La Leche. All this I ask that my child and I may live to praise forever Your Holy Name. Amen.

Sources:
- Mission and Shrine website.
- Baby and Bump website.
* image from Mission and Shrine website.

Our Church Wedding Anniversary

I won't be writing much today. Since Hubby is still abroad, I guess I'll be attending mass alone. (Or maybe with Lady M.)

This is my prayer today, I got it from a prayer book, Canticles of the Heart, given by my Aunt. 

O God, I thank You that You have given us another year of life together.

I thank You for the love which grows more precious
    and for the bonds which grows more close each day.
I thank You for the happiness we have known together,
    for the sorrow we have faced together.
I ask Your forgiveness for any disloyalty on my part;
    for any lack of sympathy and of understanding,;
    for anything which spoiled even for a moment 

    the perfect relationship which marriage should be.
Give us the grace to walk the way of life together.

Through Jesus Christ my Lord.

Amen.

P.S. The pictures inset is the card and flower I received from Hubby today after attending mass.

Shopping Unisex Baby Stuffs!

I was scheduled for my monthly check up today so I decided to leave the house early to do some shopping. My plan was to drop by at Dimensione Building. I saw an ad at Mothercare Philippines' FB account that they are having the The Great Lifestyle Sale.

Here are some pics I took when I went there:

Most of the stuffs there for babies are in blue or pink (we decided not to know Baby's gender), so I end up with only this:

3 pairs baby ankle socks from Mothercare at Php150.00

The socks is 80% cotton, 19% nylon, 1% Lycra® Elastane. I bet they had more baby stuffs there last December 24, and a lot of people too! (Which is not a good idea, with the size of my tummy right now, I have no plans of queuing in a very long line of shoppers.)

I decided then to visit Mothercare, which is just across Dimensione Building, and finally bought this one for Baby's going home outfit:

4 piece set from Mothercare at Php1,099.00

This 4 piece set is 100% cotton. What I love with the sleepsuit is that it has a pocket at the end of the sleeve that converts it into a built-in scratch mitts.

By the way, Mothercare-BHS is having an ongoing sale too, you might want to visit there and check out some stuffs on sale or visit their FB account, Mothercare Philippines.

Then I went to Metro-Market!Market! and bought these stuffs:

29"x27" white hooded towel-blanket from Baby Bell at Php199.00
29.5"x28" pastel yellow flannel hooded blanket from BeBe by SO-EN at Php224.75

feeding set from Avent at Php1,800.00 (discounted price)

The white hooded towel-blanket is a bit thin though, but I bough it anyway since I find the bear cute (I'm a woman afterall *(^_^)* ) while the pastel yellow hooded blanket is 60% cotton, 40% polyester. 

Now, about the feeding set, I decided to buy storage cups instead of bottles since I think I can use this to store breast milk and feed Baby from it using the Adaptor that comes with it (the box includes 10pcs 6oz cups with individual Adaptor and leak-proof twist-on lid). And then later I can use the cups to store baby foods. (Lady M is using her cups in storing biscuits, mallows, etc. I received the cups as freebies when I attended MOM 101 and I find it useful.) Good thing this set comes with 2 teat travel pack and 2 new born silicone teat. If this is effective, I guess I have to buy another set of teat travel pack and silicone teats, if not, then I have to buy baby bottles.

Last Wednesday, I went to SM SouthMall and I got these stuffs:

30"x28" white hooded blanket from new baby at Php289.75
bodysuit from new baby at Php309.75
3 piece set (hat, booties, scratch mitts) from new baby at Php299.75

bodysuit from basics by SM at Php100.00 (discounted price)
3 pairs scratch mitts at Php50.00 (promo price)

With this purchase, I realized that the 3 piece set is not a good buy at all. First, it's pricey. Second, the bodysuit comes with a hood and booties, so match-wise I don't need it. Oh well, another lesson learned.

Now, one thing I'm grateful about is that Lady M got a lot of unisex baby clothing given by her Ninang and a relative, and most of them are unused or used but still looks like new. So I guess we can save in buying baby stuffs this time.

Sources:

* unwatermarked images from Mothercare Philippines Facebook page.

Blowing Bubbles and Paper Horns

Within four days Lady M got her two milestones during the holiday season.

In my previous entry, I posted there that she received gifts from our neighbors and one of it is a set of two bubble tubes.

 She was so eager to try it herself when she saw me blowing bubbles so I let her play with it. She was a bit upset with her first try since she generally suck the air instead of blowing (ha-ha! I guess that's a habit from the sippy cup and straw cup). So I showed it to her one more time and she somehow get the idea. She tried again, this time she's blowing air but not that strong enough to create bubbles, which makes her more upset and she's about to cry. I told her to blow again, and again, and again, and she complied though agitated. At last, she was able to create a few bubbles (ooh! that big smile in her face and some giggles). A few more practice and she finally get the hang of it (yippee! \*^_^*/).

And then yesterday, my cousin fetched us because we're spending, again, the new year at my Aunt's house. He brought with him a couple of paper horns which makes Lady M interested with it because of the sound it makes. She tried it and just like blowing bubbles she suck the air. And again she was upset and all because her Kuya is making sounds with the paper horn while she's not making any (she easily gets upset, so I have to encourage her to try it again, and again, and remind her to blow not suck). After a few more tries she made her first sound and she was really, really happy with it.

Seeing Lady M smiling and giggling with these milestones reminds me of the times I'm achieving my own successes as well, even as simple as running a program successfully without encountering an error or cooking/baking/making something for the first time with a good result. I'm so thankful that God grant me the opportunity of witnessing most of her milestones, if not all. \*^_^*/

A blessed new year to all of you guys!

Happy Feast Day of the Solemnity of Mary Mother of God!

 Wishing you all a 2012 full of blessings from above!