Let’s say your friend’s baby shower party is almost here and you’re still thinking about what to give. Well, I didn’t have this dilemma because I was the one expecting a child and my friends organized the party for me. 
Here are some suggestions from a second-time Mom:
Baby pillows, blankets, and beddings
Diaper cakes (yes, they’re not only practical but cute as well)
Baby bath products
Terry washcloths, cotton towels, and burp pads
Car seat
Bob stroller
Baby hats, gloves, socks and booties
Baby books and educational toys
There you go! Just take your pick and choose something that’s creatively designed and baby-friendly. Hmmm… anything else to add to the list?
After many unsuccessful clothing purchases, I almost gave up on online shopping. Most of them were too big for me, others just don’t fit me well. Sigh…if only international shipping isn’t expensive! Sadly, I didn’t have any other option but to give it one more try because I really can’t find any maternity jeans here in Prague that will fit me. Petite pregnant women who are in the US are fortunate coz they have many choices when it comes to small-sized maternity clothing.
Anyway, I got hold of my order from last month yesterday and I was very, very happy coz it fits me to a tee! I should have bought plenty but well, I didn’t want to take the risk since I wasn’t sure yet if it’s right for me. But now that I already know what’s the exact size that fits me from this store, I can always add more later.
After many tries and errors, I can say thanks to online shopping! From clothing to industrial supplies , electronics to baby stuff, and everything else, you can find whatever it is you’re looking for (as long as you know how to search).
Little C’s Czech made kiddie table and chairs finally arrived last week. I had already lost hope of ever receiving it coz of the loooong wait (was it two months or more?) but just when I least expected it, it came. Great!
The only consolation there was that it was a cash-on-delivery (COD) transaction. We got a delivery receipt printed in advance from a receipt printer after paying. If they didn’t send the product, we don’t lose anything. But even when we didn’t pay beforehand, waiting for it was frustrating. M had to call them many times to follow-up our order and being such a busy man, it ate up a whole lot of his precious time. Anyway, all the disappointments vanished as soon as we opened the package and saw how happy little C was.
The little girl with her cute kiddie furniture…
We ordered online a set of animal-designed kiddie table and chairs for little C more than 2 weeks ago. The color that we chose unfortunately ran out of stock that’s why the delivery was delayed but hopefully this week it will be here. I’m already excited for the little girl! We make do with her plastic toy box as her table and her pink piggy stool as chair for some time; it’s about time she has a proper furniture set where she can sit, color, write and do other creative activities. I’m sure she will be thrilled coz whenever she sees chairs and table in play areas or in her doctor’s clinic, she would immediately sit on one of the chairs.
Little C coloring the monkey on her make-shift working table.
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Read information about mesothelioma, its symptoms, diagnosis and treatment.
After a long deprivation from TV viewing, I was able to watch several TV shows while I was in the Philippines. Guess what? I enjoyed watching the commercials more because it was first time to see them unlike regular viewers who see these ads on a daily basis, almost every hour, over and over. Even little C has her own favorite commercials too. I like short and funny ads, those that keep my senses awake, just like those famous ad clips of Howie Mandel for buy.com in YouTube. In very short videos, he’s able to deliver the message of the commercial clearly; how fast and easy shopping with buy.com is. It’s what every customer wants in a service - fast and reliable. Click on Sale to see a sample of his commercial.
Yay! What else can I say? I know I have been neglecting this blog, I’ve been busy with gift shopping just like everyone else. Oh yes! With more than 15 family members to prepare gifts for, the task of choosing what gifts to give them (men, women, adults and kids) was really time-consuming and tiring. There is not a day in a week that my sis and I aren’t in the mall.
Ooooohh how time flies! My brother and his wife from Thailand arrived tonight in Manila and will stay there till the 20th. Tomorrow my sister and her family from Finland will be arriving already! But they’ll only be here for a day coz the next day, they will go to Boracay. But it’s okay, they’ll be back anyway after 3-4 days. I’m not sure how long is their vacation in the famous beach.
And talking about how time flies, M is celebrating his birthday today, again! hehehe Happy birthday hon. Even if little C and I aren’t there to celebrate with you your special day, you know how much we love and miss you!
I’m almost done with my Christmas shopping! Whew! As always, it was a brain-racking experience thinking what gifts to give to my loved ones. Do you have a better way to solve this dilemma? I know one, and that is to ask the recipient what gift he or she desires. It’s ideal coz you really know that the recipient will love the gift you gave. The downside about this though is that it eliminates the element of surprise.
Another practical way is to give gifts that are useful such as a watch. Everybody needs a watch and even if he or she already owns one, an extra timepiece is always appreciated. Seiko Watches being one of the most famous brands in timepieces is a great gift for your loved ones. The company has been creating quality, stylish yet affordable watches for over 100 years already making them one of the trusted brands in the industry. You can’t go wrong with this kind of gift. There goes my two cents on Christmas shopping for gifts!
More than a month ago, I wrote about the broken leg of my eyeglasses, thanks to my litte C. It was temporarily fixed by M so until now I don’t feel the urgent need yet to get a replacement. I decided I’ll use it as much as I can to at least compensate the amount I paid for it. Getting the same kind of eyeglasses here in Europe will be quite expensive.
But I might consider ordering online coz there’s this cheap eyeglasses store that I’ve been reading much about lately. I bet you’ve heard about it too. Does Zenni Optical sounds familiar to you? It‘s an online retailer of affordable eyeglasses. Imagine a simple pair starting at $8? I checked how much my kind of eyeglasses would cost, and I was surprised it was really very cheap at only $39!
How can they sell eyeglasses that cheap? I found out that they sell directly from their own manufacturer to customers hence lessening the cost coz there are no middlemen involved. They also don’t spend too much on advertisement. With their very cheap price, I can even order maybe 2 pairs and still pay less than what I would have to pay in my favorite optical shop for 1 pair.
If only they have an online eye check-up, it would be great to know how much my eye grade is now, before ordering eyeglasses.
Do you know that sitting for long period especially during travel (long flights or road trip) can be harmful to your legs? Blood clotting can develop in the legs when the muscles are inactive throughout the trip. Leg muscles are responsible for helping the blood flow back to your heart and without any leg movements; the blood circulation slows down thus developing into blood clots. This condition is what they call the Travel Thrombosis, Economy Class Syndrome and Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT).
This can be prevented by wearing Travel Socks by Kendall that are specially designed to provide circulation and reduce leg swelling. In fact, hospitals have been using Kendall Travel Socks in their patients to prevent DVT.
The next time you take a long trip be sure to stretch your legs for blood to circulate properly or better yet, wear Travel Socks. It can save your life!
The Strahov Church
One Sunday morning after attending the Mass in The Basilica of Assumption of Our Lady (Strahov Church), we went behind the building to see the scenic view of Prague. Strahov is nestled in an elevated part where you can visibly see the city of Prague and its beautiful skyline and also most of its famous buildings and attractions.
As soon as we entered the viewing deck, we were drawn to the paintings displayed beside the entrance. There were paintings of Prague’s landmarks in various media but the combination of watercolor and lithography pieces were what we liked the most. We started a little chat with the vendor who turned out to be the artist of some of the artworks being sold. Unluckily for him, what we chose and bought wasn’t his work but that of his friend. He asked where we are from, etc. etc… and the conversation lasted long.
Anyway, for 6 Euros apiece, we bought three. I casually haggled if he can give the three for only 15 Euros to which he immediately agreed to. “For the Philippines!” he smilingly said, much to my delight. I wasn’t expecting that. I thought haggling in Europe wouldn’t work! But then I told myself that it wasn’t such a big amount anyway.
3 for 15 Euros only! Images of The Tyn Church, St. Nicolas and the Charles Bridge tower
We thanked him, asked him to pose for a photo op and bade him goodbye. Only later did I realize that 6 x 3 is equal to 18 Euros, not 16. All along I thought I only got a discount of 1 Euro! Hahaha. So the lesson for the day? Sometimes being silly can work for your own benefit!
Double thumbs up for this guy for giving me a big discount! Geeeez!
The guy and his paintings.
The Strahov Church photo was taken from this site.
