Getting A Convertible Car Seat For Your Baby

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The safety of a child is important; therefore, one of the first essentials you will need to have to ensure that your baby is safe in a car is a car seat. From the first day, a child is driven home from the hospital till the 10th birthday or thereabouts, a car seat is a must.

Apart from being one of the first to be purchased, it is also one of those reliable products you will depend on for several years. With that in mind, getting a well-designed and durable car seat that will last through the years is not a bad idea. It is impressive to know that car seats come with a seat belt buckle holder to ensure that your baby is properly strapped to the seat.

Deciding on the brand to buy is usually a herculean task with so many manufacturers and models on the market. Here are factors you need to consider to assist you in making the right decision on the convertible car seat for your little one.

●     Price

The first thing many people look at before making any purchase is the price. You will have to see what you can afford before you even think of buying. When it comes to car seats, the more the features, the higher the price. This means that if your budget is low, you may have to consider only the features you really need and overlook some others.

●     Longevity

It is a no-brainer that buying a convertible car seat that will serve you through the years is better. Therefore, while you may want to go for something cheap, you have to consider its durability. Buying a car seat that will not last means, you are planning on buying another one in the future, and that means spending more than expected. Plan to make a good investment in purchasing a car seat as it is worth every dime.

You can decide to go for either a new or used model.  You can get used car seats through particular online auction house websites and real-life garage sales. However, the challenges that come with buying a used car seat is that you have no idea if it was involved in an accident in the past or if the stitching, padding, and straps are still in place.

●     Removable Padding

Kids will always be kids and so are bound to mess up the seats. We recommend you get a car seat that allows you to conveniently remove the padding, wash it and put it back so that the seats can be kept neat at all times.

●     Weight

Car seats weight between 12 - 30 pounds; if you want a car seat that will be installed permanently, then you may go for something heavy. Else, it is advisable to go with a not-so-heavy car seat for ease of moving it around. So, it’s up to you.

What are you waiting for? Go get your convertible car seats!

Top 5 Things I Liked From Golden Phoenix Hotel in Pasay City

Whenever I search for a hotel, I always make sure it's near a mall or a convenience store so that whenever we need to buy something or when someone's hungry and wanted to go out, the mall is just within walking distance to the hotel. One hotel that captured my interest is Golden Phoenix Hotel in Pasay City and my primary reason is that it's a hotel very near SM Mall of Asia.

In my previous post, I shared my experience in staying in a condo in Pasay City near Mall of Asia. This time, I wanted to stay in a hotel because I believe hotel amenities is still better than staying in a condo unit based on experience. 

The Atrium Lounge at the Century Park Hotel Manila

During our 3D2N stay at the Century Park Hotel, we went to the Atrium Lounge to claim our free welcome drinks provided by the hotel when we checked in. They said we can claim it whenever we want so we claimed it on the 2nd day. 

The Fambam at the Atrium Lounge, Century Park Hotel Manila

Our Easter Party Experience at The Century Park Hotel

I have been reading stories of other families spending their Easter in a hotel here and there, and how the kids had a great time in Easter parties. I said to myself that I want to experience that just once with my family, so I needed to set aside a budget for it. Nowadays, it's important to save by setting aside a certain budget for travel or investing like timeshares, etc. Although timeshares can be tricky, Resort Release helps people deal with timeshare issues.

So just to give you an idea on what we do on Easter every year, we always spend our Easter Sunday in our village where there is a simple egg hunting activity and a simple program where there's games and prizes given by fellow residents to be won. We've been attending this event for 4 years straight since last year. Most of the time, we go home empty-handed from prizes except for a few chips, candies, and an ice cream as part of the loot giveaway. 

This year, on the other hand, I decided that we try to spend our Easter Sunday in a hotel that offers an Easter Party. We were supposed to go to Manila Pavilion, but due to the tragic fire, we decided to spend our Easter at Century Park Hotel. This is our first Easter Party in a hotel so I don't have many expectations, but I was hoping to get more loot than our usual Easter party. 

One Easter Superheroes ticket cost P1,350 good for 1 adult and 1 kid. I bought 2. 

Upon seeing the ticket, you already get clues on what's in store for you in the party which is quite exciting. On the left side, there's a loot bag stub and two food stubs. On the right, there's a raffle coupon for you to fill out your details. 

2018 Pyromusical Experience in S Maison

It was the end of the school year and we decided to end it with a bang! So yesterday, we went to see the 9th Pyromusical Olympics that was held every year in SM By the Bay at the Mall of Asia, but we decided to try viewing it along the veranda at S Maison in Conrad Hotel that's located just across the bay (near the MOA Eye). It's our first time to go to S Maison, but I've heard it's a nice place to view the fireworks so we decided to venture into it. 

What made us choose S Maison to view the fireworks instead of Mall of Asia is simply because the restaurants there accept table reservations via phone even without any downpayment, and they're quite easy to talk to. Veranda restaurants in Mall of Asia require a downpayment to be paid to the store before the event date which is quite a hassle for us. 

Our restaurant of choice was Harry's Cafe de Wheels, an Australian restaurant where they serve meat pies, burgers, hotdogs, waffles, and a lot more. I simply thought my kids would like their menu better than other high-end restaurants has to offer. 

Dinosaurs Around the World Exhibit at the Mind Museum

My 5-year-old daughter just loves dinosaurs. I actually thought of going to Pampanga just to visit the Dinosaur Island, but it's just too far and we didn't have the time and budget. That's why when I found out that there's going to be a Dinosaur exhibit in Mind Museum, I looked for tickets online right away. I saw the Dinosaurs Around the World promo in Metrodeal last December and I bought it right away.  I knew I just have to have it so my family come and see the moving dinosaurs. 

Manila Ocean Park and Hotel H2O Experience 2017 (Part 2)

When we returned to our room after a tiresome tour around Manila Ocean Park, upon opening the door, we were all stunned to see drops of water leaking from the ceiling of our room! I forgot to take a picture because I was busy talking to front desk over the phone about our dilemma. 

After their maintenance guy confirmed the leak, we were informed that we will be transferred to another room, the Aqua Room Supreme. I started to think that the leak was a blessing in disguise because I've always wanted to stay in the Aqua Room Supreme with my family, but it's just not within our budget. I remained calm and told the front desk to give us 30 minutes to repack our things, while deep inside, I was screaming "Yahoooo!". When the bellboy arrived, he assisted us with our things and guided us to our new room. It took us about 3 minutes to walk along the hallway because the room is farther from the front desk compared to our original room. So as we were walking, the bellboy was assuring us that our room is going to be bigger and better.  

The Aqua Room Supreme

The Aqua Supreme Room

My children were very excited to see the new room. It's definitely bigger. It has a bigger aquarium, bigger space, and bigger work desk. The bed, however, is still the same queen sized bed. 

It has a bathtub!

One of the biggest assets of the room is its bathtub. My kids got excited seeing it and they immediately jumped in to test it even without water yet. It was fun seeing them take a bath, but it's pretty exposed for adults to take a bath there. My husband and I just used the separate shower during bath time. 

The Bath area (The sink/toilet/shower recess)

We settled in for the night enjoying our new room. 

Manila Ocean Park (2nd Day Tour)

Yexel's Toy Museum

The first thing we visited on the 2nd day is Yexel's Toy Museum. There were lots of unique toys being displayed such as Lord of the Rings collectibles, Star Wars statues, Marvel character statues, and a whole lot more. It really brought out the kid in ourselves. After the tour, there's a toy shop where you can buy some toys as souvenirs. 

Birds of Prey

We went to the "Birds of Prey" and we saw plenty of Philippine hawks inside. Taking pictures are strictly prohibited so I wasn't able to take a picture unless you're willing to pay the staff to take a photo of you. We went there at around 11AM and it's an open area so it was pretty hot at that time, but seeing the majestic hawks was just awesome. It's still worth the visit for me. 

The Sea Lion Show

The Sea Lion Show started at 4:30PM and it was a bit hot because we were facing the sun as we watch the show, so be sure to bring an umbrella/cap or anything that can cover your eyes or head. The show was okay. The seals showed some synchronized swimming and some tricks for entertainment. Well, the kids were happy so we're happy. The show's duration was about 30 minutes only. 

We weren't able to visit the All-Star Bird Show and the Penguin Talk Show because we missed the time, and so we decided to go around the vicinity and do a little shopping instead. 

Manila Ocean Park is not only a place for fishes and marine life, but it's also a place for "tiangge" shopping. We all enjoyed looking around and ended up buying some fidget spinners, hair clips, and other toys for the kids. 

And since we're spending our last moments in Ocean Park, we're taking selfies in every corner of the place before the sun sets.  We went back to our room afterward and spent more staycation time to savor every last minute. 

Overall, our stay was satisfactory. The kids enjoyed the fishes, the birds, the seals, the hotel, and there were lots of food choices in the vicinity so there's always something to eat for everyone (e.g. Potato Corner, Wendy's, Sisig, etc.). It's definitely a nice place to bring your entire family to. Thank you, Manila Ocean Park and Hotel H2O, for an awesome summer ending. 

Did I miss something in my review? Do you have questions about our stay or something you need to clarify? Do send me a message or comment it below.  

Manila Ocean Park and Hotel H2O Experience 2017 (Part 1)

I have been planning to take my family to Manila Ocean Park before the summer ends and to maximize the experience, I booked a 3-day stay at Hotel H2O, a hotel inside Manila Ocean Park, through Metrodeal. I swear, it's way cheaper than booking on the hotel's website. Two nights means two vouchers so that sums up to almost P7,000. 

I also bought the 10-in-1 attractions for Manila Ocean Park which costs P799 each which I thought was a good deal. The deal includes the following:

• Oceanarium
• Trails to Antarctica
• Jellies Exhibit
• Penguin Talk Show
• Birds of Prey Kingdom
• Sea Lion Show
• Sharks & rays Dry Encounter
• All-Star Bird Show
• Symphony Evening Show
• Amazing Stories of Yexel's Museum
  So last Sunday, we went to Manila Ocean Park and checked in at Hotel H2O. We checked in at the hotel first to settle in our luggage and stuff. You may also check out my first review of Hotel H2O back in 2010 here. 

Hotel Review of Hotel 101

It was my hubby’s birthday so I decided to surprise him with a 3-day stay at a hotel that’s within my budget. Then I learned about Hotel 101, a 4-star hotel, that opened its doors just a few years ago and it's very near the Mall of Asia, so I decided to give it a try for my family's staycation. An overnight stay usually costs Php4,000, but I was able to buy cheaper hotel vouchers online so it was worth it.

Location
When we arrived at the hotel, I realized it was not a stone throw away from Mall of Asia. You have to walk almost 1 kilometer to get there. It's easy if I walk by myself, but having kids and all, it's pretty tiresome so we would probably get a Grab Car just to get to MOA. But good thing Jollibee is literally just beside the hotel building so going there is a piece of cake. There's also a 7Eleven convenience store at the ground floor of the hotel so guests can buy their essentials there. 

Hotel Review: Penthouse Suite in B Hotel Alabang 2017

Last year, I won a gift certificate for an overnight stay in B Hotel's Penthouse Suite that was a sweet, sweet prize for me and for my family. Before the gift certificate expired, we made sure to set up a date before the Christmas holidays to use the GC and to experience what it's like to stay in one of the most talked-about hotels in southern Manila.

Buffet Breakfast at the Spectrum Raffles Makati 2016

At 9AM, we went down to the ground floor and had our complimentary buffet breakfast for two at the Spectrum. Kids 5 years old and below eat for free. 

Enjoy my photo blog post!

Afternoon Tea at the Writer's Bar (Raffles Makati)

Since our gift certificate includes a complimentary afternoon cocktails at the Writer's Bar, I decided to check out what they have in store for me. After settling in at our suite, I went down the lobby and went straight to the Writer's Bar. Afternoon cocktails starts at 2:30 up to 5:30 PM daily.

The place is relatively small, but cozy. Lots of comfortable sofas and chairs, beautiful paintings, and plenty of books to read from the bookshelves.

Our Suite Escape in Raffles Makati

Thanks to Make It Makati, my family and I were able to experience our most luxurious staycation to date! We were privileged to have a free overnight stay at Raffles, Makati's Junior Suite with afternoon/evening cocktails and buffet breakfast. We were so excited to go! 

 

Lovely Staycation: Dusit Hotel Makati Review

Last May 22, 2015, my husband and I decided to take our family on a 3D/2N family staycation in Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati City for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We chose this hotel because after doing some online research it has all the amenities that we need. A big plus is their location being just a stone's throw away from SM Makati and Ayala Malls.  

Buffet Breakfast at Basix 2015

As we availed the "Weekend Prince and Princess" rate, it already includes a buffet breakfast for two so I'm quite excited about what Basix restaurant has to offer. Children ages 5 and below can eat for free!