Mompreneurs Archives - Page 11 of 11 - Truly Rich and Blessed

August 12, 2010 by Tina

Please check out Mommy Joanne’s True Breastfeeding Story at my new Breastfeeding Advocacy Blog 🙂 Just click on this link:

Baby Diwa Joanne Paolo Quintana

Mommy Joanne is not just a proud BFF (BreastFeeding Filipina) but a mompreneur too! Check out her contact details below if you’re interested in joining her yoga classes:

Mommy Joanne Carmela Barriga-Quintana
YOGA BABY BLISSwww.yogababybliss.com
www.yogababybliss.multiply.com

Be blessed coz’ breast is best! 🙂

Highlights of Last Week: Mompreneur Manila Workshop, Sunday Morning Mass at Sacred Heart Parish and Mom’s Purest Love Event

August 11, 2010 by Tina 2 Comments

Last week was a not so busy week for the family and me, as hubby and I are still “getting into the groove” of working/serving in Manila while waiting for our next mission assignment. It has not been a BORING wait so far, and at least we are able to spend QUALITY time with our families while we’re here (or more like, the kids are spending more time with their lolos and lolas, since their Papa and Mama are usually away during office hours). So I have nothing to complain about. In fact, the seeming dip in our workload/activities has been a BLESSING so far, in that we are able to explore other avenues where we can be “IN” the world, but not “OF” the world.

One such place was the recently held Mompreneur Manila Meetup 2, with the theme: Champion Your Creative Spark, facilitated by mompreneurs Anna Escay-Cortez and Kara Escay of My Masterpiece Movement. I went there with a fellow missionary mom, Chelle, and IT WAS SO AMAZING! 🙂 It was like we attended a recollection but with a whole bunch of creativity and arts blended in, without the actual mention of God or anything faith-related. The facilitators actually sounded a lot like us missionary moms, when we do conferences or sharings for the community, but had their own points of view and experiences to draw on. For the first time in a LONG time though, we were on the receiving end, and IT FELT SO GOOD.

The logo and motto of the My Masterpiece Movement

The afternoon was a reminder from God to BELIEVE that HE has a great plan for me and my family, and I am the only person standing in the way of this plan becoming reality! Not something new for me, but it was great to be reminded in such a creative way! I also realized that the master artists at My Masterpiece are, in a way, missonaries like me – though with a different mission i.e. to “Spark an Empowering Culture of Creativity.”

All I can say is, I AM INSPIEED! hehehe. Thank you Ms. Janice Crisostomo-Villanueva of Mommy Mundo and Mompreneur Manila, for organizing the workshop! 🙂 Praise GOD for you and the super sisters Anna and Kara too! You’re all an inspiration to mompreneur wannabes like me!

Mompreneurs and mompreneur wannabes with My Masterpiece Movement teachers

Sunday morning mass at Sacred Heart Parish in QC was also a blessing to hubby and I, as we were reminded through the priest’s homily to STORE UP TREASURE IN HEAVEN, which is related to my “verse to live by” as stated in the upper part of this blog. Through his statement, “Where Your Treasure Is, Your Heart Is Also” we were reminded that even if there are times when we seem bogged down by the cares and problems of this world and how to be FINANCIALLY FREE, we should never forget WHERE OUR TRUE TREASURE LIES. 🙂 That’s how to be TRULY RICH after all. Right Bro. Bo? *winks*

The man behind the “Secrets of the Truly Rich”, and my idol on how to live the truly rich life, none other than Bo Sanchez

To top it off, last Sunday, I was privileged to be a part of the finale of the Mom’s Purest Love event, organized by L.A.T.C.H. Philippines and Eastwood Mall. Although I went as an eager spectator hoping to get new insights and tips on breastfeeding and everything mommy-related, this was also part of my latest venture into the world of mompreneurship, as a lot of the vendors at the event were mompreneurs themselves. I ended up learning a lot, and even got to share about my experiences on babywearing as a missionary mom (thanks Jenny and Buding for the opportunity!).

Jenny (http://fabnaima.blogspot.com) and the babywearing mom models)

My impromptu sharing about babywearing (minus the actual baby and my Maya wrap/sling, left both at home hehe)

I also finally got to meet my Facebook mompreneur friend Karen in person, and get mompreneur tips and share wife-mom-missionary stories with Ate Denice and Chelle.

Facebook friends meet up! 🙂 Me and Karen of Momtrepreneur Shop

I also had fun watching the Fashion Show launching Bianca Araneta-Elizalde’s maternity/nursing wear line – Eden.

Stylish and practical wear for moms and moms to be (but good for single ladies too!)

All the mommy models with Eden designer, Bianca Araneta-Elizalde

Buding Aquino-Dee, the creative force behind LATCH Philippines, and one of my mompreneur inspirations 🙂

All in all, last week was one filled with FAITH, FUN and FRIENDSHIP (I sound like a YFC or KFC member hahaha!). And I only have THE KING to thank for that – thank You, Papa God for all the windows and doors opened for my family and I, for hubby and my in-laws who became the kids’ babysitters while I was out exploring new opportunities, for hubby’s endless support of my mompreneur wannabe ventures, for my own parents and siblings who pray for me and support me, and for all the moms whom I have recently encountered and have become my inspirations! 🙂 What a TRULY RICH and BLESSED life I have! 🙂

August 1, 2010 by Tina

(WARNING! IF YOU ARE NOT A WOMAN OR A MOM, YOU MAY FEEL A BIT UNEASY READING THIS POST. 🙂 HEHEHE. HOWEVER, IF YOU’RE INTERESTED TO KNOW WHY BREASTFEEDING CAN BE PRO-GOD, PRO-FAMILY, PRO-LIFE AND PRO-POOR, THEN READ ON. 🙂 BUT DON’T SAY I DIDN’T WARN YOU 🙂

As a breastfeeding advocate, I want to do my part in spreading the word about the several activities happening around the Metro this month of August, in line with Breastfeeding Month. However, since fellow blogger has already done a good job compiling a list of pro-breastfeeding activities in her blog, why should I reinvent the wheel right? 🙂

On a personal note, I LOVE BREASTFEEDING and really believe that it’s in order with God’s plan for mankind (or womankind, to be more politically correct! hahaha). In fact, I dare say that BREASTFEEDING IS PRO-GOD, PRO-FAMILY, PRO-LIFE and even PRO-POOR!

First, breastfeeding is PRO-GOD because it gives mothers a chance to participate in God’s plan for humankind, i.e. give our kids what He intended our bodies to produce for them. God really knew what He was doing when He created man and woman. Every part of our body was knit together with a specific purpose. And that includes our (women’s) mammary glands and everything connected to it! The colostrum that comes out during the first suckling moments of Baby has THE MOST antibodies and nutrients that are BEST for Baby. (Don’t believe what others say when they tell you to “give it up” because “your baby will go hungry”, or “there’s nothing coming out” etc etc!) Be patient and PRAY and your milk will let down in a few days’ time! 🙂 God made our bodies that way, so don’t worry and just arm yourself with all the info you can get!

Breastfeeding is PRO-FAMILY because it strengthens the bond between (1) husband and wife as he supports her, prays for her, helps her in the breastfeeding journey, especially during the first few painful days when Mama and Baby are getting into the hang of finding the right latch, (2) mother and baby as baby gets not just physical nourishment, but also quality bonding time with Mama, which helps in boosting baby’s emotional (and I’d like to believe spiritual too!) IQ. Breastfeeding also gives the father time to bond with other siblings (if any) when Mama is busy nursing the new baby. (Since Papa doesn’t need to spend time cleaning and sterilizing bottles and preparing formula!). It’s a win-win situation for the WHOLE family (even yaya!)

Breastfeeding is PRO-LIFE because by giving our babies the BEST nutrition, we improve the quality of their lives, and give them a better chance at fighting disease and sickness that could shorten their lives. It also gives the woman time to recover from birth if she exclusively breastfeeds for the first 6 months, she is 99% likely NOT to get pregnant again. This way, her body has time to recuperate, while at the same time, gives her and hubby time to bond with Baby, and give him the BEST of all things. What better way to sustain a LIFE than giving nutrition from one’s own living body? 😉

Last but not the least, breastfeeding is PRO-POOR. Consider the cost of bottle-feeding which includes paying for infant formula, bottles, sterilizing equipment, etc etc versus the cost of breastfeeding (ZERO!). Also, if infant formula is prepared wrongly (like if moms who are hard up financially try to pinch pennies by not putting the exact amount of formula as indicated) or in unsanitary conditions, babies can get diarrhea and some may even die from dehydration as an effect. Whereas we breastfeeding moms don’t have to worry about the amount of powder to mix, or clean water for baby’s milk, or sterilizing! We also save a LOT of money by not buying infant formula. These savings can be put to better use, like as small start-up capital for a sideline business, or investing in mutual funds, etc. So actually, in the long run, breastfeeding can also help one achieve one’s goal of financial freedom! Wow. Amazing huh?!

I remember our mission trips in Timor Leste (East Timor), and how convenient it was for us to go from place to place without having to lug around baby bottles, cans of formula, bottles of clean drinking water, etc etc. So I guess you could say breastfeeding is PRO-MISSIONARY too?! 🙂 hehehe. I’ve actually breastfed standing up and walking around during our community conferences both here in the Philippines and abroad! Not to mention in a tricycle, jeepney, airplanes, public buses, MRT, boats, airports, churches, etc etc etc. (Though I know of some moms who’ve breastfed in even CRAZIER places! Check out !)

Here’s a pic of me nursing our first-born, Tim. I am proud to say, and thankful to God, that he was breastfed until 2 years and 4 months! (I was pregnant with Rysse when we weaned him, although I did want to try tandem feeding!)

Here is a more recent picture, this time it’s Rysse who is nursing (believe me the Maya Wrap is one of the BEST gifts one could give an expecting mom – thanks to the Nebraos for mine! :). This was taken at the Pixar Animation Studios Exhibit in Singapore.

In fact, I’m sure our very own beloved Mama Mary breastfed Jesus too, and here are a few pics I found through Google Images to support my claim:
I

(See, breast really is BEST! 🙂

In fact, I totally advocate breastfeeding especially among new and expecting moms that I know personally. Because of my pro-breastfeeding shout-outs on Facebook, I’ve also come to know fellow moms like Jenny who also owns an online shop named Mama.Baby.Love, Janice Crisostomo-Villanueva of Mommy Matters and Mompreneur Manila, and Buding Aquino-Dee of Blissful Babes and L.A.T.C.H. Philippines, Mi’ann Reyes-Oblea of Babymama, and of course a dear “Ate” and ex-fellow missionary (though she is still a missionary in her own right!) in community, Denice Nillas-Price, who now owns her own line of nursing products (Lilymoms). Not to mention mommy bloggers Eli of The Painter’s Wife and Tiggerlily of The Lazymama blogs among others. Of course, my fellow missionary moms like Michelle, Layle, Des, Vania, Bianca, Nida, Issa, and the others whom I’ve failed to mention (please forgive me…) also deserve a shout-out, since sharing breastfeeding stories with them is one of the highlights of being a nursing mama! It is SOOO nice to know that there are other moms out there who believe in giving their kids the MOST NUTRITIOUS, MOST PRACTICAL, CHEAPEST AND MOST READILY AVAILABLE MILK – Mama’s best, breast milk! 🙂

God bless all moms out there especially those who choose to stick with breastfeeding, despite working fulltime, coping with illness, and other challenges that make breastfeeding difficult but NOT impossible! 🙂 Also, Lord, thank You po for our hubbies, parents, and other family members and friends who support us and pray for us and with us in our nursing journey! 🙂

Happy Breastfeeding Month, everyone!