I am so thankful for the continued trust that Mattel, the premier toy brand, and of course, Richprime Global Inc., the largest toy distributor in the Philippines put in me, as I am honored for always being their emcee of choice for some of the best brands they own: Barbie, Monster High and Fisher Price! I am a mermaid princess or a fairy for Barbie, then I become one cool ghoul with Monster High, and then for Fisher Price, I become who I truly am, and that is a proud mom to a clever, athletic 5-year old. They truly let all the facets of my being shine! Thanks to them there is never a dull moment, only exciting programs, discussions, learning, awesome memories and a ton of dress-up!
Above: Here I am in my midriff - baring glory. Taken during early hours when my tummy would still be flat. A bare midriff my new fashion fave 'coz in my day job, I confirmed a huge account, so I think a bare midriff is lucky. Read: Walang basagan ng TRIP! :-)
Below: The nice and warm Carrie Lupoli jumped off her chair and we had to take an instant Self-We! Still as sweet as how she was during last year's activity! This was taken before I opened the show and called her up for her talk. The place was packed with fans waiting to see her for Fisher Price!
Blessed was I to again share the stage and chat with Ms. Carrie Lupoli, founder of Live and Learn Consulting, and former Fisher Price ambassador, Ms. Audrey Tan Zubiri this year for another awesome workshop for the launch of PLAY IQ. Last year, the theme of Fisher Price was on the Joy of Learning, harping on the value of age-appropriate learning techniques and toys. This year, Play IQ was more on helping your kids naturally grow and develop their intelligence, through play; Lots and lots of PLAY!
Great News! Our Learning expert and Chief Mum, Ms. Carrie confirmed that IQ, or specifically academic prowess has no direct connection to success later on in life. Studies have determined that it is in fact, EQ that plays a big factor in life success. The Chief Mum shared the 7 predictors of success:
All of the above CHARACTER STRENGTHS can be developed through the POWER OF PLAY! It is interesting to know as well that the BRAIN is the only organ not fully developed during birth. Everything else has to mature before the baby comes into the world. But the development of the brain comes after birth as soon as the child's brain is stimulated through its senses, only through interaction and observation of the world outside of the womb. Cool huh? So moms and dads, make sure that you not only cherish the first 5 years of your children's lives, but make sure to bombard it with knowledge, interaction, words (lots of words) and of course, happy experiences. For this crucial time is when the brain can absorb so much (like a sponge, as they say), and here is where the foundation of both IQ and EQ is built.
My son is already 5 years old - yes it has been an amazing 5 years for me - and I am now at the point of waking up at 7 am, prepping everything and making sure he is at school before 8 am, and then that's when I drive to work and clock in before 9 am. I want to do more - like go jogging, start a business, meditate, and maybe I will get assigned to a bigger mall and challenge soon, so I have to start waking up at 6 am or earlier. Plus I want to be a hardcore bento mom, so good luck to me and all the things I want to be!
To end this post, I am just SO thankful to God and to everyone around for really making Motherhood for me such an awesome - and sorry to admit this but it is also a very EASY journey! I have an amazing support system in my family. Materially we have enough to lead a comfy lifestyle and are never in a financial rut. My son now gets to explore his athletic skills and soon I will be enrolling him in Piano lessons and basically everything else that he wants to try out. But the best thing of all? Is that I have an astounding corporate career (yes, I work in a cut-throat industry for the biggest company here), I get to host tons of events on weekends (this is my talent, passion and my excuse to dress up and put outrageous hair color and clip-ons), and I have a dream that I continue to work on despite everything else that comes my way.
Despite being the most dedicated (and sometimes obsessed and protective mom) you'll ever meet, basically devoting my everything to my son - the great thing is that I am still MY OWN PERSON.
Above are the superb Richprime team and this guy with me in blue is our beloved Sir Shanny. Our last event together as he will soon be flying to Abu Dhabi then Canada to immigrate with his family. All the best to you, Sir Shan Carlos who is not just a colleague but also a great friend!
Thankful every moment. Out and about even on weekends. There is no rest for the Wicked. That is, Wickedly Happy, Driven, Thankful and Blessed.
