2013-12-17

A Merry Merries Baby

Advertorial


Every mother...


From the first moment you see your newborn baby, you marvel at his frailty, his delicateness, how tiny and vulnerable he is. How can a human be so soft, so helpless?

You are his entire world and he truly and fully depends on YOU to provide him with life - life outside the womb, instead of inside, which you already did for 9 months.

And you know, as you swell with maternal protectiveness, that you are going to give him the best there is.

But alas, herein lies the problem... What is the best? There are so many things for a mom to decide on... The mere thought of the giant list is enough to make the most prepared of us panicky. What kind of milk bottle gives the least gas? What kind of moisturing wipes is the gentlest on his butt? Are organic cottons the way to go for PJs? What sleeping position is the safest? What school should he go to in future?

Since what is best is different for every baby, you cannot find definite answers to these questions - you can only read up on reviews and give the recommended brands a try.

And now, as a mother, I'm going to give you my answer on something very very important that your baby will be using daily till they are at least two years old -



WHAT IS THE BEST DIAPER BRAND?


Well, perhaps you guessed from the title...



It's Merries of course!!

You may think I'm biased... Afterall I'm sponsored Merries diapers for Dash to use, and the brand Merries isn't that well known.

The reason for this? Merries is sold by Kao, a well known Japanese company, since the 1980s. It used to be sold in Singapore, was very popular too, but sales here stopped... Only last year did Merries come back into the market.

Merries is in fact the no. 1 diaper brand in Japan. 

And here is why I'm not being biased.

Hospitals provide diapers for all newborns. Dash was given a pack of diapers, brand H (I'm sure I'm being pretty obvious here) to bring home.

Comparing NewBorn sizes, brand H was very much smaller than Merries, so I decided to finish my pack of H diapers before moving on to Merries.

That week Dash's poop kept leaking out of the back of his diaper!!!!!!!!!! This happened MANY times. I cannot begin to tell you how frustrating it is!!

On top of all the tiring baby duties, I had to also wash the couch's covers which was stained with poop since it leaked onto there, and wash all his gross and stained baby clothes, not to mention sometimes clean my own clothes.

I got so frustrated that I gave away the remaining pieces and vowed never to use brand H again. 

When I changed to Merries, I found it SO much softer, more absorbent, and the most important difference back then was that it was much longer (taller?), resulting in coverage higher up the waist. It is important for the wet poo that will sometimes leak out from the top!

"Sorry for my 10-times-a-day poop mama... Lucky I'm so cute I'm sponsored diapers" 
- 2 month old Dash who is smaller than a pack of diapers


I also tried another brand, brand D, because a whole pack of it came with a hamper gift from a friend.

I touched the diaper, contemplating whether I should try it.

Like brand H, it was also very short. And it's softness is much less than that of Merries. Why should I do this to my baby and to myself? Too short and uncomfortable diapers will only give me grief. I gave the pack away.

Another time I ran out of diapers so I tried a friend's MP brand of diapers. Brand MP was also popular with mommies so I expected to like it, but I found it also MUCH harder than Merries. The size L was also comparatively smaller than size L of Merries. Absorbancy wise, it was just on par. More expensive, and yet inferior. Disappointing.

Since I was sponsored Merries, I didn't have much incentive to try other brands (other than H, MP and D which are given free).

So when my new-mommy friends ask me what brand of diapers is the best, I always just say I use Merries and it is very good so far, with some doubts in my mind... Perhaps... It isn't really the best since I've not tried that many?

However, that's easy enough to find out. When I asked around, I found out that every mom I asked said Merries is very good.

When I post about Merries on instagram or facebook, I also found the response to be very heartening - most moms agree Merries is great and many told me they love it. Even confinement aunties told me Merries is good... And who is a better judge than them?

I now wholeheartedly believe Merries is fantastic and every baby should try it. :)


"Mommy sayz this is gud plz buy"


So WHY is it so good?


1) IT IS VERY VERY SOFT.

Baby skin is very very delicate. The skin's strength is only about 1/5 that of adults'. What make seem acceptable softness to you may feel rough on baby's skin. Extensive research is done on Merries to make diaper-wearing very comfortable for baby.



2) IT IS VERY ABSORBENT.







Even the most hardworking moms finds it tough to wake up in the middle of the night 5 times to keep changing diapers...

As Dash gets older and stops pooping at night, I find myself testing the limits of Merries to see if the diaper can withstand a night of pee.

Even after 10 hours, Merries still feels dry on the surface, comfortable!! No leakage! Which brings me to the next point...



3) IT IS VERY BREATHABLE.







When people see me change Dash's diapers, they always seem to be asking....

"No need to put nappy cream or powder??"


NO NEED! WHY MUST PUT??

Dash almost never gets nappy rash. Even if he does (a rarity), it clears within a few hours. When I change his diapers, his bum is always dry and free of redness.

My mom said she was at the baby spa with me when she saw another baby's bum when the mom was changing her diaper... It was completely inflamed and full of rashes. That's so heartbreaking to see. I don't know what causes this - is it lousy diapers or because the caretakers don't change poo-ridden diapers fast enough or maybe the baby's skin is just extra sensitive? Whatever it is, I'm glad Merries helped Dash to not have this condition.


YAY FOR CLEAR SKIN!!!




4) IT IS A GREAT FIT




Speaking of active...

Dash is VERY VERY active. His Merries diapers have increased 4 sizes by now, from Extra Small to Small to Medium to Large... and they all fit him snugly.


His diaper goes with him everywhere to protect his surroundings from his... leakages...





Be it lying down...

Sitting up


Tumbling around


Trying to crawl

Or toppled over.

They always fit well!

Even on his fatty belly HAHAHAH



****************************************


When Dash was about 4 months old, Merries asked me if I would like Walker Pants...

I asked, "How do I know if he is ready for Walker Pants?"

The answer?

"When it becomes difficult to wear his diaper for him."

OH GOD IT ISN'T DIFFICULT IT IS A COMPLETE NIGHTMARE.

After dash learned to turn over, he finds every moment spent lying down on his back a complete waste of his time. He spends all his energy on trying to crawl, including when he is actually sleeping! Yes, with eyes closed he flips over and tries to crawl inside his cot!!

Walker Pants diapers means you can simply wear your baby's diaper like a pair of underwear... You can slip them on even when he is in a crawling position!!


"I MUZ STAND ALL THE TIME NO MORE 
LYING DOWN TO CHANGE DIAPERS MAMA."


The Merries Walker Pants are great too, just like the tape diapers.


And they look so cute - let's go pantless!


"I surrender... You may change my diapers. NOT!!!" *flips and flips*









Was mystified by this strip of clear tape down at the back of the Walker Pants... Turns out it is used to seal the diaper after it's used (rolled up and taped) so the smell won't come out!



Want to give Merries diapers a try 
and get some freebies while at it??


All you have to do is purchase $50 worth of Merries diapers and you stand a chance to win a Free Gymboree Class Pass for 4 sessions worth $171.20! (10 winners) 

Purchases must be made in a single receipt and a snapshot/scanned copy of your whole receipt must be uploaded together with your details. CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT!!!

Promotion ends 31st December 2013. Entry submission ends 3rd January 2013.

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2013-11-25

Subaru XV

Advertorial

So as I told you guys, my car sponsorship with DUO Rewards and Downtown Car Rentals is that I get to change my car once every 4 months!

The time has come to change my Sylphy into something else, and I actually felt quite sad!!

In the short four months that I drove her, she has become a huge part of my life... It's no wonder that people who drive hardly ever can bring themselves to go back to public transport.

Having your own vehicle, your own private space to travel that you don't have to share with strangers, having a powerful feeling of freedom that you can go anywhere you please... It's a seductive feeling indeed, even with a rental car!!

I've always told Mike that him picking me up to drive me home in Laopokasaurus (that's what we call Mike's car) and me taking a cab home by myself technically isn't much difference since I'm chauffeured in both cases.

But when I am on a cab I feel like I'm still on strange grounds, like I cannot completely unwind yet. I still feel kinda tense in case the cabbie kidnaps me. But the moment I go into Laopokasaurus, I feel like I'm in my second home. I can take off my shoes and put my feet up on the dashboard if I want!

So that feeling rather intensified with the Sylphy. She was my first car (kinda, even though I don't own her) and I've always felt like she's a little mobile home of mine. :') I always feel snug and safe and happy driving her.

That being said, I was still very excited to see what my next car was gonna be!!!

THE DAY:



YAY I'M GETTING A SUV!!!

It's a Subaru XV!!!




Oops so I am blocking the car and you can't see how it looks like.

Hahahaha



Ok this is better... One of my favourite things about the XV's sleek design is that the rims kinda look like flowers!!


Otherwise, it is a rather manly car. Much more manly than the Sylphy somehow! :X

From the fierce looking headlights to the black leather interior...




Also the car gave off a manly cologne scent when I first stepped in. Not sure if it's coz the previous driver was a guy but it made me wanna thump my chest and hunt boar. LOL




Mike likes it a lot for that factor I suppose...



Afterall I've always found men tend to love Subaru cars... Is it because of the All Wheel Drive? Coz the XV has that too.


The peeps at Downtown Car Rentals told me that the XV is actually like a baby SUV. This car is spacious but not super huge. I love that when you are driving it you are really high up and can see the roads clearly from the high angle.


The boot is as spacious as the Sylphy's.


What I love about SUVs is that you can have the option of piling your stuff in the boot up higher if you need to... The rear seats also fold down so you can transport LOADS of stuff! No more paying for Ikea delivery! :D

And people in the backseat can simply reach in and grab stuff if they need to without getting out of the car!

(I've been watching too much Walking Dead but I imagine this is useful in case of Zombie apocalypse and you have all your guns in the boot so you can conveniently shoot out of the window when being surrounded by zombies... versus having a sedan so you have to physically get out of the car to access your armory and will in the process get gnawed on.)



Baby car seat fits perfectly too! Of course what matters the most for baby isn't space... It's SAFETY!!

And the Subaru XV has a FIVE STAR SAFETY RATING. :D It feels so good to know that.


The XV also has a very weird feature that I think many of you will love!!


It is extremely fuel efficient!


During stop lights when you fully compress the brake, the engine actually shuts down.

It rumbles and stops, and it will startle you, making you think the engine has died if you didn't know that this is a specialty of the XV!! In fact, it is only trying to save fuel for you. The aircon and stereo is still on, it's just that the engine stops.

When I was told about this, I was quite scared.

"HUH??" I said. "Then isn't it gonna take a while for the engine to start up again?? And I will get honked by impatient people behind me!"

But the Downtown staff told me it only takes split second for the engine to reignite. Great technology!


Oh yes you may have noticed some of the extra stuff on my car.


Embarrassing and bright thing number 1:


Flowers.

I actually bought two Singapore flags to fly on the car window during the National Day period. After National Day ended, I modified my flag to put on flowers!!! My mom sewed them on for me and the flowers are from Daiso. :D

They look ridiculous I know but it looks so cute when the car is moving and the flowers are flying behind!! Also it makes me easier for me to find my car in a sea of other cars!! It stands out, that's for sure. LOL

I also believe it makes other drivers laugh so they will give way more to me. HAHAHA


Embarrassing and bright thing number 2:



A P PLATE?? N0000000000B!!!!

BITCH PLEASE!!!


Time to throw my P plate away!!! LAO NIANG HAVE HAD A LICENSE FOR A YEAR NOW MUAHAHAHA!! I am no longer a NEWBIE DRIVER!!!



********************************


Want to rent a car too?

Nowadays COE is so expensive, renting is definitely the way to go!!!

Moreover, the holiday season is coming!!

It's probably going to be really tough to get a cab or squeeze into a bus during the holidays...


"Where are all the #$%^@# cabs?"


Why not rent a vehicle so the whole family can travel with ease? Don't have to worry about midnight surcharges after your countdown party and don't have to keep calling that horrible hotline that tells you all the operators are engaged at the moment.

Or squeeze into a train with other sweaty passengers...

Remember to reserve your perferred vehicle early in case all of them are taken!!

You can go to Downtown's website HERE to book!!!


*******************************


If you love discounts and free stuff, you definitely definitely should join DUO Rewards, Tan Chong International's loyalty program!!!


Ok here's the deal... You guys think there is a catch or something. Surely you have to pay in some form to get something good right?

BUT THERE IS NO CATCH.

Membership is FREE, it's for life. AND ANYONE CAN JOIN DUO REWARDS, not just drivers or anyone with Tan Chong cars!!

Once you have signed up HERE, you can see a list of all the merchants that DUO Rewards is collaborating with to give you great discounts and offers!!!

Here are some of them - there are too many to list!!

- 10% off for Bintan Lagoon Resort
- Free sessions at True Fitness and True Yoga
- 10% off at Twelve Cupcakes
- 5% off at Pet Lovers Centre

Why pay full prices for some of your favourite products and services when you can get them cheaper by SIMPLY SIGNING UP?? NO CATCH!!

Of course, DUO members also get rewards for every dollar they spend on any services at Tan Chong, be it car rental, car servicing, car purchase or even renting service apartments.





Awesome!!

Also, this year, DUO Rewards is the Official Automotive Partner of ZoukOut 2013, happening on 13 - 14 December!

Ticketholders who sign up for Duo at the point of purchase from Zouk’s website HERE will stand a chance to win drink coupons or free entry passes to Zouk + Phuture!!

COOL OR WHAT? Tickets are worth $236!





You can find out more about the contest at DUO Reward's facebook page HERE and of course remember to like it!!!


LASTLY BEFORE I GO.........


Love your furry friends and want to do your part to help those that need our help??

http://www.lost-paws.org/help/


Get involved... Just click on the picture to be a part of Lost Paws and help reunite lost pets with their owners!! It's something kind you can do just by keeping a watch for lost pets near your house!



DRIVING OFF BYE!!



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2013-10-18

Datsumo Labo

Advertorial



Don't we all wish to have smooth, baby soft and clear skin? Except on our head, eyebrows and eyelashes, it is best if the rest of our body has no hair at all!!

Unfortunately, hair grows in all the undesirable areas... For me, I'm hairy everywhere... Sigh. If you can believe it, I started shaving my leg hair (and underarms) when I was TWELVE!

There was just one day I saw my mom's razor in the toilet and decided to try shaving my hairy legs for fun. For a day, I was very pleased with the results as it made my legs look smooth and shiny - but only for a day.

Afterwards, I found that the hairs grew back out prickly and gross. From that day onwards I shaved every few days... Then it became weeks when I grew lazier... I am horrified if my boyfriend (then) touches my legs because I know my shins are prickly!

Since I was young I've tried all kinds of hair removal methods...

THEY ALL COME WITH PROBLEMS:


I tweeze for eyebrows and armpits - It's acceptable for eyebrows but super time consuming for armpits. So most of the time I shave.

Shaving makes my skin very dry and painful plus the hair grows back out so gross, and I often have ingrown hair!

I used to bother with brazilian waxes, but cmon, $50 for a 15 min strip off?? WTF PLEASE SUPER OVERPRICED. And it's SO SO SO PAINFUL!!

Epilating also hurts a lot... Hair removal creams - have you accidentally tried putting it on your brazilian area? :O I did, and it BURNS!! And think about it... Something that is so strong it can melt your hair... Can't be good for your skin right?

IPL seems to be the answer - until I tried it and IT HURTS SO DAMN MUCH plus it is so crazy expensive!

In conclusion, the quest to remove undesirable hairs seem to have no ideal solution.

AHA! That is, until I found Datsumo Labo!!

Perhaps you have heard of Datsumo Labo, as it is also very popular with many bloggers and Qiuqiu and Miyake also wrote a review on them!

What is Datsumo Labo? It is the fastest growing hair removal salon with over 50 outlets in Japan! It is very popular in Japan with many celebrities going there too to achieve that baby smooth skin we all envy. In the next two years Datsumo Labo will have salons in many countries with over 100 outlets, and two have arrived in Singapore!! YAY!!


I got invited to try their hair removal treatment and I finally understood why it is so popular and vastly different from all the other IPL/permanent hair removal salons I've ever tried.

1) Datsumo focuses ONLY on S.S.C treatment - stands for Smooth Skin Control treatment - which is the latest hair removal method available in the market. Only one treatment is available, they don't do waxing or have other services like facials or massages in other salons offering IPL/QPX etc. They are specialists. As such, they do a good job on the only job they do.

2) The S.S.C treatment is PAINLESS. 

3) It is very affordable!







You must be thinking now - what is this S.S.C?

Just like IPL, S.S.C also uses light therapy. However, the light works together with their special "beans" gel to permanently remove hair GENTLY without damaging skin. IT EVEN GIVES A WHITENING EFFECT!!

I go to the Tanjong Pagar brand to give the S.S.C treatment a try...


Giant signboard with a great affordable price!




I see pictures of bloggers who love Datsumo Labo too!


I was shown their famous "DEKA" machine from Italy - It looks so bleah. Like seriously, look at it! It's so boringly sitting there on a plain shelf.

Guess how much it costs? 

600 MILLION YEN.

That's right, this machine cost more than 7.5 MILLION SINGAPORE DOLLARS.


That's like the cost of a freaking bungalow or a few lamboghinies!



 I FEEL LIKE I JUST TOOK A PICTURE WITH A RARE DIAMOND.

And then I was shown the special "beans" gel I mentioned:


Once again, very unassumingly sitting in a bowl.

If you think this is like the cold gel that IPL salons also sometimes apply for their customers, you are wrong!

It is a special gel, really costly at $17 per kg, when ordinary gels only cost $5 or less.

RIGHT... So you are probably wondering the logical. If this Datsumo Labo is so "atas" (high end) and uses only such expensive luxury products, their hair removal services must be damn expensive!!

That's where it is so SHOCKING!!!

Datsumo Labo is very open about the costs... There is no hidden costs and they charge less than HALF of what usual major salons charge!

How is this done?

This is how the salon looks like:




When I went in I had a shock.

Unlike other beauty salons, they have no serene beautiful decorations, no lemongrass scent, no fancy plush settings. The salon, albeit very clean and neat, was barren and in fact it looked like they just moved in a few days ago. Even the chair I sat on was... Economical. I thought maybe the salon is very poor!!

Then I got a shock when I realised the reason!

It is because Datsumo Labo believes in scrimping on the unnecessary costs to keep costs lower for the consumer!! Other than spending money generously on their technology and gels, they keep costs for other items to a BARE minimum!

That's how they save for YOU!! It's great isn't it? Well next time you step into a nicely renovated salon, even though it may look nice, you are inevitably paying for it out of your own pocket!!

Still not convinced? Or maybe you are as hairy as an orangutan and you think no S.S.C can remove your hair for you?? Well for your peace of mind guess what?

DATSUMO LABO HAS A REFUND POLICY!!
No Results, FULL  REFUND!! Crazy or what?

Getting ready for my treatment!!

Since I am breastfeeding, I'm not a suitable candidate for S.S.C. Don't worry, it isn't dangerous or will harm my milk production, it is just that the results may not be very predictable for breastfeeding moms as we are chockful of hormones, which affect hair growth. As such, they advice breastfeedings moms to not do treatments until they wean.

However, I was really excited to give it a try so I went for it on my legs! If it doesn't work for me it doesn't really matter, but I needed to try it out to give you guys a valid testimony.

My aesthetician applying the special gel on my legs...

Since I've tried IPL before and even though I have a high tolerance of pain I felt it was almost intolerably painful, I was very apprehensive about their "pain-free" promise and was sweating nervously before treatment started...

If you have tried IPL you will know what I mean. 1,2,3 Snap 1,2,3 Snap - over and over again the light flashes over your skin and each snap feels like a sharp deep jet of hot pain. Once or twice it really isn't bad but over a big area and done for half an hour? Wow, its terrible! And IPL salons always promise it is painless but they are usually lying, it always DOES hurt.

But S.S.C?

I FELT NOTHING. No pain at all. Just as they promised, I felt a swoosh of a teeny bit of nice warmth, that's it. In fact, I very quickly fell asleep. (I'm a sleep deprived mom!!) When I woke up, the treatment was OVER.


I was AMAZED.

My legs were extremely smooth and felt very moisturized and pampered. In fact, the entire treatment felt more like a nice relaxing massage session to me than a torturous hair removal session! I simply cannot believe that for once when people promised painless, it really IS painless.

Verdict? A few days later, I realised the skin on my legs not only got smoother, they got fairer and less dry. As for the hair follicles? Weeks later, ONLY HALF OF MY LEG HAIR REMAINED. I cannot believe the amazing results after JUST ONE SESSION!! ONE!!




I AM DEFINITELY GOING BACK THERE TO REMOVE ALL MY UNWANTED HAIR!!!



Really cannot wait to not have to shave my undesirably hairy areas anymore!!!!!! YES!!! :DDD

And yes if you are wondering about the nice photos... I did a photoshoot with Datsumo Labo!




That's coz I am their new Main Image Model!!


And guess what? YOU can be their Maga Image Model!!!!! You could be selected among over 1,000 applicants and debut in their worldwide magazine! :D

Being a Datsumo Labo Maga Image Model has many advantages... You can find more details HERE!


And of course, I know some of you, like me, must be really sick of hair removal problems too and want to give Datsumo Labo a try. If so, good news!


YAY FOR DISCOUNTS!!!

If you wish to find out the prices for Datsumo Labo's hair removal treatments, or make a booking you can check out their website at http://datsumo-labo.com/booking It takes only 40 seconds to book a consultation!!


Or you can also reach them at:

Orchard Branch
#01-13 International Building
360 Orchard Road, Singapore 238869
dlinternationalbuilding@datsumo-labo.com

Tanjong Pagar Branch
1 Tras Link #02-02, Singapore 078867
dltporchidhotel@datsumo-labo.com

Of course, like their facebook page for more awesome deals. :D

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