Finance Friday: Fun and Frugal November Finds!

This post kinda hits two politicians birds with one stone. I haven't done both a Finance Friday and Monthly Finds post since forever! So, apparently, I mixed them into one post since November was all about finding fun but affordable finds. This is fit for a Finance Friday post because I managed to find affordable alternatives to usual finds - which is something we must all strive to do.

Please remind me to practice what I preach. :-P

Anyway, I haven't bought a single thing for myself for so long, but I find that perfectly fine. To be honest, I get bored when I browse websites for women-stuff. Instead, I always, always, find myself navigating to the babies and toddlers websites and sections. I don't follow online shops for women's fashion anymore; I only get interested in baby-and-toddler stuff shops.

So it's not a surprise when everything I bought for this month (and the past months, as well) are for Yuri. Well, you can't blame me, can you? Toddler-stuff are much more fun to buy than women-stuff! Anyway, here are what I got for the month:

1. Milk

Okay, sorry for the boring first entries. I promise the more interesting stuff are below. Anyway, one reason I got addicted to reading mommy and parenting blogs is that I can easily get unsolicited tips on what to use for babies. I read that when the baby turns 1, babies can actually go straight to reading regular milk. Fresh milk is better than powdered milk, so I've been buying fresh milk for Yuri for months now. (We're still breastfeeding.)

Anyway, I have been buying Oishi Oaties milk regularly, but I want to try something else because that brand is kinda sweet. I want to get Yuri used to the taste of regular fresh milk, so I tried Cowhead. It tastes good like regular fresh milk does, and the best part about it is the pull-tab! I'm ensured that the milk is really fresh and not tampered.

Rating: Hit
Price: Around P70 or P80 

2. Juice

I have also been regularly buying fresh juices for Yuri since he was around 15 months old. I always try different kinds of juices, but I always see to it that they are all-natural and sugar-free.

I saw this Del Monte juice brand in SM a couple of weeks ago and was astounded that it was so cheap. I took one, of course. The problem is that I forgot to check its ingredients. At home, I saw that it was not sugar-free. Boohoo. Yuri still drank it, but I have to mix it with more water than the usual. Also, admittedly, it tastes better than the sugar-free juices. Duh? :-P

Rating: Miss
Price: P62

3. Itch Cream

Since Yuri got attacked by insects at home (will be talking about this in a future post) and got so bothered by his itchy bites (poor boy), I was on the active lookout for a balm that would ease and even cure his insect bites. After research, I decided that the best option would still be GIGA (our insect repellant is GIGA) since a GIGA stall was conveniently situated in SM Lanang.

I was pleased to know that it smells mild and does not sting at all. In fact, it reminds me of lana (Bisaya readers will know this). More importantly, Yuri liked it when I apply the balm on his itches, some of which had cuts on them na. After a day of using it, I was able to see immediate effects! I will review this in a separate post soon.

Rating: Hit!
Price: P150

4. Detergent

Since we ran out of our usual laundry detergent for Yuri, I began scouring the web (again!) for a better replacement. We've been using Breeze Gold, and while it's okay, I find that Yuri's clothes become too stiff. Of course, a natural option would be better.

I have already ordered from Human ❤ Nature before, but I've never tried their detergent yet, so I gave it a try. This didn't have a scent, as expected, but Yuri's clothes feel a lot softer now!

Rating: Hit!
Price: P199

5. Dish Cleaner

I actually first tried this during my first Human ❤ Nature loot, and since I was pleased with it, I ordered a bigger bottle together with the detergent. To read a more complete review, just head over to this link.

Rating: Hit
Price: P169.75

6. Disposable Bibs

I didn't really need disposable bibs because we have real bibs, but when I saw this pack on sale at SM Lanang (again), I got really curious. I wanted to open a pack so that I will know the material used for the bibs, but the pack wasn't resealable so it couldn't be opened at the store. I bought one anyway.

At home, I opened the pack and saw that the bibs were made of light and flimsy material. In hindsight, I should have known! Haha! Anyway, clueless me was expecting waterproof bibs and these obviously aren't. Still, they could be handy in case I forget to bring a bib.

Rating: Miss
Price: P60+ for a pack of 6

7. Board Books!

Ah, my current Yuri-related obsession: books! I bought these two after our most recent appointment with our pedia (see post here). I have bought two more books before, and I just had to add two more to our growing collection. As always, I have no complaint with these Cupcake books. The stories are engaging, the illustrations are beautiful, and the material is sturdy!

Rating: Hit (of course!)
Price: P70 (regular price), but one of them, the "Dazzle Duckling" book, was only P45!

8. Suspenders

Chilly Sunday turned Suspenders-Sunday

Happy Tuesday! Can you feel the Amihan wind? Nafi-feel ko na dito sa Davao. While I do enjoy the cool breeze, I would be lying if I said I don't feel a tinge of worry everytime the wind blows more hardly than usual.

But enough of the negative vibes. Let's talk about my favorite day of the week: Sunday! As usual. Haha! For new "readers" and those na napadpad lang (thanks, Google!), I love Sundays because it's the only day of the week when I can go outside the house. #WAHMproblems.

Anyway, another reason is that I love putting together outfits for the little boy. Who says only little girls can be dressed up?

However, last Sunday, I was having trouble dressing Yuri up because my mom gave him a souvenir shirt from Baguio, and Yuri was expected to wear it. Haha okay! Since it was a little chilly that morning, I also got his jacket out para Baguong-Baguio ang dating:

Shirt: souvenir from Baguio City, khaki pants (turned pedal-pushers): NEXT, kicks: Oshkosh B'gosh, jacket: St. Patrick

I know this is not my best work (not even close), but whatever. Need to wear grandma's gift! Which I like, just to make it clear! :-P Here are the details of his "outfit":

The shoes are the ones given to me by the very kind seller of Charles Goodies. Yuri likes it so much that sometimes, he wears them at home. When he saw me bring them outside, umiyak kasi gustong isuot. Fine!

And, of course, here are our obligatory before-leaving-the-house shots:

Cardigan: Hand-me-down from mother, Blouse: Aztec-print zip-front jumpsuit from GMall Department Store, Jeans: Forever 21, Shoes: Crocs, Diaper bag: Carter's

Yes, that blouse is a jumpsuit. I was supposed to wear it alone, but it must have shrunk in the wash kasi ang ikli na! Oh noes!

Here are moooore shots from SM Lanang Premier:

My sister literally shrieked when she saw the Hello Kitty display in the atrium! She's now in a phase where she (finally) appreciates Hello Kitty, and as luck would have it, nagparamdam sa kanya si Hello Kitty!

I was also a fan of Hello Kitty growing up. Virtually everything in my childhood bedroom was Hello Kitty!

Christmas was also in the air in SM Lanang Premier. Kudos to my classmates who belong to SM's marketing team!

Yuri got bored and, well, stuck to the glass walls of Terranova. Real smooth, kid. Real smooth.

You may have noticed that Yuri wasn't wearing his jacket anymore. Well, that's because the weather abruptly changed from chilly to sunny! That left Yuri in a pretty dismal attire. But don't fret because one of my missions that day was to buy Yuri ---- a pair of suspenders!

I've been reading Momster Teacher's blog, and Raviv is quickly becoming my toddler peg for Yuri. Because Job doesn't want me overspending for clothes, my mission is to buy Yuri one piece of clothing at a time, thus the suspenders for this month!

I scoured the department store for one, and a kind and gay (I just have to say it) salesman was really helpful. He showed me few suspenders that were right for Yuri's age (let's talk more about this in my November Finds blog post *wink*), and here it is!

Clockwise from top left: All smiles! What are you looking at? Waddup?! And Back view of the suspenders

Oh diba, ang cute??? Guess how much it costs??? Ah, let's reserve that for the November Finds post bwahahaha! It's just sad that red's the only color left. Oh well. Anyway, here's Yuri in Giligan's: