Arugaan Day Care Moved to PIA

Arugaan Day Care used to be in Marikina but it has recently moved to a really big complex at the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) at Visayas Avenue, Quezon City.


the entrance at the 2nd floor


the long, wide corridor where everyone leaves their shoes and where kids can run or bike around


the main area where games, arts & crafts and even drama plays are conducted by the staff


the equally big kitchen and dining area


kids are allowed to bring in baon, but they are also provided with six mostly-vegetarian/organic meals


another big room is the sleeping area with the locally-made hammocks/cradles


an example of what the kids create with the staff

Arugaan is open to all, not just PIA employees and operates from 7 AM to 7 PM on weekdays. Monthly tuition starts at P2,500 for PIA employees and is ladderized for outsiders, starting at P3,000 (please check with them for latest rates).

Arugaan can employ wet nurses for babies whose moms cannot express breast milk for them (for a fee) and toddlers are guaranteed healthy meals. The day care does not follow a strict routine but offers different stimulating activities for the children. Nanay Ines even told me that parents are sometimes hardpressed looking for the proper preschool for their child after Arugaan because kids often already know more than their peers in schools. But whether your child goes on to a traditional or progressive school, Arugaan will still have offered a very good foundation to your child academically and socially, as well as healthy eating habits and a rich background on our local culture.

Please check the previous link for other things you can expect when you put your child in Arugaan.

For inquiries, call Ines Fernandez at 490-5452. You can also arrange for a visit (by appointment) so a staff can be sure to assist you since they will be busy, not just with the babies, but also cooking food.

Increasing Profits by Improved Marketing

Sometimes, there are really good products out there that just don't take off because of poor marketing. And while an online marketing degree is sure to help anyone running a business, it would also be good to tap onto present resources that are cheap and risk-free.

Take for example selling things online. Facebook will allow you to put up albums of your wares. Ask your friends' permission to tag them in some of the pictures because they may have friends who may be interested in your products. Or... ask them to promote you in their walls outright.

If your products are for kids, use kiddie doodles in the brochures or fold the flyers up into pinwheels.
If you want to create buzz, get blogger friends to offer your product as prize to their readers.

I am sure an online marketing degree will get you thinking up more ways to market your product better at minimum cost. But don't forget to make do with what you already have since it also usually results in strategies that are more inspired.

Enrichment Classes Resource

Mommy Pages is an online resource guide for all parents, especially moms, out there. It offers a directory of everything one might need in raising kids, from products to services. And yes, there's a lot of classes listed in their site (and handbook, which you get for free when you go to a Mommy Mundo event) to occupy and enrich your kids (and yourself) with.

So, if high school wrestling isn't being offered in your son's school, maybe you can find an alternative in Mommy Pages (like wushu, which I intend to enrol my son in when he's older). There are also classes now for budding fashionistas and theater artists. It's really a great time to be a kid for kids now, with all these options, and thankfully, the resources have been consolidated and listed down by Mommy Pages.

Just check out the website and get a free copy :)
http://mommypages.com.ph/

Entertaining Kids on a Budget

If the electronic toys with vtech batteries are not amusing your tot for hours on end, and you need some quiet time to do the chores or have your ME time but do not really want to invest in a multitude of toys (after all, there are no guarantees that they're going to be played with anyway), then invoke the power of a child's imagination and use your regular household items.

Try a box of an old appliance or your most recent groceries. Try old pots and pans and maybe some ladles too. Try newspapers. Try a malong and see them tunnel in and out of this one, or prop it up with chairs as a makeshift tent.

If you can part with it, maybe even lend the flashlight and have them shadowplay with a light-colored blanket.

You can also just let them free on chairs of different heights.

Just use your imagination so they will also use theirs. And your pocketbook will remain intact.

See an Expert for Medical Maladies

I am sure that a lot of people are just like me who think that every solution is online. How to get rid of pimples? Check online. What's this rash on my skin? Google images. What disease do I have? Compare symtoms on the web.

Make no mistake, the internet is something everyone should be friends with. Forums can even direct you to the best doctors and provide other tips and strategies in managing your baby's skin asthma. However, it is still far wiser to go see an expert, a medical professional, for your ailments. After all, what could be a gruesomely bothersome acne for you can be common fare for another, so treatment will not be the same. A doctor has to examine you first, get to know your medical history and inquire about your lifestyle for a really more personalized and effective treatment regimen.

Plus, rashes can be a symptom of so many other ailments. What you think is engorgement may not just be that, but an infection as well.

Go see a doctor and be smart about your health.

Play Pilipinas - The Philippines' First Play Festival

With gadgets, adults not knowing how nor having the time, unsafe environments, parents' fears, inadequate play spaces, premium on educational achievement and poverty all compromising the quality of play (source), Paul and Sigrid Perez (of Project Brave Kids)> have come up with Play Universal, a coalition whose mission is to 'promote, enrich and cultivate the benefits of play at home, school and in communities.'



As a first major project, Play Universal is bringing the first Play festival in the country.

Play Pilipinas will be a three-day event happening on October 21-23, 2011 at the SMX Convention center. There will be a Play Forum for all three days, targetting educators and school operators as audience, with distinguished experts tackling issues like Magic of Play (Dr. Honey Carandang), Play at Home (CEFAM), Creating Inspiring Play Spaces (Hitoshi Shimamura), Nutrition and Active Play (Kay Gibbons) and many others. The fee for the 3-day conference is P15,000.

There will also be mini workshops on music & play, arts & play, nutrition, traditional Filipino games and many more. These will cost around P3,000. Perfect for homeschooling families, no?

Then, there is the playground design challenge that is open to students and professionals alike. The top ten winning designs will be brought to life at Play Pilipinas for the public to enjoy.

And then there are the fairs: Toy Fair (over 50 booths, each featuring the latest tools and toys for active play organized by age bracket.), Book and Magazine Fair (latest and best titles covering play and child development), Children's Nutrition Fair (sample & shop for food that makes for fun, delicious and healthy eating for kids), Children's Fashion Fair (exhibition of outfits fit for active play and other children's activities), School Fair (a venue for schools or institutions to showcase their programs and the ways they integrate play into their curriculum/activities) and World Toys Exhibit (exhibition showcasing toys and games from around the world).

So, if you're an educator, school owner/administrator, Psych or Early Childhood Education student, parent, doting aunt or kid or vendor who wish to be part of the fair... mark your calendars and come to Play Pilipinas. You may also contact them directly at:
Play Universal Co.
9F Pacific Center, 33 San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City
Telefax: +63 634 0416
Email: playnow@playpilipinas.com
http://playpilipinas.org

Prevent Accidents, Manage Your Cables

Is your house like ours where there are baskets of cords and cables for the different appliances and gadgets you own? Then maybe you should invest in a floor cord cover for extensions you're using as well as make sense of the cables by tying them up together. Feel free to just use any old ribbon, even pipe cleaners, to keep them out of the way and untangled.

Little things like this can prevent tripping or your child tugging at wayward cables. It saves you from accidents and saves your equipment from getting broken too.