sun life Archives - Mommy Ginger

Today, I feel in control.

Don’t you have those days where you wake up, and you feel that everything is in the right place — that each thing is where it should be. And even if you know that it’s not, you have that feeling in your gut that you can and WILL get to where you want to be in the near future. That’s how I feel today. It must be, because of the spontaneous Mom’s Day out activity that I attended sponsored by Sun Life Financial Philippines yesterday (I’m all eager, willing and able to go for my dreams), or, it actually may be something else. I really can’t give you a proper reason, so that you, moms may replicate what I did to get to this state.

Today, I feel in control!

But what I’ve learned yesterday from the guest psychologist, Michele Alignay, is that this feeling of being in control, may not last, and it’s okay. As they say, in life, the one thing in life that’s constant is change. And what better way to show these changes in a mom’s life and our changing relationship with our children, but through this video or #SunShorts shared by Sun Life Financial Philippines (She Said, She Said). This video really struck a cord. I may look like I’m super in control of things, and it may look like that I never get mad, but there are times where I really shout and lose my cool at my daughter and at people I love. There are times that I break down, I cry (for no reason) and I get frustrated and depressed. I totally was able to relate with the mom in the video! Super naiyak ako!

We will have it easy if we accept, prepare and plan for changes that may or may not happen. As a mom, I think it’s harder for us since we have a lot of things on our minds. In this economy where the standard is to have double income households, most of the moms I know, balance working/earning a decent living, taking care of the children and taking care of themselves. And truly, it’s a struggle to find that perfect “balance”. This is why I like the definition of balance that was presented yesterday.

If we are looking for that balance, where balance comes from the idea that everything should be at equal states or everything should be given equal time, you’re on the wrong track. Balancing is about 1) knowing ourselves, 2) process of continually centering energy with the cooperation and conscious support of all other parts.

Yesterday’s talk was really inspiring, and it reminded me that I should constantly ask these three questions:

What do I want?
What do I think I “Ought to do”?
What I think I can do?

At any given point in our lives, we will have something that we want more than our other wants. We will have something that we “ought to do” and we will know what we can do. After hearing this during the Mom’s Day Out of Sun Life Financial Philippines, being a mindful mom now comes into play when every day, I accept that I can only do so much in 24 hours. I have learned howt o prioritize. I have learned to say “no”, and moving forward, I will focus on things that are truly essential.

Moms Tippy, Patty, Yours Truly, Jackie and Kelly at the Mom’s Day out Event of Sun Life Financial Philippines

It’s nice to think that we can be like Wonder Woman, or even just be like Gal Gadot (haha!) every time — so in control with her “I’ve got this!” attitude. But we only human and I’m sure even Gal Gadot goes through times where she feels vulnerable. But what we need to be mindful of is that we have a choice on how we can emotionally react to these things. Will we intentionally remain in that state of peace and satisfaction or will we succumb to the judgement of others or worse, fall into the trap of judging ourselves and feeling guilty about not living up to our own expectations of ourselves?

So today, after a rejuvenating massage given by I’m Hotel Spa, after the amazing loot bag that I’ve received, after that delicious buffet from Bloom at I’m Hotel, after the great and inspirational talks from Michele and Mylene Segismundo from Sun Life Financial Philippines Cluster Head Manila, I have decided to feel peace and satisfaction. I wrote down all of the Practical ways for Self-Care that was shared:

Perception

Affirm your goodness
Release Control (of things beyond you)
Saying NO is okay (and needed at times)
Feeling happy and satisfied is normal
Relinquish some task that stresses you

Emotions

During emotional highs: PAUSE
Ditch the guilt
Choose to love more
Be silly with the kids
Flirt with your spouse! Make your marriage matter.

Actions

Choose to rest or sleep
Give yourself an extra 10 minutes in the shower
Put a little color in your face
Find a spot for daily reflection
Find a daily physical activity that you can do

All of these tips of Michele were great and I intend to do it! So guess what, the first thing that I did today, was I met with my Sun Life Financial Advisor. There is something about having your finances in place that satisfies you (well, that’s how I personally feel at least! haha). I learned about their educational fund product. I actually have savings already for Zeeka’s College stored in Mutual Funds, but I thought of a back up.

I’m getting another policy from Sun Life Financial Philippines (which I will write about in another blog post), and I’m excited! haha! I know that’s a weird thing to say about getting a policy, but that’s exactly how I feel. I feel wonder woman-ish today!

So if you are looking to feel the way that I do today, join the next Mom’s Day Out events on July 1 and 15.

Cheers to a peaceful and content life, mindful moms! Let’s all say I’ll be the Master of Myself!

Love,

Mommy Ginger

It was a windy morning, but nothing could have stopped my family and I from attending the Money Matters for Mommies. This talk was organized by Sun Life Financial Philippines.

Money Matters for Mommies

Program for Money Matters for Mommies

Sun Life Financial Philippines’ mission is to help Filipinos achieve financial security. And one way to fulfill this mission is to conduct mini talks to teach financial literacy. This workshop that we attended is one of the series of workshops that they organized.

Why did I want to attend this workshop? I know that in terms of handling finances, Ej and I have done a pretty good job in increasing our assets. Now that we have Baby Zeeka, I’d like to listen to tips from different parents and experts on how they go about increasing their savings and investments. You know me? I’m a sucker for continuous learning.

So where should we start when trying to build funds for our little one? What do we do when we want to start building a great future for our children? Sun Life Philippines phrases it in a very inspiring statement… Your bright choice will help you achieve a brighter future.

Ms. Nerie Azurin with Mommy Ginger

During the session, Ms. Nerie Azurin from Sun Life, introduced the speaker for the day. It was TV host and mommy Suzy Entrata-Abrera.

I enjoyed Suzy’s talk because she gave tips and elaborated on each using her own personal experiences as a mom. She shared stories about her husband and her children.

For you to be able to give a brighter life for your children, here are some tips that Suzy shared:

Set clear goals: This is so so that you will know what you are actually saving for and so that you get to see what you have actually accomplished. Like for her, their goal as a married couple is to be able to have a house built in 4 years time.

Begin a saving habit: As moms and dads, we now have set our children as our main priority. She mentions that there was a time when she would buy branded bags, but now she has learned to stay away from buying unnecessary stuff.

She also says that as early as now, she teaches her kids on how to handle money. She goes on the mention that nowadays, it’s harder to explain the concept of money since a lot of things and transactions are done online with the children not seeing the exchange of money. They also get to see a plastic card being used to pay for things (credit card), which we parents need to explain to them, too.

Prepare for emergencies: Always have enough for the times when you need money the most, like sickness, etc.

Get insured: Growing up, Suzy mentions that her mom taught her and her sibling the importance of getting things insured. Her mom practically insured everything. She would ask her mom why the latter would stress over paying for insurance every month. Her mom then explained to them that everything she was doing was for her and her siblings.

Make money earn more: We really need to place our money in higher yielding investments, if we want to have enough for our children’s education.

Seek professional advice: If you need to understand investment and savings, do not hesitate to ask for help. The sooner you ask for help, the sooner you can start building funds.

Stay the course: You have your plan. You know what is important. What you need now is to keep at it and continue saving. You will reap the rewards in the future for a brighter life for you and your kids.

Other practical tips or realizations that I had while listening to Suzy:

– She mentioned that every time that she and her husband would go to other countries for a vacation, they would already buy the pasalubong for the kids before they leave and hide it from them 🙂 It saves you from paying the excess baggage fee and from carrying heavy luggage!

– I brought my yaya with me to the talk and I realized that it was a good thing because everyone in the household should be in sync on how money should be handled. Yayas are very important, since they are people who spend time with our children. If you want to teach your children good habits on saving and investing, yaya should also be on board and she should help you teach your child. It will also help her (since my yaya has an 11 year old daughter) in creating plans and in building a good future for her own family.

– You and your husband should not fight about money. Early on, try to discuss it already — who will pay what and who will handle the budget. I remember that early on, even before our wedding, EJ and I already discussed money matters and created a rough draft of how we wanted to handle our finances. Really… do talk about it 🙂 It will save you both from a lot of arguments and tears!

Well, that’s basically it. It was a good session that inspired us and gave us that affirmation that we (Ej and I) are on the right track in our wish of providing Baby Zeeka with a good future.

Zeeka with her new coin bank and her serious face!

We also got this free coin bank, which Baby Zeeka loved 🙂

You may want to read my past post about managing household expenses with real life stories from different moms:
How do you Manage your Household Budget?

I enjoyed the talk! Thank you, Sun Life!

Love,

Mommy Ginger