baby macy's 3rd birthday party: the preparation part 2

A week just before the party, I had just started buying toys and goodies for the loot bag, for the prizes of games, and for the pabitin and palayok. At first I went to APM mall just across SM to check out wholesale toys. It was my first time to go in there that time and I've heard from my cousin and sister that the mall sells wholesale items. To my dismay, there wasn't. They sell each small toy individually. The cheapest I could find was P15 per toy but I thought I could find way better toys downtown if I had the time. The mall mostly sells clothes in tiangge-style stalls. Then I thought of going to White Gold which is a couple of blocks aways. I looked at my watch and I thought I only had 1hr to shop so I crossed the street to go to SM. Then I rechecked the time again. Alas, I realized it was still 7pm and malls would close by 9pm so I still have 2hours to go around White Gold. So I rode on a jeepney and went down a few blocks away. It was there at White Gold that I actually bought the candies, chocolates, and toys. It was hard finding stuffs related to my dora-diego theme. Mostly it was Ben10, Pooh, and Disney princesses. So I just thought of customizing and adding in animal erasers and clips (at least to relate to diego who is an animal rescuer). All in all I was pretty stressed that day with the shopping rush. My hands were all dusty afterwards thanks to the dusty products on sale in that mall (Don't they dust off once in a while?).


Down to very last minutes before the party day, I went to Hannah's store in Ayala. Some of their items are the same ones being sold in White Gold (cheaper) and in downtown (way cheaper). But I also bought some stuffs in Hannah's that I haven't found in White Gold like dora stickers, pencils, and paper dolls.

Mommy tip: If you have the time and courage to go downtown, then I recommend that you search out there for wholesale toys. But don't buy there those toys that need to have contact with the mouth or candies and chocolates. To be cautious, buy only stuffs that you think are safe to use for children. Also, it is best to buy more toys that can be used for both girls and boys especially the prizes in your pabitin. I also found out that kids (both boys and girls) love plastic balloons. Take note of that and so will I.

I also bought a mini chocolate fountain in SM. At first I thought there was a 20% discount on the item. Turns out it was the bigger fountain with the discount so it was no deal but I still bought it any way thinking that I could have it rented out. I also added in chocolate chips especially made for chocolate fountains. I had it microwaved a couple of hours before we went off to family park on the party day. I reminded my two sisters to remind me that I placed the melted chocolates inside the microwave and still we forgot about it. Good thing my dad was still at home that time so he brought it along with him. For the chocolate fountain goodies, I prepared flower-shaped marshmallows, biscuit stix, sliced bananas, red and green apples, pineapples, and strawberries (which was also forgotten in the fridge until the next day after the party was over, sayang!). Since the food kiosk was a ground higher than the eating area of the guest (you have to use the stairs to get to the food), there were a couple of leftovers. I used the remaining chocolate and the fountain goodies the next day when we had a mini party with close relatives to celebrate our parents 26th wedding anniversary. By the way, the fountain got stuck after some time when it was flowing. Turns out several marshmallows were caught at the base.

Mommy tips: For mommies or party hosts out there who'd like to inquire about our chocolate fountain for rent, don'thesitate to leave a message on this blog! :D

For baby macy's party dresses, I went to SM and went through the department store. I bought 5 dresses all in size 10 (I think the size for 6-7 year olds). Turns out the sizes just fits her upper torso but the length is way to lengthy. So I exchanged the items for the next smaller size: 8. And as it turns out there was one brand that seems to have a smaller size 8. So I exchanged the items with this brand again to size 10. The salesgirls were hesitant at first in the exchange since they have this "unwritten" rule that items can only be exchanged once. So they have to get approval from their manager for such exchange. I realized I had to blurt out some lie so I can have my exchange. The manager even said that I had to be sure that this is the final size for the items. OMG, this policy wasn't even written in the huge return policy board posted at the returns counter. If they had rejected my request for exchange then I would have to hugely question this kind of "customer service" they are showing. Grr and I have to lie to make up a valid excuse why I had to exchange the items twice. The items were still in very good condition with tags and i had to exert effort to just go to SM to exchange the items. Still couldn't understand where they came up with this "unwritten" rule. If they are so bent up to it, why don't they specify it in their huge return policy board. Gee as if it was that easy to bring baby macy to the mall and have her try on some clothes which drives her mad and angry and wild. Baby macy just hates putting on and putting off clothes especially if there are still tags on them as they would make 'yayay' to her.

Mommy tip: Well, inquire about a store's return policy and verify it from the store manager (if possible) especially if you aren't sure of the right size for your little one. It can't be helped especially if your kid doesn't realize the importance of shopping yet. hehehe!