Smart Parenting Meet & Greet 2012

Yesterday, November 22, Smart Parenting magazine held their annual Smart Parenting Meet & Greet for their avid readers and staff. Fortunately, Henry's momma was one of the few lucky readers to be selected to attend the special event which happened at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. It was my first to attend such an event.

Hosting the program was TV personality, Ms. Issa Litton (who I remember from her Star Wars themed wedding video a few years ago.) Issa, shared with us some of her experiences with motherhood and how she juggled it with her career.

Ms. Issa Litton

To officially open the event, Smart Parenting Magazine Editor-in-Chief,  Mia Fausto-Cruz welcomed everyone with a few words.

Photo grabbed from Smart Parenting's Instagram account.

It was an such a fun and insightful afternoon for everyone as we learned from different speakers in their respected fields.

First up was Cosmo Fashion Director Donna Cuna-Pita who talked about how to appreciate your own body type. She had helpful tips on how to accentuate your body's assets and talked about the dos and don'ts on what to wear. She even had tips for daddies as well. 

Cosmo Fashion Director Donna Cuna-Pita

My personal favorite part of the program was the second speaker's talk, "How to Motivate Your Kids to Read". Unfortunately, I didn't catch her name, but she's from Scholastics, the book publishing company. She emphasized on the value of starting early and reading aloud to your kids. She even did a sample "read aloud." I felt like I was a kid again. 

The third and last speaker was Michelle Tambunting, mommy/preschool teacher/life coach. She spoke on how to raise unspoiled children. And recommended the book, The Price of Privilege by Madeline Levine to help understand how materialism affects our kids. She talked about the difference between external and internal motivation and enlightened us on how to raise and aim for a child to have a healthy sense of self. She suggests that we encourage our children to think for themselves and control their impulses by setting limits. She shared that her son was only allowed to watch T.V. on weekends. 

Of course, the purpose of this whole event was to meet and greet with the Smart Parenting team. Our table got to sit down with SP Online's Managing Editor, Lei Sison for a focused group discussion. Lei asked for our insights about the magazine, about what we like about it and what we think were lacking. She also asked us about how we find the website. (We all love the Family Weekender Guide, Lei! I also personally like the you have some of my favorite mommy bloggers as contributors.) 

But it wasn't all talks, we also had fun playing "Name that tune". Each table was joined by an SP team member. Great food was also served and there was a photo booth which everyone enjoyed - I know I did. 

Meet next month's cover of Smart Parenting

It was such a delight to see the people behind this magazine up close and personal and to meet other mommies as well. To top it all off, everyone in attendance won a raffle prize from SP and their sponsors. Some very lucky mommies even won GCs to California Nails & Day Spa (worth P2500! very lucky indeed). 

My loot from SP

Thanks for such an awesome day Smart Parenting! I learned a lot and had fun. I'm looking forward to next year's meet and greet already. 

with SP Editor-in-chief, Mia Fausto

To know more about Smart Parenting's events, visit SP Online at http://www.smartparenting.com.ph. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter (@SP_Online).