Showing posts with label beach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beach. Show all posts

My Acuaverde Birthday Getaway!

Almost two weeks ago, we spent my pre-birthdy at Acuaverde in San Juan, Batangas. I saw a deal at Deal Grocer around the end of February and grabbed it! I was super excited because it will be the kids' first time to go to the beach!

We left Manila Thursday around 10-ish.
Google Maps
We didn't pass thru Skyway and we had a breezy drive along SLEX. I was expecting it to be traffic but I was glad it was not.
Side kwento, when we reached Alabang around 11AM maybe, R was sleepy already. He usually naps around this time or earlier. But lately when he's in the car and "knows" were are going somewhere, he refuses to sleep hanggang sa maging super antok na siya.
Sleeping with food in his hands because he fell asleep na!
This is my second time to go to San Juan, Batangas. The first time was during college, that was 7-8 years ago! Ang tagal na pala! And the last time I was in beach was four years ago but I was pregnant then so hindi counted yun hihihi.

When we were a few towns away from San Jua, we saw big signs like this (as in ang dami dami! And you really won't miss it:
You need to pay Php20/tourist (children are free)
I forgot to take photos of where you will pay pero there are people who will stop and lead you to wher you will pay, parang toll gate ang peg.

Another side story, since Acuaverde's room doesn't have a fridge. I had to bring my own cooler for the fresh milk that I brought with me for the kids. We forgot to stop at a gas station/convenience store, buti na lang mahy nadaanan kaming water station that also sells ice! Wuhoo!
Ice!

After buying ice, we continued our drive to Acuaverde. We just used Google Maps to guide us BUT fail si Goodle Maps. I think may mali because we almost got lost. It's hard to explain. Basta muntik na kaming mag LQ ni BOS so we asked na lang from the manongs by the road where Acuaverde was. At buti na lang malapit na pala kami! Whew!
We're in our room!
I didn't get to take photos of our room before it was invaded by these two kulits. We stayed in a Casa Marina with a queen bed. I liked our room but it was a bit small, I felt a bit cramped, maybe it was also because of the extra bed. . Bathroom was just fine, nothing great. You can check the rooms here.
After settling in, all of us changed the kids into their swimwear! We were all excited to jump into the water!
R didn't like the feel of the sand on his feet but he thoroughly enjoyed the water! Screaming and giggling. Love hearing his giggles, this is coming from my little serious baby. Meanwhile, Y loved the sand but not the water! Opposite na opposite!
We didn't really stay long in the water because the kids wanted to play in the sand instead.
The sand was not fine. It was more like fine rocks at masakit sa paa! Huhu. You need to wear your flip-flops all the time. But the kids, lalo na si Yukie, enjoyed the sand so much that she wouldn't leave the beach! After playing in the sand, they wanted to go to the playground naman.
I took this photo later that afternoon
They love slides!

I had to ask yaya to give R a bath after dahil umitim na ang labi! Eeeeep! I also gave Y a shower roo. Then after dressing them up, we went fish feeding naman near their reception plaza which is by the playground too.
There are only two fish feeding schedule. Just go to the receptionist and ask for the feeds. The kids enjoyed feeding the kois.
While they were feeding the fishies, I took the opportunity to take photos of the place.
The reception area
Beach Front
The cottages

After taking exploring the place and taking our showers, we went to Cocina to have dinner (as well as our breakfast and lunch the next day). Food was okay, nothing special. The concept sana is nice where the dining area is on the second level but the place is small so we had our dinner at the ground level where there are cabanas where you can eat. Hassle lang to go up and down to get food. So the next day, we went a bit early to Cocina to be able to get seats and the reason why I was able to take photos.
Buffet Table
They serve coffee and tea all day by the way which I liked hihi. Brewed coffee all day!

There's really nothing much to do at night so we slept early that night and woke up also early the next day!
The view in the morning

After having breakfast, R wanted to swim then Y wanted to play in the sand. R had a nap after the swim then we just hanged out in our room watching TV until it was lunch thenn checked out.

And with that, we ended my pre-birthday getaway at Acuaverde.
Til our next beach trip!

We had a great stay. I wanted to extend our stay but there wasn't much anything to do. Maybe I should come with family or friends. And normally for deals like this, there are conditions and ours was valid for stays Monday to Thursday only, so I chose to check in on a Thursday. I also brought yaya with us, so I also paid for extra person which was Php2,400. Food was okay. Rooms were fine but doesn't have a fridge! It's a bit hard when the kids drink fresh milk.

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A&D Finds: Budget-Friendly Swimwear For The Whole Family

Summer is here and I'm sure the kids are super excited to hit the beach or the pool and swim the summer away! Last week, we had my pre-birthday getaway at the beach. It was my kids' first time at the beach so imagine how excited I am!
Part of that excitement was shopping for swimwear for the kids but what I didn't expect was how hard it was to find rashguards and boardshorts for kids and at a budget friendly prices! Eeeep! I am practical with things that will only be used for a short time or a season only especially when kids outgrow clothes so fast. That and/or I am a kuripot smart shopper! Heehee! One money saving tip I can give is always have a budget and stick to it!
I started looking for rashguard two weeks before our trip, this was mid-February and I tell you it was not easy! I checked Speedo and their SALE rack, nothing fits R plus it was over my budget so I checked Cotton On Kids which was suggested to me by some mommy friends.
Cotton On Kids loot for my sister. Rashguards are at Php799 thereabouts, boardshorts are at Php799 as well I think. Some are on SALE so check the sale rack first.

I bought these for my sister. They have a pool in their house and they're going to Boracay this summer, she'll get to maximize them. If you have the budget for these Cotton On Kids swimwear, then buy na! :)
More choices! Everything is so cute! Sadly, there's none for girls. I hope they'll have it in store soon!

Another friend mentioned Landmark, I never really shop at Landmark because I don't frequent Trinoma and when I go to Makati, I always go to SM naman. But over the course of two weeks of looking for swimwears, I was able to go to both Trinoma and Makati branches! O diba?!
Landmark Makati Great selection!
I was able to buy R's rashguards, BOS' boardshorts. I also bought my yaya two boardshorts at the "Bazaar" section at around Php150-Php180 each!!!
Got this for R at Landmark Trinoma. Also available in Makati. It's only Php180!!!
Boardshorts for the BOS! Left one is Php269.75 while the right one is Php209.75.

If your daughter or son likes Disney characters, it's what SM and Robinsons had last February. Sandbox had trunks and boardshorts, swimwear as well but no size for R.  But I was able to score super duper cute floral boardshorts for both Y and R. These are for girls but I bought it for R anyway.
My bebepies in their matching outfits! Sandbox Floral Boardshorts are Php169.75 each!

But the gold mine is in 168 Mall! I never thought I would be able to buy decent swimwear in Divisoria but I hit the jackpot! I spotted this store a few months back but never went in because I didn't need swimwear back then. I went back and scored rashguards for both Y and R. They also have bikinis and rashguards for ladies but it's free size only - for sexy ladies only!
Rashguards at Php200 each!
They got Carter's, Cotton On overruns, just to name a few. Rashguards are at Php200. There are also rashguard/bottoms sets for Php350. The downside is they only have what they have. Most are for toddlers, not much for Y. But I was happy with what I got! The store is in 168 Mall, Pasilio 2F but I forgot the stall number. Medyo nasa likod na siya, you won't miss it!
Enjoying the sand!

As for me, I had no plans of buying new boardshorts or swimsuit because I have two but when I tried on the older one, hindi na kasya! So I was happy when I was able to buy a swimsuit and boardshorts on sale at Cotton On! Sorry, no photo of me wearing them kasi baka mag crash ang mga gadgets niyo. Heehee!
Swimsuit and boardshorts at Php400 each.

I'm super happy with my purchases! There were times when I wanted to buy whatever was available kahit mahal because I really had a hard time looking but sabi nga patience is a virtue! I'm really glad I stuck to my budget. More stories about our beach trip in the next few days!

Have you bought your swimwears yet for this summer? I hope this post can help you somehow and please do share if you were able to score great bargains! You can also check Mothercare, Robinson's Department Store, Toys R Us, Greenhills for your swimwear needs!

P.S. Don't forget to join my ongoing giveaways! You can check my sidebar to your right and click on the photo!