Nanay Kolokoy Picks: Fun Feeding Mat from The Project Mommyger

My dream was to become a 100% breastfeeding, babywearing, cloth diapering and baby led weaning momma. I was an idealistic first time mother who simply wanted the best for the child she waited for four long years. But somewhere along the way, I learned that more than following whatever I learned from parenting books, what really matters is being able to address my baby’s needs. Had I chosen to stick to my initial plans, my baby would have suffered big time mainly because I would be losing my sanity along the way. Zayne has been exclusively breastfed since day 1. She’s in cloth diapers on most hours of the day except when we go out, and I still practice babywearing. Unfortunately, I failed in BLW. When Zayne was about to start on solids, her weight gain reached a plateau. Her pediatrician was a bit worried that it would have an effect on her brain development. To be able to catch up to her weight, I discarded the thought of BLW and resorted to spoonfeeding her. On our succeeding monthly checkups, her pediatrician’s worries were thrown out the window when he noticed that Zayne was actually advanced for her age. She started walking even if she was just expected to crawl. Her mental development also impressed her doctor. His conclusion: Mana lang daw talaga sa aming mag-asawa si Zayne. Heller, nakaka 3 cups of rice kami pero hindi tumataba! Hahaha!

As soon as the “weight gain scare” was over, I decided to let Zayne eat on her own. I was initially worried that she would refuse our new practice. Yes, it was more challenging, but Zayne was actually enjoying her new-found independence. Hihi! But a couple of months ago, when Zayne started to become more active, meal times suddenly equated to MESSY TIMES! There had been times when she would “accidentally” knock over her plate. And you probably know what happens next. Food is everywhere! She has sweet potatoes in her ears. My shirt is soaked with vegetable sauce. We have food scattered on the floor and sticking on our walls! Hahaha!

Good thing that I discovered The Project Mommyger through my longtime friend and mommy batchmate, Dianne. Dianne’s daughter, Padi, is almost the same age as Zayne. Dianne bought a Fun Feeding Mat for Padi, and she vouched how effective it is for Padi. I checked out the website of TPM, made an online order, and the mat was shipped to me in no time. It was definitely a hassle-free transaction.


Taken from TPM website: This all-in-one silicone placemat & plate will make feeding and cleaning up after your little one a breeze. Made from a BPA and phthalate-free food safe silicone, this placemat suctions securely to hard surfaces, preventing little fingers from pulling up the mat, meaning no more tipped over plates or bowls.

When Zayne used it for the first time, she was trying so hard to remove the mat from our table. It was so hilarious! Those who know us personally can attest how strong Zayne is. (She can pull my husband’s laptop bag! A visitor was shocked when she once saw Zayne trying to pull a 6L bottle of water. Yes, guys. May laman ‘yung bote! Haha!) But Zayne finally gave up when she realized that she could not move the mat. Hihi!



Dealing with Mommy Karen was a delight. She personally sent me text messages to inform me of the status of my order. And if you look at the products in her site, you’ll realize that most of them are considered mommy hacks! Pampadali ng buhay ng mga nanay!

There are a couple of other online stores that sell products that are similar to what TPM is offering. But there’s one reason which made me decide to choose TPM over them. It’s Kara. Kara is Mommy Karen’s daughter who’s just a month older than Zayne. I follow Mommy Karen on Instagram, and I see that Kara actually uses all the things that are being sold in TPM. This fact makes me feel at ease. Why? E kasi, real life (tiny) human being ang brand ambassador ng Fun Feeding Mat! :)



UPDATE: May 2, 2017

The Fun Feeding Mat has different styles, but they all have one thing in common – they all have partitions. Mommy Karen explained in one of her Instagram posts that the mat is designed to help parents in portioning their babies’ food. It’s also a reminder for parents to serve GO, GROW and GLOW foods to their babies which explains the three partitions of the mat. Genius, right? But in our case, the divider has another use!

I’m very lucky that Zayne is not a picky eater. She eats everything I put on her plate. People who see her are amazed that she eats even the yucky okra and the bitter ampalaya. But I still can’t deny the fact that she is a toddler. Toddlers love to experiment. I read somewhere that toddlers have this weird habit of throwing food because they like to see what happens when they throw anything. Zayne started throwing food when she was around 7 months old. (Yes, she started really young trying to learn about GRAVITY! Hahaha!) At first, she would throw food because she wanted water. But later on, she would throw food just to annoy her Tatay who cleans the dining area after we’re done eating! Hihi!


Later on when Zayne could already say MAMAM to ask for water, she would still throw food once in a while to signal us that she wants to eat her food in a specific order. IKR?! OC-ness runs in the blood! There are times when she simply wants to eat all the fish first so she ends up throwing rice on the floor! She also throws the food that she spits out. She was at the height of throwing food when she turned one year old. I’m glad that it’s no longer as bad these days now that she’s 17 months old. And the Fun Feeding Mat helped us big time in solving this problem!

If you’re a parent, you should know that saying DON’T THROW YOUR FOOD automatically means that your baby will surely throw food! It’s 100% accurate! Hahaha! Instead of saying DON’T THROW YOUR FOOD, I tried to train Zayne by telling her to put the “unwanted” food in the panda’s ears. (During the first few times that I told her PUT THE FOOD IN THE PANDA’S EAR, she placed the food in HER ears! Hahahaha!!!) Now, she’s trained to do it! There are still times when food gets scattered on the floor, but it’s not as bad as before. I saw her one time when she was meticulously segregating the vegetables. She placed all the carrots in the ears first. After she was done eating all the bitsuelas, she started eating the carrots that she placed in the panda’s ears. Haha! Crazy baby! :p