:Food Friday - Coleslaw

Let's get healthy this week as my entry today is coleslaw salad, a combination of cabbage, mayonnaise, dash of salt, pinch of pepper with toppings of cucumber and tomatoes. Hmmm this is so good for me especially after eating fried chicken, it's as if I'm eating in fastfood resto where you can have this as side dish. Btw you can add variations to mayo if you want to further improve it.

See other yummy foods here!

Food-Friday

Car Problem

We’re having second thoughts on our car mechanic because he just keeps on delaying our schedule for the car repair. I really want to know if he’s going to repair our car or we’ll just have other repair shop pick it up. Days are quickly passing by and we need it in good shape for our long travel for December camp meeting. I also need it to be ready for its yearly auto insurance early next year. I’m discussing this problem with my sister and hubby and they agreed to have the car picked up by another repair shop though it’s more expensive that way.

:Thursday Challenge - "Music"

"MUSIC" (Guitar, Playing an Instrument, Things that make sounds, iPods,
Sheet Music, Noisy Things,...)

This is my entry for this week's theme of Thursday Challenge's Music. This is a wooden statue of a Filipino native playing a native musical instrument made of bamboo. The natives don't buy musical instruments in the past, if they want to have music they make their own musical instruments which for me is very ingenius and resourceful.

This shot was taken in the entrance area of Manila Zoo during my daughters' educational tour.

See more Thursday Challenge 'Music' entries here!

Bathroom Suite Stock Clearance Sale

I’ve always wanted a nice and comfortable bathroom in our house; after all it’s the room for comfort so we might as well look for convenient and cozy room. Just as soon as I have the money and time I consulted my engineer brother to renovate our very old bathroom so we can have additional one to our existing bathroom facilities. I wanted something that combines style, comfort and quality so I asked the help of my brother in choosing all the necessary toilet bowls, shower systems, lavatory, fixtures and accessories.

Of course we went together to shop for the bathroom items to carefully choose what’s best for our design. I’m glad that I came with him as I saw the store he frequents whenever he needs complete items for the bathrooms he’s constructing on his residential building projects. Now our new bathroom is finished and even though we spent some money on it I know it’s worth it as the finished project is stylish and comfortable with all fittings for taps completely installed.

If you’re also planning to build or renovate your bathroom you can visit BetterBathrooms.com where the widest array of bathroom products such bathroom suites, furniture, shower systems, taps and all things needed in the bathroom were offered. There’s always one style and design to fit your specific requirements so there’s nothing to worry about especially if you’re looking for an affordable bathroom suite that would fit your bathroom and the size of your room. It’s guaranteed to be of good quality aside from being affordable.

Now they offer some fantastic deals and discounts in their stock clearance sale of bathroom suites with prices of up to 55% off RRP. And one more exciting addition is an extra 20% off on bathroom tiles if you buy one of their bathroom suites so you’ll not only getting quality here but affordable price also. Can you beat that? Super best deals!

10 Things You Wish You Knew How to Do

(click to join the fun!)

1. Sing like an angel
   
2. Play guitar and piano
   
3. Web design
   
4. Paint like an artist
   
5. Cook like a culinary expert (I'm good in cooking but I want more)
   
6. Sew dresses for my kids
   
7. Live without coffee and chocolate
   
8. Be a professional photographer
   
9. Swim like an olympic swimmer
   
10. Drive a car in the expressway
    

Bad TV Reception

I’m not satisfied with our television’s reception and images now especially on the local channels because when we switched it to cable shows it produce clearer images. When I had our cable connection checked the repair man told us that it’s not their company’s fault but it’s our television defect. He checked it and found out that one tiny wire was pulled out from the connecting wire to cable connection. Anyway it must have been pulled out by me when I rushed to save our tvs from big September flood that happened in our place. I was rushing then so I didn’t noticed that I pulled pretty hard. Anyway it’s better than letting it soaked under the water.

CNN Heroes

We were watching ABS CBN news about our very own Efren Peñaflorida making it to the top ten of CNN Heroes when my lil' boy was asking me what CNN Heroes are. He only knows national heroes and his favorite heroes like Batman, Spiderman and Superman. I told him those people are the real alive heroes of our times who do extraordinary things and gone out of their way to help people especially those who need it the most. The news include teaching the viewers how they can access the site and how to vote.

Of course I was touched by Efren's story of educating the streetchildren by way of mobile school. He chose to educate the children in the slum areas. As my Mom was a retired teacher I know fully well the sacrifices of teachers and this one is way beyond the normal ones. Of course I voted for Efren Peñaflorida though I appreciate all the extraordinary people who top the CNN Heroes' list alongside Efren. Anyway here are the complete list of nominees:

1. Brad Blauser
2. Jordan Thomas
3. Doc Hendley
4. Jorge Munoz
5. Budi Soehardi
6. Roy Foster
7. Betty Makoni
8. Andrea Ivory
9. Derrick Tabb
10.Efren Peñaflorida

They're all heroes and winners for me. I just have to vote for which I think is the best. For the top ten's heroic deeds visit CNN.

Inexpensive and Natural

I’ve found a way on how to manage my excess pounds, avoid constipation and lower my cholesterol level. It’s inexpensive and a natural way of burning fats. What I’m talking about is the fruit diet I’ve discovered not only now but few years ago. The only thing that limited me in the past into having diet was my busy schedule at work.

Now that I’m working at home I get the chance of looking for my favorite fruits just around the community I lived in which I fondly called my supplier. It’s where I get my supply of mangoes, banana, papaya and pineapple. Few weeks ago I’ve been thinking of a fast weight loss that would lessened my super big tummy because I’ve been receiving questions if I’m pregnant. I’m not that bothered about it except when it affects my health so before that happens I changed my eating habit and my choice of food. Another good thing is drinking coffee once a day only as I replaced it with tea, well not so delicious but healthy indeed.

:Food Friday - Banana Heart Lumpia

I've tasted variety of lumpia because my Mom used to experiment almost everything to make lumpia out of the many kinds of food available. Mom has done lumpiang shanghai, togue, tuna, lumpiang tuna, assorted veggies, corned beef and many others but she didn't cooked us a dish like the one above. The picture was one of the presented nutritious food for the Linggo ng Wika and it's called Banana Heart Lumpia. The menu together with banana heart burger won the first place.

See other yummy foods here!

Food-Friday

Controlling the Crowd

I went to supermarket yesterday to buy some house essentials and replenish our food stocks. I’m doing it weekly now unlike before when I was working that I buy groceries semi-monthly. It’s easier to stock food weekly and economical too. Anyway I was surprised at the crowd that greets me when I entered the supermarket. It was late in the afternoon and maybe some office employees have already withdrawn their salaries for the pay period. That should explain the unexpected crowd I met. I should have made it earlier because I was also in a hurry.

I waited in line and been watching how the barricades have been so effective in controlling the people in line when a fast approaching lady went directly in front of me not minding the queue of people behind her. She apologized suddenly when we stared at her and plead to be attended first because she was in a hurry, who isn’t? I was expecting that the stanchions would be a sign to everyone to be disciplined in waiting in line. I surmised not all people can really follow rules and regulations 100%. I’m disappointed because I like everything in order and in control.

I was thinking that perhaps there should be a sign that will somehow manage crowd control as some people can’t follow what the barriers were trying to imply to people. Signs are as important as stanchions, barricades and velvet rope in controlling crowds. It can be an added reminder to those who doesn’t care to wait for their turn. But generally all of it is a great help in guiding people on where to wait in line and in managing people who are crowding themselves in line. It’s even better if they visit Camelback’s crowd control products which showcase various helpful products in public guidance like velvet rope, security and traffic barricades, safety and crowd barriers, stanchions and all of Lavi products. Supermarkets, banks and other establishment that usually entertains crowd should check out their site to choose from their range of quality products.

My Travel Horoscope

You Should Travel Around the World

When you travel, you want to experience the journey as much as the destination.
You want a vacation that really immerses you in a culture.

You should travel:

By train, across all of Asia
With the Peace Corps
As a foreign language teacher
On an around the world ticket
Spending a few months in one place

Best Marketing Strategy

With the highest technology we have now you have to know what really will make your business be known to everyone. Most business now has their own websites to promote their products and sell online as well. It’s important to have your own site because it’s one good form of advertising your products or services. And to promote it effectively you need to have a good search engine that will help your site be searched and surfed.

Search Engine Optimization or SEO is one of the best marketing strategies you can have for your chosen business. It is proven more effective than any other. Not even PPC Campaign Management will surpass the effectiveness it brings to the site’s traffic. Though PPC can also drive website traffic to your blog it will not give you the most profit or return of investment you wanted. In view of this you can choose Globe Runner to be the search engine of your site because it provides the best SEO consultants who will help you build your online business by finding the right marketing strategies and plans that will best suit your company’s products. It will help you increase your ranks, build links, improve your visitor’s statistics and advertise your products at reasonable price. Check out globerunnerseo.com and learn many things about them.

My Worry Factor is 15%

Your Worry Factor is 15%

You hardly ever worry. In fact, you often feel like you don't have a care in the world.

It's not that your life is magically easy. You just don't dwell on worse case scenarios.

You figure that you'll be able to handle whatever life throws at you.

No use worrying about what could go wrong, especially when so much is going right!

Keeping Our Homes Secured

Home is where our heart is and all of the things that matter to us are all in there. We make it the most comfortable and coziest place to rest from the chaos of the outside world. It is also the first place that we feel very safe to stay for unlimited time. But are we safe in our house? When we talk of safety I’m sure all of us would agree that all of us would always prioritize our family’s well-being and safety no matter how. We should always be aware of who’s coming in our house or getting maid or nanny services from reliable source. It’s very important to know the applicants’ background before hiring them as they can bring trouble in our homes if we didn’t checked their true identity.

It’s best to check and think first before trusting strangers to get near our door. Since our house is in national road there are lots of incidents that strangers managed to get inside our house. Worst thing is it brings so much nervousness in my Mom that she always wants our doors closed especially now that our fences need to be reconstructed and it’s not yet secured. Just two weeks ago when we left for our Sunday fellowship the junk buyers stole the sack of steel we left by our back door. Frustrating as it was we can’t do anything about it. We can’t even have them blottered as there’s no evidence that can pinpoint the junk buyers’robbers. Now our family and our relatives living within the same compound added some security measures on how to prevent strangers from coming inside the compound and we hope that we’ll be secured from thieves now.

Well other people will not only add security measures by their own but will try to install more advanced gadget to protect their home and family. So for people who wants an advanced kind of security there’s a site that can give you home security resources. You can visit home security comparison site where you can find all information on how to get a good home security service. I’ve read all the tips myself and I learned the different equipment offered by security companies to ensure safety of their clients. I’m glad that I learned a lot from them. You can learn also and be safe!

:WW - Fountains

Click image to enlarge!

I always love looking at fountains and every time I see one I would pause and stare not for seconds but for as long as time will allow. My kids love looking at fountains also and wished that they can play with it :-). Here's the fountain near the entrance of Enchanted Kingdom, the first thing that I noticed when we entered the park. See my other entry - Dogs' Playground

Happy WW visit more entries -> here.

Wordless Wednesday

Customized and Funny Bumper Stickers

I like looking at beautiful cars and I’m eyes are always attracted to car’s accessories especially if it’s unique. I don’t want accessories that almost all have it in their cars, I want something unique. In our own car we accessorize the interior with cute items that my kids like but outside I’ve been thinking of a different one that will look something original. No I’m not that choosy about accessories I just want fresh ideas that’s all.

Speaking of fresh ideas about accessories I found something that really caught my attention. It’s about having customized bumper stickers that will be designed according to your personal specifications, personalized designs to fit the owner’s likings. Perfect for those who want to be unique and original in their own way? I had a great time visiting and viewing those online samples of funny bumper stickers which can stretch your smile to a laughter. It’s really funny and most are quite true. I love those customized funny bumper stickers and I’m now thinking what design I can possibly have for our own bumper sticker.

Rush and Get Ready!

I should be rushing now to finish all my tasks as we’re going to be early for our weekly Wednesday bible study. Josh disciplined himself to sleep for many hours after lunch because that’s the only way that I’ll bring him with me. We finish our bible study around 10pm so it’s just right that he’ll have his sleep in the afternoon. I advised my former office that I’ll not be able to drop by as my companion has slept so soundly. I planned earlier to drop by to pick up some important certificates before going to our church. Well that will wait for next week; important thing is to get things ready now for bible study as it’ll take us less than one hour to be there.

Dark Circles Around My Eyes

I’ve written in my other blog that I’m having a bad schedule these days because I can only concentrate on my blog in the evening up to dawn. Now I’ve finally came back to my day blogging because the renovation is finished already and I had some nice sleep for three nights. I had to return to my day blogging because I developed dark circle around my eyes and no amount of fresh cucumber can remedy my problem. I really have to get longer hours of sleep to prevent dark circle from forming around my eyes or I’ll need some good creams to erase the dark spots.

How Should I De-stress?

You Should Write in a Journal

Part of what's stressing you out right now is not having all your thoughts sorted out.
There's a lot of confusion and chaos going on, and you need to get a handle on it all. And there's no better way to do that than to start writing.

At first your journal make not make sense to you, but that's okay. Just writing things down will help you.
Over time, you'll find that it's great to have an outlet to think, vent, and dream without judgment. Just make sure to put a lock on that journal!

So if you feel you want to de-stress try this quick blogthings quiz and find out for yourself.

Standing Up Heavy Rains

After two weeks of continuous raining I noticed that our gutters are not functioning well because of some leaks. Gutter system is very important as it controls the water from the roof down to drainage. It should make the water come down as quickly as possible so it will not overflow. Since the rainy season is not yet finished I’ll have it checked and repaired immediately. Well our gutters are old enough to retire so I might as well look for replacement in case our maintenance man declared it not fit for repair.

I’ve seen some gutter system like ours and many seems to fail in filtering debris which results in clogging up. Oh well if I will replace my Gutter Guard I’ll choose a one-piece system like that of LeafGuard gutter system as it has no movable parts that will loosen up, solid seamless hood and can handle over 21 inches of rainwater’s per hour. Wow! I liked that performance and strength for our gutter system. And because it’s a one-piece system it prevents dry leaves and debris from entering the gutter from behind.

I’ve browsed some of their installations like Gutters Virginia Beach and was impressed that their gutter guard is not only strong and performs well but looks great also. Gutters come in various choices of colors and it’s sure to give beauty on every installed home. And with this kind of gutters you need not worry about water damage on your house or hiring someone to clean it every now and then. This gutter will run clog free always.