tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22241435599740571302024-03-14T14:14:44.117+08:00Working Moms and More...Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.comBlogger195125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-91410959877175528702014-06-09T09:07:00.000+08:002014-06-09T09:07:01.384+08:00Clutter Buster: Donate, take photos, discardIt's the end of summer break again. Soon the kids are busy once more with school works. What that means for moms besides busy early mornings and home works is the need for more space to accommodate new books and school supplies. How to create that space depends on your budget and organizing abilities. My tip is to free the study room of old stuff so you can use the space for the new ones that are coming in. Here's how.<br />
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/125014908@N03/14363859612" title="clutter buster by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="clutter buster" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3894/14363859612_9a6f463a85.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
<b>Take photos, then discard. </b><br />
I have reviewed the school stuffs that my kids have accumulated through the years and perhaps the bulk of them are books but a large portion is made up of those nice and sentimental preschool artworks. Surely, you want to keep them so your kids can someday go back and tearfully remember those early years. If you cannot find a space to properly store them, why not just take photos of them and store them in the cloud? Capture them before the colors fade, the pages torn. Create a collage out of them and print out, put in frames to hang on your wall. You may keep the best and most precious if you want but the idea is to discard majority of them once they have been photographed.<br />
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<b>Donate.</b><br />
You can donate old textbooks to the less privileged. There are various institutions and outfits that accept donations including old books. Search for the ones nearest you. If you cannot access those, organize a garage sale where you bring out all your old stuffs including books and sell them for very low prices. Or if you want to just throw them away, make sure to secure them in a sturdy box or bag before you bring them in front for collection so those who might want to take them can easily carry them.<br />
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<b>Discard.</b><br />
Don't get too attached with that impressive science project or those test papers with perfect scores in them. Aside from the space they occupy, they also attract dusts. So unless you are saving them for your younger children to learn from, stop clinging on to them. Chances are, you won't go back and use them again.<br />
So get rid of them and be free of clutter.Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-19221590830083251862014-06-07T13:07:00.000+08:002014-06-08T18:42:04.233+08:00Homemade Vanilla SyrupA good thing about living in the suburb is that it forces you to be more resourceful and creative with what you have. Unlike in the city where the supermarket is just a stone throw away, we do not have the convenience of getting what we need in an instant. We either wait for the grocery day or improvise. One afternoon, I was craving for pancakes but we ran out of syrup so I improvised. I found this easy recipe of vanilla syrup from the Internet and found it very easy to replicate.
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/125014908@N03/14363753995" title="vanilla syrup by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="vanilla syrup" height="424" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5235/14363753995_6128303514_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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What you need:<br />
2 cups water<br />
2 cups sugar<br />
1 teaspoon vanilla extract<br />
Jar or bottle<br />
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Wash the container properly and let it dry. In a saucepan, mix the sugar and water, slowly bring to a boil while stirring to let the sugar dissolve fully. Do this until the mixture thickens. The approximate time is 15 minutes. Pour the vanilla extract and let it cool. Store it in a dry and clean jar or bottle. This is a handy sweetener for your pancakes, coffee, or tea. Enjoy!<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/125014908@N03/14177208480" title="vanilla syrup homemade by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="vanilla syrup homemade" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5073/14177208480_ec39ac6a97.jpg" width="281" /></a><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/125014908@N03/14177160098" title="vanilla syrup homemade 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="vanilla syrup homemade 2" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3845/14177160098_68e0398766.jpg" width="281" /></a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-2827142477516767222014-05-30T22:52:00.003+08:002014-06-07T14:42:20.028+08:00The Pinoy Pancit (Noodles)It's been a while since that last post. A lot of things had happened already, a lot of stories awaits to be told. But we'll get to that as time goes on as I intend to be back for good. I'd like to start my coming back with my recipe of the Pinoy traditional snack "pancit" or noodles, a personal favorite. I'd like to share to you this Filipino tradition of cooking pancit.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhAfh284rFAYkh6lQuiFYdPd9q0YxYqtDEzqxZh5Ur4XQYjKGNpQt15oTIm_T92I8s5ny4bundoqY_ORWcMMBG34o2_Y3NhSkRHnWXiL5m-9IspRppFAY0mmq6Qvt7gxmMFGF8AXSTBDq1/s1600/2014-05-29+16.54.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhAfh284rFAYkh6lQuiFYdPd9q0YxYqtDEzqxZh5Ur4XQYjKGNpQt15oTIm_T92I8s5ny4bundoqY_ORWcMMBG34o2_Y3NhSkRHnWXiL5m-9IspRppFAY0mmq6Qvt7gxmMFGF8AXSTBDq1/s1600/2014-05-29+16.54.28.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a name='more'></a>Ingredients:<br />
Pancit canton, thick noodles, dry (450 g)<br />
Vermicelli (450 g)<br />
Chicken meat (250 g)<br />
Chicken liver (250 g)<br />
Carrots<br />
Chayote<br />
Cabbage<br />
<i>Baguio</i> beans<br />
Bellpepper<br />
Chicken stock<br />
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Soy sauce, 1/2 cup<br />
Oyster sauce, 1/4 cup<br />
Pepper, finely ground<br />
Garlic, sliced, 1 teaspoon<br />
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Preparation:<br />
Cut veggies into thick strips. Boil chicken, set aside stock. You may use commercially available chicken stock if you wish. Tear the chicken meat apart into thick strips and slice chicken liver.<br />
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How to cook:<br />
Saute garlic until brown. Add chicken meat and liver. When liver is cooked, add soy sauce and oyster sauce. Add carrots and chayote. Saute in high heat. Pour chicken stock. Quickly add the beans when the mixture comes to a boil. Add the other vegetable and ground pepper. Cook the veggies very quickly, and drain the vegetables and meat out of the pan and set aside.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6dD9zMnwxbnZTQU1c8zlBd6U1Uf-rIM1zIxvXk7uX_CNbicFFmeSTzR_Gk44x-gRlQLWZdR9mpT5WDRNyzYoTlUSTj6IG7e_a_OpwKNUQ20bO1HAqApikJLreZIDP70zAMpxjhZ3asHT/s1600/2014-05-29+16.40.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6dD9zMnwxbnZTQU1c8zlBd6U1Uf-rIM1zIxvXk7uX_CNbicFFmeSTzR_Gk44x-gRlQLWZdR9mpT5WDRNyzYoTlUSTj6IG7e_a_OpwKNUQ20bO1HAqApikJLreZIDP70zAMpxjhZ3asHT/s1600/2014-05-29+16.40.22.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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Using the stock used to cook the meat and veggies, cook the thick noodles and vermicelli until the latter is done and becomes transparent. You can add more stock or water and adjust the taste to your liking using more soy sauce and oyster sauce <u>prior to adding the noodles</u>. Make sure that the noodles are submerged in the stock so that the noodles would not get burned or be too dry when it is cooked. Cook until all the liquid is absorbed by the noodles. Add pepper to taste. Mix cooked noodles and veggies and serve hot. Enjoy!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7D-O6Cv_xYt9oRSSfus32AlDzCwXCuQHcCiyVjBD0ZHrTVsD1VqPgIzbE8VCLg8UBpX4-VJkFO8IJmAY1fZCfJUqSSJJF3RgnJDWwGpt2YiAK0ZtP1w5PDtQQKvJL64io-aox0gxsAfA/s1600/2014-05-29+16.40.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7D-O6Cv_xYt9oRSSfus32AlDzCwXCuQHcCiyVjBD0ZHrTVsD1VqPgIzbE8VCLg8UBpX4-VJkFO8IJmAY1fZCfJUqSSJJF3RgnJDWwGpt2YiAK0ZtP1w5PDtQQKvJL64io-aox0gxsAfA/s1600/2014-05-29+16.40.09.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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Tip:<br />
I have seen people soak the noodles (especially <i>bihon</i>)<i> </i>in water prior to cooking. I don't do this and instead I let the noodles be cooked in the chicken stock so that the taste of the stock gets absorbed in the noodles. Also, try not to overcook the veggies. If you reheat the Pancit and the veggies are crunchy and chewy still, then you can say that you've cooked it just right. Also, the chicken stock is one ingredient that makes the recipe succeed so do not substitute this with plain water.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMTG8VGR_BBbf0l8M8h5G-LwpvR-9Ao-ZbEwXATWgUnbdKqqVGYsv6b4a_F7NK1xV7xU8BNCp2e6rntypFSItDAtW7E1I-bDiqMrPDUAz_75Djt5gS-1C-g4d4YYCKcLAsV02o9cC-W4Bg/s1600/2014-05-29+16.54.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMTG8VGR_BBbf0l8M8h5G-LwpvR-9Ao-ZbEwXATWgUnbdKqqVGYsv6b4a_F7NK1xV7xU8BNCp2e6rntypFSItDAtW7E1I-bDiqMrPDUAz_75Djt5gS-1C-g4d4YYCKcLAsV02o9cC-W4Bg/s1600/2014-05-29+16.54.59.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a><br />
<br />Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-88678148692695571582013-01-06T15:43:00.000+08:002013-01-06T15:43:51.959+08:00Mussel soup from my kitchenI told you I'd make my own mussel soup - like the unforgettable one I had in my trip in Lake Como, Italy. It's a local version with chili leaves and done the usual "Pinoy ginisa" way. So it's very easy. I had local mussels, tomatoes, chili leaves, garlic, oyster sauce, red sugar, some basil dried leaves, olive oil, onions, and I did put some balsamic vinegar coz I like it to be a bit sour. Add some salt or soy sauce to taste.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8352958028/" title="mussel soup Italian by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="mussel soup Italian" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8336/8352958028_71beac3388.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
I merely sauteed the garlic, onions, and tomatoes in olive oil, put some oyster sauce to create a nice golden brown sauce. It should be just quick. Then I put the mussels and some soy sauce until the juice comes out and the shells opened up.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8351896795/" title="mussel soup chili leaves by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="mussel soup chili leaves" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8191/8351896795_2ca319d9dc.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
You can add some water if you prefer but adjust your ingredients so you can arrive at just the right taste. Put on a pinch of sugar and a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar. Add the chili leaves and sprinkle it with dried basil leaves. Enjoy you mussel soup!<br />
Tip: if you are not comfortable with putting the mussels directly, you can boil it quickly first to wash it like the way I did, as shown in the photo. Then proceed with sauteing.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8351898347/" title="mussel recipe 3 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="mussel recipe 3" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8056/8351898347_2d2d0078dd.jpg" width="500" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8352955654/" title="mussel soup saute by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="mussel soup saute" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8516/8352955654_6456713753.jpg" width="500" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8351894437/" title="mussel soup oyster sauce by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="mussel soup oyster sauce" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8475/8351894437_374918489b.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
Tell me what you think. Leave a comment below. This <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-unforgettable-italian-meal.html#more">post</a> has inspired me to come up with my own recipe. Also, check out my <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/p/free-recipes_24.html" target="_blank">other recipes</a> or go back to <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">my page</a>.<br />
Mommies rock!Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-23576673221057981252012-10-12T09:17:00.001+08:002012-10-12T09:18:09.537+08:00My unforgettable Italian mealThere was this unforgettable mussel recipe that I have tasted and which I am really dying to replicate. I don't even remember the name, I know I listed somewhere but the ageing me could no longer locate where it is now. Anyway, if you happen to go and visit Lake Como in Italy, the restaurant where I found this is called <i>il Vecchio Borgo, </i>I hope that's the name. It is located just to the right of the Como Lago train Station.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8078548245/" title="Italian lunch mussels seafood 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Italian lunch mussels seafood 2" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8048/8078548245_1c2e1d7cd1_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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Anyway, it was portrayed in the menu as soup so I ordered it because I'd like to have soup and salad. We were famished after going around Lake Como station, the funicular ride, etc. But I became so excited to see a large plate of mussels in a reddish sauce. I loved it too much I went over the Net to see what I can do to put it back to life. So I found one, hopefully, it will be as exciting as the <i>il Vecchio Borgo </i>mussel soup.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8078539210/" title="Italian meal shells by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Italian meal shells" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8189/8078539210_ef20ac63e6.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8078540392/" title="Italian lunch mussels seafood by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Italian lunch mussels seafood" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8188/8078540392_d419049334.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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It is called <a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/mussels-tomato-wine-broth-10000001097053/" target="_blank">Mussels in tomato-wine broth</a> from myrecipes.com. (Photo from myrecipes.com)<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8078582499/" title="Mussel in tomato wine by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Mussel in tomato wine" height="300" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8047/8078582499_f42f7e963d.jpg" width="300" /></a>
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But I guess this one is closer. This is the <a href="http://thedailyrecipes.com/food/italian-cuisine-food/italian-mussel-soup-zuppa-di-cozze#" target="_blank">Italian Mussel Soup - Zuppa di Cozze</a> from thedaily recipes.com. (Photo from thedailyrecipes.com)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8078593325/" style="background-color: transparent;" title="zuppacozze by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="zuppacozze" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8465/8078593325_f0ddda09cf.jpg" width="500" /></a></h1>
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Check them out. I'll choose one recipe and will show you the result soon.
Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-7740142548537822342012-10-08T07:24:00.000+08:002012-10-08T13:17:45.247+08:00Quick Pasta TunaWorking moms have very limited time to cook. So quick and easy recipes are such life-savers for us. Here,<br />
I'm sharing my 15-minute pasta tuna. I did it to liven up that rainy weekend afternoon when my sons are bored staying just inside the house.<br />
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Living in the suburbs, we don't get as much chance to eat out or buy those delectable eats available in malls and restaurants so I always make sure I can create something out of what we have at home. Here is one of our favorite snacks - the tuna spaghetti.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8064714995/" title="Quick Home made Pasta by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Quick Home made Pasta" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8312/8064714995_1a95bec0ac_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Ingredients:<br />
Spaghetti pasta, cooked aldente<br />
Tomato sauce or any spaghetti sauce (Tomato and cheese is recommended)<br />
Tomatoes, sliced<br />
Garlic, sliced<br />
Century Tuna light<br />
Basil<br />
Cheese (I used quick melt, any will do, should be same amount as that of the tuna)<br />
Butter<br />
Salt<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Preparation:<br />
Saute garlic in butter. When garlic turns brown, put the tuna including the vegetable oil in it. Put the tomatoes and cubes of cheese. As soon as the cheese melted, put the pasta sauce of your choice. I used chunky tomatoes with basil. You may also use cheesy tomato or other variants of spaghetti sauce if you like. When the sauce is completely mixed with the ingredients, it should look orangish and thick. Put basil leaves if you have, I didn't, so I just sprinkled some dried bits of basil. Put some salt to taste.<br />
Mix the ingredients with the pasta and you can enjoy the quick pasta tuna!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8064714598/" title="Tuna Pasta by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Tuna Pasta" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8039/8064714598_1007f74f4b.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8064711279/" title="Tuna Pasta 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Tuna Pasta 2" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8454/8064711279_5548a2e52c.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8064716320/" title="Quick Pasta by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Quick Pasta" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8322/8064716320_959993e92f.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
So here you go.
A simple yet delicious pasta tuna that my kids love. It's cheesy so it appeals to children. Make sure to give it along with a pitcher of chilly orange juice or iced tea. They'll surely thank you for it.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8064714345/" title="Quick Home made Pasta 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Quick Home made Pasta 2" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8036/8064714345_f6b378351c_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">HOME</a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-16869754098341606532012-09-27T00:42:00.000+08:002014-06-08T18:26:11.230+08:00A day's fixI had the luxury of time to give our kids' study room a fix last Sunday. I badly wanted to because of the mess that is almost incomprehensible. The kids, and adults, just shoved things here and there allowing this unsightly thing to transpire. Tapes are everywhere, I do not know where to find this and that, my kids keep asking about their stuff. It's becoming time consuming and stressful to just locate a sharpener or paint brush.
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So how did we do it? First, we took out everything, throw a lot of papers away, sort and sort, took some containers, and done quite a lot of labeling.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023442603/" title="Home organizing before 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing before 2" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8037/8023442603_9ae9393cdb_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a><br />
<b>Throw away.</b> I asked the kids to check which toys can be discarded. We can donate those that are still okay and throw the rest away. I also went into the piles of school works, old quizzes, and projects. I did threw most of them after consulting my kids. It's so nice that they cooperated and participated in the sorting. They actually did not realize how many small things they got.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023441479/" title="Home organizing before sorting by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing before sorting" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8175/8023441479_42c314013d_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a><b>Sort.</b> I took out some filing boxes and sorted the kids' stuffs accordingly. Test papers go together, sorted by subject and put in separate folders.<br />
<b>Identical containers make a blast. </b>Plastic bins are amazing organizing buddies. Buy identical ones so that when you put them together, they create a nice effect. These should not be too big so they can easily fit into the shelves. Later, if you wish to change the positions, you can always do so because the size of the bins is not limiting. For very small things like pins and clips, you can use identical plastic containers (disposable picnic containers are okay) and put them alongside each other.<br />
<b>Label all bins and file boxes. </b>Label, so that you will be able to look what you are looking for because everything has a label. Get a fancy tape or sticker that you can use like the one I used below. Make it uniform as well for a nice and neat look.<br />
<b>Experiment.</b> Update the look of your shelves by putting on a wallpaper or gift wrapper. Here, I used a wrapper to hide the stickers. A wallpaper will definitely do better.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023439062/" title="Home organizing filing by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing filing" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8460/8023439062_269f07f419_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023444006/" title="Home organizing after 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing after 2" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8311/8023444006_6cb39bd532_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a><br />
For the test papers in the current quarter, I took some folders and labeled them on the side with my pretty tape and labeled them.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023439413/" title="Home organizing school supplies by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing school supplies" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8457/8023439413_b4d684eab1_z.jpg" height="483" width="640" /></a><br />
In the coming days, we will build-up one side of the room for the blackboard and other posters. This part is still a work in progress. I will share the developments of building this particular wall soon.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023444523/" title="Home organizing study room by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing study room" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8033/8023444523_f5bc820db6_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a><br />
So, here is an effort to make a difference, I captured the before and after. 'Better than before eh? For now, this is okay for a day's fix. :)<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023443593/" title="Home organizing before by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing before" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/8023443593_245662676b.jpg" height="500" width="332" /></a>
BEFORE
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023446463/" title="Home organizing after by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Home organizing after" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8315/8023446463_c5b8468a83.jpg" height="500" width="332" /></a>
AFTER
<br />
Related post:
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-to-organize-your-childs-closet.html">How to organize your kids' closet</a>
<br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/">HOME</a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-45278648273579900732012-09-25T22:49:00.002+08:002012-09-26T06:11:25.368+08:00Smart saving starts at home<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: justify;">In
these times of uncertainty and economic difficulties, the need to save is most
essential. There are actually many ways
to save here and there, but the home is the best starting point to learn the
discipline. Here are smart tips that can be easily done at home to help you
ease the effects of economic insecurities. </span><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8023383723/" title="Piggy bank by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Piggy bank" height="640" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8451/8023383723_bce2232172_z.jpg" width="424" /></a>
<br />
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Avoid unnecessary expenditure. </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Do
not buy things you do not need. Whenever
you are confronted with the shopping question “Do I need it?” think 5 to 10
times before making a decision. Also, buy
only the amount of food you can consume. Did you know that in the US, 33
million tons of food waste was thrown away in landfills and incinerators in
2010? According to the Environmental Protection Agency website, food waste
forms the single largest component, 34%, of municipal solid waste discarded. In
Canada, the residents of Toronto throw away 17.5 million kilograms of food
every month, according to the World Vision Canada.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">To
avoid wasting food, cook just the right serving for your household. Avoid
having leftovers. If you have kids, plan the menu with them to make sure they
approve most of it. This ensures that you will be spending only on food items
that will be consumed. Do not stock fruits and vegetables, they can get spoiled
easily.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Buy in bulk.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Buy items that you
consume or use most frequently in bulk. These are the things that have long
shelf life. Alcohol, cereal, dried beans and pasta, toilet paper and paper
towels, office supplies, toothbrushes, other non-perishable food,
multivitamins, and diapers. Make sure that you need them and have enough spaces
for storage.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-fareast-font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-fareast-font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Clean and fix to save.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Clean
air-conditioning units and other appliances to make sure they are working
efficiently and not using too much energy.
Your appliances will use up more power to function if there is dirt on
them. Likewise, arrange for a technician to check all your appliances to make
sure there are no leakages that can cause these to use up more energy than
usual.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Work when the sun is up.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Use
natural light. Rise as early as you can; finish your work on the day, when the
sun is up to minimize using artificial lights for extended hours at night. Do
not leave the lights on when you are not using them.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Take advantage of energy-saving
appliances.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Make
your own research on what energy-saving lighting systems, air-conditioner, and
other appliances are available. It may
take a little of your time but choose those that are worth the switch because
you will shell out some money. Make sure that the benefits will be long-term.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Watch movies together.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If
you can, avoid having TV sets for each room. Assign a common room for your
entertainment system. Watch movies together as a family. It is not only
practical but a great way to bond and spend some time with each other. </span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-fareast-font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-fareast-font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Schedule an annual garage sale.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Make
money out of the things you no longer need. Encourage your kids to participate
in this activity. It can become an eye-opener for everyone not to spend on
things that eventually go to the garage sale.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Unplug.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Unplug
all appliances not in use. This is a very basic step into saving on your
electric bill.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Do it yourself.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Avoid
take-outs if you can help it. If you are living alone, buying food for yourself
in just the right serving is more practical. For families, you can dine out on
very special occasions but otherwise, it is smarter to cook your own food.
Also, if you have not tried fixing things around the house yet, you may want to
start to learn doing so. This will help you save a lot.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Know
by heart the basics of savings at home. You have to take note that these small
things do not add up unless they are done in a sustained, regular kind of way. Discipline
is the key. It is a crucial part in keeping your </span><a href="http://yourcreditscorerange.com/"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">finances</span></a><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> healthy for no one knows for sure when
the next crisis will strike again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-88119712491662453882012-09-22T21:39:00.000+08:002012-09-22T21:39:30.905+08:00Are you ready for pets?Whether to have pets or not is a household decision. Your kids may definitely like the idea but are they ready for it, or are you? The responsibilities that come along with pets and the physical requirements (like pet's home and where to put it) are just some of the things you need to think of before deciding. If your kids have allergies, you might need to think not just twice but many times.<br />
We had hamsters last year, the female one even gave birth to 3 cutelings at New Year's Eve. But then because of the difficulty in leaving them when we as a family go someplace, we decided to give them away.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8011746876/" title="Hamster babies by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Hamster babies" height="439" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8176/8011746876_0a8f913c9d_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<br />
As a mom, I look for ways to train my kids to do their tasks and responsibilities so when we got the hamsters from the province, I assigned my kids some tasks related to caring for our new pets.But my younger one has this over giggling towards the cute hamsters. One day, I suspected that one of our hamsters suffered from broken bones because it could no longer stand up. Later that day, he died. Poor thing.<br />
So here are some things to consider and discuss with your kids before you let those pets into your household.<br />
<a name='more'></a>
<br />
<ol>
<li>Are the kids emotionally ready? Make sure no one gets too excited, as the pets may end up getting too stressed or worse, hurt. Your kids should be willing to care for them.</li>
<li>Is there any available pet shop nearby? If the pet shop is too far, you will likely have a problem in feeding them on time. If possible, scout your are for the nearest vet.</li>
<li>If your kids have allergies, it is best to locate the pet's home to an area away from your kids' regular play area. If it is really a problem, then opt not to have a pet at all.</li>
<li>Have a neighbor-friend act as partner in caring for the pet, you will need one especially when you are away.</li>
</ol>
<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8011748444/" title="Hamster eating by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Hamster eating" height="640" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8311/8011748444_ca8f6f843b_z.jpg" width="424" /></a>
<br />
Pets are great companions. And through them, the kids can learn responsibility and compassion. But this takes quite a lot of effort and cooperation.Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-86022096129941906092012-09-19T23:42:00.000+08:002012-09-20T08:30:16.362+08:00Food Trip: Native Cake in a BambooBack in our humble province, we call it "Tinubong." Forgive me for I could not find the most fitting translation. It's an Ilocano term for putting something inside an elongated object called "tubong" or the bamboo. It's made of ground malagkit (glutinous) rice and other ingredients. It is a native delicacy in the Ilocos Region. It is quite sticky but delectable and matches well with coffee. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/8003303136/" title="Tinubong 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Tinubong 2" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8297/8003303136_97065c8f0c_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Although it can be bought all year long in certain areas, this delicacy is most well-loved during Christmas season. It is like <i>puto-bumbong</i> and <i>bibingka </i>here in Manila and the Southern Tagalog. It is contained inside the bamboo and grilled in a very meticulous manner of manually turning over the bamboo while wiping it with wet cloth (so that it won't get burned) until it is cooked. If you can see from the photo, the cake is a bit darker under, on the part that touches the bamboo but I tell you, that is the most delicious part. The basic ingredients are glutinous rice, young coconut meat, sugar, cheese, margarine. The producers make use of young bamboo or what we termed as "Bulo" - the thin kind of bamboo wood. The only way to open the tinubong is by slicing the bamboo lengthwise to reveal the delicious tinubong inside.<br />
Check other <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/p/free-recipes_24.html" target="_blank">Ilocano</a> dishes like <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2009/09/yummy-miki-noodles-soup.html" target="_blank">Miki</a>, <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2011/06/ensaladang-bagnet.html" target="_blank">Ensaladang Bagnet</a>, and <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2009/09/igado-recipe.html" target="_blank">Igado</a>.<br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BACK TO HOME</a><br />
<br />Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-47913087183319038422012-09-18T07:52:00.000+08:002012-09-18T07:52:09.512+08:00Your Christmas BudgetHow much should you spend this Christmas? Or have you thought about it? If you haven't experienced any problem with money before, then this article may not appeal to you. But for those who have, it is highly recommended to create a budget as early as now. Some people can really get overwhelmed with the Christmas hype and spirit that they don't realize they are spending way too much than they should be. If you say that since it is Christmas, it is alright to overspend, think again. Would you really want to be broke come New Year's time?<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7997738301/" title="Food Christmas Party by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Food Christmas Party" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8460/7997738301_25440a5110_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
Here is a sample list of expense items that Filipinos normally buy during Christmas time.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<ol>
<li><b>Gifts</b> - Create your own list as early as now. Include in your list your kids' friends, teachers, Monito/Monita and your husband's list. The earlier the better. Shop early for nonperishable items, the price of commodities at Christmastime may be 10 to 15% higher than in other times of the year. It's just my estimate.</li>
<li><b>Food for <i>Noche Buena</i></b> - You may not have a menu yet in mind but if you have been preparing the same <i>Lechon</i> for as long as you can remember, then it is helpful that you make a list now. Do you have a budget for a lavish <i>Noche Buena</i>? If you don't, think of other ways now on how you can trim your budget.</li>
<li><b>Decors </b>- Is it wise to discard your last year's decors and Christmas Tree? Think many times. A whole new theme can really eat up a huge chunk of your Christmas budget. Why not try to be creative this time. Search for ideas that does not require you to purchase new decors. Re-invent your decors. Get an old fish bowl and put Christmas balls in them. Or create your own glittery balls by crumpling old newspapers and magazines into balls, then sprinkle glitters on them. It takes creativity and some effort, but it saves you some money.</li>
<li><b><b>Greeting Cards</b><span style="font-weight: normal;"> - Yes some people still do send Christmas Cards to their relatives and friends. Buy cards in bulk. There are nice ones at UNICEF. Be sure to send them early so they can arrive at the destination before Christmas.</span></b></li>
<li><b>Fireworks</b> - Are they really necessary? </li>
<li><b>Others</b> - Set aside some amount for contributions for food, T-shirts, etc. at your office. There are little things we shell out here and there but no matter how small the amounts are, they do pile up and before we realize, we have already spend a few thousands. It is important to be prepared.</li>
</ol>
Filipinos may be one of the most confident consumers in the world. While this is not bad at an economics and public policy point of view, in the long run we need to start learning that there are better ways to manage our finances. Happy Christmas budgeting!<br />
<br />
<br />Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-67492234590204298372012-09-15T10:45:00.000+08:002014-06-08T18:26:38.285+08:00How to organize your child's closet?<br />
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Does your
child often complain about difficulty in finding what he/she needs in the
morning before going to school? Is the closet a picture of disarray and chaos? Organizing
your kid’s clothing effectively is one way to avoid the chaos. For instance, segregating the clothes and
assigning certain area for each category is important so that your child can
easily find what he or she needs in no time. Here are some steps to follow in organizing your child’s wardrobe.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpuDPblXkf_vRCtHFEDDXuH73emTCzhXB5QjzW6m83FpgEPC0rePcpb3YaTmWoqbydLfmE9bt05h6JN18QAHV1SbxlkUs0SSlaWzxuKwKURoIXSVERbb-XmJQoQgZD6MOQ8XrhyTckuH0e/s1600/KidsClothingTagsOrganizedCloset2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpuDPblXkf_vRCtHFEDDXuH73emTCzhXB5QjzW6m83FpgEPC0rePcpb3YaTmWoqbydLfmE9bt05h6JN18QAHV1SbxlkUs0SSlaWzxuKwKURoIXSVERbb-XmJQoQgZD6MOQ8XrhyTckuH0e/s640/KidsClothingTagsOrganizedCloset2.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/2012/06/conquering-clothing-clutter-kids-closet.html" target="_blank">(Photo source)</a></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">If you haven’t done yet,</b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">buy a closet that has lots of division</b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
and big enough to hold your kid’s clothing.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">This will help you in the organization department. There are quite a few
options if you have a small closet with only 2 to 3 shelves inside than if you
have more compartments in the closet.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"></b></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Segregate the clothes based on the usage.</b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
Separate home clothing like pajamas and sweatshirts, shorts and t-shirts from
school uniforms and other outdoor clothing. Clothes that are rarely used like
costumes, formal attires, off-season clothing should be separated from the
regular wardrobe.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Arrange them in the closet compartments according
to frequency of usage.</b>The most regularly used ones, like the
sleepwear and regular home clothing should be put on the easiest to access
shelf. Put the socks and undergarments like boxer shorts or panties in an easy
to pull drawer. Hang the school
uniforms, jackets, and outdoor casual wears. Put rarely used clothing in a different
compartment, in a box, or in a different closet. You may also put them in the
less accessible part of the closet like the top or bottom shelves. These include costumes, formal attires, and
off-season clothing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Keep all things orderly. </b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Buy a drawer
organizer so undergarments can be neatly organized.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Under each clothing category, separate different
types. Creating partitions is the key. Shorts go together; shirts are on a
different section. Hang pants on the other end of the hanging rod with tops on
the opposite side. For girls, dresses go together. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Have your child participate in organizing
his/her closet. </b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">This way, he/she can have the driver’s seat in the activity
and gain more appreciation about why you are making effort to put things into
order.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Give your child an incentive for
maintaining an orderly closet. </b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Sometimes,
the best medicine is a good and sincere conversation between you and your
child.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Reward any initiative that he/she
shows in keeping the closet neat and organized. This will build a good habit of
organizing in your child.</span></div>
Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-58983108289996337992012-09-12T07:51:00.001+08:002014-06-07T15:26:46.961+08:00Home Idea: The Charming Italian HomeI've got to make a post to show off some photos I took from my travel to Italy last summer especially that of a house up in one of the hills surrounding the breathtaking Lake Como. I've always liked the Mediterranean style. I say it is one ideal house that you can emulate if you are on that crucial stage of finding the perfect place or designing your own home.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7977915466/" title="Lake Como Italy home by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Italy home" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8458/7977915466_bd26a07fd1_z.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a>
<br />
<b>The lovely house with a garden.</b><br />
The Italian home with a garden is so charming. It oozes a nostalgic aura, like in a classic film. I feel I am in one of the scenes in The Godfather when I saw some small plots. The greens are so relaxing. In these times, it's good to go back to producing your own backyard supplies of veggies. I am the farming type (something I inherited from my dad, God bless his soul) so I'd rather go for a small house with a large plot of land than a big house with less garden space.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7977913700/" title="Lake Como Italy home garden by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Italy home garden" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8321/7977913700_f194f08f95.jpg" height="332" width="500" /></a><br />
<b>Well-ventilated.</b><br />
I'd like a door as my window please, so fancy. Verandas are so cozy. If you like those balconies in movies where prince charming comes by at night to visit, you'd really love to live in Italy. Drinking coffee is much more rejuvenating in the balcony. Aside from that romantic feeling, it is a great way to ventilate the room, so that air can come to the room more effectively. If I am to remodel my house, I'd do just exactly the Italian way.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7977914698/" title="Lake Como Italy home 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Italy home 2" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8297/7977914698_28774aacc9_z.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a>
<br />
<b>Beauty comes from small, simple things.</b><br />
Those small flower pots by the tiny window or in the patio, they are just so nice, especially that they are uniformly lined up in an area like in this photo below. It is so simple if you come to think of it, yet the effect is quite dramatic, adding character to not just the window or patio but the entire look of the house.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7977912860/" title="Lake Como Italy window by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Italy window" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7977912860_249e22394a.jpg" height="332" width="500" /></a>
<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7977935739/" title="Lake Como Balcony 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Balcony 2" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8316/7977935739_86c885b4ce.jpg" height="332" width="500" /></a><br />
The rural Italian home epitomizes simple yet elegant living. It exudes a light and comfortable feeling. It is what every home should be like.
Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-55481777321710571562012-09-11T08:40:00.001+08:002012-09-18T06:38:32.339+08:00Health Issue: How much do families in the Philippines spend on contraceptives?The Reproductive Health (RH) Bill is such a big issue in the Philippines today. As of publication time, the Senate is still in a hot debate whether to pass this bill or not. Meanwhile, people may be wondering just how much the poor can save if the government will be providing free contraceptives to them.<br />
<br />
If the spending reflected in the Family Income and Expenditure Survey is indeed reflective of the total amount they need, we can have an estimate of how much the government will likely spend.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7974543665/" title="contraceptives by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="contraceptives" height="414" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8456/7974543665_0d858a677b.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>The table below shows the average spending of families based on income grouping. I came up with the income groups by sorting all families based on their per capita income (total family income divided by the total number of members in the family). The poorest group spent in 2009 around P167 ($3.50)on the average while the richest group spent P7,146 or $150. You can clearly see the wide gap in the ability to purchase contraceptives between the rich and the poor. Meanwhile, the average Filipino family spent around P1,200 or $25 for the entire year.<br />
<br />
Official data on poverty shows that there were 3.855 million poor families in 2009, or 20.9% of all families in the country. If we multiply this with the average spending of those in the poorest 20% (adding the poorest and 2nd poorest will give us the 20% poorest families), the product will give us an estimate of the possible government spending on the contraceptives alone. The result gives a range of P643 to P867 million.<br />
<br />
If the RH will be implemented, the government will spend a total amount of 8 billion pesos annually (Sunstar.com.ph). This budget includes the following expenditures:<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 505px;">
<colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 14921; mso-width-source: userset; width: 306pt;" width="408"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3547; mso-width-source: userset; width: 73pt;" width="97"></col>
</colgroup><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 306pt;" width="408">Support
maternal and child health</td>
<td class="xl64" style="width: 73pt;" width="97">167 million</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Improve health facilities </td>
<td class="xl64">5.08 billion</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Construction of maternity and
birthing clinics </td>
<td class="xl64">122.86 million</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Purchase of family planning
supplies and other </td>
<td class="xl64">300 million</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Sources: FIES 2009 of the National Statistics Office, Sunstar.com.ph<br />
The tabulation is my personal estimation based on the Public Use File of 2009 FIES, for the official data, please check with the NSO.<br />
<br />
Related Posts:<br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/home-issuehow-much-is-average.html" target="_blank">Spending on Food</a><br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/home-issue-how-much-is-average-electric.html" target="_blank">Spending on Electricity</a><br />
Other <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/search/label/Health%20Issues" target="_blank">Health Issues</a> posts in this blogAubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-67293083360139381022012-09-11T07:28:00.000+08:002012-09-15T12:49:51.025+08:00Health Issue: Top sources of Vitamin C and their contentsAs a mom, I always see to it that my kids meet their daily needs of Vitamin C to protect them against infectious diseases. But I realize that if I am already giving them some fruits, I need not give them Vit. C supplement anymore. This is because the fruits I am giving them may already suffice to meet the minimum requirements. If their meals also contain several vegetables, then they may already be getting adequate amounts of Vitamin C.<br />
The USDA recommended dose of Vit. C that women should take daily is 75 mg while for men, it is 90 mg. For children, the requirements are lower (see below). To help you with the right servings and fruits, here are the top sources of Vitamin C and the corresponding contents.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7961015376/" title="fruits by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="fruits" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8461/7961015376_8edbd2888f_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<br />
<a name='more'></a>Among the fruits in this list, the guava comes in first place where a half cup can give you more than twice your daily need. The red sweet pepper is also a rich source with 142 mg of Vit. C and one with very low amounts of calories, only 20. It is the best source for those who are cutting down their calorie intake. One medium-sized orange gives 70mg of the vitamin and about 62 calories. Green bell pepper is also a good source. Here are the RDA amounts for children:<br />
<br />
<br />
Vitamin C RDA for children<br />
Infants-up to six months old : 40 mg<br />
7 months -1 year old : 50 mg<br />
1 to 3 year-olds : 15 mg<br />
4 to 8 : 25 mg<br />
9 to 13 : 45 mg<br />
14 to 18 (males) : 75 mg<br />
14 to 18 (females) : 65 mg<br />
Source: livestrong.com<br />
<br />
<br />
So if you have already served your kids 1 medium-sized orange in a day, that is already sufficient for the day (as far as Vitamin C requirement is concerned) based on the amount reflected in the this table below.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7960843286/" title="Vitamin C contents of fruits by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Vitamin C contents of fruits" height="463" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8304/7960843286_eef63719dc_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<br />
<br />Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-12084599695749948622012-09-09T21:58:00.000+08:002012-09-15T16:13:39.896+08:00Home Issue:How much is the average expenditure of Filipino families on food?I have started this Home Issues series in my blog with the average spending of families on<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/home-issue-how-much-is-average-electric.html" target="_blank"> electricity</a>. Now, I think I should have started with food as it is the most basic need. I used the same dataset (FIES 2009) as the one I used in electricity. The FIES is a nationally representative survey of around 40,000 families conducted all over the Philippines. The 2009 survey is the most recent available Public Use File.<br />
I found that the average family spent P74,808 in the whole year of 2009, roughly $1,570. The typical family in the Philippines during this time was composed of about 5 members (4.7 to be exact). The typical person's food consumption has amounted to P17,554, or $368.<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7960266628/" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;" title="food consumption by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="food consumption" height="480" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8445/7960266628_6ed4f523e7.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7960245942/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="food share by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="food share" height="375" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7960245942_d20b779307.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
The poorest family spent around P43,000 or $902 while the richest poured about P125,000 ($2,622) on food.In terms of share, the poorest families allocate more of their income, 66%, on food compared to richer families (30% for the richest grouping). This is an empirical fact because the poor have lower income.<br />
<div>
<br />
Note:<br />
The figures are based on my own calculations using the Public Use File of the 2009 FIES. For the official data, please contact the National Statistics Office (NSO).<br />
<br />
Read the <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/home-issue-how-much-is-average-electric.html" target="_blank">Home Issues: Electric Bill</a>.<br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/health-issue-how-much-do-families-in.html" target="_blank">Spending on contraceptives</a> article here.<br />
Interested in some savings tips? Click <a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/search/label/saving%20tips" target="_blank">here</a>!</div>
Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-16972271080962275232012-09-09T12:03:00.000+08:002012-09-15T16:14:02.288+08:00Home Issue: How much is the average electricity bill of Philippine households?What is the average electric consumption of Filipino households? For curiosity, I look into the data from the Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO). In 2009, there were about 2.6 million households which did not have electricity in their homes, that is roughly 14% of the 18.4 million households in the country.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7959795636/" title="Meralco Electric Bill by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Meralco Electric Bill" height="368" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8322/7959795636_98e8de1b96_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
For those who have electricity, each family paid an average of P7,809 for the whole year in 2009 (current prices) or about $164. This formed an average of 3.7% of their total expenditures (7.3% of non-food expenditures) for the year. The average monthly bill therefore was around P650, or $13.66.<br />
<a name='more'></a>To have a more nuanced look at the expenditures, I have tabulated the data by income groups. The average electric bill of the poorest family in 2009 was around P1,559 ($33) while for the richest family - P20,192 (roughly $424).<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 278px;">
<colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 3620; mso-width-source: userset; width: 74pt;" width="99"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3437; mso-width-source: userset; width: 71pt;" width="94"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3108; mso-width-source: userset; width: 64pt;" width="85"></col>
</colgroup><tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl65" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; width: 74pt;" width="99">Income
Groups</td>
<td class="xl70" style="width: 71pt;" width="94"> Phil. Pesos*</td>
<td class="xl65" style="width: 64pt;" width="85"> US dollars*</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Poorest</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">1559.28</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">32.73</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">2</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">2045.60</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">42.94</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">3</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">2659.00</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">55.82</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">4</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">3366.97</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">70.68</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">5</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">4209.41</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">88.36</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">6</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">5507.90</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">115.62</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">7</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">6900.75</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">144.86</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">8</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">9175.30</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">192.61</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">9</td>
<td align="right" class="xl66">12119.59</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">254.41</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl69" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Richest</td>
<td align="right" class="xl67">20192.07</td>
<td align="right" class="xl71">423.87</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
*Weighted averages; based on my personal calculations using the 2009 Public Use File of the FIES; for the official data, please contact the NSO.<br />
Related Posts:<br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/home-issuehow-much-is-average.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Spending on Food</a><br />
<a href="http://restorrun.blogspot.com/2012/09/health-issue-how-much-do-families-in.html" target="_blank">Spending on Contraceptives</a><br />
<br />
<br />Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-67923606274548163362012-09-08T19:41:00.000+08:002012-09-15T12:56:29.483+08:00Working Moms' Issue: How to travel with less guiltWorking moms, especially those who have to travel as part of the work and career advancement often have to face the guilt of leaving the kids behind. We worry about them, their school works, their health. We worry that they won't get the level of concern and kind of attention we, parents, can give them. Here are some suggestions to ease our worries away whenever we go on a travel.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7961968038/" title="Traveling mom by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Traveling mom" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8029/7961968038_9752e36847_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<b>1. Talk it out with the kids.</b><br />
Make sure they understand the situation. Explain what the travel is about. The kids actually appreciate it when their mom makes an effort to share where she will go and what she'll be doing. When you come back from the travel, make sure to share your adventures and experiences.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<b>2. Create a to do list for each child. </b><br />
Even if you have a household helper, make sure that your children have a share in the work. Make a detailed list of things to do after school, in the evening, and in the morning before going to school. Discuss these to the m to make sure they understand and approve of these.<br />
<b></b><br />
<b>3. Write a note to the school</b><br />
You have to write a short note to the school in case they need to get in touch with you regarding the kids while you are away. Leave them a number where they can reach you in emergency cases.<br />
<b>4. Leave your kids some numbers to call in times of need. </b><br />
Give them your closest friends' in addition to their grandparents' numbers just in case.<br />
<b>5. Buy all the things and food they need while you are away.</b><br />
Hit the grocery and supermarket. Create a week-long menu, if you will be away for a week. Make sure they have enough rations.<br />
<b>6. Arrange for an affordable way to call home.</b><br />
Set your roaming service. Inquire about the rates, you don't want to get surprised or shocked with the bill when you get back from the trip. Choose the more affordable way if you have options. Schedule your nightly chat via Skype so you can talk to your kids in a better way.<br />
<br />
Your being a mom doesn't stop when you are away from your kids. Do your best in preparing so that you can feel less guilty and anxious. It will definitely help you do what you are supposed to do. You will be more effective in carrying out your task knowing that your kids back home are doing fine. With this in mind, you can have time for yourself and enjoy your travel somehow.Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-87812280345094022692012-07-09T01:23:00.002+08:002012-09-18T10:19:14.737+08:00My European experienceYes folks. I have just got back from a travel of a lifetime. It is one that I consider as such because it may not happen again. Yeah, you may call it milestone.
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Being in Europe takes you back in time. Walking on the sidewalks of either Barcelona or Milan gives an ambiance of being in a historical documentary or 18th century movie setting. It is both an exciting and exhilarating experience because I have long </span><span style="background-color: white;">dreamt </span><span style="background-color: white;">of doing this but did not expect such length of walking I have to do under the western summer heat. People here do not fully utilize the function of an umbrella as they love to sunbathe, a habit that I, as a person who spent her entire life in the tropics, do not actually appreciate.Anyway, just to give a brief summary, my itinerary was mainly Barcelona but I had a side trip in Milan and Lake Como, Italy. Click <a href="http://theluckytraveler.blogspot.com/2012/07/las-ramblas-barcelona-in-day.html" target="_blank">here</a> to see more of my Barcelona itinerary.</span><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528426440/" title="Barcelona Spain by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Barcelona Spain" height="424" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7254/7528426440_6f12a03a05_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
Barcelona was really lively especially that it was summer time and Rebahas season (sale, sale, sale). I did not fully maximize my time to visit every destination there is in the tourism catalog, but I made sure I tired myself out in looking at the old buildings and churches and went off road to its small streets to get to know more about the place. I ate paella and drank sangria, and witnessed a crazy moment in the life of Barcelona people - watch them watch their famous football team - Barca. And with that I had fun, really.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528398440/" title="Barcelona by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Barcelona" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8007/7528398440_9f7a6da304_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528395662/" title="Barcelona 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Barcelona 2" height="424" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7264/7528395662_b388bd7277_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528390276/" title="Barcelona Paella by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Barcelona Paella" height="424" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7273/7528390276_baba3d8c65_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
(Photos up-down: Me at Plaza Catalunya, old buildings around the city, and seafood paella for my lunch, yummy!)<br />
My Milan trip was likewise fun. I saw the huge Duomo, it is like I'm living in an art piece. The architecture of buildings is so much like Barcelona. It was so hot in Milan I thought I got sun-burned. <span style="background-color: white;">My Lake Como trip was awesome. I went to a cruise to see the different parts of the lake. I regretted I did not go to Bellagio, the most famous resort in Lake Como. Riding the funicular is highly recommended. </span><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528600738/" title="Milan Duomo by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Milan Duomo" height="640" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8003/7528600738_c2dfcdb9c7_z.jpg" width="424" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528598354/" title="Milan Ferrari store by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Milan Ferrari store" height="640" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7139/7528598354_5e2e4d4af3_z.jpg" width="424" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528596154/" title="Milan trip by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Milan trip" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8011/7528596154_e662361f64_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528665258/" title="Lake Como great trip by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como great trip" height="424" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7528665258_e84bbf2cb1_z.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7528667526/" title="Lake Como Cruisa Italy by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Lake Como Cruisa Italy" height="640" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7246/7528667526_0ecc088535_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><br />
If I have to pick the bext experience I have had, I have to go for Lake Como. I felt so elated and happy. But i<span style="background-color: white;">f there is one thing I have learned though, it is that while I had fun by myself, it would have been so much nicer had I shared it with my better half and my family. Perhaps next time...</span><br />
More details about my travel will come out soon!<br />
(Photos: Duomo in Milan; front of the Ferrari store in Milan; on my way to Castello; view of the Lake Como, Italy; me riding the boat to experience more and see the best of Como Lake)Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-10558875481692001812012-06-19T19:45:00.001+08:002012-09-15T12:57:53.192+08:00Keep cool<div style="text-align: justify;">
That's what I tell myself, always. But, as we know it, it is easier said than done. There are a lot of moments when we thought the stress level couldn't get any higher. I tell you one instance.
At 5:30 in the morning one day, Sean told me he needed my help in doing a project in HEKASI (Geography, History, and Civic Studies). And guess what, he needed it that same day. Pronto! He must be kidding!</div>
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/-jIMo6qPTBE9vLHrjtpFRg?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="300" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-BEYUSjRIWD0/TkCKgykRoiI/AAAAAAAACJM/EINVzniJW_4/s400/keep_cool.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="background-color: white;">So I was supposed to do magic? I don't know if any of you can keep cool when you are facing something like this. This is the thing that we parents dread the most in all of our kids' school works - to be at the edge, to cram as hell. You know, I've already bought as many school supplies I could think of- envelops, folders -the brown ones, with plastic cover, or sliding ones in various colors and sizes, manila paper, art paper, construction paper, illustration boards - name it I have it, so that when they need them, we don't have to run to God-knows-where just to get them. But a school project with barely an hour to prepare?</span><br />
I'm not a genie or a magician.<br />
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To make things worse, for his project, Sean needed to briefly discuss a topic in geography, current affairs, geology, or any relevant topic; and he needed visual aids and index cards where he needs to write some sort of guide phrases - that is if he already knows what to say. So what's there to discuss? It's a moment that breaks my record for the most number of "OMGs" in my entire life. </div>
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ii7NNDbT_z6MFERmJEHfSA?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="280" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-hI_2pKr8JCo/TkCKgariFiI/AAAAAAAACJI/wh-o4sL9pF8/s800/keep-cool-black-mens-t-shirt-0.png" width="280" /></a><br />
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We gotta look in the magazines, in the newspapers, something, anything that is interesting. My mind was racing, my heart was beating so fast, my blood pressure perhaps was as high as my energy in going here and there searching every corner of our study room in search for a TOPIC! I can feel my eyebrows already joining together. And as for Sean? I did not want to look into his face. Oh my God, keep cool, there are things far worse than this, it's just a school project, you can do it. These are what I told myself, which I kept on doing for I don't remember how long.<br />
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And I was so thankful we found a nice photo, full page in the magazine, of an iceberg. Then Internet...browse, browse. So what's with icebergs? Sean remembers their most recent topic in class is climate. And icebergs play a great role in the earth's climate. Gotta look for those index cards. No time to memorize or study deeper, he needed to write his lines down in the index cards. Oh and there was one more thing, it has to be delivered in Tagalog. So, translate, translate. Whew! What a day! I'll make sure this won't happen ever again. (Photos from <a href="http://www.bergbahnen-werfenweng.com/Pistenregeln.33.0.html">here</a> and <a href="http://retrokiwi.spreadshirt.co.uk/keep-cool-black-mens-t-shirt-A1314353">here</a>).</div>
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Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-10829427973881849372012-06-17T18:00:00.001+08:002012-09-15T12:59:01.191+08:00Want to be a freelancer?<div style="text-align: justify;">
Are you a writer of articles and essays? Would you like to be a freelancer? Do you have a computer and fast internet connection? Lastly, would you like to earn extra income? In this times of economic hardships, it is a normal scene to see people getting additional jobs or income sources like <a href="http://www.anrdoezrs.net/click-5815901-10713612" target="_blank">small businesses</a><img border="0" height="1" src="http://www.awltovhc.com/image-5815901-10713612" width="1" />on top of their formal job.
There are organizations on the Internet that are willing to pay people to write for them. There are other sites where one can also submit articles and they get paid based on the traffic they draw to those sites. Beware though because not all of these can compensate you properly for the good work you do. Here are just some of these sites.</div>
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<b>Triond </b>- you can write about anything under the sun. Submit your articles to Triond and they will publish your article for you in relevant sites. But for you to earn, you have to draw visitors to your article. The more article viewers you lead to the site where Triond has published your article, the better. The more articles you submit the more likely you will earn. A user's experience can show that for every 100 views (roughly), you get something like $0.05. Not bad, but you need to exert extra effort.</div>
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<b>Yahoo Contributor Network</b> - write about anything under the sun and you get published for your quality work. You can also claim some tasks that they post and get paid higher amount. But there's a great BUT. You have to be a US citizen or resident. Otherwise, you can only get paid if they (Yahoo) invite you to write about some given topics. For that, you have to be a high caliber writer.</div>
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<b>Essays.ph</b> - in the Philippines, you can check out essays.ph. It is a freelance writing network and you can be surely paid for writing for the clients in this site. Just keep your record clean and you're good to go.</div>
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All voices - I have seen this from a Facebook ad. It says you will get paid if they publish your work. This works like Triond where you need to draw visitors first to the site, only that their payment scheme is not clearly shown as it is not easy to locate the policy in their site.</div>
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<b>Odesk </b>- it is like essays.ph but BIGGER. It caters not only to freelance writers but also to programmers, encoders, developers, analysts. It is a network of half a million contractors. The contractors (i.e. the writers, programmers) work for clients who post jobs on the network. These contractors compete for the jobs based on their qualifications, skills, and feedback from previous works. It offers a guaranteed payment system if the work is billed by hours of work.</div>
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There may be many other sites one can try. But I strongly recommend <a href="http://www.jdoqocy.com/click-5853431-10715496" target="_top">oDesk</a><img border="0" height="1" src="http://www.tqlkg.com/image-5853431-10715496" width="1" />because it is a greater network and a tested one. Click the ad below to get to oDesk and find great opportunities.</div>
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<a href="http://www.dpbolvw.net/click-5853431-10745199" target="_top">
<img alt="" border="0" height="250" src="http://www.awltovhc.com/image-5853431-10745199" width="300" /></a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-23517261078486805722012-06-14T00:31:00.000+08:002012-09-15T13:00:08.510+08:00Sagala Night at Cerritos TrailsIt is a nice feeling to be a part of a livable community, where people do take part in important events and other initiatives. It is after all what makes a community. Recently, we had a Sagala Night at our village. It was so fun despite the rain showers late in the afternoon which has momentarily halted the activity and spoiled the kids' excitement. But it was great that the kids had other stuffs in mind which kept them busy. The girls paraded in their fancy gowns and the boys had their turn too. They danced inside the hall not minding the rain outside. Later in the evening, they still found the energy to push through with the parade around the subdivision.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7368696390/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 2" height="332" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5450/7368696390_90481e86c1.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183463607/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 3 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"></a><br />
<a name='more'></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183463607/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 3 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 3" height="332" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7183463607_a4e47ba1ab.jpg" width="500" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183474447/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 7 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 7" height="332" src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5036/7183474447_892970aa5e.jpg" width="500" /></a><span style="background-color: white;">
</span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183459403/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 5 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 5" height="332" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7236/7183459403_eb2dda295c.jpg" width="500" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183461539/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 4 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 4" height="500" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8027/7183461539_09a8d51334.jpg" width="332" /></a><span style="background-color: white;">
</span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7368698570/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7240/7368698570_c3ce5861a5.jpg" width="332" /></a><span style="background-color: white;">
</span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7183476201/" style="background-color: white;" title="Cerritos Trails Camella 6 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Camella 6" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7183476201_86a1657e12.jpg" width="332" /></a><br />
Andre went too with his Barong and had a great time.Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-86387218967594316222012-06-01T19:30:00.000+08:002012-09-15T13:01:24.833+08:00Welcome myself to Polyvore<div style="margin: 0 auto; width: 500px;">
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/easy/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50027410"><img alt="Easy" border="0" height="516" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/1KdSC78Y8Hc7rcqxeaWg/cid/50027410/id/hw8Xite9Svuas5qErwNq5w/size/c500x516.jpg" title="Easy" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/easy/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50027410">Easy</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/scoop_neck_tops/shop?query=scoop+neck+tops">scoop neck tops</a></small></div>
Ahah! I found another fun and exciting thing to share. I have just registered in Polyvore today! Thanks to my friend Bless who is already into it a long time ago. She's actually starting her own design blog and that excites me. She will be sharing her Polyvore works, and will also design her own templates soon, and these will be for free. So once the site is up, I will let you guys know about it. Well, the works of an amateur I have shown above is just a 2-minute set. Next time I will be more patient in doing my sets. That is why I called my first one -Easy. You know I really like an outgoing kinda easy touch to my fashion statement most of the time because I'm a mommy who is most of the time busy and on the go so, I don't want to make my wardrobe complicated. I kinda played around some more with one I called Come with me, Girl Power and City girl. It is fun, so fun.
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/come_with_me/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50029804"><img alt="Come with me" border="0" height="582" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/X55IO5MEOcqPN63MnHuA/cid/50029804/id/34vvJdHfRBKyBQz3lJUdKA/size/c500x582.jpg" title="Come with me" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/come_with_me/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50029804">Come with me</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring a <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/khaki_jacket/shop?query=khaki+jacket">khaki jacket</a></small></div>
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/girl_power/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50030323"><img alt="Girl power" border="0" height="505" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/z62nf0V9RGoIkTgpEDw/cid/50030323/id/xe6dtazdQyOBoq9g4g_fOA/size/c500x505.jpg" title="Girl power" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/girl_power/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50030323">Girl power</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring an <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/embroidered_dress/shop?query=embroidered+dress">embroidered dress</a></small></div>
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/city_girl/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50032658"><img alt="City girl" border="0" height="515" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/ZLrohRAGvbwj1RtUbSKWw/cid/50032658/id/KsOaQPlKTWWnsudx5Ip3kw/size/c500x515.jpg" title="City girl" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/city_girl/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50032658">City girl</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/embellished_tops/shop?query=embellished+tops">embellished tops</a></small></div>
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/cheeky_wannabe/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50043490"><img alt="Cheeky wannabe" border="0" height="407" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/Zkz49Ye40MTvDLfjvQfKg/cid/50043490/id/UNHjPYknRWOi4YLeKSMDWA/size/c500x407.jpg" title="Cheeky wannabe" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/cheeky_wannabe/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50043490">Cheeky wannabe</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/glitter_shoes/shop?query=glitter+shoes">glitter shoes</a></small></div>
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<a href="http://www.polyvore.com/parisian_girl/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50044454"><img alt="Parisian girl" border="0" height="485" src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/vvMRJAgbDOyy7SC7tYYsag/cid/50044454/id/4duytFHbQ2eqO7EV-4piaQ/size/c500x485.jpg" title="Parisian girl" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/parisian_girl/set?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste&id=50044454">Parisian girl</a> by <a href="http://amandagrey.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3959369&.svc=copypaste">amandagrey</a> featuring <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/satin_high_heels/shop?query=satin+high+heels">satin high heels</a></small></div>
Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-84245520324523132772012-05-28T00:34:00.001+08:002012-09-15T13:02:04.215+08:00Andre's BattleshipAfter watching the movie Battleship, my kids just can't get over it. It was the talk of the table for sometime. Prior to this, they were watching Scoobydoo and some ghost ship and ugly pirates in it. And so Andre, my 7-year old son who is immensely addicted to drawing anything that sticks into his mind - brought out his sketch pad and came out with this nice drawings. His dad calls him an architect in the making. Let me see what you think. Below are photos of his drawings of the USS Missouri in various angles. The fourth one is the same ship made up of blocks.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280242182/" title="USS Missouri 3 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="USS Missouri 3" height="331" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7280242182_62471bece1.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
<a name='more'></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280233600/" title="USS Missouri by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="USS Missouri" height="296" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7102/7280233600_19a3161b82.jpg" width="500" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280239818/" title="USS Missouri 2 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="USS Missouri 2" height="302" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7095/7280239818_40988af3a3.jpg" width="500" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280237788/" title="USS Missouri 4 by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="USS Missouri 4" height="304" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/7280237788_eeba9f8629.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
I chuckled when he asked his Kuya Sean about the spelling of Missouri. At first he was quite unsure, he finally got the spelling right in the second time. The one below is his version of Scoobydoo's Pirate ship.<br />
Andre is really talented because he is so sure of his strokes, he doesn't use pencil, and so there's no room for erasures. He wasn't quite content with just sketching, he built another version of the USS Missouri in blocks. It's so cool!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280235602/" title="Pirate ship by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Pirate ship" height="334" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7238/7280235602_d83b629093.jpg" width="500" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7280303982/" title="Ghost ship by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Ghost ship" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7235/7280303982_3708194d52.jpg" width="380" /></a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224143559974057130.post-36727282463123398772012-05-25T00:20:00.000+08:002012-09-15T16:14:29.487+08:00Surviving the amortization woes<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/workingmomsandmore/7255634950/" title="Cerritos Trails Drina Model by Working Moms and More, on Flickr"><img alt="Cerritos Trails Drina Model" height="332" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8021/7255634950_5dc8d8f3bd.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
When you find yourself having difficulty paying for your mortgage loan, don't worry coz you're definitely not alone. In fact, at some point, all of us experience anxiety over paying the monthly <a href="http://www.streamlinerefinance.net/" target="_blank">amortization</a>. Based on experience, the difficulty can actually be lessened or even the amount can be lowered with these steps, and they can help us get by.<br />
1. Save and pay in advance to principal<br />
Not only for rainy days when you need something to save you from having to pay the penalty but more so to have some amount to pay come mortgage anniversary. Paying a lump sum amount no matter how small it is is helpful in lowering your future payments for the property (of course holding other factors constant). If you earn extra money here and there or get that big bonus, it is wisest to save it to pay an "advance to principal." If you realize that only a small portion of the monthly amortization actually goes to paying the principal loan (in our case, only roughly 30 percent which means 70 percent are interest payments), you would appreciate more the importance of paying in advance to principal.<br />
2. Ask for a rate reduction from the bank<br />
I used to be passive when it comes to the interest rate that the bank impose. Well, the time of blankly staring at the bank notices on interest rates is over for me. I always ask for a rate reduction every time. I simply send an email stating why I am asking for a lower rate, and guess what - I always get our rate reduced. Cite the current inflation which gives you headache in budgeting or if you are receiving remittances where the Peso-Dollar exchange rate matters a lot to you, air your concerns over the Peso appreciating a lot making the Peso equivalent of your dollar receipts lower than it used to be. Convince the bank why they should give you a lower one. Most likely they will give in, a percent or two perhaps.<br />
3. Budget, budget, and execute it<br />
Avoid facing the inevitable circumstance of paying penalty by carefully guarding your budget. If you think you will be short of funds, make adjustments early on. Our bank gives us at least a week grace period, I assume other banks have that sort of allowance, so there's actually enough time to make remedies. Don't wait until the last minute before you act.<br />
Want to read other saving tips? Check out how you can cut <a href="http://bizcovering.com/business/save-time-in-the-grocery-store-to-save-money/" target="_blank">grocery expenses.</a>Aubreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12305067333451152460noreply@blogger.com0