Snapshots of my Life

My mom and my aunt, who usually receives my packages, have been so used to receiving packages on my behalf since I almost have package delivery from my online shopping almost every week. So when they received another package today they did not even looked at the recipient’s name and my mom just handed it to me when I arrived home.

I got surprised when I got the package and I kept on reading the sender’s name and I kept on re-thinking if I am expecting any package today because I know that I did not order anything this week as I am already low on funds. LOL. And so when I read the recipient’s name, that is only when it became clear to me that the package is not for me as it is the delivery that hubby has been waiting.


It is the item from his winning bid in Ebay – Time Magazine where Manny Pacquio is the cover. According to my husband he got it for only P50. Good buy.

I can’t count in my fingers how many people I know who have died from Cancer. I have an aunt and a grand father who died from this disease, my mother-in-law, the father of a good friend…this list can be endless. That is why Cancer is one of the most dreaded diseases nowadays.

Some say that cancer can be avoided by living a healthy lifestyle like avoiding vices such as drinking and smoking, eating healthy foods, doing exercise, and the like and that is what my friend is doing so she can start living a healthy life.

As her initial step, she plans to start eating a more natural and healthy diet and so she wants to start growing her own indoor herb garden so she would have access to fresh herbs all year. The only hindrance that she has right now to start her own herb garden is the location of her apartment because she lives in a basement apartment which means her herbs will not receive the right amount of sunlight for it to grow.

But she is really decided to have her own herb garden and so she did some research and she found a solution – that is by using grow lights. Grow light is an electric lamp which can be a substitute to the sunlight because it emits an electromagnetic spectrum allowing for indoor plants to grow even without direct exposure to sun.

There are many different kinds of grow lights such as fluorescent grow lights, incandescent grow lights, high-pressure sodium lamps, LED grow lights, etc. For the herbs to grow, my friend should select the right kind of grow lights that will emit the right amount of light for her herbs.

My friend is really excited for this project. At least it will keep her busy, save money as she doesn’t have to buy herbs from the store and at the same time she will be able to start a healthy and natural diet.

I am really not a fan of any Apple products before, until my sister introduced me to iPhone. When it was first released, I didn’t show any interest on it even if I know that a lot of people are drooling for it. I was never one of them because I thought that this newest touch screen gadget won’t be a user friendly one for me.

And so when my sister bought her iPhone, I tried to use it and explore the different features that I am not quite familiar of. She installed various applications to her phone and she told me that most of the games were from the leading iPhone Games Development company, developed by Sourcebits. From then on, I got interested and immediately planned to finally have one for myself.

Ever since I got my iPhone, I keep on researching for new applications that I can use and because of that, I’ve discovered that Sourcebits also has an iPhone App Development team, that are experts when it comes to MAC technologies, which leads to further enhancement of the applications in terms of graphics and efficiency.

And the good thing about Sourcebits is that, they expand their services for android phones because they also established an Android App Development.

Now, I really enjoy my iPhone and I feel like I won’t ever replace it with any other phone because I can really do so many things with that.

When my husband and I toured Europe last year, we had a lot of unforgettable experience and one of them was meeting a group of Pinoys who are on vacation also whom became one of our good friends up to now.

We first met in Venice when they (Meg, Kuya Danny, Kuya Chito, Fr. Lito and Mommy) greeted us by calling us “Kabayan” when our paths cross in St. Mark’s Square. They invited us for afternoon snack and we talked as if we have known each other for a long time already. We also had dinner with them before our train ride to Rome where we agreed to meet up again in Rome since that is where they will be heading the next day.


In Rome, Fr. Lito invited us to his house which is near Castel Gandolfo for our Papal Visit. We all went to the Papal Visit and I guess it is one of the experiences that made us closer since we shared a different kind of emotional experience when we were able to see Pope Benedict up close and personal and received his blessing together.


Fr. Lito is currently here in the Philippines for a vacation and we will be meeting with them later. I am sure it will be one fun reunion again. I promise to post stories and pictures here soon.

Before I gave birth, hubby and I have been planning to buy a bigger car. We currently have Toyota Vios but we thought that we need a lot of space now since we have two kids already and both of them have so many things to bring especially when we travel.

But then, I talked to hubby about this and I said that it would be better if we set aside this plan first and instead, use the money to look for cheap insurance for my kids’ health. Hubby initially agreed and we decided to push through with this plan after I gave birth or even after the baptism of Yohann. And so, since we are done with these two, we again considered buying a new car. We talked about it and we estimated the budget that we will need for a brand new car and of course we tried to comprehend if we can be able to pay for the expenses including the cheap auto insurance without having any difficulties and predicaments.

As we finalized the plan, we decided to buy in the next 2-3 months. For now, I am in search of cheap insurance quotes since we have limited budget. I’ve been actually asking some experts when it comes to this so that I’ll be sure on what to avail.

Last week was a very stressful week for us as the kids and I all got sick. It started with my daughter and I caught the virus which I pass on to my newborn too. Jacobo is just two months old and so I was really worried when he had cough and colds which develop into a high grade fever. I was up the whole night as I am monitoring his condition on the first day that he got sick.

I am really not into music but there are a few singers that I like and one of them is John Mayer. His music was one of my favorite and my companion when I was still in college every time I have to stay late at night to study.

And so when my sister told me about his concert here in Manila, I got really excited. My sister said that she will be watching with her boyfriend and one of my cousins and without even thinking, I told her to get two tickets for me and my husband too.

They have an early bird promo up to September 10 where they give discounts to ticket prices. We are thinking to get tickets from the Bronze section because it is the one that we can afford but I am having second thoughts as it is free seating which means we have to be at the venue early to get a good seat. But the Silver section, which has reserved seating, is more than double the price of the Bronze section.

But I guess whatever tickets we get, I will surely enjoy this concert no matter what since it is John Mayer.

I am going back to work in a week and I am starting to feel really sad as it means that I will have less time with my kids now because I have to go to work five times a week, 8 hours a day. But I have no choice since I really have to work to help my husband with our family’s expenses (which are increasing as our family is growing too).

If only we can afford to become a single-income family, then I would not think twice and I will choose to stay at home so I can personally take care of my kids. So my husband said that maybe we should start saving up and do some investments like buying bullion so we don’t have to wait for our retirement before we quit our jobs.

This got me really inspired and I started reading the site of United States Gold Bureau to learn more about gold investment. Their hard assets professionals are always ready to help clients like me and give advice on how we can start with our gold investment.

Gold is really a very good investment and if I start saving and start with my gold investment, in no time I will be able to quit my job and just stay at home with my kids.

I was so happy yesterday when I received hubby’s text message to inform me that the package containing my Ralph Lauren loots finally arrived. It is a USPS box which was personally mailed by my kumareng Ems. She has to do the shopping for us as Ralph Lauren’s online site doesn’t accept my local cards and so she has to ship the items to me after receiving it from Ralph Lauren shop.

Ems told me that Ralph Lauren is having a promo and they are offering additional 25% off to the existing discounted prices so I went crazy and bought three pairs of polo and shorts for Jacobo and one blouse for B. My shopping buddy Peachy also did not let this opportunity pass and so she shopped for polos, t-shirts and blouses too for her two kids. Even my brother who is a very frugal person was not able to resist the offer as he did some shopping too for his soon to be born baby girl.

Ems was so kind enough that she even shipped the items together with the very elegant box of Ralph Lauren which even adds to my excitement as I open my USPS box. (Thanks again Ems for doing this for us.)


I love the items that I bought from RL site as they are really of good quality (well they better be, considering their price) so I really can’t wait for the next RL sale to buy some more stuff for my two kids (and maybe some too for me and my husband).

It started with a simple stomach ache and when the pain did not subside after drinking her medicine, they decided to rush my mother-in-law to the hospital. They all thought that it is just a bad case of ulcer so they were surprised and devastated when the doctor gave them the bad news that it is cancer. My mother-in-law hates going to the doctor and she will really invent reasons just to escape a check-up to the doctor. Because of this, it was only when her cancer is at its worst stage that it was diagnosed. Maybe, if she went to the doctor early, they might have found a way to cure her disease instead of catching it at a later stage.

So now my husband’s family has become really health conscious. My father-in-law is scheduled for an executive checkup to check his health condition as he is not getting any younger. We also bought him blood pressure monitors as he has high blood pressure too so he can monitor his blood pressure even when at home.

Watching for our health can be really expensive, from the check-ups to the different medicines and vitamins. Thank goodness there is an online store like Southeastern Medical Supply Inc where we can buy health monitoring equipment like blood pressure cuffs at an affordable price since they give factory direct prices. They even offer discounts for purchases of $75 and up.

With Southeastern Medical Supply Inc, caring for our health doesn’t have to be expensive.

I was watching the news and I heard the heated debate between church officials and the officers of the Department of Health regarding the latter’s educational campaign to make the public aware on how to prevent and protect themselves from STDs.

I think there is really nothing wrong with the campaign of the Department of Health. At least the public will be aware on how to prevent such disease.

We know that STD is a disease that can be easily transmitted to another individual so the public must be really aware on how to stop this disease from spreading because I also learned that a number of the population is already infected by it.

For those who are infected by STD or are suspecting that they have been infected by it, they can alleviate the stress that it is bringing them buy undergoing an std testing to verify if they have the disease or not. At least after getting the results, which they can get within the day as the center offer same day std testing, they can seek help from the health counselors so they will know how to deal with the disease.

STD is a highly treatable disease so if those who are infected will act responsibly, then they will get the proper treatment for it and they can even help in stopping the disease from spreading.

I think my husband is partly happy that I will be going back to work in a week. Because all the time that I was at home, all I did was do online shopping that almost every week I am waiting for a package delivery from LBC. LOL.

Just like this week, I received two packages and one of them is this:


This is my hotel membership card for Sofitel. I wanted to have a last getaway before I go back to work and since it is raining most of the time, we just opted to have an overnight stay in a hotel instead of going to one of the beaches in Batangas. Since the price of the membership is just a few hundred bucks more than an overnight stay, I opted to apply for the membership instead so we can get to enjoy the perks for a year.

Here are the benefits of the membership:
• Up to 50% discount when dining in participating hotels and restaurants
• One night’s complimentary accommodation that can be used at participating hotels across Asia Pacific (and we will be using this free overnight accommodation this weekend)
• Exclusive Member’s Only special offers and a minimum 10% discount off the best rate of the day available to the general public for accommodation
• Automatic enrolment in at silver level so you can earn 50% more points
• Earn and redeem points at more than 2,000 Accor hotels worldwide
• Dedicated member’s website and call centre.

This is my first hotel membership. Hope we can maximize its benefits.

Light and shadow, crinoline and lace: your world is a dedication to fashion. Every moment is born to capturing cloth; every picture tells a story of poses. But your devotion to the craft has not always guaranteed a profit. You find yourself struggling for work, taking clients that don't appeal, wasting time on routine photographs. Your art has become secondary to your obligations and this will not do. You need a change. You need an inspiration. You need to move.

Fashion may be found in all corners of the world but the need to frame it is not. You must go instead where there is variety to find and choices to make. After assessing your life -- and discovering expenses like moving quotes and rental properties -- you will be ready to leave all things common behind. You simply must be certain then that your equipment lasts the journey. Nothing will undo your good intentions faster than broken cameras and shattered lenses.

These packing rules apply:

1. Catalog: Anything can happen during a move. It’s a sad truth you never wish to learn. Before relocating, you must be certain that all of your equipment has been inventoried and noted (for both insurance purposes and your own memory). Log every lens, cover and tripod.

2. Secure: Your camera is your life; you must therefore offer it protection. Every container should be filled with heavy wrapping material (do not settle for the easy newspapers) and individual cases. Be certain also not to overfill any box to reduce the risk of scratching.

3. Separate: It’s tempting to toss everything into the back of your car and ride into the sunset. Your equipment, however, can easily suffer under the weight of all your other boxes. Keep it separated from other pieces and in an area that's not prone to moisture.

You need to move but you also need to be wise. Plan well.

When I was a little girl, I love playing with dolls. I always look forward to weekends because it means that it is the time for me to meet up with my friends to play with our dolls. My mom and my grand mother were so creative and patient because they hand sewn clothes for my dolls that I was able to create a wardrobe collection for my toy dolls. My friends are all envious of the clothe collection of my dolls that both my mom and my grand mom have created for me. This makes playing with my dolls more fun since I can dress them up and make my dolls be in a different character every time I change their wardrobe.

Now that I have a daughter, I know that she will love to play with dolls too like me. She is almost five years old already so it is really the perfect timing since she knows now how to appreciate playing with her doll toys.

Unfortunately, I don’t have the luxury of time like my mom and grand mom to hand sew clothes for my daughter’s dolls. Luckily I found an online store where I can purchase american girl outfits for the 18 inches doll of my daughter.

I showed my daughter the unique and cute doll clothing and accessories that I found online for her dolls and I really saw the excitement in her eyes upon seeing the doll clothing collection. (It really reminded me of my childhood, back in the days when I was still her age and on how much I enjoyed playing with my dolls.) We both had fun shopping for doll clothing and accessories for her dolls and now we both can’t wait for it to be delivered so we can both have fun while we play with her dolls.

As I published in my previous post, I am so hooked with the ChooChoo Baby Multiply site that I bought items again from them for B. And as I am typing this post, I am so giddy happy because my package from ChooChoo Baby shop arrived already:


These are the two pajama set that I ordered for B. This is the third PJs that I ordered from them. I first ordered a size 4T Baby Gap pajama set and it is a little small for B already. But I like the material of the pajama and when I saw from their site that they have new sets of pajamas on hand, I immediately placed my order for a size 5T Pajama set.

I showed it to B already and she loves both designs. In fact she already had her sponge bath and she excitedly wear one of her two new pajamas.

My brother’s wife is due to give birth in a month. After they got married, they live in with my parents as they are still saving up to buy their own house and I am very proud for my brother because their hard work has paid off as they were able to buy a house and lot and renovation works has already started and they will be able to move in to their new house before his wife gives birth.

Of course, a new house needs new appliances and so I have been helping my brother and his wife to select the best brand for the appliances that they will be buying. As this is their first investment, they really wanted to be sure that they are buying nothing but the best so I suggested that they read first the buying guides especially for large appliances like refrigerator, washing machines and dryers as they cost more compared to smaller appliances.

Of course while I was helping my brother, I did some window shopping too for dinnerware so this will be our house warming gift for my brother and his wife.

Congratulations again to my brother and his wife for their new love nest.

It has been years already since we first heard about the economic crisis, but up to know we can still feel its effects. A number of companies are still closing, houses being foreclosed because its owners can no longer pay for their loan, mass lay offs, and the like – these are just some of the effects that the global recession is bringing.

Because of this, my husband and I became more concerned of our jobs and the future of our kids. We can’t afford to loose our job as it is our bread and butter. We are lucky because work is still doing well and so we decided that while we still have good earnings, we can use this opportunity to make investments and buy gold bullion.

Gold bullion is a very good form of investment as it doesn’t depreciate in time and it is universally accepted so it can be easily converted to cash. Its value is not affected by the economic crisis as its value moves in opposite direction as paper investments.

We are sure that investing in gold like bullion and coins is one of the best financial decisions that we will be making.

This is our new favorite from Krispy Kreme, Krispy Kreme’s Baked Creations:

We first tried it when we had breakfast at Krispy Kreme in Mall of Asia while waiting for B’s ballet class to finish. Hubby tried the Cinnamon flavored Pull Aparts and being the chocolate lover that I am, I gave in and tried the Double Chocolate Kruffins.

According to Krispy Kreme’s website, the Pull Aparts are baked fresh for a melt-in-your mouth experience and it sure does accomplished this goal when I tried the Cinnamon flavored Pull-Aparts that hubby ordered. There is a sweet filling in the middle that gives the bread a different but yummy taste.

Of course I enjoyed my Double Chocolate Kruffins because it is filled with so much chocolate. Truly an indulgence.

Do try this new Baked Creations from Krispy Kreme. We are already planning to have our breakfast at Krispy Kreme in Mall of Asia again this Saturday and we will surely have one of these delicious pastries from Krispy Kreme.

In just two weeks, I will be going back to work. As much as I want to stay at home to be with Jacobo and B, I can’t afford to do that as I need to work to help my husband with the expenses of the family.

To prepare for my come back to work, I tried my old office attire but since I gained weight, none of my old office attire fits me anymore. I am not surprise as I gained 15 pounds after giving birth.

So I decided that instead of being depress because of my weight gain, I might as well do some retail therapy and shop for misses clothing. Just look at some of my fab finds:

I love these blouses as their style is not body hugging which I think is perfect so it will not show my still big belly. LOL. But I know that I should really start working out so I can go back to my pre-pregnancy weight and I really need to start my work out soon as I have a wedding to attend in three months so I better find a way to shed off those pregnancy fats soon.

If you are like me who has been working for more than a decade now, there will really come a point in your life where you will just feel tired of your everyday routine and you will want to re-consider if you are still happy with what your are doing or not.

I think I have reached that point in my career already and now I am starting to think whether I should just resign from job and stay at home. Besides I have two kids to take care of and time is moving fast so I would really like to just stay at home so I can be with my kids and just watch them grow.

But of course before I can finally decide to leave my job, I have a lot of things to consider since I have hungry stomachs to feed. So I have been exploring my options and I have come to discover the world of home based business network marketing. With network marketing, I can work from home by selling products of the company like Transfer Factor and I will earn commission from the products that I will be able to sell. Also, if I have recruits which will be under my level of authority, I will also earn commission from whatever earnings or sales that they will be getting.

I read the website and I can say that it will really work and it will really give me the opportunity to Work From Home. Some of their members are even millionaires already. I will discuss this proposal with my husband and I am sure he will be happy because he really wanted me to just stay at home so I can take care of my kids.

Ever since my good friend Peachy shared with me the Multiply site ChooChoo baby, I became totally addicted with it.

My first order from them was the Carter’s diaper bag of Jacobo. Since then, I regularly check their site for any of their new arrivals. Just a few weeks ago, I ordered Ralph Lauren polo and shorts for Jacobo (which he wore on his baptism) and Gap PJs set for B.


Then just yesterday, I asked hubby to make a deposit again for the two PJs set that I ordered for B. I also want to order the Skip Hop bag for Jacobo but I am already running out of budget but she will have another shipment of Skip Hop bag by October.

What I like about her store is that the price is really affordable and is almost the same price if I will order it from US online store. And the shipment is fast as I can get the items the day after I made the payment as compared to waiting two to three weeks if I order them from the US online store.

I still have a lot of items on my wish list from ChooChoo baby site so I have to work doubly hard to earn for my shopping budget. LOL.

When Apple released the iPad, it has created a big hype that every one was talking about it. You can see the word iPad being discussed in Facebook, Twitter, Plurk and other social networking sites because it has a lot of cool features that you cannot find in other types of gadgets. Even my husband was bitten by the hype and he wants to join the bandwagon of iPad users and is asking for my approval so he can get one for himself.

I got really curious as to what iPad can do and so I did some research and readings. One of the things that caught my attention is the different iPad applications that I can download and install. I specifically like the friendly user interface of the application that encouraged me to explore the application and try it out. I am no iPad and MAC user so this is really important for me because a very complicated application really intimidates me and will really discourage me to try it.

I tried a lot if applications and that is when I learned that most of the applications that I tried have been developed by Sourcebits , a leading iPad App Development company.

The reason why Sourcebits is the number one developer of iPad and iPhone hit applications is that they have an iPhone App Development team and an iPad App Development team that have experience with Mac specific technologies such as OpenGL, Core Audio, etc so they were able to design applications that are fast, efficient and graphic rich which is what Apple’s applications is all about.

So if you want to make the next big hit applications for iPhone, iPad, and even Blackberry Development, then contact Sourcebits now.

One of my favorite online and iPhone games is Sally Salon. The game is really entertaining as I get a real feel of being a salon owner as I move from the cashier, to the washing station, the hair cutting station, hair coloring station and even the manicure and pedicure area. I also love the exceptional graphics of the game and I love the stylish hair salon furniture that they use in the game which for sure will give the clients a very relaxing salon experience.

This really makes me imagine and wish that if ever I visit a salon, I will get this same kind of treatment. I rarely get to have my “ME” time since I am busy performing my duties as a mom so I always look forward to my time that I get to spend in a salon and spa.

Thank goodness that this is possible because the salon that I always visit uses salon styling chairs from Pretty Salon USA. Pretty Salon USA is an online store where salon and spa owners can purchase hairdressing salon furniture that is stylish and have high quality without breaking the budget of salon and spa owners. Ordering from them is very easy as everything can be ordered online or through phone.

With Pretty Salon USA, it is very easy to create a very relaxing and welcoming atmosphere for any salon and spa.

Last Sunday was one of my happiest days for this month. We went to Megamall to hear mass and to meet hubby’s siblings. After the mass, we went to Amici to treat hubby’s family for an afternoon snack.

When we are done eating, we went around the shops as hubby needs to buy shoes that he will wear on Jacobo’s Christening on Sunday. We left B and her cousins with yaya and hubby’s sister so hubby and I can check out the shops faster.

As we went around the shops, hubby and I saw the Chronos shop and hubby saw the look on my face when I saw the Philip Stein watch on display. He knows that it is the style and color that I want and so he convinced me to go inside the store to check it out. The sales agent was so helpful that she let me try out the different styles that I want. I really have no plans to buy the watch that day but then they gave me an offer that I can’t resist. They have a promo where they will slash 30% off from the price tag (but this is an on going promo actually) and instead of their usual promo of 0% interest payable in six months, they can defer the payment even more up to 12 months at 0% interest. And another offer that convinced me to buy the watch is that hubby offered to pay for the monthly payment as his "push" gift for me.

So I want home really happy and excited that day. I can’t wait to use my first ever Philip Stein watch.

My friend is in complete lost right now as she battles her right for custody for her children. She and her husband have been having a rough marriage for years now but she still decides to try to fix the marriage for the sake of their children. But all her efforts were lost when one day she woke up and she was asked by her husband to leave their house.

She already accepted her husband’s decision and she knows that there is really no way for them to fix the marriage (especially her husband has another woman already), but all she wants now is to gain custody of her kids.

Thankfully she found a good Richmond Lawyer, the MGM LAW, who can give her personal representation to get the right for the custody of her children. The lawyers from MGM LAW are backed by 19 years of experience and court trials so they will really know how to handle my friend’s case and help her get her children back. Their trade mark is they always treat each of their case differently, so their lawyers always give personal attention to all the cases that they handle.

I am sure my friend is in good hands with the lawyers of MGM LAW.

I always wonder what will happen in our country; now that PNoy is starting to work as a President by doing some actions with regards to the various problems that our country have today. Since recession has been superficial, I was a bit alarmed that even though I have a stable job and I earn enough for our family, I was also worried that somehow, this may affects me.

Since then, I always see to it that I spend my money wisely. Aside from that, I manage to start my own business with the help of my brother and hubby. I also considered investing into something valuable like gold coins for I know that in some ways, this will surely be a great help especially with regards to our family’s financial security.

And so, as we have our new government today, I hope that we will also have new chances of being a better country as well.

I forgot to blog about this but I am totally addicted to the ChooChoo Baby online site. I checked on its new products last week and guess what, I bought a pair of polo and shorts for Jacobo and new PJs for B.

We tried the onesies that I bought for Jacobo last week and the size is 3 months, and since Jacobo is a bit big for his age, it looks small for him already that I don’t think he will be able to wear it on his Baptism. So when I saw the RL polo and shorts from the ChooChoo baby site with a size of 6 months, I placed the order immediately so I will be sure that Jacobo has something to wear on his baptism if ever the RL onesies that I bought for him last month will no longer fit him come next week.


And since B is running out of nice PJs, I ordered one for her also. And I am so happy because after I made the payment, it was shipped to me right away and I received the package the next day. Very efficient. That is why I will never get tired of ordering from them.

Do I look fat wearing this? I got this from Tango last night and I will be wearing this for Jacobo’s baptism. I remember when I was looking for a white dress during B’s baptism, I really had a hard time looking for a white dress that will complement my (fat) body so when I saw this white dress last night, and I bought it even if I am not really completely happy with it. I still plan to look for a white dress this weekend (that is if I will find the time to go to the mall again). We need to hit the mall anyways since I still need to look for a white polo and pants for hubby. At least I already bought a dress for B so that is one less thing to think about.

Gold, so lovely to look at but wouldn’t it be more nicer if it will add money to your pocket? Because people are avoiding real estate investment nowadays because of the global economic recession which affected the real estate industry, people are now looking at other investment options and one of them is investing in precious metals.

Who wouldn’t like this type of investment? They say that investing in precious metals such as gold coin or gold ingot is one of the best investment as it doesn’t depreciate in time, unlike real estate. It also can e easily stored in a local bank or safety deposit box at home so its storage is not a problem too. And if you instantly need cash, you can easily convert it to cash as it is universally accepted.

So if you want to try out new investments, check out the site of United States Gold Bureau so their experienced hard asset professionals can help you get started with your first precious metal investment.

When we fetched my mom last week after her three-day conference in Cebu, my dad was craving for sea foods and so after picking up our mom from the airport, we went straight to our favorite restaurant in DAMPA for a feast.

We ordered baked mussel, buttered shrimp, buttered crab, fried fish, and sinigang sa miso. We did not do the marketing ourselves and we just asked them to estimate how many kilos we need per dish that will be good for six people and so we ended up with a food feast:


We ordered so much food that we end up having left over food for dinner and lunch the next day all for only P2,500. That is one thing I love about eating out in Dampa, you get to eat delicious and sumptuous sea food dishes at a very affordable price. I can’t wait for our next trip to Dampa. Maybe this coming Sunday...

As I blogged in my previous post, Jacobo got sick last Sunday. I am really feeling guilty because we tagged him along when we attended her sister’s swimming class and then we went to the mall to buy clothes that her sister will be wearing for Jacobo’s baptism and then we visited hubby’s family that we went home late that day. The weather was also not good that day as it is raining.

Maybe he got really tired because it was a long day and so he got sick the next day. If only we have been more careful, then Jacobo wouldn’t have gotten sick. We swaddled him in heated blanket so he will perspire to keep his temperature down. We were awake the entire night so we can monitor his condition.

I really feel guilty and I feel that it is really our fault why Jacobo got sick. Thankfully nothing really bad happen to him and he was well and active again the next day. He still has colds though but his doctor prescribed a medicine for it already.

We will be visiting his sister pediatrician in St. Luke’s also tomorrow or this Saturday so he can check on Jacobo too. I am not being overacting, but I just want to make sure.

Since most of my previous posts are about shopping, I need a way, to earn some cash so I can afford more shopping. LOL. So I have been doing some research as my husband and I are considering investing in precious metals like gold, silver and platinum which are available either as a coin or bullion.

My friend recommended to me the site of United States Gold Bureau as it is a good site where I can get tips, news and information about precious metal investment. They even have experienced hard asset professionals who can give us good advice on what type of investment is best for us and if we finally decide to proceed with our investment, they can help us get a good deal that is currently available in the market.

It will not hurt if I spared myself from a little shopping and instead use that money to invest.

As I posted in my previous post, I just discovered an outlet store of Guess in Harrison Plaza and of course I immediately shared my discovery with my kumare and shopping buddy, Peachy. LOL.

I took a picture of the shirts that are on sale for boys so that I can show it to Peachy and these are the designs:


Imagine, these shirts are only priced at P350 – P400 from its original price of P650 – P800. That is big savings already especially if you buy a number of shirts every time you shop.

The last time I went there, I was able to buy a number for B – shirts and pants and when I went back I was able to buy another Capri pants for her. They don’t have that much stock for pants for newborn babies when I last went there but they say that they usually get delivery every Friday so I will be coming back again as I want to shop for more clothes for Jacobo.

My Jacobo got sick last Sunday. (This reminds me that I should start processing his NC health insurance so he will be covered if ever he gets hospitalized which I hope will not happen). He had low grade fever of 37.5 which became 38.9 late in the evening. He has colds so maybe that is the cause of his fever. This is the first time that he got sick so hubby and I are in total panic and we are so worried. We are up almost the entire night as we exchange shifts in looking after him so we can monitor his temperature. We also gave him round the clock medicine but his fever is not going down.

The next day we brought him to his pediatrician and she increased the dosage for the paracetamol as the dosage that we are giving him is under what is required for his weight (which by the way has increased again only after two weeks. He is now 12 pounds from 9.9 pounds two weeks ago).

Thank goodness that his fever was gone on Monday and I am thankful too that his appetite did not decrease even if he is sick.

I remember I was talking to my best friend a few months back and she is telling me how she wanted to pursue a career as a make up artist. I really encouraged her to pursue her dreams and I was really happy when I saw her recent post in Facebook. She posted pictures of her first try as a makeup artist and she was really good.

I immediately called her and she told me that she finally was able to find the time from her busy schedule and enrolled in beauty school in Wichita. The Beauty School in Wichita is one of the thirty branches of Regency Beauty Institute. My friend said that she really got the best hands-on training as the schools of Regency Beauty Institute are like upscale salons so she really learned a whole lot during the entire training.

She is now applying to different salons and cruise ships and Regency Beauty Institute will even help her look for a job as they have connections with these industries so they can help their students get a job after finishing the training from them.

Everyday, my dad and my sister would stay at Harrison Plaza while waiting for B to get off from school as it is the nearest mall from St. Scholastica. It is actually an old mall and my sister doesn’t really find any interesting stores there so she always just stays inside Mc Donald’s while passing time.

One day, she dared went around the mall and checked out the Guess store there and that is when she got the happiest discovery because she learned that the Guess store there is always on Sale (items are discounted at 50-70% off) as it is the Outlet store of Guess. Imagine she was able to buy a nice pants for only P900.

I was with her last Monday as I accompanied B to school because it is the opening of their Lingo ng Wika and she brought me to the Guess store there and of course I went crazy because the price is really unbelievable. I bought three T-shirts for B all priced at P350 and P399 from its original price of P650. I also bought a pants for her priced at P800 from its original price of P1600. I also bought a shirt and a polo for Jacobo all at discounted price also.

We were informed that they get delivery every Friday so we will be coming back next week for more discounted shopping.

The problem with me is I don’t know how to say no. I don’t know, but for some reasons, I really find it hard to say no to someone who is asking for my help or I don’t know how to reject an offer if someone is selling me something.

Just like when we brought Jacobo for check-up, a distributor of Dr. Edwards sterilized water approached me and has asked for my cell phone number. Now, I kept on getting calls from her almost everyday and sometimes even twice a day to offer me their product. I don’t want to just ignore her call because that would be rude. Maybe if I have a phone voice changer, I can pretend to be someone else and will ask the distributor to stop calling me because she got the wrong number. LOL.

But I guess I really should learn how to say no next time especially if I will really have no use for the product that they are offering. I am sure with the right words, I will avoid hurting the feeling of that individual.

B was watching her favorite Mickey and Minnie DVD and he suddenly said:

B: “Mom, I want to go to Disneyland so I can see again Mickey and Minnie.”
Me: “Ok, on your birthday.”
B: “No mom, I want to go there this weekend.”

And so I just smiled. If only we have unlimited sources of funds, I would have easily said yes to B’s request as I so wanted to go out of the country because it has been months already since we last went on an out of the country vacation. But Jacobo is still too young for an out of the country travel and after all our expenses, there is no way we can afford to have a vacation soon.

But hubby and I have been talking and hopefully we will be able to have an Orlando vacation when Jacobo turns one. At least we still have a year to save up for this trip and Jacobo is a little old enough to travel. Hubby is actually hoping to have a training in the US by June 2011 and so he wants us to go with him. His air fare will be free and we have one free round trip ticket already care of our miles so we just have to save up for B’s airfare and we are all set.

This is really a dream for me and hubby that we will be able to bring our kids to the US for a vacation as we know how much they will enjoy Disneyland, Universal Studios, and Disneyworld. I do hope and pray that work will continue to pour in so hubby and I can save up for this dream vacation.

Part of my childhood was those lazy Sunday afternoon where we are just waiting for our friendly neighborhood Scramble vendor to pass by our street so we can have our refreshing scramble. But it has been a long time since I have a taste of the street food, scramble. And besides they really don’t recommend buying those street foods as we can never be sure if they really observed clean methods in preparing it.


That is why when my sister told me about the Scramble Food Cart in SM, I got really excited to try it out. Whoever thought of this is very brilliant because it is really a sure hit to the students especially since the price is very affordable (P8 for 6 oz, P10 for 10 oz and P15 for 12 oz). My sister even told me that you really have to line up if you want one as they always have dozens of customers in line ordering their favorite Scramble.

We were at SM Harrison this afternoon waiting for B to get off from school and so I was able to try the Scramble that my sister is raving about and it was so yummy that it brings back good old days when I was still a kid.

Don’t you hate it when you have to constantly clean your gutters because of the leaves that clog your gutter? Climbing ladders to clean your gutter is dangerous but if you leave your gutters clogged, it can cause water damage to your homes so you really have no choice but to clean your gutters.

But there is a much better way of doing this and that is by contacting gutter Asheville NC to install LeafGuard. LeafGuard is a one one-piece gutter system that prevents leaves and debris from clogging your gutters making the water from the rain to flow freely from the roof to the ground. This is really important because if your gutters are clogged and water accumulates in the gutter, it can cause damage to your homes which will force you to spend for repairs.

With LeafGuard, you will be spared from the time consuming job of cleaning your gutters and will save you hundreds of dollars from home repairs.