BE GRUENE

At last I am now able to post my video and review for Gruene Steam Mop and Steam Cleaner.

First of all I was surprised and ecstatic when I got my Steam Cleaner. I immediately put it all together, surprisingly it was easy considering I leave all the assembling to my husband. I already have a steam cleaner among my many cleaning tools so I pretty much know how the thing works. What I love about it though is the hand held Steam Cleaner. Now I can actually sterilize the most important part of the house which is the bathroom and kitchen. What I love about the steam cleaner is it saves me a whole lot of money. I have spent more than $200 dollars on cleaning products alone and that is just the basic cleaning products that I use around the house. Well, that is going to be cut short now with the help of my Gruene Steam Mop. The video below is where I love using the Steam Cleaner:


As any steam cleaners goes it gets the job done. As much as I love my Steam Cleaner, I still have a couple of things that needs a little bit of improvement. First of it could be a little lighter and smaller and the hose a little bit more flexible. Other than that, it has worked great and really gets the job done. It doesn't use as much water as I thought it would which is great, save me time from refilling it.

The Steam mop I have not really used it a whole lot as it feels bulky. I however like that they had a plastic tray that you can put under your Steam Mop so as not to damage your flooring when your done cleaning and cooling it off for storage. It does clean up and lifts stains really good specially hard wood floors but the waffle mop that goes with it easy gets soaked in water thus leaving a very wet floor. And the wheels I really don't get it, It doesn't really make mopping faster or easier. And the accessory holder is bothersome. It keeps falling off the back of the Steam Mop and is very annoying. But other than that I am very happy with the performance of the Gruene Steam Mop and Steam Cleaner. It is a must for household that have little kids and pets to get, It sanitizes, cleans, economically and is Eco-friendly.

SAY UNCLE

Kaitlyn doesn't get to see her Uncle that much speciallly the one on the left Larry. She gets so scared at first but eventually warmed up to her uncles. This little girl can twirl both her uncles on her little finger with ease. I just had to take a quick shot of Kaitlyn with her two uncle's before the wedding went underway. I put Kaitlyn on her Uncle Larry's lap and just had to hold her Uncle Angelo's hand since she didn't really warm up yet to her other Uncle. She looks so sweet and adorable here. Kayla on the other hand was way to busy playing with her daddy's phone that she didn't want to be bothered with pictures. Both her Uncle's adore Kaitlyn. Even though Kaitlyn doesn't get to see Larry as much as Angelo she still talk about him. So when she finally warmed up to him, I told her to tell her Uncle Larry what she wanted for her Birthday. She started talking a mile a dozen, babbling away about the dancing Dora doll she saw at the store. She is growing up so fast and acts way to mature for her age. I love you bunches langga!

MOITURIZE AND MINIMIZE

Have you noticed that as we age we get more and more wrinkles? The wrinkles that worries me so much is the around my eyes. I don't mind what I call the laughing wrinkles on the side of my eyes when I smile, what bothers me is the wrinkles under my eyes when I squint. My MIL has been pushing me to get the anti wrinkle cream that she has in her bathroom. She said it is important to use these kind of creams to minimize and help prevent more wrinkles. I was reminded yet again that I'm not getting any younger, I'm guessing I need all the help I can get. The coming cold months is usually brutal on my skin, specially on my face. I have better stock up again on a lot of facial moisturizer, lotions and anti wrinkle creams.

LIMP AND THIN

It comes to no surprise that women have this saying that our hair is our crowning glory. Too bad that has never applied to me. I am cursed with fine, thin, limp hair. How I wish my hair was think and lustrous. Doing my hair is a pain in the behind,specially when I need to go to a party or somewhere nice. Do you know how embarrassing it is when you know that people are staring at the back of your head where you know they can see the spot were your scalp is showing? I have told our family doctor about my worries and I was adviced to go to a Dermatologist. She said a Dermatologist will know what hair loss products will best for my type of hair. I have been dragging my feet about setting up an appointment but I know I have to call one soon. I don't want to end up with a big bald spot on the back of my head before I turn 40. It just my luck to have inherited my grandmothers genes when it comes to hair.

ITS OFFICIAL

It is officially Fall and we were just in time to close our pool for the season. We actually closed the pool in preparation for the Winter months ahead last week. Both of us were anxious about covering the pool and winterizing it. Every time we close the pool for the season we always encounter something that will go wrong. This has been our 5th liner and we don't want a repeat of last year. All our worries were for naught, Ralph winterized the pool, I helped him with the covers in no time at all and without any incident. Both of us just gave a big sigh of relief. Soon the temperature will be dropping and the leaves will start to fall. Some of the trees have already stated loosing their green foliage. Our leaves have yet to change colors from green to orange, yellow, red and brown hues. The season full of great golden colors. I can't wait for summer to come back and swim in that crystal clear water again.

TRAPPED WITHIN

Beauty is only skin deep but, it doesn't hurt to have great looking skin. Having great flawless and even skin tone is really a plus. A woman with great skin even wearing little make up will still stand out and look great. As teenager I was not plagued with acne, sure I had small break out here and there but nothing to really panic about. Ralph's niece just turned 18 this year and I am concern about her face. I can see that she has break out and a couple of acne's on her face. I have been telling her about some acne treatments that she can get. It's very important that she take care of the problem while its still at a minimum. Besides, taking care of oneself doesn't automatically make us vain. Investing on our skin and face will pay off in the future. I have encouraged her to really start doing treatments for it and also with her brother. Yes, pimples and breakout is part of growing up but that doesn't mean you can't get treatment for them. We are all prisoners of out skin and we might as well make the best out of it.

SIZE 4

Have you guys been to Ross Dress For Less? It is such and awesome store with great buys. I was there with the kids a couple of days ago. I had to be on a look out for a nice dress for a wedding we are going. This is the second wedding in two months. Browsing through racks and racks of clothes can be fun and frustrating at the same time. Some dresses that I really liked were either to small or to big for me. When it was time for me to try on the stack of clothes I picked out I realized something. I am no longer a size 2 but a size 4, that is an eye opener for me. I know that some women would kill to be a size 4 but I am only 5 ft tall. If I gain to much weight I'm going to end up looking like a pumpkin. I could barely look myself in the mirror when I was taking off my clothes. Luckily, we are in the age of computers and getting information and help online is so easy. There are websites like www.weightlosssupplement-s.com that is loaded with so much information. We just need to know where and what to look for. I have not really put my any real efforts about trying to loose weight. It is going to be hard but If I don't get any results, that website is to be the one I will first look up on the Web.

TODDLER LAWS

When I read what was on Joey's shirt I just laughed. The toddler laws of property fits my daughter to a T. I guess its that age where they either like to share or not at all. Most kids go through that phase and some won't outgrow these behavior until they are much older. It's important that we teach kids to share, make it fun and praise and reward them if they do. This will tell them that sharing is good and its also fun. Kaitlyn is a big bully trapped in a tiny girl's body. She hates sharing her stuff with Joey, she takes toys away from him specially if she sees that he is having so much fun with a toy she has not touched in a long time. I have been trying to break her out of that. I always say to myself, its just a phase and she will eventually get over it. I'm crossing my fingers with that,lol. Now tell me if this law does not apply to your toddler?

MISSING THE CLOSENESS

August and September has been a busy and stressful month for me. We went to a birthday party, had Kayla's birthday and attended a wedding last Saturday. I am so glad that it is over but there is yet more to come. Next month were attending another wedding, a birthday party and of course Kaitlyn's 3rd and Ralph's 41st birthday. I am going to be so broke, but hey money can always be earned. Any how while at Ralph's nieces wedding I saw such a gorgeous little baby. She was so tiny, reminded me so much of Kaitlyn when she was a baby. I wanted to hold that baby so bad and just smell her. I had to hold back the urge to ask the mom which happens to be a relative or Ralph's if I could hold her sweet baby, I know she wouldn't mind one bit. Seeing her breast feed her baby got me teary eyed. How I wish I could have breastfed my baby longer than 6 months. I was kicking myself for not searching online about how to increase breast milk production. Maybe If I had, I would have been able to breastfed her longer. One of the factor that caused my milk to dry up was the fact that Kaitlyn was already eating baby food by 3 months and by 6 months she was already eating solid foods. I only had to breastfeed her when she takes naps and at night. I missed that closeness, the feeling of having her on my breast and knowing I am the one providing her nourishment. If ever I get pregnant again I will make sure to increase my milk production.

COSTUMES FOR US

Are you ready for the Halloween? I am so excited this year, we will be complete this coming trick or treat. I still haven't made up my mind what my girls are going to be as, that is if I have a say on it. My girls are at the age where they want to pick out there costume. Even the youngest who is turning 3 next month, she has a mind of her own. I wanted Kaitlyn to go as Jessie in Toy Story or something unique and not common. Kayla on the other hand wants to be something girly but scary at the same time. As for me, I have been going online and checking out sexy adult costumes for myself so I can treat my husband as well,lol. But seriously, I really want to wear a costume this year and maybe go to an adult costume party. If the weather was anything like last year on Halloween, I'd say I may consider getting a cute costume for myself. But knowing me being cold all the time, I probably would end up wearing a sweater to keep warm,lol. But its always good to have a back up plan and I already have a costume in mind.

UNDER THE SHADE

I attended my first ever softball game a couple of weeks ago. It was a game between two Platoons of the Wilmignton Police. Ralph was kind of worried since he has not played baseball let alone softball in 9 long years. When he was younger he and his older brother played baseball and he was the pitcher. From what I have heard he was also good at it. I was so excited and nervous at the same time. I didn't want Ralph to get injured or have his Platoon loose. We got to the baseball park about 30 minutes early, Kaitlyn and Joey the boy I baby sit got to play on the playground. Its so different when your going to a game where its mostly men, so many testosterone in the air and so much swearing and heckling going around. The kids and I took shade under a tree where the breeze was just perfect and we also were in a perfect spot, Ralph was first base catcher and we were right beside him. We get to talk to him and cheer his on and the best thing about it was he could hear us. I was so loud that my husband had to shush me when I started heckling on his team mates on having "twinkle toes". The out fielders were just so rediculous, it was as if they didn't want to be there. Anyway, my husband score a home run and hit that ball out of the field. I was so proud of him. You was cheering on so loudly, you would think it was coming from 10 people. In the end, Ralph Platoon won the game and they got all the bragging rights.. After the game it was a different story though. But according to Ralph it was all worth the body pain,lol

HANDY POUCH

Travel Neck Pouch that I ordered on Amazon.com. My first ever purchase on the popular site and I am very much satisfied. The order took about less than 5 days and before I knew it, it was in our mailbox. I was happy that it got delivered early since I bought that for our Philippine trip. All the important documents, I.D's, passports and money was in that little thing. It came in handy, I didn't have to reach inside my bag to search around for our passports and money. The best thing about the travel neck pouch is that I bought it very very cheap. This thing won't see daylight in the next 3 years until our next Vacation, or maybe not. If we do push with our plan to go to Disney next year I will be using it once again.

BY LAND OR SEA

The past weeks have been hectic for all of us. I have not been online to talk to my mom since I have been very busy. Ralph and I have not even had the chance to do our ritual of just watching a movie after the kids have fallen asleep. We usually do this on his days off when he doesn't have to wake up early to work. One of the movies that we both love to watch is comedy. We got such a kick watching RV starring Robin Williams and takes his family on a vacation on this big motor home or RV. It was so fun watching him trying to find ways to sneak away from his family to meet secretly with his boss. Due to the movie Ralph and I have talked about maybe buying an RV/ Motor Home in 4 years time.I would love to travel with the kids and visit different states. What worries him though is the motorhome repairs that would have to be done. According to our neighbor who has a Motorhome, its not as bad as long as you take good care of it and take it for the routine maintenance. It's going to be a toss up between a boat or an RV but who knows. One thing for sure I'd rather go for the RV than the boat.

IT HAS BEGUN

Fall is almost here, lurking its golden head around the corner. Our neighbor's tree has started to loose its leaves. Her tree is always the first one to go in the fall. I have also noticed birds starting to migrate. My neighbor loves the fall with the changing of the foliage from green to yellowish to golden red and then to brown. She also loves the breezed that comes with fall and loves to hear the crunching of the leaves under her feet. I know my kids will love to play in it and so would our dog. And speaking of our dog he has been going nuts barking every time our doorbell rings. Maybe its a good idea to change look into door chimes. It is just so annoying hearing him bark constantly every time he hears the doorbell..Maybe if its a different chime he will stop since he is not used to a new sound. That will be among the many projects Ralph and I will be tackling in the coming months. Hopefully we will have a mild winter like the Farmer's Almanac predicted.

ITS OUT OF HERE!!!!

I just cheered my husband on his first softball game. Ralph was a baseball pitcher when he was younger and I have heard that he was good to. All the people in there neighborhood knew the Schifano boys. Today's game was between Platoon A and C. Whoever wins gets the bragging rights so to speak. Ralph hasn't played baseball, let along softball in 9 long years. He was so excited to find out that his Platoon was taking on the challenge. We got to the park early and we were the first to arrive. I was worried about my husband getting injured in the game but I didn't let my fear get the better of me. I was the only female present with two kids at that. We sat on the grass under the shade of a tree where the breeze was just a blessing. Ralph was first base man in his team and I get to see and talk to him from the sideline we were sitting. I cheered on my husbands team like crazy, and I was so proud when he scored a home run!. I could tell my husband was also pleased with his performance and he was into the game. To bad the out fielders had twinkle toes, lol... Ralph had to signal me to shush when I shouted " come on guys we don't need no twinkle toes, we need a Diego out there to run and catch those balls". He was not upset with me but he was laughing but he didn't want the guys to hear what I was saying. To make the story short my husband's team won the game and they went out the field with their head high.

I was so happy that my hubby wanted me and Kaitlyn to be there, Kayla was at school. He may be very sore now but I know he had so much fun out in the field today and we are so proud of him..

ITS A CINCH

Every time I come across movies or books about Victorian Era I always think elegance at its finest. The big ball gowns, the beautiful coifs of the women and of course the small waist courtesy of the corsets that most women had to wear. I remember reading an article about Nicole Kidman broke a rib wearing a corset for her movie Moulin Rouge. I would love to get my hands on a genuine corset that could cut inches off my waist line. I thought Corsets were long gone with the new girdles and spanx out in the market but the demand for it is still strong. A lot of dresses, blouses, shirts and costumes have taken its inspiration from the corset. Personally I don't think I would last wearing one but I would love to try it. Maybe I will try to find a dress that has a corset design around the waist for an upcoming wedding I am attending. Maybe this time I will look like I have an hour glass figure with a small waist, lol.

COSTUMES, WHAT WILL IT BE

Can you believe it, its September already. Summer is going to be over in a few days and the temperature will start to drop. I just hope this coming winter won't be as bad as the last time. But anyway in less than 2 months another great celebration is coming up fast. Its time to think about what costumes to get for the kids. Honestly I have been thinking about what the kids will be wearing this Halloween, and I want to wear one as well. I want Kaitlyn to go as Jessie in Toy Story and Kayla wants to be Bulls Eye but who knows. Maybe will look into vampire costumes since they usually come with a cape and I could use it if its going to be cold,lol. But seriously, I hope Ralph and I could also dress up with the kids or maybe attend an Adult Halloween costume party. All I know is that we will be going out trick or treating as a family this year. How about you? Have you thought about what your kids will be wearing?