CRACK

Oh snap it cracked! That is a picture of our kitchen counter. I don't know how it happened and when it happened but its not good. Our kitchen counter is still new. I only noticed the crack when I was using the crock pot. Maybe it cracked when the crock pot was placed not to gently on the counter? Nobody seems to know. It seems like I was the only one who noticed the crack. Of course as soon as I saw it I had to tell my husband so he could call the company we bought it from. First he has to find out the warranty of the kitchen counter. Hopefully something can be done. As for now you can't even tell where the crack is, but I know and it will bother me until it is fixed or replaced.

MY COUSIN AND I

Last May15, 2011 I got to see my cousin again. The last time we saw each other was 3 years ago on Thanksgiving day. I missed her so much and its a blessing that we keep in touch via phone. I was so thrilled when she told me she was going to be in Delaware to get her certification for Zumba. She wanted to see me even for a couple of hours. When I found out she was coming I made her Adobao and cooked her some dried fish (dangit). She was getting her certification at the Boys and Girls Club which was only 15 min away from the house. I was so excited to see her that I told her that we were picking her up. She didn't recognize me right away when she came out, lol. We talked non-stop when she in got in the car until we got home. She doesn't have a lot of filipino friends in NY so she doesn't get to enjoy Filipino food that much. We had a blast talking and eating at the same time. Even though she only got to stay for a couple of hours we had fun. Before she got picked up by her friends, I got a chance to give her the rest of the Filipino dish I made. I made her promise to come back in the summer for at least a couple of days so she can hang out with us and just relax. I'm glad I got to see and talk to her, I missed her.. Thanks again Manang Sigred for dropping by..

PROTECTED

Being a stay at home mom and earn online is a blessing. I thank the day that my friend encouraged me to join blogging. It wasn't as hard and difficult as I thought it was specially when you have friends who are willing to help you along the way. I have read a lot of interesting articles written by people from all over the world. Gave me the chance to get a glimpse of how they are living and coping with day to day activities. Made lots of new friends all over. One of the downside to blogging is when you get directed to sites that are malicious with spyware and malware programs and viruses that wreak havoc on my computer. It seemed like every year we were buying a new computer due to viruses infecting the hard drive. I didn't know then that something like PC Tools could help with what I was having trouble with. We just got a new touch smart computer and I will be damned first before I let any virus get into our system. We have anti-virus installed but I would rather look into more options to see a better way of protecting our new computer. I am keeping a close watch on our new computer and if I notice that our anti-virus is not working up to par I will not hesitate to get help and download any antivirus software on PC Tools.

COMPRESSION WITH FASHION

Summer is announcing its presence blazing hot! I have been waiting for many months for a very hot weather. Being born in a tropical country my body is used to the warm and I don't think I will ever get used to the winter months here. Still I don't want to waste any more time being cooped up in the house. With the warm weather I get to enjoy wearing sleeveless tops, shirts, summer dresses, skirts and short. I love wearing shorts but I have noticed that my varicose veins have gotten more visible and have more spider veins on my things and legs. Wearing compression hosiery is suppose to help minimize that. I have never worn one since I always thought they looked ugly and it made me feel old. Well, that was before. Today, compression hosiery can come in any color and design you want. I wouldn't mind buying one, hopefully wearing it will help with circulation on my thighs and legs.

READY TO FLY?

A follow up on the 3 little birdies we found in a bush in our backyard. Ever since we discovered the nest both Ralph and I have been keeping tabs on the nest and the little birdies in it. I could see the birds from the kitchen sink. When I am washing something I see either the mama bird or the daddy bird standing over the nest. I could see the baby birds mouth open wide to eat the worm that the papa/mama bird caught. In just a few days the 3 little hairless birds we saw are bigger and they have more feathers in them. When I took this picture I knew it wasn't going to be long before each birdie fly off the nest. And 2 days after I took this photo we saw the last of the 3 birdies fly off the nest. Its the way of life and what a wonderful way it is.

HAIR DRAMA

Yesterday MIL, Kaitlyn and I went to NJ. We were going to be sleeping overnight and I packed all the stuff that we needed like pillows, sheets and blankets just in case. The purpose of the overnight visit is to help Ralph's niece Kristen get ready for her Prom which is happening as I am writing this post. Before we left the house I made sure I packed all my make-up in case she wanted help with her make-up. She wanted us to come down so I could do her hair. It's such a big honor that she wanted me to do her hair for a big even such as her prom. A week before her prom I made sure to tell Kristen to take care of any breakouts she may have. I remembered telling about Accutane and accutane side effects to see if this was something she wanted to take. Like most young girls, she wants to look perfect on her big night. I don't know if she ever looked into it but I was relieved to see that she didn't have any breakouts when we saw her yesterday. We may have had a little trouble executing the hairstyle I wanted but we got it done,lol. I got to help her with make-up and she looked breathtaking when she had her dress on and ready to go. We took a lot of pictures. I was just proud and honored that she asked my help with her hair and I even got to do her makeup. It made it all worthwhile when she thanked me...

HEALTHY EATING, HEALTHY BODY

Eating healthy and exercising is not as easy as one may think. It takes dedication, motivation and complete desire for it to really work. I stare at amazement at those men/women who live a very healthy lifestyle. I know one person who is very fit and healthy for her age. I specially envy women who are mothers but look amazing, with toned and healthy bodies. My MIL and husband was in NJ a couple of weeks ago and was surprise to see how much Ralph's niece had lost weight. She had started eating healthy and exercising regularly. As her brother, he is like a health freak. He may only be 16 but he has the body of an 18 year old guy who works out regularly. Ralph brother used to be a health freak and took the best creatine supplements out in the market. But due to stress and personal problems he has kind of fell of the wagon and gain a little bit of weight. As for me, I think that the only problem my husband really needs to work on is his stomach or gut. I don't know why he has such a big gut when he doesn't drink. I guess its all the soda he drinks, hheheheheh.. Will he loose weight if he stops drinking soda for at least a month? Now that is something worth trying out.

LIL BABIES

Ralph found something in one of the bushes outside in our backyard. He was doing some yard work when he noticed out dog Sunny getting excited and going into the bush just outside our kitchen window. He was trimming the bush on the other side of the house and didn't think much about it. It wasn't until he to inspect the shrub that is just outside our kitchen that he saw it. A perfectly made nest with 3 little baby birds in it. Ralph got excited and called to me right away. I could not believe how perfectly shaped and strong the nest was. How can something so small without any hands or fingers do something so intricate and sturdy at the same time. Sunny must have seen the mama bird going in and out of the bushes and tried to catch it. We fell in-love with the baby birds and we have kept tabs on them. Making sure that Sunny doesn't keep going near the bush and to see if the mama bird does come back. Of course when the mama bird was not in the next with her babies, we saw her perching on the tree branch near the house keeping watch on her babies. It made me realize that even a bird with no hands or fingers can do something like this how much more with us humans. With 10 fingers and two hands. It just shows that nothing is impossible and it can be done. I have updates on the baby chick and ill tell you more about it on my next time...

BACK TO WORK

In less than 2 weeks my husband will be going back to work. He has been out from work since April. My husband has surgery done to his neck, he had to fully recover first before going back to work. When he does go back to work, he will be doing light duty.

Ralph had been very worried about getting surgery. He didn't want any surgery if the doctor was going to retire him. When he got assurance that he can go back to work full time after he is fully recovered he breathed a big sigh of relief. In the weeks that he was off work I asked him if he has SSDI ( Social Security Disability Insurance ). He assured me that he has everything taken cared of. As far as his concerned he won't be needing any disability insurance as of yet. With his time off from work he has been spending a lot of time with the kids and of course me. He wants to spend more time with us but he is also looking forward to going back to work. Maybe I smothered him to much, lol

AFFAIR WITH AN ANGEL

A couple of months ago I went gaga over a certain cake. We were at my BIL's house in Bear for my Biometrics for the USCIS. I got hungry and raided their kitchen for something to eat. My eyes feel on a rectangular piece of container with a few slices of what appears to be cake. I asked if I could have a piece. As soon as that piece of cake hit my tongue I was in food heaven. I found out that day that my favorite cake is Angel Food Cake. I cannot get over how fluffy, sweet and soft it comes. Before we left I begged my MIL to take me to Walmart so I could get the cake. One thing about me is when I want something specially food, I got and get it. I will keep eating the same food until desire for the taste is quenched. I bought two round cakes and I finished the whole round one in a day. My husband knows about my love affair with food and he knows that I am currently hooked on Angel, sweet, light, fluffy and delicious.

GETTING OFF THE GROUND

Guest written by our friend Gladys Fuentes


One of the things that took us so long to settle when we were getting ready to open our kitchen supply store was the aspect of credit card processing. Deciding on a processor was actually a really big decision since it's a service that costs money, and we didn't want to choose incorrectly and end up losing out. Thankfully, my brother is a business consultant and helped us look over all the options in our area and decide on the best plan. Another factor that kept us from opening on time was the growing list of construction issues in our old warehouse where we were to open the store. I don't know what we would have done without our contractor, Ryan, but he certainly saved our life on more than one occasion. Now that were open, all the hassles seem like so long ago, but I can't forget how much work went into getting this place off the ground. It sure makes me appreciate each day that runs smoothly in this store of ours!

UP DOWN

The weather has just been awful. A couple of weeks ago the weather was just perfect to be out and about, driving and even taking Ralph's mustang convertible with the top down. Kaitlyn calls it the "up down". I am not a big fan of convertible but my husband has a love affair with his mustang that I call " missy the hussy". I prefer to be closed in inside a car where I don't hear how fast were going, no wind to mess up my straggly hair. My husband has always been game to almost everything I request so I also have to compromise. He loves his car but he loves to drive it more with me by his side. I am really out numbered when its warm and we have the kids, they will readily ask daddy to use the convertible instead of the van or our second go to car. Looks like I will be needing a few bandanas and a baseball cap in the summer when we take the mustang out for a ride.

BIG FAMILY

Growing up I always dreamed about having my own family but never thought it would become a reality. Good things happen for those who wait. In a span of 4 years, I found my mate, got married, and gotten pregnant. I grew up with a lot of family but I only had 1 sister. My mom always told us that if she would have liked more than 2 children. If my mom had not had hysterectomy and had no complications with her reproductive organs, I'm sure I would have had brothers or sisters. My mom has not been physically the same since she had hysterectomy. Makes me wonder if she should take some progesterone supplement. But with that it makes me question the progesterone side effect. I have read that taking progesterone can help with anxiety, ones mood and memory. I want to find out more and see if I can also benefit from taking progesterone and the only way I can do that is to ask either my OB or our family physician. Ralph and I are currently on a mission but I will not talk or say anything about it as of now.

BASKET GOODIES

Kaitlyn posing in front of her Easter Basket.. Some of you may be wondering why its just Kaitlyn. Our oldest Kayla spent Easter with her mom as it was her turn to have her for the holiday. Kaitlyn kept asking for her sister to come home. It's difficult to explain to a child sometimes why her sister is not with her, usually Kaitlyn understand but there are times that she will just keep questioning not understanding the answer. Even though we didn't have Kayla we still did out Easter thing, for Kaitlyn. It would not be right if we didn't celebrate just because Kayla is not with us, it would be unfair for Kaitlyn. So we did the Easter Egg hunt for her and a few of our close friends , colored eggs and of course got her Easter Basket full of goodies. We also bought one for Kayla and gave it to her when she got back. In a few years I don't know if the separation of the two girls will get more difficult or easier it all depends. I just hope that my girls continue to love each other no matter what.

P.S.

The chocolates in this pictures are all recycled ones. I have had those choco bunnies for 3 years now and I intend to keep them as long as I can. My kids know that its only for decoration and not for eating, lol...

CHILDHOOD FUN

When I was still a little kid most of the games we used to play was made from scratch. Sure, we had toys but making something out of natures bounty made it more fun and fulfilling. Playing with cans, old tires, flip-flops, plants, coconut leaves and many more. Game before were more about physically playing with kids our own age, interacting with them. With today's generation its all high-tech. A whole bunch of games with different kit and kaboodle are sprouting up like mushrooms. There is the Nintendo game system, Wii still from nintendo, Xbox, PSP, different video and computer games. I have noticed though, male teenagers and adult males lean more into playing Xbox and the PSP or PS3. I have not tried playing any of those games but I have been told by my nephew that it is awesome with a capital A. He even explained to me the accessories of PS3 that are coming that improves gaming quality like the bluetooth, ps3 keyboard, dual docking station and many more. I can't say I understand one bit but at least he tried, lol. How things have changed over the years. Sometimes I wish that time would stop, and turn back time so my kids could experience the fun we had with very simple things.