Shadow Awaken Me

I was in a deep thought drinking my cup of coffee in the kitchen one day but somehow seeing this shadow awakens me.

“Fear has a large shadow, but he himself is small.” -   Ruth Gendler

Easter Candies from Sarris

To help the school with it's annual fund raising, we sold some candies to our kind neighbors.  We got them before the Easter break and delivered it to them.  A big thanks to the  Howells', Fancher's, and to my FIL for always  purchasing  candies for the school fund raising!

Psychic Prediction

Is there a way a psychic could predict a sickness?  Such a weird though I had when my  children and I were digging our garden this morning.  We  have a very good weather today so we took the opportunity to  clean the yard and prepped our vegetable garden.  We only went inside when my husband came home from work and we ate lunch together.  He only work 6 hours but he will get paid for 14 hours as it is a holiday and the company offered 1.5 rates for overtime.

Anyhow, back to to the  thought that was bugging my mind a while ago, the reason I asked that is because I don't want my kids to get sick again.  Now if a psychic can predict that, I would certainly give it a shot.  No mother would want to see their kids being sick.  I'd rather be the one that suffers than them.  

To answer my curiosity, I snooped around SpiritNow website but I did not find exactly what I was looking for.  I did  find out though that they offer five minutes free session for first time customers.  So if you have any  question about love or whatever you may want to know, try them out!

Kaleidoscope

 According to  Wikipedia :

A kaleidoscope is a cylinder with mirrors containing loose, colored objects such as beads or pebbles and bits of glass. As the viewer looks into one end, light entering the other creates a colorful pattern, due to the reflection off of the mirrors. Coined in 1817 by Scottish inventor Sir David Brewster,"kaleidoscope" is derived from the Ancient Greek καλός (kalos), "beautiful, beauty", (eidos), "that which is seen: form, shape" and  (skopeō), "to look to, to examine", hence "observer of beautiful forms

Kaleidoscope is one of Mr. Burrito's favorite toys.  Whenever he is looking at this one, there are different  stories that  he can tell us.  His imagination just  soar hehehe.

Moving is Exciting and Stressful at the Same Time

Do you see the  moving boxes  at this photo?  This photo was taken   more than four years ago when we are about to  move back here  in the mainland from South Korea.  Our neighbor  have relocated one week before us so the duplex house that we were both living  was vacant after we left.  

The military was the one who assigned the movers that would move all our  household stuff.  There's an advantage and disadvantage of being assigned a mover.  An advantage because you don't have to deal with it yourself but disadvantage because you can't really screen the movers.  A perfect example was when we were moving going to South Korea, we have stuff that got broken but  the company denied our claim when we filed it.  We can't do anything  but to accept  the fact that it got broken.

We got lucky  with the company that the military hired when we  were moving back here, the Koreans were pretty nice.  They even let  us  put some more stuff over our weight limit.  The great thing was nothing got broken with our stuff so we were very happy. 

Moving is such an exciting and at the same time stressful process for the family.   I am so glad that  we are done moving for now  especially  that our children are in school.  My husband's  retirement was a perfect timing for us to stay here but if circumstances will require us to move again, I wouldn't mind at all.  I love  exploring different places so  it's okay with me.  

Coal Candy

 My daughter had this  in her treat bag  a couple of months ago.  They never ate it as they think coal candy is gross lol.  She did not throw it but instead used it as an ingredient in "her kitchen".

This Lent season, Mr. Burrito gave up eating chocolates and candies while Ms. Burrito drinks water instead of juice.  I was going to give up blogging for a while but realized, it's the hardest thing to do wahhh.

Have you ever tried a coal candy?

Sell your Old Cellphone

I am planning to do my Spring  cleaning as soon as the weather  warms up.  Right now, we are still having  snow.   YES, snow in Spring, arrrghhh.  My daughter and I are segregating the   things that they don't really need anymore and would love to get rid of.  We are planning to have a garage sale this  Spring or in Summer because.    I have some  gadgets here that  I'd love to get rid of but don't know if it's safe so I did some digging online and found a great place  that teaches you how to sell cell phones and other  gadgets.    So you see, I am not that tech savvy  kind of gal so I have no idea of the proper ways to  dispose electronic gadgets.  

Did you know that you can get up to $500 worth for your old cellphone?  Of course, it all depends on  what kind o cellphone you have.  You can upgrade your gadget by selling your old one, how cool is that!  I was just thinking that last year, my husband got me a Samsung Galaxy phone and  in just a matter of months, there are upgrades  on that said phone already.  So mine is outdated now lol.  Oh well, it does not mater to me, what maters most is that I can use it for my basic needs.

Children's Medicine

I am so glad that both if my kids are now feeling better.  I still have to bring  my daughter ti
o the doctor this coming Monday for a follow  check up to make sure that she is free from the infection already.  After the follow up check up, the doctor  ordered us to have another blood test done for Ms. Burrito because her blood count is low.

Every Winter, we go through  boxes of these medicines for the kids.

Country Club Skilled Nursing

With the cost of healthcare rising, some business are starting to downsize their  employees and some are even thinking of closing.  Hubby and I attended a PTA meeting  last Tuesday and one  the father who also attended  sat by  us.  He said that his children used to go to  St. Joseph when they were in pre-school but he had to pull them out there because the tuition fee is high and  he can't afford it anymore.  He said that he works as a lab technician at one of the hospitals in the area but afraid that he is soon going to lose his job as the said job is now being  trained to do by the nurses.  That is so sad to know that  to cut the cost, some people  will be losing their job.

Anyhow, We were supposed to visit my father-in-law today but  there are some cars parked in front of his house to we decided to just  go home.  We will be visiting him again tomorrow after we  bring our daughter to the hospital for her  blood test.  I commend my father-in-law's strong will to live by himself.  For most seniors, living alone is quite hard to do but for Dad is the  best  option for him.  He is almost 91 years  old but he can  still function very well in doing his household chores like cooking and cleaning.  He does not want other people to do it for him.  He no longer drives  so we take turns in taking him to the store when he needs to buy something.  

Skilled Nursing, assisted living apartments, home health care services, and rehabilitation  are among the services that Country Club Retirement Campus  provides to seniors.  These type of services  would be enjoyed  by my FIL if he decided to just live in an assisted living apartments.    The advantage of this is that, you can enjoy your life without worrying too much of  home maintenance  and other obligations  when you are a home owner.

H&R Block

These were taken at H&R Block when we did our taxes. We tried using their online tax system but it's too complicated. My husband got frustrated so we just went to their office and let them do it.

How about you, where did you do your taxes?

Spring Maternity Dress

Spring is just around the corner but still so cold around here at my side of the world.  My children's school, had a two hour delay this morning because of the freezing rain that we  had.  I hope that  warm weather will roll out here soon, I am so tired of being stuck inside the house.  Now that my treadmill is broke, I can't do my workout anymore.  I can't wait for Spring to come so I could see the beautiful Spring blooms in the garden and also do my work out outside.  

I am sure that  pregnant women can't wait to  wear their spring maternity dresses too.  Speaking of which, I saw so many stylish maternity dresses over at Momo Baby website.  Looking at the  maternity dresses reminds me of  the two wonderful pregnancies I had.  It was fun and definitely one of  the most precious part  of motherhood.  

Gone are the days when  maternity dresses are  boxy, now you can actually dress yourself up in style  even when you are pregnant.  With so many styles to  choose from, you will never run out  outfit to  wear.  If you are in need of maternity dress to wear this spring time, check out the website I have mentioned by visiting the link I have provided above.

Sleeping Like a Log

Our dog Champ  can sleep like a log.  His favorite spot to take snooze is in our kitchen floor and in our bedroom.  I feel bad for this guy because he love  playing ball but since it is  very cold outside,  all he can do is chew on the balls when he want to have  some fun.  Oh, he love chasing my husband inside the house as well lol.

Certified Green Cleaner

My daughter has an "Experience Day" tomorrow at school.  They will be doing something that is related to their upcoming  First Communion.  As usual, my weekend will be busy again.  I would probably do  the laundry while she is in school and would see if I can also do carpet cleaning tomorrow.  If not, I will just do it  next week.  Household chores for oms never ends.  If only I could hire a professional  carpet cleaners to do it for me, that would nice  (lol).  If you guys are looking for a professional to clean your carpet, you might want to check out Green Choice.  

Green Choice is a certified green cleaner because they use natural and organic products when they do their  cleaning services to your home.  When you have kids and pets like me, choosing the product that you have to use in cleaning your home is crucial.  You have to make sure that it is safe  and won't harm the anyone's health.  Green Choice have those in mind  that's why they choose to use  organic products.  They understand  how important it is  to  have a clean and healthy home  for the family to  enjoy.  To find out  the full details about their  services,  just visit the  link I have provided above.

Fitness Facility

Yesterday, while we were waiting for the kids to get off from school, I accompanied my  husband to check out the new  fitness facility in the area.  Our treadmill broke down a couple of weeks ago and we can't buy a new  one just yet so my husband is looking for some alternatives   We received a promo ads  that would let us  try their facility  for only a buck for three weeks so we are looking into that.  My husband actually signed  up  a contract already so he is locked in for 1 and one half years.  There are fitness products for sale  at the said establishment as well such as Heart Rate Monitor Watches, energy drinks,  GYM clothes, and more.  My husband will be starting his work out  there  this coming Tuesday.  

I saw how much it will cost for me to sign up the same amount as he is and I thought of just spending  that money to buy me a new  treadmill.  I am not comfortable in working  out with  may people around anyway.   I am contented with the exercise machine that we have  left at our mini gym at home so I am set here.  In few more months, I would be able to  do my runs outside  around our neighborhood.   Keeping fit is  a challenge, it  requires motivation and  determination.  Hubby and I are determined to  stay fit because we are not getting any younger.  How about you, do you  exercise  regularly?

Bamboo Organ Church

One of nicest bloggers I've met online sent me a postcard, thank you much sis Mai! She's one of the blogger friends I have who never get tired of visiting and commenting on my blogs. She has a couple of blogs and one of them is the MaiThankfulHeart.  You might want to get in touch with her if you want  a piece of this beautiful Bamboo Organ Church postcard.

Thanks again sis Mai, you truly are  a thoughtful friend!

Nirvana

When we were  going home from school today, we dropped by at our  neighbor whom  we are very close to.  My kids  called these  couple their grandma and grandpa.  They treat my kids like their own grandchildren.  They played with them for about an hour before we came home.  

Our neighbor mentioned in our conversation that his friend is  very sick.  The doctor advised his friend to  quit smoking before his operation but he couldn't quit now he is so sick.  I told our neighbor that maybe, his friend would consider E-Cigs .  There are many  kinds of e-Cigs available nowadays, Nirvana 420  is one of them.  Nirvana 420 sells  herbal products so if you are into that kind of stuff, you should check them out.

On the other note, we visited my father-in-law yesterday and we  all talked about my  late brother-in-law.  It was around this time when he had he cancer surgery  and six  months after that, he passed away.  Smoking can really take a toll on your health if you do it excessively.   I am not a smoker so I don't know how hard it is to quit.  I guess, just like any addiction, it would take  self discipline and  determination in order to succeed in  treating it.

Mountain Engineered Bamboo Flooring

My husband is still trying to convince me that we should find us a  new house.  He  has given me so many reasons to  move out.  I am just really comfortable in  our location because it is near everything.  We are near from  every business and other establishments such as bank, post office, church, stores, gas stations, thrift store, my children's  doctor is just around the corner, and most especially it is near the school.  I have loved living in this house   especially that we have a very nice neighbors.  That is not something that you can easily find when you move.  I feel like we will be abandoning the very first house that we worked on so much.  We did some upgrades already here and I feel  so attached in this one.  

I told him the reasons why I don't want to move so now he wants to upgrade our kitchen.  He wants to  removed the old style of tiles on the wall and replace it with glass tiles to make it look modern.  I found some really  gorgeous kinds of glass tiles at  SouthShoreFlooring.com.  I also like their mountain engineered  bamboo kind of flooring.  Right now, South Shore Flooring has  a sale on their  glass tiles  plus a free shipping offer.  It would be a  perfect time to  buy them but unfortunately, I don't have budget for the said upgrade yet so it has to wait.

Kleenex

Winter is flu season so we always have  stock of  tissue at home, in my bag, and  in the car.   I even buy those small packs  so that the kids can have some in their school bag. I bought this slim pack of Kleenex for Miss Burrito.  She like the style of the package, the photo looks like a pocket of JEANS which sends a clear message about the product, pocket tissue.

I am so  behind of visiting you folks but as soon as I have  free time, will surely  visit you back.  Just busy taking care of  sick kids at home.  Oh I hope that my daughter will feel better really soon.  It's hard for me to see her  suffer like this.  I think this is the  sickest I've seen her.  She  completely lost her appetite and she just want to lay in bed and sleep.  Oh boy!  Glad that my daughter is  fully recuperating, one more blood test (she has a low blood count)  and she will be done dealing with this UTI, I hope.

Online Deals

With the  online opportunities getting  scarce  these days,  my goal is to find sale  for the things that we need at our household so that I could buy it without breaking our budget.  I was browsing the   Winter  sale at SaleCamel.com  to see if they have some children's coat on a reduced price.  My kids are growing up like weeds and  we need to buy them new  winter coats for next year.  This time of the year is the best time to buy them as most stores are   having a  end of the season sale.  The  website is comprised of different online stores that has  current deals.   Check them out.

Door to Door Services

Sending  a package to the Philippines through regular mail is very expensive, so what we Filipinos do is to send them through door to door  services company  like Sansu International.  It's a company that  accepts balikbayan boxes.  

The term balikbayan  is a combination of two Tagalog words  balik and bayan which means going back (balik) and country (bayan).  Balikbayan refers to a Filipino who is returning to  their country Philippines.  We use this term too when sending a package to our beloved back home through the Filipino companies here that provides that kind of services.

Anyhow, I have been meaning to send these boxes to my family  since last year but I never got to it until  this month.  There is one company that is competing with Sansu International, the Forex.  I have never used them before but  since they are offering lower fee ($85 per box) plus  free pick up of the box from your home, I thought of trying them.  With Sansu International, the fee is $90 per box and  you have to drop off the box in Pittsburgh.  I hope that this would work out fine and that my family will receive the boxes I sent.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

Professional Photos with Instagram

The use of Instagram has skyrocketed in the past few months that this application has become available for both Apple products and those products utilizing the Android software. Everyone who has a smartphone is able to get involved with this social media application and this has made for some great exposure for businesses, as well as allowing many budding photographers to get the word out about their abilities as a photographer. It brings to light several issues with paying a professional photographer versus utilizing this social media application for your picture needs.

Instagram and Professionals

Contrary to what most people believe, the use of Instagram is not frowned upon by many professional photographers in the field. They look at this as a valid way for a person to make a statement or for a business to round up consumers who are interested in what they have to offer. The big difference is that Instagram does not allow the person to take pictures that are considered on the professional level, as most photographers, or at least that is what most people think.

Developing Professional Photos with Instagram

There are several methods in which a person can utilize in order to get their photos to the same quality standards as the photos in which professionals can deliver. There are several things in which can contribute to their photo quality success. The first is the type of phone in which the person is utilizing in order to make these pictures happen. Several smartphones have cameras, which are just as good as some of the lower quality professional cameras on the market. For those who are using an outdated smartphone, their pictures could come across as being blurry and overall poor quality.

Another aspect in which helps a person to achieve professional quality is the number of applications they are using to make this photo special. Several people simply take the photo and post this onto Instagram. However, this is not going to provide the best possible picture. There are several applications which are meant to reduce blurry images, help make colors brighter and even help to give those photos taken a look such as sepia or black and white. These are all ways in which a person can make their photos stand out when compared to the other photos that are appearing on Instagram.

Businesses and Instagram

Those businesses who are using Instagram need not only worry about the quality of their picture, but they should always be worried about their following. For those Buy Instagram Likes, they are going to find they have a greater chance of getting the response they want. They can buy these likes through Buyinstagram.com in order to get the best price and the best period of delivery.

Overall, Instagram has changed the way in which a business or a person can get their message out to the world. Though it is an application, it should still be viewed as a professional means of communication and for that reason all the pictures should be of high quality that someone posts.

Stabilo Swan

Somebody gave Ms. Burrito this little Stabilo Swan  pencil sharpener.  She put it in my  screen monitor stand so Mr. Burrito had to contribute with his  "pets", the rubber duck and the  rubbery duck.  My station become their station lol.

Dental Appointments

My kids and I just had our oral prophylaxis last week. We need to go back next moth for Ms. Burrito's tooth extraction.  A permanent tooth already  emerged and the old one is still there so it was pushed aside which is causing discomfort.  The whole  family's next dental appoint will be in six months.  I am glad that my kids are not scared in going to the dentist.  It is very important that an early age, you  teach your kids about dental hygiene.

Jasmine Gardenia

Lately, I am getting hooked in buying candles rather than buying any other types of air fresher. I have been trying different scents but so far my favorite is lavender and recently this Jasmine Gardenia.  They are very soothing when lit.  

Most of the time, I light them when I have a migraine.  The smells calms me down and it somehow helps in getting rid of my migraine.

Regular, Big, and Tall

When my husband was retiring from the service, we bought some formal clothes in anticipation of a possible career hunting.  After we assessed the situation, we decided that he  will not go back to work right away.  We figured that we did not get  enough quality time as a family when he was still in the service  so what he did was to go back to school.  At least in school, it's not everyday that he   not with us.  There were just time that he has to go to school but even then, it wasn't whole day. 

When he graduated, he luckily found a job  right away and he likes it that  they only have a polo shirt as uniform in their  company.  He can wear  jeans with it.  He is never fond of wearing  formal clothes like suit and tie, that kind of stuff.  He did however  wore suit and tie during his interviews.   Dickies Clothing is the kind of  work wear that my husband  likes and comfortable  in wearing.  I was looking at the different kinds of  work wear clothing online and found a lot of regular, big, and tall sizes at GL Clothing.  

The company that my husband works for now gave him a dozen of uniform so he will never run out even if I don't wash  each of them in a week hehehe.  The company even  provide free laundry for their employ's if they don't want to bring their dirty uniform at home.  

Haghpat Monastery , Armenia

I want to thank a  very good friend of mine, EnAiRrAh, of Shopping Fashionista for sending me post cards from different countries that she visited recently.  The postcards includes  the Mandalay Plalace in Myanmar, Haghpat Monastery in Armenia, Taj Mahal in India, Suwon Banghwa-Suryujeong and Neolttwigi of South KOrea.

It's nice to be able to travel too through postcards.  Thanks a lot Rye for keeping me in your thoughts while you were traveling!

Ms. Burrito immediately asked if she could have the book mark so I gave it to her.

Footed PJs

We went to the nearby city  to buy us some Asian goodies.  When we got done with our shopping from  the Asian stores, we walked around the Strip district and saw some St. Patrick's  outfit.  My husband said that if the kids need some costume that we should buy it there.  I am not an impulse buyer so I told her that I might find some good deals online.  He did not disagree as I always does find deals  by browsing online.   

While I was waiting for my kids to come out from school, I browsed some  women's footed pjs at                     http://spencersonline.com/.  Unfortunately they did not have  as much selection and  I could not find my size.  I am a cold natured kind of gal so during night time, I always put my  sleeping pants, my feet are covered with socks, and I have sweater especially during the Winter.  I sometimes wake  my husband up when I  want to warm up my cold hands under his armpits lol.  So to avoid that from happening, I thought that I might find a  pair of footed PJs for me to wear.

Even though I did not find what I was looking for, I had fun browsing the different  kinds of  products at Spencer's Online.  They are the perfect place to browse when you want to find a unique gift for someone.  They have   a lot of gift ideas for different ages, man and women, boys and girls.   

Energy Star

Photo isn't mIne

I like brick walls in houses  but I think that vinyl siding  is easier and cheaper to replace when it gets old.  Although you can  also use vinyl siding when you get tired  of  the brick but it would be a lot harder.   Hubby always checks the  properties   for sale listed in the area and  whenever he found a beautiful house with an exterior vinyl siding, he would say "This changes my  perception about houses with vinyl siding."  He always thought that brick houses  are better than the others but I always disagree.  

Just take a look at the photo above.  I found it at Champion website, a company that provides services for roofs, windows, sun rooms, doors, home exteriors and more.  They offer free consultation with no  obligation, and you would also able to see their showroom so you can touch and test the quality of the products they use for the  job.   

Champion uses Energy Star rated underlayment  and also uses corner wrap to protect your home from insects, moisture and mold.  The fact that they  are using the products that would avoid  problems inside the house, that goes to show how they care for their  customer.  That is something that  some companies are lacking, the CARE for customers.  As a customer, I am sure that you would agree with me about customer service.  

Anyhow, if tyou are  looking for a company  for your vinyl siding  needs, check out the one I have mentioned above.  You can visit their website thought the link I have provided for more details.