Pure Labor of Love for my 31st Birthday

For those of you who don't know it yet, I turned 31 today. Gosh, I feel so old, hehehe! I used to feel sentimental whenever I celebrate my birthday. Well, that was before I've met my wonderful partner in life, Jeff. For some reason, it used to make me feel depressed when I turn a year older and there's no one special to spend it with. But it's no longer true right now and I feel so happy and blessed that God gave me Jeff. It's like my best birthday gift ever from HIM.

Even if I still have to go to work today, it still felt really special and different. My mom and my sister called me first thing in the morning to greet me a Happy Birthday. They may be million miles away but it warms my heart to know that they remember this day. My friends back in the Philippines didn't fail to greet me as well. I got a couple of cards from my best Multiply buddies namely Eden, Wena and Jowen too. There might be more but I just probably haven't received them yet. I am really so thankful for all the greetings, guys!

My babe staged little surprises for me when I got home. He actually took a leave from work to prepare all these for me. I'm so overwhelmed by his love and effort to show that I am special. He's got some small gifts for me but what really surprised me is the strawberry-chocolate home-made cake that he baked today. Hahaha! I didn't expect it. I mean hubby doesn't bake that much. I know he loves to bake and all that but he told me himself that he's not very good at it. But the effort alone melts my heart. The cake doesn't really look fancy unlike the ones that you see from the stores but as I've said the time, effort and love that he'd put into it are priceless. I love how it tasted. It's chocolatey with a little hint of strawberry flavored covering. It's yummy. Once again, he showed me in a lot of ways that I'm very important in his life. I so love that about him.

Some gifts from hubby

A pink alarm clock. We already had one but I need another one for me 'coz after he leaves for work, I would go back to sleep and change the alarm settings and we would change it back again in the evenings, hehe

Bowls that I can bring to work if I choose to bring soups or sandwiches. I'd make sure these will be hidden in my drawers 'coz until now my olive green bowl is nowhere to be found. Huhuhu!

Birthday Card with a very loving message

The Cake

The last but not the least, A Bulova Watch

It matches perfectly with my rings

This is definitely one of my best birthday ever. Thanks again to all my friends, my family and my Jeff. I have to end this 'coz we're still going out for dinner. I thought the celebration ends here but apparently, it doesn't. Hehehe!

A Home Away from Home

Some jobs require people to leave their homes on a certain period of time. Of course they would rather bring their families with them and have them live temporarily on a certain place than just leave them for a course of a few months or so. But there’s nothing simple with moving out and finding a nice place to live even if it’s not going to be a permanent set-up. National Corporate Housing can help you. They provide temporary, furnished executive corporate apartments for everyone. Relocating to a new place can still be a fun and an enjoyable experience if you have the right team to help you with the move. They take care of all the headache-inducing, minute details of finding a place to settle. They also provide short term furnished rentals to business travelers, relocated employees, government workers, and more. Just tell them what you need and they’ll definitely accommodate all your requests.

Ready for a new look!

One of the things that I love about the weekends is that hubby makes nice breakfast for us. As of this writing, he's making a runny egg sandwich with cheese and bacon for brekkie. Yum! Yum! The smell of it makes me more hungry. Today is going to be busy for us. We're going to Fort Smith, a 45-min drive from our town, to buy something for me and to get a new haircut. I've always loved the hair with bangs look but was just too afraid to try it myself because it might not be the hairstyle that'll suit my face shape. But I'm gonna take some risk so I can have a different look for my birthday. Well, you might say why must I do that for my birthday? Nope, there isn't any party or a big celebration on that day but I just wanted to feel and look different on my 31st birthday. Gosh! I am that old, yikes! Hahaha! But anyway, I'll try to have fun today. I hope the people at JC Penney Salon won't mess up my hair. I've had experiences like that with hair salons back in the Philippines, that's why I hardly get a haircut 'coz it greatly frustrates me when I don't get the results that I'd expected. Goodluck to me...

Groovy Glasses for the Masses

The other day I was just noticing how patched and old my glasses were. You know what I mean. The earpieces had been custom bent to fit my head. One of the screws had been replaced with a longer, and different screw. And one of the nosepieces had fallen completely off! Thankfully nobody else saw it before I did, but it was a wake up call for me. I needed new glasses. Eyeglasses are an expensive and necessary evil when your eyes are like mine. The Clark Howard radio show had some interesting and timely news on the topic though: http://clarkhoward.com/liveweb/shownotes/2007/06/27/12362/. The reviews on their website are either outstanding, or terrible. There doesn’t seem to be any middle ground. But at a mere $8.00 for a basic pair of glasses, this is one risk I can take. And who knows, if I like what I get, I may just stuff a pair in a few family stockings when the holidays roll around. They don’t have to know I didn’t pay designer prices, hehehe. Have a look at their eyeglasses, and decide for yourself. ZenniOptical looks like one place where you can customize, mix and match, and still be able to afford your ultimate creation when you’re done drooling and ready to check out.

Melamine Scare

The melamine milk scare has been all over the news for weeks now. Both TV Patrol and 24 Oras have been giving updates everyday as to which products positively contained the dangerous melamine substance. As I've read more about it over the internet, I learned that Melamine is a highly toxic chemical used in plastics. It is used to make dairy products look more attractive, and the tainted products have killed at least four children and sickened more than 62,000 others in China.

That's pretty damn scary. The people in the Philippines right now are extra careful with their grocery purchases and they try to do away from China food products. I've talked to my family back home and they too stopped buying food, milk, dairy, chocolates and other confectionary products that are made in China. Some of these products might be cheap but if it does contain something poisonous, no price is worth the danger. I don't know if this is something that we have to worry about here in the U.S. But I am pretty cautious about it too 'coz most most dry goods in the department stores here are made in China but Jeff assured me that our milk and other dairy products are not imported from China. How about you? Are you starting to get conscious of the brands and manufacturer of the foods you eat?

BFF Lost and Found Service

Want to be reunited with an old friend? Let LookupWho.com help you with that. It is a free people finder web site that will actually let you search someone whose address and phone number are no longer known to you. There are people that we’ve met in the past that we’re curious as to how they are doing right now but we don’t actually have the means to contact them. I’ve tried that in Friendster but they don’t actually give you a phone number to call. So I think LookupWho is much better. The best part is that they are not charging any fees for their service. It’s absolutely free. I encourage you to check this out.

Juday as Rated A Queen

I've always loved to watch movies. I don't necessarily watch all of them on the big screen but I at least rent it at Video City every chance I got. I thought that I would no longer be able to watch Tagalog films now that I am here in the U.S., but I am thankful for those kind Filipinos here who would take the precious time to upload DVDs of Tagalog movies so that somebody like me can watch it for free over the internet.

I am specifically excited to watch Judy Ann Santos' latest film Mag-ingat Ka sa Kulam. Cinema Evaluation Board gave it an A-rating, an addition to Juday's line up of A-rated films like Ouija, Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo, Sakal, Sakali, Saklolo, and her self-produced movie Ploning. "Kulam" is Regal Films 48th anniversary offering and is set to hit the theaters on October 1, 2008. It is written and directed by Jun Lana.

Get your BOO on!

I’ve actually never worn any costume at all for whatever occasion even back in the Philippines. I guess you could say I’m no fun person. I’ve heard about dressing up for the Halloween as part of the U.S. tradition but I thought it’s more like for kids than for adults. When I first got here last year, we were travelling home from a visit to my dad-in-law when I caught a glimpse of a bunch of people on the road in their cute and strange looking costumes. Most of them are kids and in their early teens though and I really think they look cute. I used to get pictures of my nephew, Bren dressed up in fancy Halloween costumes each year emailed to me by my sister while I was still in Pinas. As a matter of fact, this photo of him was taken last year while he was dressed up in a buccaneer outfit. I really think he looks adorable.

Halloween is almost here. When we went to Walmart last weekend, the store was filled with Halloween paraphernalia. For moms out there who would like to dress up their kids on that day, you might want to do your early shopping at Halloween Costume Stores online. You'll get better deals with your purchases like free shipping on orders over $60 which will last until October 10th only. I was surprised when I find out that they do not only sell kiddie costumes but also for adults and teens. I got a kick out of looking at the Adult Costume in their web site. It made me think what if Jeff and I would dress up this Halloween. It will surely be another fun first hand U.S. experience for the both of us.

What could be the best anniversary gift for hubby?

Our 1st wedding anniversary is gonna be next month already. Wow, time flies! I actually haven't decided yet what to give hubby on our anniversary. I'm excited because it's gonna be my first chance to buy him something fancy out of my own pocket, hehe. Last Christmas, we did exchange gifts but he gave me money to buy him gifts from his wishlist. So on our anniversary, I've been really wanting to give him something memorable and special suited for this wonderful event of our lives. I tried looking online for gift ideas but so far, nothing special jumps out of me yet. I was wondering if you guys know of any 1st wedding anniversary gift ideas. What did you give your hubbies on your anniversary? I welcome suggestions, please.

Online shopping for my Denim Apparel

I was so in the mood to go shopping last weekend. Unfortunately, the closest mall we’ve got is 45 minutes away and my Jeff wasn’t feeling well to drive me to Central Mall. Well, you might say how about driving myself there. I’ve driven there a couple of times before but it had always been with Jeff sitting in the passenger’s seat. Besides, I was not very enthusiastic to drive that far on that day. So we just went to Walmart instead and grab some groceries and I visited a couple of web sites to do a little bit of online shopping. Yes, I do like to shop online for some of our stuff. I find it easy and convenient. The other day, I came across with Heavenly Couture, a clothing online store that specializes in offering the highest quality in women’s fashion. I think it was perfect timing as I need to update my denim apparel lately. It’s frustrating to mention that my denims that I brought from the Philippines do not fit on me anymore. Thanks to always eating out. But anyway, the good news is that Heavenly Couture is currently having a denim clearance sale and everything is just only $13.80. This is our chance to buy Cheap Jeans of excellent quality. Every day at midnight, they even have ONE new item on sale for only $9.99. There’s no other better offer for Discount Clothes online than this. They have a wide selection of clothes so if you wish to surprise your little girls with new outfits, grab some Teen Clothes for only $17.95. Great deal, isn’t it?

Countdown to Christmas

I was blogging and EC dropping while watching tv when I heard Mel Tiangco ended her news program with a countdown to Christmas. I didn't realize until after I heard from her that it's actually only 85 days more to go before Christmas. Well, there's still a little over two months from now but part of our culture is to kinda feel the spirit of Christmas by playing Christmas songs in the shopping malls and doing countdowns in tv shows as early as the month of September. Oh boy, how I miss Pinas especially during this season!

Color Label Makers from DYMO

School is fun. At least, that was what I thought when I started to go to school. Like any other kids, the idea of mingling around with other kids seemed to be exciting and challenging. I’ve always looked forward to school time especially after a very long summer vacation. I can still remember how busy we can be before the start of the school year. It had always been mom who would organize our school stuff but she’s got only two hands so she would always ask for me and my sister’s help when we cover our books and notebooks. I didn’t think it was fun. It was much hard work. In addition to that, we didn’t use Label Maker back then. We had to do it from scratch by using a Pentel pen and cutting out that small piece of bond paper which bears the name of the subjects, teacher’s name and our name and taping it on the cover. Gosh, that was too much work to do. My back ached from doing all those stuff I can recall.

But now, everything is made easy by Dymo Label Maker. We actually have one in the office where I work. We use it to label our computers and office supplies. I did even get to install a Dymo label printer in an employee’s computer last week. It’s really so convenient to use in homes and offices and even in industrial settings. A lot of people love to use Color labels in their school and office stuff. Dymo Label Maker is the best one to use.

Foggy Morning

Our mornings here in Arkansas is starting to get chilly and foggy. I can already feel Autumn ready to visit the country once again. It still does get warm in the afternoon but it wasn't as bad as it was at the peak of the summer season. I must say I love Autumn because of the effect that it brings to the color of the trees around us. But of course when Autumn comes, Winter will follow next which is not really my favorite time of the year. I don't like really cold cold weather. Probably because I came from a tropical country, I welcome some level of cold but when it goes down as low as 60-65 degrees, brrrr, that ain't fun!

Car loans made simple

As much as possible, we want to do away with unnecessary loans. We tried to be extra careful with our finances especially now that the world is not in a very good economic state. Part of our immediate future plans though is to get a Car Loan for me. But we’re still weighing things and setting up our priorities. In a country like the United States, building good credit has actually become a necessity. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who had Bad Credit Loan which subsequently affects their chances of getting future loans. There is an online solution to this problem. You can still get Personal Loans quickly at Best Leading Lenders. It is recognized as one of the nation's leading online providers of loan services specializing in sub-prime financing also referred to as bad credit loans. You might want to check them out. They could be your one best solution!

Tired but I'm still blogging...

I'm actually now reaping the benefits of having a PR. Thirty minutes before I left from work, I checked PPP and saw 7 green and 2 white opportunities for me. I readily grabbed the $15.00 opps. As of this writing, 7 opps requiring a PR 1 are still available for me but I didn't find the interest to blog about them. I'm overwhelm with the blessings but I still choose which topics to blog about. Some topics are complicated, controversial and some are redundant, so I choose to stay away from those topics. But I am so grateful to Google once more for giving me a PR. I'm starting to feel tired now so I must get on with blogging and EC dropping. Ciao!

Dragon Naturally Speaking: Let your mouth do the typing

I first heard about Dragon Naturally Speaking from Dad Jim, my in-law. In one of our visits to him, he proudly demonstrated to us how this cool software works. It was indeed amazing how he just dictates to his computer on what to write and do. He probably noticed that I find it neat because he gave us Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 as a Christmas gift last year. I’ve used it a couple of times and I find it convenient and easy to use for my blogging and emailing needs. Recently, they come up with the newest version of this amazing speech recognition software.

It is the Dragon Naturally Speaking 10 Preferred. What is so cool about this software is that it will let you create documents and emails three times faster than typing and it’s guaranteed 99% accurate. It never makes a spelling mistake and the more you use it, the more that it gets smarter. It’s user friendly so even if you’re not really a techie, you will still be able to install it quickly into your computers. They even provide online help and tutorials which will make you a Dragon Speaking expert user in no time. To help you better understand about the benefits of Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 Standard, embedded below is a video. You can also check out NY Times Review of Dragon NaturallySpeaking.