Sister Act

My preggy sister and her husband visited us this afternoon. I gladly took a break from researching and writing about Mesothelioma treatments and cooked carbonara and baked brownies for her. I had to let her see that I know how to bake now. Nope, it's not because I had to brag about it. I just felt good catching up with her after more than a month of not seeing each other.

We're just two girls in a brood of five and I believe that this made us have a special bond. Our brothers even call us Evow Sisters because they know the mischiefs we can come up with when we're together. Well, that was when we were younger. Nowadays, we just have a grand time making chika about anything under the sun. This afternoon, she just sat by the bar counter while I baked and cooked.

It does feel good to have a sister. That's why I feel more pressured to have another child. I hate it when I imagine my son growing up alone without a sibling to share his childhood experiences with. Isn't this a sad thought?

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Here's hoping for a better Philippines

As the whole country welcomes in the 15th president of the Republic of the Philippines, I will be with my family at home hoping for a better Philippines. I did not vote for President Noynoy because of so many reasons. Then again, I believe that, whatever our differences may be, each of us should help his government in uplifting the lives of our countrymen. I will never say "I told you so" to those who voted for him because I believe that we are all part of this new administration.

President Noy, I hope that you live up to your promise of zero corruption in the government. I hope that you can usher in a better Philippines by placing the most people in your cabinet not because you owe them your victory but because of their obvious competence. Lastly, please take care of your health by quitting smoking. Or at least try puffing an electronic cigarette instead.

I'm anxious and excited at the same time. Isn't it obvious as I am writing this at midnight? I believe that, with the new President, a change for the better will come. But this will only be possible if we all unite and stop pulling each other down. I hope that we can at least do it for the sake of our children.

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Invitation Etiquette

A few days ago, my mom called me up to inform me that we've been invited to attend a relative's birthday party. I had to politely decline even when I know that the location is just nearby. We were invited the day before the party so I made up excuses that we had to be someplace else. The truth is, I hate impromptu invites.

Traditionally, invitations should be sent out eight weeks before the event. I think that this is especially applicable to wedding invitations. When we got married, our printer had a problem and was not able to deliver our invitation cards on time. To make up for their shortcoming, they gave us Save The Date cards to distribute to guests while we were waiting for all of our invitations to be printed out. That way, our guests were able to fix their schedules and reserve the date to attend our event. By the way, the formal invitation cards were distributed two weeks after the Save The Date cards were given out.

For birthdays and other more simpler events, however, I prefer that I'll be informed at least two weeks in advance. Of course, I need to adjust my schedule and prepare a gift for the celebrator. Two weeks sounds fair, don't you think? By the way, how do you feel about electronic invites? When Rap celebrated his 10th Birthday last May, I was only given a month to prepare everything from scratch. The first thing I did, after we decided about the date, time, and location, is to create a Facebook event page for it. It gave me the chance to invite relatives and friends who had Facebook accounts. I followed up through emails and texts. Guess what? The party was a success! We had guests from as far as Laguna. I was also able to invite our former neighbors and Rap's former playmates. For me, sending and receiving electronic invites are ok as long as they still give the attendees two weeks to prepare for the event.

How about RSVP's? Do you religiously reply to an invitation with the RSVP tag? I do. Literally translated, RSVP or Respondez S'il Vous Plait means "Please reply." Whether you're attending or not, you owe it to the host/hostess to inform them. When I reply, I also tell them if I'll be bringing our son along because I can't leave him behind elsewhere. I know that replying to RSVP's is still not widely practiced here in the Philippines but I do hope that you can take time to reply especially if you're not coming so they can assign your seat to others.

Do you have more invitation etiquettes to share? I'm excited to read your thought about this!

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My boy loves wheatgrass juice!

I started growing my own wheatgrass weeks ago after drinking my first shot of its juice at Mondo Juice in Ali Mall, Cubao. It was my husband and mother-in-law who coaxed me into drinking one after they watched a show on television which featured the benefits of wheatgrass juice. I discovered a local supplier from whom I was able to order my wheatberries and after a few weeks, voila!

So this weekend, after 12 days since I first soaked my wheatberries in water, I finally got the chance to puree a bunch of blades and drank its extracted juice. As planned, I had Rap have his share. My son rarely eats vegetables and I found giving him an ounce of wheatgrass juice a perfect alternative.

By the way, an ounce of pure wheatgrass juice is equivalent to 1 kilo of vegetables. Here are other benefits that you can get from drinking wheatgrass juice:

• maintain's the blood's alkalinity
• prevents Alzheimer's Disease
• increases red blood cells and prevents anemia
• anti-inflammatory
• anti-oxidant
• eliminates bad breath and body odor
• fights cancer
• prevents candidiasis
• regulates blood sugar levels
• builds the immune system
• aids in weight loss (a more natural choice over the best fat burners in the market!)

If you are interested in knowing more about wheatgrass, you can contact Arvin Gray at the details shown in the photo below.

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Keeping a First Aid Kit at home

Year ago, when we were still living in Laguna, my husband and his officemates organized a carpool so that each one of them can save gas and money going to work in Cavite. My husband's former company was always concerned with its employees' safety that each seat in the shuttle bus service has a seat belt. The company probably felt the need to keep the employees driving their own cars to work safe that they implemented a policy wherein each car should have a first aid kit. That's how I got the habit of keeping our own first aid kit at home.

Image source: Freedigitalphotos.net
Here are some things I keep inside our First Aid Kit:

• sterile gauze
• elastic bandage
• surgical gloves
• adhesive tape
• a box of gauze strips in various sizes (Band Aid or Mediplast)
• cotton balls and cotton pads
• ammonia
• cold/hot pack
• Isopropyl alcohol
• small bottle of Betadine
• antibacterial ointment
• anti-itch lotion
• thermometer
• a few pieces each of ipuprofen, nasal decongestant tablets, paracetamol, cough medication
• our medical insurance booklet
• list of emergency medical assistance numbers

We have a small plastic toolbox that we converted into a First Aid Kit. It pays to be always ready for any medical emergencies. We'll never know when accidents will happen, right? How about you? Do you keep a First Aid kit at home?

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Why choose a pedia dentist?

I often pass by a pediatric dentist's clinic every time I wait for my son to finish his voice lessons in SM Megamall. Since the clinic is intended for kids, the place is designed to be kid-friendly with toys, books,and vibrant colors. Parents nowadays prefer to bring their children to pedia dental clinics like these. A reason for this may be because of the kiddie ambiance which helps kid to be at ease with their dentist. However, we should give these parents a pat on the shoulder for doing the right choice which is bringing their kids to a pediatric dentist.

Image source: "At the Dentist" by Seth Werkheiser, c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved.
Think of pediatric dentists as your kid's tooth doctor just like how your friendly pediatrician takes care of your kiddo's over-all health. It's a specialization really. After completing regular dental school, these dentists go on for an additional two or three years of specialty training. From further studies they learn more about a child's physical, psychological, and emotional growth. As such, they develop ways on how to treat children teeth without the trauma or fear of pain.

Parents with young kids are actually luckier nowadays. My ten year old only got treated by a pedia dentist for the first time when he was already nine years old. You may need to pay more than what you give a general dental practitioner but it's all worth it. They have toys and what-have-yous that keep children distracted from the anxious feeling of seeing the dentist.

It's as simple as this.. Adults have general dentists. Adults who need to make their teeth look better need to see a cosmetic dentist. (If you are in Charlotte in the US, you can find easily find a charlotte cosmetic dentist for your needs.) But kids need a pedia dentist.

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Happy Birthday, Dadijun!

Allow me to write a short post for the love of my life who's celebrating his 3_th birthday today. Hahaha, I purposely left the 2nd digit blank. My husband deliberately tells me that he stopped ageing at 25 which was more than 10 years ago. Now, that's a give-away clue. He seldom reads my blogs anyway. ;-p

But seriously, I am very thankful of this day. I think I am even happier than the birthday boy himself. I am in a jolly mood today because I am glad that I was again given a year to enjoy his company. He is my best friend, really. And although we get into an arguing mode more often than before, we still get to talk about anything under the sun.

We love you, Daddyjun. And we will forever treasure everything that you're doing for our family. Don't you ever forget that. God bless you even more with all the blessings in the world because you are one smart, determined, and generous guy.

On a side note... I suddenly realized that June is finally coming to an end. Wow, time flies so fast when one's uber busy, yes? I bet I won't even see the days pass by until it's time to print holiday invitations for our Christmas reunions. Oh well...

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Olay Body Bars Are Here!

When I was a young girl, I would often watch my mom put on her make-up in the morning and remove it at night. Part of her beauty routine was putting on a pinkish lotion on her face and neck. The sweet smelling fluid was Olay and, in the 80s, she only gets to have them from a Balikbayan Box from relatives abroad.

So when I got older and I saw Olay Total Effects being sold in the market, I grabbed the chance to try it. Olay, has become a trusted brand for me. I was just slightly surprised that the Olay I knew from childhood has changed. The liquid came in a plastic bottle and the fluid was beige unlike the pinkish Olay fluid of long ago that came in glass bottles. Then again, I went on with my purchase even when it was a little bit pricey for my taste.

Yesterday, I receive this wonderful package from Olay Philippines. I got all the three variants: Age Defying, Fresh Reviving, and Ultra Moisture. The bars did not only smell good but my skin also felt good after using one of them. I started using the Ultra Moisture bar which is the one with Shea Butter. What's best about these new Olay Body Bars is that they only cost Php 45 a piece. So head for your favorite supermarket, beauty shops, and drug stores, try these affordable yet moisture-loaded Olay Body Bars, and defy ageing in 7 days.


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Back to "kikayness"

Rap's recent singing activities compelled me to replenish my make-up kit. Much to my dismay, most of the make-up in my kit needed replacing. They all expired without even being used up. When I bought new pots of foundation creams, loose powder, and blush for Rap's performance, I also bought a new set of eyeshadow for myself. This time, I promised myself that I won't waste money and let them expire again. I'm back to my ole kikay self! I now apply make-up just as I used to back when I was still working.

Methinks, I need eyelash extensions! Any recommendations?

It took a few trial days before I finally got my eyeshadow blending skills back. And I just discovered mineral make-up, hahaha! I found them more lasting and easier to apply. Plus, I read that it's healthier for the skin to use mineral make-up. I now find myself on the lookout for a mineral make-up sale! I also view make-up videos and read make-up blogs. I discovered that there's so much technique to learn and that I can really express our creative and artistic side through applying make-up. I'll be posting more of my experiments soon. Or probably, I'm gonna start another blog about that. Hmmm....

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Get A Great Lawn with Buffalo Grass

Buffalo grass gets its name from its history. It was one of the main, native turf grasses that helped to support the roaming and grazing herds of buffalo that used to be all over the land. The grass is relatively thin and sparse, with a blue-green coloring, and the blades can grow 10 to 12 inches tall. Because the grass is thin, though, the blades fall over and give the appearance of being much shorter. That gives the grassy area a unique look. If you decide to use this type of grass for your yard or another area that you want to plant, there are two ways to do it.

The grass can grow from runners, or you can use seeds. Whichever way you choose to get your grass to grow, though, remember that the area it's being placed on has to be acceptable to it. This kind of grass only grows in certain conditions, and is very tolerant to drought and heat. It won't work well in an area of the country that's very humid, or a place where there is a large amount of rainfall. It's better in more desert-like conditions and in the plains states.

Knowing whether Buffalo is the right grass for your area is the first step. If it turns out that you can grow the grass in your location, make sure you do your research and prep your site carefully. The more care you take in getting the site ready the easier it will be to plant your grass and see it do well. Whether you're using it for a yard or for an open field, it can look beautiful and be relatively easy to maintain once you get it started. Just make sure you consult with a professional if you're unsure about something or if the grass starts to die or perform poorly.

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Baking 101 at Heny Sison's

I and 9 other newbie bakers conquered our "ovenphobia" last Saturday as we learned the basics of baking from Chef Patty Loanzon at Heny Sison Culinary School. I'm a baking noob no more! These are what I and my groupmates baked last Saturday:

(From L-R, top to bottom) Caramel Bars, Choco Banana Cake, Choco Mint Brownies, Lola's Butter Cake, Chocochip Cookies, and Snickerdoodles. The muffin was made out of excess butter cake batter.

I am so glad that I finally attended a baking class at Heny Sison's. The six-hour workshop cost me Php 2,500 but it's worth every penny. Chef Patty is a patient teacher and is very practical, too. She taught us handy tips that we can use in the kitchen. We also got a scoop of her recommended brands of ingredients. I never tried baking even when I have tons of recipe books here at home because I was scared of wasting time, money, and effort on an unsuccessful cake. But see, I baked 2 (yes, 2!) cakes last Saturday. I'm proud of myself already even when the two cakes are the most basic ones a baker can do, haha! By the way, you can watch Chef Patty opposite Sandy Daza every Saturday, 10:30 a.m. on Word of Mouth via QTV Channell 11.

I'm just waiting for payday so I can buy my mixer, pans, and cookie sheets. It's best to practice often according to Chef Patty. I'll probably be experimenting with new, yet easy, baking recipes in the following weeks. I'll by teaching my househelper, too. We're planning to give baked treats for Christmas to friends and relatives. I bet it will save me lots of bucks instead of buying anti-wrinkle creams for my mom and my old aunts and female cousins. Oh yeah, that proves what a cheapskate I am!

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