OOSOUJI: Japanese New Year Clean-Up

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Welcome the new year like the Japanese.

OOSOUJI -- THE BIG CLEAN

The Japanese prepare for the coming year by cleaning their houses and offices from top to bottom. This is a way for them to inform Toshigami (the new year god) that their place have been purified and is ready to receive his blessings.

I am cleaning our house now. "Toshigami, I am ready for your blessings."


Sources: Wikipedia and Blue Lotus

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Go Organic This Christmas

Friday, December 19, 2008

This is my favorite gift box so far. All that yummy goodness without the guilt.
















Second place goes to the basket containing SPAM that will last us a year.

Oooooh...Temptation!

What's was in your favorite gift basket this year?

(C, I know it's a horrible picture. I'll change it later.)

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Baby - Made in Taiwan

Monday, December 15, 2008

"Mr. G, bring me to the hospital! It's time!"



They just opened a Hello Kitty-themed maternity hospital in Taiwan. (See more pictures here.)

How cool is that?!


Note to Mr. G: The baby need not be made in Taiwan. I just want him to be delivered there.

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GoodHousekeeping's The Maid Manual

Thursday, December 11, 2008

I got a copy of GoodHousekeeping's "The Maid Manual" by Tisha C. Bautista last week.

As advertised, it's truly "your ultimate guide to finding, training, and keeping your household help."

Part 1: Finding Help
Part 2: Training your Staff
Part 3: Keeping your Staff

Bonus:
Template for Household Staff Bio Data
Household Staff Interview and Assessment Form
Cheat Sheets for Cleaning the House
Sample Weekly and Daily Schedule for the Household Staff
Laundry Labels
Easy Recipes (my favorite!)

"Part 3: Keeping Your Staff" was most helpful for me. It has tips on how to motivate household staff and an explanation of standard employee benefits.

As to the other parts -- cleaning tips, weekly and daily schedules, and interview notes -- I already have them in my own household manual, thanks to Mrs. Frannie Daez.

For only P195, "The Maid Manual" will be a valuable addition to your household management library. (Click here for my other housekeeping reference materials.)

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Sandwich Wrapper: Use Cloth -- Furoshiki Style

Saturday, December 6, 2008

After some thorough research and investigation (See this and this), my quest for the perfect sandwich wrapper has ended. It's CLOTH and REUSABLE PLASTIC CONTAINER for me.

That being said, I present you with a cool way to wrap your sandwich with cloth -- FUROSHIKI STYLE.


Photo by cafeconlecheporfavor










Click here for the tutorial.

As I don't want my sandwich to be crushed inside my bag, I'm planning on buying this cute Rubbermaid TakeAlongs Sandwich container.

















Weird? It's like putting a LV bag inside a plastic bag. LOL! Oh, well...


Note: This is not a paid post. I'm not endorsing Rubbermaid.

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Sandwich Wrapper: Paper or Plastic? PART II

Thursday, December 4, 2008

SANDWICH WRAPPING TIPS SHARED BY SOME READERS





Ibyang: "I use aluminum foil. It keeps the sandwich fresh and easy to fold. I even write a little reminder on it for the husband sometimes."
Pros:
  • Great to use with hot sandwiches
  • Easy to fold
Cons:
  • Can cause minor shock when bitten
  • Not environment-friendly
  • Cannot go straight inside microwave
Aluminum foil is another great option. However, as I told Ibyang, I was traumatized by foil when I was a kid. I accidentally bit the foil while eating a burrito. OUCH! Since then, I stayed away from foil-covered food. (Click here to find out why it hurts to bite into aluminum foil.)

Reshma: "I use a cloth napkin to wrap my sandwiches in...they stay soft and fresh..more environment friendly too!"
Pros:
  • Environment-friendly
  • No chemicals to react with your food
Cons:
  • Not airtight
  • Your kid will likely lose this in school
I used to lose a lot of handkerchiefs when I was in grade school. It only stopped when I started to bring Kleenex.

Laura: Ziploc bags for me!
Pros:
  • Airtight if sealed properly
  • No folding required
  • See-thru
  • Very convenient
  • Can be combined with tissue or wax paper
Cons:
  • Not environment-friendly
C! I know you sometimes double wrap. Aluminum foil AND Ziplock. Tsk... tsk... tsk...

Homemom3: "Plastic bags here or those sandwich boxes (plastic). I hate wrapping in paper as it always stuck. That jelly can get tricky."

Mai: "I don't like using throwaway stuff for Pogiji's baon na sandwiches because they become garbage after, kawawa the environment! What I do is I put his sandwiches in LockLock containers (although the most recent LockLock containers are not made in Japan na -- made in China na...ack!) or Biokip (made in Korea naman) to maintain their freshness. The containers are not as cheap as sandwich wraps but in the long run, they are since they are reusable. And they don't harm the environment too! Wax paper gives sandwiches an aftertaste that I don't like."
Pros:
  • Environment-friendly
  • Air-tight
  • Reusable
Cons:
  • More expensive
  • Your kid will likely lose this in school
I also lost quite a number of Tupperware plastic boxes. It's not my fault! The Tupperware-gnomes followed me and stole my lunch boxes.

Environment-Friendly Choice: Airtight Stainless Steel Food Container
Pros:
  • More environment-friendly
  • No plastic
  • Reusable
Cons:
  • Expensive
Some environmentalists do not consider reusable plastic containers as environment-friendly. Only stainless steel containers for them.

My choice: Cloth Napkin AND Plastic Container
I'd wrap the sandwich in a cloth napkin then put it inside a reusable airtight plastic container. I think I'm now mature enough not to lose my lunch box.


Photo credit: WTFwich by minusbaby

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Sandwich Wrapper: Paper or Plastic?

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Sandwich wrapping is not as easy as most people think. First, you have to chose a wrapping material that will best seal the sandwich's freshness for at least 5 hours. Nobody likes a soggy and damp sandwich. Next, you have to fold the wrapper origami style for better presentation. (This post is dedicated to Teacher J. Her nanny cannot wrap a sandwich without using tape and it's driving her crazy.)

Paper or Plastic

While we need air to live, our sandwiches do not. Air accelerates food degradation so keeping air out of the wrapper or container will help your sandwich stay fresh longer.

Tissue Paper: This is the wrapper of my youth. ("Scottie, strong even when wet." -- Was it Scottie?) The sandwich is usually wrapped with orangey-checkered tissue paper then placed inside a white sandwich bag.

I do not recommend using tissue paper. By recess time, my sandwich was already soggy and the tissue sticks to the bread. Taking it off was like peeling out a super sticky price tag, you don't get it all out. I know how tissue tastes like.

Wax Paper: This is what C's sandwiches are wrapped with. Her mom makes her a sandwich in the morning so she'll have something to eat for lunch. But does she eat it during lunch time? Of course not! She has it for dinner. Thanks to the wax paper, her sandwich is still fresh after more than 8 hours.

Wax papers are definitely better than tissue papers. However, as Teacher J knows, folding it can be quite a challenge.

Plastic Wrap: This is the wrapper of the pros. Most canteens and cafeterias wrap their sandwiches with plastic wrap. We don't know long those sandwiches have been on the display counter but they're still pretty fresh after we buy them so they must be doing something right.

Plastic wraps provide a sealed environment for the sandwich, keeping it fresh longer. Also, it's clear so you don't have to open the wrapper to know what's inside. "Ham nga!"

Click the link for a guide on effective sandwich wrapping -- How to Wrap a Sandwich.

How do you wrap your sandwiches?

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Book Worm Meme: The Myth of Monogamy

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

I’ve been tagged with the Bookworm Meme by Maria of "Writings of Maria". Thanks, Maria! You just gave me a reason to share with everyone this wonderful book.

Here’s how this meme works:

  1. Grab the nearest book.
  2. Open the book to page 56.
  3. Find the fifth sentence.
  4. Post the text of the next two to five sentences.
  5. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the cool book or the intellectual one. Pick the Closest.
  6. Tag five people to do the same.

MY BOOKWORM MEME
For a "married" male to engage in out-of-pair heterosexual sex, his EPC partner must in turn be (1) seduce, (2) coerced, (3) a willing co-participant, or (4) an active initiator. ... We'll find that all patterns occur, in animals as well as human beings.

THE MYTH OF MONOGAMY: Fidelity and Infidelity in Animals and People by David P. Barash, PH.D., and Judith Eve Lipton, M.D.

I bought this book after watching Penn and Teller's show, Bullshit! The episode's topic was "The Business of Love". Several experts on love were interviewed, including authors of my favorite books, "The Rules" and "Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus".

The only book featured in the show that I haven't read was "The Myth of Monogamy". I had to get my own copy immediately! For a household manager like me, it is important that I am kept abreast of research on home topics such as Romance and (In)Fidelity.

It was a funny and informative read. Here are some of my favorite quotes:

"Unattractive males guard their mates more closely."
(The uglier the guy, the more more jealous he'll be.)

"Males who remained monogamous when they apparently had the opportunity to attract a second or third female were those mated to unusually aggressive females. (This aggression, incidentally, was directed toward the potentially home-wrecking females, not toward the male.)"
(I'll be watching "No Retreat... No Surrender... Si Kumander" for a few tips.)

"In territorial species, a female generally chooses a male based on the quality of his territory. ... By getting a resource rich male, a female also gets the best genes. But this need not always be true. If a male who is genetically subpar ends up with a high-quality piece of real estate, he may also end up with a female who looks elsewhere when it comes to a sexual partner."
(Gold-diggers are bad news. "You've got to love me for what I am, for simply being me...")

It must be noted that Dr. Barash and Dr. Lipton were talking about the mating habits of birds and not humans. I never knew birds live an exciting life.

Despite all the examples of infidelity in the animal kingdom presented by the authors, they ended the book with a positive note.
"By establishing a durable, long-term relationship with someone who not only cares, but also shares an expanding history, who understands one's strengths, weaknesses joys and despairs, the successful monogamist assures himself and herself a companion for life, long after the children (if any) have grown, when work is no longer an option, when even sex may be mostly a memory, at just the time when two devoted people can keep track of the doctor appointments, change each other's senior diapers, and sit together, watching the sunset."
Sigh... *googly eyes*

I wonder where my husband is right now. Time for some mate-guarding.

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Promises, Promises: Waking Up Early

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Interview of First Lady Laura Bush by Jay Leno

MRS. BUSH: This was back in 1977 when we married, he was thinking about running for Congress, which he did, in our home district in the Panhandle of Texas. So I said, you'll have to promise me I'll never have to give a political speech. And he said, oh, no, of course, you'll never have to. So much for political promises. (Laughter.)

But also, I have to admit, I promised I'd jog with him, too. And I never did.

JAY LENO: You never did?

MRS. BUSH
: No. (Laughter.)

JAY LENO: Well, okay, so that works. One cancels out the other.

PROMISES! PROMISES!


I promised my husband that I will ALWAYS eat breakfast with him. I was able to consistently do this the first few weeks of our marriage. I was even the one preparing breakfast! However, as time went by, I began slipping to the point that my husband would sometimes say goodbye to me while I'm still in bed. So much for promises!

But it's not too late. I can still make good on my promise. I resolve now to wake up early and make sure I eat breakfast with my husband EVERYDAY.

I was never a morning person so this won't be easy. Good thing there are so many self-help sites in the internet today. I am trying some tips from www.howtowakeupearly.com.

1. Advice #1. To Wake Up Early, Go To Bed Early

What?! This is like DIET and EXERCISE. Obvious and correct but nobody wants to hear it.

No fast fix? Fine. I resolve to sleep no later than 11:00 12:00 12:30PM.

2. Advice #6. Take A Nap In The Afternoon

This one I likey! However, it is advised that afternoon naps be limited to 20-30 minutes. No more 2-hour afternoon naps for me.

3. Advice #27. Advertise Your Early Wake Up Habit

"Start spreading the news. I'm waking early today..."

I already announced my wake-up-early resolution to my Plurk buddies last week. So far, today is the only day that I was able to successfully wake up before 6:00 AM. I woke up at 5:47 AM and was connected to Plurk by 6:14 AM.

(I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my Plurk buddies for the encouragement and support you have given me this past week. I couldn't have done it without you. *bow*)

There are 45 cool tips in the website but I'm only trying 3 this week. I hope it works.

What time do you wake up?


Note: The White House transcript is dated Oct. 7, 2004. I watched that interview when I was already married which meant that it couldn't have been earlier than mid-2006. I've always known that the Leno shows here are reruns but 2 years?

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The Vinegar-Baking Soda Duo Strikes Again

Monday, November 24, 2008

Immediately after my eye surgery, I could not let water drip down my eyes so I had my to tilt my head back when I shampoo my hair. This position plus the fact that I can now see clearly even without my glasses allowed me to notice these little rust spots in our shower enclosure.

Yikes!

















This is a job for the Vinegar-Baking Soda Duo.

Click here for the instructions. Early detection and prevention is important. Don't wait for the rust to eat into the chrome. Nip it in the bud.

TADA! No more rust spots.












The formula works really well with chrome. My next project will be to clean this rusty chrome hamper.

Wish me luck!

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Wordless Wednesday: Christmassy Brown Paper Bags

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

THE PROTOTYPE





















THE BROWN PAPER BAGS


Finally, a use for my alphabet craft punch set.

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Potpourri: Coffee Stains, Shopping and Christmas Gifts

Monday, November 17, 2008

NO TV?! NO COMPUTER?! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?!

After my Lasik surgery last Tuesday, I had to say goodbye to blogging for awhile. Although I still plurked using my phone, I could not blog hop nor update my posts.

I never realized how addicted I am to plurking and blog-hopping until last week. Forced to find other things to do, I was able to accomplish a lot of tasks at home. I went shopping too!

Banished Coffee Stains

Using my Magic Formula (Baking Soda and Vinegar) and a small green scour pad, I was able to remove the coffee stains from all the cups in our cupboard.

What you need:

* Baking Soda
* Pure White Vinegar
* Scour Pad

Instructions:

1. Mix baking soda and white vinegar. (go for pasty consistency)
2. Dip the scour pad in the baking soda and vinegar mix.
3. Gently scrub the stain.


Speed Shopped















MM dragged me to this private shoes and bags sale in Corinthian Gardens. We were in and out of the place in less than 30 minutes. She bought shoes and I bought a bag.

Assembled Car Safety Kits















Inspired by Martha Stewart, I decided to put together my own Car Safety Kit. Do you have an emergency car kit?

Tata! I need to rest my eyes now.

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P35 Project: Take Your Vits

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Sick and tired of reminding family members to take their vitamins?

Try this!

Slide in your Vitamin Schedule in a small acrylic menu holder (P35/$0.70 in National Bookstore ).










Place everything in a tray and serve during meal time.














You can go a step further by making a schedule for each family member.

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Eat Good, Live Bad Longer

Friday, November 7, 2008

I've been sick the whole week and I left my readers with a post on death. I'm so sorry.

Now that I'm feeling a bit better, I want to share with you the new craze in our household -- ORGANIC FOODS.


















We are starting with breakfast. We still eat junk food and order from Jollibee but it's a big step from the greasy bacon, ham and spam we eat every morning.

P.S. Mai da Paypay, our switch to organic is partly your fault. LOL!

P.P.S. More posts on this when I get better.

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Morbid Thoughts: Living Will

Monday, November 3, 2008

Photo by eqqman














Talks on Death

Me: If I die first, I don't want any fanfare. Just cremate me. It's cheaper. (Kuripot hanggang kamatayan.)

Husband: Me too. I want to be cremated immediately. No viewing. No wake.

Me: What if your family wants a wake?

Husband: Tell them I don't want one.

Me: What?! That will be difficult given the circumstances.

Husband: Just tell them.

Me: Bah! You're dead anyway. I'll do what they want.
Remember the Terri Schiavo case? She suffered severe brain damage and was only kept alive by a feeding tube. Claiming that it was her wish not be be kept on life support if there's no hope for improvement, Terri's husband petitioned the court for the removal of the tube. This petition was vehemently opposed by Terri's parents and the case dragged on for around 7 years.

I don't want to put my husband in the same position if something like that happens to me. I am publicly declaring now that I DO NOT WANT TO BE KEPT ON LIFE SUPPORT IF THERE IS NO HOPE FOR IMPROVEMENT.

I surfed the net and found some samples of Living Wills. I want my husband and I to make one. One day of morbid planning will save us all the trouble in the event that one of us dies first. In the perfect world, we die at the same time.

According to Eternal Reefs, a good End-Of-Life plan consists of 4 documents.
  1. Advanced Directives
  2. Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care
  3. Final Directives
  4. Last Will and Testament
The Last Will and Testament takes care of your estate. The first three documents contain your dying wishes.

Do you want to be kept on life support? Do you want to donate your organs? Do you want to be cremated? Do you want to ban Malaysian Mums (this is a type of flower, not mommies from Malaysia) from your wake?

Morbid thoughts...

Will you be making your own Living Will soon?

Note: This is not a paid post. I do not endorse Eternal Reefs. However, their End-Of-Life Planning page is really helpful.

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Happy Halloween

Friday, October 31, 2008

My babies wish you all a Happy Halloween.
Click the photo for a bigger and cuter image.

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Trick or Treat Loot Bags

Thursday, October 30, 2008

I was informed this morning that our Condominium Trick or Treat was moved from tomorrow to today.

TODAY!

I was immediately off to the grocery.


I veered away from candies and chocolates this year. I sure hope these cupcakes and cookies are safe.






Ate S, M, and I turned regular red sando bags into Halloweenie loot bags.


BOO!









My dogs are now all dressed up in their costumes and ready to party. TATA!

More pictures to follow later.

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Wordless Wednesday

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

We're having party spaghetti and chicken lollipops today.

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Speed Stacks (a.k.a. Expensive Tumblers)

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

For whatever reason, my godson MUST have one. I don't get it. They are just inverted tumblers.

It seems like a lot of kids are also crazy over Speed Stacks because the toy is now out-of-stock in major toy stores in Manila. Out of desperation, I was already planning on buying one from Amazon last night. Good thing I saw this set in REGINA'S (2nd floor, Shoppesville Arcade, Greenhills Shopping Center).


It's only P550. (The same item is $9.99, without shipping cost, from Amazon.)








Note: This is not a paid post. I am not endorsing Speed Stacks. I have no idea what kids do with these tumblers. I am just trying to be a good ninang (godparent).

Photo of Cup Anatomy from www.speedstacks.com.

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My Garage Sale Experience

Monday, October 27, 2008

My Garage Sale Tips

1. Prepare early. Two weeks before the sale, I went through every cabinet in our apartment looking for stuff I can sell. I then sorted the items and carefully packed them in boxes. Come Sunday morning, the day of the garage sale, I was relaxed and in a happy mood.

That's Jody's table being swarmed by shoppers. She was selling her kid's Crocs for only P150.







2. Let go. True to my hoarder genes, I started reclaiming stuff from the box a few days before the sale. I'm still stuck with this big server plate shaped like a fish. It comes with 6 matching fishy mini-plates.











Letting go does not end with the firm decision to sell the item. It extends to pricing. I was selling my tops (blouses, button-down shirts, t-shirts) for P25/$0.50 each. I used to just give away my clothes so I had no problem selling them at a very low price. However, when one woman started to show interest in my K & Company blouse, I started having second thoughts about selling it. I wore that blouse only once, during my husband's birthday. Why was I selling it?!?!? My heart was pounding! I wanted to snatch it out of her hands. I was tempted to answer P500/$10 (I was selling my Crockpot for P400/$8.00) when she asked for the price. Aaargh! In the end, she got it for P25 but she had to stay and listen to the history of the blouse and a reminder to love and cherish it for the rest of her life.

3. Think out of the box. The sale started at 10 AM. By 11 AM, most of my stuff were already sold. I was getting bored and so I decided to sell the remaining items in bulk -- P200/$4 for one box of clothes and P100/$2 for one box of magazines. 15 minutes later, still no takers.

A woman selling crabs approached my table. Since I haven't sold a thing in the past 15 minutes (an eternity on a hot and humid day), I was in no mood to buy anything. Good thing Mrs. Crabs was in the mood to shop. She was interested in my shoe racks and offered to pay for it in crabs. SOLD! I offered to give her the rest of my inventory in exchange for another bag of crabs. SOLD! She left with 7 shoe racks and a box of clothes (she didn't want the magazines) and I with around 3 kilos of crabs. Everybody happy.


I remembered to take pictures of the crabs only after we finished eating.







I was back home by 11:40 AM.

Note: I joined the garage sale Ting organized in Mabini Hall, Quezon Memorial Circle. Thanks, Ting and Cesca!

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My Moleskine and I

Friday, October 24, 2008

What will I write in my Moleskine notebook?

Recipes and Tips. I will write down recipes from the magazines I read in beauty salons, my doctor's and dentist's waiting areas, and restaurants. (Corny?)















My niece copied this French Toast recipe from her teeny-bopper magazine into my Moleskine planner.

[This post is my official entry to Toni's Moleskine Giveaway Contest. Thanks to Wifely Steps and Avalon.ph.]

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7 Random Facts About Me

Thursday, October 23, 2008

I've been tagged by Amy (http://artsyfartsyfooladi.blogspot.com).











Here are 7 facts about Mrs. G that are probably not known to many.

1. I heart HELLO KITTY.














2. I am a closet fag hag. (Hi, JJ!)
3. I can eat a whole doughnut in two bites. (Hi, MM!)
4. I make party spaghetti whenever I feel like it (which is sometimes as often as 2x a week). My party spaghetti is cooked with banana ketchup and cocktail hotdogs.
5. I am a natural-born detective (a.k.a. snoop, stalker).
6. My favorite color is pink.
7. I like staying at home. (No, I don't get bored.)

I now tag http://www.maidapaypay.com/ and http://baglove.blogspot.com/.

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Organize Your Medicine Box

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

When I was growing up, my parents kept our emergency medication (paracetamol, antihistamine, loperamide, etc.) in a small Tupperware container. Everything was dumped inside. Our medicine wonder-box was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get.

My husband, on the other hand, is very organized in this area. Good thing he brought with him his own medicine box when we got married.




Here's are some handy tips on organizing your own medicine box.

1. Spread it. Take it all out of its container and see what medicines you currently have.

2. Sort it. Remember the Sesame Street song, "Which of these things go together... which of these things do not..."? Sort it in a manner that makes sense to you.

3. Check it. Check for expiration dates. If there is none and you have no idea how old it is, toss it out. It's not worth the risk.






4. Store it. Decide on a container. We use a crafts box to keep the medicines neatly sorted. Some keep theirs in small envelopes inside an index card box

5. Label it. Label every medicine with it's corresponding expiration date. If it comes in a blister pack and you're planning on cutting it up, make sure you note down the expiration date first. I made the mistake of cutting before checking and I ended up piecing it all together like a jigsaw puzzle just to see the date.

6. Hide it. Keep away from reach of children. Hide it in a cool, dry, and preferably dark place. It should be accessible to you but not your children. But don't even think of keeping it in your bathroom. Storing medication in a humid bacteria-infested place is not a good idea. Remember, aerosol effect.

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Blog Awards

Monday, October 20, 2008

Thank you to The Work From Home Mother.











Thank you to Tina of Everything But The Kitchen Sink.










My favorite blogs now are:
Kitchen Cow
Market Manila
Wifely Steps
Misterhubs
The Trojan Bore

I'm too shy to tell them that I like their blog. I just hope they see this.

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Wardrobe Inventory: Jeans

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Photo by aphasiafilms














WARDROBE INVENTORY: WEEK 6

JEANS


The Lucky Shopping Manual suggests the following:

MUST HAVES...

1 Pair to wear with heels
1 Pair to wear with flats
1 Weekend Pair you can wreck

ADD...

1 White Jeans
1 Another Favorite Pair
1 Cords (Corduroys)
1 Fun Jeans

To help you with your inventory, here is a guide to the perfect pair of jeans from Real Simple -- The Best Jeans for Every Body Type.

I don't have a pair for wearing with heels. I also don't have cords.

I have --

  • 6 pairs of drawstring cargo pants (a.k.a. fat pants)
  • 3 pairs of Levi's that are way to small for me now (a.k.a. pre-wedding pants)
  • 1 pair of Moto jeans that fits horribly (a.k.a. i-bought-it-on-sale pants)
  • 1 pair of white skinny jeans (a.k.a. what-was-i-thinking-my-thighs-look-huge-in-these pants)
  • 3 pairs of wearable jeans

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Holiday Planning: BOO!

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Photo by x-eyedblonde















Holiday Tasks for the Week (19 to 25 October):

1. Check your lists and relax.

  • Check your lists to make sure you haven't missed any important task.
  • Another holiday is coming up. Time to shift your focus for a while.
2. Decorate your home for Halloween.
  • Are you buying ready-made decors or are you making your own?
  • My friend Mrs. P made her own cute scarecrow a few years ago.
  • Find a way to blend the Christmas lights you already installed in your garden with your Halloween decors.
3. Buy or make your Halloween costumes.
  • Do you have a theme for the whole family this year? You can be a farmer and your children the vegetables. A gardener with her flowers? Snow White with dwarfs (hmmm... childhood dream)? Queen Bee with worker bees? You get the idea.
  • The cute and unique costumes are selling like hotcakes so shop early. You don't want to end up with the generic Wonder Woman/Superman your child wears all year round. This is the one time of the year you can legitimately act goofy.
  • Can you help me find an adult version of these costumes - here and here?
3. Prepare your Halloween candies/loot bags.
  • I heard it's now not enough to just give out candies. People started giving away loot bags last year?! Is this true?
Note: I'm following the holiday planning schedule of Cynthia Townley Ewer. Check out her website -- Organized Christmas.

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How to Colorfast Clothes

Friday, October 17, 2008

GADZOOKS! Someone didn't colorfast his gi!

















Last night, my husband's pristine white gi was stained by his jiu jitsu sparring partner who wore a red non-colorfast gi. How irresponsible!

(The Tide "lagot kayo sa asawa ko" commercial comes to mind now.)

Dear Mr. Red Gi,

Please print out this post and give it to whomever is in charge of your laundry.

Mrs. G
HOW TO COLORFAST CLOTHES

Ingredients:
4 liters cold water
1 cup vinegar
1/4 cup salt
  • Mix all the ingredients together. Use cold water for better results.
  • Soak the garment into the solution. I colorfast each garment separately. If you wish to do one big batch, make sure you soak clothes of the same color.
  • Let it stay in the solution for about 30 to 45 minutes.
  • Wash separately. Be on the safe side, wash the garment separately until you're sure that your colorfasting was a success.
This is a good way to preserve the color of your clothes, especially jeans.

I hope this helps you, Mr. Red Gi.

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P50 Make-Over: Pen Holders

Thursday, October 16, 2008

I was finally able to throw away the capless and barely writing pens in our pen holder. I went to the bookstore and replaced them with P5.00 retractable pens. It looks a lot neater now.




BEFORE:














AFTER:












Computation: P5.00 x 10 pens = P50.00

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Lead in Make-up

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

We had quite a scare yesterday when HV taught us this simple test to check if there's lead in make-up.

  • Apply foundation/lipstick at the back of your hand.
  • Rub anything made of gold, like a gold ring, to the make-up.
  • If it darkens or turns black, there is lead in the make-up.
We were on our way to Divisoria so I was the only one wearing gold jewelry, my wedding ring. MM, on the other hand, was the only one with a make-up kit in her bag.

MM tested her Maybelline foundation first. It turned black. Aaack! She tested her favorite Cinema Secrets foundation next. It turned black too! She was distraught. (
I know she left her bulky wallet that day to lighten her load so why did she have 2 foundations with her? Beauty before comfort.)

Good news, MM! You don't have to give up your favorite foundation. At least, not yet.

According to Snopes.com and About.com, this test is a sham.
The handy home test for lead in lipstick touted in the email is bogus. Certain metals, including gold, may leave a dark streak when scratched on various surfaces, but this is an artifact of the metals themselves, not an indicator of a chemical reaction with lead or any other substance.
To All: Can you help me confirm this? Please do the test on your foundations and tell me what happens. If it's true that gold will generally leave a dark streak when scratched, then ALL foundations, regardless of brand, should turn black.

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Bad Mothers Anonymous

Monday, October 13, 2008

Photo by Jennanana









Hey, Mommies!

Have you ever felt guilty for --

  • Not Breastfeeding (or stopping after your child turned 8)
  • Leaving the baby for 5 minutes so you can shower
  • Buying a dress that's worth 2 cans of baby formula (because you stopped breastfeeding)
  • All of the above and more

STOP FEELING GUILTY! You are not alone.

I recently discovered this site - Bad Mothers Anonymous - where mommies all over the world confess their deep dark secrets on motherhood. I bet you won't feel as guilty after reading their confessions.

Here are some of my favorites:
  • I have a 6 and 7 year old and since they don't know where babies come from I use it to my advantage when they are getting out of hand I tell them that I'm going to take them back to Target to get some other children. I know it's wrong but it works.
  • My hubby and I bought our son some candy at Godiva Chocolatiars. When he fell asleep that night and I carried him to bed I found the candy bar laying there and ate it. The next day or so he ask about it and I gave him a regular chocolate bar wrapped in the other ones wrapper....couldn't help myself it was SOOOO good.
  • When My son was little he was a biter, I got sick of it and finally bit him back! I didn't break skin or anything, but it actually worked. My daughter is a biter now, I mean HARD, I haven't bitten her yet, but I've been tempted to just throw her when she bites into my shoulder during a fit.
What's your bad mommy secret?

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Wardrobe Inventory: Sweaters

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Photo by Lisa Dusseault









WARDROBE INVENTORY: WEEK 5

SWEATERS


The Lucky Shopping Manual suggests the following:

MUST HAVES...

2 Fitted Pullovers for Work
2 Cardigans
1 Black Turtleneck
2 Weekend Sweaters

ADD...

1 Evening Sweater
1 Vintage Sweater
More Weekend Sweaters


MY WARDROBE

I have too many sweaters! Good thing I did this inventory because I almost shopped for more in Zara yesterday.

Fold Marks -- I've noticed that my sweaters are developing fold marks because of long-term non-use. I need to find a better way to fold and store them.

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Holiday Planning: Deck the Halls

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Photo from Wikimedia













Holiday Tasks for the Week (12 to 18 October):

1. Prepare Gifts for Shipping

  • Send your gifts for overseas friends early. Avoid air shipping and save money.
  • The gifts must be ready for shipping by November 15 if you want your friends to get them before Christmas Day.
  • The same rule applies to Christmas cards. Mail them early.
  • Shop around for cheap and reliable shippers.
2. Shop! Shop! Shop!
  • I cannot overstress this. Shop early and avoid the Christmas rush.
  • If you shop online now, most sellers can still deliver your purchases before December. Check their shipping rules.
  • Schedule trips to bazaars and weekend markets.
  • Review and update your Christmas list. Are you still within your budget?
3. Start Decorating Your Home
  • It's never too early! You want maximum exposure for your Christmas tree after spending days installing the lights and decors.
  • You can start with the tree then build-up the other decors each week.
4. Halloween
  • Two weeks to go before Halloween.
  • What's your costume this year?
Note: I'm following the holiday planning schedule of Cynthia Townley Ewer. Check out her website -- Organized Christmas.

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The X-Men's Favorite Dessert

Friday, October 10, 2008





















GELATINOUS MUTANT COCONUT

What's in a macapuno? MarketMan has the answer. Check it here.

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