Pinay WAHM

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It's been days since I last wrote here. I guess I'm just too preoccupied with all that's happening back home. Thankfully, my family back there didn't have to go through the devastation that most of the people in the greater Metro Manila, Marikina and the Rizal province went through and are still going through. I tried to call my siblings while everything was going down but the circuits were all busy. After talking to a high school classmate who informed me that the river [which is by our very backyard] swelled up, I decided to try calling my family again. I got lucky that time because I was able to speak with my sister in-law who resides in Angeles City. Yes, the river water rose but it didn't cause any flooding. Big sigh of relief after that phone call. I've been glued mostly online reading and watching some heart wrenching videos posted on You Tube. I want to be kept abreast with all that's happening but sometimes after reading all t...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ETA: The reason for the recall lifted from Tylenol.com website : You may have heard that McNeil Consumer Healthcare (the makers of TYLENOL®) is voluntarily recalling certain lots of Children's and Infants' TYLENOL® liquid products that were manufactured between April, 2008 and June, 2008. All products manufactured met internal specifications. However, the company is implementing this recall because during this period, an unused portion of one inactive ingredient did not meet all quality standards. Therefore, as a precautionary measure, it was decided to recall all Children's and Infants' TYLENOL® liquid products listed below, which were made during this time. Parents and caregivers who have questions or concerns should contact their child's health care provider or our consumer call center at 1-800-962-5357 (available Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time). Consumers can find the lot numbers on the bottom of the box containing ...

Photos from Yahoo.com A GIANT BABY! Weighing in at 8.7 kilos or 19.2 lbs , this little, err...big bundle of joy is the heaviest baby born in Indonesia as of yet. He was of course born via the C-section. I can't imagine him being born the natural way, 'ya know. I wonder how much milk he eats everytime he gets hungry...and at this stage I'm sure he gets hungry a lot of times.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ During my appointment yesterday, my doctor asked if I am taking vitamins regularly. I am but I only started not too long ago. It turns out some vitamins have iodine in them so he wanted to make sure it's not what's triggering my thyroid to be overactive. Even if he said that it's unlikely that my vitamins may be causing the problem, I still checked my multi-vitamin as soon as I got home. Nope, my vitamin doesn't have a hint of iodine in it. Aside from that, he also asked me if I am on some weight loss pills . Hmmm...that question made me ask myself if my weight gain is 'that' obvious. Is it? Not really. He only asked me that question to make sure that if I am taking something to lose weight, I have to make sure that there is no iodine in them as well. There's not need for that actually because I have not taken anything to lose weight. Maybe I should stop taking in so much food to trim down a little bit, eh? Ha! I sound like I am so ov...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Blame it on my appointments. Today is not as early as the previous appointments though. My doctor's earliest appointment starts at 8 AM so that's as early as we can get in. I had some blood work done last week and I was kinda' excited to hear what the doctor has to say about the results. I got a copy of the results in the mail and there's a big difference between this result and the one I had before it which was about 2 months ago. The result of 2 months ago made my doctor increase the dosage of the medication I'm on because there was not a lot of improvement in my thyroid problem. Well, this latest result is showing otherwise. It seems I'm over medicated now because the 'hyper' turned into 'hypo', well, kinda'. I still have hyperthyroidism . The doctor put me back to the original dosage because my thyroid is not producing enough hormones now [I think]. This explains why I am always tired the last few weeks. He e...

Or autumn, however you want to call it. At least on this side of the globe anyway. Yes, today, Sept. 22, 2009 officially starts the new season. It doesn't feel like it but it's slowly looking like it. Our neighbor's oak tree started 'shedding' already and I'm sure it won't be long before I start getting all worked up. Leaves, dry leaves and more dry leaves to clean...from other people's tree. Ha! 'Nuff of that though. I'll try to enjoy the season as if there is no oak tree dumping its leaves in our backyard....maybe. For some interesting facts about Fall/Autumn, visit Yahoo News .

from: Joke of the Jay... Generation Next ... There have been a couple of generations in the last sixty years that have missed the boat but this group isn't one of them. A first grade school teacher in Virginia had twenty-five students in her class. She presented each child in her classroom the first half of a well-known proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. It's hard to believe these were actually done by first graders. Their insight may surprise you. While reading, keep in mind that these are 1st graders, 6-year-olds, because the last one is a classic! 1. Don't change horses...........until they stop running. 2. Strike while the............................bug is close. 3. It's always darkest before..............Daylight Saving Time. 4. Never underestimate the power of ....................termites. 5. You can lead a horse to water but........................how? 6. Don't bite the hand that..........................looks d...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For me, anyway. I took a nap this afternoon. Finally! After about 300 years. Not a wise decision. One word: headache. Yep. I took a nap because I had a slight headache...and I woke with an even bigger head...ache, I mean. Anyway, our weekend has been good so far. The weather today was perfect. I was able to pull out some weeds on the flower beds after a long while. It was either way too hot or raining the past few weekends for me to do that. Not sure what we'll do tomorrow. There's a big chance we'll just stay home but we never know. I really want to go to the Philippine store and get some stuff but we'll play it by ear. I'm not up to traveling half an hour to do that though...sigh. Hopefully, you are having a more exciting weekend that me....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ...and here I am blogging. Early, eh? Just got in a few minutes ago. I went to have some blood tests done and we wanted to beat the crowd. The lab opens at 6:30 and we were there at 6:36....and there's a line already. Wheewww.... At least it didn't take an hour this time. My appointment was actually at 7 AM but we were hoping we would be able to be done by then. Not quite. We waited for about 30 minutes and I was done a few minutes later. The little one was excited to see the sunrise...LOL. It was still dark when we left the house and the sun started rising on our way home. I've forgotten how pretty it is out there early in the morning. I can't remember the last time I was out that early. Anyway, have a great day everyone. I'm off to have breakfast. The little one just finished hers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That about sums up how I'm feeling right at this moment. I am just not used to waking as early as I did today. Back when I was still teaching, my wake-up time was 5:30 AM. I had to be in school before 8 everyday but I was usually one of the earliest to arrive in school. It wasn't that hard to get up then because I would go to bed around 9 or 10 at night. But that was then. This is now. I have actually accomplished a few things already since we woke up. I did some laundry, prepared what we will have for dinner [it's in the crock pot...teehee] and some little things here and there. Still: I AM SLEEPY!! Not sure how long I can keep my eyes open but I have to since it's only 3 PM here. To keep me rather occupied, I've been browsing the news online. There are some interesting news right now like this 107-yr old Malaysian woman who is looking for a 23rd husband . Hu--waatt?? But guess what? She is still married to her 22nd husband. She's af...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I am not much of a shopper. I like to go around window shopping but I have a hard time deciding what to buy most of the time. I always think that I don’t really need something until it’s a day too late. This is also one reason why I find it hard to buy a gift for someone. I feel like I’m never going to get that perfect gift for a friend or a loved one. So I am one of the many who either give a gift card or cash for gifts. I even gave the husband a gift card one time. Romantic! Not! But that was the first and the last time I did that. It’s getting harder as the years go by what to get him though. I may just get a little edgy and buy him a Diezel underwear in the future. We have been playing it safe the last few years by asking each other what we want when there’s an upcoming occasion. A lot of times, we just agree not to give each other anything. It’s easier but it’s also not very exciting, right? So yep, I may just go ahead and get him one of those nice...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Yep! We've been up since before 7 AM. We had to wait on an early delivery so we needed to be up before they arrive. It's been delivered and now all I can think of is jumping back to bed to catch a few winks...but I won't. I'm sure I will only feel more tired if I do that so here I am trying to stay awake by blogging....in between my yawning, of course. But today is not the only day we need to wake up earlier than usual. I have a lab appointment as well sometime this week and I chose the earliest possible time for that one. Hopefully, it will be an "in & out" one. Last time we were there we waited for about an hour because the place was full. The online appointment I made was rather useless because of the long line. Anyhoo...I'm waiting for my laundry now....and I'm still tired...ugh!

from Joke of the Day ...of course! Amazing how some of these are dead on.... I Am The Law! Law of Mechanical Repair: After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch or you'll have to pee. Law of the Workshop: Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner. Law of Probability: The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act. Law of the Telephone: If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal. Law of the Alibi: If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire. Variation Law: If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will start to move faster than the one you are in now. Law of the Bath: When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings. Law of Close Encounters: The probability of meeting someone you know increases when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We've been living in this house for about a year and a half already. But if you look around the house, it's not evident that we've been here for that long. The walls are still bare. No pictures or art walls or anything like that. My husband and I both believe in 'slowly but surely'. Yes, we could have used 'plastic money' to adorn the house with decorations but we opted to go with what we can afford and wall decors are somewhat at the bottom of the list. That's because we also didn't have furniture when we moved in because we left the old ones in the old house. We have most of the furniture now so we've been thinking of getting something for the 'bare walls'. Maybe a blow-up picture of me? Nah....I wouldn't want that on my wall..LOL. Seriously, we may start with some wall candle sconces . We like candles and how they make the house smell all nice and fragrant. I still have some still in the boxes from the mov...

from Yahoo.com Kseniya Simonova is a Ukrainian artist who just won Ukraine's version of "America's Got Talent." She uses a giant light box, dramatic music, imagination and "sand painting" skills to interpret Germany's invasion and occupation of Ukraine during WWII. Amazing Sand Drawing @ Yahoo! Video

And the new season hasn't even aired yet.... First it was Paula Abdul quitting the show and now...a [more] famous celebrity will replace her. Hmmmm....I wonder how Paula feels about her replacement?? I read about it yesterday but waited until there's some kind of a confirmation....yep, Ellen De Generes is now an American Idol judge . Reactions ? Comments ? Lots of it actually. When Paula Abdul abruptly left the program, there was a lot of negative reaction about it. She was one of the original judges so that's understandable, I guess. But personally, it was getting more and more painful to watch her as the years went by. She helped the show go where it is now but sometimes people grow....and maybe, I just did. Anyway, Ellen is funny. I'm sure her presence will provide a much needed comic relief if anything. I don't 'really' watch AI anymore. I still check it out once in a while but I may just try to watch it more this coming season to see how Ellen will fa...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our very first camcorder is a Panasonic and it's called a 'palmcorder' . We got it when the little one was only a few months old so it's almost as old as her. As new parents we wanted to capture every single thing she did, of course. One of the very first captures we have of her was when she first started 'laughing'. We were able to record most of her 'firsts' using that palmcorder and we have numerous homemade DVDs to prove it. But just like everything else, it conked out on us after a few years. It's also becoming out of style slowly but surely. It's a good thing it conked out because smaller and much better camcorders are coming out so it was becoming a bit 'embarrassing' whipping it out in public places. Last Christmas, I got my hubby a more 'up to date' camcorder as a present and that's what we've been using since then. We are still keeping the 'palmcorder' though. This weekend, w...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So I was mistaken! I thought it will not rain today. It's pouring like crazy while I'm typing this. It's been going on for the last hour and it looks like it will go on for a little while more. At least the grass has been cut already so hubby need not worry about it anymore. I had a busy morning. I was catching up on my chores that I can no longer do on the weekdays like vacuuming. That's one of the downside of my new gig. I now have to schedule some things so it won't be forgotten. At least I have some kind of a schedule now that I never really had in the past 4, maybe 5 years. There's nothing planned for the rest of the day. One of my bosses emailed saying there will be some work that will be released throughout the long weekend. That's great because we've been slow forever. I've been reading that the 'recession' may have hit rock bottom already. Now there's no way but up, right? Or is that *wishful thinki...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As I mentioned in my previous posts, I want to start getting in shape. Well, that may happen sooner than later because after putting on some day clothes this morning, the harsh reality that is my 'jelly roll' hit me. Yep, no matter how much I try to suck it in, it just bounces back like ball. I actually mentioned to hubby last night that I want to look at treadmills this weekend when we get the chance. It's a long weekend and there are some good Labor Day sale going on right now so we may just find one that's within our budget. That means I don't have to wait for my new gig to pay me to get a new treadmill. I only have one problem though. What do I do with my old treadmill? Oh well...I guess I'll just cross the bridge when I get there. I still have to look for its replacement anyway and there 's no guarantee I will find it this weekend. Knowing me, I'm sure I'll change my mind again whether I really need to get a new one...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Acne has never been a problem for me. I had them when I was in college I think but they didn't last. I get a pimple every now and then but not to the point of breaking out. My chin is probably the part of my face where acne develops most of the time. I may even be the one to blame for that because I tend to prick some 'whiteheads' on my chin which would then turn into pimples. But it doesn't happen much anymore. My nephew is another story. He's been battling acne for years now. I think he started having break outs in high school. He's now a doctor and his problem with acne is still ongoing. Just last month when I called on his birthday, he wanted me to check Acnepril . Actually, he wants me to buy him that as a gift for his birthday. I told him I would have to look it up first and see what kind of reviews it's getting. He agreed so now I have an assignment from him. He does this quite often. If he hears or reads some medicine for...

A big chunk of what one makes here in the US goes to insurance. It's a painful reality especially to one's "wallet or pocket". Just this year, we've decided to change providers for all our insurance coverage. At first, we only thought of changing provider for our home owner's insurance but we found out that our new home owner's insurance provider can give us a much cheaper auto insurance as well. Now we're with them for both home & auto insurance. Just last month, we also decided to change health insurance provider. Why? Because the old provider keeps increasing our monthly fee. It's just crazy how they can increase their prices numerous times and without enough notice. We have also been having some issues with them because they're making it so hard for the doctors to get their claims. That means that if they don't pay the doctors, it's us who have to shoulder the bills. UNFAIR! We never fail to pay them on time because it's au...

Quiz for Kids... Q: Name the four seasons . A: Salt, pepper, mustard and vinegar. Q: Explain one of the processes by which water can be made safe to drink. A: Flirtation makes water safe to drink because it removes large pollutants like grit, sand, dead sheep and canoeists. Q: How is dew formed? A: The sun shines down on the leaves and makes them perspire. Q: How can you delay milk turning sour? A: Keep it in the cow. Q: What causes the tides in the oceans? A: The tides are a fight between the Earth and the Moon . All water tends to flow towards the moon, because there is no water on the moon, and nature hates a vacuum. I forget where the sun joins in this fight. Q: What are steroids? A: Things for keeping carpets still on the stairs. Q: What happens to your body as you age? A: When you get old, so do your bowels and you get intercontinental. Q: What happens to a boy when he reaches puberty? A: He says good-bye to his boyhood and looks forward to his adultery. Q:...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Back in the Philippines, as soon as the 'ber' months start, people get excited. Why? It signals that Christmas is just around the corner. Here in the US, Christmas is not only big celebration that people are waiting during the 'ber' months. Aside from Christmas, people here are also awaiting for 2 other special events: Halloween and Thanksgiving! These 3 events are definitely big around here. Since Halloween comes first among those three, I'm sure that Halloween invitations will be finding their way into people's mailboxes in the next few weeks. Our little one is very excited already that in the last couple of months she has already started thinking what costume she wants to wear when she does her 'trick or treat'. Growing up, I wasn't even aware that there's such a thing as Halloween. What we observe around the time that Halloween is being observed in the west is 'All Saints Day'. It's when Filipin...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I have not posted tags/awards here in looonnggg time...maybe because I have not been given any lately? Or maybe...I'm just getting really old that I tend to be forgetful. Hmmm...I think I'll go with the latter. So before I forget about these 'awards' that JK so kindly virtually handed me [for my blog of course], I am posting them here now. Thanks JK ...appreciate the thought as always.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Or do I even have to remind you of that?? It seems that everyone I know always waits for it anyway, right? So I guess there's really need to remind anyone of it then...but what the hay....Weekend is COMING!!! LOL... I had a busy day yesterday. Well, more like a busy early evening actually. I had some back to back calls with the longest one lasting for about 50 minutes. My ear was red and sore when I got off that call only to get another one a few seconds later. But that's good because I only get paid when I'm actually on the phone so no complaints here. It's not always that busy though. A lot of times I sit by the phone for hours without receiving a single call. When that happens, I just surf the internet and check out things I don't really need like pet beds because we have no pets, yet. Ha! It's like window shopping done online. Am I ever tempted to buy these things I have no need for? Not really. Truth be told, I even hold ba...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That what I need to do if I want to get in shape. But because of my new job, I tend to sit a lot more now. The phone I use for work is in the computer room so I am forced to stay in one spot most of the time. It would have been easier if I can use a wireless phone but I have no choice because we are not allowed to do so for quality assurance. Unlike my other work-at-home jobs where I can do pretty much everything I want like go out in the backyard, walk around the house, with this new job, I am tied up in one place. I'm not complaining [although it may sound like I am, eh?] as I am very much aware that I'm lucky to even have a job, much more a work-at-home job. I know I have to find a way to exercise [or move at least] one way or another if I intend to lose some weight. Walking in our treadmill would be a great start but I am not too crazy about our present treadmill. It's inclined so I tend to get tired pretty quickly. As soon as I start gettin...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That's all we've been hearing in the news lately. With school starting the past couple of weeks [and in the weeks to come], the talk about swine flu has just escalated to whole new level. I personally don't know anybody afflicted by this epidemic [pandemic?] so I only rely on whatever is being reported in the news. The reports are saying that there is a great chance that the swine flu situation will even get worse during the fall season. But how much do we really know about this much-feared form of flu? Here are a couple of 10 Things You Need to Know about swine flu which I copied and pasted from Yahoo.com News. 1. No cause for panic. So far, swine flu isn't much more threatening than regular seasonal flu. During the few months of this new flu's existence, hospitalizations and deaths from it seem to be lower than the average seen for seasonal flu, and the virus hasn't dramatically mutated. That...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ...and it's only Wednesday. It's my second week with the new job and I must say: so far so good. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I am still on edge right before my first call but I start to relax soon after. Last week was another story though. I was so stressed out I thought I was going to pass everytime I was doing my job. I would have temporary mental block in the middle of it all that after I hang up, I'd feel like I would get sick. I've also had some sleepless nights that I had bags and dark circles around my eyes for days. I though I'd use up all of my eye wrinkle cream to cover up the circles. The husband who has always been my biggest supporter kept telling me not to beat myself up with the 'should haves'. I guess he hated seeing me so down for a few days so he kept giving me the 'pep talk' when he got the chance. I'm just glad I have a very good support system in him because if he wasn't boosting...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ And today is officially the start of the 'ber months' and the last quarter of 2009. Again, how time flies. The first 3 quarter just went like a breeze although it was probably the slowest to some due to the present economic situation. Hopefully we will have some positive changes during this last quarter especially on the economic front. On a more personal note, this is my second week with my new gig. I **think** I'm starting to get the hang of it. I'm still a bag of nerves especially in the morning but it gets better as the day goes on. It's not as 'busy' as I anticipated it to be. Actually, that's what the hiring specialist told me during my interview. But he also mentioned that there will be days where it gets really busy...just no way of telling when those days will be. Right now, the new job seems to be a nice fit with my other jobs. The only problem is my other jobs are still very slow. We still get some work but they only...