A Call for Help

I have a friend who has two daughters who are in school. Sometimes, when they have math homework that they can't do, their mother always calls me for help. I don't mind at all as I am always happy to help. I am just a call away when they need math help.

I told my friend to check out online tutoring offered by guaranteach.com. Although, I don't mind helping the kids on their homework, sometimes it is better to check the services offered by guaranteach because they not only help the homework but they also have practice quizzes and free videos. I told her to check it out because I have heard that they also offer Algebra Tutoring which will ensure that her kids will be ahead with algebra lessons. I recommended this website because her kids can try it for free by creating a trial account. I am sure that if they need Algebra Help they can find the best help that can be provided to them through this website. The videos in guaranteach are accurate and appropriate for learning because they are screened by professionals.

My friend promises to check out guaranteach for her kids.... hmmm I think I will miss the calls for help by then.

Noche Buena or Media Noche?

Noche Buena and Media Noche... two of the most important happenings that I will always miss. I hope that when Andrea is old enough we can make it our family tradition too.

My nephew Giles wanted a change of our holiday arrangements. Usually we celebrate Christmas in our family home and New Year's will be at my sister Lita's home. Giles orchestrated a change because he said that he never remember celebrating Christmas in their home. Everything was planned and good to go until the last minute. My other niece (Langlang) was hospitalized due to dengue fever few days before Christmas so everything was cancelled. Giles was disappointed but no choice they can't party while other family members are in the hospital.

They celebrated New Year (media noche) at our family home. The exchanging of gifts which was supposed to be during Christmas was extended to New Year. They all had a blast. They have a wonderful celebration. The whole family were all there except for me, my sister Menmen who is in NJ and my brother Jojo who works as a seafarer. The only problem.... they didn't take pictures... I wish they will take pictures because they have digital camera and it will be great to see pics of them celebrating....

While my family is busy celebrating noche buena and media noche, in my end it was just an ordinary day. NO noche buena or media noche. We spent our Christmas day at Mom's opening gifts from Santa for Andrea... we shared dinner as a family. New Year was quite different. Dave has to work. I was with friends while Dave was working. We had fun preparing and eating Filipino foods. Dave picked us up before New Year strike and we went to Mom's for the countdown. We were together as family when the clocked strike New Year. We hug and kiss for the New Year... we didn't have champagne as all of us don't like it. It was a plain New Year celebration but it was special since we are a family celebrating it.

New Year's day we went to Mom's for a sumptuous dinner.....

My little chef... playing and cooking... she got many gifts from Santa last Christmas

With Love Wednesday....

Local Search

Most Filipinos here in Alabama go to Atlanta, GA to shop for "ethnic" food. There is not much of choices when it comes to Asian food in Birmingham area. Although there are few Asian stores here, the variety of products that they sell is very limited. Since Atlanta is just a 2-hour drive from where we are, when we crave for fresh Asian and Filipino food (fish and vegetables) we always heed to Atlanta and shop there. I am glad that through a click in the mouse I can find anything in Atlanta, GA. Local search is very easy when you use justclicklocal.com! Anything that we want to find in Atlanta is just a click away.

The same with my cousin who lives in the border of New York and New Jersey, they always shop in New York for local food and delicacies. The last time I talked to her, I told her how easy it is to find things in Buffalo, NY if she will just use the local search. Local pages displays all the popular searches and popular listings. Justclicklocal.com has everything you want even if you are in St. Louis, Mo. So, for all your local searches needs don't forget to justclicklocal.com and you can surely find what you are looking for.

Customer in Training

Few days ago, we went to shop at Whole Foods and found a very neat thing. While looking for a shopping basket or pushcart, we found a small shopping pushcart that has a "Customer in Training" on it. These shopping pushcarts are designed for the little ones to use while shopping. Obviously, Andrea was so excited to shop and push the pushcart. She was on the go pushing the cart everywhere. Of course, her daddy has to guide her so as she won't run over everybody. While I was shopping for fish and veggies, father and daughter are busy pushing the pushcart all over the store. They will just come back to get the things I picked and put it in Andrea's pushcart.

After I was done shopping, we were ready to go but Andrea was not! She still wants to push the pushcart around. The store is somewhat expensive but they have a variety of fresh fish (with heads on) that is why we shop there every once in a while. Perhaps next time, we will give Andrea more time to do her shopping....

The Cook in Me....

I love cooking that is why I have a kitchen blog that showcases the different recipes that I cooked in my kitchen. I enjoy trying different cuisines and I enjoy discovering new dishes. As evidence of my cooking, I gained a lot of weight (which I am not very proud of). Most of the times, I cook very healthy meal. I am very lucky that my daughter Andrea is not picky on her food. She eats everything and she doesn't complain if I feed her fish and vegetables.

I know that baking is healthier than frying but there are foods that are better fried that is why I have a food fryer in my kitchen. Sometimes, we indulge ourselves with those greasy and yummy types of food. I am just glad that I have an electric fryer because all of us love fried shrimp and calamaris. So, whenever we crave for this type of food, it is very easy for me to prepare.

A countertop fryer is also an option to have. This is a very useful kitchen appliance especially if you love to eat french fries. Whenever we indulge ourselves to a fast food type of food, I always marvel at the ability of a commercial fryer to do its frying job. I always enjoy watching the crew when cooking fried chicken or french fries. It always amazes me how quick and easy the process looks.

The Vacuuming Job

Andrea hates the vacuum. When we have to vacuum our place, Andrea and I has to stay inside our bedroom and let Dave do the vacuuming. Vacuums scared Andrea. When not in used, she never get near our vacuum. By the way, our vacuum at the moment is one of those upright vacuums.

We are trying to ease Andrea's fear of vacuum but so far it is not working. I am wondering why when we go to the store and we see store employees vacuuming the store, it doesn't bother Andrea. I guess that commercial vacuums for her are not as scary as our household vacuum.

Speaking of vacuum, we are planning to buy one of the bagless vacuums that I have seen in the commercial. It looks like it is very dependable. I bet in the long run it will be cheaper because I will no longer need to buy vacuum bags.

TCP: Blockbuster Movies

There is no doubt that Titanic was a blockbuster movie worldwide. I remember watching Titanic on the 2nd or 3rd week of showing in Manila. The movie house was full-packed even though it was shown for a couple of weeks already. I was standing the whole time I watched the movie and yes I cried rivers of tears.

To name a few blockbuster movies that I like.... Lord of the Rings series, Harry Potter movies, Shrek movies, Pirates of the Caribbean... and more!!!!

For this week, I wanna feature AVATAR... this is a blockbuster movie that is still showing in theaters. We hope to watch this movie this weekend.... It will be a date for me and my hubby. Based on the reviews of friends that have seen this and the trailer that we have seen, I am sure that this will be a good "movie date" for us. I am so looking forward to see this movie....