Share your "stuff"!

Have you heard of Acobay, lately? If you haven't yet, I suggest you head on over there and see for yourself what I am about to rave in this blogpost.

Have you ever wanted to buy something, but it's a considerable amount of investment that you're not quite sure if the purchase was worth it? Conscientious consumer that I am, I always have that moment. Like everytime. Good thing I know how to use the internet to my advantage.

You know how important it is to get honest to goodness reviews nowadays, right? How many times have you finally purchased something because someone you know or trust said something good about the product?

And oh, if I purchased something that fell short of my expectations, how I love to rant about it! The company that provided me with the product or services should at least know what I expected from them and meet that expectation. Otherwise all my friends are gonna know about it.

Imagine my delight when I learned about Acobay. At Acobay, you get a chance to establish network with real people with real opinions about products, games they play, places they visited, cars they drive, movies they love, books they read, and so on. They even have Wishlist wherein you can put in the stuff you wish to have, planning to purchase, and get personalized recommendation from other Acobay members who share the same wish or stuff as you do. Else, you can browse through stuff, read real reviews by real people with genuine product experience.

Afterwards, off to google you go to scour for the best bargain you can find. And oh, get the one that offers free shipping, too. ;-)

While I'm writing this, I'm adding more stuff to My Stuff, and probably on to Wishlist next (I so wanna know what people say about the new toy I'm eyeing for Xofia). I'm excited to finally see my Stuff Network grow!

So, see you there?

What will I do without Dr. Karp and ice packs?

Dr. Harvey Karp said that toddlers acting out when their mommies (yes, mommies, not daddies) are around is the ultimate form of flattery. I remember he made an explanation as to why (and it made sense!), but totally forgot the moment my 1 1/2 refuses to go to sleep when Mommy is in the room.

At one and half, my little Xofia is beginning to be a handful. I think she forgot how to walk, she's running all the time. She has mastered throwing things at a precision that everytime she'd successfully hit her target, she'd beam with pride, clap her hands, say "bub" (her version of "good job"), and look around for a nod of approval. Her glowing pride will most definitely stop glowing when she'd see my serious, upset face. I then proceeded to lecture in toddler-ese how we don't throw things in a civilized world.

With eyes almost filled with tears but refusing to let herself cry, she'd walk away with shoulders down, and observe me from a distance. If a glance in the next minute is met with a neutral face, she'd let out the cutest smile and who am I to resist that. The moment I curve my lips into a smile, she'd come running to hug me.

Sometimes, my Harvey-Karp Method makes me feel like she's the grownup and I'm the baby. Those moments that she'd look at me about to cry, I have to stop myself from saying sorry for getting upset, that it was nothing what she did.

I just hope she remembers all those in the next 5 minutes before she rolled to the edge of the bed despite my stern warnings, and in a blink of an eye, hit her head on the floor and got a major boo-boo.

Thank God for ice packs!

Is your home secured?

You watch the news, scan the channels for a good 15 minutes and tell me if you don't come out of it depressed (if you weren't already) and more worried. Crime rate is staggering. In UK, burglaries are up as recession takes its toll that the leaders plan an emergency summit to tackle the issue. With the rising cost of living, cities all over the world are experiencing an increase in, particularly, property crimes.

Of course one can always argue that crime statistics are better indicators of the prevalence of law enforcement and crime reporting, than actual crime prevalence. But then, think about it, what's there to report if there's no crime happening? The fact is that crime is happening all around us, even so with the recession, and we better come prepared.

I'm sure all of us have a trick or two on keeping our home and loved ones safe. I know somebody who lines up food cans along the inside of his doors and windows to startle would-be burglars. I personally believe outside home lighting is a good deterrent. This is counting on the good Samaritans in my neighborhood, hoping they'd report any suspicious activity. However, robbers also have tricks up their sleeves to outwit home owners.

With the layoffs and salary cuts, I expect to be working doubly hard, and rendering more overtimes in work. So is my husband. How do you think we'd feel leaving our house and the people who live there under the watch of the subdivision guard, who also happen to be watching 75 other houses, and manning the gate? Home security is never overrated. Before anything happens, God forbid, start securing your home, your loved ones, and your personal belongings. Personally, I find ADT Home Security Systems equipped to provide you peace of mind. Their video surveillance system allows you to watch your home from anywhere in the world. It's really something to personally see that everything's all right even if you aren't physically at home.

ADT provides a lot of other security services that are worth checking out. The safety of your family and your home is one less thing to worry about while you concentrate on a host of other things in these trying times. I suggest you start securing your home now before it's too late. Better to have a tiny bit of paranoia and acting on it, than sorry.

Made.In.China

Say again?

This was from the box that one of my french presses came with. Aside from the lead and melamine issues, I simply love Chinese products. They're cheap, functional, and they provide entertainment -- a value-add to customers if you, like me, enjoy cheap thrills.

In this lifetime, I've mourned over the demise of 3 french presses. For coffee drinkers like me, a coffee press is an important thing. Of course, there's drip coffee maker. But aside from consuming so much electricity, they separate the oil from the coffee making the drink less, uhm, full. Oil makes the flavor really really bold and aromatic. It also maximizes calorie content. Filtering coffee beans in the coffee-making process just strips off the fun of enjoying full, bold, calorie-filled drink. Coffee press brings all that back in. Ah, little joys.

Since I've lost every single press I've had, the husband and I thought of buying several at one time. It is his ardent belief that if you store several pieces of presses, the one you're currently using will not break. I am willingly subscribing to the belief, dutiful wife that I am! Currently, we have 3 french presses. All are proudly Made in China. Because they're cheap, they serve the purpose, and they make me look like a supportive wife without dishing out thousands of pesos for a Starbucks or a Coffee Bean press. Those from these two are just outrageously expensive.

Oh, if you're looking for a press, Metro Gaisano at Ayala Center has plenty. You're welcome to hoard.

Night, night! Don't let the bedbugs bite!

I have very, very sensitive skin. At least that's how my dermatologist describes my affliction. Yesterday, I finally went and saw a doctor. (Oh, congratulate me!) And because of the type of skin that I have, I am now to follow a strict skincare routine twice a day. Aside from that, I am to stay away from almost everything that this polluted world is basking in.

I have always wondered why I get welts so easily, why insects seem to see/smell me and make me their first victim in a crowd of hundreds. Either I smell really good (move over, Bella Swan) or I'm just totally unlucky. Among other sites, I consider bedbugbites.com an additional treasure when it comes to guides on bugs and insects. The site provides a lot of information about bed bugs, how to treat them and prevent them. Because bites differ from one person to another, they also provide pictures of bed bug bites to help you identify if what you got is really a bed bug's doing.

I don't want to come to a point where I have to worry how to treat the bites, heaven forbid, I need to know exactly how to identify if we have bed bugs at home. Once I get the bite, the welts will then develop into something terribly ugly. I then use lotions or creams, which in turn, irritates my skin and I'd get flare ups. So either I stop the bugs from getting close to me, or I pray I see them first and kill them before they get close to me. (Oh, I mean bugs, bugs. Not people). And if the unlucky me gets bitten, I can only use the most natural treatment devoid of any allergen. Ah, it's a blast to be me!

Rocking out

It's the connection.

I am, once again, wondering if I did the right thing going for this provider.

Even Speedtest.net refuses to load. So I made screen captures of all those loading pages to while away the time. Pathetic...Internet.Connection.


Incidentally, however unrelated, I was reminded of some pics I owe Xofia's godmothers. Xofia received a big Dora pillow and an electric guitar from Titas Caffeinated-Muse, Diva, Faery, and Jan. She went to sleep late that night because she kept on turning her pillow over. Dora wins all the time, there's nothing much you can do about that. The guitar makes a lot of noise, alright, but this girl likes it, so I bite my lips and bang my head like a true rakista along with the rest of the household.

But really, nobody here can rock it out like this girl can:

OK, now, don't be such a killjoy and rock with me!

YEAAAAAAA!!! *peace out*

Mga Atih, you girls rock the most! Thanks for making my little munchkin so happy. :-D

Picking up and gaining speed

I've been away for quite some time that I don't know where to start. To save you from going through my boring list of TODO's, allow me to assure you that I am picking up, albeit slowly, from where I left off. Holiday recipes will be posted soon, and some videos as well. For those who are wondering, my blog also serves as communication tool between me and my relatives. They don't comment as frequent, though--we're very shy bunch--but they do pester me with updates ;P

Anyway, I think I should be starting with my most favorite subject: Xofia. Oh, the things these little munchkin has learned over the past month! I dare not believe how fast time flies. But Xofia accumulates skills in a heartbeat sometimes leaving me and her daddy wide-eyed and wondering where she got all that. Before we went to Bora, she only knew one number: 2. When I counted with her, we finished off until 10! And man, can she dance! She danced before she can even walk. And now, she sings like it's the most natural thing babies like her do. Am I grooming a performing artist here? :P :P

How do you keep those very fleeting memories stay without leaving you blissfully overwhelmed? I am dreading the time when I cannot recall each and every moment of wonderful discovery with her. Ah, simple joys. Happy 2009, everyone!