Time to Save

We recently purchased a tube TV that is so heavy from a local charity store for $9.00. It was so funny how Ryan and I had to get in the house. Yes, it was that heavy but we couldn’t pass the deal. What I have initially in mind was to save my money and get Ryan a Samsung HDTV and put it in the living room. Knowing Ryan, I am sure he will like the idea but he doesn’t want me spending my money for him. I figure, he helped us so much for my sister and that is the least I could do. As I was getting close to my goal, we found that TV and thought, hey why not? But, I have told Ryan that once we move to our new house whenever that would be, I will definitely get him an HDTV for the living room, so that gives me a lot of time to save.

Who Knows?

It is so easy to forget about the responsibilities we have to ourselves and to the people we love. Have you ever stop and ask yourself if your family will be ok if something happens to you? I recently purchased a term life insurance with a purpose of protecting Ryan and Frankie if something happens to me. The future is so uncertain that we can’t do anything about it but be proactive. Now, Ryan and I have two life insurances. One we got through our different jobs and the other was what we got for ourselves. Because, we’ll never know!

Sets

Can you believe we are going to be setting the boots next week, and less than a week after that is the St. Nick set which is for Christmas? Time by fly fast that is for sure. I remember it like yesterday that we are all excited to go home to the Philippines last March and now it is already September. I guess I like it this way rather than waiting for the time to finally get here. School, work and Frankie is making me so busy and also keep me sane.

I have a boot set next week, and I still do not know what to bring. I will probably bring the usual depending on the time we have. I am off on Monday for Labor Day, and I gave my hours away for Tuesday because it is Frankie's first day and on Wednesday I am working overnight. I hope to accomplish a lot of things next week. I have been goofing off and not studying the way I should be studying. I just need to focus and concentrate. I guess there is a lot that I get confuse what to do first, but I will be alright.

Someday

I have never been to Disney, and I have only seen pictures of it. Visiting Disney is one of my childhood dreams after growing up watching those Disney classics. Of course, who doesn’t want to meet the princesses and their princes? I would! Frankie is learning different Disney characters too. Who knows in the new future we could take one of those Disney vacations and see the beautiful Disney by ourselves. Well, it may have to wait a little longer because we have our priorities, and it is in the bottom of the list. I am sure we will go there someday.

Gone

Our gazebo and hot tub in the backyard are completely gone. It was starting to become a sore in the backyard since we never used it. Thankfully, my father in law was willing to take it. Ryan and I have decided to just get rid of it to gain our backyard space back. My father-in-law just needs to get a new hot tub cover because what we had in the hot tub is a little outdated. It was colored brown and little worn out through the years of usage. It was actually the previous owner of the house who got the hot tub and the gazebo. If we could have live out in the country, it wouldn’t be a problem, but here the houses are too close to each other that we could not enjoy privacy. I am just thankful that it is out of our hands now.

My Tutor is Awesome

I have always been an in-charge person when it comes to my school. I hate depending on other people because I have experiences before where they do not follow through and I end up trying to do it by myself at the last minute. However, this semester is a different story. I have a tutor and he is the most patient person. You see, I have to take Math this semester and the next semester to graduate. I don't want to put it off because the more I put it off the longer I graduate. That is why, I have four classes this semester. I am sure my GPA will surely go down if I get a B, but I just want to get done with it. Besides, the minumum grade that allows me to transfer into a university is a B.

Math has always been my issue even in high school and college. I have always been a B student when it comes to Math. I am only in my second week of class, and I am already having a problem with it. It's been years and years from the last Math class I took. Although it may look so simple to some, I am absolutely having a problem with it. We are doing problem solving right now, and I am not understanding them at all. While he is discussing, it just so foggy with me. I don't get it, and I hated it so much that I don't get it. They put in some tricky questions and I am lost. We had our first quiz last Wednesday and I don't think I did really well. The night before, Ryan and I spent 4 hours in the university library just to talk about my Spanish and Math. He is really good at those two, and I am not. He is so excited that I am taking Spanish, so we could converse in Spanish. I am no where close to that and I have a bunch of assignments to do. He did a really good job in explaining the problem to me. I am so happy that he is very patient too with me. I wish I am good with Math. *sigh*

Here to Stay

In my education major class, our professor asked us why we want to teach when there are a lot of teachers being laid off recently. My question to myself was, is there something out there for me? I already have a bachelor’s degree and it would be a waste of time, money, and effort if I have to start all over again. Plus, I just hate the sight of blood. It makes me sick that is why the medical field will never be for me.

I wish it was the other way around though because there are a lot of health care jobs available. Like my friend Jenny, she is in school and still managed to get a part time job caring for the elderly. She is currently working for her nursing degree, and at the same time, she does home health to those who are unable to take care of themselves. There sure are a lot of health care jobs available and it is here to stay.

Outdoor facelift

There was so much nice weather this season - even if it was a little too hot for my taste - that I took advantage of it and did a lot of home improvement that I had been putting off for a while. I wrangled my 13-year-old son into helping me out too. One of the main things that I wanted to get done to our house's exterior was repainting the shutters.

I realize now and should have realized then that taking the shutters off the house before painting them would have been the best thing to do, but I decided it would be easy enough. Well, my son ended up dripping black paint all over our white siding. Instead of get mad at him I decided that we would just get some new siding while we were at it. We might as well do all these home updates at once while we were no a roll anyway. So I got sears vinyl siding indianapolis to come out and do the work.

Our siding was little a little worn anyway and I think that the difference in the shutters wouldn't have been obvious if we hadn't gotten the siding replaced.

Thanks for this post Burt Wood

Only Kid

Frankie is the only kid who enrolled for the traditional preschool at St. Liborius. Apparently, with the economy being bad (this was according to the principal) nobody else enrolled, so Frankie will be joining the non-traditional preschool who are there for the whole day. She explained that the learning would still be the same. The only difference is Frankie will be with the 4 years old and a couple of 3 year old. My mother-in-law thinks that it would good for Frankie because he will learning off from the 4 years old who is a little mature. Ryan and I are just glad that they did not shut him off from the opportunity of being able to go to school because he will be by himself. I hope the rest of the kids will be nice to him especially that they are older. I know he will be ok. He can take care of himself.

Moving to North Carolina

More and more people these days are selling their house and moving into an apartment. My friend and her husband did exactly the same. They could not afford to keep their house anymore, so they decided to get rid of it and move into an apartment. She said it was a leap of faith, but thankful that they did it because it was the best decision they ever made. They are no longer worried every month if they have the money to pay for their mortgage or not. What is even better is they were able to save a little money now because they are not paying as much for the rent compared to the mortgage.

Economy has surely affected a lot of families. I am just thankful that Ryan’s company bounced back, or else we could have been in the same situation. Well, moving into an apartment is not that bad after all. It is less the hassle of owning the house, but it doesn’t mean you will just get just about any apartment. There are luxury apartments that you can get too. In fact, if you are around Durham North Carolina, it has never been so easy to find and move to an apartment. You can start by going to nc-apartments.com, for they have a list of luxury apartments around the Durham area.

If you are moving from another state and not familiar with the place, the list of Apartment in Durham, NC will be a good start. You can browse through the website, plan ahead and pre-apply to see if you qualify. It has never been so easy to start fresh with the Apartments in North Carolina.

Scrubs

When I was pregnant with Frankie, it was very convenient and nice to know that there were a lot of Filipinos in the hospital where I was going to deliver him. Some of them I met, every time I have my ultrasound. I really love going to that hospital because everyone seem to be very friendly and accommodating. I was never a fan of hospitals but that one in Indiana made me feel very comfortable with hospitals.

One of the things I really like about hospitals is the nurses and their hospital uniform. They looked so neat and professional. I used to work in a retail store before, and a lot of people that are in the medical field used to ask me if we sell scrub sets. Unfortunately, I don’t know where to get them. Had I known about blueskyscrubs.com, I would have let them about it. They have a wide variety of scrubs to choose from.

In fact, they sell discounted scrubs at a very affordable price. I also like the different simple, custom, traditional, and designer scrubs that they offer. You also have the option to buy the scrub in a set or separate. They have scrubs for both men and women including scrub hats, lab coats and more. I wish I am a nurse right now, but I don’t do well with needles and blood.

Preschool

We finally got the letter and everything that we need to get Frankie started with preschool. We need to get him a pair of new shoes again that he could leave in his cubby at school. I got him a pair of skechers, but it was still a little bigger for him. I am thinking of the jumping beans but I wonder if a 10T will fit him since they run small and Frankie already wears a 10. I am sure I will find some good deals when I go back to work on Monday.

Anyways, he will start on the 7th of September right after Labor Day. On that day, I am supposed to be working overnight, so I did not request that day as my day off. I forgot that I asked them to change it for me on Wednesday night instead because it would be rough for me since I have a Math class on Wednesday morning. After they changed it and all is good, they scheduled me to work at 7:00 a.m. -3:30 p.m. for that Tuesday. I was excited because I get off early then I realized that it is Frankie's first day. I need to be there because I have to introduce Papa to the teacher since he will be picking him up most of the time. Ryan is not sure if he will take off, but he is thinking about it. I am hoping I could give my hours away, so I can have that day off. I got so messed up with the schedule and dates that I completely forgot the most important event of my son's life, his first day of school.

Gold Coins

There are different investments that most Americans invest their money in. For beginners, the most popular is the 401K where most people can get through their jobs. It is a savings program where it gets deducted from the salary and put side. This is in preparation for retirement or for the future. Other people also choose to get a life insurance. Although it is not as big of an investment, but it is still to protect the family in case something happens. The common goal of getting an investment is for future use.

Another investment that will also benefit you in the long run is buying gold coins. Acquiring gold coins are not hard to find anymore. In fact, you can get one with the United States Gold Bureau for immediate delivery or storage. You don’t have to know a lot about investing to be able to get one. All you have to do is contact them, and you will have your gold coins in no time.

Good Luck to Me

I just got home from my major education class and so far so good. I really liked the teacher, and I liked how he doesn't take bs. One of the down side of this class is, there are a lot of writings and readings but mostly writings. Next week, I have two things to read and write. Then I also need to have 15 hours of observation and the evaluation. We also have 3 major essays besides other things. As I was listening to him say all of these, my head hurt all of the sudden. I know it is going to be really a lot this fall, and I can't goof around. I am just happy that Frankie will be going to pre-school, so that will keep him busy. I also asked Ryan to get a table and chairs for Frankie's room, so we could study together. I have one class that is a late start, so I won't have to worry about it till a month from now. Math is another story, and Spanish. That started this week too. I will get there somehow. I will just have to take it easy and not beat myself too much. If I get a B, that is ok as long as I tried my best.

Planning a Birthday Party Online

Thank you for the post Angelo Cooper.

As a mother of three children, planning birthday parties can sometimes be difficult. I tend to run out of ideas for food and decorations. This is when I scour the Internet looking for unique ideas

I like to start with Google and search for the party theme and decorations. I like to look at image results for cute display ideas. Searching just blogs can also get you great ideas. I also like to search for food ideas and anything else to fit my selected theme.

Flickr.com is another great source for birthday party ideas. Flickr.com is just for photos, but sometimes the photos have descriptions. Searching through the photos can give you great ideas for cakes and other food. I usually find some great decorating ideas full of things I can make for the party.

With my hughes net internet service, I can quickly and easily get online to help plan these important parties. Without being able to get online I'm afraid I would have run out of ideas for food and birthday party decorating many years ago.

Chicago the Beautiful

We were in downtown Chicago two weeks ago, and Frankie had a wonderful time. It was Frankie first train ride. I mean he has been to Chicago when he was a little baby, but this is the first time that he is conscious, and he really loved it. I snapped a few pictures of downtown Chicago and here they are below.

Owning a Home

Acquiring one’s own home is an American dream regardless if you are a native of this country or an immigrant from another country. But there are times when life gets to us, that reaching for that American dream of owning a home could be impossible.

Ryan and I lived with my father-in-law for two years before getting our own house. Although Ryan’s credit was near perfect, I have not established any credit just yet because I just got here then from the Philippines. Before we finally decided to move out, Ryan and I researched on what we could possibly do and where to start. It was overwhelming to read a lot of information for first time buyers, but we were determined to do what we have to do. After three months of going through different houses and finally deciding what to get, we were able to close the deal and got the key of our first house on the fourth month.

Not all people are as lucky as us. Our credit was good. Some home buyers thought that if you have bad credit, it will be harder to get a loan. It could be if you don’t know where to find it. It could also be very stressful, but looking for the best mortgage loan entails a lot of research. So, if you are planning to get started in looking for a house, check your credit score first to see what your standing is. Then proceed with learning about finance options within your scope. Owning a house could be a lot of responsibility, but it is worth it,

Out in the Country

When I moved here in the US, I never felt so isolated in my entire life. I go out occasionally with my co-workers and friends back home, and even if we were unable to drive, there were public transportation that could take us places. I never felt stuck in one place, but it was a different story here in the US. I didn’t know how to drive, and I had to wait for my husband or my father-in-law or someone to take me places.

Ryan and I lived with my father-in-law for two years. It was out in the country, and the city was fifteen miles away. I felt so trapped being there all the time with nothing to do. I cross stitched, but that did not stay long because my eyesight was getting bad. I watched TV occasionally, but there were only a few local channels to choose from. I was told that since we lived out in the middle of nowhere, cable could not get to the location that we were in. I did not know anything about Direct TV by DirectSatTV then because I just got here. If I had known about it, I would have told my husband and father-in-law that regardless of our location, we could still get a satellite dish for TV service loaded with different shows to choose from.

It is amazing how much stuff they have to offer. I browsed through Direct TV packages by DirectSatTV, and they have awesome offers for new customers. I like the flexibility of having to choose my own specification. They have the premier package, choice ultimate, choice xtra, choice, and lastly the family package. These are a lot of choices depending on one’s budget, but before anything else, one has to make sure to check the government dish rules. We may have to get one for ourselves.