Posts from — August 2008

We bought The Sunday Telegraph paper today and it comes with the free DVD ‘On the Road with The Wiggles’. It features some Wiggles favorites as well as 3 new songs from the new DVD ‘Sing a Song of Wiggles’. The whole video runs for about one hour. But for CN, the thing played for about 5-6 hours on day one. So excuse me Dora, your turn would have to wait.

Here is a list of 15 of our family’s favorite Disney movies or shows (you can also add the sequels!). It is hard to build the list as there are a lot of greats in Disney. So this list is also not in any order.

1. Toy Story
2. The Lion King
3. Alladin
4. The Little Mermaid
5. Beauty and the Beast
6. The Chronicles of Narnia
7. High School Musical
8. The Jungle Book
9. Mulan
10. Bear in the Big Blue House
11. Brother Bear
12. National Treasure
13. Ratatouille
14. Cars
15. Underdog

I’m sure you, too, would have your own. So tell off maybe 5 of these and see how they compare with the list above. Though, I have to say that it may be easier if I would name the top 20, 25, or even more favorite shows as there are just too many. I would even be able to put up a list for Disney songs and games. Speaking of games, the Disney Bingo game is one that should remind players of what these shows are so you get to complete the fave list in no time. The game is for kids and adults alike and thus, has a potential to be a good family game. A quick browse at amazon.com should get you up with this game in no time.

Spring Rolls or Lumpia is one favorite dish in every Filipino parties and gatherings. The inside feelings are usually vegetables or just like mine the minced or ground meat. And it definitely go well with all kinds of dips like sweet and sour sauce, vinegar with garlic and salt, tomato ketchup and sweet chili sauce.

Ingredients:
½ kilo cooked ground pork or beef
1 medium size carrot (grated)
1 cup of shrimp (cooked, unshelled, and minced)
sesame oil
2 tsp cornstarch
soy sauce
1 small size onion (sliced)
2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
oil
1 egg
lumpia wrapper (spring roll wrapper)
salt
ground black pepper

Procedure:
In a medium size bowl mix the ground meat, carrots, shrimps, sesame oil, onions, garlic, cornstarch, and egg. Add soy, salt, and pepper to taste. Put a one tablespoon of meat mixture in the middle of one edge of the wrapper. Flatten mixture then roll. Deep fry in medium hot oil until golden brown. Serve with your favorite sauce.

One of the shows our family loves watching together is the TV series House. Dr. Gregory House (played by Hugh Laurie) is such an amazing physician who, most often than not, resolves the most puzzling health issues faced by the patients. I recall reading in one forums that his specialization is on infectious diseases and nephrology. Though, in the show, we see him work on practically all parts of the body, managing a wide range of diseases. What I personally find interesting is the way the main character attacks the problem. He is so passionate about finding the cure no matter what the situation may be. It is not uncommon to find him go out of the norm just to save patients. Amusing isn’t it? Generally, the successes of medical breakthroughs bring joy to mankind. An example is the stem cells recently found on menstrual blood. Through C’elle, women can unbelievably participate in healthcare. The C’elle Client Testimonial can attest to this. A quick visit on their website’s About the Science presents a simple explanation as to how it can possibly work. Now that’s a promising chance to participate ending the drama faced by a lot of people.

Last week, I asked who could name that unusual flower which was in my snapshot. There was only one person who gave the correct answer. You know who you are… congratulations! Actually, after I have published that post, my eldest daughter told me that she knows what that flower is. The name was quite interesting as it is derived from something which most, if not all, parents have held in their hands. The answer? Well, there are several types or species but they are commonly called “bottlebrush”. And I guess the reason is too obvious.

How much room does politics have in the family? I think that it has a pretty big part. That is why I kept on telling my children how important watching the evening news show is. Let’s face it. The decisions or policies set out by the government will have a direct or indirect effect on our families. It is for the same reason that I take government elections very seriously. I could recall how I and my husband have some discussions on which candidate to support (though, we let each other decide freely who to write in the ballots). I believe a lot of parents share this thought. Some would probably even go an extra mile to promote or campaign for their selected candidate. For example, Giant Obama Bumper Stickers are available to show support to the Democrat candidate.

We went out to have dinner at a friend’s house today. As I am quite busy doing our preparations for next weekend’s move, I had to think of something quick and dirty (figuratively) to cook. Anyway, it turned out that I couldn’t squeeze the cooking into the schedule. Good thing that the local grocery shop has some cooked grilled chicken ready for serving. I tried the ‘flavored’ version today. I think it turned out to be a pretty neat option after all.

The concept of a loan has probably changed considerably these past few years. It may be due to the rising financial challenges that are faced by persons or families. Just looking at petrol prices would be enough to explain what the economic situation is. Personally, I think a loan has its benefits if used and managed properly. It can be of great assistance if accessed at the proper time, at the appropriate conditions. Personal Loans or also called Pay Day Loans are often good solutions to allow someone to make adjustments in order to get back on track in terms of finances. It is best to get proper advise from experts in order to maximize the options.

Scene: Inside the car. On our way home… CN suddenly said:

CN: Mama, can you wash your face with orange juice? Can you brush your teeth with bubble gum? Can you put toothpaste in your eyes? How about in your hair? (then laughs out loud)

It was really amusing the first time I heard this. Eventually, I learned that it was part of a song she learned in school, but still had a good laugh with this one. Besides, who would have thought that these phrases are part of a song.

We were a film-camera user before and in just a few years, have collected a huge number of negatives on file. Though, looking back, I think that the film concept still has some advantages. That includes having all the photos printed. I can still recall back then when buying a new photo album has to happen everytime a roll of film is sent out for processing.

Nowadays, we probably shoot significantly more photos than ever before but would also probably have lesser prints compared to what we usually had in the past. So instead of photo albums, we instead have our photos stored in discs or hard drives. I have to admit that not having the photos on print result to having lesser chances of viewing those memories. That is not to mention that the chance of showing them to visitors has lessened (compared to having photo albums displayed on the living room). Well, technology has an answer as to how digital photos can be better managed and viewed. Digital photos call for digital albums or frames. I think it is a pretty neat idea. A 7 inch digital frame promises to be a good living room companion to keep the family and even guests refreshed with memories.

Whenever I go to our letterbox to pick up mail, I get a surprise which I honestly don’t like. A number of skinks or lizards pop out from nowhere and crawl all over the walls outside our home. These are the types which move so quick that anyone caught unguarded will definitely be startled. They move so quick it is so difficult to capture them on photo. Anyway, there is nothing really wrong with these creatures. I just find the thought of them possibly creeping on me terrifying.

Tagalog Translation
Sa tuwing pupunta ako sa letterbox para kunin ang mga sulat, ako ay nakakakuha ng surpresa na aaminin kong ayaw ko. Mangilan-ngilang ’skinks’ o butiki ang biglang sumusulpot at gumagapang sa mga pader salabas ng aming tahanan. Ito ang tipong napakabilis kumilos at sinumang hindi handa ay tiyak na magugulantang. Sa bilis nilang kumilos, may kahirapan silang kuhanan ng larawan. Wala naman talagang mali sa mga nilalang na ito. Talaga lamang na para sa akin, ang kaisipan na posible silang gumapang sa akin ay nakakatakot.

Whenever families go for a long overseas holiday, there is a need to plan out for things that will be left home alone. When we had our trip last year, we had to make sure that the car is stored properly. I can recall my husband putting some extra pressure on the tires. He also put the parking brake down and placed some stoppers on the wheels instead. Apparently this is to prevent rusting or locking up on the brakes. Other than that, it is just to make sure that the garage is well locked and that the car insurance is up to date.

How school homework happens nowadays is simply amazing. My daughter RD has recently prepared her homework presented in a slide show presentation format. It was great watching her do research on the net as she puts up her digital homework. When she completed her piece, we asked her how are you going to bring or present that to school? She answered: “Oh, I’ll have to put it in a flash drive.” Funny that I can recall submitting my own homework in manilla paper.

One evening, we passed by the house where we will be moving to next week. The outside of the house seem to get minimal lighting from the street lights as the area is located somewhat exactly in between distant street light posts. We will have to see after we have moved whether additional outdoor lighting is necessary. In the meantime, I’ll just continue preparing for this big move.

We’re planning on moving house in the next couple of weeks. While we’re at it, I thought of sharing with you some thoughts or insights as we go through the experience. The first tip is probably this: Do not pack your kids favorite DVD too early. While DVDs are probably one of the easier things to pack, it’s probably better not to seal the box until probably a couple of nights before the move. In my case, I started packing the discs ahead but for some reason the Dora DVD just kept on going out of the box.