I’m not sure if it is just a fad or whether it will linger on a bit more longer. My daughter CN has become an instant fan of Dora, the Explorer. And I don’t think I am exaggerating things. Well, it all started with being glued to the television on this smart show. If only the DVD player could talk, it would have asked for a few minutes break from playing the show over and over again. Nowadays, whenever it’s an off-day in pre-school, you would find her on the computer playing Dora games in the internet. Slowly but surely, CN’s Dora gear also started to increase in number. When we went to the Snowy Mountains, she had a Dora beanie, scarf, gloves. Now she’s got a Dora blouse and skirt. (Now she couldn’t buy those stuff all by herself… so am I the Dora fan here?)

Without a doubt, my daughter loves this show. We’ve actually booked tickets for the Dora the Explorer show here in Sydney on October. She can hardly wait for that day to come. I don’t want to tell her to count the days left before the show goes up otherwise she may start counting Uno…Dos…Tres…

There is often some interesting read in Reader’s Digest. I recently came across articles under ‘Are You Normal or Nuts?’ It features posts of readers regarding some questions about their quirks or oddities. An interesting question is about someone who uses things until they wear out before getting new ones. In today’s financially troubled times, it does seem to be a sound attitude. For me, I would say that quirk is quite ok.

Perhaps several people fall into the trap of purchasing something new for the simple reason of getting something new. Confusing, huh? Maybe a better question is: why do have to buy something new? I can think of a few reasons. There are some things which we buy only when whatever we have (or don’t have) is all used up or is no longer functioning the way it’s supposed to. Falling into this category, a broken television probably warrants buying a new LCD TV. Some reasons for buying something new may have a mix of both ‘need’ and ‘want’. To some, my example above may actually fall into this category. At the extreme end is buying something just for the sake of buying something new. An example may be a person having the urge to getting a new mp3 player each time a new version comes (think of a person who has an iPod classic, shuffle, nano, touch).

There are some other questions on quirks so be sure to have a read through of ‘Are You Normal or Nuts?‘. Some of they maybe funny while some are simply amusing. Maybe you too could share some of your own.

If you want more to make you laugh, you should also try Reader’s Digest Laughs

Spell Distinction: D-I-S-T-I-N-C-T-I-O-N. Well, that sure is right. But there’s certainly something better to blog about than just that. My eldest daughter RD recently took the University of New South Wales (UNSW) International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) last June and the results went out last week. We were quite pleased with the results as she was awarded with Distinction. That means her score in the spelling test was higher than a pretty good number of students in her level who took the test in New South Wales and Australia Capital Territory. Congratulations RD!

So pardon me if you can spot a word which is incorrectly spelled in the post. I didn’t get a chance to run it past my kid.

Has your family made any big holiday plans? I’m referring to something really big as in probably taking a trip half around (if not totally around) the world! Well, we have not had that chance yet. But as they say, there’s no harm in dreaming. Better yet, there’s no harm in planning.

I have some family who moved to America in the past couple of years. That tickled the idea of planning for a trip to visit them and see that beautiful land. It is good that Australia and the USA have opposite seasons. As I am a warm-weather person, I am thinking that it may be good to plan for a summer tour. That means I get some time-off winter in Sydney! (Note: I got too excited writing this that I realized that it’s time to turn on the heater as I’m getting the chills.)

Ok, back to the plan. We’ll have to work through things to do in Los Angeles as it is where most people I know in the States are living. Of course one other must see is the capital city: Washington DC. The White House is a ‘must see’. But there are other attractions such as Madame Tussauds which will make the trip a lot more fun. This is when online travel guides really become handy. Better sign-up on these so you can get fresh updates.

Anyway, for now it’s a plan in the making. Someday, hopefully soon, I’ll blog about it!

My eldest daughter RD has always wanted to have a pet. If she would have her way, she would want to have a pet dog. It is funny that in her younger years, she would tend to avoid dogs (or maybe that’s natural for a kid). But as she grew up, she would normally ask us if she could have one.

As we do not have our own home yet, plus the fact that we do move a lot, we opted not to have a pet dog. Or maybe that’s just an excuse. Well, it does look difficult to have one. So we tried to give RD ’smaller’ pets and maybe less troublesome (or so we thought) such as something that fits in a fish tank.

But it does look like she wanted a dog after all. The fish tank is now in a box.

Looking up home services does appear intimidating especially if it is your first time using such services. That makes it even harder if you are new to a particular suburb or locale. I can still recall when we were looking for a carpet cleaning company when we were still quite new in our place. Of course, household services do not end with carpet or home cleaners. At some point you’ll probably look for plumbers, pest control, and so on. This reminds me that since the winter weather is too cold, I’ll probably need to check for someone to work out the backyard for me. With a good web directory, finding such services becomes less stressful. Your search can even be specific to your exact location. For example, people in New Mexico can just do a search specific for Albuquerque landscaping and they get exactly what they need.

In today’s busy lifestyle, some people may consider ‘going out’ with family or friends as a luxury. Some may think as such because of the usual expenses that are associated with taking the entire family out. On the other hand, some would treat it as a luxury because of the time that has to be put aside to plan and to actually go out. Maybe it’s because of the definition of ‘going out’. Anyway, I believe that going out with the family need not be expensive. Just look around as there sure would be some places to go without spending a fortune. The outcome is still sure to be great. Having a walk, a stroll, a picnic, or just having time together as a family is definitely refreshing.

City of Sydney

Tagalog translation
Sa abalang pamumuhay na mayroon tayo ngayon, may mga taong nagtuturing na luho ang pamamasyal o pag-liwaliw. Para sa iba ito ay maaaring dahil sa gastos na kadalasang nakadikit sa pagpasyal kasama ang buong pamilya. Para sa iba naman, ito ay nagiging luho dahil sa panahon o oras na kailangang itabi para planuhin at yun mismong pag-labas. Maaari din namang ito ay dahil sa pagbibigay-kahulugan sa saliting ‘liwaliw’. Anupaman, naniniwala ako na ang paglabas o pamamasyal kasama ang pamilya ay di kinakailangang maging magastos. Tumingin-tingin lang tayo sa paligid at tiyak na mayroong mga lugar na maaaring puntahan na hindi gumagastos ng malaki. Ang kalalabasan nito ay tiyak na maganda. Ang palalakad, pagpiknik, o ang simpleng paglalaan ng oras na magkakasama ang pamilya ay tunay na nakakaginhawa.

Yes this is my first contest but I hope not the last one. I will give 50ec credits each to my first and last five commenters that gets to answer my question correctly. So if you think you know the answer just let me know by leaving a comment on this post. Have fun!

Question:
If you are holding a New International Version (NIV) Old and New Testament Bible, tell me what is the first word and the last word in the bible?

Answer:
IN and AMEN

Winners:
Zriz, Jennie, Leah, Ruby and Sharon

Congratulations to the winners and thank you all for joining.

It is tax time here in Australia. Part of the fiscal year end activities is to look at and evaluate the expenses for the past year. That would include looking at medical expenses. While looking through this list, I was reminded that we are now maintaining two pairs of eyeglasses. Yes, both of my daughters wear eyeglasses. Our youngest, CN, started wearing eyeglasses a few months ago. Well both of them are still young and we are praying hard that they will soon outgrow these glasses. But at least for now, we have to keep the eyeglasses as items in the family budget.

It is a common knowledge that eyeglasses can really be quite expensive. The eyeglass frame in itself is one of the things that may keep the price really high. For kids, getting these expensive designer glasses is not advisable. I could still recall the very first words that our ophthalmologist told us when selecting the eyeglasses: ‘Choose something sturdy’. True enough, our three year old CN has put her glasses into really good shock tests. To date, the one we bought for her is still in one piece. Whew!

Another way to beat eyewear costs is through online stores like Zenni Optical. They have $ 8 Zenni Optical Rx Eyeglasses which will definitely suit the budget.

Going out on a holiday? There is one thing that parents should not forget to pack whenever going out, especially with unbelievably active kids. I’m referring to emergency kits that can possibly save the holiday! No emergency is ever planned so I think the best way to deal with it is to plan for emergency. It can make that well planned holiday to become really memorable… on a positive sense.

In my case, I always make sure that first aid supplies are packed together with other over the counter medicines for fever, tummy problem, and so on. It does take up some space in the packing. Nevertheless, I know that it is important to have these along. The good old bandage strip is another example that’s definitely worthwhile to keep in a mom’s handbag. Emergency Kits such as first aid kits need not be expensive. There are products which put all the essentials together in nice easy to carry packages.