We Are Family

This is one tough week and i’m sure glad it’s over.  The annoucement about the reorganization of our team rocked the boat and we are still having difficulties at home because of B.boy’s teething.

We went to the pedia this afternoon and she said there are 4 molars coming in hence the discomfort.  He had fever for 3 consecutive days already and i guess the pain is unbearable as he cries and wants to be held most of the time.  Poor thing!  He couldn’t even sleep properly at night.

Good thing M0rn1ng has been my pillar of support.  Without his help i don’t think i would be able to go to work and worse, i may be having those asthma attacks again because of fatigue.  We were only able to sleep an average of 3-4 hours for the past 5 days now.  Then we have to go through the daily routine in daytime.  I can’t take a leave from work because the team has yet to accept the changes due to the reorg.  Patience and clear communications on it’s benefits should be provided or else they will be demotivated.  I feel i should be there as a leader.  But then i should also tend to a sick child as a mother.  haaaaaay!  The never ending saga of work-family balance. 

But it wasn’t that bad and all that is because of M0rn1ng’s love and support.  I couldn’t thank him enough for taking good care of us and helping me go through a rough time.  I love you so much daddy!

I hope those molars come out this week-end to finish B.boy’s ordeal.  Wawa kasi talaga sha pag may sakit.  And i hope things go well here in the office too.  Positives Positives Positives!  :)  Have a good week-end averyone!

P.S.  Thanks for all those who dropped by and even left some love.  I will reply soon, promise.

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I dream of having a business of my own and be able to manage my time and maybe do the work without leaving the confines of our home.  I have concrete ideas on what i want but we are just waiting for the right time.

So what kind of business would i want you may ask?  I would like to design clothes and sell them.  hehehe.  Surprising eh?  I may not look fashionable most of the times but that is because of budget constraints.  But if i have extra bucks and have plenty of time for shopping, i’ll look trendy too.  Then i dream of having my own site so my clothes can be bought online.  Right now, there are a lot of merchants who use Multiply to sell their goods.  But having your own site equipped with ecommerce software is way better because of the SEO benefits it provide.  You get to be on top of search results in major search engines and that is premium advertising.  There are a lot of hosted shopping cart software  that offers a complete solution for mercants to sell online.  That kind of service is the one i would like to have when the right time comes.

Right now i could only dream but time will come. 

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Have you ever felt excited and overwhelmed at the same time?  Well, that is exactly what i feel right now.

A few weeks ago i told M0rn1ng that boredom takes over me at work.  I told him that it doesn’t excite me anymore and would like new things to do.  I also told him that what i look forward everyday is to tend my blog and not my daily task.  You see, i’ve been in this role for 4 years and i thought i need something new to work on.

Well, i spoke too soon.  My boss is here since last week and he told me that we are going to push through with the team restructuring.  I am to handle a new role, that of overseeing the special projects team.  It seems like it is the excitement that i’ve been wishing for but now that it is in the offing, i chicken out.  What scares me?  The new and heavier responsibilities for one.  Next is how the staff reacts to this change.  The people now under me will belong to the other team and i have a new set of people from the other group.  They’ve been a closely knit bunch of people and i don’t really know what they think and feel about this change.  (Sa ngayon, nakikiramdam pa ako. )  Then there will more conference calls with the US team so we really need to have a post paid telephone line at home.  I don’t want to stay up late in the office and my boss has been considerate enough to allow me to do the calls at home.  There’s a lot to learn and expectations are high.  I’m not sure i’m capable enough.  :(  Can i still be a hands-on mom to Andre with the heavier workload?

On the other hand, this the career move i’ve been waiting for…more learnings, more exposure and more opportunities.  My boss even asked if i would be willing to go to US to train.  Had i still be single i would have answered yes straight away.  But having to leave a husband and a son for 2 weeks makes me think it over a hundred times.

Haaaaay! I’m really having mixed emotions over this whole thing.  And oh btw, it’s going to be implemented mid July.  I need to brace myself to face the challenge.

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Better safe than sorry.  I’ve learned the truthfulness of that statement in a hard way.  We were working on one of our major papers in college and we are pressed for time.  Gladly after months of sleepless night, it’s nearly complete.  We throught we could now relax but we were so wrong.  My pc crashed and some of our files were not recovered anymore.  The dumbest thing we did is not have a backup of our important files.  Needless to say we were back to square one.  We completed it in time but it brought too much stress and pressure which could have been avioded if we have been careful.

From then on i realized the beauty of doing backup.  Today, many sites offer Online Storage and backup.  The best part is that user’s online data appears as a mapped drive or a folder on their computer.  This provides for easy drag and drop interface.  If i’m going to backup i’m definitely going to do online storage.

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I am tagged by Abie.  I’ve done this before for Joy but because i like Abie a lot, i’m doing it again. 

Instruction: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

• I’m left-handed.
• I don’t have any brothers.  I have 2 other siblings and both of them are girls.
• M0rn1ng is 7 years older than me.
• I have 2 flat screen monitors at work.
• I’m the first girl grandchild on both sides.
• I’m the eldest in the family.
• M0rn1ng and B.boy are my life. 

I can’t think of anyone to tag, so feel free to do this if you feel like it. 

Thanks Abie! 

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I love to travel.  Seeing new places, discovering other cultures and eating new food thrills me.  Maybe because we lived in a lot of different places during our growing up years.  We’ve lived in Riyadh, Kingdon of Saudi Arabia for 3 years and my dad took us to other countries for vacation.  One unforgetable family trip is when we went to Cyprus.  We stayed there for a week and we marveled at their culture, arts and of course food.  We stayed at Limassol and got to tour the other parts of the island too.  Troodos mountains has a lot of vineyards and wine-presses.  We were also amazed at the mosaics that reflect the Byzantine period.  It was one vacation that we won’t forget.

I would love to have B.boy experience that too.  I hope we can travel locally or internationally at least once a year.  Our dream destinations are : Hongkong, Singapore, Europe, Egypt and Hawaii. 

If we have funds, we would love to have a vacation in Maui.  It’s a wonderful place and it’s the closest thing to paradise in my opinion.  I’ve been searching the net and looking for options and i found this Maui vacation rentals and it looks promising.  It’s more economical than staying in a hotel which is good for a budget traveller like us.

I hope we will be able to save up so that we can visit our dream destinations one of these days.

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I’ve been tagged by Mhay.  :) 

You Are 37% Vain

Okay, so you’re slightly vain from time to time, but you’re not superficial at all.You are realistic. You know that looks matter. You just try to make them matter less.

How Vain Are You?

Huh?! I’m not so kikay afterall. Hahahaha! Anyway, the result did not come as a surprise. My fashion style has always been ‘wash and wear’. My mantra has always been less is more.

My kikay arsenal is limited to:

• Lotions.  I love soft and supple skin so this is something i can’t do without.
• Moisturizers.  I dread having lines and wrinkles when i hit 50.  So taking good care of my skin is a must.
• Pedicures. My feet are the ugliest part of my body so it is a must to beautify them.  I have pericures every 2 to 3 weeks.
• Blush.  Don’t you love the pinkish glow it gives your cheeks?  Parang inlove. hehehe

So there! It’s not much, is it? If this interests you, consider yourself tagged. 

thanks Mhay!  I had loads of fun doing this.

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He didn’t sleep well last night.  All he did was toss and turn.  What bothered me most is the low grade fever and colds that he has.

He was grumpy this morning too.  He just wants M0rn1ng and i to take care of him.  Our patience nearly ran out because i had some panwich orders here in the office and M0rn1ng has to make them.  Then i’m rushing because my officemates ordered them for their breakfast. 

So, i played with him while M0rn1ng prepared the panwiches and the stuff needed in the shop.  M0rn1ng took over B.boy while i get ready for office.  Pabilisan na eh, it  just took me 15 mins.  I did not have breakfast because i was pressed for time.  It was great traffic isn’t bad and i was at the office at 9:15.  My officemates loved it and i got new orders for tomorrow.

Going back on B.boy, we noticed that his gums are swollen.  Could he be teething?  His molars are next in line to arrive.  I’ve heard horror stories from my bestfriend that his son had a difficult time when his 4 molars came in at the same time.  He cries in pain, has fever and had a hard time eating.

I hope B.boy won’t have a difficult time.  Any tips on how to deal with the teething discomfort?

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A lot of you might not know that i am a Statistician.  But whoa, before you think i’m a Math whiz let me tell you this, i’m not.  hahaha!  Well, i used to think that i am during elementary and high school days.  I even won on Math Contests. I like numbers because you don’t have to memorize a lot of stuff if you understand the concept and analyze things then you can ace any exam.

However, everything changed when i entered college.  I nearly flunked my first Calculus subject.  I cried really hard after that first exam.  It was a very humiliating experience but i learned to study and really prepare for exams.  What helped me a lot are the nice friends i had in our org.  They tutored me for free and everything was a breeze afterwards.

I’m sure a lot of kids today are overwhelmed by numbers too.  It is important that they are not scared of numbers from the very beginning as it will hinder their learning.  They should view math as fun.  It is good that there is SCORE that provides Math Tutors. This is a great help for parents and kids who are having difficulties in Math. Their aim is to help children ages 4 to 14 make significant academic progress through innovative tutoring environment.

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Last night my youngest sister Noreen was raving about the Food Expo at the World Trade Center.  She said that there are a lot of food stuff for sale and most were cheap.  She even brought home pili tarts and piayaya.  Then she mentioned that the Guylian chocolates is sold half of it’s original price.  I was surprised with Morn1ng’s comment.

Morn1ng:  Baka naman expired  na yun o di kaya naman mag-eexpire na.

Noreen:  Sabagay, kasi usually pag malapit na mag expire yung chocolates binabargain eh.

Morn1ng:  Saka di ako bumibili ng mga half the price half the price na yan.  Pag bumili ako full price.

I butt in and said; ang yabang yabang naman nito wala namang binibili. bwahahaha!

Morn1ng then went to fridge and produced a box wrapped in cash and carry plastic.  I peeked inside and was surprised to see a box of Guylian chocolates.  (Pahiya ako)  That was so sweet of him to surprise me with chocolates.  It’s his gift daw for our 56th monthsary. 

Thanks mahal ko.  You are getting better and better through the years, always full of surprises and never runs out of pakulo to make me kilig all over.

Happy 56 months!

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Here’s another good news for us bloggers.  Payperpost announced the release of PPP Direct.  Now, it’s possible to make money by advertisers approaching the posties to make sponsored post for them.  There is a widget that bloggers can install and it will return badges on their site.  This can be clicked by advertisers and they can make an offer.  I’ve installed one and you can see it in my sidebar.

This is way better than competitors like Reviewme where they charge between 50-100% mark up on blogger’s post.  This mark up is to cover the expenses on facilitating the review, match-making, customer service processes, tax report and financial processing.  With PPP direct, you get to paid more as it do away with the middleman in transactions driven by our blogs.  PPP Direct only charges a 10% service fee and nearly 5% of that is PayPal and Credit Card Fees.

It also has security features to avoid spamming and ensure both bloggers and advertisers messy free transactions.  They sure do know how to attain a level of security that makes both sellers and buyers happy.

Check out the details here:
http://blog.payperpost.com/2007/05/part-one-of-birdo-release.html

Watch the overview video:
http://blog.payperpost.com/2007/05/payperpost-direct-overview.html

See it live in action:
http://andybeard.eu/

This is a great way for bloggers to maximize their earnings while having the safety and security of an escrow-like service.

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This is B.boy’s recent favorite pastime : making faces.  He’s super pa-cute.  :p  Whenever he sees the camera, he will start posing and smiling.  It is very amusing.  :)  I hope he stays that way so that we can have a very nice album for him to see when he grows up.

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They say that work is best when you’re having fun doing it. I’ve always dreamed of writing reviews and was so glad i got to know companies advertise on blogs. Now, i can do what i love and earn added income on the side. Their website is pretty good for it has clear instructions on how to go about the whole thing.

I’ve signed up last week and was approved 3 days ago. In just that short while i’ve already earned $21.  I know it is still small but the opportunities are endless. And i’m certain that in just a few more weeks the earnings will trickle in.  :)  And what i’m going to do with it? Well, it could add to our mutual fund investment or maybe fund our next family trip.

I also got to know new friends at the forum who has been so helpful to a newbie like me. This is really a good find! I’m so excited as this will help readers find new information and for me to improve my writing skills.

I heart PPP.

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