The Noise is Too Much

When we first moved to this condominium where we are staying right now, there was no problem at all. We liked it because it is not the high rise building but only three stories high and we are in the first floor. This means we have a neighbor downstairs and another on the upper floor. The couple upstairs are newlyweds and we barely hear any noise. They both work in the medical field. If I am not mistaken their work schedules are during night time.

Let us fast forward to four years later.  The situation with our upstairs neighbor is different now. More people started to live with them and the noise has become unbearable especially during unholy hours that you want to get some sleep. The building needs Durisol insulating concrete forms in its walls to absorb all the sound coming from the outside. We have approached them at one point about the noise but I think they just keep on forgetting or ignoring. The weekends are the worst since they always have late night visitors on Fridays. I am just praying that one day. I will get used to the noise and do not mind them at all but if you are already at the stage where you want peace and quiet when you get home, it is difficult.

Let Us Pray for Philippines

If you are a Filipino, you probably heard about what happened in the Philippines two days ago.  Another storm struck the country again, bringing non-stop deadly rains in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces since Monday. It was raining for almost two days and they were saying that the amount of rain that fell is more than what Ondoy (another storm) brought in 2009. Classes, work and even trading has been suspended due to neck-deep waters on roadways. The water submerged cars and houses forcing thousands of people to flee their homes for safety.

I have been glued on TV watching the live telecast of news from my hometown. The rescue operations were being fed via satellite, and you can see that they do not have the necessary equipments for these emergencies. You see people on the roofs shivering while waiting for somebody to get them. The hospitals were running out of gas for their emergency generators. The evacuation centers are all getting filled up with not enough bathrooms or shelters for those affected by the flood. They are saying that help is on its way but do they have enough resources to do so?

All we can do is pray for everybody’s safety and that the rain will stop. The death toll rises every day and the damage left behind is not yet accounted for. A lot of infrastructures were damaged. Hope the Philippines can get back in due time and life be again normal to a lot of people.

Great Wedding Gift

Posted by Gaylord Campbell

I was so lucky that when I got married my parents decided to buy my husband and I our own home. We were doing well on our own, but we could have never afforded to own our own home so early if it wasn’t for their generosity. My husband was really worried that there would be some conditions attached to the gift, and it made him kind of uncomfortable. In order to make my husband feel better about the situation I asked my parents point blank if the expected anything in return from us for the gift. Luckily my parents understood where my hubby was coming from and weren’t offended at all. They did say they had one condition on buying us the house though. They would like us to get a home security system before moving in so that they can feel like we are safe in our new home. We decided if that was the only expectation then we would search home security new yorkand get a system right away. We thought that was a reasonable request and we would be stupid to turn down their generosity because of it.

Full Size Comforter Set For Home

I have been delaying my shopping for comforter sets for my daughter. Since we upgraded her bed to a full size, I have not bought anything yet for the winter. I have a lot of full bed sheet sets but I need thick blankets and comforter sets. I only have twin size comforters for the bed she used to have. So, what am I waiting for? I am waiting for a big sale where I can have big discounts when I go shopping.

BrylaneHome is having a sale right now on their comforters and sets. By using the promo code BHWEBHITS, you can get 20% off your highest priced item plus free shipping upgrade. Almost all the comforter set collection is on sale up to 60% off and with the additional savings by using the code, I can get a big discount. Other discounts are also available when you open a Brylanehome credit card.

I like to get this for Isabella’s room. I do not think I still need the tailored valance but the grape color really matches her curtains. It is a reversible comforter set that includes sheets, pillowcases and shams. This will be a perfect for her forthcoming birthday too.

Can You Buy A Home Even With Bad Credit?

One thing that has been instilled in my mind when I arrived here in the U.S. is the importance of having a good credit. To have an outstanding credit score, you start building by paying your bills on time and do not over borrow. Your credit is very important when you are applying for a loan and the interest rate depends on how good or bad your credit is.

So what happens if you have a bad credit and you want to buy a home? Of course, when you have an outstanding credit history, the approval rate is higher but it does not mean you cannot be approved at all if you have a bad credit. There are companies like advantagehomerates.com that specializes in helping people who are trying to get a loan but with not so good credit standing. They can also help you on your construction loans, bailouts, loans with only 3% down, refinancing, loans for self-employed people, first time buyers and a lot more. If you are interested and to help you better with your inquiries, you can contact them or fill out a mortgage inquiry application form on their website (advantagehomerates.com). Good luck on your future home.

Planning To Rent An Apartment in Calgary?

Looking for Calgary rentals have become so easy these days because of rentcalgary.com. Calgary is divided into four major areas: north west, north east, south west and south east. At rentcalgary.com, houses or apartments for rent are available in each area and once you decide which side of Calgary you pick to reside, all properties for rent in that area will be shown online, complete with descriptions, pictures, size of the property, rental pricing including deposit, number of bedrooms and a lot more information needed when renting. If you have a pet, you will readily know if pets are allowed or not.

Renting is so easy in rentcalgary.com. Just find the rental property online and you can call the leasing office right away to make arrangements. It is only a click away. Here is one thing more with rentcalgary.com. It is not only for renters but also for owners who wants to advertise their vacant houses or apartments. For homeowners who are interested to have their properties listed or to know pricing, go to their website at rentcalgary.com or call 780-905-4062. Do not waste your time looking for a place to rent in Calgary. You can do it anywhere without leaving your home or office.

Get Rid Of The Oil?

When we talk about breakfast, we always have bacon in mind but we know how fattening they are. We tried to lay the the cooked bacon on a paper towel to absorb the fat before serving and we see how fast the paper towel gets wet. Here is a different way of doing it. You can hang the bacon on this one:

See the fat at bottom plate? That's how much fat intake you can have if you eat all these bacon. It does not totally get rid the fat but at least lessen. I love bacon but i don't eat it that often now. Maybe once in a blue moon.

I Thought I Lost It

My daughter came to work with me today. Since it is summer break for school kids, I drop her off to the baby sitter before going to work. She stays there until her father picks her up around 3 pm. Today, I gave her a break by bringing her to my job. She can actually come here every day but when she runs out of activities to do, she gets bored. After we left home, our first stop this morning was at McDonalds to buy two fruit oatmeal for our breakfast. I tell you, this is my family’s favorite food from MD. As I was paying, I cannot find my debit card inside my wallet. All of a sudden I felt uneasy because it has been three or four days since the last time I used it. As I do my recap, I remember I bought some valances for windows and it was hubby who lined up at the register. I cannot recall if he handed it back to me or not. The more I got uneasy because when I called hubby, the debit card was not inside his wallet too. Hayyy, I have to wait until 4pm when he gets home and search for it. After almost the whole day of being uneasy, finally he called. He found it still in his shorts pocket inside the hamper bag next to the washing machine. Had it been another day longer, I would be needing a replacement card by now. I'm thankful it was just misplaced not totally lost.

For The Home

As I was saying on my last post about our house hunting, my friend fell in love with one house we went to. This is a house located in our area. It has a huge kitchen with an island and a breakfast nook. Right above the island is an enclume pot rack with only few pots hanging. It is a feature in the kitchen that made it more appealing but my friend plans to get the bigger enclume pot racks if he buys this house. There are 5’ enclume potracks in chrome that are suitable for large kitchens. These racks can hold large pans and cooking utensils making them accessible when you are cooking.

My friend is very excited about the developments on his house hunting. He has been in contact with the realtor almost everyday. I am not sure if they already submitted an offer but for sure they will do it before the week is over. I cannot wait for the day the we become neighbors again.

Break In At The School

During the family day at my daughter’s school, it was a happy atmosphere around the school area. It was a well attended affair with booths selling food, home decors, doing face painting and there was a lot of activities for the kids. The kids had so much fun. The drizzle did not scare them away; the fun just continued until it was closing time. So we it was really a wonderful weekend for the school.

Come Monday morning, it was a totally different scenario at the school. There were police cars all over and cops inside the school. A mom who was also bringing her child to school told me that the school had a break in over the weekend. Laptops and money were taken! How and when did it happen? No one knows yet but the school was open during the weekend so that people can use the rest room inside the gymnasium during the fun day Saturday. When I got home, I called my friend right away to get in touch with the home security Starkville. She was still undecided whether to sign up at Localtv-Satellite.com for their home security but you can never be lax on safety. It is always better be safe than sorry. How could these people steal from of all places – the school! The cops even called my babysitter because she lives next to the school if she saw anything unusual last weekend but she was not able to give them any answers since she was at work that time. Hope they get all the leads and eventually catch the perpetrators soon.

A Night With Family and Friends

I have mentioned few weeks ago that my friend bought a house here in our town. They have been doing a lot of tlc’s on the house that we never got the chance to meet up for dinner. So, during the Pacquiao fight they finally gave us a call. We watched the boxing match at their house. It was the first time we saw their new house after they bought it.

Our first impression when we got into the house is they did a very good job in fixing the kitchen. On the kitchen counter, they did a granite restoration and a marble restoration on the island. With matching new aluminum appliances, their kitchen looks brand new and updated. My friend says that they still have to do a stone floor restoration on the garage but that could wait for next year. They cannot afford another expense at the moment.

So as they always say, when there is a Pacquiao fight, it brings Filipino family in the U.S. together. That was what happened last May 7th. Although the fight was not the action that we were expecting, we still enjoyed the night seeing old family and friends together again. See you guys on the next Pacquiao match.

Lost Package?

One of my customers from my online store sent me a message today complaining that he did not receive the package I sent him. He said that the package is not in one of the residential mailboxes in their apartments. And he added that the mailboxes have their own address plaques that is very visible and can never be missed. He sounded like it was my fault why he did not get the package and that I have to send him a replacement or refund his money.

Before I give answers to queries like this, first thing I check is the tracking of the shipment. When I entered the tracking number at the shipper’s website, it showed that it has been delivered two days ago. Once I have this information, I am now confident to answer him back. Actually, I did not say anything to him anymore but I just emailed him the tracking information I got from the shipper. I am still waiting for his reply up to now. Hope he found it eventually or he gets it eventually from somebody who might have found the package. I am so thankful I paid extra to track the package otherwise I am in trouble right now.

My Friend Just Bought A House

One of our family friend recently made a closing on a house here in our town. When they first moved in four years ago, they lived in an apartment until they decided to buy a house. They have been doing house hunting for months; finding a home that would fit their budget. Home prices are not only high here in our area but we also pay one of the highest homeowner's tax in the U.S. So finally, they were able to get a house they liked.

The got a cheaper house that needs some tlc and kitchen remodeling. A design build contractor is needed in the future if they want to make an additional bedroom upstairs. It is a two family house with only one bedroom upstairs that can generate more income if it is converted to a two bedroom. This is why they got a two family. On the first floor, there is nothing to be done except for the kitchen.

So now my friend is a very proud homeowner. A house blessing is happening maybe this summer. For now, they have to do a lot of clean up and painting before moving in by the end of the month. I am happy that they still live in town and only a few blocks away from where we live.

Locked Out Of The House

My husband just called me that he was locked out of our house. He and Isabella are going to the park to play tennis and he forgot to grab the key of the Kia Soul on his way out. He was asking me if I was already on my way home so that they can wait for me but I told him I was still at work. I suggested that he tried the kitchen window because I remember I opened it this morning when I was cooking some bacon for breakfast. I did not hear from him in the next 15 minutes, so I pretty much assumed that he was able to get into the house again. Oh, I just got a text message that they are already getting gas.

Speaking of gas, did you see how much it went up again? We are so thankful that we have this Soul that is so efficient with gas. This car has a very positive review on one of the used car blogs I have read. We bought from a friend who moved in from Chicago. He does not need the car for now because he takes the subway everyday so he sold it to hubby. I think our friend bought it from very reliable Chicago used cars dealership. The car is little but with big cargo space. This became our city car and the van for out of town and long trips only. I wonder what will be the price of gas this summer?

Home Alone For While Cooking Dinner

The father and daughter team went out to play tennis. The house is so quiet while I am cooking dinner. I'm not even watching TV. I'm in the kitchen cooking sinigang, longganisa and fried chicken. The only noise you can hear is the steam coming out from my cooking. Once they get home, the TV will be in full blast again. They're back!

Spring Break and Visitors

It is almost vacation time for my daughter. Her last day of school is on Friday then she will have a week off for Spring break. My husband took some vacation days too to be with my daughter next week. I cannot take the whole week off but when our visitors from Las Vegas come, maybe I will take Tuesday off just to be able to spend a day with them. Our visitors are from Philippines but they are in Las Vegas to attend a seminar about commercial pest control. They told us over the phone that they even met a Las Vegas Exterminator who was very helpful in showing them the process of exterminating pests and bugs in houses. This is relevant to their business since they are contractors on homes and buildings in the Philippines. Hope we will not be talking more bug facts when we see one another next week.

We really do not know where we are going to bring our visitors during their stay. Atlantic City is out of the picture because they just came from Las Vegas and our AC is just a mini Vegas less the beach. Of course, we have to tour them around New York City but other than that, we have no clue. They have been here once so maybe they just want to hang out with friends over dinner or go to the outlets for shopping. It is all up to them. We will just go with the flow.

Spring Cleaning

Once the weather gets warmer, it is the best time to do spring cleaning. I have started mine last weekend with the living room first and I also changed the curtains to something colorful. I want my living room to be bright for spring and summer. Our living room carpet is of neutral color so it easy to match with any color for the curtains. I already scheduled for a professional carpet cleaning to come this weekend.

Anybody who lives in Austin and Dallas areas that needs carpet cleaning services? The steam team of Texas can do all your carpet cleaning needs. If you do not know how to find them, just search for carpet cleaning Onion Creek or carpet cleaning Garfield and you will find The Steam Team of Austin right away. My friend had no problems looking for carpet cleaning Anderson Mill.

The Steam Team of Texas has been in the cleaning services for 25 years. They do, not only carpet, upholstery, leather, air duct, drapery cleaning but also pet odor treatments, 24-hour water extraction, marble polishing, construction services and a lot more. If you like to give them a call for your quote, here is their contact no. 1800-880-7785.

My Onions Are Growing

My onions are growing, not at my backyard from my kitchen. I bought bags of onions few weeks ago and when i saw them from the kitchen tray, leaves started to grow. It has no soil or water at all. My daughter was excited as she is learning about how plants grow. But how can i explain to her that these onions grew without soil and water?

So we planted some of them in a big pot with soil, then put it by the kitchen window to get some sunlight so that she can watch them grow. I also gave some to my co-worker for his vegetable garden. Oh my, they grow fast!

Saturday Breakfast

It's saturday morning. No work, no school. The daughter wants to make something for breakfast so we opened a cannister of crescent rolls from philsbury. She put some cheese inside and rolled them.

Mom's roles are only to put them in the oven and take them out when cook. She did the rest.

Now it's cooking and breakfast is ready in a few.

Where Is My Mail?

I just finished talking to the maintenance guy in our building. There is one mail from one of the company I work with online that I have been waiting for weeks now. I have called the office and they already informed me that it has been mailed to me several days ago but still I have not receive it. So when I talk to the guy in charge of the apartment mailboxes at the lobby, he said that he has not seen any mail for me from that company. This is the problem when you have cluster mailboxes in your place of residence. Mails get lost sometimes and we have no way of knowing it. Although these commercial mailboxes have locks but if your mail got lost before it even reach your mailbox, it is something that cannot be prevented anymore. There are around 50 condo units in this building so just imagine how many mails come every day. I hope that my mail just went into somebody else’s mailbox who has a heart of putting it back in our box. I really need this mail so that I can file my tax already.

Hubby has been telling me not to expect the lost mail anymore. I am giving few more days. If I don’t get it by Saturday, I have no choice but to request for another one.