Mrs. Smith is Perfect for the Holidays

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Mrs. Smith's for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

From its best pies to sending a holiday card to a friend or family member, Mrs. Smith is always there for you. I am one busy mom and for the first time I did not send holiday cards to my family friends via mail but it does not mean that I totally forgot about them. I admit I was a little which is not an excuse at all so I look for a website where I can send holiday cards to my loved ones the fastest way. I found Mrs. Smith microsite. It so easy to send your holiday message to family and friends. This is the best feature I really like. All you have to do is enter your name, recipient's name, recipient's name and email plus your message. That's it! Click submit and your holiday e-card is on its way. Do not worry even if you have a lot of friends, you can send the e-cards up to 50 people using their beautiful holiday designs. Try this Mrs. Smith microsite yourself and I am sure you will love it.

 

 

 

 

I have been a fan of Mrs. Smith’s pies. In fact, I still have a pie  in my refrigerator. I bought several of them for giveaways to friends and my favorites are Mrs. Smith's Pumpkin, Peach, Coconut and Sweet Potato pies. I feel good every time I buy Mrs. Smith's pies because they give $1 donation to Operation Homefront for every pie sold in November and December. Mrs. Smith's will also provide pies to them for Thanksgiving.

 

 

Thank you Mrs. Smith for making our holidays yummy and meaningful.

Holiday Baking

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Truvia® Natural Sweetener for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Lately, I and the daughter have been doing a lot of work in the kitchen. It started when I told her that she is my kitchen helper. She loved the idea. We started with baking ready to bake goodies like cakes and cookies until it became not just a bonding time with mom and daughter but on special occasions my daughter wants to bring some to any family gathering we go to. We have been baking so often now that it worries me about our calories and sugar intake. Of course, this is because we don’t just bake but we eat what we bake too.

So I searched for recipes with fewer calories and less sugar and the found this recipe:

Brownies with Truvia® Natural Sweetener

Ingredients:

3 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate

¼ cup cup unsalted butter

¼ cup canola oil

2 large eggs

3 ½ TB Truvia® natural sweetener spoonable

¼ cup white granulated sugar

½ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 TB skim milk

¾ cup all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking powder

 

Directions: Mix all the ingredients while you preheat the oven to 325 Fahrenheit. Place baking chocolate, butter and canola oil in a large microwavable bowl. Heat for 30 seconds and stir. Repeat and stir to melt the chocolate. Whisk together the eggs, Truvia® natural sweetener, sugar, salt, vanilla and milk in a separate small bowl. Add the egg mixture to the chocolate mixture and stir. After sifting the all-purpose flour, fold it into the chocolate mixture using a rubber scraper. Do not over mix. Pour batter into a square pan and bake for 22-25 minutes. Do not over bake. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes.

Truvia® Baking Blend, designed for easy, at-home baking, is a blend of Truvia® natural sweetener and sugar. It provides sugar-like taste and texture in recipes but with 75% fewer calories and twice the amount of sweetness than sugar. Only 1.5 pound bag of Truvia® Baking Blend has the equivalent sweetness of 3 pounds of sugar, which is approximately 7 cups, enough to make 13 pies, 9 batches of cookies or batches of brownies. You can buy them at retail stores nationwide in a 1.5 pound bag with a closeable, easy to use pout spout.

Now that I have shared with this brownies recipe, do you have your own to share and we can re-create it by using Truvia®. I would appreciate it if you can leave a comment on my blog.

For more information and recipes, please Visit the Truvia® website for more tips and information on Truvia® Baking Blend.

 

Giftcard.com

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of GiftCard.com for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

After my last year's holiday shopping experience, I am revising my traditional gift ideas into something that will be more convenient for me in terms of buying gifts for family members, friends and especially for the kids. For the holiday season, I usually shop for two families, two close friends, one step daughter and of course my husband and Isabella. I am counting a total of fifteen Christmas presents all together.

Still shopping until Christmas Eve last year was not fun at all. Thank God for good friends who volunteered to pick up my food orders otherwise I would not be able to make it on time for Christmas dinner. This year, I found a solution to my problem. I want a stress free, no traffic and relaxing Christmas shopping. I will be buying all my presents at GiftCard.com, the largest online store for hundreds of brands of gift cards. It is a one-stop shop for gift cards like Zappos, Callaway, Foot Locker, Visa, Best Buy, Target, Lowes, Old Navy, Toy R Us, Outback and more. For sure, I would get the Toys R Us and Best Buy for kids and Outlook for the husbands and wives. You have the option if you want your gift cards delivered by mail or sent as e-gift cards. The feature I really like at Giftcard.com is they can personalize a gift card for you which to me is something so cool. A simple personal touch on the gift card makes it more meaningful to give this Holiday season.

I will definitely promote Giftcard.com to my friends. Please check them out at Giftcard.com and try them too. Let me know which one if your favorite gift card and would you personalize it too? Also, Giftcard.com is now on Twitter. Do not for get to follow them at @GiftCardLab. Happy shopping.

The Boss Is Out

It is a quiet day at the office today. Our boss went to another branch to interview applicants sent by the employment agency. That is an old branch but it has been revamp since the branch manager retired at the beginning of this year.  They need seasonal drivers that will service the Philadelphia area. I do not know what made my boss went down there to personally meet the applicants. He has not done this with the previous ones.

Some of these temp hires get lucky when they are eventually absorbed by the company they work with. Our receptionist for one, she got a permanent position after working for six months with the temp. My boss liked her performance so he offered her the job. She was so happy because she is a working student and at my job, they are more flexible with your hours when you have to do something for school.
Everybody is aware that she is not staying for good. Once she is done with school, she will be looking for a job in line with the course she is taking. As long as she gives sufficient time for us to get a replacement, it is fine.

At Chipotle

It was our first time to try Chipotle until one day a new branch was opened nearby. We stopped by and tried it. And, we really really like it. The set up is not new because we frequent Qdoba and another Mexican restaurant which I cannot remember the name right now. I ordered the burrito bowl which filled me up, hubby had the chicken quesadilla and daughter one of the kids meals. Now we know why a lot of people go to chipotle. We are one of them now.

A Day Off and A Lunch

My husband took a day off today to do some work in our house (change the lights to energy saving induction lamps) and go to motor vehicles for the car inspection. I know that the last day of the month is still on Saturday but since we already learned our lesson from the past, we will never do our car inspection on the last day of the month anymore.  Other than the car inspection, he also has to go to the town center to get a street parking sticker for the new car before we get ticketed by doing overnight parking on the street. If our drive way can only fit two cars at a time, we don’t have to get this sticker anymore.

On a day like this, we normally have lunch together. During lunch break, hubby came to my job  and he brought me to this nice outdoor restaurant for lunch. It is located on the hilly side of town, overlooking NYC with tables on the patio.  It was a little breezy but we still took one of the tables outside the restaurant. I had a soup and salad while hubby had lobster pizza. The food was delicious was great. We stayed a little longer for coffee until it was time for me to go back to work. It was really a perfect day to have an outdoor lunch together.

Veggies From Neighbor

These are fresh vegetables from our neighbor. This is the second batch this summer. He always invites us to his house and do the harvest ourselves. My daughter had fun especially cutting the ampalaya and okras. One of her favorites is tortang eggplant. Me and hubby love the ampalaya with egg or cook it with sardinas. lol. 

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.

Chicken with Lettuce Wrap

Another favorite at pei wei is the minced chicken lettuce wrap. This is made of small bits of chicken with shitake mushrooms, water chestnuts, scallions, garlic, rice sticks and lettuce. The way to eat it is to wrap the chicken in the lettuce, roll it and eat it like an egg roll. It is an appetizer but to me one serving is enough as dinner. I can finish one whole. We always order one for me and one for hubby.

Preparing For Back to School

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Famous Footwear for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

Before the school ended last June, they sent a list of supplies that are needed for back to school. There are what the kids would need for the new school year. The list specifically said what type of notebooks and folders the kids would need. There's nothing that is offered for free these days, even boxes of tissues, they are required to bring at least three boxes when the school opens. 

 

I always buy the school supplies first because they go on sale early. I am also very happy that I don't have to shop for clothes anymore. This is the second year that they are wearing uniforms. All I need to buy is a new pair of shoes, a bigger size than her old ones. I think her foot grew one size bigger over the summer. I do not panic buy when it comes with shoes since I found Famous Footwear that carries hundreds of name brand shoes and style at a great price. I like to shop at Famous Footwear because it is not crowded compared to other department stores. I am a busy mom so when I shop I just want to be in and out of the store if possible.

 

 

For mom's who are also buying shoes for their kids, Famous Footwear has a back to school promotion of BOGO + 15% off Famous Footwear Coupon . This coupon will surely give you a lot of savings and if you are a Rewards member, you get 20% instead of 15%. It is easy and free to join the rewards program and right away you start earning 1 point for every $1 you spend in store or online to earn certificates up to $100 a year. 

 

So whoever is doing back to school shopping, do not forget to print the coupon by clicking the link. Do not worry if sometimes you cannot find your shoes in the store, Famous Footwear will get for you through home delivery or on www.famous.com. Bear in mind that this discount do not last. Print the coupon now and redeem at the store between 8/2-8/18. Enjoy your shopping.

 

To Maryland

My sister-in-law and her husband are here in the U.S. for a three month vacation.  They have been for three weeks now. Every weekend, we have plans for them like going shopping at outlets, see various tourist spots around New Jersey and New York or do cookouts and barbecues with relatives in our backyard.  Last week, it was my husband’s brother who also lives here who brought the visitors to North Carolina for a week vacation. They just got home two days ago. Tomorrow or should I say this weekend is our turn to bring them to Maryland and see some of their friends. It has been confirmed just now by people from Maryland that they are expecting us tomorrow.

Because of our trip, we have to make adjustments with regards to our other plans for the weekend. First, the van (which we are using tomorrow) will go for oil change today instead of Sunday then I have to shop for the best baby blankets for my cousin who is expecting. She lives in South Jersey so we can stop at her house tomorrow to give my present. This will be a big surprise for her. This trip is unplanned so my cousin thinks I am sending her present through the mail. I hope she likes it. Before I made my decision on what baby blankets i should buy for her, I even check out these other uses!

I hope all my errands are done by 7:30 p.m. Why, because I want to watch the opening ceremonies of the 2012 London Olympics live on TV tonight. If time is running out, we will just have a take home dinner at eat while watching the Olympics.

Crab Wontons

There is a new restaurant that opened in town called pei wei. it is owned by p.f. chang which serves asian food like lo mien, pad thai, teriyaki, mongolian beef, etc. and this crab wontons as one of the appetizers. It is made of crab with cream cheese. It is yummy, creamy and crunchy on the outside. i like the presentation with their famous sweet and sour sauce. i took this picture through instagram.

Happy For Her

I am referring to our receptionist in the office. She is not a direct hire by the company. My boss got her from a temp agency when the former receptionist came to work that day just to tender her resignation and left. There was no two week notice at all. I was not sure if the two week notice is required for all employment contracts but it is only proper to give your employer the chance to hire a replacement before you leave. I understand if some type of misunderstanding happened at the office that made you quit your job, but none. So to cover her job immediately, we had to call a temp agency.

That is how our current receptionist got into the picture. She is a working student, very polite and articulate when she talks to customers on the phone. My boss right away liked her job attitude. Yesterday marked her 6th month in the office. My boss surprised her by hiring her as the receptionist permanently. She did not expect it. She was all smiles when she left my bosses' office so we knew right away it was good news. We are all happy for her as well.

Jollibee Is Here

Yes, Jollibee is here in New Jersey. Our first ever. It is located in Jersey City, NJ. It opened around a month ago.

This picture was taken during our first visit. My two nephews did not stop following Jollibee around the store. Just like the other Phil restaurants that just opened, expect long lines especially during weekends. We do not mind at all. Jollibee is our favorite over Mickie Dees :(

NJ's Jollibee is the second one on the East Coast. The first one is in New York City which opened around 3 years ago now. This is one is more accessible to us and no need to pay tolls anymore to eat our favorite chicken joy, palabok and peach mango pie.

My Car

Not too long ago, I wrote about my car’s milestone; reaching its 100,000 miles. To date, I am still driving my car at 133,000 miles! It is still in good running condition with only minor repairs (knock on wood!). However minor it is, once the engine light comes on, I still panic right away and would switch cars with my husband the next day.

The most recent of my panic attack was when I was on my way home from work. But even before the check engine light came on, I already had two instances where my car would die while in idle and thankfully it starts back up. It was on the third one that check engine light came on and stayed. How I wish the car has switches that can just turn the check engine light off. As soon as I got home, I asked hubby to bring the car to the shop and run a diagnostic test to see what is going on. The test gave him a code P0340 camshaft position sensor with list of probable causes like open or short circuit condition, poor electrical or weak battery condition or faulty camshaft position sensor. Although the part is available at the car parts store, we did not buy the part itself; we left to our mechanic to give us a quote for both parts and labor. He is one of the trusted and reliable mechanics we have known and who does not overcharge. ,To make the long story short, my car got fixed and the check engine light is now off.
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We have been preparing for the day that my car would not be drivable at all. At this point, my big thanks for the services and comfort it has given us for the past 9 years. We started looking for a replacement but we have not made a pick yet. Which cars are we eyeing for? There are three, all are 4 cylinders only. We are still debating which of the three. ,Why not get a hybrid? That is another to consider too. But let’s see. We will let you know.

A Healthy School Snack

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Quaker Oats for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

Periodically the school would send notices through your kids. I already made it a habit to check her take home folder because sometimes my daughter forgets to hand them to me on time. One of the most frequent are reminders regarding snacks and bringing birthday party food to school. The school wants the kids to have healthy snacks; strictly no candies, junk food, gum or any sweets. For Isabella, I buy different kinds of fruits then I alternate them with whole sandwiches and the Quaker Soft Baked Bar.

 

 

 

The quaker breakfast snack is a new discovery. We were at the supermarket when I daughter asked me to buy one for her. Maybe she saw it from one of her classmates in school. It comes in two flavors – cinnamon pecan bread and banana nut bread. The banana nut bread has become a favorite not only by Isabella but also the husband and me. They are tasty and with only 140 calories, 5g of fiber and 6g of protein, It is also an excellent source of 5 b-vitamin. This new quaker soft baked bar is made with real fruits and nuts that can be eaten anywhere you want. It is very handy snack that you can just put inside your purse, in your car or gym bag. You can also microwave it for a real bakery experience. This is a wholesome food for everybody.

 

 

Go Organic With Whitney Farms Products

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Whitney Farms for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

 

My mom who lives in the Philippines loves gardening a lot. She has a backyard full of flowering plants and orchids. As far as I can remember, I think she has cattleya, denrobiums, vandas and butterfly orchids. She has a lot of green plants too. My mom can spend the whole day just be tending to all her plants and flowers.

 

 

Last time I spoke to her over the phone, she mentioned to me she has plans of using organic soil and organic plant food for her plants. She has tried organic plant food before when I sent her a small box and she said what a big difference it made to her plants. The leaves are healthier and the flowers were blooming nonstop. She got a lot of praises from people who come to our house to visit her. I plan of sending her more since I found a $3 dollar off the Whitney Farms organic soil and organic plant food. Whitney Farms® has a full line of 100% natural plant foods and soil that includes no additive, no artificial ingredients that can give you big and beautiful flowers. Their products are very easy to apply with low to no dust and no manure odor. They contain beneficial microbes with specially designed protein-based blends that provide your plants with both macro and micronutrients essential for their growth.

 

 

So to all plant growers, do not miss this savings coupon from Whitney Farms. The coupon is valid until the end of July 2012. Try Whitney Farm products and see the difference it makes to your plants and flowers.

 

 

 

This is a small photo of my garden that I wish i can grow orchids like what my mom has.

 

 

 

Japanese Green Tea

Hubby won in a tennis tournament against some of his Japanese friends and one of the prizes is a $50 gift card which can only be used to buy japanese green tea. I was not familiar of the different favors of the green tea available so i just picked randomly.The order came today this is how one of the boxes and its contents look like. Inside the tea bags are not only tea leaves but they are dried twigs or branches of a tea plant. To me, they are organic and no artificial flavors or ingredients at all. There's no need to use a tea maker though - which is a good thing. I have tried a few already and still i am trying to adjust to this new flavor of green tea.

Our California Trip

The California trip we had was planned for the kids. It was the best time to bring them there because they were already at the age to enjoy and have fun at the various theme parks. We stayed at a hotel that has amenities for kids to have fun and for the adults to relax too. It was a two bedroom condo hotel with living area, a kitchen and very close to a lot of shopping centers and restaurants. Planning ahead is the key to stress free trip. I made airline and hotel reservations months before the trip. I purchased electronic disneyland tickets to avoid the line at the park entrance and we even have our ponchos ready. I have checked the weather channel and rain welcomed us from the airport. I would not forget how the pouring rain got us all soaked in one of our trips. The rain made our planned trip for that day more fun.

This was my daughter’s first trip to see Mickey Mouse and all her favorite Disney characters. It was unforgettable for her. And, being with her two little cousins made her trip more enjoyable. The kids
want to do it again next time. I have no problems with that. There were still a lot of places we were not able to visit because of time constraints. We will see you next time again, Mickey and Minnie.

My Cousin Bee

I promised myself to blog her arrival. She is my cousin whom I have not seen in 20 years or so. I could not even remember when the last time I saw her. We lived in the same town but because I did not attend the same school with her (she is younger than I) and I was based in Manila before I moved here many many years ago. I am thankful for the social networking sites that keeps us connected whereever we are.

Tomorrow she is arriving for a visit. She already posted as her status as “off to new york.” Her plane is expected to land at JFK airport around four pm and would you believe I will not be able to see her until around 7pm. Hubby is picking her up because I cannot get off from work early on Mondays. I am just hoping the white chocolate delivery I am expecting tomorrow would come on time before I leave work. I ordered them especially for her. White chocolates are her favorite.

My cousin is staying with us for 20 days. We have another cousin who lives in Queens so maybe we can get together while she is here. Our first weekend is to go around Washington, DC for Easter.

Enjoying Girl Scout Cookies

I am having my morning coffee while munching on this Thank You Berry Munch girl scout cookies. This is one of the new flavors they have. These cookies are made with real cranberries. Another favorite of mine on their new flavors is their lemon cookies called Savannah Smiles.

A nice birdhouse to attract some cute birds

Guest post written by Gloria Sommers

I love to see wildlife around my home, although there really isn't enough in my neighborhood for my opinion. But I guess that I shouldn't be surprised because I don't live in the wilderness or anything like that. But it doesn't hurt to try and attract some little cute birds to our home to watch and enjoy. So I thought it might be fun to try and make a birdhouse by myself so that I could attract some birds to look at.

Making a birdhouse is something that I've never tackled before, though. I looked online to find some easy birdhouse directions I could follow and ran across the site debtcounseling.bankrupt.com/. I read through it some and after that I decided to use it to help get some counseling for my debt.

I did find the perfect little tutorial for a birdhouse that I wanted to try out for myself. So I'm going to give it a go and hope that it actually attracts some birds and will give me a little more wildlife to look at from my front porch!

Today Is Friday

and this is what probably be our lunch again since it is a no meat friday. The fillet o fish is still 2 for $3! But even if it is not lent, i always have fillet o fish when i am in mickie dees. Pair this with a large brewed tea and lunch is all done.

Mega million is up to $540 million. Good luck guys.

Happy Friday.

Happy friday.

Show Your Touch of Class with Wine Gift Baskets

Gift baskets are offerings that can make anyone happy. The items put in the baskets speak what type of person is giving the basket. Hence, adding a bottle of wine will add a touch of class to the entire basket. The choice of wines also plays an important role in the quality of wine baskets that you are going to give.

It is best to order your wine baskets online when the recipients live far from you. So, you do not have to go through the trouble of packing the gift. Ordering online includes delivering your gift to your recipient in a timely manner, and the online vendor will take care of everything for you.

For people who love wines, they will surely enjoy making wine gift baskets. The personal touch of putting all the items together on your own will make the basket very exceptional and unique. In order to make the wine basket a very personal one, you have to make sure that you know the favorite wine of the recipients. This is to make the recipient very happy because this means you pay attention to their favorite.

The most important aspect when creating a wine basket is the basket itself. It should be sturdy enough to hold the bottle of wine and keep it in place. A sturdy basket is needed in order to avoid undesired accidents. Straws should be spread at the bottom or base of the basket in order to serve as a cushion and protect the wine bottle.

You should find the perfect wine for the recipient of the wine basket. Once you have selected the wine, you can choose other items that can be included to your basket. In order to make a good wine basket, you have to be creative. You can choose anything you want to include in the basket. You can add items that are practical or for one’s hobbies such as books on wines.

Most people love cheese to go along with cheese. Thus, add some of the favorite cheese of the recipient in the wine basket that you will create. You recipient will surely appreciate the wine basket some more.

When creating wine gift baskets, moderation is the key. It is important not to drown your wine in a basket filled with a mess. A basket that is full of crammed items will only look overwhelming. Your recipient will have a hard time appreciating the gift. Thus, balance the number of items you include in the basket. There is no need to overload your basket. You just have to keep it minimal and add your stylish touch.

The V-Day Treats

These are the different treats we had last Valentine's Day. We did not go out for dinner that day because it was a weekday and for sure the restaurants were packed. Hubby took charge of the kitchen so that was sweeter than anything else. He also ordered food to take home instead of dining out. It was a quiet and relaxing day at my house.

So, here are the treats:

Hubby's valentine gift to us and also our gift to Isabella.

Heart decorated cookies at my job.

The ladies got this yummy dessert from one of our male employees.

My daughter so happy with her big bar of chocolate. Her valentine gift from Papa.

Who Is Going?

Here at my job, we have around four to five trade shows every year. Only one of those is our own, meaning, my company sponsors it, and then we invite all our distributors, manufacturers and merchants to participate. We have one scheduled trade show next month but the girl who is in charge of doing trade shows is pregnant. Somebody has to do her job for the meantime. She has a very delicate pregnancy so as early as her first trimester the doctor asked her to take a leave from work. The big question is who’s going to take her place?

It is not that difficult to set up a trade show. I already knew how to set up the kiosk, velvet rope and stanchions. The barricades are just on the side just in case there is a need to do a crowd control. Sometimes the organizers provide the barricades already. If I am still single, I would love to volunteer. Hey, being on a trade show is an opportunity to be away from work where hotel accommodation is provided and free food but I cannot do that these days anymore. Nobody is still volunteering but if the boss requests you, would you say yes?

Cupcakes For a Birthday

You get a birthday cake when it is your birthday at my job. I always request for an ice cream cake since my birthday falls on a hot summer month of August. This girl who just had her birthday requested if she can order cupcakes instead from her friend who makes them (homemade). And this is the one...a big carrot cupcake for each one. It was so yummy and moist and the icing was not so sweet. All of a sudden i forgot about dieting. lol.

Facebook Advertising

Via: Wpromote

There were other social networking long before came into existence but I never got interested in joining despite a lot of my friends or family members did. Then when Facebook came, it was something different although the concept was similar to the other social media where people can share photos, make comments and status updates. But, there is something in Facebook that it became a hit with million of members globally. Now Facebook is beyond just sharing photos, updates or inviting friends but Facebook advertising have been taken over by employers or companies to get applicants for a job offers. Likewise, people who are looking for employment have come to Facebook to look for job openings. I already have two friends who found a job through Facebook.

Are you an employer or company who wants to try Facebook advertising? Whether you are promoting a product, selling services or wants to hire an employee for your company, WPROMOTE, an online marketing can help you to get results. Call today at 1866.977.6668 to request a consultation or visit their website at http://www.wpromote.com to get more information. Get ready to penetrate the hundreds of millions Facebook members worldwide.

Baby Sling

When I was pregnant, I did not use any baby sling wrap for my daughter. Although I received one as a baby shower gift, I gave it to my sister-in-law who got pregnant right after my daughter was born. Now I am shopping for one, not exactly them same but a baby pouch for my best friend. She has a five year old and a two month old baby boy. She really needs one to have more ease in shopping or walking at the park.

Are you also shopping for a baby sling? Try to visit the premier baby sling shop online at http://babysling.com. They have all styles of baby sling and shopping is made easy by just selecting by age/weight, by style, by brand, by color or by fabric. Sling accessories, diaper bags and other baby products are also available both at the store and online. View the different images on their website on how baby slings are worn by moms or even dads. It's one way of having a quality bonding time with your baby.

Other than the best and quality products we can find at babysling.com, there are more reasons to shop with them. Shipping is only $7 flat rate, easy returns and no sales tax on purchases. Do not forget to use the coupon to get a free gift with your purchase of $75 or more. Visit babysling.com and enjoy your shopping.

Yogurt With a Twist

This is a new store at the mall we frequent too. Although it is freezing cold outside, it's not a reason why we can't have our favorite yogurt. At frozen peaks, you select what flavor of yogurt you want as a base then add as many topping you desire. The price depends on the weight. You have a choice of having it in a cone or cups of different sizes.

BEING LATE

Thanks to Erasmo Cortez

This morning, I was running super late to meet with my supervisor. We meet once a month to go over anything that I am having trouble with on the job. I am a substance abuse counselor. My husband usually goes to work at six in the morning, but today, he had to go in at nine like I did. Our schedules got totally thrown off. I ended up getting up late and putting the coffee on late. I looked terrible going to work. To make matters worse, I got my to-go coffee mug and I grabbed the top really quickly, surely enough, the entire cup of coffee spilled all over my clothes and the floor. I was wearing a winter white sweater so I had to change. I quickly logged onto my Gmail account using my clear wireless internet connection and sent my supervisor an e-mail explaining that I was going to be a little late. I know that being tardy is her pet peeve and that she is a little ticked about it, but sometimes things happen that you just can’t control. Unfortunately, they happened to me today when I needed to be on time!

Sledding at the Park

The snow last Saturday was a treat for the kids. It was a very calm snow that lasted from early morning up to noon time of Saturday. My daughter kept on asking me to go outside to clean the car. She was offering me to help shoveling but the truth was, she just wanted to go outside and play in the snow. Can i blame her? Her wish was finally granted and the more she got excited when I told her we were going to the park to go sledding.

The park is only a block away from our house. As we got there, we saw bunch of kids already at the field with sleds. I just sat myself on one of the portable bleachers watching her play. The seats were filled with snow but not as much as the aluminum bleachers on the other side of the oval field. These are new additions to the soccer field together with the pet waste stations at the park after they have been damaged by the hurricane last summer.

The snow was a late comer but it sure did feel like winter. I gave credit to the hand warmer I bought at the hardware store two days ago. I lasted the whole time Isabella was playing in the snow.

Xmas Cookies

Who says i cannot post christmas goodies in January? lol. I just saw this on my iphone. These are cookies given to us during the holidays. These are homemade ones and were very yummy. They did not last long. They were gone in few minutes.

When It's Going to be Summer Again?

When it is winter, you always dream of sunny and warm weather. I am not even complaining because we are having our first snowstorm of the season only today. I am not counting the first one because it happened last October. Today's snow is not that bad, it is actually beautiful and calm but for my daughter, the fact of not being outside to play is not cool at all. She wants to go back to the park and play on the playsets that were recently installed after hurricane Irene destroyed the old ones. Two more months I told her. I hope.

Breakfast on a Snowy Saturday

It's just me and my daughter this Saturday. Hubby is still at work. When it snows like this, they always have emergency OT until the snow stops. So, no Panera breakfast for us (our usual during weekends) instead we have these:

A garlic toast, eggs and bacon for Isabella with pink lemonade.

And, my egg sandwich on a wheat bread, coffee and watching the snow news on my ipod.

Hoboken

Last night, I and the husband were watching a home and garden show where two cousins did a kitchen makeover in the home of a restaurant owner in Hoboken, New Jersey. Of course we know where Hoboken is and how beautiful is that town. If you have visitors coming over to see New York or New Jersey, you have to bring them to Hoboken to see the view of NYC across the river. It is a beautiful town to walk around, dine and go clubbing.

On that show we were watching last night, some parts of Hoboken were also featured. We right away missed the place. Last time we were there was about four years ago. We want to go again when the weather gets warmer to try Café Michelina, a casual Italian restaurant located on 423 Bloomfield Street in Hoboken. I already downloaded the cafe Michelina menu so I know what to order before we even get there. By the way, they also deliver and you can order your food online at cafemichelina.com. If you live in the area and happens to be in the mood for Chinese food, Precious Hoboken NJ located at 128 Washington St #1 is very accessible for takeout and delivery orders. They are open seven days a week and closes late at 10:30 p.m. Thanks for the local SEO in NJ, making our internet search so easy.

It is about time we should be back in Hoboken. See you soon.

Friday at Fridays

It used to be Fridays every TGIF but we have not been going that often anymore. Those were the days when we were still not watching what we eat and counting on cholesterol. lol. But, last night was a treat, to save me from not cooking and rest early for hubby because he is going to work at midnight.

Daughter had the classic buffalo wings. It was not spicy for her at all. Served with celery and blu cheese.

I had this Bruschetta Chicken Pasta made of muti grain angel hair pasta with bruschetta marinara, garlic basil and tomatoes topped with sliced grilled chicken. The black sauce is balsamic glazed with some parmesan cheese. This is a healthy dish, so filling and the grilled chicken alone can make you full.

Hubby had fridays burger made of 100% angus beef with sides of french fries

Are You Affected By Express Scripts Program?

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walgreens for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Effective January 1, 2012, Express Scripts is no longer a part of Walgreens' pharmacy provider despite negotiations made by Walgreens to have a new contract. Due to these changes, a lot of pharmacy patients covered by an Express Script plan are left with no choice but to go elsewhere, change their pharmacist or deal with less convenient hours to get their prescriptions filled.

A lot of people do not like these changes at all, people who have loved and got used to Walgreens pharmacy that has been taking care of them for years, just like me. I have been using Walgreens pharmacy since I was single and now my whole family does. Luckily, I am not one of those affected by these changes between Walgreens and Express Script.

So here is what Walgreens is doing for its customers affected by the disruption. They are offering a special discount on the annual membership of  Walgreens Prescription Savings ClubWalgreens Prescription Savings Club. An individual can join for only $5 this January special promotion or $10 for a family membership. What are the benefits of joining? You can get savings on more than 8,000 brand name and all generic medications, more than 400 generics are available with a three-month supply for less than a dollar a week. The regular annual membership is $20 and $35 for individual and family. Other benefits included by joining the Walgreens Prescription Savings Club are discounts on flu shots, nebulizers and diabetic supplies plus bonuses when you purchase Walgreens brand products and photo finishing services.

I have loved Walgreens through the years. If you feel the same way, show your support and get updates by liking Walgreens on Facebook or following Walgreens on Twitter. I just did.