Parrot on a PorchA Journey Toward the Little Mansion Dream

Having been living in the metropolis all my life, I’ve always wondered how it feels like to live in a house by the lake.  Looks like it feels so relaxing and soothing just by looking at the magnificent view of the lake by the porch or window.  Then the activities are endless.  The whole family has an instant access to go swimming, skiing, kayaking and fishing.  Communing with nature has never been that easy.  This also reminds me of my favorite movie The Notebook.  I love the lake scene where Noah and Allie were sailing on a swan-filled part then she realizes that she’s still in love with him.  Just the perfect setting for a romantic scene.

I was browsing these new homes for sale Virginia at Fawn Lake’s website and came to know that they have lakefront properties.  It really must be nice to own a property there and live in a laid back setting.

I really hate these moments when I feel so sticky and icky.  Blame it on the weird weather pattern these days.  At one hour, it feels so humid and hot then just after a couple of hours, heavy rains suddenly pour down heavily making the air more humid.  Even an Air Conditioning Fairfax Virginia couldn’t be of any help.  That’s how hot and disturbing it is where I am from.  I couldn’t concentrate on my work as the fan blows hot air.  Now I know how a cake feels like when being baked in an oven under an extreme heat.  The climate around the world is really alarming.  I’m sure you’ve seen the destructive flood in Singapore and France yesterday.  Dreadful scenes, don’t you agree? Geez…the horrendous effects of global warming.  I don’t want to think about the worse things that can and perhaps bound to happen in the near future. 

Friday is the most anticipated day of the pre-schoolers here in my mother-in-law’s school. It’s because it is their free day and also, the art class day. They look forward to whatever art lessons and activities their teacher has in store for them. I’ve seen them before create beautiful artworks and crafts like beeswax candle flowers, abstract art t-shirts, picture frames made of wooden craft sticks and a lot more. They absolutely had fun and enjoyed doing them. Now that the school year has started anew, my mother-in-law who’ll be teaching the Kinder 2 students is currently preparing art lesson plans. I passed by her browsing the computer the other day and so I suggested the website of AMACO. It’s there that I found ceramic art education and tutorials the other while I look for craft lessons I could teach my little toddler. I find the website interesting as there are also classroom ceramics materials that can be readily ordered. One of the things that’s on their new special products now is Cloud Clay. It’s a modeling material that is soft, puffy, pliable and fun to squeeze, shape or mold. Most importantly, it’s safe for school kids. MIL will browse the site further as just like me, she finds it promising, helpful and interesting indeed.

Have you ever been in the middle of an important company meeting, reached out to thank your client, and suddenly realized that you don’t have a business card? When you are out there talking about your company and promoting your brand, it can be very embarrassing to be caught without business cards. Save yourself the awkwardness of being ill prepared by having a business card on you at all times.

When it comes to business cards, don’t settle for the plain old and boring. Today, there are many options for beautiful, funky, and extraordinary business cards. Take some time to get your brand on your business cards to effectively portray your company message. Never underestimate the power of a good message on or off your business card.

You’ll also want to make sure the printing on your business cards is done right. Proofread, spell check, and use high quality printers. There’s nothing more damaging to your business than spelling mistakes or errors. A simple proofread should save you the trouble of re-doing hundreds of business cards. Especially check to make sure your name, address, phone number, and email are correct. After all, you want clients to be able to get a hold of you!

It’s also important to use a high quality printer. If the ink or printing on your business cards doesn’t read well or is faint, it could have a poor impression on you and your company. Do your homework and choose a company that uses good printers and has a reputation for producing quality business cards. Some may even guarantee their work, so if you’re not satisfied with the end product, you can get your money back.

Business cards never go out of style. Make sure you are prepared for any occasion by keeping some business cards with you at all times. You never know when you’ll meet your next all-important client.

I’d like to share a picture of my makeup stash. I’m not really a makeup person but I always apply just a little whenever I go out. These are just the ones that I often use while the other hauls I have are neatly kept in my drawer. It consists of a few Clinique products, Mac, Bare Escentuals, Everyday Minerals, and Nyx. Branded but they’re all worth it. I love how they don’t sponge, melt and do not feel sticky just like the ordinary brands do to my skin. It’s just odd that I started investing on good makeup brands when I became a Stay-at-Home Mom and very rare that I go out. I think it was the time when we were to attend a friend’s wedding that I thought of purchasing some branded ones I could use instead of going to the salon to avail makeup services. Incidentally, the mineral makeup craze over our Twitter group surfaced and that’s when we started shopping like crazy for a cheap dollar worth ones at Everyday Minerals then soon at NYX. It’s even weirder because I kept on shopping for more even though I lack the expertise and skill of applying makeup.

And now, it seems that the makeup shopping fascination will be awakened as I just browsed the site of White’s East Hampton Chemists and Perfumers. The pictures of Clinique makeup and Estee lauder makeup and a view of their reasonable tag prices did the trick. I think I just found a new cosmetic shop to go gaga about. I think I have to safeguard my credit card because I might end up overspending again.

To save on costs and as we have a little budget for our wedding five years ago, the husband and I decided that we create our own invitations, misalettes and guest sheets. I had great confidence with the husband’s artistic skills so the invitations were his assignment. From the formatting, to printing and cutting of all 70 invites, he was just the one who made it. While on the other hand, I took charge of the printing of the misalettes and other stationeries that we needed. Our best friend then was the printer. Thus, we made sure that we had enough stock of printer ink cartridges and refills since the printing requirements were tremendous. We were lucky because we were able to score cheap printer cartridges at almost wholesale prices from a friend’s ink refilling store.

For those of you who have ink refilling and printer cartridge requirements, I’ve stumbled upon a site that sells high quality printer cartridges and ink refill kits of all brands whether Canon, Brother, Dell, HP Ricoh, etc. and printer supplies at the most competitive prices. Apart from the products availability, what sets them part from the others is their outstanding customer service and low cost shipping. Their products come with one full year guarantee so 100% satisfaction is their game. Always be wary of low cost, rebuilt printer cartridge, you may have saved on them but the truth is the quality is sacrificed and may even damage your printers.

It’s been more than one month since my sisters and I had a delightful bonding time over dinner at Serendra.  But until now I can’t forget how my taste buds was overwhelmingly satisfied by this steak meal at Texas Roadhouse Grill.  It’s called Wrangler’s Pork Steak, one of their bestsellers. 

Just by the looks of it, the huge, thick slices of the pork steak topped with melted Swiss cheese and drizzled with au jus are already calling out for fda approved diet pills.  The Texas rice which is quite heavy on the tummy is also seemingly inviting a good run on the treadmill.  Luckily there’s a huge serving of fresh veggies on the side to somehow neutralize the calories.  Nevertheless, this was indeed one great feast and I’m yearning to go back and have another appetizing treat.

After reading an article about what gold ingots have to do with feng shui of the home, I am prompted to go to Binondo now and buy gold coins and other amulets that is said to bring wealth and greatness to any home.  I’m not a Chinese nor I do not 100% believe in Feng Shui but I think it won’t hurt to have a few in the home especially that these amulets can also add to a home’s interior.  In the precious metal world of investment, gold, they say is one of the most profitable and safest investment of all time as it does not devalue. So now this got me thinking to might try this investment.  Who knows this could be the luck that the gold amulet will bring forth.

Summer may be over here but in the US, it’s just about to start.  So for those who are all set to get sun kissed, make sure to have your skin and eyes protected. 

1.)  Don’t go out without a pair of sunglasses.  As much as possible go for a wraparound pair with a 99.5% UV blocked label.  It is a good standard for UV protection. Wraparound sunglasses prevent UV from hitting your eyes from the side of your face.

2.) Drink more than eight glasses of water daily to keep hydrated.  Drink when you feel thirsty and to keep your skin dewy.

3.) Apply on skin sunscreen with at least SPF30 when staying outdoors. When indoors, SPF15 is just fine.

4.) Moisturize.  During summer, it is a fact that skin tends to get oilier because of the warm climate, thus, it makes everyone pimples and acne prone.  To save yourself from perusing acne treatment reviews, prevent these facial blemishes and make the skin healthier by moisturizing.   A gel-based moisturizer, in this instance, is more effective.

Modern homeowners often find that underfloor heating is a novel approach to regulating building temperature. Historically, underfloor heating has been a much-used method of keeping buildings warm. In fact, this method has been used in Korea since 37 BC and was also enjoyed by the Roman Empire and various parts of the Islamic world.
Underfloor Heating Systems in Korea
The impact of underfloor heating is clearly visible in Korean culture. Koreans have a close bond with the floors of their homes. They take off their shoes at the entrance, sit on the floor, and wear clothes that make it easy for them to get on and off the floor without constraints. Underfloor heating became such an important, although invisible, part of Korean culture that many homeowners and housing developers abandoned the use of Western heating systems in the 1990s and focused on water and electric underfloor heating systems instead.
Mediterranean Underfloor Heating Systems
In the Mediterranean world, some ancient cultures relied on a hypocaust to warm their homes and public buildings. Hypocausts are underfloor systems that use fire to heat and circulate warm air. The Roman and Islamic Empires both used hypocausts for a period of time, but ultimately abandoned the systems. In order to make underfloor heating of this type, building constructors had to raise the floor by a few feet to allow air from a fire to circulate underfoot. Although extremely efficient, the additional labor required raising floors may have led to the decline in underfloor heating systems in private homes.
Today’s Underfloor Heating
Today’s homeowners have access to a wider range of underfloor heating systems than ancient peoples. Many of the new systems use heated water instead of air. Although gas-fueled systems are certainly an option, many people choose to explore electric systems that provide energy efficiency benefits as well as comfort.