A Salt Journey

One of the many travel adventures that we had here in Germany was our trip to the Salzberg Mountain. It was a unique experience for us because we had to go underground to discover the wonder of the salt mines and learn more about "white gold".

In our overalls to protect us from the cold and our clothing from the salty air. The temperature udnerground is constant all year round at 12°C.

Before the trip, I had to browse and search the Internet for more information especially on the location since we will go there by car. I even had to search pdf files for the SalzZeitReise brochure and had them printed so that on the way, I can read to Hubby about where we are going and the adventure that awaits us. I am grateful for the Internet because information is readily available to us.

The Rutschen, the Schaustellen, a wall of brine crystals behind me, the miner's tunnel, the Spiegelsee and the mines.

I had an adrenaline rush while riding the scary mine's slide called the Rutschen. I was awed by the wonderful and warm colors of the brine crystals that graced the Schaustellen. I was mesmerized by the Spiegelsee (Mirror Lake). I was informed and educated on how important salt is and how it is processed. It was a very great adventure indeed!

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On Halloween and Undas

Today is the last day of October. I am sure many are busy dressing up for the Halloween parties or are excited to go trick or treating. But I am not one of them. Where I grew up, Halloween is not celebrated in a grand and special way. I never really liked it because it only scares me to death! I don't enjoy watching those scary movies or ghost stories aired on local tv. And I just don't see why it is such a big deal for most people.

What I do look forward to is November 1st and 2nd where we celebrate Undas or Kalag-Kalag, the Filipinos' way of remembering the dead. Going to the cemetery has already become a family tradition for us. We would gather at the cemetery usually on the 2nd of November, All Souls' Day in the Philippine calendar, bring some food to share, say the rosary and novena for the dead, and eat as one family to celebrate life. It is a time of reminiscing the good old days when our dear departed still walked the earth. It is a great venue to see distant relatives again. I so miss it! It has been three years since I celebrated kalag-kalag with my family back home.

I guess all I can do here is say a prayer for the souls of our dear departed and light candles for them, hoping that that light will lead them to the Creator, the giver of eternal life.

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Need Luck? Wear Jade!

Life can be difficult at times.

You might:
- have gone through rough relationships.
- have made bad decisions in your life.
- have lost your temper and lashed out at your little child.
- have been a victim of lies and insincerity.
- have felt that you didn't have enough to satisfy your material needs.

If you feel this way at times, you could use a little bit of luck. Where do you get your luck from? JADE Jewelry of course! Believed to offer protection, a sense of calm and luck in many areas of life, carrying it wherever you go in a piece of jewelry is a very good idea indeed! But of course, one must be cautious as to where one gets the jade piece. It should be made of 100% pure nephrite Jade. Otherwise, no luck will come. :D

That is why there is BillyTheTree for the real deal! They have a huge selection of 100% Jade jewelry at very reasonable prices. With the season of gift giving fast approaching, this is one great gift idea. You can send it directly to the recipient too as they ship worldwide for FREE!

I know someone who needs a little luck and any jade piece will do. I found the Jade and Carnelian Bead bracelet shown in the photo above from their fine selection of Jade Bracelets and I know they will be perfect. It looks very trendy and chic and I am sure she will like it! With such great design, I would be very happy to wear one myself.

So if you feel you are running out of luck, why not wear jade? You have nothing to lose if you believe in good luck and lots to gain.

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Thank God It's Friday!

It is 2 in the morning as of this writing. I know I should be sleeping already but I still can't bring myself to bed. My eyes are now threatening to close but my mind is still very active. I am just very happy today. I know I have missed two Friday memes because I have been busy cleaning, entertaining guests and taking care of my Samantha but nothing can compare to the happiness that I am feeling right now.

Why am I so glad?

Because HE visited our home:

Yes, Sto. Nino together with the members of the Sto. Nino Group visited our home for the Friday Novena/Devotion to the Sto. Nino just yesterday. I have long been waiting for this day to come and it finally arrived. I am just moved with the experience because the Infant Jesus brought almost all the members into our humble home. While we were expecting only a few, we were overwhelmed that many had come. We were united in prayer, shared stories, sang songs and enjoyed a sumptuous meal. If you are like me who is living overseas, having friends who pray with you is a great blessing. Each Friday, we gather together and pray the novena. This is where I draw my strength and inspiration from. This also keeps us closer together as a family.

I feel blessed and I am thankful. For the experience. For the little miracles. For the blessings of these good friends in a foreign land. The phrase "Thank God It's Friday!" has taken on a new height for me... A more spiritual one. I thank God for that.

Now that I have finally written my thoughts, my mind is already calm. I can now rest. I wish you all a very blessed weekend.

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Home Feng Shui

I know most of you are familiar with the term Feng Shui, which is an ancient Chinese Philosophy and translates literally to "wind water". Many believe that applying the principles of Feng Shui will help in balancing the energies in any environment to ensure the good health and good fortune of the people living in it.

The house is our chief environment and while we don't have much choice as to how it is designed especially if we are only renting it, we can still apply some feng shui so that the chi or energy will flow smoothly around the house.

If you have put up blinds or curtains on your windows, be sure that they are open during daytime so that sunlight can come inside the house. At night time, be sure that the curtains or blinds are closed as exposing the windows at night can bring bad luck. The materials of your curtains or blinds should of course be natural. Wooden venetian blinds are the most beneficial.

If you are looking for one, WoodenBlindsDirect.co.uk has a wide selection. Wooden blinds of every shape, size, color and design can be chosen from top brands. They have an an ongoing SALE that you wouldn't want to miss. They also offer FREE DELIVERY for orders above £50.00. Isn't that great?

Got plastic blinds? Chuck them! You can now have feng shui in your home and allow positive chi to come in by replacing your plastic blinds with the wooden ones. You are now on your way to living a harmonious, positive life!

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Awards, I LURVE!

It's awards day once again because somebody just sent me some link love and awards! This week is just getting better!

Foremost, a big THANK YOU to Mommy Seiko of Seiko's Diary for always remembering me. The I Love You tag and the Most Inspirational Blog Award are from her. It is indeed nice to know that somebody out there loves and thinks of me! Naks!~~ Start copying here ~~

Be the kind of women that when your feet hit the floor each morning,
The devil says "Oh Crap, She's Up."
Sister, life is too short to wake up with regrets.
So love the people who treat you right.
Love the ones who don't just because you can.
Believe in everything happens for a reason.
If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.
If it changes your life, let it.
Kiss slowly. Forgive quickly.
God never said life would be easy.
He just promise it would be worth it.
Today is sister's day.
To the cool women that have touched my life.
this is for you.....LOVE U!!!

Rules:
Tag all your sisters, mothers, daughters, aunts, girlfriends,
Including me if I am like one. If you get tag back seven times, you are loved.
Happy sister's day! LOVE YA SISTA!!!
Girlfriend and sisters WEEK.

~~End Copy here~~

Then here's another one from newfound Wahmaholic friend Kaye: the One Lovely Blog Award. I know I should've posted this last week and my apologies. Sowee Mommy Kaye it took a while to post this.


To accept this award, here are the rules:
Post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

And so to pass these awards and tag on, here are the 15 Inspiring and Lovely Women who deserve these more than I do:
Niko, Fehdz, Pehpot, Ria, Ate Beth, Ate Rose, Shydub, Sweet Shelo, Bambie, Bambie Dear, Cookie, Ate Chris, Enchie, Jacris, Clarissa

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Girl Talk: Accesorize!

They say that if you don't have much clothes in your closet, the best thing that you can do is accessorize! It could be scarf, an earring, a necklace, armbands or bangles, a ring, or a brooch to compliment what you are wearing. But since I am a minimalist when it comes to clothing, I don't do accessories either. Less is always more for me.

I only wear my usual when I go out: watch, necklace, and engagement and wedding rings. I don't even wear earrings anymore ever since I lost my pair of pearl earrings. And superstition has it that it is not good to be given a pair of pearl earrings by someone you love because pearls grow separately. So I cannot ask Hubby to give me one. I am still looking here so I can buy one for myself.

I add scarf in my outfit when the weather gets really cold and my favorites are these Burberry scarfs given to me by friends in Japan.

How about you? Do you accessorize? What's your fave? Share it with us here at GT!

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An Hour Too Early

On our way to church last Sunday, I was again my hurried self. It was already 10 to 12 when we left and I said to myself, we surely are going to be late. We were driving our usual route and always passed by a gigantic digital billboard where the time and temperature is displayed. I checked to see how late we already were and was surprised to see that it is still 11:10. Odd, I thought to myself so I asked Hubby what time it is in the car's clock. He said, 12:10. I thought maybe the clock was just wrong or I was mistaken in reading the time. At the back of my mind, I was thinking, perhaps the time adjustment already took effect. But I just brushed the idea off.

Then we arrived in the church at around 12:20 PM in my watch and I was really expecting that the priest has already given his homily. Much to our surprise, the church was very quiet, with only 5 people inside. Hubby then asked an elderly woman what time the service is going to be and she replied, "um 12 Uhr." I guess we were an hour early then.

I do know about the DST (Daylight Saving Time) but I didn't know when they would take effect. For the benefit of everyone, all European countries have DST or "summer time" as the British call it.

When DST starts in central Europe, clocks advance from 02:00 CET to 03:00 CEST. Here in Germany, DST starts on the last weekend of March. Weekends here end with Sundays.

When DST ends in central Europe, clocks retreat from 03:00 CEST to 02:00 CET. Other regions switch at different times. In a typical case where a one-hour shift occurs at 02:00 local time, in spring the clock jumps forward from 02:00 standard time to 03:00 DST and that day has 23 hours, whereas in autumn the clock jumps backward from 02:00 DST to 01:00. Here in Germany, DST ends on the last weekend or Sunday of October.

We learned all about it just recently and our body clocks are confused. I already feel exhausted and sleepy at 8:00pm and felt that I have overslept when I wake up at 6:00AM.

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TCP#12: The Lord Of The Rings

Hello Couchers! It is Tuesday once again and time for Tuesday Couch Potatoes, the October 27th edition. This week, we will post about Magical Movies, where wizards and magic, enchanting creatures, and the power of love all work together for a happy ending.

Last week we did Supernaturals Movies and Mommy Lulu of Bitz 'n Pieces of My Life featured Heaven Can Wait, a comedy remake of the 1941 film Here Comes Mr. Jordan and again remade in 2001 with the title, Down to Earth. If you want to know more about the movie, head on over to Mommy Lulu's for a short synopsis.

If there is one movie that is truly magical for me, that would definitely have to be The Lord of The Rings Trilogy. I fell in love with the fellowship, the hobbits or the halflings are just very surprising creatures. Middle Earth and the elves of Rivendell and Lothlorien have enchanted me. Dwarves and Orcs, talking ancient trees (Ents), wizards and kings... all of these and more have taken me into a fantasy world where I ventured into an adventure with Frodo and Sam and Smeagol and Gandalf too and their quest to destroy the One Ring.

I even owned the trilogy books and also The Hobbits' Tale which told of how Bilbo got hold of the ring and it has enchanted me since then. Tolkien has written such a great epic that I said to myself, if this should be made into a movie, I will definitely watch out for it!

I know all you have seen this one so I will babble no further. I am just a great LOTR fan and I never tire of watching this movie over and over again. I think I have seen this countless times already and I have memorized almost every line. I loved the narration with the rich English accent! Couple that with a gorgeous location and an enchanting soundtrack from Enya and you are sure to be taken into a new world!

One of the most unforgettable quotes that I really love is this:
“How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on, when in your heart you begin to understand there is no going back. There are some things that time can not mend. Some hurts that go too deep... that have taken hold.” Frodo, LOTR: Return of the King.

What's your Magical Movie? Share it with us by entering your TCP link to the MckLinky below:


Thanks for joining us this week! Next week, we will feature our favorite Drama films. See you next week Couchers and Happy TCP!

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Gift Ideas: Bath Robes

I have been looking for great gift ideas for my girl friends. I want something personalized, something that will be very useful, and soft and comfy. Then I thought I could give them something that will make bath time a "to-look-forward-to" experience.

A cotton terry bath robe, which is perfect for cold locations, will be great for my friends who live in four-season countries and the lighter waffle bath robe will be great for my friends back in the Philippines. They can be personalized too with a monogram of my friend's initials or embroidered with their names. Isn't that great?

The bath wrap for women is also a great idea and they come in funky and chic colors. And with three sizes and seven colors to choose from, I can match each according to my friends' favorites! They also have a matching laundry bag, a duffle bag or a traveler's bag so that I can also add one based on my friends' personality: homebuddy, sporty, adventurer.

If you are looking for gift ideas for your girl friends too, you might consider getting these for them!

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Food Trip Friday: A Filipino Feast

My apologies for my entry coming in late again. But I promised in my previous post that I will share the Filipino feast that we had last Saturday. So here they are:

Yup, that is a whole lechon! You can have also them here in Germany and I was sooo relieved! Of couse, a Filipino feast is not complete without the longganisa, pansit-canton, laing, menudo, afritada and adobong sitaw!

And with food like that, you will definitely forget about your diet! LOL! Want to see more mouth-watering stuff? Visit Food Trip Friday!

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Mommy Moments: Attack Of The Temper Tantrums

This week's theme for Mommy Moments is a great one! Why great? Because I get to learn from other Mommies how they handle their child's tantrums. I know each child is unique and have their own personalities, but when it comes to throwing tantrums, no mommy is exempted from the wailing, crying, yelling and throwing a fit.

I have had my share of Samantha's tantrums too. She would give it to me especially if she sees me sitting in front of the computer. This is the typical scenario: She would come inside the "office", pull my hand and lead me away from the computer. Most of the time, I would go and accompany her and ask what she needs, but sometimes when I am doing something "very" important, I would say "Please wait Sam." And that's when she would cry until she sees me stand up and takes her hand. So that explains why I don't get much time to blog or blog hop. Hehe!

She wanted to get the camera from me and I said No. So she gave me this:

There was a time though when she threw a very big one that I wanted to pull my hairs out! I tell you it was a lot of drama. I tried everything possible yet the cries and wails came. So I gave her a time out while I tried to vent out my anger. After that, we embraced each other and cried together. LOL!

But I guess at her age, it is her way of asking for attention and venting out her frustrations. It is just a stage though and I know she will soon outgrow them.

She is already tired and cranky after a day out, a signal that we need to go home. She slept as soon as we strapped her into her car seat.

Fortunately for me, handling her tantrums is not that difficult (except for the one I mentioned above) because Samantha, after all is a HAPPY child. I learned that scolding her would make things worse but that embracing her, talking to her softly and distracting her calms her down. I also make sure that we do things together during the day so that when I need to do my household chores, she could just play by herself or watch barney to entertain herself. She now knows that she has to take her naps in the afternoons and I see to it that she gets them. She would calmly oblige and sometimes, she is the one who will take me to the bedroom as a sign that she wants to take her nap. Isn't that cute?

So how to handle tantrums? Be consistent. Be patient. Parenting, after all is a never-ending classroom. And let's just be happy that they are growing up normally. Imagine a toddler who throws no tantrum. That is something to be worried about. Hehe!

How about you? How do you deal with them tantrums? Share it with us!

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Your Favorites Right At Your Fingertips

I have always loved movies. I would always be on the lookout for new film releases on the Internet and excitedly wait for them to come on the big screen. But ever since I had my baby, I have been missing a lot. Being a Mommy does change a lot of things. So to catch up, we rent DVDs online and wait for them to arrive in the mail. The only problem is that, you need to wait a few more days before you can actually watch them. By the time the DVD has arrived, I am either too tired to watch or my appetite has gone.

We do have cable tv at home but you would need to know the schedules firsthand so you won't miss them. And my little one loves to watch Spongebob, Dora and Diego on TV too. Sadly, they air too early and most of the time, she doesn't get to watch them. Then I heard about Charter Digital which allows you to watch these shows when you want them for FREE! It does sound interesting and exciting. That would mean less fighting with the daughter and less tantrums too. Charter Digital also does HD shows so that you don't need to have an HD TV in order to watch an HD show. Isn't that great? If you need more information, you can also learn more at charter.net/ondemand. You may also get updates and fun extras on Charter’s Facebook page. If you are a busy mom and wouldn't want to miss on your favorite shows and movies, then you should get Charter On Demand.

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Cold Remedies For Your Toddler

Samantha caught the colds, AGAIN! She doesn't have any fever though and I am thankful for that. She sneezes a lot, especially during the day, and she has a cough too. Her nose is very stuffy she finds it difficult to breath and sleep. Getting her to take naps in the afternoons and to bed in the evenings is quite a task. She would run and cry each time she sees me holding a wet tissue or wipes and heading in her direction. I am glad though that she does not resist drinking her medicine anymore.

-please click on photo to read the poem and see sam more clearly-

So what should one do to treat the cough and lessen the congestion? There are many home remedies available online and here are some of the tips that I have tried and/or willing to follow because they are safe enough:

1. Get your child off the milk and other dairy products for the time being as they can cause very thick mucus, which makes it difficult for your baby to clear. Tea and clear chicken broth will do the trick. To sooth irritated throats due to coughing, mix one part lemon juice and two parts honey in a little warm water.
2. Create your own steam room: let your shower run on hot and be sure to keep the bathroom door closed to keep the steam in. Sit with your little one inside the bathroom for 10-15 minutes, 3 to 4 times a day. This should help with the congestion.
3. Give your little one a vapor bath. Johnson and Johnson Soothing Baby Vapor Bath is very good.
4. Keep the room where your little one sleeps in moist to prevent the secretions from drying out. A cool mist humidifier will help. If there is none available, you can improvise by hanging wet, warm towels inside the room.
5. Apply some baby rub on your baby. Most use Baby Vicks but I use the one that the pharmacist recommended for toddlers. It does help Sam breath easier especially during bed time.

So there you are Mommies. I hope this will help you treat your little one's colds too! Cheers!

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