Mommy Moments - Encounter with Pets or Animals

Even at a young age, I can sense that Joaqui likes animals. He can identify a lot of animals in his books and flash cards and would want to pet an animal that he sees.

His first encounter with wild animals was when we went to the Manila Zoo when he was just one year old. He is very much familiar with the elephant.

This was in the Kindergarten Zoo of the Manila Zoo. He was not afraid of the snake at all and in fact, wanted to bite it.

His Mamu likes to give him pets. The first was a bowl of small fishes and now he has a pet rabbit at Mamu's house which his Tita Mylene calls Osagi. He likes to hold Osagi.

And chase him too around the house. We don't often let him hold Osagi because Joaqui can be a little too rough on him.

Have a happy weekend everyone! For more of Mommy Moments, click here.

Thursday Thirteen - I am a working girl

Header courtesy of Samulli

Since I am temporarily working from the office, after working from home for more than a year now, I realized that there were a lot of things I did miss working outside the home. It's like a new experience again and although I miss my son, I am glad that I braved a change in my routine and the world around me seemed a little bit different from my perpspective.

1. The morning rush excites me.

2. Having to commute going to work is a little bit difficult as I am not used to going out in the middle of a rush hour.

3. Tall green tea frappuccino with hazelnut from Starbucks. I missed this!

4. Working in an office cubicle where there are other people actually working other than me!

5. I enjoy the view from the window on the 12th floor in the office.

6. Chatting with co-workers.

7. I actually get a lot of things done without a 2-year-old boy asking me to make him sit on my lap infront of the computer and play with my computer mouse.

8. I am looking forward to going home and be with my little Joaqui.

9. It is a little quiet here in the office.

10. People watching - other than the people I live with inside our house.

11. Fast food for lunch is not bad. In fact, I get to eat different kinds of food - Mexican, Chinese and McDonald's.

12. I have to use a pen and paper in the office. When I was working from home, I put everything in my computer.

13. I can only blog but I can't play games (like Farmtown in Facebook) in the office while working. : )

Fore more of Thursday Thirteen, click here.

digital cameras for sale

I have checked my paypal account today and I am really happy because I think I will be able to buy this Nikon D90 12.3 megapixel SLR digital camera body for hubby as a Christmas gift. It is never too early for me to shop for Christmas gifts. There are so many digital cameras for sale, but this one is really something because it has one-button live view and DMovie mode, which hubby would really like. He can now record 720p HD movie clips from this camera that will also allow him to interchange SLR lens. This is so cool!

While looking at this, I also found other digital cameras for sale that are actually selling at a lower price, like the Panasonic Lumix DMCLZ8K, Nikon Coolpix S52C digital camera, and Canon PowerShot SXIOIS. Digital cameras have changed from a luxurious item to a common gadget that most people will need over the past few years. The price has dropped and the quality of the point-and-shoot camera has increased markedly.

Although the device has become a commonly used gadget, it is not uncommon to see that a lot of people are getting confused about what to look for when buying a digital camera. Of course, one should look at the published information before buying and choose the one that fits your location and budget. As with any thing that you will buy, beware of false information that can be misleading and can end you up buying a product that falls short of the manufacturer's standard.

too much attachment?

As I write this post, I am currently working in an office cubicle from my previous office. I have been working from home since last year and the temporary change is brought about by a need to change my routine and my son's too much attachment to mommy. I am not an overprotective parent and I believe that my child should learn to explore the world around him, and I encourage him to be with other children as much as possible. Lately I have noticed that Joaqui does not want to play with anyone except mommy. When he goes outside for a walk with his nanny, he would cry mommy, mommy after just going out of the door. His current nanny and the previous one have noticed though that when we (my husband and I) are not around, he is more well behaved. He asks for us, but does not go into tantrums as much as when I am around.
As much as I am a believer of attachment parenting, this temporary change will still hope to strive to maintain a healthy, secure attachment with my child. But I sure do miss him and I can't wait to go home already. ; )

For those work-at-home moms out there, has this happened to you and your child? I would really appreciate any input you have on this.

shifting gear

It's really interesting how people shift careers, sometimes really far out from what they have studied. I had a chance to chat with some of my batch mates in college and a lot of us are non-practicing physical therapists. I for one is in medical transcription, others in pharmaceuticals, education and insurance companies. The one career shift my former classmate made was being a Miami general contractor. I wasn't quite expecting it from him since he was really a good student before. I thought that when he went to the States, he will pursue a doctorate in physical therapy.

I asked him why he had chosen this field and he said that when he came to the U.S., he got interested in custom home remodeling and from there, it had awakened a passion in architectural drawings and carpentry. He says that being a general contractor puts him in charge of architectural, engineering and construction services. Of course, he made further studies to be able to deliver the best service his company has to offer. He looked really happy telling me stories of how he started, the sacrifices he had to make and now fulfilling his dreams.

I wish I could be more like him in being brave enough to pursue my passion. I wanted someday to have my own catering business. I love to cook and I believe this is one of my passions. I have yet to enrol in a culinary school one day and study the ins and outs of a catering business, but I do hope that someday I will be able to tell my own story of how I started and be able to fulfill my dreams.

Mommy Moments - School Days

Our Joaqui does not go to school yet, so I'm posting here pictures from his Gymboree Gymplay Class when he was about 15 to 18 months. When we first enrolled him, his schedule was every Sunday and so he seldom has classmates, like the first class he had. He had the gymplay area all by himself. : )

Although he does not go to Gymboree anymore, he still remembers this pushing the airlog activity. He even knows the song until now. This was his favorite.

Bubbles!

He was not going through tunnels at first because he was afraid to go inside one, especially the long narrow tunnels. Eventually he was able to go through them.

This was Teacher Marc singing the welcome song.

Sadly after about two and a half months, Joaqui got restless with Gymboree so he stopped going there. For now he still has mommy as his teacher, but come July (or August for the other school) hopefully he will be able to go to a playschool near our area.

For more of Mommy Moments, click here.

the light of HS code

Have you sometimes ever wondered how multinational businesses coordinate their offices or how certain products are delivered across the world? I do and for someone like me who has no background knowledge on business, I think there should be a book on "Business for Dummies" like me. But looking it up on the internet, one thing about this big businesses come up and that is the harmonized codes.

The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System or HS of tariff nomenclature is an internationally standardized system of names and numbers for classifying traded products developed and maintained by the World Customs Organization. Individual countries may extend a Harmonized System number to eight or ten digits for customs purposes, and eight or ten digits for export purposes.

For importers and exporters, a commodity code classification engine is of utmost value in hs tariff classifications to manage risks and costs associated with customs compliance. If you are an exporter or an importer and you need an instant accurate classification tool for hts code lookup, the technology is available that intelligently interprets products descriptions and drives the HS classification process to completion, while other technology available lets you perform large-scale post-entry audits of commodity classifications.

Knowing about this HS codes makes me look at my favorite chocolate bar in a different perspective, and sheds light to the business aspect of a simple everyday commodity.

Thursday Thirteen - WOW Philippines

The Philippines constitutes an archipelago of 7,107 islands, but is divided into three large island groups, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The country provides a high environment of natural resources in areas such as agriculture, nature, and minerals. The Philippines has a coastline twice the length of that of the United States, where in the Philippines can claim to be Asia's Beach Capital. The diversity of our culture and heritage makes one's visit to the Philippines more than the usual. Here are my Thursday 13 list of why you should experience the 7,107 islands.

1. Festivals

2. Shopping
3. Filipino cuisine.
4. Our warm smile.
5. Glorious sunsets.
6. Our heritage.
7. Snorkeling

8. Diving
9. Flora

10. Rare and Exotic Fauna
11. Marine Life
12. Wildlife

13. Beaches

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

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road mishap

It was unfortunate that my brother had a motor vehicle accident the other day wherein a motorcycle hit him on the driver's side. It happened when my brother was turning left when suddenly this motorcycle came from nowhere and apparently was trying to cut in. The impact was quite hard because it had left a deep dent on the door that he was not able to open it. If there is any consolation though, no one was seriously hurt.

The damage was unsightly and it will be unsafe for him to drive the car at all. His insurance company had suggested a specific repair shop, which according to them is one of the best in the area and is affiliated with a Los Angeles Auto Body repair shop. The necessary repairs are currently being completed and much to our relief, the door does not need to be replaced. We have yet to see the new paint job though, but at this point my brother is quite satisfied with their technical expertise.

Motorcycle accidents are becoming apparent in the roads nowadays wherein 2,092 accidents were reported, of which 51 had fatalities, in the first five months of the year alone. It is a fact that they have the right to use the road, but they have to be careful too. Swerving, driving on the curb and sidewalks, and basically ignoring lane partitions are what causes a rise in the incidence of road mishaps involving two-wheeled transport. If these motorists will follow traffic rules and regulations, then the number of accidents will not reach such a worrisome level.

Mexican craving

I've been craving for Mexican food these days, and hubby promised me that we will try the new TexMex restaurant we have seen in the newspaper when we have a chance to go out on Saturday. We really like Mexican food, although I go easy on the chili and spices because my tolerance for spicy food is quite low. I wondered what Mexican food suits me and got this for an answer.

You Are Chips and Salsa

You are energetic and a real go getter. You can even be aggressive at times. You love taking risks and taking the rewards. You are a true daredevil. You can be a bit greedy in life, and you go after what you want. You are courageous and edgy. You will do what others are afraid of.

What Mexican Food Are You?