Walking

Walking is the most simple, effective of all exercises to lose weight and stay in shape and maintain good health. It is considered as the the king of exercise . There are so many great health benefits that you can get by walking. The fact that it can be done by anybody without spending money is absolutely an advantage to everyone. You can do it with your love one, family or even with friends in most places, indoors and outdoors.

Since hubby needs a good walking exercise and the thing that we all share the same interest which is the love of nature, that is how our bush walking trip idea came in. It is our way to exercise where everyone can join, indulge and enjoy as well the beauty of nature. It is apparent that bush walking trips are part of our life now. Weekends would never be complete if we cannot do it unless we have something important to do otherwise or if weather is not cooperative. Kids are getting used to it even though the night before the trip, I use to tell them that they have to sleep early for the coming big trip in the following morning. So far, no complains from them yet as they are always excited to go with us. And even so, that I have to wake them up early to get ready for the trip, they are always happy to abide what they are told. That's how excited they are.

So what are you waiting for, let's get moving and go WALKING!

Toasted Sandwich

This is not actually what I planned for lunch today. I have here few eggplants that I was planning to cook with eggs but since i realized I didn't have much time left to prepare it and my tummy was begging already, I opted for something quick and easy to prepare, a toasted sandwich.

I've been enjoying this recipe for quite sometime now especially if I am running out of time. This is quick and easy and great for the kids too who love avocados.

Method:

1. Pan-fry 4 shortcut bacon slices in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat for 5 minutes until crisp. Drain on paper towel.

2. Toast 4 slices wholegrain bread.

3. Spread 2 slices of toast with ripe avocado and top each with 2 slices bacon, sliced tomato and shredded Iceberg lettuce leaves. Cover with remaining toast, cut in half and serve. Makes 2.

Intrusion

I was so angry and disappointed with our next door neighbors. However, I didn't confront them myself for I was afraid I cannot control myself to outburst of anger in front of them and just let hubby to speak to them rather in a nice way. We hardly know them for they just newly moved and rented the property next door to us. What they had done most likely any neighbor would be unhappy about. Of course, I considered it as an intrusion and damaging our premises. What happened is he mowed part of our front lawn to a very low setting that it looks so bald and unbearably ugly that if you look at it, it looks like almost to the color of the ground, brown. With these warm days coming, I am sure the grass will eventually die. We never mow our lawn to such setting but just trim them if we feel they need it just to give them the chance to grow and be happy. And even apply lawn fertilizer to help them look good, healthy and more greener from time to time. But now, look at what happen, our front lawn has two distinctive colors.
As what we gathered from them that for some reasons there was broken glasses accidentally spread in their front lawn including part of our front lawn so he decided to get rid of it completely by mowing it to a very low setting without asking permission from us. They never let us know what happen in the first place and that was the main thing that made my blood boiled. We might be able to advice them what we wanted them to do without damaging the precious grasses of ours.
Oh, well, what is done is done and we could not do anything about it but have to deal with it. Our neighbor contrived to pay the damage they caused by keeping the damaged area watered constantly until signs of new life is coming out.I hope it will grow back to life otherwise I will let them replace the grass and let them take care by themselves until it will fully established and thriving.

Rileys Mountain Lookout

The video was taken by myself during our visit to the place early on Saturday, 18/10/08. We've been wanting to visit this place and finally we made it. It was about 30 minutes drive from where we live . When we reached our destination, we parked the car in the appropriate parking area and continued our journey walking through a rocky, sandy and dirt road for more than an hour. We were glad that it was raining few days ago that it kept the dust from stirring up as we walked. It was a good exercise walk for us to rejuvenate our energy after a busy week and inhaling the balmy surrounding of the wilderness . We enjoyed it so much and so did the kids.
The temperature was soaring though, that it brought beads of perspiration to our faces and arms. Our hair looked soggy a little when we reached the top of the mountain. However, it was well worth a trip for the scenery was stunning with magnificent mountain ranges as far as our eyes can reach.

New Notebook for Dorothy

Surprises, treats and rewards are not our kind of way to acknowledge and applaud the kids if they do impressive work at school most especially that our budget is a bit tight at the moment and has always been since I disengaged myself from the workforce about 4 yrs ago. As much as possible, we try to save every penny we have in any way and tighten our belt to some other expenses which we do not necessarily need just to make both ends meet. But something came in one day in our postbox that we could not take off our eyes on it and could not afford to miss. It was too good to ignore at this stage. A good deal that came in the right time since David encountered problems lately in his computer that hubby could not fix anymore. He was already taken off his hands from it . He had been doing everything he can just to fix it by himself but to no avail.

This particular thing that I am talking about is a Toshiba Notebook(+software and 120GB hard drive) on sale in one of the shops here. It gave us a lot of thinking beforehand and finally came up to a decision to get one for Dorothy. It surely was a big expense for our pocket. But the good thing was, we got a cash back of 150$ from the selling price which was 799$ with 12 months warranty which is good at least if problems occur within the warranty period and hubby cannot fix it we have someone to turn to straightaway for free. And besides, we can claim back the amount we paid which was 799$ on next tax year (July 2009). It is a new study benefit here from the government given to families who have kids in the big school provided the expenses are intended for their learning purposes. This takes effect just only this year. And to avail it, I am starting now collecting dockets/receipts i paid for Dorothy's books, excursion fees, educational cd's and such for the next tax claim.

Since David is still too young to use laptop, we decided to give him permanently the old one of Dorothy while Dorothy takes the new Notebook with provision that she will take good care of it or otherwise. "You are lucky", as I teased her and I saw a bright smile creeping across her face. It surely suited her penchant from what I saw on her face .

However, Dorothy thought that it was our surprise for her since she is doing an impressive work in school compared to her previous school years. Like the other day, she came home with a surprise official letter from the principal congratulating us for her excellent performance both academically and non academically. Not to mention her awards for being one of the " Aussie of the Month" twice this year are something to be proud of. That's why she thought that we bought it as a reward for her great achievements. It was just that the sale came up in the right time.

It's raining again!

Waaahhh... can't do much today. It seems the rain will keep on pouring the whole day. The ground have been soaked and very muddy with lots of puddles. I've done ironing a basket of clothes and just waiting lazily for the time to pick up David. I already prepared his raincoat and gumboots for him to wear. Since the school is just about 1 block away from where we live, I was planning to give him a walk in the rain, of course, with his raincoat and gumboots on. He always loves walking in the rain.And look here he is, looks so happy enjoying the rain. Glad the rain didnt get heavy, only steady light showers. He was so excited when I told him that we gonna walk in the rain and gave warning at the same time that he has to avoid puddles.That's a rule to him and Dorothy if we go out on rainy days. Of course, I know how much they love splashing and stepping on it but I dont want him to get soaked with the dirty water on the ground.

Easy ideas for Bananas

Australia is relatively free of plant diseases and therefore prohibits imports of bananas. When Cyclone Larry wiped out Australia's domestic banana crop in 2006, bananas became relatively expensive, due to both low supply domestically and the existence of laws prohibiting banana imports. Prices have since fallen as production has reverted back to a steady rate.
October is one of the month here when bananas are at their best and cheap too. And while I was in the shop yesterday buying some bananas,I grabbed a copy of (Sydney Markets) The Smart Fruit and Veg Cook, Spring edition with quick and easy recipes and tips. Here are some interesting easy ideas for bananas that I am sure everyone would love to try on. I myself would love to try each of them one day.

1. For tropical breakfast, team sliced banana with sliced papaya and pineapple. Drizzle with lime juice and serve with thick natural yoghurt and toasted coconut.

2. Make a delicious smoothie by blending 1 peeled banana with 2 cups milk, a small tub of berry yoghurt and a few strawberries.

3. For an easy dessert, layer sliced banana and blueberries in serving glasses with vanilla ice-cream and caramel sauce.

4. For kids, thread peeled bananas onto paddle-pop sticks and dip in melted chocolate. Roll in crushed peanuts if desired.

Butterfly Award!

Thank you a whole bunch ibjsprinting for spreading me this wonderful butterfly award. It means a lot to me. I feel so honored and proud. :)

1. Put the logo on your blog;

2. Add a link to the person who awarded you;
3. Nominate 10 other blogs;
4. Add links to those blogs on yours;
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs;

I proudly merit this award to all who are in my list of bloggers to spread the wings of this beautifull butterfly I know how cool bloggers they are and their sites are all wonderful.

My Congratulations to all and enjoy!

Dorothy's latest friend

Well, well, I know you would not love this because it is kinda weird, strange or whatever you call it. lolz. I myself don't like it and how much more that it is under our roof. I could not dare to look at it and the same with David that one time when Dorothy showed it to him what's inside her precious box, he screamed instantly once he saw it. But Dorothy claims, it is the prettiest and the cutest little thing she has so far. lolzz. Don't get confused and wondering what I am talking about here because right now, I am going to tell you what she has inside her precious box in her bedroom, it's a type of wiggly silkworm. I could not believe until this time that she got the nerves to keep it...lolz. A special friend of hers gave it to her to taken care of until it will fully developed into a pretty butterfly. It is only one yet it is growing rapidly. Her diet consists only of mulberry leaves and he loves it so much that she munches the leaves so quickly like a muncher machine. Everyday Dorothy gets few fresh mulberry leaves for her new friend. Good thing though, we have a mulberry tree at the back with plenty of new leaves coming out after the winter season. So she has nothing to worry about her food at all without bothering my pocket.
Now, my duty while she has this wiggly silkworm is constantly to remind her the rest of her responsibilities for she has fishes in the tank (inside her bedroom) and dogs as well to be taken care of. I dont want them to be neglected and forgotten in the first place because of "silky" as she calls her new friend because, right now she only focuses her attention to that silky thing and needs to be reminded everyday to do the rest of her responsibilities. A pretty normal attitude for children if they have got something new which satisfies their likes and tastes. Isn't it?

Hay fever Season

With Spring is in the air, hay fever is commonly suffered by residents here with sneezing, itchy and watery eyes, and runny nose. It is caused by an allergic reaction to fur, pollen, grass and other allergens, foreign "invaders" that enter the body by inhalation, by swallowing, or through your skin. It can hit anytime of the year but it is worse in spring when plants are growing and flowers are giving off pollen.

Hubby is the one who suffered it first right from the start of Spring that until this time he still has that occasional sneezing but not as bad as before. Then, I noticed symptoms in David. At first I didn't pay so much attention to it because I thought it was just a kind of tired eyes. After all, how many springs had past, he never had it so I never gave it a thought. But as the days went by, I discovered that it was getting worse that even his other eye became reddish and sometimes watery too . David looked so uncomfortable and kept on rubbing his eyes and did a lot of sneezing too. There were few mornings I noticed that it was a bit bulging around his eyes and a bit sticky. We decided to take him to our GP for examination and he gave us a prescription medicine for allergy thing. After taking the recommended dose for few days, I was very glad that David's eyes gradually becoming to normal. This CLARATYNE hay fever & allergy relief did wonder to David. It is non drowsy antihistamine syrup for 1 -12 yrs old . I bought a peach flavor for him and he liked it.
Well, keeping an eye on the pollen count everyday and taking extra precautions are beneficial especially if you have allergic reaction to allergens. And here are few of the self help tips that I gathered while surfing in the net if pollen is high:

1. it is best to keep windows and doors closed and stay away from areas such as grassy
parks especially in the mornings and late afternoon where pollen is more,
2. wearing wrap-around sunglasses to keep pollen out of your eyes,
3. taking a shower and washing hair after going outside
4. not drying washing outside if counts are high-pollen may get trapped in the fibers of clothes and bed linen.

A busy week

I am kind of busy this week because friends of ours will be visiting for at least a week. The wife was my schoolmate in HS back in my hometown and married one of my hubby's friends. Every year on time of school holiday prior to the last school term they always schedule a visit down in Sydney to see and visit some friends. It is always exciting to seeing them again even if it is just for a short time. Even though we talk from time to time over the phone to keep ourselves updated, but seeing them personally is definitely a different one.

The kids are getting excited now and can't wait any longer. My friend has 3 kids, the eldest is a girl who is about the same age as Dorothy and the second is a twin (boy and girl) who are younger than David by 1 yr. Must be pretty busy though with a handful of kids around to take care of. We are planning our temporary itinerary where we would take them during their visit and one thing for sure a fishing trip with hubby and my friend's hubby is definitely in the list. However, we could not come with them because our boat has only a capacity of 4 adults. Hubby is taking time off from work so he can spend more time with them. For now, I am quite busy planning our meals and what Filipino foods should I cook for my friend while they are here but one thing that i should not miss to prepare is the "inun-unan" because this is her favorite. I just hope I can get fresh fish then. I am pretty busy too doing a general cleaning in the house which I didn't do for ages particularly in our back room as this is the only room that i can offer to them which I think is comfortable enough because it has its own toilet and privacy. Our back room is temporarily a play area for the kids. We are planning to extend the house if we have the resources. How I wish we win lotto but when that gonna be!!!!! (sigh)

I am certainly not spending longer time in my computer for the time being and hope to catch up with each and everyone of you when everything will be back to normal.

Visit to Circular Quay

Since it is a school holiday here, me and my friends agreed to take our kids to the city and Circular Quay in particular, one of our favorite spots around Sydney. A must see tourist destination located in the northern edge of the Sydney central business district on Sydney Cove, between Bennelong Point and The Rocks. It is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney. It offers lots of things to see and do. It is made up of walkways, parks and restaurants and hosts a number of ferry quays and a train station.

We went by train and the kids loved it. It was about 45 minutes ride and lot of things to see along the way to ease their boredom while inside the train. And as usual, David was so busy talking to whatever caught his attention, drawing some passenger's attentions. He is always happy whenever he is in a train and it's like heaven to him.

We've been here many times but coming here is always an exciting trip one cannot afford to forget. When we reached our destination, I can hear people muttering words of admiration around us at the moment we got out from the train. Some of them took pictures right away after disembarking from the train for it has an overlooking view across Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge .

We had lunch in McDonald and as usual the kids had their all time favorite, burger and nuggets for Dorothy and David. We strolled around enjoying the views after our lunch before heading home.

Kids first Splash in the Pool

Weather nowadays is getting better although some of the nights are still a bit chilly but days are more warmer now. Fun and excitements have just began and we're looking forward for more right through the summer season.

And to begin with, we had our first birthday pool party after the winter season finished held in one of our neighbor's swimming pool. Glad the weather wasn't bad at all with only few scattered clouds around. Temperature was just like 27 and just warm enough like early part of summer. The pool is a heated one with solar heater so it helps a lot with the water temperature. However, it was still unbearable to me as I dip my fingers to the water to test it, I can't stand its coldness, so I decided not to have a go in the pool at all. I rather go swimming on Summer than Spring even though the pool is a heated one because every time you get yourself out from the water, it's still damn cold.. and I can't stand it whereas the kids are used to such kind of condition and how much more if breezes come in, it's bone-chilly freezing like a snow to me.

Some of my kids' friends in school came over too and they had all the fun in the pool all throughout the day. There were lots of food and time to forget the diet again..hahaha.. For how many days now that I've been eating rubbish foods. But i can assure you, fingers crossed, I still can count it with my fingers.lolzzz. I cant resist them especially when they are right there in front of you. Taking only a glimpse makes my mouth water..hahahaha.. and the smell..hmmmm.. makes a rumbling tummy.

It's time to relax and unwind with friends anyway with good food and good cheer on this beautiful weather. Right?