Helping Out Schools

Are you the kind of parent who sends their kids off to school, hope they get a good grade and do nothing else? Or are you the one who is involved with their kids' school and even volunteer time and effort to help out the school? I am proud to say that I fall into the second category. I am very involved with my kids' education. The principal and school personnel know me. I help out whenever they need volunteers and I go help out during recess on Thursdays. I wish other parents will also give whatever they can to help out our school. I'm sure they are not even aware of the needs of the teachers, one of which is a dlp projector. If they can't help out to volunteer with their time, I hope they can help out and fulfill other items on the school's wish list.

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My Lazy Day After Thanksgiving

What did I do the day after Thanksgiving? Well, I took advantage of the great Black Friday deals online. Yes, I shopped online and didn't set a foot out the door. Plus, it was raining that day and I didn't want to brave the rain plus the crazy shoppers that are all out looking for deals. I wasn't in my jammies though. ha ha

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Christmas Card Time

It is that time of the year again, it's time to send out our Christmas cards. I finally got a photo to use for the card. And I thought taking photos of babies and small children are hard, try taking a photo of a dog! I think I took about 25 shots and was able to get 4 or 5 good ones. I almost run out of ink so I had to run into the store and looked for it in the printer aisle since that's where it usually is. I was running around in circles and finally asked and was shown that it was beside the toner cartridges. Geez... Anyway, this year, I'm not sending out as many cards as the past years, it is just too expensive. I know some people who stopped doing it since it takes time and costs money. For me, it's Christmas and I want to share the spirit of the season with families and friends. Do you send out Christmas cards?

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What Will They Think of Next?

If you have a new card from your credit card company, then your card may have this new chip which stores your information. This makes things easier and cheaper for the credit card companies. But I was suprised to learn that anyone with the right device can get that information without you even knowing about it. Yes, can you believe it, your credit card info can be stolen right from your wallet, without anyone even touching it! Unbelievable, isn't it? Of course, there are a few ways you can protect yourself, one is to get an rfid blocking wallet or just to be very safe, leave your credit card home. After learning about this, it makes me nervous knowing that it is easy to be a victim of identity theft.

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A Big Christmas Help - Buy.com

I cannot believe that Christmas is almost here! Why is it that after Thanksgiving, it seems like the days are just running so fast. I am not finished with my Christmas shopping. I know I am not the only one in this dilemma. I am just thankful that there are online sites like buy.com which has almost everything you need to help finish off that Christmas shopping list. I remember twenty years ago when there aren't any internet stores yet. I, along with many other shoppers, crammed into the malls after work hours and try to get shopping done. Can you say, headache? I'm so glad for internet shopping. I've been doing this even before my daughter was born, which is about 12 years ago. For this year, I expect to do my Christmas shopping online 90% of the time. How about you?

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I Love Your Deep-Set Eyes

And your blue eyes too! That's my dh, he has these deep-set blue eyes. *sigh* My kids got the deep set part but not the eye color. Now, I am just worried that my daughter will have those dark circles under her eyes. She doesn't have it yet but if it shows up, I will surely google how to remove dark circles. I don't want her to have an inferiority complex just because of that. She has enough pressure growing up in our society who puts too much emphasis on physical looks.

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Sunflower or Canola Oil?

I've been using Canola oil for a long time now, more than 12 years. I read and heard in the news that Canola oil is very good for your health, especially your heart health. Now, I read in a health/exercise magazine that sunflower oil is very good too. It has conjugated linoleic acid, a naturally and healthy fatty acid that is essential to the basic funtions of the body. Moreso, it has beed shown to help burn fat and build lean muscles. It sounds good, doesn't it? I have to research more about it though. I want to be sure that it is the best for me and my family. Have you tried sunflower oil?

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Use Up Your Flexible Spending Account...Fast!

It is that time of the year again, figuring out how much you have in your Flexible Spending Account and trying to find receipts that will hopefully cover the balance. I'm glad CVS has these helpful info on their receipts. Everytime you purchase an item that is FSA eligible, it'll say so in the receipt. I've been saving all CVS receipts just in case it is needed during the end of the year. I wonder if acne pills are covered? If you want to see the complete list of what is covered, you can check out the IRS page: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p502.pdf

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The New Homeless

I saw this piece from the news last night, it is about people who lost their homes and are now living in their motor homes. Are they considered homeless or not? Technically, I guess they are not homeless because they still have a place they can call their own. What are the pros and cons of living in a motor home for a long time? Well, you don't have much space, no privacy and depending on how big your motorhome is, not a lot of conveniences. But then, you do not have a lot of expenses compared to living in a house, you only have motor home repairs to worry about. Is it better than living in a small and cramped motel room? Honestly, I do not know the answer to that. I'm sure these people want to be in their house and nowhere else.

I feel bad every time I hear people losing their homes to foreclosure, but not if they lost it because of trying to keep up with the Joneses. if you know what I mean.

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