Is Your Bed Comfy?

For me it is necessary to have a comfy bed as more than half of our time or so is spent in bed. Isn't it? But with the variety of bed style available in the shop, choosing one could be a nightmare, I reckon.

Speaking of bed, I have to constantly remind (if not nag) Mcj to put our headboard on. He asked me when I first came here if I want the headboard on, I said no.. but I changed my mind. I want it on now and he seems not happy to do it. Grrr..

Anyway, heard of sleep number bed? I've seen it in ads and it looks special and unique. I want to change our bed not because it is comfy but because it is hard to clean under it. Well, if I have the means I would want to change all our furnitures. :)

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Something for Mother's Day

Mother's Day is coming and although, I said to myself that I will be less materialistic these days, part of me still wants to receive something special. Mcj said, I already have everything so giving me something won't be that easy. Doing something special, is out of the question. We just can't take off anytime and anywhere. With the little boy in tow, it's not like that. How about giving me diamond hoop earrings. I have many earrings but I would love to have a new one.

Bella True has beautiful earrings on sale. I checked them out and these caught my fancy:


And guys here this. Bella True has this in their site "What Men Don't Know... Can Hurt Us." Us means the ladies and it's quite true. Men has exquisite taste but when it comes to jewellery, women are still the expert. I mean, when it comes to style. Although, Bella True can give you some tips also. Check it out.

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Talking of Jobs

It was in the news that 56K jobs were lost last year – mostly full time. Jobs advertisement online has also reduced. It’s just sad for those who lost their job in this time. So to those who are still employed, work hard and stay afloat.

Related article how Aussies are trying to save jobs:

Companies and unions are negotiating for staff to rotate through shorter working weeks in a bid to save money without cutting jobs completely.

Holden and Channel 10 are among the companies trying to make the switch. Holden cut 10 days from staff's rosters for next month but are looking at slashing more.

Other workers do not have the option yet. It is being reported today that the National Australia Bank will announce next week plans to axe hundreds of jobs, while Bank of Queensland said last night that up to 150 jobs could be set for the chop.

Thousands of other jobs have already been lost and more bad news is expected as the economy heads towards recession. The most high-profile job cuts so far have come from Pacific Brands, where those staff who still have a job are urging customers to ignore calls for a boycott of the company's products because it could lead to more cuts.

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I think most of the jobs these days are in danger except maybe of those that are in demand and hot like immigration lawyers, bankers, etc.

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Love, Love, Love

What did you get last Valentine? I said to myself and to a friend that I’m past the materialistic stage but guess what I got? A Nine West bag and coin purse. Well, Mcj didn’t really buy it for me rather I bought it for myself. Hahaha. He said, I’ve been spending much already that I don’t need anything so my trick is, I buy things for myself and convince myself and him that they’re his gifts to me. How clever is that?

I bought Mcj a pair cool thongs (and would have bought some of thebest weight loss pills if he wants to trim down).

We don’t actually celebrate valentine. Everyday is the same day for us. It’s not always heaven for us as we have moments of bickering and all but we are really doing fine. We don’t need occasions to express our love for each other.

Speaking of love, here's a nice quote from the book, The Alchemist - where I bury my head on the train.

When you are loved you can do anything in creation. When you are loved, there's no need at all to understand what's happening, because everything happens within you, and even men can turn themselves into wind.

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Trimming Down

My Little Boy is trimming on the face. He used to have big chubby chops. I’m not really worried because he seems to be growing taller. Which to my delight. He was given a clean bill of health on his last general check-up except on the height department. Take it from Mum.

I should feed him more protein and carbohydrates. His diet would be cereal with milk plus fruit for breakfast, cheese for morning snacks, omelette for lunch, fruit for afternoon snacks and veggies with meat for dinner. More milk of course. I’ve been cutting him on milk these past few days as he has a very chesty cough and Mcj reckon, milk makes the phlegm stickier. It helps though.

I really want him to grow taller (although we might need tv mount so he won’t muck around with our telly). I don’t want him to be like me.

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Something Free?

There’s no such thing as free, they always say that. I beg to differ as I have received so many freebies when I wasn’t working and have plenty of time to kill surfing the net. Well, they didn’t come naturally free as I spent time and effort plus use up some gigabytes of our data traffic but still they’re stuff that you need not to worry for receiving without costing you anything as they didn’t come with a catch.

So when I see free stay at hotel, I checked it out when I had the time. We might have no spare time to go on holidays frequently, getting a free stay will surely motivate us to look and make time. Though with the list of things to pack and prepare for having a toddler in tow, planning for a holiday is really causing me pain as there are limited options of place to wander around.

Check this out.

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Beefed-Up

I used to bring my own lunch to work when we were at the old office. But where we are now, there’s a convenience store that sells hot food – with Chinese cuisine, not to mention several Mexican and Chinese restaurants around the area. So, I don’t pack lunch anymore. At times, I am able to save money anyway and able to eat the food – with it freshly cooked.
At the beginning of this year, I answered a quiz to know what will be my new year’s resolution – which result was, for me to make one. There was one question that lingers in my mind – was the last vegetable you have were french fries? I always remember that when I eat the main meals which, always have veggies other than french fries.

Since, the quiz said I should make a New Year’s resolution, so I made one. To beef up. I lost weight when I started working and I think, I’m putting it back. What with me eating lots and lots of anything. I weighed myself at the airport – on the baggage weighing scale, and I weighed 42.5 kg. I used to be 38 when I was single so there’s an improvement there.

I really need to eat more and I do if I am well rested. Maybe, I should stop going to the shop burning my energy. I’ll just time my trip when there’s a big sale and buy some wholesale electronics for Hubs..

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Getting Ready for the Cold Season

We are on the last month of summer and although it has been very hot on other parts of Australia particularly in Victoria (where the bushfire was), it wasn't that bad here in Queensland, which is the sunshine state. I can't complain on the weather actually, well, except when it rains for long.

Cold season is looming and it means, sickness like cold and flu would be around the corner as well.

Here are some helpful tips on how to get ready:

Step1: Know the difference between a cold and the flu. A cold can last two or three weeks; most people are better within seven to ten days. On the other hand, without proper care or attention, a flu virus can lead to bronchitis or pneumonia, each of which can cause permanent health damage. Each year, more than 100,000 people in the United States are hospitalized and about 36,000 die due to the flu and its complications.
Step2: Wash your hands. Frequent washing with warm water and ordinary soap for 10 seconds is one of the simplest and most effective ways to avoid catching a cold or the flu. Use antibacterial alcohol-based foams and gels when you don't have access to soap and water.
Step3: Disinfect your home regularly. Spray the surfaces in your bathroom and kitchen with a mild solution of 2 to 5 percent bleach in water to kill viruses and bacteria.
Step4: Get a flu vaccination if you're in a high-risk population: (a) People living in long-term care facilities and group homes. (b) Adults over the age of 65. (c) Adults and children with chronic diseases such as diabetes, asthma, emphysema and kidney disease. (d) Pregnant women who will be in the second or third trimester of their pregnancy during the flu season. (e) People with weakened immune systems, such as HIV-positive individuals or cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. (f) Health care workers.
Step5: The vaccine is made with a killed virus that cannot give you the flu. Vaccines are not 100 percent effective, so you may still get a less severe case of the flu after receiving the vaccine. The vaccine takes about two weeks to become fully effective in your body, so prepare yourself before the season hits.
Step6: Discuss FluMist with your doctor if you are healthy and between 5 and 49 years. Approved in 2003 by the Food and Drug Administration, this flu vaccine is delivered through a nasal spray.
Step7: Eat a well-balanced diet. It's essential to building a healthy immune system, and it provides sources of energy and nutrition for optimal growth and development. Taking a daily multivitamin-- especially when you're fatigued or stressed--also helps ensure that you will receive an adequate dose of minerals and vitamins.
Step8: Get plenty of rest. On average, humans require seven to eight hours of sleep every night. Lack of sleep can lower the immune system's ability to react when needed. Without sufficient sleep, the immune system is hard-pressed to keep up with its nightly repair work, and creates an opening for opportunistic diseases.
Step9: Stock your medicine cabinet with a supply of single-symptom drugs such as cough suppressants, pain relievers and antihistamines. Cold symptoms tend to appear in sequence, not all at once, so multi-symptom formulas often give you too much or not enough medicine for any given symptom. Avoid time-release capsules for the same reason.

And be prepare for the cold temperature. Have your heater ready. If you haven't got a wood flooring, you might want to through a rug or carpet.

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A Short Trip

I've was in Melbourne for two days. We didn't really stay in the city or been to the city aside from driving around to the airport. The customer's office is in the south side which is more or less an hour drive from the airport, so we opted to stay in one of the hotels around the area (not booked through Westgate though).

I now know the feeling of a jetsetter. It is tiring especially if it's for work. I didn't see much as I opted to stay in the hotel room watching telly, dilly dallying and surfing the net. I had a great time though on the way home as I did a bit of retail therapy for pressies.

As for food, I tried the hotel's garlic prawn and it didn't appeal to my palete.

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Pertussis

My sister-in-law was recently diagnosed to have whooping cough. And it has been circulating in the family. We've been interacting most of the time and we're just passing around bacteria and germs.

The little boy has been coughing and it was real bad last Friday so we took him to the doctor yesterday as we suspect it might be pertussis. The doc said, he has viral infection and was prescribed of anti-biotics.

Here are some facts about whooping cough:

What is whooping cough?Whooping cough (pertussis) is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the upper respiratory system—specifically, the area where the nasal passages meet the back of the throat (nasopharynx). The infection causes irritation in breathing passages, resulting in severe coughing spells. The illness can have three distinct stages and can last months.

What causes whooping cough?
Whooping cough is caused by infection with Bordetella pertussis or B. parapertussis bacteria. The infection easily spreads from person to person through respiratory secretions or mucus, which can be emitted during coughing or sneezing. The incubation period is about 7 to 14 days, meaning that symptoms start about 1 to 2 weeks after exposure to the bacteria.

What are the symptoms?Symptoms of whooping cough typically last 6 to 10 weeks (but may last longer) and can occur in three stages.

Stage 1: Coldlike symptoms—such as sneezing, runny nose, mild coughing, watery eyes, and sometimes a mild fever—last from several days to 2 weeks. An infected person is most contagious during this stage.
Stage 2: Coldlike symptoms fade, but the cough gets worse. It changes from a dry, hacking cough to bursts of uncontrollable, often violent coughing. During a coughing episode, it may be temporarily impossible to take a breath because of the intensity and repetition of coughs. When finally able to breathe, the person may take in a sudden gasp of air through airways narrowed by inflammation, and this sometimes causes a whooping noise. Vomiting and severe exhaustion often follow a coughing spell. But between coughing episodes, the infected person often appears normal. This is the most serious stage of whooping cough, usually lasting from 2 to 4 weeks or longer.
Stage 3: Although the person improves and gains strength, the cough may become louder and sound worse. Coughing spells may occur off and on for weeks to months and may flare up if a cold or other upper respiratory illness develops. This final stage may last longer in people who have never received the whooping cough vaccine.
Healthy adults who become infected with whooping cough often have a much milder form of the illness compared with children. But adults ages 60 and older are at increased risk of having severe symptoms and developing complications. The severity of symptoms is, in part, influenced by whether a person was immunized against whooping cough and how long ago the immunization was given. The protection against whooping cough provided by the vaccine wears off over time.

More here.

One of the reasons why I don't having pets around is because ofthe illness that we can get from animals especially those that are furry - it's not because I don't want to buy pet supplements.

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