Living on a Farm

I grew up living on a farm. My father used to be a farmer before we moved to my Mom's place. The joy of feeding the pigs and riding on a carabao is something that I always treasure living on a farm.

It's something that my kids doesn't experience.  That's why when we have a chance, I let them  explore how it  is like to  live in a farm even on a short period of time.

These photos were taken when we brought our dogs to the Kennel before we went to California.  The owner of the kennel lives  way out in the country and  they have animals.  MY kids' favorite thing to do is interact with the chicken.

The last time we went  down there, the owner let the kids go inside the chicken coop  and they even give the kids some fresh eggs.

Wisdom Tales: Book Review

I received these two great books to read and review from Wisdom Tales Press, a company dedicated to providing great books full of moral lessons for children and adult alike.   They have a great selection of award winning books  from great authors and artists for children and teens.  They have so many books that I would love to read with my children  during the school break this year. I brought this book during our three days trip to California last month so the kids will have something to read during our long flights.  

The first book that I would like to discuss is the "Never Say a Mean Word Again" which is very important for children to learn at a very young age.   This book teaches children how to deal with kids who say mean things to you.  Normally, when someone  say mean thing to you, you tend to retaliate by   doing the same but in this book, the boy  handled it so well by  setting a good example to the boy who said mean things to him.  My daughter love this book and it gave her a lesson to be more understanding  to her brother even at times when he annoys her  so much.  

"Never Say A Mean Word Again" is a  A Tale from Medieval Spain by Jacqueline Jules and illustrated by Durga Yael Bernhard.  It is a  charming story of conflict resolution between two boys, one Jewish and one Muslim, that was inspired by the real-life actions of the Jewish poet Samuel Ha-Nagid. With today’s bullying problem, this is a wonderful story for all children today.

You can watch the  video below for it's short introduction.

The second book is the  Horse Raid: The Making of a Warrior by Paul Goble. This was riginally published under the name Lone Bull’s horse raid in 1973 (the year I was born, wow!)  I have always  fascinated with the Native American history so this one  answers to a lot of questions a I have in mind prior to reading the book.  This book is an advanced copy but this will be released this month so you can grab a copy when it is available in the bookstore or online already.

In this book I learned that during  the tribes of the American plains in the Buffalo Days of the pre-reservation life, horse raiding was a chance for men to show their courage and bravery in battle. This depicts the bravery of a young warrior who wanted to prove his worth by joining the warriors on a raid against the Crow.  This book really entertained my thoughts during our flight to California.  It made the time fly by so fast.

If you are looking for  great books to buy for your children, I highly recommend  Wisdom Tale Press.  They  have a great selection of  books that  your kids can learn lessons to.  You can check them out by visiting their website or by following them via Pinterest and  Facebook.  Thank you so much Wisdom Tales Press for these  books!

Disclaimer: The author of this blog was NOT financially compensated to write this review. Opinions expressed is not in anyway influenced by other factors. The product/s mentioned above was provided for FREE for evaluation purposes.

Space Hero Towel from Kidorable

My son was very excited when I showed him this Space Hero Towel that Kidorable have sent me for review.  Public swimming pools  officially opened here in the  area during Memorial Day so he was very excited to use it.  Unfortunately, I did not go when they went for a swim at the pool so I was not able to  take pictures of him using the towel.  Anyway, I took some photos when  it first arrived and  he modeled it for me.

Our son love anything with machine in it so having the space theme on a towel is a big plus for him.  This towel comes in two sizes, small and medium.  The absorbent, soft cotton towels makes lounging by the pool and beach, or drying off after a bath, extra fun. I would definitely bring this on our Maryland trip next month as we are going to Ocean City for our daughter's birthday.

You can buy this towel for $40 at the website or via amazon with a free shipping when your order reaches up to a hundred dollars.  I love Kidorable products as they are high quality made.  What separates their products to other products  in the store is the craftsmanship and customization.  The designs are just an absolute winner  in the kids' eyes.  MY kids love their products as well!

If you are looking for a  unique design for your children, nephews, nieces, grand kids, or friend's children, Kidorable has so many things that you ill absolutely love.  Thank you so much once again Kidorable for this wonderful opportunity of working with you!

Disclaimer: The author of this blog was NOT financially compensated to write this review. Opinions expressed is not in anyway influenced by other factors. The product/s mentioned above was provided for FREE for evaluation purposes.

Toddler Costumes

Sure time flies!  It's the first day of June and a lot of exciting events have happened already.  After our  exciting trip to California, we came home with several packages at our mailbox and one of them is a costume  I have for review.  Play with Tinkerbell, that's what she wanted to do when she saw  the costume.  The size of this one is for small kids but since she is  skinny and short, she managed to  wore it for me to take  photos of.

I love the selection of other costumes for toddlers online.  Halloween may seem far but it is always  an advantage to scout for your child's  costume earlier because  you usually find some sale going on especially if you search  it online.  I love the  wings of this costume because it really stands up when you fastened it to the dress.  The only thing that the little Miss did not find appealing is  the material as it a bit itchy.  

She said that she wants to send this costume to her cousins in the Philippines.  I like it that my kids think about their cousins  from back home when they have something here that they don't need anymore and want to give out.    I have to clean out our closets and gather up the things that I save for my nieces and nephews.  I have to prepare the balikbayan box to send to my family.  I just need  some time to do it.  Maybe now that they are  on school break, I could do things at home freely  since  I don't have to  attend to school  event and other stuff.  

Thank you so much once again Costume Super Center for this  costume.

Disclaimer: The author of this blog was NOT financially compensated to write this review. Opinions expressed is not in anyway influenced by other factors. The product/s mentioned above was provided for FREE for evaluation purposes.

Doodle4Google California - First Day at Crash Pad

We arrived later in the afternoon at Palo Alto, California.  Google booked all the participants to stay in Sheraton Hotel, it is  near the huge Stanford University.  Upon arrival at the airport, someone with a Doodle4Google sign was waiting for us.  He drove us  to the hotel.  We registered at the reception area they call "Crash Pad".  

We were surprised to learned that all four of us can participate to the  events on the second day which was really nice of Google.  The luncheon was supposed to be attended by the participant and one adult only bu-t they let all the family members participate on it as well.

When we finished doing what we had to do at the registration, we checked in and put away our stuff in the room and came back down at the Crash Pad.

Refreshment and snacks were served as we get acquainted with the other participants and family members.

Here's the little miss painting the  state-carved wood with the other  older participants.

She was kind of timid at first but since the other participants are  very nice, she felt comfortable later on a blended right in.  

I am  so glad that we were able to afford to pay for me and my son's  travel as he enjoyed it as much as his sister did.

As a state winner, our daughter won a trip for two to California.  My husband said that we should all go so  our son could experience it too.  As much as I would like to object because of the expense, I went with my husband idea because I wanted to be there for our daughter as well.

She painted  her state with Rhododendron.

Please stay tuned for more exciting part of our trip.  I am still  feeling the jet lag and this is what I could post for now.  Thank you all for the support, for casting your vote for her Doodle.  We definitely had a great time out there in California.  Thanks Google for the awesome event!

Affordable Care

I have seen a lot of rants about the new health care system and I feel bad for those family who lost their coverage because they can't afford it.  Affordable Care Act  is not really affordable to some and I think that it isn't fair.  If you ever need  help in finding  a health insurance coverage, you can check out at the  http://www.nchealthagency.com/ website.  I am sure that they have helpful information that could really shed some light on what you need to get an affordable coverage.  

Senator Manchin's Representative's Visit

I got a call from the school this morning while I was busy cleaning and gathering the stuff that I have to pack for our trip to California. The school informed me that the representative from Senator Manchin's Office is in school. I know that somebody is coming but I did not know when. My daughter forgot to tell me last Friday but glad I was able to come and take some photos hehehe. 

With Ms. Mary Jo Guidi, Regional Coordinator from Senator Joe Manchin.

With Mrs. Carol Lammers (class teacher), Mr. Al Boniti (School Principal), and Ms. Mary Jo Guidi, (Regional Coordinator from the office of Mr.  Joe Manchin, United States Senator of West Virginia).

Ms. Guidi congratulated and wished Ms. Burrito good luck! We are leaving this week to attend the  awarding ceremony at the Google Flex in Mountain View California.  Wish us luck!

I was so unprepared because I was very busy at home, I did not even took shower wahhh. Oh well, at least I did not miss it and was able to capture  the precious moment.  Alrighty, back to packing now.  See you  all next week!