LIFE IS A GARDEN

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year 2011

2010-12-23T09:24:00.000-08:00

Only two days to Christmas. It is hard to believe that years passing by so quickly. I am going to start my new year exploring new adventure. I am not sure how far I am going to go but I recently becoming an Avon Representative and I must say it is a very slow start but I am very optimistic about it. Anyone interested in Avon Product or if you want to just look around you are welcome to visit me at this link http://www.youravon.com/nancyrobbins.

My children are so looking forward to Christmas. I am sure you all know why. They all excited about opening their Christmas presents! I don't blame them. Christmas time is always the best time of the year for children and my children are no exceptions. The weather man said supposed to be light snow on Christmas Day. If it snow it would be so fun for the kids. I hear my son in the background while writing this telling me "Mommy, only two days until Christmas", I say to him " Yes, sweetie" Poor baby he is sick at the moment. Had high fever last night but he is feeling much better this morning.

School Holiday starting today and always nice doesn’t have to get up so early in the morning to get them ready for school. It is a lot easier now since that both my daughter and my son can take care of themselves every morning when come to dressing themselves up all I need to do is to prepare their breakfast.

Fun, Kids and Dicipline

2009-07-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

Gosh! Months just passing by so quickly but anyway we had a great 4th of July. First time we brought our children to a firework show though not as grand as the last time me and my husband went before we had children. That was long long time ago. When we got home, we got to see our neighbors shooting fireworks. Sit at our pouch for a while, luckily the weather was just perfect to sit outside. We did not buy any fireworks this year. Planning to buy some next year and maybe for New Year celebrations will see.

We also went to a water park last week. We had a blast. My daughter and my son just cannot get enough of it. Good time to be playing in the water since that it was so hot. My youngest son not much of it. He rather watches his big sister and big brother slide down the slide. We did slide a couple of times on the kiddies slide. He seems to like it though he tries to escape when I tried to sit him on my lap. No big vacations for us this year. Gas prices keeps on going up you really cannot afford to go anywhere.

Oh yes, my husband bought me a new puzzle last week, since that I like doing it so much, it was a Thomas Kinkade again 750 piece Christmas Moonlight. I already started on it until my youngest son push it over yesterday only left the top part intact; my daughter forgot to close the door. It is so funny, how did he know that I have puzzle up on that table. Some children just cannot stand seeing something that line up nice and neat and my youngest son is no exception but though he likes to messing things up I still love him. When come to kids I guess we have to let them be kids but of course with boundaries. If we do not teach our kids about right and wrong they will never learn.

Famous phrase “You lead by example”. We need to respect our children because that is the only way they going to respect us back. There is a lot of truth to when you are hitting, insulting and hurting your child, we are simply showing them that it is okay to behave that way which the truth it is not okay. By doing so will only make your child reject and despise you maybe not now but in the long run. And also they will do the same to other children too.

Discipline is as easy as not giving into them and teaching your child early on that they will not get everything that they want. Talk to your children about what they are doing and why it is not okay. They will listen. That is what I did to my children. If you talk to them with a calm and loving voice they will listen.

Whether we realize it or not children test and push our boundaries; we when we were kid the same way, we just love to push our parents button mainly to get their attention, oh yea all of us been there on that side of the fence, that is why we have to be consistent in everything we do and say to our children. Where there are no inconsistencies, they will absolutely going to cross boundaries.

So parents out there discipline your child with lots of love. Do not discipline your children without giving them any reason why it is not okay for them to do this and do that. Tell them it is for their own good. Good luck!

Puzzle puzzle .. What can I say ...

2009-06-24T12:20:00.001-07:00

Months passing by so quickly. Summer is finally here and it is very hot outside. But I should not complain about being hot right? During cold weather we are complaining about being cold and summer we are complaining about being hot. I guess that is life and as human we cannot avoid in complaining about so many thing.

But anyway we finally got our frame for the puzzle yesterday and I wasting no time in framing it as you can see from the picture I attached below. I have not hanged it on the wall yet. We are going to hang it in our master bathroom when we get our bathroom painted.

I don't know why I am in the mood in doing puzzle lately but one thing I do know that I really do enjoy doing it. As a matter of fact I just got our third puzzle done last night. My son did help with two three pieces this time though he doesn’t know how to put it together, I have to make sure it fits first then I let him put it in, he got a kick out of himself for being able to fit the puzzle together. It is a Thomas Kinkade collection - Painter of Light Shimmer ( Lamplight Brooke ), very pretty, 750 piece puzzle. At least this size it is not that hard to find a frame that fit so we did bought the frame as well so we don't have to go to town and wasting the gas just to get one thing. I am still waiting for it to completely dry before I frame it. I could not wait to get another one.

LAMPLIGHT BROOKE

Updated: Finally it is up on the wall

1000 piece puzzle

2009-06-17T09:13:00.000-07:00

Talking about puzzle, we finally got our second puzzle done and this one is a 1000 piece puzzle, collectable puzzle. It is the Art of Darrell Bush titled The End of A Perfect Day. I have so much fun putting the pieces together though along the way our youngest son pushed some of the already assembled puzzle on the floor and we have to start all over again.

I was looking for the frame for it could not find any at regular shopping place so we decided to order online last night. Hopefully in few days when the frame arrives we could frame it and put it on the wall. To be honest it is really cheaper than buying real painting which could costs you hundred of dollars or even thousands.

I have so much fun and joy in putting puzzle together. I always like scenery kind of puzzle, so no surprise next puzzle I am going to get is going to be some sort of scenery too. So here is our second puzzle...

The End Of A Perfect Day

Scented Candle - Small verses Big

2009-06-16T14:01:00.000-07:00

Scented candles. I am sure every household have scented candles burning every now and then in their home. Recently, I found a cheaper cute little candle stands and cute little scented candles that goes with it. Considering economy is not that good lately you cannot help not to save money on anything that you can think of and scented candles are one of the item.

Before I found this one I used to buy big and medium size jar scented candles which is very expensive. The price is around five dollars to ten dollars per jar. I could get two, one gallon of milk for the price that I paid for these candles. Since that the economy is not that great it is only wise to cut down on item that are not important and scented candles are one of the item as I said earlier at our home that I could live without but would like to have it every now and then since that I love the scents and they make your home smell good. So what a better way to cut down on spending and at the same time still get to keep and have your scented candles by just getting a cheaper candle stands that only costs a little over one dollar and a cheaper scented candles that fit the stands that will only cost you under one dollar.

Though these candles are small in sizes, they still deliver the same result, the scents that you wanted. I think also it is a good choice of candles for those who prefer a mild smell. I must say it can be bothersome to some if the scents are too strong.

Besides the prices and want to save money, there is another thing that I don’t like about the big jar of these scented candles. Once your candle burned half way you really cannot lit it anymore because if you do it will start to burn the mouth of the jar, what I meant by burning your jar here is when the fire or the heat from the candles touches the jar it will produce black smoke and this causing black stain on the mouth of the candle jar itself and it is not a pretty sight. I am so glad I came across these cute little candle stands and I don’t have any problem with it so far and at the same time I safe few dollars.

So next time if you want to buy scented candles and want to save some money look for these cute little stands and cute little candles. You don’t have to worry about buying another stand, with these cute little one you can use them over and over again. All you need to buy next time is just the candles. Have fun in shopping around for your scented candles. There are many to choose from. Happy shopping and at the same time try to save.

Letting Go and Be Safe

2009-06-10T08:16:00.000-07:00

How many moms out there experiencing their sons and daughters fascinating about toilet flushing? I am one of them. My three year old is a toilet flusher now. Cannot leave the bathroom door open. Every time he is going in the bathroom he always flush the toilet. I am not talking about one time, as many times he gets to flush and he is laughing and giggling while doing it and after doing it too. I can only assume he loves the sound of the water gushing down the toilet :-D. Besides flushing the toilet he is into switching the lights on and off too. He is tall enough to reach the switch so it is a lot of fun for a kid like him gets to do what grown up able to do. The more you say No the more he wants to do it.

Anyway, I used to say no, no to my children but now I am loosing up in saying word NO. It is not very good for their development. If we keep them from doing something they will be afraid in doing something or try new things in the future. But of course big NO NO if what they are doing is dangerous and could hurt themselves or others.

It is normal I guess when come to our first born that we tend to be stricter and more protective. I spoke to many moms and they said the same thing. As for me I had a difficulty in letting my first born go to her friend’s house though the house is just across the street and next to our house. So many things running through my mind such as she is going to get hurt while over there and got kidnap while walking over there you names it. I am worried to death. And with my second child. I am not as worried that much though I am still that way from time to time. He is beginning to detached himself from me for the last few months and he is really growing up. I was surprised one time I caught him standing on the chair and cooking popcorn in a microwave. I was so terrified, anything could happen to him. He was a little over three years old at that time. What happened made me put safety gate between our living room and the kitchen back on. When come to kids they can be very sneaky, not that they want to be sneaky they just did. It is their nature.

When come to go to a friend’s house he wants to go too. It is hard for me to let him to follow his sister. He is barely five at that time. He is still my little baby. My husband said it is okay, it is good for him so I did let him go and I am glad I did, he is more independence now and not afraid though from time to time which is always actually reminding them not to talk to stranger and do not play near by the road. I honestly say that I am watching them like a hawk, considering what is going on in the world right now, kidnapping, child molester etc. scares me a lot and you cannot help not to watch your children every second. Never, never leave or let your children playing all by themselves in your front and back yard. Our world today is not like our grandparent’s world long time ago. Be kindly enough to watch over your neighbor’s children too. If you go to the mall or where many people are around no harm to be watchful of other children besides our own children. Have a blessed day to all of you.

Grocery Shopping

2009-06-06T13:40:00.000-07:00

Grocery shopping by far one of the thing that man hates to do and I can understand why. I have been doing it for my family for quite sometimes now and I must say it can be very tiring. I know exactly now what my husband had to go through when come to grocery shopping. You know going from one aisle to another. That is why make sure you have your grocery lists with you all the time so that you don't have to stand there and start thinking what you need to get. Not sure about you but as for me though I have the lists I tend to not using it, always get something that was not on the list and ended up forgetting the one that was on the list. So be firm with yourself. I surely need to be firm with myself just get what was written on the list, don't want to spend more than you needed to spent.

Waiting in line to pay for your grocery is another thing, as for me I think I have a very good patience in waiting so that doesn't bother me at all. As long as I got all the stuff that I needed, I am happy.

This morning I went grocery shopping with my son as usual. He loves to go to the store with me and he was so sweet and so thoughtful today. What happen was he were asking me whether he could get Cheetos and I told him yes, and he replied back "for Joseph" and that took me by surprise because I did not expecting him to be so thoughtful for his little brother. Joseph is his younger brother and he loves Cheetos. Give him a bag of Cheetos he set to go. My 5 year old boy really growing up, he is slowly becoming that sweet, kind and thoughtful young boy. Sometimes out of nowhere he came up to me and tells me that he loves me; every time he says that, it is just melt my heart away. He did it to his dad and his big sister and his brother too. I am truly blessed to have three beautiful children. Doing grocery shopping with your child is one of the thing that you can do to spend time together with your child besides going to the playground where most of the time they actually playing by themselves or with other children. So I really do encourage parents out there to bring your child grocery shopping, it is fun and good way to bond with them. Happy Grocery Shopping!

Puzzle

2009-06-05T14:59:00.000-07:00

Puzzle ... umm ... who doesn't like to do jigsaw puzzle, as for me I like to assemble puzzle together. My whole family loves it though the youngest one all he wants is to play with them and scattered around the house. But anyway, the thing that I like the most is I get to spend time with the whole family. It is really fun trying to figure out which pieces go where.

A couple of weeks ago I bought a set of puzzle from a garage sale. Bought it only for $1.00 dollar and we put it together I think took us about a week and one day. The first thing you really need to do when you dealing with puzzle is to separate the four corners of the puzzle pieces (the edges) that is the easy part. And then you separate the colors. Like the one that we just got done, there were so many different colors and oh boy so hard to separate because the pieces you would think will go to this set of puzzle pieces might go to the other set so I am just kind of assume it goes to the set of pieces that I think it would go. Surprisingly only one or two belongs to some of the set that I already separated.

But I am so glad and happy to see the end result though a lot of work trying to figure out which pieces go where. My husband did the honor to put the last piece in. To glue them together you need to use a special glue for puzzle and in my case I did not take my time in trying to spread the glue evenly so some are glued and some are not so you might need to take your time and let it dry completely. If you want to, better glue the back of it too. Make it more secure that way though it will make your finished puzzle stiff a bit but it will be fine once you put it in a frame.

And speaking of frame. This morning I have to go online and see where can I buy the frame for puzzle and I tell you, not many maybe I did not look at the right place but I decided just go to Wal-Mart and get the $9.00 one, just a regular frame just as good as the one that I found online. So here is our finished and framed puzzle. It is a 750 Piece Puzzle, Artist Series ( Egidio Antonaccio - Exotic Garden )

Exotic Garden

Potty Training

2009-06-04T14:19:00.000-07:00

Potty training is one of the thing that every parents wants their child to master and it is not easy either, some say to use bribe and some say time will come. Boys and girls are different and for boys many parents think that it is a bit harder but from my experience not really but for a child with mentally challenge that can be a bit harder. That is what I am facing right now but anyway...

I share moment of frustration when I try to potty trained my first born son. With my daughter took me only a day after she got jealous of her stuff animal which at that time it happen to be a moose. I brought her to the bathroom to potty but she seems wants to play than to do what she needs to do, I bribed her, that did not work not until I decided to try different technique which is to go and get her moose and bring her moose instead of her to the bathroom and this may sound silly and funny but I actually let the moose sit on her potty and surprising after seeing what happen out of nowhere she decided to sit down and potty. I let her go without diaper the whole day that day and to be expected she had a couple of accident and the next day she goes potty all by herself.

And for my first son, I don't remember how many attempt I had to take to get him to potty. Of course I use the bribe technique first that did not work. And then I had this idea why don't I bring the potty bowl to him. You know how it is with boys, potty standing up not like girls so it is very easy for him so what I did was I brought his potty to him every time it is time to potty just long enough to give him an idea that when he needs to go he needs to do it in his potty. After a while I decided to place his potty bowl closer to the bathroom, no problem for him. I am just hoping that it works. Knowing that now he got the idea I decided to move his potty bowl even closer to the bathroom, just to see what he does. Like magic, when it is time to go, he knew exactly where to go. You have no idea how happy I am at that moment. I keeps on reminding myself do not screwed it up, continue and be consistent with him and consistent I was. He is been doing that for quite a while until one day I decided to move the potty bowl permanently in the bathroom and I must say it is working.

I may get away with my daughter and my first born son but I am not out of the wood yet when come to my youngest son. He was born with Down syndrome. He is three years old now. Potty training is kind of hard a little bit when come to him. My husband and I are trying to train him. So far he got the idea it is just he doesn’t know when to go and where to go. I use the same technique as my other son bring potty bowl to him. The good thing is he did potty in the bowl every time I brought it to him, this shows that he knows the use of the bowl it is just that he doesn’t know when to go so it is going to be a trip for us.

So parents out there if you have difficulty in potty training your son you are welcome to use my technique, you can use bribe at the same time too if you want too. May not work for me doesn’t mean it won’t work for you. Good luck in potty training.

Cooking

2009-06-04T11:51:00.000-07:00

Cooking is also one of my passion beside gardening. I think it is not fair to favour one ethnic food over the other. I used to prefer Chinese over Western or Western over Indian etc. but the more and more I try different food I am beginning to love and appreciated all of them. All of them are unique in their own special way. So here are some of my home cooking pictures :-

Ginger, garlic, lemon grass and pearl onion ingredient for
soya sauce beef

make sure to fry all these ingredient until golden brown or closer to brown which ever you prefer before you put your sliced beef in ..

Slice beef meat ready to cook make sure you cut against the grain

( I like to use roasting beef meat to make this dish )

Semi cooked - Normally I let it simmer until the meat is soft and almost dry.

Spagetti Sauce

Fried Plantain

Corn Bread

Spinach

Pig's feet

Pork Egg Roll - Thank you to my friend Nance for the recepi

Deep Fried Talapia

Five layer pork cooked in soya sauce, garlic and lemon grass

Stir fry Bak Choi

Pig's Blood and firm tofu

My Garden My Rock Garden

2009-06-03T14:39:00.001-07:00

Gardening keeps a person happy inside out in my opinion. You know when you get to see what you planted grows into this beautiful thing example if you planted flowers. Seeing these beautiful rays of vibrant colors bring out that happiness in you and sense of satisfaction. As a human being we are very lucky get to see colors. I think those who loves gardening out there knows exactly what I was talking about.

Anyway ... here are some of the flowers that I have in my humble little rock garden. Enjoy !

Yellow Magic Rose

Pink Magic Rose

Red Magic Rose

Mini Pink Carnation

Forget-Me-Not and Mini Pink Carnation

If you see this little flowers ( forget-me -not ) in person you will fall in love with them, I am planning to plant this somemore which this one I am not even remember I planted them until I found another packet of seed which I got free from the Divine word Missionaries comparing the picture on the packet to the one in my garden and yes indeed it is Forget-Me-Not. I must have planted them sometime last year or the year before.

Lily

Dianthus

Splenden Sea

Indian Mustard

Indian Mustard

Classic Rose