PR

I didn't know I have a PR on this blog! I'm so happy that I got one. It's a really nice feeling. I haven't been updating for a long time. I'm so glad I got to check on this blog. Have to get back to blogging again. 

AMERICA'S CASTLES

Guest post of the week by Deangelo Spencer The other day I watched a really great television series on my Dish TV. I saw two episodes of the series and can’t wait to see some more. The series is called, “America’s Castles”. The show highlights some of the most famous homes in America. The first one I saw was on the “Hearst Castle” in San Simeon, California. The home was absolutely amazing and looked more like a cathedral on top of the hill. The newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst, built the home in the roaring twenties. It was the meeting place and party place for the who’s who of society. He entertained royalty, actors, and politicians. The home was decorated beautifully. There were so many beautiful antiques through out the home. Most of them were imported from Europe. The home has the famous “Neptune Pool” that was brought in piece by piece from Italy. It is absolutely stunning. I guess it was the era of no income tax and extravagance for America. Some of the countries most beautiful homes were built then. I wish I could visit them!

Vote for Aiden

$20 Chili's Giftcard

Trying to Stay Calm is giving away a $20 Chili's gift card. My husband and I love going to Chili's and I also love their promo Shout Out To Eat Out. So if you're like me who would love to win this, just head on over to Shauna's blog.

Infant Car Seat Giveaway

Mommy Mandy is hosting a giveaway to this really awesome car seat for babies weighing 4 lbs to 35 lbs. This is a product by Safety 1st called the onBoard 35 Air. Check out the giveaway to know more.

Win A Vtech Bugsby Reading System Pen and Starter

Enter the giveaway at Jenny's Reviews and Giveaways to win a Vtech Bugsy Reading systems. I would love my son to have this as early for him as possible. I want him to start reading at an early age that way he won't have a hard time once school starts. 

Fruits and Vegetables For Your Skin

I got this post from Max Beauty website and I'm sure many women would love to know it too. I love what nature has made to make our skin beautiful and I believe in them. It's cheaper and you are sure it will work.


# Apple tonic: Mix 1 tablespoon of apple juice with 1/4 teaspoon of lime juice. Leave it on for 20 minutes. It is excellent for combating greasiness.

# Potato tonic: Grind & squeeze juice of potatoes. Apply it onface and neck and leave it for whole night. Next morning, wash it off with water. This tonic brightens the skin.

# Orange tonic: Blanch and grind couple of almonds to paste and mix in two tablespoons of milk, one tablespoon of carrot and orange juice. Apply thickly on face & neck. Leave it for 1/2 an hour. It is helpful in removing scars and blemishes from face and makes it soft and smooth.

# Tomato tonic: In 2 teaspoons of tomato juice, add 4 tablespoons of buttermilk and apply on face. Remove after 1/2 an hour. It is an excellent face tonic for removing sunburns.

# Tomato lotion: In 1 tablespoon of tomato juice add some drops of lime juice. Apply on face and remove after 15 minutes. It is very effective for shrinking enlarged pores.

# Watermelon lotion: Grate and squeeze out juice from small piece of watermelon. Apply on face and neck and leave it on for 15 minutes and then remove. This lotion freshens up skin.

# Cucumber and Turmeric lotion: To 1 tablespoon of cucumber juice stir in few drops of lemon juice and pinch of turmeric powder. Apply on face & neck and wash it off after half an hour. It’s an excellent whitener for all types of skins.

# Carrot lotion: To 1/4 teaspoon of carrot juice, add 1 teaspoon of honey and apply on face. Remove with cotton ball soaked in lukewarm water to which little soda bicarbonate has been added after 15 minutes. It removes roughness and makes skin smooth as silk.

# Coconut lotion: Coconut water, if rubbed on skin and left on for 15 minutes, lightens and brightens the skin.

# Papaya pulp: Apply some or small piece of mashed raw papaya to face and leave on for 15 minutes. It removes pimples and other embarrassing blemishes from the face.

# Cucumber lotion: Take 1 tablespoon of cucumber juice, milk and few drops of rose water mix together and apply on face and neck and remove after 15 minutes. It’s an excellent whitener for delicate skin.

# Grape lotion: 1 tablespoon grape juice should be applied on the face and neck for 15 minutes. It will help in making skin soft, smooth, bright and fair.

Seagull

Went crabbing my husband and his family to South jetty, Florence here in Oregon. There were so many seagulls and I couldn't help not to take their photos. They were there to eat whatever we could give them, some of our baits or some crabs. It was really windy and cold.

Funny Tomato

I took this photo of the tomato my mother-in-law harvested from her garden. It's a really funny looking one so I feel I can't post it on my facebook. People will surely comment on it there. I just thought it might be fun to do it here. 

Baby Blanket

My baby's blanket I made. I'm not done with it yet because I still need to put the batting and all but at least I got the front finished. He will need it a lot during winter when he's born. I enjoyed making this quilt for him. It makes me want to make more and sell them. 

Birthday Party

Steven celebrated his birthday and I was really glad he enjoyed it. I love him so much. He's second from left. I took this photo with the people we usually hang out more. Although, it has been a while since we hung out with them but I'm just glad we still did. Food turned out good, I'm still glad it wasn't bad or else. Anyway, I'm just happy my husband enjoyed his simple celebration.

Investing in Gold

5 years ago my 401k was moving steadily upward....it was 401k gold. I mean, I was making significant gains.
Things have changed in the last couple of years. So, while my 401k isn't like gold anymore, I have been thinking about gold.
Gold....it has been a treasure sought after for many thousands of years. It's really the only market that has always stayed strong. And that's why I've been considering investing in a gold IRA.

You can put many different investments into an IRA gold being one of them.

I already 3 different retirement accounts going....but these last 3 years of economic decline have severely affected my retirement...at least the net value. I, of course, still have the same amount of shares.

But gold has gotten stronger during this crazy time. Since 2 of my retirement accounts are 401k's that I had with previous employers, I should qualify to do a gold IRA transfer, which is where I transfer the 401k to an IRA and then use the roll-over funds to purchase the gold.
Maybe legislation has changed and there is such a thing as a gold 401k, but I think I'm going to have to go through the transfer process.

Trip To the East Coast

Steven and I have been planning a vacation for quite a long time now. Steven wants to go so many places. Mostly he wants to visit other countries, but he has also never been to New York. And I have never been to the East Coast.
So, this summer we are planning on heading out to NY & NJ for a week. It should be really fun!

There are some great concerts happening over there this summer so I plan on hitting a few different venues.
I need to get our tickets soon!
We're going to the Tom Petty show so I need to get our IZOD CENTER TICKETS for that show. That's in New Jersey.
After NJ, we'll head on into New York for the other shows and probably spend most of our time there.
John Mayer is playing an outdoor show at a place called Nikon, so we need to get purchase our JONES BEACH THEATRE TICKETS soon before that show sells out.

And then the highlight of all of the concerts is a show in Central Park! The John Butler Trio is playing a show there! Isn't that awesome?

So, we definitely must get our Central Park Summerstage TICKETS in the next few days for that one!

Setting Up Blogs

One of the hardest things for me when setting up a blog is trying to decide where to host the site. There are a plethora of providers out there who claim to have the best services. Knowing the difference between the different services available is very tough. Honestly, I haven't really figured out which company is the best to go to for web hosting. Too many to choose from!

I'm about to set up another blog soon, another website. And once again it will be time to find a new web hosting service. I'm going to search for some reviews of the web hosting services this time though. The last time I paid for a service I found out afterwards that I was way overcharged. I won't let that happen this time.

Just Writing

Every morning for several days now, I wake up early with a goodbye kiss from my husband. Later in the morning, the sound of heavy machine fixing the road in the neighborhood which is super annoying wakes me up. The kiss from my husband is the best, now I look forward to it everyday. Sometimes I don't want him to leave. Then the annoying noise outside which wakes me up really upsets me. I need to get all the sleep before going to work. It's hard to be pregnant and people say it's harder on your first one. My breasts are really tender which makes it hard to run around my workplace, my lower back hurts, and wanting to throw up while working are the hardest things I have to deal with. But like every mother feels, I'm excited to see my baby, to know whether it's healthy and buy baby stuff. I'm excited!