Marriage and Beyond

posted by Jennie on Jun 2

After having recently bought another domain for myself, I pretty much have put more time on it than I did here on my main blog, this past week. Please forgive the less frequent updates on MarriageandBeyond.com. Aside from the blog updates that I had to do across my blogs (a couple of which still undisclosed), my sweet hubby gifted me with another website. I did not have to ask twice. Thanks, Jeff! It just occurred to me that this is a validation to my doubts that the web bug has bitten us.  If it were some years back, I would have found it queer to be gifted by my beloved spouse a blog. Of all things, who would have appreciated a website! Well, I do now. I would probably make a promotion of it in the coming days but I will have to let you in some bits about it, for now. It’s a wordpress blog, no less. A domain of its own and with a title that has been SEO-ed (if you know what I mean). Now I’m kinda stuck what I want more for a gift, Belgian chocolates or a website (good and well thought of one).

One of the more updated blogs that I have is my beauty blog. Dear readers must have noticed my inclination towards all natural products when it comes to beauty treatments. One reader contacted me and confessed of her varicose veins issues. My tendency was to refer her to VARICOSE VEINS PITTSBURGH. If you know me, you will easily figure out why. The team behind varicose veins pittsburgh use minimally invasive treatment alternative for patients who suffer from superficial venous reflux. This is usually where varicose veins often start.

As much as I would love to give my reader an all natural treatment for her superficial venous reflux issues, this is the most natural that she could really go to – spider veins pittsburgh. The truth of the matter is there is this estimated 20% of the adult population in America alone that is afflicted with this problem. Varicose problems aren’t just about the aesthetics. The pain that goes with it is reason enough to get it taken cared of.

Between homeschooling, house chores, web content writing, church and occasional blog events, it is just nice to be able to juggle things and enjoy life.  When it comes with my time with the hubs, I have an ever faithful alarm clock seated inside by rib cage that goes off the moment I don’t get to spend quality time with him (which, thank God is not very often).   I totally get disoriented when that happens, out of sorts, frazzled even.  That’s the time when I bug him right back to our “us” time.  I have the most wonderful husband and I thank God for him everyday and that’s not just because of the website gift.

posted by Jennie on May 16

Here is another reason why I so love World’s Healthiest Foods. While I try to compensate my zero workout with eating health foods whenever I get the chance, here is another neat recipe - Calabacitas. Calabacitas is a Mexican flavored side dish. The hubby and I have been indulging in Mexican foods lately (spicy foods are his least favorite). While we are at it, this is one dish I am going to try out very soon. A regular dose of this healthy stuff and regular exercises, then I just might need less of ephedra free. (I know I have at least more than a couple of pounds to lose and some serious muscle toning to work on) 

The ingredients are pretty much easy to find in my regular supermarket. A recipe with an unusual mixture of flavors. Can you just imagine all those flavors coming together? This is what I love about Mexican food, the flavor that is so rich, you just cannot stop munching. I have to watch it though and go easy on Mexican recipes with loads of cheese. It can be hard to resist, but I have to or else my lactose intolerance won’t like it.

Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 medium onion cut in half and sliced thin
4 medium cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups zucchini diced into ½ inch cubes
2 cups yellow squash, diced in ½ inch cubes
15oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 4oz can of diced green chili
3 + 1 TBS chicken or vegetable broth
¼ cup chopped cilantro
3 TBS fresh chopped fresh oregano
salt and black pepper to taste
*Optional: drizzle with olive oil before serving

Directions:

Slice onion and chop garlic and let sit for at least 5 minutes to bring out their health-promoting benefits.
Prepare all the vegetables by slicing and chopping.
Heat 1 TBS broth in 11-12 inch stainless steel skillet. Healthy Sauté onions in broth over medium heat for about 5 minutes stirring frequently, until translucent. Add garlic and sauté for another minute.
Add zucchini, yellow squash, remaining broth, green chili, and cook for another 3 minutes or so until vegetables are tender, stirring often. Add tomatoes and continue to cook for another couple of minutes.
Stir in herbs, salt and pepper. Serves 4

posted by Jennie on May 10

… that is my mission before this month ends. It was early this year when I decided that it is going to be a healthier me this year. I jumpstarted with an everyday workout, started with five minutes a day to almost an hour a day. It was a feat, really. For someone who never had a regular exercise for most of her life, that is really something. I then followed it up with getting a flu shot. I was really decided to be healthier. Because I drag my family with me every time I get sick.

The bad news is, it only lasted two months. I have not been working out for a couple of months now and I am not proud about it. Even after a slimming procedure done on my mid portion recently, I admit, I could still use fat burners. A workout fat burner will be an ideal, though.  I have been pretty busy, my schedule has been crazy but I know I have got to figure something out to get back into shape. 

One thing that I have noticed, the moment I stopped working out was the time I almost instantly tipped seven pounds heavier. Now I am starting to believe that there is this side effect of putting workout to a sudden halt. But I cannot also deny the fact that I was at my best shape when I was working out.

posted by Jeff on May 10

By Turlough O’Carolan

A mother’s love determines how
We love ourselves and others.
There is no sky we’ll ever see
Not lit by that first love.

Stripped of love, the universe
Would drive us mad with pain;
But we are born into a world
That greets our cries with joy.

How much I owe you for the kiss
That told me who I was!
The greatest gift–a love of life–
Lay laughing in your eyes.

Because of you my world still has
The soft grace of your smile;
And every wind of fortune bears
The scent of your caress.

(from Jed)

Happy Mother’s Day to my loving wife, Jennie!

posted by Jennie on May 8

The issue of family planning in a Christian family is a rather controversial one. There is no passage in the New Testament about the issue of birth control. Obviously, God has left this one issue up to the couple, as long as they do not go against the other commandments. Which brings me to mention that abortion is a no-no. Exodus 20:13 says “Do not murder.”  Abortion is killing a human being.

The size of a family is all up to the couple to decide. Although God has given Adam and later Noah (after the Flood), the command to replenish the earth, a few other factors about raising a family should also be considered.  Raising a family means getting into a commitment to train up each and every child aright. The ability to provide should also be looked into. A larger family automatically means more tuition and basically more of everything.

If ever a couple decides to have an unlimited number of children is up to them. But they should also get into this with the responsibility that goes with such decision. If ever they decide to get into something invasive like getting a more permanent contraception and later have a vasectomy reversal. Again, it’s really all up to them. So long as there is no event of killing the fertilized egg and abortion, the kind of family planning a couple decides should not matter. This means NO to that morning-after pill as well. 

On the other hand if a couple decides to just have one child, they should also consider the danger of spoiling the child. This is very common in a family with one child. This is why our hearts’ desire is to have another child. But if this is not in God’s plan, then we are okay with it. Having an only child, we put it upon ourselves to be more aware that we do not spoil him in any way.  Right from the time that we were still pregnant with our son, our prayer has always been to more than just have a child that we could live with, but who will be a blessing to the people around him, as well. So far, even as there is this tendency to have that center of attention on him, he knows who is in command. We would like to think that he is considerably one disciplined child.

More than the issue of how big or small a family should be, it is more important to subject our family to what God has intended it to be. Prayerfully plan and envision what you want in your family and decide from there.

posted by Jennie on Apr 20

Sweet potato (camote tops juice) and lemongrass juice are two of the things I have religiously given my son in the last three days he was down with fever. Well not exactly down, because you would actually miss that he has it, if you won’t feel his skin and actually check his temperature. I practically had to hold him off from his usual overactive self.

Thanks to the sweet potato tops (camote tops juice) and lemongrass juice that I think helped him fight whatever he was sick of. I am happy to report that my son has been fever free for more than 24 hours now. The last three nights were the craziest for me. I hardly had any sleep, managing my son’s temperature by giving him frequent sponge baths. It was only the first day that the fever persisted for almost the whole day. The days that followed were lower grade ones and were several hours apart.

The only thing I gave him were the occasional paracetamol, lemongrass juice and sweet potato juice. Both of the juices he would refer to as his juice medicine. I have not done sweet potato juicing for sometime now because we have kind of gotten stuck to lemongrass juice as our regular family drink. But because there is a valid Dengue scare, I knew we have got to up our chances of being able to manage if it was the case.

For those of you who have been asking how to make sweet potato tops juice (camote tops juice), here is a post especially dedicated for this recipe.

1. Clean a sheaf of sweet potato tops in a mixture of water with vinegar. This will take out the soil and other dirt particles from the vegetable. I formerly used Sunrider’s SunSmile® Fruit & Vegetable Rinse, but later figured my trusty vinegar could do the job.
2. Boil the sweet potato tops for at least five minutes. Let it cool.
3. Separate the leaves from the juice. (You can use the sweet potato tops as salad or appetizer)
4. Squeeze in lemon or calamansi juice. The number of calamansi is up to you.
5. Add honey to taste.
6. Refrigerate.

Your ultra refreshing sweet potato tops concoction will be ready in no time! Of course, for hot tea drinkers, you could always choose to drink the juice straight after procedure number three.

Dengue fever is one of the most dreaded diseases in tropical countries such as the Philippines. It has taken lives of quite a number of children and adults. National Statistical Coordination Board reports tens of thousands of deaths brought about by Dengue every year.

Dengue kills and it does its job by having the victim’s platelet count to a dangerous low, and then it becomes fatal. Studies have shown that the nutritional content of sweet potato tops can fight the dangerous drop of a patient’s platelet count.

It really is so simple if you think about it. It might even get you to think that a disease so dreaded cannot just be cured by those lowly camote tops. The truth is right there in our own backyards. Come to think of it, if we heed to the supposedly insult/jest, “Go home and plant camote,” it will even do us good after all.

Some Related Posts:
Therapeutic Properties of Lemongrass (Madagascar lemongrass)
Health Benefits of Lemongrass
My First Post on Sweet Potato Tops (camote tops) Juice

posted by Jennie on Apr 18

My little guy started having fever Thursday morning. He had fever (38-39 degrees Celsius) for most of the day until the next day at six in the afternoon.  No cough and colds, no loss of appetite, still bubbly and playful. So we really can’t call it the flu. We brought him to the Pedia Friday morning just to be told that blood tests will not help because fever was just a day old. So if it was Dengue, the test will not come back positive until at least the third day. Today is the third day and Jed has been fever free for twelve hours until another episode of low grade fever came back again at two in the afternoon.

If it was not for the kid on the next block who had Dengue last month, I wouldn’t be as concerned. We don’t have mosquitoes in our home because of our trusty JML pest shield. We got that to get rid of stray roaches and since I bought it a year ago, it did not just get rid of roaches, but millipedes and mosquitoes as well. It was frustrating that our brand new home was infested with millipedes! Now we hardly use anti-mosquito spray anymore, really. This deserves a separate post altogether.

Going back to this Dengue scare, for non-Filipinos, please know that it is not pronounced as “den-goo” as one website claims. It is pronounced as ˈdeŋ-gē, -ˌgā . Etymology is American Spanish. But we usually pronounce it with a short “e” –  den-g-eh. Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF),  mostly found in the tropics, is spread to human with the bite of female aedes mosquitoes. The virus incubates the human body for 2 to 7 days before it leads to fever.

According to my father (which was later reinforced by some health magazine), these dangerous dengue carrier mosquitoes are only active until ten in the morning. Since then, I have not allowed my son to play or bike around the house, even in the garage before 10:00AM. We certainly make sure we do not have stagnant water around us, but still with a neighbor’s grandson across the block having just had his bout with Dengue, we could not be more careful. But a few days back, my son went out to see his grandma and they stayed outside, came back with mosquito bites around the legs.

These past couple of days was spent reading on this scary disease, its symptoms and cure. Symptoms include: fever, headache, severe joint pain and rash. But I also read that toddlers may have non typical symptoms, so that leaves us clueless for now. We are hoping and praying that what Jed has is just viral. The fever that he has been having since are all six to twelve hours apart and are low grade ones.

I have also been making Sweet Potato Tops (Camote Juice) this last couple of days. There have been a lot of articles that have testified on the potency of Camote juice to cure Dengue. So I thought, if it was Dengue that Jed has,  then he will be cured in no time. Camote tops juice ups the immune system, which helps the body fight the rapid reduction of the blood platelets.

We are praying that Jed will fully recover soon, whatever this is, his pedia said to hope that it is just viral. He sure is getting better by the day. I am just blessed that it was never hard for me to have him take his juice medicine (whether lemongrass or sweet potato tops).  Despite of his fever, he still remains the chatterbox, playful boy, ever cooperative with the juices and paracetamol medications that I give him. His appetite remains the same.  

As I said in this Plurk page,  I refuse to worry and am confident that God will heal my cutie pie real soon.   Thank you so much for those who prayed with us, especially our church family in SBC-Makati. 

posted by Jennie on Apr 12

After having transferred my beauty blog, KikayCorner.net to wordpress last week, I knew I had to get down to business and have the online store running after the long wait. It is inevitable. Countless of inquiries of beauty products that I endorse, I just knew I had to put something up for my readers to have access to a few of the rather scarce and not always commercially available natural beauty products.

It is not easy to be a webmaster of a handful of niched blogs and put rich content on them on a regular basis. A challenge, to say the least. But I’m definitely loving it! Especially after having seen that my experimentation with yet another new blog (another niched one) is topping the search engine. I get really giddy, when some of the newly acquired SEO skills of the hubs is passed down to yours truly and actually see my posts rank. We really hope that we grow forward to becoming better webmasters.

Meanwhile, as I go about my business in keeping this online shop, I have yet to create a merchant account and maybe later add in some other girl stuff like Marni necklace and who knows I just might get back to making my very own Swarovski crystal blings and sell them online.

I used to design and create my very own swarovski crystal jewelries six years ago and they sold like hot pancakes.  Literally! I even customized for some clients and even had the items shipped abroad.  I doubt I could still take in the same bulk of work, unless of course I  outsource.   It is  neat that shipping is made easy by a local courier who picks my merchandise for free and have them shipped anywhere in the world. Sweet!  

posted by Jennie on Apr 3

One year ago today, I was in one of those hospital beds in Medical City - a confinement that lasted almost a week. It was longer than my hospital stay when I gave birth to my son. I was then enrolled in my review classes and everything had to be on a halt. Not to mention the board exam that I was to take in the next couple of weeks. It was actually the onset of a year full of bed rests, doctor’s visits, endless medications and all those tens of thousands of pesos that went along with it. Being sick is not easy, to say the least.

“This year will be different,” this is what I claimed in faith. The first quarter of 2009 is almost over and we are all doing okay. I believe one of the major things that contributed to our being healthier is having the Vaxigrip Flu vaccine during the first month of this year. The event invite where we got the shots came in just in time because we were really scheduled to get our shots the first week of February.

A collage that I made from the Bakuna event that we attended. We got our little guy ready the night before by letting him know that he’s getting the shot together with mama. We were all surprised that he volunteered to get the first shot. Even though he stepped back when he saw the syringe, I still think it was best that I had him ready for it. So there will be no room for trauma for anyone - worked for us from day one.

If there was anything, I am more than thankful that our family attended the Bakunado Campaign through the efforts of Sanofi Pasteur last January. It was because of that event that I was made set to be more vigilant than I ever was. It was a real eye opener. If there was anything that I learned as I browsed through http://www.bakuna.ph, flu is nothing like a simple case. I learned a whole lot about the strains of influenza, its causes and how it spreads. The truth of the matter is, a whole bunch of complications can stem from what I used to call a simple case of influenza (Trangkaso in our vernacular).

After the roller coaster ride our family had with influenza last year, I can never emphasize enough the importance of getting the Flu vaccine yearly. It is our best shot in getting a better quality of life .

posted by Jennie on Mar 31

The hubby and I were married three years before we were blessed with a son. During those first years of married bliss one of the favorite things we enjoyed doing together is going to the spa. We hope to be able to try out the Spa Couples package from BlueWater Day Spa. It has been a while since we indulged in this type of royalty treatment. After having heard of countless BlueWater Day Spa recommendations, I just know it’s on top of our to have list.

Truth be told, working from home can be the most stressful of all jobs. First, I cannot really shut my child out, in the middle of work, when he asks for attention. I try my best to have him understand that mama is working, but it can be a challenge. I have learned to device ways to juggle the things I do from my work as a web content writer, to the toddler I have to take care of and teach, things that I do in between and back again to the endless cycle. One thing for sure, one has got to have strong intrinsic motivators to be able to do what I do.

This is why a spa will be a treat I would like to have every so often. A Vitalift (Flash Beauty Treatment) will also be a sweet indulgence. I am not much of a fan of invasive procedures, so this the one that I will ever go through when it comes to facials. I’m sure that will be review worthy that I will post live via my beauty blog – KikayCorner.net

Now that BlueWater Day Spa Capitol Hills branch is open, I will be the most thrilled to drag the hubs with me one of these days and just soak ourselves in treatments fit for a queen and her king.

BlueWater Day Spa Capitol Hills Branch

Capitol GreenStreet Commercial Center, Capitol Hills Golf Annex Building, Capitol Hills Drive, Old Balara, Quezon City

Telephone Numbers: +63 (2) 4730455, 9524829, 4350114

posted by Jeff on Mar 22

The hubby is the most athletic 33 year old that I have ever come across with. He always feels sluggish and gets tired easily whenever he misses his workouts at Marikina Sports Park. There is just this need for him to go run miles. He comes back refreshed and energized. For that I admire him more.  

Remember my quest to being healthier this 2009, which defines that I do my part of working out even via my ever reliable game console? I have quit for a month now. I just cannot get myself to go back to the exercising routine. With the schedule crammed up, there is just no way I could squeeze it in. I know it is so easy to find all the excuses in the world. Maybe I really have got to do some soul searching especially about this matter. I remember feeling so much better, physically, whenever I do my workouts. My back is starting to hurt again like before.

But before that, I think I have got to pull the hubby again to get me a pair of running shoes. For some reason, whenever we go to sports depot, I just won’t find the pair that suits me, or atleast the one that I would really like to wear for some time. I think my tiny feet look awful when I try on bulky shoes. The ones for me are those hard to find shoes that are fit for tiny ladies like me. Since rare and hard to find shoes are not all that popular in the malls, I visited shoebacca.com and there I found some perspective pairs. Online shopping can really be fun.

posted by Jennie on Mar 19

While it is true that we really cannot prevent stress from creeping into our everyday lives, there are things we can do to manage them. As a work from home mom, I have both full time careers to take care of. That doubles the responsibilities that I already have and a “Me Time” is but a necessity, to somehow keep me from losing sanity. Believe me, it’s tough work. Especially now that I am to figure out how things should work when school year starts for the little guy.

I love massages and with the stresses that I am exposed to on a daily basis, lines showing up here and there are but inevitable. Once in a while I treat myself to self conducted microdermabrasion. I barely have time to leave home for these treatments. That is why this facial massage video straight from Video Shelf really come in handy. I still have to figure out how Chemical Peels work, I’m a little apprehensive to do the more invasive types. The videos that they have really are award winning. Check out their site on how to avail of them.

posted by Jennie on Mar 17

It was early last week when I found out that I was hitting 106lbs.  I weighed the heaviest when I was in college (at 107lbs.)  Of course minus that time that I was prego, wherein I hit 126lbs. on the scale.  I understand that this might not sound heavy for a lot, but believe me a 5ft. gal like me feels really heavy at 103lbs.  The best weight that I can be in is between 98 to 102lbs. I tip a pound over and I feel downright heavy.  

So you can just imagine, when I tipped my Wii balance board and saw this?  

My personal trainer’s nagging tone is not really new to me anymore.  But realizing the fact that it has been too long when the gadget is right in front of me really says a lot about my not being disciplined enough.  Okay, before this post sounds like an opposite to what a Toot should be like,  wait until you see this…

Not bad eh. And the good news is in a week’s time I lost all the unwanted pounds that I had. I’m now doing 100.2 lbs. My diet wasn’t anything unusual at all.  Just more of bananas and salad.  I actually indulged in cakes and gelatos once or twice.  All the while I thought I altogether lost my body’s ability to lose extra poundage easily because of age.  Apparently,  I still have it.  And boy am I thankful!  Now I don’t need to change wardrobes after all.  :D

posted by Jennie on Mar 3

For an easy to prepare salad, which is both packed with Vitamin D and will provide you a hundred and five percent of your Daily Value for Omega 3 fatty acids, try out this Cucumber Chili Salad recipe. Another winner from The World’s Healthiest Foods. After having gained almost four pounds since last month, it looks like I am going to have to look into preparing more of salads, from now on.

Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1½ lb salmon fillet,deboned and skin removed cut into 4 pieces
3 cups thinly sliced washed cucumber, do not peel
2 tsp minced jalapeno pepper, seeds and stem removed (or to taste)
½ cup chopped scallion
3 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
1½ TBS chopped fresh mint
Dressing
2 + 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
salt and cracked black pepper to taste
Directions:

To Quick-Broil salmon preheat broiler on high and place an all stainless steel skillet (be sure the handle is also stainless steel) or cast iron pan under the heat for about 10 minutes to get it very hot. The pan should be 5 to 7 inches from the heat source.

Rub salmon with 2 tsp fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. (You can Quick Broil with the skin on; it just takes a minute or two longer. The skin will peel right off after cooking.) While pan is heating, prepare the remaining five ingredients. Using a hot pad, pull pan away from heat and place salmon on hot pan, skin side down. Return to broiler.

Keep in mind that it is cooking rapidly on both sides so it will be done very quickly, usually in 7 minutes depending on thickness. Test with a fork for doneness. It will flake easily when it is cooked. Salmon is best when it is still pink inside. While salmon is cooking, whisk together lemon juice, soy sauce, olive oil, salt and pepper. When ready to serve toss with cucumber mixture. Do not toss ahead, as it will dilute the flavor. Place cucumber salad on a platter and place salmon on top. Garnish with a sprig of cilantro and serve. Serves 4

posted by Jennie on Feb 24

Finally! After a long while of trying to figure out how I could ever be more regular in doing my workouts, I have found this support group for mommies who do their routine via Wii Fit. I honestly feel real good whenever I get to workout regularly and sluggish in days that I don’t. I feel heavier around the middle that I would have to take Fenterdren if I don’t watch it.

I just chanced upon that site a couple of days back as I was doing my rounds on EC dropping.  It is like having my very own accountability partner that would get me committed to working out on a regular basis.