3 Ways to Prepare for the Holidays

Even though Halloween may still be fresh on your mind, we all know how quickly the holiday season can creep up. Before you know it, it will be time for parties, baking, concerts and gift-giving! Here are a few ideas that can help make your holiday season run a little more smoothly.

Plan ahead. There’s nothing more stressful than being left at the last minute needing a gift for a party you’re going to, a friend you’re planning to see, or even your kids’ teachers. Stock up on some small, easy housewarming gifts like tins of chocolate, candles and bottles of wine. A lot of these things can be found pretty cheaply at dollar stores and will keep you from spending more than you need to on your nice gesture.

Start making lists. Start taking note of things that your kids and other people on your shopping list are asking for this holiday season. That way, when you see items in the store that you know you’ll need, you’ll be able to grab them and not risk stores running out of stock and making you track them down at different locations. Getting organized like this will also make any online shopping you’re doing on Black Friday easier!

Stock up on baking supplies. It’s hard to go through a holiday season without doing some baking (and why would you want to skip it anyway?!) so dig up your favorite recipes now and make sure you have everything you need on hand — think about pie crusts, brown sugar, pumpkin, Karo syrup, etc. This will save you from running out to a convenience store last minute and spending twice the price you usually do on something cheap like sugar!
 
Remember, thinking ahead just a little bit now can make the holidays a bit more stressful and leave more time for you to enjoy your family and friends!

LincolnParkAnnie is a freelance writer focused on how to live large on a little living. She writes financial savings tips for the cash advance company, QuickQuid.co.uk, and enjoys finding new ways to have fun on the cheap in her native Chicago.

Food Friday

This week's featured Food Friday player is...

Ms Dominique with her post Monkey Boy Cooking on a Friday, on her blog, From Dominique's Desk.

Who would have thought that an eight-year old boy made that dish above? Yes, Ms. Dominique's son cooked that all by himself! *clap, clap* Letting our kids help out in the kitchen is a great way to keep them busy and at the same time  let them appreciate and learn how hard (and fun) it is to cook for a family. Good job, Monkey Boy! Do visit Ms. Dominique's blog to learn more about parenting concerns and tips as well as some of the yummy food that they've been having!

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Am afraid my food post for this week isn't really healthy...and it's not something that I'd recommend that you eat daily. lol. Peanut butter, Banana, and Marshmallow Sandwich. That's what it's called.

Ingredients

• two slices of bread (i used whole wheat)
• one banana, sliced (you may use your fave variety; we only had plantain that day, so that was what i used)
• peanut butter (your choice..i used creamy)
• marshmallows (i think it would look way better if i used white smaller sized marshmallows...lol)
• muscovado sugar (or you may use maple/chocolate syrup)

Procedure:

• Using an oven toaster, toast the bread slices slightly before slathering with peanut butter. 
• Place the banana slices on one bread while the marshmallows on the other bread slice.
• Toast both slices until the marshmallows expands, gets gooey, and turns brown on top.
• Remove from the oven toaster (or the oven), then add muscovado sugar (or maple/chocolate syrup) on top of the toast with the banana slices.
• Place the marshmallow topped toast on top of the banana topped toast.
• Enjoy!

I first found this recipe online (yeah, this isn't a Maiylah Original. hehe) a couple of weeks ago, and got curious. I only managed to buy marshmallows this week, so I thought I'd try this. I didn't think I'd like the mix, but I did! It wasn't overly sweet at all, much to my surprise. My youngest son who was with me at that time didn't like it that much, though. That's because he doesn't like peanut butter; he says he prefers eating REAL peanuts instead of peanuts with butter in it. lol. :D

Reminder: Please don't forget to link back (a simple text would be great, or you may use the buttons provided here). Also, please try to visit the other party-goers and leave some commentluv to let them know that you dropped by. Many thanks! :)

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Reader...

I have been thinking of getting myself one of those e-book readers for a while now, and hubby is encouraging me to buy one. I have always wanted to buy books, but I hesitate because I really wouldn't know where to store them! Our house is pretty small so space is a constant challenge. That's why I decided I want ebooks instead of the actual books. I was thinking of getting one of those mp3 audio books, too. Not only for myself but also for my youngest. I want him to be interested in reading, too. Well, he's only four years old, so...I just want him to be familiar with books and such.

Will I get myself that ebook tablet this year? Let's see...

Drive-by Shot

Shot taken using the dslr (on a moving vehicle), but edited using the phone. This was taken while we were on our way home, from Cavite. Yup, that's what you'll see when you use the Manila-Cavite Expressway.

The trip was ok...but I still prefer our "usual" route: using the South Luzon Expressway. Or maybe I'm so used to it already. lol.

Mini Library

Honestly, I have always been fascinated how one plays the harp. I almost always associate that instrument with fairies and far away lands. Yeah, blame it all on the fairy tales that my siblings and I used to read back when we were much younger. I guess our parents share the same passion too, since we certainly had lots of fairy tale books (most of them hardbound!) back then. Not only that, you can also find a sprinkling of paranormal, soul searching, and "how to improve one's self" books in our mini library. But that all changed when we started buying our own books...now we've got detective/robot/sci-fi stories (one of my faves! lol), biographies, science, psychology and some books that are quite hard to categorize. But do you know what my all-time fave books are to this day that you'll find in our mini library?

Yeah, those fairy tale books! :D

Typhoon Ofel

It's raining again. Yup, another typhoon...

On Coping

With the hectic life one is forced to take these days, it is no wonder that some people succumb to the stress and try to cope by taking medications. There are different drugs that can be prescribed by licensed medical doctors which can help relieve depressive disorder and one of them is cymbalta. Nausea, dizziness, and insomnia are some of the cymbalta side effects which have been reported, but I guess that those are minor inconveniences compared to the pain you experience if you have fibromyalgia, bipolar disorder, neuropathy or have a depressive disorder.

Honestly, I wouldn't want to be in any sick person's shoes. I emphatize with them. We all need to deal with what we have and get on with life. I so admire persons who try to stay brave and keep moving on in spite of what they are going through.

They are the ones who knows the true meaning of life.