Pineapple cheese ball

Guest post written by Elaina Sanderson

When I started planning what I was going to fix for my family when they come over to my house for Christmas Eve dinner, I knew that I would need something for everyone as soon as they got to the house while I was still cooking the last things and what not. I thought that maybe I could put out some cheese and crackers, but I wanted to do something a little more special and impressive.

So I went online to try and find a good recipe to fix as a little appetizer and when I was doing that I came across this website http://www.ClearWireInternet.com and after I read through it I signed up for one of the internet packages on the site.

I couldn't really think of a better thing to fix and set out than a pineapple cheese ball. I really think that they're so much better than regular old cheese balls and also wanted something that I would want to eat, just in case I have lots of the cheese ball left.

Earthquake!

Almost 8:00 AM, we were all fast asleep when we all felt everything shaking. I thought hubby shook the bed so I opened my eyes and I saw him laying next to me so I closed my eyes again and he yelled "Earthquake!". We both jumped out of the bed and I told hubby that I'll go check our son in his room while he knocked on our dad's room. As soon as I opened the door, I saw my son awake, laying in his crib while hugging his pillow. I grabbed him and we all went to the living room. My dad said that he was already awake that time because he was reading a book.

Hubby went next door where our mom lives to check if they are all alright. We turned the TV on and the the earthquake was on the news 15 minutes after it happened. According to the news, the earthquake's magnitude was 4.2 but they lowered it now to 3.8

I encountered several earthquakes in the Philippines, probably 4 to 5 times, and this is the first time I encountered earthquake here in the US. It is so weird because I didn't feel any aftershock unlike the quakes I had in the Philippines. I didn't feel dizzy at all, well, it is a good thing though.

Hubby said that earthquake here in Indiana is very rare, although we had earthquakes in the past which had happened last April 2008. According to the news, it's only the third earthquake of note to hit north of Indianapolis in 175 years.

I hope no more earthquakes again and thank God that there was no report of serious damage.

What My Family Does Every Year

This guest post from Lenny Mcknight

Normally around Christmas time, there are many parks that have some type of Christmas Lights type of festival. My family doesn't really care for it because you pay too much and you go way too slow because there's already a car ahead of you driving way too slow so they can take in all of the sights. We prefer to go a more traditional route of looking at Christmas lights in different neighborhoods.

Before we go to look at Christmas lights and decorations, we set our home alarm (deals Adt Alarm) before we leave. It's that time of year when that is a must do! After that, we just drive to different neighborhoods to see how other families decorate their houses and look at how they string the lights on their houses. Most of the houses are beautiful and sometime funny. I like to hear the kids laughing in the back or giving flattering comments to certain houses.

I could not imagine not doing this every year. We have so much fun and we don't have to pay an arm and a leg to see a festival of lights. We prefer the amateur version of it because it is more original and sometimes even more beautiful. If you want to start a tradition that doesn't cost anything besides a few bucks in gas, this is certainly the way to go.

Asbestos survey can save lives

Talking to your relative whom you have not seen for a long time is something that I missed, that is why I decided to call my relatives from London last Christmas to greet them. I can't believe how I missed them. The last time we saw them was on our trip to Florida last September. While talking to my aunt on the phone, I asked her on what she was doing before I called. She said, she and my uncle was discussing about whether to have a survey about asbestos or not.

I told her that I always see commercials here on TV about asbestos and that I read how bad is the effect of it to our body if we are most of the time exposed to it. She told me she knew someone whose husband had Mesothelioma disease due to too much exposure to asbestos, her husband's job was in the construction. They thought that his husband would be safe against Mesothelioma because they wore safety protective gear at work, but sadly, he still got the disease.

My aunt said that it is the law in the UK for businesses to have a report that their premises are safe from presence of asbestos. But since my relatives also wants heir house to be safe from asbestos exposure, they decided to get an asbestos survey. I actually think that it is a good idea to have a survey like this to your house because this would determine if our house is asbestos-free. In that way, our lives would be low risk of getting asbestos illnesses.

Not only I was happy talking to my relatives but, I was also glad to know more about the asbestos. I didn't know that there is a such a thing like asbestos survey till they told me.

More gifts to give this Christmas

Hubs and I shopped for more gifts to give this Christmas. Aeropostale, Old Navy and Victoria's Secret were all on sale so we were both happy that we saved some money. Victoria's Secret stores is like heaven to me lol! I don't know what to get when I am there because everything looks so yummy hehe. I told hubby that I want to live in VS store, he just laughed hehe. Here are more gifts that we will give away tom. I wrapped them with garland so it would look more Christmas hehe.

Children's Christmas book search

Guest post written by Melanie Sparks

Every time that I have a reason to get a gift for my nephew, I like to spend a whole bunch of time picking out the best possible book that I can find. I'm really big into reading and even though my sister, his mom, hasn't always been a big reader I think that my influence definitely got him into reading. Well, I guess he probably doesn't have much of a choice though because I've been brainwashing him with books as gifts.

However, I am getting him more than just books for Christmas. He's my only nephew and I like to spoil him so he's actually going to get a few different presents from me. But I was online looking for some of these presents about a week ago and while I was diong that I came across some stuff about Clear Wireless Internet packages and after I read through it some I ordered one of them for my apartment.

I found this really great children's Christmas book and even though I wasn't looking for one specifically, I decided to get that for him and I'm going to give it to him early so he can enjoy it up until Christmas too.

We are ready for Christmas!

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Playing around with cookie cutters

Guest post written by Eleanor Robbins

My kids are pretty picky eaters, so I like to pack their lunches for them. I figure that it's better this way because I know that they'll at least eat what I fix instead of not eating their school lunches and come home from school starving.

I like to keep up with food blogs and find new things to fix and new presentations for food so that they'll be more likely to eat what's good for them. One night when I was looking online to try and find new and fun things that I could put into their lunches, I came across some Wireless Internet Companies offers and after I looked through them some, I signed up for one of them.

Then I saw on a blog to cut out sandwiches with holiday cookie cutters. I already had some and thought that it would be the cutest thing to use on their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I actually saw it once at a baby shower, so it can't be all that hard.

You reap what you sow

Hubby and I together with our son visited hubby's friend. He lives in the next town where we lives. We went there to drop by an invitation for our son's first birthday party.

While hubby was driving on our way to their house, he told me some things about his friend. They were playmates when they were kids. His friend had rough childhood life because his parents divorced when he was 7 years old. He worked in a gasoline station after finishing high school so he could save some money to afford to go to college. He studied Business Management during day time and worked in a convenience store at night. After graduating college, he became a manager. His life fell down when he and his wife divorced. His wife took almost all the property he had and aside from that he lost his job. That was the last news he heard by my husband from him.

When we found the address of his friend. We were amazed how big his house was. We rang the doorbell and a pretty woman opened the door for us. We sat down in the couch and there we met his friend. He told us that he is now working in an Advertising Agency. He got a good position there and that is where he also met his new wife. He was able to buy a new house with a big yard because from the money he is making from his job.

A person like hubby's friend became successful because of his endless dedication to his job, faith, hope and perseverance. Looking at his life now is like those story on soaps on TV. He inspired me .

I am addicted to Food Network Channel!

I am so addicted watching Food Network Channel. I am not a cook but I am a frustrated one lol! I can cook some foods and I want to improve myself more in cooking and baking. Here are the list of shows on Food Network that I love (not in order):

1. Chopped
2. Unwrapped
3. Rachel Ray
4. Down Home with the Neely's
5. Semi-Homemade
6. The best thing I ever ate
7. 5 Ingredient Fix
8. Cup Cake Wars
9. Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
10. 24 Hour Restaurant Battle
11. Ace of Cakes
12. Throw down with Bobby Flay
13. Giada at Home
14. Rachael's Vacation
15. Dinner Impossible

And now, the show I am waiting for is "Worst Cooks in America". It will be shown on January next year.

Seeing Santa for the First Time

Thanks for the post from Barney Crosby

When I had the twins in March I didn't think about Christmas or the eventful proceedings that would go with it. So, when it was discussed to take the children to the mall to have their picture taken with the jolly old elf, it took quite a bit to get going. We decided it was best to take them while my husband was at work and the delightful afternoon turned gray when it started to rain and then to snow. That didn't dampen the twins spirits at all. While they were cozy in their car seats I took the time to lock the door, but not before I set ourADT HOME SECURITY . That is something I never forget to do.

It's so amazing to me that nine month old children get that excited. I will absolutely be taking them again next year. Snow or rain isn't going to stop me from seeing the looks in their eyes when he asks them what they want for Christmas and calls them each by name. When we got the pictures back we put them on our Christmas cards to send to everyone in the family and all of our friends. I was all in all a great day.

My BFF this winter

Meet her ,.,.

I got this house slippers at Walmart for only $10

and it makes my feet warm this winter.

My messed up router

I was browsing the internet this afternoon when I lost connection. I checked the settings of my laptop and modem and everything seemed fine. I tried to browsed on my hubby's laptop but unluckily, there was no browsing either. I called our Internet Service Provider because I thought they were having some technical problem or they were having system maintenance. But when the customer support I spoke with, told me that everything is fine in their network, then that is the time I checked my router.

I tried by passing the router to check if there is internet connection by connecting the ethernet cord directly to my laptop and to my surprised, there is an internet connection. I applied everything I know about escalating router problem and technical skills but the problem wasn't solved still. I decided to call my friend who is more knowledgeable than me about router to help me get my connection back. I was impressed because she was able to fixed my router problem in just 5 minutes.

My friend is married to a military that is why they often move a lot. She took Virginia Cisco Course when they lived in Virginia and continued studying by taking Virginia MCITP. After she took those courses, they moved to Chicago and that is where she got her Chicago CCNA certification. A year after, she attended San Diego CCNA Bootcamp when they moved to California.

I am so proud of all her accomplishment in life. She loves computers alot that is why she never stop studying computer.

Cookies for my tired hubby

Hubby came home from work very tired. I asked him on what's wrong and he said that it's his job. I know that it is hard to be a nurse because you have to take care lots of patients and some patients are not very cooperative in the treatment which adds up more work for the medical team.

I asked hubby this time on what he did at work and he said that aside from assisting the Physical Therapist, he also went back and forth to the medical supply room to get the TENS Units and Muscle Stimulators. He said that all of the units are non-working except for the LG-TEC Dual Combo TENS Unit and Muscle Stimulator. Since there was only one working unit, hubby visit LGMedSupply Online to order more units. While he was browsing the website, he came to their online customer blog and he read more about how effective the units they are ordering.

My husband is nurse who works in a Rehabilitation. Sometimes, he is just not a nurse. He sometimes give extra hand to those who needs his help at work and that is why everybody at work admires him. How do I know? People at his work told me that. Good thing that I baked his favorite cookie and they were still a little bit warm (which he likes) when he got home. And of course, I gave him some massage to make his legs, arms and back relaxed.

Done with the gift wrapping ,.,., for now.

Candy Cane Jelly Beans Bring Back Memories

Guest post of the week by Brittany Booker

Just thinking about Christmas makes my mouth water. There are so many yummy treats that are only offered during the holiday season, and I always look forward to indulging in all of the sweet goodies. Not only do I make peppermint baked goods and pumpkin-based desserts, but I also enjoy shopping for unique candies that are marketed only during this time of the year.

Last night, I was flipping through the channels on my CableTelevision, and I saw an advertisement for Candy Cane Jelly Belly jelly beans. I first ate a Candy Cane Jelly Belly last year on Christmas, and I quickly became addicted to them. They are little, minty bursts of heaven. Since they are only produced during the holiday season, I have been patiently awaiting their return. I plan on stocking up tomorrow when I do my grocery shopping.

Jelly beans have always been a favorite treat in my family. Growing up, my parents would leave out a candy dish with a few of the bite-sized delights. I also remember receiving them as a gift for almost every holiday. Now that I have a family of my own, I have passed my love of jelly beans on to them. The delicious Candy Cane Jelly Belly jelly beans will put a big smile on our faces this Christmas.

Ten songs I like listening this season

Winter is back that is why I can't go out much because of the sleek road. What I do most of the time now is listening to music and watching music video. Here is my fave songs for this season (not in order).

1. If it's love (Train) - I love the lyrics and the vocalist's voice.
2. Stuck like Glue (Sugarland) - I love the rhythm plus the outfits of the vocalist in the vioce makes me want to buy a clothing with leopard design.
3. Pretty Girl (Keri Hilson) - I love the song and I like the way she dance. I like the part when she was dancing the Waterfalls by TLC.
4. Just a Dream (Nelly) - I am so glad that Nelly is back. Love his new come back song.
5. I'm coming home (Pdiddy) - I love the rhythm plus this song make me wanna go back to Philippines.
6. Just the way you are (Bruno Mars) - Bruno has a really great voice.
7. Raise your glass (Pink) - I always like Pink's songs.
8. Jars of Heart (Christina Perri) - I like the singer's voice.
9. Paris (Ooh La La) -I like the Ooh La La part lol!
10. Bottoms Up (Trey Songz) - I don't why I like this song lol!

Santa's Worst Nightmare

Thanks for the guest post by Donn Schroeder

My daughter Ilana has been asking me to see Santa since July. I know most kids are excited about seeing Santa, but having to explain to a 5-year-old that Santa doesn't come around in July is not easy. Once I said that he only comes around at Christmas, she would ask why. I would explain that Christmas is the time when he gives out all the presents. She would rebut that that is not a time-efficient approach. This is how my daughter talks - I'm not kidding. A lot of it might have to do with my wife being a lawyer. In my daughter's opinion, it would make a lot more sense for Santa to spend the entire year handing out gifts. This way, he wouldn't have to rush so much, which would be better for air traffic safety. Unreal! How am I supposed to respond to something like that? The good news is that I'm certain she's going to make one heck of a lawyer one day. I eventually gave in and told Ilana that she can ask Santa these questions on her own. Tomorrow after school, I promised to take her to see Santa. Once we get ready to go out, we will set ourADT Home security alarm and get in the car. This is when she will be telling me about all the questions she has for him. Santa doesn't know what he's in for.

I shopped til I got sick!

Yesterday was fun and tiring as well. Afternoon, my dad-in-law and Iwent to the post office to mail some invitation cards and Christmas Cards. After that we went to Kmart and shopped for some gifts. Marsh's was our next destination after Kmart. We shopped some baby foods and milk there. Next, we went to Harvest Grocery to shop for more baby stuff.

We got home around 4Pm already with hungry bellies so we ate first before we proceed in continuing shopping lol! Around 4:30PM. We went to ALCO to shop for a Christmas tree. The Christmas tree is not for us, it is for my sis-in-law. Her sons wants a tree in their house so my dad-in-law decided to buy them one. We didn't find the tree that we like so we went to another town to shop. At last, we found the tree that we liked and we found it at Big Lots! We also shopped for tree top, garlands and ornaments for the tree. I thought the shopping was over, but no! We went to Lowe's looking for a device. Well, we didn't find what we are looking for and since it was already late night, we decided to just go home.

We came home around 8PM. I was hungry again and tired. I ate, cleaned the dishes and made my son's bottled milk. While I was resting, hubby asked me "Do you want to shop?" I replied "Are you kidding me? I am already tired because what I did the whole day was to shop". Then I laughed. He said "But I want to shop for Christmas presents for the kids". he was talking about our nieces and nephews. My husband is like a vampire lol! He likes to sleep daytime and wakes up night time during his day offs. I told him "It is already 10:30PM. Why did you just decided to shop now?" We just both laughed at each other and I agreed to shop with him at Walmart even though I was tired.

After shopping at Walmart, we went to Meijer to shop for more. It was really a tiring day yesterday. I liked it though. Now, I am typing this post with kleenex sitting next to me because I have runny nose, cold and sore throat from shopping in 30F.

I'm tired and weak,,., I badly need a massage.

I woke up this morning with sore throat and headache from the shopping we did yesterday. My son has runny nose and no appetite (til now). His body temperature was 99.2F this morning which is not normal but not too high. I monitored him the whole day and thank God that it didn't go higher.

This afternoon, I had to go house-to-house to give the birthday invitation card for my son's birthday next week. After that, we had to shop again because we are not yet done buying gifts to our relatives and I am not yet done (til now) in buying party needs for my son. The party is just simple and not too big but I wanna make sure that the visitors will going to have fun.

When we got home, I was so starving that I had to force myself to cook dinner. I made Pork BBQ, mac and cheese, mashed potato, pork and beans and biscuits.

After dinner, I washed the dishes which made me more not feel good. Inspite of all the tiredness, I am glad though because my son's body temperature went down and hubby liked the dinner I made.

I still have gifts that needs to be wrapped and cards that needs to be sent tomorrow. Writing this post is actually my breaktime and now that I am done writing this, I have to get my butt back to work.

Snow covered Christmas tree

Guest post written by Rachel Fallon

I've always wished that I could put my Christmas tree outside so that snow could collect on its branches. It would just be so gorgeous! But that isn't very reasonable, so I have to settle for snow themed Christmas tree ornaments and trimmings.

I like to make my own ornaments just because I can appreciate them that much more and they look more special to me. I wanted to find some kind of new snowflake ornament or garland to hang on my tree and was looking for some inspiration online, when I came across some Chicago Wireless internet offers. I looked through and decided to get one of them because I've hated the internet provider I've been using at home for a while.

After all of that, I got the idea to make some snowflake garland with just hand cut paper snowflakes and white yarn. I also liked the idea because I already had all of the supplies to make them. I also got my kids to help out with cutting the snowflakes too and then I let them dip them in glitter, which made a huge mess. But it was worth the payoff.

Dinner meal for Santa

I prepared dinner meal for Santa tonight hoping he will give me nice present this coming Christmas lol!

Steak wrapped in bacon, white rice, stroganoff and buttered cream of corn

And for his dessert, I made brownies and orange juice for his drinks.

Hubby said Santa will sure like the meal I prepared for him. Does that also mean I'll get nice present this Christmas? :D

Our Favorite Holiday Tradition

Content by Reid Dawson

It is our family's favorite time of the year, Christmas! Our family is fond of numerous holiday traditions that have passed down through several generations. One of the traditions our family has started is picking out our Christmas tree together. Every year we all reserve a few hours out of our busy lives, so we can keep with our tradition of going Christmas tree shopping together.

As our family grows, our tree choices have too. We started out years ago with an average size tree. This year, I expect our tree choice to be close to 7 feet tall! We always make room somehow. Before we leave the house to go Christmas tree shopping, we typically decide on a particular theme or color scheme, we want to decorate the tree with. This usually influences the size and look of the tree we choose.

Of course, like many families, we have already done a great deal of our holiday shopping before we actually get the tree. We feel safe leaving our precious gifts in our home because we always remember to set our Security choice home security alarm before we leave on our tree shopping adventure.

Getting busy for Christmas

Hubby and I are getting so busy this December. Aside from Christmas, we will also be celebrating the first birthday of our son. The birthday celebration would not be as big as other celebrated theirs, all we want to invite are those people who are close to us. Aside from our relatives, we will be inviting some of my friends here in town. I only have few friends though because I just moved here two years ago plus there are also few Filipinas here in town.

We have been busy few days ago shopping for gifts, Christmas gifts for everybody and birthday gifts for our son. I already have an idea on what to give to my hubby but of course, I would not gonna write it here or else he would know hehe. At the end of next week, hubby and I needs to finish all the shopping that we need to do. So far, these are all the gifts that we have for our son. We also have one big toy for him that I haven't wrapped yet because I am undecided whether to wrap it or not :D We have to buy more gifts for him next week.