• It has a super cool user interface that’s robust, yet still easy to use –> Think Apple UI

YNAB

• I have always been confused with debit and credit, good thing, this app uses IN and OUT instead
• It’s more than an application… it encourages you to make saving a habit through goal setting and living by its 4 principles:

Give Every Dollar a Job

Each month you assign your Available dollars to spending/savings categories. This process takes 20 minutes and revolutionizes the way you think about your money.

Result: Dollars are told what to do. Your awareness will increasetremendously and you’ll find contentment as your spending aligns itself with your core values. Communication between spouses is restored.

Save for a Rainy Day

You’ll anticipate larger, less-frequent expenses and will be ready for them. Insurance premium due in six months for $600? Save $100 each month and watch the Car Insurance balance grow.

Result: Eliminate the crazy ups and downs in your life. Gain atrue picture of your discretionary income. Enjoy opening the mail again (the money will be there waiting to pay that bill).

Roll with the Punches

The key is to keep moving even when you fail (you will). YNAB will make small adjustments when you overspend, ensuring that you fix those mistakes before you go to the next month.

Result: It keeps you on your budgeting feet, so when you fail, you don’t quit. You start each month with a clean slate–a hugepsychological boost.

Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck

We want you to work toward living on last month’s income. Both the software and methodology will help you do just that.

Result: You’ll find breathing room. You’ll stop wasting time by timing paychecks with bills, and if you’re on a variable income, your budgeting “problem” will be eliminated.

Budgeting

• It is super lightweight and multi-platform, it even has an iPhone and now an Android application
• Syncing is very easy, it highlights the updates or conflicts between devices, and allows you to easily check for it and approve as necessary

• Beat this — It has an awesome website, awesome community, awesome crew, awesome tutorials
• It focuses more on changing lives rather than scoring money from its users because it focuses on YOU learning by giving free tutorials and coaching classes, it focuses on YOU getting the latest update for free for life, it focuses on YOU being able to access your application from all of your devices

If you’re still in doubt, read what others think about YNAB:

• http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0611/The-Best-Budgeting-Software-For-2011.aspx
• http://financialsoft.about.com/od/budgetingsoftware/gr/You-Need-A-Budget-Review.htm
• http://www.onemoneydesign.com/ynab-3-review-you-need-a-budget/
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/you-need-a-budget-ynab/id372076250?mt=8
• http://www.amazon.com/You-Need-Budget-YNAB-Personal/dp/B000QO76HU

Enough said, why don’t you guys just try this wonder for free I know, this is starting to sound like a paid ad but that’s how happy I am! I can’t stop spreading the good news! =) In fact, I’m glad that I am finally able to post this one because looking back, I really owe Jessy (founder of YNAB) big time! Read their story here.

If you have any question about this app, feel free to contact me via email. I’ll be a YNAB consultant for free!

Good thing I didn’t give up and gave it one more shot. Look at my output below, that only took me around 3 – 5 minutes waiting time.

What did I do? Simple, just spray this on and wait for a few minutes. After that, wipe the faucet with wet chamois. It would be better to leave the room after spraying because this Lysol disinfectant cleaner releases bad odor and is possibly harmful to your health.

Anyway, the real purpose of this post is to share with you the rule of 72. This method is invented by Albert Einstein and is probably one of the most important facts you’ll ever encounter in your life. The rule of 72 simply teaches us that if you divide the number 72 by the rate of interest, will yield the number of years it will take to double your money. It is used in compounding interest rather than simple interest calculations.

For example, if you divide 72 by 8 percent interest in an investment, your money will double in 9 years, regardless of the amount of your money.

Why am I sharing this? To give you a wakeup call. Saving in banks can only give you at most, 4% interest and they would probably require you to save millions just to get that rate. And if we are being strict here, we would need to include the inflation rate of 3% to 5% into the picture, which will give you 0 to 1 percent interest. Using this scenario and applying the rule of 72, in how many years can you double your money?

The grease, dirt, oil, and other particles our eyes cannot see…

My emotional quotient is higher than ever and I’m so proud!!! I was able to withstand the urgency of the situation… I was able to ignore the immense need to wipe the stove top until after cooking (1 dish). Wow, it feels like passing the marshmallow test! Awwwesomeeee!

So how should one clean a stove top? I usually use a coarse rug in wiping off the oil and dirt to make sure the markings are removed. But before doing that, I wet the rug first with water and a little bit of Lysol Concentrate just to be sure that I’m not merely spreading the dirt all over my stove top. After that, I wipe it dry with a clean cloth or chamois, also to make sure that no water markings will be left behind.

P.S. No matter how hard it is to resist the urge of wiping splattered oil from your stove top while cooking, resist it, to avoid accidents.

I always feel like 24 hours a day isn’t enough to do all the things you have to do. I mean, there’s the clothes to wash, iron, and fold; food to cook; house and car to clean; movies to watch; blogs to read; social networks to update; places to go to; friends to meet; errands to run; and of course,  self  to maintain and pamper. Whew! That was a long list =)

Truth is, I just wanted to list all the things I have to do so I won’t forget and I can plan ahead. You see, listing your tasks is a simple way organizing your life.  You can use a pen and paper to do this, but you can also opt to take advantage of today’s technology.

Hubby and I opted for the latter in managing our medical, sports, and travel appointments. We chose Google Calendar because allows us to: 

• View several calendars at once — upon approval, you will be able to immediately see your friend’s calendar. You can also view Philippine holidays and daily weather, etc.
• Invite people with Google accounts to appointments — once they accept, the appointment will also be added to their Google calendar; think online version of Microsoft Outlook
• Receive appointment reminder either through pop-up, email, or SMS
• Add tasks
• Sync with iPhone/iTouch via Internet (no need to attach the phone via USB)
• Create appointments via iPhone/iTouch

Note: Click the thumbnail to view the screenshot of my calendar in full size.

Actually, the best part of Google Calendar is… it’s free! So, isn’t Google hot?! I strongly recommend that you guys start managing your life by managing your appointments and tasks, this way, you are able to plan ahead and make use of time efficiently.

Are you always frustrated in trying to prolong the life of parsley just so you can use it on different recipes before it finally dies on your fridge? I always am! In fact, I even tried to put it on a container with water just so I could prolong its life… but to no avail. tsk

Anyway, I’m sharing a solution that I’ve watched from the heaven sent Martha when she guested Eleonora Scarpetta to cook Chicken Cacciatori. Here’s How:

1. Get the freshest parsley you can find in the market.
2. Wash carefully and dry with paper towel.
3. Place on top of paper towels and wait for a while to let it air dry. Remember that the parsley needs to be very dry before putting it in the oven.
   
4. Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees celcius for 10 minutes.
5. Spread a baking sheet on top of the oven tray and place the parsley on top.
6. Place the tray inside the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the parsley is crispy.
7. Once done, get the tray and place the parsley on a strainer.
8. Crush the parsley with your hands.
   

Honestly, the entire process is not easy but like Martha said, having parsley within your reach is just like having gold in your kitchen and I totally agree!

Yep you read that right! Fresh Christmas tree is actually available here in the Philippines so go get one from SnR now! All you need to do is to order and make a PHP 500 peso deposit.

Thank you so much for your concern and interest in donating to all the victims of the typhoon Ondoy; we really really appreciate it.

You may donate via the following organizations:

1. Worldvision Foundation: For $ donations, BPI:USD acct #4254-0050-08

3. TXTPOWER.org: All donations will go to Philippine National Red Cross
Paypal (https://www.paypal.com/ph/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_flow&SESSION=txrSrwJ22EYrg20WoG3shUX2IQXpUdqgWAgcRdJUZWpNF69y5Z2pDZllGIy&dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1fca8cb0621aa94a5fc157eca86dc6e6adbec4b69650d8a3ec)

4. http://www.philippineaid.com/

5. Go to www.myayala.com/ondoy. Select “Typhoon Ondoy Donations.

1.  First of all, remove the squid’s cuttlebone (transparent and plastic like part of the squid.)

2.  From the squid’s head, remove the beak (round shape). 

Video available here:

How to clean a squid from Kathryn Ong on Vimeo.

When I am already short of time, this is my number one option because I can do other things while I wait for it to be cooked. ;p

This heaven sent dish is available at all major grocery stores, especially in SM groceries. It only costs 95 pesos, serves 2 to 3 persons, and the best part is, it is indeed boneless.

Another important ingredient to a great tasting meal is the sauce (sawsawan). We Filipinos love to have fish sauce or soy sauce with calamansi, or vinegar with salt or soy sauce by our side while we eat dishes like fried fish, chicken, or liempo; lumpia, and the like that is why I am introducing you to yet another great find =)

People would normally ignore vinegar with this type of packaging and go for widely advertised brands, but that should not always be the case. I have nothing against popular brands because indeed they are goodies; but Pinakurat, is just so awesomely blended – with just the right amount of all the elements you look for in a vinegar.

Pinakurat is available at all leading grocery stores so go ahead and try this one with your favorite dish.

One of the things that has caught my attention is the issue about bottled water not being safer than tap water, and the plastic used in these bottled water is harmful to us and to the environment.

Anyway, here’s a basic list of plastics so that you guys can do the necessary precautions. Just look at the bottom of the plastic container and notice the number inside the triangle; the number corresponds the type of plastic used, as follows:

1. Polyethylene terephthalate (PETE) – used in sodas, water, and liquid medicine bottles; generally okay for single use for food
2. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) – used in milk, laundry detergent, shampoo, plastic bags, grocery bags, recycling bins, agricultural pipe, base cups, car stops, playground equipment, and plastic lumber; very safe and transmits no known chemicals to the food
3. Vinyl, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) – used in cooking oil bottles (the transparent ones) and soft PVC toys; it contains softeners like phthalates which can interfere with hormonal development because it mimics human hormones
4. Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) – used in plastic cling wraps, sandwich bags, dispensing bottles, and food plastic bags; very safe and transmits no known chemicals to the food
5. Polypropylene (PP) – used in yogurt cups, auto parts, industrial fibers, food containers, and dishware; very safe and transmits no known chemicals to the food
6. Polystyrene – used in disposable coffee cups, take-out containers, cafeteria trays, plastic utensils, toys, and other expanded polystyrene products (e.g., Styrofoam); it can leach styrene, which disrupts hormone production and affect reproduction, into food; this type of plastic is not easily recycled so guys please avoid buying poducts made of this plastic
7. Other plastics, including acrylic, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, fiberglass, nylon, polycarbonate, and polylactic acid – used in baby bottles, dental fillings, sports equipments, 5-gallon water bottles, and linings of canned food and beverage; when exposed to hot liquids, it leaches out Bisphenol A (BPA), which is an endocrine disruptor; it has also been linked to a wide variety of problems such as cancer and obesity (OMIGAHHH); BPA is also harmful to the environment

Having read all sorts of related stuffs, I think the scariest part there is that mothers are actually endangering the health of their young ones without knowing it. When they sterilize baby bottles, they are actually inducing the release of BPA.

And when I think about how BQ and I interact with plastics grarr! horrors! We are drinking from water inside plastics that belong to type 7, eating food from cans that also belong to type 7, drinking from coffee cups that belong to type 6, cooking food from oil in plastics that belong to type 3, aaaahh!!! I even pour hot water to our plastic lunch boxes to “kill bacteria” but what I didn’t know was I am actually releasing all sorts of harmful chemicals from the plastic waaa! Anyway, to calm my nerves, I recently bought this nice glass lunch box and will soon think of a way to purify our water without the pastic part =D

This non-stick Sunnex pan is one of the most useful cookware I own; I actually have two favorites but I am only featuring the first one for now. I only bought this pan for around 900 pesos and all I can say is, it is worth every peso simply because I can use it for many purposes, it’s light, and it’s very easy to wash!

The pan is ideal for frying because even though it is kind of deep (for deep fry), it has small circumference to make better use of cooking oil. I mean, no need to put in tons of cooking oil just so you can deep fry your french fries or chicken.

Bangus Ala Pobre

It is also ideal for cooking rice means like fried rice or paella because its depth helps prevent your rice from jumping outside the pan.

In summary, this pan is good for saving cooking oil, saving yourself from oil burns, and of course in saving yourself from cleaning the entire kitchen (from oil spills and flying objects).