It Would Be So Nice To See A Deer

We are at the folks' house this weekend to visit and spend the usual weekend with my honey's parents.  We celebrated Christmas at home so we didn't come over on Christmas Eve.  As usual, our little one was very excited to see her grandparents.  They weren't able to come to DD's birthday party three weeks ago because of the winter storm that brought ice and below freezing temperature. So DD got to open her birthday and Christmas presents Friday.

Since we didn't have any particular plan yesterday afternoon, dad took us to the park because he wanted to feed the ducks.  But when we arrived, there were a few people fishing and the ducks were in the distance.  Dad didn't want to stir the ducks which will create a disturbance in the water and disturb the fishing.  So we went home instead.  On our way home, we told dad that we're going for a walk for a while.  DH, DD, and I had a little adventure this afternoon.  Well, we were just having fun walking, looking for interesting stuff.  

Hoof prints of a buck and a doe.

Then DH noticed these deer tracks on the ground.  The hooves print were still fresh so the buck and the doe were kind of strolling along side of the road.  Ah, we missed them!  It would be so nice to see a deer.

We had a wonderful dinner with the folks.  Their neighbor across the street came over to have dinner with us. 

Here's Another Way To Make Your Business Stand Out

If you own a business that relies on customer service, a uniform can go a long way toward making your employees memorable. Uniforms can be formal or casual, but they provide a number of important features that truly make your business stand out.

Professional Dress

If you are employing a number of different age and socioeconomic classes, you will find that what passes for professional dress may vary greatly. Uniforms are a great way to guarantee a professional look without the need to pass a dress code that may need frequent updating and require your time and employee hours to relay the information. Uniforms may consist of professional office attire, such as slacks or skirts and a button down collared shirt, or they may require specific articles of clothing. The exact configuration of the uniform is up to you, and there are now more options to choose from than ever before.

Recognizable Employees

A distinctive, professional uniform will allow you to be recognized for what you do. Recognizable uniforms allow customers to quickly find help in retail stores where they may need service or advice, and provide free advertising when they are seen outside of your place of business. Many companies have found this to be a very successful strategy, including places like the US Postal Service and UPS.

Functional Clothing for the Job

Uniforms can also provide proper attire for jobs that are too difficult or dirty to do in regular clothing. Coveralls, raingear, and cold weather attire are great perks to provide to your employees, depending on the job, and having the logo of your company on the clothing allows them to show their pride in working for you while wearing necessary protective gear. If the clothing is useful in more situations than just work, like a fleece jacket or hat, it becomes an advertisement for your company wherever your employees go.

Finding the Right Uniform

The right uniform should take several things into consideration. They should look classic enough to last a few years, but also have a fit and fabric that isn't dated. The clothing choices should also represent the kind of message you want your employees to convey.

Once you've decided on the uniform you'd like to give or require, the next step is finding the right place to create them. There are a number of uniform shops that can offer different choices. Online, one great option is Averill's Sharper Uniforms. Click here to see the great selection that they provide, no matter whether you're looking for a professional or a functional look.

Chistmas Celebration At Home

We had a great Christmas celebration at home.  My darling daughter had fun unwrapping her presents from family and friends and from Santa.  She enjoyed her gifts most especially the cute elephant tent and the new bicycle for toddlers.  

My living room was a mess yesterday-toys and books everywhere.  I cleaned it up last night but the tent is still up in the living room up to now.  I know she is really fond of it.  My husband and I are happy that our little one is happy on her first Christmas at home.

I did not prepare a big Christmas dinner (Noche Buena).  We just decide to make stir-fry noodles with pork chops.  Simple yet a delicious meal.  We celebrated Christmas at our humble home for the very first time.  The previous ones were celebrated out of town.  And last year, we were on our long holiday vacation and spent the holidays with my family in the Philippines.

Wordless Wednesday: Christmas, Family, Presents

Ways To Get The Lowest Freight Forwarding Quote Possible

When you have goods to send, it can often be a large expense you’d rather avoid. In many circumstances delivering your goods is unavoidable, for example if you are shipping products to a customer, and therefore delivery companies see opportunities to charge you high prices which you can’t get out of paying.

This is not something you have to worry about when you use a freight forwarder. They will have connections with a large number of companies and will be able to match you up with one to suit your needs whilst getting you the best price possible. Nobody likes to sacrifice good service for a good price, and when you use a freight forwarder you don’t have to.

www.beatmyfreightquote.com

The best thing to do when you use a freight forwarder is to first of all shop around and find the lowest price you can. You can then tell the freight forwarder the price they have to beat. Most companies will be much more willing to offer discounts if they know that by doing so they will be able to beat a competitor. If you don’t provide a quote for them to beat, you may not end up with the lowest freight forwarding quote possible.

To get the lowest freight quote, the best thing you can do is be flexible with your time. It’s usually much more expensive to arrange a morning or afternoon pick up than to arrange one for any time of day, so if you can make yourself available all day on your scheduled pick up day you cut down your cost. It also helps to plan ahead because most companies will be much more willing to offer discounts on unused cargo space before it leaves than to leave it unsold, so if you are able to send off your goods at any time, your freight forwarder might be able to get you a discount in this way.

Whilst these are all good ways of getting a low freight forwarding quote, there are things you can do yourself before you even get in touch with a freight forwarder. Your cost will be calculated according to the width, height and depth of your package and this will include any protruding parts, so when a package is an irregular shape, you may find that you are paying extra just to ship air. If you have packages like this, the best thing to do is pack them tightly together in a box, using the smallest packages to fill up the spaces. This way you’ll only be paying for space you have actually filled.

It’s always useful to consult a freight forwarder because they have much more negotiation power than you, as they are the ones who bring a lot of custom to the delivery companies and help them to beat their competitors. This means they can often get discounts for you just by asking, and they will be able to guarantee you a lower freight quote than anything you have received.

Weekend Snapshot: Winner!

I won one of the door prizes at the company Christmas party.

My dear husband and I attended his company's Christmas party last Saturday.  It was held at Blue Mesa Restaurant in Addison (Texas).  He introduced me to his new colleagues.  After the 'white elephant' style exchanging of gifts, drawing for the door prizes came up next.  I didn't know hubby wrote my name on his raffle ticket until it was called.  I went up to the  front and picked a prize.  My DH likes liquor (only on special occasion) so I picked the Coffee Liquor made with tequila. It comes with two shot glasses too.  Cool!  As I was walking back towards our table, his boss said "Are you old enough to drink that?".  That was funny!

Give The Gift Of Wellness Enter To Win $100 American Express GC

The Holidays are here again!  I bet you are excited about getting the items in your Christmas Wishlist.  Me? I have a few things in my Christmas list but the topmost important above all is good health for me and for all the family.  Next, I want something electronic that can be used while traveling or on vacation. ;)  I hope my dear husband will get the hint. However, a shopping spree is also ideal.  How about a $100 American Express Gift Card?  Not bad.  I can buy something that I really, really need.  Wouldn't you?

So how about joining me for a chance to win $100 American Express Gift Card?  A lucky winner will own this gift card courtesy of Northwest Pharmacy to enjoy shopping for gifts this Holiday season.  Entering is easy.  Just follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter below and you're in.  This giveaway is open until December 31, 2013.  And the lucky winner will be contacted via email.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Part of celebrating the Holidays is preparing the Christmas and New Year's Eve dinners.  For those with heart problems, foods with cholesterol should be avoided. And if you win the giveaway, perhaps consider shopping for nutrition and wellness products to give to your loved ones.

Come and join now!  Good luck to us!  If I win, I will buy some wellness products too.  How about you?

Thanks to NorthwestPharmacy.com

Yay, A New Wok!

I bought a new cookware yesterday.  It's a 12.5" wok that I found at H-Mart (the Asian market recently opened in Plano, Texas).  My cousin and I did our grocery shopping yesterday afternoon for the Christmas party tomorrow.  We are going to make some spring rolls or lumpia as our share in the Potluck.  

I am excited about this new wok because I can make stir-fry noodles in it without crowding the ingredients.  I have been searching for a wok for some time now and gladly I found it at H-Mart.

Wordless Wednesday: Trees Are White

Weekend Snapshots: Sleet And Icy Weather On DD's Birthday

Oh man!  Winter storm is here.  And it is bringing sleet and ice which makes it very difficult and dangerous to drive.  We got freezing rain here in Texas and the temperature dropped to 14 degrees Fahrenheit which is below freezing.  The freezing rain accumulated immediately and turned to ice overnight.  Bad timing because today is our darling daughter's birthday.  Awww...

Because there's icicles everywhere, tree limbs were broken and fell over power lines somewhere that caused power outage since 6 o'clock in the morning until 3 o'clock this afternoon.  So my husband drove us around the neighborhood to look and check.  Then we ate brunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant (thankfully they're open).  After having our meal, we went ahead and buy some firewood for the fireplace.  This is the very first time husband lit the fireplace since he bought the house in 2004. We thought, because of the very cold weather due to the winter storm, the firewood will cost a fortune.  But we only paid $20 for a big pile of oak wood.  Which is good. 

Daddy lighting up the fireplace.

 

 

The birthday girl. :)

So the power was out until 3:00 P.M. this afternoon.  My husband wasn't able to roast the pork.  We told our daughter earlier that the folks are not coming over because of the bad weather condition.  But my cousin and her family was able to come over for dinner.  I quickly fixed broccoli cheese and rice, adobo, corn on cobs, and banana pudding.  My husband bought a rotisserie chicken.  Gladly my cousin and her family were able to come because DD was kind of unhappy when I told her that the guests aren't coming because of icy roads.  But as soon as I told her that Audrey and Alexis (my cousin's daughters) are coming over, her face lit up with cheer.

Even though the weather was bad, DD still had a great birthday celebration with her cousins.

Trees bent because of heavy ice.

See how heavy the ice on that tree?

Icicles.  See where the drops stopped and formed to ice.

A tree branch broken and fallen on the side of the road.

Wordless Wednesday: Clear Blue Skies in Austin

And So Our Christmas Tree Is Up!

Hello everyone!  It's December 1 and my family is helping me decorate the house for the Holidays.  See how my little one put the Christmas balls?  She was very excited about this decorating thing soon as I told her that we are putting up our Christmas tree this year.  And so, our Christmas tree is up!

She's my little helper.  :)

Under the tree with her buddy bunny.

I have to make a wreath for the front door.  My daughter and I will go to Hobby Lobby maybe this weekend.  And I still have to look for nice Christmas decorating ideas.