I am DZOI

How was everyone’s weekend?

Ours was pretty boring, having spent it at home. We went out Sunday morning to get the groceries but that was it. I’m very proud though that we didn’t go over budget on our grocery bill. I guess we should continue buying them in SM instead of Rustan’s. It’s definitely much cheaper, if you don’t mind the crowd that much.

As for health, Sandy has colds while The Husband has been feeling weak and tired for the last two days. I’m blaming it on late nights, fatty foods and not enough exercise. I too, am not feeling so good, by the way. My extra pounds won’t go away that I’d probably take some weight loss pills if only Sandy isn’t nursing. I’m too lazy to hit the treadmill and even if I feel like exercising, there are enough scary stories circulating in our household that I’m not crazy staying in the office for the meantime.

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Multiple Backups

Just like money savings, I don’t believe in putting your eggs in one basket. This is why apart from burning all my files to DVDs, I make sure to make online copies as well. IBackup is one of the companies on my list for online storage and backup services. Their IBackup for Windows uses the same interface of MS Windows Explorer so you can be sure that it’s very user friendly. This service includes automatic scheduling of backups, 128-bit secure socket layer encryption, incremental/full backups, snapshots, synchronization and many more. For your online storage needs, IBackup lets you map your online storage account as a local drive on your computer. Simply drag-n-drop to edit and save files, use snapshots to view older copies of your file, organize data through sub-accounts, web folders, and sharing and collaboration options. It can even access data directly from your iPhone or any other handheld gadgets.

Try it now. IBackup offers free trial services if you’re not yet ready to purchase.

Posted in technology | 1 Comment »

Who Needs Inspiration?

I do! I need to submit at least two mockup designs for a website before Saturday but haven’t started anything yet. Solution? Visit one of my fave blogs - desire to inspire.

I found two great design ideas.

A great way to display artworks on the wall by Noel Mulet

A reason why we don’t have to sell our books. We can do a mini-version of this living room in the future. Designed by Tracey Garet

There are more but I have to stop browsing now or else, I’d never get anything done. At least, these two gave me an idea on what I will do on the web design - white spaces, beige and tan colors, and one or two bright colors (green or red) to bring life to the page.

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Old School Doll House

I want this for Sandy.

Photo from Alpha’s blog

You rarely see wooden toys at the malls now. When Alpha told me about this, I was hesitant to buy but after seeing the house on her blog, I’ve decided to get one. I will have to hide it for two months though because I want to give it to Sandy on her 3rd birthday. I’ve bought too many toys for her lately and not comfortable spending more. At least now I have a reason, which is her 3rd birthday. The dollhouse is so cute and looks really sturdy. Something similar is being sold at Toy Kingdom for about Php20,000. It’s bigger and more intricate of course and you can build a whole town with it. There’s a dentist clinic, a grocery store, a picnic yard, a lake with a boat, and more homes varying in size and styles. The town is so pleasant that you’d want to ask for free mortgage quotes LOL.

Anyway, since I can’t afford that, I’d settle for this one. It’s really lovely, I tell you. Read Alpha’s post here on how her son Estong loves playing with it. The family dolls are so adorable too! It’s the kind of toy that you can pass down to your grandchildren (IF it will survive Sandy’s rough playing).

Posted in your royal highness | 4 Comments »

The Weekly Sale

You’ve probably seen the words “budget conscious moms” on my blog a lot. It’s because I haven’t seen any homemaker who wouldn’t want to know about great deals. Why settle for the original price when you know you can get it an unbelievably lower price? You just have to know where to look. And since I love sharing my loots, I’m talking you know - BUY.COM. Access their weekly sale section and you’d feel like a kid inside a toy store. You can save from $40 up to $500 per item when you shop here. However, note that some of the items are refurbished so you might want to purchase extended warranties as well.

As for me, my heart is set on the Canon PIXMA iP4500 Inkjet Photo Printer. It originally sells at $129.99 but I can get it for only $84.99. That’s a whopping savings of $45 which I can use to stock on ink and paper. My main requirement is top quality digital photo printing and according to reviews, this printer can do just that.

If you have a list of things to buy just like me, check out buy.com. You might be surprised to see that your favorite gadget is on sale.

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Gadget / Accessories List

While we’re on the subject of office furniture, I decided to create another list of things that I plan to buy in the next few months. I have a long list of computer accessories that I should’ve purchased by now but sadly, they remain uncrossed from my list. I usually set aside a budget for this kind of stuff but somehow, whenever there’s extra cash, I end up spending it on clothes, junk food and toys. I mean you gotta live a little right?

So on to my list. Now these are just projections and not listed by importance.

1. Computer table
2. Laptop memory
3. Portable hardisk (done! Hah!)
4. 21″ Viewsonic LCD
5. Portable DVD (hah again!)
6. Wireless mouse - cheap yes but whenever I see one being sold, I always say that I’d buy it next month, which never happens.
7. More shelves for my wall
8. A more high-end router for wider coverage area
9. Possibly replace my Compaq Presario laptop.
10. A laptop cooler from http://www.xoxide.com

And a year from now, I’m going to be a proud owner of a 20″ iMac. Mark my words. Or not.

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Updating my work area

I so want to purchase office furniture just to inspire myself to work hard. I’m having trouble coming up with design ideas lately and I blame it on my work area. The Husband and I talked about moving my work area downstairs where there’s more light and space. I have no doubts that it will keep the creative juices flowing; it’s the moving process that’s making me think twice. And if I work downstairs, I’d need someone to stay with Sandy inside our room when she’s napping. This will disrupt our schedules because our helper uses Sandy’s naptime to cook our dinner. Oh well, there are absolutely plenty of reasons when you don’t want to work. But seriously, my computer table is going to give up any day now. I definitely need to replace it soon.

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WW - A Stormy Afternoon

This is what happens when you’re stuck inside a hotel room for too long. It was raining so hard outside so we passed the time by taking action shots.

Posted in all me, thinking out of the box | 15 Comments »

Want a Better Bathroom?

My favorite part of the house, aside from the bedroom is the bathroom. Whether it’s ours, a hotel’s, a restaurant’s or a friend’s, I find myself always rating the bathrooms according to my standards. I believe a bathroom should be as nice looking and clean as your bedroom that you’d want to lie down on the floor. It doesn’t mean it should be expensive though. Take our bathroom furniture for example. Almost all of them are cheap but you’d still want to spend hours inside because of how homey it is.

Want to update yours? There are lots of bathrooms furniture that you can check from betterbathrooms.com. Why settle for boring, white tiles when you can dress up your bathroom with colorful tiles and chic accessories. After all, you do spend a lot of time in the bath room Besides, if your bedroom looks amazing, there’s no reason why the style should stop there. The bathroom sinks and vanity at betterbathroom.com are to die for and will instantly give your bathroom the needed makeover. Personally, I’ve always liked how freestanding bath tubs look. It reminds me of the old days when people put tubs inside a high ranking lady’s room so she can have a bath. Do check it out. Even something as minor as replacing your bathroom mirror will do wonders in your bathroom.

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All About Mustangs

I have a client who blogs about all his mustangs, he has five (two ‘97 convertibles, one ‘93 hatchback, one ‘91 convertible and his most prized possession, a ‘07 GT Coupe) and he asked me to design a header for him. Of course, being a normal girl that I am, I absolutely have no idea about them. His postings were not enough to give me idea on what to do so I searched the web and came across this: http://www.americanmuscle.com/browsebyyear.html

If you’re a mustang lover, this URL should be the first one on your favorites. It’s a compilation of all mustang history from 1987 to present. You can see how your favorite American muscle car has evolved over twenty years. Each model has detailed statistics, updated fact sheets, production numbers, engine information and original retail prices. You can even check out products like parts and accessories that will work on your mustang, even if it’s a 1987 model. I also learned from research that Mustang had the most successful car launching in automobile history, having sold more than one million cars on its first eighteen months.

So I guess after all those info, I’d revert to my original plan which is to fill his header with a nice convertible shot in a long winding road.

Posted in all me, bread n butter | No Comments »