The Vegan Lifestyle

Cooking For Kids at home is a nice time to make nutritious and delicious food for our children. During this time, we can make nutritious food than buying junk foods for them. It is an inexpensive but a sure way to make your kids healthy.

It is also a time  to spend some nice memories with our kids. We can cook with them and they can learn to cook some good recipes at their early years of age.

We must teach our children at  their early age to be more independent. They won’t stay with us always, and it is important that we teach them how to cook now. Even simple and easy recipes will do, and they will really be happy eating food which they have cooked with their own effort.

We can teach our kids  to bake nutritious cookies, muffins and cakes. We can also make some unique food for them. We can cook with less sugar or make patties using the pulp of extracted carrots,  spinach and other vegetables.

For a nutritious drink, we can make beverages or shakes by extracting some vegetable juices, such as carrots and cucumber mixed with ice cubes to make it more refreshing. With our cooked vegetable patties and carrot-cucumber juice, our kids will surely enjoy their meal.

Cooking for kids is a good time to spend with our children. Most of us are busy with our office work, and we can show our love and care for them by cooking special food during the weekends. They will appreciate this very much, and they won’t forget the memories of the time we have shared with them.

Cooking for kids is indeed very advantageous for us and our children. By this, we not only save money, but we also teach them how to cook, and share quality time with our kids.

Bring out the champion in your child. Enroll her at the best gymnastics school for the best training that could make her a future world champion!

Gymnastics is very good for your child’s health. It develops physical strength, agility, flexibility, balance, coordination, and grace. This sport is highly beneficial for your child’s physical and mental health.

Artistic gymnastics, the sport used in all gymnastic competition, is usually divided into men’s and women’s gymnastics. It involves various different events for both men and women. Uneven parallel bars, balance beam, vault and floor exercise comprise the women’s events. And men’s events include pommel horse, still rings, parallel bars, vault, high bar, and floor exercise.

The above gymnastic events or exercises not only develops strength, stamina, agility, flexibility, coordination and balance, but they also greatly develop the self confidence, discipline and poise of your child. All gymnastic exercises are very good for the whole body that ensure the best of health.

There are other forms of gymnastics such as rhythmic gymnastics, aerobic and acrobatic gymnastics, trampolining sports and others. All these are designed to develop physical strength, agility, flexibility, coordination and poise.

Bring out the champion in your child. Enroll her now in the best gymnastics school. The health benefits that can be derived from gymnastics are many. You’ll surely save a lot of money from hospital bills, medications, and doctor’s fee when your child is in the best of health through gymnastics.

What are the causes of hair loss and how shall we avoid them?

Hair loss is a big problem especially for men. Most men are ashame to be seen bald even during old age. They’ll try everything to hide their baldness to avoid being taunted or laughed at by children or by their peers. They hide it by wearing wigs, hats, or even try a hair transplant. But the latter is a very expensive alternative. So some bald guys cover the top of their heads by combing up some few long strands of hair from the sides of their heads, and fixing them with the use of gel. It looks awkward too, but at least it covers their shiny scalp.

The number one cause of hair loss is dandruff. There are other factors that can cause hair loss too, such as stress, vitamin deficiency, and old age, but dandruff is the major cause. So to avoid hair loss, it is very important that the hair be cleaned daily. As a protecting cover of the head, hair accumulates dirts such as dusts, grease, grimes, chemicals, and other pollutants on the air. All these can cause dandruff to develop on the scalp. When dandruff develops, the hair starts to fall, and this may cause hair loss when left untreated.

To avoid dandruff, we should clean our hair with a shampoo of reliable and trustworthy brand. There are a lot of adulterated shampoos being peddled by charlatans. Don’t ever try them  -  they can can destroy your hair. Be sure not to be gullible enough to be tricked to buy these products just because they are cheap. Choose a shampoo whose ph value is suitable for your hair. Too much acidic or too much alkaline may damage your hair. This ph value varies from person to person, therefore it is important that you check what ph value is good for your hair.

For personal hygiene, it is better to take a bath daily, but shampooing your hair daily may damage your hair, especially when you are using a shampoo of potent solution. Shampoos are made from chemicals too, and as such, they can be harsh and damaging to our hair. So, select the mild ones, if you want to shampoo your hair daily.

There are herbal shampoos available in some clinics or stores. They are a little bit expensive compared to the conventional shampoos sold at drugstores and supermarkets, but they are safe for your hair. Most of them will not only treat dandruff to prevent hair loss but can also restore the body and luster of your hair.

Of course, we should avoid stress too. Too much problem causes insomia, and this depletes some vitamins in the body that may result to hair loss. So stop worrying, and preserve your hair till old age.

I had a lot of accidents during my childhood days. It seemed I was born with it. Each day seemed to bring bad omens, and I thought that probably I was cursed with it.

One of the accidents happened when I was on my sixth grade. My mother told my brother and me to fetch water from the well. There was a long queue, so I went to my uncle’s house which was nearby the well. While in their house, I saw the lemon tree with its fruits hanging under its branches. I climbed the bamboo fence while stretching out my hand to reach the lemon fruits. I was so excited to get the fruits that I never noticed that I was standing very precariously on bamboo fence whose top ends were sharpened like arrows.

There wasn’t any sure footing; my left hand took hold on the nipa roof at the bottom edges, while my right hand was pulling the lemon fruit off the branch. the nipa roof where I was holding on to was already weak and brittle due to years of weathering.

As I forced the lemon fruit off the twig, the nipa roof broke off, and I fell backward headlong. The calf of my left leg hit the sharpened bamboo fence, and I hung inverted on it with my head touching the ground.The wound was deep and big, and the blood was bleeding profusely. Thanks God my brother arrived immediately, and he bandaged my wound with a cloth.

There was no hospital or clinic in our area during those days. And no doctor as well. Our neighbor poured denatured alcohol directly on my wound, and covered it with cotton, and tied it safely with cloth. On the third day, my aunt and uncle brought me to the clinic in Naval, a one hour travel via motorized boat. The doctor cut the flesh off because it was burned by the denatured alcohol, and it was stinking already.

It was the worst accident I have had. It took mroe than a year for the wound to heal, and it left a very big, bad scar. I thanked the Lord for sparing my life. The bamboo fence missed my body, specifically my spine, for just a few inches away. It could have been my last on the very spot instantly.

I always remember my elementary and high school  days. They bring me happiness and a sense of pride whenever I remember them.
I was 7 years old when I started my elementary school. During those days, shoes were not readily available in our rural area. I wore rubber slippers to school. But during rainy days the road becomes sticky with clay, and it clings thick under my slippers. Most of the times my slippers broke, and I had to walk barefoot to school. My parents cannot afford to buy slippers all the time, so I had to repair it and use it until the soles are totally abraded.
There were days that I went to school without breakfast and lunch. My parents were very poor that we always borrow rice from our neighbors. And when not fortunate to borrow enough rice, we just cook it to porridge in order for the family of six to subsist. But in spite of these hardships, my studies were marked with flying colors. I was consistent First Honors all years and graduated Valedictorian in class during my elementary graduation.
During my high school days, I had to walk four kilometers from our place to school daily. When the weather was not good, and the rain poured heavily, I had to take cover under big trees. But usually I arrived at school wet.
I had more extra curricular activities during my high school days; and responsibilities too. What with being class president, I was the editor-in-chief of our school organ, and the president of the student government.
I feel proud whenever I tell my daughter of my high school days. Winning the First Prize of the Talent Unlimited Contest for four consecutive years was really a feat. And to think that a very poor islander like me defeated the representatives of all high schools in the province.

I remember accompanying my father fishing out to the deep sea. I was six years old then. I have a fear of the deep blue sea, much more on a small canoe anchored at the center of the sea and so far from the shore. I had wild imaginations of monsters coming out from the deep swallowing the canoe. I also have a fear of sharks and sea snakes.

I loved seeing how my father caught a lot of fish, but I hate sitting in a small canoe anchored at the sea. Even at fairly calm sea, I felt the small movements of the boat, and I easily get nauseated. When I started vomitting, my father and I had to go back to the shore even with a few catch.

During weekdays, my brother and I would go fishing at the shore, using our improvised hook and line. When the tide is low, we dived near the shore to catch fish using our spear guns. Its a very good exercise for the whole body. All parts of the body are benefited when holding breath under water.

But we have to be extra careful when swimming during low tide. Stepping on stone fish is so excruciatingly painful. It’s like being bitten by a scorpion. And so with sea snaked that spit venom that are fatal. Be sure to get off the sea quickly as soon as it appear. Sea snakes have round bodies half inch in diameter and more than two feet long. You can easily identify it because of its yellow and black stripes.

I had seen some of these sea snakes and they scared me off the water. But so far, I have not known of any fatality due to its venom. Probably because people run away from it so fast as soon as they see it.

I have fond childhood memories of Christmas and New year celebrations in the island. When I was about five years old, my mother sister, and aunt baked delicious rice cakes for our noche buena. Many carolers came and relished the oven-fresh rice cakes. Our neighbors came also and we gave then rice cakes too. They gave us their delicacies in return as well — biko, suman, muron, maja, leche flan, etc.
We enjoyed eating all these native delicacies. All were so satiated after the noche buena. (more…)

"Island Of No Return"

I am Apo. In our locality, my name means “grandchild.” My family tree reckons its roots from the Spanish conquerors that came to the Philippines in 1521 together with Fernando Magallanes.
I was born in a beautiful, peaceful island in Eastern Visayas. So beautiful indeed that people from other places who visit or work in that island never leave the place again, thus it being called “The Island of No Return.” (more…)