Pineapple Strawberry Shake in Photos

One of the things I love about Southern California is the abundance of fresh fruits. I love mixing them together to make sweet concoctions. Here is one of my experiments.

Slice fresh pineapple into cubes and place in freezer

Quarter or halve strawberries, depending on size, and store them in the freezer

After 15 minutes or so, place them all in a blender. Add orange juice and sweetener to taste.

Enjoy the great taste of fresh fruits in a glass!

Redline Tickets: Take Mom Out

I usually get presale announcements for concerts and basketball games – and I used to get really good seats for great prices when I purchase tickets during presales. But as my life got more hectic, I tend to forget when tickets go on sale – I’ve missed buying Coldplay and U2 tickets this year because I forgot the date and time it went on sale. By the time I went to find tickets all I could find were behind-the-stage type seats!

For those of you who have been in similar situations, there is hope. My sponsor, Redline Tickets, a website that sells hard to find tickets for very popular concerts and basketball games can help. So if your significant other, really really wants to go to that U2 concert – there is no need to disappoint her.

And for Mother’s Day, you can even purchase broadway tickets! Take your mom out for dinner and a show – treat her to a special Mother’s Day celebration.

Have fun at the show! Happy watching!

Get Up & Dance!

One of the best parts of event production is meeting so many wonderful people. Shalini was one of the winners of my husband’s Asian pageant – she was born and raised in the US, but embraces her Indian heritage passionately.

She founded a dance company called Tattva that promotes international dances and helps her Northern California community. We both dream of working together again. I would love to plan an event for her dance company! I even teased her about learning how to dance and she said she would gladly teach me. If only Northern California were only a couple of minutes away...

I have this secret love of dancing. When I was young, I would self-consciously lock myself in my room and try to imitate those interesting dance moves I see on TV. This is why I keep a lot of dance outfits disguised as lounge wear at home. Leggings, capris, camisoles, and shoes – they are very comfortable and let you move freely while dancing.

Check out my sponsor, Capezio Dance, for a wide array of dance outfits for the kind of dance you enjoy! Looking for a fun workout to shed off those extra pounds? Get up and dance this summer!

The White House Black Market Experience

My husband and I passed on the trolley tour of Old Town San Diego and drove into the Gaslamp Quarter to Horton Plaza for some window shopping last week. While sitting on a bench having frapuccinos, we noticed this teenage girl carrying a garment bag walking out from a clothing shop. I peered inside and saw this amazing skirt that looked like it was made by an expensive designer label. My husband noticed my interest and encouraged me to take a look inside.

It was an expensive store, but they had great clothes. Most of their clothes were black and white - in classic and very elegant styles. I wandered off to their dresses on sale and tried a couple on for size. They had a very comfortable fitting room area with extra large upholstered benches to lay your dress on. My husband waited in the sitting room outside while I changed then I went out to show him how it looked.

It kind of felt like that scene in the movie Pretty Woman where Richard Gere was buying clothes for Julia Roberts, but I liked the experience. I hesitated on buying a dress because they were still out of my usual price range even if they were on sale. My wonderful husband said that I deserved even more expensive dresses and I should buy the dress I really liked. Sweet, huh?

So now I have this beautiful black dress hanging in my closet, waiting for that special occasion so I can wear it. I loved this store and found out that they had a location in Anaheim Garden Walk. I will definitely shop here again - especially when that amazing skirt that first drew me in goes on sale!

Two thumbs up on this one. It's definitely worth checking out! Happy shopping!

Powerbook Medic: Get Help for Your Mac

Apple computers are one of the best selling commodities on the market today. iPods are one of the most popular gadgets today for people who love music and videos. These products are not cheap, they usually sell for more than other similar items so if they break down, it’s not easy to replace them.

My sponsor, Powerbook Medic, offers computer repair service for your valuable Apple computers like the Macbooks, Powerbooks, iBooks as well as iPods and iPhones. You can also buy parts for them at their website. If you’re a do-it-yourself kind of person, they have free repair guides available for download as well.

If self repair becomes too difficult, they also have a send-in service and they pay for the shipping to and from their facility. Isn’t that great? It’s definitely something Mac lovers should look into – just in case something happens to your investment.

I hope this article is helpful. Have a great day!

Man and Pet: A Special Bond

Marley & Me recently came out on DVD.  I loved the book and had great feedback about the movie. It made me cry.  In the time it took for the movie to finish, I got attached to Marley.  

I think pets become part of our families - that's how I feel about my birds.  I mean they come with a lot of responsibility - you have to feed them, bathe them, exercise them, make sure they're comfortable - and you fall in love with them.

When I come home at the end of the day they start chirping excitedly as soon as they hear our voice.  We play this cat and mouse game before they let me stroke their feathers.  When I wake up in the morning as soon as they hear me moving about, i hear a soft chirp as if they're asking me if I'm awake and then the whole group calls out.  And they like posing for pictures, they fly up close to my camera everytime they see it.  They are so relaxing to watch especially when they first figure out how to play with the toys I get for them.

The special relationship that develops between you and your pet is a great bond - a bond that doesn't need words.  After crying over Marley, I went to watch my birds and they were all quietly looking at me.  Vani even let me stroke her feathers without flying away as if she was offering comfort.

Don't you just wonder at how God created these animals with the capacity to soothe, comfort and love?  Show your pet some love today!

Get Feedback: Make Your Customers Happy

I think it is very important for business owners to have Customer Satisfaction Surveys periodically to gauge their products or services. In this economic crunch, entrepreneurs need to make sure that they keep their loyal customers happy. They need to concentrate on people who are already availing of their products and services – to focus on customer retention as much as attracting new customers.

Well designed surveys give businesses important feedback that is essential in improving their product or services. Surveys give businesses insight into the needs of their consumers. The most efficient type of survey is an online survey. It is easy to deploy and easy to summarize the results.

The Inquisite Human Insight Management applications make it even easier to deploy online surveys. Inquisite Survey lets you build your own survey according to your needs and design it with a WYSIWYG editor so you can have your survey branded the way you need it to be. They provide an invitation management system that makes sure your survey is delivered to your customer email list. They also take care of survey campaigns to obtain data without annoying your clients. And when you get the survey results they have tools that would analyze the data you were able to gather. You can also integrate the survey results to your HR, CRM and other enterprise systems for better business decisions.

Try it today and make your customers happy!

Fast-Teks: Fast Computer Help

My husband and I run our small business from home. I try my best to be our IT department to be able to save on expenses, but because I am more of a software developer than anything else – our system is not as up to par as I would like it to be. Even though I have a secure wireless network and basic security solutions, I know that my set up leaves much to be desired. Thankfully, my husband’s cousin has a passion for computers and has helped us out of a bind more times than I can remember.

If you’re in the same boat or just need Computer Help, check out Fast-Teks. They might just be the kind of help you need - whether it's for your home or your business!

Second Spin Recycling

My brother-in-law owns a second-hand bookstore in New Zealand. He finds slightly used books in different markets and resells them in his store.

His hobbies include listening to music and watching movies - but even when looking for CDs or DVDs he likes finding great deals. He introduced me to Second Spin, a store that sells used DVDs , CDs and Games at a much lower price than retail. They have a store in Costa Mesa.

They have a lot of TV boxed sets at around $10 to $20 off their retail price. I did not find the newest boxed set of Numb3rs, but they had several of the older ones. If your kids are anime and manga fans like my stepdaughter, Second Spin has great deals on DVDs and boxed sets of this genre - when we visited they had it at 50% off. I bought off every episode of Witchblade they had, my stepdaughter was so happy and so was my wallet.

Doing a bit of spring cleaning? You can bring over your used CDs and DVDs - recycle them by selling them to the store for resale. Great deals and green too! Check out an outlet near you or shop online.

Find Your Hawaii

One of the places that most remind me of home is Hawaii with its warm and friendly people and its breathtaking islands. Hawaii Travel is one of the most sought after vacations during the summer months and I must admit it is a place I would not get tired of visiting, not only because I have family there, but because of the sense of escaping to nature when you’re there.

My sponsor, Best on Hawaii, provides an amazing array of tours that provide you with the best view of Hawaii. Swim with the dolphins, go on a zipline tour through the tree tops or kayak your way through the blue lagoon – there is never a dull moment in Hawaii. Cruise through the islands on romantic dinner cruises, book an off-road adventure or take one of the many helicopter tours available – see the islands the way you want to - by water, land or air. Discover the Hawaii you are looking for book cultural tours or food tours. There are even Movie and Lost Adventure tours you can go on to see the sets of movies and the popular Lost TV show in Hawaii.

Hawaii is a great place to visit – enjoy your stay by planning and getting the vacation you want. Have a wonderful vacation – aloha!

Custom Builders For Your Dream Home

One of my online pastimes is looking at new homes – finding great floor plans and dreaming of how I would like my own home to be built. Although there are a lot of great homes out there – already built and ready to move in, I still love the thought of being able to custom build my own home the way I want it. Each family has a different need and sometimes cookie cutter homes just won’t do.

I found these North Carolina Home Builders who have been in the custom home building business since 1992. They build homes to your specifications and tailored to your needs. From craftsman style homes to mountain cabins and beach houses, you will not need to compromise on the style you want.

Check out my sponsor's website today – design your home and let Schumacher Homes build it for you.

Prom Season: Gown Shopping

It will be prom season soon in New Zealand and one of our most difficult tasks was shopping for a gown for my niece. I didn't think it would be a problem since she's slender and has a great complexion.

The experience reminded me that everyone's body is different and there is rarely a perfect body. I helped my sisters and my friends pick prom dresses and graduation ball dresses before - and each time you would have to find the dress that would highlight their assets and downplay their flaws.

It proved to be the same exercise with my niece - even though she had a good body when wearing casual clothes we found out that she had big manly shoulders and a bit of a tummy. Now the tummy part was easy, we just concluded we'll go with an empire cut that had a flowing skirt.

The biggest problem was how to downplay her shoulders. In our first round of fitting, the style that best suited her was a grecian cut gown with a low v-neck. It was a classic style - something I would wear. We found this one-shoulder gown like the Alex Evening Ombre gown shown above in a rich baby blue color. It's a younger style, something that grazed the pages of magazines like Seventeen. It didn't have the scarf-like cloth that draped in the back, but a sheer blue fabric that wrapped around the chest flowed down her back making a lovely train.

It was perfect! After a long day of fittings and looking at gown after gown, we had found the one. And the best part was my niece actually loved the gown - which of course boosts her confidence in wearing it even more.

Are you looking for a gown as well? We've gone through a lot of shops, but we found the style we loved at Beau Le Beau in Westfield Main Place Santa Ana. I've bought several gowns there for wedding anniversaries, parties, my stepdaughter's prom dress and now my niece's as well. Call (714) 543-1288 for more information. Happy shopping!

Vacation Notes: Renting a Car

I have been on vacation for over a week now to spend quality time with my stepdaughter who is visiting from New Zealand. She came to California with my sister-in-law and her family to visit my mother-in-law.

All together there are seven of us and our truck can only seat five so we had to rent another vehicle that can seat seven.

Here are some important points I learned from this experience:

• Do your research. Go online and look for the average rate of renting the vehicle you need. Take it a step further and get quotes from nearby rental car companies. Although there maybe a lot of tempting deals online, there might just be a cheaper rate in your neighborhood.
• Know the vehicle you need. Make up your mind as to what type of vehicle you need and why. This will make your trip to the rental car company faster and more efficient. If you prefer something that is fuel efficient because you are taking it on a long drive, tell the agent right away.
• Make sure you understand the rental company's policies. Read the company's rental policy carefully. Is it an unlimited mileage rental? Can you take it to the state you want to drive to? Is there an alternative drop off point that is more convenient to you? How much deposit will it take out of your credit card and how soon will you get that deposit back? These are some important facts you should know before renting a vehicle.
• Do insist on a test drive. Aside from the usual outer inspection of the vehicle, insist on driving the vehicle to make sure nothing is wrong with it before signing the rental agreement.
• Never hesitate to have the vehicle replaced if you find something wrong with it. It is easy for a representative to say, "No sir, nothing is wrong with that vehicle." But if you are used to diagnosing your own vehicle and you know there is something wrong with it, take it back and replace it with another. Let the company reimburse you for the inconvenience.
• Make sure you like the vehicle you rent. My husband is used to driving a truck so when we got a minivan, he had some issues driving it. He felt better when we switched to this Dodge Durango though, it was at about the same height and the handling was almost the same. If you are taking it on a long drive, this is especially important.

Hope these notes help all you vacationers out there! Summer is almost here and make sure your fun is not spoiled by rental car hassles. Have fun!

TWLOHA: Help Save Our Youth

My personal goal is to learn to accept and love every person the way Jesus would love and accept them - no matter who they are or what they went through.

When I was young I struggled with doubts about my self-worth and depression - as I matured I realized if only people took the time to make other people feel they are loved maybe fewer people will struggle with depression and worse conditions like addiction, self-injury and suicide.

I found To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA) when my youngest sister asked me to buy her something from their online store. But while I was on the website, I got curious and decided to look around.

"TWLOHA is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding
help for those struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide.
TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire, and also to invest directly into
treatment and recovery."

It started as a written story - a true story of five days spent with a friend who was denied access to a drug treatment center. The t-shirts were printed and sold initially to pay for their friend's treatment. Wow!

Now they donate a portion of their proceeds to the treatment and recovery programs of National Hopeline Network (1-800-SUICIDE), Teen Challenge (rehab program), S.A.F.E. (Self-Abuse Finally Ends) and other organizations.

I think what they are doing is important - I think their cause is vital - especially because so many of our youth are affected by these problems. Save our youth, save our future! Check out their online store and do your part to help out.