Just two more sleep before 2010

To all my blogger buddies and blog's visitors...

May peace, love and prosperity be with you this coming 2010 and all the years to come!

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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Bidazzled. All opinions are 100% mine.

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Give me a break!

-->What’s your plan for Christmas? I’m sure many of you are very busy now shopping and preparing for the oncoming Noche Buena and the Christmas day itself. With me here, I see nothing special with the days ahead except that we are gonna spend Noche Buena and Christmas day with my Big Sis’ family in Bataan. It’s our first time of celebrating the holiday outside of our own home and hopefully, the altered venue and the presence of my beloved sis’ family would bring some oomph to my currently dull emotion.

I have been requesting Hubby for an out of town holiday, like one being spend on Oceanfront Myrtle Beach Resorts. I know his fund is way too low to reserve for an Oceanfront Myrtle Beach Resort, let alone book a unit in Oceanfront Myrtle Beach Hotel that’s why what I am after now is just to be anywhere but our place. For almost twenty four years, I’ve been spending each and every Christmas holidays here and that’s where I think the kick wears off. Well that’s what I feel so far. A vacation anywhere in the north would be fine with me as long as we could find a place like those of Oceanfront Myrtle Beach Hotels. Oh well, not actually! Any regular hotel will do as long as we're all together.

So far, Hubby is keeping mum on my whining. I do hope that he’d say “yes, we’re going on vacation” before the year ends. If that happens, I'd be rejoicing this early!

On Gold and Swindlers

Have I mentioned here before that we were victimized by some swindlers? Although this incident occurred a couple of years back, I came to remember the incident today coz I’m missing my gold necklaces and bracelets that were taken by some criminal syndicates. Now that the price of gold is soaring high, I wonder if I still could afford to own those valuable gold jewelries I’ve lost to those wicked men. I am just hoping that with the better economic times ahead, I’d be able to acquire some valuable gold jewelry again and perhaps, even buy some gold coins for investment. If ever, I’ll make sure I’d visit Gold Coins Gain website first to get some insights on gold investments.

Now that I am dreaming of having a new set of gold earrings, ring and necklace, I couldn’t help but recall the depressing incident we had back then.. The swindling episode happened when we went out for an overnight outing together with a couple friends and their family. Left in our house were my aging mother and my only house helper. Hubby and I were confident that everything would be well with them as we’ve warned them to be cautious with incoming calls. As we had much fun at the resort, we forgot to check on the two people we left behind. I only did so when we were about to go home. There and then, my house helper informed me that it was late when she realized she was victimized by some unscrupulous men. She said she received a phone call and was informed that we got involved in a vehicular accident and that I was brought to the hospital and my husband was supposedly brought to the jail. She was asked to get all our money and gold jewelries from our cabinets and hand it over to the man who was supposed to be the lawyer helping us with our case. She was warned to keep it from her companion. Scared for our safety, she said she searched all our cabinets and found few hundred U.S dollars from my husband’s attache case and all the nine pieces of gold necklaces and gold bracelets I just left hanging on my dresser and handed them over to the man who met her in a shopping center quite far from our place.

I was stunned when we reached home, finding all my jewelries gone. I was suspicious of my house helper so I brought her to the police precinct for investigation. However, I eventually took pity on her and decided to just release her and just kick her out of our household.

If you think that was the end of it.. you are mistaken! The swindlers attacked for the second time with the same modus operandi. We were just fortunate that the house helper we had at that time was smart enough to have figured out it was a hoax .

Posting this experience to give warning as well, especially to my blogger friends here in the Philippines.

Another Cyber Friends' Meet Up

When I learned that this blogger friend is here in the Philippines, I just left a comment on her blog wishing her to have a grand time with her family. Although I wanted to invite her for a meet up, I didn’t do coz I know she’ll be here for only a short period of time and I don’t want to minimize the valuable time she’s gonna spend with her family. But then I got a message from her asking me if we could meet up along with some of her blogger friends. I am more than eager to meet her personally so when she asked me to choose where to meet from the three places she mentioned, I said it doesn’t matter whether near or far. (as long as it’s within Metro Manila), I will see her. And Mall of Asia it was.

In MOA, I saw Sheng walking towards me. I realized, her blog’s url is true to its word - Kaiden's gorgeous mum. Sheng is indeed gorgeous! She’s visibly a fashionista. With her was Kaiden, her cute li’l man. Together we proceeded to Friday’s and there I came to meet her other blogger friend, Lena of Pinay Mom Blogs who’s with Ethan, her grandson. Actually, Lena isn’t new to me. I’ve hopped to her blogs many times before though not regularly. I told her what my impression of her was. I said I thought she’s “mataray” and she admitted she really is Mataray she maybe, but I found out she’s fun to be with. . I don’t know.. but I felt very comfortable with these two bloggers. I guess, blogger buddies would always have that especial rapport in between them. Just like us who endlessly talked of anything and everything under the sun while the two kiddos were enjoying their own time.

I’m so glad to have met Sheng and Lena in person! The faces behind those awesome blogs are now real to me, no longer imagination. This meet up is an addition to the wonderful things blogging has given me. I hope there would be more to come.

Btw, I wanna thank Sheng for that wonderful lunch we had in Friday’s' last Friday. Please give me the chance to return the favor next time around, if ever. Tomorrow you’ll be flying back to Brisbane, Australia. I wish you all the best.

Here are some of our photos:

L-R Kaiden, Sheng, me, Lena and Ethan


Just the three of us while the kiddos are
having their time.


Cutie Kaiden hugging his mom to pose for
the shoot.


Gorgeous Sheng's candid moment.


Lena's sweet smile.


The caring grandma watching over Ethan's
funny antics.


Lively performance of Friday's' crews.


Good looking guys and sexy gals made the
performances even more entertaining.

So that's what we had more or less. Though very quickly done, it's like days that we've been together. And I enjoyed the moment.

Mead Johnson, Maker of Enfamil, Loses Multi-Million Dollar False Advertising Case Against Store-Bran

This is a sponsored guest post written by a Press Release on behalf of PBM Products. Post powered by Sponzai.

GORDONSVILLE, VA., December 2 , 2009—PBM Products, LLC, a leading infant formula company that supplies store-brand infant formulas to Walmart, Sam's Club, Target, Kroger, Walgreens, and other retailers, has received a favorable jury verdict and a $13.5 million damages award in its false advertising lawsuit against Mead Johnson & Co., the operating subsidiary of Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (NYSE: MJN) (“Mead Johnson”), the makers of the national-brand Enfamil® LIPIL® Infant Formula. Mead Johnson is 83 percent-owned by Bristol-Myers Squibb.

PBM’s lawsuit claimed that Mead Johnson engaged in false and misleading campaigns against PBM’s competing store-brand of infant formulas, suggesting they do not provide the same nutrition as Mead Johnson’s brands. PBM’s store-brand infant formulas cost up to 50 percent less than Enfamil® LIPIL®. The $13.5 million in damages awarded by the jury in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia is one of the largest damages awards ever for a false advertising case.

“This decision by a jury of the people confirms that Mead Johnson’s ads have been false in suggesting that there is a nutritional difference between our store-brand formula products and their products, when in fact the only major difference is price,” said PBM CEO Paul B. Manning. “Despite Mead Johnson’s scare tactics, parents are assured that PBM’s formula products are as high quality and nutritious as Mead Johnson’s.”

U.S. District Court Judge James R. Spencer issued his written rulings yesterday following the November 10^th jury verdict. Judge Spencer’s written rulings permanently enjoined Mead Johnson from making any false statements concerning PBM's infant formula, including the claims Mead Johnson previously made in Enfamil advertising that "It may be tempting to try a less expensive store brand, but only Enfamil LIPIL is clinically proven to improve brain and eye development," and "there are plenty of other ways to save on baby expenses without cutting back on nutrition." The Court also ordered Mead Johnson to retrieve from the public domain all advertising or promotional materials containing these or any other false claims about PBM's store brand infant formula.

The details of the decision and the complaint are posted online in full at:

· http://www.pbmproducts.com/docs/Order_Laches.pdf

· http://www.pbmproducts.com/docs/PBM_Complaint_MJ_III_LIPIL.pdf

The nutritional supplements under examination in the case are two fats, DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and ARA (arachidonic acid), which Mead Johnson calls “LIPIL®” solely for marketing purposes and touts as promoting infant brain and eye development. PBM’s claim focused on Mead Johnson’s direct mailing to more than 1.6 million parents of an alarming blurry picture of a child’s cartoon duck next to a clear picture of the same image which suggested that anything other than the Enfamil LIPIL® blend of ingredients is inferior and will result in poor eye and brain development. Other parts of the false advertising campaign consist of statements that only Enfamil LIPIL has been proven to confer visual and mental benefits on infants, and store-brand formulas are a “cut-back in nutrition” compared to Enfamil.

PBM successfully argued that these advertisements were false and misleading especially since PBM store- brand infant formulas have the same nutrients at the same levels as Enfamil. PBM infant formulas are formulated to contain DHA and ARA, and are sourced from the same supplier in amounts which equal or exceed the DHA and ARA in Mead Johnson’s Enfamil LIPIL®.

This decision marks the third time PBM Products has sued Mead Johnson for false advertising claims. On the prior occasions Mead Johnson admitted that it made false claims about PBM’s products. It is also the first false advertising case to focus on the issue of DHA and ARA nutritional ingredients in formula, which were introduced into the market in 2003 and have become a staple in recent years by many brands as key components for infant development.

“This jury verdict should send a significant and clear message to Mead Johnson about the way it conducts marketing and advertising for its brands,” said Manning. “This lawsuit also demonstrates our complete commitment to defending our products and the valuable brands of our retail partners.”

“As a parent and supporter of children’s medical research, I take a personal responsibility in assuring our customers that the products we produce are healthy and nutritionally equivalent to brand names like Enfamil® LIPIL®. It is important, especially now, for parents to know that there are lower priced yet highly nutritious store-brand formulas that will provide the same benefit to their children as any national brand name formula product,” Manning added.

The U.S. infant formula market is estimated at $3.4 billion and the global market is estimated at $7.9 billion.

All of PBM’s formulas, and for that matter all of U.S. infant formulas, are subject to the exacting standards of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), pursuant to the Infant Formula Act of 1980. This legislation vested FDA with the authority to ensure that all infant formula products sold in the United States provide the necessary levels of identified nutrients required for the growth of healthy babies. For more information, visit this FDA link.

PBM Products was represented by the law firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP. Partners from the firm’s advertising practice, Harold P. Weinberger and Jonathan M. Wagner in New York, led the team.

About PBM

PBM is privately owned and based in Gordonsville, VA. PBM companies specialize in manufacturing, distributing, and marketing consumer food, nutritional, and pharmaceutical products. For more information, visit www.pbmproducts.com.

Enfamil® LIPIL® are registered trademarks of Mead Johnson & Co.

Potpot loves Bear-bear

For the length of time that Bear-bear (the stuffed toy) was occupying that chair in the living room. Potpot (our pet and baby) loves to jump up that chair and position himself on Bear-bear's lap. That's his favorite spot to rest on. However, Bear-bear was overlooked lately. He hasn't been washed for quite a while and Potpot seems to know. He doesn't seek his lap anymore and instead chose to sleep under the center table. Probably, his own doggie smell that stuck to Bear-bear was a complete turn-off for him. (Lol!) The other day, Bear- bear had a good bath complete with a perfumed disinfectant. Fresh and sweet smelling, Potpot quickly found out. I just noticed he is back there with him when I heard his loud disturbing snore. It was obvious, he missed lying on Bear-bear’s sweet smelling lap.

I aimed my cam and shoot...


Oops!.. the cam's flash disrupted his snore
and opened his eyes.. seemingly annoyed


Then turned to look at me as if to complain...
"hey, I'm just having a nap. will you please
leave me alone?!"

And I did, coz tomorrow he will be forced to be groomed to look good for Christmas.

I’m celebrating!

It’s the 17^th year of my life after Cancer today! I praise God! He has blessed me with second lease in life with a clean bill of health. There are 1,001 reasons to be grateful for and there won’t be enough words to equate the joy and contentment that’s in my heart right now. God’s blessings are indeed endless. We only have to keep the faith!

Read the related story on my last year's post here,

God has Purpose for Everything

Charina was the daughter of our neighbor/friend. She was a typical young lady, vibrant, energetic and beautiful. At 21, she had freed herself from books and school and started to face the world full of dreams and hopes. Like any other fresh college graduates, she was starry eyed and excited on her very first job in a private office. However, fate seemed to be hostile on her. One morning when she was preparing for work, she noticed numbness in her limbs. She could no longer hold something for more than a minute. Curious with number of other symptoms, they saw a doctor. The mom was expecting that she would be prescribed an anti-biotic medicine or something similar, but was shocked by the doctor’s diagnosis. C’s kidneys were no longer functioning. They have shrunk like raisin. Apparently, C was strong willed to fight the odds. She didn’t give up, let alone be overwhelmed by all the complexities of the severity of her illness. She underwent peritoneal dialysis daily and lately switched to twice a week hemodialysis. The last time I saw C was in a jeepney going home. She appeared to be cheerful despite her state of health, still in control, so to say.

However, cheerfulness slowly slipped away. C was losing her two year battle with the disease. And the other day, I got the heartbreaking news. She has passed away. The jolly girl who’s just beginning her journey on the real world was brought to a halt by kidney malfunction. All the dreams and hopes are now gone with her. Last night we bade our last respect to C. I chose to view her coffin from afar instead of looking at her lying inside. By that, only her lively image would remain in my mind.

I was thinking …life is unfair sometimes. For a young girl full of dreams and hopes, how could she be stopped from all the pleasures she’s just about to meet and enjoy? Nonetheless, I do believe that God has plans for all of us in this chaotic but beautiful world. As one verse in the bible goes… “you can make many plans but it is God’s purpose that prevails.”

Sending our heartfelt condolences to Charina's family.

The Finest Online Ticket Broker

How many times have you planned to watch a show, a game, a concert or event but have missed doing so only because you were unable to grab a ticket or two? Not having enough time to go out and buy the tickets shouldn’t deny you the chance to watch that desired show, or concert or whatever it may be. For those who have experienced such frustrating moment, I supposed, it is only one amongst the many problems often faced by those who try to obtain their tickets from ordinary ticket sellers in the market.

To minimize your trouble regarding show, games, concert tickets or the likes, I advise that you contact ACheapSeat.com. Whether you’re looking for Grand Ole Opry House Tickets, or THE PALACE OF AUBURN HILLS TICKETS, or IRVING PLAZA TICKETS, try visiting their site and most likely than not, you’d find all of them available together with scores of popular entertainment venues all over the country. So while you’re in California trying to catch up a concert in New York, you can make arrangements online and they deliver your purchased tickets to your doorstep.

It is quite tough to find a ticket broker such as ACheapSeat. They give their customers the help and advise regarding the ticket purchased apart from the best possible price they can offer.

So maybe, the next time you want to see a game, an opera, a concert or what ever, seek the assistance of the finest online ticket broker , the ACheapSeat.com

Credit Card Freebies

One of the advantages of using your BPI credit card when paying for your purchases is getting some yummy treats like 1 piece, 2 pieces and 6 pieces Jollibee Chickenjoys. Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is offering these promo items in exchange for Credit card receipts amounting to P1,000., P3,000., and P6,000., respectively. Not bad at all coz apart from those freebies, you still garner reward points that could be exchanged for more valuable gifts. And I heard, for a single credit card receipt of P3,000 you can also claim a dinner item from Friday’s Resto.

Just some words of advice though: Don’t use your credit card for purchases you can’t afford to pay. You’d definitely find yourself in a pit hole of endless bank charges and penalties that would be too deep to get out of.

See you again and have a happy weekend!