Summer in Canada vs. Summer in the Philippines

some people claim that they prefer summer in the philippines than summer in canada.what do i think? summer in the philippines is hot. humid. and sunny. summer in canada is hot. dry. and scorching. last year when i didn't realize that summer was about to start, i was surprised to see my son come back from school 2 shades darker than when he had left for school. the sun is so hot in canada that using a sunscreen is absolutely necessary. in fact, i normally start to put on sunscreen on my children towards the end of spring. i put this on them everyday before going to school. if we think we'll be under the sun for a period of time, we always put on sunscreen to protect ourselves from the damage that the sun's rays can do to our skin.in the philippines, i never felt the need to put...

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Coping with Stress

when a relative of mine found out that we were migrating to canada, she was very adamant that i shouldn't go. she said that life in canada is difficult and that i will not be able to handle the stress.the stress of being away from my family and friends. the stress of not having any helpers or nannies (yayas as we call them in the philippines). and the stress of doing everything by myself - cooking, dishes, laundry, etc. for someone who doesn't do any household chores, the stress of having to learn everything may be too much to handle.some people do cope. as we have. and some people don't.those who have difficulty adjusting find themselves getting stressed out. and this is obviously not good. articles on stress management indicates that constant stress affects our health and our well-being....

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Questions

got tagged! thank you Live It Up. appreciate it much!1. what date is it?:: July 18, 20082. what time did you wake up?:: 9:00am3. did you go somewhere yesterday?:: yes went to the drugstore4. what did you do there?:: bought OFF for my kids' trip to the woods5. how old are you?:: too old!6. are you mature or immature?:: hmmm... i can be both!7. what do you call your mom and dad?:: mumsy and puffsy... hahaha!8. are you an only child?:: nope.9. where do you go shopping?:: new jersey! hahaha!10. do you like school?:: yes11. do you like books?:: yes!12. do you want to get married?:: i am married13. with whom?:: with hubby14. are you spoiled?:: i could be...15. what's the most flattering compliment you ever got?:: hmmm...16. only girl/boy in the family?:: nope.17. if you were to marry a celebrity,...

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Allergic Reactions

allergy is something canadians take very seriously. and with good reason too. as reactions to allergies are sometimes fatal.a lot of the people here in canada are allergic to something. in schools, students are required to bring peanut-free snacks and lunches because a lot of the students are allergic to peanuts. this serves as a preventive measure in the event that the student decides to trade their snack or lunch with someone else.when friends of my children come over, i also make it a point to ask the parents if their child is allergic to anything. with so many allegies here, it is always better to be safe than sorry. in comparison, we filipinos tend to take allergies lightly. when someone is allergic to something, more often than not, we encourage him/her to "eat a little" to "cure"...

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A Sad Goodbye

i attended a wake last night. my grandmother's bestfriend passed away due to cancer. and though i have only known her for the past year and my interactions with her are limited, i couldn't stop my tears from falling down. in the short span of time that i've known her, she has touched my life with her kindness and unconditional acceptance. she was the kind of person who was always willing to help others. to comfort others. to feed others. even when she was sick, she would always encourage me and hubby to take a break and leave the kids with her. when i remind her that she needs to rest, she would always dismiss it saying that she is ok. and despite us not taking on her offer, the mere fact that she offered herself was very much appreciated. i have to admit that i have never seen so...

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Buying and Selling A House in Canada

buying and selling a house in canada is very different from buying and selling a house in the philippines.i find that the process of buying a house here is easier, more organized and a little bit more exciting. it is a very different experience from our experience in the philippines.when we bought a house in the philippines, we were in contact with a lot of real estate agents who have different house listings. in canada however, you are legally obliged to deal with one agent only. this works well because all agents in canada have access to all houses for sale.the only houses that they do not have access to are the houses which are for sale by...

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Ultimate Blog Bloom

This new tag is from mckhoii. Thanks, mckhoii!This tag will give you 2 techie points per successful tag. The rules are:1. Copy and paste the URLs (ALL OF THEM!) on the list and add them to your blogroll (this gives your buddy one techie point).2. Add your name according to the alphabetical sequence of the list.3. Link your webbie to your name in the list (the second techie point opportunity).4. Add your URL next to the linked name…5. Voila! just do this, tag as many as you can and wait until your techiepoints grow exponentially! Don’t forget to linkback… in your case link back to Filipino in Canada.THE ULTIMATE BLOG BLOOM LISTFilipino in Canada - http://www.filipinoincanada.com/Mckhoii - http://mckhoii.comNursemagic - http://nursemagic.blogspot.com/*add your entry in the right alphabetical...

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Traveling Between US and Canada

a friend from san francisco recently visited us.they took a plane from san francisco to buffalo. contacted a car rental company from buffalo and then drove to toronto from there.since we migrated here in canada, i have known a lot of people who have done that. and it goes both ways too. people from the US travel to buffalo or michigan and then drive over here while people from toronto drive over to buffalo or michigan and then fly to their US destination.the reason a lot of people do this is because the airfare within the US is cheaper than the airfare between US and canada. so i guess it makes practical sense to fly to the border and then drive...

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Shoes Off Please

taking off your shoes when you enter a house is a common practice here in canada. and coming from the philippines, i have to admit that it is something that i am not used to. walking barefooted on bare floors was something that i had to get comfortable with.prior to coming here, i bought a lot of thick, white socks for us to use. when we got here and realized that we'd be using those socks to walk around the houses we visit, i realized that i should have brought black socks instead.filipino homes, more often than not, have slippers for their guests to borrow but non-filipino homes would not have those.so it took awhile for me to get used to it....

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Birthday Party with Cinderella

my daughter had her birthday last saturday.she was pretty excited about it because cinderella was coming. and apparently, all her friends who knew that cinderella was coming, were pretty excited too.the children were treated to an afternoon with cinderella. or should i say, the girls were treated to an afternoon with cinderella.the boys just couldn't be bothered. sure, they all rushed up the stairs when they found out that cinderella has arrived. but after the initial awe of being with the princess, they all moved back to the basement where the playstation and air hockey was waiting for them.so cinderella had the girls with her. she did story...

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A Hands-On Birthday Girl

my daughter's birthday is coming up soon.if you have a daughter like mine, you would know that party preparation could be quite tedious. my daughter is only 5 and yet, when it comes to her parties, she is very hands-on. it was on her 4th birthday that she started expressing her interest in being involved. she likes being involved in everything - the invitations, the food, the games, the loot bags, and would you believe even on what plates and utensils to use?she has a list of what she wants done and would constantly remind me. she would say, "mom, we need to give out the invitations by this date. have you started it?" yup! she is the boss of me. :)when i was not as busy as i am now, i didn't mind the little details. we would make her invitation together and would really customize it...

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Buying a Domain Name

since getting my own domain, a lot of people have asked me where i got it and how i did it. so for those who would want to know, i purchased my domain directly from blogger.com. sure, there are other companies who offer it at a lesser price than blogger does. but i like the convenience that blogger offers. and for that i am willing to pay extra.prior to purchasing my domain, i did my research. those who personally know me know that i never jump with my eyes closed (at least one eye has to be open). i like knowing what i am getting into and i like knowing what is out there before i make my decision. as you probably know, blogger is owned by google. so when you decide to buy your domain from them, they will take you to the google apps domain purchase website where you will check whether...

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Arte Y Pico Award

i got this award from 2 great blogger friends - Of Colors and Styles and Anne Loves Will. thank you guys. really appreciate this. :)The rules of this tag are as follows:1) You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.4) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize...

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A Lot About L

this is a long overdue tag from a simple life. thanks liza!Name 10 things that start with L.1. Love - can't live without it2. Laughter - life without laughter is no life3. Life - live life with love and laughter4. Ladybug - my daughter's favorite bug5. Lion - my son's favorite animal6. London - a place i would like to visit one time7. Library - my kids' favorite hangout8. Letters - i love sending and receiving letters9. Lychees - one of the fruits i love 10. Leather - i love the feel of leather I'm now tagging - Wife of a Warrior, Weng's Thing, Vanity Treats, Treasures in Life and The Rantings and Whinings of a Princess...

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Impromptu Trips

since moving to canada, people have one constant question for me - "what do you like most about canada?"and i only have one answer for them - "the ease of traveling."from my experience, traveling from the philippines and traveling from canada are very different. when we were in the philippines, traveling to the US would require months of preparation. since the US was far from the philippines and plane fare from the philippines to the US is kinda costly, we would maximize our trip by having long vacations and by squeezing as many places as humanely possible to see. and as we all know, long vacations from the office require at least a month's...

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Canada's Point System: Adaptability

this is the last installment on my series on canada's point system...adaptability is how well you or your dependents can adjust to life in canada. if you can show that you have what it takes to adjust to life here, you will get a maximum of 10 points. you will be awarded points based on the following factors:1. your spouse or common law partner's educational levelyou can get a maximum of 5 points depending on your spouse or common-law partner's level of education. the points are distributed as follows:a. high school diploma or less - 0 pointsb. one-year diploma, trade certificate, apprenticeship or university degree and at least 12 years of full-time studies or full-time equivalent studies - 3 pointsc. a 2 or 3-year diploma, trade certificate, apprenticeship or university degree and...

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Blog Hopping

one of the thrills of blog hopping is discovering blogs that prove to be either interesting or useful. i am especially fond of blogs that teach me something new or give me a different take on ordinary things.today, i discovered a car blog which i am sure hubby is going to love. and if you are like hubby who goes gaga over cars, then i am sure you would go gaga over this car blog too.they have an extensive assortment of articles which are informative as well as entertaining. and a forum which anyone can join for free. the forums are vehicle specific which makes it easier to connect with people interested in the same vehicle.yes, it's nice to blog hop. everyday i discover new blogs. and learn something new....

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My New Look in My New House

i finally got my own domain name! woohoo! and i have my new look to match it.i have been thinking about going dot com for quite sometime now and today, i finally made the leap. finally purchased my own domain name. to those who have exchanged links with me, i would appreciate it very much if you could please update my link. when i started blogging, i was hesitant to purchase my own domain because while the concept of blogging appealed to me, i didn't want to commit to it until i take it for a test drive. i believe the test drive is over. i have purchased my dot com. and i am here to stay. ...

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10 Years Ago

Got this tag from Pinaywifespeaks...The rules are posted at the beginning. At the end of the post, the player tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blog and leave a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.1. What was I doing 10 years ago? i was a career driven woman working in HR in the phils with zero knowledge that i would end up in canada one day and be a stay at home mom.2. What are 5 things on my to-do list today?1. work!2. create an invitation for my daughter's bday party3. finalize the video clip for my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary4. meet up with a neighbor (long overdue date)5. blog3. Snacks I enjoy:i am currently addicted to samosas, chips and pizza4....

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Too Early For Halloween

it is only june and yet my kids are already thinking of halloween costumes! yikes! not that i have anything against halloween. but isn't it way too early?when my kids were much younger and we were still in the philippines, finding a good halloween costume was definitely an effort. at that time, there were very few options and only selected stores sell them.in canada, however, it is a different matter. costumes are abundant both offline and online. the difficulty is not in finding a costume but in finding 'the' costume.the fun part for me is checking out the costumes. i normally search the web to check out my options. i go through several...

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Are You On Auto-Pilot?

i was in a friend's house the other day. he was up preparing food when i noticed that his playstation was left open in the basement. so i went up and told him about it. he casually said that he really left it on. "what?! why would you do that? isn't that such a waste of electricity?""no. because i'm playing." "how can you be playing? you're not playing. you're up here, cooking.""i AM playing. it's on auto-pilot." "WHAT?!?! it's on what?!""it's on auto-pilot. i have programmed it to play while i am cooking."ok. i am floored. i am seriously floored. i totally did not expect that answer. is this a guy thing? am i not understanding...

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Tagged!

I got tagged by Can of Thoughts with this fun question and answer game. It's a very simple game, just follow some few rules:1. Add your blog/s to the list. Feel free to add all your other blogs. It’s okay if you only post this question in one blog as long as you answer them.2. Get back to YEN and will add your blogs to the master’s list here! Yup, another linking thingy but this one has 15 questions and you get to enjoy answering them too!3. Tag as many friends online you know. But you don’t need to be tagged in order to join.QUESTIONS:1. When you buy a greetings card, are the words or the picture more important to you? definitely the words.2. What’s your favorite kind of cake? chocolate3. Do you ever make gifts for people, if so what, or do you buy them? sometimes i make, sometimes...

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Are You on Social Spark?

i also recently joined socialspark, the newest baby of IZEA.socialspark is social community where bloggers and advertisers meet. it is like payperpost, friendster, stumble upon and google analytics all rolled into one. this means that on this site, you will be able to take paid opportunities like in payperpost, add friends like in friendster, prop and be propped back like in stumble upon and have all your blog statistics on hand like in google analytics. pretty neat huh? it's like having a one-stop shop. and i am loving it that way.and among all its features, it is the analytics that i am loving the best. i like knowing who visits my blog,...

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Paying for Torture

i accompanied my kids to the dentist yesterday. as i was waiting outside the waiting room, a little girl around 7 or 8 years old, came out from the dental room and was on her way out the door when she was stopped by her mom. her mom told her, "wait, let me pay first." to which her daughter replied, "what?!?! you actually have to pay for this?? you pay to torture me?!" all the mommies in the waiting room couldn't help but laugh.prior to coming here, one of the things that people warned us about was the high cost of dental services. while medical services are free in canada, dental services are definitely not. and they can be pretty expensive. just how expensive are they? i took my 2 kids in for their regular cleaning and xray and i paid a little over $450 total. it was a good thing...

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See the Philippines

My Lakbayan grade is C! How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!Created by Eugene Villar.thank you Mckhoii for this tag! appreciate it much.So how much of the Philippines have you travelled? Add your links here:1) mind bubbles, 2) may 3) VANITY KIT 4) SOMETHING PURPLE 5) A DETOUR 6) Big Eyed Gal 7) The Chronic Shopper My Inner Thoughts Revealed 9) DeCaFFeiNaTed 10) BaReFooTeD Me 11) Puzzled Me 12) joanjoyce 13.) Mckhoii 14) Filipino in Canada 15)Your link hereTagging: Daily Rounds, Daystar Shine On Me, Eida's Jungle, Em's Exposure, Everything is Simply Amazing, Everything That Has Breathe Praise the Lord, Everything...

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Favorite Summer Clothes

it is almost summer time and the hot weather is starting to make its presence felt.after a long season of heavy and layered clothing, everyone certainly welcomes the change. my kids are enjoying the warm breeze and are enjoying the fact that they are able to wear lighter clothing. on an average warm day, you would see my daughter wearing either a dress or a skirt while my son chooses to wear pants to cover his legs from the heat and to protect it from possible scratches which he could get from playing with his friends. hubby on the other hand, prefers wearing shorts on hot days. he likes shorts with multiple pockets to accommodate the stuff...

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Planting Grass

did you know that grass shouldn't be cut too short? i certainly didn't know that. and i had to learn it the hard way.i only found out about this tiny bit of info when our grass in the front lawn died. yup. dead. brown. dried. it was definitely an ugly sight. especially since ours was the only one on our street suffering from that state. i was really embarrassed so i pestered hubby to do something about it. either hire someone to do it or try do it himself. but hubby was feeling up to the challenge and decided to give it a try. and so he did. he bought his gardening tools and worked on our front lawn. first he took off all the dead...

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Now a Part of the PPP Family

i discovered payperpost almost as soon as i started blogging. it wasn't difficult "discovering" it as most bloggers are already a part of this extremely popular community.and while i have known about payperpost for quite sometime, it has only been recently that i submitted my blog for approval. needless to say, it was approved. woohoo! bring out the party hats!so why didn't i apply earlier? because payperpost does not approve all blogs. and i wanted to be sure that i get approved when i do apply. so i waited for my blog to age. i posted more articles. and i tried to improve my ranking.payperpost, to me, is like icing on a cake. to do...

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Friendship Around the World

thank you of colors and styles for tagging me with this.::Start Copy Here:: Rule:1. Copy from ::Start Copy Here:: through ::End Copy Here::.2. Add your blog to the list. Feel free to add all your other blogs. Just make sure to post this to each of the blog you added in the list.3. Tag other online friends you know.You don’t need to be tag in order to join. If you want to join just post this one in your blog.4. Let me know your blog’s name and url by leaving me a comment HERE. I will add you to the master list.That way, everyone is happy and can meet new friends too!5. Come back once in a while to get the master list! Let’s see how this makes...

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Canada's Point System: Arranged Employment

still on canada's point system...having arranged employment at the time of your application will help you earn points. but unlike the other factors in canada's point system, this factor does not give you a range of points. it's either you get it or you don't. it's 10 points or nothing.so how do you score 10 points?a. you are currently working in canada and have a temporary work permit.you can score 10 points if your work permit is valid at the time of your visa application and issuance and if your employer has offered to hire you indefinitely when your visa is issued.b. you are currently working in canada in a job that does not require confirmation from the human resources and social development canada (hrsdc).you can score 10 points if your work permit is valid at the time of your visa...

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Nominated for Blog of the Week!

this blog has been nominated for blog of the week.if you enjoy reading my posts, please show your support and give me some love by voting for me here.you may vote once everyday for the whole week.thank you friends! enjoy your weekend! ...

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What A Rose Can Say

A rose can say I love you and want you to be mine,A rose can say I thank you for being so very kind,A rose can say congratulations, whatever the occasion may be,A rose can say I miss you and wish you were here with me,A rose can say I’m sorry if I’ve hurt you in any way,A rose can say get well soon, May God bless you today,A rose can say I wish you happiness, and the best for you each day.A rose can say farewell when someone goes away,A rose can say hello, I’m thinking of you today,There’s just so many wonderful things that a rose can say,A rose can say goodbye when a love one is laid to rest,No matter what there is to say, a rose can say it...

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Can You Tell Me How to Get... How to Get to Sesame Street?

sunny day... sweeping the clouds away... on my way to where the air is sweet... can you tell me how to get... how to get to sesame street?we went to sesame place recently. and unexpectedly. meaning no plans to go there but suddenly found ourselves there. we slept the previous night without any plans of going to pennsylvania and woke up the following day thinking, "let's go to sesame place!" if there is one thing i love about living in canada, it is the relative ease by which we can see new places. you can just literally grab your bags and go. and so we headed to pennsylvania which is about 9 hours from toronto. and went to see big bird,...

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When To Start Job Hunting

friends who are planning to migrate here often ask me when they should start job hunting.some would say start as early as you can. some would advise to put it off till you get your visa. and still others would say to wait till you get to canada. different people. different careers. different experiences. i can only tell you what worked for us. and this is what worked for us -we started scanning the job market soon after applying for the immigrant visa. no, we did not apply yet. we just scanned. we checked out the job search engines and then checked how many openings are posted for our field of work. doing this gave us an idea of whether our job was in demand or not. it also helped us decide which part of canada to go to. at the time of the application, we really didn't know...

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Pexlinks Triple Love

mommy ruby has come up with yet another project that is sure to benefit bloggers and i am definitely joining in!the thing is, i like giving and receiving love. and this project is going to do just that. not just once but three times! three times the lovin'. woohoo!to join this project, you must have the following basic requirements:1. EntreCard Account2. Technorati Account3. RSS Readers Account (Bloglines, Google Reader, etc.)as you could probably guess by now, this project will allow participants to have a lot of (1) technorati fans, (2) RSS subscribers, and (3) regular entrecard droppers. isn't that just amazing?come and join us!=====================PEXLINKS...

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Happy Birthday Mommy!

it's my mom's birthday today and i wanna greet her a happy birthday! we may not be there to celebrate it with her but i wanna let her know that we are celebrating it with her in spirit.and i wanna let everyone know that...thank you eds for this tag. it came just in time for my mom's birthday.if you think about it, this tag is appropriate for mother's day but as eds has said...Its Mother's Day everyday and it's time to tell the world how grateful we areof our mothers who gave us life and love.~ Start Copy Here ~Friends now is our opportunity to tell everybody in the blogosphere why we have the best Mom in the World.Please copy the link and add...

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Tagged Again!

i got tagged again... this time by jojo. thanks jojo!~~Begin Copy~~This is the easy way and the fastest way to :1. Make your Authority Technorati explode.2. Increase your Google Page Rank.3. Get more traffic to your blog.4. Make more new friends.Rules :1. Start copy from “Begin Copy” until “End Copy” to your blog (for bloggers paste on the “compose” not the “edit html” part in posting blogs so it will be linked automatically).2. Put your own blog name and link.3. Tag your friends as much as you can, the more the better!1. Picturing of Life2.Juliana’s Site3.Hazel-My Life, My Hope, My Future.4.Jeanne-The Callalily Space5.Starz in De Sky6.My Charmed Life7.Denz Techtronics8.Denz Recreational9.Life’s Simple Pleasures10.My Blog11. Because Life is Fun12.In This Game of Life13.Scribbles of my Life14.Changing...

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Canada's Point System: Age

more on canada's point system...age is another factor that they consider when you apply for an immigrant visa. basically, you get points depending on your age at the time when you submit your application.the points are awarded as follows:16 years old or under - 0 points17 years old - 2 points18 years old - 4 points19 years old - 6 points20 years old - 8 points21–49 years old - 10 points50 years old - 8 points51 years old - 6 points52 years old - 4 points53 years old - 2 points54 years old and above - 0 pointsif you wanna take the complete self-assessment, click he...

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How To Prepare For Canada

as i mentioned in my previous post, preparation is key to a smooth transition from the philippines to canada.while being prepared does not guarantee your success, it will definitely make the transition easier. i find that things are easier when you know what to expect. when you know what is coming to you, you are able to plan your course of action and prepare back-up plans as necessary.so how did i prepare to migrate? here's the list of what i did - 1. researchbefore leaving for canada, google and i became best friends. whenever i needed information about canada, i would google it. almost everything and anything can be "googled" these days. some of the things i googled were - weather, jobs, apartments, culture, clothes, prices, banks, schools, etc.2. ask questionsif you have friends and relatives...

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Kid's Question

got tagged by gel...Copy here:1. Answer the Kid’s Question by Gregory Stock, PH.D. Remember: Don’t respond as you think others want you to. Respond the way you actually feel!2. Add your name (linked to your blog)3. Tag everybody else!Kid’s Question #1 - If you were the ruler of the world and you could have anything you wanted as well as have people do anything you wanted, do you think you would get greedy and mean or would you be a good and fair ruler?Participants:Jhong, Alpha, Women Xplore, Em, Something Purple, Our Journey to Life, My Planet Purple, Princess Bela, Princess Vien, cookie jar of entertainment, allinkorea, kim, idealpinkrose, korean food, Jackie’s Everyday Life, Jackie Simply Pinay, A Whole New World, Tasteful Voyage, A Mom’s note, There’s no place like home, The Girlicious...

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