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 it
2. Laughter - life without laughter is no life
3. Life - live life with love and laughter
4. Ladybug - my daughter's favorite bug
5. Lion - my son's favorite animal
6. London - a place i would like to visit one time
7. Library - my kids' favorite hangout
8. Letters - i love sending and receiving letters
9. 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 notice.

in canada, however, we can decide to travel at a moment's notice. and because it is so close to us, we do not need to have long vacations nor do we need to take a leave from the office.

i remember one particular time last summer. we only realized that it was going to be a long weekend after hubby came home from work on a friday. he asked what we wanted to do for the long weekend. impulsively, we thought, why don't we go to new york tomorrow? and then off we went to new york the following morning.

that night, prior to packing our things, i went online and googled online travel guides to check out things to do in new york. since it was my kids' first time to be in new york, we wanted them to have a varied experience of the city. in my search for places to see, i stumbled upon Trusted Tours & Attractions. they have a list of 40 new york city attractions which you can visit for free and even have special discounted tickets which you can actually print from home. it was so convenient.

i went through the list and ticked off the things i thought my children would love to see. we took them to see the statue of liberty, times square, the empire state building, the metropolitan museum of art, and the rockefeller center. each attraction was thoroughly enjoyed by my children.

for a very impromptu trip to new york city, trusted tours and attractions certainly helped me in planning out a very memorable trip for my children. and since they offer discounted tickets to the best sightseeing tours in 23 cities across america, i will definitely visit their site again when i go look for things to do in chicago.

so if you are currently planning your next vacation and looking for ideas on what to do, sign up now for the Trusted Travels eNewsletter and you just might win a handheld GPS. their offer ends June 30th, 2008, so better sign up right now!

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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 level
you 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 points
b. one-year diploma, trade certificate, apprenticeship or university degree and at least 12 years of full-time studies or full-time equivalent studies - 3 points
c. a 2 or 3-year diploma, trade certificate, apprenticeship or university degree and at least 14 years of full-time or full-time equivlent studies - 4 points
d. a master's degree or PhD and at least 17 years of full time or full time equivalent studies - 5 points

2. previous work experience in canada
you get 5 points if you or your spouse/common-law partner have previously worked full-time in canada for at least a year on a valid work permit.

3. previous study in canada
you get 5 points if you or your spouse/common-law partner have previously studied full-time in canada for at least 2 years on a valid study permit. this study should have occurred after you or your spouse/common-law partner were 17 years old.

4. arranged employment in canada
you get 5 points if you have a ready employer to work for when you land in canada.

5. relatives in canada
you get 5 points if you or your accompanying spouse/common-law partner have a relative who lives in canada and is a canadian citizen or a permanent resident. relatives include - parents, grandparent, child, grandchild, child of a parent, sibling, child of a grandparent, aunt or uncle, grandchild of a parent, niece or nephew.

in computing for your points, please note that you can only get a maximum of 10 points for adaptability. you can only count points from each factor either for you or for your spouse/common-law partner but not for both.

if you want to take the complete self-assessment, click here.

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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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