Super Fast License Renewal in Philippines

10.25.2018
License Renewal, Super Fast
We went to MOA for my husband’s License Renewal. I was so amazed because it was really really fast!

We arrived at 11:15 then we went straight to a clinic next to the LTO center. My husband only paid 350 for the medical, after just 5 minutes the result was ready. Then we went to the next door where you could find a center which has different government and private departments.

See photos for the departments that you can see here...

Next, give your medical result and old license to the officer in charge and wait for your name to be called. Once your name was called, they will give you a breakdown of the fee that you will pay. Pay here 650 pesos. Give the receipt to the counter. wait for your name to be called again for photo and biometrics.

After 20 minutes, my husband got called for hisbiometrics.. actually it wouldn't that long, its just that there were 2 senior citizens applying as well,  and that they should give priority. This is how they do it! 😉

After just 30 minutes, viola! here’s the renewed Driver’s License of my husband with FIVE years validity! yey!

Kudos to LTO Mall of Asia for the super fast service!

That's all for now Queens 👑
More to come...

(¯`v´¯)
.`·.¸.·´ ?
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(¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸ Mikaela

Basic Things you need to start Baking

Baking is ❤!

When I decided to start baking (2015), I immediately search on the net the basic tools needed to try simple pastries and cakes. Unfortunately, I was not able to find any site about it, so I decided to figure out on my own. 

For those Queens out there who wants to start baking here are the basic tools and equipment you need to have. Please take note that I am sharing infos based on my own research and experiences. 

1. OVEN. 

There are two common types of oven in baking. Conventional and Convection oven. Confusing right? hehehe I felt that before don't ya worry! It's normal you're just a beginner! hehe! Let's get through it for you to understand well. 

Conventional oven doesn't have fan in it. Cooking/baking time is slower and there's a possibility of uneven cooking because the heat doesn't circulate. The heat is coming from the bottom only and fixed. If you are using this kind of oven you should follow the temperature given in the recipe as well as the preheating time. 

TIPS: 
*Best to use if you are baking cakes, cupcakes, muffins and other delicate pastries. 
*When baking cupcakes and cakes, try to rotate the pan half of the baking time, for even baking. 
  for instance, when the baking time for cupcakes is 20 minutes, turn the pan after 10 minutes. 


Convection oven has fan in its feature. The fan helps to circulate and distribute the heat properly. It can also makes the cooking/baking time faster. However, it is not really advisable to use this in cake and cupcakes because the middle part of the cake will rise up easily and since it has a fan, it may blow the top on one side. NOT GOOD. So better turn off the fan if you'll bake cakes and cupcakes. But, convection oven is best if you are going to bake cookies and pies. 

TIPS:
*If using convectional oven, decrease 25 degrees Fahrenheit from the recommended temperature on the recipe. 
For instance, the recommended temperature is 350 degree Fahrenheit, it will become 325 degree Fahrenheit.


BOTH oven can be heated by gas and electricity. However, I prefer electric oven because the heat distribution is stable. Unlike if you are using gas oven the heat distribution may change and there's a big possibility that you will ran out of gas when baking. In addition to that, I have read a lot of experiences from co-bakers from one of the baking groups, who experienced exploding gas ovens. scaaaaaary! 

2. Cake and Cupcake Pans

The standard size for round pan if you are just starting in baking is 8" x 2.5" (8 inches diameter and 2 inches height). You can buy this for only 95 Php. For the cupcake pans I suggest that you need to have both 6 holes and 12 holes. The size is 3 oz for the standard cupcake size. I prefer Arrow brand. 6 holes cupcake pan will cost you 130 Php. The size of the whole pan is 7" x 10". While the 12 holes cupcake pan is 220 Php. The actual size of the whole pan in 10" x 13".

3. Mixing Bowls

You should have at least two mixing bowls. Big and medium size. Because most of the time, the recipe usually instructs to separate the wet and dry ingredients. 

4. Measuring Cups and Spoons

You NEED to have these. One of the most important thing to be successful in baking is measurement. Unlike in cooking, you can add up condiments if the taste doesn't satisfy you, in baking however, even a teaspoon of baking soda will affect the result of your bake goods. Always, always follow the measurement provided on the recipe. 


5. Mixing Whisk

If you're just starting to bake and no enough budget yet to buy mixer, you should have this. But if you want to start investing there's an available hand mixer at a very affordable price. You can buy a hand mixer for as low as 250 Php in divisoria or lazada. 

6. Spatula

In some recipes, you may encounter an instruction which says "fold" the batter, that's when you need to use the spatula. Also, it is best use in scraping the batter while mixing and transferring to the pan. 

Add caption

7. Decorating Tips and Coupler

There are a lot of decorating tips, hundreds of them I think... But there are basic tips that you need to have, with these you can make lots of designs as well. Here are my personal preference for the basic tips that you must have:

a. round tip
b. Leaf tip
c. open star tip (ca make a perfect swirl and rosette)
d. closed star tip (make a perfect swirl and shell border)
e. basketweave tip (make a basket weave effect and shell border as well)
f. grass tip

Coupler is a must have tool as well, specially when you are practicing. It is also called the "quick-change" tool because it will help you change decorating tip from to another without changing the pastry bag. 

8. Pastry Bags

Pastry bags come in different sizes. You can buy disposable and washable. For me, I think disposable is better because it's more convenient since I'll just throw it away after using. I usually buy the medium size. The cost is 40 - 50 Php for 10 pcs. 


There you go! Those are the primary tools that you'll need to start your baking journey. On my next post we'll talk about baking ingredients... :)

That's all for now Queens 👑
More to come...

(¯`v´¯)
.`·.¸.·´ ?
¸.·´¸.·´¨) ¸.·*¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸ Mikaela

Althea Contraceptive Pills Review

Being a woman is really hard, because you have to take care a lot of things inside and out!

You have to be more conscious not only with your appearance but with your health,too. We, women, are more sensitive than men. So, we should be more watchful when it comes to our health. And that's the thing I didn't do. :( I admit I was not that health conscious before but, after I was diagnosed of having four super small fibroids ( I forgot the sizes) I became more aware with regards to my health.

I will just write more about that on my next blog. For now, I want to have a review about ALTHEA CONTRACEPTIVE PILLS.
I tried some brands of contraceptive pills before like TRUST pills. I already tried the pink one and the yellow one. Also, I tried injectables,too. Sadly, I gained much weight, that's the side effect to me so I decided to stop...

Three months ago, I started taking contraceptive pills again because of the irregularity of my period and the fibroids in my ovary. My OB told me to take contraceptive pill which is anti-androgen to prevent from increasing the number of fibroids...

photo credit to mims.com

ALTHEA is a 21-cycle contraceptive pills.
You can start  taking on the first day of your period or anytime you want BUT be sure that you are not pregnant before taking your first pill. After taking the 21st pill you have 7 pill-free days. On the 8th day you have to start taking the next pack. It will only cost you P355 in local drug stores. Half the price of some Contraceptive Pills which has the same effects.

PROS:

* decrease popping out of pimples ^^
* regulate menstrual period
* prevent the feeling of being bloated
* lightens the brown patches on my skin
* helps your skin become smooth and fresh
* loose weight (for me)
* remove unwanted facial hair
* cheaper than Diane pills
* available in local drug stores
* enlarge your boobies (this is pro for me! hahaha)

CONS:

* headache during the first week of taking the pills
* moody

I hope those information will help you if you are planning to take contraceptive pills.
You can also take contraceptive pills even if you don't have a husband or boyfriend because it is therapeutic.:) It will help you a lot with your acne issues (for acne you need to take the pills for at least three months before you see the result/improvement) and menstrual irregularities.
NOTE: DON'T forget to visit your OB-GYN for pap smear every after 6 months.

That's for now Queens! Feel free to post comments and ask questions! ^^
More to come....

(¯`v´¯)
.`·.¸.·´ ?
¸.·´¸.·´¨) ¸.·*¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸ Mikaela ^^,

Ladybug Stuff ^^

Why do I chose ladybug or ladybird as a theme of my collection?
Well here's the informative reason..

When I was in college, lots of my friends have their own collections of stuff.. I remembered one of my friends is collecting Hello Kitty stuff which is really cute ^^, the other one is collecting Frog stuff and so on. And in addition to that my aunt,too is collecting Sunflower stuff. It was cool because when I visited her house I saw her kitchen full of sunflower things from kitchen utensils to decorations. Her kitchen is so cute and flowery! hehehe

And so I decided to try collecting something... but what?!
Of course, first thing that came into my mind was INTERNET. hehehe
I searched and searched... because I thought I don't want to just collect something which has a cute theme, I want to collect something which is cute and symbolic... then BOOM! Ladybug it is!!!

Ladybug is a sign of luck. In some countries it is a sign of love. In some Asian countries, they believe that when you caught a ladybug and released it, the ladybug will fly to your true love and whisper your name to his/her ears.. hehe isn't that amazing? hihi.

It is also said that when a ladybug lands on you, your wishes will come true but it depends on the ladybug's spots. Why? because it is said that the spots indicate how many months you are going to wait before your wishes will come true . For Irish, ladybug is a sign of protection.

The name Ladybug arise in Europe in Middle Ages, when pests were  destroying the farmers' crops. It was said that farmers prayed to Virgin Mary to help them. After they prayed, ladybugs appeared. They ate the pests and save the farmers' crops from devastation. From then on, the farmers call the ladybug as "The Beetle of Our Lady".

Aside from having lots of symbolism, Ladybug is such a cutie! I love the combination of red and black. Moreover, there are only few people who are collecting ladybug stuff right?!  ^^. Also it is a symbol of LUCK! hihihi (✿◠‿◠)

And those are the reasons why I started collecting Ladybug things ^^. Anyway, here are some photos of my collections:

 Some of my Ladybug accessories :))

 Ladybug office stuff.... ^^

Me with the Ladybug.. hihihi

this was taken at Tagaytay. ^^

 

So,dollies! If you are planning to collect something, make sure that you will choose a theme which will relate to you personally and has significance to your life. A theme which you will love and makes you happy!^^

Enjoy reading! ^^

More to come... :))

(¯`v´¯) .`·.¸.·´ ? ¸.·´¸.·´¨) ¸.·*¨) (¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸ Mikaela ^^,