All-Around Pinay Mama

My Recommended Word Games for Moms

December 14, 2021

Moms do the work of more than 10 people and considered as "master of multitasking". They may be considered admirable due to their productivity but like any ordinary person, they also get burnt out and may experience mental health concerns and memory problems and distractibility due to multitasking (Winch, 2016).

I am a mom for 16 long years. I experience burn out sometimes and worse, constant forgetfulness which I am so worried about. That's why I see to it that I break my routines from time to time to continuously develop new pathways for my brain. I read, do journaling, try new activities, and play word games online. Speaking of word games, they help me increase my focus and concentration, make my brain work harder, and of course, make me happy and relaxed. Indeed, word games are so helpful for my brain, well-being, and mental health.

Since I have no available pen and paper word games on hand, I opt to search for different online games that suit my preferences. There are a lot, but the following word games from Solitaire.org are the ones that I prefer:

DAILY WORD SEARCH

Daily Word Search is a 12x12, 14x14, or 16x16 word search puzzle game which offers a new puzzle every day. We may play it online and even print a hard copy if we want. When we don't like the day's game, we can pick another day's game.

This is very relaxing! It's like we are answering word search activities that we regularly purchase from bookstores.

DAILY LETTER LOGIC

Daily Letter Logic is crossword without clues. It is a puzzle interface with a letter filled in then we can get the words to be filled in from the word list which can be used only once. It's challenging because it does not contain a built-in error checker where we can check our progress but when we are able to beat a puzzle, a winner stamp in orange will appear over the top of the puzzle including our completion time.

LETTER SCRAMBLE

The most challenging word game for me is the Letter Scramble. It is a scrabble-styled online game in Solitaire.org where we can spell as many words as we can under time pressure. We can use variations of the same word and also, we can even repeatedly enter the same word as long as we have the letter tiles available to spell it.

I usually play any of these Word Games and my preference on what to play depends on my mood. If I want a hardcore brain activity, I prefer Letter Scramble followed by Daily Letter Logic. If I just want to be more relaxed, I play Daily Word Search. Regardless of my preference, I have observed that after a few weeks of playing them, something good has happened inside my brain and my mental health has improved too.

Reference:

Winchm G. (2016). 10 real risks of multitasking, to mind and body. Retrieved December 14, 2021 from

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-squeaky-wheel/201606/10-real-risks-

multitasking-mind-and-body

*Mom photo courtesy of shaila19/Pixabay

Zumper Helps You Find the Best Apartment for Rent in Austin

July 27, 2021

Zumper, Apartment for Rent in Austin, Product Review, AAPM Tips, Home and Living,

Most of my Filipino nurse and teacher friends consider the United States of America as one of the best countries to work in and would like to land a job, particularly in Austin. According to the U.S. News and World Report, Austin, Texas is one of the best places to live in the U.S. Bloom (2019) also mentioned in her article in Forbes that for three consecutive years, Austin was voted to be the number one place to live in America based on job prospects, affordability, and quality of life. It was also named as one of the fastest-growing large cities in the U.S., ranked number four as the best to start a business venture.

Texas State Capitol

Austin Skyline

Aside from business and job opportunities, Austin is the best place to stay in because it is filled with the best schools, hospitals, shops, and places to visit when you want to commune with nature, study art and history, enjoy music, and do rest and recreation. All the things to make one's life contented and fulfilled are probably found in Austin.

Texas History Museum

In line with this, one of the things that you should prioritize when you like to move to Austin is looking for a place to live. Of course, it is more convenient to rent a place as you start a new adventure. It may be challenging especially when you are new to the place but fret not because Zumper is here to help you find the apartment in Austin that suits your taste, budget, and needs.

Zumper in a Nutshell

Zumper is a website or app (available in App Store or Google Play) that is used by millions of renters in finding rooms, houses, condos, and apartments for rent. Zumper is in the industry for almost eight years with the mission of making renting an apartment as easy as booking a hotel. It is "inclusive", built for everyone. Zumper's inventory of quality listings is always updated which you can always see the newest rentals on its website. Aside from being always updated on its listings in real-time, you may set an alert to get new notifications when a new listing is posted. It filters by price range, bedroom count, pet-friendly, amenity, or location so it's so easy to choose based on your preference.

Zumper may help you find the best deals on condominiums, houses, or apartments for rent in the hottest cities like Austin.

Zumper's Core Values

You can rent with confidence through Zumper. It is committed to helping you in providing both a safe place and community to call home that you deserve.

Zumper doesn't tolerate any form of discrimination with regard to disability, nationality, age, color, race, gender identity, religion, marital status, or sexual orientation. Zumper values its clients' safety, dignity, and empowerment. It sets a specific standard to make sure that its community works together in fairness, respect, and confidence. It values courteous, honest, and prompt communication within the rental community, among the renters and property managers alike.

Zumper believes in business anchored to its values to deliver its purpose. Looking for a perfect apartment for rent in Austin is definitely seamless with Zumper.

Photo Credit: Zumper and Pixabay

My thoughts about Car Key Gnomes ...and other household pests , Poems by Miciah Dodge and Artwork by Danie Plott

March 10, 2021

Snippets on Manners Matter: A Children’s Self-Guide to Social and Personal Conduct by Dr. Shubhra Sharma

March 10, 2021

A few years ago, I attended a workshop of an award-winning writer about "How to Write a Children's Storybook." I dreamt of writing a series of storybooks for children that would tackle Good Manners and Right Conduct (GMRC). I thought that those reading materials would help parents and teachers teach children manners and character-building because, for quite some time, GMRC was not included in the DepEd curriculum. Due to this, kids and the younger generation nowadays tend to forget what is essential and that is to live mindfully and intentionally without sacrificing being a good person. Furthermore, I thought of writing stories that would enrich values formation because it would be one of the easiest and best ways to tap the intellect and emotions of the kids starting at a very young age so that the lessons that they would learn would be innate in their character. Unfortunately, that dream of mine was put on the shelf due to a lack of time or confidence perhaps because I thought I was not credible yet.

In line with this, I always believe that what you think, you will attract. God has His way of connecting you to the right people who share the same passion and belief as yours. I feel truly blessed and honored because Dr. Shubhra Sharma, lecturer, anthropologist, and children's book author, shared with me her passion project, Manners Matter: A Children’s Self-Guide to Social and Personal Conduct, which coincides with what I want with a "manners book for children" to be written. It’s a children’s etiquette book, a self-guide, that breaks down common social interactions - and how one should behave in them - into bite-sized pieces of information along with colorful images/graphics that even the youngest readers can understand and appreciate. I got a digital copy and it was awesome! For sure, it would look awesome in paperback too! Then I realized that I should not feel regretful for not pursuing my postponed plan because this book gave justice to it. This book perhaps is what should parents and teachers include in their children's reading list.

Manners Matter: A Children’s Self-Guide to Social and Personal Conduct, Dr. Shubhra Sharma

What amazes me more is that it is made possible by an aunt and niece tandem. Dr. Shubhra asked her 10-year old niece, Zoya, to draw the illustrations of the book. I love the way she has expressed how excited she is for the opportunity. She also loves the idea of an etiquette self-guidebook for children. She has mentioned that this book has the answer to the following questions that she has never thought about, "What is etiquette, how do we learn it, who teaches us, why is it important?" I also like the idea that the book teaches children how to behave properly. Parents letting them learn through "Self-direction" is a form of positive discipline. Positive discipline gives children a feeling of empowerment to solve their own problems. This becomes a learning opportunity to learn acceptable behavior in different circumstances which helps them become confident, independent, and self-directed (Eaton, 1997). When a person becomes good to his peers, it builds relationships, and it brings a feeling of fulfillment.

This book is made of 24 etiquette lessons in a detailed manner that revolve around gratefulness, mindfulness, accountability, respect, appreciation, hospitality, politeness, kindness, empathy, evolving learning, happiness, thoughtfulness, responsibility, leadership, patience, resilience, attentiveness, and more. There is also a part where the reader may write his thoughts about a specific virtue. This book is not only perfect for children 5 to 13 years old but for adults as well who need to be reminded of how they should express and act with prudence and in conformity with societal standards. I am already in midlife but still, I've learned so much from this book.

I invite you to get your own copy of this book. All the things your children need to learn about manners may be included in this book. This is probably an "all for one book of manners" that we have in the market today. You may purchase it from Amazon.

Reference:

Stevens, A. (2018). ScholarWorks at WMU Positive Discipline as a Part of Effective Classroom Management. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?rticle=3982&context=honors_theses

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