5 Ways to Cook Camote

Did you know that camote or sweet potato is one of the world’s healthiest foods?  This root crop, especially the yellow camote is rich in beta carotene that looks after our heart, contains lutein to sustain good eyesight.  Camote also stabilizes blood sugar levels in our body. Its fibers help lessen bad cholesterol and relieve bowel movement. And it has heaps of vital minerals and vitamins like manganese, potassium, iron Vitamin A, C, E, B2 and B6 that our body needs.

Wow, isn’t camote an amazing food? 

Do you like camote? I do! It’s one of my favorite food.

Boiled or Bake Camote

Fried of Baked Camote Fries

Camote Que 

Glazed Camote 

Here's the Yummy recipe that I follow when I cook glazed camote.

Camote Chips

Here's a great recipe from Market Manila.

How about you? Do you have other ways to cook camote? 

Photo Sources: Google, YUMMY, Market Manila

Morning routine, typical day…

Even I am a full time mom I always ensure to have a smooth morning routine to have a productive day.

Here’s my morning routine:

Wake up at 4:45AM every day.

a. drink one full glass of water after waking up – did you know that drinking water in early morning and with empty stomach cleanse our colon, boosts the production of new blood and muscle cells and facilitates weight loss? I have been doing this for years and I feel good every day. 

b. prepare breakfast and prepare my school girl’s pack lunch/my lunch too! 

c. do my daily exercise – walking around the neighborhood for at least 30 minutes and now I include skipping rope, 50 to 100 repetitions.  By the time I’ve returned home, my kids and hubby are already wide awake.

To make sure that I get up that early is to never sleep late or sleep while the TV is on.  Speaking of TV, as much as I really wanted to watch Ch7’s My Husband’s Lover because I really like its plot, but I cannot do it because  have to stick to my schedule to be productive for the following day.

Eat breakfast with the whole family by 6:15AM – I don’t skip breakfast or be left behind, eating our meals is my family’s bonding time. You know, that I eat my lunch alone during weekdays and I really despise eating all alone haha!

By 7:00AM, my kids and hubby desert me.  I would start my normal house chores.  If there is plenty of time I open my blog, update my blog, read updates from my FB or read online articles or book.

After lunch I would spend several hours to supervise our business, trouble shoot if there are problems,   do my online job while lazing with our staff/workers and take snacks with them.  By late afternoon, I rush to go home to cook dinner and wait for my youngest to return from school, and then my eldest and the hubby.

It’s my typical day. How about you? What’s your morning routine, typical day?

Pack Lunch

Do you packed lunch for your kids? I do. I always ensure that my kids eat safe and healthy foods when they are in school that’s why I need to be awake very early in the morning to prepare their pack lunches.
For this school year, my daughter is the one that brings pack lunch to school. My eldest who is now in college, suddenly resented a packed lunch! OMG, what’s wrong with him? Is it embarrassing to bring packed lunch in universities nowadays?

Well, I realize my son is in a different stage of life now - new environment, new classmates and friends. Maybe his friend doesn’t bring packed lunch? Maybe it’s dyahe?

Ha! I should be broadminded. I should understand the developmental stage he is in now.  I cannot impose the things that I like him to do. I cannot force him to bring a packed lunch if he doesn’t want.  I don’t like to be a nagging mommy! It’s different now.  Looks like I need to update my knowledge on approaches in handling teenagers, specifically a 17 year old kid.

Anyways, this pack lunch – Herbed Rice with Lechon Kawali is for my daughter’s lunch today. Oh, I also reserve another serving for my lunch.

The Lechon Kawali is a left over viand from yesterday’s lunch. I boiled a slab of pork liempo in salty water, with cloves of garlic, laurel leaf and peppercorns.  Once it done, I baked it for 25 minutes. I reheat the left over this morning.

For the herbed rice, pour olive oil in a pan, add minced garlic, onions, dried basil and thyme, and stir for a minute. Then add in the cooked rice, season with salt and pepper and stir until the rice is heated through. Pour in oyster sauce and chopped fried egg, stir again. Add chopped green onions, stir a few more times.
And I am done with our lunch.

How I received my payments?

The next big thing to me when I got an online job is how I will receive my payment.  When I applied for a job I noticed that employers are asking for a PayPal account. So I did open a PayPal account.

Signing up a PayPal Account is so easy. I just fill up this PayPal form.

I noticed a section that I need to verify my account by adding a credit or debit card. I skip this section because I like to have a separate credit or debit card for all my online earnings.  I think I got a separate card two weeks after I got a job. Anyway, even my account was unverified; I can receive my weekly payments.

So the next step I did is to have a credit or debit card. Searching online, opening an EON Cyber Account with UNION BANK is the simple and best route to easily get verified.  And from the articles I read EON has no cash out charges, no minimum maintaining balance and it is an ATM debit card and electronic banking in one meaning I can purchase on line using the card, pay bills online, withdraw cash from any ATM machine and can transfer cash. I was really beguiled by these services!

I applied online.

I just fill up all the sections and after that I received a text and an email stating my Reference Number and that I can pick up my EON Visa Debit Card in the nearest Union Bank branch in my place.  Wow, I was amazed of the rapidity!  I just need to bring 2 valid IDs and P350.00 for the annual fee.

So I went to the bank, showed the text stating my Reference Number,  my 2 IDs + photocopies of each, the P350.00 for annual fee and P200.00 for initial deposit that will be used for PayPal verification process but will be returned.

After 10 or 15 minutes, I was holding my EON Visa Card, ha-ha!

That was so easy and super quick!

When I got home, I enrolled my card online.

And  add my card to my PayPal account.

I just clicked the Get Verified link. And entered the information required:

Name
Last Name
Billing Address
Card Type (select VISA)
Card Expiry
Card Security Code (flip the card and there is 3 number sequence next to the signature strip)
Card Number – the 16 digits number
And SAVE.

Upon adding my card, PayPal charged me of  $1.95. It appeared on my bank account statement accompanied by the 4 digit EXPUSE number. I waited for 2 days before the EXPUSE number appeared on my bank account statement.

After 2 days I see my EXPUSE number. I log-in to my PayPal account and click the link – Confirm my debit or credit card. I entered the EXPUSE number and clicked submit. PayPal send a message that I successfully verified my account.

After that I clicked WITHDRAW to transfer money to my bank.  I waited 5 days for the transfer.
It’s already July but my money from my online earnings in less than 2 months, amounting now to P13, 000.00 are still intact.

I’m feeling great to be earning again!

How I landed an online job

Before I landed an online job, I would say that my job hunting experience was a tough one. I job hunt for less than three months. There are a lot of people – various ages and nationalities having qualified skills that seek for a job, meaning I have a lot of competitors for a single job application.

But I wasn’t enfeebled. I soldier on with my job hunt until an employer contacted me. That begins my story of being a WAHM.

I will specifically address this post to certain BC Bloggers, such as Abbey, Van, Ella (Ella, I was not able to email you, I decided to write this post instead), Meikah and Aileen, who expressed interest for online job. Hey ladies, your comments compel me to write my experience and I will not fail you, I will show you the way as Meikah had remarked, ha-ha.

Aside from the ladies I mentioned I hope this post can be of help to others who are seeking online jobs.

Here it goes.

1. Write your resume; proof read it for correct spelling, grammar, no missing words, and no typing mistake; and attach your recent photo. 

2. Start your job hunt. Here are the 5 job boards/sites  that I member in and subscribed for daily job alerts.

Freelancer
OnlinejobsPH
ProBlogger
Elance
Craigslist 

You can search for more job boards online if you want to. 

3. Some tips

a. Apply as many jobs as you could. Applying for a single job and wait for the employer to contact you is unfeasible. Remember you have a lot of competitors!  When I hopped into various job boards and monitor job alerts in my email, I applied to all positions that I think I am qualified. 

b. Decide if you go part time or full time. Identify your priorities and limitations. For now, I will work part time, I am not ready to hire house help, and anyway I have survived 16 years of personally taking care of my two kids and hubby. Hays, even its tough ha-ha.  

c. Do not be afraid for the job interviews, even its a Skype interview. When you are scheduled for one, nail it!

• Stare into the camera; make eye contact to your future employer. Sit not too close to the camera, sit-up straight.
• Even if you are in your home be presentable, be dressed just   like you are going to have a real interview. 
• Do your interview in a quiet and not cluttered place in your home. Remove anything that can distract you.
• Don’t forget to smile. 
• Answer the questions smartly and be yourself.
• Fix technical difficulties that may arise – camera, audio, etc.

d. Persevere. If you failed with your first, second, and so forth job applications as well as job interviews. Then, try again. There’s no harm in trying. 

Ladies, start your job hunt now!