Take The Power Back: Upgrading Your Home’s Electricity Supply

Is your home running on old electrics? Not only could this have a negative effect on your energy bill, you may find that your electricity supply isn’t working as effectively as it should. Here are just a few ways to modernise your home’s electricity.

Upgrade your panel

Old electrical panels are often worth getting checked out, especially if you’ve been experiencing numerous power outages recently. It’s possible your old panel might not be suitable to meet the electrical demands of a modern house. Alternatively, there could be damage that needs fixing such as corrosion or dodgy breakers. Finding an electrician that does electrical panel upgrades could be worthwhile. This is not a job you should ever do yourself without a license.

Add new sockets and lights

Getting a few new sockets and light fittings installed in your home could be worthwhile in some cases. This could prevent you having to rely on overloaded power strips and multiple plug-in lamps. You should pay a licensed electrician to wire-in these light fittings and sockets. This can be an expensive job, but it could add a lot of value to your home. When considering overhead lighting, those on a budget should consider track lighting over spot lighting.

Get rid of power-guzzling appliances

It’s worth also considering your appliances. Old washing machines and refrigerators may not be very economical in comparison to some of the appliances available today. Appliances with an Energy Star rating are worth looking out for, as they are very green and cheap to run (most of these appliances work just as well as power-hungry versions). You should also consider your light bulbs – swapping out incandescent bulbs for LEDs could also help you to save a lot of money.

Make use of smart technology

Smart technology (also known as ‘the internet of things’) is the latest household trend. This involves appliances that can be operated using your smartphone. Smart TVs, smart kettles and smart lighting are just some of the options out there. You can also switch to smart heating and air conditioning, controlling your home’s temperature from your phone. In fact, you could install a smart energy reader that allows you to take readings of your gas and electricity consumption on your phone.

Switch to sustainable power

More households are taking the decision to go off-grid, getting their power from sustainable sources. Solar panels are the most common method of generating power – these generate electricity using the energy of the sun. Shop around for solar panel installation companies to find the best rate. Another option could be to install a home wind turbine if you live in a particularly windy area. Installing these sustainable power sources can be expensive, however you’ll make up costs in the long run by not having to pay electricity bills.

Uni-Pak Mackerel Sandwich Recipe + Giveaway!

Time flies fast! It seems as though we just celebrated New Year and now it's already the month of March! From grand festivities with bountiful feast, we're now heading to the Holy Week. Philippines, being one of the only two predominantly Roman Catholic nations in Asia, it is a religious tradition to observe the Holy Week or Mahal na Araw. One of the popular practices observed during the Holy Week is fasting or meatless meals.

Just in time for the Holy Week, I have prepared yet another recipe using Uni-pak Mackerel in Natural Oil. It was also Holy Week last year when I first posted about Uni-pak and shared a recipe.  

If you have been following my Instagram, you know that I am promoting healthy lifestyle. So this recipe that I am sharing with you is definitely diet friendly and is easy to prepare, this is what I had for dinner last  night. 

Here's the recipe:

Uni-Pak Mackerel Sandwich 

Ingredients:

2 cans of Uni-pak Mackerel (155 grams)

minced onions 

1-2 tsp of lime

mayonaise (amount depends on your preferred consistency)

1 tbsp of cream (optional)

1 cup of pineapple tidbits (optional)

lettuce (optional)

Procedure:

1. Bone the Mackerel if desired

2. Mix Uni-pak Mackerel, minced onions, mayonnaise, cream and lime together

3. Season with salt and pepper

4. Spread on your bread of choice; whole grain bread for a healthier option

5. Add lettuce and pineapple in between (optional)

6. Enjoy!

It's easy to prepare and it tastes good! This is ideal for people on the go, you can prepare it the night before and have it for breakfast or even for lunch!

For a change, try switching from tuna to Mackerel. It tastes equally good but more affordable. Uni-pak Mackerel already tastes good on its own and surprisingly, there are a lot of different dishes you can come up with it. Indeed Uni-pak Mackerel is a must have in every household; hindi basta nakasanyan the best na yan!

Giveaway!

You made it this far, and for that I am once again giving a Uni-Pak Mackerel gift pack to 1 lucky reader! Winning is easy peasy, simply follow the steps below.

1. Follow She's The Mom and Uni- Pak Mackerel on Facebook

2. Follow @pearlizshell and unipakmackerel on Instagram.

3. Share this post on FB with the hashtags: #ShesTheMomxUniPakMackerel #PakNaPak #ShesTheMomGiveaway

4. Re-gram this post on IG with the hashtags: #ShesTheMomxUniPakMackerel #PakNaPak #ShesTheMomGiveaway

5. Comment you shared posts here. Make sure all your shared posts are set to public so I can check.

Congratulations Winner!!!

Winner will be drawn using online random picker. Giveaway is until March 18, 2018!

M2 Malunggay, Okra and Luya Tea Drink giveaway is still up, you may join here.

Advice for Moms Starting New Families

Starting a family can be the most rewarding thing you do in your life, but also the scariest. You’re tasked with making sure another person is properly trained to be their own person for 18+ years. Caring for another human being, especially babies who can do so little, is a daunting task. There are millions of parenting books on the market but parenting advice is always changing.

If you decide to parent your child one way, while someone else says it should be a different way, then it’s totally okay. There is no perfectly right way to start or raise a family. Just ensure that all of your children are given love, compassion, and support.

For those wanting to start a family and looking for a little parenting advice, here are nine tips to consider for your parenting techniques.

3 Tips to Keeping the Perfect lawn made Easy

A beautiful lawn adds aesthetic value to one's property and nature at large. Keeping a perfect lawn ensures good health for you, your family, and also your pets. In the past, a perfect lawn was tiresome to achieve, despite being everyone's dream. It was hard to keep up with routine maintenance and yet keep up with your daily work. The following tips are a manual on how to easily attain a perfect lawn:

1. Frequent Mowing.

Cutting the grass helps thicken the blades. During mowing, thumbs rule should be adhered to; only cut one-third of the grass. Cutting the grass too low kills the lawn as it is deprived of its nutrients. Cutting and leaving the grass too high also leaves the weed too high and controlling them becomes a menace. It is advised to sharpen the mows blade or replace blunt blades to avoid injury to the grass that will cause the lawn to look rugged. Sharpening the blades also ensures that your equipment is highly maintained. Mowing should be done regularly with different patterns and directions to avoid the grass bending to one side.

2. Watering and fertilizing the lawn.

This process should be done to achieve a greener and healthy lawn. When planting the seeds, watering should be done early in the morning to ensure high germination of the grass. For grown grass, it requires water and nutrients for healthy growth. Nutrients need to be replenished, especially after recent mowing. The grass requires phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen as nutrients for a healthy and a green lawn. Potassium and phosphorus are easily found in the soil and they are not easily lost as compared to nitrogenous fertilizers. Therefore, when choosing a fertilizer, nitrogenous fertilizers are highly recommended as they ensure the leafy growth of the grass blades. These two activities can be done manually or can be automated and it depends on the size of your lawn and the time available.

3. Persistent Control of Weeds and Pest.

Controlling weeds in your lawn can be a headache if you don't know the target weed to be controlled. Small weeds can be manually uprooted with care to ensure that the weed does not grow back and at the same time, great care is taken to avoid injury to the grassroots. The uprooting should be done at the right season before the weeds pour out its seeds. Leafy weeds can be controlled by spraying them with right herbicide directly. Timing is of great essence, the best time to spray the herbicides is just before they germinate. Pest should be controlled with pesticides that do not harm your lawn, you or your pets. When spraying these chemicals, ensure you are properly dressed and read carefully the instructions manual. In a case where the whole lawn is infested with weeds and pest, full lawn spraying should be done with the right chemicals.

The way to achieve a perfect lawn has been made easy and there are professionals all over the world dedicated to helping you achieve your dream lawn. Ziehler lawn Care Company has trained personnel who work hand in hand with the client to help them achieve and maintain a perfect lawn of their dream. Visit their site on ziehlerlawncare.com for more information and services.

M2 Tea Drink: Delicious breastfeeding diet for pregnant and nursing moms

Are you a breastfeeding mom or are you an expectant mother who's goal is to breastfeed your little bundle of joy?

Breastfeeding can be beneficial and rewarding for both mothers and babies, but at the same time entails a lot of hard work and can be a bit tedious. I know because I breastfed Brianna for more than 2 years and it's something that I am very proud of doing. 

In order to keep quality breast milk supply sufficient, it is essential to always stay hydrated because breastfeeding can make the nursing mother really thirsty. This means that nursing mothers need to be sipping liquids most of the day. But most important of all, the health and nutritional state of the mom must always be at the optimum to make sure quality milk is being produced for her baby. 

Although water is good, it can get a bit dull as well as lacking nutritional value and content. 

In 2011, NatureEarth has introduced M2 concentrate tea drink. With malunggay (moringga), okra (lady finger) and ginger as its main ingredients, it is packed with powerful nutrients, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, potassium, calcium and has been proven to significantly improve the amount of milk of nursing mothers. It is, by far, the best and most convenient diet for breastfeeding mothers, which are important for a baby’s growth. Malunggay, okra and ginger are also low calorie vegetables that are excellent sources of calcium and healthy antioxidants, important for both mothers and theirs babies. 

It is a known fact that malunggay is a good enhancer of breastmilk. And to further support this claim, a case study research was conducted by NatureEarth wherein twelve moms ages 18 to 33 years old with babies ages 2 weeks to 2 months old were asked to participate. Half of them were asked to drink one glass of M2 concentrate tea drink daily, while the other half were asked to drink 2 glasses. After a month of regularly drinking M2 concentrate drink, the 6 mothers who drank 2 glasses daily claimed they produced more breast milk. While the other 6 who drank only a glass did not notice any changes on the quantity of their breast milk. 

On the second month, all mothers claimed to have an increased amount of milk being produced, including the ones who only drank a glass daily. 

Then on the third month of continuously drinking M2 concentrate drink, everyone noticed that they felt better because no one got sick during the three-month period and there was an ease in bowel movement. Some mothers even claimed that their skin became smoother. 

M2 Tea drink is available in concentrated form wherein you still need to dilute it in water and the other one is the ready to drink. 

There are many ways to drink your M2 Tea Drink, add milk to make your own milk tea or just add lime. It can also be served hot or cold.

Early this month, I received a box of M2 Tea Read-To-Drink, this is the first time that I actually heard about this product and all I can say is that it stays true to it's claim that it is "Surprisingly delicious. Refreshingly nutritious!". I recommend it not just for breastfeeding mommies but to just about anyone who needs a quick vegetable fix, even kids love it!

Here comes the exciting part of this post, a giveaway! I will be sharing with you some bottles of M2 Tea Drink, head on to Instagram and FB for the mechanics! 

For more information about the product and other updates, please follow their Facebook page, M2LactationClub. 

This cool and refreshing tea is available in all Robinsons Supermarkets and Andoks Litson Manok stalls.