So I look at the homepage and see that I started with "Beginning of 2012..." Now it's 2022 so it means this website is now 10 years in the making. Yay! (Pat on the back...)

Well I barely wrote in it, there is an obvious and significant gap after 2016. 

Juggling parenting and your professional career is an ardent task to master. I often find myself overwhelmed by the many things I have to accomplish. You see, I have my hands full as a parent. I’ve been homeschooling my kids and while it has been going smoothly, it still absorbs a good amount of my time. On top of that, I still have a consultancy business to take care of. Plus, I still have to allot a considerable amount of time for grocery, a little bit of me-time and some recreational activities for the family from time to time. It has become easy to lose track of all the things I have to get done in a day.

In the midst of all the chaos and busy schedules, I managed to find a powerful tool to help me remain focused and detail-oriented. Evernote has been more than a mobile app for me. It is my digital reminder, my modern journal to keep me in line with my daily chores and goals.

Evernote is an application that doubles as my note taker and online task manager. Think of it as a blank canvass where you can store your ideas and important documents. But more than just an electronic diary and memo pad, Evernote is packed with a number of viable uses that can help you do more things more conveniently. 


Get Quick Access to Files

I am a fan of Evernote’s efficient process of helping me save important stuff –documents, files, you name it.  With just a few clicks (or a few taps if you download the app on your phone or tablet), I can easily transfer ebooks, pictures and even recipes! If I read an article online that I want to read at a later time, I can save it using Evernote. This goes true for important documents, too. My kids’ birth certificates and school and medical records –all easily accessible with a touch of a finger.


Go for Smooth Sharing

There were countless times when I read something online and get excited to share it with my friends and loved ones. Or write about a planned trip and send it to a travel buddy. Evernote boasts of a set of sharing features that enable me to share my personal notes in an instant.

I also use Evernote to share notes publicly. I just click “Copy Public Link” and voila! I get a URL that I can send through email or post on Facebook!


Collaborate and Engage

For a career-driven woman, Evernote is a trusted partner in ensuring that daily tasks are done in a professional and speedy manner. It pushes note-taking a notch higher with its work chat feature. Think of it as a messenger embedded in the app. This feature allows me to connect and discuss with my colleagues without having to open a new mobile application, giving me seamless interaction with my business partners, and potential company clients. Working has never been this easy!


Give Homeschooling A Boost

I likewise use Evernote in homeshooling my kids. Yes even my kids use Evernote! Except for 6 year old Haley, each of the boys have their own individual Evernote accounts.

The app allows me to create notebooks, where you can insert notes or to-do list for your little ones. Think of this as a binder. I have a notebook for each of my kids and when I give them assignments, I just insert notes and directions along with some pictures and videos to make the lesson more exciting. It truly is a wonderful helping hand when it comes to their education.

An online journal, a work tool and a homeschooling planner –these are the roles Evernote plays in my busy life. Experience the wonders of Evernote today, your powerful tool to help you achieve more and get more out of life.


If you would like to learn more about how to use Evernote for homeschooling, contact me via facebook page or comment below. 

If you are interested in getting Evernote for business or if you wish to upgrade your existing Evernote, click on this link .  

As an Evernote advocate, I can talk your ear off about Evernote and the many ways to customise it to your needs. Let me know how I can help you!

Living overseas with four kids is no easy task. You have to do everything by yourself. Luckily, with homeschooling, we have been on the D.I.Y. bandwagon even when we were still living in the Philippines. So when we arrived in Australia, I was not overwhelmed. It was not so different  from what we have been doing back home.

Part of being a parent is the never-ending washing of the dishes. My kids know how I get frustrated when the used glasses or mugs are all over the table and I can't find any left in the dish rack because they've used them all. So I've told them to clean up after they drink and put back the glass or mug in the rack. It's not hard!

And any kid of mine who forgets gets a beating. Just kidding. They get a hug and loving reminder. Through gritted teeth.

Don't know about other parents, but I love making wraps. In the Philippines pita breads are a bit expensive so I seldom made them. But here in Australia wraps are quite cheap! Just 2 (Australian) dollars for a pack of 10 wraps. When you make wraps or burritos, I normally just use one plate and maybe 2-3 spoons to use for the individual fillings. You know what that means?

Less dishes to wash!

What's more fun is that the kids want to do the wrapping themselves. Even my little 6-year old Haley volunteers to do her own wrap. She identifies and says out loud the fillings of her burrito like the meat, potatoes, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, sour-cream sauce, onions etc. 

I would suggest making the fillings in advance or even have stock in your fridge so you can make it anytime you want. But with my kids, this normally doesn't work because as long as they see that there is some meat filling left, they keep making burrito wraps till every bite's gone. 

I don't really follow any strict recipe. We just put in whatever we feel would taste great in a wrap. Our usual ingredients are: 

- stir-fried ground meat (pork, beef, chicken or even canned tuna!)
- tomatoes
- stir-fried onions
- cucumber
- lettuce
- cheese strips 
- white sauce (can be a combination of sour cream, mayo, mustard, honey, minced    
  garlic)

other experimental fillings that was a hit with my kids:

- cooked stir fried noodles (or pancit canton)
- pork and beans
- rice or couscous

Do you have a great burrito recipe? Or perhaps tried an unusual filling that tasted great? By all means share it with us!

I am ususally talking about attaining financial freedom on this blog. That IS the reason why I created this blog after all. But there are times I would talk about my kids, my marriage, and of course, homeschooling. 

By the way I am watching Ryan Higa cooking (sort of) on youtube as I write this... so it will take me a while to write most likely...

About six months later...

So as I was saying, what happens next after everything else has worked out? And by that I mean, you have attained financial freedom? But wait, what is financial freedom?

Financial freedom is defined by Robert Kiyosaki as the freedom to be who you are and do what you really want in life. So, it is not really about how much money you have, because having lots of money doesn't automatically mean you have financial freedom. I come from a family who made money regularly (both my parents were hard working employees), but we were not free to do what we want. As a kid we had to constantly hear about saving money, we couldn't buy what we want, ate the same adobong kangkong for 5 days in a row, couldn't go to the movies, watched other kids have nice toys and gadgets... I am not complaining, in fact I salute my parents for how they raised me. I am only demonstrating how we did not have financial freedom even though we had money. I think it is because my parents were afraid of losing money, afraid of becoming poor, and so we were made to live a poor life.  

Financial freedom therefore is when you are able to be and do what you want with the money you have. 

I would say at this point in our lives, I am almost able to do whatever I want. So I guess I can say I have almost attained financial freedom. I don't think I am rich by normal standards, I don't have a nice car, I don't have the most expensive laptop or mobile phone... but it's ok because those are not the things I want. Some of the things I do want are:

- not having to endure traffic 5 days a week
- being with my kids and my kids wanting to be with me
- being able to buy what my kids want, but not to the point of spoiling them
- eating delicious food when I want (no more adobong kangkong!)
- going to the movies when I want
- travelling abroad when I want
- sharing my knowledge to people who are interested in hearing what I have to say

I don't think I am quite there yet because I still hold back to buying wants over  needs. My bucket list still contains a list of unchecked things I want to do. I still have that fear of losing, I guess it's hard to break the habits that my parents have instilled in me. I believe fear can be a good thing when it is used to propel you to take action. Some people tend to be frozen with fear that they don't do anything, it is the fear of the unknown.

So what next after financial freedom? Once the bucket list has all been checked and done, what next? 

The answer to that, for me, would be... Share your knowledge and pay it forward. Help other people to attain financial freedom. 

Today, after a very long time, I received an email from a young reader. It was a pleasant surprise because I seriously thought no one ever read my blog. I just write out of passion and hobby. I am posting her inquiry about homeschooling here so that everyone else who happen to read my blog may benefit too.

"Hi po! I'm turning Gr. 9 this school year and I'm planning to be homeschooled because of personal reasons (like i'm really introvert po) and also financial problems. As I was looking for homeschool reviews I saw your blog and I saw your email at the comments. So paano ko po ma coconvince my parents? And paano po ba yung proseso sa TMA? Thankyou. :) If you wouldn't mind can I ask several questions po about TMA? Kung hindi okay lang po. Salamat po! :)" 


Dear Young Reader,

......

First of all, I'm very happy to hear that you are very much interested in homeschooling. Up to now, my children are homeschooled. My eldest son is not much older than you, he will be starting grade 10 soon, he is turning 16.

As a parent, at first I did not believe in homeschooling. Madami akong concern for my kids. Matututo ba sila talaga magaral? Pano kung hindi sila sumunod sa akin? Makakapasok ba sila sa college with homeschool credentials? Magiging normal ba sila pag adult na sila? 

Alam mo kase marami kaming takot as parents. We don't want to screw up our children's future by making a bad decision. We only want you to do well in life. So by doing what everyone else is doing, like sending our kids to regular school, we think we are doing the "safe" thing.

But as I started reading more things about and attending orientations about homeschooling, the more I felt that it was the best for my kids.

So I suggest the same thing to your parents. You should expose them to more information about homeschooling. Homeschool providers have scheduled orientations for parents who are considering homeschooling.

I don't know your circumstances at the moment, but homeschooling requires one parent to be willing to be in charge of your education. If your parents are both working, one of them may need to sacrifice their work, it's usually the mother. 

Also, I suggest you also check out Catholic Filipino Academy founded by Bo Sanchez, if you are Catholic. Mas mura ang tuition fee nila compared to TMA kung isa ka lang na maghohomeschool. I transferred to TMA kase mas mura lumalabas sa kanila kung maraming anak ang enrolled, kase per family ang charge ng TMA.  

At the end of the day, it doesnt matter kung TMA or CFA, because what matters is how focused you are in taking charge of your education. As long as you are honest and passionate in learning, I am sure you will do well!

Best of luck to you dear and hope all will turn out ok. Let me know how it goes!

Kind regards,

Bella Carlos aka Carol S. Abella