Trick or Treating with the Kids

I don't recall Halloween being a big celebration here in the Philippines. Things like "treat or treat" and getting dressed up as zombies had no relevance when I was growing up.

Blame it on the malls and the stores who promote the ghoulish costumes, just to boost their sales. Most kids right now consider it part of tradition and parents would spend money to get them dressed up in pretty costumes.

I never planned on getting into the Halloween bandwagon. My son's school organized the celebration, telling parents to bring their kids in costumes and go around the village for some trick-or-treats.

Rather than spend money on some costume, I decided to make my own Thomas train costume for my son.

And we bought a crown and pair of fairy wings for my daughter.

It's definitely cheaper than those creepy outfits.

Another discovery at Booksale

Here are some of the stuff I discovered in a Booksale branch in Manila.

The D&D Fourth Edition Eberron Campaign Guide costs 325 pesos. I did not buy it since I'm not collecting Eberron or D&D 4e books.

I did manage to get my hands on a brand new Three Dragon Ante card game set for 45 pesos.

The card game is made by Wizards of the Coast. I also found a video tutorial for this game.

Found in a Local Booksale Store

D&D Player's Kit worth 210.00 pesos. Looks interesting and a worthy purchase.The set should contain six dice, some miniature figures, maps, and some books.

Separation Anxiety

We finally enrolled my eldest son in a local preschool. It's a new set of adjustment for all of us. I have to rearrange my work schedule to help prepare and drive him to school. My wife has to plan for his recess snack and the clothes he needs to wear.

My son is making the biggest adjustment in the family. He doesn't want to be left in the company of strangers. Blame it on us for not letting him do things by himself. Now he cries whenever we dress him up for school. He cries when my wife leaves him in class. He cries when she fetches him after school. The teacher says he cries during class hours as well.

I know this is just a phase and he will get into the habit and routine of going to school. But we are looking for  creative ways of encouraging him to like his teachers and classmates.

Lair Assault (The End is Near)

The guys decided to play a Dungeons and Dragons 4th Ed Lair Assault blog campaign. It's supposed to be a killer adventure, where you have to stop the main villain in twenty or less rounds from completing his ritual.

It's nice to have a play-by-post game again, even though I have a bad feeling I'll be the first to die. The three other players are more experienced in the rules and the system. But that won't stop me from having fun. At least I managed to kill off one of the warlocks and eat a fire fish (that grants my character temporary fire immunity).

I'm playing a dwarf shaman who is supposed to be healing and curing my companions as they hack the enemies to pieces. But it turns out they don't need much healing to start with, they've chosen stuff to aid their recovery (such as ongoing regeneration). I guess I'll be using my own healing powers on myself.

Anyway, it's already the 8th or 9th round and the dungeon is getting as hot as hell. I'm down to my last twenty-plus health and the fire demons are getting more aggressive. I'm hoping to make it to the main room before I die. At least I could say that I made it to the last climatic event before getting roasted.

Retirement Dreams

I stumbled upon a financial article that featured an American couple who retired in their early 40's. I found the piece inspiring because they managed to plan early, and decided to save money for their retirement. Things like this take a lot of discipline and commitment. While their circumstances are different from mine, I believe I can use some of their suggestions to plan my own retirement.

I admit I have dreams of retiring early. But my situation is different from the Charltons. I have two kids and I live in a third world Asian country. The money I save would not be enough to sustain the standard of living that I want for my family and my children. I mean, I could choose to cut the costs of my kid's education and send them to a public school (which is way cheaper than private schools with a Chinese program). But this is not something I want for them.

There were three things in the article which reaffirmed my decision to focus on my own retirement plans.

1. Cutting Costs
One thing great about living with my parents is the fact that we get to split the monthly bills. Rent is free. We also have more people at home to watch over the kids. I admit I still get the occasional urge to splurge on things, but I think I can control this habit if I become more conscious of my budget and spending.

2. Agreeing on priorities
Planning for the future requires input from everyone involved. It's been a while since I talked to Jen about my financial goals and my idea of "retiring early". I think we both have different ideas on what "retirement" means. My idea of retiring means taking it easy but not totally getting out of work. Her concept of retirement is leaning more towards the "not working and living off your investment" kind of lifestyle. We do need to discuss about what we want, compromise on what we want for ourselves (plus the kids), and work towards that goal.

3. Living below your means
I believe this is something that a person needs to cultivate over time. You won't see the immediate results of being thrifty. There are times when I feel like I am depriving myself of the good things in life. But living a simple life has a lot of benefits, like having less clutter and stuff to control you.