Feng Shui for Health, Wealth and Happiness

I am a big fan of Feng Shui for years. I arrange my furniture and enhance special areas in my house. I even did not buy some houses, just because they had features which were not good according to feng shui books.

Some people think that feng shui is some voodoo thing. I believe that if it might change your life for better, why not try?



I read lots and lots of books about feng shui. Out of all I found most useful two books: "The Practical Encyclopedia of Feng Shui" by Gill Hale and "The Illustrated encyclopedia of Feng Shui" by Lilian Too.

As in any part of my life I made my simple ways of following feng shui.

In general I try to declutter and clean as much as possible. So it creates positive flow of energy.

I calculated Kua numbers for each member of my family and make sure our beds and desks located in auspicious positions. You can calculate your Kua number here.

I try to avoid "poison arrows". You can easily figure them out. Just make sure there are no sharpy edges pointing to you while you are asleep or toward the entrance to your house. There are different ways to "deactivate" these arrows - with plants, mirrors, windchimes, screens or walls.

I use compass method. I place symbols of good fortune in order to energize areas and help to increase good fortune for all of us.

I created my own list of different symbols and arrange my stuff like decorations, pictures, etc around the house according to feng shui.

Compass direction	Element		Enhancers
South	Fire	Reputation	light, fireplace, burn candles, wood, red color, phoenix, horse
North	Water		water, black and blue color, aquarium with fish, earth elements, tortoise, painting of water
East	Big Wood	place of sons	big pieces of wood furniture, trees, green dragon, green color, plants, water elements
West	Metal		gold, silver, pot of gold, coins, metal things, cranes
South East	Small Wood	place of daughters	water elements, plants, green color
South West	Big Earth	Mother/Marriage and Romance corner	large decorative urns and water vessels, pots, crystals (amethyst, quartz), ceramic teapots and vases, bright light, picture of mountain or mare, candles, symbols of love, mandarin ducks, horse, fire, stones, all from the ground, globes, matching pairs, happy couples pictures, metal, wood, peonies, peaches, flowers, hearts. NO water
North East	Small Earth	Education and Scholarships	decorative urns, crystals, ceramic teapots, vase, water, earth, wood, mountains, books
North West	Big Metal	Most important corner, place of family breadwinner - Father	earth or metal elements, gold, silver, coins, mountain, globe, metal wind chime, chinese coins, 3 leg toad, horse, grand chair. NO Fire, NO to much light, NO red, NO water.

This is a very short on feng shui but if you are interested purchase or borrow a book from a library and start your own journey.

Thanks for reading.

CAG - ConAgra Food - added to my watch list

Today I was scanning through "Most active Market Movers" and noticed CAG - ConAgra Food.

What I like about this stock:

1. The company carries well known and loved by many brands. Some examples are:
Frozen food : Healthy Choice, Marie Callender's, Kids Cuisine, Bertolli, PF Chung, Banquet.
Can food: Rotel, Chef Boyardee, Ranch Style Beans, Hunts
Snacks: Orville, Act II, Swiss Miss, Reddi Wip, Peter Pen, Slim Jim, David, Crunch and Munch.

2. The Bank of America downgraded this stock to "underperform", but TheStreet ratings team thinks the stock is "Buy" now and I agree with them. Read article here. I think this company will find a way to improve their earning,

3. It is trading close to their lowest of 52 weeks average - $29.42
52 Weeks range $28.09 - $37.28.

4. Dividends yield is 3.10%. The company pays dividends since 1984 and slowly increase them.

After reviewing their profile, financial statements and listening to one of the Earning conference calls I added this stock to my watch list and plan to acquire some shares soon.

What do you think about this stock?

Please share your opinion.

My Weekly Stock Watch List (6/15)

This week I finally was able to buy some stocks.

I bought more of ARCP@11.98 and also PG@79.83.

I wrote about ARCP here. I am kind of concerned that they are selling 76 shopping centers. Read article here. On the other side I believe that they might have a good plan for acquiring new properties.

Here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/31	Dividend Yield
ARI	Apollo Commercial Real Estate	$16.68	9.50%
SBSI	Southside Bank	$27.33	3.30%
PG	Procter & Gamble	$79.64	3.20%
ARCP	American Realty Capital Properties, Inc.	$11.96	8.00%
TGT	Target	$57.23	3.00%
ROST	Ross Stores	$67.12	1.20%

* If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

If I have a stock on my list, it means I like something about this stock. If I buy one of these stocks, it does not mean I plan to keep them forever. I might sell them if their price would go up a lot and I feel it's time to sell.

I love Sales on my regular shopping sprays and I use this strategy for my stock shopping... :)

At this moment on my most wanted list is ARI because I really like dividend yield. This stock looks pretty safe to me but I am waiting to see if the price will go down a little.

I am happy that I finally was able to buy PG.

Read my previous post about ARI and PG last week here. ROST and SBSI here.

I probably will not be able to buy any stocks following week because I spent my play money on a new dishwasher, grill and also had to prepay homeowner and home warranty insurance. But I might sell some of my non dividends stocks and buy dividends stocks. I will keep you updated.

My complete Watch List of Dividends Stocks here. I update this watch list at least once a month.

Please share your thoughts and watch lists.

Thanks for stopping by!

This week in my little Garden

The weather is getting hotter and hotter but plants keep flowering.

Here are some new blooms for this week.

Crape Myrtle pleases us with non stop pink flowers.

Beautiful and fragrant rose is an eye catcher

Two different types of marigolds, which we grew from seeds.

and daisies

I might start using daisies for small cut flowers bouquets.

The Meyer Lemon is blooming again. Maybe this time it will produce more fruit.

In our vegetable garden we picked more squash, but I had to give it to my friend since my kids said "no more squash"... :)

Basil and parsley (not ont he pic) are ready to add flavor to our Italian recipes.

and this girl just trying to stay cool on a hot day...

Have a great week.

My Weekly Stock Watch List (6/8)

I was very busy and did not have a chance to buy any stocks this week. I was planning to buy on Friday but my internet stopped working and I decided that it was a sign not to buy this week.

Here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/31	Dividend Yield
ARI	Apollo Commercial Real Estate	$16.97	9.60%
SBSI	Southside Bank	$26.92	3.30%
PG	Procter & Gamble	$80.03	3.20%
ARCP	American Realty Capital Properties, Inc.	$12.38	8.00%
TGT	Target	$57.68	3.00%
ROST	Ross Stores	$69.08	1.20%

This week list consists mostly same stocks.

This Week in my Little Garden

Here is what's going on in our little garden this week... :)

We had lots of rain, so all the plants are happy and growing very fast.

Easy to grow and good for your budget Plants

Gardening is one of my passions. It's my distressing therapy and exercise. I love to watch my plants grow, to pick up fresh herbs, vegetables or fruits directly from a plant.

It make our life more beautiful. Growing your own vegetables, fruit and herbs helps to save money and eat healthier.

I prefer plants, which are easy to grow and maintain but beautiful or produce crops.



We live in Texas, so we are in zone 8-9. My recommendations probably will be good for Texas, Florida and other warm states.

Decorative plants

 1. My biggest favorite - Knock out roses. They grow in any soil and they survive "cold" winter, if we have a freeze. They bloom over and over again and you don't even need to deadhead them.

My Weekly Stock Watch List (5/31)

This week I did not purchase any stocks. I was planning to purchase more Target stocks on Friday but price went up and I decided to wait until next week.

Here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/31	Dividend Yeild
ARI	Apollo Commercial Real Estate	$16.75	9.60%
SBSI	Southside Bank	$25.82	3.30%
PG	Procter & Gamble	$80.79	3.20%
PFE	Pfizer	$29.63	3.50%
TGT	Target	$56.76	3.00%
ESV	Ensco	$52.66	6.00%
ROST	Ross Stores	$68.45	1.20%

* If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

If I have a stock on my list, it means I like something about this stock. If I buy one of these stocks, it does not mean I plan to keep them forever. I might sell them if their price would go up a lot and I feel it's time to sell.

Dividend Reinvesting or Not?

I was thinking for a while to reinvest dividends automatically or not.

I used to reinvest dividends automatically. Then I decided not to reinvest it automatically since I plan to sell stocks at some point and so I didn't want to have short term sale of investment.

Now I got another idea.

I put on automatic reinvestment of dividends all my Retirement accounts (IRA, Roth and SEP) because I mostly invest into these accounts at the moment I prepare my taxes. So if I would not reinvest automatically small amounts of cash would accumulate through the year while if I reinvest them I will get more stocks without paying commission and it slowly would increase my dividend pays.

But for my stocks in regular brokerage account I set my settings on to "not to reinvest dividends". 
If you asked me why? First of all I do at least 2-4 trades per month, so I can always use my dividends to acquire new stocks. As I always say I like to buy stocks when they are on sale. If I just let my settings to reinvest automatically my dividends pay into the same stock I would save on the trade cost and get more stocks, but sometimes it can be at high price. On the other hand I could add this amount to my trade for stocks, which are on sale and it would be a better deal.


I was reading an article in Kiplinger on the same subject. Columnist Kathy Kristof was trying to decide to keep reinvesting dividends into the stock or start using these money for investing into new stocks. Her reasoning was that if she would not reinvest her dividends into the same stock, then this stock would look like a "huge underperformer". She asked readers opinion on this subject.

So today while reading through studying material for my CPA test I got an interesting way to account for cost basis for Dividend stocks with dilemma like this. You supposed to use this type of accounting for Equity stocks, but I thought it might be a way for your own internal use.

Every time I receive dividends I will subtract it from my original cost of investment. For example, I paid for XYZ stock $1,300. So this is supposed to be my cost basis. Next month I received dividends in amount of $14. So now my new cost basis is going to be $1,286 and so on. So at some moment I will see that my stock totally paid off for itself.

So what do you think? Please share your thoughts on dividends reinvestments.

My Stock Watch List and Stock Purchases (5/24)

This week I purchased shares of

TGT@55.79 and WFM@37.68

Here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/16	Dividend Yield
PFE	Pfizer	$29.49	3.50%
TGT	Target	$55.69	3.00%
ESV	Ensco	$51.35	6.00%
CNP	Centerpoint energy	$23.87	3.90%
WFM	Whole Food Market	$37.78	1.20%
ROST	Ross Stores	$68.85	1.20%
SBSI	Southside Bank	25.79	3.20%

* If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

If I have a stock on my list, it means I like something about this stock. If I buy one of these stocks, it does not mean I plan to keep them forever. I might sell them if their price would go up a lot and I feel it's time to sell.



I love Sales on my regular shopping sprays and I use this strategy for my stock shopping... :)

I added ROST to my list. I used to have it before but since I decided to invest mostly into Dividends stocks I removed this stock from my list.  But after reading analysis of Project3million here, I decided to put it back into my watch list.

I added SBSI - Southside Bancshares is a holding company for Southside Bank located in Texas.
I discovered this stock while reading http://compoundingincome.blogspot.com.

I also updated List of all my Dividends Stocks here. I added some stocks to my watch list and I plan to add more next week.

Please share your thoughts and watch lists.

Thanks for stopping by!

Healthy Lifestyle = More Money Part II

Healthy Lifestyle = More Money Part II

You can read Part I, which was about healthy food choices.

Today let's talk about some good habits and other random stuff which can make you happy.

My University professor used to tell us that it takes a month to create a habit. It means, you have to stick to something for a month and then it becomes a habit.

Healthy Lifestyle = More Money. Part I

Healthy Lifestyle = More Money. Part I.

I strongly believe that choosing a healthy lifestyle will not only make you feel healthy and happier but also will save you some money. And who knows? It might even help you to earn more money.

Let's start with healthy food choices.

Shopping for Groceries and Sales
Walk along the walls of the grocery store and mostly skip the middle section.
When you are at the grocery store before you even start shopping scan store flier for sales. If you see really good sale on chicken or fish and you have some extra money - stock up and freeze. Cook your meals according to weekly sales. Find fast and easy recipes online. Improvise - skip or substitute some ingredients.

My stock Watching List and Stock purchases

This week I purchased shares of

PFE@$29.10, CNP@$23.59 and Ford@$15.57.

Here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

* If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

If I have a stock on my list, it means I like something about this stock. If I buy one of these stocks, it does not mean I plan to keep them forever. I might sell them if their price would go up a lot and I feel it's time to sell.

I love Sales on my regular shopping sprays and I use this strategy for my stock shopping... :)

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/16	Dividend Yeild
F	Ford	$15.76	3.20%
PFE	Pfizer	$29.03	3.50%
KMI	Kinder Morgan (natural gas)	$33.45	5.20%
TGT	Target	$58.64	2.80%
ESV	Ensco	$50.04	5.90%
CNP	Centerpoint energy	$23.88	3.90%
WFM	Whole Food Market	$37.91	1.20%
VZ	Verizon	$49.07	4.40%
DRI	Darden Restaurant group	$48.49	4.40%

I added Verizon and Darden Restaurant group to watch.



I need to add more communication stocks to my list and Verizon looks like a good match. I believe Verizon and AT&T are two main wireless companies. Even if I am a customer of AT&T I believe Verizon has a higher quality of their wireless service. When I used to live in a house with a bad reception my AT&T phone would not have service in some part of my house but my friends with Verizon never had any problems.

Read Motley Fool article or Wallstcheatsheet.com for latest reviews.

Darden Restaurant group just got rid of Red Lobster but from the list of other restaurants they own, I know very well Olive Garden and Longhorn Steakhouse. Not sure if I want to buy their stocks right now but I want to watch it for now.

Whole Food Market - not a dividend stock but as I wrote last week here I might still buy some shares.
I believe this company has a potential because younger generation are more concerned about healthy eating and willing to spend money at places like this one.


Please share your thoughts and watch lists.

Thanks for stopping by! :)

My Stock Watch List for upcoming week

I was busy last week and still did not make my decision on which stock I will purchase this week.

So here is my watch list for upcoming week*.

* If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

If I have a stock on my list, it means I like something about this stock. If I buy one of these stocks, it does not mean I plan to keep them forever. I might sell them if their price would go up a lot and I feel it's time to sell.

I love Sales on my regular shopping sprays and I use this strategy for my stock shopping... :)

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/9	Dividend Yield
F	Ford	$15.77	3.20%
PFE	Pfizer	$29.03	3.50%
KMI	Kinder Morgan (natural gas)	$32.15	5.20%
TGT	Target	$59.13	2.80%
ESV	Ensco	$50.66	5.90%
CNP	Centerpoint energy	$23.95	3.90%
WFM	Whole Food Market	$39.32	1.20%

As you might notice some stocks are still on my list from previous week.

Monday I added Target and Pfizer. See post here

I added ESV after A frugal familys journey suggested it and I did my own research. Here is another analysis for this stock.

Centerpoint energy price went down and I like to have variety of companies in my portfolio. It's a stable company, which has it's own niche. This is why this stock is on the list right now.

Whole Food Market does not look like a high yield dividend stock but this is one of these stocks which I like that they are doing. Unfortunately we don't have this store close by but I went to one in Boulder, CO and I really loved it.

At this moment I am trying to decide between PFE and KMI. I already have stocks of KMI but not PFE. So I probably will pick PFE. Variety is better, right? :)

Also I might buy some of Whole Food Market Stocks as well.

I guess next week will show.

Please share your stocks watch list.

How to earn money while following your heart... my own experience...

Do not be afraid of new things...

Last week I got a phone call from my old recruiter. I didn't hear from him for years because he switched to a different company.I thought he just wanted to chat with me and keep me in his database but it turned out he had a project, which he wanted me to start almost immediately.

The company was located in my tolerated traffic zone and the timeline of the project was in my available time frame. I warned my client that I need some flexibility and since I get paid hourly, of course they agreed. My recruiter negotiated my rates with this new client and all that I had to do was show up and start working.

Back in 2008 I left my perfect job because my commute was too long and I wanted to stay with my kids. My plan was to stay home for a while and after cutting here and there I calculated I could afford it. I planed to go back to work eventually. Well, my plan never worked this way. :) I always wanted to try new things.



I started with taxes. I wanted to learn more about tax preparation, so I went to H&R Block and learned how to be a tax professional. They basically give you a job almost automatically after you complete their course. You do not need to have a degree, just pass your test and then apply for a temporary job. The best part about this job was that I could work when I wanted and it was a seasonal job. I picked a tax office that was a 5 minute drive from my house and worked through my first tax season. The pay was not much but it was interesting for me and it still was additional income. I stayed with H&R block through 4 tax seasons.
I enjoyed it. They have great advanced training programs, which you can participate in year after year. You have an ability to grow to upper level every year after completing training and passing tests.

So if you want an easy additional income - become a Tax professional. It is not as hard as you think. But you will earn some extra money when you have free time. Remember tax offices are open until 10pm and weekends through tax season? Plus you will be able to do your taxes for free and you can ask any questions from the more experienced colleagues.

I am not affiliated with HR Block and I don't work there anymore. There are other Tax preparation companies but I only share my experience. It was a nice experience though. I just want to share some ways you can earn extra income. As I said above, you do not need to have any previous knowledge about accounting or taxes, they will train you. But start researching early because training starts as early as September.

Craigslist was my other way to find part time jobs. I usually scan through ads and see if there is something interesting for me. Thanks to craiglist I found at least 3 part time jobs and several short term projects. I still perform work for some of my clients I found through craiglist.

Linkedin. If you don't have your profile on Linkedin, create one. Put your experience and education there. Connect with people you know. Join groups you are interested in. Participate in discussions. Recruiters are very active on Linkedin. They will contact you if they see that you match that you are looking for. You might land a new better job just because you are on Linkedin.

Recruiting agencies. Join several recruiting agencies online and keep your resume updated. You never know when and for what job or project you might receive a phone call. Even if you think you do not need a new job, do it. It is a recruiter's job to match a company with a perfect candidate. They want you in their database. I always tell my recruiters that I only do short term projects but ask them to keep me in their database. I know one girl who actually had two resumes for two totally different jobs.

When I left my perfectly secure full time job in a great company people thought I was crazy. Yes, if I stayed there my net worth would be much higher by now but... it would never replace all these years when I was able to be in my kids lives as much as they needed me. No money could buy this experience. Yes, I put being a mom first and I am still this way. My kids are teenagers now and I can accept more projects but kids still prefer when I am around.

Surprisingly even while working just part time through all of these years I was able to grow professionally and gain so much experience in different industries that I feel strong and secure about my future.

Do not be afraid of changes and new things! Keep searching, trying and switching jobs until you find something that matches you perfectly. Just perform the best you can at every job you have. The right people will show up in your life and value you. Through your search you will meet wonderful people as well as downers and haters. Just keep going your own way, don't let anyone discourage you. Life is too short, so find your way to live it happy.

My Monday Stock Watch List

My Monday Stock Watch List

Today Pfizer reported revenues below expectation and Target CEO left.

So I am adding these stocks to my watch list. 

Stock	Name, description	price as 5/5	Dividend Yield
F	Ford	$15.74	3.10%
PFE	Pfizer	$29.96	3.40%
KMI	Kinder Morgan (natural gas)	$32.74	5.00%
IGT	International Game (casino eq)	$12.56	3.50%
TGT	Target	$59.87	2.80%

ARCP

American Realty

$12.98

7.60%

I am trying to decide if it is time to sell my FTR shares.

Please share your stock watch list.

My dividend stocks list this week

My dividend stocks watch list this week

If I move stock to this list, it means there was a price drop or current price is somewhere in the middle.

I do not buy stocks at their highest prices. I might miss some good stocks but I prefer to sit and wait.

I love Sales on my regular shopping sprays and I use this strategy for my stock shopping... :)

Exam Quotes: 15 Motivations To Pass Your Exam -

How I earned $1,576.56 in one day without leaving my house

How I earned $1,576.56 in one day without leaving my house

 So today was my insurance review day.

My Homeowner insurance is due in a month, so I decided to recheck if anyone can give me a better rate.