Ask Laane

Right contactadres

2009-07-10T12:18:00.001+02:00

Helen, can you give me the rigth contactadres so I an answer your question immediately.

Ryan-paid-air

2009-07-04T02:25:00.000+02:00

We were supposed to travel with this organisation!

How to make a link

2009-07-01T02:19:00.002+02:00

Lani asked how it's possible to put a link in a comment section.

Because blogger would take away the fun and display only the link here I've uploaded a graphic with the code.

The quality of the graphic was OK, but blogger blurred it.
But I'm sure you'll grasp the meaning.

Have fun commenting!

which laundry machine

2009-06-05T15:10:00.002+02:00

Astrid asked which laundry machine is best for a large family.

Well, that depends.
When you dry your clothes in a dryer, it's best to have equal heavy loads.
That way your wet laundry won't stay in the machine too long, causing smell.

When you dry on the line I prefer a washing machine with as large a load as possible.
I can't afford an industrial machine, because it requires large wardrobes, so I opt for a 7 kilo one.

I don't care for many buttons.
Just the temperatures, full and half load and the possibility of centrifuge only.

It needs to give a good balance between clean clothes and saving energy.

For me a front loader is best, because I can put the basket under it and just pull the laundry out.

The filter needs to be at a level that I can put a small bowl underneath it to let the water out.
A filter that's too low is a problem, because it means using towels or stuff to catch the water.

beautiful

2009-06-01T15:04:00.000+02:00

For you

2009-05-14T04:27:00.002+02:00

A friend called to tell me he will be here this summer.
He asked for some musicians and then my memories just started to flow.

thousand hands

2009-05-11T04:29:00.000+02:00

Thousand hands...creating beauty from single movements.

Moving to DC Ranch? Fulfill your dream with the Holm Group

2009-04-24T15:42:00.003+02:00

Some people are eagerly awaiting for the recession to end, so everything will be back to how it was.
Others realize the huge impact of financial and environmental awareness on our way of living and want to change their lives to fulfill their dreams.

Moving out of the city is a large step, but living in an environment which amazes you every day with rest, beauty and smiling people is well worth it.
Why live in a polluted area when you can take part in preserving nature by living in comfort?

Take for instance the area at the base of the McDowell Mountains, at the open desert space.
It's beautiful!
The sunsets are pure gifts of nature, the panoramas are breathtaking.
You'll be able to walk at any time, wherever you want.
Nature is at your doorstep.
Your luxurious doorstep.

At the wide roads, between soft moving trees in the wind, you'll find DC Ranch, the private golf and residential community of Scottsdale.
You'll find a home fitting your needs, whether you want a villa, family home, condominium or a luxury apartment.

All homes are grouped in 4 neighbourhoods, each featured with a park and plenty of sport facilities, enough events to keep your children and yourself happy.

Since 2005 the Holm Group assists buyers and sellers.
To get a good impression of the DC Ranch Real Estate and the other estates, visit their site.

You can find a variety of housing, from traditional to architecturally unique buildings.
Just chose one of the search functions and fill in your requirements and go through the photos and descriptions.
Don't forget to look at all the recources. They're listed at a special page.
Here you'll find information about schools too.

Don't worry you won't be able to shop, have a candle light dinner or experience other pass times.
It's all waiting for you.

Just contact the Holm Group and you'll be guided through the whole process of choosing a new home.
I can assure you a relaxed experience, because they know their sellers very well.

fool for fundraising

2009-04-24T11:23:00.001+02:00

I'm bombarded by mails of people who want me to publicize their fund raising campaigns for autism.

Like last year I'm fundraising for autism too.

But unlike last year people don't have much money to spend.

In fact: I haven't received one single euro or dollar.

That means that overpowering people with even more fundraisers would be foolish.

Considering the fact that I find myself blogging an advertising post for 2 dollars, spending a lot of time to write a decent post for a firm that could buy me my dream, an autism house, within a second without blinking an eye just once, I have declared myself a fool for fundraising this month.

I hope this last week will change things a lot.

Well, there's 2 dollars.....

Introducing nature to your child

2009-04-21T15:27:00.002+02:00

I was asked when I started to make my children aware of nature.

Isn't it strange that we're now so conscious about introducing nature into the lives of our children?

In the past we just lives and nature was part of us.

When my children were born, the first 23 years ago, I wasn't conscious at all about the subject.
I just took my baby walking a few days a week.
Which was quite an enterprise... taking the pram downstairs three steep stairs.. and after that the baby. (Well, that was the reason we moved.)

When we moved, we had a garden and I put the pram in the garden for the afternoon sleep of the baby.
When he woke up, he heard the birds.
(And me chasing a cat! LOL! I didn't want cats to jump on the pram.)

I also often walked into the garden holding my child and pointing out the flowers, smelling the roses.
There mini-walks learned them that some insects needed to stay away and that could be done by slowly walking away. Not by trying to slap them.

When my children got a bit older and were able to walk themselves I took them to the park and we tried to find the plants we had in our garden and to see which animals were new. Like the ducks.
I taught them the difference between swans and geese, and warned them for their power.
Etc etc.

I just followed my heart and explained everything my dad explained to me, like never stepping at the part between the land and the ice on the lake, because the rim is the weakest.

It was fun!!

Over and over again.

Yes! ShopWiki in The Netherlands too!

2009-04-18T16:49:00.003+02:00

2 items that made this week into a memorable one:
Susan Boyle (Need I say more?), and....

drums.....

tada!!!!!!...

ShopWiki is available for The Netherlands too!

I'm so glad, because ShopWiki really makes a difference.

I know, because ShopWiki already exists for Germany and France, and ofcourse in the UK and the USA: http://www.shopwiki.com.

Wiki means "fast", and in this case it means that you can get a fast comparison of products and prizes.

Because shops are not charged to be added, no advertising is involved.
For us, Dutch, it's the way it should be: clean, no ornaments and elbow work.
Just a plain representation of the facts.

Right now over 7000 online shops are participating and I'm sure that number will increase.
I don't know the amount of products are in the system now, but I'm sure it's huge.
Being the cheapest means not only that the consumer gains, but also that ShopWiki sends a lot of customers and potential customers to a shop.

Yesterday I had a dynamic discussion with the man in the house. I want to have one of those little hand-vaccuumcleaners and he'd seen one for 82 euros.
I had seen one for 49 euros, but I knew they were cheaper.... somewhere....
He just didn't believe me because I couldn't prove it.

Just a moment ago I showed him this page, and he was amazed how easy it was to find products and prizes.
Just chose the name of the brand, chose the product and your at a page where a lot of information is provided.

When it's too much: adjust the prize range at the top right.
Or when you just want to know the information about a certain color, chose the color.

ShopWiki gives you the best prizes and the shops where you can go, links included.
New products are added as soon as possible, with the date of addition mentioned.

Additional information, like descriptions and warnings are given too.

Whenever a similar product is available you'll find a link at the top of the page.
In this case I went to this page, where I found items with more gadgets attached.

Another way of shopping is using the list.
We wanted to know more about cleaning the computer and found good tips. The links in the text and a list of related products at the bottom provided us with the products we need, ofcourse with the welknown ShopWiki prize comparison.

We've bookmarked http://www.ShopWiki.nl and take my advice: you should bookmark this site too.

When to plant bulbs

2009-04-15T17:37:00.003+02:00

This week I was asked when to plant bulbs.

Well, it depends.

Some bulbs need to be planted six weeks before it starts freezing, so that's before winter.
When you're not sure, then follow another rule.
The ground should be to 55°F, that's 12°Celcius or cooler.
When the soil is too warm or moist the bulbs will start to rot.

Some bulbs can be planted in spring.
It will say so on the package.

When you're not sure, buy bulbs in containers and put them outside at the time their collegues bloom.
Never ever put them outside just like that.

First water them and keep them in a cool area with temperatures above freezing for a few days.
When the narcisses and tulips are flowering you can put them in the ground.
Remove the container and plant the bulbs in the ground. Not too deep, but at the same level from the top as they were in the container.

recycling chemical waste

2009-04-12T17:49:00.001+02:00

When I blogged the other day how we deal with waste, someone was amazed we even have a seperate system for getting rid of our chemical waste.

We're talking about small chemical waste.

batteries
medicines
paint and other DIY products like thinner
lampbulbs
oil
mercury thermometers
injection needles
products used when developing photos

These are products that shouldn't be burned with other household waste, because they contain lead, mercury and other materials that will contaminate the restproducts which are recycled, they'll cause airpollution or waterpollution.

All these products are collected at special cars which are found at special times at shoppingcentres. (Chemocars, we call them.)
And we can bring these products to the waste organisation where they have a chemocar available too.

Some products, like batteries, are even collected in many shops that sell them.

As much as possible of the elements is recycled.

earthquakes in The Netherlands?

2009-03-29T18:03:00.002+02:00

I was asked whether we experience earthquakes in The Netherlands.

The answer is: YES.

But we're not in a ring of fire or an area where the bottom is moving because of the shift of continents.
Our earthquakes are relatively small.

In the south of our country, Limburg, coals where mined for generations.
Once in a while part of an old coalmine collapses and it causes some shaking.
There are some breaks in the earthcrust which cause some movement too.

I've witnessed the worst with a magnitude of 5,8.
It was during a night that the earth moved.
It was like a huge truck was driving into our back yard.

Then everything started shaking and my meds fell from the shelves.

First I woke up my husband and he told I was nuts.

Then I switched on the radio.
The studio is situated far more north, and the quake even reached them.
They called: "What's that? What's that?"
Then my husband finally believed me.

In the north of the country quakes are induced because gas is taken out of the ground.
The quakes are minor too.

ShopWiki, not only for your best buys, but also to silence the guys

2009-03-21T15:05:00.003+01:00

My autistic boy is all over the place, because his MP3 gave up.

Sometimes I get stressed because of his persistent requests for new items, but this time I told him I would look for one online. I have no plans at all to go shopping this afternoon.

The kids here wonder why mom is able to "organize" things in no time, especially when it comes to products they use and we have to pay for.

While they are visiting online stores they find with the usual search engines, I just visit my own secret place, and come up with the best prizes and the most advanced items.

Unlike other mothers they know, I suddenly speak their iPod language, so I've already used USB connection, Gig, and I even know that the red iPod shuffle contributes to helping AID's victims in Africa.

I'll share my secret with you as long as you don't tell the kids.
I use ShopWiki.com.

It's as easy to use as Google and at least as fast and certainly more targetted to what is needed when one searches for a special product.

Just enter the name of the product, click, and you'll get a list of information, which includes:

photos for fast browsing,
name and short description
5 stars rating system (with reviews one click away)
best prize
number of stores
and a pop-up with the list of stores and prizes, clickable, so you'll land on the right store in internet.

To get additional informations you can find at the right side a list of Wiki Buying Guides.
The one I used today was highly informative about the iPod and all related products including the MyVu Media Viewer, which might be something to keep my son busy for a longer time.

I love ShopWiki, because I feel like I'm taken serious as a customer.
Over an over I'm guided to the best buy and I'm even warned when I'm prepared to make big mistakes, something I don't often experience in normal shops.
Take for instance the compatibility between iPods and speakers.
Not all iPod speakers dock at the same speakers. ShopWiki made me aware of this and guided me to the right choice.

At the bottom of the products you can find "related searches".
I was ready with my choice, but clicked some of the links to know more about what young people talk about.
Which came in handy.

I was in the garden, talking with one of my other sons about the iPod when the neigbour asked how he could use his iPod in the car. While my son took a breath to answer, I already said: "Just use iTrip".
The silence that followed was a consequence of their amazement.

They both looked at me and I smiled back.
"Use ShopWiki guys", I said and went inside.

To write this post for you.

Call for help

2009-03-11T23:26:00.002+01:00

No need to say more.
Just watch the video and do what needs to be done.

Informing schools about autism

2009-03-01T16:17:00.002+01:00

I've been asked how I have dealt with informing schools about the autism of my son.

Well, at basic school it was clear something was the matter with him.

The teachers followed their intuition and were able to deal with him, but the new principal had serious problems with him,, because he wanted all children to look him into the eyes and he had the habit to put his hands on the children's shoulders to emphasize what he was saying.

I told the teachers when I requested a diagnostic procedure at a cetre with exprience in autism, and told the teachers that maybe it would be better the principal was informed by the teachers about the influence of his actions on the wellbeing and behaviour of my son.

So they called a meeting, but he was not willing to listen at all.

My next step was making an appointment with him and informing him about the diagnosis.
With it I had a leaflet with information about autism and about how people best react to children with autism.

He didn't know I'd made that leaflet myself.

At that time there was almost no written information available.

The guy didn't care much about the info, until a fill-in teacher was confronted with a situation she could handle, because she had worked at a facility with some autistic children.
He was walking towards my son, when she took a step faster and arrived earlier at the scene.

She handled the situation in a perfect way, so the principal was very amazed.

He never acknowledged his own problems with my son, but when he was able to back out of a situation he would.

The next school told me they were informed, but it turned out they were able to make a mess of the whole schoolexperience of my son, because one man ruined everything that was gained by teachers and caretakers.

He considered to own the truth and told everyone autism is the result of a bad upbringing.

Where the teachers were eager to get more information, he declined everything.

Well, in the end my son dropped out of school.

easy tomatosoup

2009-02-21T16:48:00.002+01:00

Want to make a impressive soup in an easy way?

Take some tomatoes, slice them and put them in the blender.
Add pepper and salt.

Take a pan add the tomatomash,
add water.

Bring to a boil.

In the meantime take two teaspoons and mashed meat.
Grasp little pieces with the spoons and throw them in the soup.

Add 2 bags of instant tomato soup,
a few slices of union,
a bit of vegetables you have left over from the day before, or fresh from today.

Slice bread to little squares.

Put no butter in a baking pan, but rinse the inside with the open part of the union.
Throw in the bread and stir well.
Until they get brown.

Take a few ready cooked potatoes.
Slice them in squares.

Take the soupbowl.

Put a few potatopieces at the bottom.

Soup on it.
The baked bread either on top, at the side, or in a seperate little bowl.

Eat well!

planting bulbs

2009-02-18T16:29:00.002+01:00

Are you ready to start spring yourself?

Buy the bulbs of flowers you like, a huge pot (or more), good compost.

Plants the bulbs that flower last the first, add compost and plant the ones that bloom a bit earlier and plant the ones that signal spring the first on top.

You'll have a long time of fun of a pot like that.

When you put the pot inside the house, the bulbs will flower sooner.

fire alarms in the house are important

2009-02-12T16:34:00.002+01:00

I can never stress enough that smoke alarms in the house are a must.

When my son moved out he got a package with a smoke alarms, and he was very happy with them.

Even though you don't smoke, an alarm in a bedroom might save your house from burning down (when there is someone to respond.)

Why?

Read this experience.

Inform your neighbour about the alarms and give them a key to the house.

It's a few years ago that I heard the alarm of my neighbour.
Because I had the key, I went to see whether it was an empty battery causing the problem.
It wasn't.

It was a haircurler she forgot to unplug.
The towel it rested against caught fire.
I ran downstairs to switch the electricity off, then filled a bucket of water.

A demonstration of the firebrigade a while ago taught me how to kill a fire, and I managed to do so.

Pffff

Hayfever

2009-01-30T16:42:00.001+01:00

Those who suffer from hayfever know how tiring it is.

A stoffed nose, wooly brains and some even have terrible itching eyes, like I have.

There are not much working meds against the eye-troubles, so it's important to find something that works for you.

I'm blogging about this outside the season, because anti-allergy meds take time to work properly.

It's better to prevent that to fight the symptoms after they've occurred, because the preventive meds don't cause as much foggyness in the brain.

Start now taking your meds when you're one of those who are the first with hayfever.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-26T10:49:00.001+01:00

Well, hello!

Please comment on my main blog when you want to wish me happy holidays.

You can find it here.

Thanks!

commenting on blogs

2008-12-08T10:38:00.002+01:00

Commenting on blogs is an interesting experience.

I understand people want to protect themselves against automatic comments, but why choose a system that prevents almost all comments?
Some of those fake word systems display unreadable words, which means I have to type new words in about 3 times before I either have my comment submitte3d for approval or I'm kicked out of the system.

Others use combinations that not only need my full attention, but are also written so little I nearly have to press my nose through the screen to see them.

Oh and how about those blogs where they have a pop-up jump in your face when you go over a link with your cursor.
To go to the comment section one needs to click a link... can't, because that pop-up covers it completely.

Another annoying things crossed my path today.
Someone not bothering about the ease to comment.

You have to highlight the whole page to find where to type what... and the window to comment displays the same colour as the letters.
Blind commenting gets a whole new meaning that way.

With all the slow loading pages, my urge to comment is about zero.
And it disappears completely when I'm trying to type and the page is still loading, so the window jumps from under my cursor, hup hup, to other places on my screen.

Well, that is...when I've ever been able to dinf where to comment.

Some sections are to be found above a post, or under it, or in some graphics or even between all sorts of links I doubt anyone ever uses.

Well, I'm sure you've come to some understanding that I feel bugged by my own urge to comment sometimes.

Super Contest at JoeTech.com for sponsors and bloggers

2008-11-16T15:09:00.003+01:00

With such a banner, need I say more?

JoeTech.com is preparing a huge contest with lots of prizes.
Cash, entrecard credits, designs...
At the moment the prizes are totalling up to $3,500!!!

Oh no...it's just updated...
It's now: $4,258!!!

Why not become a sponsor too and add to this huge amount?
You'll enable normal bloggers to have something extra for the special days that are coming soon.

I'm not going to reload the page, otherwise I keep rewriting this post. LOL!
You can find out yourself by clicking the badge and going to his site or going directly to http://www.joetech.com/suggests/nmsc.

Early publishers have a chance to win, so why don't you have a go at it too?

Good luck all!

Do you need some encouragement?

2008-11-08T03:10:00.003+01:00

When I was a student I agreed completely with the idea that everyone should give a percentage of their income to charity.
I hoped that by the time I had children it would be normal to pay a percentage for housing, a percentage for education, etc, and a percentage for charity.

But people are too greedy.

Are you one of them?

Or are you altruistic when you're pushed a little?

Well, you can help yourself from this day on.
You can shop with AidMaker.

It's a small piece of software you can download from www.eengoedezaak.nl.
That's a site of aGoodCause.com.

You might have heard about this global organisation.
It's a partnership of 700 important NGO's, like Save the Children, the Red Cross, Oxfam, etc etc. They all work towards a better world for nature and all living beings.

With AidMaker you can shop at 5000 online shops and generate funds for these charities.
When you buy something at these shops, you'll pay the normal prize, but the retailer donates part of the money to the cause you have chosen. 75% of the total purchase will be donated.
There's no need to do something yourself.

After installing AidMaker and choosing the cause you want, all the rest is done automatically.
Ofcourse you can change the cause whenever you want to, but there's no need.

The system is just launched in 8 countries: America, Great Britain, Denmark, Italy, Germany, France and The Netherlands.
You can choose your own language at the site, where you can find more information.

I hope you too want to participate this way in generating funds for charities.