Main Floor Washroom - After

This is how our newly renovated washroom looks like after the renovation.

Lito's House Project List - Item 6

Number 6 on the list - Bathroom renovation - completed. 

When we moved in our new house, we already are aware that there are areas in the house that will be changed/upgraded or renovated. We just did not realize that some will come sooner than expected.

After a year, we noticed that the washroom tiles are becoming loose and some are about to fall. The two shower faucets are also problematic and is very hard to close. It does not matter how hard you turn it, there is always a drip. Since we do not have the budget for the renovation yet, I used my handy man hat and re-grouted the tiles and replaced the faucets rubber washers. The repair was a success and it kept the tiles in tact and the drip has stopper.

After a while, the dripping was back and tiles from the other side is becoming loose too. I realized, that we really have to save up for the renovation. We contacted RONA and Canadian tire to give us a quote. I thought we might get a financing scheme with them. Canadian Tire quoted us for renovation that only included the wet area (shower area) and RONA quoted for the entire washroom renovation. However, both quotes were too high. Based on our computation, for a 12 month financing, this will not fit or budget. We included our financial need for the bathroom renovation in our daily night prayers.

We decided to buy the things needed for the washroom little by little and then get a contractor to build it. We started buying the wall and floor tiles last year from Costco and Rona. Then we got the vanity and mirror/cabinet from a store in Dundas. The last was the Wall shower from Costco again.

We contacted two contractors that were referred by our friends and got a quote for the labor. We agreed with the terms and after a week, we have a newly renovated washroom all within our budget.

God is really good and answers prayers!

Photos here -> (Before and After)

Main Floor Washroom - Before

This is how our main floor washroom looked like when we moved in.

Lito's House Project List - Item 13

Number 13 on the list - Replace washer and dryer - completed. 

I do not consider this as something to be urgent. The pair that we have is still working well. I made it part of my list because I thought that we would be able to save some space in the laundry area if we have a washer and a dryer that is both front loading so that we can stack them together.

There are a lot of new models out there that my wife and I think are to expensive just because it has to much bells and whistles that we do not need. So we have decided not to prioritize these in our list.

However, we saw a flier from Lowes one Friday that offers a lay away plan for 12 months and a laundry pair that we believe has just enough features that we need and will use. To top it up, it was on sale. We chose the Samsung pair (White finish):

• Washing machine Model  WF42H5000AW
• Dryer Model DV42H500EW/AC

We called Lowes and ordered the washer and dryer. With the stacking kit included and the delivery fee, it was around $1,500. Not bad, I thought.

As a bonus, Lowes even hauled our old pair.

Washroom Pot Lights Installation and Fan Replacement

I was thinking of adding more lighting in our washroom and decided to install 3 pot lights.

Before

After

Windows Update Error - "Windows Update cannot currently check for updates,..." - FIXED

I upgraded my Lenovo laptop (running Windows Vista 32 bit) hard drive from 120 GB to 500GB. I used Acronis to clone the hard drive and was successful in doing so. Everything worked well except for the Windows update. It has been a year that I have not updated. If I manually update Windows, the following error is what I get:

I decided to search the internet for possible solutions. I have tried a lot of them too which unfortunately did not solve the issue that I have. Some of the things I read and tried are the following:

1 - Ran Microsoft FixIt from the Microsoft Website - Did not work for me
2 - Force Start Bits and Wuauserv services - Did not work for me
3 - Set Windows Update settings to "Never Update" and then back to "Update Automatically" - Did not work for me
4 - Stop Update Service, Locate and delete "C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\" folder and its contents and Start Update Service

NOTE: Although it did not work in my particular case, the above might work for others.

I stopped trying and tried to research again after a month and I stumbled upon a thread at the Microsoft TechNet site. There was a contributor named "Nick-Tech". He mentioned that the issue is sometimes caused by a device driver for the Intel Rapid Storage. The trick here is for you to be able to determine what is installed in your laptop/desktop and update the driver manually from the Intel site. Please be aware that if you use Windows' device manager to check if for driver updates, it might report that you already have the correct/updated driver for your device.

I searched the Intel site (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/) for "Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver". Selected the driver that matched my set-up.

I downloaded and ran the file -> "STOR_allOS_9.6.0.1014_PV.exe". Note: You may have to look at the readme file to confirm if you have the correct one.

After the installation, the Windows update is now working perfectly.

20 Volt Worx GT Grass Trimmer/Edger (WG175)

We received a free Visa gift card so my wife and I went to Lowes to buy a Worx graass trimmer/edger that I have seen on television for more than 2 years now. I have been wanting to get one since I saw the advertisement. It really looks very east to use and very convenient since there are no power cords that you might trip on.

Having used it 3 times already, I have to say I am very happy with the purchase. It converts from a trimmer to an edger and it is light weight. The battery also charges very quickly and lasts a long time

Friday Photo Flashback - August 22, 2014

Alexus mimicking the statues at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington DC

Friday Photo Flashback - August 15, 2014

This was taken last 2007 Bohol beach club in the Philippines. It was our family's first out of town trip.

Irmee's House Project List - Item 5

Number 5 on her list - Track Light - Completed

I can not count using my fingers and toes how many times my wife urged me to purchase and install a track light in our small hallway. She said that the current light is too bright that it affects the visibility of the shows on television when it is on. I finally gave in and purchased and installed one last Sunday.

I was hoping that I will at least have some time before the next request comes and I was mistaken. The next request came a day after this project was finished. I will just not mention what it was.

Project details:

Cost: CAD 74.94 plus tax IKEA

- CAD 29.99 - "Husinge" Track light

- CAD 8.99 x 5 - "Ledare" LED GU10 Bulbs

Duration: 1/2 Day

Installation fee: Priceless

Purchase date: August 17, 2014

Nike Shox TL IV Metallic

Got this kicks from the Nike outlet store at Buffalo NY. Paid less than USD 50 including taxes. Now being worn after it was purchased more than five years ago.

Voltes V Memorabilia T-Shirt

When I was young, Voltes V is my favourite robot anime. It is a Japanese anime television series that was aired on Philippine television in the early 1980's. I got this t-shirt 20 years after.

Home Insurance

During the time we were looking for a house, I canvassed for the cheapest home insurance that we can get. That time TD insurance was the cheapest. It was several hundred dollars less than what my preferred insurer RBC. I prefer to get it from RBC because it is where I have all my financial accounts. I was happy with the premium I paid for the first year with TD insurance.

I found out that the happiness was shortlived. Like everything else, the premium increases every year. On this third year of my renewal, I again canvassed rates from other companies I did not call before. I got a quote that was $150 lower than what I was going to pay TD so I changed my insurance provider to CAA.

There is a caveat:My Home and auto will not be insured by TD insurance, which results in loosing my multi-product discount. In effect my auto insurance will go up in which based on my calculation would total more than what I would save by transferring my home insurance. However, come December when my auto insurance expires, I can move it to CAA as well. Hopefully, when that happens, I will get a multi-product discount and realize the savings I was anticipating from this change.

Protect Yourself from Harmful Sun Rays

It is summer once again. Students are on a long break and a lot of them are engaged in summer activities that require staying under the sun. Although physical activities are good for everyone, we must be very careful not to expose our skins too much to the Suns harmful ray.

Following are some steps from Canada's Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care newsroom (Release - July 12, 2014 9:00 a.m.) to protect yourself from harmful sun exposure:

• Using sunscreen - SPF 30 or higher -- and reapplying at least every two hours or after swimming or sweating a lot, even on cloudy days.
• Limiting time spent in the sun, especially between 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. when the sun is strongest.
• Wearing the right gear, including a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and light clothing to cover the skin.
• Staying in the shade or indoors, especially during heat alerts; find air-conditioned spaces, including malls, libraries and specially designated community facilities.
• Drinking a lot of water, even before you feel thirsty.

Friday Photo Flashback - July 11, 2014

This is the first selfie that I had after moving to Toronto. This was taken around May 2008 on the conference room of Armadale Property Management. I was waiting for my interviewer to come. This is also the first job interview I have. I was eventually offered the job. However, it did not last. I have to leave after working for a month. The image is kind of blurry. It was taken using a cellphone with a low resolution camera.

Kite Flying Time...

Kyle got a kite from school on their last day which was Friday. The weather was nice the following day and there seemed to be winds strong enough to fly a kite. The kids and I decided to go to the field near our house and try to fly the kite.

Friday Photo Flashback - July 4, 2014

Aloysius when he was less than a month old.

Alexus` Basketball Moves...

My youngest is showing some signs that he might play basketball. He seems to have learned some moves that I learned only when I was a teenager (what a very very late bloomer). I hope he learns a lot more and be a good player someday.

Celebrating Canada Day with Molson Canadian 67 Beer...

Went to the beer store to get some beer. Got 12 bottles of Molson Canadian 67 light beer as well as pack of Molson's Summer Trio. The summer trio pack includes each of the three Molson Canadian 67 flavours including the flagship beer along with their Sublime and new Tangerine Twist. All of the flavours are very refreshing. It does not contain too much alcohol which is exactly what my wife and I like.

Off to Cool Down by the Pool

I am very happy to be living near a Toronto park with a swimming pool. My kids like to go to Eringate park outdoor pool to relax and cool down most afternoons. The facility is free and caters to people of all ages. They have different programs such as learn to swim, leisure, family and length swimming opportunities.

The photo below was taken before my 3 little boys left for the pool.