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Unvaccinated Children May be Suspended from School

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There is something new that parents may want to consider as they prepare their child for the upcoming school year. Some schools are suspending children who are unvaccinated. The purpose is to stop the spread of preventable childhood diseases. Parents who live in states that allow exemptions for vaccines can still make that choice. However, they should be aware that the exemption will not override the school’s right to protect students from the spread of diseases that can be prevented by vaccinations. Vaccines prevent diseases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) point out that some diseases, like polio … Continue reading →

Things You Should Do For Yourself Right Now

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Are you someone who makes an effort to help, comfort, and pamper your loved ones? It has been said that many people take much better care of their friends and family than they do of themselves. Typically, there are more women than men that have this tendency, but it does include both genders. Now is the time to start taking good care of yourself, too! Here are some things you can start with right this minute. LifeBuzz posted an article that contained 30 things that everyone should start doing for themselves. You can view it as a guide to better … Continue reading →

Pregnant: Am I Doing It Right?

During my pregnancy I’ve felt a couple times like I wasn’t “doing it right.”  Not that I wasn’t taking care of my body or baby properly, but that I didn’t care enough, and that meant I wasn’t going to be very good at this whole mothering thing.  I didn’t feel that way in response to serious events, or in the face of friends with children, or anything like that. It started when I was asked “what’s your countdown?”  I had no idea what the person was talking about.  Apparently it meant how many days left until my due date.  I … Continue reading →

20 Ways to Avoid Independence Day Injuries

Nothing extinguishes Fourth of July fun faster than an injury.  That goes double if your young child is the victim of an Independence Day accident. To avoid the physical pain and suffering associated with a holiday mishap and the added agony of paying sky-high medical bills, consider the following safety tips:   Never allow children to ignite fireworks. Adults should be on hand at all times when children are near fireworks. Always follow the instructions printed on the fireworks’ box. Keep fire extinguishers, water hoses or a bucket of water on hand if you are using any type of pyrotechnic, … Continue reading →

Save Those Pennies! They Add Up

About a year and a half ago, my husband and I decided that we wanted to eliminate the car payment, and so we employed all sorts of methods of scrimping and saving to do this, including reducing our grocery bill, eating out less frequently, and finding fun and free things to do. One big step that got us closer to our goal of paying off the car loan was turning in all of our change. We had a few baby wipe tubs full of change, which we took, as a family, to the bank. We loaded the change into the … Continue reading →

Homeless Man Does the Right Thing

I write a lot about celebrities who give back, but sometimes it is nice to read about a real person doing the right thing. Billy Ray Harris is a homeless man who was panhandling on the streets of Kansas City.  Last week, Sarah Darling decided to do the right thing and help out her fellow man, in this case, Harris.  She unzipped her wallet and dumped her change in this cup. But, Darling dumped more than her change.  She had forgotten that she had taken off her diamond engagement ring earlier in the day and put it in her wallet. … Continue reading →

Five Steps that Will Help You Go on A Spending Break

If you have an unexpected bill, want to take care of a new purchase with cash, build up an emergency fund or just get closer to paying off your overall debt, you might want to consider going on a spending break. How much extra money you accumulate will depend on what you normally spend in any given time period plus how long you decide to stay on your spending break. Saving $500 this month is not unthinkable for most families. Before you get started with a spending break, you’ll need to have a plan to ensure the best success and … Continue reading →

Why Credit Card Spending Doesn’t Feel Real

It is true. Spending cash is painful to us, while using a credit card doesn’t quite feel real. Oh sure, logically we know that we are spending the money on that new television, iPad or boots, but there is a well-documented disconnect in our brains that makes it much easier to spend when we do it with a credit card. Think I might be wrong? The average household credit card debt through the end of 2012 was $15,422. The average cash debt? That is $0, of course. With cash, you don’t want spend what you don’t have. So why does … Continue reading →

Inexpensive Indoor Fun

The weather outside is frightful. And by frightful I mean 15 degrees below zero without the windchill.  Schools in our area closed yesterday because it was simply too dangerous to have kids wait outside for the bus. Old Man Winter’s brutal cold slap is being felt across the nation.  The bone-chilling temperatures have most families cuddling up together as they wait for the spring thaw to arrive.  Of course, all that togetherness can be a bit too much for kids and adults to handle, especially if the weather pattern persists for multiple days. If you are looking to keep your blood pressure … Continue reading →

Are You Shopping at the Right Grocery Store? Four Steps to Save 20 Percent or More

Choosing the right grocery store can save you 20 percent or more on groceries before using coupons. If you were buying a big ticket item, such as a television or a new washer and dryer, you would do some research and shop around, right? Since food tends to be the biggest general family expense after housing, it just makes sense to do your research before you step foot in your grocery store. Just spending $225 a week on your groceries, adds up to almost $12,000 a year!Imagine shaving close to $2,400 off of that total food bill, doing nothing other … Continue reading →