Preparing to Become a Caregiver

Are you prepared to be a caregiver? Several years ago, my grandmother moved in with us. She has since passed away and I will always remember her with fond memories, however there were times when I wondered if I had taken on too much. I know now that at the time I was not properly prepared to care for her and my family at the same time. At least not without pulling my hair out! It took months for me to catch on and to figure out what I should have done differently in the beginning. Her move into our … Continue reading →

Preparedness: When Mom Is Sick

Personally I find that being prepared in case of an emergency is very important in my household. What kind of emergency? The day I woke up with a terrible stomach virus! Ugh! Not a good day. To make matters worse, I was unable to perform my daily morning routine and that was considered an emergency in my family. At the time, I didn’t care a thing about what needed to be done or how it would be accomplished. However, my husband… well, that was a different story. He was a bit lost. Ever since, I have made it a point … Continue reading →

Plan Next Year’s Garden Now

The fall is a great time to begin to plan and prepare next year’s vegetable garden. You can take important steps to promote a healthy and successful garden for next year. Here are five tips for preparing for next year’s garden today. 1) Fall is the best time of year to prepare the soil for next year’s garden. To begin you should pull up and remove any plants from your garden. You may choose to till them under instead. If you do this, make sure that the plants are disease free. You can also add compost to the soil, and … Continue reading →

Five Ways to Prepare for Cold and Flu Season

As the cool weather sets in, that means that cold and flu season are beginning to set in as well. Many people believe this happens because people are inside more, and the germs are more easily spread from person to person. You should be prepared to handle the onset of a cold or the flu in your family actually gets it. Here are five things you can do. 1) You should go ahead and purchase tissues for your family to use. You may want to buy a box to place in your car. You may also want to put a … Continue reading →

Five Planning Tips to Simplify the Holiday Season

The holiday season can be a stressful one. In addition to planning for Thanksgiving and Christmas, I have one child with a birthday in December and another soon after in January. I have learned that if I do not begin early, I will not get everything done. The importance of planning increases the closer you get to the holidays. It is so easy to forget something, if you do not have a plan. If you are hosting any holiday events then you really do need to begin to plan now. Here are five easy steps to make your holiday easier. … Continue reading →

Teaching Your Children How to Plan

One important skill that you can teach your children is the ability to plan ahead to achieve goals or dreams. It is important that children begin to learn the elements of planning ahead for the future and the benefits of self-discipline. Just as you plan for future events, such as vacations, or buying a new home or a car you can also teach your children to do the same thing. Here are five events or goals that you can encourage your children to plan for. 1) Once your child is old enough you can have her plan her own birthday … Continue reading →

The Importance of a Will

If you do not already have a will in place, you should begin to prepare one now. If you are relatively young, and do not plan to leave over a million dollars in assets you should be able to complete a simple will and you may not need a lawyer to help you. You can simply buy a book or a kit to complete the will. Once you grow older and acquire more assets you will want to change your will to meet your needs and then you should probably contact a lawyer to help you with a will. When … Continue reading →

Why Plan?

Are you a planner? Do you sit down and plan out your day every day or is it more of a quick glance at the week ahead? Do you plan for Christmas several months in advance and start buying gifts early or do you buy everything the week before Christmas? Some people are born planners and feel lost without a list in their hands telling them what to do next. Other people can’t seem to handle putting every little thing down on paper, and feel restricted when they do so. The extent to which you plan is a very personal … Continue reading →

Planning Trusts and Guardianships

If you have young children or a child with special needs it is important to plan for their future. You should plan so that they will be cared for, even if something happens to you. You will want to set up special trust funds and guardians to watch over them. You should speak to an attorney whom you trust to carry out these plans. Here are important items to consider. 1) If you have young children you should decide on how long you want to be able to support them. For many parents this would cover expenses up until they … Continue reading →

Five Steps to Financial Preparedness

An important part of preparedness is being financially prepared to handle the situations that may arise in life. There are several steps you can take to be prepared to handle emergency and life situations. If you aren’t prepared than these situations can lead to bankruptcy or a complete change of lifestyle. 1) You should have health insurance coverage. You should always have health insurance. It is not worth the risk to not have it. If you have an appendectomy with no complications, the average cost is $15,000. If you have an accident while hiking, skiing or boating, it could cost … Continue reading →