How do you send greeting cards to your family and friends?

I remember the time when I used to go to the supermarket and choose the greeting card according to the relation ship I had with who was going to receive it. Afterwards I would write some nice words and deliver the greeting card envelope to the post office.

Nowadays technology makes it all easier for me. No matter who I want to send a greeting card to, I always use the internet to find great online greeting cards. Online there are many, many different types and styles of greeting cards. Online we can find greeting cars for every occasion and for different type of people, from family to people we just met once.

Online greeting cards are excellent for busy people, they just need internet access and the email address of the receiver. With internet and online greeting cards there is no excuse to not send greeting cards.

Summer Holidays

My son's migraines and headaches are gone, his eye infection is gone and only a mild pain on his right foot is bothering him. Doctors say his headaches are nothing to worry about and there is no need for further exams. He is headache free since last week of school so I think it was some kind of tension headaches he was having.

Summer vacations are here and he will have a lot of activities in the daycare he is staying. In fact both my kids are there. Tomorrow they are going to the movies and they have already activities scheduled for the rest of the week.

The daycare keeps the kids very active and entertained so they really don't need Kettlebell training to keep fit. An healthy diet is also an important issue the daycare keeps in mind.

I completely trust the daycare they are staying and I know they are in good hands so summer, here they go.

Time for holidays...with no money

Right know the kids are outside having a great in the swimming pool with their cousin. It's very hot and the only place that seems to be cold really is the pool.

Our car is fixed and we had to pay a lot of money for the repair, also there are some extra money we have to pay in the condo we belong too so, unfortunately, we will have another summer without abroad holidays. Of course not all hotel prices are like Las Vegas hotels prices, camping bungalows are much cheaper (we spend 5 days in one last year) but...this year no money for a bungalow either.

I have two weeks holidays in July and I'm trying to spend as much time as I can outdoors, with husband and kids. We have the beach 20 minutes aways so we are going to take advantage of that.

I'm not sad for not having holidays abroad this years, the really best news I had were that my son's headaches are not harmful and that there is nothing to worry about them. This is the best news I could have.

Bank interests are going down

Bank interests finally went down allowing us to pay less for our mortgage. Of course the banks always find other ways to make some extra money with other products they offer and the surplus is always present.

For us it is great because we have some extra money and we don't have to use credit card for essential shopping like food or cleaning products. However we are always short in money, extra expenses are all over the place: doctors, medication, pair of shoes for the kids, etc.. The money is never enough.

The Effects of Media on Your Kids

When you think about the effects of media on your kids, are you thinking about how you can control your kids and teach them what is right and what is wrong in the media? Do you think that, whatever negative content in the media can be remedied by you, as a parent, telling them what is right and what is wrong? Are you thinking that your child will be immune to the negative effects of the media because you taught them to know better? If you are, you might want to consider a few facts.

• Children from ages 0 to 6 spend an approximate of 25 hours a week absorbing media content and children from 8 to 18 spend 44.5 hours a week absorbing the media.

• They only spend 17 hours a week with their parents and school only takes 30 hours a week.

• Advertising is a multibillion dollar industry which has a sizable amount dedicated to advertising to children and the youth, encouraging them to a more consumer driven life.

• Violent content in the media is very common and are very prevalent even in children's programs.

• Sexual content in the media is very common. While the media sensationalizes sexuality, it often does not put enough emphasis on the other side of the coin such as sexually transmitted disease, unwanted pregnancies and, notably, AIDS.

These statistics are easily available to anyone who is looking for them. A search in the internet with the keywords "children" and "media impact" will soon get you to a site that underlines these very heavy statistics.

The media has a very debilitating effect on your kids. For one thing, a child is bombarded with advertisements for fast foods, toys and other forms of entertainment right from the TV, to the radio to the internet and even up to the magazines they read. The media is consciously cultivating a society of consumers. They advertise to children in order to increase their sales. As these children become adults, they habit will have firmly set in and, while the businesses boom from all those sails, the individual is trapped in a life of consumerism where he or she is unable to determine the real value of living but is constantly chasing the next big buy of his or her life.

Violence is another media influence which has spread its dangerous influence to children as young as 7 to 11 years old. Statistics of violence from children are steadily increasing. Most of these violent acts are, unsurprisingly, imitations of violent acts that children are exposed to in the media. Studies also suggest that children who are exposed to a lot of media covered violence are more prone to act violently as they become young adults and adults.

Sexual content has also become one of the staples of the media in luring in young minds. This has resulted in a generation of low sexual control and high sexual immaturity. The lack of knowledge of this generation regarding the negative side of sexuality is also alarming. This ignorance has resulted in a rise in unwanted teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted disease and the risk for AIDS.

Needless to say, the media has an unlimited effect on your children. With the prevalence of the media over all aspects of daily living, its effects are thus inescapable. The question then is not how to stop the effects of the media but how to counter it. As a parent, this should be of utmost importance to you.

Tischenko Irina is one of the top rated Copywriter and Search Engine Optimization expert on most of outsourcing portals. She is ready to write for you on any topics under this holy sun. Please visit http://www.bluebirdwritingservices.com for all your outsourcing needs.

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My birthday day

On May 27th it was my 40th birthday. It was a regular day, in fact I was really upset and sad all day because my son had an headache in the morning and I had to take him to ER. After that I went to the office and spend the day working. At night we had a quite normal dinner at home, only the four of us, and the difference was a small birthday cake and the happy birthday singing.

I sent no party invitations because in fact there was no party, but I also had no surprises guests. I was really tired on that day so it was ok no one showed up but...some important people to me forgot my birthday. I'll survive...

A little update

It has been a while since I last wrote on this blog, however I have been updating my other blogs. For those who follow my Laura's Daily Life already know that May was a rough month for me regarding illnesses, car problems and other stuff.

For me the best appetite suppressant there is is stressing about serious stuff, that's why I am under weight. First an infection with my son's tooth, than his headaches and migraines that made us go to the hospital several days in a raw, one car that can not be fixed, my tooth problem, etc etc.. However what is worrying me the most is my son's headaches. Doctor's told me to relax, to let a few time goes by, to make a daily report of the headaches, probably it is nothing to worry about but...I'm really worried.

Watching my kids having health issues is not easy, I prefer to have the health problems myself. Despair was a feeling I went through when I saw my son with strong migraines. Not easy...

My son has migraines

These last four weeks were terrible and this one is not starting the best way.

During 3 weeks my son and I had a terribly cold, cough and running nose. We had a hard time going through headaches and congested nose but after 3 weeks the cold was gone although mild headaches keep assaulting us. The week after the end of the cold (last week) my son had a tooth infection, a lot of tooth ache and he is on antibiotic. Last Thursday his headaches got stronger and Friday morning I had to take him to ER. He was advised to rest and if the headaches come back he had to go to Hospital Pediatrician ER.

Last night the headaches got stronger, this morning he was worse so hospital here we go. He went through a neurological exam that turned out to be ok so he is having migraines with unknown cause as well as a lot of other kids in ER. The doctors don't know if it is a virus or if my son is an isolated case.

He has medication to take for the migraines and I have to make a record of every headache he has. As long as he eats well (no weight loss pills allowed) , sings, jumps and plays along with the headaches there isn't much to worry about because it means he is fine neurologically.

I can't say I'm not worried, I am worried. When something happens to my kids I'm always worried.

Do you have kids that experienced migraines at early age?

Choosing a school for my son

In June I have to decide which school I want my son to attend. He is going to 5th grade and he's leaving the space he has attended for 7 years (3 pre-school and 4 basic school).

We have 3 schools in our city but if I want to choose one without bad behavior situations then I won't be choosing any. :) therefore I'll be choosing the closest school to our house. It is a school that has 5th to 9th grade and it's next to the school where he will be attending 10th to 12th grade so the transition won't be difficult.

Every school has its issues and we have to learn to deal with them so let's get prepared for the change and let's not get worried about getting self defense products.

Best Brainstorming Techniques

Image by jisc_infonet via Flickr

Have you been in a "brainstorming" session where each person just defended their own ideas? Worse is when people don't suggest ideas at all, for fear they'll be attacked. That's no way to brainstorm. Brainstorming is using the power of many minds, and ideas should flow freely and trigger other ideas. How do you make that happen?

The Key To Good Brainstorming
You have to have a good leader to have good brainstorming. The leader isn't there to impose his will, though, but to stop the imposition of anyones will. His role is to stop criticisms, arguments, and even strong opinions, at least in the first part of the session.

A brainstorming session needs to be spontaneous, open and uncritical. "Bad" or "silly" ideas can lead to helpful ones, so suggestions have to be left un-judged at first. To brainstorm effectively, you can't stifle the creative process. The leaders job, then, is to make everyone feel free to suggest any ideas.

An Example Of Good Brainstorming
The scenario: your business needs to cut delivery costs. The group throws out ideas and thoughts. "Let's not deliver," someone suggests, and when another starts to criticize, you remind him of the rules. "Negotiate lower rates," somebody says, "Or just find a company with lower rates," another adds. Ideas like reducing package weight and charging customers more are suggested, and lead to other ideas.

You keep it civil, take notes, and eventually call a halt to this free-for-all part of the session. Now it's time to evaluate and develop the ideas for whatever usefulness they may have.

To keep the creativity flowing in this stage, have participants defend or develop ideas that are not their own. This brings new insight to the idea, and prevents the problem of ego-identification that causes people to get "stuck in a rut" with their own ideas.

For example, ask the man who was critical of the idea of not delivering to work with that idea. "We have to deliver," he might start with. Then he thinks for a second and says, "I suppose we could deliver to central distribution points instead of to the individual customer. The customer could drive a short distance to pick up their order. That might save us on shipping."

Someone else suggests that the customers may like the arrangement. They would be able to return the product immediately if they were dissatisfied, with no need to pack and ship it. You assign a couple people to look into it, and move on to the other ideas.

Good leadership keeps the whole process working. In the last example, you've even used a "bad" idea to come to a possible solution. That's good brainstorming.

Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower enhancement, creative problem solving, and related topics for years. You can visit his website, and subscribe to his free Mind Power Course, at: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com/mind-power.html

My boss went to Disneyland Paris...

My boss flew to Paris to visit Disneland with his girlfriend and girlfriend's daughter. Who is paying for the flight and accommodation? The company.

There is a crisis, the company should cut on the extra expenses, he even fired my co-worker in December because he said there was no money and now he goes on a five day holiday to Paris!! I know there aren't any free hotel rooms but Disneyland Paris? Staying in the best hotel there? Not fair. I just wished someday he could realize the real value of money for those who live by the paycheck.

Losing a house it's not easy

With the financial crisis that is knocking at everyone doors, many people are moving to low cost houses. Some have great difficulty to sell the houses and when the owners don't have money to pay the mortgage to the bank, than the bank keeps the house and sells them in auctions. This is what happened to a neighbor. He lost the job and with only one salary they were unable to keep such an expensive monthly payment so for now the bank is retaining the house due to several delayed payments and they had to rent moving services to take their things to the new apartment. This is really a sad situation that it's happening to a lot of families. Better days will come...for sure.

Coffee: so good, so bad

I've been drinking a lot of coffee lately. When the work volume increases in the office I tend to become stressed and coffee is my escape. But if coffee makes my headaches and stress go away it causes me pain and disturbance on my bowel. Nauseas is one of the side effects as well as diarrhea. Sometimes my bowel gets really cramp and I just wish I could do a colon cleanse to get rid of the pain. Well, the better option will be, not drinking too much coffee!

I feel I'm playing with my life, because due to my tachycardia background I shouldn't drink coffee at all. I should take care of myself, I'm not a kid anymore.

Bad weather, when does it stop?

Where is the good weather? It has been raining the whole week and we can't even take advantage of the weekend to go cycling or just for a walk. I'm using the dryer again because the weather is too bad and clothes can't dry outside. When can we think about sun, beach, walks, etc.? I have a cold for the tenth time this year and I'm fed up of this running nose. This weather makes people look sad just like the dark sky. Conversations about nuphedra or other diet pills are not heard so often because beaches and sunbaths seem so far away. I hope the weather gets better soon.

Looking for a product online?

I've been searching for a massager device that will help me get rid of my neck and shoulder pain. After looking into several stores I decided to search online.

As usual I use ShopWiki for my searches because I always find great products at great prices. Last time I used it was to search for a wireless router. Mine wasn't working properly and I really needed a new one. One of the things I really like at ShopWiki is the extensive information available for each product category, so besides searching for a product we can really look into additional information that it's useful for the device functioning. By the way I love this Netgear wireless router.

Getting to the point, right now I'm really interested in the Shiatsu Massager especially for head and shoulder massage. Usually massager chairs don't do the neck and shoulder massage so I searched for the massager's buying guide and I was offered a link of several alternative massage devices. I can then compare the products, see the price range and search for the store with the best price. It's always good to read the product reviews to see what other people is saying about the product.

Easter Holidays

We had some rain yesterday but today we have a great spring day. My kids are in Easter school break and are all day in daycare. Daycare provides a wide range of activities to keep the kids happy and occupied during the holiday break.

Last week they went to the cinema, the beach, the park and to a football park. This week they have already gone to the park, activity center, today they are going to the library and probably to the park tomorrow.

As we both have to work it’s great to know that our kids are having fun during school holiday. I’m not able to take some days off this week but next week I will stay home on Monday, I just hope the weather let us go to the beach or the park.

My SIL and BIL took three day off and they went for a mini vacation with their kids on their rv. An rv is really a good option for those wanting to travel a lot. They just have to pay for gas, the remain expenses are similar to the ones they would have if staying at home. For those that don’t have an rv home vacation are more applicable.

Tough Times ahead: insurances

June, July and September and difficult months when we talk about money and insurances. Car insurance, life insurance and home insurance are the three I will have to pay and guess what: I am going to try to get a few insurance quotes to see if I can reduce some of them and pay a lower price.

I have already made a list of the companies I will be going to, maybe ask for online quotes and compare prices and conditions.

Life is not easy this days so with a little work from my side I can earn a few bucks with the insurance policies.

Promotional Products needed

As a blogger that lives outside the US it is really difficult to get promotional products to try and review. Customs are a little complicated with products coming from the United States and almost no company sends me products. Of course I can always write a review based on photos and descriptions but that's not the same thing as I would review it if I had the chance to try the product.

I have already received some make up, cream for hands, a pair of glasses, a book and that's it. Food is something I thing I will never receive.

I'm always available to do Giveaways when the gift is sent directly to the winner. This way the product does not have to come to me first.

Cleaning up closets

Finally I had some time to do some closet organization at home. My husband's wardrobe is already organized. All the shirts that no longer fit were put aside and I will give them away to charity. The tuxedo shirt and suit from our wedding will be stored together with my wedding dress.

I'm having a certain difficulty in deciding what to do with my old clothes. Most of the are really old and need to be replaced but there is no money now to buy new clothes for me so...I guess I still have to keep some of the old clothes.

My kids closets are next.

Back pain does not go away

After fifteen physiotherapy treatments my back is worse. I've got a lot of pain on my neck and all the muscles from the neck to the shoulders. The doctor says that I need to relax...ah ah ah, that's easy to say.

I have another appointment on April 7th and I am curious about what the doctor is going to say. I probably have to practice swimming once I can't practice almost any other sport. Stretching is one option but I can only do specific exercises; ellipticals is not a bad option but I have to be careful will my posture and I doubt it will do any good to my back, so I am stuck with swimming.

I thought this pain would go away but I am not that lucky. I'm searching the net for some stretching videos with exercises I can do.