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Thursday, September 26, 2019

Throwback Thursday: Johnny Appleseed Day

Sept 26th is Johnny Appleseed Day.  When my kids were younger we used to have so much fun learning about Johnny Appleseed.  The keywords Johnny Appleseed were one of my most popular search terms for this blog.  Today, for Throwback Thursday, I am sharing a page of older posts on the topic of Johnny Appleseed.  Enjoy!

Johnny Appleseed

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Twitter Share Tuesday

This is a new feature for this blog and will repeat every Tuesday.  The rules are simple and it is a great way to increase exposure for your blog.  Please abide by the rules, and do not spam me in the comments. 

1.  Post a blog post, not your whole blog, one post you would like others to share.  Share it in the comments.  If you share a blog post you must share the other blog posts in the comments.

2.  Along with your link to your blog post, share the link to your Twitter account where you will be sharing other blog posts to.

3.  Tweet all the blog posts shared in the comments.  Come back tomorrow to be sure you got them all.

4.  This post is active until midnight tonight Eastern Standard Time.

5.  If you miss this week, come back next Tuesday to try again.

6.  Have fun!


Monday, September 23, 2019

The First Amendment, High School, Promote Your Blog or Business

Today, we watched a video on Youtube about Civics 101.  It was about 40 minutes, and I shared it in a previous post.  It was concise and to the point which I like especially for High School.  After watching it, and some discussion, I had Caitlin write out the 10 Amendments that make up the Bill of Rights.  Next Monday we will focus on the First Amendment.  All of my posts may contain affiliate links.

The First Amendment affords us a lot of rights.  Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom to petition.  But what do all of these mean, and how do they play into society?  That is what we will be focusing on next week.  There is a short video below, and then a book you might also be interested in.  This blog is not about right or left, secular or religious.  It is about information, facts and yes even opinions.  Which brings me to the image I shared.  That is actually a painting I did.  I am a Christian, so painting Santa Claus saying Happy Holidays can be a very hot topic of conversation, and free speech, plus the freedom of religion.  Caitlin will have to pick one of the rights covered in the First Amendment and make an argument for it, or against it, and why.   I am going into depth with her much more than I did with DJ.  Because, she doesn't tend to speak up, give an opinion, or use her voice.  I am hoping these exercises will be very good for her.  My other child is very good at arguing, lol.

I have focused so much this year on starting an online Health Coaching business, plus getting ready to do some Kidney Awareness classes, that this blog has gotten neglected.  Very neglected.  I am hoping to change that by increasing readership and engagement.  I will be starting a whole host of fun promoting, and link sharing posts for other bloggers, or small business owners. Other posts will be on fun topics for you to add your ideas to and get them shared.   There will be no rules as to what blogging platform, or where you sell.  The only rule is that you have to share other items or posts.  The first one will start tomorrow with a Twitter share.  If you are interested to be sure and follow this blog and check back in tomorrow.  I haven't decided yet for the other days, and it probably won't be every day.  I hope to see you tomorrow for the Twitter blog post share.





Thursday, September 19, 2019

Guest Post from Mighty Moms

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having an amazing Thursday.  Emily from Mighty Moms reached out to me to do a guest blog post on finances for teens and young adults.  I read the article and she offers some great advice.  Be sure and check out her website, too. 





A Head Start – Financial Tips for Teens and Young Adults
From first part-time jobs to college graduations, your teens and twenties offer plenty of moments of financial transition. These milestones aren’t just a sign you’re growing into an adult; they’re also a great opportunity to begin learning how to manage your money like one. Here are a few tips for the young or soon-to-be adult looking to give themselves a financial head start.
Track Your Spending and Start a Budget
It’s enormously difficult to make changes before you know what, exactly, you’re changing. For a few weeks, just keep track of where and how you spend your money. You can do this in a budget app, spreadsheet, or even just an old-school notebook.
Whichever method you use, make sure to note the date, total, and location of everything you spend. You can also make a few notes to give yourself an idea of how you might categorize that spending once you’ve reached that point. For example, next to the line tracking filling up your gas tank, you might note, “Car,” and next to a ticket to a movie, you might note, “Entertainment.”

Once you have a sense of how you spend your money, you can start trying to build a budget. Set aside a specific amount each month into your spending categories, and commit to keeping your spending within those limits. Track every purchase, and check in throughout the month to see how you’re doing. It will take practice, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t nail it right away.
Consider Future Expenses
Generally speaking, the younger you are, the fewer expenses you have. If you still live with your parents, your room and board are likely covered, leaving you with plenty of income. Even if you’re out of the house, you may still be years away from childcare costs, medical expenses, mortgage payments, and other future expenses.
Here are a few down-the-road items it’s wise to start saving for early:
  • Retirement – The sooner you start saving for retirement, the better a position you’ll be in once that stage rolls around. Putting 5 percent of each paycheck into an IRA or company retirement fund will set you up for financial stability in your golden years.

  • House Payments If you think you may want to own property, start saving for a down payment earlier, rather than later. When it comes time to buy, you’ll want to have enough saved up for a 20 percent down payment. Less than that, and you’ll see costly mortgage insurance added onto your regular mortgage payment.

  • Car Costs – Just like with a house, the more money you set aside for car costs, the more power you’ll have when it comes to purchasing a car. However, keep in mind that car payments aren’t the only cost associated with driving. You’ll also need to save for repairs, gas, and insurance. Auto insurance can be one of your higher expenses, particularly depending on your age and gender. Where you live and the type of car you drive can also impact how much your insurance costs, so it's best to maintain a good driving record and to even take defensive driving courses if you want to work toward lower payments.
Make Useful Goals
Once you have a sense of your budget and what kind of expenses you can expect in the future, you can start making goals. However, it’s important to make goals that are clear and detailed. A goal like “I want to save for a house” is fine, but “I want to put away at least $200 a month so that in 10 years, I’ll have at least $24,000 to go toward my down payment” is better.
Whatever goals you decide to focus on, create a clear plan for how to achieve them and stick to it. Do this, and you’ll be ready to take on the future.

Photo Credit: Pexels

Monday, September 16, 2019

Democratic Primary Debate

We are still dealing with an injured knee.  I went and got her some crutches which has made her more mobile.  Today, for History class we watched the Democratic Primary Debate from the other night.  Now she is following all candidates, including President Trump on Facebook and must look at her feed at least once a week to see what each one is saying on social media.  She is a fan of Pete Buttiegeg since Tulsi Gabbard did not make it to the debate stage.  I made the short slideshow below to help her remember the process.  It is short and sweet and there is so much more to learn about the process.  You can watch it too!  Let me know what you think.  I am very new to creating slideshows, but slowly getting better, and faster.


Monday, September 9, 2019

Week 2 of School and an Injured Knee

Well Caitlin didn't even make it through 1 week of school without an issue.  Last Wednesday she twisted her knee at church and is still not able to walk on it.  Thankfully I had a Quad Cane here that I picked up at a garage sale, just because.  She is not so greatly hobbling around on that.  The swelling has gone down significantly to almost normal, and she is wearing a knee and calf brace.  This has been a very humbling experience for her.  Learning how it feels to be helpless and need others for things you would normally do yourself.  I am doing PT with her, and hopefully, by next week she will be walking a little bit, partial weight-bearing at least.  She is still doing school, however, just no morning walks and no real chores.  Which brings me to my other life lesson she has learned, exercise is very important to ensure your body maintains strength.  She does not like exercise and complains terribly.  Maybe this will show her how important it is.

Today was our first day of grade 10 History.  We are studying Civics and Government, and the election process.  This falls in perfectly with the 2020 elections which is why I did it this way.  Today, we watched the top 4 candidates at their Climate Change town halls from last week.  I explained to Caitlin how the people bringing in the most donated money are the top candidates.  We watched Buttiegeg, Warren, Sanders, and Biden.  She has to follow all of the 10 candidates on Facebook, that made it to the end of September debates.  We do a lot of discussing and will learn more about the process as we go along.  Since we are doing one class a day we may have to skim some of the topics that come up in the coverage of the primaries.  The flashcards below will help prepare to take the Civics exam.

Tomorrow she will work on her ASL, sign language course.









Monday, September 2, 2019

Tomorrow Is Our First Day of School

We will be starting our first day of grade 10 tomorrow.  We will be trying our new daily schedule, and she will be starting Drama on Wednesday.  So, we have a full week, and I am hoping that Hurricane Dorian continues to track off the coast of Florida.  I hope it stays off the coast, period.  The poor Bahamas have just been hammered by this awful storm.

We will be starting with ASL on VHSG.  This is a free course, and at your own pace.  Right now that is all I can say about it.  The first week is preliminary stuff.  I registered her for FLVS today, so she can take Driver's Ed in January.

While Caitlin does 10th grade stuff, I will be continuing to get my Health Coaching business going, plus taking a Reiki class, and finishing up Integrative Therapies classes.  I am hoping to have at least one client by the end of the year.  Most of this year I have focused on building my following and writing good content blog posts on my Health Buddy Melissa blog.  I finished my first Guided Imagery voice recording for Better Sleep.  I hope to get more done soon.

What are you working on this week?





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