Main | Next page »
 

Entry bubble Poison Prevention

By: Joanne | March 16, 2010 | Category: Health

poison symbolIt’s one of those parenting nightmares – you find your baby sitting on the floor with an open bottle of medicine. My story went something like that, but instead of medicine, my 1 year old got her hands on a bottle of cleaning solution for our CD’s. It has no child proof cap and she found it while rummaging through the stereo cabinet. Small children are curious little explorers and it’s amazing what they can get themselves into when you turn your back for a moment.

So there she was, sitting on the floor happily holding the open bottle. I didn’t see her drink any of it, but there wasn’t much liquid left in the bottle. I just didn’t know what to do, so I called the Poison Center.

The people at the Poison Center asked me some questions about the situation, and luckily the cleaning solution was alcohol and the quantity (if she had any at all) was small enough that it didn’t pose a serious threat. They told me what to watch out for, just in case she had a bad reaction and were calm, comforting and helpful. *whew* Everything turned out OK.

Needless to say, a child safety latch was installed on the stereo cabinet – pronto! It’s hard to make your home 100% safe, but if you have small children or animals around your home, do your best to prevent poising.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [0] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: center   child   health   joanne   poison  

 

Entry bubble Census 2010 Forms

By: Joanne | March 09, 2010 | Category: Home and Family

hand holding a pen filling out a formI got mine, did you get yours? It’s March and the Census Bureau is in full gear making sure census forms are delivered to every home in the United States and Puerto Rico.

The good news is that it’s easy - when you get your form, just answer the 10 questions and mail the form back in the postage-paid envelope they provide (the form cannot be completed online). It only took me a couple of minutes to complete mine.

If you don't mail the form back, you may receive a visit from a census taker, who will ask you the questions from the form.  I don’t like random visitors to bother me at home, so I filled out the form and sent it back last week.

The U.S. Census counts every resident in the United States, and is required by the Constitution to take place every 10 years. Each question helps to determine how more than $400 billion will be allocated to communities across the country. That’s a lot of money – so make sure that your local hospitals, job training centers, schools, senior centers, emergency services, and bridges, tunnels and other-public works projects get their fair share.

Do your part and fill out the official forms, and stay alert to avoid the census scammers.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [10] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: 2010   census   joanne  

 

Entry bubble Read Across America Day

By: Joanne | March 02, 2010 | Category: Home and Family

Dr. Seuss' The Cat In The Hat with text reading "Read Across America Day, an NEA Project"What’s your favorite Dr. Seuss book?  I love The Cat in the Hat with its moss-covered three-handled family gredunza. I love to recite the “Tweetle Beetle Bottle Puddle Paddle Battle Muddle” in Fox in Socks just as fast as I can. The Lorax, The Sneeches, Green Eggs and Ham…I could go on and on.

Reading children’s books is a fun part of having kids, and today is Read Across America Day. Read Across America, sponsored by the National Education Association, is an annual reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of beloved children's author Dr. Seuss.

The research is clear: children who are read to, and who read for pleasure, are more successful in school than children who do not. Reading is a wonderful way to spend fun time with any child, and reading gives a child the gift of lifetime learning. So get in touch with your favorite children's books of the past and discover some new treasures with a child. Read to a kid today.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [4] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: book   child   education   joanne   kid   literature   read   seuss  

 

Entry bubble Are You Missing Your W-2 Form?

By: Joanne | February 23, 2010 | Category: Money

income taxIt’s tax season once again, and time to gather all the forms and tax records you’ll need to file your tax return. One of the most important documents you’ll need is your W-2 form. We always hear from a lot of people who didn’t get their W-2’s and don’t know what to do. So if you haven’t received your W-2 yet, read on.

Your employer is required to give you copies of your W-2 form by January 31. If that didn’t happen, the first thing you should do is contact the employer and see if you can resolve the issue together. If that didn’t work and you still don’t have your W-2, then it’s time to contact the IRS (Internal Revenue Service). They’ll ask you for some information and then they’ll contact the employer and request the form.

Did you know that even if your employer doesn’t provide the W-2 form in time, you’re still required to file forms with the IRS? Yep. Things start to get a little tricky at this point, so if you’re in that position you should check with the IRS to be sure you file the correct forms.

And just so you know, the rules are pretty similar if you did receive a W-2 from your employer, but it was incorrect.

I wish you a happy tax season and a hefty return!

| Post a Comment | View Comments [1] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: form   irs   joanne   tax   w 2  

 

Entry bubble A New Tax on Soda?

By: Joanne | February 16, 2010 | Category: Money

a woman's hands opening a beverage canSoda tax - you heard me. I was reading today that Congress is studying the issue of taxing soda. Will a tax help to reign in the average American’s consumption of a beverage that is by any measure, not so good for you?

I’m a pretty moderate person, and that goes for soda too. I realize that sodas aren’t very good for me, but sometimes on a long road trip, I get a wild sugar craving and indulge it. I’m not too worried about the 6 or so sodas that I drink a year. But the average person in the United States drinks 54 gallons of soda and other sugary beverages a year – and nutritionists tell us that’s trouble. Over consumption of sugar is obviously a health issue – contributing to diabetes, obesity and also distracting us from highly nutritious foods. Even if you drink the sugar free soft drinks, it seems to me that you’re just drinking a big ol’ can of chemicals. Um…yum?

I’m not totally anti-sugar, but we all know that there’s a limit to the amount of sugar you should have in a healthy diet. Since 33% of the sugar in our diets comes from soda it’s easy to cut back if you cut out the soda. I know, sometimes you just like to have a cool, refreshing, fizzy drink – consider the fruit juice sweetened sodas. That’s what I keep around the house and the kids and I enjoy them occasionally.

Will a soda tax decrease your soda consumption, or will it make you so mad that you’ll dump cases of Pepsi into Boston Harbor?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [21] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: diet   joanne   pop   soda   sugar  

Main | Next page »