Money Matters

Lets discuss an issue that pertains to the "99%". Money.

In the past my family has unexpectedly found itself financially crippled with income cut in half. The reason for why varied from situation to situation, but the tools that I used to help budget and stretch the remaining income have stayed pretty standard in my book. And the best thing about them all: They are all free!

Folios App

I use the Folios app to help keep a running balance on an account. The app is light weight and very minimalistic in design. When the app is opened you can create the accounts that you want to track in the form of folios. You enter in the starting balance and from there enter in your transactions and the app will calculate a running total.

Another cool feature of the app is that you can add tags to each transaction so that all your transactions become search-able. This is great for when you would like to analyze how much you have been spending on lunch each week.

Here is an example of what the folio looks like once transactions are added.

Everything in the app is manual. It does not have a way to sync up with a bank account and the only way to add transactions is to enter them in yourself. In that way I have come to think of the app as a digital version of the old school check book ledgers.

Since I have a joint checking account with my husband and my bank account sees a lot of activity, I do not find this app practical for keeping a running balance on it. For that I use a different tool. However, I do use this app to keep track of balances on prepaid cards such as gift cards.

As I had mentioned above, keeping tabs on my bank account is a little trickier than what can be managed by a simple ledger. For keeping tabs on my bank account I like to use Mint.

Mint.com

Mint.com is a site that can dynamically monitor your finances. Once you create your free account you can enter in your debt, and assets, as well as link credit cards and bank account. The website fetches live data from the credit cards and bank account and automatically updates the transactions and running balances.  It also generates graphs to show how your money is being spent and which categories are taking up the majority of your income. 

For me. one of the most useful tools on mint.com is the ability to set a budget for each category and then to monitor the spending in that category in real time. This is great for keeping frivolous spending under control. In my budgeting books this website is a necessity.

Mint.com can be accessed both from a computer as well as from a mobile device.

Click on the links to download and try the Mint.com App from your relevant app store.

Iphone

Android

After using mint.com for a few months I found that the food category was extremely high. (FYI: the food category includes groceries as well as fast food) and I realized that I had a lot of wasteful spending in that category that I could work on.  That was when I found PepperPlate.

PepperPlate

PepperPlate is a website with companion apps in all app stores. This amazing website allows you to create and manage recipes as well as import them from other recipe websites. It also has the capability to plan out a menu for your household in a calendar layout.

It even takes the recipes for the meals planned and creates a shopping list for you. Here is where the cross platform functionality really shines. The app on your phone can also access that shopping list! 

Cherry on top moment (for me) is that the shopping list in the app splits everything up into shopping aisles. Here is how the shopping list looks on my app.

Brilliant!!

Now I am not  a financial advisor (I am a long way from it), and even on my good days I am not the best at managing finances. These tools however, make me at least somewhat competent at managing my accounts like an adult. :) And hopefully, if they can help me, they can help you as well!

As always feedback, comments, and suggestions are always welcome. 

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Disclaimer: Any product mentioned in my blog may have been received for free or at a discount in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Some Secrets to Success

Growing a blog from nothing and nurturing it into something of a success is not easy. I am not even going to try to fool anyone into thinking that I have done that here, or that I even particularly know what I am doing. All I know, is that I like to write and share stories of my kids.

Would it be nice if the blog were to take on a life of its own to where it could pull its weight and pay me for my time? Heck, yeah it would. As of right now, though it is still a work in progress.

I have, however found some pointers to kind of help it along. These pointers are included in the short book How to Make Big Bucks from Big Blogs.

This is a very short book with quick pointers and tips on how to make a blog successful. This is coming from Brandon Colker, entrepreneur and blogging expert. He presents the idea of passive income in an easy to understand format as well as dispelling any misconceptions about the term as well as the blogging industry.

You can check out the book on Amazon.com HERE. I definitely recommend it if you ever consider writing your own blog, even if you don't plan on making that blog work for you. I was lucky enough to receive a copy of the book as a part of a promotion  through Amazon's Giveaway services, however, I have not received any compensation for reviewing the book.




You can read more about the author at the links below:


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-jensen/profile-brandon-colker-re_b_7788434.html
http://www.amazon.com/Brandon-Colkers-Make-Bucks-Blogs/dp/1517756537

Announcement!!

Hi Everyone!

This blog is now an Amazon Associate!


What does this mean? It means that all the products that I mention in the blog will have a link back to Amazon.

All purchases completed through these links will help support the blog.

I plan on keeping the blog ad free until further notice, but if you don't mind showing your support for the blog, just click through on the picture links and complete any Amazon purchase.

I greatly appreciate it.

As always, any comments or suggestions are welcome!

Shared TV Time with the Kiddos

Television time for children has been a hot debate ever since the TV box was produced to be accessible within the home. Several studies over the years have been conducted many of which have had conflicting results. I personally take a viewpoint similar to the Canadian musician Raffie.

Young children need to be able to run around to develop motor skills and they need to be able to interact with real people in order to develop communication and social skills. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics discourages media use by children younger than age 2 and recommends limiting older children's screen time to no more than one or two hours a day. The Mayo Clinic wrote an article regarding the necessity of limiting children's television time, the effects of too much television time on children's health, as well as some tips and strategies on how to limit that time. You can read the full article HERE.

I know that we are supposed to limit TV time for children, and for the most part I feel that I do an alright job at that. My children have limited TV exposure before the age of 2, and like Number 3, most of my kids were always more interested in running around than sitting and watching TV.

Don't get me wrong, I don't believe that all television is bad. My mindset falls in line with the philosophy of The Child Development Institute.

It’s Not All Bad!

Since television is definitely here to stay, parents need to look at it as a resource and not necessarily as a menace. A good way to start is to consult the listings of the public television stations which offer magnificent programs on nature, literature, history, current events, the arts, etc. Also, consider:

•  Studies have indicated that television does increase the general vocabulary of children, especially when it involves term referring to outer space.
• Television does provide opportunities for children to learn about all kinds of things, although whether they do so to any great extent depends largely on the specific programs the child actually watches.
• Television can increase a child’s range of interest since it exposes him to a variety of activities and topics he might not otherwise encounter-archeology, science of all kinds, architecture, music, etc.
• Television has probably been the most effective of all the mass media in making people aware of a wide range of human problems ranging from pollution to homelessness. It also has increased awareness and acceptance of various kinds of illness, both physical and mental.

Read more: http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/family-living/kids-media-safety/television/#ixzz3pFrBZLVU

I generally limit the TV time for the older two kiddos. Not because I am concerned about how much they watch, but more because stuff needs to get done first (ei: homework or picking up a little). What TV time they do get, I get involved in. I know what shows they are watching and what type of content is in them. For the most part I like the shows they watch. Sometimes, though, the shows can get to me with how repetitive they get.

Some days I want to pull my hair out if I have to hear the screeching of the children with British accents sing about Thomas and his friends.

Now, my older children are pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. (Not to toot my own horn, or anything.) I will never forget the evening when I was channel surfing for a tolerable show for my oldest and I to watch before bed. As I was flipping through the channels heading to the usual channels he watches, he tells me to wait and stop on a channel well before we get to his usual line up.

My son sat mesmerized as the screen flashed machinery left and right of an assembly line. I asked if he wanted to continue looking for a show and he replied "No, I want to watch this.". That show was How It's Made.

Another show that my kids like to watch with me, I introduced them to it. It is a cooking show that matches science with fun cinematography. That show is Good Eats. Alton Brown the show's star and creative engine finds fun within the scientific explanations of food in a way that my children can relate to. I started watching Good Eats back in 2005/2006 and I will watch it every chance I get. My children have grown to love the show too and if given the choice, will choose it over any cartoon.

In the clip above Alton Brown consults with a relative of the famous Cookie Monster on the intricacies of baking cookies and why cookies can turn out in various ways (chewy, thin and crispy, cake-like and crumbly) even though it is all the same basic recipe.

Sadly though, Good Eats is no longer in production. It did have a very long run and has since (much to my and my children's delight) been released on Netflix. If you have a Nexflix subscription you can watch them HERE. If you have not checked them out before, I would highly recommend you do.

If nothing else, the two shows that I have discussed, created some common ground for me and my kids. It is something that we can all agree on when it comes to our TV time, and that creates one less battle for me to have to fight.


As always, questions, comments, and suggestions are always welcome! And remember to follow Reviewing Whirlwind and sign up for email updates at the top of the page so you never miss a post!

Gift Ideas for Dad pt 1

Over the coming weeks as we all approach the holiday season, I want to share gift ideas with you. I will also keep a running list the pages linked to my blog: Mommy's Time Out and Dad's Man Cave.


Buying for guys in my family can be difficult. They just don't seem to keen on communicating with me things in which they are interested. Number 1 has already started learning these non-communicative habits. (Hello monosyllabic answers. I didn't expect you until the teenage years.)

So as I scour the Internet and local stores, I will share with you some of the items I think would make great gifts, and hopefully they will inspire you and help you find something for them.

Silicone Wedding Band:

These things are really neat. Okay so story time. I used to work in a warehouse setting, and I was constantly terrified that my ring was going to get caught in the machinery. Or smashed onto my finger to where I couldn't get it off, and the blood flow would be restricted and I would have to have my finger amputated.... Sorry about that. Like I said, I was terrified.

Silicone wedding bands are made of a soft, flexible rubber. I have found three different brands so far.

The first brand is North Action. This brand of rings is very light weight and comfortable. I like the variety of colors you can get them in. One of the downsides is that the edges are not beveled and so for the first few days or so (until you get used to it) it will almost feel like the edges are "cutting" into you when you bend your finger.

The second brand that I have found is Stoni. These rings are a little heavier than the North Action brand and they don't flex quite as readily. What I do like about them are the beveled edges. They make for a much more comfortable wear.

 

The third brand that I have tried is the softest and lightest that I have tried yet. It flexes easily and if it were to get caught it would break away before any damage would be done to your digit. This ring is a lot like the North Action in the design and like it, it does not have the beveled edges that the Stoni does. This ring  comes in an attractive box that is suitable for giving as a gift like the Stoni. I would recommend it for any active person where they are not allowed to wear metal rings or any person who works with heavy machinery that might damage traditional metal rings. 


iPhone Armband:

If the man in your life likes to spend his extra time either on the track or at the gym, then this may be the gift for him. I found a nice one from CellProPlus.

The armband straps are made from a soft padded neoprene to ensure a comfortable fit. The clear plastic shield over the screen of the phone is thin enough to where the touch screen can still be used. There are small openings at the top and bottom of the back panel of where the phone fits for unimpeded sound from the microphones and speakers.

The arm band sports a few nifty pockets that come in handy if your workout clothes do not have any pockets. The is a small pocket for a possible gym locker key built into the strap. There are two flat pockets on the back of the phone pocket to hold an ID or a credit/debit card.


As always the items mentioned in my blog may have been received for free or at a discount in exchange for a fair and honest review on other websites. 

Keep an eye out for future updates in blog posts.

And as always --  Comments, Feedback, and Suggestions are always welcome!

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Mommy Needs...

A New Pair of Shoes New Apple Charge Cord


I don't know about other parents out there, but I seem to have the worst luck when it comes to the Apple Lightning charge cords.

This little accessory rules supreme in my house hold. It is needed for our iDevices, like mommy's iPhone or the family iPad. However, the Apple branded cords all seem to have roughly the same short life span, just over 2 months.

Most of them meet the same untimely demise of fraying cord casing and internal wires at points in the cord where they meet up with the connectors.

As you can see in the picture above as soon as this fraying occurs it has to be thrown out as it now poses a fire and health hazard. With official Apple branded cords priced at $20.00 each and only lasting for a few months, I had to find a more affordable and sustainable alternative.

Now I have found two brands of cords that I like as my replacement lightning cords. Kash and Beam Electronics both make functional and affordable replacements.

The Beam Electronics lightning cord is only 1 foot long but is great for charging devices at the desk. The cord covering appears to be a little thicker and a bit more durable than the Apple branded cords. It charged my iDevices in roughly the same amount of time that the original Apple branded cords used to.

For longer lightning cords, I prefer Kash Technologies. They have a four pack of 3 foot long cords that as of October of 2015 were just under $16.00.
They like the Beam Electronics have the thicker cord coating making it more durable than the original Apple branded cords. However the length of the Kash Technologies cords are more suited to charging the iDevices in the car where a little extra reach on the cord can go a long way.

Not all lightning cords at my house get the pleasure of living out their sort lives to the fraying end. Especially when my whirlwind incarnate number 2 gets a hold of it. She is fantastically and almost comically accident prone (think Martin Short in the movie Pure Luck).

Our family had just received our beloved iPad back from the local tech repair team with a brand new screen after a particularly bad week of accidents staring Number 2. She'd had the iPad maybe an hour contentedly watching cartoons on Netflix with it plugged up. She then decided to change location from the couch in the living room to the kitchen. She got up and started walking, forgetting that the iPad was plugged in.

By the time she remembered, it was too late. The damage had already been done. She hung her head and brought to me the pieces of the newly deceased charge cord. Somehow, when she stood up and walked away from her spot on the couch and the outlet next to it, the metal connector of the lightning connector came out of the connector's housing. Thankfully there was enough to grip and we were able to liberate the metal connector from the connector receiver of the iPad.







Disclaimer: Items mentioned in the blog may have been received for free or at a discount in exchange for an honest and fair review.

Do You Need a New Bedtime Story?

I understand that repetition is a part of learning and children are the masters of repetition.

(Mommy, Mommy, Are we there yet? Mommy? Are we there yet? Are we there yet, Mommy?)


Here is an excerpt from an article I read earlier this week on www.kindermusik.com

Three interesting facts about repetition and child development:

1. Learning requires electrical energy to create neural pathways. The less “automatic” something is, the more electrical energy is required. Think of something you do automatically – like count by 10′s. It takes very little electrical energy for your brain to travel that “counting 10′s” neural pathway, because you’ve done it a lot.

The more well-traveled a pathway, the less energy is required. That’s why you can do two things at once. Watch TV and knit, for example. When you are first learning to knit, it takes all of your effort. Looking, counting stitches, watching your needles. As it becomes automatic, you use less brain energy, so you can layer another activity on top of that without fear of accidentally turning those mittens into a hat instead.

Neurons Communicating

2. Did you ever wonder why children expect a favorite activity to be repeated again and again and again? Repetition is a necessary building block of development. Children’s brains KNOW that they need repetition. They are pretty smart little creatures! Do you remember the show Blue’s Clues? (Never the same for me after Steve left…). The creators did research while developing the show as to what preschoolers wanted to see in the show, and you can probably guess the answer by now – repetition!

3. So what about the fact that we always have a hello and goodbye ritual, a bounce, a steady beat, rocking time, and story time (in the older classes)? As my friend Heather Wiebe says (she a Kindermusik teacher in Alberta who is fascinated about the way the brain works, just like me) “Patterns make children happy. Knowing what to expect and having things happen in that way not only helps children know what to expect and feel at ease, it’s also how they mark time.” When the environment and routine is predictable, then a child feels safe and learning can naturally happen.

Read the full article Here. 

While this does provide an explanation as to why repetition is important it provides little comfort when your little one is asking you to read the Goldilocks and the Three Bears for the gazillionth time or the cute little song they are listening to over and over again is starting to sound a little creepy like the playground screen in The Birds.

If you have read all the books in your house for bedtime stories (when I was taking classes for my undergraduate degree I did read textbooks to my children for bedtime stories: two birds, one stone), it may be time to introduce some fresh characters.

I recently ran across a really cute and endearing series called Terry Treetop.

Pictured is the book Terry Treetop Finds New Friends.

I read this book with my children and it provided a great conversation starter to talk with both my six year old and my nine year old about what makes a good friend and helping people in need.

The book is well written and the meter of the book makes it an easy and enjoyable bedtime read. Tali Carmi uses literary devices such as repetition as well as alliteration making this a great practice primer for the six year old's reading skill.

I look forward to Terry's other adventures and sharing them with my children and reading them a couple hundred times.


Disclaimer:
I may have received any products mentioned in this post for free or at a discount in exchange for an honest and fair review.

The Great Diaper Debate part 2

So to continue on my previous topic on the Great Diaper Debate I found this video that compares the three brands I have used in the past along with the Honest Company's diaper.

I hope this video helps you to make the best decision for covering up your little one's waste elimination end and helps you to avoid the catastrophe that I endured.

Two Out of Three Ain't Bad

Meatloaf was right with two out of three ain't bad, except when it comes to sick children.

These past few days has created a complex mixture of emotions within me. My two youngest children have been feeling under the weather with a stomach virus. My morning started out well enough. I had gotten to sleep in because the older two were out of school for Fall break.
I woke up and got Number 3 ready for day care and running errands. My plan was to run errands and then drop him off later. Number 3 was acting a little weird and that should have been my first indication, but I just chalked it up to a restless night for him. Right before we reached out second stop, he started whining in the back seat. I stop the car and look back at him just in time to watch him throw up. Well, not just trow up, but turn into a spewing fountain of curdled milk.

 (You would not believer how many pictures there are of babies projectile vomiting.)

From his car seat he projected the vomit so violently that he almost got it on the back of the seat in front of him. It took about two seconds for the shock of vomiting to register within his toddler brain. When it finally did he freaked out. Never in his 1.5 years of living could he recall his body betraying him in this manner. Then to top it all off, he was now covered in slimy milk curds. His little mind could not wrap around the events and so he sat there, too afraid to move for fear of getting the milk curds anywhere else on him and he cried. Needless to say my errand running for the day was over.

But that was only the beginning.

When I got Number 3 home, safely in the door, I started stripping him down less than two feet inside the house to contain the mess. Number 2 comes up to me before I am done stripping down Number 3 and informs me that her head hurts and that she has already thrown up this morning. Concerned with an emerging pattern I call Number 1 to interrogate him on his well-being. He reported that he felt just fine.

I cleaned up Number 3 and got him and Number 2 some Tylenol as they felt like they were running fevers and then I convinced them both that what they needed more than anything was some rest.

What then followed is what causes me to have my internal conflict. Number 2 and Number 3 slept. The got the rest their little bodies needed. Normally all three of my kids interact with each other antagonizing and fighting creating most of the noise within my whirlwind of a life. However, with Number 2 and Number 3 out of commission my house experienced a quiet peace it had not experienced since before we moved in. I watched Number 2 and Number 3 in their cute and peaceful slumber. I also got to read a book without being interrupted every other line. For the most part my day was perfect with the exception of the occasional instance of vomit in stereo as Number2 and Number 3 coordinated  stomach onslaughts. Part of me feels bad that my children were not feeling well, but the other part recognized that I do not get many breaks and rejoiced at the opportunity for quiet.

The Great Diaper Debate

One of the most important items you will purchase after the birth of a child is diapers. But there are so many different kinds and brands. How will you know which one is right for you?

For the longest time I didn't know. It pretty much took until my third child before I became convinced that I had finally got this whole diaper thing figured out.

For me this was never a question. For my lifestyle and the fact that I was always chomping at the bit to return to work after each new addition to the family it was a no-brainer that I would go with disposable. Yes, I know that decision is the worst for the environment, but I try to make up for it elsewhere. Life is about compromises, you know.

A mommy friend of mine who also had a child about the same time I had number 3, opted for the cloth reusable diapers. For me she is a trusted source of information. She was a stay-at-home mommy and when all was said and done, she stated that the diapers only added about one additional load of laundry to the pile. She also pointed out that in changing a diaper you are already up to your elbows in baby poo, so just complete the cycle and clean out the cloth nappie. That is a very noble decision on her part, and I give her props for being more of a supermom than I can commit to.

So instead, I opted for disposable diapers for all three of my children out of convenience. With child number 1, my husband insisted that the premium diaper brands (ie: Huggies and Pampers) were priced as more because they obviously were of a better quality, and only the best would do for his baby. I remained skeptical and stubborn and purchased which ever brand of diapers were on sale or whichever ones I happened to have a coupon for. (I mean really, how much do I want to spend on an item that is designed to catch poop and be thrown away?)

I have used three major brands through out the course of my three children: Huggies, Pampers, and Luvs. I mostly used Pampers when the kids were really small. All the hospitals I delivered at used that brand in their nursery and generally we just continued using them after we got home. I have never had any complaints about Pampers. They work wonderfully and very rarely leak, even on a long night after the baby has drained a lot of bottles. I love the Pampers Swaddlers brand, but that line stops right about the time the baby is a year old and begins to walk. At that time, I guess we are supposed to switch over to Pampers Cruisers. My one and only complaint is the price for the larger sized line.

The price for these larger sized diapers are substantially higher than the Swaddlers line and me trying to be frugal would eventually win out over the spouse and begin purchasing Luvs which is much more affordable.

And this is where things start to decline. With my older two children, using Luvs was an occasional inconvenience. Every once in a while they would fully empty more liquid into their diapers than I previously thought to be possibly contained within their pint-sized (appearantly gallon-sized) bodies. Leaks bad enough to have to change out their crib sheets maybe happened once every two months. So even with this little inconveniences, the product was still worth the price.

That was until child number 3.

On this fate-changing morning, I woke the older two and got them ready for school to catch the bus. It was early in the school year and light was streaming in through all the windows, promising "Today is going to be a beautiful day! Nothing can go wrong!".

It lied.

After gathering up the necessary items to wake number 3 and get him ready for daycare, I approached the door to his room. The gentle snoring from within lulled me into a false sense of security, and I cracked the door open quietly. (I love getting in the room before he wake up so I can see him sleeping peacefully.) However, as soon as the door was cracked the air from the room spilled forth and enveloped me within a putrid cloud.

Something was very wrong, if the smell assaulting my nose was to be any indication. I carefully creep over to number 3's crib and peered in. The sight laid out before me was one of parenting horror. Number 3 was still snoozing contentedly on his stomach, knees drawn up under him, BARE bottom up in the air with poop smears on both cheeks like some sort of yoga sun salutation: poopy variation.

Poop was EVERYWHERE!

(This scene has been recreated for dramatic purposes and is not an actual scene from the event)

I picked up Number 3 as gingerly as I could to contain the already catastrophic mess and ran him to the bathroom. Number 3 grumbled at his rude awakening but settled quickly and contentedly into a bubble bath. With the bathroom door open I went across the hall to assess the damage and try to piece together what happened. The only incriminating evidence as to what happened was the sad, scraggly Luvs diaper with a broken strap on the side. In the middle of the night, Number 3 woke briefly and dropped a decent deuce. He then curled up and went back to sleep. Somehow twisting around in his sleep the strap on the Luvs diaper broke spilling the stinky contents within. It took several hours to clean the mess. Since then, as the slogan for Luvs goes, (and almost gets it right) "You live and you learn, and then you DON'T get Luvs!"

The saying goes you get what you pay for and I definitely got what I paid for. 

For more information regarding the Disposable vs. Cloth debate below are some awesome sites that help break down the pros and cons.

www.thebump.com

www.babygearlab.com