June 30, 2008
The Secret To Passing The Microsoft Office Specialist Exam
If you are trying to get ahead in you career today, you will know that the computer skills you have under your belt are what will make the difference between you moving up the ladder or down. When it comes to trying to prove your computer competency in using office applications there is no other certification path that stands out like the Microsoft Office Specialist program. With over 3 million exams now undertaken and well over 2 million Microsoft Office Specialist Certificates issued, this certification has become the one to get to prove your skills in using Microsoft Office.
One thing I have found though is that many people fail these exams first time around and there really is no reason for it. The way the Microsoft Office Specialist exam works is that you will be taken into a room and sat at a computer. On this computer you will be asked by the computer to carry out a series of tasks. Each set of tasks is designed to represent tasks you would be expected to do on a day-to-day basis.
These exams really are a good representation of what people would be expected to do on a day-to-day basis. I should say I am a little bias since I am a Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor and my company is a Microsoft Office Specialist Authorised Testing Centre but having trained about 4,000 to 5,000 students through my training centre in Townsville, Australia the certification exams really do represent the skills you would be expected to perform in your workplace.
There are in fact seven exams in the Microsoft Office Specialist Program and they are the Microsoft Word Core and Expert Exams, Microsoft Excel Core and Expert Exams, Microsoft Outlook Core Exam, Microsoft PowerPoint Core Exam and the Microsoft Access Core Exam. If you were a Secretary or Personal Assistant, I would expect at a minimum you would have passed the Microsoft Word Core Exam and the Microsoft Excel Core Exam. If you hold the position of a salesman, I would expect you to have the same certifications as the Personal Assistant or secretary plus the Microsoft PowerPoint Core certification and maybe the Microsoft Excel Expert Certification and Microsoft Access Core Certification.
Ok, so how do we prepare for these exams.
First of all, you need to choose how you want to study for these exams. In terms of passing these exams it doesn’t matter whether you want to do a course at a training centre, buy a self paced training program or doing the training on the Internet. Use the form of training that you feel most comfortable with. Me personally, I prefer to use self-paced training where as many of my students prefer classroom based training. Each training method has its own advantages and disadvantages. One thing to note, if you are going to go to a training centre, make sure at the very least they are a Microsoft Office Specialist Testing Centre and that they will give you a training manual and exercise disk to take home with you to keep. If the training centre doesn’t give you a manual then don’t waste your time with the course even if they might be the cheapest. In computer training, cheapest definitely does not mean the best.
Step 1. Once you have done the course or studied the Self-Paced material make sure you redo all the material within 7-days!
One mistake many people make, is thinking that they can do a two-day computer training course then walk away as an expect. If that’s what you think, than it is totally fanciful. Computer Training is like a sport, if you want to be a professional then you must train as a professional. The first step you need to do in any training regime is to go back through all the material you did in the computer training course in the first 7 days after you the finish of the course.
Studies have shown over the years, that each 7 days you don’t review your material, you will loose 50% of the material. Each week you don’t review the material you loose another 50% which means in 6 weeks or so, you will remember nothing from your course. All in all you may as well, not have done the course in the first place.
Step 2. Write a brief statement in your own words, the key terms used during your course.
The next thing you must DO! Is to write a brief statement in your own words about all the key terms you learnt during the course or in your self-paced material. One of the challenges you will have in the exam is deciphering what they are asking you to do. Sometimes, I have found the language is very difficult to understand because it is written in American English (no offence intended to my American colleagues). In one of my Microsoft Outlook Core Exams, I was certain I was going to fail the exam. The only reason I passed was by identifying the key terms in the text that related to the application and by knowing those I worked out in each question what exactly they were asking me to do.
Step 3. Practice, Practice, Practice – Get lots of Practice Exercises
The next thing you must do is to get as much practice as possible. Most training schools will have structured their material so that at the end of each topic you will have some questions to answer and also some sort of homework exercise to do that will put all the tasks together into one exercise. The key here is to practice as much as possible. Check out the internet for places where you can get lots of practical exercises or make up some of your own.
Step 4 – Do a Pre-Assessment Exam to see if you are ready.
One thing I have learnt from doing these professional exams is that they are absolutely nothing like the exams you would have undertaken at school, college or at University. My recommendation that I would make to anyone sitting computer certification exams is to purchase a pre-assessment exam for the exam you want to take. What the pre-assessment exams do is to test your skills prior to sitting the real exams. Most of the pre-assessment exams I have seen are pretty good and pretty close to the real exams. I personally recommend either the pre-assessment exams from Certiport, Transcender or Self-Test Software.
When you do the pre-assessment exam, you should score 80% or above on the first go. If you don’t, do not do what I have seen many people do, and that is to just keep doing the exam till you get all the questions right. What will happen if you do this is you will build up a memory of the questions and you end up knowing the requirements of the question without truly being able to interpret what the question is asking you to do.
Once you have done the exam once; DO NOT under any circumstances re-do that exam for 7 days. This will help stop the memory build up, of the questions.
What you MUST do once you have completed the pre-assessment exam and got a result is to look at the results of the test and find out which questions you got wrong and go back and study those areas more thoroughly. Then, after you have reviewed the material and waited 7 days, then try the pre-assessment test again.
You should in the second attempt score 90% or better. If you do achieve this then you are ready to sit the real exam. If you don’t, then you need to follow the same process again for the next 7-days.
After the third time using the same Pre-Assessment exam, I recommend people try a different pre-assessment exam before being 100% sure they will pass the exam. The more you use the same exam, the bigger risk you face in retaining that memory of questions.
Most pre-assessment exams usually come with 2 or 3 different exams to try. If after three attempts of each pre-assessment exam and you still find that you can’t pass at 80% or better, I would strongly recommend finding a mentor and also checking to make sure the training material you have purchased is covering the required material.
Step 5 – Pass the Microsoft Office Specialist Certification Exam!
Obviously once you have done this much training and practice and you have passed your pre-assessment exams you are now ready to sit the real exam. One thing to remember, Microsoft Office Specialist Exams are commercial exams and because of this, if you fail the exam, you have to pay to resit the exam. The cost to resit these exams can vary from as low as $80 US to $135 US, in many cases the prices are set by the Microsoft Office Specialist Testing Centre.
The good news is that if you have followed the steps I have outlined, I will be very surprised if you didn’t pass on your first attempt.
Step 6 – You Are Finally A Microsoft Office Specialist
The Author Chris Le Roy is a Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor and trains over 2000 students per year to become Microsoft Office Specialists. His company One-on-One Personal Computer Training has a range of training kits to help you prepare for the Microsoft Office Specialist Certification Exam. Chris also has a range of pre-assessment exams available for sale as well at his website at http://www.1-on-1.biz
Country Home Decorating – Country Style Home Decor the Way Life Used to Be
What is the lure and appeal of country home decorating? Maybe it’s the desire to escape the rush and demands of a hectic lifestyle. It could be the need to return to a time when life was simpler, perhaps even happier. The necessities of rural life are what influence today’s country style home decor.
Country home decorating can be defined as a style featuring rustic simplicity and tradition. Home decorating country style is viewed as welcoming, unpretentious, friendly and practical. Country style home decor is flexible enough to include timeworn antiques, reproductions, crafts and handmade products all together. Country furniture is usually made by craftsmen and has a sturdy, rugged appearance. Country style furniture seldom uses delicate designs. Country home decor may feature unfinished beams, floors with natural finish, rough bricks and unpainted or undulating plaster walls.
Here are recommendations for specific rooms when country home decorating:
Country Kitchen Décor – use open shelves, buffets, plate racks and cupboards for storage. Country kitchen storage is usually crammed with stoneware pots, plain glazed earthenware and glass jars. Country kitchen pots should be made of copper, steel or cast iron — country cookware tends to be large and plain. Country kitchen cabinets that are made of aged surfaces, natural materials, rough finishes and round knobs will keep the country style. Open shelving in the country kitchen is perfect to display plates and dinnerware collections. Kitchen cabinets or kitchen furniture made of pine or perhaps even painted can be a beautiful key element in the country kitchen.
Country Kitchen Countertops and Floors – country kitchens countertops have ceramic tiles or even hand painted tiles, slate or marble. If you want to use laminate materials, go for plain colors for coverings. Terracotta tiles, brick, stone and wood are very popular in country kitchen floors. If you decide to add some antiques to your country kitchen, they don’t have to be perfect — even chips and scratches will add to the charm and un-restored look of the antique. Adding a bit of wear and tear to maintain the country flavor is fun and it works!
Country Dining Rooms – dining rooms are once again popular. Many years ago, meals were eaten in large country home kitchens. Today, the kitchen continues to be the hub of the home and the place where you can have less formal meals. However, when entertaining guests, a dining room is the place to be. Country style dining rooms can have a large rectangular table made of pine, oak, walnut or mahogany with wooden chairs or old benches that are similar in style and material. A corner cupboard, plate racks, dresser or sideboard will provide perfect storage and serving area for the dining room as long as they match the style and the materials of the table and chairs.
Country Bathrooms – the characteristics and styles of country bathrooms take us back to our simple life and roots. A bathroom with neutral tones or soft colored walls, antique looking lighting and wooden antiques or antique reproduction cabinets and vanity will give the country bathroom a calm and elegant atmosphere. Clawfoot tubs, country style antique brass faucets and old-fashioned country home decorating cabinets will give your bathroom the kind of atmosphere that invites you to spend time there.
A country bathroom should have wood, ceramic tile, linoleum, vinyl or natural cork floors. To have carpet in the country bathroom is not appropriate. Wood and brass accessories are perfect materials to use in a country style home decor bathroom. Plain white towels are recommended instead of patterned or bright modern patterns. Use wicker or wire baskets to keep your sponges, loofas and shampoos handy near the tub or shower.
Country Home Furnishings – decorative items associated with country style home decor include adirondack chairs, Windsor chairs, fresh or dry wild flowers, vintage baskets, quilts, yellowware bowls, blue and white ceramics, wicker or wire baskets, floral tapestries, linens and paintings, wool blankets, duck decoys and teddy bears. Floral patterns and candleholders also remind us of the country-style life.
The colors used in country home decorating are neutral tones ranging from white to bone, earth tones, red barn, blues and green which are the most appropriate colors for country style. Stenciling and wallpaper are frequently used in country home decorating. Stenciling originally was cheaper than wallpaper. Stenciling can be used around windows, in areas where the walls meet the ceiling or on the floors. Oftentimes, stenciling is even used on furniture. Done correctly, stenciling adds a great deal of charm to a country home decor.
While country life in the old days was often very difficult, it’s now possible to recreate the pleasures and peace of a nearness to nature without having to endure the adversity and hardship of everyday rural life. In general, the knowledge and abilities needed to create a country style home are achievable by nearly anyone. Read all you can. Inspiration will come if you understand the basics for creating a country style home decor that provides the look and feel of the way life used to be.
Copyright 2005 InfoSearch Publishing
David Buster is Vice-President of InfoSearch Publishing and webmaster of http://www.yourdreamloghome.com – visit the website to learn more about home decorating and remodeling, backyard living, home plans, kitchen and bathroom design and decor tips, home storage, fireplaces, log cabin rentals and more.
June 27, 2008
What Can We Expect Of The Next Notebook Computers
Move over Desktop, it’s the time of the laptop, or at least that what the high demand indicates. So big demand but minute supply according to what manufacturers are anticipating. Many have forcasted laptops to be in demand but its surprising that theres been no slow down. Whatever you do you’re playing with technology that is shifting all the time so its hard to keep up with the latest trends.
There seems to be a lot more variety and attainability of gaming notebooks these days. With prices dropping and new technology being launched rather rapidly it means that customers are getting greater value. For those who need mobility, the speed notebooks offer in terms of playing games shouldn’t be frowned upon much longer as power is better. Smaller components that perform faster and are run cooler also means that gone are the times of the giant notebooks for gaming. Speed of desktops should infinitely be a mile ahead of notebooks but its still inspiring to see. It looks as if everyone is possessed with manufacting slimmer, portable notebooks and I am certain we will see gaming notebooks like that soon.
Speaking of gaming notebooks, the vast alternatives are attainable when they are custom built. I feel the components are more respectable and perform more stable. Particular market benefit because they only have aquire what they require. The systems found in retail outlets are commonly configured based standard, mass market customers and well not everyone is mediocore now are they? So clearly this is why you require a custom notebook. Just like premade notebooks there are a lot of brand names selling custom notebooks all with a different selling point or increase customer care. The fact that there is choice and competition makes its very viable.
The new laptop technology will be exciting. The latest trend along with those discussed looks to be inexpensive ultra mobile notebooks. I do not feel anyone thought they would be so popular. I feel the market would prefer to see larger portables that weigh a ton less than the current systems. I am certain some brands are proactively laboring on such things. The way things are headed I know gaming notebooks will get thinner. New concepts are seen every year of so and I’m certain the next year already holds a lot of promise for us techies.
The Gaming Laptops at Rizeon are really good.
June 26, 2008
What Do I Feed My Baby?
For the first four to six months of your baby’s life, his or her diet consists solely of milk, whether from breast or bottle. When it comes time to start feeding your baby solid food, many experts give conflicting advice about what the right types of food to feed your baby. Some of these experts are of course, right in your own family. Grandma, Aunt Bessie, your sister, and others will all want to help you out by telling you what is best. What they may not understand is that recommendations may have changed since they were the mother of a new baby.
Dr. Ronald Kleinman, chief of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Massachusetts General Hospital, recalls nutritional guidelines that differ greatly from today’s recommendations. “Several generations ago, doctors were quite dogmatic in establishing the order of what came first, next, and next. For example, the pediatrician would say, ‘First, rice cereal. Then, peas. Then, introduce a yellow vegetable.’ There wasn’t any rhyme or reason to that dogmatism.”
Without that strict guideline though, it’s easy for parents to be confused about which approach to take. What type of food is the best to start with? How much should my baby eat each day? What types of food are bad or harmful to my baby? What if he’s allergic to something I feed him? There are also a lot of myths to confuse you even more.
Let’s explore some myths and facts about your baby’s diet;
Myth: The first food that your baby is fed must be rice cereal. Rice cereal is a great place to start, but not the only potential first food you feed your baby. Almost any soft, hypoallergenic food can be fed to your baby as their first food. Mashed sweet potatoes and applesauce are two examples.
Myth: You should not feed your baby meat as a first food. As long as the food is soft or mashed and is hypoallergenic, your baby should be able to eat it.
Fact: You need to allow some time after each new food you introduce to see if it causes an allergic reaction in your baby. Food allergies can cause reactions varying in severity from mild to serious, including anaphylactic shock. However, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI) reports that only eight percent of children under age six have adverse reactions to ingested foods, and that only two to five percent have confirmed food allergies. People often confuse reactions to food with food allergies. For example, if a child has a stomach bug, he may be lactose intolerant for a week. That is a negative reaction, but not an allergy. “There is a host of adverse reactions to foods, and allergies are a subset of those,” says Dr. Kleinman.
Fact; Your baby has a higher chance of being allergic to certain foods more than others, such as peanut butter, peanuts, egg whites, shellfish, fish, and tree nuts like walnuts and cashews. If your family is prone to food allergies you need to wait until your baby is at least three years old before introducing them to these foods. Even if your family is not prone to food allergies, there is no reason to start your baby on peanuts before age three.
Myth; If a baby refuses a food a few times, that means that she doesn’t like it. “There’s a lot of good research to show that children are notoriously stubborn about new foods,” says Dr. Kleinman. It’s often necessary to introduce the unpalatable food multiple times.
Leann Birch, head of the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at Penn State, published a study on food preferences in children. In it, she found that parents must present a food six to eight times before a baby will accept it. Don’t force it, but don’t give up easily, either. You really do know more about nutrients, vitamins, and calories than your baby does, and he’s counting on you to persist.
Fact; As your baby begins to eat solid foods their motor skills will become more efficient and they will be able to begin feeding themselves. If you wish to speed the process along, start out by offering your baby finger foods after they have been on solid food for awhile, such as pieces of toasted oat bread, small pieces of well-cooked sweet potato, banana slices, or small chunks of avocado.
Myth; Commercial baby food is preferable to table food. Parents tend to believe that there’s something special about commercially made baby food. That’s a myth; in fact, most of the regular food on your table every night is probably just fine for your infant to eat. By pureeing food in a blender for your baby, you control exactly what your infant eats. “None of the baby food manufacturers have been found to be completely honest or accurate about what is in their products,” warns Dr. Charles Shubin, director of Pediatrics at Mercy Medical Center and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
Fact; You need to be extra careful when preparing food for infants and small babies. Practice good food hygiene. Wash your hands, scrub bowls and utensils thoroughly, keep food hot or cold as indicated, and cook food thoroughly. Make sure you keep the portions you feed your baby small enough for them to digest. Fruit needs to be stewed and strained to a creamy consistency to start out with, then you can move on to chunky, then bite sized pieces as you progress.
Myth; Parents should only offer a small varieties of bland foods. When your baby is 6 months old it’s okay to introduce food that has more flavor. Remember, what you enjoyed while you were pregnant may have given the baby for a taste for it as well. Babies learn flavor preferences from the adult feeding the baby.
Myth; It doesn’t matter what I eat, as long as my baby eats healthy. Babies and children learn by example. If all you eat is fried chicken and ice cream, they will want to only eat fried chicken and ice cream. If you do not want your child to be obese, set an example and eat healthy, so they will learn to eat healthy.
We hope these tips on feeding your baby have been helpful to you. Robin Darch, of PRT Specialised Services Limited has a website, www.babyport.info to help parents find all the information they need about babies, baby names, baby showers, baby gifts, products for babies, baby clothing, and more.
June 24, 2008
To diet or not to diet?
Dieting doesn’t mean starving yourself to death, but it includes a lot of nutritious foods and most importantly water. Water is something that should be on the top list of your diet plan. Experts have advice people to drink at least two liters of water everyday to maintain the water control of the body.
Often dieting is taken on a wrong way by many people, but what it really means is having a proper balance food for a healthy life. One reason why people should drink atleast two liters is that the body metabolism will increase thus it controls the fats in the body. A nutritious food can help you in a lot of way but without water it is of no use. It will flush out the harmful toxics from our body and enables our body to lead a healthy life.
When you included water in your diet list then, your body can heal and rejuvenate. You can gain lots of weight if the water intake is very less.
For a proper and healthy diet plan you can trust the words of Dr. Gillian McKeith, a famous nutritionist who knows everything what your body needs. She has written many books based on leading a healthy life with the help of nutritious foods. Her books have been a boon for many people and it tells a lot about eating a healthy diet that is required for your body. You can even log on to her website and get as many information about a proper diet for your body.
June 23, 2008
Find Out Why Fruity Lubricants are Sensational and When to Use Water Based Lubricants
Not sure which fruity lubricant to buy? Your questions will be discussed in this awesome sexual lubricant article.
Lubes are not just for hooking up. Lubing up for personal fun is one of the most common uses for fruity lubricants, sexual oils and massage lotions. Using sexual lubricant during one on one fun is safe, astonishing and practical. You will want your dongs to enter and move as significantly as possible.
If men are looking for a sex lube which is safe to use with all sensual aids stick to a water-based one, there are tons of yummy types out there like pineapple. And there are some that tingle. Go for the real look with Realistic Vibrators.
Old school users can often already know what sex lube is most enjoyable for them. But if you yourself are obtaining a lubricant for the first time we would love to recommend the following. It?s very best to start off with a water-based sex lube. Water-based lubes don?t stain and sexual lubricants are totally safe to use on all sexy toys. If you wish to have a lubricant for mouth play we recommend you yourself get one of the lush vanilla flavoured ones. Anal fans tend to go for heavier sexual lubricant because these sex lubricants are somewhat longer lasting. Remember, the more water based lube you yourself apply the more eye-opening screwing you yourself can have.
June 20, 2008
The Benefits Of Saving Money On A Regular Basis
Over the past few years, I have been saving money each month, not for any particular reason like for example to buy a house, but just in case something big went wrong. It is in a way a form of self-insurance. In this article I write about the benefits of doing this and about my own personal experiences, i.e how hard or easy it has been saving in this way.
Maybe I am being paranoid but I always seemed to have far less money than what my friends had. Four years ago a group of us went to Spain for a two-week holiday. I will never forget the moment when one of my friends asked how much money each of us were taking on the holiday. We all answered one by one and to my horror not only did I have the least amount but I had around two hundred pounds less than the next lowest person. It was not because I was being tight, it was because I did not have anymore. It had actually been a real struggle to save up this much.
When I arrived back from this holiday I decided that I needed to change my attitude on financial matters. I read a few books and spoke to a number of people about the best way for me to move forward. I did not want to have to struggle next year if there is to be another holiday for example.
I believed the answer was to start saving an amount every month which would leave my account via direct debit. I was the type of person who would basically spend whatever I had or earned. If it was in the bank therefore I would spend it. It was to leave my account via direct debit I would have no way of course to spend it.
I set up one of these savings policies and started it a modest £30 a month. I am very pleased to say that it did not exactly have a major negative impact on my social life. The policy itself was in some way linked to the stock market and this itself was quite exciting, sad I know. After a year I received a statement through the post and I was quite happy to see that I was actually worth something for a change. I then decided to increase the amount that I was going to save to £50 a month.
In life you never really know when something is going to go wrong, for example your car breaking down, the washing machine packing up or the need for some improvements to your house. By saving in the way that I know do makes these issues far less stressful to deal with as I have the funds readily available to remedy the situation.
At times of course I have enough money saved to splash a bit on say a holiday or a new car.
I would strongly advise other people to commence saving on a regular basis as it has certainly given me a piece of mind.
Stephen Hill promotes different websites including:
stutter therapy
business start up advice
beer brewing tips
Your Cosmopolitan Real Property Marketplace — Fostered by Property Index
Need specialist advice for property in Spain? View the PropertyIndex site to find lots of properties!
Notwithstanding the fact that the Property Index online service must be rated a rather young organization, (they were set up only in March 2007), they were very quick to achieve expert status. In actuality they are a rather incomplex organization focusing entirely on offering their expert opinion to every client who is attempting to buy, sell, rent etc. real estate in many parts of the world. What they promise is to offer you assistance to light on exactly what you want quickly plus, of course, without hassle. Property can easily be purchased in many parts of the world now, unquestionably the fanciest area being property you can purchase in Spain. It’s dead easy to list some of the phenomenal property on the market in Spain, one reason for selecting properties here being a combination of the houses and apartments available and the opportunity of being able to live amid such a bouncy people.
It’s one of the most trendy areas now, and in view of the scenic beauty and the great climate that surrounds you all year long, how could you ever be wrong! Property in Spain is steeped in history, art and culture, this country has always been home to quite a number of sophisticated cultures. About 25 or 30 years ago you would find merely a tiny number of British people who are looking for property in Spain. Just ask anyone who has removed to Spain and they will substantiate it. There are those who would will view it as a basically irrelevant craze and others will view it as a practically an infatuation! People that will repair to this region will typically range from young freshly weds looking for a perspective to OAPs who want to have a break and enjoy themselves.
Do bear in mind, however, that there could be hitches when looking to buy property in a foreign country — it stands to reason that there are 100s of procedures to follow be it when organizing, visiting or finalising. Even if just a single minor action is missed it is certain to well escalate impassable hitches plus, critically, a financial trouncing. As you may probably have presumed with this trendy destination, property could well be incredibly expensive in this destination which is clearly caused by the broad market pressure. Nonetheless the customer is really spoilt for choice in such a place so rich in fantastic terrain. It indeed has all a homebuyer could possibly covet, and plenty more.
June 18, 2008
I Am More Than A Mother
Copyright 2006 Pat Brill
How to balance the different roles you hold as mother, daughter, sister, soul-mate, best-friend and more…
It’s easy to get so engrossed in Motherhood that your other relationships begin to suffer. It’s not intentional, but you barely even have enough time in your busy day to take a shower, let alone return phone calls or make friendly visits. You begin to feel the guilt seeping in slowly but surely, as your mother exaggerates on your voicemail that she has begun to forget what you look like! After hearing the message you retreat to your bedroom only to find your overlooked husband cuddled-up to the body pillow for intimacy. So, on top of being completely overwhelmed with a thousand things to do around the house and with the children, you now have shame resting comfortably on your shoulders for isolating your loved ones. Before you attempt an act of multiplicity, here are a few simple ways to balance your different roles without going crazy in the process.
As a Busy Mom, there will be times in your life when you may grow anxious or depressed with the sudden changes in your world and feel unappreciated. This is the ideal opportunity to turn to your family and circle of friends because, 9 times out of 10, they’ve been there, understand, and may even have some helpful tools to get you through it. You surely didn’t enter this world solo, and as a Mom you don’t have to wear yourself out trying to do everything by yourself.
Moms often feel the responsibility of taking on the entire family agenda. By the time a friend or family member extends an invitation to do something fun you are completely exhausted and don’t have the time. Try planning activities and trips for your family that you can do in conjunction with others. Collaborate with your girlfriends about the children’s extra-curricular activities so you can hang out while they’re occupied. Arrange your hair appointments and weekend shopping so you get to spend time with your sister. Schedule an early bedtime once a week so you and your husband can spend some quality time alone. And no matter how busy you get, make sure you find 30 seconds to ask your spouse about their day and say “I Love You”.
Technology is on Mom’s side. When you begin to feel out of touch, hop in front of the computer and send emails to let everyone know what’s going on in your world. Mom’s forgotten what you all look like? Kodak Ofoto (www.ofoto.com) and Shutterfly (www.shutterfly.com) have excellent free software allowing you to share digital photos and videos. Your loved ones can even order prints for themselves so they can see first-hand what everyone is up to and how much the children have grown. If you are the kind of Busy Mom that doesn’t have time to talk on the phone, send quick text messages through your cell phone when you get breaks in your busy day.
It’s easy to forget the things that make Moms feel happy and complete when their focus is on everyone else. Take some time to reflect. Write down things you used to enjoy and miss doing. Add to that activities you never tried but would like to experience. Now come up with creative ways to merge them into your monthly schedule.
The key factor in making time for the important people in your life is to be able to effectively communicate your needs and desires. If taking care of the children is holding you back, speak up and ask a family member or friend for help. The people who love you will want to assist you in some way. Avoid asking the same people for help repeatedly. Tap into your entire support system so you don’t take advantage of one person’s kindness and willingness to assist.
Now, look in the mirror and affirm, “I am more than a mother. I am a sister, lover, daughter, and friend. Yes, I was born as a nurturer, naturally, but I have qualities that transcend social function and stigmas. I have a purpose to thrive creatively and spiritually without limitations and barriers. I am destined for greatness and I accept and welcome the positive support from my girlfriends, family, community, and soul-mate.” And celebrate the fact that you are more than a Mother and you are proud of each and every title you hold in the lives of those you love.
Pat Brill is co-founder of www.SilkBow.com which supports Busy Moms with free gift ideas and helpful tips to meet the challenges of motherhood. SilkBow is the perfect place for the perfect gift. Contact her at pat@silkbow.com
June 16, 2008
Health Insurance Helped Me
I was seeing a doctor for a medical condition, and I just had a feeling that something was not right. This particular doctor kept trying different approaches, and nothing seemed to be working. Several times, the doctor wanted to try certain treatments, but since the health insurance company determined that it wasn’t medically necessary, I didn’t go through with the treatments.
I am thankful that the health insurance defined my treatment, because I found out later that the doctor I was seeing had been doing treatments on patients where it wasn’t even something they needed done. The health insurance company saved me a lot of money and recovery. I have since changed doctors.
There are times when the health insurance system works, and there are times when it doesn’t. Unfortunately, there are instances when the doctor feels a course of treatment is appropriate, and the insurance company disagrees and determines that they will not pay for a certain procedure because they don’t feel it is medically necessary.
When health insurance defined my mother’s treatment, I was very upset because I felt that the doctors should be in charge of my mother’s care, and not the health insurance company. There are reasons that the insurance companies sometimes determine that there is not medical necessity, but I didn’t feel that the determination was correct in this case.