Ways to Make the Switch from Summer to School.

• Restart Routines. Kids need time to adjust, so provide a head start. About two weeks before school starts, make bedtime earlier and dust off the alarm clock. Aim to serve meals at approximately the same times your child will be eating throughout the school year. To make sure your morning timing is right, stage a test run. Have him ready to go by the time the bus or carpool would arrive - then remind him he still has a few days of summer left!

• Go Over Ground Rules. Decide when and where she'll do homework. Be sure to cover tricky topics: can she watch TV after she finishes her work? How late can friends visit on school nights? When's the caffeine cut-off? What about chores? Establishing guidelines and going over them together will make sure you're on the same page once school's in session. Some families even draw up a written contract spelling out everyone's expectations.

• De-stress Dressing. Let your child choose special first-day clothes — a souvenir shirt from a park you visited this summer or a new dress to match her best friend's. To avoid arguing over school-appropriate clothes, bring the fall wardrobe front and center. Replace sandals and swimsuits with socks, sneakers, and lightweight sweaters.

• Develop a Game Plan - Together. Discuss goals for the upcoming year, triumphs from the year before, and some skills he would like to improve. Goals might include: Making three new friends, or sitting at a different lunch table every week. Becoming captain of the chess team or a spelling bee finalist. Making the honor roll. Helping a new student adjust. Listen, and ask questions. Setting his own priorities will make them more meaningful. Throughout the year, track his progress and encourage his efforts.

• Keep Passions in Play. If your child became a weaving whiz at summer camp or a diving champ at the local pool, keep it going. Integrate new summer hobbies into the school year by finding after-school clubs or groups that will let her continue to do the cool new things she tried this summer!

• Summon the Learning Spirit. Assign creative "homework" as summer wanes: Ask him to identify a paw print in the park or photograph something that changes colors. Make family flashcards and quiz each other: What was the farthest you went from home this summer? What plans were rained out? Who got the most bug bites?

• Take a Family Field Trip. Plan one last fact-packed trip to top off months of water parks and baseball games. You don't have to go far: Visit a nature sanctuary to learn about different plants and trees, or examine an old ship down at the docks. Whether you pick an aquarium or a modern art museum, the combination of fun and learning is sure to get kids back in school spirit.

• Set Up a Homework Area. Create a quiet, well-lit space for study. Prevent first day freak-outs by hauling out the necessities: backpack, dictionary, atlas, calculator, art supplies, paper, and pencils. Make it personal and fun, but free from distractions.

• Sharpen Skills. Add more factual brain-bending activities into the everyday mix. Sudoku games, crossword puzzles, word searches, and trivia all encourage your child to sit still, focus, and complete a task from start to finish.

• Go for a Test Run. Take a trip to school and get familiar with the new classroom. Make sure to find the cafeteria, gym, theater, and library. Don't forget about bathrooms! Adopted From http://www2.scholastic.com/
  

Who Do You Feed?

Greetings Champions. I address you as Champions. Yes, Champions. You do realize that you are a Champion. There is a coward inside of all of us however, there is a Champion, a leader inside of all of us as well. The question is, who are you feeding?

Who do you see when you look in the mirror? Is it the coward or the champion? The coward will reason or rationalize with you to accept defeat long before defeat is here. The coward will tell you to just give up and NOT try, that you never should have even thought that you could win.

The Champion inside of you tells you to go on; push ahead, even when you clearly cannot see how you are going to achieve your goal. The Champion inside of you tells you that if anyone can do it, You Can. Do it, Go. Do it, Go. Go on and be Great.!

Who do you feed, who do you give nourishment? Who do you want to see when you look in the mirror? I believe it was Maya Angelou who said, "As we travel down the highway of life on our journey to WHO we choose to become, many people just pull over and park."

Feed the Champion inside of you. What do Champions eat? They eat encouragement, the word of God; they read books and listen to CDs that focus on personal improvement instead of watching TV. Choose your destiny! If you are parked, get back on the highway and put it in gear. Do not let the coward tell you to get started next week or next month, or next...
Feed the Champion inside of you. The abundant life awaits you and your family for generations to come. Adopted From Contributing writer, James Prewitt, Dallas, Texas.

Recipe Of The Month - Zucchini Bread!

Last August in our Newsletter I gave you our Chocolate Zucchini Bread recipe. So, I thought this year I would give you the other Zucchini Bread recipe that is always a hit at our house!

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup oil
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups grated raw zucchini
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts - pecans or walnuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Prepare pans (either greased and floured loaf pans (2) or in a 9”x13”).
2. Wash Zucchini. Cut off ends and slice open lengthwise. Spoon out and discard seed pulp in center. Grate.
3. Mix the eggs, oil, and spices together.
4. Add sugar. Mix. Then add flour and mix well.
5. Now add your zucchini and mix by hand. (Don’t over mix or the Zucchini will ball up around your spoon.)
6. Pour into prepared pans.
7. Bake at 350 degrees. (Loaf Pans-45 min., 9” x 13” pan-35 minutes)
8. This recipe is great still warm from the oven with butter on it. It also freezes well if you want a taste of summer when the winter winds are blowing outside.

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How to Conquer a Fear of Flying.

For millions of Americans the idea of getting on a plane and flying is one of the most scary imaginable. People all over the world struggle with this fear, which recent studies ranked number three on the list of the top ten phobias.

Statistically speaking, flying is 29 times safer than traveling in a car. Thousands of flights safely and routinely take off and land at airports around the globe every day. Yet fear of flying still strikes millions.

There are many homemade remedies that frightened travelers have concocted to help them survive a flight.

Most include either alcohol or over the counter sleep aids that allow the traveler to sleep their way through the anxiety of a trip. There is a better way to conquer your fear of flying. Psychologists have identified the four most common thought patterns in people who fear flying, and provided some techniques to combat them:

Rumination: This is when you obsess about how bad the situation is, dwelling on your fears. Psychologists say the best way to combat this type of thinking is to find something positive about the experience, no matter how small, and refocus your thinking on that thing. It could be the nice view out your window or the movie being shown. Whatever it is, moving your thoughts outside the situation can help calm your anxiety.

Self-blame: This is when the person focuses on their failures and allows them to feed into their fear. In this case, it might involve chastising one's self for being afraid of flying. The best way to combat self-blame? Remind yourself that you are achieving an incredible breakthrough by taking the trip, and that progress is a slow and steady process.

Resignation: This is when a person allows themselves to feel hopelessly out of control of the environment around them. This creates a mindset where the person can feel paralyzed with fear, unable to relax. The best way to combat this type of fear is to re-affirm that you do have control of the situation. You can control things like your breathing and use muscular relaxation techniques to relieve stress.

Catastrophizing: This term refers to fear that causes a person to envision how bad the situation is or could become. Those who are afraid to fly often say this is the most common type of thought, imagining a disaster that is statistically almost impossible. The best way to combat this type of fear is acknowledge your fear and challenge it. Remind yourself of another time where you faced up to something that scared you or stood tall in the face of a problem. Challenge yourself to conquer this fear just as you did another before it.
Flying is statistically the safest means of travel, so don't let your fears stand in the way of your life and getting where you want to go. Adopted From http://howlifeworks.com/travel/fear_of_flying/

Steps To Become A Millionaire

A number of the people profiled in "Millionaires tell how they did it" made their millions as entrepreneurs. But working for the Man doesn't mean you have to be a wage slave or resort to buying lottery tickets to strike it rich. The trick is to maximize your income on the job (and know when to move on), make the most of your employee benefits and tax breaks and use that extra money to start investing.

• Keep your eyes peeled for better ways to do your job. Streamline a procedure, shave costs, create a new profit center, become an expert on a specific topic, volunteer for a company committee -- anything that will make you stand out as a prime candidate for a promotion or a pay boost.

• Don't be afraid to negotiate. In a study of master's degree graduates from her university, Carnegie Mellon economics professor Linda Babcock found that those who negotiated their first salary boosted their pay by 7.4% compared with those who didn't bargain.

• Get your ducks in a row and your numbers on paper. If possible, quantify how much your efforts add to the company's bottom line. If that's not feasible, spotlight your value with comparable salaries for workers in your position from a Web site, such as Salary.com, or from a professional association.

Talk back: Do you hope to be a millionaire?

• Plot your strategy when it's time to move on. Create a professional-looking page on MySpace that tells prospective employers why you're an exceptional candidate, recommends John Challenger of the outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. And don't neglect more conventional networking: Join a professional association or show up at school reunions toting business cards.

Milk your benefits

• Contribute as much as you can to your 401(k) and other tax-deferred retirement plans. You'll not only build a bigger nest egg, but you'll also cut your tax bill. In the 25% federal tax bracket, every $1,000 you contribute to a 401(k) trims your taxes by $250. And you'll save on state income taxes, too.

• Flex your tax-saving muscle. Contribute pretax dollars to a flexible spending account to pay for dependent care or out-of-pocket medical expenses. If you set aside $1,500 per year and you're in the 25% bracket, avoiding federal income and Social Security taxes means Uncle Sam will subsidize almost $500 of your expenses.

• Review your tax withholding. If you're expecting a refund this spring, you're having too much tax withheld from your paycheck -- and making an interest-free loan to Uncle Sam. That's no way to become a millionaire. Put more money in your pocket by using Kiplinger's withholding calculator and then filling out a new Form W-4.

• Stash savings in a Roth IRA if you're eligible. Withdrawals in retirement, including decades of compounded earnings, will be tax-free. This year, income-eligibility limits for a Roth increase to $114,000 for individuals and $166,000 for married couples.

Invest like crazy

• Don't delay. The quicker you get a jump on putting money aside, the easier it will be to stuff a seven-figure cushion. If you start at age 25, for example, investing $286 per month will get you $1 million by age 65, assuming you earn 8% annually.

• Invest automatically, either through your employer's retirement plan or by setting up a regular deposit to a mutual fund or broker. You'll never miss the money, and you'll avoid two big mistakes: buying too much when stock prices are high and not buying at all when prices fall.

• Watch for fund fees. The more you pay, the tougher it is to earn an above-average return. The typical hedge fund, for example, takes 20% of any gains, a huge hurdle to overcome. A better bet: no-load mutual funds with expense ratios of 1% or less. If you trade individual stocks, watch those commissions.

Keep it simple. Be wary of get-rich-quick schemes or sales pitches for complex investments, such as oil-and-gas partnerships, that trade on the millionaire cachet to lure investors into buying high-fee products they don't understand. Most millionaire households accumulate their wealth over the long term by sticking to a regular investing plan in a balanced portfolio

Interview Bloopers - The Questions (How *not* to answer!)

Barry Shamis of Selecting Winners, Inc. has compiled a list of really bad answers to interview questions. Here they are:

• Q. Why should I hire you? A. Because they say you should always hire people who are better than you.
  


• Q. Why do you want this job? A. So I can have a front for my more lucrative activities.
  


• Q. What do you remember about your life as a child? A. The courts promised to suppress all that after I turned 18. Why do you want to know?
  


• Q. Who do you admire most in history? A. The Three Stooges. Q. Why? A. Because when someone asked them a stupid question, they smacked the idiot in the face.
  


• Q. What five or six adjectives best describe you? A. Really, really, really, really, really cool.
  


• Q. What can you tell me about your creative ability? A. I think my answers to most of your questions are pretty good indicators.
  


• Q. Tell me about you as a team player? A. Teamwork is OK, as long as other people don't get in the way.
  


• Q. Are you willing to take a drug test as part of your employment? A. Sure. What kind of drugs do I get to test?
  


• Q. Did your grade-point average reflect your work ability? A. Absolutely. Maximum results for minimum effort has always been my goal.
  


• Q. Do you consider yourself to be a smart person? A. No. But I'm the only person in the world with that opinion.
  


• Q. What is your greatest weakness? A. Three-foot putts for par.
  


• Q. How do you handle change? A. I usually put it in a jar in my sock drawer.
  


• Q. Can you supervise people? A. Sure. Tell people what to do, then kick their butts if they don't do it.
  


• Q. Describe your management style. A. Don't do anything you can make someone else do for you.
  


• Q. How do you set an example? A. I never let anyone catch me sleeping in my office.
  


• Q. How would your subordinates describe your management style? A. Who cares.
  


• Q. Who is a “problem person"? A. Anyone who disagrees with me.
  


• Q. Are you a good communicator? A. Huh? Adopted from http://resume.bgolden.com/
  

Ask Mike Your Mortgages Questions: What Are Some First-Time Home Buyers Tips?

If you are looking to make the move from a rented apartment to a home of your own, you are not alone. The convergence of low house prices, still-low interest rates and appealing tax incentives makes 2009 a good time to buy a home for many people. If you are looking to buy, here is what you need to know:

Home prices are low. Home prices dropped at a record annual pace of 18.7 percent this past March (the most recent data available). That means discerning buyers can find real bargains.
Interest rates are still good. While interest rates have risen from their historic lows earlier this year, they still are appealing. In mid-June, rates hovered around 5.70 percent for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage.

Tax credits will help. First-time homebuyers can get money back from tax credits implemented as part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. An $8,000 credit is available to first-time buyers (a category that includes people who have not owned a home for several years) for homes purchased before Dec. 1, 2009. Legislators are considering increasing the credit to $15,000 and expanding it to include other home buyers.

Credit scores matter. While houses are widely available, financing is limited to those with good credit. Credit scores range from 300 to 850, with the median U.S. credit score about 725. A score below 680 usually results in a higher interest rate or denial of credit. Check your credit score before you make any home buying decisions. If your score is lagging, wait a few months and work to improve the score by paying every bill on time, paying down as much debt as possible and disputing any erroneous information on your report. Note that it can pay to do your homework researching mortgage rates and lenders -- credit scores do not decline if multiple similar credit report requests are submitted within a close time period (usually a few weeks).
Do not stretch too far. Standard guidelines call for keeping housing expenses below 35 percent of total income. Breathing room in your budget will help you keep your home even if something unplanned does occur. If you are uncertain, wait to buy.

Know the real costs of buying. The principal and interest on a mortgage payment are only the beginning of home-related costs. Escrow payments - the funds withdrawn to cover home insurance and taxes - and PMI can add a few hundred dollars per month to a mortgage payment. In addition, home owners must pay for repairs and maintenance. A rule of thumb is to budget 1 percent of the home's purchase price per year for upkeep.

Know whether you can pay off early. If the mortgage has a prepayment penalty, borrowers face hefty charges if they pay it off early. This provision also can apply to future refinancing, so be forewarned. Review Truth in Lending disclosures to find out.

Buyer beware. Some of the lowest prices on homes today are "fixer-uppers" or homes sold "as is" because of foreclosure. Invest in a home inspection (typically costing under $400) before agreeing to purchase any home. The inspection will inform you of any faults in the home and help you determine the approximate cost to remedy those problems.

For many Americans, the time is right to take advantage of today's excellent home buying opportunities. If you are among them, shop carefully and enjoy the journey to home ownership. Adopted from www.wthr.com/