Life has been crazy. I am sure many of you can agree. I just noticed that my youngest son has 2 more month of school and then he is out for the summer. Next thing I know he will be off to college (getting a bit ahead of myself, but still). This weekend we decided to go out on Saturday and enjoy the weather and capture the life that was coming out all around us. Here is what we found.
James Playing
Anole Enjoying the Sun
Blooming Flowers
Sap on a Dying Tree
The idea of Live a Little was started by a friend, Katja from Skimbaco. A group of us are posting various posts on Monday’s sharing the theme “Live A Little” and hope you will join us in doing so. Life is just too short.
I am so happy that I am married and that I do not have to deal with the dating nightmare scene anymore. When I divorced my first husband (one of the smartest things I have ever done) almost thirteen years ago the digital world was in it’s infancy. In 1997 online dating was as taboo as you could get. Dating sites online were just starting to emerge and it wasn’t until a year later that Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan gave a tad bit of validity to the phenomenon with the release of You’ve Got Mail.
I have to admit that I did dabble a bit with online dating, but it wasn’t through one of the dating sites, it was through something called mIRC where I ran a trivia channel named #1WorldmIRC. The criticisms I got from my friends and family were abundant and to this day my husband still makes fun of me about the relationship. There were tons of people who were regulars to my chat channel that “hooked up” and some even got married. We were from all over the world and we all had one geeky thing in common, computers and useless information (thus it was a trivia channel). One woman who lived in Amsterdam met one of the men and they started dating in Manchester.
Today the world of online dating has grown so much it is almost the norm. According to Wikipedia “the United States generated $957 million in revenue in 2008 from online dating services.” That is incredible.
I am really curious if any of you have tried online dating and if so,
do you have any advice you can offer to anyone who might be looking for that special someone?
When I was young I lived in a lot of places. I was born in Schenectady, NY and up until the age of 8 I lived in Albany, NY. I have tons of memories being raised in the city. I remember walking to school as young as 5 years old (uphill both ways, barefoot, in the rain). I remember playing outside until the street lights came on. I remember having a ton of neighborhood friends to play with and never running out of things to do. When I was young “life” was different than it is nowadays. Adults didn’t freak out like they do today. I loved being little.
I look at this picture and I can actually remember the day it was taken. Living in the city back in the early 70s the only chance I got to see a horse was when the traveling photographer came around to the neighborhood with their pony. The illusion that I’m a “regular” at riding is easily disproved with the lack of horse riding equipment. Heck, I didn’t even have on shoes let alone chaps. Little did I know that my life would be turned around when in 1976 our family was uprooted from the city and moved into the Foothills of Upstate NY…the country.
When we moved to the country it was a dramatic change…dramatic! There were many years when we didn’t even own a television. It wasn’t because we couldn’t afford it, but living that far in the country there was no TV reception anyway. Instead of playing with neighborhood kids I had to learn to use my imagination and play with fallen leaves and snow. I remember one of my favorite things to do when I was young was to play at Alligator Island, a make believe oasis I had created far back into the woods near a small creek. I played there for hours.
Riding horses became a reality, not a orchestrated photo opportunity like when I was living in the city. Families actually owned cows and horses and occasionally I was lucky enough to be invited over to go horseback riding. I learned to ride both bareback and English style and found that I preferred riding bareback because it felt so much more natural. I don’t think I would have ever been London 2012 Olympic dressage material, but I think I was pretty good rider.
Do you have any childhood memories that stand out for you?
This is a featured post by Equestrianclearance.com.
Share your tea time must haves for a chance to win a year’s supply of Lipton Tea, a tea kettle, a tea box, a mug/saucer set, a travel tumbler and a $50 gift card to Amazon.com! In addition three random comments will be chosen from my post to win their own box of Lipton Green Tea Superfruit.
For Valentine’s Day I thought I would share one of my new finds, the new Lipton Green Tea Superfruit! This isn’t your normal Green Tea by any means, the Lipton Green Tea Superfruit is not at all bitter. The natural sweeteners of the Superfruits like White Mangosteen and Peach, Purple Acai and Blueberry, and Red Goji and Raspberry take out the bitterness normally found in a lot of Green Tea.
My favorite of the teas served hot was the Purple Acai and Blueberry paired with an Oreo Truffle. The perfect iced tea blend for me was the White Mangosteen and Peach (directions for both Hot and Cold tea are on the box).
Oreo Truffles Recipe
1 lb Oreo cookies (3 sleeves)
8 oz cream cheese (room temperature)
½ t vanilla extract
1 lb milk chocolate (we use bark)
½ lb white chocolate (we use bark)
Grind cookies into a fine powder using a food processor. Blend the cookie powder, cream cheese and vanilla extract with mixer until thoroughly mixed making sure no cream cheese is visible.
Form mixture into small balls by rolling and place on cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate for 45 minutes.
Line two additional cookie sheets with wax paper. Melt milk chocolate in a double-boiler. Once chocolate is melted dip cooled balls into mixture coating well. With a slotted spoon lift coated balls out of chocolate and let excess chocolate drip off. Place on wax-paper-lined cookie sheet.
Melt white chocolate in a separate double boiler. Using a fork or small spoon, drizzle white chocolate over coated balls.
Refrigerate until cooled and store in airtight container, in refrigerator.
Now that I have shared what I would pair with these refreshing Lipton Green Tea Superfruits, I want to know, how do you enjoy your tea?
Share your tea time must haves for a chance to win a year’s supply of Lipton Tea, a tea kettle, a tea box, a mug/saucer set, a travel tumbler and a $50 gift card to Amazon.com! In addition three random comments will be chosen from my post to win their own box of Lipton Green Tea Superfruit.
I’m serious. My oldest son went to open a bank account when he turned 18 this year and they told him that someone else is using his social security number. Come to find out not only has he (or she) been using my son’s social security number he has set up credit all over the place. It isn’t good credit either, apparently this mystery person has a ton of unpaid bills including utilities.
The part that makes me particularly angry is that we don’t know who this person is because NO ONE will tell us! I contacted the various credit agencies and they need us to verify information under the account, but all the information on the account is the thief’s information (not my sons) so we couldn’t find out whats on his credit we only knew it was bad. We tried the FTC and they were little to no help and the Social Security office wouldn’t help us unless we came in person. It’s a nightmare trying to recuperate from child identity theft! We still haven’t cleared it up and we aren’t sure we will ever be able to at this point.
I’m really not sure how they got my son’s social security number. He didn’t even know his number until he turned 18 and the only places I ever shared it with were his doctors (which I will NEVER do again), government agencies that required it (IRS), and his father. I do know that many companies are not as careful as they should be when it comes to handling SSNs and many times we take it for granted as well when disposing of papers with our SSNs. Below are a couple other places people get SSNs from:
Scams where thieves pose as a business or bank official on the phone and ask for your credit card information.
Old-fashioned pickpocketing, where thieves steal your credit cards and either use them or sell them to other criminals.
Card readers installed by thieves at everyday locations, such as cash machines and supermarket checkout lanes, to steal your information.
Data breaches where your information is accidentally exposed by companies you should be able to trust. (ITAC®, the Identity Theft Assistance Center, recorded 662 breaches last year.)
As part of a ambassadorship I am testing out Identity Guard/KidSure products and services. I have enrolled in the KidSure child identity protection service to ensure that what happened to my oldest son will NOT happen to my youngest son. Through this service I get:
Ongoing visibility into potential exposure of your child’s personal data
A comprehensive “Digital Footprint” report showing detected data
Alerts to certain kinds of activity detected
I love that I get email alerts when there is any activity on my son’s account. I was very impressed with their security as well because I had to verify all my information as the adult parent of the child. I can’t wait to learn more about the company over the next few months and share what I learn with you!
Do you know anyone who has had their identity stolen?
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and unfortunately this year I have a few friends who either got divorced or have separated from their spouse. Dating for parents can be particularly hard, especially if their children are young. Many people are turning to online dating and local agencies that sponsor speed dating events. Fortunately there are far more resources today than there ever were thanks to the internet.
Dating 101
When I divorced my first husband I went years before I ever dated. Although there were a small handful of online dating sites it was still pretty taboo to meet men online. It is a much more acceptable thing today, however if you are worried about safety here are a few tips that might help for your first date:
1. Never let him pick you up at your home. Giving out your home address to a stranger is not a good idea. Meet him in a public place.
2. Never plan a long first date. The general rule of thumb is to keep the date under an hour. Meet for coffee or glass of wine. There is nothing worse than being stuck with someone that isn’t a good fit for hours over dinner.
3. Always leave yourself an exit. Prior to the date let him know you have another obligation in an hour – maybe the sitter needs to leave early or you have a hair appointment. Whatever it is be firm when it comes time to leaving, even if you are enjoying yourself. Leave him wanting more…
4. Watch what you say. Try to resist talking about your ex, children (at least too much info), and sex.
5. Trust your gut. If you are uncomfortable at any time during your date do not be afraid to leave.
This is a featured post for Dating Agency and Just Singles Parents.
I won. I did it. I’m shocked. I am officially 220.4 lbs this morning at weigh-in. My goal was to lose 6 lbs. in two weeks while doing the Special K Challenge and I met my goal. Why am I surprised? Because I just had surgery and I am still healing which means I get very little exercise right now. Honestly, the meal plan was relatively easy to follow and it involved a lot of my favorite foods. The healthy recipes shared on the site not only looked delicious, but tasted really good too.
As I stated when I started the challenge I was hoping to gain the confidence to maintain a healthier lifestyle that would encourage weight loss and it has worked. Although I used the Special K Challenge as a 2-week catalyst I am sure I will revert back to it as needed and use the tips and tricks found on the site. The tools are valuable and I don’t want to become one of those statistics that lose their motivation.
The Special K Plans
The Special K plans are also customizable to women’s lifestyles. There are on-the-go options for busy lifestyles and adventurous recipes for “foodies,” plus vegetarian recipes. After selecting their meal plan and activity level, women are given a personalized Special K plan that is unique to their needs and goals. Women can easily track their progress online via their mobile device.
So, what does the future hold for me? I have set a new goal weight of 200 lbs by Spring 2012. I haven’t totally figured out the plan yet, but it is probably going to be finalized next week so stay tuned!
Facts
The Special K survey also found that 75 percent of women said they aim to gain confidence by managing their weight in the New Year. At the same time, more than 63 percent of women find that personalized meal plans or tracking tools make weight loss programs easier to follow. In addition, 64 percent find a lack of support the reason for getting off track from a weight loss plan.
Disclosure: I participated in this program through a partnership with TheMotherhood on behalf of Special K. I received product and supplies to complete the plan. All opinions and statements are based on my own opinion and experience. (Consult your physician before starting any diet or exercise program. Average weight loss when replacing meals with two cereal meals is 4.8 pounds. Weight loss may vary. Average waist circumference reduction when replacing meals with two cereal meals is 1.3 inches.)
