Mom & Dad & Arizona Retirement Communities

From the time of our birth until we leave our childhood home most of us are taken care of and looked after by our parents.   When I grew up my mother was there when I left for school in the morning and there when I returned home from school.  Clean clothes were always in my drawers each morning as I would try to decide  what to wear.   Meals were always prepared and on the table when it was time to eat.  Being a child I never really wondered how all these things go done or just how much work it was to make sure everything was in order.   Luckily I had a mother that taught me how to work as I always had chores to do around the house.    

                Not until I left my childhood home and started a family of my own did I realize just how much work my mother did in keeping a clean house and meals prepared for the family.    As my own little family grew I found that I was visiting my parents less and less.   I tried to go as much as I could but that wasn't always easy.   It seemed each time I visited I would notice that my parents would be sitting in their living room just watching television.  A lot of their friends had either passed away or had moved away to be with their children.

                When dad stopped working in his garden I knew that I needed to look at their living situation more carefully.  As my home was not large having them come live with me was not an option.  They were by no means ready to be put out to pasture (as my grandmother used to say)  but they were ready for something more, something different in their lives.  The house was getting to be too big for my mother to take care of and things were starting to be neglected both inside and outside of their home.

                That is where I found some great Arizona Retirement Communities.   The cold weather had begun to affect my mother’s facial injuries that she had received years before and it was apparent that the pain was increasing.  Thus the warm weather of Arizona was the answer.    It was time for a new adventure in their lives.  A time to be able to meet new people.  A time in their life to not have to worry about taking care of a house or a yard.

Retirement was supposed to be a time in one’s life where they should be enjoying all the things they loved to do.  It was time to enjoy the activities that interested them or a time to discover new and exciting challenges.   So I took my parents to visit.  This was an affordable solution for helping my parent s find peace and relaxation as well as many challenging activities for them to be involved in.

Upon one visit they commented to me why I hadn't found them this place earlier.  Never did I ever think I would hear that statement coming from my father.  If you find yourself in this situation you should defiantly check out this retirement community at http://glencroft.com/ and give your parents an active community and housing they deserve without all the stress and worries of them living on their own.

Her First Christening Gown

There is so much excitement when a baby is born.  Before a child comes the new parents plan out just what the child will need.   If this is their first child then the things they will be looking for will include things like a crib, a dresser, a rocker and lots and lots of diapers.   The day comes when everything is moved out of the extra room so it can be painted.   Now days the trend is to find out what the gender of the baby is.  The color of paint will probably be in either pink for a girl or blue for a boy.  When a theme is chosen for the baby’s room decorations will include things at go along with that theme.   Friends and relatives will be invited to a shower for the baby and if the gender is known  the gifts for the baby will be according to that gender.  It seems everyone wants to give the cutest and latest trend of clothing styles to the forthcoming baby.  

Sometimes you will see relatives going in together to get a gift card that can be used to purchase a stroller or swing for the baby.  I once went to a baby shower where the new mother had gotten a gift card and she expressed how grateful she was for it as she was going to apply it to getting the $800 dollar stroller she had seen online.  $800 I about passed out.  That was about $700 more than I had paid to get everything I needed for my first baby.  

I have to tell you I am a grandmother. So some of the things they younger generation is doing to prepare for a baby are totally foreign to my nature.  I also like to see new babies in cute comfortable clothing.  When the time came for me to be getting my first grandchild I wanted to continue the tradition my mother had with my children.  This tradition was to be the one to find and purchase the Christening Gowns.   It was so exciting to see all the styles of gowns available.  When I was having children it seemed like there was not very many gowns to choose from.  As it turned out my mother ended up making some of the gowns.  I myself have chosen to buy the blessing outfit as I have seen some blessing gowns that are truly amazing.  I thought the stroller was an extravagant price…I had no idea just how extensive prices for Christening Gowns could be.    My daughter and I got online to check out what was available.  We found a place that had some beautiful dresses.  They also had all the accessories that would be needed to complete the blessing outfit.  The price for these beautiful gowns was something that was truly within my budget.               

If you are a grandmother like me and want to start a great tradition of being the one to give the Christening Outfit you will want to check out this site: www.dressedinwhite.com/index.php/infants/girls.html.   I also have to say that on the blessing day my granddaughter was happy and comfortable and looked so beautiful in the gown.

Finding help with San Luis Obispo Insurance

               When I was a teenager there were very few things I would worry about.   Oh I had the typical things like school, dating, being popular, getting dates and being able to drive.    Something’s I didn't have to worry about were things like house insurance or health insurance.   I did however have to worry about car insurance.   As our family was not one of the rich families in our town I had to help pay the car insurance.  Being a teenager the very fact of being a “new” driver could have caused our family’s car insurance to go up.  My dad was smart enough to find a great insurance company at San Luis Obispo Insurance.    I soon realized that I would have to be working harder at keeping my grades up so we could get the discount on car insurance they offered to teens with good grades.   I was just ok in school so I really had to set my mind to coming home and getting right on my homework.   Also to pay for the insurance I had to have a job.

  Now I live in a really small community and so the opportunities for a teenager to have a job were not very good.  I had a friend that’s family owned the local pizza parlor.  It was her friendship to me that I got a job there.  I was able to make enough to pay for my insurance and have some left over to spend on teenage activities.    I thought I was so grown up being able to pay for things.  Little did I know how much more responsibility I would have for money issues in the coming years.

                When I got married I realized that the small portion of car insurance I had been paying for was just a tiny bit of obligations that adults have.   I am very grateful to my parents for teaching me the learning process of responsibility.   Now I have a house and two cars to get insure.   My sweet husband did not want to work for someone else all the rest of his life and so he started his own vinyl letting company. 

                Add that to the other obligations of running a household and it at times can get overwhelming.   I found myself returning to ask my parents questions because taught me to be responsible and had some good ways of doing things. One thing I needed to know was how you keep track of all the things that need to be paid for each month.  My dad told me that insurance for things was one of the most important things to do as you never know when some disaster may come into your life.  To have good insurance with a company that can bundle all your coverage’s together is an easy thing to do.  I just had to follow his suggestion and go with the company at  http://www.petersongranthamslo.com/.

This is one of the things that is making my life less stressful knowing that I have good coverage for my home, my car, and a great health policy with my husband’s business. 

Found the best Veterinarian Cincinnati has

           There is nothing worse than to hear the squealing of brakes and the thump and then the cry of a wounded animal.  This sound tends to stop your heart especially when you are the owner of any kind of animal.   The day that this happened to me I would say was one of the hardest days emotionally that I had ever had.   I have the most beautiful white cat with the bluest of eyes that we named “Casper”.  Casper has become so much a part of our family that he thinks that he is totally human.   Have you ever heard the phrase “dogs drool and cats rule”.  Well I can tell you being a total cat lover this would be the truth in our home.   Casper had all the routine things done when he was little such as neutering and de-clawing and of course his shots.    He is an outside-inside cat.  He loves to be outside to explore and usually does not go anywhere but the front yard.  So when he is outside I know when I open the door he will usually be right there ready to come inside.

             Casper has really become attached to me and when I say attached I mean “attached”.  No matter what part of the house I am in he is there.  He will follow me from room to room and either sits on my lap or curls up at my feet.   I love having a cat that is so friendly and cuddly but sometimes I have to race into a room and shut the door before he comes in to have any privacy.   I have never had to go see a vet except for wellness exams and vaccine shots.

           That dreadful day all those “accident” sounds came floating in through my window sent my blood pressures skyrocketing.   I could not get the front door open fast enough to get outside.  There in the street was my beautiful Casper trying desperately to get up and walk.   The driver of the car that hit him was too running over to see exactly how injured he was.   As I knelt down to see how bad the situation was I could see that it was just an injury to his leg.  I could tell that it was broken so I carefully lifted him up into my arms.  My husband was there at my side and together we took Casper to the Veterinarian Cincinnati where Casper had been treated all his life.   When we arrived at the animal hospital they took Casper right into the back room.   The girl at the front desk was so nice as she filled out the paperwork.  I don’t know how she knew what I was saying as my speech came out garbled with emotion.   Just a short time later we took Casper home leg braced and all.    

          If you live in this area I would recommend this hospital for any major trauma to a pet and for any medical care that you precious family pet needs.  You can find them at www.beechmontpethospital.com/services.html.

Choosing the best Optometrist Roseville for my eye exams

             I have raised eight children but I do not remember taking all of them combined to any doctor as much as I have taken my parents.   We were the kind of family that would just get the over the counter things to treat any illness or injury that came along.     I do have to admit we were in the emergency room three times.   I know that doesn't seem normal as I used to volunteer in the ER and saw how many people come back to the ER again and again.  We had the normal checkups for school and sports but that was about all.   I soon found out that when a person gets older their body truly does begin to wear out.   It was not that I ever did not want to take my parents to any doctor but that I was just more aware of how many times and how many hours were spent in the waiting rooms of doctors.   I must say I did get a lot of reading accomplished with all the waiting room hours.  But the best hours were spent in just talking to my parents about people and events in their lives. 

 One time my mother had to go to get her eyes examined.  I thought it would be just a routine checkup and possibly some new glasses.   When my mother didn't come right out and the doctor came out to get me I did then suspect that something more than the normal things in an exam was discovered.    As it turned out the doctor did see something more going on with her eyes.   The OptometristRoseville found that my mother had the beginnings of Glaucoma.   As I told you there were precious times I had been able to just sit and talk to my mother and remembered her telling me things about her mother.   I remember my grandmother being diagnosed “legally blind” but I did not really know if it was just from her age, as my grandmother lived to be 96, or if it was caused by something going wrong with her eyes.   As it turns out the loss of my grandmothers sight had been from advanced glaucoma.   As she was a proud woman and in her time there was not the technology or information of how to catch this early it was too advanced to cure.   My grandmother never wore glasses and so I am not really sure she had the yearly eye exams she needed either.   

As my mother’s problem was caught early by the optometrist he was able to treat and take good care of my mother’s eyes with medication.   My dad was so good at keeping track of all the things that needed to be done each and every day with the two of them.   I remember picking up a notebook at their house with entries each day of what was taken or done for that day.

You can be sure that now I have a yearly eye exam.  If you want my recommendation for a great optometrist you should check the doctor at http://www.wellnessandeyes.com/.

Life is easier with a printable grocery list maker

                   Where is a pen I yelled.   How many times have you heard yourself asking that question? And then where is a piece of paper to write on?  You start turning over all the many things on your table or desk to find just a scrap of paper.   As it becomes an un-daunting task you just give up thinking you will remember  what you were going to write down when you get to the store.    You go to the store get the things you thought you needed and return home.   Dinner time comes and the one thing you needed for that new recipe is the item you were going to write down but couldn't find something to write with or write on.   Or then there is the time you find a pen but the only thing there is to write on is an envelope that is only junk mail so you turn it over and you start making your list.

                    The time comes to go to the store and you go to the table to find your list.  Wouldn't you know it someone for once has thought to clean off the table and your junk mail envelope is gone.   You don’t have time to remake the shopping list so you either just jot down what you think you wrote on the first list or you hurry out the door to the store hoping you will remember what exactly was on your list.   If you ever would have peeked in my kitchen window you probably would have seen a scenario like this.   My children are always asking me what I want or what they can get me for either Mother’s Day or my birthday.  Granted I am no the easiest person to buy for.  This is because I am at a stage in my life where money is not as tight as it was when I was raising children. When I see something I want or something that interests me I usually buy it.  So when one of my children gave me a Printable Grocery List generator I was curious.   How was it that I had not seen this before? 

                 It was easy and ready to use right out of the box.   I could hang it on the wall or on my fridge.   All I had to do was push the button and record what it was I needed to get.   No more tearing my house apart just to find a writing instrument or scrounging the junk mail for something to write on.   When it came time to go to the store I would simply go over to the list maker, push and print a grocery list.  Easy as pie the list would be printed for me.  I would just take that list and go shopping.   What if there was something I wanted but the word was not in the list maker?   Well it has 2500 grocery items capability so I have yet to find any word it didn’t have.  It also has the advantage to add custom items.  My life is so much less stressful when shopping. 

If you are looking to distress the shopping part of your life you should really check one of these out at http://www.smartshopperusa.com/.

Finding the Perfect Temple Dress

When I first got married like all girls from the time we are little the thought of a big beautiful wedding was all we dreamed about.   Mine would be the best one anyone had ever been too.  I remember as a little girl begging my mother to take me with her when she would attend wedding receptions.  My dad was not very social so he was all too willing to let me go.   I remember sitting at the table looking around taking everything in.   I knew from the very first reception exactly what colors and style of dresses my bridesmaids would be wearing.   Little did I know that styles were an ever changing fact.   I would take the mint or candy swirl that they served and keep them for the longest time believing they would stay perfect for ever.   Usually my sweet tooth would get the better of me and I would end up eating it. 

 But the thing I remember above all else from each wedding reception I attended was just how beautiful each bride was.   How could the brides just keep getting more and more amazing?   I grew up in a small city and a time where it was the only thing a girl could do was wear white.    Did I want a dress with a big hoop that stood out like a merry go round.  This was the style of dress my older sister wore and she was the most beautiful bride I had ever seen.    When my sister got married I couldn't figure out why she had 2 wedding dresses.   One dress was not as ornate as the other one and my mother told me that was her Temple Dress.   The other dress with the hoop and slips was for the reception.  Oh how I loved to crawl under all those beautiful white starched slips.  Much to the  frustration of my mother and sister as I am sure my mother had spent many long hours starching the slips to make they stand out so far.

                As my sister was many years older than I was it was a while before it was my turn to be married.   And yes styles had changed.  Gone were the slips and hoops.  But not my dream of wearing the most beautiful dress I could find.   I also would be getting a chance to have two dresses.   A dress for my ceremony and a dress for the reception.  They were equally as beautiful and equally as important to me for the most important day of my life.   My Temple Dress however would be one I would be using over and over so as I carefully chose this dress I was sure to make it the most comfortable one I could find but also easy to take care of.  The dress I chose is so pretty it lets me feel like a princess every time I wear it.  If you are looking for a white dress you should check out the ones I found at www.dressedinwhite.com/