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How to Let Kids Be Kids
By Judith Newman
... There's a good chance that your child is, right now, making his own Harry Potter broomstick out of a stick he found in the backyard ... and he might prefer it to the pricey vibrating plastic version you were thinking of buying him. Childhood experts and those who have studied the stressed-out are weighing in on the ways we can help our children reclaim simpler pleasures.
read more...
TheOnlineMom.com offers parents and consumers a guide to the top-rated, age-appropriate, kid-tested and parent-approved tech toys and gifts.
read more...
Teach Your Kid Confidence - from Birth
By Cynthia Ramnarace
Even Babies Can Be Confident. What can you do when your child is an infant to help him develop the confidence to "try, try again"?
Create a predictable routine. When your baby knows that after having his bath he'll be fed and then go to bed, he doesn't have to worry about what's going to happen next. Instead, his mind is free to focus on mastering new skills, such as how to get his belly up off the floor so he can crawl.
read more...
Single Mom Dating Tips
Ms. Single Mama advises on How to meet men as a single mom and date them, The good stuff: falling in love as a single mom, The not-so-good stuff: breaking up as a single mom.
read more...
Cutting Grocery Costs without Cutting Nutrition
Simple, healthy, and affordable ways to weather the rising price of food
Karen Collins, R.D., American Institute of Cancer Research
Grocery prices are projected to increase again in 2008 – that’s following 2007’s highest annual increase in 17 years. But surviving these tough economic times doesn’t have to mean sacrificing good nutrition. Some simple strategies can help you cut food costs and eat more healthfully, too.
read more...
Got a Cute Baby Pic? Free Entry! New $2500 Winner Every Month
91 Ways to Save on Almost Anything
Here's how to stretch your dollars -- and pinch your pennies 'til they scream -- while you feel little or no pain.
by Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine
Want to save a buck? How about a few hundred or a couple thousand?
We took a look at eight spending categories in your budget and identified dozens of ways you can keep more money. Whether you need to plug leaks in your spending, learn where to find the best deals or even trick yourself into shaving expenses, we've got something for everyone.
read more...
10 Tips for Improving Your Family's Eating Habits
With today’s busy lifestyles, families don’t always eat as healthfully as we would like. But by practicing healthy eating habits at home, you can make it easier for your family to eat right. Try these 10 tips designed to encourage healthy eating habits:
read more...
How to deal with economic stress
Stressed about the economy? You certainly aren’t alone. According to a recent survey from the American Psychological Association, 74% of Americans say work or money cause them stress and anxiety.
The thing is, stress has a huge impact on your body. It can cause headaches, impair your immune system, disrupt your digestive system and can even affect heart function.
Here are some stress-busters you can start today to help curb your symptoms.
read more...
Paula Abdul Thinks Four 'Idol' Judges is a Mistake. Does This Mean She's On Her Way Out?
Remember when word of American Idol adding a fourth judge first went out? The first things we were thinking that Kara DioGuardi was, ultimately, out to replace Paula Abdul. At the end of the seventh season, Paula wasn't exactly in tip top shape, to say the least. Plus, there's the fact that Kara was introduced in a pretty sneaky manner—in the middle of the auditions...
read more...
Kris Allen takes the 'American Idol' title
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Kris Allen's smooth vocals and boy-next-door image propelled him to "American Idol" victory Wednesday, turning the theatrical powerhouse Adam Lambert into the most unlikely of also-rans...
read more...
Basic Legal Recommendations for Women
by Michele Howe
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According to Toledo attorney, Stephen Pennington, there are some fundamental legal concerns that every woman should understand, plan, and prepare for in order to best protect her financial assets in lieu of a possible divorce, death of a spouse, or for simple common sense financial survival.
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Lunchables
Reading nightly with your kids is crucial and fun. But did you know that more than a third of U.S. fourth graders are reading at or below a basic reading level?
read more...
What is your credit score? Click here
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ONLY AT SINGLEMOM.COM™
 Enter the drawing for a chance to win one of this month's DVD giveaways. Specify your choice of DVD from those listed. Winners will be chosen at random.
So enter today! The deadline to enter is July 31, 2009.
See This Month’s Giveaway...
Listing of Top Online Schools
Motherhood Brings Meaning, But Maybe Not How You Thought It Would
by Laura Fortgang, author of The Little Book on Meaning
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It's long been assumed that motherhood brings meaning to our lives. We guide, love, nurture and support our offspring and sometimes feel appreciated in return -- all elements that can fuel our connectedness and satisfaction in the world. It's easy to find meaningful moments as a mom, but it's when things are tough that it seems we don't know how to interpret what meaning is. What if the greatest reward and meaning of being a mother is the growth our children force us to do?
read more...
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FTC Cracks Down on Scammers Trying to Take Advantage of Economic Downturn
Learn of fraudulent business opportunities, and other scams...
The Federal Trade Commission announced a law enforcement crackdown on scammers trying to take advantage of the economic downturn to bilk vulnerable consumers through a variety of schemes, such as promising non-existent jobs; promoting overhyped get-rich-quick plans, bogus government grants, and phony debt-reduction services; or putting unauthorized charges on consumers’ credit or debit cards.
read more...
Uncommon Sense - How a single mom makes it on $31K
by MP Dunleavey
Tricia has 3 kids, 2 mortgages, 1 car payment and a salary of about $31,000. While it's not easy, she's doing OK, thanks. Here are 15 lessons she learned the hard way.
While I admire the folks who were born smart about money, my true heroes are the ones who had to struggle to find that precious commodity I call financial sanity.
Take Tricia, a single mom who lives in Pennsylvania. She supports herself, three kids, two mortgages, one car payment and a couple of student loans -- while still paying off her credit card debt -- all on about $31,000 a year.
read more...
Health insurance costs may be on the rise... But you can't afford to go without it! Request a free quote for your family and loved ones, and protect them today with health insurance.
10 Steps to Smarter Food Shopping
In an enticing palace of eating designed to lead you astray, here's how to stay on track
You came, you saw, you shopped. But then you got home from the supermarket and started unloading fatty snack items and deli meats. What went wrong? You fell back into the habit of shopping like an average American rather than a person with a dietary purpose. In an enticing palace of eating designed to lead you astray, here's how to stay on track.
Make a list: Before you shop, write down what you need -- to reduce the chances of buying what you don't.
Limit your trips: Make your shopping list long so you have to make only one or two trips to the store per week. Besides being more efficient, this provides less opportunity to make impulse purchases.
Avoid shopping on an empty stomach: When you're hungry, you're more likely to grab high-fat snacks and desserts.
...Learn how to pay attention to portions, ignore the pictures, keep your eye on the cashier, follow the walls, and other good advice.
read more...
Don't Pay These New Hidden Fees
Watch out for these sneaky ways that you are nickel-and-dimed
By Max Alexander
Felonious Fees -
Once, when I was kid, I paid $3, a week's worth of lawn mowing, to see the Alligator Lady at the county fair. "Half reptile and half woman!" the promoter barked. I was hooked. When I got inside, all I could see was her silhouette. "Whaddaya think, electricity is free?" demanded the carny. I coughed up the 50-cent electrical surcharge, the lights came on -- and the Alligator Lady was revealed to be a woman in a bathing suit with a bad case of eczema. How could I be such a sucker?
These days, fees no longer surprise us, and companies know that. In fact, many businesses are raising fees. Consumers have not revolted, so companies are getting bolder...
read more...
Your 7 biggest financial decisions -
How you manage a handful of major life choices can make or break your financial future
By Richard Jenkins
A lot of people spend a whole lot of time worrying about the small stuff: a little extra yield on their savings, a few dollars less in mortgage payments, slightly higher returns, slightly lower commissions.
... In fact, if you spend all your time focusing on fractions of a point, you may lose sight of the big picture.
The blunt truth is that if you make the right choices early in life on a handful of major decisions, you'll never have to worry about financial security.
read more...
Health plans don't have to cost an arm and a leg. Find the affordable health plan that's right for your family - request a free quote today!
Going It Alone: Meeting the Challenges of Being a Single Mom
By Michele Howe
When the reality of separation, divorce, or widowhood sinks in, encountering life as a single mother can be an overwhelming experience. Share in the stories of other single moms who have faced past hurts, dealt with present fears, and built a future of promise, while they contended with life's everyday pressures. Through the pages of this practical book, Michele Howe offers sensitive, compassionate advice for women who are confronting the challenge of being a single mom. Be encouraged; with God's help, hope and healing are not only possible, but promised.
Topics include: Helping children cope, Strengthening family identity, Raising a masculine son in a house of females, Caring for children with special needs, Creating balance in every area of life, despite burdensome and exhausting situations, Returning to the workforce.
The Blame Game
by Judith O’Reilly, Author of Wife in the North
As a parent, you accept from the start that it is all your fault. Every last
inhibition, weakness and thing that goes wrong in your child's life is down to
you -- however old they are. If they get bullied, bully, pick the wrong course
at university or marry the wrong girl, it is all because you did it wrong. As a
parent -- deep-down, you know you suck. You know it is not the kid's fault
(however old the kid is) -- you made a hash of it.
You drank a glass of wine when you were pregnant which is why your nine-year-old
has ADHD. You had a caesarian which is why he has "trust issues" with women. You
threw him out of the house when he was 21, papered over the steam-trains to turn
his bedroom into your craft room and he never got over it. You did not throw him
out of the house and he is still there at 28 and counting. You smacked him; he
grew up to have a problem with authority figures and cannot hold down a job. You
did not smack him; he grew up to be a bastard. You let him have a small watered
down glass of wine with Sunday dinner and he became an alcoholic at college. You
did not let him touch alcohol at home and he became an alcoholic at college.
read more...
Let Careers&Education help universities find you!
Is the recession hitting you hard? Make some extra cash from the comfort of your home. Click here to learn more.
50 ways to trim your budget
You don't have to give up the things you love to save money. You just have to be
willing to look hard. Start with your fixed expenses, then review your
discretionary costs
by Liz Pulliam Weston
Lou knows his family is in a vicious cycle with credit cards. He's just not sure
how to get out...
... But really getting your budget in line may require rethinking just about everything on which you spend money.
Look at the biggies first: The biggest savings often lie in the areas where you spend the most money: housing, transportation, food, insurance, health care and clothing.
Here are some ideas for places to look for savings: read more...
Tuesdays in the Pocketbook: How to Keep Divorce from Devastating Your Family Finances
by DK Simoneau, Author of "We're Having a Tuesday"
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Let’s face it. Getting divorced is a financial blow to any family. It is quite a touchy subject. Even in the best of circumstances there are double the housing expenses because suddenly there are two homes to support. Ah you know, two phone bills, to cable bills, two water bills and so on. When there are kids involved and split-family living becomes the lifestyle of choice for the foreseeable future, finances can get even stickier. If you are on reasonable terms with your ex-spouse there are some ways to avoid common pitfalls of supporting your kids financially. If you are not, there are still limited actions you can take without having to involve the family lawyer, they just may not be as equitable.
read more...
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InsureAutoDepot provides you with multiple FREE auto insurance quotes from leading insurance companies that could save you hundreds!
Outing the Secret of the Injured Self
by Florence Falk
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After two divorces and more than two decades as a psychoanalyst, Falk is an expert on the concept of being a woman alone—a term she prefers because "as a distinct category within women's culture, it formally elevates our presence and status, helps us to achieve visibility and expression, and allows us to redress our marginalized state."
Hyperbole aside, there's no denying that to embrace being a woman alone isn't easy in a society where "bachelors are always eligible," while " 'spinsters,' almost by definition, are ready for the dumpster."
read more...
About Author: Florence Falk, author of On My Own, is a writer and teacher, and has been a psychotherapist in a private practice for more than twenty years.
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Single Parents Need Support
by Bernie Siegel, MD - Author of Love, Magic and Mudpies: Raising Your Kids to Feel Loved, Be Kind, and Make a Difference
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During his many years working with thousands of patients and their families, Dr. Bernie Siegel became an expert on how to turn sometimes trying situations into opportunities for personal growth. In his newest book, this husband of more than 50 years, father of five children, and grandparent of eight, shares the gems garnered from his practice and his own family life to show readers what he's learned about raising kids with love, wisdom, and humor.
read more...
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Miss Match's top 10 first-date do's and don'ts
Today Gets Personal’: Famed matchmaker Samantha Daniels' quick guide to
putting your best foot forward (rather than your foot in your mouth!
by Samantha Daniels
Whew! At last, you’ve landed a date with someone who appears to be a hot
prospect. It could be a set-up by someone you trust or even one arranged by a
matchmaker, such as Samantha Daniels, the divorce attorney-turned-Cupid whose
story has been turned into the NBC series “Miss Match.” This week, as part of
our pre-Valentine “Today Gets Personal” series, Daniels is matching three
singles with potential partners — and we get to hear how things went! Part of
her service includes coaching on how to put your best foot forward on a first
date. Here are her top ten dating dos and don’ts.
read more...
Your 5-Minute Guide to Credit Cards
Up to your ankles, knees or neck in debt? Try these two dozen tips to help get
your finances back on track.
At some point in our lives, most of us have borrowed too much. If you're in over
your head, don't despair. But make no mistake: You must learn to live on what
you earn.
First, stop making excuses about why you're in debt. Don't blame the credit card
companies or your parents. Put that energy into reducing your debt.
read more...
Get your piece of the Bailout! You can be debt free in as little as 12 months.
The New Mom's Survival Guide - How to Reclaim Your Body, Your Health, Your
Sanity, and Your Sex Life After Having a Baby
by Jennifer Wider, M.D.
The New Mom's Survival Guide, Answers These and Many Other Questions: Why can't I lose the extra weight?, I'm just too tired to have sex - and It hurts.
What should I do?, Can I catch croup from my child?
At last your baby has arrived, and you're experiencing all the joys that come
with being a new mom. But you may not have bargained on acne and varicose veins,
not to mention constipation, vaginal pain, mood swings, or perhaps one of the
more serious conditions that pregnancy can trigger. In this compassionate,
comprehensive guide, Dr. Jennifer Wider, a physician as well as the mother of
two small children, delivers up-to-date medical information, candid answers to a
host of questions, and expert advice on a range of postpartum issues...
...From redefining yourself to taking care of yourself while caring for your baby, The New Mom’s Survival Guide offers such a wealth of practical help that new moms will turn to it again and again.
read more...
Wise Answers To Old Wives' Tales
Experts reveal the truth behind the most popular (and persistent) health rumors
stressing you out
by Ben Cramer, Prevention
Does reading in low light really hurt your eyes? How about sitting too close to
the TV? (No, and no.) Why are you better off drinking exactly eight glasses of
water per day? (You're not.) Thanks to quack culture, the Internet, and
well-intentioned but poorly informed relatives, it's become harder than ever to
separate fact from fiction. Whatever its origin, misleading health information
can cause unnecessary anxiety and distract you from wellness habits that truly
deserve your energy and attention. Here's a dissection of six watercooler myths
that will give you all the authority you need to refute your brother's latest
forwarded e-mails.
read more...
The Girl's Guide to Absolutely Everything
by Melissa Kirsch
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And I do mean EVERYTHING. Okay, here it is in simple language- everything you've always wanted to know - from unclogging a toilet to health and body image. This being the new year, we're all trying to make changes in our lives, to improve ourselves, to learn new things, and we need a little boost of inspiration and encouragement along the way.
The Girls Guide to Everything can be your bible to making that life transition. Got a question about almost anything? The book provides quick and easy answers at your finger tips.
read more...
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Single By Chance, Mothers By Choice: How Women Are Choosing Parenthood Without Marriage and Creating the New American Family
Rosanna Hertz, M.A. & Ph.D.
TAKE HOME NANNY
Take Home Nanny follows Nanny Emma Jenner as she brings a fresh new
approach to raising children and maintaining family harmony. Each week, Nanny
Emma will work with a family with out-of-control kids. With only a few days
before an important event in which the parents and children have to participate,
Emma gets to work instilling her simple yet effective philosophy – be well
mannered, be consistent and be patient - first with the parents and then with
the kids. Finally, we’ll see Emma’s work put to the test at the big family
event. Will the parents and kids be able to maintain their newfound harmony or
will the family be embarrassed at their lack of discipline?
read more...
MUST LOVE KIDS
Presented by TLC. Its a new hour long docu-series that
follows three single mothers as they embark on an emotional journey involving
family, love, and self-worth. With an estimated 10.4 million single mothers in
the U.S., these three single moms will undoubtedly inspire others to take the
initiative and focus on their own happiness, while still being able to balance
the responsibilities of a single parent. It's a real-life journey of love and
family in an original relationship series unlike any other.
read more...
Let's Say THANKS in Support of Our Troops
Please visit
Xerox, the host site, select an online postcard, personalize with a message,
and send! Thank you.
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Fight against credit card rate hikes
by Gerri Willis, CNN finance editor
As expected, credit card issuers are raising fees and rates just before legislative restrictions take place next February. But you don't have to be vulnerable. Here are some alternatives to bank credit cards.
read more...
Suze Orman's Recession Rescue Plan - helps you survive in times of financial crisis
OPRAH.com
Do you know what your family would do if you lost your job - or worse, your home? Financial expert Suze Orman is ready to help you devise a recession rescue plan to survive - and possibly thrive - during this deepening financial crisis...
read more...
Save More Every Week
RealSimple.com
TRACK YOUR SPENDING FOR ONE WEEK and transfer the totals to this log created by Jill Gianola, a certified financial
planner and the author of
The Young Couple's Guide to Growing Rich Together . Make categories for
repeat purchases, such as coffee, lunch, movies, and manicures, then decide whether you can cut back on or eliminate the
expense or whether it’s a must-have.
read more...
The 10-Ingredient Shopping Trip
By Tara Parker-Pope and Mark Bittman
... In his latest “How to Cook Everything” segment on the Today Show, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman makes it surprisingly easy to cook a week’s worth of dinners with just a 10-ingredient shopping trip.
read more...
Your Just-in-Case Emergency Plan
by RealSimple
Who do you call if you can't make it home in time to meet the kids' bus? Who do
you trust to take in your mail when you're on vacation? Who do you trust with
the extra set of keys to your house?
read more...
How to save $10,000 in 2009
By Liz Pulliam Weston
If you were hoping for a list of small tweaks you could make in your spending to save $10,000 a year, sorry. The reality is that $10,000 is a lot of money. And saving big money usually means making big changes in the areas where we spend the most, such as: Housing, Transportation, Food.
read more...
Wash the Dishes with All Your Heart
by Victoria Moran
"In a charmed life, the best thing going is what is happening now"
Even the most dazzling lives are punctuated more by commas and periods than by exclamation marks. You virtually guarantee a charmed life when you can give yourself as fully to doing the dishes, and tending to the other miscellanea that make up your day, as to some grand adventure...
read more...
32 and Counting? Finding Your Happily Ever After Today
by Gi Gi
The author talks about the struggles a single mom goes through and the discovery that you can have HEAT (Happily Ever After Today) just as you are, being single, taking care of your kids...
read more...
The Super, Sexy, Single Mom on a Budget
by Renee Rayles
A quick reference guide designed for the busy, single mom who has
little time to read while running the mom taxi, cooking dinner, helping with homework, and trying to fit in a date night every now and then.
TheOnlineMom.com offers parents and consumers a guide to the top-rated, age-appropriate, kid-tested and parent-approved tech toys and gifts.
read more...
Your 5-minute guide to protecting your identity
20 steps to protect yourself from identity theft, and seven ways to clean up things if you become a victim.
read more...
The best financial advice ever
Prince Charming isn't coming. Live like a college student...
By Liz Pulliam Weston
If you're doing well financially, chances are you had help.
... If you're not doing well financially, maybe you're finally ready to hear some advice that could make all the difference.
read more...
Find 7 More Hours in a Day
From O, The Oprah Magazine
• Handle things once
• Don't listen to the news first thing in the morning
• Make good use of waiting time
• Think "half-time"
• Be decisive and move on
• Lighten up on your cleaning standards
• Write it down
• Turn off technology during your high-energy time
• Monitor time-sapping addictions
read more...
The Single Moms Little Book of Wisdom: 42 Tidbits of Wisdom To Help You Survive, Succeed and Stay Strong
by Cassandra Mack
Provides insight and encouragement for women who are parenting without a partner or who feel like they are.
This concise yet comprehensive book will motivate you to pursue your goals and
fulfill your dreams. It will provide you with reassurance as you walk the path
of single motherhood and offer survival tips and success principles that are
necessary to succeed, survive and stay strong.
read more...
How-To Never Look Tired - 25 easy tricks that replace sleep
by Wendy Schmid
That coworker’s voice is full of concern when she says, “How are you? You look tired.” But her sympathy doesn’t stop you from wanting to throttle her. Nobody wants to appear sleep deprived—and nobody has to anymore. “It’s easier than ever to not let exhaustion show on your face.
read more...
AMERICA'S WORST RESTAURANTS FOR KIDS REVEALED
Eat This, Not That! Authors Grade 43 National Chains; 6 Receive an "F"
A year-long study of children's meals has revealed vast dietary differences among America's favorite fast-food and sit-down chain restaurants... and discovered that many of America's most popular chain restaurants are nutritional nightmares for America's children.
read more...
Miss Manners
Minimalism is the cutting edge now. My decorator calls it Dorm Chic. Wait, you'll see, everyone will have this look in a year or two. And then maybe I'll go out and get myself some overstuffed chairs." ...
read more
10 Bad Habits That Lead to Debt Disaster
Little things add up fast. Learn from these mistakes and try these tips to start paying off your debt.
Sometimes the only way to stop a snowballing problem is to go back to the top of the hill and find out what started it. If you're up to your eyeballs in credit card debt, take a step back and recount your money missteps.
read more...
7 Secrets to Raising a Happy Child
What Makes a Child Happy?
We all want the same things for our kids. We want them to grow up to love and be
loved, to follow their dreams, to find success. Mostly, though, we want them to
be happy. But just how much control do we have over our children's happiness?
read more...
Do You Want To Know How Your Nanny Is Doing Her Job?
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We want to introduce to HowsMyNanny.com, a web service started in the Fall of 2006 by Jill Starishevsk, a nine-year veteran of a District Attorney’s Office in New York City who works in the Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Bureau. While on maternity leave of her second child, she developed this website.
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read more...
Study Finds Multivitamins Do Not Prevent Cancer, Heart Disease
Millions of Americans spend billions of dollars on vitamins to boost their health. Research has focused on cancer and heart disease in particular because of evidence that diets full of vitamin-rich foods may protect against those illnesses.
But that evidence doesn't necessarily mean pills are a good substitute.
... advice: "Get nutrients from food. Whole foods are better than dietary supplements...
read more...
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