It seems trivial to compare the flooding situation many have been experiencing here in New Jersey to what has been happening in Japan, but both show the devastating power of water. We have spent the last few weekends preparing for potential runoff problems (big ones) on our property after heavy snows all winter, snow-melt saturating our soils and then heavy rains washing what is left of the snow from the hills across the street from us…across the road…to the lake where it wants to go, not where the designers of the “fine” drainage system on our street wants it to go…at 2 right angles then down to the lake. We are long overdue taking this situation to our Town to be fixed, just asking isn’t enough. They did try a couple of minor fixes, none adequate, and there used to be years between incidents (we’ve been here for going on 27 years). The last flooding was just last Spring, so they are getting closer together, and we are getting older and less able to keep up. We had hoped to retire here, it’s a small, cozy home on a lake, but if this isn’t fixed, we’re not sure what we’ll do.
But then we look at the news and see what is happening in Japan, and our hearts break, it makes what we are experiencing look so small. Our thoughts and prayers are with those in Japan, and those not far from us in New Jersey who experienced much more than we did, thanks to some carefully placed sand bags by my son.
Here is a short video clip we took of a river in Butler, NJ, not to far from us, video taken March 12th:
This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of PBM Products. All opinions are 100% mine.
Baby Boomer grandparents, boomers soon to become grandparents, and any new mothers with newborns, or pregnant woman looking forward to the birth of their child who may be reading, this is for you.
There is a delightful website for you to share with your child who is soon to become a parent, or for you to visit if you are reading this and looking forward to giving birth to a new little one. You will find many things for the newborn, including a baby formula called "Bright Beginnings". This is a formula that you can buy on diapers.com that comes in many different forms suitable to babies that may have food sensitivities that cause them digestive upset. There are gentle formulas, milk-based formulas, and soy-based formulas. There are great discount offers, you will find a couple of them at the top of the page when you visit.
I often share that among my favorite memories with our now-grown babies was the experience of breast-feeding for a number of weeks…so good for building the infants immune system. But each day, one feeding was a formula feeding, so that my husband would have an opportunity to bond with the babies when he would come home from work. Gradually it became all formula, and we raised two healthy children. These are among my most special memories.
You can find out more about Bright Beginnings on Facebook. If you are looking forward to being a grandparent, or parent, I wish you all the best…treasured memories are in the making!
Smartphones are getting a little too smart it seems, and it’s making me concerned for the welfare of my friends and family that have them. My husband made me aware of a report on the news that shows how, by taking pictures with a smartphone that also has gps abilities, then posting that photo online, whether it be by facebook or another means, you are pinpointing where you are when you take the picture. If that picture was taken at your home, of you, your children, you pet, whatever, with such a phone, then put up on Facebook, anyone “out there”, whether friend or foe, should be able to find your home. There is also a new feature on Facebook that was mentioned that helps you find friends in close proximity to where you live. I am sure that with the internet, and how we freely share our addresses, etc., it probably is not hard to trace many people, but this story has it’s own unique set of concerns attached to it. Here is the video of the news report for you, be aware and use care.
This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of NMEDA. All opinions are 100% mine.
Having a disabled brother, and a father who lived with disabilities for years after several strokes, I’m sensitive to the physical needs of people who are disabled, as well as those who have to look out for them and provide their needs.
Getting my Dad from here to there became a problem as his condition deteriorated. It was so sad to watch, and we would do the best we could for him. My Mom never got a drivers license, and if he needed a ride anywhere, it fell on us, his children. Before my brother moved into a wonderful group home, it was the same with him…though he was able to sit in the car like anyone else. Now his equipment is provided for at the place where he lives. For many with disabled children, young adults and adults at home, a resource for tracking down proper equipment is of great value.
My dad went through a long period where he could not walk and was moved from place to place by wheel chair. It would have been wonderful to have a way to take him places, but his condition didn’t really allow for that. For others, it is possible to get around if the person has the right driving equipment.
This is where NMEDA comes in. They can direct you to the right resources and equipment for the disabled person, including proper driving equipment, and vans fully customized to the specific needs of the individual. Just as my father and brother differed in their circumstances, so no two people people who have disabilities are alike, which is why a personalized “in person” evaluation like you will receive from NMEDA is so valuable. What a wonderful site, I wish it had been around when we needed it.
If you want to be included on NMEDA’s site as a service provider for the disabled, you will want to look at the QAP (Quality Assurance Program) and complete the necessary requirements.
If any of you reading this are disabled, or caring for someone who is disabled, there are many things you can do to improve your quality of life, and NMEDA can help.
Do you read local news online, or on the web? I do both…still enjoy leafing through our local papers that come to the door for the latest very local news, but for news about what is happening all over New Jersey, I prefer the internet…a paper with all of that would be enormous and much heavier than my laptop:-)
I decided to put something together to pull together the New Jersey news in one place where I can check in on the news by New Jersey region. It’s broken down by region, then by counties within the region with feed providing the top headlines for each. It’s a quick place to check in each morning.
This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of TABASCO® Original Red. All opinions are 100% mine.
My mind is on the Super Bowl and yes, I'm disappointed the Jets won't be in the game. And who can avoid the never-ending winter storms that have plagued us since Christmas weekend? When winter storms keep you trapped indoors, or shoveling snow outdoors, we think a great way to stay HOT inside is with some TABASCO® Original Red HOT sauce, which is actually MORE than just HOT. It has a way of enhancing the flavor of your food so that you enjoy each and every bite. As I type this, l'm looking out the window at a mountain of snow that has been growing due to shoveling since Christmas weekend when we had our first storm. I'm getting ready for a brunch of eggs, toast and of course some Tabasco sauce, we use it regularly around here. If it runs out, I hear about it from my husband, so always have an extra bottle in the cabinet…the LARGE size.
I have yet to try what they are calling Pizza Perfected which may be a great addition to your Game-Day Party Menu this coming Sunday. We will have to try it another day as we usually buy a hero from neighbors who are doing a fund raiser for their school band trip. But Pizza is good any day, so there will be plenty of opportunities. Original Red Tabasco Sauce was the first sauce introduced by the McIlhenny family back in 1868 and is as delicious today as it was then.
Enjoy the snow if you can, enjoy the Super Bowl Game, and may the best team win!
Before the latest storm, which has topped our mountains of snow with a glaze of ice, and caused a snow plow that was plowing a bridge while my husband was driving under it to dump snow on his windshield and crack it badly (thank goodness he’s okay), we had a beautiful sunny day. When I woke up in the morning, and looked out the window of our lakefront cabin, I was looking through icicles that glistened with the rising of the sun. I grabbed my camera and captured the following picture that I call “Icicle Sunrise”. When I posted it to Facebook, some enjoyed it, some were more concerned about whether we had enough insulation in our roof. Probably not, but I wouldn’t have missed this pretty view for anything.
The media is reporting that the first Baby Boomers in New Jersey, and all over the United States, have started collecting Social Security. I’m a “Baby Boomer”, but still have 3-6 years until I can collect…though if those years go as fast as the previous years have, I’ll be there in no time. Because I didn’t work outside the home for as many years as some…was a stay at home Mom as many years as possible, I don’t think my contribution to our household will be very significant, but it will be better than nothing.
Many predict that the baby boomers are going to eat up all the social security available, there’s quite a bit of talk and quite a few sites on the web projecting this. Time will tell how all of that goes. I’ve heard gloom and doom predictions before and they don’t always turn out as bad as predicted, but we are living in challenging times now, so it’s hard to say.
This gloomy article from foxnews.com states that 10,000 Baby Boomers will be retiring each day…and will start collecting Social Security, not to mention Medicare for some and Medicaid for others, things that we’ve just taken for granted that we will have available to us, just as they were available to our parents. There are also interesting facts at the Social Security Reform Center website.
Fear does come along and rears it’s ugly head as I try to sort it all out in my thinking, and it’s good to think and plan as much as we can, but there’s a lot of things we can’t plan for…it’s those things that can bring fear. It’s at those times that I love remembering and singing this old hymn of the faith, my faith:
I don’t know about tomorrow;
I just live from day to day.
I don’t borrow from its sunshine
For its skies may turn to grey.
I don’t worry o’er the future,
For I know what Jesus said.
And today I’ll walk beside Him,
For He knows what is ahead.
Many things about tomorrow
I don’t seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand
