New Homeowners

Author: Joseph Sandoval
My husband and I have been shopping for a new home for a while now. We would really like to find the perfect home before we get locked into a thirty -year mortgage. I know we are annoying our realtor because we have looked at so many houses, but we just haven’t found one we could see ourselves living in for the rest of our lives. We would be foolish to commit to something that we were unsure about. We have seen some homes that we like, just nothing that really wowed us. In preparing to be new homeowners we have also been doing a lot of research on what other costs are going to be in our potential new home. Insurance and other costs can get pricey so we want to make sure that we can afford the home we decide on. We had no idea that we would have a choice between texas electricity providers and that this could save us a bunch of money. We have always loved living in Texas, but everything we learn makes us love it just a little bit more! Hopefully soon we will find that perfect house and a perfect energy deal to go along with it.

Weather

Thanks for the post, Vernon Lowe

Every morning I dress my kids based on the weather report. I used to turn the TV on at a certain time each morning so I could see the weather report in time to get them dressed. However, since we got internet from http://www.wildbluedeals.com/satellite-internet/alabama/b/brewton/, I have started checking the weather online each morning. This has been so much easier and more convenient. If I remember to, I check the weather the night before so I can go ahead and pick out clothes for the kids. Our weather has been pretty crazy lately and even after looking at the weather report, it is still difficult to dress the kids in appropriate clothing because it will be in the 40s or 50s when they leave the house in the morning and in the upper 70s when they come home in the afternoon. I have come to the realization that dressing them in layers is the only option. That way they can take off their jackets when they get hot as the day progresses. I do not want to be the mom that sends her kids to school in shorts when it is freezing outside. I am sure the teachers talk about the parents that do that. I also want my kids to be comfortable in their clothes. Hopefully if they are dressed appropriately for the weather, then they can avoid getting sick this fall.

The Ad Man

The Ad Man
Guest post of the week by Deangelo Spencer
My new job requires I watch a lot of TV – I know that sounds silly, but I’m in advertising. It’s up to me to keep up to date on the trends in commercials and particularly those aimed at DVR audiences so I got a satellite package from a Click HERE link online and I watch a lot of TV nowadays, mostly for the commercials. I think the most fascinating ones are those that last longer than the traditional 30 seconds or those that they aim at specific audiences – you can really tell when an ad is something more than just an ad. Anyway, I think my boss can tell, too, because he seems to think my work is improving but I don’t want to tell him it’s all because I like to veg out in front of the screen several hours each night! That just sounds silly!

Finding You

As I wrote at the start of this blog, I worked hard to get myself in shape.  Being fit for my family matters a lot and of course people looking at you for how good you look is a real confidence booster.  That is not to say that I didn't research getting cosmetic surgery from a cosmetic surgeon, but I chose to try to work it out on my own in the end. 

Everyone would love to have that Miami Beach, South Florida body that is shown on magazine covers with little to no work. Others are just unsatisfied with what God and genetics gave them.  In fact, my friend recently got breast enhancement.  And though I did not see them uncovered, I can say there is a big difference in size and she was totally satisfied with the results.  Another friend seeing these results is actually debating on a possible facelift.  With advances in this field, the down time from surgery is minimized.  Pain and bruising is reduced to a little to none at times.  Reaching your ideal body is more accessible than ever.

So why not get plastic surgery?  Many feel getting in shape is the whole point of looking good as well.  But who can argue with almost immediate results?  I know I can't. If I had the money, I might have done it.  Heck, if I win the lottery, I still might do it.  Why? Just to touch up what the exercise has yet to hit.  Truth be told, I still think working out pays off and in order to maintain the lifts and tucks of  the modern day Michelangelo, adjusting your habits in the kitchen as well as in the gym will make your investment to sculpting your body even more worth it.

Vacation Fits

Yes packing for vacation is such a chore.  Sometimes just doing it for yourself can drive crazy, but do it for my three kids and I gets to be such a hassle.  Seven days away for four people with limited luggage is not easy.  Secrets to packing I have is to roll your clothes tight and this can actually save lots of space.  Of course it doesn't work well for items that need to be ironed, but then I won't wear a shirt that needs to be ironed on vacation.

The other fit on vacation I seem to have is trying to find a nice shirt to come back with to represent the trip or even give as a gift.  How come most just look thrown together by the cheapest possible method and then attached to a $50 price tag? No thank you.  My memories will do.  However, I still search in vain.  Wish me luck.

Seeing the Slope

I have talked about my Columbia clothing in the past and how great it was skiing.  I can say as a person that wears glasses, that skiing can be difficult at times.  Wearing glasses and goggles becomes cumbersome.  If my glasses didn't fog up underneath the goggles, the goggles did on their own.

I did get contacts and that seemed to help greatly.  However, if you are a skier, you know the frustration of when you put your goggles up on your hat, or down around your neck and then later replace them around your eyes, the goggles have fogged up.  You wipe them or try to air dry them as best you can and then you end up with streaks of water droplets down them.  This is not the best situation when skiing. So I turned to sunglasses and ended up with a pair of Oakley Hijinx.

If you know anything about Oakley, you know you are talking style.  These glasses I found highly durable and greatly helped with my dilemma.  They didn't fog up on me while wearing them.  The are close enough to my face to make the wind a minimal factor to drying my contacts as I race down the mountain.  They allowed extreme ease to seeing the terrain even with the sun glaring down the snow.  They seemed to complete what I needed to enjoy my trips.  For any avid skier, they are worth checking out if you run into the same issue I did with wearing goggles.

The Age of the Brand

I remember rather fondly when fashion as a teenager started to matter to me.  I still enjoyed the hand me downs from my cousin as what was purchased by my aunt was always fashionable.  I never had to worry about wearing out of style clothes.  One item that could never be handed down was shoes though.  I still remember going to Tom McAn shoe stores and getting my bargain shoes with my mother. Around age twelve, I began to loath going there. The shoes would be a cheap imitation of a better known brand.  They would fall apart rather easy or if they didn't I seemed to grow out of them quick enough.  Kids can be so cruel at school at times based on what you wore and I can remember ridicule from more than one other student based on my footwear.  It was nothing I could really control but it stuck with me.


One day while wearing these shoes at a friends house I happened to be swinging in a tire swing while he mowed his lawn.  I fell out of the swing while he passed me and he ran over my foot with the riding mower.  I can say I was extremely lucky I didn't loose my foot as the blade cut the sole off leaving my sock exposed.  The excuse to this day that my mother believes is that I got it caught on a barbed wire fence around my friend's property.  I explained to my mother the need to buy better shoes that would hold up to her tough son.  She obliged her son's wishes.

So when my son asked for a pair of osiris shoes, I felt the need to comply so my son didn't feel out of place or feel the need to have to make up an excuse if something occurred to his generic brand shoes.  I still buy the generic shoes from the local Wal-mart or any other store that sells them. It allows my son to help with the yard work or walk in the river as we fish.  I know he feels great though when he can go into school in the latest fashion.

And speaking of walking in the river, my friend decided to go river rafting recently down the Leigh River.  She is never short on footwear as it clutters her closet, back porch and bedroom.  I still can't understand the need of so many shoes especially when two pairs of high heels look almost exactly the same.  So when she told me she needed chacos, a type of sandal, to go rafting, I was rather perplexed.  She has easily half a dozen sandals.  Once again getting the "right foot wear", as she says, for the job matters.  And let's not forget the right brand.

Overall I have to understand this.  I have owned four pairs of different types of boots depending on what I am doing.  What you buy, including its brand, does matter in the end.  As I have grown older, it has mattered less to me what the brand was as long as the quality matched the hype.  I have to say for my son and my friend, their choices were good ones.  My son is happy and my friend enjoyed her trip.