Using Natural Ways to Increase Fertility

by: Lyta Humphris Are you finding it difficult to become pregnant? If so you can do many simple things to improve your chances of conception, the way we live can have a big effect on the reproductive system of both men and women and most people prefer natural ways to increase fertility. You may both have to change your life-style to incorporate healthy influences, and eliminate things you enjoy that reduce your fertility. Increasing or improving your fertility is something you can both do. You can make sure your weight is within the range that is helpful for conceiving. You can make sure you incorporate a regular gentle exercise programme into your daily life such as walking; cycling or swimming, being fit and active is beneficial for fertility. You can make sure you and your partner are eating healthily, and eliminate habits that may lower your chances of conceiving. Alcohol Reduction Alcohol can put pregnancy at risk. According to some studies, the risk of miscarriage appears to increase with moderate drinking during the first three months of pregnancy, particularly in the first weeks. Reducing Stress Stress can have a big effect on fertility. In women under stress, the reproductive hormone prolactin is over-produced and this can interfere with ovulation. The hypothalamus stops secreting gonadotrophin hormone, which in turn will affect the release of both the luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone. As these hormones stimulate ovulation - fertility is affected. Self help for stress is regular exercise, deep breathing techniques, hypnotherapy and visualization - a combined approach can include the following: - Acupuncture - Nutrition - Hypnotherapy Fertility is a whole-body event, not something that happens just in our reproductive organs - that is why a holistic approach often works well. There may be a need for more fertility awareness and lifestyle changes to improve the chances of starting the pregnancy, or there may be a need for nutritional supplements, relaxation and de-stressing techniques, acupuncture, and massage. Nutritional Improvement You should not overlook nutrition in fertility treatment – it is important to have a good level of nourishment that will allow your body to function well, and it is of course a very natural way to increase fertility! Bad eating habits can lower the reserves of nutrients that are necessary for reproductive hormone systems to work properly. Your hormonal balance and fertility are affected by what you eat, your nutrient levels and how well your digestion works. If you are short of essential fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin B6, zinc, magnesium, and antioxidants, then your hormone production may be blocked - resulting in an imbalance that makes conception less likely. Acupuncture Have you ever wondered about the treatment of infertility with traditional medicine and acupuncture? Good candidates for trying medical acupuncture are people who have unexplained infertility - acupuncture is effective for balancing the body's energies and raising the receptiveness of the body for conception. Men and women with a physical problem, such as damaged fallopian tubes, or a low sperm count, would be encouraged to try acupuncture in addition to their medical treatment. When skilfully applied, acupuncture is effective in correcting many of the imbalances that underlie the complex physical and hormonal disorders that lead to a reduction in fertility. Smoking Cessation Women who smoke are more likely to take longer to conceive, they have an increased risk of miscarriage, and lower oestrogen and progesterone levels. Men who smoke are likely to have decreased sperm density, less motile sperm, reduced testosterone, and an increase in abnormal sperm. These risks for both men and women increase with the number of cigarettes smoked. Hypnotherapy Hypnotherapy is exceptionally beneficial and natural way to increase fertility. Hypnotherapists are already using Hypnotherapy to help women give birth peacefully, and teaching them that a normal birth should be a calm and natural process. Learning simple but specialised relaxation, and breathing, and other techniques, make the whole birth easier and more comfortable. With unexplained infertility, hypnotherapists teach you to let go of the stress you have been holding on to, using specialised relaxation, and breathing techniques. It teaches you to let go of any emotional blocks or worries you may have that can create infertility issues – Hypnotherapy can help you identify and process emotional issues that might be interfering with conception. In addition to dealing with deep-seated fears, hypnotherapy is effective in stress reduction, and this in turn allows for hormonal rebalancing. This has been seen in cases where there is too much prolactin being produced which can inhibit ovulation. In a relaxed environment at a clinic, you can work together to bring about positive attitudes and beliefs. You can give your unconscious mind free rein here and allow yourself to be creative, free, and prepared to follow your heart's wishes. So there you have it - a range of natural ways to Increase infertility . Choose as many as befits your lifestyle and make things easier for yourself and your baby.

Ezines And Content Nurturance

by: Scott Lindsay Did you know that of the 25 million people in the United States that consider themselves writers only 5% of them will ever be published? If that seems an astonishing figure it should also point to an opportunity for those who create business or industry related ezines. How is this an opportunity? If you are like most business owners you may have trouble locating fresh content. You may borrow from industry publications (with permission of course), you may try your hand at writing content yourself from time to time or you might use a free-article directory to make your ezine sparkle. However, you can also work to foster an atmosphere where struggling writers can add to their portfolio while providing fresh content for your ezine. How can you do this? Well, this can be accomplished through multiple avenues. Let’s take a look at a few. 1) Posting a classified notice within your ezine. Let your subscribers know you’re open to receiving reader content. If they are reading your ezine they probably already have an interest in the subject matter you address. You may have one of those multiplied millions of writers just looking for an opportunity reading your online publication. 2) Visiting a writer’s forum. In many of these forums you can post a freelance opportunity alerting writers to the fact that you have a need for material. You can determine what you can pay and either state it in the body of your need or let the writer know when they contact you. If you are not able to pay the writer then you should consider providing a byline and website link as a way of thanking them for their contribution. 3) Go on an intentional search for a writer. Many writers’ websites will feature writing samples from members. Look for a style you’re interested in and a writer who may have some understanding of your industry. It’s possible to nurture writers from these three sources as you seek to grow and diversify your ezine. Many of these volunteer writers may have creative ideas to make your ezine better. You might even suggest a writing contest as part of the ezine. This can be enhanced with the offer of free gifts and or business products. Many individuals respond very well to contests and, as evidenced by the opening statistic, there are a lot of aspiring writers looking for the type of opportunity you can provide. Ezines can be both informative as well as a spiffy looking tool for marketing your business. Why not use the development of an ezine to help you fulfill your dream of an upwardly mobile business while offering an aspiring writer the opportunity to fulfill a few dreams of his or her own. The result can be mutually beneficial. Inviting others to share in your dream can benefit your business and help lighten the production load. The diversity in the content can allow you the opportunity to improve readership and instill a greater sense of interest in your ezine. Nurture the inner desire most writers have and provide an avenue of publishing that can help them reach their goals.

What Does Your Child REALLY Need From You?

by: Margaret Paul, Ph.D. Most parents want to be good parents. Yet parenting is one of those things that does not have hard and fast rules. So how do we know what to do? How do we know what will support our children in being all they can be? One of the most important things for parents to do is to learn to trust their own intuition. Your feelings tell you when you are on course or off course in your behavior with your children. When things feel right inside, then you know that you are being a truly loving parent, and when they feel wrong inside, you know you are out of alignment with what is in your highest good and your children's highest good. I remember my mother telling me that she used to put her fist in her mouth to stop herself from crying and from picking me up when I was an infant and cried. She had read in Dr. Spock that babies should not be picked up when they cry, that it is good for their lungs to cry, and that she would spoil me if she picked me up. But her insides were telling her the opposite - that babies cry when they need food, changing, or love. It is so sad that she followed Dr. Spock instead of her own inner knowing. Now research has proven that babies who are not picked up when they cry become more dependent and insecure than babies who are kept with their mothers. In other countries, babies sleep with their parents until they no longer want to, feeling safe all night. In our country, most babies are alone at night, some crying themselves to sleep. This is not only sad, it is not healthy for the baby. So the first thing your child needs from you is to trust your inner knowing rather than any book you read. Your child needs your loving presence - not your busy preoccupied presence. For your children to feel important to you, they need to feel you fully present with them - reading to them daily, playing with them, holding and comforting them, and listening to them. Your children need for you to create a healthy environment for them by feeding them healthy food, restricting screen time - TV, computer, video games - and making sure they play outdoors and get enough exercise. They need your encouragement to develop their hobbies and interests. They need you to try natural remedies before resorting to drugs for illness, so that you don't set them up for more illness with the side effects of drugs. They need for you to be a good role model of self-care. Children need to see their parents taking full responsibility for their own feelings instead of being victims and blaming others. With this role modeling, they will also learn to take full responsibility for their own feelings. Learning and practicing the Inner Bonding process that we teach will support you in becoming this loving role model for your children. Children also need you to be a role model for care of the environment. My daughter told me that my 3-1/2 year-old grandson got very upset with the checker at the market for using a plastic bag. "No, no plastic bags! It's bad for the environment!" he told the checker. By role modeling caring for our planet, we can raise children who are much more conscious of taking care of our environment. Your children need to see you being connected with a spiritual Source of love, peace and wisdom in order to naturally connect with their own higher power. By developing your spiritual connection, they can learn to have their own. What do your children really need from you? They need you to learn to be all you can be so they have the role modeling and permission to be all they can be.

Top 3 Search Engine Optimization tips of 2008

by: Scott Jason Since 1998 I've spent the first several months of each year looking for the very best search engine optimization (SEO) tips of the previous year's end. This year I've come across the best SEO tips yet. SEO Tip #1: Make Google Alerts Your Personal Online Spy Google Alerts is a great way to let the world's biggest search engine be your personal online spy. This takes search engine optimization insider info to whole new level. Here's an excerpt straight from Google.... "Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic. Some handy uses of Google Alerts include: * monitoring a developing news story * keeping current on a competitor or industry * getting the latest on a celebrity or event * keeping tabs on your favorite sports teams" As you probably guessed, it's the second one we care about most, "keeping current on a competitor or industry." Here's how it works... Each time Google finds a reference to the query or topic you request you will be sent an email with the details. This is like having an online spy to make sure competitors are not using your protected keywords (trademarked names, company names, etc.) It's also an instant identifier to know when your site or product is mentioned in a news story or even when a topic is hot so you can take advantage of the situation. It's the easiest way in the world to stop competitors' dirty tricks and identify trends that you can take instant advantage of. It's fast, free and works every minute of every day. Let Google Alerts (http://www.google.com/alerts) do your most time consuming legwork while you reap the rewards! SEO Tip #2: Optimize Your 404 Page and Always Be Found "Error 404: Page Not Found" is a blessing that most Webmasters curse. Why? Getting a visitor on any page of your site is fantastic! Don't blow the opportunity. Not only can you make your "404" page a valuable sales tool, you can use the following search engine optimization techniques to attract customers in droves. A.) Use your main keyword in your title, add a "pipe" (usually above the Enter key) and then use your secondary keyword. Here's as example for an SEO site "SEO - Search Engine Optimization Tips" B.) Add some keyword rich content using one to two keywords for the page. If you have less than 250 words on the page, just use one keyword and use it no more than three times total. Bold the first use and italicize the second or third use. Keep in mind this is an "inactive" page so simply tell the visitor what your site is about and whet their appetite with a good description. Something like this works well... "Thank you for visiting SEO (bold) Group, Inc. We are sorry you landed on a missing page but don't worry, if you're looking for the very best search engine optimizations tips (bold), you're at the right place..." This will go on for a couple paragraphs or as long as you'd like then end it with something to the effect of "Please Click Here (link) to visit our site map or click any link to the left." C.) Add your site's standard navigation system (bar, column, etc.) as mentioned above. D.) Make the look and feel of the customized 404 page match your main site as closely as possible with a template, matched palette, cascading style sheets, etc. E.) Create a link to the site map page if available, and make the link easy to find. You want your visitor off the 404 page and into your main content as quickly as possible. Setting up a custom 404 page link usually takes less than five minutes on most major Web hosting companies like Godaddy.com. But whatever it takes, it's worth the effort. SEO Tip #3: Get (Even More) Serious About Linking I saved the most important for last. If you want to do well on any search engine, especially Google, linking is THE single MOST important thing you can do. It's that simple. Here are the five things you MUST do to make your site #1 on Google: A.) Find the highest page rank sites linking to your site AND your competitors' sites. B.) Run monthly link campaigns and snatch up the best of the above identified Web sites. C.) Run regular checks on what pages are still linking back to your site. Alsomake sure they did not move you from a high page rank page to a lower one (don't get cheated!) D.) Eliminate any penalized sites you link to; ASAP! E.) Check your search engine ranking AND your competitor's for each of your keywords every week. Do this, at the minimum, for Google, Yahoo, MSN and Alta Vista. Inside Tip: Keeping up can be a lot of work so a lot of SEO Consultants (myself included) use SEO Elite (http://www.SEOeliteWeb.com) to do all the most difficult and time consuming work. One last thing to know is that Google was originally a college student's project created for the sole purpose of defining a Web site's value by the sites that link to it. Twelve years later this is still it's main job. Linking is EVERYTHING to Google. These few SEO tips are the very best of the best so use them wisely. Best of luck!

Entitlement Vs. Earning: How To Avoid Harmful Help As A Parent

by: Cameron Taylor There’s a story about a boy who came from a wealthy family. His father had built a large, multimillion-dollar business from the ground up. As this father approached retirement, he brought his son into his office and told him that he wanted him to take over his company. The son was excited to take over his father’s multimillion-dollar empire and asked, “When are you going to give it to me?” The father replied, “I am not going to give you anything, you must earn it.” The son replied, “How am I supposed to do that?” The father answered, “First, you must earn $10,000 to purchase a small portion of ownership in the company. After this is accomplished you will get your next instruction.” As the son left the house to being his quest, his mother grabbed him and thrust $10,000 into his hand and told him to give the money to his father. Thrilled by his good fortune, he ran to find his father. His dad was sitting by the fireplace reading a book. The son approached his father and said, “Dad, Dad, here’s $10,000 for the business.” Without even looking up, the father grabbed the $10,000 and tossed it in the fire and watched it burn. The son stood frozen in amazement. As the money burned, the father said, “Come back when you have earned the money!” As he left the room, his mother once again thrust $10,000 into his hand. This time she instructed him that he needed to be more convincing in selling his father on the idea that he had actually worked for the money. So the boy scuffed himself up a little, jogged around the block a few times, and then went to find his father again. His father was again sitting in front of the fireplace reading a book. The boy approached his father and said, “It sure is tough earning money. Here’s the $10,000. I really do want to own the business.” Once again the father took the $10,000, and without even looking up, tossed the money in the fireplace. As the money burned, the son asked, “How did you know I didn’t earn the money?” The father replied, “It is easy to lose or spend money that is not your own.” At this point, the son realized he wasn’t going to get the business unless he actually earned the $10,000. He wanted the business, so when his mother offered him money again, he declined her offer. He went out and picked up some odd jobs. His jobs required him to get up early and stay up late, but he worked and worked until he finally earned $10,000. Proudly, he walked into his father and presented him with the money. Like before, his father was sitting by the fire reading a book. Again the father took the money and threw it in the fire. As the money hit the flames, the son dove to the floor and risking burns and pain stuck his hands into the fire and pulled out the $10,000. The father looked his son in the eyes and said, “I see you really did earn the money this time.” Many parents make the mistake of provided damaging financial assistance to their children. Their motives are usually good. They want to help their children get started in life or assist when a financial need rises. Unfortunately, the result is often opposite to the one desired. Instead of helping children become self sufficient, they become dependant. Rather than sparking initiative and discipline, the children become idle and indulgent. Instead of being achievement oriented they become entitlement oriented, ungrateful and demanding. “Children who always get what they want will want as long as they live.” Research has shown that “in general, the more dollars adult children receive [from their parents] the fewer they accumulate, while those who are given fewer dollars accumulate more.” How can we make sure our children grow up with the earning mentality rather than the entitlement mentality? While starting my first business, I often relied on one of my business partners and mentors, who was a multimillionaire, for advice. My business was growing but struggled to turn a profit. I continued to work hard but things were getting tougher and tougher for me financially. I went to my rich partner and asked for a loan to help me get by until the business was profitable. He declined to give me any assistance. I was a little frustrated and said, “You are making millions a year and I am struggling to stay alive. Please help me.” He looked at me and I could tell he wanted to help me. He was close to giving in to my plea when he replied, “If I take away your struggle, I will also take away your victory.” He then shared the following story. “There was a young boy who came across a caterpillar hanging in a cocoon. He went to see the cocoon several times each day waiting for the butterfly to emerge. After a few days, the young boy began to see the cocoon move as a butterfly struggled to come out. The boy a little impatient and wanting to help ran home and got a pair of scissors. He returned and carefully cut open the cocoon and out fell a partially developed butterfly. This caterpillar would never fly. The young boy innocently killed the butterfly he was trying to help.” At the time, I didn’t find this advice helpful, but today I am grateful to a wise partner and mentor who resisted the temptation to cut open my cocoon and take away the struggle of life while starting a business. One of the best ways to create an earning mentality in our children is to teach them how to work. Work helps get rid of the idea that one is entitled or has the right to something. I have identified 3 important factors that help teach children good work ethics. Parents need to look for opportunities to assign or create chores and work for children that have the following characteristics: 1. Purpose The job assigned must have real life purpose. As a child, there was a large vacant plot of land behind my house that was very proficient in growing weeds. Dad sectioned off the plot and gave each child a section. The instruction was simply to keep the weeds down by pulling the weeds by hand. I can remember hating this job because it was always hot and dusty and the weeds grew fast and tall. I finally asked my dad why we had to keep the weeds down. Dad then explained that it was to make sure the weeds don’t spread into the yard and garden so the grass will be soft to play on and the garden will grow lots of good food to eat. This explanation gave my sweat and pains a purpose that I was willing to work for. I still didn’t like weeding my section but, now understanding the purpose of the job, I had motivation to make sure my plot was free of weeds. Sometimes as parents we give chores that simply have the purpose of keeping our children busy. These chores are probably better than letting children sit in front of the TV or play video games all day. However, jobs with real life purpose, once accomplished, will ignite a feeling of true accomplishment and contribution to a collective or greater good. The feelings of purpose and accomplishment are feelings everyone desire. It is wise to use these feelings to fuel future assignments with purpose. 2. Consistency Parents need to be consistent in assigning chores. If making the bed is an important skill or chore you want your child to learn or accomplish then you as the parent must be consistent is giving the assignment everyday and just as consistent in following up and making sure the job is done and done well. If you are as consistent in assigning a chore and just as consistent in following up and helping the child accomplish the chore then the child will progressively and consistently accomplish the chore alone. The job that teaches good work ethics is one that is on a consistent schedule. Punctuality is important in the work place and in life. It wasn’t until I got a job my first job out side of the home that I realized the importance of consistency. While in Junior High I worked at a local grocery store where I was required to be at work on time. I’ve found that those who had jobs outside of the home while still in high school have a stronger work ethic than those who did not. Having noticed this trend leads me to believe that teaching a child to work is not simply teaching them how to do a few jobs but it’s teaching a way of life. 3. Perseverance One of the hardest parts of life is to continue to do something when it is no longer fun or when it never was fun to begin with. The world would teach our children that such uncomfort or pain should not be tolerated. The world would go as far as to teach that if pain is felt then what ever is causing the pain is bad and should be avoided. It is on the contrary that good work ethics are learned. It is important to teach our youth to continually work past the point of comfort. Not many reach this point regularly, but it is here that character is permanently built. Learning good work ethics takes persevering through the uncomfort and beyond the pain of work. Right out of High school I worked at a lumber mill in Idaho. My job was to stack lumber as it came off the saw. This was the most physically demanding job I’ve ever had. At the end of every day I was physically drained from being baked in the saw mill from the summer sun and from keeping up with the mill as it relentlessly kicked out lumber to be stacked. It was just a miserable job. I remember asking myself during one of my short breaks if this job was worth the pain. The thought and answer came back that “It wouldn’t be called work if it wasn’t work!” Well, that didn’t really help me feel better but it did help me understand that not all work is fun. Business owner and church leader, Spencer W. Kimball said “I remember some years ago, a young man and his wife and little children moved to our Arizona community. As we got acquainted with them, he told me of the rigorous youth he had spent as he grew up. He’d had to get up at five and six o’clock in the morning and go out and deliver papers. He’d had to work on the farm and he’d had to do many things that were still rankling (irritation/resentment) in his soul. Then he concluded with this statement: ‘My boys are never going to have to do that.’ And we saw his boys grow up and you couldn’t get them to do anything. They [sluff] off their church activities and nothing seemed very important to them.” If you protect your children from struggle and responsibility, you will also prevent them from growing. Help you child learn how to work and earn by assigning work that has real purpose, consistency, and requires perseverance. Good work ethic and the earning mentality cannot be purchased with money but are developed through experience, responsibility and education. The Entitlement mentality is a form of bondage for it is simply living off of others —for if you take from a person his responsibility to care for himself you also take from him the opportunity to be free. Do not simply give your kids money, give them education and opportunity and teach them how to work. It costs a lot less and will develop the productive, self sufficient children you desire.

8 Proven Points To Make A Home Business Website Profitable

by: Juhani Tontti It is a miracle how the most successful home business websites have so much in common, despite of the fact that they look so different. This cannot be a co-incident. One common feature is that these successful sites are likable and somehow easy to use. Everything looks so clear, so it is easy to judge whether you like it or not. They look so simple, that I often ask, what special they have and how they have become so successful? It seems that the simpler and the more user friendly the site is, the better chances it has to create big sales. Very clearly one big success factor is that the finetuning work should concentrate to take away all the unnecessary elements and non-selling links. 1. Winning Element: Attention Grabbing Title. The title is absolutely the most important element of the site. It should contain the promise and to describe the content of the site. A Great Title informs in a catchy way that this website includes the benefits about this topic. The headline should be written well and it should stand out from the rest of the copy. It also should be the first element, which catches the visitor attention in seconds, because if it does not do that, the visitor continues the surfing. 2. Winning Element: Well Written Copy. The Internet is the information highway, so the role of the copy is very important, this is the world of the words. The copy should draw the readers attention immediately to the benefits your offer give to him. The style is important and the target is to build up the trust from the first contact. The copy should make the reader enthusiastic about the benefits but it should not use hype style overpromises, because they will destroy the trust. 3. Winning Element: Easy Site Navigation. This is the technical must, because nothing drives the visitors away faster than the bad navigation. The site structure should be clear and logical, so that the visitor knows all the time, where he is and to where he could go from here. The menu should be the same on every page and clearly accessible and also easy to understand. The terms should be clear, despite of the fact that you may want to use internet home business keyphrases. 4. Winning Element: Call To Action. After the copy has presented the main benefits it is the time to call the reader into action. The clearnes is important. The visitor hates the situation, when he does not know, what to do next so it is better to call him to action and not to leave him guessing? Action is everything and we have to call the reader to do that. One good way is to lower the bar, i.e. to offer a cheap or free trial opportunity for some weeks, before the reader will buy the product. The efficiency is the better, the more often you call the reader into action. 5. Winning Element: Images. One picture tells more than thousand words. You should include photos of every product you sell, because they make the products more real, than the copy alone. To make the navigation easier, you can use thumbnails instead of big images, which link to larger images. This speed up the page loadings. 6. Winning Element: Optin Form. Most of the internet home business visitors needs at least five contacts before they will buy. It is important to get the website visitor`s name and email address in the early stage, because otherwise they can leave the site and you will never see them again. In this process you have to give them a gift, an email course, a free e-book or something like that, which again will sell your offer later on. Now you can send them messages during a long period of time, which clearly makes the process more productive. 7. Winning Element: About Us Section. The idea of every internet home business site is to build trust over a long period of time. This requires that you tell enough about yourself and give your contact information for further questions. All big home business brands are build by stories, so can you also do. The idea of the story is to give enough information about you and to show that there is a real person working for the customers. This shows people that there is a real people behind the business. 8. Winning Element: Site Freshness. People and search engines love unique, fresh information. A successful home business website goes through regular changes and additions. The visitor sees immediately that it is up to date. It is useful to look the competing sites in your internet home business niche, because they are a great source of new ideas. Another idea is to make sure your site can stand out from the crowd. The marketing is very important but the key is still the quality of your internet home business site. It makes the people to come back and it is the real place, where they can reach you and your offers.

Year Two: Adventures in Instant Parenthood

by: Gracely Sinclair It’s amazing how life’s time can leave you…fast. It was almost one year ago that our daughter came to us. We had found her in foster care and opened our home to her. This, not knowing that our son was already growing inside me… the son that the doctors had, for ten years, told us we couldn’t have. So… I think that receiving two children in the space of five months, as rookie parents (and one a newborn!), was the toughest thing that either of us had ever done. But it was also a sudden open door onto an avenue lined with good things. The avenue was stony and sometimes hard to walk. But the good things became gooder and gooder. Why haven’t I written down every observation on parenthood; every cute look and lisped phrase; every gurgle, smile, and fart? Because I’ve been reaching for my pen and formulating half-sentences for almost a year. But always, before being able to commit thought to paper, the spaghetti boiled over, the phone rang, the family walked in, or the pen dropped to the floor and my thoughts ended in, “Zzzzzzzz”. Now comes the actual effort of recording our adventures as a new family. And just in time… I forget things quickly, easily, and often forever. “She” Our daughter is the daughter of a niece of ours, gone wild. We’re not sure where the niece is, just that she’s not wherever her various children are. She was 10 months old when we got a phone call from a frantic grandmother, telling us that the child had been abandoned to foster care in Washington state. The grandmother lives in Mexico and could do nothing. Fortunately, God had stayed our hand when we had considered adoption a year or so before so that, though eligible to adopt in Oregon, we hadn’t yet. That smoothed the path for the child that He had for us. The gears of the state grind slowly, though, and another year had gone by before we got to see She for the first time. In between was the paperwork that means the state is letting you care for this little thing instead of doing it themselves. Finally, though, we got to visit her. We’ve talked about that moment many times. How frightened we were, waiting for the door to open. How such a small being could make us – grown adults who drive and have jobs– shake in our shoes! And then, there she was. The most adorable 22 month-old girl with braided hair and eyes that seemed big enough to wrap around the sides of her head. She was perfect. Well, almost perfect… A month later we had her home and two months later she was calling us Mommy and Daddy. We were over the moon and then down into the valley as the terrible two’s began in earnest. But the hills and valleys, thankfully, were interspersed with each other so that life averaged out on the wonderful side. When she arrived, we could count the number of real words that She could say on a couple of hands. She still took a bottle at night and we couldn’t figure out where to get her hair done. I probably obsessed on this last point more than any other. I wasn’t able to take care of my own hair, let alone the mop she came with. She cried at night and we had to learn just how to comfort her. She had a drooling problem; thank heavens that’s starting to take care of itself. And she had a habit of biting and hitting when angry. That resolved itself with reasonable discipline. But it’s a work in progress and her progress has been amazing. She just loved to pat Mommy’s growing tummy and talked endlessly about the baby inside. Her own tummy was shown with pride to all, and she wondered aloud if she would have a baby, too. (When the baby did come, I wonder if it registered. The patting of the tummy and the wondering where the baby is continued for some time…) We quickly learned that She did not like to be thwarted. She wanted what she wanted. She wanted it now, and she told you so often. When whatever it was was not forthcoming… well, we literally bought ear plugs. But a trip to the park or a ride on a slide and especially the adventure at Zoo Lights in Portland showed us her active, athletic, and curious side. The sponge part of her now is inside her – wondering, asking, learning, and repeating what she’s learned. When she arrived, She fit into size 6 or 6-1/2 shoes. Now we’re lucky to get her into a size 9. She has grown some inches and we can make out cheekbones where we used to see chub. She no longer eats her crayons and actually enjoys applying them to paper. She loves working with glue and other art supplies… anything sticky. And – we can’t wait – she’s been on the potty a good many times, with reasonable (if not consistent) results. Now She speaks well, often in full sentences. She has an amazing memory and knows some Korean words that she’s taught at her day care. She talks about her friends and wants me to make her babies and her toy bears talk and move. Then she talks back to them, consoling and chiding them, just like Mommy does. With us she’s very direct. She has given me a count (“1 - 2 - 3! Time out, Mommy!”) and tells us to go to sleep. She loves “my music”, and bounces and sings to Jesus Loves Me, The Bare Necessities, and The Mickey Mouse Club March, among others. She dances to music and TV theme songs and commercials. Whenever we have company and the dancing starts, we all sit down and watch “The She Show.” She gives me imaginary presents to open, since Christmas made such a big hit with her. She wonders where the stockings went and why we had to take down the lights. She always wants to go back to the beach, which is where we spent Thanksgiving with my family. And she wonders how big she’ll have to be before she can go see Mickey at Disneyland. After we tell her that she has to get bigger and stronger, she says, “I get my coat.” She loves her Daddy’s family, who are all in town. She will look at me and ask after a member of the family…Uncle This or Auntie That. I’ll tell her where they probably are at the moment and then I’ll say, “Who else?” And we’ll talk about every member of the family that we can think of. Of course, she wants to see the cousins every day. And even more of course, though she knows the answer well, “Where’s Daddy?” She doesn’t do well with change. This is typical of foster and adopted and… well… just kids. She cries often while in bed and it’s sometimes hard to figure out why. Heaven help us, we get angry. Tired people often do… But then came the day (quite recently, really) when she moved across the room into her “big girl bed”, which is furnished with a rail that has her name cut into it by another brother who is a woodworker in his spare and generous time. Her Daddy bought her a Tinker Bell light and another Princess night light that help her deal with the dark. It’s so comfy and cushy and PINK that I’m envious sometimes. She surrounds herself with plush toys and favorite blankets and settles in for the night – more and more, the entire night. And we have peace… blessed peace… and then the boy wakes up and wants his food. “He” I have never been happier than when I was pregnant with our son. At 37 years old, with special health issues, I was considered a high risk in pregnancy and had ultrasounds almost every week. I had a high-risk team of obstetricians following me around with charts, probes, and pee tubes. This last item was always welcome. I look back at pictures of myself during that time and see this glow and smooth radiance in my face that I remember inside me but never noticed in the mirror. I was never sick or even the slightest bit nauseous. My other symptoms disappeared almost entirely… no more soreness or swelling, no more aching back until the very end. He wanted us to know immediately that he was a HE. During one of the initial ultrasounds, he flipped himself over and spread his legs as wide as he could. The ultrasound picture of his defining male characteristic is one of my favorites. I’ll never forget the tone in my husband’s voice when I told him he was going to have a son. Just a very, very quiet, “No way.” There was so much awe, hope, and fear in that tone and in that voice. It moved me as few other speeches have. He grew well and exactly on schedule. He turned over from a breach position to a head-down position in plenty of time. He got the hiccups so often that it became no longer novel. We had several baby showers and are still going through clothes and toys donated to us from friends and family. We have bought very little for the kid; and he has everything he could possibly want and more. Then we went to the hospital in one of those scheduled and arranged situations. We would be induced here and then the birth would happen there, they said calmly. My obstetrician had a party to go to but would be back in “plenty of time”, since labor would probably take such-and-such hours. Uh huh… Hours after being given the pitossin to induce me, I had barely dilated at all. In the meantime, the baby’s heart rate was up then down then up and down. They broke my water manually and OWWWWW… the contractions started, minutes apart and hard as h-e-double-hockey-sticks. Sorry, Grandma. Hours of this, I thought. Are you crazy?? The senior member of my OB’s practice arrived and suggested a Cesarean procedure with an epidural. I have rarely been so grateful to any man still living… or dead for that matter. I love whoever Mr. Cesarean was! The operation began, with my husband gowning himself with shaking hands (he’s not a hospital guy). And minutes later the epidural was in effect and my son was being shown to us. I will never in my life forget that moment. I burst into tears for so many reasons that it seems silly to recount them. He was safe…he was here…he was ours…he was healthy-looking…we had done it. Thank you, God. Thank you forever. Four days later I was released. The doctors studied the baby and myself for after-effects and drug levels and we were fine. He developed cradle cap and, in pictures, was downright ugly unless you were his mother and you were holding him at the time. He was skinny and seemed undersized, though I was assured he was exactly average in that regard. He smiled on his second day of life but wailed in a surprisingly piercing way when hungry or tired. I was exhausted and stressed. The doctors were sending me home with a life that I hadn’t had when I came into the hospital. Where was the manual? Who would I call at 2:00 a.m. when we were so stupid with fatigue that we were confused about which end the nipple went into? I don’t know how we would have gotten through that first month without the love and backup of family and friends. They cooked and cleaned for us. They came and brought us hope and encouragement. When the house was filthy and there was no food in it, one couple went to the store and brought back $300 worth of goods and sent us to bed while they cleaned and cared for our kids. We got sleep. The dishes were done. There was food. We were speechless…we still are. Day by day, hour by hour, month by month He grew and we came to understand him better. It took a solid month before routine had been re-established and we could eat and sleep with any amount of comfort. I can’t stop looking continuously into his bed, to check for breathing sounds. That will probably end when he’s 12. Then breast-feeding became bottle-feeding. He suddenly was able to hold his head up and had a magnificent grip. We noticed immediately that he was strong; he was a true son of my husband’s. Much more alert than the average athlete, though. He noticed everything and studied everyone. And they always received a smile. The boy was a smiling fool, from the beginning. The cradle cap moved back and the fine dark blonde hair began moving forward. The baby acne starting clearing up and I felt like a teenager, limp with relief that it was less visible all the time. He started eating more and more and crying less and less. The blankets with which we had to prop him in his swing became thin blankets, then disappeared. Then we had to strap him in because he was big enough to fall out. He reached for us, then grabbed onto us. Then he reached for She’s toys. That was a mistake. Then he arched his back and looked behind him, above him, around him. Then he rolled over to get something and light dawned. Motion! Now we have a very active boy on our hands and, in our 40’s, get more exercise within the confines of our home than out of it. Year Two I’ve never imagined my life as full as this. Even as a young woman, my visions of motherhood were blurry and distant. I never knew where my life was headed in that regard. Then, after several discouragements, those hopes faded almost completely. I’m so grateful to God for taking this decision out of our hands. People’s eyes get big and I hear breathed “Wow, you’re busy,” when they hear about us. And for us it is hard to step back and just see who we are. There’s always a load of laundry waiting to be folded, the same spaghetti boiling over, and the two kids competing for our attention. But we know what we can seldom speak. That life has become mission. That movement now has meaning. And that we are the luckiest two people on earth…. Let Year Two begin!

Secret Search Engine Optimization Strategies: How to Turn Keywords into Conversions

by: Derek Gehl Are you focusing your search engine optimization efforts on getting tons of traffic from the search engines? If you answered yes, then I am about to tell you something completely different from other Internet Marketers. Forget about getting tons of traffic from the search engines. Get LESS traffic that converts MORE! The Secret to Turning Keywords into Conversions is to Keep Your Keywords Focused For example, if your site sells an all-natural remedy for acid stomach problems... You start to do your keyword research and you discover that the keyword phrase "natural remedies" has 288 daily searches. But it has over 2,000,000 sites competing for it. While the phrase, "acid reflux natural remedies" has 67 daily searches with just over 11,000 competing sites. Do you want to spend all your time and effort trying to optimize your website for the first keyword phrase? You may get more searches, but you'll never know how many of those searchers want to buy your stomach acid remedy. Not to mention the HUGE number of competitors the keyword has! Or would you go for the second term, which only has 67 people searching for it -- knowing those 67 people are looking for EXACTLY what you offer? And, it has a MUCH lower competition number to boot! Obviously, the second term is better! Sure, you might get less traffic -- but the visitors you DO get will be MUCH more likely to buy your product. Why You Will Make More Money with Less Traffic That Converts More People search the Internet to find a solution to a problem and not necessarily to buy something. So what problems will they solve by coming to your website? Think of a keyword as a "problem statement" that someone would type into the search engines. When you can match your keywords to the exact problems they're trying to solve. You'll attract the BEST visitors to your site so you can focus all your optimization efforts on them! Here are some more keyword research tips that will help you turn keywords into conversions… Top Search Engine Optimization Tips for Finding Highly Focused Keywords That Will Bring the Absolute Best Buyers to Your Website: Check your server logs. See what keyword phrases people are actually using to find your site. If there's something relevant that you've overlooked, build a page focused on that keyword phrase. Also look for keywords that are causing people to leave right away because they're not finding what they're looking for. Ditch those keywords immediately. Look for "intention." Say you sell cross-country ski equipment. People can come to your website looking for different things. For instance: They're looking to buy a specific product They're looking for product reviews They want information on how to get started in cross-country skiing They want used or discount equipment They want to know what kind of equipment will be best for them They want to know what's new and hot in cross-country ski equipment Same products -- far different intentions! If you optimize a page (or pages) for each different problem people are trying to solve, you'll give them what they're looking for… That means they'll stay on your site longer -- and you'll have a better chance of getting them into the sales process. Check out your competition. What keywords are your competitors optimizing for, and on what pages? You can spy on them by going to their websites and looking at their code! In your web browser, just go to View on the main menu and click on Source or Page Source to "look under the hood" of any competitor's site. Then you can see what they're doing right and what you could do better. Find your best keywords with pay-per-click advertising. This is the fastest way to find out just how well different keywords perform. Pay-per-click lets you run ads based on two or three different keywords at the same time. This enables you can track which ones convert best. Make sure the ads click through to pages that relate directly to the keywords. Focus your SEO efforts on the specific keywords that describe EXACTLY what problem each page solves. Don't be tempted by more general keywords with higher traffic numbers. They'll never send you the traffic you want. Follow these search engine optimization tips and you will turn keywords into conversions. Keywords: how to make money online, how to start internet business, ways to make money online, internet marketing course, online marketing course, internet marketing training course, web marketing course, how to start an internet business, e business strategy, online small business course

Seven Important Facts You May Want To Know About Saving For College

by: Robert Walsh Major Corporations want to be able to hire college graduates. The average college graduate makes approximately 70% more than the average high school graduate in his working career. The cost of college is increasing faster than the inflation rate. Dollar wise, the cost of college increases at more than $1,000 per year. If you are able to SAVE $480 per month with an interest rate of 3.5% in a College Fund from the time your child is born to the time you send him/her off to college at age 18, you will have paid for 4 years at a public college or university ($145,000) with today’s projection. With an average of 40% savings of monthly shopping costs for food and household goods, you can save an extra $226 per month to invest in a college-savings-plan. Scholarships and grants are available for families based on yearly incomes of $65,000 or less. Saving-and-paying for college may not be as difficult as you think. Save-money with everyday-shopping is the smart-way to save-for-college. Generally, the more you hear about the high rising costs for a college education today, the cost factor becomes more frightening every year for the average American family. As with anything that is frightening we try to avoid it. We hide from it. We may even want to bury our heads in the sand, and hope that it just goes away. Or it paralyzes us into non-action. No matter what one’s response to fear is…as loving parents you will have to face the challenge head on one day… and the earlier the better. Facing a fear head on, even as children, is ultimately how we all conquer our fears. So let’s journey together, it’s easier than doing it by one’s self…there’s safety in numbers. And you may become a lot safer with these numbers to plan, save, and pay for a college education for your son or daughter. "SHOP-SMART SHOPPING-TIPS SAVE MONEY" will be our slogan. Let's start with some guidelines or rules. The guideline or RULE #1 is very simple: NEVER PAY FULL PRICE for anything you buy. With a little bit of effort you will be surprised how much you can SAVE before you go out shopping. According to a new poll conducted by the consumer Reports National Research Center for “ShopSmart” magazine, (women) shoppers who use coupons and store loyalty cards save over 10% a year on groceries…estimated to be the equivalent of $678 a year with an average weekly shopping trip of $116.00. Actually, YOU CAN DO A LOT BETTER THAN TEN PERCENT! The women in the survey used their coupons occasionally, and they did not necessarily use all of them. This leads to RULE #2 - ALWAYS SIGN UP FOR STORE-LOYALTY CARDS. Don’t miss out on a sale. Sign up at all the local grocery stores in your area, and it’s FREE. Each week different stores have different items on sale. For example, if you have a loyalty card for store A, but not store B; and your brand of coffee or laundry detergent goes on Sale at store B, you will miss the SALE. And you pay FULL PRICE at store A because there was no Sale on your coffee or laundry detergent there this week. BE SMART….SHOP SMART makes the loyalty cards work for you. BE LOYAL TO YOURSELF and SAVE MONEY! RULE #3 - TO OPTIMIZE YOUR SAVINGS- ALWAYS USE COUPONS. Coupons are easy to obtain. Check your Sunday Newspaper first, go online, and check the store sale ads both in the mail and in the store. Rule #4 - ALWAYS STOCK UP, and BUY IN BULK WHAT IS ON SALE when it is a highly used item or high ticket item like coffee or laundry detergent. For example, your brand of coffee which is regularly priced as $10.99 for a large can (34 oz. or more) goes on sale for $5.99 for the shopper with the store loyalty card. That’s a savings of $5.00. Add one .50 cents-off manufacturer’s coupon. Now you just have saved 50%. (Hint: Keep an eye open for the coupon dispensers that hang off the shelves in the grocery store. If it offers a coupon for an item you use, take 3-4 of them, and save them until the product goes on sale prior to the coupon’s expiration date.) Back to the coffee example… let’s say, you have four coupons for your brand of coffee. You purchase four cans of coffee and stock up at this price… and WHAM you just SAVED $22.00 for a 50% SAVINGS….much better than the average 10% that survey suggested. Even if you go out to the store just for the coffee that’s on SALE….YOU MADE A GREAT DEAL! To keep your savings at a 50% level leads to Rule #5 - TAKE ADVANTAGE of BUY 1 GET 1 FREE OFFERS, especially on products your family uses on a regular basis. Again, buy in Bulk. Rule #6 - BE FLEXIBLE with your shopping list when you see something on SALE:an item might not be on your shopping list this week; but you see that it’s on SALE, and you buy it. Now, there won’t be a need to put it on your shopping list for the next two or three weeks, and you SAVED. Rule #7: ALWAYS ASK FOR A RAIN CHECK FOR A SALE ITEM that the store has run out of. This way you will be guaranteed not to miss out on the SALE ITEM. Rain checks can be good for one month or one year, depending on the store policy. (Hint: On the rain check ask for maximum amount of the item possible for a multiple purchase in the future.) These Shop-Smart shopping-tips will help you save-money with your everyday-shopping. Another area to look for to SAVE MONEY is with your kidswear. You can SAVE BIG when you buy Kids clothing at half-off prices whether for your infant, toddler, or teenager. You can save up to half-off on top-quality designer kidswear. Think of how many more dollars YOU CAN SAVE and add to YOUR CHILD’S college savings plan. Each year, how much do you spend on clothing for your kids? Do the math…how much is the 50% off savings worth to you and your CHILD’S FUTURE COLLEGE EDUCATION….year after year. Don’t allow your education dollars educate someone else’s child. As a loving parent your responsibility is to your child first, and foremost. These are just some of the possible ways to save half-off with your grocery shopping and your children’s clothing purchases that will begin to make college a reality for your child. Use these SHOP-SMART SHOPPING-TIPS to SAVE MONEY. Once you see how much money you save for your child’s education…set a goal….plan-save-and-pay for college with your monthly savings. The survey indicated saving 10 percent on your grocery shopping would generate savings of $678 per year. My challenge to each of you is to average SAVINGS of 40% on your purchases. If you can do that…. you will realize savings up to $2,712 a year, or $226 per month; and that’s just on your groceries alone. Saving-and-paying for College may not be as difficult as you think once you start using the SHOP-SMART SHOPPING-TIPS for all your purchases. Automatically-save money-for-college each time you FOLLOW THE RULES. They represent Free-Money-for-College you didn’t know you even had. It is our goal at http://robertwalshkidsclothing.com to provide hope to every family who has the dream of sending their child(ren) to college. Continue to deposit MONEY in your Free-College-Money Reward Program each time you order top-quality designer kidswear for your child(ren) whatever their age…infant…toddler…teen or any age in-between. Remember Rule #1: NEVER PAY FULL PRICE.

I Can Do It! 7 Tips for Teaching Your Children Self Reliance

by: Dr Robyn Silverman Most parents are trying to stay clear of the label "helicopter parents," because they don't want to be seen as the type of mother or father who hover and "overprotect." The most powerful parents have realized that when their children have the opportunity to make mistakes, they gain an invaluable opportunity to learn from those mistakes. It's developmentally appropriate for children to become more and more independent, self reliant and responsible as they age. It can be challenging for parents to know when to step back and let their children try something on their own. After all, from the time their children were babies, parents have spent years meeting many to all of their child's needs. Striking a balance between allowing your children to do tasks for themselves and helping them when they seem to need or want is a talent of very powerful parents. This balance allows their children to thrive because they feel more confident in themselves while still feeling supported and properly mentored. How can we instill self reliance and responsibility into our children? (1) Allow your children to make some decisions: Even young children can make sound decisions if you give them a few select choices. Do you want to wear the red shirt or the blue shirt? Would you like a peanut butter sandwich or a cheese sandwich? As children get older, you can allow them to make more important decisions with little to no guidance. They can determine things like which Fall sport they'd like to play, if they need a tutor for math, and which friends they'd like to spend time with each day without needing much, if any, input from parents. While it's tempting to make these kinds of decisions for your older children, they need to stand on their own two feet—after all, their decisions are often correct! (2) Encourage your children to try tasks on their own: While it's often quicker and more skillfully done when we do it for them, children need to engage in tasks on their own if they're ever going to learn how to do them well. Laundry, shoe-tying, and making the bed are great places to start with young children. Older children can handle more complicated tasks such as cooking, preparing their own lunch, and doing their own homework. (3) Model responsibility and self reliance: Parents have many responsibilities—let your child see them and hear about them! Say out loud; "This screw seems a little loose, I'll go get the screwdriver and tighten it" or "I have to plan our weekly menu for dinner; let's see...Monday night we'll have..." When children see you making decisions, taking initiative, and displaying self reliant behaviors, they will engage in similar behavior. (4) Be your child's coach rather than his sage: When your child asks you questions about how to do something or what to do in a certain situation, sometimes asking questions is more important than providing answers. "What do you think you should do? How would you feel if you chose X? What would happen if you did Y instead?" These questions can unlock the answers in your own child's brain so the next time he's in a similar situation he'll be able to call on his own experience and judgment to make a decision. (5) Be a good support system: Sometimes this means cheering them on from the sidelines and other times it means encouraging them to try again. Of course, when children truly need your help, they should know that they can count on you. If you teach them to ask for help when they really need it (when something seems unsafe or too challenging), they should know that you will be there to assist them. Children who know that they can count on their parents when they really need it feel better about taking risks and the possibility of making mistakes. (6) Provide them with responsibilities: Chores are great for teaching children how to be self reliant as well as how to work as a team. After teaching them how to do the chore properly, let them give it a try with some assistance, if needed. You can even work on a checklist together which helps to break down the task into easy, age-appropriate chunks. For example, (a) Take the clothes out of the dryer, (b) Separate the clothes by family member, (c) Match up all the socks...and so on. When we provide children with ways to help out the family, we give them opportunities to build responsibility, self confidence, and self reliance. (7) Encourage healthy risk-taking: Assure your children that making mistakes is OK. The most important thing is that s/he tries! Most things are not done perfectly the first time—even when you're an adult. It doesn't mean "the end of the world" and there is no reason to be embarrassed. Watching our children make mistakes can be challenging. We may want to rush to their aid to shield them from impending failure or disappointment. However, when parents do this, they rob their children of some very powerful tools; self confidence, stick-to-itiveness, and of course, self reliance. Your children are relying on you to teach them how to approach the world. Sometimes that means they have to watch you to learn how to approach the task. But other times that means, you must watch them from the sidelines and encourage them to figure it out on their own.