Search Results for: blog changing your name

You Might Want to Cancel Your Progressive Insurance Policy

What company does your car insurance policy come from? If it comes from Progressive Insurance, you might want to consider changing companies. Progressive treated the family of a woman who died in a car accident, (through no fault of her own), without compassion. Matt Fisher’s story will break your heart. This could happen to you. Matt Fisher is the brother of a woman named Katie. He wrote a blog that described the ordeal that Progressive Insurance put his family through after Katie was killed in an automobile accident. The fault was with the other driver, who ran a red light … Continue reading →

Finding Your Identity in Your Marriage

I never thought much about my life growing up. At times in my adult life when I’ve considered getting married, having kids, I didn’t have anything but my own thoughts at that time to rely on. It’s strange because I’m an obsessive planner for short-term details, but I can’t think of any point in my life when I’ve had a vision for the future. As a kid I always had dreams of what I wanted to be when I grew up: veterinarian, zoologist, reporter for National Geographic Magazine, but those were always just fleeting childhood whimsies. I never pictured myself … Continue reading →

Changing My Name

By now I’m sure that you can tell that feminist issues are a very big deal for me. It even took a bit of coaxing from my parents for me to walk down the aisle with my dad; I did it for him, because it was important to him, but I don’t like the idea of being passed off from one man’s hands to another. Yet one thing about my decisions related to my married life really stands out: I took my husband’s name. I’ll admit it rankled a little, just the idea that I erase a part of myself … Continue reading →

Scary Trends in Baby Names

Leave it to Americans to find yet another way to immortalize pregnant teens. Just when you thought paying 16 year olds cold, hard cash to allow TV cameras to follow their every move as new parents was something to cringe about, now the government reveals that the young reality TV stars have some of the hottest names in the country. According to the Social Security Administration, the stars from MTV’s mega-popular show “Teen Mom,” are among the hottest trending names in the United States. Scary! I wish I were joking, but facts are facts. The Social Security Administration just released … Continue reading →

Your Own Work

A nearing-the-end-of-the-semester reminder to all of the students out there: plagiarism is not good. Oh sure, you might be tempted. When you’re staring down a couple of all-nighters in a row the prospect of replacing your friends name with yours and changing a couple of sentences seems appealing. As we’re not at the very end of the semester just yet I think you might be able to avoid those all-nighters of the future if you pull some part-timers right now. Sure, there are probably all sorts of social things you could be doing. Social things are good — but is … Continue reading →

Celebrate Your Name This Week

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Did you know that this week is Celebrate Your Name week? Although the week can be celebrated by anyone and everyone, it seems to me that genealogists are going to be especially interested in using this week as the perfect excuse to delve deeper into your own family history. It includes “Genealogy Saturday”! Your name is special. It identifies who you are, and connects you to your immediate family, your relatives, and your ancestors. Nothing gets a person’s attention quicker than when they hear someone else calling out their name. Celebrate Your Name Week (CYNW) is all about making sure … Continue reading →

How to Make Your Facebook Photos Look Better

Have you ever put a lot of work into editing a picture, only to upload it to Facebook and have it look terrible? It happens to a lot of people and there is a way to prevent this loss of quality. You see, Facebook resizes your images to fit, but it does not apply any sharpening, which is essential for optimal web viewing. By resizing your photos and sharpening them before you upload them, you will achieve the best quality and your Facebook friends will see your photo in all of its “original” glory. I always resize my Facebook images … Continue reading →

Tips for Puppy-Proofing Your Home

There’s something irresistible about baby animals, isn’t there? Puppies, kittens, chicks, and more… so innocent, sweet, and cuddly! But for baby animals, some things around your house may be irresistable… and dangerous. It’s best to puppy-proof (or kitten-proof, or whatever animal you have-proof) your home BEFORE the new family member comes home. Even if you don’t get every potential hazard out of the way, you’ll still be ahead of the game! First things first: get a pet’s eye view on the world. That means crouching down — or crawling on your hands and knees — to see what the room … Continue reading →

You Tube: How to Swaddle Your Baby

Swaddling a baby is often used to comfort a newborn baby who is used to being in close surroundings and doesn’t quite know what to do with all of those arms and legs that seem to flail around. When done correctly, swaddling can instantly calm a fussy baby (assuming of course that all of the other needs are met, such as feeding, changing and burping). But swaddling is often hard to get. Sure, the nurse at the hospital or birthing center may show you exactly what to do to wrap your infant up as a little burrito, but let’s face … Continue reading →

Parents, Kids and Nicknames

If you ever want to see the face of horror try using your child’s family nickname in front of his or her classmates. Trust me; the mortified look your child will flash is one that will be seared in your memory forever. How do I know this, you might ask? I was witness to a similar scene last weekend and I still can’t stop thinking about it… and it didn’t even involve my child. Last Saturday I bumped into one of my former colleagues at Macy’s. I was exchanging a birthday gift and she was doing some back-to-school shopping with … Continue reading →