YouTube is Not for Kids Under 13

Parents need to be aware that YouTube is not intended for children who are under the age of 13. YouTube has been making efforts to protect minors and families, and recommends that kids who are 12 and under use YouTube Kids instead of the main YouTube. According to YouTube, it never was intended to be used by children who are under the age of 13. That is why they created YouTube Kids in 2015. It is a safe place for kids to be able to explore their interests and for parents to have more control over what their kids can watch. … Continue reading

FDA Warns of Dangers of Codeine and Tramadol for Children

The Food and Drug Administration has posted a safety announcement that warns parents of the dangers of giving children codeine pain and cough medicines and tramadol pain medicines. This warning includes a recommendation that women who are breastfeeding not use codeine or tramadol. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued this safety warning in April of 2017. It is an update to two previous safety warnings. One was an evaluation of potential risks of codeine cough and cold medicines in children that was issued in 2015. Another was an evaluation of the risk of using tramadol in children aged 17 … Continue reading

Ways to Prevent Your Baby Monitor from Being Hacked

We are entering the very beginning of “the internet of things”. The simplest explanation of what that means is that there are now several appliances and electronics that are constantly connected to the internet through Wi-Fi. The purpose is to make life more convenient. Unfortunately, sometimes this interconnectedness can cause security issues. A family discovered this in a very unpleasant way when their nanny noticed that someone had hacked their baby monitor. A stranger was able to talk to, and see, the room the baby was in, the baby, and the nanny who was caring for the infant. How did … Continue reading

What is the Dirty Dozen List?

One of my little frugal dreams is to one day walk into a store and see plump juice organic strawberries for very little cost. That dream may have a hard time being actualized, since organic strawberries, even when in season, can get expensive. Conventional strawberries, on the other hand, may be on sale or even available as a “loss leader,” an item that the store loses money on in the hopes of getting shoppers in the door. Still, it is a rare day when I buy conventional strawberries. They are just too high on the list of produce with the … Continue reading

Fire Your Maid Service and Get Your Family Cleaning

Admittedly, I wouldn’t say no to maid service, if it was free that is. Since it isn’t I have to rely on myself and my family to do the cleaning. Getting three kids to clean is a chore in itself, even when just has to do with cleaning up after themselves. Still, I’d rather have train the family to clean than pay for a maid. Plus, this way, my kids get some valuable real-life lessons, thrown in. Routine is Everything Establish some cleaning routines, and cleaning won’t take up so much time. It is easier to do a quick wipe … Continue reading

Cheap Ways to Freshen Your Home for Spring

While the calendar is promising spring, here it still seems like winter. I can’t wait until I am able to open the windows and let the fresh air circulate through the house for hours. It is one free way to instantly freshen up our home. While the new catalogues that come in the mail are promising all sorts of ideas for freshening up a home and getting it ready for spring, I think I am going to stick with the free and the cheap. This way I can still have a nice fresh house, but can also save my money … Continue reading

Is Your Sofa Safe?

I often worry about the chemicals I use in my house.  I worry about what exactly is in the air freshener I use.  I freak out when my husband buys a Teflon skillet. But, I just read that another real threat in my house may be my sofa. My sofa?  A threat?  Yes. Since 1975, California has required that all furniture with foam such as sofas and baby products such as car seats be treated with flame retardant chemicals.  That standard, maybe because California is so large a state, became the standard for most other states. The problem is while … Continue reading

Don’t Miss the Presidents’ Day Sales!

The first thing that many people notice about Presidents’ Day is that it comes with a three-day weekend. Schools are closed, banks are closed, and your workplace might be closed as well. Stores, however, will be open and having big sales. Here are some of the Presidents’ Day Sales that will be going on through Monday, February 18, 2013 (or even longer). Sears is having a “Presidents’ Day Sale and Values Event”. It will end on Wednesday, February 20, 2013. The sale is taking place both in the store and online (with some sales that are online exclusives). The items … Continue reading

Earn Money with Your iPad or Tablet

Take advantage of your iPad or Tablet to earn money. With the iPad or Tablets capabilities, you can pad your bank account with some extra cash. Here is how. Selling Books Grab your iPad or tablet and head to the nearest thrift store. Using apps, you can scan promising looking books and find out exactly how much they are worth in the resell market. This means that books you can purchase for 50 cents or a dollar could be worth much, much, more. Don’t forget to hit yard sales as well, where you may be able to pick up an … Continue reading

Start Your Own Genealogy “Newspaper”

Have you heard of Paper.li? I just recently started looking at it. You can use it to create a newspaper of articles, photos, and videos that interest you. In other words, genealogists can make their very own Paper.li newspaper and then share it with other like-minded people through social media. Start by visiting the Paper.li website. It will ask you if you want to sign up (or log in) through Twitter or through Facebook. I picked Twitter (since I am no longer using Facebook). Next, you will be asked if you want to authorize Paper.li to use your account. The … Continue reading