What Mistakes People Make While Taking Medication?

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medication

Our medications are meant to keep us healthier. But chances are good that at some point or another, you’ve made a seemingly innocent medication mistake that put your health at risk. “It’s not hard to make a variety of mistakes with your prescription, including not taking it at the right time [or] taking too little … Read more

Easy Ways to Boost Your Pets Mood

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pets

Is your pet acting…bored? Games of fetch, chasing a string on a stick, or that plastic ball don’t seem to be as exciting as it was a few weeks ago? Well, maybe your pet needs some new stimulus. It’s important to keep our pets happy and that means rotating toys and also keeping their interests … Read more

In Love Relationship Ask Yourself Before Saying Yes

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There’s so much dating advice out there telling women how to get a man to commit in love relationship, but not so much about whether you should commit to him.

Our relationships are just about the most important predictor of our happiness: and there’s hardly a relationship more important than who we choose as a spouse, potentially for the rest of our lives.

So here are 9 CRUCIAL questions to ask in a relationship before tying the knot, so that you know whether this is a man you could really be with long-term:

1. “Does he bring me up, or down?”

This is the most basic of all, but so many people forget to think about it. When you’re with your guy, do you feel better about who you are? Do you feel like you are appreciated for all your best qualities? When you spend time together, do you feel lighter, like your mood is lifted just by being with him? If the answer is yes, you have a keeper. But if you feel constantly criticized, under-valued, and made to feel bad about yourself, you know that this love relationship won’t be healthy for you in the long-run.

2. “Do we want the same lifestyle?”

You want the country. He wants the city. You want to be active on weekends, he wants to sit around watching TV. You want to be settled in one place, he wants to be backpacking across South America and living one-day-at-a-time. Relationships are hard work. They’re even harder if you both have completely different ideas about how you picture your daily life. Choose a guy who already at least wants the same kind of life you do, even if you disagree on the little details about how big the kitchen should be, or which restaurant you want to try this week.

3. “Do I feel a unique sexual attraction?”

There’s no getting around it: he does it for you physically, or he doesn’t. Do you both feel that pull of wanting to grab and kiss one another? Sure, the wild early passion doesn’t stay the same forever, but you should feel like you have a sexual connection that works effortlessly from day 1, so that you know you have great love chemistry. While it’s true sex can get better over time, the sexual attraction needs to be there from the first date.

4. “How much sex do we both want?”

Some of the most painful relationships are created when two people don’t put the same value on sex. There’s no one-size-fits-all rule for how much you should be having – the only answer is: enough to keep you both satisfied. Someone feeling like they aren’t getting enough is terribly damaging over a long period of time. It makes them feel rejected, unloved, and even resentful to the other person for not caring about something they need. Bottom line: Choose a guy with a sex drive that matches your own. This is one of the most difficult questions to ask in a love relationship, but honesty now will save you both years of frustration later on.

5. “What is he like at his worst?”

This is HUGE. Does he throw enormous temper tantrums? Is he wildly possessive and jealous? Does he turn vicious and nasty in arguments in a way that makes you wonder what happened to the man you fell in love with? Some people think you should overlook the worst in your partner if you also want their best. That’s insane. Someone at their worst is something you’re going to have to deal with whenever times get hard, and those are the moments in a love relationship when you most need someone who is going to support you and have your back.

6. “Where do I want to live?”

I can’t tell you how many couples I’ve known who have broken up over location. If you want to live in another country, another city, another continent, then it bears knowing this early, or else someone is going to be miserable at being dragged out of where they want to be for the sake of their partner. Yes, relationships are all about compromise, but make sure it’s a compromise you can actually deal with, rather than one that’s going to make you give up something that is crucial to your happiness.

7. “Is our vision for the next 5/10 years similar?”

Yep, you guessed it. Kids. Marriage. Houses. All these items on the menu need to be at least in both of your heads before committing to a future together. Just being in love sadly isn’t enough for a relationship to last. You need to both feel like you have an exciting shared vision for where you want to be in the next few years so that you’re both on the same page. Ignore this at your peril: the future comes sooner than you think, so make sure you both want the same one.

8. “Are our values similar?” (i.e. for kindness, for generosity, for ambition…) 

You need to look at this man and see traits in him that you either aspire to possess more of or that you already possess. It might be how you both care about family. Or how generous you both are financially. Or maybe it’s how much you both care about spending quality time together and having a great work/life balance. Maybe you want a guy who appreciates being focused on his career because you also live to work. Whatever it is, look for a guy where you recognize a major piece of yourself in who he is.

9. Are you both willing to apologise and work on your mistakes?

Relationships can’t survive on one person alone taking all the burden when problems arise. A truly healthy relationship should have evidence that both partners are able to see their own flaws and (as difficult as it is) swallow their pride on occasion and apologize when they drop the ball.

This is ESSENTIAL for showing your relationship can grow and make progress. If your partner can never concede their mistakes in an argument, your future together will be a long uphill struggle.

Things Children Expecting From Their Parents To Do With Them

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What do you think matters most to your children? You driving them to lessons and practices, or is it the smile and hug you greet them with after school? If you guessed the latter, you are correct.

Sixteen years of teaching and giving the same assignment every Mother’s Day has led me to the exact same conclusion. You see, every Mother’s Day I would ask my students to give me advice on being a mother. They were to think about things their mother or guardian did for or with them that made them feel happy or loved. The classroom would go silent as the students wrote intensely for longer than they had ever written before. Often smiles would appear on their faces as they reflected on the happy experiences they were remembering.

Something Interesting…

After reading their responses I would add to my list all the ideas they mentioned. Surprisingly, many of the responses were the same. Year after year, in every country I taught, and in every type of demographic, the students were saying the same things and had the same message: It’s the small things that their mothers did that meant the most and that they remembered.

Many moms today feel as if they are not good mothers unless they are racing around, shuttling their children from lessons, to practices and back to lessons again. I’ve had mothers tell me that they want to give their children every opportunity they did not have. While this thinking might bring the mother some comfort, it really does not do the same for their child who is potentially feeling overextended, stressed and tired.

After speaking endlessly about this topic with my students, it became clear to me that children today are involved in too many activities and are in turn becoming less in touch with themselves and their families. In addition, my students told me they really wished for more time to “just play”. Of course many of them enjoy their extra-curricular activities, but it is not necessary they said to be allowed to do everything. What they enjoyed most, and what made their hearts happiest was when their mothers did simple things for or with them.

Important Points to Notice

Here is a list of the top ten things students around the world said they remembered and loved most about their mothers.

  1. Come into my bedroom at night, tuck me in and sing me a song. Also tell me stories about when you were little.
  2. Give me hugs and kisses and sit and talk with me privately.
  3. Spend quality time just with me, not with my brothers and sisters around.
  4. Give me nutritious food so I can grow up healthy.
  5. At dinner talk about what we could do together on the weekend.
  6. At night talk to me about about anything; love, school, family etc.
  7. Let me play outside a lot.
  8. Cuddle under a blanket and watch our favorite TV show together.
  9. Discipline me. It makes me feel like you care.
  10. Leave special messages in my desk or lunch bag.

Children are incredibly wise and tend to see the world more simply than we do. Perhaps it is time we start taking their advice. Maybe we as parents would all feel a little less stressed and be satisfied with the fact that doing little things really is… good enough.

How to Plan Your Baby’s First Birthday

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Whether you’re planning an intimate gathering of friends and family or an all-out bash, your baby’s first birthday celebration is bound to be special – at least for you and the other adults and older kids in his life!

Yes, a first birthday party is really for parents and their guests. Your baby won’t remember this party, and may even be overwhelmed by it. But that doesn’t mean you can’t all have fun. For party planning suggestions and tips on keeping your baby (and young visitors) comfortable, read on.

Who to invite

Your 1-year-old may be fearful of strangers, and strange or new places. Despite liking other babies, she won’t understand how to play with them yet. She will enjoy individual attention and likes to make you laugh. These factors often convince parents to opt for an intimate, low-budget family party or small gathering of relatives, close friends, fellow parents, and neighbors.

But no matter how many guests you have, keep in mind that your 1-year-old will want a lot of your undiluted attention. This is especially true if she’s feeling overstimulated by a large crowd of well-wishers.

How much to spend

According to our poll of more than 5,000 parents, the amount spent on a baby’s first birthday party is all over the map, from less than $50 to more than $500. A majority – 61 percent – of parents spent $200 or less, 25 percent spent between $200 and $500, and 11 percent dished out more than $500.

The amount you spend is up to you, and depends on what kind of party you want to have for your child. Keep in mind that food is the main thing that drives costs up, followed by decorations and the cake. Don’t feel pressured to spend more than you can afford – small is beautiful at this age!

Choosing a time

Your baby will probably still be taking a morning and afternoon nap when her first birthday rolls around. If so, it’s best to plan your party around nap times if possible. And if you’re inviting other young guests, check out their nap times with their parents. Once one starts crying, they all might! You may want to keep the party brief – an hour or so is probably long enough at this age.

Choosing a place

Home is usually the easiest place to host a first birthday party, and it’s where your baby will feel most secure. But if your home is too small for the number of guests you want to invite, consider a local community center or church social hall, a kids’ museum, a restaurant (you may want to go with a kids’-themed place or a fast-food restaurant with a play space), a relative’s house, or, if the weather is nice, a park or zoo.

Choosing a theme

Party themes aren’t important to your 1-year-old or her baby guests. You might want to aim for a color-coordinated look, or pick matching plates and napkins with a favorite cartoon character, but it’s more for the benefit of the keepsake photos than your baby at this stage.

Food

Keep food simple – a lot of it will probably end up on the floor anyway!

Finger foods work well for both babies and adults, and eating them won’t interrupt play or socializing. Some babies may have quite a few teeth and be able to bite into food; others may still be toothless, so cater to both extremes. Tiny sandwiches with cheese spread (you can cut them into shapes), cubes of mild cheese, cut-up fruit, pasta spirals, and mini yogurts are good options. You can also try animal crackers or graham crackers broken into small pieces.

Your small guests will probably eat very little, so aim for a variety of tastes, textures, and colors rather than quantity. And avoid serving nuts, hard candies, popcorn, raisins, marshmallows, and other foods that may present a choking hazard to little ones.

As for beverages, it’s a good idea to have water, milk, and maybe diluted fruit juice around for the kids and mineral water and sodas for the adults.

Don’t forget a wonderful birthday cake. Some parents like to have a small separate cake for the birthday baby – this way she can smash into it to her heart’s content. (It also works to serve cupcakes to everyone, including your baby.) Homemade treats are special, but supermarkets have a great variety available, or try a bakery. You may need to order the cake or cakes in advance. And don’t let your baby get too close to the candle as she’ll want to grab it, not blow on it.

Games and activities

Loud bangs from party poppers and bursting balloons may frighten your baby, and discarded poppers and balloons are a serious choking hazard until age 3. Why not have some musical fun, such as dancing with your baby, or a nursery rhyme tape on in the background? She’ll also enjoy peek-a-boo games and finding toys hidden in a box or under a cloth. And, of course, she’ll enjoy helping you open her presents (although the wrapping paper will be far more fun than the gift!).

Goody bags

Goody bags aren’t really necessary at this age, and the usual treats like candy and balloons are downright for the babies at your party. If you want to give a going-away present to your little guests, opt for a small, safe soft toy or a board book to chew on.

Birthday presents

By now your baby will appreciate toys that make noise or light up, or both, so activity centers are a good choice. It’s never too early to read, and textured board books are great fun for your tactile baby. A push-along toy to aid walking skills may be a hit, and new bath toys are always welcome. You may want to consider a big, lasting present, such as a baby swing for outdoors or a rocking horse. And if you already have loads of toys, your baby won’t object if some people buy her clothes!

General tips
  • Have somewhere clean, handy, and well-equipped for diaper changing.
  • Breastfeeding moms may appreciate somewhere quiet and private to nurse.
  • It’s crawling, walking, and climbing time – safety gates and other childproofing devices are essential.
  • Stow away precious ornaments and breakables.
  • Keep pets well out of the way (for their own protection!).
  • Keep a watchful eye on the party area for hazards, such as forks and small swallowable objects, and clear them away quickly.
  • Babies will play alongside each other, not together, so keep a variety of toys available within a large, safe floor space.
  • Relax – let your baby and her guests set the pace.
  • Make sure you have a willing volunteer to take plenty of photos and video. You may be too busy, and you don’t want to miss those shots of your baby digging into her first birthday cake!

When to Wear Earrings After Piercing?

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wear earrings

One question almost everyone asks when getting their ears pierced is how long they have to wait before wear earrings. After the initial piercing earrings are put in, your earlobes need time to heal before you can switch to the earrings of your choice. Danglers shouldn’t be worn for lengthy durations because they can stretch or tear piercings.

Ear Piercing Procedure

It is always best to have any piercing, including earlobes, performed by a professional body piercer using single-use sterile needles. Needles can be sterilised in an autoclave, which employs high-pressure steam to kill bacteria. Plastic piercing guns cannot be autoclaved and can spread infection even when disinfected. Piercings performed with sterile needles and surgical-steel jewelry often heal more smoothly than gun piercings, since a gun uses blunt-force trauma to shoot a stud through the lobe.

Ear Piercing Aftercare

Alcohol and hydrogen peroxide are too harsh and drying for new piercings as they heal. The Association of Professional Piercers recommends soaking earlobes in a saline solution made of 1/4 tsp. of non-iodized sea salt and one cup of warm bottled water. After soaking, wash the lobes with an antimicrobial soap. Keep your hands off the jewelry when you are not cleaning it, and change your pillowcases frequently. If you follow this aftercare procedure twice a day, you can change your earrings in four to six weeks.

Jewelry for Initial Ear Piercings

The best jewelry for initial earlobe piercings is a surgical stainless-steel captive bead ring. Rings are comfortable to sleep in and move freely through the earlobe, making them easier to clean than piercing studs. The most common gauges for piercing ears are 18 or 20; 20 gauge is slightly smaller.

Dangling Earrings

When you first remove the rings and insert new jewelry, use a high-quality metal such as surgical steel, gold, platinum or titanium. This eliminates or reduces the risk of nickel irritating your new piercings. Choose the lightest-weight earrings you can find, and wear them for short periods of time at first. Be careful of intricate patterns that can get caught in your hair. Although your piercings are healed, they are still new. Hair caught in jewelry can pull or tear a new piercing.

Stretching a Piercing

Heavy dangling jewelry has the potential to stretch your piercings or even rip through the lobes. If you choose to wear heavy earrings, look for small silicone piercing protectors that you can insert into the holes before inserting the jewelry. These protectors provide strength around the piercing holes, keeping the jewelry from stretching or tearing them. They can also protect against metal allergies, a common problem resulting from wearing inexpensive costume jewelry. If you want to stretch your piercings on purpose in order to wear large-gauge plugs, look for a piercer certified by the Association of Professional Piercers to assist you in stretching with tapers.