Finding remedies to health issues right in your kitchen

As I’ve gotten older, I begin hearing about more and more people suffering from cancer, kidney disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, chronic pains, etc.  I myself suffer with high blood pressure and now have a slight problem with my kidney and now, I’m having knee pains.  I take 2 pharmaceuticals’ for HBP, and they just gave me something that I can take for the knee pain (Aleve works for me but not good for kidney). So, the older I get, I become more and more concerned about my health.  My mom was an 18 year breast cancer survivor when she suddenly passed away at the age of 63; I’ll never know exactly what killed her because there was no autopsy performed.  Cancer runs on my dad’s side of the family; he died from the disease in 2010 at the age of 73.

I hate taking pills.  I hate going to the pharmacy getting refills and having to make sure I take them every day.  I know there’s got to be a better way to maintain my health NATURALLY.  So I began researching and reading and learned that there are a number of natures “health care products” right in my kitchen!

Lemons.  Lemon lowers blood pressure and increases the levels of HDL (good cholesterol).  It’s also an anti-carcinogenic which lower the rates of colon, prostate, and breast cancer.

Garlic and Onions.  Both reduce the risk of cancer and heart attacks

Turmeric.  This is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.  When combined with cauliflower, it has shown to prevent prostate cancer and stop the growth of existing prostate cancer.  In laboratory tests Turmeric prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.

This is just a few examples of preventive health care that’s found right in our kitchens.  For additional information, click here to listen to our radio broadcast on the subject.

Here’s to your health!

Elements of Inspiration

A night of encouragement, uplifting inspiration, laughter,fellowship, food & fun  with hostess Dezzie of Praise 103.9FM, . Tap into the Life of Brother Marcus on Friday July 20th at 7pm. While having the opportunity to meet Brother Marcus up close & personal you will also enjoy heavenly sounds from Special Guest Tamika Patton, awesome sounds of the Joe Dingle Trio, Mahogany Pollard, Aaron Thomas, Kee Kee Ross and many, many more.

 

This is a night of inspiration with "Your Brother Talking" sharing Elements of Inspiration and his life testimony. Come out and experience some of the benefits that of the new endeavors that Bro. Marcus is working on to help keep us focused and inspired.

 

Tickets are  $30.00.  You can obtain tickets by calling (856) 418-0329 or visit https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=CBERDG425TBMU

 

A portion of the proceeds from the event will be contributed to Support the Children of Estel Orphanage;  an overseas mission in Africa providing the needs of the orphanages and the children that reside there. For information, please visit http://www.lostcoinintl.com/missions#!__missions

 

 If you are interested in representing your business or organization as a vendor call (856) 418-0329.  

How credit scores work

If you're applying for a car loan, a home mortgage, or a credit card to finance your next vacation, banks and other institutions will likely base their lending decision, at least in part, on your credit score. The higher the score (other things being equal), the more money lenders will offer and the lower the interest rate they'll charge. Credit scores are a relatively new invention. As credit cards became popular in the 1960s, card issuers needed a way to determine whether an applicant was likely to pay his or her bill on time. Although lenders used various means to assess that risk, their methods tended to be inconsistent and sometimes inaccurate. Around the same time, Congress started cracking down on discriminatory lending practices by passing several pieces of legislation that reined in lenders and collection agents.
All this didn't go unnoticed by a firm called Fair Isaac and Company. They developed a risk scoring model in the 1980s, a score that was widely adopted by credit issuers and banks throughout the United States. The FICO score was born. That score, which ranges from 300 to 800, is based on five factors that are considered good predictors of risk.

1. Payment history (35%). This factor is given the greatest weight. Lenders want to know how many bills you've paid late and how many were sent to collections. The more recent the problems, the greater the negative impact on your score.
2. Outstanding debt (30%). Rule of thumb: keep your credit card balances at 25% or less of their limits.
3. Length of time you've had credit (15%). In general, a longer credit history will generate a higher overall score.
4. New credit (10%). Opening several new accounts tends to impact your score negatively in the short term.
5. Types of credit (10%). Having experience with several types of credit — revolving credit, installment loans, mortgages — can push your score upward.

The FICO score isn't the only score used by lenders, nor is it the only factor they consider. In fact, some lenders may use a different scoring model altogether. Nevertheless, by keeping a watchful eye on the above five factors, you can certainly increase your odds of obtaining credit at reasonable interest rates. What's the best way to monitor your credit? Examine your credit report regularly and quickly resolve any inaccuracies.

contact: aconner@atconnercpa.com

Parenting 102: Censorship is good!

I am reminded today of a day many years ago when my now 25 year old daughter was about 4 or 5 years old.  My mom bought her the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit".  Typical grandmother...buying her grands all the latest in movies, toys etc.  My daughter loved watching Roger Rabbit and I loved it too; knowing she would be occupied for a hour and a half and I could  devote my total attention on her baby sister.  So, almost daily I would gladly pop in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" immediately upon her request.  I, myself had never really bothered to sit down and watch it all the way through, so I assumed it was an innocent cute little cartoon with human incorporated. 
Until one day...

One moring I was dressing her for kindergarten and she told me she didn't want to wear panties anymore.  Of course I was stunned by this sudden "decision" she made and told her that she has to wear panties.  "Everybody wears panties." is what I said.  Her reply: "Jessica doesn't wear panties."  Now, I'm truly puzzled because I thought she was talking about her little friend Jessica from school.  I replied:  "I'm sure Jessica's mommy doesn't allow her to come to school without any panties on."   My daughter looked at me as if I were the dumbest mommy on earth and says "Not Jessica Shirley, JESSICA RABBIT!"   It took a minute, but I realized she was talking about the character from her favorite movie! 

At that point I was almost ready to cry!  My little girl's mind was already curiously dealing with sexuality.  My mind raced as I funbled with words that this 4 yeear old mind would understand.  I couldn't just say "because I said so" I knew that wouldn't work with her and shuddered to think of her thoughts on the matter as her body would inevitable develop.  So I said, "Mommy always wears panties; they're a part of your outfit.  See how mommy matches her underwear with her outer clothes?"  I figured that might work because she was already a fashionista.  I added that "we wear underwear because we don't want people to see our private parts.  Just like mommy always tells you don't ever let anybody touch your private parts, we don't want people looking at our private parts either. ok?"  She sayed ok and seemed satisfied with my answer.  Thankfully that conversation never took place again, but from then on, when we shopped for outfits, she always had to get matching underwear.  Thank goodnes for those little pantie and mini undershirts they had for little girls!

Later that day I sat down and watched the entire movie and realized what she meant.  Although Jessica Rabbit was a cartoon character, she was full of sex appeal and built like a brick house.  The clothes that were "painted on her" left no doubt that "Jessica doesn't wear any underwear."

I learned a valuable lesson that day and from then on I always watched tv shows and movies with my girls.  I would censor what they watched up till their teenage years.  Even then I let them know what shows I didn't like and why, but at some point, you have to allow them to begin making their own decisions and choices.

Oh yeah...that "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" movie got all messed up and the tape inside the video somehow popped. 

Good Housekeeping Tips For Vacation Savings

As a travel professional I often hear how people will put off going on vacation due to financial concerns. In fact, some people won’t take a vacation because they think it’s too expensive. Well, that’s where I come in!

Indeed some vacations, depending on where you are traveling can put a dent in your wallet. But, if you’re swift, flexible and willing to sacrifice, you can laugh at the dent while adding some extra cash to your wallet for spending.

When it comes to budgeting your vacation, travel is all about being flexible. If you are willing to travel, for instance, from week day to week day, you could possibly save as much as $500 on your vacation depending on where you are traveling to.

Try these tips…

For travel to Disney World   

When traveling to Disney World, try to stay from Wednesday to Tuesday instead of Saturday - Saturday. Doing so will save you a nice amount of money. Plus, you still get a weekend in the trip and won’t be charged for weekend rates. Another great way to explore Disney World is by lodging @ offsite partner resorts and hotels. For instance, rather than staying at Disney All Star Resorts(which by the way is an awesome resort!), stay off site in the Down Town Disney area, Lake Buena Vista or Kissimmee for more valuable resorts. Plus, you can still take advantage of the park hopper passes offered by Disney! If you stay off site, you could easily save up to $1000, depending on your family size.

For travel to the Caribbean Islands

Traveling to the Caribbean Islands? Try an All-Inclusive package! These packages are rewarding and you don’t have to worry about food, beverages or even activities. This is a plus for families, especially where the family size is greater than 4 persons. At most, an all-inclusive package will always come with hotel accommodations, all food, beverages, all non-motorized water sports and activities, tips & taxes. So you don’t have to worry about anything. Even tips are included!

Like many other things, travel too, requires sacrifices. Soooooo, you may have to limit or temporally give up night life, frequent dining out or even the mall and start sending those hard earn bucks to your travel professional for payments on your trip. Easier said than done, but at the end sits the ultimate reward of a much deserved vacation with family or friends.

 Anitra Byers

Travel Professional/Owner

Wallet Happy Vacations

Parenting 101: Plain and Simple

Parenting 101:  Input Output – What goes in is what comes out.

When my children were younger, we had a videos series called Psalty the Psongbook.  They had caseete tapes and movies.  One of my personal favorites was “The Computer”.  In this episode, Psalty taught a valuable lesson to the children.  He taught them that whatever they listened to or watched on TV would program their minds and warned them of the consequences of putting “bad programming” into you mind.

The kids loved watching Psalty, and so did i!!    I became very conscience of what my children watched and listened to – at least for as long as I could and controlled their lives as much as I could.  When they became teens I just prayed that I had bought them up in the right way and that they wouldn’t depart from it.  The lessons seemed pretty much like common sense, but now I realize it’s not.   Lots of parents themselves have been “programmed” by the likes of these “reality shows” like BB Wives, The Kardashians, music videos and audios, etc .   Unfortunately some take from just being “entertainment” and turn it into a way of life.  Then when children are in school acting up, imitating what they see on TV and hear in the music, we wonder what’s wrong.  Then they get misdiagnosed and labeled…for life…at the age of 6.

Listen.  Parenting 101 – GARBAGE IN GARBAGE OUT.  POSITIVE IMAGES IN POSITIVE IMAGES OUT.

Plain and Simple.