Top Super Foods that you should be feeding your family

Date: September 15, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

"Super Foods" are full of nutrients, filling, low in calories, and some even offer disease-fighting capabilities. If that isn't enough motivation, then look at cost. Many of these are low in cost to begin with, and when you add their healthy and filling abilities in, that's even less spent at the grocery store.

Just remember that even though these foods are good for you it is still essential to eat them in moderation and not in place of other foods that your body needs. Check out the United States Department of Agriculture recommendations here.

Below are some of the top Super Foods and why they are so good for you and your family.

• Broccoli - Full of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, and tons of fiber.
• Nuts - Protein, healthy fats, fiber, and antioxidants. Just keep the portion under control because of the high fat content in nuts.
• Eggs - Chock full of protein and 12 different vitamins. They're also light on the wallet.
• Beans - Tons of protein and best of all they help you lower cholesterol.
• Salmon or Tuna - These are both low in fat, but high in Omega-3 which helps your heart.
• Kiwi - According to WebMD one large kiwi has enough vitamin C to fulfill your entire daily requirement. Not bad for the fruit from down under.
• Yogurt - Specifically low fat, fat-free, or Greek yogurt. It's high in calcium and loaded with much needed potassium and other nutrients.
• Berries - Blueberries are tops in this group, however, they all have more than enough antioxidants to make them fantastic for you.

What are your favorite Super Foods?

Florida Prepaid College Plans

Date: September 14, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

The Florida Prepaid College Board offers parents the opportunity to save for their children's college education.

Everyone knows that education costs continue to rise every year, which makes saving for your children's education that much more difficult. Not only do you need enough money to cover tuition and books, but you also have to think about dormitory fee's if your child is going to live on campus, as well as factor in inflation. It's enough to make your head spin.

There are two separate opportunities to start saving now, a prepaid college plan and a college investment plan. Each has its own pros and cons, so it's up to you to review each and determine what is best for your own situation.

Prepaid College Plan

• Lets you prepay for tuition, fees, and dormitory housing at a set price which is considerably lower than the cost when your child attends college.
• Intended for use in a Florida public college or university, however, you can transfer the actual monetary value of the plan to most private colleges and universities in Florida.
• Cost is dependent on your child's age at the time you start their plan.
• Does not cover books, food, supplies, or other costs.
• You choose from three different plans, all with a maximum of 4 years of education.
• Purchaser must be a Florida resident of 12 months or more.
  

College Investment Plan

• Allows you to save as much as you want toward your child's education, with the benefit of tax-free withdrawals.
• Can be used toward any education costs associated with the program of study, including books, supplies, room and board, equipment, tuition, fees, and even food.
• The investment plan can be used toward further education should your child go for a graduate degree.
• Florida residency is not required.

Children's Way 5k benefits Jacksonville Ronald McDonald House

Date: September 8, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

One of the best things about many 5k walk/runs is that they often support a great charity. This is most especially the case with the Children's Way 5k on September 26th, as it is benefiting the Jacksonville Ronald McDonald House.

The Ronald McDonald House Charties is a non-profit organization that provides lodging for parents and families of ill or injured children that are receiving care and/or therapy at a nearby hospital. Something that allows parents the opportunity to stay either by their child's side or literally across the street from them rather than in some cases across the country.

As a non-profit, they are always looking for donations and there are many ways you can help.

1. Donate directly to the Jacksonville Ronald McDonald House .
2. Volunteer your time to help cook, work at special events, or simply answering phones.
3. Organize a Wish List drive and gather some of the many needed items that the House uses daily.
4. Collect pop tabs from your soda cans and bring them to the Ronald McDonald House. They recycle them and get cash that helps keep them going.
5. Participate in the 5k Challenge and walk/run in the Children's Way 5k. They have tons of food, fun, and prizes at the end of the race.

Obama classroom webcast scheduled to air Tuesday in most schools

Date: September 7, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

In many other cities across the country, Tuesday marks the beginning of a new school year. It also brings the first presidential speech directed at your children via a webcast. The webcast is directed toward students in an effort to encourage them to stay in school, study hard, and to not give up in their education.

President Obama's speech is set for noon, however, some schools throughout the country have opted not to show the webcast, and in those that plan to air it, some parents are choosing to pull their children out of school rather than let them view it.

Many parents and lawmakers alike are concerned about the exact message(s) that will be relayed through the webcast, believing that there is a deeper political agenda. Presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs denounces that there is anything improper in the speech.

Read the speech here (released after this article was published): Florida Times Union

Some parents have said that they would prefer to watch the speech first and then choose if they feel it is appropriate for their children while others refuse to even look at it themselves.

Spousal IRA allows SAHM's to save for retirement

Date: August 31, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

One of the big hits you take in deciding to stay-at-home involves money. Not only are you giving up that 2nd income (assuming you worked before), but in many cases you are also giving up retirement savings and pensions plans that were provided through your company. Fortunately it doesn't mean that you are going to be totally on your own when it comes time to retire.

A nonworking spouse (that would be you) can contribute up to $5,000 per year to an IRA.

Some things to remember:

• You must file your taxes jointly.
• Your working spouse must make enough money to cover the amount contributed.
• There is not an actual Spousal IRA (though some financial institutions may label it as such), Spousal IRA simply refers to an IRA/Roth IRA that is contributed to by the opposite spouse.
• There is a cap on the amount of money your spouse makes. If he is making over a certain amount (currently $169,000) then you can not contribute to a spousal IRA.

If you're interested in more information regarding Spousal IRA's please check out the links below. Each one provides great information and advice.

Helpful links on IRA's:
Smart Money
Q & A on Charles Schwab - More in depth information regarding tax deductions and limitations
IRS - IRA information

Exercise resoruces for stay-at-home moms

Date: August 28, 2009
Where: Examiner.com

Being a stay-at-home often means that your family is working under a pretty strict budget that does not always allow for gym memberships and childcare (for those that have younger tykes). However, that does not mean that you are restricted to the confines of your home never to see another workout again. There are many resources available to you both on line and throughout the city.

• Workout DVD's - Best thing about it is you can borrow them for FREE from any public library.
• Mapmywalk.com - This site lets you map out a walking/running path using Google Maps. It shows you how many miles your path is, and you also have access to dozens of user entered paths.
• Parks - You can't hardly sneeze in this city without running into a park, and many of them have paved walking paths or walking trails. That means you can get a good walk or jog in for you, and then let your child(ren) explore and play around the park.
• Stroller Strides - A workout playgroup that brings mothers together in the pursuit of fitness. This one is not free, but a group that is growing in popularity across the city and therefore warrants mention.
• Sparkpeople.com - This website not only helps you make smarter meal choices, but offers a large selection of workouts that you can easily do from your own home. Many do nott require anything at all except you, and the rest only require a towel, medicine ball, and/or dumbbells.

With a little time and the use of the above resources you can easily put together a great weekly routine to keep you or get you, in shape.

New free plagiarism website

Date: March 10, 2009
Where: The Campus Voice

For some students the idea of blatant plagiarism doesn't really concern them. In fact, many would have no qualms about copying an entire paper and submitting it, if it meant that much less work for them.

Where does that leave the honest students who would never dream of such a thing, but find themselves accused of it due to improperly citing a source?

We've all heard of turnitin.com and the teachers that use it. Regardless of how truthful you are, everyone feels that little bit of nerves knowing your paper is going to be scrutinized by it. Did I put that into my own thoughts enough? Did I properly cite that paragraph? How is a student to know?

Turnitin.com heard the questions and brought an answer: writecheck.turnitin.com. This site provides the same database as the teachers get at turnitin.com, but it doesn't store the paper. This means that when your teacher goes to submit your paper, it will not come up as a replica.

Sounds pretty great doesn't it? However, it comes at a price. You can expect to spend $4.95 for a paper up to 5,000 words, $19.95 for up to 25,000 words, and $49.95 for a 200,000 word thesis.Considering the fact that your teacher or school is already paying for their half of it, it seems like a pretty steep price, but what else are you to do?

This is where developer Jeffrey Smith, comes in with the creation of plagiarismdetect.com. It is designed for those students that often have plagiarism issues with their papers, and already has over 105,000 registered users. His site is free, and offers comparable results to writecheck.turnitin.com. Plus, it's free! What struggling student can argue with that?

All you have to do is register, upload your paper, choose what resources you want checked such as books, websites, online journals, etc., along with the option of doing a quick check or a more detailed in-depth one. The results of the check are listed in seconds, and cover every sentence of your paper.

Though plagiarismdetect.com may not have the notoriety that turnitin.com has, it's definitely a site worth looking into.