Just a reminder

Be sure to visit http://www.revealedreflections.com for my blog posts on our travels and the joys of the Golden Years. Please subscribe to that blog so that when I post you will get an email notice.

I hope to see you there.

Mary

I'm back but leaving again

I have neglected my blogs terribly. My husband and I have embarked on an exciting journey and I would like to share it with you. Please visit my blog
and go with us as we travel through the Golden Years. Please share your journey and struggles with us too. We would love to hear from you.

After a few weeks I intend to close this blog. Today is September 25. I will be deleting this blog on Halloween.

Don't forget to bookmark the link above.

Thoughts on our upcoming remodel

Those who read my blogs know that my husband Gary and I are full time RV-ing for a while. At the end of summer we intend to go back home to Victoria, Tx and remodel a rental house we have and move into it. It's a cute house, very small, but all that we need.

I spend a lot of time planning what I want to do with the kitchen. It badly needs updating, so I'll be needing to decide on appliances, sinks etc. I've been looking at some copper kitchen sinks and am considering having something like that put in. We'll be doing most of the work ourselves so I will have to find someone close to us who sells these things.

I love country style so I think I'll try to make the house look even older than it is. I'm excited to get going on that, though certainly not at all ready to give up on adventure with full-time RV-ing. It's wonderful. A subject for another blog, however.

Caring for our teeth

Of all the things that I consider important, dental care if right up there with the top few things. Eating right would be number one though eating right is a part of dental care. The right foods = healthy teeth etc. etc.

Brushing several times a day, flossing, and getting regular checkups, all are just plain good sense if you want your teeth to last throughout your lifetime.

If you don't have a dentist now, it's time to find one. You can search online for a dentist in your area. As an example, search for Frisco Dentist on Google and up will come a list of dentists in your area.

I'm an advocate of research and feel so blessed to have access to so much info at our fingertips. So, find a dentist in your area and look after those beautiful teeth.

My grandaughters newest activity

My grandaughters are always coming up with something new, a new activity, a new challenge. Their latest thing is horse back riding. They are taking lessons and are fast becoming skilled equestrians.

Of course, one doesn't ride in just a pair of jeans, but must have riding breeches, and carry a crop. Next they will be entering competitions and that will mean an outfit of "horse show" clothes.

Our world is full of interesting activities and I am glad that my granddaughters are open to trying new things. A full life is an interesting life.

What are your thoughts?

What do you think about weight loss pills? Do you use them and if so, which ones have you tried?

I feel that herbal products are the best way to go in this area of supplements. I'm a huge fan of label reading always. Before I take any over the counter remedy I need to know just what it is that I'm taking. Be it a medication or processed food, I read the labels.

The older I get the more rigid I get about reading labels and being mindful of taking care of my body. Our health is our greatest asset. Guard it with your life, for your life.

Planning a vacation?

Last year gas prices were so high as were airfares and just about everything else. This year, however, due to everyone cutting back, prices have been reduced considerably.

I don't know anyone who hasn't cut back on spending, but with these vacation prices being lower, it's enabling us all to reconsider going somewhere instead of staying home. Westgate is just one of the many resort chains that have lowered prices. They are offering a great Las Vegas package for $149. Having resorts in many of the most popular places, we can go just about anywhere in the states and stay at one of their resorts and take advantage of their great deals.

Saving money! Always a buzzworthy subject.

Mesothelioma, still a lot to be learned

If you have a friend of family member who has been diagnosed with mesothelioma you know how far they've come in learning about it, but also know how far they have to go before they fully understand this terrible disease.

Mesothelioma is relatively new, but a lot of research is being done and some great discoveries being made as well. A dear cousin of mine has been diagnosed with it so whenever I find a new website I bookmark it and send it to him. When I came across www.mesotheliomahelp.net I read with interest about some of the inroads that are being made. I was also pleased to read that there are a lot of support groups available for sufferers of this disease. Support groups are a great tool not only for the sufferer, but also family members. I'm reminded of a Beatles song, "I'll Get By With A Little Help From My Friends". How true!!

The new face of business

I have several family members who are in the insurance business. In fact, my brother and sister-in-law are, their daughter and her husband are insurance people as is my nephew. Their business has been very successful over the years. Times are changing even for their business, however. People aren't content to stay with just one insurance company but want to shop for the best price and are using the internet to do so.

As things change for individuals who are shopping for insurance, so are they changing for those who sell it. Business is stressed and they all have to consider new ways of finding health insurance leads. There are now companies online who have valid leads for insurance companies, people who are shopping for the best prices around.

The more things change, though, the more they stay the same.

A buzzworthy site

I have been doing some research on a diet supplement that my daughter is using and I came across what I consider a "buzzworthy site". It's www.diet-supplements.com. They list most of the supplements and then recommend the best diet supplements according to different criteria.

No matter which product you are thinking of using or want to educate yourself on, they have information on it. Products from a-z, detox products, cleanses, appetite suppressants, fat burners etc. etc. etc. They list it, give a review of it based on their research. They offer their reviews which appear to be fair and based on credible information, but also give the website for the product so that you can read what the makers of them have to say.

This site is impressive and I highly recommend you check it out for yourself. You might want to bookmark it for future reference. I did.

Warm weather striked again in South Texas

It's only May and already here in South Texas we are having temperature in the 90s. I'm not ready for this yet!

I was talking to my neighbor this morning. She's just a young woman in her 30s and is either on a diet, just going on a diet or just coming off of one. Bless her heart! She's not alone, though, as we're all urged to watch our weight no matter our age. It's not about how we look so much as being healthy, feeling our best and of course, feeling good about ourselves. Body image is an important issue no matter your age or gender.

My neighbor was saying that she is using Liporexall, a diet aid, appetite suppressant. I'm very careful when taking any over the counter medication and always do a lot of research to find out what the ingredients are. It's so important to make sure there isn't anything harmful in non-prescription drugs. I also asked her to please check with her doctor too. She said she would. She's a smart young lady!

I learn something new everyday.....

I overheard my daughter and her husband discussing "pos systems" the other day. I listened waiting for a clue as to what it was, but a clue never came along. So, once there was a lull in the discussion, I asked, "What is a pos system?"

I have to tell you that my daughter is very business savvy. I truly admire her ability to think out of the box. She can see the big picture with ease and that ability has paid off for her over the years.

I digress! POS systems are "Point of sale" systems. If you go to a department store and make a purchase, the cashier who rings it up is using that store's POS system. The cash register is tied into their computer system. It takes the product out of their inventory as it is sold to you. Besides retail stores, restaurants us these systems, as do salons. I would bet there are systems for every kind of business that there is.

Now, don't you feel smart? You learned something new today too. Have a good day.

The "nether world" of factories

As a woman I find factories, their equipment, what they do and how they work boggles my mind. My husband was talking to a neighbor about their days of working in factories. The early days when they weren't in management. It was as if they were talking a foreign language!! Break presses, industrial hand wheels, motion and time study! I didn't bother to even ask any questions. I just listened and nodded my head as if I knew just what they were talking about.

We ladies got back at them, though, when we started to discuss our sewing projects and the different ways to put a zipper in. You'd have enjoyed the quizzical looks on their faces when we talked about presser feet. Talk about foreign languages. I guess we're all in the same boat when we're listening to discussions on things we know nothing about.

A Gambling Vacation

Have you ever thought of going on a "gambling vacation"? What is that, you ask! It's the perfect kind of vacation for those of us who like to gamble. What you do is pick gambling casinos in different places and go from one to the other enjoying the shows and the gambling.

I think for the novice the best way to plan a trip like this would be to get online and do a search. Start by a casino nearby, such as Las Vegas. Find different casinos in different states, go from one to the other and gamble your heart out.

I would book our Vegas hotels especially because that's such a busy place. Some other spots are so crowded.

It sounds like fun to me. What do you think?

One of my favorite comedians...

Howie Mandel is one of my favorites as far as comedians go. His sense of humor matches mine. We find the same things funny.

He's been doing adds for www.buy.com on TV and on www.youtube.com. The latest one he did on www.youtube is especially good. With many commercials I get caught up in who is talking or what they're doing rather than getting the message they are trying to get across. In Howie Mandel's commercial for buy.com, however, it's simple, to the point and you get the message, and the message is, if you're looking for a laptop on sale go to www.buy.com. Compare prices, check around and you'll see that their prices are the best around. They also offer free shipping. You can't beat that offer!

When space is an issue

My husband is helping some friends of ours build an exercise room in their house. They have added the room onto their home and it's almost done. What a great idea!!

They are going to have a treadmill, stationary bike, bench press as well as just about anything you could think of to aid them in the sculpting of a healthy, well formed body.

Not wanting to waste any of their space with a tv stand, they have chosen to buy a mount for the wall. That way they can save all of their floor space for exercise equipment.

They have invited us to use all of the equipment whenever we want. I may get on the treadmill once in a while, but I certainly don't plan to be doing any weight lifting anytime soon.

I really like the way the room is turning out, though, and that wall mounted TV is a great addition to it.

Wonderful peace

It's Springtime again and Sunday is Easter. That means that summer, the beach and swim suits are right around the corner as well.

With that thought my next one most of the time automatically would turn to dieting and appetite suppressants. However, as a senior citizen how I look in a swim suit or other things isn't an issue and is the least of my worries.

That isn't to say that I no longer care how I look, but what it does say is that being healthy and feeling my best is my focus rather than appearances. With that comes a freedom that I praise God for. It's a freedom to just be myself and to live peacefully in my skin.

I wish this same peace and freedom to each of you this Easter season.

Happy Easter and thank you for reading my blog.

Our carbon footprint

It's been quite a while since I blogged on ecology and the need to decrease the size of our carbon footprint. In simpler terms, we need to find new ways to lower the amount of energy we each use as well as the amount of "stuff" we dispose of too. Recycle is the name of this game.

There was a lady being interviewed on TV one day who claims to have cut her energy bill down by $100 a month by unplugging everything in her house that wasn't in use. I didn't know that our computers, televisions, clocks etc all use energy even when they're off. That boggles my mind.

One other thing that we're doing is replacing our light bulbs with led home lighting. As our bulbs burn out we replace them with something more energy efficient and longer lasting.

There is still so much we need to do before I'll begin to feel that we're doing our part in this matter. It's up to each of us to work towards the goal of reducing our carbon footprint. If you have any unique "go green" ideas, please comment on my post and share them with the rest of us. I thank you in advance.

Plumbing issues

Our daughter called her dad yesterday to tell him she was having plumbing problems in her kitchen. "What should I do, dad?" was her cry. Well, being the doting father that my husband is, he told her that he was on his way and she was not to worry.

Having worked on her kitchen plumbing before, he decided that it was time for her to have a new faucet so did some searching to find discount Danze faucets. Our daughter and her husband have an older home and try to preserve it's charm. When they replace something they try to find new accessories or fixtures that look old. Danze has some wonderful reproductions

Well, he ordered her new faucet and while we await it's delivery, he did a quick fix on her sink to hold it for the time being. She's going to love her new faucet!

A buzzworthy site

Anyone who reads my blogs on a regular basis knows that I shop and buy most everything online these days. This being so, I see a lot of websites and so am not easily impressed.

However, while shopping for Fossil watches I found www.kenmarwatches.com to be what I consider a buzzworthy site. I think you'll agree with me when you visit the site yourself. The wow factor is the way the items are immediately enlarged when you run your cursor over the picture. Not just enlarged, but you get a real closeup picture that enables you to see all of the detail of the watches as if you were looking right at them real time. I wish more sites would utilize this graphic feature rather than just offering an enlarged photo. I want to see all of the detail when I'm about to purchase something online. Do check this site out and see for yourself.

Mesothelioma, a form of cancer

I've been thinking a lot about my cousin who has Mesothelioma the past few weeks. He and his family live in Idaho and we're in Texas. We haven't seen them in way too many years and we've gotten out of touch.

Mesothelioma is the form of cancer that is caused by exposure to asbestos. A lot of progress has been made in treatment of this cancer, but I know little about it, it's symptoms or the prognosis for someone who has it.

If you or a family member has this disease, I would appreciate hearing from you so that I know what my cousin is up against.

Meanwhile, I'll keep trying to get in touch with him. He is so dear to us all, and he's always in my prayers.

Remembering the 8mm recorder

I wonder how many of my reader owned or even remember the old 8mm movie recorder. We have reels and reels of movies of us as newlyweds and of each of our children as they were growing up. We keep saying that one of these days we're going to get them all out, have the kids over and spend some time watching them. When our son comes for a visit next time that is going to be on top of our agenda of things to do.

Today capturing the important events in our lives is so much easier. We can buy a camcorder
that is so small it fits in the palm of my husband's hand. Easy to use and easy to put onto a cd. All we have to do is plug it into our computer and burn the recording onto a cd. We've come a long way, baby!

Great vacation ideas

It seems that my theme for all of my blogs these days is the economy and all that is involved with that.

Less I vary my posts or something, again I am reminded that our plans for a vacation are strongly affected by the economy. We'll be staying in the country this year for sure.

I've been doing some research to come up with some vacation ideas for us and have found that Orlando vacations offer some great package prices for all of their theme parks. They have Disney World there, Sea World and Universal Studios just to name a few. I think we're going to have to go there and spend several weeks in order to see it all.

Now to find some RV parks in the same area. I'm betting there are a bunch of them.

The "upside" of our "down" economy

Our struggling economy is a source of stress for most of us for a lot of reasons. The ripple effect has touched us all and is putting a strain on everyone.

On the flip side to these down times is that there are deals to be had in just about every area from housing to restaurants to travel. Most airlines and cruise lines are offering special packages as they try to fill their planes and ships. Argentina travel can be enjoyed for about $600. That's an amazing bargain. We've never been there, and there will never be a better time to take advantage of some great travel packages.

The up side of the economic recession

As stressful as the economic recession has been for most people, it's showing itself to have an upside as well. There are bargains to be had everywhere you look. This means that whatever it is that we need or want to buy, it is more than likely available at a cheaper than ever price somewhere.

My brother just bought a watch for his wife for their 50th wedding anniversary. She has always wanted one of the Patek Philippe watches for ladies, and he found a pre-owned one at an amazing savings. When purchasing a luxury item such as this, pre-owned is a great opportunity. Like new, still just as luxurious, valuable, and beautiful as when it was completely new, Patek Philippe watches never go out of style, and retain their value over the years. This is an investment as well as a wonderful gift. My brother has taught me a lot over the years about the value of buying quality.

Media rooms, the latest rage

During these difficult economic times we're all making lifestyle changes to cut back on our expenses. One of those ways is to cut out going to movies, but instead renting movies to watch at home. This has brought on a boom in home theaters, or media rooms as they are called these days. People will turn a room in their home into a mini movie theater complete with comfortable home theater furniture. These pieces are amazingly comfortable. Most recline, though some are made lounge like so that you can stretch out.

Add a popcorn machine, your favorite drink, a good movie and you're all set for a fun and affordable evening with family and friends.

Earning extra money during hard times

Daily we hear of more businesses going under, job layoffs, people losing all they have worked so hard to achieve. It's a very stressful time. No matter what your income bracket, we all live on what we make. Hopefully, we all live within our means as well. There has never been a better time for us to learn that huge lesson.

My mind has been working overtime this last while trying to come up with ideas to share with you all hoping that I can help someone else as I help myself. Some of the ideas that have come to my mind are to use my craft skills to generate money. I can sew, I crochet and knit. The other crafting genres are open to me as well. Once a crafter, it's only a matter of getting a book and learning a new craft. Whatever you can do, be it plastic canvas work, needlepoint, ceramics, wood work, all of those things can be put into play as a means to earn extra cash. I plan to make some things to put in local antique stores to sell.

For those of you who are "craftily challenged" there are other things that come to mind. Can you baby sit? Sit for the elderly? House sit? Pet sit or pet walk? What are your talents and how can you put them to work for you? I have a friend who is so very good at doing scrap booking. She could make more general scrapbook collages and sell them. She could hire herself out to organize people's pictures and perhaps scrapbook for others who don't have that talent. I'd be her first customer and would try to work out a barter exchange. She could get to work on my pictures and I could sew something for her. =)

Anyway, I hope that this posting has stimulated you to think of creative ways you too can earn some extra cash. If you're at your computer you can type. Could you do that for someone?

Let me know some of the creative ways you have come up with to use your talents to help earn money for your family. We're all in this together!

New Years Resolutions. How are you doing?

My niece and I made the same new years resolution, and that was to get fit and get healthy. So far we both have been able to keep at it, are feeling so much better, and we both are losing weight.

Because I'm older, I feel that it's safest to just eat my regular meals and get some exercise. My niece, however, being younger and without any health problems, felt that she wanted to take a more aggressive approach and is using a weight loss product. She checked with her doctor to make sure that it was safe and was given the go ahead.

You know, we have to be our own doctor for the most part. Who knows our body better then we ourselves. If we're eating right and feeling better then we know we're doing the right things.

Relocating? Save money!!

We have new neighbors across the street. We were gone when they were moving in, so I went over to welcome them as soon as we returned home.

They are such nice people, and I was amazed to hear how they saved a ton of money by using the services of www.upack.com. She said that they packed the "ReloCubes" and truck rental themselves, and then the company's professional drivers did the rest. Their belongings arrived safe and sound at their new home.

A lot of us are scaling down to save money, or moving to find a new job. We need to save as much as we can. This is one way we can do it without the risk of damaging all that we have worked so hard to acquire.

A buzzworthy weight loss support site

When I find a site that is really unique or of unusual value I like to share it with you all. Weight Commander is just such a site.

Although the site is fairly new, the Weight Commander computer program isn't. I downloaded my copy several years ago and have found it to be an awesome tool. It keeps me on track.

When Michael Marder started his online version of his Weight Commander weight loss support program, I found it to have all of the features that I enjoy with my personal copy, but the added bonus of message boards. The message boards give me a whole community of others who are striving to be healthier and are there to support and advise me on my journey. That support system is invaluable and can be the difference between success and failure.
Weight Commander is free to try and after the trial period only costs a one time fee of $9.95. Where else can you find a great program that doesn't charge an ongoing weekly or monthly fee?

A great bargain, a great program, and the support we all need as we journey to be as healthy as we deserve to be and to feel the best we can in the new year.

Check out www.weightcommander.com. I truly expect you to be sharing this site with the people you care about too.

New Year's Resolutions

Have you made a resolution for this new year? I have. I resolve to get healthy and plan on getting more exercise and making sure I give my body all it needs in the way of nutrition.

I'm a huge believer in vitamins etc so I am always on the outlook for discount supplements. When I find a good site I try to pass it along as well. Planetarynutrition.com is such a site. They offer supplements that will give the added nutritional support that you need. Each body is different, each person's goals are different.

I think you'll enjoy this site. Do check it out if you're looking for any kind of nutritional supplements.