PROTECTING THE FAMILY !!

Which are the most important issues your faced with on a daily basis?

Remember that your personal life, health and financials require some thought and consideration and planning!

Let's talk HEALTH:  some people, especially young adults, do not consider health or health issues. I'm not talking about fitness, food, diets or sweets. Let's consider non-conventional habits. They may be;

1. Smoking - most smokers start at an age under fifteen years old..Most are introduced to cigarettes by parents, brothers or sisters. Smoking is "cool".. Breathing is "cooler". Cancer is deadly, cigarettes contribute to Cancer...why smoke.. think of your health and expense!
2. Drug Abuse - Often starts at the age of 11-14 years old. Most often starts with inhalants, glue, paint, and gas mixtures. Often sniffed directly from container, spray can or even inhaled from a balloon. I do not believe in graduating substances. I believe that often the child's personality coupled with a lack of parental control, or even often parent participation introduces illegal drug substances; from marijuana, cocaine, heroin, speed, crack or even alcohol. Ecstasy, the club drug of choice for the night crawlers along with GHB finds many of our young in emergency rooms or at the morgue.No returning from the morgue...too late!!!
3. Fatty Foods, Sweets, and an Overabundance of Carbohydrates - with little planned exercise finds many of your kids struggling with weight issues as young children and teenagers. We are inundated with fat food commercials, advertisements, and even School Food programs are loaded with high cholesterol, carbohydrates and fried foods. This often will lead to high blood pressure, diabetes and a shortening of life. It also leads to a life span disrupted by medical visits and hospitalizations... thus the expense for doctors visits, legitimate drugs from pharmacies, and a lifestyle that differs from the healthy.

Lifestyle Issues - Socialization is an important part of growing as a kid. However, being bullied, a victim of gossip, Internet slander, text message violence, threats from classmates or others hanging around the school often leads to depression and in some it may lead to suicide.

1. Parents need to be part of the child's life. This often is not possible due to working parents, drunken parents, separated or divorced parents in many families. Often children are left on their own after school to fend for themselves. That's where the street-gang becomes the way of life. Someone to hang with, relate with, introduces him/her to quick money, sex and violence.
2. Interaction with child and friends, friends parents, school and teachers.
3. Outside home activities. Cultural exposure to; after school events, playground participation, visits to parks, beaches, museums, grocery shopping, reading books, Internet activities supervised by parent or guardians, music, libraries and city governmental agencies. And most important the value of money. How it is earned, what its used for, not just toys, and explanation of a family budget...often the weekly allowance is tied to chores and deeds assigned to the child. This is a representation of first payment for work.
4. Daddy & Mommy Work. Where? What they do? Why they do? and How it helps others? Bringing a child to work for a few hours every so often, impresses the child and engages the child in questions about work and responsibility.
5. Child Care- In today's busy routine, some parents, single parent or even relative may be required to place the child in day-care services. If this is required you need to know the following; Profile of the Day Care Taker...is the person a friend where you drop the child at their home. Is this person a responsible individual? What do you know about them? Are the trained and licensed child care taker? If not, do they have a drug habit, sexual deviant, molestation or abuse tendencies? If they are licensed,; Do they have a State or County License to operate a Day Care Center? If so; request a copy of their license. Confirm that not complaints of abuse or criminal history of the day-care center is on file with local police department or State Health Division, or Licensing Agency. If so, remove the child immediately. If the location is operating as a Daycare Child Care Center, confirm all the above and confirm that a licensed Nurse is available to the facility. Confirm the times of operations, the daily procedures and operations of the child, is there nap time, lunch, snack time and clean facility. Talk with your child after each day to determine if the child has a positive experience or is having a problem. Address the issues immediately.
6. Coaches & Other Adults - Most Coaches of kids sports, whether inside school or outside in the community are great caretakers and honest child guidance counselors. However, every so often the deviant, perverted or just mentally impaired filter into the system. Whether it's organized sports, scouting, youth counselors or what ever, molesters and deviants manage to sneak into the system. Why? Because schools, communities and parents want to trust. The deviants sell themselves as legitimate caretakers, honest law abiding citizens, while making every effort to prey on your child. How do you prevent this?  Easy! First, identify the Coach, Sports Parent,, require a full background check, medical clearance, including access to past medical insurance claims, criminal record's check (nationwide) under the given name, social security number verification, profile past employment history, verify and confirm. Second; Ask you child questions, speak about the events, sporting activities, where, what happened, quest gradually through conversation. Become aware of your child's activities, friends and friend parents. Communicate with your school teachers, friends parents and directly to the coach or athletic director.  Make sure that your child (boy or girl) does not allow themselves to be put into a position that they are alone with any coach, teacher, guidance counselor or even religious instructor, what ever religion, in an office, gym or even the coaches or instructors office, car or private lunch or driven home, for your convenience. It's been proven by the hundreds of victims own testimonies in several criminal and civil cases, that the child trusted the person, parent confidence in the integrity of the person, and even communicating with the child through facebook, e-mails, text messaging or any other method of communication.

BE AWARE!!! PAY ATTENTION!! ASK QUESTIONS!!!

FINANCIAL WATCH -  We all understand that we work to support ourselves, family and prepare our children for a better life than the one we had. It often doesn't work out for all that they become rich or even middle-class. To some life is always a struggle. It has it's ups and downs. Some struggle to make ends meet, others try to find a short-cut to wealth, usually on someone else back. Like the Bernie Madoff's of the world. Or, even your brother-in-law who steals from you, or a friend who takes advantage of you and your friendship.

There are three things in this world you never loan;

1. Your House
2. Your Car
3. Your wife

However, many borrow money, others gamble waiting for that big hit, some with legitimate bookmakers like the State of New York, Off-Track Betting Corporation, or the wiseguy bookmakers. Sports betting has taken over many, betting the odds makers spreads between teams, or even the fighter in the ring. High School sports betting is very lucrative for the wiseguys. College Basketball, Football and the Professional Football Superbowl is the grand-daddy for the bookmakers.

College costs have risen, food prices have risen, gas prices are up and salaries are down. I spoke with a group of working (legitimate working) women. None had planned for the future. They didn't know how or where to begin. All of the group of 15 have worked for years yet couldn't get ahead. They had no retirement plans, just squeezing each week to pay the bills, make the mortgage and some even worked a second job just to meet the needs.In the end they all needed a plan.

Plan;

• Pay Yourself First....what does this mean?  Each pay check take a minimum of 10% of your take home pay and put it in an account that you cannot touch for a planned period of time.Let's just say, a three year certificate program. This way you can't have access to the money...no matter what percentage it is paying, it's aside from availability and making some money.
• At the end of the three years of payments, role it over again...and continue to add each week. You already have become comfortable with living on the income without the 10%. You've adjusted. So it's one less dinner out, one less cigarette pack, one less bottle of beer, one less pizza pie or even one less women or man.
• Do this for 15 years and suddenly your money should have doubled, making you a 100% increase in the savings.  There was a time when the savings would double within 10 years, but with a worldwide economy in trouble, expect 15 years. Put the money from the beginning into an IRA Roth Account...tax free retirement. This will help the working women or man.....

Your financial situation may differ, from year to year, from family members, or even friends. For those who have hit the jackpot of the American dream, you've won the lottery.,. The jumbo lottery of 100 million, option of take the cash immediately or a 20 year payout. Either way you pay taxes. Remember when you win that lottery, suddenly you have new friends, relatives you never heard of, and strangers knocking at your door.

• Keeping private is important
• Making investment decisions is new, hire a professional
• Before you hire that professional get advice from a trusted attorney (not a stranger)
• You want to help family, fine, just remember the money can go out as fast as it came in. (One big lottery winner, who showed up to collect his winnings, came with his wife, nine kids and girlfriend. He shared with them, bought cars, jewelry, fur coats, houses, etc. He lent friends and family money to start businesses, pay off their mortgages, pay their bills. Within 4 years he was BROKE!

Protect you financials...whether you hit the lottery or are a working women or man..Plan, budget, watch your expense... the clue to it all is the expense..What's lavish? What's necessary?