Toddler Gear: The Only 5 Items You Need

I hate it when I stepped or tripped into my girl's toys. Not only it hurts my feet but sometimes I fell down once I step on her toys. It pissed me off honestly, sometimes I wish we didn't buy her toys because she doesn't clean up after her mess. We end up sleeping at night with all the toys cluttered all over our place. When we need to get up at night, possibility is we fall down for stepping into her toys.

I found this article this morning stating the only 5 things necessary to keep around for the baby. You see no mention of plastic toys here which for me is an awesome idea, keep it simple and clean is what I want to do.

1. Car Seat

Unless you plan to stay home all summer, you'll need a car seat. If you haven't already done so, you'll also need to upgrade your infant seat to a larger one to safely accommodate your growing child. And don't forget, experts recommend you buy a new car seat rather than borrow a used one since safety standards are constantly changing.

2. Crib

Even though my toddler manages to nap on a cot at day care, she still needs a crib at night. My pediatrician recently reminded me that parents need to shift their kids to a toddler bed or purchase a crib tent once their youngsters start climbing out of their cribs.

3. Stroller

Personally, I find a stroller indispensable because I live in New York City and walk everywhere. Once I move to the suburbs, I may feel differently. But I imagine a set of wheels are helpful no matter where you live since little feet tire easily.

3. Sippy Cups

Drinking from an open cup can be tricky for young toddlers. Many can do it, but not without frequent spills. So unless you like cleaning up after your child, some form of sippy or straw cup is quite helpful.

4. Potty

When a toddler starts showing signs she's ready to get rid of her diapers, you'll want a potty to help make the process move along more smoothly.

5. Crayons

Hands down, my favorite toddler toy is a simple box of crayons. Steal some paper from your printer and you can transform your little mess maker into a regular Picasso. You can also ditch the flashcards and use the crayons to illustrate your own alphabet and set of numbers.

Of course, you'll also need clothing and diapers. But I didn't include these on the list since I don't consider them toddler gear.

You're also probably thinking I forgot about the high chair, changing table and even the toddler utensils. Nope. I let my daughter sit on a regular chair at the dining room table. I change her diapers on a towel on the bed. (Sometimes I just do it while she's standing up in the bathroom.) And she's quite happy using our regular silverware, provided she gets a salad fork and tea spoon.

Finally, I'll admit that toddlers need books too. But that's what the library is for.

What toddler items can't you live without?

LIFTED FROM ITS ORIGINAL SOURCE FROM YAHOO FINANCIALLY FIT

How to Make Simple and Cheap Detergents

Ah now I know. I have to try making it sometime and see if it truly cleanses greasy, heavily soiled dishes. This is going to be a challenge for all of us in order to save some bucks at the grocery.

According to the latest government data, Americans spend an average of $659 a year on housekeeping supplies. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which provides that figure, also says the average American earns about $787/week -- which means many people are spending most of (if not more than) a week's pay every year on dish soap, laundry detergent, and other cleaning products.

If that sounds crazy, here's a better idea: Make your own.

Recipes for cleaning products are as numerous as recipes for dinner. Here are just a few to help with dishes, clothes and more.

Dishwasher Detergent

Here's a simple recipe for dishwasher soap:

• 1 cup of borax

• 1 cup of baking soda

• ¼ cup of table salt

• 2 packets (half an ounce) of unsweetened lemon Kool-Aid

You can try to save even more by buying ingredients in bulk, but another idea is to find smaller and much cheaper boxes at your local dollar store: a good idea to since you'll want to try a small amount at first to see if you like the results. The amounts listed above are good for 16 loads -- one tablespoon each -- so even small batches will last a while.

Other recipes online vary: For example, we found one that suggested combining only borax and baking soda, 1 tablespoon each per load. Another suggested adding a little citrus essential oil to make it smell nice: We didn't try that one, however, because we had difficulty finding inexpensive citrus oil online. Then there's this recipe, which goes in a different direction altogether:

• 2 bars of shredded Octagon soap

• 1 cup of baking soda

• ¼ cup of washing soda

• ¼ cup of lemon juice

This one calls for melting the shredded soap in five quarts of water and then mixing in the other ingredients. If that sounds a little like the recipe for laundry detergent we wrote about last year, that's because it is.

Laundry Detergent

Speaking of laundry detergent, that's easy, too. You'll need:

• 4 cups of water

• ⅓ bar of cheap soap, grated

• ½ cup washing soda (not baking soda)

• ½ cup of Borax (20 Mule Team)

• 5-gallon bucket for mixing

• 3 gallons of water

First, mix the grated soap in a saucepan with 4 cups of water, and heat on low until the soap is completely dissolved. Add hot water/soap mixture to 3 gallons of water in the 5-gallon bucket, stir in the washing soda and Borax, and continue stirring until thickened. Let the mix sit for 24 hours, and voila! Homemade laundry detergent.

Other Cleaning Products

If you like the results of your homemade concoctions on clothes and dishes, why stop there? The next time you're at the store, instead of picking up a bottle of some expensive cleanser, grab these six items and make your own cleaning supplies:

• Vinegar. It may smell a little weird, but vinegar can handle everything from dishes to laundry and even weeds. We've written about the wonders of vinegar before.

• Baking soda. Eliminates odors and helps with stains, and also works as a natural method of pest control -- ants hate it.

• Borax. This mineral salt beats bleach as a toilet cleaner and is also useful for scrubbing walls. And as you see in the recipes above, works with laundry, too.

• Fels-Naptha soap. This one's actually made by one of those big cleaning companies: Dial. They recommend it for "pre-treating" stains. In other words, "use this in addition to a bunch of our other expensive products, like Purex!" But you can turn the tables by using it as part of a recipe for your own laundry detergent, and they can keep the Purex.

• Rubbing alcohol. Works as a disinfectant and is also a great glass cleaner. It also gets grime off plastic and metal surfaces like patio furniture or bathroom fixtures.

• Lemon juice. This cuts through dish grease and is an ingredient for homemade furniture polish -- but it's not the easiest thing to preserve long-term.

If making your own cleaning products sounds a little extreme, there are still simple ways to save. The best? Buying generics. And if you insist on using name brands, at least clip those coupons -- but only the ones worth your time.

LIFTED FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE

10 Days, No Spending

JUST WANT TO SHARE THIS HELPFUL ARTICLE I READ ON YAHOO TODAY AS I KNOW SOME FAMILIES ARE IN FINANCIAL STRESS, THIS MIGHT HELP THEM. OF COURSE THIS IS LIFTED FROM IT'S ORIGINAL SOURCE FROM YAHOO FINANCE.

*Note: This was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Do you have a personal finance story that you'd like to share? Sign up with the Yahoo! Contributor Network to start publishing your own finance articles.

As I was perusing Facebook one morning, a posting from a friend caught my attention. This virtual liaison pledged to spend no money for 10 days. That's correct: She pledged to spend no money at all, not a dime. She had sufficient groceries, a half-tank of gas, and the will and determination to do it. With this pixelated revelation, I launched a program with my online budgeting group to do the same.

With some tweaking, this can be a powerful way to jump-start a frugal lifestyle, and I have now completed this challenge twice.

Take stock.

First, I rummaged through my cabinets, checked the contents of my freezer, and looked to see what was in the fridge. You can't expect to initiate a challenge like this without an adequate stock of groceries, household items, and toiletries, and I wanted to make sure I was prepared. The secret to the success of this program is removing the store from your equation for 10 days.

Pay the bills.

Remember, you are making a commitment to spend nothing, and that means nothing. I looked at all my bills that would come due in the next 10 days and paid them online. Having that monkey off my back was a wonderful feeling.

Fill up the car only enough to commute to work.

No more, no less. When you run out of gas, that's it. An even better idea contributed by a member of my group is to arrange for a carpool during this period, or to buy a bus pass before starting the challenge. Because I work from home, I wasn't concerned about having enough gas to commute to work. Both times I started the challenge, I had about a quarter of a tank. It was only for emergencies and taking the kids to school and extracurricular activities.

Hide it.

I removed my debit card, credit cards, and checkbook from my purse. I put them in a fireproof safe and left them there for 10 days. Find your own solution, and put your spending tools in a safe place, where they are not easily accessed. By avoiding temptation, you are more likely to achieve success.

Pick a day.

I mark a day on my calendar each month. Just like with starting a workout program, you have to choose a day to start. Mondays work best for most people, as it signifies the beginning of a new week. When I began the challenge, I started on a Monday.

Stay accountable.

Challenges like these work best when you have people around to hold you accountable. In my online budgeting group, everyone would report daily if they were still in the challenge or if they had given in to spending. It was interesting to see who stuck with the program and how they did it. I have to admit that being one of the few that held out for the full 10 days was a fantastic feeling of accomplishment.

Log your progress.

I kept an online diary on my iPhone. The more I logged in the various ways I didn't spend, the more I felt like I was accomplishing something great. Positive reinforcement goes a long way.

Check your bank balance.

This is the moment of truth, especially for over-spenders like me. Seeing a solid balance in the bank, or even an increase if the challenge fell on a payday, is surprising, but in the best of ways. I ended both challenges with more money than I started with, and I was happier for it.

By forcing yourself to repeat this challenge at least once a month, you could easily increase your savings by banking what you would have spent otherwise. If you have tried unsuccessfully to stop the spending train from getting out of control, this might just be the ticket to get you out of the station and down the tracks toward a frugal lifestyle. It works for me, and it's a great repeatable exercise.

6 Secret Laundry Ingredients

I guess we all need answers to make our laundry look clean and white if they are whites and dark if they are black. So here is a helpful article lifted from Yahoo to help us with our laundry especially moms and wives who want to give clean laundry to their family.

Get whiter whites and darker darks with these ingenious additions to your laundry.

Whiter whites

Do your white T-shirts tend to go grey? White socks look dirty no matter how many times they’re washed? Try one of these tried and trusted methods for making whites stay white.

1. Baking soda

Soak in a solution of 4 liters water and 1 cup baking soda.

2. Aspirin

Soak in hot water in which you’ve dissolved 5 aspirin tablets (325mg each).

3. Vinegar

Add 1 cup white vinegar to the washing machine’s rinse cycle.

PLUS: 9 Quick Kitchen Cleaning Secrets

Blacker blacks and darker darks

While faded and distressed-looking garments are sometimes the height of fashion, you may prefer not to look as if the last time you went clothes shopping was in the 80s. Here are some tips for keeping black and dark-colored clothes looking like new.

4. Coffee or tea

For black clothes, add 2 cups brewed coffee or tea to the rinse cycle.

5. Salt

For dark colors like navy blue or plum, add 1 cup table salt to the rinse cycle.

6. Vinegar and salt

To keep denim from fading quickly, soak jeans in salt water or a 50:50 solution of water and white vinegar before the first wash. Turn the jeans inside out before putting them in the machine and turn the temperature setting to cold.

A Big Difference Between Name-Brand And Store-Brand

I consider myself a good shopper although sometimes I pick up stuff from the grocery store that are higher in prices. Most of the time though I choose to buy stuff that are store-brands. It is a lot cheaper than name-brand ones yet they contain the same ingredients as the latter. I have learned to shop wisely through a friend who taught me to look at prices not the known labels so I won't be fooled by them. It saves us a few bucks so we have a happier pocket.

Here is a few products that you should ALWAYS buy generic written by Stacy Johnson on her article I found on Yahoo.

1. Pain relievers and other over-the-counter medications

Acetaminophen — the active ingredient in Tylenol — is available in many generic products. Note that the generics aren't similar: they're identical. Why would you ever pay more for an identical product? This also applies to everything from cold medicine to eye drops — virtually every over-the-counter medication. The labels are right there — read them.

Name-Brand Acetaminophen: $10.99
Store-Brand Acetaminophen: $6.99
Difference: $4.00 (57 percent)

2. Water

Although I should certainly be used to it by now, I can't get over the fact that people go to the store to buy something in a bottle that they could be getting nearly free in their kitchen sink. But even if you can convince me that bottled water is worth the money, you'll have a heck of time convincing me that the gallon jug from Crystal Springs is noticeably better than the one from Publix. And if you're really concerned about water quality and/or taste — why aren't you buying a filter and making your own bottled water? I just don't get this entire concept.

Name-Brand Water: $1.25
Store-Brand Water: $.85
Difference: $.40 (48 percent)

3. Milk

I'm sure there are connoisseurs of moo-juice that could distinguish name-brand milk from store-brand — but I'm not quite sure how they'd do it. Bouquet? Finish? Sounds like a bunch of bull to me.

Name-Brand Milk: $5.45
Store-Brand Milk: $3.39
Difference: $2.06 (60 percent)

4. Margarine

It's already a substitute for butter. Is it really going to negatively impact your quality of life to substitute the substitute?

Name-Brand Margarine: $1.79
Store-Brand Margarine: $1.19
Difference: $.60 (50%)

5. Bleach

You're taking a cup of chlorine and adding it to gallons of water in your washing machine. How could any TV commercial possibly convince you that a brand name will make your clothes come out better?

Name-Brand Bleach: $2.25
Store-Brand Bleach: $1.67
Difference: $.58 (35 percent)

6. Cleaning Products

Many — if not most — cleaning products are already overpriced substitutes for stuff you already have around the house. Two of the most popular news stories we've ever done were Household Products Vinegar Can Replace and Do-It-Yourself Laundry Detergent. But let's assume that you have a fetish for spray bottles and insist on buying ready-to-use cleaning products: is the name brand getting your counter that much cleaner?

Name-Brand Cleaner with Bleach: $3.29
Store-Brand Cleaner with Bleach: $2.39
Difference: $.90 (38 percent)

7. Spices

Think your job is hard? Imagine if your career entailed convincing the public that your company's salt — the most basic of ingredients — was better than some other company's salt. The whole idea is preposterous. And yet, there they sit, side by side, with nothing but their labels and their prices to set them apart. And where spices are concerned, that's just the beginning — can you tell your oregano from mine?

Name-Brand Oregano: $5.48/oz.
Store-Brand Oregano: $1.24/oz.
Difference: $4.24 (342 percent)

5 key skills to preserving a healthy relationship

I have been married to my husband for over five years now. Our relationship is stronger than ever before. We have had some hardships before and we were able to surpass them all. It is through adversity our love for each other is tested, thankfully we survived that it even made us see how we are as a person and as a married couple.

We have a gap of 17 years yet I see no age in our marriage, I see no color and I see no ethnicity. It is just so amazing how the two of us get along very well in almost all aspects of our lives although there are few misunderstandings sometimes. I owe a lot to my husband for he is such a good guy, a good provider, a very responsible and devoted husband to me and the best father to Jadyn. I am looking forward to grow old with him, nourish our relationship and cherish every moment spent with him and our children together in the future.

If you read this and wants to know some helpful keys on preserving a healthy relationship, read on. I snagged this from the internet to share it here to you all.


Be willing to forfeit: the win-win strategy
Disagreements are inevitable — as unavoidable as Tuesdays or the common cold. They don’t have to be acrimonious, though. And I’ve learned that in marriage the choice is often to win or to be happy. Being harsh and critical in an argument is only going to hurt feelings and alienate your partner. That’s fine if you want to rule the roost, but if you want to love and be loved, you’ve got to care for your partner’s feelings, especially when you’re fighting.

“When there’s a lot of goodwill, it’s amazing what you can say and still feel good about each other,” says Catherine Hastings, Ph.D., a licensed marriage and family therapist in Lancaster, PA.

Hastings sees couples become polarized in their disagreements, with neither person willing to yield. The problem, she says, “is the idea that there has to be right and wrong in an argument. And there really doesn’t.”

Get to the point, nicely
I can be a little sensitive sometimes, and not in the sweet and caring way. Usually in the don’t-talk-to-me-about-my-shortcomings way. Lots of couples struggle to discuss the big issues that can rend a marriage in two. Who wants to talk about money management, family relationships and child rearing (to name just a few) while you’re falling in love? These don’t come up easily when you’re sipping coffee and eating molten chocolate cake.

“People are not direct enough,” says Jane Barton, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist in Knoxville, TN. “Indirect communication can be really damaging.”

She says that couples need to find ways to discuss the touchy subjects before they get married instead of hoping that marriage will fix any conflicts. It won’t. You may find yourself legally and emotionally bound to someone with a wicked online gambling habit or who thinks children respond best to pain.

Take money habits, for instance. “With the economy the way it is and things in the news, it would be an easy thing to bring up on a date,” she says. You can also learn a lot by watching your partner. “Is she shopping at Barneys and really shouldn’t be?”

The point is not to criticize your partner and attempt to rein in his or her habits. You want to know if his or her decisions are in line with your values. If you’re honest with yourself about your needs, you’ll know if conflicts are on the horizon.

“Don’t take on the task of teaching a person or being anyone’s personal therapist,” says Barton. “Identify what you feel and share it.”

Recognize that there is an “I” in marriage
My wife and I are a team, talking, sharing and negotiating most decisions together. We’re individuals, too, though, and we don’t lose sight of that. We encourage each other’s goals and ambitions because we don’t feel threatened by them.

“Healthy relationships have room for that — his interests, her interests,” says Hastings. After all, she points out, “if you’re not able to address your own needs, no one else is going to do it for you.”

Be a copycat
Finding that mix of individuality and teamwork isn’t necessarily easy, but it’s essential. We simultaneously let each other be who we are while being influenced by each other. I had to learn to argue kindly, for instance, giving up the notion of the win. My wife somehow already knew that when we met.

John Gottman, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist who has studied relationships for more than 30 years, written several leading books about marriage and is the executive director of the Relationship Research Institute in Seattle, WA. According to Gottman, one of the key components of a successful marriage is that the husband allows the wife to influence him. While women in general tend to be influenced by men without much emotional difficulty, men are often resistant. A man who allows a woman’s ideas and attitudes to impact his own is creating an equal exchange within the marriage.

And, as Hastings points out, you should learn to appreciate the difference. Each of you has strengths and weaknesses. Learning to let the strengths come through, no matter whose they are, makes for a better team.

Be positive — it’s not just a blood type
One of my wife’s greatest strengths is a generally positive outlook. Allowing her to shape the spin on a situation isn’t always easy, with my undeniable knowledge that the world is ending. But slowly, over the course of our marriage, I’ve become willing to see through her eyes.

“People need to learn early on,” says Barton, “that there are always going to be problems. There’s always going to be stress, somebody gets sick or somebody dies, and that’s part of life.” Successful couples, she says, dwell on the good times and not on the bad.

SOURCE: YAHOO Seth Wharton is a writer who lives in New York City with his wife of seven years and their two cats. In addition to doling out invaluable relationship guidance, he writes fiction.

4 Foods For Younger-Looking Skin

Here's to skin conscious people. If you would like to keep your supple, healthy, younger-looking skin forever, eat these four wonderful foods that helps maintain your collagen to help fight getting wrinkles.

I am an Asian and naturally tan in color so I don't bother getting in the sun so much for the sake of getting brown, I am talented in that part. However, I would still want to keep my skin as it is right now, wrinkle free and not sagging. Thanks to this wonderful tips from Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.

Strawberries: Eating more vitamin C-rich foods, such as strawberries, may help to ward off wrinkles and age-related dryness, suggests research from 2007 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vitamin C’s skin-smoothing effects may be due to its ability to mop up free radicals produced from ultraviolet rays and also its role in collagen synthesis. (Vitamin C is essential for collagen production.) You can find vitamin C in a multitude of cosmetics—of which some have been shown to be effective in protecting skin—but why not go straight to the source for a tasty boost of C: red bell peppers, papaya, broccoli and oranges are other excellent sources. (Try these sweet strawberry recipes for better skin.)

Tomatoes: Tomatoes get their red hue from lycopene, a carotenoid that may help to keep your skin smooth. In a study published in 2008 in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, researchers found that of the 20 individuals studied, those who had higher skin concentrations of lycopene had smoother skin. Boost your lycopene intake with fresh summer produce like watermelon and carrots too. (Find tomato recipe ideas here.)

Tofu: Tofu and other soyfoods, such as edamame and soymilk, may help to preserve skin-firming collagen because they are rich in isoflavones. In a study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, mice fed isoflavones and exposed to ultraviolet radiation had fewer wrinkles and smoother skin than mice that were exposed to UV light but didn’t get isoflavones. The researchers believe that isoflavones help prevent collagen breakdown. (Find tasty 30-minute dinners using tofu here.)

Tuna: Eating tuna—and other omega-3-rich fish, such as salmon, sardines and trout—may help keep your skin looking youthful thanks to the omega-3 fat EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). EPA has been shown to preserve collagen. (Enjoy tuna in Mediterranean Tuna Antipasto Salad and more healthy tuna recipes here.)

Birth Order And Romantic Compatibility

This another great article I have read tonight on the internet and I thought it would be a good idea to share it here. I find this very true since it fits for both me and my husband's personality. I am married, I am the second child in the family to a husband who is the first born and yes he is somewhat a perfectionist person, yes a true leader as well...ah all of the characteristics describing the first born, my husband has it all and I am lucky for he accept my flaws even though for me he is perfect.

The oldest child: the leader, a good citizen, responsible, responsive to parents’ expectations, well-organized, precise, and prone to perfectionism.

The youngest child: takes on the baby role, easygoing, spontaneous, used to being noticed and fussed over, charming, and manipulative.

The middle child: has less of a clear-cut role in the family; instead, she often makes a place for herself outside the family, creating a network of close friends, venturing away from the family physically, and breaking the mold intellectually as well.

The only child: often has characteristics both of first children (capable, perfectionistic) and of youngest children (attention-seeking, self-centered).

Lifted from the internet, SOURCE HERE

What Not To Do On Facebook

More often than not, people on Facebook have done great mistakes by simply putting all out important/confidential information about themselves in their profiles. A lot of them on my list alone proudly wrote everything from their hometown, birthdates, schools etc. Little do they know the biggest risk they are about to encounter, thieves, hackers and criminals swarming and lurking around the internet waiting for that perfect timing to strike and victimize people.

If you read this post or happen to read an article on Yahoo, please forward it to people you care about. This might save them from trouble in the future.

Using a Weak Password

Avoid simple names or words you can find in a dictionary, even with numbers tacked on the end. Instead, mix upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and symbols. A password should have at least eight characters.

-A combination of letters and numbers will be good enough as long as it is not a short single word that is predictable.

Leaving Your Full Birth Date in Your Profile

It's an ideal target for identity thieves, who could use it to obtain more information about you and potentially gain access to your bank or credit card account. If you've already entered a birth date, go to your profile page and click on the Info tab, then on Edit Information. Under the Basic Information section, choose to show only the month and day or no birthday at all.

- I helped my husband set up his FB account and one day he saw his birthdate was entered wrong and he corrected me with that, yeah I changed it to the correct year he was born(that was when he was watching me) but I changed it the following day for I thought displaying the whole thing could mean hassle and trouble someday. So now he's safe.

Overlooking Useful Privacy Controls

For almost everything in your Facebook profile, you can limit access to only your friends, friends of friends, or yourself. Restrict access to photos, birth date, religious views, and family information, among other things. You can give only certain people or groups access to items such as photos, or block particular people from seeing them. Consider leaving out contact info, such as phone number and address, since you probably don't want anyone to have access to that information anyway.

- I am pretty sure I have done it to mine and to my better half. I still have to check it for the second time though to make sure we are safe.

Posting Your Child's Name in a Caption

Don't use a child's name in photo tags or captions. If someone else does, delete it by clicking on Remove Tag. If your child isn't on Facebook and someone includes his or her name in a caption, ask that person to remove the name.

- Dang it! I always do it everytime I got photos to upload, my baby's name will be the caption of it.

Mentioning That You'll Be Away From Home

That's like putting a "no one's home" sign on your door. Wait until you get home to tell everyone how awesome your vacation was and be vague about the date of any trip.

- Kids beware for this one, you are hinting perverts/criminals to come into your home while your guardians are away. It could also be a warning to adults that love to let the world know how and what they're doing from time to time.

Letting Search Engines Find You

To help prevent strangers from accessing your page, go to the Search section of Facebook's privacy controls and select Only Friends for Facebook search results. Be sure the box for public search results isn't checked.

- It would be an advantage for people who blog as their means of exposing their page to the world as we all need traffic to our blogs. But your profile to be published in all eyes? That's another story.

Permitting Youngsters to Use Facebook Unsupervised

Facebook limits its members to ages 13 and over, but children younger than that do use it. If you have a young child or teenager on Facebook, the best way to provide oversight is to become one of their online friends. Use your e-mail address as the contact for their account so that you receive their notifications and monitor their activities. "What they think is nothing can actually be pretty serious," says Charles Pavelites, a supervisory special agent at the Internet Crime Complaint Center. For example, a child who posts the comment "Mom will be home soon, I need to do the dishes" every day at the same time is revealing too much about the parents' regular comings and goings.

Information lifted from YAHOO

Tips Before Leaving A Child To A Babysitter

I have always been a SAHM. I can't imagine leaving my baby at the day care or trusting her to somebody who is not related to me nor I know anything about one's background. That is scary! I have heard a lot of accidents and abused children under the care of their babysitters. To be sure, I take care my baby girl myself and never would I ever want to work until she starts going to school.

But for some mothers who have the need to work, it is okay for it left them no choice but leave their babies at someone's care. In case you need to hire a babysitter, here's a few tips you should consider before hiring someone and trust your baby. Hope it works for you and be thankful you came across this blog for I give important information to my readers once in a while.

- (HealthDay News) -- Before you choose a new babysitter or leave the sitter alone with your child for the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests you take the following precautions:

-Choose a sitter who has good references and has training in first aid and CPR.

-Make sure the sitter is mature, knows what to do in an emergency and is at least 13 years old.

Give the sitter a tour of your home, and encourage the sitter to show up well before you need to leave.

-Provide instructions in the event of a fire, including offering detailed escape plans.

-Direct the sitter on how and when to feed, bathe and "tuck in" your child.

-Be sure that your sitter knows about any health conditions affecting your child, including any allergies.

-Inform your sitter of where you're going and when you'll be back.