Swine flu is spreading rapidly. It is important to know facts about swine flue to prevent the illness.

People CANNOT catch swine flu from eating pork. Swine influenza viruses are not transmitted by food. Swine he flu is contagious it can be spread from human to human. It is spread as follow:

•    Coughing
•    Sneezing
•    Touching infected objects

Swine flu is very similar to regular flu:

•    Cough
•    Muscle aches
•    Fever
•    Sore throat
•    Headache
•    Chills
•    Fatigue

Additional symptoms may include diarrhea and vomiting.

Unfortunately there is no easy way to distinguish the swine flu from a regular flu. If you are concern about your health you should visit the doctor.

It is important to stay in good health:

•    Wash your hands often
•    Avoid close contact with sick people
•    Cover your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze
•    Drink fluids
•    Stay active
•    Eat nutritious food

CDC recommends the use of Oseltamivir or Zanamivir for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with swine influenza viruses.
•    Oseltamivir (brand name Tamiflu ®) is approved to both treat and prevent influenza A and B virus infection in people one year of age and older.
•    Zanamivir (brand name Relenza ®) is approved to treat influenza A and B virus infection in people 7 years and older and to prevent influenza A and B virus infection in people 5 years and older.

Last night I was happy to be a part of the benefit for the Oakland School For the Arts. It is an outstanding charter school that was founded by Jerry Brown in 2002. The first graduating class of 2006, graduated with 100 percent of the class. Oakland charter school continues to excel with help of Jerry Brown and the board of directors. The school is a unique educational art institution. It has more than 500 students in the middle and high school. Recently it was named a California distinguished school.

The event was held in beautifully renovated Fox Theater.  Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn spoke at a benefit and helped to raise more than one million dollars for the school. I wish than more people will help to the art schools all over the country.

For more info and donations visit www.oakarts.org

After Divorce: Why Some Women Remarry Fast While Others Stay Single
Divorce is such an agonizing time for everyone involved: husbands, wives, and the children in between. It really doesn’t even matter how close you were when you decided to make the split or how long you were together-chances are you spent some memorable times with them and shared some treasured moments, and by divorcing-all of that comes to an end. That said, how do you make the most successful transition from divorced to single life? Some women end up remarrying right away while others tend to stay single for awhile. No matter which of these you consider yourself, you may wonder what makes the difference between the two? Below, we examine the number one factors involved in those who quickly remarry and those who do not.
1.   Dependent Nature: One of the most significant variables in those who tend to remarry fast after divorce, is what their dependent nature is. Do you consider yourself someone who has always needed to be in a relationship to have a full life or are you someone who feels safer being on her own once in awhile? Whichever boat you put yourself in will determine whether or not you remarry or stay single after divorce. How you view relationships is key to how you act-either proactively towards getting another one or not.

2.    Self Confidence: Another key reason that many women find themselves single long after they have divorced is because they have low self-confidence. This could be a self attribute that you always have had, or most commonly, you may have increased its potency once divorced-especially if the divorce was because of your husband’s neglect or infidelity. Just working on yourself-in career and self overall-will help learn to think better of yourself, and at which point you can decide if you are ready or not for a new relationship.
3.    Freedom: For many women, divorce can give them a time to be single and free when they most need it-to for once in their lives consider just what they want out of life and a partner. This can be a liberating time for women-especially for those who may have been married for a long time to the same person. Some women do not need this time to explore themselves or perhaps they feel like they can still explore their goals and dreams with a partner. It all depends on the woman.
4.    Marriage Experience: In many cases, the idea of marriage leaves a bad taste in some women’s’ mouths. This could be because they were abused, neglected, or cheated on. So these same women have a bad association with marriage and tend to stay away from it for longer-if not for the rest of their lives. Other women, who may had better experience in their marriages but something was just missing, have no qualms about remarrying right away.
Whatever your situation as a new divorcee, know that the difference between a woman who remarries quickly and one who stays single for longer- has absolutely nothing to do with attractiveness. It is the choice of every woman to approach relationships in whatever way and time frame they choose-and their actions will necessarily follow.

I just saw bizarre people behavior on TV. Two narcotics suspects have been tossing more than 17,000 of dollars from their car window on two San Diego freeways.

Other drivers saw the money and stopped their cars on the middle of the freeway to get some of the cash. People were running around and picking up the money. It was like a money rain!!!

I need the money but I wouldn’t risk my life for it.

Would you?

You do not have to plan in advance to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day!

Just follow our recommendations.

1.    Dress in a little green with taste and style.
2.    Pinch everybody (or who you like) who doesn’t wear green.
3.    Remember you do not have to drink green bear. It looks and tastes gross. Instead enjoy the Guinness.
4.    Prepare traditional lamb stew or salmon.
5.    Attend local St. Patrick’s Day parade and make new friends.

Enjoy and stay out of the troubles!

Kids now days, starting in elementary are hard to impress. Starting with a few years back this generation has been exposed to lavish birthday parties, endless celebrations and an all out putting on of the dog in the name of one year older. This can make coming up with ideas a little tough because by the time the child has celebrated their 7th or 8th birthday party they have seen all the most common. No mom wants to disappoint the birthday boy or girl, so here are a few unique ideas that work for elementary school age children!

Wanna face some fear, stare worms in the eyes and eat slop? Well, that is not surprising, but elementary age kids sure do. The more real the better, dirty is great and it will likely be the talk of the school halls for months. Since fear factor is a huge success on television, how about setting up some “safe & clean fun” challenges for the group? It may be eating dog food (mashed up Vienna sausage), challenge city (obstacle course in the backyard) or some other slimy (food product) that you can think of! Really popular parties and there are a ton of ideas on the net to help you out.
Scavenger hunt birthday parties are not unique, but they can be made that way. There are so many things that can be changed with the hunt, which can really make a difference. For the older kids it may be a longer area, harder clues or a bigger prize at the end. They can be held at the mall, parks, museums, city wide or anywhere. Granted the idea is not unique, but being creative for the clues, developing traps or fooling them makes it a lot of fun!
What about a birthday party modeled after the all too awesome Amazing Race? The guests can work in teams or separately, but they travel around the park or neighborhood asking questions, looking for clues and participating in competitions. It could be jump rope, skipping, water balloons or whatever else you can think of.
Costume parties can be very popular for kids at elementary age. They are still young enough to fantasize about characters and most like to dress up, so give them the opportunity. They can either bring their own costume or can make one after arriving at the party. Having them make a costume could be part of the birthday celebration, but costs might be a factor. Again creativity sets the precedence here.
If your birthday boy or girl is the inquisitive type a game show theme birthday party may just be what thrills them. Picking one of the popular shows, such as Millionaire, Deal or No Deal or Family Feud might be a great way to get them engaged for that special day. Most of these games can be purchased and the only thing that mom would need to worry with is the matching decorations. This party is easy, but hugely successful.
See, there are still many ideas that will make that big birthday party the talk of the school house. It is not as much the money that is spent as the creativity and time that is placed into the planning process, believe me though, they will be most gracious for all that hard work.

The world is becoming more and more computer and electronic centered.  Kindergartners now take computer classes at school, and a large percentage of homes have some kind of electronic gaming system, or allow their children to play games on the computer.  There’s no getting out of the fact that electronics are a part of our kids’ lives, not just for school and work, but also for entertainment.

It’s this entertainment aspect that worries us, especially when it comes to violence in video games.  We hear over and over that there’s a link between violence in video games and violent behavior in children.  Fortunately, that view is becoming more balanced by studies that show that this isn’t always the case.

MIT professor Henry Jenkins discusses eight pieces of conventional wisdom about violence in video games which just are not true, or are not true in the ways people usually understand them.  His article, “Reality Bytes: Eight Myths About Video Games Debunked,” discusses some of the studies that have been done, and the truth about how video games affect our kids.

The myths about video games that Jenkins discusses are:

1.    The availability of video games has led to an epidemic of youth violence.
2.    Scientific evidence links violent game play with youth aggression.
3.    Children are the primary market for video games.
4.    Almost no girls play computer games.
5.    Because games are used to train soldiers to kill, they have the same impact on the kids who play them.
6.    Video games are not a meaningful form of expression.
7.    Video game play is socially isolating.
8.    Video game play is desensitizing.

He goes on to show that not only are all of those common ideas false, that in most cases their opposites are true.  In fact, in some cases, violence in video games can be cathartic for kids.  If kids are struggling with feelings of aggression or anger, it can do wonders for them to take those out by beating up an alien, which might them prevent them from beating up another child.

Obviously all parents have to make these decisions for their own kids.  Just because video game violence isn’t as damaging as we thought it might be doesn’t mean that any sort of video game content is appropriate for kids.  Video games have ratings on them or a reason.  Games rated M for “mature content” are not designed for kids at all, but are made for adults, who comprise the larger part of the gaming market.  Adult content in any context is not appropriate for kids.

The key is for parents to pay attention.  If your kids are asking for a certain game, look it up online and see if it’s something you want them to have.  Talk with them about the pros and cons of it.  They can understand and appreciate your thoughts on things, and might have some arguments that you hadn’t thought of.  The most important thing is that you have the facts, and then discuss them together.

There’s no doubt that times are getting leaner in our country.  A lot of people are getting laid off, or not getting raises and bonuses they had counted on.  Gas prices are fairly low right now, but could skyrocket at any time, and I don’t know about you, but after living through last summer, I always have one eye on that…because when gas prices go up, everything goes up.

The news isn’t all bad, though.  Many businesses are flourishing even as others fail.  And downturns and recessions are temporary; they won’t last forever.  So how can your family adjust its budget to allow for leaner times?  Here are a few ideas.  Keep in mind, though, that different things will apply to different families.

•    Make sure you actually do have a budget.  And yes, that means written down, on paper, or in the computer.  I know that many of us know in our heads what has to be paid and when, but there’s no substitute for having it in front of you in black and white.  Use an envelope system, where you do most things in cash, and you will be much less likely to overspend.  A budget also forces you to look at where those little amounts go…a few dollars here, a few dollars there…and how much they could add up to.  Finally, it forces you to decide what’s important enough to stay, and what can go, at least for the time being.
•    Do more free and cheap things together.  My family loves to go to movies, but that can get really expensive.  Why not have a family movie night instead?  It can be a regular thing, and each person can take turns picking the movie.  Or a family game night, which has benefits reaching way beyond simply saving money.  When the weather’s nice, go to the park—you can even bring a home made picnic.
•    Don’t stop saving.  When we’re strapped for money, it’s often our savings that are the first to go.  But even if you have to reduce what you put in saving every month, make sure something still gets there.  One rule of thumb is to always assume things will get worse before they get better.  You don’t want to dip into your savings now, because you might need it more later.
•    Look for bargains.  When we look at who is going out of business and who is growing, it’s the high end places that are suffering, and the discount places that thrive.  Wal-Mart, Family Dollar, and Dollar General are doing just great, and almost anything you need can be gotten at one of those places, instead of any of the stores at the mall.  Don’t be embarrassed to shop at garage sales, consignment shops, and flea markets, and to search around online for better deals than brick-and-mortar stores can offer.

A recession doesn’t have to be a scary time for your family.  Some easy, thoughtful steps can help your family get through these hard times and still have good memories to show for it.

There’s no doubt about it; in our quest to teach kids what they need to know to be getting on in life, we simply have to teach them how to cook.  I have to admit, though, that this is one of those parenting things that makes a better ideal than practice.  It just takes so much extra time and work to have kids helping in the kitchen.  I sometimes live in dread of those three little words that cause me joy when I hear them in any other context:  “Can I help?”

Try not to think of this as an inconvenience; think of it as an investment.  It will take extra time and care to show them how to pre-heat an oven, how to clean up as you go (some adults haven’t quite mastered that one!), how to scrape the sides of the bowl as you stir a cake batter, how to crack an egg, and so on.  But if we do take the time to walk kids through those basic things, it won’t be long before they can do them on their own.  The benefit to you is that soon your child can be in charge of cooking one night a week, and you can have the night off!

There are sites that feature all sorts of recipes for cooking with kids.  One that I recently found is called simply ChildrensRecipes.com.  They feature recipes easy enough even for preschool children, and some that are a little more challenging for kids who want to learn new skills.

Here’s a fun one for making Valentine’s Day Heart-Shaped Ice Cream Sandwiches.  First you have to make the cookie part, which is a simple and fun butter cookie recipe:
Butter Cookie Dough
Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 egg yolk
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
Method:
Combine butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and egg yolk in medium bowl. Add flour, baking powder and salt; mix well. Cover; refrigerate about 4 hours or until firm.
Makes about 3 cups of dough

Once you’ve made the cookie dough, you can then proceed to the ice cream part.

Ingredients:
3 or 4 drops red food coloring
1 pint ice cream or frozen yogurt, any flavor
Heart-shaped cookie cutter
Method:
Prepare cookie dough; mix in food coloring. Cover, refrigerate until firm (about 4 hours or overnight).
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Roll dough on floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies using cookie cutter. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 20 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned around edges. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
Remove ice cream from freezer; let stand at room temperature to soften slightly, about 10 minutes. Spread 4 to 5 tablespoons ice cream onto flat side of half of cookies. Place remaining cookies, flat side down, on ice cream.
Press cookies together lightly. Wrap each sandwich in foil; freeze until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.
Makes 6 to 8 cookie sandwiches.