The Best Storage Option

I thought it was awesome when my Dad bought a boat. What I didn’t realize was that he would have nowhere to park it.  So it sat and sat until it killed some grass.  The thing also got covered with leaves in the fall.  Then he decided that it needed a place to live permanently.  So we did some research into how he could store it.

Self Storage
The first idea we investigated was a self-storage unit, but those are really expensive.  Plus you don’t have ready access to your boat. Say it's a nice day, and Dad wants to go out on the lake and take my kids with him. That’s a win-win for me, but first he has to go and pick the boat up at the storage place, and by then the kids are cranky and tired of waiting.  Paying a monthly fee for someone to keep your boat locked up just doesn’t make sense.

New Garage
Then we looked into building onto his house.  This was his idea not mine. I already knew I couldn’t afford it, and I doubted that he could. Sure enough, the quotes he got for building a new garage were over $20,000.  He could buy another boat for that! What’s more, there would be a lot of turmoil during the process. A foundation would have to be dug. Heavy equipment would run all over the yard.  I saw that happen with a renovation a few years ago at a neighbor’s house. In the end, they spent another $1,000 just to reseed and replant their yard.   

Free-standing Carport
So then we looked into getting a free-standing carport.  I was surprised that a metal carport was such an affordable option.  It wouldn’t disturb the yard or require much in the way of installation.  Sure enough, Dad went for it.  The new carport was installed quickly. Mom was happy because it was a no-mess, no-fuss solution. Dad was very happy because it cost a tiny fraction of what a garage would have cost, and it protects his boat. This seems like a good option for cars and campers, too. You protect your investment from the worst of the weather, but you don't spend a fortune doing it.

Disclaimer: This is a guest post. My dad did not buy a boat, though it would be cool if he did. He did build a carport, though.

Because I Have So Much Free Time

When I first started blogging, I used Photobucket to host a lot of my images. Thinking about it now, I'm not sure why. I've used Blogger for ages, and I can just use Google for all the images I need for my blog. They even make it super easy to add photos from my phone - which happen to be pretty much the only pictures I seem to take these days. (see example 'eclipse' photo on the right)

And now, after all this time, Photobucket has decided to change things (read: they want money) so that I can no longer use my Photobucket images on my blog - not only all images going forward, which would be OK since I haven't actually used them to host any blog images in ages (did I mention how easy it is to use Google?) - but every single image that I have ever used. So, everywhere that I have an image I hosted on Photobucket (and included in my post with code provided by Photobucket), I now have this super ugly graphic telling me that I need to upgrade my account. Oh Yay.

So now I have to go back through every post looking for those ugly graphics, figure out what image was supposed to be there, and then get them downloaded from there and re-uploaded (to Blogger and Google), and then fix the code so that the images display properly. Because, of course, I have nothing else to do with my life...

Thanks, Photobucket. I love you too. (jerks)

And, yes, if I wasn't such a perfectionist, I'd just let it go. They're all old posts anyway. Except for those things in the sidebar - what were those, anyway? And the background on my recipe blog. That is the final straw! (or was - got that one fixed at least)

(jerks)

Independent Health Insurance Options

Many small businesses and families need independent health insurance. In Florida, the Office of Insurance Regulation reviews health insurance plans that offer wellness and preventive care benefits. Insurers must provide access to health care and medical services when the insured needs them.

Independent health insurance Florida plans offer a few different options. Most insurers offer the same kinds of health services, but plans differ in cost sharing and the manner in which services are provided to beneficiaries. The following type of independent health insurance plans are offered in Florida:

Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) Options

A private Florida PPO allows the insured to receive health care and medical services for any provider or doctor. Costs to the insured are less when he or she uses the PPO’s in-network providers. All PPO plans in Florida require the beneficiary to pay a deductible. It’s necessary for the insured to meet the deductible threshold before the PPO plan begins to pay a portion of healthcare costs.

If you’re scheduling a surgical procedure, take the following steps to ensure your medical costs are covered by the PPO plan:

• Check the PPO provider directory. Confirm that the surgeon, surgical center or hospital, or other healthcare providers are participating in the PPO network.
• Call the healthcare provider’s office to confirm that he or she is in the PPO network.
• Realize that you must pay more for healthcare providers who don’t participate in the PPO network.
• Note that some plans, such as Florida Blue, allow the insured to receive services from any healthcare provider or physician, but out-of-network costs may be significant.
• Check “pre-determination of benefits.” Ask the provider to estimate the costs of the procedure. Alternatively, use the private health insurance plan’s cost estimator tools.

Before receiving any care from the provider, surgical center, or hospital, the insured must show his or her plan member identification card. This information can help the provider to determine the insured’s costs of care.

Standard and high-deductible PPO plans are available in the state of Florida. To offset the out-of-pocket costs of care, it’s possible for the insured to use funds in a Health Care FSA or a Limited Purpose FSA for vision and dental costs.

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Options

HMO plans can help the insured to save money on private health insurance plans in Florida. Unless the insured goes out of network, he or she typically has no deductible to meet for the plan year in a standard HMO plan. The insured may need to make copayments for provider visits or make higher contributions for coverage. A Health Care FSA can help members to offset the costs of healthcare in Florida.

A high-deductible HMO costs less in premiums to the insured but includes a higher deductible, such as an in-network per person or per family deductible for the plan year.

No Totality Here

One of my Facebook friends just posted this neat site that lets you put in your zip code to see a simulation of next Monday's solar eclipse in your area.

Here's what the peak coverage should look like at my house:

We won't be in the area of complete totality, but it will still be interesting to check it out. Of course, I haven't picked up any of those eclipse glasses or even figured out the best way to 'watch' it. I'm thinking I'll definitely be checking out the shadows on the driveway through the leaves on my tree, but other than that, I don't know.

ABC News is planning to do a live special Monday afternoon, and NASA will be streaming it live with views from NASA research aircraft, high-altitude balloons, satellites and specially-modified telescopes. They'll also include live reports from Charleston, as well as from Salem, Oregon; Idaho Falls, Idaho; Beatrice, Nebraska; Jefferson City, Missouri; Carbondale, Illinois; Hopkinsville, Kentucky; and Clarksville, Tennessee.

What are your plans for viewing the eclipse?

Health Care Made More Convenient

Looking for a physician for your health care needs can sometimes be a bit of a challenge.  However, many Houston family physicians have chosen to provide healthcare options all in one online place through Spring Medical Associates.  Many people call them their go-to website and love the convenience of having several types of doctors all in one place.  They provide a variety of convenient healthcare services via online appointments, specialists are also available as well as onsite x-rays and labs.

Healthcare in One Place - Searching for a general physician or even a healthcare specialist all over the internet can be a challenge.  To make healthcare a lot more convenient and easier to handle, many healthcare developers are combining services in one central online location to meet the demand of their patients. Spring Medical Associates is one of these places that have gotten onto this new type of healthcare bandwagon.  On websites such as this one, patients can easily search for the doctors by name, gender, specialty, and even language.  Sites such as this one allow the patient to search by languages, such as Chinese, Hindi, Telugu, and French.
 

Specialists Available - Specialists doctors may be another challenge for some patients to find. However, websites such as Spring Medical Associates helps patients find specific specialists all in one online site.  The website provides walk-in appointments, online appointments, and same-day appointments for specialists, such as ear-nose-and-throat specialists, interventional pain specialists, and breast specialists.  Patients can also find specialists that work in primary care or family medicine, urology, and even general surgeons.

Onsite Technology - Another challenge in healthcare is finding doctors’ offices that have onsite x-ray technology and labs.  Spring Medical Associates is one of the places where patients can make a doctor’s appointment and know that laboratories and x-rays are on site.  This can save the patient time, gas money, and energy when they are especially sick.

Getting check-ups, routine care, and maintaining health care are so much more convenient when medical associations provide a network of healthcare providers all in one online location.  

It Takes a Bit Longer

Our grandson Jason is visiting this week. He's 6 and about to go into the first grade. I'm not sure who told him he could grow up so fast, but he's certainly doing it.

Ready to go, sporting his new Spiderman
water squirter (from the cereal box)

I usually get up every morning after Jeffrey leaves for work and go walk 2 or 3 miles. With a 6-year-old here, I can't exactly do that, so I made him promise to go walking with me. Of course, that means I have to wait until he gets up in the mornings, so we're not leaving until quite a bit later than normal. (I should probably start getting him up earlier so he can start getting ready for his really early mornings once school starts, but he does have all month...) And then it takes quite a bit longer than usual to walk those 2 miles. His little legs are a bit shorter than mine, and he's always stopping to pick things up or look at flowers or trees or bugs. It's a boy thing, I guess.

Getting hot

Yesterday we walked a mile - and then we went to the playground and played for a bit afterward. Jason wants to be an American Ninja Warrior when he grows up, and those playgrounds offer all kinds of 'obstacles' for training.

On the home stretch

Then today Jason was determined to walk 2 miles, and a Ninja Warrior should be able to walk 2 miles, so I took him on my regular route. He made it! Never mind that it took an hour to do it...

And we made it!

Making Extra Money

It can be difficult to take care of a household when unexpected expenses occur. Even expected expenses can be hard to juggle. A night out at a restaurant can quickly turn into a costly outing. If you make a bit of extra money, then you will feel free to go out and enjoy yourself without feeling guilty about spending extra money. Sometimes all it takes is a bit of creativity to make a bit of extra money. Here are some suggestions to stash away some cash.

Offer Services - If you have any special skills, then you can consider using those skills to make some extra spending money. Taking care of children in your home or providing tutoring to neighborhood children can help you bring in some extra cash. You can also consider other services, such as cleaning houses, doing chores, or offering handyman services. Sometimes a hobby can turn into a lucrative gig as well. If you love to garden, then consider offering landscaping maintenance as a service. If you are a dog lover, then you may be able to take care of dogs while their owners go on vacation.
 
Host a Yard Sale - Another way to earn money is to sell items that you no longer need. Clean out your closet and put together all of the items that you want to get rid of. You may be surprised to find how many items you have kept throughout the years. Selling these items can bring you more money than you might think. If your friends or neighbors have unwanted items, then you may be able to work together to have a larger sale.

Be Creative - You may feel that you do not have any skills or unwanted items, but you may just need to be more creative in your thinking. Families who have sold used wheelchair vans have been able to earn money quickly. Think about any larger items that you may have, such as unwanted furniture or vehicles, as well as smaller items. If you have any creative talents, such as creating crafts or wreaths, then you may be able to market those skills as well.

Once you have earned some extra money, then you should feel comfortable occasionally treating yourself to a special time with friends and family. Consider trying a new restaurant or visiting a local attraction. You can enjoy your outing without breaking your budget.

Top Benefits Of Using Full-Service Storage Solutions

Long gone are the days when you have to load up all of your belongings and transport them to your new home or to a storage facility yourself. These days, you have many storage options available at your disposal and one of them is storage pickup service Boston MA (the reputable company found at www.ondemandstorage.com). While there are many advantages to using storage solutions of all kinds, here are some of the top benefits of using a storage company that will pick up your stuff for you.

No Renting Trucks - It can be time consuming and expensive to have to rent a moving truck. Not many people enjoy having to load and unload the truck, and it can also be tricky to try and drive that huge truck in traffic. When you hire a storage service with pickup included, they will come to you, get your stuff, and transport it for you. There is no need to worry about renting or driving any moving trucks.

No Heavy Lifting - With storage solutions that offer pickup services, you don't have to worry about doing any heavy lifting. You have enough to deal with when you are moving or storing your belongings. Full-service storage companies will come to you, pack and load up all of your stuff, and then transport it to their storage facility until you need it again.

Return Items - When you use a traditional storage unit, you have to pack up your belongings and take them to the unit yourself. Additionally, when you want to remove your belongings, you have to go pack them up again and transport everything. When you use a full-service storage solutions company, they will not only pack and transport your belongings to the storage facility, they will also bring your stuff back to you when you are ready. There is no need to make the trip to the storage facility to pick up your stuff. The company will bring it to you wherever you need it.

Moving or trying to store your belongings doesn't have to be difficult anymore. Using full-service and on-demand storage services can take away a lot of the stress involved with moving. It couldn't be easier to get your belongings packed and stored away so that you can have extra time and energy to take care of other important things.

Leave all of the work to the professionals.

Camp Outreach

I spent last week at a summer camp. It's not your ordinary summer camp. Instead of swimming and hiking and canoeing, and whatever other activities you regularly find at a summer camp, the campers at Camp Outreach spend their days painting, cleaning up overgrown lots, replacing roofs, and all kinds of other projects in a neighborhood in downtown Indianapolis. And they love it! Some of these young people (and not so young people) have returned year after year after year.

This was my third year. The first year I helped out in the VBS for the neighborhood kids in the mornings and then worked on various projects in the afternoons. The last couple years I helped out with VBS in the mornings and then was responsible for feeding all our hard-working people dinner every night. There's a lot of planning, a lot of shopping, and a lot of work involved, but it's all worth it. And I certainly could not do it without lots of help.

If you're interested in seeing a bit about Camp and hearing from some of the young people who were involved this year, be sure to check out this video and discussion of Camp Outreach 2017.

Perhaps it's something you'd like to get involved in next year?

The Magic of the Bedtime Story

Many of us have fond memories of childhood and the bedtime stories that often ensued once we were cozily nestled underneath the covers. The magic that happened at bedtime was often our first introduction to literacy, and one of the defining moments that fueled our interest in the world and all the adventures yet to be had.

The Magic of Routine
One of the sweetest and most satisfying aspects of bedtime was knowing that there was always an interesting and exciting story to send us off into sleepy land. Although none of us really wanted to go to bed, we were always excited about the prospect of another bedtime story adventure that would be unveiled if we submitted to the necessity of bedtime. Bedtime was never put on a pedestal, but we knew that bedtime was the only ticket to the coveted bedtime story.

The Adventure
Bedtime stories were always fun because each one had an inherent adventure and dilemma tucked neatly into the story line. Would Jack ever make it back down the beanstalk without being caught? Would Little Red be spared from the Big Bad Wolf? Would Elizabeth ever find those regulation cornhole boards she secretly borrowed from her mom? We were all on the edge of our seats waiting to hear what the outcome would be as each character battled their nemesis for survival or some other hidden or obvious treasure. These stories taught the love of the unexpected and the need to embrace courage and face problems in order to overcome them.

Love from the Storyteller
Although the storyteller was not the obvious heroine or hero of bedtime, they were, in an unspoken way. They were the bearers of the stories. We learned to appreciate them just as much as the adventures they unfolded every night. We knew that it was love that fueled their desires to enrich our lives with the stories and adventures of others, both fiction and nonfiction. We loved them for loving us enough to tell the stories in such provocative and entertaining ways. Often, these people were our very own moms and dads, or grandmas and grandpas, and the love was often twofold because they did so much more for us than tell bedtime stories.

The telling of bedtime stories has been a well-known tradition for many years. Many children have looked forward to the telling of some exciting adventure or dilemma faced by a character in a bedtime story. This ritual has often been the first taste of literacy that a child experiences, and it is often one of the tools to help encourage bravery and problem-solving.