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Prepare Your Family With Comprehensive End of Life Planning

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No one likes to think about their own mortality, but the truth is that no one is immune to death. While it’s impossible to predict when or how you will pass, there are some steps you can take to make the process easier for your loved ones. End of life planning is a comprehensive way to prepare for the inevitable, and it can provide peace of mind for both you and your family. Here are some tips to help you get started.

Write a Will

One of the most important things you can do is write a will. This document will outline your wishes for how your assets should be distributed after you die. Without a will, your family may have to go through the costly and time-consuming process of probate, which can be avoided with proper planning.

If you have minor children, you should also appoint a guardian in your will. If something happens to you and your spouse, this person will be responsible for raising your children. You can write a will on your own, but it’s always best to consult with an attorney to ensure it’s properly executed. If you’re under 40 and don’t already have a will, now is the time to get one.

Make a Living Will

A living will is a document that outlines your wishes for end-of-life medical care. This can include things like whether you want to be resuscitated or placed on life support. Having these conversations with your family and your doctor is important, so everyone is on the same page about your wishes.

In some states, you can appoint a healthcare proxy who will make decisions on your behalf if you cannot do so. This person should be someone you trust implicitly and who knows your wishes for end-of-life care. Making a living will is one of the most important things you can do to prepare for the end of your life.

Plan for Medical Expenses

According to a recent poll, approximately 8.3% of adults went without medical treatment because of the steep cost. Medical expenses can quickly add up, especially if you have a chronic illness or are facing a terminal diagnosis. It’s important to plan for these expenses in advance so that your family isn’t left with a huge financial burden. There are a few ways to do this, including purchasing long-term care insurance or joining the Medicare program.

For those with a life insurance policy, you can also designate it as a payer of last resort for medical expenses. This way, your family won’t have to use other assets to pay for your care. Planning for medical expenses is an important part of end-of-life planning, and it can give you and your family peace of mind.

Create a Trust

A trust is a legal entity that can hold assets on behalf of another person. This can be used to protect your assets from probate or to provide for a loved one after you die. Trusts can be revocable or irrevocable and can be created during your lifetime or after your death. If you’re thinking about creating a trust, it’s important to consult with an attorney. This is because trusts can be complex legal documents, and you want to ensure everything is done correctly.

Keep Updating Your Plans

Your end-of-life plans should be fluid and flexible, as they will likely change over time. As your life changes, so too should your plans. For example, unless you have experienced major life changes, such as marriage or relocation, it’s advisable to update your estate plan every five years.

It’s also important to keep your plans up-to-date if you have a change in health. If you develop a chronic illness or are diagnosed with a terminal illness, you may want to make changes to your plans. Updating your plans regularly is the best way to ensure that they remain accurate and reflect your wishes.

Making end-of-life plans is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your family. There are a few key things to consider, including your will, medical expenses, and trusts. It’s also important to keep your plans up-to-date as your life changes. By taking the time to plan for the end of your life, you can give yourself and your loved ones some peace of mind.

5 Ways We Inspire a Love of Reading in Our Kids

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Inspire a Love of Learning

As a child, one of my favorite activities was reading. This love of reading and later, writing, helped lead me to major in English in college, become a college English instructor, and learn more about the world than I ever could have without books. Because books enriched my life so heavily, when I had kids, I wanted them to love reading as much as I did. Luckily, most of them do. We inspire a love of reading in our kids using the following methods.

How We Inspire a Love of Reading in Our Kids

To help your kids fall in love with books and reading, you need to immerse them in the reading world.

Read Aloud to Them

From the time our kids were born, we read aloud to them. At first, we started with short board books like Goodnight Moon and The Going to Bed Book. (At this stage, don’t be surprised or annoyed if your child asks you to read the same book over, and over, and over again!) Then we expanded into longer stories until we were reading our kids chapter books when they were in preschool. I continued reading to them all through middle school.

Have a Home Library

To foster a love of reading, surround your kids with books. We always had bookshelves filled with books the kids could look through when they were little and read when they started school.

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to do this. For example, we picked up most of our kids’ books at garage sales for 10 cents or less.

Take Them to Library Activities

The public library is a wonderful resource that we utilize frequently. We started by bringing our kids to the library to pick out their books and to join in on story hour. Because of these early experiences, our kids always associated the library with fun.

Participate in Reading Rewards Programs

In the summer, sign your kids up for reading rewards programs. For example, Pizza Hut has the Book It program. Your public library likely has a reading program, too. Our son was one of the top readers one summer in elementary school, so he got to join the other top readers for a bowling and pizza excursion compliments of the library. He still talks about how much fun that was.

Let Them See You Read

Inspire a Love of Reading

Kids learn best by watching your actions. You can tell them that reading is fun, but if they don’t ever see you reading, you’re not reinforcing that lesson. My kids see me read books and hear me listen to audiobooks in the car. I love to read, and they see me regularly taking time to do so.

Final Thoughts

We inspire a love of reading in our kids, which was one of the best things we could do. Today, they still read for fun and recreation, enjoy learning, and have an exceptional vocabulary.

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Why Our Child Decided to Take a Gap Year

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Why Our Child Decided to Take a Gap Year

Our 18-year-old son graduated from high school this year. As most seniors do, he applied to several colleges in our area last fall. He got into all of them and received substantial scholarships to two of the colleges. He planned to start college this upcoming fall. And then his life was upended, which is why our child decided to take a gap year.

What Is a Gap Year?

For those who don’t know, a gap year is when graduating high school students take a year off before they begin college. They use that time in various ways, such as working to raise money for college, volunteering in the field they want to pursue, or traveling.

Why Our Child Decided to Take a Gap Year

In May, my husband got a new job 2,200 miles from our current location. Our son had always wanted to go to college nearby to live with us and save money. However, because we were moving in July, he no longer wanted to go to the colleges where he had received scholarships. He had to start his college search over again.

Unfortunately, the college scholarships that were plentiful in October had all but dried up by July.

He found colleges to apply to in our new location that accepted applicants on a rolling basis. He did get a few scholarships, but not nearly as many as he would have gotten had he applied to those schools in the fall.

To make matters worse, he would have had to pay out-of-state tuition because we hadn’t lived in the new state for 12 months before he wanted to start college. So, after careful consideration, he decided to take a gap year.

How He Plans to Use His Gap Year

Why Our Child Decided to Take a Gap Year

Even though he never considered taking a gap year, he’s warmed up to the idea. He’s made a long list of activities he plans to do for his gap year.

Volunteering

Our son has always been interested in volunteering. During high school, he volunteered more than 100 hours. He hopes to volunteer at a local cat shelter and the public library during his gap year.

Working

In addition, he plans to work part-time and save money for college.

Applying to College

In the fall, he will reapply to the colleges he applied to in July. Since he’s applying at the typical time students do, he’s hoping he’ll be eligible for more significant scholarships.

Final Thoughts

My husband and I understand why a gap year is the better choice given that we’ve recently moved to our new location and colleges in the area would be pricey. We are slightly concerned that he may decide not to go to college after this. However, our son was always the youngest in his class because he has a summer birthday, so taking a gap year may be the perfect way to give him more time to mature and qualify for larger scholarships.

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3 Mistakes We Made in the College Process

3 Mistakes We Made in the College Process

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Mistakes We Made in the College Process

First children are always the guinea pigs of the family. Parents experiment with them and learn how parenthood works. They understand that once you have children, life doesn’t always go as planned. Our oldest, who recently turned 18, is also our guinea pig when it comes to college. We’ve learned that there are significant mistakes we made in the college process with him. Luckily, we’re learning from these experiences, so hopefully, we’ll be smarter with the college process with our younger two children.

Not Having a Backup Plan

My husband and I have always worked in education. I worked at a community college until I quit after our third child was born, and my husband has worked at two different universities.

We didn’t have money to save for college when our kids were young, but we weren’t concerned because we knew that our children could receive a tuition discount if they went to college where my husband worked. Between that discount and the scholarship our son received, he could have lived at home and gone to college for free.

However, life doesn’t always work out as we plan.

Moving After His Senior Year

My husband had been looking for a job for the past 18 months. He had interviewed and made it to the final rounds for four different jobs. However, none worked out. He applied for one more this past February, and we decided if he didn’t get that one, we’d quit looking until after our oldest finished college.

Luckily, for my husband’s career, he got the job. However, the job required a move across the country. While the job pays much more than his current position, it’s not at a university, so we no longer have a college tuition discount.

In addition, our son hadn’t applied to any of the nearby colleges in the new location because we didn’t know we’d be here. He missed out on the prime time for college admissions and scholarships. Now, he’s stuck applying only 6 to 8 weeks before college begins.

Not Specifying How Much We Would Contribute

Mistakes We Made in the College Process

Some parents tell their children what amount they have to contribute to their college education. Then, the children can use that amount as a basis to help them determine which colleges they will attend based on affordability. We never had that discussion because we didn’t think we had to; our child knew he could get a substantial tuition discount.

Now, we don’t know how much we can afford to pay because we’re moving to a new geographic area of the country and still aren’t sure how much typical monthly expenses will be. That makes determining affordability difficult.

Final Thoughts

The three mistakes we made during the college process have made the experience more difficult for our son than it needed to be. We had a unique set of circumstances that, hopefully, won’t happen to our younger children.

However, we’ve learned from our mistakes and will now be saving for their college tuition and setting a limit for them that we can pay.

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Should Your Family Invest in a Vacation Property?

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Planning for a vacation can be a hectic process. Besides finding a destination, you need an accommodation facility that will give you a pleasant experience. The availability of vacation properties creates an avenue to meet your needs. You can rent the property for the few days or weeks you are on vacation, but the costs can increase. So, why not invest in and own vacation property? This guide explains why your family should invest in a vacation property.

Your Getaway

For starters, you want to invest in a vacation property for your interests. You find it easy to go on vacation without worrying about accommodation. Finding and using the right place to stay with your loved ones throughout the vacation can be hectic. The case differs for investing in a vacation property. You get your getaway without thinking about the related costs. You can conveniently use the place for special events, including parties, get-togethers, and birthdays. You can also consider timeshares with other investors and make the place more lively and productive. Did you know that the number of families that own timeshares across the country is more than 9.9 million? Investing in a vacation property and including timeshares helps meet your expectations faster.

Income Generation

Understand that going on vacation means getting ready to spend considerably in the process. But why spend more on accommodation when you can generate income instead? Investing in a vacation property is an avenue to generate income as a family. Whenever you are not using the property, you can lease or rent it to other people on vacation. They pay the accommodation fees and use the facility for their needs. You become an Airbnb host and multiply your family’s income. The more guests you have on your vacation property, the higher the income. Ensure you market and advertise your place properly to attract more guests.

A Reliable Retirement Plan

Besides the fun that comes with vacation properties, you get a reliable retirement plan as the owner. Investing in business ensures your family’s financial future, proper healthcare, and a platform to handle emergencies. Like other investment opportunities, you get a sustainable financial shot from which your future generation will benefit. As time passes, converting the property into a retirement home is also an option. You only need to handle the repair and maintenance needs and convert the place to suit your needs. Air leaks, roof damage, and plumbing issues are among the repair needs you must handle. According to the United States Department of Energy, allowing air leaks around your windows and doors can add 10% onto your energy bill. Seek professional guidance and services to create a suitable retirement home.

Builds Equity and Wealth

At first, you will only have a vacation property for your guests and family’s needs, but you build equity and wealth in the long run. The more you buy and invest in a vacation property, the easier it is to build wealth. You join a network of investors and get a platform that helps you know the value of real estate holdings. The vacation property you invest in becomes a legacy that you and your loved ones will benefit from and cherish. The income you generate also allows you to consider other investment opportunities in the market besides vacation properties. When you build equity and wealth, other investors and potential shareholders find you attractive.

Tax Advantages

By investing in a vacation property, you essentially buy a small business. While, at some point, you and your loved ones will stay and operate in it, it is still a business. You reap from your investment because you run it as a business. Tax deductions are among the benefits that come with vacation property investment. Apart from the structure that makes the vacation property, you enjoy a tax advantage on other things, including the vehicles you operate. You enjoy a suitable tax advantage for every mile you travel using vehicles for your business. Collectively in America, vehicles travel trillions of miles every month. This tax advantage, therefore, is beneficial to your business.

The decision to invest in a vacation property as a family comes with several benefits. Learning ways to make your business a success and enjoying the related benefits is crucial. Reading more and seeking guidance, as explained above, is therefore helpful.

4 Road Trip Tips When Traveling with Tweens

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Road Trip Tips When Traveling with Tweens

Eight years ago, we moved from Chicago, Illinois to Tucson, Arizona. We still had family in Michigan, so we have made the road trip across 1,900 miles one way to visit family six times now. When we made the first trip, our kids were 10, 5, and 4. Our most recent trip was just a few weeks ago, and the kids are 18, 13, and 12. Traveling with them now is much easier, but regardless, the trip is a long one. We’ve learned many road trip tips when traveling with tweens. If you’re traveling with kids in the eight to 12-year-old age range, these tips may help your family survive a long road trip.

Road Trip Tips When Traveling with Tweens

Tweens are easier to travel with than younger kids, but they still can get bored quickly. Try these tips to make the trip go faster.

Make Maps for Them

I mapped out our route on Google Maps, magnified it, and printed it out. Then, I made binders for each kid with the seven pages showing the route. I put the pages in plastic page protectors and gave the kids dry erase markers. They marked on the pages as we passed areas, so they could see how much progress we had made and how much more we had to go. I also marked where we were stopping each night to make the three-day trip seem less daunting.

Have Them Pick a Fun Activity

Road Trip Tips When Traveling with Tweens

Before we left, each child researched the route and found one fun thing they wanted to do. Our favorite activity that a child picked was Cadillac Ranch in Texas. We brought along some spray paint and joined others in spray painting the upside-down cars planted in the ground. When we have driven by later, other times we are making the trip, the kids still talk about the fun they had and how weird the attraction is.

Pack Food. . .and More Food

Tweens are hungry most of the time, especially on a road trip. We pack sandwiches and chips for lunch, but we also pack A LOT of snacks. Popular snacks include beef jerky, pretzels, granola bars, squeezable apple sauce, squeezable pudding, and fruit. Make sure the kids can easily access the snacks.

Limit Stops

Our drive is so long that it takes us 10 to 12 hours of driving each day to get to Michigan in three days. Add in a fun stop, and there’s not much time for anything else.

When we stop for gas, we also use the restrooms and get out our sandwiches, if it’s lunchtime. When we combine all of our stops in one, we only stop for 10 or 15 minutes before we’re on the road again for another three to four hours. We have found Love’s Travel Centers have the cleanest restrooms.

Final Thoughts

Traveling with tweens is less stressful than traveling with younger kids, but they can still get bored and antsy on long road trips. Use these road trip tips when traveling with tweens for a smoother, more entertaining drive.

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Tips for Entering the Workforce After Having Kids

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Starting a family is something that many adults do at some point in their lives. Due to the demanding nature of bringing up children, it’s sometimes necessary to take a break from work. If you did this and feel that you’re now ready to get back into the workforce, here are some tips that can help you out.

Network Widely

Networking is the number one thing that you need to do when you’re ready to rejoin the workforce. Talk to your friends and family and get the word out there that you’re looking for a job. Share the details of what you want as well as the skills you have with them as well. This way, it may be easier for you to find an opportunity that fits you well. On average, job seekers spend about 11 hours every week looking for the ideal job. This should motivate you to keep at it even if you feel like it’s taking a long time to find something. With persistence, something will turn up.

Write Down the Most Important Qualities of the Job You Want

Everyone has different needs as far as their ideal job goes, so list down the things that are important to you specifically. One thing may be a job that offers enough flexibility for you to have time to play an active role in your family. Another thing may be getting a job that’s close enough to your home so that you can multitask effectively and not need to delegate errands to someone else. When you know what you need in a job, it will be easier for you to look for something that you want and you will be likely to enjoy the position that you get. You will also be able to sift through different job offerings and make applications only for those that meet your needs.

Don’t Be Afraid to Start from Scratch

After spending some time out of the job market, there’s a good chance that things have changed a bit from the way you left them. This may make you a bit less likely to start working at a top position. This should not demotivate you, however, because you can simply take the time you spend at an entry-level position to remind yourself of what your tasks and duties are and practice. As time goes by, you may be able to get promoted to higher levels and you will get more experience to boot. Simply think of it as a kind of paid refresher program where you will be paid a bit less to fine-tune your skills.

Refresh Your Knowledge

Finally, depending on the length of time that you’ve been out of the workforce, you may need to refresh your skills so you know how to work once you get the position you seek. You could take it a step further and add to your knowledge by taking a course or furthering your education. This will make you more sought-after, especially because, as mentioned, you already have experience working.

You could also switch careers to a faster-growing field if it’s associated closely enough with your current experience. In the healthcare industry, for example, employment is expected to grow by 14% between 2018 and 2028. This is a lot faster than the average for other occupations, and it adds around 1.9 million new jobs to the market. This is a career that you could step into to enjoy a higher likelihood of getting hired, especially if you’re passionate about it.

These tips should help make it easier for you to rejoin the workforce after having kids. It will be an amazing way for you to ensure you can support them through everything and provide a great life for them.

StoryWorth: The Most Thoughtful Gift That Can Be Cherished for Years

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Most Thoughtful Gift

My grandma died almost 20 years ago at the age of 90. I was close to her and thought I had asked her everything I needed to about her life. But as I get older, I realize there are still more things I would like to ask her and more I would have liked to have known about her, especially her younger years before I was born. I wish StoryWorth, the most thoughtful gift, would have been around when she was in her 70s and 80s.

What Is StoryWorth?

StoryWorth is a website that helps you learn about your relatives’ lives. For a $49 fee, you can get one question a week sent to your relative. Your relative answers the question, and StoryWorth compiles all of the answers. Your relative can also add pictures to the stories. After one year, the stories are bound into a hardcover book.

What Questions Are Asked?

StoryWorth has hundreds of questions. When you first pay for the subscription, StoryWorth populates 52 questions automatically. However, you can change out questions by looking through the available questions. This allows you to target specific information you’d like to know. Some potential questions include, “Describe one of your most memorable birthdays,” and “How did you meet your spouse? When did you decide you wanted to marry them?”

The Most Thoughtful Gift’s Stay Power

StoryWorth is an excellent gift for you and your children to learn more about older relatives’ lives. However, this gift is a gift that keeps on giving.

As I get older, I’m spending more time researching my ancestry. I have a great, great, great grandfather, Alonzo, who fought in the Civil War. He kept a journal during that time, but the journal was factual information about the battles he was in and the marches the soldiers took. There was nothing personal. I discovered that Alonzo’s mother typed up a two-page document about her life, which included personal information about Alonzo. That is a cherished document because those relatives now are more than a branch on my family tree. I have a glimpse into how they lived.

Imagine how cherished a StoryWorth book full of memories will be to future generations when they want to know more about the people in their family tree!

Our Experience with StoryWorth

The Most Thoughtful Gift

I bought my mom a subscription to StoryWorth for Mother’s Day. She has answered every prompt with several paragraphs of writing. Although I know the stories behind most of her answers, my kids didn’t. They love learning more about their grandmother’s life, especially when she was younger.

Final Thoughts

StoryWorth is the most thoughtful gift for the recipient, the gift giver, and future generations. The recipient gets to share the stories of her life and relive her memories. The gift-giver learns more about the recipient’s life and create a cherished keepsake. Future generations of family genealogists get a priceless document that will let them deeply learn about the life of one person in their family tree.

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Baby Formula Shortage: How to Survive and Thrive

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Baby Formula

The baby formula shortage has been making headlines lately. Stores are running out of stock and parents are struggling to find the right brand for their children. While this may seem like a major crisis, there are ways to survive and thrive during these tough times.

In this blog post, we will discuss some tips for finding baby formula during the shortage and ensuring that your child gets the nutrients they need.

Other Options For Feeding Your Child

First and foremost, it is important to remember that baby formula is not the only option for feeding your child. Breast milk is the best source of nutrition for infants, and there are many ways to obtain breast milk even if you are not able to breastfeed yourself.

Milk banks provide pasteurized donor milk. There are also organizations where you can connect with mothers who are willing to share their excess milk. If you are unable to find breast milk, infant formula is still a viable option.

However, it is important to note that not all formulas are created equal. Some formulas may be more difficult to find than others, but they may also be more expensive. It is important to do your research and decide what type of formula is best for your child.

Make Your Own Formula

Another option for parents who are struggling to find baby formula is to make their own. While this may seem like a daunting task, there are many recipes available online that can help you create a nutrient-rich formula for your child.

Of course, it is important to consult with your child’s pediatrician before you make any decisions about changing their diet. However, making your own baby formula can be a great way to ensure that your child gets the nutrition they need during this difficult time.

Final Thoughts

The baby formula shortage is a major problem that is affecting many families. However, there are ways to survive and thrive during this time. Remember that baby formula is not the only option for feeding your child, and consider making your own baby formula if you are struggling to find the right brand for your child.

Most importantly, consult with your child’s pediatrician before making any changes to their diet. With some careful planning and research, you can ensure that your child gets the nutrition they need during this difficult time.

While it’s important to do your research about what type of baby formula is best for your child, don’t forget that breast milk is still the number one source of nutrition.

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