الجمعة، 19 يونيو 2015
Eight death linked to Takata airbags confirmed by Honda
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30 ways to stop spoiling your kid
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Governor praises state’s job growth as business creation muddles along
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Retail spending for Father’s Day to near $189 million, trade group says
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Metro Chamber of Commerce promotes savings program
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Nevada now ranks No. 2 in nation in unemployment
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Why Poorly Performing Funds Remain in 401(k) Plans
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Siegel Group acquires Arizona property for $8.3 million
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Up Close With Twitter’s New Product Pages & Collections For Shopping
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Marketing Day: Twitter’s New Product Pages, YouTube Newswire & Facebook Tests News Feed Changes
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Comcast founder Ralph Roberts dies at 95
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Twitter Jump Starts Shopping Experience With Product Pages & Collections
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Why Don’t My Leads Convert? – June 30 Webcast
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Google Could Face Deterrent-Sized Fines In EU Antitrust Case
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How To Use Video Content To Generate, Qualify And Score Leads
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School’s Out for Summer: 16 Free or Low-Cost Activities for Kids
“Moooooooooom, I’m booooooorrrrrrrred. There’s nothing to do!”
No matter how many toys or high-tech gadgets they have at their disposal, siblings and neighbors to play with or books to read, every child utters these words at least a few times a year. Usually in the summer.
You could try lecturing them on contentment or regaling them with stories of how kids in some places have daily homework all summer long. But, for less eye-rolling and grumbling, why not spice up their summer with activities that will keep their minds engaged and learning and their bodies active? You don’t even have to spend much — or any — money besides the cost of getting to the activity.
Here are 16 free (or inexpensive) activities for your kids to enjoy this summer. These programs are available nationwide, though not in every city, so it’s best to call your local store or outlet to ensure they’re being offered in your community.
Reading Programs
Enrolling kids in summer reading programs is a great way to prevent the “summer slide” or “brain drain.” For just the cost of getting to the library — which is free if you walk or bike! — your kids can improve their reading skills, learn new information and get some neat rewards.
Your local library will probably have a reading program, with weekly storytimes and activities related to a theme. Community businesses often sponsor the programs, and kids get prizes like books, free kids’ meals and tickets to sports or cultural events as prizes for meeting their reading goals.
In addition, several national book retailers, as well as a few businesses, offer summer reading programs. While their programs are noble, they do hope that you’ll buy a few books when you come in to sign up. You can avoid buying new books by using your library card or obtaining inexpensive books from thrift stores, garage sales and PaperBack Swap.
Here are details for eight summer reading programs:
- Barnes & Noble: Read eight books, record the titles in the printable journal and redeem it for a free book from the store’s Reading Journal list.
- Books A Million: Read four books from the store’s Summer Quest list, fill out the journal (print it at home or pick up one in the store) and receive a free tote bag while supplies last.
- Book It: Read five books to be eligible to win prizes in the Summer Reading Challenge, which runs from June 22 to August 15.
- Chuck E. Cheese’s: Print out the Reading Rewards Calendar, check off each day as your child reads daily for two weeks, and he’ll get 10 free tokens on his next visit. This program runs year-round and also has other rewards calendars that encourage good habits such as good behavior, daily music practice and sportsmanship.
- Family Christian: Read six Christian books, complete a short book report on each one (printed from the website) and earn a $10 savings pass for your next purchase of $10 or more. This can even be completed online if you don’t live near a store; just email the book reports to the address on the website.
- Half Price Books: Read daily for 15 minutes in June and July, record minutes in the Feed Your Brain Summer Reading Program calendar, and receive $5 in Bookworm Bucks once you’ve read for 300 minutes.
- TD Bank: Read 10 books, fill out the Summer Reading Form and take it to your nearest TD bank branch to get $10 deposited in a new or existing Young Saver account.
- Showcase Cinemas: Bring a completed book report to Bookworm Wednesdays from July 8 to July 29, and receive free admission to the children’s film. Accompanying parents and siblings under six get in free as well.
Sports
- Kids Bowl Free is a great option for kids who love to bowl, or who live near a participating bowling alley. Children get two free games every day, all summer long. Shoe rental is not included, so you’ll probably want to purchase a pair to save on rental fees. And to keep kids from spending all their money at the snack bar, use your free gift cards from Swagbucks to buy snacks to eat while they bowl.
- Kids Skate Free offers kids free admission to roller rinks across the nation. Each center that participates sets its own terms and conditions, so you need to contact your nearest location for details. If your local rink isn’t participating, the site has a letter you can print and send to the rink owners to encourage them to join.
Movies
- Regal Entertainment Group’s Summer Movie Express program offers movies for just $1 at participating theaters for nine weeks. Each theater screens two movies every weekday morning, but be sure to check their website to find a theater in your area.
- Cinemark’s Summer Movie Clubhouse offers movies for $1 each or sells a pass to 10 movies for $5. Check out the website to find which cinemas in your area are participating.
Microsoft Summer Camps
The tech giant offers two types of free camps to teach, entertain and challenge kids and teens.
- YouthSpark Summer Camp: Select Microsoft stores in 31 states teach kids ages eight and up about game coding or game design. Kids get to use the latest technology as they use their creativity and imagination to plan and code games. Both the Smart Game Coding and Smart Game Design camps offer beginner and intermediate options. Sessions are two hours long and run for four consecutive days.
- DigiGirlz High Tech Camps give young women a chance to learn more about technology and get them interested in careers in the tech industry. At these free camps, high school girls enjoy hands-on experience, listen to speakers, network and participate in demonstrations. As of this writing, three camps are still open for registration: July 30-31 (Reno, NV), August 4-5 (St. Louis, MO) and August 11-12 (Las Colinas, TX). Registration is done on a first-come, first served basis so sign up quickly if your daughter is interested in technology.
Building Workshops
- Home Depot offers free Kids Workshops on the first Saturday morning of the month for kids between five and 12 years old. Previous projects have been planters, picture frames and model airplanes, and the workshop includes all supplies. At the end, kids get a certificate of completion and pin in addition to their apron and project. The online registration process is easy: fill out the form (selecting your preferred location), print out your ticket and show up at the event. Adults may stay to help younger kids complete the building project.
Vacation Religious School
- Religious Programs: Most houses of worship offer some sort of kids’ program in the summer, be it a day-long event or a week-long morning program to teach kids about faith in fun and engaging ways with story time, arts and crafts, sports, singing and snacks. These programs are typically free of charge and are open to any child. Looking in local newspapers, speak with religious leaders or check church or temple websites to find out what programs are available.
Check Your Local Newspaper
You might find more summer programs available from local businesses and organizations. Minor league sports teams often have summer training camps for youth, universities need kids to participate in lessons taught by education students and school districts offer fun summer classes.
Your Turn: What cheap or free activities are your children participating in this summer?
Charlotte Edwards is a freelance personal finance and parenting writer whose work has appeared in Incomes Abroad, International Living, Hawaii Parent and My Kids’ Adventures. She’s the wife of a great penny-pinching guy, and mom of two kiddos who are learning about saving and wise spending by earning commission for housework.
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YouTube Newswire Offers User-Generated Feed Spotlighting Eyewitness News Video
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Rubicon Project Says Mobile Now More Than 20% Of Programmatic Ad Spend
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Why You Should Have a Pet Companion in Your Golden Years
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How to Rollover a Former Employer’s 401(k) Plan
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Why We Like, Comment, and Share on Facebook
Have you ever wondered why people enjoy liking, commenting, and sharing on Facebook?
If you haven’t, you should. Why? Because understanding why people enjoy doing these things will help you generate more Facebook traffic.
So, if you want to get more Facebook traffic, first you need to understand what motivates people to use Facebook. I’ve created this infographic to help you gain that understanding:
Click on the image below to see a larger view:
Click here to view an enlarged version of this infographic.
Conclusion
When it comes to generating traffic from Facebook, I’ve seen firsthand that writing blog posts that are interesting, important, timely, and funny usually does the trick.
By leveraging the data in the infographic above, you should start seeing more social traffic.
How else can you get more Facebook traffic?
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George Clooney’s Casamigos Tequila Launches #HouseOfFriends Social Media UGC Campaign
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Connecting The Dots With Device Targeting
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What ALDI could be plotting next
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The pizza making you some serious cash
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The Hidden Costs of Free Trials
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Some Thoughts on My Father
In the spirit of Father’s Day, I wanted to share some thoughts about my own father and the huge impact he’s had on my life, personally and professionally.
I grew up in a single income household. Most of the time, my father worked in a factory making construction equipment, while my mother stayed at home. We lived about a mile outside of a small town on a plot of land that was about 75% covered in woods.
Our house was very much a humble one. It was old and small, with three very small bedrooms. The largest bedroom in the house is almost completely taken up by having a twin bed in it, and the smallest? It’s basically a closet.
The center of our lives were family and friends. There were people constantly at our door, stopping by to say hello or to bring us something. We spent many evenings visiting other people, too, often with some item or another in hand to give to them. It was rare when a meal consisted of just people who lived in our home.
My father was constantly busy. Given the demands of his factory job and the fact that there were three kids at home, my father usually took on every bit of overtime work that was offered to him. He also often jumped from shift to shift to get better jobs with better pay.
This meant that there were periods where I didn’t see him as often as I would like. This was particularly true when he worked the evening shift, which meant that he clocked in at 3:30 PM and clocked out at midnight (assuming no overtime hours). Since I was in school, that meant he was at work during the evenings after school and asleep (because he got home at about 1 AM) when I got up in the morning before school.
He also maintained several “side gigs” as I was growing up. He grew an immense garden and sold the excess produce, both directly to neighbors and friends and to grocery stores. He was a small-scale commercial fisherman, an endeavor I helped with to an extent, especially during my high school years.
There were times when he was laid off from his factory job. The company that ran the plant went through some serious financial problems in the late 1980s through the mid 1990s and there were periods where the company almost went bankrupt. He was laid off for months at a time.
During those periods, my father just kept on working. He would throw himself into his fishing business and his gardening practices.
He always, always found a way to keep food on the table for my brothers and myself, no matter what. We never went without. That made a giant impression on me.
When I look back, I remember lots of times when I wish that my father didn’t have to work so much. I remember sitting outside when he was working on the day shift, waiting for him to get home from work. I remember staying up late sometimes on Friday nights so that I could give him a hug when he got off work when he worked the evening shift.
As busy as he was, he always made time for me and made sure that we had a strong bond, even if we weren’t always interested in the same things. I remember doing countless things with him, from mushrooming in the woods to fishing, from watching baseball games to playing catch in the yard. He somehow found time for this.
He had a great relationship with my mother as well. A few of my most vivid memories of them from my childhood involve them sitting together outside on a warm summer evening, just talking to each other about life as they sat close together, often sharing a glass of wine.
It wouldn’t be honest at all to say that my father was or is a perfect father. He isn’t. He was merely a great father, which is all I could ask for.
He also provided a great blueprint for my own adult life.
He taught me to have a strong work ethic. He worked at a full time job that often included overtime hours and always had other things to work on to generate income. He almost never sat still during the whole time I was growing up. The only time I ever seemed to see him be still was when he was asleep.
I try every day to match his work ethic. Some days I match up and others I fall short, but I haven’t missed a scheduled post for The Simple Dollar in many years.
He taught me to put my family’s needs before my own wants. Over and over again, he did this. He made sure we always had food to eat. He made sure that there were always Christmas presents under the tree and birthday presents on our big day. If we needed something for school or to improve ourselves, he always found ways to make sure that we had those things that we needed. He did that by putting us first rather than himself almost all the time.
I made the choice to become a husband. I made the choice to become a father. Making those choices means I accepted a lot of responsibility and it’s on me – no one else – to live up to those responsibilities. That means that I spend a lot of time and effort taking care of my family when I might want to be doing something else – and, in fact, I would be doing something else if I hadn’t chosen that responsibility. I chose the avenue that demands my responsibility, and it’s up to me to live up to that.
He taught me that having lots of income streams means that you’re not caught in a disaster if one of them goes away for a while. He maintained a fishing business and what amounted to a small gardening business pretty much constantly when I was a child, and sometimes dabbled in other things as well (such as junk trading and scrap metal collecting). Even if he happened to be laid off from his job due to a downturn at work, he still had ways to keep food on the table and keep the bills paid.
Again, I took this to heart. The Simple Dollar started off as a side gig. Even today, I take on little side gigs all the time. I run a pair of small businesses when I’m not writing that earn some additional money and could be scaled up if I was no longer able to write. Having income streams means having more security in life.
He taught me to appreciate what you have rather than longing for what you do not. My father never wanted much of anything other than a simple meal and a cold beer in the evenings. We never had lots of expensive things. He never needed a brand new truck to drive around in or a brand new boat to go fishing in. He never needed an expensive watch on his wrist or fine clothes to wear. He was – and still is – simple and humble.
The older I get, the more I aspire to that standard myself. I wear blue jeans and old button shirts and t-shirts almost all the time. I don’t wear a watch these days. I prefer simple meals – rice and beans and vegetables. I don’t have any need for finery. I’m happy with friends, family, the outdoors, and a good book on a rainy day.
He taught me to not give up when a setback happens. My father experienced long layoffs. He experienced devastating plant blight. He experienced long periods where the fish weren’t biting, and periods of drought and flooding where fishing and gardening were impossible. He didn’t give up on his family, his gardening, his fishing, or his job. He got right back up and gave it his best shot once again.
Setbacks are going to happen. That’s just part of life. The question is whether or not you allow yourself to be defined by those setbacks. I don’t want to be defined by my setbacks. I want to be defined as a person who, when he gets knocked down by setbacks, picks himself up and tries again.
He taught me to believe in myself. My father has a sense of unwavering confidence in his skills and, because of that, he has aways taken on challenges that pushed himself quite far. The size of the gardens he planned was ludicrous, enough to provide a gardener with a full time job. His fishing exploits involved extensive operations requiring several people to pull it off. The diversity and intensity of the things he pulled off was impressive, yet he just went ahead and did it. Why? He believed in himself.
Sometimes, this is hard for me to do. I find that whenever I’m afraid to take that leap, I can just think to myself about what my father would do. He’d take that leap, and so sometimes I do, too.
My father taught me a lot of things as I was growing up, and he continues to teach me things as he grows gracefully into his elder years. I can only hope that I can live up to even a fraction of his standard.
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A Trick for Sticking to Your Budget: Try the Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card
Sponsorship Disclosure: A huge thanks to Kaiku and Visa Clear Prepaid for working with us to bring you this content.
I enjoy small, everyday luxuries. I don’t mind treating myself to a latte, grabbing dinner out with friends or picking up a bottle of wine after work. But too many of those indulgences would leave me broke. So each month, I try to stick to a budget with strict limits for hitting the grocery store and just-for-fun expenses like coffee shops, restaurants and shopping.
But there’s a problem with my budgeting plan: I secretly know nothing will happen if I don’t stick to it, and there’s no real incentive to keep me honest.
Even if I only go a few dollars over each category’s budget each month, those expenses add up. And I know if I had budgeted better, all those pick-me-up lattes or fancy cheeses could have gone towards something much more luxurious — like a plane ticket to somewhere exotic.
Why Budgeting is a Challenge for Me
I use an online money manager to set my budgets and track spending, but there are no real repercussions for going over my limits. Even though the service warns me if I’m getting close to blowing my budget, I get a clean slate on the first of every month. I always have my debit and credit cards on hand, making it super easy to pick up a coffee, eat lunch out with coworkers or grab a few bags of chips at the corner store.
I’ve considered the cash diet — taking out a certain amount every single month and spending only what’s in my wallet — but I’ve never been a huge fan of carrying cash. Since those purchases don’t show up on my statements or in my money management service, cash feels like toy money. I can spend it however I want, then I’ll forget about it minutes later. This frivolous approach certainly isn’t helpful when trying to stick to a budget.
I’d like to set a firm budget for my groceries and treat yo’ self expenses, track my spending and cut myself off when I’ve hit my limit. Enter prepaid debit cards.
How Prepaid Cards Help You Stick to Your Budget
If you want to limit yourself to spending a certain amount in a certain category each month — say, $150 on groceries — you can simply load up that exact amount on a prepaid debit card. Swipe your card at the grocery store just as you would a debit or credit card.
But unlike your credit or debit card, you won’t be able to spend more than you have. When your balance hits zero, you can’t use credit or overdraft protection. You’ve only got whatever you’ve loaded onto the card for the month, which might make you think twice about tossing something extra into your cart you don’t really need!
Which Prepaid Card Should You Choose?
When I started looking for a prepaid card, I was surprised at all the options — and each card has different features and limitations.
I was excited to learn about the Visa Clear Prepaid program; cards that qualify for the program are required to clearly communicate their monthly fee plans, so you’ll know exactly what you’re signing on to pay. The Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card has a flat monthly $3 fee that covers a few cool features:
- No overdrafts permitted, so you can’t incur extra fees or spend more money than you have
- Deposit or share insurance to protect your funds, e.g. FDIC/NCUSIF
- Visa’s Zero Liability fraud protection*, which provides added security if your card is lost or stolen
Plus, you’ll never get hit with sneaky fees. The Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card has:
- No fees for declined transactions
- No fees for cash back
- No fees for customer service
- No fees for in-network ATM withdrawals or balance inquiries
- No fees to close your card
- No fees for replacing a lost card
The main fees include the $3 monthly fee, which you can avoid by loading $750 per month onto the card (like direct deposit), and $1.45 for out-of-network ATMs. For more information on fees, you can visit https://kaiku.com/fees.
You can use the card to make one-time or recurring bill payments, get cash at more than 55,000 AllPoint ATMs and even transfer money to friends who have the Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card. You can use the card anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted: supermarkets, clothing stores, drug stores, restaurants, online retailers and gas stations, just to name a few.
Join The Penny Hoarder 21-Day Challenge
To test this prepaid card as a budgeting tool, we’ve partnered with the Visa Clear Prepaid program to launch a 21-day challenge for the Penny Hoarder community. For 21 days, I’ll be using the Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card for all my grocery purchases.
Since I tend to overbuy at the grocery store, I plan to use my card to purchase only the groceries I need. Instead of ending up with more food than I can possibly eat, I’ll stick to the necessities — and stick to my grocery budget. I hope that limiting myself to only using my prepaid card will help me be more mindful of my spending.
Ready to get serious about budgeting for one of your everyday expenses? Join me in the 21-Day Challenge! Here’s how to get the card and get started.
How to Get Your Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card
Signing up for your Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card is super simple. Go to the Kaiku website, click Get Card, fill out some basic info and they’ll mail you a card. (Bonus! You get to pick from a few fun colors.) It will arrive seven to 10 days later, and you can call or go online to activate it.
Then, it’s time to decide how much money you’re going to load — I chose to add $150, my grocery budget for the next 21 days. You’ve got a few options to put your money on the card:
- Take cash to a Visa Readylink location. This is the fastest option because you’ll be able to use the card instantly, but vendors will charge a fee of $2.95 to $4.95 to load your card.
- Deposit a check onto your card by snapping a picture with the Kaiku app. If you’re not in a hurry, wait up to 10 days for the deposit to go through and you won’t have to pay a fee. Or, if you want instant access to your funds, you can opt to pay approximately 4% of the value of the check, with a minimum fee of $5.
- Sync your bank account and transfer funds straight onto your card. These transfers take two to four business days. Kaiku won’t charge you a fee, but your bank might.
My Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card is on its way and I’m looking forward to getting my grocery budget back on track! Will you join me in the 21-Day Challenge?
Your Turn: How would you use a prepaid card to help you stick to your budget?
* Visa’s Zero Liability Policy covers U.S.-issued cards and does not apply to certain commercial card transactions, or any transactions not processed by Visa. You must notify your financial institution immediately of any unauthorized use. For specific restrictions, limitations and other details, please consult your issuer.
Betsy Mikel is a Chicago-based freelance copywriter. She loves biking all over every city she visits to find its best taqueria.
The post A Trick for Sticking to Your Budget: Try the Kaiku® Visa® Prepaid Card appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.
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Hershey to cut about 300 jobs, lowers 2015 revenue outlook
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Marketers Don’t Need To Choose Between Efficiency And Premium
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How to Build Your Brand on a Budget
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5 Ways to Balance Doing What You Love With Making Money
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The 2015 Father's Day Sales You Should Shop
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Content Creation Platform Visage Launches Web-Based DIY Tool For Creating Data Graphics
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