Why do you need life insurance?

This came to mind today after my 18yr old son decided to get himself into a small fender bender while going to work at the touristy movie theater on the beach. He was running late for work and ended up pulling into a parking spot "a little" to fast as he would say and scratched the paint of the driver's side door of the car. Ironically, the couple that owned the car saw it happen as they were walking to their car and heard it happen. They had just seen the movie, "The Dark Knight Rises". My son..... works in that same movie theater.

As I have been dealing with calls from Geico about car insurance matters the last few days it had me thinking also about life insurance. Do I have enough coverage to take care of my family if something unexpectedly were going to happen to me? I've already looked into long term care coverage (Thanks to my 78yr. old dad). By the way, his 300,000 long term care plan will run out of money in 18 more months. That's a whole different problem, back to topic here.... I currently carry roughly 1 million dollars in life insurance. My wife has about $500,000. I broke down financially everything it would take to take care of my 4 kids (youngest being 5) & wife if I were going to pass away. It's crazy how quick the costs begin to rise. Most people forget to think about child care needed if their aren't two parents to watch the kids in this equation.

While some life insurance agents aim to guide you toward whole life insurance over term life insurance (whole means more commission for them), term makes more sense for most people. Term coverage is the appropriate coverage for most individuals, as their needs are for a certain term of years while their other assets accumulate, such as retirement savings. You obviously have more debt in a young marriage with kids running around the house than you do once you hit the empty nest stage of your relationship. Make sure you factor in the following items when thinking of how much coverage do you need?

Life Insurance Quotes 1.Short term financial needs? To figure this out, consider emergency expenses and outstanding short-term debts. Emergency expenses should include a cash reserve to cover medical emergencies or repairs to your home. Short-term debts include credit card balances and car loans.

2.Long Term debts? This includes your mortgage, student loans, and future tuition costs. Deciding what your children may need in the way of college funds may sound tricky. But using the cost of college today as an indicator will give you some sense of how much to plan for.

3.How much $ is needed to maintain your lifestyle? On this list you’ll want to include necessities such as childcare, household bills, and transportation expenses. Also consider how much your family spends on non-essentials, like shopping and vacations. Once you’ve come up with a figure based on one year, multiply that by the number of years you expect to be providing for your family.

4.How much are your family’s assets worth? Put a dollar amount on your family’s resources. To do this, you’ll want to include savings, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and Social Security benefits. This list should only include your “liquid assets” — meaning assets that can be converted into cash quickly and easily.

Once you figure this out PLUS inflation you should have a good number to go with.  I also recommend Select Quote for gathering multiple quotes at once and saving time.  They worked out great for me!!

Here's a couple of calculators to help you figure out your needs too!!
http://www.lifehappens.org/life-insurance-needs-calculator/
http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/insurance/life-insurance-calculator.aspx
http://www.smartmoney.com/personal-finance/insurance/how-much-life-insurance-do-you-need-12949/
http://www.aarp.org/money/insurance/life_insurance_calculator.html

Most couples don't have sex from sheer exhaustion!

As a married man I wasn't surprised to see that the #1 reason couples don't have sex is just sheer exhaustion. At the end of the day, after I clean the kitchen, load the dishwasher, read the kids their bedtime story, load up the dryer, and give my daughter her required 5 hugs and kisses I am tired. I've been married for 13 years and intimate lovemaking takes a backseat to sleep quite often.

Luckily I don't have insomnia. I'm very active, I play tennis, I'm a runner, and I'm a Crossfitter. My body hits the bed and I'm out within a minute typically. I wanted to share this info graphic, some great info!!


Via: Canada Drug Center

Bed Bugs vs Dust Mites - what you need to know!

The key to remember when dealing with these is two things:
Bed bugs = bad
Dust Mites = good

Dust mites just eat the dead skin cells we leave behind. I have no problem with that.

Bed bugs on the other hand are evil. They are like microscopic mosqitoes that suck your blood in the middle of the night. The easiest way to kill these in a mattress is just to buy a plastic full zip cover and they eventually die. After being encased in a plastic mattress cover for a few days they stop moving and "look" lifless BUT it actually can take up to 12 months for them to die completely and never come back again. Here's a great inforgraphic on the little critters.


Via: Allergy Asthma Technology

What are the advantages of a Nursing Degree Online?

            With more and more classrooms moving to the Worldwide Web, it may be tempting to sign up for an online class to get a nursing degree from your house. Online classes offer many advantages, such as freedom for scheduling, being able to work from home, and being able to work at your own pace. Online classes also come with disadvantages, as well. Since they are virtual, you have no physical school or physical teacher. If you need help with something, nobody is there to help guide you in person. In addition to not being able to receive help, you don’t receive hands-on instruction either.

Is an online nursing degree right for you?

            Nursing is a hands-on skill, which means you need to be able to use the dummies in the class, use nursing props, practice scenarios, and have physical interactions to learn how to become a nurse. At the University of Phoenix, the online nursing program will cost you $21,000 per year, which is comparable to any university with in-school classes.

            I personally do not recommend getting a nursing degree online. Taking several online classes myself (mostly math, English, and some other hands-off classes), I do not recommend virtual learning. I feel that you put forth more effort to learn less. After my online classes, I retained none of the information because I was learning in my living room. I recommend (especially for nursing) taking the classes at an actual college, in person, with a professor.

           Of course, I understand that oitside of the course work, all nursing students will be required to complete a certain number of clinical hours, during which they must work at a health care facility in a situation similar to an internship. This experience helps nursing students gain firsthand knowledge of what it is like to interact with patients and other health care professionals. Distance higher education combined with some traditional learning (blended or hybrid learning) is the most effective, better than only online and pure classroom.

Thier is no doubt that the demand for registered nurses is stronger than ever as the health care industry expands rapidly to meet the needs of an aging baby boomer population.

If you are a working RN, you do not have energy to travel to school, complete assignments and still provide quality care to your patients. For some, thought of having to cut back, or even stop working to attend school is frightening. Not working means deferring old loans, taking on new ones and letting the debt pile up until you finish school, without earning in the process. Scheduling for nurses can fluctuate and an online degree means you can be flexible with your work, home and school life so you keep your job and your sanity!

The top 3 programs are from the following three  online colleges:

•  Kaplan College
• American Sentinel University
• University of Phoenix Online

The outlook for nursing continues to be optimistic per the Bureau of Labor Statistics-

Registered nurses (RNs) constitute the largest healthcare occupation, with 2.6 million jobs.

About 60 percent of RN jobs are in hospitals.

The three typical educational paths to registered nursing are a bachelor's degree, an associate degree, and a diploma from an approved nursing program; advanced practice nurses—clinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, nurse-midwives, and nurse practitioners—need a master’s degree.

Overall job opportunities are expected to be excellent, but may vary by employment and geographic setting; some employers report difficulty in attracting and retaining an adequate number of RNs.

What are your views on getting an online degree in Nursing?  What were the procs and cons for you?

Why Kids Are Not Exercising At Day Care

Children are naturally active, which means when given the space and freedom, they will play without hesitation. So why aren’t children exercising outdoors at day care? About 75 percent of preschool-aged kids go to a day care facility for most of the day while their parents are working. While at day care, those children spend 70 to 83 percent of their time indoors. Dr. Kristen Copeland, a pediatrician at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, has been trying to figure out why day care teachers are not allowing the kids to play outdoors. From her research, she has learned that day care administrators think that playing outdoors risks injuries and is too dangerous without parental supervision. She also learned that many preschools do not have proper playground equipment due to the cost. Some teachers even go far enough to blame poor weather or the children’s unfit clothing for not playing outdoors.

When I was younger, my mother was a single mom and had to go to work. That means that I had to go to a day care facility during the day when my mother was not home. At my day care, they had multiple sets of playground equipment outdoors including tunnels, swings, slides, ladders, bridges and all sorts of fun toys. In the rare case of a bloody knee or scraped elbow, they would help the child and give them a band-aid. Children playing on the playground is definitely not a hazard.

A local day care called Kid’s Discovery Learning Center has a white bus that they parade the children around with on field trips. I’ve seen them at CiCi’s Pizza, but they probably go to many other places over forty-five miles away just for a meal… Day cares have the funds, they just do not want to use it on a playground for the students.

Many People Leaving Medical School Before Time Is Up, Settling For RN

With the populating rising, the need for hospitals and doctors is on the rise. College, medical school, then internships… Becoming a doctor can get pricy and drawn out. In the United States of America, you need a four-year Bachelor in Science degree from a college or university to get into any medical school. When in medical school, it takes four years to become what is considered a MD (Medical Doctor). This is what is considered a “general” doctor and you can now get a job at a doctors’ office or become what is known as a “family doctor.” Many people are dropping out of medical school after two years and becoming what is considered an RN (Registered Nurse). As an RN, you could get a job as a school nurse, a nurse at a local doctors’ office, or a hospital nurse. Since so many people are quitting after four years of college and two years of medical school (six years of schooling after high school), the amount of nurses is high, which means job opportunities are low. After taking loans for college and medical school, not being able to get a job is the last thing any new RN wants.

Becoming a medical doctor only takes two more years of medical school. If you are interested in becoming a specialized doctor, such as a pediatrician, it will take approximately three years of residency. The first year of residency is commonly known as “internship,” and you will basically be helping out other pediatricians and learning the way around. To become a specialized doctor, it will take approximately eleven years of schooling.

Only determined and special people can make it all the way to a specialized medical career. If you are considering becoming a doctor, consider the amount of schooling, costs, and determination it will take to enter the career. Many loans will have to be taken out, many late-night studying will have to be done, and the average age of becoming a doctor is around 29 years old.