Physical Activity Reduces Risk of Dementia and Alzheimer’s

After just writing about the importance of seeing fitness as something that encompasses body, mind and spirit, I wasn’t surprised to read about research just published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, which indicate that regular exercise may help prevent cognitive problems.  Specifically it’s found that those who remain physically fit during the mid-life years were almost 40% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s or dementia. Previous research has found that regular exercise can prevent a host of other health problems, such as arthritis, certain types of cancer and stroke. It’s also been found that an individual’s level of health during … Continue reading

Tracking Physical Activity

There are all sorts of gadgets out there which help in tracking your physical activity. Bands you can wear on your wrists and apps on your phone are just some of them. Of course, you can always do it the old-fashioned way, with a notebook and pen. No matter which method you choose, there are some real benefits to keeping track. First, it helps you to put together a plan that works best for you. After you have tracked your activity levels, you can usually get a good feel for the time of day in which you might be more … Continue reading

The High Cost of School and Activity Fees

This year, our school district is charging activity fees for its students. This means that if any students want to participate in after school sports or other activities, they must first pay a fee. The amount of the fee depends on the child’s level in school. So, an elementary student who wants to participate in a school activity must pay $25, a middle school student must pay $50, and a high school student must pay $75 per year. Granted, these aren’t astronomical fees, and this particular fee gives a free pass to all activities, but they aren’t the only fees … Continue reading

A Primary Activity

This past Saturday, we had a great primary activity. I feel so lucky to get to live in UT and around so many unique and special church sites. One of which is the church history museum downtown. I’ve blogged before about how my family went there on a Sunday night and really enjoyed their children’s exhibit. After that experience, I thought that our little small primary might enjoy doing something similar. First, we decided to take the train to our destination. This was very exciting for the children. Some of them had never ridden public transportation before. To do this, … Continue reading

Special Needs Blog Week in Review – March 18 – 24, 2012

Once a week, the Special Needs Blog at Families.com does a quick Week in Review. This is a great way to catch up on the blogs that you meant to read, but didn’t have enough time to do it when it first hit the blog. The Special Needs Podcast Roundup for the week went up on March 19, 2012. This week, I would like to point out an episode from the “Autism & Disney Series – The Best Magic”. It is episode number four, and it talks about how children who have autism can have a great Disney vacation. Study … Continue reading

USCCB Responds to White House Blog about Birth Control Coverage

The White House posted a blog that described the facts about birth control coverage, insurance, and religion. Now, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has responded to that blog, by giving their interpretation of what it says, and their opinions about it. Clearly, the battle about birth control coverage is continuing. Recently, the White House posted a blog called “Health Reform, Preventative Services, and Religious Institutions”. This blog provides the facts about insurance coverage for birth control. I believe that this blog post was intended to give clarification to the rumors that people have been spreading across the internet … Continue reading

Do You Blog About Your Homeschool?

Do you have a blog? And if so, do you blog about your homeschool? When you go online and type “homeschool blogs” into a web search, you have a wealth of information at your fingertips. Just a quick search in Google yielded me 4,110,000 results – wow. Think of all the resources those four million blogs could hold for me. Think of all the inspiration, the lesson ideas, the motivation I could get by tapping into that completely free resource. With all those blogs already in existence, is it still important for you to add the topic to your blog … Continue reading

Blog Networks, Part 2

I discussed yesterday that Blog Networks are a powerful tool for bloggers. A network will provide more exposure and opportunities for your blog. You will also gain learning opportunities and friendship from those in your network. Networks should be small in number so keep it around eight to ten bloggers. Too few bloggers and you will not have an impact but too many bloggers and the network will become overwhelming to manage. Think of a core group of individuals who are likeminded and share a passion to blog and to grow. That is the concept behind a network. Starting a … Continue reading

A Sunday Activity

As with many typical Sunday afternoons, my husband and I were looking for something to do to get the kids’ energy out. We hopped in the car and went down to temple square. It is a great place to visit for a Sunday activity with small children. Our kids love running around and looking at the pretty flowers and fountains, it’s free, and it is Sunday approved. Do you ever wonder what to do with small kids on Sunday afternoons? Sometimes we don’t have family to visit with, and we have sat around keeping the sabbath day holy all we … Continue reading

Home School Blogger Spotlight: Quirky Momma

When I first began blogging on my personal site a little over a year ago, I came across a blogger who inspired me. It was my pleasure to bump into her on the blogosphere roads through homeschool blogging carnivals, Charlotte Mason carnivals and on online forums concerning education. She is a true professional in her approach to blogging and always gives her best. This blogger has become a blogging buddy; she is Rachel, from Quirky Momma. If you are a blogger you will benefit from her style, her helpfulness, her friendly spirit and creative heart. If you are a blog … Continue reading