The Curse of the Lottery

All That Money and You'll Still Go Broke!

I was watching the Today Show this morning and their continual coverage of the woman in Arkansas (woman "A") that won the AR lottery, but the ticket actually belonged to another woman (woman "B") - who tossed it in the trash after claiming the lottery machine made a mistake and said the ticket was not a winner (with me?).  Want the full story, click HERE.  

First, let me sat that both women are clearly of less than intelligent stock.  Here are 2 people who clearly don't have 2 nickels to rub together, yet, play the lottery - it would appear regularly - and are now fighting over ownership.  At stake is about $680,000 after taxes (of course!).  Woman "A" regularly takes tossed tickets out of the trash and "Tossed tickets" bins and re-scans them for winners (quite the hobby).  Woman "A" is also out of work, her husband is out of work and they have already spent almost $200,000 of the winnings.  A judge has ruled that the ticket belongs to woman "B".  Right or wrong, clearly woman "A" cannot afford to pay back the $200k she's already spent.  Both parties cannot agree on any terms and woman "B" is refusing to consent that woman "A" can just keep the $200k.  So, to trial this shall go.  Really?!

I seem to recall a Bible or children's story about two people fighting over something so badly that both ended up with nothing (help me out here!).  What is the matter with people?  This situation clearly was a mistake on both parts, yet each of these hill-jacks are refusing to compromise and walk away with more money than they will ever yet see in their lifetimes.  Instead, they are going to try to stake there claim to the whole ball of wax - and walk away with nothing after all the legal fees.  Just what they deserve.

QNexa Should Not Be Your Next Choice

QNexa?  Leave it to Big Brother Pharmaceutical to look out for our best interests - right?  Please tell me you know the answer is wrong!  There are very few instances where the right answer is taking a relatively new drug whose side effects may include some serious heart issues.  The FDA is concerned enough about heart problems from Qnexa that they are considering requiring studies – but the studies could come after the drug hits the market and loads of people begin taking it.  Really? What on earth is the FDA here for?  To let drugs hit the market, see what happens and then make a decision about whether its safe or not?  WOW!


I heard a radio news story about QNexa and how the pharmaceutical companies thought they had a good answer to weight loss.  I'm sure that's exactly what they think.


Perhaps each of us need to take our health into our own hands.  You know in your heart what is best for you and what isn't.  What I hope for each person that is struggling with weight loss is that you find yourself a good support system and discover what the real issue is.  Oftentimes there is an emotional cause as to why many women struggle with their weight, so keep in mind that there is NEVER any shame in seeking professional help in overcoming your hurdles!


That's the end of my sermon for today.  Take care of yourselves and let's be each other's cheerleaders!

Hope to talk with Your Kids

Any tips we can share to be able to talk with - and listen to - our kids, we will!

In any relationship, the positive power of communication is highly underrated!

Have Sippy Will Travel

Happy Ground Hog Day!

Useless and Fun Ground Hog Day Facts you wish you knew!  Hey, we're all about sharing fun!  Our friends at the Huffington Post did all the work for us, so why not share the HogLove?

To put more of an eco-spin on it, Ground Hogs are just another reason to keep our waterways clean and our forests standing.  Humans are not the only living creatures on the planet and didn't our Mommas teach us how to share?!


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/01/groundhog-day-2012-facts_n_1245259.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003#s649298&title=Woodchucks_Dont_Chuck

The Menopause Journals

Cathy Tiffany, author

I'm 42.  I'm in menopause.  Seriously - full blown, no periods menopause.  The new period thing I dig.  The hot flashes, body changes, sleep altering stuff - I do not.  It's really strange.  I got off the birth control pill three yearsish ago.  As soon as I did, I dropped 5-7 pounds (I'm thin anyway), the nifty wave in my hair disappeared, My sleep went to hell in a hand-basket and my hot flashes went from occasional to crazy.  Oh yeah - and my breasts started leaking milk.  Really?

My next gyno visit bought me a mammogram, an internal and external ultrasound (by a male technician - great.) and blood work $$$.  Anyhoo - as suspected, all was fine, but I am one of not many my age that is in early menopause.

The thinner you are, the younger you are and the faster you go from regular periods –irregular periods – no periods, the worse your hot flashes are.

Isn’t this crazy?  What is the pits is that my gyno office was so worried that they signed me up for all these tests, but once everything was OK, they sent me on my way with no info as to how best to deal with all this crap.  Hmmmm.

My hot flashes went away for a bit but are now back and my body is changing, which is not making me happy.  I’ve been blessed with a high metabolism and don’t have to be too careful with what I eat, but choose to eat healthy.  I now better start watching or I won’t be happy L

So, as an act of sisterly love, if you happen to be facing any of this, I researched info on my own that will help alleviate these symptoms.  As I was reading these symptoms (just now) I am shocked that I see several other things that happened to me that are all associated with menopause!!  Aha – I’m NOT falling apart or crazy!!

Common and not so common symptoms:

• Hot flashes and/or night sweats
• Fatigue
• Cravings for sweets or carbohydrates
• Diminished sexual desire, vaginal dryness
• Irritability, mood swings, depression, and/or anxiety
• Insomnia or restless sleep
• Fuzzy thinking (difficulty concentrating, memory problems)
• Weight gain, especially around the middle
• Stiffness and joint issues
• Irregular periods

Other menopause symptoms include headaches, heart palpitations, thinning hair, dry skin, dry eyes, increased facial hair, urinary dysfunction, and digestive problems.

Common Treatments:

Avoid caffeine/alcohol
• Sleep 7-8 hours per   night
• Intake vitamins B,C,D,E
• Practice breathing   exercises
• Eat a balanced diet
• Exercise regularly
• Stay hydrated

Here is a link that had much more info……http://www.34-menopause-symptoms.com/treatments.htm

Oh this is going to be a long year.  Negative campaign ads, with their sound bite "facts", leading you to believe that what they are saying is the truth.  Here's the sad part:  most people you know will not take 15 minutes to get on the candidate's web site and verify whether something is true or false.  Ever hear of a "lie of omission"? Basically that's not telling you the whole story and letting you assume the obvious - even though it's a lie.  We are so much smarter than that!  But, we're often too busy to do anything about it.  My hope this political season is that we all - and I'm just as guilty - take that 15 minutes and arm ourselves with knowledge that will ultimately help us all.

What's up with MONEY?

This week there have been a lot of articles written about how our (taxpayers) money is being wasted.  I have to admit, this is one of the few ways that I feel totally helpless.  Congress makes laws that don't apply to them, millionaires have legal loopholes that allow them to pay taxes around a 10-15% bracket, while most people I know are in the 20-30% bracket.  Hmmmmmm.  One of the things that B.A.B.E is about is saving, investing and growing your money.  Sure would be nice to be able to use what we really earn to secure our own futures! Our deal here is apolitical, which means we don't preach politics as I believe it's a personal decision who you vote for.  But, encouraging you to vote and make your voice heard, is a different story!  To make it easy, here is the handy address for said representatives:
http://www.house.gov/

Intersting accompanying article: http://www.foxbusiness.com/investing/2012/01/16/congressman-takes-up-buffetts-debt-offer/

Our Money is being hung out to dry!

Another thing?  Anyone who thinks that the rich should "pay more"  is missing the real point.  What "pay more" is supposed to mean is "pay your fair share".  That is fair and right.  What I hear people grumbling about, and what I think they think it means, is that the rich should pay more than the rest of us.  The United States was built on the principles of "work hard and get rewarded".  Not "some of you can work hard and share your wealth with those who choose not to work hard or have a career that doesn't pay as much as you make". Many people seem to have gotten into this mind set that we all should be equal, that there are no winners and losers, that there is nothing exceptional - or acceptable - about those who can rise up and excel.

What I wish everyone would do is learn to live within whatever means they have and be happy for those that can do better.  My disclaimer:  this does not count those folks that have special needs, illnesses, deaths, horrible and sucky situations that come about in life sometimes.  I had a friend that was a single Mom of an extremely special needs son who sucked every last dime she could get.  She did the best she could with what she had, but was always behind.  But, she - as a matter of fact - was happy for those that excelled, tried her best every day to rise above her situation - never quite making it  - but still tried to live that REAL American Dream of making a better life for herself and her son - honestly and with dignity.  Too bad there weren't more people like that in the world.

Time vs. Money

I have to say that when it comes to saving time or saving money, saving money usually wins out for me every time.  Recently my daughter's schedule ramped up into a tizzy on Monday nights and we found ourselves running from 4:20-8:00.  She is in an advanced orchestra group (so proud!) and we made the leap to Club volleyball.  Despite my best efforts, the winter volleyball team ended up practicing on the same night as orchestra - Monday.  Her orchestra practice starts at 5:15 and is 10-15 minutes from home and lasts 1.5 hours.  I pick her up and we race to volleyball practice - which has already started and is on the other side of town basically - while she changes in the car.  Now, you may have noticed that this is all during dinnertime as well.  Ordinarily, to have a healthy meal and save money, I would go back home.  But let me tell you how I've found the peace and tranquility of taking my laptop to Wendy's (where I'm writing this blog), hooking up my headphones, connecting to wifi, ordering a healthy salad, unsweetened berry tea and a small chili.  WOW!  Love it!  It is worth every penny I spend; I'm not rushed, my belly is full and it was a healthy choice.  Look at me: spending money to save time (although I am not giving up my frugal ways)!

Reclaim Your Born Identity- Authenticity Pays Off

As we start the new year, please take a moment and read this. It's a great reminder of the importance of living your life to the fullest and becoming "you" to the fullest. Very often wives and mothers are too good at wearing all the masks described in the following piece, doing for and developing those around them, but never take 5 minutes to explore their own selves. Becoming "You" is such an important thing, because if you aren't "you", who are you?

Reclaim Your Born Identity- Authenticity Pays Off

Weight loss challenge: Track it, log it, stay on schedule

Here are some great ideas to help you with your 2012 weight loss goals, via Joy Bauer from the Today Show:

Weight loss challenge: Track it, log it, stay on schedule

A Green Dream for 2012

This is an awesome wish for 2012:

A Wish List for Congress in 2012

Why does Congress make everything so darn complicated?  I guess when you have a battle between morality and greed, it gets a bit dicey.  This is why I maintain my stance and aim on making it one of my goals this year:  stay educated and always let your representative know what's on your mind!

http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/blogs/republican/top-10-congress-wish-list?src=nl&mag=tdg&list=nl_dgr_got_non_010212_congress-wish-list&kw=ist