food

My granddaughter Tara started watching Extreme Couponing and got several of us back into coupon clipping for our groceries.  And then my middle child did a great job Friday with her grocery shopping chopping off more than 50 percent.  Feeding our families has oftentimes in our up-and-down life been quite a challenge and at today's prices it's becoming more of a challenge again.  Along with coupons and careful shopping using slow cookers can be a great way to use less expensive cuts of meat and all kinds of veggies especially for those days when there are activities after work and time is just not there for cooking when you get home.  It's ready when you walk in the door and cuts down the impulse to swing through a fast food pick-up joint which can blow your budget real quick.

So what else can you think of?

Royal Wedding

What did everyone think of the Royal Wedding this morning???

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/royal-wedding-mysteries-solved-2479360/

I usually do not get wrapped up in things like this, but it is truely a historical moment.

Tara's Other Blog

http://taravc.blogspot.com/

Just letting everyone know that Tara also has another blog here, so you can keep up with all of us.

America at Number 2???

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/112616/imf-bombshell-age-america-end-marketwatch

Obama's Birth Certificate

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theticket/20110427/ts_yblog_theticket/white-house-releases-obama-birth-certificate

What is everyone's thought on this???? I have a hard time keeping updated but seems to be a big subject right now.

Uniforms

I do believe that the military should be able to wear their uniforms in public. It would be a pain to have to drive all the way home to change just to run into the store for a gallon of milk that your spouse could be needing, who is holding a screaming baby at home. Also, if there were a great number soldiers wearing their uniforms then they would be less of a threat. Such as police men, fire men, ect. They should be able to be prideful in their uniforms instead of being taught to hide it.

hurricane season

To all my peeps, there is a tropical system brewing in the Atlantic this morning.  Hurricane season starts June 1st.  Somebody forgot to tell Mother Nature apparently.  This is unbelievable.  And my cousin in Indiana said Monday morning she woke up to snow.

New Topic - Military Uniforms in Public?

Since the health care topic was such a serious one, I figured I would post my first topic and make it a less serious and detailed one! With myself being a Marine wife, MiddleChild being a retired soldier, and FlSailMom being the mother of a retired soldier, I figured we would have lots of different view points on the topic.

So my question is, do you think service men and women should be able to wear their cammies in public? I am simplifying it down to cammies rather than mentioning dress blues (or whatever "fancy" dress attire the other branches wear.)

I am a Marine wife and therefore it is hardwired into my brain to not be okay with this. The Marine Corps is 80% mental, 20% physical (I believe those are the numbers, please do not quote me haha.) The uniform rule is just one of the mentalities they are taught to live by it. The rule being that a Marine cannot wear their cammies in public. Not to the gas station, bank, store, anywhere. Do I agree with the rule? Absolutely!

1. Rules are rules. No matter what job you do, you will have rules and will be expected to follow them. Whether you like the rule or not is of no importance and it must be followed regardless or consequences are likely to occur.

2. Safety. A service member walking around in uniform immediately becomes a target. The sad reality is that many Americans do not agree with war and actively seek out revenge on members of the armed forces.

3. Work is work. Work should be kept separate from non work related events or places as much as possible. When work starts being introduced into other areas, problems arise. Many marriages fail as the result of stress from work. Same goes for uniforms. It is a uniform for a reason. To be worn to work. Not to your child's basketball game.

4. Convenience? Honestly, how hard is it to take five minutes to change out of cammies? My husband has done it on numerous occasions and it has never been a burden.

5. Misconduct. I have witnessed fights amongst people in uniform in airports. Bottom line, it makes all who wear the uniform look bad. It is stereotypical and sad, but that is the world we live in.

*Just an FYI, I do not expect anyone to go as in depth with this discussion as I did. I simply felt like blogging and it is something I hear about on a normal basis being the wife of a Marine.

Need a change

To be honest, I don't know enough about how good health care works to even pretend to offer a good solution, but I do know things need to change somehow. The U.S. system as it is just doesn't work well enough. That coupled with the rising costs of medicines creates a very difficult situation for some people. For example, one of my grandmother's many monthly prescriptions is a $100 bottle of eyedrops, and that seems outrageous to me. Without these eyedrops, she would go blind. But how many people really can afford that, along with other meds, insurance, etc.? And health costs are only a fraction of the budget people need from month to month.

I don't think we can or should simply switch over to a free universal health care. For one, I think it would be much too hard to implement. How can we go from a system that's been in place for decades to one so completely different? It would require a great deal of time and certainly some trial and error. Second, offering free health care would place a great burden on taxpayers, and that burden would be unfairly distributed.

I didn't have insurance when I lived in Switzerland because I was only there for 6 months, but their health care system is supposed to be one of the best in the world. Everyone is required to have health insurance, and once you have it, you're guaranteed to have great care. It's very expensive, though, and there are some subsidies, but people have to pay out of pocket. It works for them, but Switzerland is so small, and they have a much lower poverty level than we do. It's really the only other health care system I have a little experience with, but I don't think it would succeed here. What would succeed and be the best for everyone? I just don't know.

A Suggestion

If the country is in favor of going to some kind of universal health care then I feel what is offered to everyone should be the same. Perhaps the country should even start on a smaller scale and work their way up. An idea such as they could offer every citizen a well check up every three years and children a well child checkup every year. Women could get a mammogram every three years, prenatal care could be covered. However, they wish to do it. Then at a slower pace those who choose to carry extra health insurance through their employment or personal choice, possibly the premiums for these policies would be lowered and all parties would benefit. Just an idea, but what do you think?

health care

Advocates for single-payer health care often point to other countries, where national government-funded systems produce better health outcomes at lower cost. Opponents deride this type of system as "socialized medicine", and it has not been one of the favored reform options by Congress or the President in both the Clinton and Obama reform efforts.^[204][205] It has been pointed out that socialized medicine is a system in which the government owns the means of providing medicine. Britain is an example of socialized system, as, in America, is the Veterans Health Administration. Medicare is an example of a mostly single-payer system, as is France. Both of these systems have private insurers to choose from, but the government is the dominant purchaser.^[206]

More money per person is spent on health care in the USA than in any other nation in the world,^[3][4] and a greater percentage of total income in the nation is spent on health care in the USA than in any United Nations member state except for East Timor.^[4] Although not all people are insured, the USA has the third highest public healthcare expenditure per capita, because of the high cost of medical care in the country.[


The USA is the "only wealthy, industrialized nation that does not ensure that all citizens have coverage" (i.e., some kind of private or public health insurance).^[17] In 2004 the U.S. a Institute of Medicine report observed "lack of health insurance causes roughly 18,000 unnecessary deaths every year in the United States."^[17] while a 2009 Harvard study estimated that 44,800 excess deaths occurred annually due to lack of health insurance.<sup>[18]

Some excerpts from the Wikipedia on health care in the U.S.  I really would urge you to read the whole piece and put some effort into understanding the health care system in this country.  It is a huge piece of our economy and it has many moving pieces.  The Health Care Reform Act that was passed is not one that I personally like but it does address many of the critical issues.  What I would like to see from you all are some suggestions that would address the problem.  And no one is talking about "free health care."  There is no such thing as free.  The premiums for my Medicare come out of my Social Security.  For people working part-time minimum wage jobs that don't provide health insurance, what's your solution?  And remember for a lot of people today that's all the jobs that are available.  Our middle class job base has shrunk tremendously over the last 30 years.</sup>

Free Health Care Question

I need to do more research on this topic but my quick opinion is that I do not agree with the so called free health care the country is trying to offer. As far as I understand it not everyone would be entitled to this free health care. If you work a job where your employer offers health insurance then you will not be entitled the free health insurance from the country. The people who work will not only have to continue to pay for their health insurance from their employers plans but those rates will also be increased and they will have to pay that. On top of that, the workers of this country will also have their taxes raised to help pay for everyone else in the country to receive the country's free health care. So NO, I don't agree, as a worker I am down right tired of helping to pay for everyone and their bills when I haven't been able to receive help from anyone in times that I would need it. Possibly after more research I can post more details, but as it stands right now, I think it is a terrible idea.

Multiple Baby Showers

I waited until the day of the baby shower to be able to see every one's opinion before I posted my opinion. To make it short though, YUP, I think a mother should have as many baby showers as she wishes. The way I see it a baby shower is to celebrate the new life that is coming into this world and joining into a family. If a mother has friends and families who would love to celebrate with her then she should do so. If she has friends who does not share the same opinion on baby showers then they do not have to accept the invitation to the baby showers. In a family like ours we know love is more important than any kind of price that you could put on a gift. At our celebrations, we do not even expect gifts. If one is received that is nice, but if one isn't then that is also just fine. We know later that a gift will come in one way or another. This way of thinking is probably what makes all of our celebrations wonderful and we look forward to ALL OF THEM. 

PARTY ONE EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

baby shower/dinner

We all had a great time celebrating Tara's upcoming baby boy at Don Jose's, one of my favorite all-time restaurants.  They have a lovely screened room on the lake which is a perfect place for a large family with several small children.  It is a plus that we can have the interconnected families get together for a joint celebration.

Tara and her baby will be returning to California soon to prepare for her husband's return from Afghanistan and the new baby's arrival not long after.  We are all going to miss them terribly.  She came here five months ago with a baby who is now a very active, vocal toddler. 

I have been fortunate to keep my family together for as long as I have and now they are starting to establish their own little branches, first my son and his lovely wife, Katie, and then my two older granddaughters, one 40 miles away and the other one all the way across the country.  Skype has been a wonderful help in keeping us in touch and having family members branching out adds a different perspective into the family discussions.  We are fortunate to have Katie contributing.  She is not only gorgeous but also a very bright and accomplished young woman.

First post, new addition!

Hi all, and hello from Gainesville! Sorry I've been a bit delayed in my first posting, but here I am. I saw on Facebook that today is Tara's baby shower, which reminded me about the multiple-shower question from earlier this week. Hope you all had fun at the party!

Generally, I don't think it's a problem for mothers to have a shower for each new baby. Tara brought up a good point that each child deserves to be celebrated, so I think it's great for excited mothers to want to commemorate the occasion. Tara also is a perfect candidate for a second-child shower for several reasons; for one, she was away from family in California for the first baby, and two, boys do need different things than girls.

Perhaps when somebody starts getting into multiple births with multiple showers, not every shower should be as big as the one for the first child. For example, I can imagine it getting out of hand if a mother already had a large number of children and kept expecting more and more gifts. (Especially in extreme situations, like that family on "19 Kids and Counting"-- can you imagine if she wanted huge showers for each baby?) But of course most situations wouldn't be like that. People should keep celebrating each baby, but be cognizant of who they're inviting and whether they expect presents or not. A shower doesn't have to involve any big gifts, like Tara said, but most people would probably be happy to contribute something, even if it's small. And SailMom also had a good idea of giving something parent/family related, rather than just for baby, once the mother has all the baby stuff she needs.

Anyway, my overall opinion is that if you're excited about your new baby and have friends/family who want to celebrate with you, do it!

American's Rights to Free Health Care? - Tarav

First and foremost, let me say that I am mostly ignorant to the subject of health care in this country. It is embarrassing for me to say, but something I must admit as I believe many of us are and need more forms of education on the matter. I went from being covered by my mother's insurance to immediately being covered by my husband's (I am under Tricare provided by the United State's Marine Corps.) This is a subject I most certainly wish I knew more about and I will continue to read and learn.

The easiest way for me to break this discussion down would be by using pros and cons.

Pros:

1. Lives saved - Obviously, with free health care more lives would be saved and those who cannot afford care would still be able to get the care they need and most likely deserve.
2. Cost reduction of products - Companies would not have to pay for their employees to receive health care. As a result, these savings would be passed on to consumers in the form of lower product prices. Which in turn could help consumer spending and help bring the economy back to its feet.
3. Prevention - If a person had health care, they would probably be more likely to go in for routine checkups and catch a problem before it is a much bigger, more expensive problem.

Cons:

1. Quality - I fear that by providing everyone with health care, the quality of care may suffer. If more people are able to get care, it only makes sense that the services would be lessened as to provide for a much larger number.
2. Access - If everyone had access to health care, when would they receive the benefits? How long would the list be to get enrolled? How long would it take for care to be authorized or paid for?
3. Increased debt - We are already too far in depth as it is. Providing insurance to all Americans would more than likely put us even further into debt. Possibly to a point of the complete destruction of our nation's economy.
4. Free? - "Free health care" would not really be free. It would come out of raised taxes or spending cuts (education, defense, etc.)

I have been reading several blogs, websites, etc. and it seems to me that free health care would cause more problems then we already have. In my opinion, the cons heavily outnumber the pros. Besides, people without insurance may still possibly be covered through non-profit and government run hospitals. Most people who have something handed to them take advantage of it. The same would go for health insurance. If everyone had it, I fear that Americans would worry less about taking care of themselves and making alternative choices in their lifestyle and would rely instead on medicine.

*I recognize that "taking care of themselves" does not always cause the prevention of a sickness or disease. I know that illnesses such as cancer, lupus, etc. are not necessarily caused by the care given to your body.

New Additions - Tarav

Question: Should a mother receive a baby shower for each additional baby added to her family?

Once again, this discussion could be way more in depth depending on your vocabulary or understanding of the term "baby shower." My simple answer, absolutely! However, that does not necessarily mean having a get together for the sole purpose of showering a mother-to-be with baby gifts. I believe that every child should be celebrated. Children are so precious and none is more special than the previous or the following. Therefore, every child should be celebrated by the joining of family and friends in support, love, and celebration! I think that if your children are merely months or years apart, then it could be an option to put "gifts not necessary" on an invitation. But really, how much will it put you out to buy a friend, daughter, etc. a bag of diapers or a cute little outfit? After all, Walmart sells affordable brands that are no different than those of higher end baby departments!

In my case, I was away from friends and family for my first born. That was upsetting to me! All I wanted was to be around people who were just as excited for my princess to be born as I was. Receiving gifts was not even a thought in my mind! Now I am [temporarily] staying with family and I want nothing more than to be able to celebrate with those closest to me!

In closing, having a baby is one of the most exciting things to ever happen in a person's life. Having the second, third... none less exciting! I say the more to celebrate, the merrier! Bring on the baby festivities!

health care - new topic

Most of you know that one of my passions is health care in this country; to be more precise, the lack of access to health care for everyone.  And to me that does not equate to access to health insurance provided by for-profit insurance companies.  Their concern is their financial bottom line, not the medical needs of their clients.

So I want to know your views on where we are and where we need to go with health care.  I know we have some Republicans among us, some leaning that way, and I have been a liberal Democrat all my life.  But health care to me should not be a political football but a matter of what's good for the citizens of our country.  Should we try to move toward a single payer, Medicare for all, type of system?  Should we have private insurance for everyone, vouchers for government paid health care for people to buy private insurance, which is what the Republicans in Congress want to do? 

Here is the link for health care in Wikipedia.  It's rather long, complicated, but worth reading to get a handle on this subject.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_the_United_States
When you have the time let's get some input.  I know two of us have government insurance now Medicare and Tricare, and I think everybody else has private health insurance. 

new additions

I too am delighted to have a new member joining us (new to the blog).  I am looking forward to hearing her opinions and it will add another younger member of the family.  And since she lives in Gainesville, which is a college oriented town) and has traveled and lived in Europe she has a different background which may give us a different perspective on matters.  So welcome aboard.

On the matter of multiple baby showers, I don't think Tara had one for the first baby so this is a new thing for her.  But as she said, it's more in the nature of getting the family together for a good bye and baby shower.  And since the first one was a girl and this one is a boy, she has gobs of pink frilly outfits but no baby boy type things.

Usually multiple baby showers depend on the length of time between babies (or at least that used to be the criteria).  If it's been long enough that the mom no longer has all the stuff that you want and need with a new baby then have a shower.  If you still have everything, then maybe just have a "welcome new addition" type of party and bring something if you want, maybe a treat for the mom or dad, i.e., a babysitting voucher, a card for a manicure.

New Addition

We will very shortly be having a new addition to our blog. Our family is constantly growing, I am so proud to have such a big family who we all keep in touch very closely. This is great!!!!

Talking about growing families..... We also have new arrivals coming into our family often. We have another one due soon as Tara will be having a baby boy to add to our family. She leaves Florida soon to go back to California, where she lives, to join her husband coming home from serving overseas. It feels as if she just got here though, and I haven't been able to spend much time with her. However, we are soon to have a baby shower for her in the next few weeks. So my question, and guaranteed to get interesting results, do you believe in multiple baby showers for expectant mothers. As if she has had a baby shower previously for one child, then should she receive a shower for any additional children she may have????