It all started three years ago when my brother in law got a job out of state. His wife had just passed away, and he was missing a lot of work. Add to that the fact that he was addicted to Heroin, and you can get a picture of just how fast he was going nowhere. With the new job, the in laws saw it as a way for him to clean himself up. So to be as supportive as possible they gave him one of their credit cards. It didn’t have a huge credit limiit, just enough to get his weekly hotel and rental car. He would pay off the credit card each week with his expense checks. Well…as with most drug addicts that wasn’t exactly how it worked out. He called the credit card companies pretending to be my father in law and eventually got his credit limit raised to $40,000. He was getting cash advances to pay for his habit as well as the minimum payment on the card. Then he stopped paying it altogether. The expense reimbursement checks also made their way to the drugs, and as with any company, he was terminated shortly thereafter. This left him with a huge credit card bill, a huge addiction, and no way to pay for either one.

My in laws were not smart in handling the situation. They refused to have the credit card fraud assigned to their son, and worked really hard to pay off the card, at the same time letting their mortgage and car payments slip further and further behind. 2 years ago, on the brink of foreclosure they sold their house to an investor and had 18 months to get their finances in order, claim Bankruptcy, and get another mortgage to buy the house back from the investor. As with most of the things in their lives, this didn’t happen. Last January they became responsible for a monthly payment of $3000! They are nearing eviction on the home they are in, and just yesterday got their second home up for sale.

They have not been smart in working their finances, and if they were to take the Bills IQ test…they would get a well deserved “F”! My husband and I have finally had to wash our hands of their financial situation. We have lost hours of sleep worrying about them, and we have our own problems to worry about!

I’ve had the opportunity to work with this great company for the past 18 months or so, and I have enjoyed every minute of it. As I mentioned above, there is something for everyone! I’ve gotten friends, my aunt, my uncle and my sister all involved and they’ve enjoyed their associations with this great company as well. My sister, Aunt and I all met up in Vegas last fall for PostieCon, and had an amazing time. Not just because it was Vegas, but because this company took the time to put together a very well thought out and knowledge-filled convention. We learned and laughed so much, because that is the type of company this is!

Even if you are just looking for a community of bloggers, they’ve got you covered there too! Head on over and see what you find for yourself!

BBQ RULES

We are about to enter the summer and BBQ season. Therefore it is important to refresh you memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity, as it’s the only type of cooking that a ‘real’ man will do, probably because there is an element of danger involved.

When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion;

Routine…

1-The woman buys the food
2-The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.
3-The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill-beverage in hand.

Here comes the important part:

4-THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.

More routine…

5-The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.
6-The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beverage while he deals with the situation.

Important again:

7-THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF OF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.

More routine…

8-The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.
9-After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.

And most important of all:

10-Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts.
11-The man asks the woman how she enjoyed ‘her night off’. And upon seeing her annoyed reation, concludes that there’s just no pleasing some women!

Is this not an exact recreation of this most cherished summer rituals? I thought it was very well written!

We have a summer of fun planned. All close to home because of the rising gas prices, but we’re excited to get it kicked off!

That is when we turned to the internet. I didn’t know that there were financing options available from several different online companies like BasicCarLoans.com. They have a national financing service to help people with good or bad credit. Because of services like this one, we were able to get a Used Car Loan and picked out a mini van that carries our family comfortably.

Hopefully now our credit is getting back into shape, but I will always be happy for this type of service. They really came through for us in our time of need!

We signed up for the yearly family membership to help get us through the summer, and I can’t wait to find a seat and let my kids run, having the time of their life. What a great idea!

When it comes to heart health, my father in law has no luck! 12 years ago he had a quintuple bypass and has many heart procedures in the years since. He was recently diagnosed with COPD due to his lifelong smoking and poor heart health. We’ve learned if the man goes in for a stress test, most likely he will be in the hospital later that day for a procedure. This is to help keep his arteries clear to keep him from having a heart attack. But what is frightening is the fact that he is a prime candidate for SCA, Sudden Cardiac Arrest. This is something that has nothing to do with the arteries themselves, but rather with the fibrillation itself. SCA is not brought on by plaque in the arteries, nor is the chance of it lessened by the lack thereof. Yet it affects over 325,000 people per year, and there is only a 7-9% chance of survival! I’m sorry, those are scary odds in my mind!

His brother in law recently underwent a procedure to get an ICD implant and honestly, I would love it if my father in law would do the same. However, with the state of his fragile heart, it really may not be an option for him at all. There is so much information out there, and heart health has come so far over the last 15-20 years, that I’m hoping we’ll have him around for years to come.

Find out if you are at risk for Sudden Cardiac Arrest and do what you can to protect yourself and your family!

I’ve wanted to check it out since I heard about it, and now that I find one close, I’ve been worried about the price. You know, the rising cost of feeding the family can’t have stopped at the grocery store. But, I have found a great way to enjoy this great shop at a fraction of the cost! If you go to the WLS A.M. insider store you can buy a $50.00 gift card for $25.00! That means I can buy 4 gift cards, $200 worth of food, for $100! Now that would help the family food budget really well. Plus, you make all the food there and bring it home. That cuts down on my evening prep time.

I think this is what I will be asking for for Mother’s Day!

This has been one of my favorite shows since the beginning. Harold from season 1 still reigns supreme as Top Chef in my mind. This season, I’m voting for either Stephanie or Richard. Funny how Richard won the Elimination challenge and he gave it to Steph. They ended up sharing it, but it was cool. I want them to be the top 2.