Social Media Olympics: Learn How to Watch the 2012 Olympics!

July 26, 2012 By 1 Comment

social media olympics

social media olympics

The 2012 Olympics are only a day away, and this year’s games  have been dubbed the “social media Olympics”. Why have the penned this moniker? Because for the first time ever ALL of the Olympic events will be streamed live on NBCOlympics.com!

You can even check out the Twitter handles of your favorite athletes! Find out their handle, why the chose it, and interact with them during the games!

Make sure to stay on top of all the Olympic excitement by following NBC!

·       Follow on  Facebook: Facebook.com/NBCOlympics

·         Follow on Twitter: @NBCOlympics

o   Make sure to check out the new NBC Olympics Twitter Tracker: It allows you to follow your favorite athletes and experts and get in on the conversation

·         Instagram: @NBCOlympics

·         Tumblr: nbcolympics.tumblr.com

·         Google+: NBCOlympics

I am really excited to see all the ways that you can interact with the athletes during the games. Watching the games has been a tradition in my family ever since I was a really little girl. I was even lucky enough to attend the Men’s Gold Medal Soccer game in Athens, GA in 1996. It was an amazing time, and something that I will remember for a life time.

So what events can’t you wait to see this year’s games? Will you be watching the opening ceremonies Friday July 27 at 7:30pm EST?

Filed Under: Entertainment Tagged With: ,

Obamacare upheld by US Superior Court. How do you feel?

June 28, 2012 By 12 Comments
U by Kotex

ObamaCare

SUPREME COURT RULES

We normally don’t cover political things on Crunchy Frugalista, but I thought this topic was pretty important. Plus, I wanted to give you, the readers, the opportunity to weigh in on today’s ruling by the Supreme Court.

First off, there are some things I don’t agree with in the law, but overall I am so glad it was upheld today. I don’t agree with the part that requires individuals to carry health care coverage. When my husband and I didn’t have insurance it wasn’t because we were being irresponsible  or didn’t want insurance. It was because we couldn’t afford the COBRA payments after he lost his job. It would’ve made us choose between health care or a place for our children to live. So, obviously we decided to give up our insurance.

OBAMACARE PROTECTS KIDS LIKE MY DAUGHTER, BAYLA

Even though I am not fond of that part, it doesn’t trump the parts of the law that I do like. I love the fact that insurance companies can’t drop children from insurance merely because their insurance is getting too expensive. If that were the case, my youngest daughter, Bayla, would be dead.

ObamaCare

My daughters Keiran and Bayla (right)

Bayla has had severe allergy, asthma, and eczema since birth. She is a wonderful, beautiful, intelligent child. Her life has been full of hurt and pain even with the help of doctors and medicine. I couldn’t and won’t even imagine her life without access to health care. If she was to be dropped by her insurance tomorrow, her monthly medical bills for medication alone would reach over $4000! Her dad doesn’t even make that much in wages a month.

COMPASSION FOR FELLOW MAN

I know there is a lot of people saying they don’t want to pay for “those people” assuming that they are mooches off of the system. There ARE people that are mooches, but is it really worth killing kids like my daughter to “punish” those that aren’t willing to support themselves. I would rather pay a little bit higher taxes to help someone in need than to cut off resources all together, but that is just me.

I won’t even get into if it’s right or wrong for someone to get help with health insurance, but I did want to share how my children would be affected if this law wasn’t upheld today so maybe next time you go to speak against it you might just have a little different perspective.

How did you feel when you heard the news that Obamacare was upheld today? Did it change your views on the health care system?

 

To Read More about this: Check out CNN’s post on the decision.

 

Filed Under: Life Tagged With:

Children Bully Grandmother Bus Monitor: Americans raise $400,000 for vacation fund!

June 22, 2012 By 7 Comments
grandma

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

If you have not seen this video, I warn you it will make you want to punch the little punks through the screen. The good news is this story does have a happy ending. :) Best way to start a feel good Friday!

Some little punks near Rochester, New York decided it would be a bright idea to harass the bus monitor that is on their bus. The woman is a 68 year old grandmother and retired bus driver.

The kids start by making awful comments about how she looks, calling her “fat” and a “troll.” One kid even tells her to “shut the f**k up!” That’s about when my jaw hit the floor!

I don’t know what is WRONG with kids in this country today, but if these were my kids they would regret the day they EVER did something like this.I don’t know which part is worse, the part that the kids harassed this woman or the fact that the put it on the INTERNET! This video has more than 2 million views. It’s just sickening!

I am not going to even get into the argument of whether their behavior is the kids’ or parents’ fault. What’s astonishing is the lack of respect for each other and elders kids seem to possess today. If I ever did that when I was a kid, I would have been in some serious trouble! Could you ever imagine insulting your elders like this?

Here’s some food for thought: What would you do if you found out it was one of your kids that participated in this bullying? Did you realize that bullying in schools had reached this extreme? I mean I know things are bad because of the amount of kids being bullied, but I never realized these little monsters are now harassing adults. Where is it going to stop?

The little demons may have gotten their 15 minutes of fame, but the story ends in a victory for grandma. People across the country have raised over $300,000 for a vacation fund for this poor woman. If this isn’t a great way to help her out, and stick it to the little minions I am not sure what is. Maybe after she is relaxed from her vacation, she can make a trip to each one of these little punks’ houses with a bar of soap!

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Do YOU know what’s in your food? New GMO bill presented in Congress

June 19, 2012 By 17 Comments

GMO, if you aren’t familiar with the term it means genetically modified organism. Foods that are made from GMOs have been genetically altered by using bacteria and other means to alter the DNA of a plant or organism.

Advocates against the GMO wave of foods, are fearful of what effect these altered foods may have on our populations health. It is also of concern because once a crop or plant has been “contaminated” with the altered DNA it changes our ecosystem. You can’t undo this genetic spreading, which in itself is a really scary thought.

My family and I have been trying to eat a little more healthily lately, so we have been reading more labels. Specifically we have been trying to avoid foods that contain GMOs. I figured it had to be labelled as such, right? Wrong!! There currently is no governmental law requiring companies to disclose if they are using genetically modified foods.

Personally, I thought that food labels were supposed to empower consumers and give them the ability to know what they are eating. Labels, such as organics, are strictly monitored so why aren’t GMOs?

Naysayers against labels are touting that it would cause packaging costs to go up. Even if that were true, isn’t it the consumer that the cost is passed down to anyway. If we, the consumer, want the labels why is cost then an issue.

There are so many things put in foods nowadays that aren’t the best thing for you; dyes, artificial sweetner, and now genetically modified foods. Even if you are eating whole foods there is no way to tell if what you are eating has been modified. Most corn and soybeans produced in the United States now contain some form of genetically altered DNA.

I find that a little bit scary, ok not a little but, a whole lot of scary. My children already have medical conditions so I have to be picky about what they eat. How can I do that when the labels don’t really TELL me what’s it is made of.

For me, it’s all about transparency. If bills hadn’t been passed for allergens in foods, it would be virtually impossible to feed my daughter. Why can’t the food industry have the same transparency with genetically altered food. It’s not even a question if they are “good” or “bad” for you. It’s an argument of consumers having enough knowledge about what’s in their food to make an educated decision.

I really hope that this bill passes, so that families can know what they are eating. In our family, it would definitely put our minds a little bit more at ease!

What about your family? How do you feel about GMOs? Are you fr or against this bill?

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New York Mayor bans large drinks, but still approves of milkshakes

May 31, 2012 By 9 Comments
New York Mayor Bans Soda

New York Mayor Bans Soda

Update: I am sad to share that this ridiculousness has actually become law in the Big Apple. Restriction has never been a healthy weight loss option. The cup may be smaller but they aren’t limiting the quantity that people can buy. This is absolutely absurd, and though we need to win the battle of the bulge I think it will do very little for the expanding waist line of New York City. If you hadn’t read this story before, read the original story below to see what it’s all about!
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has set out on his crusade against soda. Concerned with the ever growing waistline of the New York population, he has declared the era of the over sized soda is coming to an end.

The New York mayor bans soda to help save New Yorkers everywhere. At least his will if his plan passes to get rid of any sodas over 16 ounces in the big apple. Goodbye Big Gulp, bye bye Bubba Keg. Their sugar reign may be coming to an end, but wait what about all the other super high calories drinks on the market? Well, let’s just take a look!

This new anti-soda crusade doesn’t include things like alcoholic beverages, 100% fruit juice drinks, or products made with 51% milk products. (Hello, milkshakes) Soda is bad, but uber sized milkshakes are ok, really??!! Something is definitely wrong with this picture. Let’s just see how they  measure up!

McDonald’s McCafe Chocolate Shake (22 oz) 870 calories
McDonald’s Large Coca-Cola (21 oz) 210 calories
100% Welch’s Grape Juice (22 oz) 1132 calories
Absolute Vodka Dirty Martini (21 oz) 1330 calories

When we compare apples to apples, soda is the LEAST of New York City’s problems. Of course soda is empty calories, but so are alcoholic bevarages. Don’t see Mayor Bloomberg going for another era of prohibition in the name sake of weight loss. Someone would have to drink four times the amount of soda in order to equal the calories in one milkshake! Even though juice is “healthy” you would have to drink almost six times as many glasses of soda to equal the calories in a 22 ounce glass of juice. Crazy, right?!?

What do you guys think? Do you think NYC is picking on soda or do you think it’s time that something was done? What would you ban in addition to soda if you were Mayor?

 

Sources:
New York Times
McDonald’s
Reuter’s
My Fitness Pal

 

Filed Under: Rants Tagged With: ,

Small Business Associations: What all the hype is about!

May 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Since starting my own business, I have had to make a lot of choices I didn’t realize when I first started to write. Will I need liability insurance? What tax deductions can I take? How can I plan for my retirement? Not working for an outside employer has its perks, but there is also a lot of responsibility as well.

I am personally lucky that my husband carries our medical insurance, but for the others that aren’t that lucky they need to find health insurance for  self-employed small business owners.

These memberships are so vitally important to the entreprenuers that don’t have insurance because by joining a group like this you can get in on group rates. If you have never checked into private health insurance prices, they are horribly high. To cover my family of five it was at least $1000 per month for an extremely basic plan.

After doing some research, that is where I found that that small business associations are really important. Organizations like NASE, National Association for the self-employed, offer great resources for small business owners.  They offer a great “Ask the Expert” section where you can get answers to questions about small business loans, health insurance plans, and more!

In addition to having access to health insurance discounts, small business associations also grants and scholarships to help new small businesses grow.

Each association is different, but the city where I live offers small business grants  to help revitalize certain parts of our city. All you have to do is apply and supply your business plan. Other than that, it’s free money to help get your business started.

Since becoming a business owner, I have been glad to know that small business associations are out there to help support fledgling business owners like myself. It’s a great place to get advice, insurance, and a supportive community to help you start your business.

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Meet Bayla and help her celebrate National Food Allergy Awareness Week: It could save a life!

May 15, 2012 By 4 Comments
Food Allergy Awareness Week
Food Allergy Awareness Week

My youngest daughter Bayla

Meet my youngest daughter Bayla. She was brought in to this world a little over 9 years ago, and she’s been full of spunk and sass ever since.

What you can’t tell from this picture is that my daughter has SEVERE food allergies. As in she will die if she eats certain foods that she is allergic to. This idea might be quite frightening to parents with “healthy” children, but it’s something that we live with on an every day basis.

Bayla was born after a completely healthy pregnancy. She was 9 pounds, and given a clean bill of health. Unfortunately, her days of being a healthy baby were numbered.

GRUMPY, ITCHY BABY

Around six months old, Bayla started suffering from very severe eczema. Doctor after doctor told our family it was just eczema and that there was nothing to worry about. Cream after cream, she still continued to be itchy and fussy.

It was around 12 months old when the scary stuff started to happen. At 12 months old, Bayla had her first asthma attack. If you haven’t seen a young child have an asthma attack, I have to tell you it is just about the scariest thing I have witnessed my children go through. They can’t communicate, and you can’t figure what’s going on. You feel absolutely helpless.

After her asthma attack, I started doing research myself. Doctors and their medicines were failing us because Bayla was getting worse not better. Hours and hours went by while I researched the Internet when I suddenly started to notice a pattern. A lot of the symptoms that Bayla was suffering from were signs of food allergies.

BUT WE DID EVERYTHING RIGHT

This didn’t make any sense. All of Bayla’s doctors swore that children this age couldn’t have food allergies. Actually they insisted that it wasn’t true. Plus, Bayla nursed exclusively until 6 months old, and then continued until the age of three. That was supposed to lower the risk for allergies, right?

Food Allergy Awareness WeekWith my new found information, I educated the doctors and then demanded that Bayla be tested for allergies. They were hesitant at first, but I was,well in a word, persistent. About two weeks later, we took Bayla to get her first RAST test.

It was another two weeks before we got the results, and it was the first time in my life that I absolutely hated being right. Bayla’s tests showed she was allergic to strawberries, peanuts, soy, dairy, and a few other foods. It was devestating to know how much she wouldn’t be able to eat, but at least we knew what was wrong.

FOOD ALLERGIES: JUST HOW SERIOUS ARE THEY?

After her diagnosis, we learned to read food labels religiously. We also learned that there are so many “secret” names for her allergens. Did you know that dairy is also known as whey, cassein, and curds? I sure didn’t before she tested positive for food allergies.

We thought we had it all figured out within six months. Two years later, we had action plans in place. Epipens everywhere and even signs at my daughter’s daycare in big BOLD letters. “Don’t let Bayla eat anything she doesn’t bring!” I thought it was simple and idiot proof.

About three months into her first year in preschool, my daughter had a daycare provider feed her some peanut butter crackers. Another teacher had set them on my daughter’s lunch bag. When I said there were signs everywhere about her allergies, I literally mean EVERYWHERE! I guess they weren’t bold enough because the teacher fed her the crackers anyway.

Peanuts are an extremely deadly allergen that easily kills people that are allergic too them. All because someone didn’t take the time to pay attention, my daughter got violently ill and had to be rushed to the hospital. Her symptoms were severe and instantaneous. Poor little kid barely had one cracker down before she knew what hit her. We were very lucky that she only got sick, but next time her reaction might be much more severe.

CELEBRATE FOOD ALLERGY AWARENESS WEEK AND EDUCATE YOURSELF

 

Right there is the whole point of Food Allergy Awareness Week! It’s vitally important to educate others about food allergies and how to prevent severe allergic reactions, also known as Food Allergy Awareness Weekanaphylaxis. Careless or remaining uneducated not only could hurt someone, it could kill them.

Next time you go to hand a child a snack or prepare dinner for some friends, please make sure you are aware of any food allergies. It is better to ask than jeopardize someone’s health.

If you are interested in learning more about food allergies, please visit the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. Want to go a step farther? Find out what you can do to forward the Food Allergy Awareness Movement!

Educating yourself will help other people like my daughter Bayla, and it just might save a life!

Still not a believer at the severity of food allergies? Read this tragic story about a 15 year old that died due to food allergies

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Same sex couples should be able to get married: Obama Endorses Same Sex Marriage

May 11, 2012 By 5 Comments

PRESIDENTIAL FIRST

I was really surprised to hear while I was at the gym yesterday, that President Barack Obama came out in full support of giving same sex marriages legal rights. It was something that no other president has said 100% either way. I think everyone can agree that its a really controversial topic, and frankly I don’t blame previous presidents for being so wishy washy on the issue.

President Obama needs to be applauded for being brave enough to stand up for what he believes in. It really breaks my heart that we have become more accepting as a culture regarding same sex couples, but there are still so many states that don’t allow for them to have legal unions that give them the same rights as heterosexual couples.

Whether you agree with same sex marriage or not, most people believe in love and being able to support people that you love. Imagine for just a moment that you weren’t allowed to be there to support someone you held dear to your heart because others viewed it as wrong. How heart broken would you be if you were forced to leave?

STOPPING THE HATE

The great thing about America is  that we are allowed to express our individualism. What is more personal and individualistic than whom you choose to be in a relationship with? I know lots of people are against same sex relationships, and that is fine, that is your right. It just baffles me the hatred that is being taught because others don’t agree with these choices.

Imagine for just a moment that it became illegal to love someone with brown hair, blond hair, no hair. Would that law change the way you feel about your spouse? Would you love them any less? If a law came out tomorrow that it was illegal to marry bald men, I wouldn’t love Mr. Crunchy any less. It would make me very sad that I would have to jump through extra hoops to get rights for property, hospital visits, and other things in my life, but I can guarantee you I would continue to love him nonetheless.

IT’S NOT ABOUT WHETHER YOU APPROVE OR NOT


Passing these laws isn’t about whether you approve of same sex couples choices or not. It’s about giving Americans the same rights as everyone else. I know our country was founded on largely Christian beliefs, but we also foster the freedom of religion. Maybe we should change all “marriages” to legal unions and then allow your clergy of choice to bless it as a marriage. That way it would give same sex couples legal rights, and not use the term marriage that some religions hold dear.

AGREE TO DISAGREE

I think we as Americans should be proud to see our country coming forward and embracing the beautiful diversity of our country. Giving same sex marriages legal rights doesn’t say it’s “right” or “wrong.” It’s just agreeing that they deserve the same LEGAL rights as any other American family. It’s up to you and your clergy to decide if you feel like it’s ethical or not, and as American citizens I think it’s high time that we all agree to disagree upon the issue. It’s about time that we allow people to love one another and leave the government out of our bedrooms and love lives.

How do you feel about this issue? Where you surprised about Obama’s stance on trying to legalize same sex marriages?

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Childhood Hero Passes Away: Maurice Sendak Dies at age 83, Author of “Where the Wild Things Are”

May 8, 2012 By 3 Comments
Maurice Sendak Dies
Maurice Sendak Dies

Children everywhere lose a hero

LOSING A CHILDHOOD HERO

Growing up as a kid, I used to love to imagine that I was Max from “Where the Wild Things Are”! Being a child could get frustrating at times, and it was really easy for me to relate to  Max. Who didn’t want to go off on some imaginary island where they was appreciated and had people that would listen to them?

“Where the Wild Things Are” quickly became one of my favorite children’s books as a child. To this day, I still have the copy that I used to read incensently. It was really sad to hear that Maurice Sendak, author and illustartor of this book, passed away today at the age of 83.

Close friend and caretaker, Lynn Caponera, said that Sendak passed away at a hospital in Danbury, Conneticut after suffering a stroke Friday.

SENDAK TAUGHT KIDS COURAGE

Sendak was truly a brilliant author that touched my life as well as millions of other children across the country.

Growing up during the Holocaust era, he really understood what it meant to be a child and the hardships that children experienced during childhood.

He believed, “there’s a cruelty to childhood, there’s an anger. And [he] did not want to reduce Max to the trite image of the good little boy that you find in too many books.” Even when the movie was made, he made sure that director Spike Jonez conveyed this message.

The honesty of children is what kept Sendak going. He loved their candidness. ”Kids don’t know about best sellers,” he said. “They go for what they enjoy. They aren’t star chasers and they don’t suck up. It’s why I like them.”

CARRY ON SENDAK’S MESSAGE

Sendak touched so many lives because he taught children courage, resilience, and survival. He let them know that childhood isn’t all sun and light, but it was something that would make them better people. The books that he wrote gave children characters they could relate to. Even as adults these messages still ring true. That is why his works have been able to join generations over the decades. In his honor, make sure to carry those messages on with your children and let them know it’s ok to be like Max. It is a tragic loss to the literary community, but I know his messages will still carry on in his books for generations to come.

In Memorium Maurice Sendak 1928-2012

To celebrate the honor of this fabulous author, what’s your favorite Sendak book or childhood memory?

Sources: Huffington Post

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Saddest Story Ever: Soldier Dies in Afghanistan while on Skype with his wife

May 7, 2012 By 5 Comments


I think this is the saddest story that I have heard in a very long time. There was a soldier, Captain Bruce Kevin Clark, speaking to his wife from Afghanistan via Skype. During their call he fell over and was non responsive. It took his wife over two hours to get someone to help her husband. Sadly at this point he was found to be dead.

My husband is the love of my life, and being a formal military wife, I know how hard it is to be away from your spouse when they are deployed. I could not even phathom witnessing my husband’s death.

I guess there is some question about how he died. His wife reported seeing a bullet hole in the closet behind him, but early Army autopsy reports say there appears to be no bullet wounds.

Captain Clark has two little girls, ages 3 and 9. My heart goes out to those little girls and to his wife. There are so many lives being lost in Iraq and Afghanistan it is a really a tragedy. I think what makes this story so heart wrenching is the fact that his wife was sitting there with him slumped over helpless 7,000 miles away and couldn’t get anywhere there to help in time.

Could you even imagine how you would feel if you were this Army wife? Makes you appreciate every day you have with someone doesn’t it.

Sources:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/soldier-died-skype-chatting-shot-army-concludes/story?id=16294434#.T6gGDOvveSp

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