What Are YOU Reading Friday

I am back on my self-help kick! I picked up this book at the library:

It was on the "new" bookshelf in my library so I decided to bring it home and see what it was all about. Turns out there is a lot of good information, and a lot of stuff that didn't really apply to me at all!! Basically, I just skimmed through until I got to each section that I was interested in and then read that in detail. Some of the interesting chapters of The 10 Commandments of Money by Liz Weston are: "Saving for Retirement Must Come First", "Reserve Insurance for the Big Losses", and "Defend Yourself in the War on Consumers". The last one is about credit cards and managing yourself while being a consumer (how to save, shop around, and complain, when necessary).

There were a lot of references to how this time now is not the same as your parents' time and why it's different (and why WE think the way that we do and how it differs from our parents' thinking - or even their parents' thinking). Which is a nice way to put it all in perspective...

I have been thinking about my time vs. my parents' time a lot. My parents seemed to have it all together, even though they got married really young, they are very financially well off. And, admittedly, sometimes I feel like (even though I was 10 years older than they were when they got married) I feel like I'm not where they were financially when they were my age. But, clearly, that is a fault of my way of thinking - - and my consumerist habits! At least now, I have some kind of reference point to start changing the way I think and the way that I spend and manage my money.

....okay....the sad violin is back in the closet.....lol.

In light of the book, and the subject matter, how are you saving / changing your spending in this "new" environment?

Thanks to all the comments to the last What Are YOU Reading post!!

I think that this is the first week since I have started doing this that I haven't heard of at least ONE book that you all have mentioned in your comments! So, I guess I have some new books to look up. ;) Here are the recommendations:

Angelology from Nicole
Jemima J from Delaney
A Discovery of Witches from the Momma at the Sammy Makes Six

Have a great weekend everyone! Happy reading!
More later! :)

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What Are YOU Reading?

I got this wonderful book at the library last week. I wasn't searching for it, it just happened to be on the "featured books" shelf at the library. It looked interesting, so I decided to check it out. It's a self-help book, but written by a doctor who used her visits with kids and their parents to see the real value of mothers (that we have a hard time seeing ourselves). It's really awesome and moving to see yourself in this way - - to see you how your KIDS see you - - as a provider, comforter, and confidant.

The book is 10 Habits of Happy Mothers: Reclaiming our Passion, Purpose, and Sanity by Meg Meeker, MD.

Here is one of the moving things that I saw that has stayed with me while reading this book:

"How can we assume that we have little value when we give them life, shape thier lives, and ultimately change their lives? We mothers are indispensable to our kids because no one can teach them how to love, empathize, nurture, or value others like we can. No one."

It's a very good book with ten "habits" that you can start that will get you on the road to happiness and joy while living in the role of motherhood.

I think sometimes we are tired, overwhelmed, and just frazzled. These habits help put those feelings in perspective and find the bigger, greater thing that this life is about right now - being our babies' momma.

What things do you do that help save your sanity???  ;)

Share your comments - your advice may just help someone else be less frazzled tonight!!

Thanks for all your comments in my last post about Dave Ramsey - - I really do like reading his books and listening to him on the radio. He also has a new book coming out this fall about being an entrepreneur. Do you know he started his "empire" on a fold out table in his living room? Wow. I want to read about that!!!

Seems like he is pretty much a household name - everyone who commented has either read about him or heard about him. Liz actually knows someone who teaches his classes at her church! And Nina commented about ways that she saves - including making sure that some of every paycheck goes to savings right away!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!
More later! :)



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What are YOU reading Friday?

Hi everyone!!!!

Hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!!! We had so much fun and it was relaxing and easy going. We actually spent one whole morning sitting around the pool - which, unfortunately, is something that we rarely ever do!! Miss No-No is finally old enough to be in swimming lessons now, so hopefully, we will be swimming more soon!

We spent about an hour in the library last night looking at new books. There is sooooo much stuff I want to read right now. I don't know if they got a lot of new books in recently or if I am not really looking at all the new stuff lately!!! What are YOU reading this week?

I got this book called Twitter Power 2.0 by Joel Comm. It is an awesome book with tons of tips about how to have a more commanding "voice" being on Twitter. I highly recommend it for anyone using Twitter who is unsure about it or about it's potential. There is a lot of stuff about marketing and using Twitter as a promotional tool for your products. Since I am not actually SELLING anything on the internet, I mostly skimmed over these sections, but I did find a lot of useful information about how to be a good tweeter and how to use some parts of Twitter that I didn't completely understand before. If YOU are selling something on the internet, this book makes you a fast study on the types and frequency of "ads" and special offers that you put out. One thing the book also mentions is to make sure that you realize that people are not "following" you or "liking" you, they are CONNECTING with you. Comm says that is what makes Twitter different than other forms of social media available to us now. (Clearly, that was a profound statement that stayed with me after I put the book down!!)

This is a great, quick, informative book on the finer aspects of Twitter.

I found out about this book from Rosann who actually recommended it during a previous What Are YOU Reading Friday!! Thanks Rosann!

If you recommend a book to me, I just may pick that up to and discuss it here!! :)

So....

Do you use Twitter as a marketing tool? What are you selling? Do you think it's helped your business?

And...

what are YOU reading this week?

English Rose stopped by last week to say that she just finished reading Her Love Next Door. If I know ER, I KNOW this is probably a romance novel! ;)

Have a great week!

More later! :)

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What are YOU Reading? Friday

Hey everyone! Happy Friday!!! :)
What are you reading today?

I picked up this new book called Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, MD. The claim is that you can "lose up to 20 pounds (or more!) in six weeks". Dr. Fuhrman is a ...nutritional researcher who specializes in preventing and reversing disease through nutritional and natural methods (from the back cover).

I don't know about losing 20 pounds (although I wouldn't mind! ahhahaha!), but there are some good recipes in here and nearly all the daily plans include some kind of dessert (mmmm). And the desserts look awesome, but I haven't had one yet.
I have already done a couple of days of the plan and I love the lunches, they are good and filling. Most of the dinners can be made in 30 to 40 minutes! And the breakfasts are all easy and fast although some require pomegranate juice (which I don't have and have been substituting for freshly made carrot juice). Additionally, I don't feel full, full, full, but I also don't feel hungry either (except in the mornings, when I first get up, and then I am starving!). Overall, this book is good and seems to focus on the fact that everyone needs lots of whole grains, fruits and (both) raw and cooked veggies.
I spent some time a couple of years ago reading about "nutritionally-deficient" caused diseases and how they can be nearly (or completely) reversed using good, wholesome, whole foods. I was impressed with the studies I read and the information that I learned. This book boils a lot of that down into an easy to read format (without being overly scientific) with testimonials here and there to break it all up.

This book is good informational reading and good for wholesome recipes.
What are YOU reading today?

Thanks to all the comments on my What are YOU Reading post last Friday. I really enjoy hearing about what you are all reading and what your intrests are. Share it all with me in the comments.

What is YOUR favorite cookbook? Or good food / recipe book?

More later! :)

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What are YOU Reading Friday

A couple of weeks ago I picked up the Peter Walsh book about clearing your mental clutter. I thought that it was such a good idea to read something like that (positive, uplifting, and motivational). However, after reading through the first section, I realized that book was actually the THIRD in a series. And the introduction said something about how if you haven't read the first two books, you couldn't get really get going on this third one! :( I still looked through the book and saw a lot of stuff that I liked, but I really just skimmed through because I knew that when I went back to the library this week, I was going to have to check out one of the other two books.

So, you know when I went to the library today, I grabbed one of the two that came before it!

It's All Too Much by Peter Walsh is a "plan for living a richer life with less stuff". That's not only what I need, but what I try to advocate here... Living more, or living richer, with the basics in life!! Perfect!!

I have only read the first 20 pages but it looks like it's a plan to clear out the clutter from your home - and clear out how emotionally (!) everyone deals with their own clutter. I know that this applies to me because I have boxes (small boxes, but still boxes) of things that I am saving - - stuff that my mom gave me from when I was little, stuff from my wedding day, stuff from when my Miss No-No was born - - and it's all stuff that I never look at, but I just NEED to keep. I'm not sure that this book will help me clear those things away, but I am willing to read through it and see what advice is there.

But, every time I see these kinds of things I just think - do you really get rid of everything??? everything??? My wedding dress? What about the shoes I wore on my wedding day? (I haven't worn them since, but I do love them so much!) And what about year books from high school? (Yes, I still have them all.) And what about things that I have that were passed down to me? (I have lots of baby blankets and old hand-crochet blankets for doll cribs <- I did pass those down to my little one already... and old handkerchiefs that my great grandmother embroidered...I don't use them, but they are so precious and special) So, I guess we are going to see exactly what I learn! If it's spectacular, I will keep you all posted. However, if it's a huge bust, I doubt you will be reading about it all here - hehehehe! I guess...stay tuned! If I find some great tips, or things that work out, I will be sure to pass them on.

What are you reading?

What kinds of things do you hang on to but never use?

Thanks to all of you who left comments last week! I appreciate you sharing - - and I love learning about new books that I haven't heard of, or wouldn't have thought to look into before. EnglishRose is a literary goddess, just look at her site, it's all about books!, and she is reading New Year, New Life by Sherry Lewis. Kelli dropped by to say that she is reading The Yearling (and that it's as sad as she remembers). I don't know what that book is about, but I will keep it in my list of things to "check out later". And, Rosann, who I love and who stops by so so often to comment (thanks! Rosann) is an avid reader, too! She is reading Unlimited by Jillian Michaels - I didn't even know that she had a book out, Twitter Power 2.0 by Joel Comm - which I will be sure to check out, amongst others.

More later!! :)

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