Choosing the Correct Child Safety Seat

On a daily basis, your children are in your car. You need to take them to school, extracurricular activities, playmates, the library and so forth. No matter how much time little ones are spending in the car, safety is of major concern. You want to make sure you are following these tips to get a car seat for your precious little ones.

Know the Laws

Before you purchase any safety seat, you need to make sure that it matches the laws for your child’s height, weight and/or age. Find out what the particular laws are governing your situation, and you must be sure to purchase a seat that matches up with these requirements. Some parents think that it’s fine to shirk the law a little bit because things were different when they were growing up. However, they would also probably find that accidents, injuries and deaths for children in car accidents were higher than too.

Space in Your Car

As you are selecting the seats, you need to make sure that the appropriate amount of space exists for them in your vehicle. Be sure to have your car seat inspected to ensure that it is installed properly. This note is especially important if you are putting more than two car seats into the vehicle. Obviously, you also need to pay attention when you are choosing a car.

If you are planning to have children in the near future, then you must think about the space that the car has for such a seat. You can check with your local car dealership, like Rouen Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, to see if they will be conducting a car seat safety checkpoint soon or if they can recommend somewhere for installation.

The Maximum Age

At a certain age, your child might be in-between two safety seats. You need to look at the requirements as a whole, and you may also want to have a conversation with your child’s doctor to find out which seat is better. Now, at some point, your child might be on the cusp of needing a seat and not needing a seat. It is better to err on the side of caution. However, if your child is too old, heavy or tall for the maximum requirements, it could actually be dangerous to keep him or her in it.

Reading Reviews from Parents

Ultimately, you want to hear what other parents have to say about the particular safety seat that you are choosing. Therefore, it’s wise to find forums of people in your community to see what they have to say about the seats. Additionally, you could also look into general reviews online, but make sure they are coming from a reputable source that you trust. Ask your friends who are parents what brands they use. As a result of all this research, you are sure to have a decent idea of what the best models on the market are.

When it comes to safety, you want to exercise the utmost caution because you always want your little ones to be safe. Through following these tips and suggestions, you will be able to create a safer environment when you are travelling with your precious child.

Business Resources

A Five-Step Guide For Beginner Entrepreneurs

Anne Younger Leave a comment

Want to get your awesome idea underway, but don’t have the necessary experience to turn your thoughts into reality? Don’t worry – no one is born with all the knowledge they need to do, well, anything! It comes with time. The important thing to remember is that you can know how to run a business, even if you haven’t worked in a business environment before. Below, we take a look at a few key ingredients that show everything you need to know if already (mostly) inside of you!

Source: Pexels.com

Find Your Passion

There’s no one single way to run a business. There’s only your way. As such, you’ll be making things much easier on yourself if you choose to run a business in an industry that you’re already passionate about. Everybody has passion inside them, it just sometimes takes some time to bring it to the surface! If you’re not sure where to turn, think of something you’d do every day for the rest of your life, even if you wouldn’t be paid. Whatever it is, that should be a guiding force in getting your business idea together. And hey, you will be paid for it!

And What’s Hot

Of course, it’s also important that you’re living in the real world. You might happily spend all day in bed, eating cookies and watching films: nobody is going to pay you to do that. The key to forming a successful business is to find the fine line between your passion and what’s hot. There are plenty of ‘trendy’ business ideas out there; take a read of the type of businesses that are currently successful, and see if any of them fall in line with your passion.

Get the Necessary Skills

As well as choosing a company that has the potential for growth, you’ll also need to know how to market your new venture so that people know where it is, how it can benefit them, and so on. There is a knack to this, but it’s important to persevere through the learning process, as knowing the rules can be the difference between success and failure. Read and listen to the best marketing blogs and podcasts, and also consider studying for an AACSB-Accredited online MBA in marketing to ensure you fully grasp all the modern marketing strategies. With this in your knowledge bank, you’ll be able to effectively market your business – and see tangible results.

Start Small

Your enthusiasm will be a driving force behind your success, but there is such a thing as being too enthusiastic. It’s important to start small and focus on getting everything right, before expanding your enterprise. This way you’ll be growing from a solid foundation; a key aspect of success!

Going All In

Finally, remember that no one bluffs their way to business success. It takes time, patience, and hard work to grow a profitable company. Commit to it, treat it like a passion, and eventually, things will begin to pay off. Everything is possible with the right attitude!

Automotive

What to Look For In Your Next Family Car

Anne Younger Leave a comment

When you have a growing family, you want to make sure you not only have enough space for everyone but also for everything that comes with them.

When we were a family of 3, a nice sedan suited us just fine. There was more than enough room for everyone and the trunk had enough space to fit everything we needed if we were going on a road trip, to the ball park or just the grocery store.

When our family grew to 7 people, we easily filled a minivan complete with 2 convertible car seats and a child booster seat for the little kids and our space was quickly cramped.

For a while, we went back and forth on the idea of getting a larger vehicle to make sure there would be room for everyone and while we have been did that, I put together a list of things to look for when buying a family friendly used car. Be sure to check out the inventory at Three Rivers Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram and see if they have a vehicle that meets your family’s needs.

What to Look For

If you are shopping for your first family friendly vehicle and you want it to fit your family for quite some time, here are some great tips to follow and things to look for when you are out shopping.

Make sure the vehicle you are considering has enough room for your current family and room to grow if you need to. Also, take into consideration that you may want some extra space if one of your children wants to bring a friend along somewhere. Right now, if we have our whole family in the van we can’t bring anyone extra along and this is something I want to change.
I definitely recommend a vehicle that has a remote to allow you to lock and unlock the doors and if you really want to spoil yourself, one that has a button to open any doors or the trunk/hatch. These tools make loading kids, bags, etc. into the car a lot easier when your hands are full. My current van has the ‘magic button’ to unlock the doors but boy do I wish I could open and close them too, especially when we have a child who is sleeping in our arms.
Will your current child safety seat work in this vehicle? Don’t be afraid to put your current car seat in the vehicle you are thinking of purchasing and make sure it is a proper fit and everything is secure. Child safety is always at the top of my list when we are shopping around. If it isn’t going to keep my kids safe then it’s not the car for me.
Make sure the new vehicle has enough trunk space! Is there enough room for your groceries? A stroller? Your luggage if your family decides to take a road trip? Do you have a child that has to lug around sports equipment? Will it all fit? These are things you want to have when you are toting around a family. Our current vehicle has a larger trunk area but I wish it had a lot more space. Once we pack in all of our luggage for a short trip there is no extra space which makes for a tight squeeze when we travel home with goodies from our trip.
Does the new vehicle have all the bells and whistles you are looking for? I recommend having a TV/DVD player if you plan on taking trips. I also highly recommend a built-in GPS as they are much more user friendly. If you are like us and experience very cold winters, you may want to add remote start as well! These are ALL things I wish our current minivan had. I hate having to use our plug-in or phone GPS, would love for the kids to be able to all watch a movie together instead of having to download movies to iPads and now that I have remote start because I can’t live without it!

If you keep these tips in mind and add a few more ideas to your list, you will know just what it is you are looking for when you are shopping for your family friendly vehicle.

In the Kitchen

Crockpot Cooking Safety: Important Essentials for Beginners and Pros, Too

Anne Younger Leave a comment

The sort of meals that you can turn out for your friends and family using a crockpot can be very tasty and healthy too if you want, but you also need to get to grips with this type of cooking and learn how to use your slow cooker safely.

When you discover PaleoHacks for example, you could soon be turning out a delicious beef stew and other tasty recipes, all of which tick the right boxes if you are looking for 100% paleo or want to go gluten-free.

Here is a look at some important essentials on how to get to grips with your crockpot so that you can cook safely and make the most of what this style of cooking has to offer.

A viable alternative to your oven

Although you might automatically associate a crockpot with warming winter stew to satisfy you when the temperatures have dropped outside, this vessel is really a seasonal all-rounder and is a versatile and economical alternative to your oven.

Using a slow cooker allows you to plan your meals ahead of when you need them, allowing you to come home to a delicious dish that has been slowly coming to fruition while you are out.

Another positive to consider is the fact that it normally takes less electricity to use your slow cooker than you would expend using your oven, so there are some potential energy savings to enjoy as well as some good food.

A safe way of cooking

A crockpot, or slow cooker as it is also known, is a useful and safe appliance to have in your kitchen.

It works by cooking your food slowly at a relatively low temperature that ranges somewhere between 170F and 280F. This is a key selling point, as this way of cooking your food allows you to turn even a cheaper cut of meat that could be a bit tough when cooked in a conventional oven, into something far more tender as a result of the lengthier cooking process offered by a crockpot.

Another positive point to consider about using a crockpot to cook your food, is that as a result of the direct heat emanating from the pot, the extended cooking period, and the steam that is created inside the sealed container, this all combines to produce an environment that helps to destroy any potential bacteria, making it a safe way of cooking.

Getting started

Good food preparation is the key to safe and healthy cooking and this is just as much the case when using your crockpot as it would be whatever type of cooking you are doing.

Make sure that the crockpot is clean and ready for use, and ensure that the work surface and any utensils you are going to use are also clean. Make sure that you keep any perishable foods properly refrigerated up until the point you are ready to put them in your slow cooker.

If you do some initial preparation beforehand and chop up the vegetables and meats in readiness for use in the cooker, do make sure that they are stored separately and in the refrigerator until you are about to put them all together in the pot.

Remember that your crockpot may take a few hours to attain a level of temperature where any lingering bacteria should be killed off, which is why it is important that you keep your ingredients refrigerated or at their optimum temperature for as long as possible.

Properly thawed

Ensure that any meat or poultry that you are using in your slow cooker, is properly thawed before going into the pot, if it has been stored in the freezer previously.

The best recipes to try with your crockpot are normally ones that tend to have a high moisture content, such as stews or maybe a chili or homemade soup. Having a reasonable amount of liquid in the pot will help to ensure that your meat or poultry is kept nicely moist and tender as well as being cooked thoroughly over the number of hours it is in there.

If you do buy a ready-prepared slow cooker meal, make sure you follow their instructions in terms of preparation and cooking times, especially if the meal is frozen.

The right order

It should be remembered that vegetables are often going to take longer to cook through than meat or poultry will, so it is normally advisable to put those ingredients in first.

As well as putting everything in the pot in the right order, do check the volume of food that you can put in the pot. If in doubt, check your instruction booklet to see what quantities you can use for optimum and safe cooking conditions.

Using a crockpot is a lot of fun and with a bit of experience, you can soon turn out some restaurant-grade meals that everyone will really enjoy.

Tom Hughes is the one who does most of the cooking in his home. He enjoys coming up with new recipe ideas, tweaking those he finds online to make them suitable for his diet and lifestyle.

Automotive

What I’m Looking for In My Next Minivan

Anne Younger Leave a comment

Over the last decade, I have become quite the minivan mom. I am on my 3rd minivan in that time and each one of them has been a white Dodge Grand Caravan and I have loved each and every single one of them.

My current Dodge Grand Caravan is a 2010 with less than 90K miles on it and I love just love it. I purchased this van used in the winter of 2015 with just 79K miles on it. Although I have had it just over 3 years now, I have been toying around with the idea of trading it in for an even newer model which made me think about what features I want my next van to have.

Since I am just looking right now, I turned to my friends at Don Vance Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram to see what the newer models have to offer.

Must Haves

Not be white – My last 3 vans have been white.
Remote start – Alex has remote start installed on my current van last year and now that I have it, I can’t live without it! I need to be toasty warm in the winter and nice and cool in the summer.
Entertainment package – so my kids can watch movies and be happy
Magic Buttons – you know, the buttons that magically make the doors and rear hatch open and close
Navigation – Even though I have a great sense of direction, I would like to venture out on some road trips
Heated seats – Because a warm tush is a bonus in the winter
Ventilated seats – Because it is also important to have a cool seat when your car has been sitting in the hot sun.
Stow-n-Go seats – I need room to haul large items
USB ports – For easy phone charging
Killer sound system – Because music is life
Satellite radio because I have been spoiled in with it in my husband’s car
Room for 7 (or more) – Space is important
And a lot of safety features – Hello, most precious cargo!

I know as more time passes, my list will continue to grow, but I have no doubt when the time comes to start shopping that I can reach out to the dealership to find the perfect van to suit our family needs or if need be, a different vehicle to fit MY needs!