admin, Author at 3 Kids and Us

Emergency-Proof Your Family Budget

May 17, 2018 by admin

In 2017, it was reported that 1 in 7 Australians has no savings at all. If a personal emergency were to occur, 2.6 million people in the country could not afford to cover the expense. For individuals and families who like to travel and explore, it is especially important to be prepared, as there are numerous expenses that could suddenly arise. Someone could get sick or break a bone. The family vehicle might break down. Any number of situations can occur that require the use of emergency funds. However, if you are part of the millions living paycheck to paycheck, you could be one minor emergency away from a bad financial situation.

Now is the time to ensure that your family’s financial picture is as solid as possible. Thankfully, no matter what your current situation may be, you can immediately begin to take actions that make your budget emergency-proof.

Have an emergency fund that you don’t touch

A recent report revealed that the average Australian saves $427 each month. If you find it difficult to put cash away, this is the first habit that you must build. Having adequate savings is the top way to ensure that you do not have to go into debt for emergency expenses. How much should you plan to save? While something is better than nothing to start, you should make plans to achieve a significant savings goal as quickly as possible. Experts recommend aiming to save at least 6 months of your income. This amount of cash will cover you for some of the most major expenses, and for extended periods of income loss.

Ensure that your credit score is in top shape

While it is ideal to have the cash to cover emergency expenses, you may be caught in a position where you do not have the necessary funds. Even the most financially responsible of individuals will find it incredibly challenging (if not impossible) to pay for large purchases (such as a new vehicle). In the event that financing is needed to accommodate an emergency expense, be sure that your credit score is in top shape. Taking the time to understand your finances and credit score can ensure that you get approved for needed financing, and ultimately save you thousands in interest. Is your credit not where you want it to be? In addition to building an emergency fund, make a plan to reduce and eventually pay off any outstanding debt. Always be sure to make your payment on time, and explore the possibility of lowering your current interest rate on credit cards and existing loans.

Maintain your property, vehicles, etc. to avoid emergency expenses

It is obviously impossible to prevent every emergency expense. However, being proactive in the maintenance of your property, vehicles, and other things you own can reduce the risk of a sudden expense. Create a schedule for yourself to be sure that nothing is missed. Take your car in for regular maintenance, such as oil changes and filter replacements. Have the heating and cooling system in your home routinely serviced. Do everything in your power to avoid the possibility of a preventable emergency expense.

For families who live an on-the-go lifestyle, it’s crucial to prepare for unexpected expenses. Make your budget emergency-proof by building a savings fund that you don’t touch, keep your credit score in top shape, and be proactive in avoiding sudden, preventable expenses. Spend more time enjoying life and less time worrying about what expenses await in the future.

WHAT TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A CAREER

May 17, 2018 by admin

Your choice of career determines the kind of life you will live since you will spend almost a half of your waking hours work. Your career determines the kind of lifestyle you will lead, your social life and even your health.

Your choice of career dictates the quality of life you will lead and it is important to choose a career that you are passionate about and in which you will find fulfilment, happiness and satisfaction. Finding satisfaction and meaning in your work is essential otherwise you will have to drag yourself out of bed every morning and endure at least 8 hours of torture in a job you don’t like.

So, you need to consider a number of things when choosing your career.

Passion

Choose a job you love and you won’t have to work for a day, so the saying goes. You still have to work even if you follow your passions but you will find enjoyment and fulfilment if you go into a career that you are passionate about.

In any professional life, there are bound to be the hard times and it’s passion that will keep you going and motivate you to weather the storms when they come.

Skills

Going to Dental Assistant Schools America leaves you with one career option, that of being a dental assistant. When making a career decision, the best option to with the one that needs the skills that you already possess. You will settle in faster and excel in your role since you are already well equipped with the skills you need for the job.

That’s not to say that you can’t diversify to other careers. In fact, most people never know what they want to do with their lives by the time they join college and end up pursuing careers in different fields from what they majored in.

Personality

If you want to minimize work-related stress then go into a career that is suitable for your personality type. This begins with you knowing yourself well and having some self-awareness. It is also easier for you to thrive in your workplace when you choose a career based on your personality.

Using the Holland code, you can match broad career choices with your personality type and then narrow down to the most suitable one considering other factors like skills, passion, and qualifications.

For instance, if you are a creative extrovert, then a career in the performing arts or media would be more suitable than a banking job.

Work environment

It is also important to put into consideration your preferred work style and environment when choosing your career. If you prefer an organized work environment with minimal disruptions, then you will find a career that involves a lot of shuttling between cities and countries strenuous.

Similarly, if you like working on your schedule with minimal supervision, then you will find working in a formal office environment where you have a dress code to maintain quite restricting and suffocating.

10 Camping Essentials To Remember On Your Next Trip

May 16, 2018 by admin

Taking your family camping is a great opportunity to spend quality time with them and reconnect. Here are 10 camping essentials to remember on your next trip.

An increasing number of families are choosing to spend quality time together on camping vacations.

It’s easy to see why going on a camping trip as a family is so popular. You get to reconnect and bond together while spending time in the great outdoors.

But for all the fun and excitement of going camping as a family, there are also so many different things to bring camping.

Even if you pack your car full of camping gear, it’s easy to forget some camping essentials back at home.

To make sure you have everything you need on your camping trip, we’ve created this list of the top 10 essential camping gear for you to use on your next trip. Keep reading to find out more!

1. First Aid Kit

On any camping trip, there are always bumps and scratches along the way. They’re nothing to worry about if you’re prepared with a first aid kit.

You can either purchase a first aid kit or create your own wilderness version, with the essential items.

If you go on any day-trips and venture away from the campsite, make sure you take your first aid kit along with you.

2. A Box of Matches

Unless you know how to start a fire out of nothing, you’ll definitely need to take a box of matches with you.

After all, a fire is a great way to keep warm during the evenings. It can get quite cold out there in the wild. Sitting around the campfire singing folk songs and telling scary ghost stories is a tradition.

With a fire, you can cook lots of different things. No camping trip is complete without marshmallows on the open fire.

It’s simply not worth the risk of camping with a box of matches handy. They’re also cheap and small. So you can easily keep plenty of matches in your camping bags for years.

3. A Long Piece of Rope

Ropes also deserve a place on our list of camping necessities. There are so many useful purposes for a camping rope, you can’t afford to go without bringing one.

You could use it either to hang wet clothes or create a shelter from the rain. But it’s also a useful item to have if you find yourself in an emergency. For instance, if someone finds themselves in the tight situation.

But of course, you need to be able to take advantage of the many uses of ropes, by being able to tie different kinds of knots yourself.

4. Peanut Butter

Unless you have a nut allergy, you should totally make sure you bring a jar of peanut butter along with you to every camping trip.

There are so many excellent benefits of peanut butter.

It lasts for ages without going bad. It’s also a great source of protein and fat.

Whether you’re eating it straight out the jar with a spoon, or spreading it on bread, it’s a great energy boost on your camping vacation.

5. Travel Spices

Part of the joy of camping is having yummy food while living outdoors. But just because you’re living in a tent, it doesn’t mean you have to eat unseasoned meals.

By bringing a box of travel spices along with you, you no longer have to eat food without any flavor.

There are plenty of portable travel spice racks that you can take with you on your camping trip. They are easy to store away in the bottom of your backpack.

Next time you want herbs and spices on your barbeque, you’ll be prepared.

6. A Flashlight

Have you ever arrived at your campsite after dark? All your problems are solved if you have a flashlight!

Yes, I know you have your cell phone. But you really can’t beat a proper flashlight when you go camping.

After all, you never know when your cell phone is going to run out charge at the worst moment when you’re trying to get back to your tent.

The best flashlights are headlamps. This frees up your hands for doing other things during the night.

7. A Map

Of course, we have Google Maps on our cell phones now. But your cell phone GPS really isn’t as reliable as a map.

This is especially true if you’re camping in the middle of nowhere. It might be news to you, but Google hasn’t quite conquered every path in the world yet. Besides, just getting signal in remote areas is sometimes impossible.

8. Compass

That’s why you not only need to make sure you have a map, but you should also have to make sure you have a compass.

This way you’re not solely dependent on your cell phone GPS telling you the difference between your North from your South.

9. All-Weather Wear

What do you do before you set off on your camping trip? You check the weather forecast of course.

But anyone who casually follows the weather forecasts will know that they occasionally get it wrong.

Then you could be up the creek without a paddle. But also wet.

The best way to prepare for a camping trip is to ensure you’re prepared for all weather scenarios.

Make sure you pack a waterproof coat, a sun hat and a spare set of clothes if things take a turn for the worse. Find all the camping gear you need, click here for more.

10. Swiss Army Knife

Swiss Army Knives are certainly the most popular choice of pocket knife. But any pocket knife will do the job.

Whether it’s opening a bottle or carving something into a stick. It’s always useful to have a pocket knife with you on your camping vacation.

Ensure You Have The Camping Essentials

Camping is a wonderful way to spend a family vacation, or a romantic break away as a couple.

But it’s also important to make sure you have your camping essentials to ensure everything goes smoothly.

If you found this blog post interesting and useful, check out our other blog posts of travel.

How To Be Organized in a Crisis

May 16, 2018 by admin

Your home is a safe place where you can relax, unwind and enjoy yourself undisturbed and in peace. At least that’s how it should work! Life never goes completely to plan all the time though, so the odd problem or crisis is bound to occur now and again. Knowing that something is inevitably going to go wrong at some point means that you can be prepared for such eventualities, and therefore avoid panic and helplessness should disaster strike. The key to preparation is organization, which will prevent many issues arising in the first place and make it easier to handle unavoidable issues that may arise.

Preventing a crisis

There are varying grades of problem, crisis, and disaster that can befall you, but all will have a degree of stress involved. How much any particular situation stresses you will depend on your ability to cope with it, so there’s no one size fits all solution to managing a crisis situation. The best approach is to prevent anything going wrong in the first place. Keeping your heating, hot water, plumbing and electrical systems and appliances serviced and well maintained should help prevent breakdowns and loss of facilities, so don’t neglect this important task. Plot all the dates for appliance and system checks on a calendar or wall-planner and make sure you get maintenance visits booked in plenty of time. You also need to have a regular schedule for carrying out home maintenance tasks like clearing gutters to prevent blockages and stop water getting into the house, or cleaning paths and patios to help avoid accidents from slippery surfaces.

Dealing with a crisis

Most importantly, don’t panic – it will do you no good and won’t help the situation. Identify the cause of the problem if possible, so you can explain to the tradesperson you contact. Depending on location you will need to find a local tradesperson, so research emergency plumber Toronto for example. If there’s anything you can do while you’re waiting for your help to arrive, don’t waste time thinking about it. Bailout or soak up any pooling water from a leak or overflow, for instance, so the risk of damage is minimized, and the working area is clear for the professional when they arrive. Have a list of contacts readily to hand so you can call the best person for the job rather than just ringing the first name in the telephone directory. It’s also a good idea to keep a store of batteries, fuses, light bulbs, torches and anything else that could prove useful if something goes wrong. Staying calm is your best defense in these situations, enabling you to focus on what needs to be done and who needs to be contacted.

It shouldn’t take too much time and effort to get a crisis situation plan developed, and if you have one, it can cut through indecision and uncertainty in the heat of the moment. You may not, hopefully, experience these crisis situations very often, but the reality is that trouble can and does happen, so being prepared will stand you in good stead long-term.

Exploring the Surroundings: Are Your Young Wanderers Safe on Their Adventures?

May 15, 2018 by admin

Scooters are an excellent way to let your kids explore the surrounding. But as a parent, safety is always a consideration. You don’t want to let your boy or girl go out without ensuring that their adventure scooters are safe and all precautions been put in place.

What size are they riding?

Scooters vary largely in size and weight. Not all scooters are meant for kids. Be sure to confirm the weight & height restrictions of the one you’re buying for your prince or princess. Having one of the best scooters for kids is the first tip for safe scooting.

Manufacturers provide safety suggestions for different child ages assuming that most kids within then the same bracket can comfortably handle the same height and weight. But this is not the perfect way to get what fits your son right. In fact, it’s advisable to take your kid with you if you’re buying from a physical store.

Never let them go out without a helmet!

This is an overstressed safety tip for almost all riders. If you don’t go out on your bike without a helmet why then would you let your kid go scooting without one?

Head injuries are a big deal; it is no wonder most states have it as a requirement for scooting. Let them choose their favorite color or style; it might be the motivation to have it on every time they go wandering.

Can they stop their Scooter?

Bunny hop and kick-out are tricks that they can learn later. Being able to stop the dime as fast as possible is a must-have skill. The ability to make quick turns is an added advantage.

You don’t want to let them wander in high traffic areas before they have these basic scooting skills. It can be quite risky. Don’t let them go to congested areas until you confirm they can comfortably control their scooters.

Keep them scooting around until you’re sure they can take care of themselves.

Are their Knees, Elbows, and Hands Protected?

These three parts of the body are obvious parts of the body to hit the ground in case of a normal scooter accident. Make sure to check if they have the pads for knees, elbows, knees, and hands before they go roaming the estate.

Shoes Matter!

When it comes to choosing shoes for scooting, fashion shouldn’t be much of a consideration. Instead, you should worry about the safety of your child’s feet. What would happen if the scooter wheels strayed? Can the shoes they have on protect them from anything that could cut, poke, or scratch their toes?

So, when picking shoes for a scooting adventure then go for close-toed shoes with thick soles and some ankle support. And if the pair looks awesome, then that’s a plus!

Lastly, a rule of thumb for kids’ scooting is to let them wander out in numbers. Apart from making the experience unique and fascinating, it serves is a safety measure as they always watch out for each other. And the company doesn’t have to be siblings; you can let your daughter join her pals or neighbors.