By subscription only! Welcome to another issue of:
"THE BALANCED WOMAN".
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=> Welcome
=> Feature Article: "The Biggest Obstacle to a Balanced Life"
=> Household Hint
=> Web Pick
=> Fashion Tips
=> Money Matters
=> Classified Ads
=> Pampering Yourself
=> A Little Laughter
=> Site Updates
=> Recommended Resources
=> Recipe of the Month
=> Help Others without Spending a Dime
=> Subscribe/Un subscribe information
What a month! Let's see...My primary email account was shut down and my site host is
having technical difficulties causing the site to take forever to load. It's been so slow
it's practically been down for an entire month. Supposedly it is fixed now but when you go
there to read some of this month's articles and if it's not any better, please bear with
me. The site host promises this nightmare will be over soon. April has got to be better!
Did you know it's National "Stress Awareness" month? Seriously. It is.
I want to thank all of you who responded to my email that let you know my other email
account was shut down. I got many, supportive emails and wonderful words of comfort. I
read each and every one of them and appreciated them more than you know. So thank you, all
of you.
April always seems bittersweet to me. The weather warms up; the flowers bloom; the birds
sing---Spring kicks into high gear to energize and refresh. But just when I'm feeling
great--it's time to file income taxes (for those of us in the U.S.) Talk about a downer!
So this issue features lots of good stuff: our recipe contest winner, a spring cleaning
tip and a timely reminder about how to protect ourselves from the sun-among other
information. And speaking of good stuff...Recently a wonderful business associate of mine,
jl Scott, began publishing a new ezine, All Around Good Stuff. It's absolutely terrific
and just the kind of resource we all need to help us keep perspective and balance our
lives. The best part is--it's free! So I strongly encourage you to subscribe. Just send a
blank email to mailto:subscribe@TheMasterCourse.com
And speaking of perspective...if you haven't seen this yet, take a look at http://www.politicsandprotest.com. It's a
tasteful pictorial of September 11th. It's moving and powerful and a definite "must
see".
Finally, the recipe contest has been going gung ho! I received so many delicious entries
that it made it difficult to choose just one winner. But select a winner I did! Linda
Pickle's fantastic recipe is at the end of this newsletter and for winning, she will
receive a copy of my newest ebook, "Maximize Your Moments, A Busy Mom's Guide to Time
Management". It has been so successful, that the recipe contest will continue. Please
send your entries to: mailto:jackihale@yahoo.com
with recipe in the subject. Each month I'll feature a new one, so each month you'll have
another chance to win!
Enjoy this issue!
jackie
PS Don't forget, our site updates and easy recipe of the month are at the end.
Feature Article: The Biggest Obstacle to a Balanced Life
By: Jacqueline McLaughlin Hale
**************************************************
The biggest obstacle to a balanced life is stress. How’s that for a profound (or
profoundly obvious) statement? We all knew that, didn’t we? But the real issue is not
WHAT the biggest obstacle to a balanced life is. The real issue is what is it about stress
that affects us so and can we do anything about it.
When we become stressed, the object of our stress becomes all consuming. We think about
it, worry about it and focus on it---to the exclusion of all else. By definition, if a
single object, event or person commands our energies to the exclusion of all else, our
lives cannot be balanced, until the stress is relieved. If it is not relieved, it will
impact our health, our relationships and ultimately our quality of living.
Interestingly enough, the experts tell us it isn’t the major life changes such as
birth, death, marriage or divorce that create lasting stress. It is the smaller stressors
such as traffic, fights with loved ones, a schedule that’s been thrown off or trying
to do too much in too little time, that get to us the most.
It’s curious that larger events do not negatively impact us to the extent that
smaller events do. Perhaps it’s because larger changes force us to stop and regroup
before we can go on. They are so big we can’t possibly live our lives in the same
manner again. And so we do not try. We accept what has happened and work on moving forward
from there.
On the other hand, it seems as though we try to fight the smaller changes. We think we can
go on just as before and we struggle to do so. If we get caught in traffic we tell
ourselves that if the traffic would just start moving again, we wouldn’t be late for
work. If we do not finish a fight with our spouse, we continue on with our day, thinking
we can function normally. When we try to do too much in too little time we delude
ourselves into thinking that if we just work faster or drive faster, we can get it all
done.
But we can’t make traffic move again. We can’t function normally when a fight
isn’t finished and we can’t work faster or drive faster. Our plans have to
change. We have to let them. But we don’t. Perhaps we just can’t give up
control.
Maybe that’s what stress boils down to, fighting to maintain or regain control in a
situation that is uncontrollable. Maybe we need to concede.
One of the happiest people I know has a thriving business, three kids under four (two of
them are twins), a home and a husband. When something happens to throw off her plans, she
just laughs. "What can I do?" she says. "Nothing. " So if her daycare
provider cancels on her one day she stays home and reschedules her appointments for that
day. She quickly accepts her fate and figures out a way to move forward. She doesn’t
struggle or worry. She concedes control immediately.
In the end, she wins not the situation. By conceding control, she takes it back and
affects the things she can affect.
That’s the irony. In order to gain control, you must give it up. Then and only then
can you go forward. So the next time you’re stuck in traffic, you’ve had a fight
with your spouse or you’re trying to do too much in too little time, let go. Accept
that your plans must change and stop fighting it. Regroup. Reschedule and decide that your
best is just going to have to be good enough.
Jacqueline McLaughlin Hale is a CPA and the editor of Between Friends: Resources for
Mothers http://www.betweenfriends.org Between
Friends contains household hints, time management tips, articles on organization,
parenting, money management, career, self employment, self improvement and more! Subscribe
to its FREE monthly ezine, The Balanced Woman. Visit today!
Webmasters and publishers may use this article in their ezine or website, as long as the
*entire* article is used, and the *copyright notice* and *resource box* are left in tact,
including this notice
With spring cleaning time in the air, I stumbled across a great way to get your shower
doors sparkling clean. If you can easily remove them from their tract, do so. Take them
out into the backyard and get a broom, some Spray and Wash and a hose. Squirt the doors
with Spray and Wash and use the broom to scrub them. Hose them down and repeat as
necessary. Let the doors dry in the sun before reinstalling them. It's quick, easy and it
works great!
Did you know that April is stress awareness month? Perhaps that's because April is one of
the most stressful times of the year for our U.S. subscribers (taxes are due <grin>)
If you want to understand stress and what causes it, if you want to learn about your
"optimum stress level" and if you want to analyze and plan to control stress,
than visit: Mindtools.com http://www.mindtools.com/smpage.html
Parent like you mean business! Stop nagging and fighting with your kids! Get your home
running more smoothly than it has ever run before. Discover a simple, effective and proven
system for putting sanity back into your life with the new ebook THE BUSINESS OF MOM!
Hot, humid days. Warm, tropical nights. Evening barbeques. Piņa coladas by the pool. Ah,
yes, the joys of summer. But in the midst of vacationing and making memories this year,
don't forget the toll these languid days can take on you physically. Just as you're
getting your warm weather wardrobe together, so too, should you be changing your skin and
hair care regimes for the season.
Heat, humidity, and the sun extract a heavy price. Not only are you more prone to heat
stroke and sunburn during the summer months, you can also be doing long term damage by
basking it in the sun's warm rays.
Remember the late 1970's trend of slathering your body with baby oil and lying on a
reflective mat to bake in the sun? It was the "in" thing to do. Nowadays, those
sun worshippers are paying the price. If they managed to escape a brush with skin cancer,
they probably look older than they are. Such is the price for a "healthy" tan.
Yes, I know it feels good to lie in the sun. I know a tan looks hot. But unless you take
the necessary precautions, you'll do irrevocable damage. Damage that can lead to skin
cancer and make you look much older than you are.
So, regardless of your skin color (yes, even black skin can get sunburned!), you need to
protect your skin. Here are some tips for summer sun worship:
1. Always use a sunscreen. Apply 20 minutes before you go into the sun to allow your skin
time to absorb it. Re-apply as needed throughout the day, particularly after a swim.
2. Wear broad-rimmed hats, light-colored coverups, and UV protective sunglasses when in
the sun.
3. Whenever possible, stay out of the sun between 10am and 2pm to avoid exposure to the
most intensive rays.
4. Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration and heat stroke.
5. Apply cool compresses to sunburned skin to help reduce the area temperature. Never
exfoliate or use a mask on sunburned skin until the area as healed, and be sure to go
light on your favorite perfume until the burn is gone.
Sunburn products on the market that will help you heal and peel less include:
REMEMBER: If you are severely sunburned, consult a physician as soon as possible for
treatment
Did you know?
Until the 1920's, white women of stature stayed out of the sun. A tan was considered a
sign of the working class, as those who had them labored in the sun. When machinery
replaced manual labor in the fields, everyone stayed indoors.
So when did tans become popular? When Coco Chanel stepped off a yacht in the South of
France in the mid-1920's, sporting the tan she'd picked up on board. By the 1930's, a tan
stood for health, wealth, and style
Diana Pemberton-Sikes is a wardrobe and image consultant and editor of "Fashion
Savvy", a monthly online newsletter dedicated to helping women achieve more success
through dress. You can visit her online at http://www.fashionforrealwomen.com
Diversified Portfolio: This is an investment strategy that seeks to minimize risk. It is
akin to "Don't put all your eggs in one basket".
When you have money to invest and you put it all in the stock of one company (say, ABC
Company), here's what can happen. If the value of ABC's stock goes down, you can lose
much, if not all of your initial investment.
Why would their stock plummet? For a variety of reasons. Perhaps the stock market itself
isn't doing well. Perhaps ABC's industry has taken a downturn due to the economy. Or maybe
ABC experienced circumstances unique to them that made their stock fall. In any event, any
stock over the course of its life will go up and down. The stock market is like a roller
coaster.
If you invest that same amount of money in ABC's stock, and a mutual fund, bonds, and real
estate, etc then when ABC's stock falls you'll still have other investments in your
portfolio that might be up, mitigating the losses of that one stock.
A BETTER LIFE:ITS YOUR FUTURE!
Enjoy Humor, Inspiration, Romance, Fitness, Nutrition & Personal Finance- all aimed at
helping YOU to take control of YOUR future! Subscribe FREE at: http://webmarketingezine.com
WEB MARKETING EZINE
Let us help YOU succeed on the Web with Tips, Tools, News & Views on Web Marketing and
E-Commerce, from a street-smart Marketer. Subscribe FREE at: http://webmarketingezine.com.
THE HUMAN FACE OF WEB MARKETING
There was a man who computed his taxes for 1999 and found that he owed $3407. He packaged
up his payment and included this letter:
Dear IRS:
Enclosed is my 1999 income tax return and payment. Please take note of the attached
article from the USA Today newspaper. In the article, you will see that the Pentagon is
paying $171.50 for hammers and NASA has paid $600.00 for a toilet seat.
Please find enclosed four toilet seats (value $2400) and six hammers (value $1029).
This brings my total payment to $3429.00. Please note the overpayment of $22.00 and apply
it to the Presidential Election Fund, as noted on my return. Might I suggest you the send
the above mentioned fund a 1.5 inch screw. (See attached article - HUD paid $22.00 for a
1.5 inch Phillips Head Screw.)
It has been a pleasure to pay my tax bill this year, and I look forward to paying it again
next year. I just saw an article about the Pentagon and screwdrivers.
If you have liked what you've read, please forward this newsletter to friends or family
members who you think might enjoy it! It might encourage them to subscribe. Thanks!)
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THE WHAT'S FOR DINNER COOKBOOK
More than 250 quick easy dinner ideas. Free chocolate and Sunday breakfast recipes with
every order. Click here to order. http://hop.clickbank.net/hop.cgi?jahale/recipeclub
DIVORCE WELL
"Divorce Strategy for Men and Women" reveals the secrets of men, women, lawyers,
financial tax experts and private investigators! This book a must have for those going
through divorce. http://www.divorcewell.com
This is the first winner of our recipe contest! Congratulations to Linda Pickle who has
won a copy of my newest ebook "Maximize Your Moments; A Busy Mom's Guide to Time
Management"! I'll select a new winner each month so keep those recipes coming! You
can send them to me at mailto:jackihale@yahoo.com
Chuck Wagon Beans
Brown I lb hamburger meat with chopped onions.
Add chili powder (to taste)
1 can tomato sauce
2 to 3 cans pork-n-beans
Water
Simmer on stovetop. Top with grated cheese and serve with crackers
The appearance of advertising in The Balanced Woman should not be interpreted as an
endorsement by the editors of the service, product, business, or program being advertised.
We take no responsibility for claims or representations made in any ads. The Balanced
Woman is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The ideas and information
expressed in it have not been approved or authorized by anyone either explicitly or
implicitly. In no event shall Jacqueline McLaughlin Hale be liable for any damages
whatsoever resulting from any action arising in connection with the use of this
information or its publication, including any action for infringement of copyright or
defamation. The opinions expressed by our columnists are not necessarily the position of
The Balanced Woman.
Editor's Comments: If any of you have any ideas, comments and suggestions on how we can
improve this e-zine please let me know. Just send an email to: mailto:jackihale@yahoo.com
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