It’s that time again. Time to check out all the great resources from Twitter over the past week or so. I’m going to start with the most recent as it’s also the most important.

If you get an email from Delta about a ticket, DON’T open any attachment. A nationwide fraudulent email scam has hit millions!

Another vital tip – don’t forget to set your clocks ahead tomorrow, Saturday, 3/7/09. Spring forward, Fall back!

I don’t know about you, but I have several friends and acquaintances who have either been laid off or are concerned they will be. It’s especially hard for the Baby Boomer Generation as ageism can rear its ugly head at times. Seems silly, as we have more experience, but we can also require a higher salary and that is a key concern in this economy. Here’s a great article about some of the creative ways people are using this forced time off to learn, help, and/or recharge, as they wait to get another job.

I found some great new add-ons for Firefox. I gave up on Internet Explorer a few months ago due to so many crashes. Firefox crashes as well, but it doesn’t seem to be as often. On top of that, they have such great add-ons, I haven’t looked back. My favorite is called Morning Coffee. It allows you to enter as many of your favorite websites as you like. Then, when you have some time to just read, you click the cup of coffee and they all open at once. It’s great for people who always read certain sites each day. It’s also great for caregivers like me who don’t often get that luxury, but know it’s there when we do.

Another useful add-on that I just found out about yesterday is called Session Manager. “Session Manager saves and restores the state of all windows – either when you want it or automatically at startup and after crashes. Additionally it offers you to opportunity to reopen (accidentally) closed windows and tabs. If you’re afraid of losing data while browsing – this extension allows you to relax.” Talk about perfect timing. I had just installed this when I got called away from my desk. While I was gone, one of my grandkids accidentally closed all the windows. Session Manager did, indeed, save the day!

Isn’t this perfect for Senior Home Care Givers  - The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He won’t grow tired or weary…gives strength to weary!

I love working on the computer and the internet. I can spend hours at it and the time flies. I love playing with grandkids as well, and again the time just soars. Housework is a whole other kettle of fish. I work on tidying, vacuuming, making beds, etc. and the time just drags. Or it did. Now I listen to my iPod with great sermons, educational business shows, and interesting books and the time flies. It really makes things much more interesting. I’ve already listed my favorite sermon sites. Here’s a couple of great sites for podcasts.

Blog Talk Radio – . This site is well set up and easy to navigate. You can go through it by channels or use the search button. There is plenty to find there to interest you, from caregiving to frugal, from business to blogging, and more. Many, if not most, of the shows are available through iTunes but it helps to have specific names/titles which you can get from here. You can also download the podcast directly following their directions.

Another resource I just found that looks quite useful, RadioPaq -– offers shows from BlogTalk Radio, along with the BBC, several French stations, a Jazz station and more. Between these two, you should find plenty to get you through your housework, your commutes, and more.

Are you a writer, a reader or do you know someone who is. I just read an interesting article in Publishers Weekly about RedRoom which is set to be a Facebook for authors and readers. Currently it has 2000 authors/20,000 members. It’s free for readers. I’m not sure about writers. If you know, tell us about it in the comments section below.

Do your favorite ways to save money include shopping at the Dollar store? Read the article to find out the goods and bads there.

For senior home care givers, It’s always the right time to brush up on our stroke awareness, such as signs and symptoms to watch for in your elderly parents or yourself!

Here’s some great health news! An early non-invasive cancer test is coming soon, in the next two – three years.

Encouragement – A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all!

This article has some great ideas for putting together frugal gift kits for kids and grandkids using items found at yard sales and thrift stores. I’ve got it bookmarked for my grandkids. It’s definitely one of those great ways to save money.

Well, that should keep you busy for now. I’ve got plenty more for tomorrow as well!

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Sandwich Generation Resources Via Twitter 3/6/09

Info PR: n/a I: 160 L: 0 LD: 4,550 I: 270 Rank: 919412 Age: no matches I: 0 whois source Robo: yes Sitemap: yes Rank: 3536066 Price: 97 Links: 89|10 Density

“Ways to Fall Asleep” headlines abound in a wide variety of magazines from those geared for the young on up to those with an older readership. Sleep medication ads are all around. “Can’t Sleep” issues can impact just about everyone. Of course, some do have more difficulties than others. The elderly often have a harder time sleeping as they continue to age. Those going through menopause struggle with the problem due to hot flashes and other issues. Caregivers of any age can struggle with sleep when worries over health, finances, kids, etc. take over. It’s frustrating, it’s exhausting, and it makes it doubly difficult to carry on with all the various responsibilities we caregivers have.

I have discovered a few creative ways to fall asleep and thought I would share my newest one, which is also my favorite one. I discovered that I could use my mp3 player to “lull” me to sleep while also planting God’s Word into my mind. I have it loaded up with a wide variety of sermons by some of my favorite pastors. When I awake, and can’t go back to sleep because my busy mind starts kicking into overdrive, I just grab my Apple iPod , turn it on to a sermon from one of the epistles, set it for a low but audible setting, and pop one ear bud in my ear. Then I tuck the iPod under my pillow and start listening. If I absolutely can’t sleep, I  am learning more about God and His Word. Most nights, I find that I am back to sleep within five minutes, with the added blessing of a verse or two impressed on my mind. Occasionally I will wake up again for a few minutes, listen to a bit more of the sermon, and then it again lulls me right back to sleep. Don’t get me wrong, these are not boring sermons. I thoroughly enjoy listening to them when I don’t have a chance to do my own regular Bible study. In fact, I will later make sure I listen to them while driving in a car since I do miss so much of it. When I do, I find it interesting that the parts I did listen to I do remember.

I’ve learned to pick pastors who have quieter voices as opposed to those with more dramatic voices. I have also learned not to use sermons on dramatically interesting stories such as Daniel and the Lion’s Den or those from the book of Revelation. They can actually keep me awake because I am so interested or because they have created some anxiety in me. I often use the same sermon every time for a week or two since I never last that long through it. The interesting thing is that before, when I tried praying or lying there, I would stay awake much longer, and often never get back to sleep. I’ve only had that happen once since I started this routine a few months ago.

I use an Apple iPod but I’m sure any mp3 player would work fine. My mom has actually done this for years using a cd player. Those are a bit more bulky and you’d need to have a little table to put it on.

Whether you give this a try yourself, or help an elderly parent with this suggestion, please let us know how it worked for you by leaving a comment below.

One final thought before I bid you adieu. The sermon I’ll be listening to next is from Romans 8:28-30. It’s one of my favorite passages and I wanted to share it with you on this Sunday evening:

We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.

Have a blessed Sunday! Sleep well.

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Sleep Aid for the Sandwich Generation

It’s Sunday but no church for me today. I’m hacking, coughing, and just plain not feeling great! I’ll be popping in my iPod earphones to listen to Beth Moore’s class on Daniel and that will be my Sunday church supplement.

If you are home today, also, either because you are ill or because you are caring for someone else, you may not have an iPod but there are still lots of good options for you to get some extra teaching. If you want to hear the teaching, you can check your TV or the sites listed in my post at http://www.sandwichink.com/resource-full-links-updated . If you prefer reading, here are a few new sites I have discovered.

Crosswalk has a whole page of devotional authors. Just click on one at http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/ and be whisked away to read a devotional written by such writers as Charles Swendoll, Greg Laurie, Ann Spangler, Max Lucado, or John Piper. If you prefer the classics, you’ll find Charles Spurgeon, Mrs. Charles Cowman, F.B. Meyer and more. There are devotionals specific to seniors, to families, to parents (and grandparents), and even dieters. It’s an excellent resource for a stay-at-home Sunday or to use as an encouragement for an elderly parent who is homebound.

If you love Our Daily Bread but don’t have the newest one handy, you can go to http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml and read it there. Upper Room also publishes several devotionals for all ages and they can be found at http://www.upperroom.org/Devotional/ .

The Christian and Missionary Alliance offers devotionals written by A.W. Tozer - http://www.cmalliance.org/devotions/tozer/tozer.jsp .

Many, if not all, of these devotionals are available to you through an email subscription. You can sign up, and they will arrive regularly in your inbox. Read them as they arrive, or save them up for the next Sunday you are unable to make it to church. And with that, I’m off to learning more about Daniel.I pray that you have a blessed Sunday and a healthy week!

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Encouragement: Sunday Devotionals at Home

I have a sad confession. When it comes to going to the dentist I am, well, not terrified, but definitely not a happy camper! It probably stems from too many cavities at my first dental appointment. Or perhaps I was traumatized by those years in braces. Probably the fact that my mouth is a bit on the small side plays a large part. Also, I am very tender – both in the mouth and in my scalp. It must be a head thing.

What’s a dental chicken to do? For awhile, I went to the max and had them give me laughing gas. It definitely relaxed me. I hate unnecessary medications though, so I really wanted to work past that. I decided to give a more natural remedy a try.

Lamaze. We all love to laugh when TV sitcoms portray a woman in labor and there she is, deep breathing and “he he he” panting away right before the blessed event. I’m here to tell you that it’s not just funny. I used it with each of my deliveries and it really helped! Admittedly I am very blessed that I had fast, relatively easy labors. But they still hurt! All that breathing may look silly but it has a very definite purpose and it very much eased the pain to where I could tolerate it without using any medicine.

I decided that if it worked for babies, maybe it would work for the dentist. Guess what, it did! I now sit down in the chair and take several deep breaths in order to start out relaxed. When the dentist or hygienist starts working, I resume the deep breathing as needed. It definitely helps! But I still tended to cringe a bit.

Then a new trauma ensued. We moved and I had to find a new dentist. But God was good, I found a wonderful new dentist and he offered a special option I’d never heard of at my old office. He told me I could listen to an iPod or tape player if I wanted. They even kept one in their office for people to use if they forgot their own.

What a difference! I take in my iPod with either praise and worship music, a good novel, or an interesting nonfiction book, and I am instantly relaxed. I know it makes it a little harder for the dentist and his staff. They often have to ask me something 2-3 times. But it is so worth it for me, and I suspect for them as well. The time goes by faster, I am rarely aware of what is going on, and before I know it, I’m done. On those rare occasions when they accidentally poke a little to hard, or when the drill is loud enough to penetrate through my earplugs, I throw the Lamaze breathing in as well.

The nice thing is, this is something that works for all ages. If I have to take a grandchild in, they are rarely nervous. However, if they are we can play some kid songs, or a Clifford book on tape. My elderly relatives enjoy hymns, classical music, and their favorite mystery novels. I just make sure to remind them (and myself) a day or so in advance so we can have it all ready to go. I still don’t RUN to the dentist, but I don’t dread it as much either. That makes me a very happy camper!

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Dental Relief for Caregivers and Their Families