As the Baby Boomers Age – Elder-Care
As the Baby Boomers Age
Many employees today are calling in sick - not to care for themselves or their children, but to care for their aging parents. Baby boomers are rapidly moving into the role of caregivers for their parents, but with a few extra challenges due to the changing face of our workforce. Nearly 25% of U.S. households are now involved in caring for a senior family member, spending an average of 20 hours a week in caregiving services. Nearly 65% of those individuals providing the caregiving are employed outside of the home. According to the National Alliance for Caregiving, approximately 15 million days of work per year are lost due to these circumstances. These numbers are forecasted to increase since the longevity of life is being extended by modern medicine.The workforce is also aging with more people moving toward retirement age and fewer young people filling the ranks. The median age of workers has risen by five years since 1986, making the average worker 40 years old. Women in this age group, who are primarily the caregivers for their parents, continue working full time in order to support their family, pay their children's college tuition, or save for their own retirement. These situations are even more compounded because many baby boomers have relocated away from their senior family members to pursue job opportunities.Another issue facing baby boomers and their families is the cost of care for their senior family members. Many members of the sandwich generation will be shocked to find out what the cost of prescription medications really run, especially since many of the medications are not covered by Medicare. This will cause many retired seniors and some baby boomers to continue their pursuit of a career, and not enjoy their Golden Years.When faced with these issues, it is always best to have some future plan in place. Do not wait until mom or dad is in the critical care bed or is being discharged from the hospital. Here are a few suggestions for the potential or current caregiver to contemplate:1. Talk to your parents and/or family members before a crisis. This will help you and all those involved to truly understand their wishes. Discuss with them the topics of Medicare, health insurance, long-term care insurance, and if they have other important legal documents regarding medical treatment (i.e., Living Will, Durable Medical Power of Attorney, etc?).2. Locate any community resources that may be available to you and your family. The Valley of the Sun has numerous services available for the elderly (i.e. Area Agency on Aging, Meals on Wheels, Adult Day Care Facilities, Housing, etc?). You can access many of these services via the local hospital or skilled nursing facility discharge planners, senior citizen centers, or even the local clergy.3. Ask your employer if they can help. Many employers are willing to help employee caregivers in order to retain valuable workers. Find out if your employer offers paid leave benefits for flex hours. Some employees are even beginning to include long-term care insurance or caregiver respite programs in their benefit package.4. Ask friends and family for help. Ask them what experiences they have had with some of the community services. Many of these people may have already gone through this and can be of assistance.5. Talk to your local clergy. Many local churches and synagogues have family assistance programs or have access via their denominations. If these services are not available, most clergy are familiar with what can be obtained by you or your family.Caring for our aging parents may be one of the more challenging roles we undertake in our adult lives. With forethought, consideration and a little planning on everyone's part, it can actually have a more positive outcome.Hearts of Joy Senior Care provides an affordable, non-medical, in-home companion care service for seniors, which enables them to maintain their independence, as well as dignity and self-respect. Marc and Susan speak around the valley on numerous topics regarding senior care, with a primary focus on fall prevention and home safety. Hearts of Joy Senior Care Inc. can be reached at (480) 948-4655.
Naming Your Baby Is Part of The Challenge of Being a Parent
Naming Your Baby Is Part of The Challenge of Being a Parent
Baby names are as diverse as the people to whom they are given. Choosing the right name for your baby can be a very challenging yet fun exercise! This is my story.Before I was married I used to work as a midwife in a Labor Ward. I have helped deliver over 1,000 babies. It was an awesome feeling every time I placed the baby in the mother's arms for the first time. Often I would ask, 'What's your baby's name?' The mother would look up at me with such pride and say, 'His (or her) name is....'. I loved sharing their joy. Seeing the mother snuggle up to her baby and announcing her baby's name!I was destined to be married! An unmistakable inner thought filled my mind at the age of sixteen. I knew then that I would do nurses' training, two years of bible college and then I would get married and go to Ethiopia as a missionary.Bill, my husband-to-be, had been a single missionary in Ethiopia for five years. While praying one time, a strong impression came to him that God would give him a wife when he returned to Australia on leave. Bill stopped in Singapore on the way home and bought the engagement and wedding rings. He had just enough money left to buy a watch, and the brand name of the watch was "Rebekah". As Bill was reading the story of Rebekah in the Bible, this verse stood out "Just as I led Abraham's servant to find a wife for Isaac, I will lead you to your future wife." (Genesis, chapter 24) Hang in there! I am telling you this story so that you will understand why we named one of our daughters Rebecca!Bill arrived back in Australia and decided to visit the bible college where he had trained. On the way, Bill heard an inner voice saying, "She is in the college." He prayed a prayer similar to Abraham's servant, "Lord, let it be the first girl I meet." I was the first girl he met! We were so sure of God's plan for our lives that the next time we met we were engaged.A few months later we were married and on our way as newly weds to work in an isolated area southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia. After three challenging years we flew home because of the imminent birth of our eldest child. We named her Leanne Maree. Leanne was a name we always wanted if we had a girl. Maree was chosen because the night we were engaged we went to see the movie, 'The Sound of Music' and Maree was our modern version of Maria in the musical.We were back in Ethiopia for the birth of our second child. An American doctor helped bring Carolyn Joy into the world, in a remote Ethiopian hospital. To minimize the risk of infection, the doctor advised me to only stay in the hospital for one hour after giving birth. The nicest thing about the experience was bringing our little bundle of joy home! Carolyn Joy was named after the doctor's daughter.With each pregnancy we expected a boy! We wanted to call him Peter, because Peter's character in the Bible reminded me of myself. He was outgoing, loving, passionate and spoke his mind. We did not have ultrasound in Ethiopia to determine the sex of the baby so we anxiously waited to see if we would have a Leanne or Peter. When Carolyn was coming it was Carolyn or Peter. I was pregnant again when we left Ethiopia at the beginning of the communist's occupation. This time it would be Peter Andrew or Rebecca Grace. Rebecca Grace won ? she was named after Bill's watch brand, Rebekah, and Grace is my second name!With three beautiful girls we both agreed that Peter was not to be! Until one night I was reading from the Bible and these words stood out, "Next year you will have a son." Peter Andrew was born nine months later.No doubt if you are having a child or have had children you can tell a story of how you came to choose your baby's name. Choosing the right baby name is one of the biggest decisions you will have to make in life.Talking of names! Another big decision you will have to make is whether you will have your name written down in Heaven. The Bible says clearly that the moment you come alive spirituality and become God's child your name is written down in Heaven. When you become his child, your name is recorded in his family register. A cartoon flash presentation on my website (www.ydyc.org) will show you how you can become God's child and have your name written down in Heaven. You can be sure of your final destiny.Wilma Watson is the producer of the cartoon website: http://www.ydyc.orgShe has a passion to help people reach their maximum potential through making spirituality simple and fun.Choosing the right name for your baby can be a very challenging yet fun exercise! This her my story.
Its Not Always About the Benjamins, Baby
Its Not Always About the Benjamins, Baby
Often when I receive emails from this list with folks,
Telling me that they have discovered their life's
purpose but they don't have the money to do what
they need to start living their purpose.Please, please, please do not let your lack of money
stand in the way of you living the life that God has
planned for you to live.There is always a way to do what needs to be done
regardless of how much or how little money you may have.If the lack of money is an issue for you, start small.Let's say that you see yourself opening a store of some kind
but right now you don't have the money. Don't say to yourself,
when you get the money you will open your store, because
chances are, the money will never come. How do you expect
it to come when you are doing the same thing for the past five years. If you don't have an extra $1000 right now, than what will make you think that you will have an extra $1000 five years from now.You wont, unless you make some changes in your life.Instead of telling yourself that you don't have enough money
to start living your life's purpose. Ask yourself, how can I start living my life's purpose with what I already have. You may be amazed at the amount of ideas which come to you that will
allow you to live your purpose on a shoe-string budget.Let me give you an example. Once, when I decided that I wanted
to promote a boat ride, I was terminated from my job and had NO
money. But, I did have credit cards. I used my credit cards to fund my project and never looked back. I'm not encouraging anyone to go into debt by using their credit cards, but what I am trying to get across that if you really, truly want to make changes in your life you will do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true. You must have that type of desire in order for it to work for you.ACTION POINT: Find a way to start living your life's purpose regardless of how much money you have in your bank account. Make a list of things that you can do, right now, that will cost you little or no money, yet it will bring you closer to your dreams.Dawn Fields is a motivational speaker, author and spiritual coach that will help you discover life's purpose and incorporate it into a lucrative career. Visit the web site at http://www.dawnfields.com. Be sure to tune in each Thursday for her internet radio show, Your Life's Purpose Interactive Internet Radio Show at 9 p.m. at http://www.dawnfields.com/radioshow.htm. And, while you are at it, sign up for a weekly, motivational and inspirational newsletter, Your Life's Purpose by sending a blank email to dawn@dawnfields.com
and SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.