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Staying Safe while Christmas Shopping
The Christmas season, rather synonymous with “the shopping-season”. We grab the lists, grab the keys, and head to our local department shops to buy gifts for loved ones. But what can be a time of merriment and fun can quickly go south if we become unsuspecting victims. Here are five quick tips to staying safe and protecting your belongings while hitting the crowded malls and department shopping stores. 1. Situational awareness. Be aware of those around you. Put down your phone, keep an eye on other shoppers, watch your 3 o’clock, 9 o’clock and even your 6 o’clock. (Can you tell I’m the daughter of a pilot?). Don’t be so focused on your shopping that…
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More than just the winter-blues
The Holidays. They can be a very tough time of year. Not only is it getting darker and darker in our part of the hemisphere but we are missing family, friends and loved ones that are around the world. We are looking back at our year and have seen changes we may or may not like. We are looking ahead wondering what the year ahead will have in store for us. Your spouse might be deployed. Your parents might be thousands of miles away. You may be experiencing the mind-blowing effects of PTSD. Your schedule is crazy and the thought of ‘Silent Night’ is really only a song. Or it might…
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Small Business Saturday: November 24, 2012
I am really intrigued by this idea of “Small Business Saturday”. The premise is the Saturday after Thanksgiving you go to your local family-owned, small business stores to do your Christmas Shopping.I got this ‘chain email from my mother-in-law a couple weeks ago. Usually I immediately hit delete on chains. I get over 100 emails a day so the delete key is my friend. But this one caught my eye and hits right along the Small Business Saturday concept: As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods — merchandise that has been produced at the expense…
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Away for the Holidays – Care Package Ideas and More
There are a few Christmases that stand out in my life. I remember our first Christmas in Iceland after being separated from my dad for six months while we waited for a house to open up at Keflavik NAS. He had to report without his family but just before the holidays new friends opened up their home to us so that we could be together as a family. Our house would be ready when they returned from a vacation back to the states. That was the Christmas of Homecoming. (Although a new home, but home none the less). Another very memorable Christmas for me was the year my husband was in…
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You know you are a military-brat when…
April is Month of the Military Child and we have some fantastic give-aways lined up from businesses around the nation that support /you/ the military family. We will have one question for each week. Leave an answer as a comment on this blog and you are elgible to win. Our question of the week:“You know you are a military-brat when …”Source: Uploaded by user via MilitaryAvenue.com on PinterestLook at the military children around you, your own children, maybe even yourself (even at 38 years old I still am a Military-brat through and through). What makes them (or you) uniquely part of the military-community? I’ll go first: I know I am a military…
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Small Business Saturday
I am really intrigued by this idea of “Small Business Saturday”. The premise is the Saturday after Thanksgiving you go to your local family-owned, small business stores to do your Christmas Shopping. I got this ‘chain email from my mother-in-law a couple weeks ago. Usually I immediately hit delete on chains. Sorry, I get about 50 emails a day – and that is just personal. But this one caught my eye and hits right along the Small Business Saturday concept: As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods — merchandise that has been produced at the…
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The Holiday Budget
It is that time of year again. Festive lights, decorated Christmas trees, homemade treats and the celebration of traditions with the promise of a bright future. It can also be a very stressful time of year. The focus has become retail. We spend our time fretting about the ‘perfect gift’, the ‘perfect meal’, the ‘perfect ensamble’ for the brigade or unit party. All of this when we should instead be focusing on what the holiday is about. We have found joy in spending, getting the biggest, best, most luxurious. The worst of it: the stress lasts well into the new year when we overspend, don’t budget and simply spend on impulse instead of planning. Want some simple tips on…
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A Thank You to Our Veterans: A Giveaway for Veterans Day
We know from personal experience the sacrifices of a veteran. That is why we are excited to be able just a small gift of appreciation from our good friends, and military-supporters, Home Depot and Sears. We also have some beautiful gifts from a-zphotogifts.com. If you are a veteran or the family member of a veteran you don’t want to miss this opportunity. $100 Gift Card $25 Gift CardA Beautiful Personalized Throw from a-zphotogiftsAn elegant crystal with your photo or one of a loved one. Who is eligible? Any proud member, current or past, of our US Armed Forces. Any immediate family member of a veteran (spouse, child, mom or dad). We know…
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Motown has a new Veterans Homeless Facility and Park!
A Park for Veterans is being createdMotown has a new Veterans Homeless Facility and Park! It was not exactly the smooth sounds or motions of Motown but a blur of noise, colors (mostly orange), activity, yard equipment movements, cars and trucks being guided by traffic guards, pounding hammers, wheelbarrows rolling, noisy chippers, buckets carried, … It was heartening to see in the “rustic” downtown area of Detroit to see these bright orange clad volunteers turning the sounds of cacophony into a smooth jazz park for our homeless veterans in the area! MilitaryAvenue’s MilAve_Dan and Mil_Col_K had to follow up on this kind offer to see and report on this Volunteers…
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He “Refused to be a Burden” and Earned an Air Force Cross – DoD Blogger Roundtable
TSgt (Select) Robert (“Gute”) GutierrezHUMBLE HONORED BLESSING THANK YOU SERVICE BEFORE SELF FIT FOR DUTY TEAM FATHER FAMILY Words heard frequently during the interview… A motto… FIRST THERE … THAT OTHERS MAY LIVEImagine a night time assault on a bad guy stronghold with the best fighters in the world on your side. You are outnumbered and the bad guys have the high ground (never a good thing) but you have A-10s and F-16s overhead and the night is your friend. Plus you have eyes in the sky overlooking the battle situation with an ISR platform. But you are the guy calling in the airstrikes, you control them with your radio,…
