The Voice of Elmo is Silenced

Kevin Clash, the voice of Elmo, has resigned from “Sesame Street.” But, it was not entirely voluntarily. (This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.) In case you haven’t been keeping up with the news, Clash has found himself in the middle of not one, but two underage sex scandals. The first case broke a little over a week ago when a 23-year-old man reportedly contacted Sesame Workshop bigwigs with the news that the 52-year-old puppeteer had engaged in a sexual relationship with him when the accuser was only 16. On November 12th, the news came … Continue reading

Bath Safety

There are so many accidents that occur in the bath, so it makes sense to prepare your home in such a way as to avoid these accidents, which in some cases can be really tragic. Bath safety is especially important in home with children or seniors, the two groups that are often affected by accidents in the bath. Here are some ways that you can be prepared to keep everyone safe. Install grab bars in bathtubs and showers to provide solid support. This will help prevent falls. People often grab for towel racks and soap dishes, either to get in … Continue reading

Homesteading Skills to Learn Now

There is currently a movement toward homesteading, in which families go back to learning and practicing the practical skills that our ancestors knew. Cultivating certain homesteading skills can be very valuable, because they can prepare you and your family for living in less modern times, should an emergency or disaster strike. Why not try your hand at learning one or two of the following homesteading skills in the coming year? Gardening Learning basic gardening is an important skill to have. Through it, you can grow some of your own food, an important resource if you find that food become too … Continue reading

The Importance of Cash in an Emergency Kit

Why do you need cash in your emergency kit, and how much should you have available? Where should that cash be stored? These are all questions that should be answered if you want to be prepared. In an emergency situation, cash can come in handy if there is no access to electronic transactions and you need supplies. In most emergencies, you will probably not need cash, since either stores will be closed or inaccessible. There are some instance where having cash would be invaluable. You might need cash for tolls or campground fees if you need to evacuate to another … Continue reading

How Many Towels and Blankets Do You Need in Your Emergency Kit?

While we often talk a lot about the amount of food and water that we need to have in an emergency kit, there often aren’t a lot of guidelines around other items, such as linen, blankets, towels, etc. How many of these items should you make sure that you have? Here are some guidelines to help you be prepared. In general, you should pack one blanket, one towel and one sleeping bag per person in your family for your emergency kit. However, if you live in a cold climate or on a climate where it gets cold in the winter, … Continue reading

Take Advantage of Cyber Monday to Be Prepared

Are you snapping up the Cyber Monday deals and all of the other Christmas sale savings? Cyber Monday can be a great way to get your holiday shopping done and over without while saving money. But Cyber Monday sales and other Christmas bargains can also serve another purpose: getting items that will be useful to you and your family in an emergency. Here are some items that you should look for while you are shopping for deals. I’ve found some great Cyber Monday sales as well as coupon codes that can be applied to these items. Frozen and Can Foods … Continue reading

Sesame Street Can Help Your Family Plan for Emergencies

Gone are the days when kids were taught to get under their desks in emergency drills at school. Now kids have the help of beloved friends that will teach them how to stay safe in an emergency and how to help their families plan for disasters. The lovely furry old Grover and others will present your child with key things that they should know and help them to learn it. For example, it is important for children to know their own full names, and there is a fun video that talks about this. You can take the lesson one step … Continue reading

Media Review: Follow that Bird!

I consider myself a book-lover, frugal, and responsible about other people’s property. Thus it may surprise you that, upon finding and reading a book in the church nursery, I ripped it up. By hand. Into tiny little pieces. I told the nursery director later that I didn’t even want someone to pull it out of the recycling and read it. Perhaps even more surprising is that it was a Sesame Street book. More surprising yet, I set out to review the movie the book was based on, and ending up thinking that it wasn’t that bad, actually enjoyable, with a … Continue reading

“Sesame Street” Helping Parents Teach Kids About Terrorism

Subtitle: Elmo Meets Michael Chertoff or “The Muppets Take Manhattan… Post 9/11” I wish I were kidding. For decades parents have turned to those fun-loving furry friends on “Sesame Street” when they needed help teaching their kids how to spell, tie their shoes, and count to 10 in Spanish. But now Elmo, Grover, Big Bird, Zoe, Oscar the Grouch and crew are getting serious about a grown up topic most adults struggle to deal with—terrorism and other potential deadly catastrophes. So how exactly does a parent explain to a 3-year-old why it’s important to prepare for a terrorist attack? Don’t … Continue reading