The Boys & Girls Club of America has been offering positive activities for children and youth for over 100 years.  With over 4,000 clubs nationally and on military bases overseas, children are getting positive encouragement, fostering a servant heart for their communities, and choosing healthier lifestyles.

If you’re curious about the Clubs, or just want to support the ones in your community, National Boys & Girls Club Week is April 7-13 and they’re encouraging everyone to “Open the door.  Take the tour”.  If you can’t make it by your local club or don’t live near one, you can still take a virtual tour to see all of the wonderful things these boys and girls are up to!

GET READY FOR FUN

During the week, clubs will be planning fun activities for club members, their parents, and even neighborhoods to enjoy, including forums, carnivals, health fairs, and more.  Many Boys & Girls Club leadership and service groups (such as Torch and Keystone Clubs for tween and teen Club members) also use the week as a chance to give back to the community by volunteering at homeless shelters or assisted living facilities.

The schedule for this year’s celebration includes:

• Monday, April 8 – Open the door to education.
• Tuesday, April 9 – Open the door to technology.
• Wednesday, April 10 – Open the door to character and citizenship.
• Thursday, April 11 – Open the door to healthy lifestyles.
• Friday, April 12 – Open the door. Take the tour.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

If you’ve ever wondered if the Boys & Girls Clubs make a difference for the children who attend, please take just a minute to watch this testimonial video from Misty Copeland, a ballerina who started attending when she was 11.

These clubs are definitely a positive influence in the lives of the children who attend.

You can follow the Boys & Girls Clubs of America on these social outlets:

Twitter:  @BGCA_Clubs

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/bgca.clubs

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. I received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Needing a new car is almost always a nightmare—even for the most budget savvy people reading this. Here are some tips and tricks to help you get the car you want, at the price you want.

1. Know your credit score and financial situation before you go to the dealership.

One of the ways that car salespeople get the better of buyers is by telling them “based on your credit score, we can offer you X amount in monthly payments.”  They bank on a buyer not actually knowing his credit score or what is on his credit report. Don’t be that guy.

You are entitled to one completely free credit check on yourself every twelve months. The federal government has even endorsed AnnualCreditReport.com as the best avenue to travel to get this information. Pull up your report with each of the three major reporting agencies.

PRO TIP: If you don’t need that car right now, take the time to really comb through your credit reports. Make sure they are error free before you go car shopping! You don’t need a mistake the credit bureau has made to force you into exorbitant payments.

2. Save up for a big down payment

The more money you pay up front (the “down payment”) the less money you will have to borrow to finance your car. This means that your monthly payments will also be much lower over the course of your car loan. The dealership is also more likely to work with you to give you the payments you want if you can put a solid chunk of cash down on the car. Try to have at least 20% of the car’s value saved up before you go to the dealership.

3. Buy used!

These days a car is labeled “used” within just a few months of the car being delivered to the dealership. It is possible to get a car that is less than twelve months old at used car prices. To make sure that the used car you want to buy really is just used and not a lemon in disguise, work with a dealership that will certify it’s used cars. For example, BMW of Towson certifies pre-owned vehicles. If you live outside of the Maryland travel zone, check with your local used car dealerships.

4. Shop Around

Spend some time figuring out exactly which kind of car you want and then start searching your local dealerships for that car. Compare mileage, price, what shape the car is in (is it still in good shape or is it all banged up?), etc. If you really love the price of a car at dealership A but would much rather work with the people at dealership B, take proof of A’s price to B. Many dealerships will match prices if it means they can keep your business. If they won’t, you have to decide if it is worth paying more money to work with the people you like better.

These are just four tips to help you get the car you want at the price you want. Beyond all of these, though: be firm! You don’t have to let the salesperson boss you around. It’s okay to negotiate and to stick to your guns!

 

This is a post by Sam Peters.

My son loves to draw with markers.  He has his own little box of art supplies that we keep in the living room and he has recently discovered that markers are much cooler than crayons.  Naturally, this also makes for messier hands when he gets the urge to express his creativity through drawing.

I make a huge deal about hand washing in our home.  I work in a school, so I come in contact with many, many germs on a daily basis.  My son is a student, so he also shares a community space and things like crayons and pencils.  Anytime I tell him to wash his hands at home, it’s usually met with a loud sigh and fussing.  However, he has no problem washing his hands in a restaurant bathroom, particularly because they often have an automatic soap and paper towel dispenser.  He thinks it’s “magic”, how the soap and paper towels come out with a wave of the hand.  He’s often asked me how come we couldn’t have this at home.  Well, now we do!

The LYSOL No-Touch Hand Soap has made me the “coolest mom ever” in our home this past week.  I received a unit to try out, so I unpacked it and set it up in the bathroom.  I then called my son in to test it out for me.  As he held his hand under the dispenser spout, out came the perfectly proportioned dollop of soap.  He was too excited that we had a little of our own “magic” at home. 

The LYSOL No-Touch Hand Soap starter kit comes with the dispenser, a hand soap refill, and 4 AA batteries, which is everything you need to take it out of the package and start using it immediately.  I love the fact that it’s so easy for my son to use and that it’s one less surface he has to touch after washing his hands so they can stay as clean as possible, especially before eating. 

On February 25, LYSOL launched The Kid Who Touches Everything Contest and the grand prize is a trip to Disney! Have some pictures of some messy moments with your kids?  Be sure and enter them for a chance to win! No purchase necessary. Contest runs from 2/25/13- 5/25/13. Open to US residents ages 18+. Void where prohibited. Click here for official contest rules.

 

I participated in a campaign on behalf of MomCentral Consulting for LYSOL^®.I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

What started out as a simple project of replacing the drip pans on top of the oven turned into cleaning the inside of the oven as well while I was off work during Spring Break a couple of weeks ago.  I tend to get carried away when I throw myself into projects, especially if it involves cleaning or organizing.  Tackling bigger projects such as this can be time consuming.  I definitely had the time that week to do this, but in all honesty, it wasn’t necessarily something I wanted to be doing with my time off. 

Tough Grease Needs A Tough Cleaner

In the 13 years I have been married and taking care of my own home, I’ve always used Easy-Off oven cleaner, the #1 oven cleaner that has 5x more grease-cutting power than the leading all-purpose cleaner.  It’s powerful formula eliminates baked-on grease and food spills, saving me lots of time and elbow grease.  It always gets the job done and definitely makes oven cleaning easier for me.

Clean Your Way

Easy-Off comes in two great formulas that are designed to meet your specific needs:

Heavy-Duty– This formula is for those times when you need to clean quickly.  It    cuts through tough grease in less than five minutes.

Fume Free is safe for self-cleaning ovens and doesn’t emit caustic fumes.

I use the Fume Free formula in our oven.  I simply spray according to directions and let the oven cleaner sit inside for two hours, then wipe clean.  This option uses no heat, doesn’t let off an overwhelming smell in our home, and requires very little effort for such a great clean. 

Life Is Better When The Cleaning’s EASY!

With the weather turning warmer and the Easter holidays just around the corner, the last place anyone wants to be is stuck inside for hours cleaning an oven.  Use Easy-Off for a quick and effective clean and enjoy the time you save doing something you want to do.

 

I wrote this post while participating in a blog tour conducted by Burst Media on behalf of Easy-Off. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program, but my opinions are my own.

My husband and I started our spring cleaning this past weekend.  I love to organize and have everything in its place.  It also feels great to get rid of things we no longer use in order to free up space and get rid of clutter.  One of the biggest jobs we will have soon is going through our son’s old DVDs and video games he no longer plays.  He has quite a stack going on in his room and I’m constantly having to pick them up.  He’s only eight years old, but it’s amazing how many games, dvds, and cds he has accumulated in the past two or three years.

I was so excited to learn about musicMagpie, an online site that allows you to sell your old dvds, cds, and games for extra cash.  It’s as simple as entering the barcode from the item you want to sell at www.musicmagpie.com and getting a quote.  If you decide you want to sell, musicMagpie provides a free shipping label to send in your unwanted items and you get cash in return.  This is so much easier than trying to sell them individually or in groups at online auction sites, which I had thought about doing. 

Additionally, if you have an iPhone or Android device, you can use musicMagpie’s free app which turns your phone’s camera into a barcode scanner so you can scan fast and easily.  This is great if you have lots of unwanted games, dvds, and cds to sell. 

I am so excited about finally getting rid of these unwanted items around our home and the fact that we can get a little cash in return is just a bonus!   If your in the process of spring cleaning and find yourself not knowing what to do with all of those old games, cds, and movies on dvd, be sure and check out musicMagpie.

 

This compensated post is brought to you by musicMagpie.