Tag Archives: life

Life

Why Everyone In Their Twenties Should Have Life Insurance

05/29/2018 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

Life insurance is something that many of us in our twenties won’t even consider as an issue we have to deal with. When we are young we often feel invincible, and the idea of planning for the future with life insurance doesn’t feel like something we need to do at all.

However, today we are going to talk about why every young adult should get a life insurance policy and why it is so important at a young age.

Lower premiums

When you are looking into life insurance, the main concern which you may have is the cost of the premiums. Life insurance can be pretty expensive when you take it out, but the younger you are, the lower your premium will be. As a young, healthy adult you will be accepted much quicker for a policy as the risk is lower. You can take a look at different life insurance policies and reviews such as this policygenius review to see what a difference it can make to your costs overall.

Get covered before illness

Illness is one of the main issues that older folk have when they sign up for a life insurance policy. It stands to reason that the older you are, the more likely you are to suffer an injury or illness. Having a serious condition can make you immediately uninsurable and this can stop you being able to protect yourself and your family if something does happen to you in the future. One of the insurances you should consider adding to your list is vision insurance.

Protect your family

If you are about the start a family or you have a young family at home already, the best thing you can do to protect them throughout their lives is to get a life insurance policy. Having life insurance ensures that if you suffer an untimely death, your family won’t struggle to pay the mortgage and other bills in the home. They will instead be able to cope with their lives financially and be left to grieve in peace, without stress.

More cash

It is a simple fact that the longer you pay your premiums for a life insurance policy, the more money you will have at the end of it to use for your family.
Saving up from a younger age, like you would with a pension, can make a huge difference to the final payout and it can make a positive difference to the lives of everyone you love after you die. You can even use the cash values to pay off any debts you have and help you stay financially stable throughout your life.

Preparing early for the future is something we all need to think about doing for our own sake and the sake of the people we love. It is important to get these things out of the way with early in life to allow you to live stress-free, knowing that if anything ever happens you are protected. Life insurance is a crucial thing for anyone, and you should take the time to open a policy this month.

Going Healthy, Life, Parenting

Routine Maintenance As A Stay-at-Home Parent

05/12/2016 R.C. Liley 2 Comments

Search the web or ask other stay-at-home parents around you and one of the first bits of advice you’ll hear is “Find a routine!” This doesn’t just apply to at-home parents, of course, it’s absolutely vital for all parents.

As I moved away from my full-time job at the office into my new role as a stay-at-home dad, finding a routine was high on my list of priorities. It’s been two years now and I have been pretty good about sticking to a routine and not straying from my schedule. But, that doesn’t make it a good routine.

For one thing, this created havoc on my brain when the weekend rolled around and Going Mom was home. Of course I love my wife through and through, but I was thrown off and would find that I had trouble managing this for a while….a long while. Some days I’m not sure how she even put up with me, and some days she didn’t. I deserved it.

The weekends were bad enough, but going on a trip was even worse sometimes. Yeah, it was vacation, a time to cut loose and relax, but I had so much trouble enjoying the time because it simply was not my routine. There were other factors like finding acceptable food and whatnot, but getting out of my comfort zone (i.e. routine) was the big culprit.

I’d fight with myself saying to just enjoy time with friends and family, as that makes sense, but I’d still have trouble. As time passed, my stress management from daily, weekly, and monthly changes had me on an emotional rollercoaster. I made myself miserable.

If I couldn’t workout at the same time, go on walks at the same time for the same distance, cook meals for my family, vacuum the house, get Avery down for a nap at the same time, prepare dinner, and then kiss the girls goodnight as I sat up too late on the computer, there would be a stress bomb exploding in my head. All because this “sacred” routine was broken. As a result, I’d be cranky, snap at my wife or daughter for petty reasons, and simply no fun to be around.

I would talk to my wife about it every now and then, but never letting out all of my feelings. Finally, I broke down and let it all out telling her how everything got to me and how much I hated being like this but didn’t know what to do. Being the loving, caring, and pretty much always right wife that she is, she gave me an ultimatum.

Start meditating, doing yoga, or something to better manage my stress, or within three weeks, I would need actually seek help from a doctor about my stress. Whoa, doctors? No thanks, seeing enough of them for my shoulder as is, and I refuse to resort to prescription meds as a way to cover up the stress and anxiety.

We’ve had similar talks before where I said I needed to change, but they rarely lasted longer than a month. But this last time was different, and everything had built up more than ever, so I committed to make changes for the better.

I used to start my day by waking up right as Going Mom left for work. I’d then get Avery up and fed as I prepared dinner for the night and lunch for my wife to take to work the next day. Most of the time, I’d fail to get much food for myself, and then proceed to try and get in a workout with Avery in the garage. Trying to perform a set of heavy squats with a screaming toddler behind you is enough to drive monks up-the-wall-insane, which only further exacerbated my already high stress levels.

I’d finally eat after Avery went down for a nap and then plan on eating mostly late at night when everyone went to sleep. This meant staying up late and getting little sleep for myself. Thanks to my wife and the help of Shawn Stevenson’s book Sleep Smarter, I find the main cause of my routine stress; SLEEP.

Going Mom had a simple solution, try going to sleep earlier. Whoa, mind blowing! I’ve thought of doing it before, but held on so dearly to “my time” at night and just didn’t want to change. Well, I pushed my selfish thoughts off to give it a try.

Instead of staying up to stare at the computer for a couple hours at night, I went to sleep the same time as my wife. Here’s the kicker, I woke up earlier feeling better than before, had some tea/coffee, and got my workout in before Avery woke up. The fear of missing a workout is a big concern for me, so taking care of that right off the bat immediately puts me in a more relaxed state.

From there, I have a just enough time to prepare breakfast for Avery and myself before I get her up. Then we eat at the same time and have time after to actually do more without me stressing out so much. This has been going on for just over a week and I notice I feel much better/happier than I have in a long time.

Do I still get stressed? Of course, it’s completely normal to get stressed, in fact, it’s part of how we as humans have survived, but chronic stress can literally kill us. Not because of a saber tooth tiger, but from work, family issues, body image, traffic, etc.

Needless to say, making just one change in my routine has lead to having a more fulfilling day with my daughter and wife. I have plenty of minor details to work out, but sleeping earlier and smarter has solved the bulk of my issues. Having that stress-free time in the day to have genuine fun with my wife and daughter is something I will cherish forever.

routine, stress, happy, family, changes, stay-at-home

That’s what really matters. Missing a workout is no big deal, and I know it, so hopefully I’ll work on fully accepting it when that time comes knowing I’ll be able to jump right back on board soon again.

If you’re having trouble with your current routine, try and find the one thing that will lead to many more positive changes throughout the course of the day. For me, sleep was the big one, maybe it is for you too. Whatever the case, seek it out and change for the better. Trust me, you and your friends and family will be happy you did.

Life, Parenting

Baby’s Firsts are Fun, But What About Their Lasts?

01/02/2016 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

You have approximately 940 weeks from when your baby is born to when they (usually) head off to college. It’s true, Google’s calculator says so…

940 might seem like a lot, but how many have you already used with your kid or kids? And as they grow older, they will be spending less time with you and more time at school and with friends. Before you know it, the weeks will become a blur and you’ll have less than 100 left to cherish. Then, you’re helping them pack to leave and saying your goodbyes.

I know this isn’t the case for every family, but for many, it is. Avery is only 9.5 months, and I get emotional just thinking of that day she leaves Going Mom and me. Although we’ve been parents for less than a year, time truly is flying by, and the little squirmy baby that easily fit in our hands, is now a bigger squirmy baby we need to firmly hold with both arms!

Lately, as I’m sitting with Avery in her dark nursery and feeding her a bottle for nap time, I have been thinking more and more of how little time we really have. Getting her to actually fall asleep while holding her has become a rare event, and I usually resort to just laying her in her crib to where she’ll move all over the place until finally giving in to sleep.

But, it doesn’t seem that long ago when she’d fall asleep on the bottle, and I could hold her on my chest and just rock with her before laying her in her crib….still sleeping. Now my wife and I both look back on those days and tell each other if we are ever so lucky to have that chance again. Kelley is able to experience this more because of that damn comforting boob, but it’s still a rare occurrence.

This quickly fading part of our parenthood makes me think how excited we get about every “first” we experience with Avery, but we don’t always consider there will be a last. Even as she’s sitting on the floor crying for no reason, there will be a last time we come over to pick her up and hold her.

Soon, crawling will be a thing of the past and we won’t have to stoop so low to pick her up. And then *gasp* she’ll grow up to where picking her up and holding her is simply unacceptable!

It’s sad to think, but there will be a last time you pick up your baby.

As this thought entered my mind, many more “lasts” soon followed. I remember my delight when I fed Avery her first bottle, but now I’m thinking of how one day, I’ll be feeding her the bottle one last time. It’s bittersweet, really, because obviously that means she’s moving on to bigger and better things with food and I can’t wait to show her the wonderful assortment of fresh produce to enjoy, but still sad to think about.

Even things like diaper changes; there will a last change of diapers before she wears big girl undies. Using a swaddle for the first and last time has already happened, and I can barely remember those days. As a new parent who still has a lot of firsts to enjoy, I know there will be many lasts to endure as well.

Eventually, I will have to stop wearing her in our baby carrier which is a huge part of our lives. Every day, I make it a point to wear her and go for a walk. Luckily, the Onya can support up to 75 pounds, but I imagine I won’t be wearing her at that point! And blowing raspberries? Sadly, this is already fading fast.

At least not every first will mean there’s a daunting last in the future. When she walk for the first time, I expect she’ll be walking for her entire life. When she gives the first real hug, I can only hope she’ll give us hugs for eternity. But there are also many firsts we have yet to encounter that will be accompanied by lasts.

One day, after we are through with bottles, we’ll give her a sippy cup for the first time, but then, we’ll get rid of it as she upgrades to bigger and better drink ware. Same for plates and bowls; the colorful cartoon-decorated items will eventually be used for the last time when she is ready for bigger things.

She will develop a deep love for that special toy and we’ll get used to seeing her bring it with her everywhere (update: that toy is Lamby as of January 2016), but there will be a last day she wants to carry it with her and it will be put up and forgotten.

This is not because I have negative view about everything, rather, it allows (or at least helps) me to enjoy every day for what it is and to not take it for granted. Because once today is over, it becomes a thing of the past and will only live as a memory. Would you prefer worrying over petty things every day and letting them disturb your thoughts, or does enjoying the life around you and shrugging off the small stuff sound better?

I choose the latter, and need to remind myself of this every day as I am what some call a “worry wart”. As I spend my time with Avery, watching her learn and grow, I want to make sure to enjoy her now, just how she is in the present. Because, while she has many firsts yet to come, she also has many lasts.

Do you have grown children that have already had many “lasts”?

Any thoughts or stories to share of your own?