Training puppies

I learned how to train dogs when I worked for Canine Companions for Independence back in high school. I guess I didn't really work for them, but volunteered. They use volunteers to train dogs for handicapped people, as service dogs. I did some foster care, taking care of little puppies until they were matched with trainers, and caring for older dogs in various stages of training while the trainers took a pup-less vacation. I loved learning about dog training, and as a result I was able to train our dog we have now pretty well. Like children, dogs need consistency. I'm a big fan of 'teathering' and crate training. If you see puppies for sale at some place like www.puppies-forsale.co.uk you can get one with confidence if you know how to train them. To teather, you literally teather a new puppy to my waist with a leash. Then I can correct every misbehavior immediately, and this speeds up the training process. If puppy can't be with you, you can put him in his crate. Due to the dog's DNA, he's designed to be just fine in a secure area. He might not like it at first, but eventually he will like his 'den' (crate) or point of refuge from the world. These are the two training methods that I use the most with dogs.

Local places have dogs for sale too, which might be a better option if you want older dogs so you don't have to mess with the chew up everything puppy stage.

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Web Hosting

I've found that a good website can actually be profitable enough to make it worth doing, especially if you are staying home with kids. It's something that can be done during nap time, and with scheduled posting a good long nap for both kids can yield a week's worth of content. I use website hosting because I'm not technologically savvy enough to do it myself. Check out webhostinggeeks.com if you're looking into paid blogging or another website that makes money. Paying someone to host your site that really knows what they're doing helps you to look more professional.

Dave Ramsey is always trying to get people to think outside the box and find unusual places to make a little extra money. While he does support moms staying home with the children, or just to be homemakers after the children are gone, he also encourages us who are in Baby Step 2 and 3 to be gazelle intense, and squeeze a little extra out of everything. For me that means doing some crafts and selling them online, and doing money making blogs. When you trim your budget down to nothing but the essentials, and then follow through on your budget, it's easy to see that even a little money here and there makes a huge difference. Back when we had no plan, I made substantially more money than I do now, but we never had any. Now we're living on 2/3 of my hubby's income, and the other 1/3 of his income and all of mine goes towards debt. It's nice to see some progress being made when we get those card statements in the mail.

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Public Safety Products

Public Safety Equipment is available online from a company that has been in business since 1977. Whether you need EMS gear, wholesale police equipment, or firefighter equipment. They are a friendly company where you will be treated with respect. Fast friendly service, quick shipping time, and attention to detail are what are important here. There is a toll free number, or secure ordering online, so you're covered however you want to order. I like when a company has their 800 number right where I can find it easily. It shows that they're not afraid of customer service, so I likely will not be disappointed in buying from them.

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Autobody repair

If you're looking for auto body repair it pays to look into who you're dealing with. Autobody repair can make or break the sale when you need to sell your current car. Ask to see examples of how they match paint, take out dings, and scratches. I was kind of a dumb driver when I first started driving (I thought that faster was better) and ended up plenty of times in an autobody repair place. Twice just for them to tell the insurance company that the car was really totaled, and once that they fixed it after I got in a fight with a guard rail. Go ahead and search online for autobody work, and see who has a good reputation in your area.

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Multi Player Games

Do you like to play multiplayer games? My hubby does, and I think that if I were to be into video games, the only way I'd stay interested is if I was playing against real people. Hubby likes the challenge of another person's unpredictability, especially with war games. He spent a winter outfitting my work computer (!) with all sorts of software to enable him to play against others online. Where he prefers more war and strategy type games, I prefer simpler ones like Tetris and Solitare. Whatever games you like, there are some out there online for free. Go check out http://www.8c1.net - they have a fast site and you can sign up for free at this quickly growing network community.

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Start Page

This browser start page is a cute way to customize your internet experience. It's not affiliated with Google, but is very googlish. Uses Google search, though.

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Custom T-shirts

Do you want something to get the word out of your business? Printing you own custom T-shirts is a great a business tool. You can let your satisfied customers advertise for you at surprisingly low rates with free or low-cost shirts that bear your business name on them.

Hint: people are more likely to wear your shirt if it's tasteful. Most people prefer a little image on the upper left chest and a larger image on the back, rather than a large image across the front. The more they wear them, the more exposure for you.

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Singing bowls

Crystal Singing Bowls are available at Silver Sky Imports. They are an online retailer specializing in Yoga and meditation needs, as well as natural hand made goods. Their singing bowls really are unique; they are hand made and listed individually so you really choose which bowl you are buying. Listen before buying as well. A timeless technique of relaxation, check out their website for more information about using singing bowls to center your thoughts. Each bowl comes with a striker and cousion to complete the set. They have other hand made items out of natural materials to use in your home and for yourself.

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Engaging Members

Do you want people to remember your business? How about draw in new customers? Keep existing customers? Wild Apricot has many ways to Engage Members online and keep them visiting your website for information, social networking, socializing, and just to have fun. An active forum is a great way to publicize your business. Show customers that you know your stuff and care about them by being their online host. With more and more people connecting with like minded individuals or long lost friends and classmates over the world wide web, now is the time to get with the program and encourage this on your website.

Use an online calendar to give notice of upcoming podcasts, sales, or new product availability. When people are excited about what is coming up, they will create a buzz and spread the word for you!

If your looking for search engine optimization, content that updates like blogs and forums is very helpful.

When customers know that websites are going to change and have new content up often, they visit often! Market your brand, and leave a lasting impression that your customer remembers with Wild Apricot for Associations.

Wild Apricot's smart website software includes many applications, including it's social networking tools like blogs and forums that both empower and engage members.

Many of their users find that blogs are a great way to keep members up to date in a casual and easy environment. It allows members to join in on conversations and share opinions about the latest activities and ideas. Users of their website software have found that this has saved them a great deal of time by sharing important news asap...and then getting feedback that is much needed and appreciated!

Forums have created many wonderful communities amongst Wild Apricot users as well. They let your members reach out to you and other members in an open and inviting environment. It also allows you to find out what matters to them most while giving them the opportunity to connect with other members who have similar interests.

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Air Conditioning

As someone who grew up with the coastal fog coming in nightly, moving from Northern California to Montana where it stays hot overnight was a shock to me. Before we moved here, we thought that people who had air conditioning were being silly. But after one summer with long nights of humid heat, we realized that air conditioning was kin of a must for our life. I know it's not as high of a priority as food or shelter, but it's right up there above internet access even. Because when it's hot hot hot, we don't sleep well, and when we don't sleep well, the days just don't go well. So now that we're renting, we check to make sure it has central air, or at the least a good place to put a window unit for the bedroom.

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Autobody Work

auto body shops colorado is what you're looking for? Well then check out collisionrepairexperts.com. They are USA's premier autobody website. Autobody repairs guaranteed for life. Quality that protects the value of your vehicle. Insurance company approved autobody network. When choosing an autobody shop, I've found that it's best to choose one who has a lot of experience. They know how to work with insurance companies to get the work paid for quickly, are experts at matching paint colors, and know tricks to get everything done the way you want it. Taking a minute to research autobody shops could save you time and money, so whether you've been in a fender bender or just need an estimate because your car is totaled, visit the collisionrepairexperts.com today!

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Rustic Furniture

What am I looking for when I look for rustic furniture? Well, I love rustic furniture, since we enjoy country life and aspire to own a little cabin in the woods. What I look for is sturdy construction that will last, even if I have to pay a little bit more for it. I personally like lighter solid wood, but my husband likes darker stained wood. We like classic styles that never look out of place, and we like standard dimensions will fit in a regular sized country home, not huge that would only fit in a mansion.

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Skin Care

How do you keep looking your best? We know to keep out of the sun to reduce wrinkles and sun spots, but if those are already happening, visit North Scottsdale Laser. Especially in warm Arizona, it's hard to stay out of that glorious sun. So if you have some skin issues, especially on your face, that you would like evaluated, seeking professional skin care can be your answer. Choose a professional clinic that is focused on safety and you, the customer. When I was on the swim team in Jr High and High School, I seriously considered getting lasar hair removal. I had a friend who got her leg hair removed and it was pretty neat. No more daily shaving, especially in the rash prone bikini area. I never did it, but I think if I had my husband certainly wouldn't complain! As a busy mom, it's rare that I get both legs shaved at the same time...

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Tax Relief

Boy do we know about debt right now. We did the typical generation Y thing and bottomed out financially a few years ago. We're still recovering, but we know about everything from how to get Tax Relief from the IRS (paid that off out of 2008's refund... they had been on our backs since 2005), to how to settle credit card accounts (US Bank... finally), to how to negotiate a workout payment on the truck that we bought when we were first married, but couldn't afford, and ultimately had to have repossessed. Lots of Americans are having trouble with this right now, with the first downturn of the economy in our generation.

As Larry Bourkette said, debt isn't the problem, it's a symptom. And whether you are having trouble with the IRS or your credit cards, student loans, or vehicle payments, the issue needs to be addressed from the inside out. For us now I'm thankful that we bottomed out when we were in our 20s (23 and 25 actually) so that we can now live like noone else so that later we can live like noone else (thanks Dave). We've had multiple creditors calling us daily, had threats of lawsuits, learned how to negociate with the IRS to be put on noncollection status, and been so much a slave to the lender. The Good Book is right. We don't want to do that any more, so two years ago now we cut up our credit cards and have been slowly been paying them off. The first to go was the dirt bike loan, sold the dirt bike and that covered it thankfully. The next was a couple smaller credit cards when we sold our property and moved into a rental in town that we could afford. The IRS was paid out of both our 2007 and 2008 tax refunds. Another credit card was settled for 15 cents on the dollar out of the 2008 refund as well. Now we have Sallie Mae, Discover, 1st Financial, and USAA totalling 12K that we're working on, and the balance due for the truck that was reposessed that we are going to try and settle with our 2009 tax refund.

Next step will be to save 3-6 months of expenses (for us that is 6,000- we've gotten good at living on beans and rice) and then saving 20% for a down payment to buy a home. Dave Ramsey says that we should take out a 15 year fixed mortgage with 20% down, but we're going to do a 30 year fixed unless hubby is blessed with a huge pay increase. We are done with car payments. We drive an old, paid for car (and yes, we have to budget for expenses, but it doesn't even touch the $385 car payment that we used to have) and we're saving to buy another old car in cash so I have something to drive around town.

We are living like noone else so that later we can live like noone else. And lovin it. We are so much more at peace now that we're not spending money that we don't have. Call us weird, Dave says that's a good thing..

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Time

When looking for a new watch, why not check out Best of Time - Where Time Lasts Forever? For deeply discounted prices you can afford a quality watch. As I've learned, and we're all learning in this recession, there is a shortage of money to be spent. So when you are looking to purchase something, purchase something that will last both in style and in mechanics. Best of Time - Where Time Lasts Forever is the place to start when looking for a high end watch. I know that I look at my watch 50 times a day or more. When you use something that often, you don't want to sacrifice on quality. But you also don't want to pay a huge markup. So shop around, but start at Best of Time - Where Time Lasts Forever.

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Dog Training

My husband is more of a dog person than I am (though I don't mind outside dogs), but since I'm home all day with the kids, and before we had kids I was home all day doing medical transcription, the bulk of the Dog training falls on me. When I was a teenager I used to do Dog training for Canine Companions for Independence in Ronert Park, CA and so that's where I picked up my training style. For those who aren't experienced with dog training, and are too busy to take a weekend class, I'd recommend training DVDs to show you how to take command over your dog.

The Dogfather will teach you his method of dog training using his command collar technique so that you can take control and start enjoying your family pet rather than just dealing with him. Check out the testamonials about his success stories, you will find lots on his website! Whether you have problems housebreaking your puppy, teaching your older dog to not jump on company, or keeping your pup off the furniture, I strongly encourage you to look into an intensive training course for your dog. Everyone in the family can participate, and Fido will become a loved addition to the family, that brings you joy, teaches your children about responsibility, and serves as a discuoragement to intruders.

I know that we love having our dog, Riley, at our home and when we go on walks. And since he's trained well (He's a border collie) I don't even have to bother with his leash when we're walking. He walks right along side the stroller and sits with a snap of my fingers. He loves it, and we like it, as we feel protected when he is with us.

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Finding a dentist

When looking for a dentist, where do you start? Do you ask friends or family? What if you're new to the area? Most of us now are on the computer, so the internet is a logical way to start. You can search for a Sacramento Dentist any other type of dentist by doing a simple search.

When we look for a dentist, we prefer to find one that will work with the whole family. Children learn and are comforted by seeing their parents do things, so if they visit the same dentist and go after the parents, they are likely to feel better about the experience. To us, another important topic in finding a dentist is finding one that doesn't use fluoride, as fluoride is known to be a toxin to the body. In Europe they don't use fluoride, and there isn't an abundance of tooth decay. We also choose not to use amalgam (silver) fillings because of the heavy metals in them that leach into the blood. Searching for dentists in this family is no easy task!

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When your car is broke

As a previous teenage driver, I'm well acquainted with autobody shops like the excellent ones at auto body shop ontario Search that and you can get autobody shops near you, quickly, when you need them. Now that I'm a mom, I've slowed down and am much more cautious. But when I was a new driver, depsite informing my parents that I was very slow and cautious, I drove like a complete idiot in my Volvo. Reminds me of George Carlin's 'safe car' routine :) So look for your auto repair experts at www.autobodyontario.com and remember to buckle up and drive safely, whatever your age

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