My

Blog

January 26, 2013 Blog By admin No Comments

Radical Green Cleaning for Your Home

We’ve been to the moon and back, but we’re still cleaning the way we did 100 years ago, and those habits are hard to change. We think it’s not clean unless we get that chemical smell, but what no one told us is that there are no regulations for cleaning products. Good mothers use  Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo, we thought. They just came out with this concession, to remove all toxins by 2015.

The famous ’10 Americans’ study in 2004 of 10 umbilical cords, tested for 413 toxins and environmental pollutants. The chilling test results showed that the 10 cord blood samples contained 287 toxins and chemical pollutants, 200 on average per baby, including 212 industrial chemicals that were banned 30 years ago! The chemicals included waste products coming out of incinerators and smokestacks, and ingredients from pesticides, like flame retardants, teflon chemicals and pesticides.
Of these chemicals

  • 134 are linked to Cancer
  • 151 are associated with Birth Defects
  • 154 cause Hormone Disruption
  • 186 cause Infertility
  • 130 are Immune System Toxicants
  • 158 are Neurotoxins such as lead, PCBs, and mercury that can have far-reaching effects on developing children’s intelligence and coordination.

Leading researchers believe industrial chemicals have brought a silent pandemic in children.

In November 2012, a new policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics outlines the harmful effects on children and makes recommendations on how to reduce exposure. A new report this week stated that ADHD is on the rise. One in five children have autism, ADHD, ADD, or allergies, 7.3 million American couples have trouble getting pregnant or carrying to term, up 20% in the past 10 years. Cancer is on the rise.

Chemicals are taken in via inhalation, ingestion and absorption. Cleaning sprays can be inhaled, a crib or high chair cleaned with lysol can be ingested or absorbed through the skin. Safe levels of chemicals over a long period of time equals a level that is too high. Nearly all traditional cleaning products have chemicals that are bad for humans and for the earth. Find your favorite cleaning product in this list.

What can we do?
We can’t avoid all exposure. Some people just love their cleaning products. This is a challenge for many. I shared this with my 93 year old mother who still cleans her own windows, and she just laughed, “I’ve been using amonia and window cleaner all my life and I’m not dead yet!”

The average home has 62 toxic chemicals.  Eighty-five percent of housekeepers die within one year of retirement. And when these toxins are used, it’s putting more chemicals into the environment.

Make your own green cleaning recipes. 

Work with your nanny or domestic staff to  mix up simple green cleaning recipies using vinegar, lemon, borax, liquid soap, olive oil.

Don’t use aerosols
They are easier to inhale and the particles are smaller. The particles go deeper into your lungs. Some aerosol particles stay in the air for up to two days and a baby can ingest it. A trigger spray is better.

Use gloves
Your skin is one big absorbing sponge.

Think about ingestion.
Did you use fabric softener on that baby blanket? Then baby sucks on the blanket. Nervous system disorders are linked to  dryer sheets.

Beware of flame retardants
Hidden hazards tested 20 popular new foam baby products for toxic flame retardants linked to serious health problems

No one is using disinfectants properly.
Beth Bittenbender of Pure Strategies spoke to the DEMA Domestic Estate managers Convention last September, explaining that, “For a disinfectant like lysol to work properly, the surface needs to be cleaned first, then sprayed with the Lysol and allowed to sit for 10 minutes, then wipped off. But who takes the time to do this? This procedure  can kill 99.9% of germs. However that .1% may adapt and become a superbug.”

Great tools to use:

  • Microfiber rags and water give better results than chemicals.  Cotton is food for germs.
  • Use a sealed HEPTA vacuum for allergies.
  • Electrolyzed water changes the PH of water. Electrolyzed water was discovered over 150 years ago. Table salt and tap water are infused with electricity into water, and it cleans and disinfects and degreases food, tables, counters and sinks. Electric tea pot sizes are available as well as wall mounted units at Pure Strategies
  • Liquid Ozone (O3) kills bacteria 3,000 times faster than bleach.
  • Dry Steam Vapor is a high heat, low moisture process using minerals and can be used as a pesticide against any insect from bedbugs to scorpins.
  • Increase your indoor air quality with plants, especially in the nursery. Plants pull toxins out of the air.
  • Install self cleaning surfaces, called nano-coating. Chandelliers and windows can be coated so they can be cleaned with a dry rag.
  • UV lights can be installed in the HVAC systems to kill microbes.

These products can be used with pets,  animals, in pools and hot tubs.

Do what you can and don’t worry about the rest.
My daughter-in-law showed me all the toxins in toothpaste, so I quit using it. My two year old granddaughter looked at me  a couple weeks later and said, “Grandma, your teeth look yucky!” so now I’m back to poisoning myself at least once a day.

Knowledge is power

  • Your goal is not to get rid of all germs. Desensitizing children to germs, makes them less able to fight back normal levels of infection.
  • Don’t feel overwhelmed, start small.
  • Reduce your chemical footprint. When getting rid of your old cleaning compounds, bring them to a city recycling event like  the one in Tempe April 20 

Here are some other programs we found:
City of Scottsdale Hazardous Waste Options
City of Phoenix Hazardous Waste Schedule
City of Chandler Hazardous Waste Schedule
City of Gilbert hazardous Waste Schedule
City of Mesa toxic waste recycling
City of Peoria hazardous waste recycling
Fountain Hills hazardous waste recycling
Carefree hazardous waste recycling
Cave Creek hazardous waste recycling

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Read More
January 19, 2013 Blog By admin No Comments

A Hip Hop Violin Medley and Developing Your Child’s Creativity

A pundit once described genius as the ability to take two seemingly unrelated subjects and “mash them up” to make something wonderful. A great example of this is Josh Vietti’s Hip Hop Violin Medley. It’s simply outstanding, especially the last two minutes. Well worth the watch.
Want to teach creativity like this to your kids? It doesn’t just come by accident. It must be cultivated. Here are 10 ways to develop creativity in your child.
Being a father is your most important job and unlike many other responsibilities, you don’t get any breaks and you work at it seven days a week. So All Pro Dad and NFL Player Engagement have teamed up to bring you the WeekEND Zone, a new resource to help you engage with your children on the weekends and create new family memories.
WeekEND Zone Activity:
Couch Potato Kickoff

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Read More
January 12, 2013 Uncategorized By admin No Comments

How To Mother a new Mother

Why is it that babies of Mexican immigrants in the US have lower infant mortality in the first few weeks of life than average American women? In rural Mexico, Hispanic mothers also avoid postpartum depression, compared to 15 percent of US mothers. What are they doing differently? One reason is the “cuarentena” — 40 days of completely compulsory nurturing for the new Mom. For the first six weeks, family and neighbors come together to ensure the mother eats, sleeps and bonds with the new baby. There’s no cleaning, cooking, or errands. The outcome? A happy mother and a happy baby.
New mothers we see using our agency are typically sucessful professionals between 30 to 40, independent, with successful careers, used to being in control of their lives and overcoming challenges. Bringing home a new baby is overwhelming, and nothing can prepare her for that first one. Hospitals are not designed for sleeping, so by the time she arrives home with baby, she’s utterly spent. Not used to asking for help, her whole identity has radically morphed into how successful she feels she is at mothering. When I had my

firstborn, I’d never changed a diaper! How did that happen? In our culture, we live far from parents and extended family, and we think we should be able to do it all.
When my second baby was born, I had the blues. I wasn’t feeling any emotion towards my baby, and I’d run out of diapers. I stared out the window at the clean ones fluttering on the line. This was 1968 and dryers had yet to be invented. I was so emotionally spent, I couldn’t go get one. I finally got up to get a diaper, and a few months later, my emotions returned, but that experience has given me an inkling of understanding of what others go through.
Three causes of non-medical postpartum depression are a lack of sleep, poor diet, and clutter or disorganization. People used to a perfect environment are now unable to keep up with housework and making balanced meals.
Sleep is crucial now, but hard to get. Be sure the new mom naps during the baby’s nap. Get someone to take the baby at least a couple of hours a day so she can rest. The tiredness is intense.
Get some help. Being a new mom can be lonely and isolating if dad is back to work and family isn’t close by. A friend who can come over and fold some laundry or spend time with the new baby so Mom can get a nap or a shower, is invaluable. This isn’t so crucial for new moms, because they can sleep when the baby sleeps day and night, but after a second child, it’s helpful for a friend to come and take the older child on an outing. It’s pretty rough being dethroned by a new baby, and the older child needs some special attention.
Supplying meals for a new mom is so helpful. New moms need lots of veggies, foods rich in Omega 3 fatty acids and B vitamins such as Riboflavin to bolster against postpartun depression. Friends can send a gift certificate for your favorite resturant, or bring a home cooked meal that can be warmed up or frozen for later. Mealbaby.com is the perfect way to organize meals! It’s free and easy!
If Grandma can’t help or if you need space from family, hire a mother’s helper, a newborn specialist  or baby nurse for help at night, or a doula. A newborn specialist can be 24 hours 7 days per week, or just nights. A doula is there more for the mom, preparing meals, taking over baby care for a period, preparing meals, doing housework, or a full night shift. Both are helpful for answering questions, hands on education, and reassuring the new mom that she’s doing a good job.
If there’s someone doing housework, mom will feel free to rest, since naps are her only time to get caught up.
Listen. Care. Validate her feelings. She may break down and cry, feeling inadequate. What she needs now is understanding, listening, caring. Let her vent. Ask questions. Be curious. Don’t try to solve the immediate problem but aks more about how she’s feeling, giving her your time, and lelt her know you care. Most of all, she needs to know  she’s doing a wonderful job with her newborn.
Help her connect with a mom’s group or friends she can go on play dates with.
Offer to run errands for her or babysit so she can get out of the house by herself, or offer to run errands with her. Go with her for her six week check-up. Or offer to babysit she she can go out with her husband for a few hours.

Beth

Read More
January 12, 2013 Blog By admin No Comments

How To Mother A new Mother

Why is it that babies of Mexican immigrants in the US have lower infant mortality in the first few weeks of life than average American women? In rural Mexico, Hispanic mothers also avoid postpartum depression, compared to 15 percent of US mothers. What are they doing differently? They don’t have insurance or top notch medical care or education. One reason is the “cuarentena” — 40 days of completely compulsory nurturing for the new Mom. For the first six weeks, family and neighbors come together to ensure the mother eats, sleeps and bonds with the new baby. There’s no cleaning, cooking, or errands. The outcome? A happy mother and a happy baby.
New mothers we see using our agency are typically sucessful professionals between 30 to 40, independent, with successful careers, used to being in control of their lives and overcoming challenges. But bringing home a new baby is overwhelming, and nothing can prepare her for that first one. Hospitals are not designed for sleeping, so by the time she arrives home with baby, she’s utterly spent. Not used to asking for help, her whole identity has radically morphed into how successful she feels she is at mothering. When I had my firstborn, I’d never changed a

diaper! How did that happen? In our culture, we live far from parents and extended family, and we think we should be able to do it all.

When my second son was born, I had the blues. I wasn’t feeling any emotion towards my baby, and I’d run out of diapers. I stared out the window at the clean ones fluttering on the line. This was 1968 and dryers had yet to be invented. I was so emotionally spent, I couldn’t go get one. I finally got up to get a diaper, and a few months later, my emotions returned, but that experience has given me an inkling of understanding of what others go through.
Three causes of postpartum depression are a lack of sleep, poor diet, and clutter or disorganization. How can we nurture new mothers so they can successfully nurture their newborns?

  1. Sleep is crucial now, but hard to get. Be sure the new mom naps during the baby’s nap. Get someone to take the baby at least a couple of hours a day so she can rest. The tiredness is intense. If the Mom is nursing, she can pump for one feeding so that she gets five to six hours of sleep at night.
  2. Get some help. Being a new mom can be lonely and isolating if dad is back to work and family isn’t close by. A friend who can fold laundry or spend time with the new baby so Mom can get a nap or a shower is invaluable. This isn’t as crucial for new moms, because they can sleep when the baby sleeps day and night, but after a second child, it’s helpful for a friend to come and take the older child on an outing. It’s pretty rough being dethroned, and the older child needs some special attention.
  3. Supplying meals for a new mom is so helpful. New moms need lots of veggies, foods rich in Omega 3 fatty acids and B vitamins such as Riboflavin to bolster her against postpartun depression. Friends can send a gift certificate for your favorite resturant, or bring a home cooked meal that can be warmed up or frozen for later. MealBaby.com is the perfect way to organize meals! It’s free and easy!
  4. If Grandma can’t help or if you need space from family, hire a mother’s helper, a newborn specialist  or baby nurse, or a doula. A newborn specialist can be 24 hours 7 days per week, or just nights. A doula is there more for the mom, preparing meals, taking over baby care for a few hours, preparing meals, doing housework, or a full night shift. Both are helpful for answering questions, hands on education, and reassuring the new mom that she’s doing a great job.
  5. If there’s someone doing housework, mom will feel free to rest, since naps are her only time to get caught up.
  6. Listen. Care. Validate her feelings. She may break down and cry, feeling inadequate. What she needs now is understanding, listening, caring. Let her vent. Ask questions. Be curious. Don’t try to solve the immediate problem but ask more about how she’s feeling, giving her your time, and letting her know you care. Most of all, she needs to know  she’s doing a wonderful job with her newborn.
  7. Help her connect with a mom’s group or friends she can go on play dates with.

Offer to run errands for her or with her or babysit so she can get out of the house by herself. Go with her for her six week check-up. Offer to babysit so she she can go out with her husband for a few hours.
So let’s learn from our neighborns south of the border and do a better job of taking care of our mothers by making sure that they get

  • plenty of sleep
  • nutritious food
  • rest
Beth
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Read More
January 5, 2013 Blog By admin No Comments

Here’s What You Need to Know for 2013 Taxes

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

NEWS & NOTES FOR 2013

Here’s what you need to know for the new year:

  • The Payroll Tax Holiday Has Expired. The social security tax has reverted to its traditional 6.2% (it was temporarily reduced to 4.2% in 2011 and 2012 in an attempt to stimulate consumer spending).  The change will decrease take-home pay for all U.S. workers.  Your full-time nannies will see a change of about $10-$15 per week, depending on their income level.
  • The FICA Reporting Threshold Did Not Change. The $1,800 threshold has been extended through 2013.  Families who pay a worker less than that amount are absolved of the FICA reporting responsibilities under the “casual babysitting exemption.”
  • The Federal Mileage Reimbursement Rate Has Increased.  The rate for mileage reimbursement increased by one penny per mile.  It’s now 56.5 cents for each mile an employee drives on the job.

ANNOUNCING A NEW SIMPLE SOLUTION TO WORKERS’ COMPENSATION INSURANCE

We are very pleased to announce a major breakthrough in our long-time quest to provide families with simple, affordable  access to workers’ compensation insurance.

We’ve always educated families on workers’ comp and guided them to the best solution for their situation/state.  However, in recent years, the solution options have dwindled.  More and more families have complained that finding an affordable, stand-alone policy is difficult.  In some states, it’s next to impossible.

So, we decided to take control of the situation.  After more than a year of research and meetings and due diligence, we have teamed with PMC Insurance Group and an A-rated underwriter to help them create HomeStaffPROTECT — the first and only workers’ compensation insurance product custom-built to meet the unique needs of nanny employers.

Since we worked closely with PMC Insurance Group to develop HomeStaffPROTECT, Breedlove clients will have exclusive access to this stand-alone workers’ comp product.

It will be extremely convenient.  With instant online quotes and a pre-filled online application (pre-filled from their Breedlove payroll data),  obtaining a workers’ compensation policy will take families less than 5 minutes.

If you’re wondering about cost, you’ll be pleased to know that HomeStaffPROTECT will be a low-cost leader.  PMC is a wholesale provider and Breedlove does not take any commissions or mark-ups or charge any administrative fees.  So, our mutual clients can rest assured that they’re getting the best price possible.

Finally, we’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that customer service and claim support are handled with the same level of expertise and responsiveness we deliver on our payroll service.

HomeStaffPROTECT is licensed in 24 states (which includes all of the “problem” states) with more states coming soon.  In all of the other states, we’ll continue to educate and guide as part of our setup process.  The bottom line is we can now ensure — one way or another — that families in every state have a convenient, cost-effective solution to workers’ comp.

We’re excited to bring the combination of high quality, high convenience and low cost to the workers’ compensation insurance market as a way to help families and nannies receive this important protection.

If you or your families have any questions about workers’ compensation insurance, just let us know.  We’re here to help.

Guest Blogger, Tom Breedlove

QUICK TAX FACTS

$1,800: Annual wage threshold for Social Security & Medicare (“FICA”) reporting

$1,000: Quarterly wage threshold for Unemployment reporting (some state thresholds are lower)

$2,500: Total childcare tax breaks available for families

1.5: Overtime rate of pay when work week exceeds 40 hours

$0.565: Federal mileage reimbursement rate

$7.25: Federal minimum wage (some state rates are higher)

$2: Approximate daily cost to have Breedlove & Associates handle all payroll and tax compliance duties with no work and no worry.

HELPFUL LINKS

Employee Paycheck Calculator

Employer Budget Calculator

Nanny Tax Overview

Helpful Videos

88-BREEDLOVE (888-273-3356)

www.myBreedlove.com

Connect with us online!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Read More

About Us

Caring Nannies has been matching nannies with families since 1983. Whether you are a seasoned nanny or just starting, we will help match your passion with a dream job you’ll love!

Contact Information

(480) 946-3423

jenny@acaringnanny.com

Social Media