A Click A Day · Quotes For You

Boathouse Reflection

Our life is a reflection of what we allow ourselves to see and be.

Boathouse, reflection, water, image, sea, quote, photograph

A Click A Day · Photographs

Quenching The Thirst

What can we do without water? Every living thing would cease to exist.

The men are carrying barrels of bottled water, and the pigeons help themselves to the free fountain from the urn.

Urn, Fountain, Birds, Water, Nature, Life, Photograph

Urn, Fountain, Birds, Water, Nature, Life, Photograph

Guest Posts

A Single Mom’s Guide To Raising A Happy, Healthy and Safe Family

Happy kitchen, Parenting, Raising A Family, Single Parenting, Security

Image credit – Flickr

Raising kids by yourself is a lot of hard work but it’s definitely doable. In order to overcome the stress, anxiety, and challenges that come with it, you need to have a lot of patience and the right strategies. Here are some ideas a single mom can use to keep her family safe and healthy.

Get A Work That Fits Your Family

As a single mom, it’s essential that you have a steady source of income for the family. This, however, shouldn’t be at the expense of your kids or your relationship with them. Even though you have work, you still need to make time for them.

One of your best options is to find a job that can let your work from home. There are actually tons of online platforms you can send your application to. If being home-based isn’t an option, then you should consider reaching out to your present company and ask if you can be given a more flexible working schedule.

Ensure Your Kids’ Protection

If you worry about leaving your kids at home alone, then getting a security system is a must for you. A surveillance system is one of the most effective ways you can ensure their complete protection at home.

In selecting the right system for your family, it’s best that you consider its price, features, and coverage. You want to find a system that fits the budget but doesn’t come short when it comes to protection. If you are living in a rented space, there are a lot of DIY systems you can choose from. Most of them don’t come with high price tags and can be conveniently taken wherever you go.

Read reviews first and talk to some of your friends to get an idea of what type of system they are using and how it’s helping them out. Do not sign up with any company without doing any research and background check.

Spend Quality Time With Your Kids

Being physically present with your kids isn’t enough; you also have to know what’s going on with them. Quality time doesn’t always have to be expensive. You can cook their favorite food for dinner, take them out for a short walk to the park or spend a night watching their favorite movies with them.

You should also make it a point to ask what concerns them or if they are having any problems at school. Encourage your kids to be open as much as possible so that they won’t feel the need to keep secrets from you. It’s also helpful if you can get to know their friends and the people they spend most of their time with. Since technology is easily accessible these days, monitoring your kids’ smartphones for any dangerous app is essential, too.

Have Patience

Raising your kids alone can be a daunting task. There will be times where you’ll get annoyed, stressed and even frustrated. If you feel this happening to you, try to engage yourself in some form of relaxation techniques. Deep breathing is one of the easiest technique you can do since it requires no equipment or special tools.

It’s also a good idea to get into meditation daily or you can try exercising. You can try Yoga since it relaxes both mind and body. Starting off with 10 to 20 minutes a day can set you on the right track. You can also try running. It’s a good exercise to improve your mood and thought process.

Know Your Limitations

As a single parent, you should expect tons of work and tasks to finish. This, however, doesn’t mean that you have to do it on your own. One of the most common reasons why single parents easily get burnt out is because they feel overwhelmed with their responsibilities.

Don’t be afraid to reach out to your family and friends to ask for help or when you want to vent out. You should also go out once in a while and treat yourself as a reward for your hard work. Going to a salon or treating yourself to a pampering night with at-home spa products can ease your stress and rejuvenate you for the next day.

Guest Post Written by Andy Cho – Topsecurityreview.com

 

 

Life

Warning! Distress Alert!

Hurt, Pain, Young Ones, Killing, Duckling, Poetry, Harsh Reality, Life

I took a stroll to clear my head.
Going down the Marina, under the bridge to a quiet spot.
In a dark corner, a slight movement startled me out of my thoughts.
The sight that drew my eyes made me sick to my insides.
I had shut down the disheartening news of Manchester
wondering when humanity would recover its senses,
only to come across this one.

I am no different from this little baby.
except that I am an older duck
We are all loving beings that value our lives
and it hurt.
It hurt me to watch this young one
who hasn’t even grown to the prime of her quacks

It hurt to watch her entrails hanging out
to hear her distressed cries of pain
I can’t figure out what could have caused it
what could have brought so much pain
even when I tried to draw close
she just kept drawing away in fear.
I cried. I suddenly broke down into huge gulping sobs.

My mind went to the young children,
senselessly killed in Manchester.
Now this baby duck!
I wished I have all the healing skills
that could patch this one and put it back together again

For several moments, I didn’t like myself
I didn’t like the fact that I didn’t know what to do
That I just watched helplessly
just like we are all watching these senseless killings helplessly
I whisper a sigh of prayer for these young souls.
I whisper a well-wish. In this moment,
I just don’t like humans.

Jacqueline

Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · My Thinking Corner

There Is Always HOPE! My Thinking Corner

When we don’t have anything to hope for, then what are we living for?

Hope, Quote, Life Lessons, Persevere, Commitment, Inspiration, Motivation

When we realize that our destiny lies in our hands through changing our thinking, when we realize that so long as we inhabit our bodies and notwithstanding the fact that we grow older, that if we’re mentally, physically and spiritually able, we can still pursue those dreams that brighten our eyes and light up our hearts.

The one thing that we need to help us carry on day to day is hope because with hope there are possibilities. With hope, there are alternatives to our despair.

Let’s Talk About It!

Rononvan's Weekly Haiku Challenge

Miracle…Ronovan Writes Weekly Haiku Challenge

Miracles, Photographs, Quotes, Poetry

She called herself a realist,
believing in only what she could explain,
until a miracle saved her.

§

Nothing can save you now,
not even a miracle;
and then the unexpected happened.

©

Jacqueline

Miracles do happen. Every day.

A Click A Day · Photographs

The Beautiful Ones…

Each day a beautiful one is born
adding her colourful effervescence
to the medley of growing beauties.

flower photography, beautiful, nature, hibiscus, photography, flora

flower photography, beautiful, nature, hibiscus, photography, flora

Short Stories

Unpredictable

She hissed in annoyance and sighed in resignation. Not knowing if her irritation was due to her changed plans, the unpredictable weather, the weather channel or the summation of all three.

They just never seemed to get it right these days. Especially the new weather girl with the dry sense of humour, pout and too much makeup. She had said they would have a fair Spring day, yet here came sleet with ice nestling on the leaves.

With another sigh at her changed plans, Geeta put the kettle on for a spot of tea. She should have listened to her bones. Her tired bones could tell the neurotic weather better than all those fancy TV personalities, except maybe Harrison’s creaky bones.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

InLinkz

In response to the FFAW photo prompt above. Thank you loniangraphics for our photo prompt and Priceless Joy for this enchanting platform.

Featured Blogs

Featured Posts – Share Your Post Links

Sharing, Blogs, Networking, Growing Readership, Connection, Bloggers, Blog Posts

‘PLEASE SEND IN YOUR LINKS.’ 

Today’s featured blogs are:

Put your hands up in the air Excellent read! Caught between and betwixt 40’s and 50’s. Awakening to an awakening and holding your breath for the mid-life crisis 😉

Kaylee Marie blog Have you met Kaylee Marie? Check out her blog where she offers great tips on beauty, lifestyle and traveling adventures. I hope you enjoy!

Storyteller Check out the Storyteller. Scintillating, thought-provoking tales in bite-size.

Soulful Strut There’s is something simply satisfying about struts around the neighbourhood. Toss in good music and your soul is glad.

Hear The Melodies All I can say is ‘just beautiful.’

Do step in, explore these blogs and show some love.

Do you want more eyes on your words?’

Well then, add your LINK INTO THIS LOOP.

Comments are disabled here to keep the loop tidy. Any comments or link you want to send can be added through the link in the post.

Thank you for your understanding and regards.

‘Remember, we create a cohesive community when we come together.

Mundane Monday

Forgotten Blade… Mundane Monday

Mundane Monday challenge is created to find beauty in almost everything.

The challenge is simple. Find beauty in everyday mundane things, capture the beauty and upload the photographs.

Roller Blades, Pink, Photograph

I wonder what happened to the other blade? The little owner obviously didn’t quite want them again or simply misplaced it. I guess her mother gave her ears some talking to?