Zombie Walks

Have you ever heard of a zombie walk? They've been around for a few years and it's essentially when a group of people (sometimes very large) get together, dress up as zombies and walk with a zombie gait in a public space, like a shopping mall or down Main Street. Seattle Weekly has a slideshow of a recent zombie walk through Seattle. If this sounds like good, creepy fun to you, check out www.zombiewalk.com to find a meeting of the undead in your area. Let us know if you've ever participated or have seen one of these in your area.

Happy Halloween everyone, and don't forget to post your costume pictures on the forum (click here).

What to Do With Your Money

Are you a deer in headlights when it comes to your money in the market? You probably feel like the rodent that's been run over. Regardless, Newsweek offers some advice. It says to put your money back into the market--as much as you can--really. Their logic is that over the long haul, the market will go up. Here are some more specific bits of advice:

Put your money in a Roth IRA
"You'll pay income taxes on the amount you convert, but that amount is probably a lot lower than it would have been without the recent market rout. And given the astronomical deficits that Washington will have to fix sooner or later, your tax rate may be at an all-time low. Once your money is in a Roth, you'll be able to reap all the future earnings without paying taxes on them."

Invest for income.
"High-yield stocks and corporate bonds have been among the hardest hit in recent market sell-offs, but they are exactly what you want in your portfolio as you head into retirement"

Use a health savings account.
The theory behind these is that they enable you to save up to your deductible without paying taxes on it... For 2008, you can contribute $5,800 and an additional $900 in catch-up contributions if you're 55 or older."

What have you done with your money, anything?

Stay Married and Kids Less Likely to be Thieves

In an interesting project called Mapping America by the Family Research Council, it reports that family structure has a direct impact on the likelihood of adolescents stealing. The study says 13 percent of children who live in an intact married family admit to having stolen at least $50 worth of goods. The number jumps to 19 percent of children whose parents never married or are divorced have stolen as much, and again jumps to 20 percent of those living with a step-parent. The number of adolescents who steal drops to 15 percent of those living with cohabiting biological parents, and jumps up again to 23 percent of those living with one cohabiting biological parent.

It good that adolescents of married couples steal less, but doesn't it seem like 13 percent is high! That means if you walk down the street in your neighborhood, more than one in every 10 homes would have a real thief on their hands. We can do better than that. Not to mention these are just the kids who actually admitted to stealing. Yikes!!

Marriage Classes in Alabama

If you're marriage needs a pick me up or just a tune-up, the Alabama Community Healthy Marriage Initiative has put together a county map for the state that lists workshops and marriage classes in each area. Click on the county you live in and you'll be redirected to a list of classes offered in your area. The most populous county in Alabama, Jefferson County, lists the following:

Wanda Davidson
Community Presbyterian Center
201 Church Ave.
Birmingham, AL 35242
205-791-2857

Scott Estes
Pathways Professional Counseling
2681 Rocky Ridge Lane
Birmingham, AL 35216
334-451-0804

Deborah Harris
Barbara Britt Pickens Counseling Center
2609 Drennen Place
Birmingham, AL 35242
205-515-4268

Mark Wadler
Jennifer Wilmoth
IMPACT Family Counseling
1000 24th Street South
Birmingham, AL 35205
205-916-0123

Ward Williams
Vinyard Family Services
4733 Valleydale Rd.
Birmingham, AL 35242
205-533-7853

If you're a marriage expert, counselor or marriage educator reading this, you can post your own workshops, classes, etc. on our Married Life network for free.

Cell Phones and Internet Strengthen Family

It may seem like your kids texting away on their cell phones or keeping their eyes glued to online videos is tearing down the strength and tradition of family, but it's not. Well, tradition yes, but not strength. In a survey published by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 25 percent of adults said cellphones and online communication made their families closer while 11 percent said that the technology had a negative effect. Overall, 47 percent of adults said cellphones and the Internet had improved the quality of family communication. One of the authors said the parents like the new communication tools because they know what each other is doing during the day. All of you parents out there can be thankful that your parents didn't text you throughout the day, keeping tabs.

Do you keep tabs on your kid(s) throughout the day by internet or cell phone?

ADHD Kids Strain Marriages

It's not surprising that kids can affect and put strain on a marriage, but this stat is high. According to a study by State University of New York-Buffalo, parents of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are almost twice as likely as other parents to divorce by the time their child is 8 years old. The authors of the study say, however, that if you and your spouse can survive the eighth birthday, the rate of divorce stops climbing. Further adding to the stress is the fact that ADHD is hereditary and mothers with ADHD children are are 24 times more likely than other mothers to have it while fathers are five times more likely. Meaning, while trying to deal with a child, one of the parents is very likely to also have ADHD, which can be a point of conflict on its own. Some good news came out of this article from USA Today, researchers in Canada found no difference in divorce rate of parents with ADHD children. Do you have a child who's been diagnosed with ADHD; and has that affected your marriage?

"Honey, It's Time for a Diet"

Belittling a loved one about being too fat and then undermining efforts to lose weight are common mistakes among couples according to experts in this article from MSNBC. For example, making jokes about your spouse's weight, then when they do start losing the pounds, bring home a thing of cookies. In this article, this scenario happened and the couple eventually got divorced. So how do you tell your spouse that they're gaining a little too much weight and you're worried about them? Here are a few tips:

1. Don't nag
2. Be loving
3. Don't judge
4. Help solve problems
5. Don't sabotage
6. Be a role model
7. Don't play cop
8. Be a role model

To get more in-depth explanations on these steps, click here. Do you think you're spouse needs to lose weight? Talk about it on our forum.

Don't Count on Holiday Bonuses

It may be a little early talking about the holidays, but they are just around the corner. And with the economy going crazy like it has, it's worth planning now than get stuck on December 24th with no bonus check for relief. The AP just came out with a story saying that many who are expecting and have received year-end or holiday bonuses in the past shouldn't expect to get them this year. Obviously if the company you work for is doing well and has been doing well, you may not have anything to worry about. Then again, they may be planning for rougher waters ahead. Either way, here's your friendly reminder that it's not wise to plan on non-guaranteed money.

Fan in Baby's Room May Prevent SIDS

A study from Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine says babies who slept in a room with a fan were 72% less likely to die from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). The study included interviews with the mothers of 185 infants who died from SIDS and the mothers of 312 other babies. In addition to fans, the simple act of opening a window also seemed to reduce the risk of SIDS. According to the this article from USA Today, doctors don't know exactly why fans seem to help, author De-Kun Li, a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist with Kaiser Permanente's research division says that perhaps the improved air circulation, preventing infants from rebreathing exhaled carbon dioxide, which can pool up in the gap between a baby's face and the mattress is the reason. The good news is that deaths from SIDS has dropped in half since 1992 according to this article. Other things parents should do to help protect their babies are putting them on their back to sleep and don't put the baby in your bed and sleep with them.

Ford Key Monitors Teen Drivers

Are you a parent who sweats when your teen takes the family wheels out on the town? Ford feels your pain. They have recently introduced the MyKey, a programmable ignition key for Ford automobiles that monitors teenage driving behavior. So what can this magic key do? A lot of things. It can limit the speed of the car, say 80 mph. It can limit the volume of the stereo. It can prevent the stereo from even coming on if someone in the car isn't wearing their seat belt. It can also make warning sounds when your teen begins to hit higher speeds. For the parent who wants a play-by-play, this PC World article mentions that for a fee parents can have the key track the point-by-point destinations through the GPS.

What do you think, is this a little too big brother or what every parent has been waiting for? MyKey will be introduced as a free standard feature in the 2010 Ford Focus and Ford hopes to eventually make it a standard feature on all Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury models. I'm sure kids everywhere are already talking to their smartest computer-hacking friends.

Wine from Faucets

It's been a tough week and we've been holding onto this one for a few days just because we knew it would put a smile on your face. It's Friday, and the Dow Industrial has just concluded it's worst drop in history! If you've ever needed an excuse to drink, now may be it.

In Marino, Italy they hold a grape festival every year and reroute the plumbing to have sparkling white wine flow from the fountains in the main square. In an "error", the plumbing was switched to local homes instead. Which meant that wine was literally flowing from the faucets of local residents. The London Times reported that some locals were able to fill up jugs of wine before the error was corrected. Have a great weekend. Click here to read the full post.

Dying of a Broken Heart

Have you ever noticed that when half of a longtime couple passes away, the other partner passes soon after? Researchers at the University of Glasgow found that widows and widowers were at least 30 percent more likely to die of any cause in the first six months following a spouse's death than those who hadn't lost a partner. They followed over 4,000 couples. Many experts in this article from MSNBC say that context matters, meaning older couples with deteriorating health are at higher risk. More amazing is what Rollin McCraty, research director at the Institute of HeartMath in Boulder Creek, Calif., found after he studied six longtime couples' hearts while they slept. While they were sleeping beside each other their heart rhythms fell into sync, rising and falling at the same time. Their EKG printouts looked virtually identical. So imagine sleeping in perfect harmony with your spouse for 50 years and having that ripped away. "Is it possible to die of a broken heart?" asks Dr. Hope Wechkin, the medical director of Evergreen Hospice in Kirkland, Wash. "Absolutely."

60 Minutes Explains Wall Street Crash

It's difficult to make out the connection and jargon of the financial collapse on Wall Street, but 60 Minutes has a great 12 minute video that helps explain how our economy got into this situation. It's likely that just about all Americans will feel the effects of the current crash, if not immediately, perhaps when they look at their portfolio in six months and see how it's disappearing. How have you been effected?

Contradictory Marriage Satisfaction Survey

Parade magazine released a marriage survey of 1,001 married Americans aged 18 and over. The results showed 88 percent of participants reported being either happy or reasonably content in their marriages. Seventy percent of men say they never think about leaving their wife. What's surprising is that 19 percent of men said they'd had sex outside the marriage. Eleven percent of women also admitted to cheating. So what keeps married people together? According to the survey, 71 percent of couples said they've stayed married because of deep love while 73 percent cited companionship. To read all the results, click here.

Where Did That Hamburger Come From?

Keep an eye out the next time you're at the grocery store looking to pick up ingredients for dinner. A new law has gone into effect that requires all meats, fish, and fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables to be identified by their country of origin, whether by a sticker, a sign, a placard or a label. Organs such as hearts, livers and kidneys are not included. As this article from USA Today points out, there are a few loopholes. For example, cooked and processed foods are exempt. Another loop hole is that when you combine two of these foods, they become exempt. Meaning, frozen strawberries are covered and frozen blueberries are covered, but when they're put in the same bag, their origin does not have to be announced. This has been in the works since 2002 and it's finally in the stores. If you see that your beef has traveled 8,000 miles, will you put it back and instead go for the local stuff?

Secret to Happy Marriage: 4 Hugs a Day

A study, which this article from the Telegraph doesn't say from where, says four hugs a day is a key to a happy marriage. The study interviewed 4,000 couples and also found many other secrets. Like the four hugs, many are surprisingly specific. For example, seven evenings in together every month with two proper dinner dates. Another is two romantic walks a month and at least one visit to a pub or cinema without the children or other friends. Other highlights from the study are:

- Husbands should give their wife flowers or another gift at least once a month
- People to spend at least one evening away from their partner a month

What's the secret to your happy marriage?