Use an Anti-Virus {Tips-n-Tricks Tuesday}

   What is it with me and weird posts lately? The last post was about a book with zombies and werewolves - this is about running an anti-virus on your computer.

   Well, bear with me here. Let me just tell you this: using a good anti-virus on your computer is very important. It saves you time, money, and stress by wiping away viruses on your computer. You've probably heard commercials before about how viruses can steal your passwords and credit card numbers, make your computer slow, and sometimes render your computer barely usable (if not completely unusable). Some of you might be saying "yeah, of course - I've been using those things forever." But I've found that there are alot of people who use their computers regularly, but never check for viruses. Instead they wait until it's broken really good and ask their nearest related teenager to come fix it. That's not necessarily bad, but sometimes it can get annoying to keep fixing things that could have been easily avoided by the computer owner. Trust me, I'm sort of in the middle somewhere - not the "nerd" and also not the "doesn't-run-anti-virus-person" either. So I also hear the computery peoples' frustrations and I'm putting out a plead today on their behalf: run a good anti-virus on your computer!

   It's really not as complicated as it sounds. Find a good anti-virus and use it. Ask the teenager that fixes your computer what a safe one is (some of them are viruses in themselves - so don't download something unless you or your computer friends trusts the anti-virus) and maybe they'll even help you set it up and teach you how to use it if you offer them some yummy hot chocolate and a plate of spice cookies or some other yummy cookie! I use "Malwarebytes Anti-Malware". If you download it, just make sure you use the update tab in the program before every time you do the scan.

   Then don't forget it! Put it on your calendar if you have to and do a scan at least once a month - or if your computer is acting funny. Your computery friend will thank you for it.

   In closing, I am so thankful for the various anti-virus programs we have had over time. They have wiped out so many nasty viruses. Just think of it. How much money would we spend if we had to replace our computers every time we got a virus, if there was no anti-virus software? Wow. Now you're thankful for it too, aren't you?!

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   Disclaimer:

(I am in no way affiliated with "Malwarebytes Anti-Malware" and I am not held responsible for anything between you and "Malwarebytes Anit-Malware".)

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73 Home-made Christmas Gifts

 

   73? Yup! Don't you ever sit down and wish you could think of something really cool to make for relatively cheep as Christmas presents? So do I. So when I came up with this list, I just HAD to pass it on.

   They vary in difficulty and cost. So just scan through and see what sparks your interest. These are also SUPER GREAT to make with your kids or siblings. Good quality time ;-) And if you don't know how to make something, google it! I'm sure you can find a tutorial.

   And most of all - be creative! These are all very, very basic descriptions. Take the idea, sit down with the kids, and RUN WITH IT! Have fun!

1. Partially pre-made "photo album recipe book" with recipes in it using index cards

2. Wooden toy chest or stacking organizing boxes

3. Leather-bound book (pages home-sewed too)

4. Various (blank inside) hand-made stationary

5. Body-care kit (lotion, soap, bath salts, bath bombs, soap-cozy, lip gloss, deodorant)

6. Birdhouse

7. Hair accessories (beads, sewed, etc.)

8. Jewelry

9. Food in a jar

10. Notes in a jar

11. Quilt

12. Doll clothes

13. Simple girls' skirt/dress

14. Framed art picture, poem, or saying (painted, colored, pressed flowers, etc.)

15. Homemade play-dough

16. Pre-made healthy snack/dessert/meal (frozen, canned, dried, "just add water", etc.)

17. Sewed purse

18. Cute guitar-string wiping cloth

19. Wind chime

20. Wooden car/truck toy (ride-able size?)

21. Wooden toy blocks

22. Dog/cat treats

23. Pretty doily

24. Tool-box

25. Jewelry box

26. Family/individual picture, framed

27. Water-paints

28. Pick-up-Sticks game

29. Mancala game

30. Hacky-sacks

31. Braided rug

32. "Favorite Crafts" book with all your favorite craft ideas in it

33. Wooden toy horse barn

34. Windowsill herbs in cute pots

35. Make computer game on the program called GameMaker (I remember this neat program from my younger years)

36.Make a home-movie

37. Make a home-cd of you singing music

38. Painted coffee mug, plate, or bowl (and glazed)

39. Princess crown

40. Write on a whole roll of toilet paper for a funny (don't make holes!)

41. Wall hanging (paper, wood, metal, cloth, etc.)

42. Write a book

43. Garden seed organizer container (for big and small seeds)

44. Sewed slippers

45. Cute or manly tack-board

46. Washcloth/scrubby (knit or crochet)

47. Paint a glass vase/bottle

48. Sidewalk chalk

49. Kids' baking apron

50. Bird bath (mold from concrete)

51. Wooden bowls (via lathe)

52. Chair

53. Baby-doll bed

54. Cedar picture-frame

55. Glass board used like a white-board (hang it on the wall and it looks nifty)

57. Simple wooden bench (to put by back door for shoes, plus storage space, etc)

58. Flower arbor

59. Leather knife sheath

60. Woven bike basket

61. Bobsled

62. Cool bookends

63. Christmas ornaments

64. Kite

65. Leather-braided watch band

66. Simple wooden medicine cabinet

67. Simple hand-propelled merry-go-round (popular mechanics volume 6, back of book)

68. Outdoor rotating worm bin

69. CD holder

70. Wooden child's play house

71. Clothes hamper

72. Make essential oils

73. Hammok

   Share some of your ideas with us!

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Sister Time on the Computer

Just the other day one of my sisters was mulling around. Bored. She decided to go on the computer. But still bored. It's amazing how much more fun something can be when you do it with someone else. I said, "Hey, I'll play with you." "Really?!" She exclaimed. So for the next 1 1/2 hours I played a multiplayer real-time strategy game with her. And hey, we even won the game!

Just because computers are for "wasting time" as some may say, doesn't mean that we can't spend time together and have good fun with them.

Today, ask your sister to play a computer game with you. Even if you are bad at computer games, just get over it and play with her! Especially if she likes computers. If she is a fan of computer games and you aren't, it will mean even more to her that you took the time to play with her. Your little sister will feel SOOO important. Go ahead. Try it. Just make sure that if you're bad at computer games, you don't play on her team. Otherwise she might be afraid to let you play!

Do it and remember to keep it lighthearted, even when you get upset - have fun!