conception and contraception calendar

(384 pages)

Your Complete Retirement Planning Road Map: A Comprehensive Action Plan for Securing IRAs, 401(k)s, and Other Retirement Plans for Yourself and Your Family by: Ed Slott publisher: Ballantine Books released: 2007-12-26 ISBN: 0345494563 $10.85

This is the same diagnostic system I use with my own clients and with the financial advisors I train. So, going through it will be like having me sitting beside you, whispering in your ear, guiding you every step of the way.”

–from Your Complete Retirement Planning Road Map


Corporate pensions are disappearing. Social Security is in trouble. And the sizable postwar generation is reaching retirement age. With the futures of millions of Americans at stake, Ed Slott, the country’s foremost retirement planning advisor, now offers expert advice on weathering the perfect storm of financial instability that looms on the horizon. Your Complete Retirement Planning Road Map, Slott’s most essential and accessible book yet, provides clear step-by-step directions through the highways and byways of IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and other major accounts.

In five helpfully focused sections, Slott combines crucial facts with interactive checklists and questionnaires (those he uses with his own clients) to teach investors and beneficiaries alike the best way to save and to maximize an inheritance. Inside you’ll discover

• My Account Inventory: an overview of every retirement savings account you own, whether you’re thirty or sixty-five–from what it is and where it is to who gets it and how, plus where to put important data for easy access and where to store your essential documents (hint: not in a safe-deposit box)
• The Account Owner’s Care Solution: how to properly fill out retirement account beneficiary forms so that whatever amount of money is left in your account after you’ve fully enjoyed retirement will go to whomever you choose and not to relatives who suddenly pop up out of nowhere
• The Account Beneficiary’s Care Solution: what to do when you inherit so that you won’t lose any of the tax benefits and other opportunities your benefactor has created for you, or make a mistake that could wipe out an inherited fortune that took years to build up
• The Special Issues Care Solution: how to handle the out-of-the-box issues that could affect you or your beneficiaries (e.g., life events such as divorce or incapacity; tax issues for unmarried partners; decisions about trusts)
• The Follow-up Care Solution: how to keep your planning on track and make adjustments when circumstances change, and how to determine whether your professional retirement advisor is really up to the task of preserving and protecting your money
• Plus: the most up-to-date information on tax laws, including the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which provides major new retirement incentives that you can take advantage of

Your Complete Retirement Planning Road Map is an indispensable planning solution that is sure to become the standard how-to on a complex subject that is becoming relevant to more people every day.


From the Hardcover edition.

Got the book. So much information and easy to follow. Made this whole scary, complex area more manageable.

Bob

Being retired or on the way to retirement, this is a good source of information.

(512 pages)

Taking Charge of Your Fertility, 10th Anniversary Edition: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health by: Toni Weschler publisher: Collins released: 2006-10-31 ISBN: 0060881909 $16.47

I have found this book very helpful in getting started with the FAM method to avoid conception as an alternative to hormonal birth control methods. The author very clearly describes the fertility process and the steps to observing and charting a woman's cycle. I especially enjoyed the tone of the book, which is gently humorous and devoid of religious ideology. It really convinced me that FAM is a good method of birth control as well as an aid to conception.

The downside is a few "over the top" moments in the book. After using this method I will agree that the process of taking a temperature every day and charting fertility signs is not as inconvenient as I had originally thought, but I will not go so far as to say that "charting is a privilidge".

Overall, this book is a good start. I recommend it.

My husband and I had been trying to conceive for 4 months without any luck so I decided to buy this book - we got pregnant the 1st month that I started charting. I am assuming that most people reading this review are trying to conceive so I will add that I also was taking an herb called Vitex which I would highly recommend as well. I believe that the combination of this book and Vitex helped me get pregnant.

Wow! A friend told me about this book, and I ordered it right away. I am so relieved and amazed to finally find a method of keeping track of my cycle, and avoiding pregnancy! Every gal should have this book!!

I learned how to read my body for signs to let me know when to "try". I knew exactly when we conceived, because I knew my body was ready. It took one month to chart and understand, and the second month we got pregnant. Good information, easy to read.

This was a wonderful and informative book. My husband and I were set on using natural birth control when we got married, and weren't quite sure of the specifics. Originally, we got a book on NFP (very similar to the FAM method described in this book). The information was very similar, but this book was so much easier to read and understand. We thought the charting and temperature taking would be too much, but we got used to it pretty quickly. The book also came with a computer program that I love, because it calculates everything for you, and even predicts your cycle (very accurately for me!). I would highly recommend this book to any couple who wants to avoid or achieve pregnancy. I have read many books and internet articles that have their information all wrong about your temperature and your fertile and infertile phases. Written by doctors none the less! Even more reason to READ THIS BOOK!

(288 pages)

The Financial Peace Planner: A Step-by-Step Guide to Restoring Your Family's Financial Health by: Dave Ramsey publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) released: 1998-01-01 ISBN: 014026468X $10.88

This is an excellent product to help people with their finances and establish a budget. Dave Ramsey has a great plan to help people get out of debt and stay out of debt. This should be required reading for all young people entering adulthood.

Dave Ramsey speaks from experience. He is incredibly black and white, and full of faith. I actually did some of the things he recommended in the past when I was younger and had debt, and not only did they work, they gave me an incredible sense of control.

This book is a very approachable method in reviewing and planning your finances. It is intended to be used by implementing a chapter a week, but if you have already accomplished the beginning items, you can move a bit faster...as long as you pay attention to the lessons you are skipping and are sure you understand them.

The characters he uses for illustration purposes are one dimensional, but readers can easily see themselves or those close to them in the characters.

The workbook is NOT BORING, NOT DRY, and easy to understand. It can be used in conjunction with the Financial Peace (or Financial Peace Revised) book, but works well on its own. After reading it, if you are understanding that materialism is good, but not to be worshipped, you can accumulate a good bit of wealth in a reasonable period of time.

The book is very motivating. Anyone can understand it, anyone can use it. You don't have to be broke, up to your eyeballs in debt or bankrupt to appreciate it. In fact, you'll have a leg up on those who are.

If you are looking for a way to plan you future, are facing a promotion and want to be wise with your money, or are just interested in a basic, non-threatening way to learn about home economics and investing, this is the book to read.

Comes with great forms to help you evaluate equity, learn about your household budget (he calls it a 'cashflow' plan), percentages of income should be dedicated to what expenses, etc.,etc.

It helps to see budgets in black and white and be reminded how simple it is supposed to be for us.

Dave Ramsey hits it on the head - I wish I had read it at 18 years old. Personal money management can be tough, but this book (as well as all the Dave Ramsey books) gives very clear, concise instruction on how to manage your life's fortune (or how to create a life's fortune).

He is hysterical and animated - It's easy, fun reading.

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it is a little dated. I bought this book along with Financial Peace Revisited, and I found this one to be more helpful. It is just the basics/outline of the book, but he actually gives examples so you can build your budget worksheets, which i found really helpful.

Having said all that, I highly recommend the books to anyone that doesn't have a written budget. I thought I had one, albeit in my head, but it turned out that I had no idea where our money was going. I was in shock when I really started tracking our spending and found that we were overspending in areas we didn't need to. Now we use cash and our debit card, instead of our credit card and I feel I'm in much more control of our money. One of these days we'll be out of debt...

(320 pages)

What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know: Preparing Your Child for a Lifetime of Learning (Core Knowledge Series) by: E.D. Jr Hirsch publisher: Delta released: 1997-08-11 ISBN: 0385318413 $10.20

With its comprehensive curriculum providing a sound basis in the fundamentals of math, art, history, language arts, science, and technology, the phenomenally successful Core Knowledge series has become an esteemed tool for parents and teachers striving to better educate today's children. And since it is agreed that the first years of schooling are crucial to a child's lifetime educational achievements, it is no wonder that parents and teachers alike have been asking for a volume for kindergartners.



This primer for those just beginning their school careers was devised with the contributions of over 2,000 parents, educators and students, distilled into a user-friendly volume specifically designed for parents to use with their children. Eighty pages of four-color illustrations enliven the new, bold design of this latest title in a series adopted by hundreds of schools nationwide and appreciated by thousands of adults looking to instill in children a lifetime love of learning.

My children are 3 years and 20 months. This book has provided numerous, fun, learning opportunities for them. My redheaded 3 year old had a fun time when we discussed the section about Thomas Jefferson. She was thrilled to learn that he loved books (just as she does) and that he also had red hair just like her. The format of this book is great. It is divided into subjects that make it very easy for a parent to use with their children. Even though my children are young, they are still gleaning knowledge from this book when I use it in conjunction with "What Your Preschooler Needs To Know". I highly recommend this book.

I purchased this book so I can understand (in general) what my 4 year old needs to knows before Kindergarden. He currently goes to preschool but like most little kids he is hungry to learn more. I have been extremely happy with the book and its content. I agree with others that some of the stories are graphic and deal with death but it is my understanding that between year 4-6 kids are developing difference between good and evil. There are times that I pre read stories and edit them in mind prior to reading them to him. Overall excellent book and well worth every penny.

This is a book that I would recommend that any parent get. It helps me teach my child what is needed to know at each grade level. Delivered on time, with no problems.

Excellent resource for anyone who wants to make sure their child is getting a good educational foundation. Our child actually insists that we read from it daily. Very user friendly.

This series of books is incredible. We purchased the Fourth Grade, Second & Kindergarten and they are all fabulous. My husband and I even enjoy reading them. These books are a must for your kids. Highly recommend.

(320 pages)

Parlay Your IRA into a Family Fortune: 3 EASY STEPS for creating a lifetime supply of tax-deferred, even tax-free, wealth for you and your family by: Ed Slott publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) released: 2005-12-27 ISBN: 0143036416 $10.20

Ed Slott is without a doubt “one of the country’s leading IRA experts” (Reader’s Digest). Appearing at a time when virtually everyone is concerned about retirement savings, this authoritative thoroughly accessible book presents an easy-to-follow plan for making money—a lot of money— with your IRA. Slott shows readers how to choose the right financial advisor, manage vital information and deadlines, and create a retirement fortune that will not only benefit the individual, but continue to enrich beneficiaries for generations. This powerful, straightforward tool is the book for Americans interested in creating a fiscal windfall for the future.

Ed Slott is excellent in his field. I find his other books full of good information and alwasy watch when he is on PBS. The book has good informative for leaving your money to your loved ones, but, I wonder if the loved ones will leave the money in the IRA for it to grow or automatically take it out for immediated spending once they inherient it. A lot of people are in extreme debt and would see this as an opportunity to correct some of that debt. The concept is easy to understand, but I was looking for something for those of us who plan to spend every dime before we go. I will keep the book as a reference in case I change my mind.Parlay Your IRA into a Family Fortune: 3 EASY STEPS for creating a lifetime supply of tax-deferred, even tax-free, wealth for you and your family

[[ASIN:B000HT2P1Q Parlay Your IRA into a Family Fortune: 3 EASY STEPS for creating a lifetime supply of tax-deferred, even tax-free, wealth for you and your family].]
This is a great book. Really can be helpful if you have professionals who know what they are doing as the key is doing the correct thing at the correct time and making sure that those you bequeth the IRAs to also understand what to do.
I work in this area of financial planning/management so am not sure whether the "regular" person would understand it, but just having read this, it will be helpful if more professionals read it

This book shows you basically two options. Give most of your tax deferred assets to the government after you and your wife's death, or set it up so your kids and/or grandchildren get it. It is amazing how many financial and legal types that I have shown this too that didn't know about Stretch IRA's. Great book to teach you how to keep your hard earned dollars in the family instead of sending to the government.

I think I understood the underlying theme of this book, but the author made it more difficult to read and understand than need be. It seemed he was trying to be either clever or funny to the detriment of the content.

ONly on the first chapter and already learning what I should be doing. Easy to read and understand. With book's help I may be able to save a lot of money.

(384 pages)

What Your Second Grader Needs to Know: Fundamentals of a Good Second Grade Education Revised (The Core Knowledge Series) by: E.D. Jr Hirsch publisher: Delta released: 1999-07-13 ISBN: 038531843X $10.20

Since the Core Knowledge series was introduced, hundreds of thousands of children have benefited from these books' effective and user-friendly knowledge-based curriculum. Researchers at the Core Knowledge Foundation constantly refine and update the curriculum based on feedback they receive from parents and teachers across the country. This new, revised edition of What Your Second Grader Needs to Know reflects the fruit of that research and features a complete redesign with thirty-two pages of color illustrations.

Every parent should buy these books for their children. We bought the Fourth grade, second grade and Kindergarten and they are all fabulous. The kids find them very interesting and my husband and I even enjoy them. They are packed full of terrific information. Highly recommend. This is a book your child has to have.

I have been very pleased with this book. I love to get ideas out of it for our homeschool.

When I bought this book from Amazon, I knew it was a steal! My daughter has already been helped so much by its stories, activities, and short biographies of famous people. I plan to eventually buy all of the books in the Core Curriculum series. They're just like vitamins and vegetables, they're good for kids!

This series is very good to my kid. It covers not only literature and math, but science, art, history, etc as well. Both my kid and I like it very much.

This is an excellent book. My husband and I read many passages for my son. He likes them very much. They enrich his mind tremendously. My son's school somehow does not provide this much content. We would miss a lot fine literature, history, and geography without this book. Thanks to the authors. I do see the math part is too easy for second graders nowadays. For practice, we use Beestar math and ELA (a wonderful web site www.beestar.org). Its free weekly exercises are about right and very helpful. Overall, this is an outstanding book loaded with fine content. I highly recommend it.

(160 pages)

Birnbaum's Walt Disney World for Kids 2008 (Birnbaum's Walt Disney World for Kids By Kids) by: Birnbaum Travel Guides publisher: Disney Editions released: 2007-09-18 ISBN: 1423103874 $10.36

Very enjoyable book for my son. We read a little each night so that when we go on our trip to Disney, he will know what to expect. Also, there is a ton of pages in the back for Autograph's with a place to put a picture next to it.

My daughter and son both LOVE this book. It gets them excited and shows them a little of what to expect. There are real kids' opinions and reviews of rides and attractions. My daughter very much enjoys reading all about Disney! She'll definitely be prepared when we set off for our trip!! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone!

This book has all the answre's to questions on disney world. It's a fabulous book . It has every thing in it we need to know. We will definitely be taking this book to disney world with us, when we go in june.

This book was an excellent resource for us when taking our 20-month old to Disney World. Originally we bought it for the autograph section, but it soon became handy for reading quickly about each attraction at the separate parks. The tips written by children themselves were also helpful. The book is softcover and lightweight - easy to carry in your backpack all day at the parks.

BOUGHT THE BOOK FOR MY DAUGHTER (WHO'S 8) AND SHE IS SO EXCITED ABOUT GETTING SOME AUTOGRAPHS AND FROM LOOKING THRU IT SHE KNOWS WHAT THE BEST RIDES FOR HER ARE! GREAT PICTURES IN FULL COLOR-VERY KID FRIENDLY!

Good to Great CD: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't by: Birnbaum Travel Guides publisher: HarperAudio released: 2005-06-14 ISBN: 0060794410 $26.37

Good to Great is a great book for anyone in business. I was amazed at some of the less obvious lessons learned from the years of research as well as the simple truths that seemed obvious after they were revealed.
I am a small business owner with a professional degree but with no formal business education. It was good to read "research" that was not all stuffy and dry. A particularly strong point for me was the argument for why I should strive to be great and not just "good" or even "mediocre". I am planning on reading Jim Collins' other book, Built to Last.

"Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't" by Jim Collins was a real eye opener for me.

In this book, Jim Collins, observes 28 companies over the span of 5 years. Over this period of time 11 of the companies make the leap from "Good to Great". The findings in this book were truly eye opening and inspirational. I loved the chapter on Level 5 leadership. Collins starts the chapter using a quote by Harry S. Truman "You can accomplish anything in life, provided that you do not mind who gets the credit". This is the essence of the book.

I also loved that in this book he speaks about how the executives that ignited the transformation for companies that went from good to great, did not figure out how to drive the bus, but how to get the right people on the bus (and the wrong people off) and then they figured out where to drive it.

Another book I really enjoyed reading about transformation is Being Here: Modern Day Tales of Enlightenment. Any person who is looking to grow their business would greatly benefit from reading both these books.

The condition of this book was excellent. I recieved it in a very timely manner. If you currently own or are looking to own your own business, this book is invaluable. The concepts are concrete, realistic, and attainable. I highly recommend this book.

If you are like me and struggle to keep a business running at a profitable level, then you need books like this one. In my opinion, "The Businessman's Bible" is an alternative title for this great and informative text.

This book is gleaned from facts acquired through years of researching the ups and downs of thousands of companies, to learn what works and why, and what definitely should be avoided in the business world.

If you are in business or even contemplating going into business, then you must read this book.

Real Life Dramas - Volume One

Darren G. Burton

This is one of the most quotable books around. There are excellent tidbits, which can be applied to everyday business. For example, Right people on the bus, Hedgehog concept, Level 5 leadership....a dabbling for everyone to enjoy and quote.

(854 pages)

Guide To Getting It On! by: Paul Joannides publisher: Goofy Foot Press released: 2006-07-25 ISBN: 1885535694 $18.68

The Guide To Getting It On! has won five awards and has been translated into 12 foreign languages. It has sold hundreds of thousands of copies from the dorms of UC San Diego to the bedrooms of Tripoli. Some people say The Guide is the best how-to book on sex ever written--we say it's the most fun to read. It is smart enough to be used in sex education courses, but is also a favorite at stores that sell the kind of sex toys that will land you in the slammer in Mississippi, Alabama and Texas. Schools even use it to train doctors. The Guide covers a full range of topics from romance, necking and losing your virginity, to things we can't even mention here.

Sorry, but I'm the author of this book, and they wouldn't print this note unless I gave the book a star rating.

We've been wrestling with Amazon for the past year to have the current 5th edition of the GUIDE TO GETTING IT ON come up first when shoppers do a search. It still doesn't. Instead, the 3rd edition from 2001 comes up. Heck, the German edition comes up before the current 5th edition!

I pride myself on making sure that you get the absolute latest information, and I put more work into each new edition than a lot of authors put into an entire new book. You are selling yourself short if you read anything other than the current 5th edition, which is light years better than the 4th edition.

You might ask, what's changed about sex? There's a tremendous amount of new information about human sexuality that is coming out all of the time. We are constantly finding out that we've been wrong about certain things, plus there's new research findings to analyze and integrate. At any given time, I've got a "must read" stack of new publications about sexuality that is at least three feet high--from the latest in the Journal of Sexual Medicine to learning about new sex slang.

If you are reading The Guide, I hope you'll make sure it is the latest edition--which for now is the 5th with a publication date of 2006. We did an updated 2nd printing of this edition in June of 2007.

This book is one of the best guides you can find for overall, general information about the sex act. It is very ambitious, and runs the gamut from top to bottom, left to right and every other direction. It's fun to read, and is a must for any sexually active couple. Couples may also like a more specific book about oral sex. The Sensuous Couple's (Flip Over) Guide to Seismic Oral Sex is highly recommended because it is a flip over book. One side is dedicated to cunnilingus; flip it over, and the other side is dedicated to fellatio. Both acts get equal treatment, and it is not necessarily heterosexually biased. Highly recommended.

I have been using this book since 1998 and I have been giving it as a gift to anyone interested in sex. This is well written, well researched book, and the authors know when to poke fun and when to be serious making it a balanced read.
The best part about this book is you can read it cover to cover and gain insight into all aspects of sex including the social history or you can grab the index and read only the sections that apply to you and you won't feel like you're missing something.

I purchased this book for myself at the age of 41. I am greatly impressed by it and I have only read Chapters 1-6 so far (out of 71). It presents the material in a casual and sometimes humorous manner. By doing that it makes you feel comfortable reading about things that are most often not talked about in our society. It is written so that it can appeal to and inform any age reader.

I happened upon this book mixed in with the cookbooks on the shelf at my boyfriend's bed & breakfast and flipped through it in a few free minutes this weekend. I found it very helpful and informative and am torn between asking to borrow his copy or just buying one & reading it privately. But I can't wait to read it again. As far as I could tell it was a nonjudgemental book for normal people.

(272 pages)

Nextville: Amazing Places to Live the Rest of Your Life by: Barbara Corcoran publisher: Springboard Press released: 2008-04-01 ISBN: 0446178276 $16.49

WHAT ARE YOU DOING THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

Where, and maybe more importantly, how do you want to live once you've escaped the 9-to-5?

Barbara Corcoran has built her career on knowing where people will live even before they know it themselves! Now she turns her keen eye toward predicting "the next big thing" in real estate-where and how the over 77 million baby boomers will live when they retire.

In NEXTVILLE, Corcoran identifies the top eight trends that are changing where (and how) boomers are retiring. And she helps you figure out what's most important to you in your next place-whether it's pursuing your passions, living green, finding community, living young in a city or college town, or even staying right in your old home town. Corcoran also delivers her signature "Barb's Rules" on where and how to get the most out of the next great stage of our life. Let Barbara help you make the smartest real estate choices today to ensure a secure, comfortable, and fabulously fun tomorrow.

This is a great book for Baby Boomers approaching retirement. Author Barb Corcoran seems to have her hand of the pulse of this age group and she is very insightful into their work, spending, and living habits. It is an excellent reference if you are considering a move at this time in your life.

I'm not quite at retirement age yet, but it's really not that far away. This book has opened my mind to new possibilities for retirement--things I hadn't thought of before.

Nextville is full of practical advice and is written by a woman who seems to be the voice of experience. Besides this, the author ads a touch of humor and it is an easy read.

I enjoyed the book, it was an easy read. It gave me some things to think about and I also learned some things I did not know about before. The links at the back of the book were also helpful. I do wish however that the author had explored the RV lifestyle in a bit more detail.

This is an excellent reference which will help you to focus on what is important to you in determining where you should live in retirement. The questions in chapter 2 helped to show me what is important to me. The next step is to have my wife take the quiz to see if we are on the same page. This book is so much more helpful than articles on the 10 best cities etc. Although such articles are helpful, they don't take your personal preferences into consideration.

This book opened my mind to new possibilities for retirement--things I hadn't thought of before. I especially liked the chapter on "Living Green," and the description of the pros/cons of buying a second home or time-share. The best thing about this book for me was that it sparked a conversation with my husband about our (different) ideas for retirement. My objection to the book is the typeface: it should be printed in black ink, not gray, for the older audience that is their target; aging eyes need higher contrast, and my eyes felt strained reading it.

I have not purchased Barbara Corcoran's book and have only read an excerpt online after seeing her interview on The Today Show, so I can't really rate it. However, I do have one problem with her choices of "great places to retire". Almost every place she chooses as a great place to retire, you'll be snowed in and freezing your behind off for a good portion of the year! To me, that isn't so GREAT. And as you get older, do you really want to be shoveling snow, scraping the ice off your windshield (and eveverything ELSE) and driving on icy roads? I am Florida born and bred and continue to live here. Depending on where you go in this state, it has a LOT to offer, especially in the way of "artsy" enclaves, since she seems to be partial to those types of places. People can say whatever they like about Florida, but you cannot beat the gorgeous blue skies, CLEAN white, sandy beaches, and warm, balmy breezes. On second thought, Barbara's right----FORGET FLORIDA----that way there will be less traffic for US to deal with. ;)