11 Best Days of Summer - The Maryland State Fair

The 11 Best Days of Summer at The Maryland State Fair Starts Today

The 11 best days of summer at the Maryland State Fair begins today. The fair opened this morning at 10 am and will run through September 3, 2012 (Labor Day).
Friday August 24 - Comptroller Day - Open 10 am to 10 pm - Ride Special $22 pay one price ride from open to close (sold noon to 6pm) $17 with $5 off Food Lion Coupon.
Saturday, August 25 - Department of Natural Resources Day, MD Pork Day at Maryland Foods Pavillion - Open 10am - 10pm
Sunday, August 26 - Governor's Volunteer Day, M & T Bank Day - Open 8am for RH Competitions to 10 pm
Monday, August 27 - 9 am for competitions - buildings open at Noon until 8pm
Tuesday, August 28 - Open 8:30 for competitions, Most buildings open Noon to 8pm. Ride Special $22 pay one price ride from open to close (sold noon to 6pm) $17 with $5 off Food Lion Coupon.
Wednesday, August 29 - MD Fruit & Veggie Day - Maryland Foods Pavillion, M & T Bank Dollar Day Open 9:00 am for competitions, buildings open noon to 8pm. Ride Special $22 pay one price ride from open to close (sold noon to 6pm) $17 with $5 off Food Lion Coupon.
Thursday, August 30 - Governor's Day/MD Agriculture Day, MD Million Day - Open 9:00 am for competitions, buildings open noon to 8pm. Ride Special $22 pay one price ride from open to close (sold noon to 6pm) $17 with $5 off Food Lion Coupon.
Friday, August 31 - Toyota Day, Baltimore County Day, MD Lamb Day - Maryland Foods Pavillion - Open 9:00 am for competitions, buildings open 10 am to 10 pm -
Saturday, September 1 - Maryland Lottery Day, Handy International World Record Crab Cake Day - Open 10 am to 10 pm
Sunday, September 2 - Open 8:30am for competitions, buildings open at 10 am until 8pm, some exhibits until 10pm.
Monday, September 3 - Open 8:30 for competitions, buildings open 10 am to 8pm. Ride Special - $22 Pay one price 10am to 10pm.
Come out and support exhibitors from all over Maryland and take a look at what people have been making, painting, baking over the last year. It's a great time!!

If you are thinking of buying or selling an home in Maryland give me a call at 410-292-0100 or start your search here and we'll talk about the market conditions and what your home could possibly be worth in today's market place if you are thinking of selling. If you are considering buying a home, there is no better time than now to buy. The tax savings and wealth building alone is worth the plunge into todays market. Century 21 New Millennium is part of the largest nationwide relocation company and can assist with your move here in Maryland or anywhere in the United States or abroad. Ask me how.

In keeping with saluting our heroes, during 2012 I am waving flat fees for active duty military, retired military and the families of fallen military, as well as policemen, firemen and emt's. If you enter into a contract by the New Year's eve I will waive the flat fee at settlement. This is a $395 savings. If you are thinking about buying or selling a home give me a call and receive full service real estate assistance from an experienced agent. Our office is open 7 days a week and we can be reached at 410-730-8888 or I can be reached directly at 410-292-0100.

June Piper-Brandon ~ Associate Broker, CDPE, CIAS, ePro

Century 21 New Millennium

How-To: Help Your Kids with Their Homework

How-To: Help Your Kids with Their Homework

It has been decades since you tackled some of the topics your kids are bringing home from school—but that doesn’t mean you can’t help them with their homework.  And, some of it, I'm sure might as well be written in some obscure foreign language that you've never seen.  But, statistics so that students who do their homework consistently tend to have better grades. It's not always easy to get them to do their homework, especially after a busy day, but these tips can help:

Talk to your children about their homework. It's important that your kids understand why it's important to do their homework and the positive impact it has on grades. Homework helps them practice what they've learned as well as prepare them for upcoming classes. Plus, by doing their homework they develop the discipline and skills they need to be successful throughout their school years and beyond. 

Talk to the teachers. Different teachers might expect different things from parents, so be sure to talk to them to figure out what your role will be. For example, some teachers prefer parents review their kids' homework; others prefer parents make sure kids do their homework. Teachers can also tell you how much time your child should spend doing homework and what to do if the homework is too easy or too difficult.

Select a fixed time to do homework. The best time to do homework is the one that works best for your child and you. It can be before or after playing, watching television or dinnertime. What's important is that homework time is consistent. Avoid leaving it for the end of the day, when your child is tired and sleepy.  For my son, when he gets home from school he has a snack and then sits down at the dining room table, we go through his planner and set out his books and the tools he'll need to complete his homework and we turn off all distractions until he is finished his homework.
Pick a quiet area and eliminate distractions. To help your children focus on homework, pick a place in the house where there's plenty of light and no distractions. It doesn't have to be fancy. It can be the kitchen table or a desk. Make sure the TV is off and put away electronic devices, unless they're essential to doing homework.

Get them the resources they need. You don't have to be an expert in all subjects to help your kids with homework. However, you need to make sure they have the tools they need to succeed. If you need expert help, you can always take them to the library or help them with their search online. You can also visit kids.gov to find information on homework topics. The Department of Education also has several resources to help your child with homework in different areas, including math, reading and writing.  My partner is a whiz at math and science and I'm not and Skip is often here when Liam gets home from school and I'm not so we plan our day I do the morning and Skip does the homework and after school.  This works for us, it might not work for you but figure out what works and stick with it. 

Resource: GobiernoUSA.gov and USA.gov

Orange You Glad It's Back To School?

Orange you Glad It's Back to School?
I was out shopping with my son, Liam this afternoon to get a few last minute things for back to school.
School's all across the country are preparing to go back and parent's are stressed with the endless lists of supplies that seem to increase in size every year. And, for those parents preparing to send their kids off to school for the first time - it will be ok, your children will be fine.
Here are a few things I've learned over the years and 5 children later:
Get into a routine now so your kids will be ready when they start back and they'll be able to get up in time for school.
Breakfast IS the most important meal of the day. If your kids don't like breakfast, breakfast drinks are often a great way to get those nutrients in their bodies. I make a great breakfast shake: 1/2 banana, 1 scoop of whey protein powder, 1/3 c. low fat vanilla yogurt, 1/3 c. cranberry juice, 1/3 c. frozen blueberries, 4 ice cubes - put all ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth. I am not a big breakfast person but this is delicious and keeps me going until lunch time.
My son just graduated from middle school and is off to high school in a week. He prefers to bring his own lunch rather than buy the one at school. Let your child help choose what they'll eat for lunch. We get our bread from the H & S Bread Store in Fells Point. It's a great place and helps save money. We get potato bread and he chooses two or three lunch meats for his sandwich. Cheese doesn't travel well so he doesn't have cheese on it. Then we buy Utz Potato Chips in a variety pack and he takes one bag. Sometimes he has cookies, baby carrots are popular. We got a cooler lunch bag that has space for an ice pack. Liam says that it takes too long to stand in line and wait for lunch and it doesn't given him enough time to eat it that's why he wants to bring his lunch.
Kids grow really fast. Goodwill Stores often have great deals and great prices on children's clothing. In Maryland we have Value Village stores too. Both will from time to time have brand new clothes with the tags still on them. If your parents live nearby and are over 60 on Wednesdays Value Village has 50% off all clothing in the store. When my older kids were still in school I used to go with my neighbor and she'd help me buy back to school clothes. I would come home with a large black garbage bag full for about $50 with Levi's, Banana Republic, GAP and other brand name clothes for the kids, and with the tags still on them.
Starting in June Staples has a Back to School Savings Pass that gives 15% off school supplies from June 10 until September 15. The pass excludes technology, ink and toner, flash drives, calculators, case paper and furniture. Also starting in June/July Staples has special weekly sales that offer special items for very cheap prices. I check back weekly and pick up only the items offered for sale. Last week they had refill paper for 1 cent per package, limit 5 with a $10 purchase. Starting today they have spiral bound note books for 1 cent each and Timberland Back Packs are 50% off. Over the years I have purchase 9 TI 83 calculators. The cheapeast place I have found them is on Amazon.com, I wish I would have kept my middle sons calculator but that was 8 years ago and I thought the technology would have changed but it hasn't.
For the first week of school walk your kids to the bus stop. Caution them about talking to strangers, taking rides to school (even from people they know) and to keep their eyes open and watch for people driving who might not be paying attention for children going back to school.

If you are thinking of buying or selling an home in Maryland give me a call at 410-292-0100 or start your search here and we'll talk about the market conditions and what your home could possibly be worth in today's market place if you are thinking of selling. If you are considering buying a home, there is no better time than now to buy. The tax savings and wealth building alone is worth the plunge into todays market. Century 21 New Millennium is part of the largest nationwide relocation company and can assist with your move here in Maryland or anywhere in the United States or abroad. Ask me how.

In keeping with saluting our heroes, during 2012 I am waving flat fees for active duty military, retired military and the families of fallen military, as well as policemen, firemen and emt's. If you enter into a contract by the New Year's eve I will waive the flat fee at settlement. This is a $395 savings. If you are thinking about buying or selling a home give me a call and receive full service real estate assistance from an experienced agent. Our office is open 7 days a week and we can be reached at 410-730-8888 or I can be reached directly at 410-292-0100.

June Piper-Brandon ~ Associate Broker, CDPE, CIAS, ePro

Century 21 New Millennium