Yahoo! Answers

Hey Guys,

Wedding season is here. And that means gifts. Lots and lots of gifts. But how much (or how little) are you supposed to spend? Don’t get guilt-tripped into dropping $200 on a deluxe fondue set for your second cousin once removed — read on for the skinny on what to spend.

Not trusting myself to give tips on etiquette, I went to the experts over at The Knot, a site that specializes in all things nuptial. Their rule of thumb — no matter what, don’t drop less than $50 on a gift. It’s bad form. If the person is a coworker or relative you aren’t close to, aim for $50 to $75. For a friend or relative, prepare to spend between $75 and $100. And for a close relative or close friend, shoot for $100 to $150.

That may sound a bit cold — putting a dollar amount on your relationship, but it’s important to remember that weddings can be very expensive, regularly going for tens of thousands dollars. The average cost of a wedding is $27,021 (not including the honeymoon). Gifts go a long way toward offsetting the big costs. Those designer napkin rings at the reception don’t grow on trees, folks.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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**Secret Revealed**

I’ve only been a dad for a few weeks, so I can’t provide any anecdotal evidence on this one. Thankfully, a much more scientific source is available. The British Medical Journal has published a study that concludes: sugar does not make children hyperactive.

Of course, we’ve all heard this myth. There are even some parents who give their kids pixie stix, hoping it will give them more energy.

However, the results from at least 12 double blind randomized controlled trials have shown that there is no noticeable difference in a child’s behavior regardless of how much sugar they have consumed. Even kids who are considered “sensitive” to sugar or have attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder are not more hyper after consuming sugar.

There does appear to be a placebo effect though. The study indicated parents do rate their children as more hyperactive after their child has consumed what appears to be a sugary drink, even if the drink was in fact sugar free.

That’s food for thought.

Chad Upton is the editor-in-chief of Broken Secrets and an official Yahoo Answers contributor.

Thanks for reading,

Source: British Medical Journal

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After asking my manager to attend a conference I felt would be extremely valuable for our team, he finally said yes, and I should have been thrilled, but then reality hit! This will actually be the first time I will be away from my 2 year old for 5 consecutive days!

As the thought of separation from my toddler begins to cast dark clouds over my otherwise sunny and beautiful daydreams, I remember, technology is here to help us stay connected.

I was told by her Daycare teacher that I have to prepare her well by talking about the conference ahead of time– but as soon as I mention “Mummy having to take an airplane” she starts to cry.

Whenever I have questions regarding new parenting situations, I check out what the experts have to say.

• Ms. Smith, founder of MomTini Lounge, believes children thrive on routine and structure. To minimize the disruption at home caused by travel, she suggests canceling any unnecessary commitments like play dates to streamline the family schedule.
• Phaedra Cucina, author of the picture book “My Mommy’s on a Business Trip” advises mothers to use Skype video to show their younger children their hotel room when they are away on a trip. She notes, “it’s comforting for a young child to see mommy in her hotel room waving and making silly faces.” I will be sure to try this method, but I have a feeling it might cause my daughter to cry more and want to be right there with me.
• My Tips?
• Make sure you have all of your child’s medical records in one easily locatable place so the caretaker watching your child while you are away can easily find important info. If organization is not one of your top strengths, you might want to invest in a mobile app like ‘mother knows’ where you can have all of your child’s records at the tips of your fingers via an iPhone app.

Have you ever left your Toddler at home for a Business Trip and have some successful tips to share? We would love to hear them.

Thanks for reading,

Layla – Guest Blogger

Recalls Plus is a Knowledge Partner on Yahoo! Answers.

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Hey Guys,

People who make grammatical errors drive me nuts. Or should I say, people whom make grammatical mistakes drive me nuts? How do you know when to say who and when to say whom?

The American Heritage Book of English Usage puts it like this: “Who is used for a grammatical subject, where a nominative pronoun such as I or he would be appropriate, and whom is used as the object of a verb or preposition.”

OK, great, but what the heck’s a nominative pronoun and what’s a preposition? Basically (and I had to look it up), a nominiative pronoun acts as the subject of a verb. For example, “Who put my underpants in the freezer?” Use the word “who” if you could swap “who” for pronouns like “I” or “she.”

Contrast that to the object of a verb, also known as a direct object. That’s when you use “whom.” An example of that would be: “You saw whom near the freezer, looking all suspicious?” Use “whom” if you can replace it with “him” or “her.” If a pronoun ends with the letter “m,” it’s an object.

The Yahoo! Style Guide puts it like this: “One trick for finding the correct form is to recast the sentence in your mind, substituting he and him for who or whom. If him sounds correct, use whom.” Keep this in mind as well: “Sometimes it’s better to just rewrite a sentence to avoid a potential grammatical error or a grammatically correct but awkward or formal-sounding construction.”

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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Flowers, breakfast in bed, and handmade cards are popular gifts to give to your mother on Mother’s Day.  Sunday, May 13, marks the day this year and in honor of mothers here are five fun facts about Mother’s Day:

1. Mother’s Day is celebrated all over the world, mainly during the months of March, April and May.
2. The word for mother in most languages starts with the letter M.
3. Anne Marie Jarvis is the founder of Mother’s Day, but it didn’t become an official holiday until 1915.
4. Next to Christmas and Easter, Mother’s Day is the third most popular holiday.
5. Red Carnations are the flower associated with Mother’s Day and is meant to honor mothers.

Happy Mother’s Day to our community enjoy your special day!  How do you plan on spending this Mother’s Day?  Please leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading,

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