Make St. Patrick’s Day a Family Affair!

      Food, crafts and activities you and your brood can use to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day!

Surprise your children this St. Patrick’s Day with a special lunch at school, and continue the festivities when they get home with a true celebration...

1. A Touch of Green in Food...A little green food coloring can go a long way on St. Patrick’s Day. From green milk in cereal to a four-leaf clover on your children’s sandwich bread, it’s easy to turn your everyday meals into a fun treat.
2. Rainbow Cake...Start the cake with vanilla cake batter (buy the box in the baking aisle or make from scratch) and split it into a few small bowls based on how many colors will be in your rainbow. The classic rainbow, remember, is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.
Add food coloring to your batter to make a variety of colors, and then pour them one by one into the center of a round cake pan and bake as normal. What comes out of the oven will be a treat — and one you can use beyond St. Patrick’s Day.
3. Go Traditional...If you opt to skip the leprechauns and rainbows this year in favor of a traditional Irish dinner, try a few Irish-inspired dishes you’ve never had before. Irish stew and Irish mashed potatoes (with bacon and kale) are sure to please kids and adults alike.
4. Blarney Stone...Known as the Stone of Eloquence, visitors come from around the world to lean down and kiss the Blarney Castle’s famous stone.
Luckily, you don’t have to travel to Ireland. Just make your own! Take any small, smooth rock you can find and decorate it with green paint, glitter, and anything else you’d like and you’ll be awarded with the gift of oration.
5. Paper-plate Leprechaun...Children love making paper-plate leprechauns; they’re the perfect St. Patrick’s Day decoration to hang on the fridge.
Use the paper plate as the leprechaun’s head. Paint the plate’s border orange, glue on googly eyes and draw in a smile. Make a hat out of construction paper and glue this to the leprechaun’s head to pull the face together.
6. Lucky Clovers...Any clover-making craft will be a hit with the kids — whether it’s making thumbprint clovers or clover stamps (made from a cut green pepper dipped in green paint).
For a project you can display as art, simply place your child’s painted hand onto a canvas four times to make four leaves and then paint a stem. The hand prints come out much smoother if you paint your child’s hand instead of having her dip it in the paint.
7. Scavenger Hunt...Hide treasures around your house or yard with clues for your children to follow. You can even make leprechaun footprints from construction paper to leave a trail they can follow. They’ll have tons of fun trying to find the next pot of gold or yummy treat.
8. Leprechaun’s Gold...You and your kids will have a great time trying to see who can slip the leprechaun’s gold through their fingers. Place your hands together and fold your middle fingers. Have someone place a coin between your ring fingers and try not to let go of it.
9. Movies...Snuggle up on the couch with the kids and some of your St. Patrick’s Day treats for a movie. There are plenty of family-friendly options to choose from that range from children’s cartoons to movies teenagers and adults can enjoy.

St. Patrick’s Day is a great reason to celebrate your good luck and gratitude while teaching your kids a bit of Irish history (and pride for Irish families!) and spending some quality time together. Enjoy!

DavidTheLocator

DavidTheLocator: Moving To Houston? Tips To Finding A Reliable Movi...

DavidTheLocator: Moving To Houston? Tips To Finding A Reliable Movi...: Everyday at Innovative Realty Group we are relocating clients from across the country. Moving all of your precious heirlooms and other p...

Moving To Houston? Tips To Finding A Reliable Moving Company.

Everyday at Innovative Realty Group we are relocating clients from across the country. Moving all of your precious heirlooms and other personal items can be a very stressful situation if not put into the right hands. It only takes one incident to make a move a "regrettable move." So, how do you choose a reliable moving company?

Most companies have websites that list their services, service history, destinations they will move to, and roughly how much it will cost. This is a great place to get background information and to start compiling a list of potential companies. Also, most companies will list contact information, including e-mail addresses, allowing you to ask questions and be provided with a written response.

Also ask around. Most people you know have moved once or twice in their life, so ask friends, family and colleagues if they can recommend a company, or if there's a company they don't recommend. Both lists are invaluable when choosing a mover.

Contact the BBB. Find out if any of the companies on your list have generated any reports. Information you can get will usually contain any grievances filed and if the grievances were resolved successfully. It's rare that a company does not have any unhappy customers; the key is to ensure that if there were complaints, that in the end, the customer was satisfied with the result. Read the report carefully, and if you're thinking of using a company who had a grievance filed, ask them specifically about this case and how it was resolved. Depending on the severity of the complaint, you may choose not to pursue this company.

Go to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website and find out if your potential mover has a Department of Transportation (DOT) number. This number ensures that the company is registered with the Department of Transportation.

According to FMCSA, there are signs that the company is a rogue mover. They offer the following tips:

• The mover doesn't offer or agree to an on-site inspection of your household goods and gives an estimate over the phone or Internet—sight-unseen. These estimates often sound too good-to-be-true. They usually are.
• The moving company demands cash or a large deposit before the move.
• The mover doesn't provide you with a copy of Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move, a booklet movers are required by Federal regulations to supply to their customers in the planning stages of interstate moves.
• The company's website has no local address and no information about licensing or insurance.
• The mover claims all goods are covered by their insurance.
• When you call the mover, the telephone is answered with a generic "Movers" or "Moving company," rather than the company's name.
• Offices and warehouse are in poor condition or nonexistent.
• On moving day, a rental truck arrives rather than a company-owned and marked fleet truck.

Make note of anything suspicious. And above all, if it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't.

And last but not least, keep track of your items. Take pictures and document your most important items prior to the move in the event that anything is accidentally damaged or lost.

We look forward to helping you find your next home in the Houston Metropolitan area. For more information, visit our website at www.DavidTheLocator.com and call us at 281-326-HOME!

Keeping Kids Safe In School

Advice for parents on making sure their kids stay safe at school and while traveling to and from school

For most of the year, children spend more time at school than anywhere else other than their own home. At school, children need a secure, positive, and comfortable environment to help them learn. 

Overall, schools are one of the safest places children can be. However, some schools have problems, such as bullying and theft, which make them less secure. These problems make students and educators feel less safe, and it makes it harder for students to learn and for teachers to do their jobs.

But there are specific ways that parents can make going to school a safer and more valuable learning experience for their children now that school is starting.

In the Classroom

Kids need a safe and comfortable environment to learn to the best of their capabilities. This means they have to feel safe in their school and be able to positively interact with their teachers and classmates. By doing the following, parents and other adults can help make sure children have a positive school experience.

• Talk to your children about their day. Sometimes children won’t tell you right away if they are having problems at school. Ask your children if they see anyone bullied, if they are bullied, or if anything else makes them feel uncomfortable. Look for warning signs, such as a sudden drop in grades, loss of friends, or torn clothing.
• Teach children to resolve problems without fighting. Explain that fighting could lead to them getting hurt, hurting someone else, or earning a reputation as a bully. Talk to them about other ways they can work out a problem, such as talking it out, walking away, sticking with friends, or telling a trusted adult.
• Keep an eye on your children’s Internet use. Many elementary schools have computers with Internet access. Ask your children’s school if students are monitored when they use the Internet or if there is a blocking device installed to prevent children from finding explicit websites. Talk to your children about what they do online – what sites they visit, who they email, and who they chat with. Let them know they can talk to you if anything they see online makes them uncomfortable, whether it’s an explicit website or a classmate bullying them or someone else through email, chat, or websites.
• Ask about the safety and emergency plans for your children’s school. How are local police involved? How are students and parents involved? What emergencies have been considered and planned for?

Traveling To and From School

• Map out with your children a safe way for them to walk to school or to the bus stop. Avoid busy roads and intersections. Do a trial run with them to point out places they should avoid along the way, such as vacant lots, construction areas, and parks where there aren’t many people.
• Teach children to follow traffic signals and rules when walking or biking. Stress that they should cross the street at crosswalks or intersections with crossing guards when they can.
• Encourage children to walk to school or the bus stop with a sibling or friend, and to wait at bus stops with other children.
• Teach children not to talk to strangers, go anywhere with them, or accept gifts from them without your permission. Tell them that if they see a suspicious stranger hanging around or in their school they should tell an adult.
• Help children memorize their phone number and full address, including area code and zip code. Write down other important phone numbers such as your work and cell phone on a card for your children to carry with them.

On the bus

• Have your children arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to pick them up.
• Make sure children know to stand on the sidewalk or on the grass while waiting for the bus.
• Teach children to make sure they can see the bus driver and the bus driver can see them before crossing in front of the bus. Tell them to never walk behind the bus.
• Be aware that often bullying takes place on the school bus. Ask children about their bus - who they sit with, who they talk to, and what the other kids do. Let them know that if they see someone being bullied, or are bullied themselves, they can talk to you, the bus driver, or another trusted adult.

If you'd like to work towards making your children's schools safer on a larger scale, consider implementing Be Safe and Sound. This campaign provides a model for how parents, students, and school staff can work together to make schools safer and more secure.

Loans, Interest Rates And The Approval Process When Purchasing A Home

Learning to understand the process of buying a Houston home can be a little over whelming, especially to a first time buyer. The biggest and most expensive purchase most of us will ever make is the purchase of a home, so it really pays to spend some time learning about interest rates, loans and the approval process in general, as well as understanding your specific needs and your specific real estate market.

It is a great idea to get pre-approved for financing because this approval will be a real indicator of what you can afford. What is a pre-approval?

In lending, pre-approval has two meanings:

The first is that a lender, via public or proprietary information, feels that a potential borrower is completely credit worthy enough for a certain credit product, and approaches the potential customer with a guarantee that should they want that product, they would be guaranteed to get it. This rarely happens in the financial services industry, and when it does happen, it is usually loaded with fine print that is not immediately disclosed. Usually, what happens is pre-qualification, instead.

Although, to a typical consumer, "you're pre-approved" means "you already passed the approval process and therefore are guaranteed to be immediately granted the loan if you apply," the literal meaning is different. The literal meaning is "at a stage before approval." Thus, pre-approved creates no obligation whatsoever on the lender and no rights whatsoever to the potential borrower. "Pre-approved" is thus a popular advertising catch phrase to induce people to apply for a loan.

The second meaning relates to mortgage lending. People interested in buying a house can often approach a lender, who will check their credit history and verify their income, and then can provide assurances they would be able to get a loan up to a certain amount. This pre approval can then help a buyer find a home that is within their loan amount range. Buyers can ask for a letter of pre approval from the lender, and when shopping for a home can have possibly an advantage over others because they can show the seller that they are more likely to be able to buy the house. Often real estate agents prefer to work with a buyer who has a pre approval as it demonstrates that they are well-qualified to receive financing and are serious about buying a home. A pre approval is based on the documentation the borrower supplies at the time of application, and any actual eligibility to receive the pre approved loan depends on the terms and conditions of the pre approval and ability to secure the loan before the pre approval expires.

This is the very beginning of learning and working through the loan application/approval process so you need to be honest. Do not overstate income, or employment. Do not buy for someone else. And don't sign any blank documents. Be honest about your intent to occupy and be accurate about your level of debt. And finally, read and understand everything before you sign.

If you need additional help my team and I at Innovative Realty Group can assist you if you are ready to purchase a Houston home. Call us at 281-326-HOME and please visit our website at www.DavidTheLocator.com. We look forward to assisting you in this next step of your journey!