Parents: Where to Find Affordable Summer Childcare

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NorthJersey.com: Summer’s an Expensive Time to Find Day Care

NORTH JERSEY — With the end of the school year fast approaching, millions of working parents are considering their summer childcare alternatives. Basically, primary caregivers will have to fill up eight to 10 hours of a day with childcare. Summer isn’t only a challenging time to arrange childcare – it’s also the most expensive part of the year. Many families spend half of their child care budgets during the summer.

Fortunately, there are flexible, money-saving alternatives for caregivers who want to offer their children an enjoyable and safe summer—without breaking the bank.

Work & life balance

Many companies today embrace work and life balance strategies through flexible or reduced work schedules for employees, which could be ideal for working parents during the summer. Hueina Su, a certified life coach and author of “Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself” While Caring for Others, recommends approaching your manager with a detailed plan on how your proposed schedule will benefit both you and your employer. “Be prepared and write down your proposal. Also, be sure to specify how work emergencies would be handled,” Su said.

Care center camps

Many child care centers offer day camps during the summer. If your child is already enrolled in day care during the year, this option is a great opportunity for your child to remain with friends in a familiar environment. Circle Time Preschool and Childcare Center, in Newfoundland, offers curriculum designed to encourage young children to explore.

Their activities allow active participation and promote independent growth. Parents can enroll their children in the summer program weekly or monthly, and full-days or half-days are available. Children ages range from 2 through 7.

“Through flexible hours, we try to accommodate the parent who does not work the typical 9 to 5 schedule, said Jennifer Lippe, director of the child care center. “We also offer emergency child care in the event a primary caregiver arrangement falls through at the last minute, which can be stressful, particularly during the snow season.”

Bruce Bialkin, of West Milford, brings his son, Benjamin, 4, to Circle Time during the year. His 2 year-old son Nathan, attends home care at a neighbor’s house. Ben will attend Circle Time’s 10-week summer program. “It is important to us that Ben is in an educational school and social setting among kids his age during the summer,” said Bialkin.

Neighborhood care

Alternate watching the kids with neighbors or friends for free. Laura Wymbs, a mother of two in Riverside, alternates sitting duties with friends, which is a win-win for both the parents and the kids.

“Not only do we save money on a teenage sitter, but our kids are close in age so they have a great time together,” said Wymbs.

Networking with other parents in your neighborhood at the park or at school can also lead to a flexible shared child care arrangement. Parents might need to take time off work during their turn, but it should be minimal as other households are taking turns as well.

Whatever your choice for child care, make sure you have a back-up child care plan in case of an emergency. Recruit a teenager or college student on summer vacation in the event your child must miss the primary child care option. They can be recruited through the university’s on-campus career centers or through a parent network in your community.

Summer savings

Affordable day camps can range in activities from sports and science to music. Local options might include museums, YMCA/YWCA and town parks.

“When my children were younger and I worked from home, I would take them to the library or bookstore, so I could work while they were being entertained,” said Su.

Day camps can be great money-saving alternatives to overnight camps. Most townships offer affordable summer programs that have a ton of activities for kids of all ages. Check out your town’s website or local newspaper for a listing of a calendar of summer events.

All in the family

Su recommends reaching out to local relatives for support on different days of the week. Whether it is a teenage niece or grandma, your children can enjoy some quality bonding time.

“This strategy may not apply to everyone but it is a nice opportunity for family members to reunite and spend time together,” said Su.

Just breathe

Amidst the chaos of researching and planning your summer child care arrangements, be sure to take a moment to take care of your own needs as an individual.

“Stay-at-home and work-at-home mothers suffer during the summer too,” said Su.

While the children are home from school, it can be hard for mothers to have time to relax and unwind.

“Having a self-care mindset is not selfish or a luxury; it is an essential practice for survival and well-being,” said Su.

Learn how to create more time & space to nurture YOU without guilt: download your FREE Intensive Self-Care Kit at http://www.IntensiveSelfCare.com.

Learn How to Sell Without Selling

Selling is perhaps the most stressful business activity for most people, however, it’s a critical skill that’s required for business owners as well as many other professionals. Luckily, there is a way to sell without feeling like a used car salesman.

My friend Terri Levine wrote a book called Sell Without Selling: Lessons from the Jungle for Sales Success. Terri Levine, The Guru of Coaching, is a Master Certified Coach, bestselling author, and a sales-coaching and training expert. She created the world renowned “Selling-Without-Selling” program that has been delivered to corporations worldwide. Terri has an impressive track record using her sell-without-selling approach and was number one in sales for several national organizations before starting her own sales coaching company and teaching her proprietary Selling-Without-Selling method to others. This book is written as a delightful fable that tackles the issue many salespeople face daily — in their hearts they hate to sell. It instantly engages anyone who sells with the story of a young business student and her struggle to learn a way to sell with ease. Through the story Terri shares different ways of selling and why they work or do not work. She shares the secrets of not just turning prospects into clients, but turning them into raving fans!

You can purchase this book from Barnes & Noble online.

Life Coach Hueina Su Invited to Launch Mindful Wellness Coaching Program for Cancer Patients and Caregivers

Certified life coach, best-selling author and founder of Denville, NJ-based Beyond Horizon Coaching Hueina Su is invited to launch a stress management coaching and training program at Sparta Cancer Center.

DENVILLE, NJ – June 28, 2010 – Coping with cancer is perhaps one of the most stressful events by most people’s standard. Besides enduring the physical symptoms and cancer treatments, cancer patients have to deal with fears, anxiety, grief and many emotional issues.

“Cancer patients and caregivers are very prone to stress and overwhelm. Research has shown that stress lowers immune function and interferes with body’s ability to heal. So learning how to deal with stress effectively will help accelerate cancer patients’ recovery and improve their quality of life. Many studies published in peer review journals found that stress reduction and coaching improve cancer patients’ survival rate,” says Hueina Su, MS, BSN, CEC, a certified life coach, stress management expert and founder of Beyond Horizon Coaching in Denville, New Jersey.

Su is invited to launch her Mindful Wellness Coaching Program for cancer patients and caregivers at Sparta Cancer Center in Sparta, New Jersey. “This is a new complementary support program aimed at helping cancer patients reduce stress, fears, anxiety, create more balance and inner peace, enhance cancer treatment effectiveness, and as a result, promote healing and recovery,” Su says.

Sparta Cancer Center is the first radiation oncology center in the Sussex County NJ to offer the most advanced radiation therapy. Under the leadership of Dr. Michael Gallagher, MD, MBA, FACRO, FACP, the center has a multidisciplinary team that offers complementary support programs in addition to radiation and chemotherapy. Su’s Mindful Wellness Coaching Program is the newest addition to their complementary programs.

The Mindful Wellness Program is an innovative multi-dimensional program to enhance care and quality of life for cancer patients, caregivers and staff. “Stress reduces body’s immune function and interferes with body’s natural ability to heal. Stress reduction coaching can lower patients’ risks of cancer recurrences, infection, complications and stress-related illnesses. It can promote healing and make medical treatment more effective,” Su says. “By giving cancer patients tools and techniques for stress relief, self-care and life skills, it gives them a sense of control, and help them become more resilient and confident in dealing with cancer and other life changes.”

In addition to one-on-one life coaching for cancer patients, survivors and their caregivers, Su will also conduct stress management training for the center’s medical and administrative staff. Caregivers and medical care staff are often neglected in the patient care process. Caring for others is among the most fulfilling activities one can engage in as a human. But for far too many, the line between caring and over-caring is crossed, leading to illness and burnout.

“I’m an advocate in intensive self-care. The well-being of cancer caregivers and patient care staff is just as important as that of cancer patients. Having worked with terminally ill cancer patients as a nurse, I experienced first-hand the high level of stress and its negative impact on health and well-being. This is why I wrote my best-selling book Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others,” Su says.

“It’s my pleasure to work with Dr. Gallagher and his team,” says Su. “My program uses mind body interventions as well as life coaching to help cancer patients and caregivers to not only cope with cancer, but also thrive beyond survivorship. We launched the program early this month, and the response from patients, caregivers and staff has been overwhelmingly positive. My intention is to give them the tools and confidence to not just survive, but thrive after their cancer treatments. There is life beyond cancer, and I feel so privileged to be able to help them bridge that transition.”

About Hueina Su and Beyond Horizon Coaching

Hueina Su, MS, BSN, CEC, The Nurturer’s Coach^TM, is a renowned expert in helping people restore the missing peace and balance in their stressful lives.  Su is a professional keynote speaker, certified life coach, and the best-selling author of Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others. She is on a mission to bring the message of self-love and intensive self-care to make a difference in the lives of more than one million women nurturers.

Su is the founder and president of Beyond Horizon Coaching, a global coaching and training company, specializing in providing solutions for work-life balance, stress management, and Intensive Self-Care through personal coaching, executive coaching, teleseminars, keynote presentations, team-building training, and other wellness services. She is the creator of Rx for Balance^TM, The Coaching Oasis^TM, and Nurture and Grow Rich^TM programs.

To sign up for free stress management video e-course and learn more about Su’s coaching, keynote speaking, training services and products visit http://www.HueinaSu.com.

Hueina Su’s full bio and additional photos http://www.HueinaSu.com/media-room.

She is available for interviews and can provide a list of tips and other articles. Call 973-664-0446 (O) or 201-572-3641 (Cell) or email Hueina@BeyondHorizonCoaching.com.

# # #

Contact Information:

Hueina Su

Beyond Horizon Coaching

Phone: 973-664-0446 (O), 201-572-3641 (Cell)

Email: Hueina@BeyondHorizonCoaching.com

Web: http://www.HueinaSu.com

What My Beloved Handbag Taught Me

Are you feeling a bit frayed or about to snap?

A few days ago, I went on one of the most exciting trips in my professional life – I flew to Florida for my very first national TV appearance on Lifetime Television’s morning show The Balancing Act. I’ve been on several local TV shows, but this is my very first national TV appearance. Needless to say, I was so excited! It took me a long time to shop and decide which outfits to bring (they wanted me to bring 3 alternatives, and let’s not forget the shoes) and make the travel arrangements. The new jacket I bought, a beautiful white jacket with white beads and floral embroidery, was vetoed by the show’s production coordinator. She told me they prefer their guests not to wear any black or white or navy outfits. “It’s a morning show”, she stressed, “we want bright colors.” Well, if you know me, I wear black A LOT. I bought the white jacket thinking it’s a light color, but according to her it doesn’t work well on TV. So, this was 3 days before the interview, and I was back to square one. Luckily, I remembered a Chinese shirt that I bought many years ago. It’s turquoise and pink and printed with lotus flowers. So it’s the same color scheme as the cover of my book Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul, which is the subject of my interview. Then I prepared the other two alternative outfits, one in turquoise and white, the other indigo and white. It sounds silly, but it seems harder getting the outfits and shoes ready, than the interview itself.

Speaking of interview, just a few days before my trip to Florida, I was interviewed by Dr. Christiane Northrup on her show Flourish! on Hay House Radio. It was a wonderful interview about how to move from over-care and burnout to Intensive Self-Care. We shared stories and tips and had a good laugh! We also chatted about what it’s like for me to grow up as a girl in a culture & family that strongly favors sons over daughters. I’ve had to overcome quite a few external AND internal barriers to get to where I am today. If you are a Hay House member, you can access the archives of the show. By the way, if you have not read my story, you can read about it here.

As I got on the plane en route Florida, I noticed, for the first time, that the straps of my handbag were frayed. In fact, one of them was so frayed that you could see the fabric inside. This is a handbag that I’ve been carrying every day for months. I love the design details. It’s beautiful, classy and functional. And it goes with everything – yes, you guessed it, it’s black, of course. I do have many handbags, but I usually don’t bother to change handbags with different outfits, unless it’s a very special occasion.

So, I’m sitting on the plane staring at the frayed straps of my beloved handbag, a little worried that it might not survive this all-important trip. Then, I chuckled as the metaphor dawned on me.

Most of us are juggling so many roles and responsibilities, day in and day out. Just like my handbag, we are working overtime, often without realizing how “frayed” we have become. I’m no exception.

As I looked back, I had a couple busy weeks leading up to this trip. For example, a few weeks ago, I was training intensely with my children to compete in a Chinese Wushu tournament, which took a lot of time and energy. Earlier this month I launched a Mindful Wellness life coaching program at the Sparta Cancer Center, helping cancer patients, survivors, caregivers and staff reduce stress and create more inner peace and balance. It’s a very exciting new program that uses mind body interventions as well as life coaching to help cancer patients and caregivers to not only cope with cancer, but also thrive beyond survivorship. My intention is to give them the tools and confidence to not just survive, but thrive after their cancer treatments. There IS life beyond cancer, and I feel so privileged to be able to help them bridge that transition.

Two days before my trip, I was invited to meet with the coordinator of Survivorhip Initiative at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital. That was a 3-hour drive into NYC, which provided me a great opportunity to practice various stress-relief techniques. ☺ My favorite methods for relieving stress in a traffic jam: music, Young Living therapeutic-grade essential oils (such as Peace & Calming, Tranquil, Joy), and EFT. The meeting went very well, and I’m hopeful that something great will come out of this to benefit more cancer patients and caregivers on a larger scale.

I’ve put in many extra hours preparing for these programs, meetings, tournament and interviews. I’ve stayed up until wee hours on some nights. Now that I had a chance to sit and reflect, I realized how tired I was.

Yup, it could happen to ANYONE. Stress and burnout can totally sneak up on us. If you are like most people, I bet you have experienced this too! You might be working overtime for your work or family without realizing how worn out you have become. Next thing you know, you have a physical or emotional breakdown. If you have come down with a bad cold right after (or before) a big deadline, you know what I’m talking about! It’s your body’s way to tell you that you need a break.

So, how do you prevent burnout? You need to be mindful of your physical, mental and emotional state. Check in with yourself often. How are you feeling in your body? Are you tired, hungry, sleepy or aching? How are you feeling emotionally? Feeling sad, cranky, impatient, irritable or resentful are all signs of stress and fatigue. Are you so stressed you can’t think straight? Are you craving all the junk foods or surfing the net mindlessly?

When you detect multiple stress symptoms, give yourself permission to take a self-care break. The thing with stress is, if you can catch it early, you can easily take a short break and bounce back. If you let it go for a long time, it will become more difficult for you to recover and you will have to deal with other complications caused by stress. Chronic stress is linked to higher risks of all major diseases, so the consequences could be devastating for you and your family. You will do yourself and your loved ones a big favor, by giving yourself a break when you need it.

As for me, after checking in the hotel, I went straight to the beach, which was only 10 minutes away (lucky me). The fresh air, sun and ocean relaxed and recharged me. The next morning, I showed up at the TV studio with a little tan and a lot of happiness. My interview went very well and it ended a lot earlier than I thought. They had asked me to reserve the entire day for this, but now I found myself with hours and hours of free time! I’m not due to fly home until the next morning. I suppose I could use my free time to work. Some people might even change their flight to return to work early. Not me. Not after receiving the divine message through my handbag!! I had one of my BEST days ever!! I got to play with stunning exotic butterflies and adorable Lorikeets at Butterfly World, and spent the rest of the afternoon back at Ft. Lauderdale Beach… No schedule, no hurry, no worries, endless white waves, eternal blue sky, white puffy clouds, even the rainbow showed up briefly!! Ah, it was heavenly!! My perfect kind of “work-cation”!! ♥

Best-selling Author Hueina Su to Support Fundraising for Interfaith Council’s Mission to Fight Homeless and Poverty

Life coach and best-selling author Hueina Su will have book-signing to support Spring Fundraising Drive hosted by Interfaith Council for Homeless Families of Morris County on Friday June 11, 2010 from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm ET.

DENVILLE, NJ – June 10, 2010 – Despite of being one of the most high-income counties in the nation, more residents in Morris County, New Jersey are struggling with staying in their homes.

Interfaith Council for Homless Families of Morris County was formed to help fight homeless and poverty. It’s is a non-sectarian, not-for-profit organization dedicated to ending the crisis of homelessness faced by Morris County families by partnering with other public and private agencies, religious congregations and community volunteers to provide shelter, case management and mentoring services leading to self-sufficiency.

Interfaith Council is hosting it’s first Annual Spring Fling & Clothing Drive to raise fund to benefit homeless families in Morris County on Friday June 11 from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm. The even will be held at Frelinghuysen Arboretum in Morristown.

A local resident in Denville, the Nurturer’s Coach and best-selling author Hueina Su will help raise fund by signing her books for whoever buy the books at the event. The money will be donated to the Council.

Su is a keynote speaker, certified life coach and the author of the best-selling book Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others.

“I’m a big believer in faith and law of attraction. This is some worthy cause that I can help the less fortunate people to get back on their feet,” says Su, president and founder of Beyond Horizon Coaching based in Denville, New Jersey.

“This is a great opportunity for me to feed back to community,” says Su. “I’m on a mission to bring the message of self-love and intensive self-care to make a difference in the lives of more than one million women nurturers.”

For more information about Su’s best-selling book and special bonus gifts, visit http://www.intensiveselfcarebook.com. This book is also available at Amazon.com.

About Hueina Su and Beyond Horizon Coaching

Hueina Su, MS, BSN, CEC, The Nurturer’s Coach^TM, is a renowned expert in helping people restore the missing peace and balance in their stressful lives.  Su is a professional keynote speaker, certified life coach, and the best-selling author of Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others. She is on a mission to bring the message of self-love and intensive self-care to make a difference in the lives of more than one million women nurturers.

Su is the founder and president of Beyond Horizon Coaching, a global coaching and training company, specializing in providing solutions for work-life balance, stress management, and Intensive Self-Care through personal coaching, executive coaching, teleseminars, keynote presentations, team-building training, and other wellness services. She is the creator of Rx for Balance^TM, The Coaching Oasis^TM, and Nurture and Grow Rich^TM programs.

To sign up for free stress management video e-course and learn more about Su’s coaching, keynote speaking, training services and products visit http://www.HueinaSu.com.

Hueina Su’s full bio and additional photos http://www.HueinaSu.com/media-room.

She is available for interviews and can provide a list of tips and other articles. Call 973-664-0446 (O) or 201-572-3641 (Cell) or email Hueina@BeyondHorizonCoaching.com.

# # #

Contact Information:

Hueina Su

Beyond Horizon Coaching

Phone: 973-664-0446 (O), 201-572-3641 (Cell)

Email: Hueina@BeyondHorizonCoaching.com

Web: http://www.HueinaSu.com

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