The first thing everyone should be doing in this day and age is subscribing to some kind of credit monitoring service. All the 3 main credit bureaus all offer this service, as well as many third party providers. Just type in “credit monitoring” into Google and you will get a huge list, along with credit tricks. But be careful – there are tons of scam artists out there who are looking to steal your information. If you don’t go with one of the 3 credit companies (Experian, TransUnion, Equifax), make sure you know and trust the company you are going to give your information to. One additional source here is your credit card company. Most of them now will monitor for you for a yearly fee. The main reason for this is to find out in real time when changes are made on your credit report. It is far far easier to remove bad credit in real time than to find out 2 months or more down the line when a past due bill notice comes in the mail for an account you never opened.

Once this is done, they will send you a copy of your credit report. Check every line, make sure every bit of detail on that report is accurate. If you find something that does not look right, you can usually call the credit bureau and inquire for more information. If something is not right, make sure you also check with the other 2 major credit companies as well, order a copy of your report. Sometimes the error or (fraud) is uniform across all 3, sometimes not. Either way, this type of credit tricks has to be a first step in fixing your credit.

If you detect any irregularities that would indicate some type of fraud, you have to check all 3 and alert them. If you find there is a fraudulent account that has been opened in your name, often times you will also need to report this to the local police or FBI depending on what has occurred. The representative from the credit agency will be able to tell you if a report needs to be made. One side tip – if someone fraudulently opened an account at a department store or somewhere else that you do frequent but don’t have an account with – do not shop there using credit of any kind while the investigation is going on. If you must use cash. Its harder to prove it was not you if you are actually going there and spending money with another credit card while the investigation is going on – its not illegal or anything, but just a tip to keep it simple.

Assuming you have actually checked your report, fixed (or there are no) problems, now its time to boost the score. I will list a few here, there are of course many, many more.

A firs tip: If you are the type of person that does not like balances and pays off in full each month your card, you too are getting penalized (makes no sense, but it happens). If you charge up $1000.00 and pay $1000.00 each month essentially you have a balance of 0.00 (or 1000.00 depending on when you pay) – you are not getting credit for paying it all off. The best credit tricks to boost the score is to NOT pay it all off. Pay it over 3 months, or at least pay half and half. This demonstrates you can carry a balance for a few months, then pay it off. This does work and does boost your score, believe it or not.

The second big one that most people don’t know is to look on your credit card statement, find the billing cycle beginning and end date. This end date is important. Its the date that the credit card company reports your total outstanding balance to the credit agencies (aka credit reports). It is also the date they use to calculate the interest owed for the billing cycle. So – pay your credit card bill BEFORE this end date and you accomplish 2 things: 1 – the balance amount reported to the credit agencies is lower, and 2 – you will pay far lower interest over time because the interest will always be computed on a lower amount.

In essence, if you charge up 500 bucks on the first date of the cycle, then make sure you have paid it off by the cycle end date, you have “used” the credit card companies money for FREE!! Once you start doing this, its an easy way to float money for recurring stuff that has to be paid on someone else’s dime for 20 days or so. In addition, make sure you have a credit card that has bonus points for charges – this adds up over time. I know people that pay the rent on a credit card, then before the due date pay the bill and thus get a free 20 day ride or so where that money is still theirs to do something else with until its time to pay back the charge.

A third thing I will discuss here is that every recurring bill that anyone has (mortgage, HOA fees, car payment etc) should be put on auto-pay at your bank if possible. The main reason is anything that is a fixed amount and is paid the same date every month is simply easier to auto pay it – that way it is never ever late, and is never forgotten to be paid. In addition, you save stamps and checks, and have less to worry about. Let me tell you, once you get a house, car payment, kids and all the stuff that goes with it, its easy to have 15-20 bills each month of some kind that have to be paid – and its easy to forget one until its too late.

A fourth thing you can do to remove bad credit can make sure to do is to not ever have a larger than 50% of the outstanding credit available as a balance on a card. It seems counter-intuitive, but if they give you a $10,000.00 limit, and you use $7000.00 of it, even if you pay 2x the min payment, your credit score gets dinged. Meanwhile, your buddy, who has a credit limit of $2000.00 and a balance of $600.00 and only pays the minimum gets a bonus for NOT USING CREDIT. While its always good to pay more than the minimum balance due (usually 10% more is fine), if you are over the 50% barrier it will not matter as far as your credit score is concerned. The min payment (or excess payment beyond) is only used to calculate how much credit you might be able to handle.

photo credit: stevendepolo

• Cooking: Podcasts are great for creating a recipe and differ from using a traditional recipe card. Guided instructions will assist you in creating everything from chocolate chip cookies to five-star cuisine.
• Learn a Foreign Language: Similar to the cassette tapes played two decades ago in high school foreign language classes, this type of podcast allows listeners to pick up on any language. This option is great for anyone from an executive moving abroad to an individual attempting to increase linguistic competence.
• Home Repair: If you are unsure of how to fix the leaky bathroom faucet or the best way to install a dishwasher, find a podcast that takes you through a step-by-step guide, giving advice while you complete the project. This is great for the motivated homeowner who is too independent or frugal to seek outside help.
• Family Activities: This particular type of podcast caters to small children with a variety of hands-on activities and guided steps, on everything from how to make a sock puppet to learning how to knit. This type of podcast is great on a rainy day.

And there’s more….

Exercise: If you seek variety in your workout routine, look for a podcast that serves as an exercise buddy. Workout podcasts include all different varieties of movement like yoga and Pilates, as well as podcasts for walking. This is a beneficial means of trying out a new form of exercise or simply trying out a type of workout before paying to attend a class.

Games: Podcast listeners who wish to test their knowledge will love the ability to access podcasts of puzzles, trivia, and riddles. Exercise your brain or challenge someone to a trivia contest.

Consider any podcast that allows you to become an active listener. Where else can you learn to perfect the lotus pose or plan your next garden? Becoming productive with the use of podcasts can open doors to fun and exciting activities!

photo credit: thedigitel

Many women find ways to breast feed discreetly. You can ask your partner or even a friend to stand in front of you while you lift your shirt from the waist. When you breast feed, the baby’s body will cover most of your upper body and you can pull your shirt down to their face to cover the tops of your breast. Some mothers prefer to put a light blanket over their shoulders as a type of cover.

When you are visiting someone else’s home, you may feel more comfortable either leaving the room or turning away from people when you first put the baby to your breast. If you would like more privacy, breast feed in an empty room, car, or public restroom.

A lot of restrooms are becoming more child friendly and they even have a seperate area with a changing table and a chair. Several shopping malls now offer special mother’s rooms where a mom can breast feed her baby in privacy, which will help sensitive babies who are too distracted by feeding to nurse well in public. It won’t take long at all though, before your baby will learn to breast feed without any fuss at all.

An alternative way is expressing or pumping your milk at home and then offer it in a bottle while in public. Keep in mind, offering bottles with artificial nipples in the first few weeks can and probably will interfere with breast feeding.

When breast feeding in public, you should always use what works best for you. During the first few weeks, it will take some getting used to, as it will be as new for you as it is for the baby. With some time, you’ll have no problems at all.

If you don’t feel comfortable breast feeding in a certain location, then you shouldn’t. You should feel a certain level of comfort when you feed, as the baby can tell when you aren’t comfortable doing something. If you show your baby that you aren’t nervous – you and your baby will be just fine.

Other Child care Advice:
The key to successfully potty train a toddler begins long before they are developed enough to be using a potty. This is known as pre-potty training. Discover more
potty training boys
potty training tips
potty training toddlers

photo credit: crimfants