From Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
253 353 2662
I wrote this in response to a question on Mamasource posed by a member, then I got to thinking it might be helpful to others so I am posting it as a blog as well. I feel so blessed to have a job where I do not have to be making these choices myself ( leaving baby) :) Any way hope some of you out there find it helpful....
I am prefacing this advice with you must figure out what works for you and make your final decisions. I do have a background in breastfeeding having lactated continually since 1997 and have helped 100's of moms with nursing when I was a childbirth educator and since as well....
I too have a 3.5 month old child too. I too work full time, in fact went back to work when he was less than 1 week old. I have been blessed however and was able to start back partly from home and partly part time. I also am blessed since I have a job where I do not have to separate from my small children and take them along. Is there any chance you could do that with your job? ( you did not say what you do)
I would suggest in order to maintain your milk supply that you never ever give baby a bottle when you are there yourself. If you are working and away it can really effect your milk supply. I would also suggest that if you don't that you sleep with your baby and nurse while you sleep so baby does not need as much milk during the day. ( I have to do this since we are on the go with my job so much during the day) The more my babies nurse at night the less they need during the day and the easier my life is.
Also consider feeding baby with a cup instead of a bottle. A tiny shot glass or tiny dixie cup carefully fed to baby often works better and the sipping motion the baby does more closely similates nursing so is often easier for baby, it also has the benefit of being easier for clean up, baby does not get air in their little tummies and also no nipple confusion. I would also suggest that if you are pumping or hand expressing at work. ( and you should be) that you do not do it on an exact schedule, having a more varied schedule make for more milk production.
You baby is smart and prefers you to a bottle. Make drinking milk from a cup something different he does when you are gone and he is more likley to take to it than if you try to give him a bottle when you have the breast right there. Many moms I helped who were going back to work have used this tactic I've described very sucessfully.
In summary,
*Nurse baby when ever you are with baby *Nurse baby just before leaving. *Nurse baby @ night and relatch him any time you wake at night ( of course sleeping with him) *If you are able to be with baby at work or at least on a break nurse then * Pump or express as often and frequently as you can when you are away and on the non nursing side some when together too so you have enough for him. *Cup feed baby instead of a bottle. * NO Pacifiers at all ever *Nurse baby the moment you get back home
Please let me know how it works!
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
In Pierce county and around the nation town homes are fast becoming a popular urban way to live.
Among the many benefits of Townhome living (easy to care for home, not having yard work, safety from close proximity to neighbors and so on) is one that likely you have not thought of.
Weight loss, and better fitness may be a side effect of your new town home? How so?
Well, having 3 stories in your home means you do more stairs than if you lived in a Ranch style home. So not only do you get more squarefootage for your money, you also get more exercize for your time spent in your home. Walking around your ranch home doing your day to day chores and so on will burn about 6 calories a minute, however doing the same when taking the stairs in your 3 story townhome will burn more than double the calories, this of course adds up in the end cumulatively to weightloss.
Not only that but the muscle built from doing stairs will continue to burn more calories per hour even if you are doing nothing than if you had not built the muscle.
To get an idea of the impact take a look at the 2 links that follow regarding stairs and impact on calories burned.
This 3rd link also in addition to having information about stairs has some good basic information on how to cut calories in other painless ways as well.
So not only will you likely get more house for your money with your new town home, but you may also get less of you from the resulting weightloss you get using the stairs in your home!
Anna Matsunaga Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
I started blogging just a little over a year ago and I made personal rules for myself when I started. If I had something really really negative it would not go in a blog. I would only write good reviews for local businesses, if it was one I could not honestly do that for, then I would not write it. If I disagreed I would be very very civil or I would say nothing at all. If some one made a bad comment that was harmful I would delete, if some one criticized me I would take it to heart if it were made with the attempt to help and not to degrade. I would write my own content or I would include a link if I liked some of the content I found and wanted to share. I would reblog where allowed and be sure my comments on the reblog made it clear it was not mine. I think I have done well with following my own rules and they would go along way towards keeping any of us safe with social networking and business. However Keller Williams just posted more good advice, some of which went further than I had thought of.
Here is the link, please check it out, lots of good advice!
Since advertising and social networking are an important part of all of our businesses we really always want to know what is working. This is one of the things I love about Active Rain. I can see my statitics right away and know if things are being looked at and what of traffic I am generating.
With some of my advertising though, I am less sure. Sometimes people call on a house, but can't remember where they found it and of course so many see it that I never know about so....what if you could track each of your venues for free?
Well leave it to Craigslist to do something else wonderful for Realtors.
Go there and create a free account. You can use the tracker code with any set up that supports HTML. Then you can view reports and have them sent and so on and not just know where your hits are coming from, but also what areas and time and more.
I am excited about this and intend to use it. I think it will also make a nice tool to send my listing clients so that they can see how well the ads are working.
Let me know how it works for you and I will keep you posted!
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
Most of us like the word FREE. I always am on the look out for free things, but of course don't want junkie things in the house....so when one of my friends on Facebook posted this I got excited and ordered right away. We already have one that we paid just under $20 for. It's a blanket with sleeves....ok that sounds goofy, but if you have a person in the house who likes to be warm, but is always cold they will love it.
We bought ours for our oldest daughter, she seems to alway be cold and some mornings getting her out of bed is hard because of it. Other times I would get her out of bed only to find her sitting in her chair in front of the computer ( she home schools) doing NOTHING. Why? Well she was cold and did not want to uncover herself. This snuggy blanket has solved this problem.
My husband is a Network Engineer and a Electronic Engineer. He also works with radar and almost everything concerning hardware in computers. He's what you've got to call a smart guy. On his previous job he was in and out of lots of Real Estate offices when equipment needed to be serviced ( computers and so on and networks of computers) Over and over he came home saying to me "Real Estate agents are IDIOTS!"
Of course I consider myself smart ( not in the ways he is but smart none the less) and I am a Real Estate agent....so....I of course take offense. Not just for my sake but for the sake of many many really great agents I have worked with and love.
What other job requires what ours does? A good agent must master several things that all on their own require a degree.
1. Marketing
2. Contract writing and negotiations
3. Valuation of homes.
4. Understanding psychology of our clients
5. Advertsing
6. Networking socially and with other businesses
7. Learning neighborhood charaeristics
8. Negotiations
9. Writing
10. Business management
11.Sales
12.Accounting
13. Business planning and budgeting
14. Adminstrative management
15.Basic law regarding Real Estate
16. Contact management
17. Consulting
and much much more.
If we also have assistants or a team ad to that
18. Hiring/ Recruiting
19. Management
20. Coaching
This of course does not take into account any of our specialties......
Being a Real Estate agent is one of the most challenging things I have done and even though I love to learn and I soak up what I am interested in like a dry sponge, I feel I will never ever be at a point where I could possibly know it all. I must say this is one of the biggest blessings of Real Estate. To be any good what so ever I must constantly be learning and growing and doing new things.
So let's go back to my husband's point of view....where does it come from? Well mostly that many of the agents he encountered did not understand HIS job. They often did not know how to operate the equipment he was called to work on and often it was their mess ups that brought him there....Well....Real Estate agents (unlike engineers) tend to be people people. So, although we may all use the computer and other office equipment daily we have little interest in how it works. What makes our clients tick? Well now THAT'S interesting. How to market a 4 plex missing the entire floor in one unit, that's a challenge we are ready to take on. Remembering to back up our hard drives....maybe not.
This brings me to another point. With a job that requires so many different skills, few of us will be good at them all. I know the areas in which I am "an idiot" and I work hard to surround myself with others who are good at them so that I can focus on doing what I am naturally good at.
That's the beauty of Real Estate, you can do that, that's the beauty of Real Estate teams.....you can totally do that....and really I don't want to be a genius at keeping a complete file ( I have people for that) I'd rather be a genius at marketing, negotiating and helping people get what they want.
--
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma 253 353 2662
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
There are many places in Pierce county I love to go, especially after living in the area since 1992. However one of my favorites is quite close to home....Wapato park. It holds special significance for me since my husband and I had our wedding there ( ok actually our 10 year anniversary, but we had a wedding then since we had not had one when we got married in the first place) I also love it because I have spent many hours running and walking around the lake and also have many memories with my children playing there together.
Just take one look at the beautiful arches near the round about drive and you will know why this is a destination for weddings or at least wedding pictures.....The rest of the park is as well cared for. It has seasonal plantings of flowers that are changed out and kept in color for most of the year. You will also find the following @ Wapato.
Walking / bike trails.
Volley Ball Courts
Horse shoe courts
Picnic areas
Play equipment
Juvenile fishing part of the year
Baseball field
Open play areas
Duck and goose watching
Rating the park
Space-10
Layout- 10
Parking 8.5
Maintainance 9
Ammenities- 8.5
Cleanliness-7.5
Pretty factor 8.5
Play equipment 8
Accessibility-8
Dog friendly-7
Family friendly-8.5
I would love it if there was a small fenced off leash area for dogs since there are none on the S. End of Tacoma and there is enough room there. Judging from the number of dogs that are seen there @ any given time I am guessing it would be popular. The equipment is nice, could be a bit more of it.....once in a while I see trash there and the other issue with cleanliness if the ducks and other water foul can make a mess....but the park is actively working on that issue.
For walking and running, hardly could there be a better set up. According to mapmywalk.com the jaunt around the lake using the main bridge is just about exactly a mile which is great. The paths are wide and fairly level which makes for nice running and walking and you get up and down hills both making a nice varied work out.
I forgot to mention, not just duck watching, but also squirels, there are plenty in the park to see as well.
The location also makes it accessible via bus lines, and to people coming from other parts of town and even other towns since it is right off the freeway. Last week met friends from Lakewood there and they mentioned would be coming back plenty now that she knew how very close and easy to get to it was.
Haven't been in a while?... drop in while the weather is still nice, although, you will not be disappointed even in the rain, you just might get wet though....
--Anna Matsunaga Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma 253 353 2662
This is great news for Pierce county area buyers and sellers with so many of them being Military folks. Also forecasts perhaps an extension of this for all.
If you are military and looking for a great home in Pierce county and want to know more, please call me 253 -353-2662
Yesterday the House of Representatives unanimously voted to extend the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit to active military personnel, foreign service and intelligence officers. HR 3590 extends the existing tax credit to this group until November 30th, 2010. The bill now goes to the Senate, and is expected to pass with the same ease.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) because it was thought that military personel serving oversees this year did not have the same opportunity to take advantage of the tax credit. If the original qualifications are met, the extension applies to military personnel who spent at least 90 days of the current calendar year oversees. It also does not require borrowers to payback the tax credit if they are deployed after receiving it. The current tax credit requires borrowers payback the tax credit if they do not occupy the home within three years of receiving the tax credit.
No word yet on whether the $8,000 tax credit will be extended for all eligible borrowers.
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
I just found this post about Town homes in Barrie. Helpful information about the basic differences in the terms town home, town house and condo. I will write more soon about the differences between them in a resale and purchase sense and how living in one or the other could be quite different as far as the experience, cost and resale even if it is a town home style condo we are talking about vs a town home that is not a condo.
To those looking into the Barrie townhome market for the first time, navigating your way around can be a bit confusing. For instance, what’s the difference between a condominium townhome and a freehold townhome? And why are some called ‘townhomes’, while others are referred to as ‘townhouses’?
In order to clarify things a bit for those in unfamiliar territory, here are the basic differences.
First, the easy one: ‘townhome’ or ‘townhouse’? These terms are used interchangeably, and mean the same thing, but the term I prefer to use with my clients is ‘townhome’, because it’s not just a building I’m referring to – it’s your potential new home. This building will become your personal space, where you go to escape, raise your family, and live your life.
Now for the main difference between condominium and freehold townhomes: freehold townhomes are those for which you pay no monthly fees, and are responsible for all maintenancelike shovelling snow, mowing the lawn, etc. Condominium townhomes include a monthly maintenance fee, but the trade-off is that you don’t need to worry about cleaning the pool, or maintaining your driveway in the winter or lawn in the summer – it’s all looked after for you.
If you’re a professional or retiree who just doesn’t have the time or interest to invest in the upkeep of a house, a condominium townhome might be a good option for you.
Affordable luxury
Whichever you choose, both freehold and condominium townhomes in Barrie usually offer upgrades and amenities that are often cost-prohibitive when looking at a detached home. Items like ceramic or hardwood floors, upgraded cupboards, granite countertops, and whirlpool tubs are just a few options that generally have a large price tag attached to them in detached homes, but are often more affordable in a townhome. It boils down to value for your money, and the lifestyle you want.
An appreciable investment
Like a detached home, townhomes are an investment that will (or should, depending on the market conditions) appreciate in value. And, again like a detached house, the more amenities and upgrades the townhome has, the higher the resale value.
When it comes right down to it, choosing a freehold or condominium townhome in Barrie is simply a matter of personal choice based on lifestyle and affordability.
Stephanie Adams is a Sales Representative at Royal LePage Barrie (First Contact Realty) specializing in Barrie Condos and townhomes. Stephanie is part of the Barrie Condo Team.
Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
Commentary on Real Estate, business, health and personal growth as well as raising a family while growing a business, centered on the Puget Sound area especially TACOMA
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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