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You know what time it is. It is spring cleaning time! Spring cleaning is usually hard, but now, since there is no school to go to, children are at home all day. That makes spring cleaning a lot harder. Or maybe you’ll put your kids to work and it’ll be easier. Either way, we have tips that might make spring cleaning time with your kids a lot more pleasant.

Turn Cleaning Into Games!

One thing children love is games! If you can come up with a cool game to play, they will definitely pay more attention! You could try a sock matching race, or turn collecting laundry into basketball by shooting the clothes into the basket, or anything fun like that!

Alphabetize Your Spice Cabinet

One thing some children like to do is alphabetize. You know something you can alphabetize? Your spice cabinet! If your children are young, this is helping everyone, as they are learning, and your house is getting organized. Remember to be patient with them even if they get some things mixed up.

Play Some Music!

Everyone loves a good tune! Turn on the radio, pop in their favorite CD, or play that family-friendly playlist, and start jamming! This way, you can do some stress free cleaning and have fun singing along.

Reward Your Children

Even if it is just something small, children love getting rewarded. Whether it is money, a toy, or just a plain old hug, they just love the thought of a prize. Let them know they did a good job and they were helpful and this will be sure to put a smile on their face.

Give Everything A Place

Having random junk everywhere is not a good thing. To ensure that nothing useless is laying around, you should give everything a proper home. If it doesn’t deserve a place, throw it away. This will make cleanup time a lot quicker in the future as well.

Now let’s give you some reasons for why you should get your children involved in cleaning.

Learning to clean Helps Children Adapt Socially

As adults, we know that our behavior affects those around us, we know that actions have consequences, sometimes for those who weren’t even involved. But for children, this awareness can be pretty far off the radar. Drawing their attention to cleaning up after themselves (or even being kind enough to help others) can help widen their perspective. 

They Learn Important Skills They Will Use Throughout Their Lives

This is an important one. Home is the perfect place to learn how to do things. If they don’t learn it first at home, they will have to learn it somewhere down the line. Teach them now so that they will be ready later.

They Learn to Be Responsible

Responsibility is key.  If they know that they are in charge of something and that people are relying on them, they are much more likely to follow through. This also helps them to feel proud of themselves when they get their job done no matter how bug or small.

 Here is a guide to help you decide which child needs to do what chores.

If your child is 2 or 3, they should start easy. They should do basic stuff like put away their toys, and make their bed.

If your child is 4 or 5 they should do stuff like cleaning their room, feeding the pets, setting the table, etc.

If your child is between the ages of 6-9, they should do stuff like sweeping, helping with food prep, and wiping the counters.

If your child is between the ages of 10-12, they should do stuff like taking out the trash, loading the dishwasher, vacuuming, and making easy meals.

And finally, if your child is 13 or older, they should do more advanced stuff like mowing the lawn, cleaning the fridge, and making meals.

With tornado season getting pretty intense, it would be pretty helpful to have some nice tips to help you stay safe. Well, lucky for you, we have some great tips for you! Here are 10 tips for you to stay safe from this tornado season. 

1. Plan a Place to go Ahead of Time

During a tornado, you will not have time to figure out where to go, and what to do, especially if you have young children. Instead of winging it, you should plan out your hiding plan. Decide where you will go, what you will bring, and other important things such as that. Preferably, you should go to your basement, if you have one.

2. Stay Away from Windows

Windows are very fragile, and a tornado is very destructive. Obviously, they do not mix. To make sure you stay safe, you should stay away from your windows because they can easily break, and glass is very sharp. You don’t want to have to take a trip to the hospital on top of having to have your home rebuilt.

3. Put on Some Appropriate Protection

Where there are tornadoes, there is debris. Walking on debris will definitely hurt your feet. So to prevent cutting your feet, you should probably wear some shoes. Also, if you have a biking helmet, you should wear that to prevent something hitting your head and giving you a head injury.

4. Stay in Your Home, No Matter What

If you are in the direct line of a tornado, you might be tempted to leave your home and drive away, but that is a bad idea. The tornado could change directions, or you could get caught in traffic with other people trying to escape the tornado. It is safest to stay in your home and get to a safe spot there.

5. If You are Driving When a Tornado Hits...

Being in a car while a tornado is going strong is one of the most dangerous places to be. A way to be safer while in this situation, is to get to a building as fast as possible. If there are no buildings, get in a ditch. Do not try to out drive the tornado, and stay away from overpasses.

6. How to Keep Your Pets Safe

We all love our furry friends, and we definitely would not want anything happening to them. During a tornado, they are at an elevated risk. For their safety, you should make sure that they have their identification tags on, and bring them with you in a carrier, or on a leash. But do not risk your life for their safety. You and your family matter the most in these times.

7. What to Do If You Are in a Tall Building

Being in a tall building is a really dangerous situation to be in during a tornado. If you find yourself in this predicament, you should go towards the center of that floor. If you have a lot of time, you should get to the lowest level of the building, but only if you have time.

8. Know What Means What

A lot of people do not know the difference between a tornado watch and a tornado warning.

A tornado watch is when you need to look out for a possible tornado. A tornado warning is when a tornado has already touched the ground. You should definitely know the difference so you know what precautions to take.

9. Never Hide In A Mobile Home

One of the most dangerous places to be during a tornado is a mobile home. Mobile homes can tip over very easily, so under no circumstances should you hide in a mobile home.

10.Keep Up With The News

This is a very obvious one, but it must be said. Keep up with your local news. They will give you great tornado coverage, so you stay safe, wherever you are.

The fact of the matter is that some people do not know the difference between burglary and robbery, so today we will be comparing the two to clear things up. First, we will go over the definition of burglary.

Burglary is the the act of breaking and entering a dwelling at night to commit a felony (such as theft). A person commits burglary when he enters a building with the intent to commit a crime within. To show that a burglary occurred, a prosecutor must produce evidence on the following points, and convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt on each of them.

Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by putting the victim in fear. It can happen at any age, whether you are older and you have your car stolen, or whether you are 5 and you got your candy stolen, it is all robbery. You will not go to jail for stealing someone’s candy when you were a young child, but that dosen’t mean you didn’t get trouble! But, if you stole a car, you would definitely get in trouble.

Among the types of robbery are armed robbery, which involves the use of a weapon, and aggravated robbery, when someone brings with them a deadly weapon or something that appears to be a deadly weapon. Highway robbery or mugging takes place outside or in a public place such as a sidewalk, street, or parking lot. Carjacking is the act of stealing a car from a victim by force. Extortion is the threat to do something illegal, or the offer to not do something illegal, in the event that goods are not given, primarily using words instead of actions. All types of robberies are serious crimes. 

  While the 2 names often get confused with each other, they actually have different meanings (as described earlier in this blog) and should not be used interchangeably. Also, they have different legal consequences. Depending on the state where the crime is committed, the consequences given can vary. When it comes to fines, burglary fines can be extremely high. Again, this is depending on the state, but someone who is guilty of burglary can be expected to pay as much as $100,000 or more for a felony charge. Usually for a misdemeanor charge, the fines are less than $1000. Even if you break in to someone’s home and don’t take anything, a judge may still give you a restitution sentence. This basically means that the court can make you repay the victims of the crime to cover costs for losses and repairs.

As for robbery, it is almost always a felony, punishable by at least one year in prison, regardless of the value of the items taken. Most states punish aggravated robbery quite harshly, including armed robbery, carjacking, and home invasion robbery. Sentences of ten or 20 years in prison or more are common. 

Of course, I’m sure you’re wondering what you can do to protect yourself from falling victim to these crimes. To start, you can install security and doorbell cameras. And always make sure you’re aware of your surroundings, especially when you’re walking to your car or house at night to prevent getting robbed.