There's a new scam going on right now for identity theft against children which I just read about. you can read the full story here. This story brought back all kinds of bad memories and some anger over our own nasty experience with identity theft. Social Security numbers are used either by illegal immigrants to receive benefits or by those with poor credit scores to get credit. There are companies out there actually selling social security numbers, many of them social security numbers of children, because they are unused.
Masked Woman, Venice Carn...
Kristin Piljay
Several years ago, right before our son was born (late 1994), I received a strange phone call. Sears was calling, asking if I had just purchased by phone (no internet just yet back then), because the young lady taking the order thought it was odd that (1) we rarely used our Sears card for anything but appliances and (2) the shipping address was Detroit. Of course we hadn't used the card, and we were thankful that she caught that. We naturally reported this to the police (after all, I thought she was dumb--she had given her address!), and thought all was well. The truth is, we had only uncovered the tip of a disasterous iceberg.
What happened was this: back then, in 1994, your social security number was all over everything...including medical bills, and your full account number was on your billing statements for everything. This evil person put in a change of address for us (which back then you could also do without ID), having our mail sent to her house for about a week. In that time, she got most of our credit card statements and medical bills, and thus had my husband's social security number. She quickly got a Driver's license with his name (he is Martin, she changed it to Marti), bought a car on his credit, had us pay for her car insurance (they didn't alert us that we added a third car), and bought things on our few credit cards, while applying for a bunch more credit cards (and getting approved).
Because it was a federal crime to tamper with mail, that was what she had to be prosecuted for, but it was unprovable in court so this wicked person was let off the hook. Seriously. We spent several days finding babysitters, skipping work (without pay) for court dates, and paying for a lawyer to fight some of the charges against us that some companies wouldn't forgive (because she was found innocent), and enduring stress just as our baby was about to be born...and she walked. We weren't the first of her victims, and we'd likely not be the last. She looked at me and laughed and flipped me off as she walked out.
We on the other hand still endure the lasting effects of her actions. Though we were not responsible for most of what she bought on our credit, some of it remained, and we lost lots of money...money from missed work for court dates, money for a lawyer to fight some of this, money for my husband nearly getting arrested for unpaid tickets (she was using his name after all, and they shared a driver's license number), money to go through the process of getting a new social security number (They don't just give those away, friends...but with his being sold on the black market, it was no longer any good). I can't tell you how much time I spent on the phone and writing letters to clear our credit score of all of the erroneous charges. It took years.
To say this was a nightmare is the understatement of the century.
I got a copy of my own credit report, and it was 10 pages long, as a family member had fraudulently used my social security number too. That same family later wanted my kids' social security numbers to open accounts for them (uh, no, I don't think so).
How do you protect yourself and your family?
1. Don't ever give out your social security number for anything but tax purposes. No one needs it, and you and your kids certainly don't need their social security # laying around on a piece of paper somewhere. Treat it like gold. Trust me, it's more expensive to deal with the after effects of someone getting it.
This may sound horrible, but even for camp, when they need my kids' social number, I will not ever give it. I make up a number off the top of my head. They don't need it.
This new scam (in the article I linked to above) uses a different technique than finding a stray social security number somewhere, so it's important to also check your credit report too:
2. Get regular copies of their credit report and yours (annually) and quickly dispute anything on there that isn't correct.This is a long process, and it is aggravating, but it has to be done. Doing it annually is easier than have 10-20 pages to clean up after not looking at it for a decade. You can read more about that here.
This is something I originally wrote back in 1998, and was published in Above Rubies Magazine. It's an adaptation from 1 Corinthians 13, but for mothers. I wrote it for Mother's Day, right after my fourth child, Esther, was born. Feel free to pass it around with the copyright information and link intact. :-)
A Mother's Love A Paraphrase of 1 Corinthians 13
If I speak truths from God's Word and train my children in the Lord, but have not God's love flowing from me to them, the words I teach are as noisy as a barking dog, a broken muffler, or a colicky baby at 2 a.m.
And if I have all manner of wisdom and knowledge in the latest child-rearing techniques, if I have an understanding of child psychology, and if I have subscriptions to every parenting magazine on the market but don't have God's love flowing from me, I am nothing.
If I have all the faith I could ever need, so that I could move mountains, keep the house clean, or potty-train a two year old, but do not do it in love, I am nothing.
Even if I leave behind my own dreams and ambitions to raise my children, and even if I stay up for nights on end with sick children, sleepless babies, and mountains of laundry, but complain and murmur about lack of sleep, God's love is not in me, and I am accomplishing nothing.
A loving mother is patient enough to wait for a child who insists on tying her own shoes and buttoning her own coat.
A loving mother is kind to her children even on three hours of sleep and is never rude to them. A loving mother is not jealous or envious of everyone else's children nor will she boastfully exalt her own children above others.
A loving mother models true Christian behavior even when no other adults are watching. A mother full of God's love doesn't seek her own rights, but demonstrates the servant hood of Christ as she serves her family.
Such a mother doesn't resent cutting corners to live on one income, but is grateful to raise her own children.
A loving mother forgets her children's sins as soon as the discipline is over, and never reminds them of their imperfections but encourages her children in good works. A loving mother doesn't look at her children's rebelliousness as a cute phase but rejoices in seeing her offspring grow in godliness.
Only a mother with God's love can bear the day to day tasks of managing a family with zest and joy. She is able to see the potential hidden deep within each of her children and prays that God will shine through them into a dark world. With such a vision clear in her mind, a mother can endure anything.
A loving mother's influence will never fade away. Oh, the children may forget a spotlessly clean house, or perfectly pressed clothes, or even freshly baked cookies, but her children will always carry with them the legacy of God's perfect love.
Though all you may see now are stacks of dirty dishes, diapers to change, noses to wipe, and wild toddlers to tame, the spirit in which you tackle these tasks is laying the foundation for your children that has eternal consequences.
There are three things your children will always remember about you:
Your faith and zeal in how you serve the Lord.
Your hope in the promises of God's word and how you waited and watched for His return.
And the Love of God that flowed through you to others.
It is these three that will remain in their minds forever, and the greatest of these is their mother's love.
Starting off our home schooling journey, I planned to give my children a classical education, using the trivium. I wanted them to learn, among other things, logic. The problem was, all of the logic books I found were dry as sawdust. My oldest balked at logic lessons because they were simply boring. Several years ago, our adventures into the study of logic were changed forever when we bought our first copy of The Fallacy Detective by Nathaniel and Hans Bluedorn.
Unlike other logic books we've tried to use, this one is both fun and practical. Instead of making my children study logic, I found myself having to pull this book away from them to get other lessons done! Once, my husband (who doesn't like to read for leisure) couldn't put down The Fallacy Detective, and he took it to work with him. While there, reading it on his lunch break, several of the men he worked with all wanted to read it too. I say this just to reinforce the biggest appeal of this book: The Fallacy Detective draws in the reader, hooks them, and doesn't let go.
But, does it teach logic?
No matter how entertaining a logic book is, it wouldn't be a good logic book if it didn't succeed in teaching logic. Thankfully, The Fallacy Detective does an excellent, long term job at teaching the principles of logic and fallacies.
It's been about six years since we first used The Fallacy Detective, and my daughter still remembers and talks about what we learned. We find this especially useful (and fun) during political debates or when watching commercials. This book does more than entertain and educate; The Fallacy Detective arms young people (and adults) with the tools they need to recognize and combat fallacies of logic that are thrown at us every dayy in our modern world.
Because the Bluedorns are coming out with the new 3rd Edition, I have just a dozen or so copies of the 2nd Edition of the Fallacy Detective still available for you to purchase for just $22.00. 50% off the regular price of $22 until August 7th!
This is available only while supplies last!
From the www.TriviumPursuit.com website:
Nathaniel and Hans Bluedorn wrote this book to meet the needs of Christian parents who want a do-able text for introducing logic and critical thinking to their children.
Fun to use – not dry like a math textbook.
Self-teaching – not intimidating, starts students with skills they can use right away.
Each lesson has exercises for students, with an answer key at the back.
Covers logical fallacies and propaganda techniques. We divided the most common fallacies and propaganda techniques into thirty-eight lessons. We explain how you can spot fallacies, and we give exercises to stretch your abilities for detecting fallacies.
Geared for ages twelve and older – we suggest using The Fallacy Detective before advancing onto more difficult logic programs.
Includes The Fallacy Detective Game, giving you and your friends an entertaining way to spot and make up your own examples of fallacies.
Christian view of logic. Many critical thinking texts introduce political correctness. This book does not.
Can be used before or after The Thinking Toolbox
Cartoons to illustrate the logical fallacies discussed, including Peanuts, Dilbert, Calvin and Hobbes, and several original cartoons
This book is for fallacy detectives. We've designed this book to be a handy-dandy text for learning to spot the errors in thinking that you meet everyday on the street, in the newspaper, or on television – or errors you make yourself.
I'm not a fan of relish, but my family is. Canning large batches of relish and pickles is one of the things I do for love for my family, because it sure isn't because I love the smell (blech).
My own cucumbers are just starting to bear fruit, but friends from church have a surplus, and have been giving me bushels of cukes for canning. I've spent the last week or so making bread and butter pickles and sweet cucumber relish. We videoed the latter for your viewing pleasure, cleverly cropped to spare you all from seeing me in my night gown at 2 in the morning. Enjoy!
Here's the Recipe for 1 batch (In the video I am making 2.5 batches):
Sweet Pickle Relish
by Kimberly Eddy/www.joyfulmomma.org
Ingredients
1 pound of cucumbers (about 4-5 medium)
2 onions
1 green bell pepper OR 3-4 Banana Peppers
1 Hot Pepper of any variety (optional)
1 red bell pepper
2 c. cider vinegar
2 c. sugar
2 T. Pickling spices
1/4 c. pickling/canning salt
Tools:
Knife and cutting board
Food Processor
Large non-reactive (plastic, ceramic, or glass) bowl
Canning Jars and lids (about 4 pints)
Canning kettle or non-reactive pot
Water bath canner with rack
Jar lifter
Clean Towel
Sink with hot water to soak your jars
Large strainer
Instructions
Chop your vegetables coarsely and finish them in the food processor, until they are finely chopped
Put the vegetables in a large non-reactive bowl as you chop them
Put the salt on the vegetables and cover with cold water. If necessary, put a plate on top of them, in the water, to press them down. (We'll be rinsing all of this salt out later!). Let stand like this for 2 hours or overnight
Before we drain the vegetables, begin heating up water in the canner, and bring it to a boil.Pour very hot water over the canning jars and lids to get them ready for use.
Mix the vinegar, sugar, and pickling spices in the kettle, and bring that to a boil.
Drain and rinse the salted vegetables in the strainer, then press out as much of the water as possible with your clean hands. Add your vegetables to the brine once it is boiling, turn it down, and let it simmer for 10 minutes.
Fill jars to 1/4" headspace (that is, 1/4" from the top), wipe the rims, and wipe a soaked lid. Tighten the lid band, and place in the canner.
Lower the jars into the boiling canner, and process for 10 minutes.
Remove from the canner carefully, with the jar lifter (I place mine on a towel, as they are hot and dripping), about 1" apart, and let them cool.
The popping sounds means you have a good seal. You want to hear that!
Once cool, and before you put those in the pantry, remove the bands, and make sure the lid has a good seal. If not, store it in the refridgerator.
Tastes best if you let your canned relish sit for a week before using.
The first book I wrote was Momma's Guide to Quiet Times in Loud Households. I only have a couple dozen more printed copies of this book left, and we're as of yet uncertain about having it reprinted (though you can still find it as an ebook). Quiet Times in Loud Households is near and dear to my heart because it is about a topic we moms often neglect: our personal, daily, walk with the Lord. We may know that we need to have time with the Lord, but actually making that happen while running a busy household with children is quite another thing. I wrote this book based on my own experiences trying to find a balance between my inner Mary and Martha.
True, genuine Christian growth comes from a heart that is seeking after God, and reading in His Word regularly. This is what changed me into the woman I am today.
Penny Raine from Momma's Heart reviewed it when it first came out, and had this to say about Momma's Guide to Quiet Times in Loud Households, "Mothers need time with Jesus. They cannot do it with out Him. Yet all too often in the midst of mothering they can't find time to spend with Him. The answer is here in "Quiet Times In Loud Households." This book written by Kimberly Eddy has the power to change lives. Not just the lives of stay at home mothers, but anyone who struggles with finding personal time with Jesus. Everyone from the President of the United States to children of reading age and up can benefit from this book. It teaches us to commune with God in every phase of our lives."
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