Plane Facts

Aviation is still the safest form of transportation. The International Air Transport Association says the 2012 global accident rate for Western-built jet aircraft was one accident for every 1.4 million flights. If you were to take a flight daily, you could go 3,859 years without an accident!

Fast Sale? Higher Price? Focus on Landscaping!

Good landscaping can increase your home’s resale value by 14 percent, according to the Associated Landscape Contractors of America. Better curb appeal may speed up the sale by as much as six weeks. Professionals recommend that you invest 10 percent of your home’s value in landscaping. More than just plantings, this includes structural features such as lighting, outdoor rooms, fences and pools. Here are some helpful tips: • Determine what you need. Are you landscaping to sell your home or to enjoy the property yourself for the longer term. • Get professional guidance. Depending on the scope of your project and budget, consider hiring an arborist, a landscape designer or a certified landscape architect. Ask friends for recommendations or search web sites such as the one for The American Society of Landscape Architects. • Develop a plan. Set your priorities ─ what needs to be done (have you solved that drainage problem?) versus what you’d like to do (put in an outdoor entertainment area). If you take a piecemeal approach, the result will look disorganized and cost you more money in the long run.

Get Your Child Excited About Reading This Summer

Does your child spend too much time watching TV or playing video games and not enough time reading? Here are 7 quick tips to make reading fun and exciting: 1. Let your child choose books they’re personally interested in. This way they won’t get bored right away. If they can’t decide, help them by matching a book topic with one of their interests. 2. Encourage them to act out the book as a play. Kids love to perform for others, and this will help them remember more. 3. Ask your child to draw pictures of the characters. This gets them to really think about the details, plus it’s fun! 4. Read chapter books. These have more surprises and character development, which will help your child visualize the words more. 5. Take turns reading and let them ask questions. Also, have them read aloud to their siblings or friends. 6. Work with other parents to start a book club for kids. Here’s a video: www.howdini.com/howdini-video-14452277.html 7. Get your child an eReader. If you can’t get them away from video games, at least make their time in front of a screen more productive. If you have an iPAD, go to www.progressbythepage.com to find a reading app. It comes with a list of free eBooks, and ways to monitor their time spent reading.