Keller Community Event - Apollo Support and Rescue for Abandoned Dogs

Saturday, August 1st from 10am to 12pm, Farmers Insurance, Kirkwood Agency will be hosting a HUGE event benefiting Apollo Support and Rescue for Abandoned Dogs.

TCAP will be there doing low cost vaccines. Unleashed will be here with doggie pools and doing paw prints. The Freezing Frog will be there with sno cones. There will be a cake walk for the kiddos, raffle items and giveaways throughout the event.  And most importantly, Apollo Rescue will have dogs and cats available for adoption!!

Hope to see you and your fur babies there!

Baby Proofing for your Mischievous Little Ones

We seem to be more aware of the dangers around our homes when it comes to babies. There are all kinds of gadgets out there to secure cabinets, cover outlets, barrier gates, the list goes on forever. Over the years, these gadgets have evolved to keep your babies safer. There is so much more to baby proofing than just covering up outlets, putting locks on cabinet’s, and corners bumpers these days:

1.      New and improved outlet covers: Now this is pretty cool! The first ones I remember were the hard plastic flat ones that were nearly impossible to take off. So for protecting babies from sticking anything in the outlet, they worked like a charm. Once you finally did get them out, they then turned from a safety gadget to a choking hazard if you left it laying around. Now you can buy outlet covers with sliding doors. The door just slides back when you take the plug out. Genius! No more tugging and takes the choking hazard right out of the picture!

2.      Keep technology cords out of reach: Phone chargers, laptop cords, tablet chargers and not just those but all cords.  Plug them in high or behind things that babies can’t get to.  If your is a little Houdini and can get into the tightest spots, plugging your cords high is a better idea. Another thing to think about is, if you use an audio or a video monitor, make sure it is far enough away from your baby’s crib and their reach. Cords in general… not baby safe.

3.      Make sure your TV won’t tip over: It seems flat screen TV’s are what most  have these days which are lighter than the older box type TV’s. Although I’m sure the box TV’s could be tipped over, the flat screen TV’s are much easier to fall or tip over. Make sure your TV is secure either by mounting it on a wall or strapping it down.

4.      Make sure your furniture is secure: Like your TV, furniture can tip over as well, especially when your baby starts to pull up on everything as they get more mobile. There are also straps that you can buy to anchor furniture to the wall so they don’t tip over.

5.      Never let them out of your sight: We do need to blink every once in a while so it’s not always possible to never take your eyes off them. We all know how quick they can be and before you know it, they are somehow standing on the table. Be proactive, take anything that could hurt them and put up high or covered, buy toys that are less likely to be choking hazards (because everything goes in their mouths), and make safe places for them to roam and just watch them. Babies will be babies and love to explore so just make a safe place for them to explore.

In reality, nothing we set up will ever be completely safe. Little ones can find ways to climb out of barriers and somehow can get into or out of places we never thought they’d figure out. So just be on guard and prepared for anything with your little daredevil. They just can’t help themselves but to always be on the go, ready with an escape plan and will stop at nothing. Sneaky little people they are. 

If talking in movie quotes (or TV quotes) is wrong… Then I don’t want to be right!

How many of us use movie and TV show quotes in our everyday conversations? Think about it. I bet all of us use them, from Dirty Harry to Joey from Friends. You know what I’m talking about. 

I've set up a few situations below that a movie or TV show quote will fit perfectly into:

 

You’re on the road and someone is trying to cut you off… “Go ahead, make my day!” – Dirty Harry from Sudden Impact

Heading out the door for lunch, “I’ll be back.” – The Terminator

A greeting that has seemed to worked itself into everyday life, “How you doin’?” – Joey from Friends

I feel like I use this one more when I’m talking to my kids, “You’re killing me, Smalls…” –Ham from The Sandlot

You accomplish something so amazing that you end the conversation with, “It was Legend…. Wait for... DARY!!!” –Barney from How I Met Your Mother

Moments after you realize you were talking about one thing and mid conversation started another completely different conversation, “SQUIRREL!” – Dug the Talking Dog from Up

And no one can start a sentence with, “This one time…” without someone else saying, “at band camp…” – Michelle from American Pie

 

Am I right? And if you’re not saying them out loud, you have to be saying them in your head, especially “this one time… at band camp,”. I think that’s one of the most irresistible ones not to finish off…

 

Here are a few more oldies but goodies and a few from today:

“I pity the fool!” – Mr T.

“D’oh!” – Homer, The Simpsons

“No soup for you!” – Soup Nazi, Seinfeld

“Negative, Ghost Rider.” – Air Boss Johnson, Top Gun

“Earmuffs!” – Frank, Old School

“Run, Forrest! Run!”   - Forrest, Forrest Gump

“STELLA!!!” – Stanley, A Street Car Named Desire AND Elaine, Seinfeld (and if you’ve been to DeVivo Bros. in Keller, they have a ‘STELLA’ sandwich. You can’t ordered it without saying, “STELLA!” like Stanley or Elaine. Well… I guess you can but it’s not as fun.)

“You can’t handle the truth!” - Col. Jessup, A Few Good Men

“Alrighty then!” – Ace, Ace Ventura

Here are the offices personal favorites:

Eddie: “You’re killing me, Smalls!” Ham, The Sandlot

Donna: Besides finishing up the, "at band camp" quote, Donna's not much of quoter. She's loaded with all her own original quotes. 

Amanda: “Negative Johanson.” Highway, Heartbreak Ridge

Marti: "I'll be back." The Terminator

Candyce: “Nobody puts Baby in a corner.” Johnny, Dirty Dancing

Lindsea: “Ya Nasty!” Raven, That’s so Raven

Brittany: “He touched the butt…” Tad, Finding Nemo

Steph: “I mean… You’re welcome.” Becca, Pitch Perfect 

There are so many more to choose from. What are your favorites? We encourage you to leave them in the comments! We would love to read them! 





Happy Movie/TV show quoting!! 

Get a Life… Insurance Policy for your Children

Life insurance is the gift that keeps on giving, even when giving them to children. It is a non-traditional gift to give but it comes with future benefits. A life policy can potentially be a source of funds that your children and/or grandchildren can access when they get older, protects their future insurability, and by starting coverage early, it can keep premiums down.

Talking about life insurance can be tough especially when it’s for your child or grandchild. As parents we don’t like to think about something tragic happening to our kids. As an example, let’s say the unthinkable happens to your child while away at college. Having a life insurance policy for them that covers tuition in case of an accident will stop a monthly tuition bill, reminding you that your child won’t be coming home.

There is also a juvenile permanent life insurance policy that builds cash so that come time for college, your child or grandchild can access it to pay for college. A juvenile permanent life insurance policy is commonly purchased to supplement a college fund.

Here are more notable advantages for a life insurance policy for your children or grandchildren:

-        Important Cash Accumulation – The cash value of the policy grows with your child so the earlier the better.

-        Guaranteed Insurability – Regardless of their occupation or their health, when they have a life policy as a child, those factors will not interfere with them qualifying for a life policy as an adult.

-        Cost Savings – The earlier the coverage begins, the lower the cost may be.

-        Guaranteed Self-Completion – In the event of your death, an optional payor benefit may be available that could cover the premium payments of the policy for you.

Talking about Life insurance  isn’t always the easiest subject to talk about. Let’s set up a meeting and lay out all the benefits of a Farmers Life Insurance policy for your child or grandchild. Like Professor Burke says, “The more you know, the better you can plan for what’s ahead.”

Surviving a Road Trip with Kids

“Are we there yet?” “When are we going to be there?”  “Are we almost there?” “How many more hours?”  "He's on my side!" These and a variety of other ways to ask these same questions are usually what we hear on a road trip with children. In my experience, we aren’t even out of the city yet and the questions begin.

When I was a kid, there were no portable DVD players, cars with DVD players in them, or smartphones. If you were lucky you had a Walkman. (On a side note, Walkman’s are still around! Check out The History of the Walkman: 35 years of iconic musicplayers).Other than that, we played I Spy, Slug Bug, or who could annoy the other sibling the fastest.  That never ended well.

So in our modern day, fast paced world, what is a kid to do on a long road trip? The possibilities are endless, right? Even with all the choices, do you still get the, “I’m bored…”  “Are we there yet…?” Yeah… me too. Well, here are a handful of ideas that hopefully will help pass the time and not make you lose your mind on a road trip with the kids:

1.      Invest in a portable DVD player

If your vehicle doesn’t already have one, it’s worth the money to purchase one.  I’ve seen them priced from $50 on up. You can also load movies onto a tablet or smartphone and have them watch movies on those as well.

2.      Load games to a tablet or smartphone

In my experience, that will keep my kids quiet for quite some time.

3.      Play car games

I do like my kids and I don’t want to necessarily keep them quiet the entire trip. Here are a few ‘classic car games’ that even you can join in on:

·        I Spy – ‘I spy with my little eye, something…’ That was one we played on road trips. Someone finds inside the car and gives everyone a clue (color, letter, texture). The others playing have to guess what the object is.

·        The Alphabet Game – The object of this game is to go through the alphabet using road signs or something in the car that begins with the letter that falls on your turn.

·        The License Plate Game- There are a few different ways you can play it.

o   Look for license plates from different states

o   Take the letters from the license plate and name a celebrity with those letters (JF = Jimmy Fallon).

o   Take the letters from the license plate and make phrases out of them (BEO = Big Elk Outside).

·        Celebrity Name Game – How this game works is the first person to go picks a celebrity’s first and last name. The next person has to take the first letter of that celebrity’s last name and name another celebrity with it. Did I confuse you yet? It’s a little difficult to explain but here’s an example: First player names Julia Roberts. The next player would us the ‘R’ in Roberts and chose another celebrity – Ryan Reynolds. In a situation where the celebrity’s first and last names start with the same letter (and there are more than 2 players playing), the turn reverses back to the ‘Julia Roberts’ player. This game can go for hours!

4.      Bring board games that are car-friendly

Playing cards in a car can be tough but it’s doable. There are car-friendly games you can buy like Battleship and Checkers.  Though it’s not a board game, there is an app called Heads Up.  That’s a good time, too.

5.      Have story time

Even if you have older kids that don’t care about ‘story time’.  If doesn’t have to be about fairytale’s and dragons.  Tell them your stories (maybe not all of them…). Road trips can be a great time to tell stories, catch up and find out more about your kids and vice versa.  We all have busy schedules and may not always have time to just sit and talk to our kids. What better setting than to trap them in a car and chat away.

So, with summer vacation in full swing for the kids, I hope a few of these help to keep you as sane as possible on road trips and keep the craziness in the backseat to a minimum.

Safe travels every one!

Do's and Don't's for Father's Day Gifts*

SUNDAY, JUNE 21ST is when Father's Day is this year. Any ideas on what to get good ol' dad this year? A tie? Cologne? 'Best Dad Ever' shirt? Those all sound good me. Father's Day commercials usually have one or all of those displayed as things to get dad. 

To see if that's really what today's dads want, I reached out to 20 of my closest family and friends (that were dads) and took a survey asking them to give me at least 5 things dads DO want for Father’s Day and at least 5 things dads DON’T want for Father’s Day. Some of their requests were very specific with an explanation of why and/or why not they chose the items on their lists. It was comical.

So here you go families.  Here are the DO wants and DON'T wants:

DO’S:

With 2-4 Votes: 
Date Night                                          

Family Time

Round of Golf

Lingerie for Wife                                                                                  

Tools

Golf Gear

Athletic Gear

Grill

Gun

Watch

Events Tickets (sports and concerts)

Ammo

Framed Family Pics

Car Detail

Alone Time (this was the best I could sensor it)

Kids Artwork

Sporting Goods Gift Certificates

Single Votes:

Weekend Getaway

MAN Dinner (NO Diet Restrictions)

Sports Memorabilia

BBQ Items

Massage

I pod

Gun Range Outing                 
Gift Cards

New Gadgets

Cologne

Brisket and Ribs (RAW – for the avid BBQ-er)

10,000 Acre Ranch in South Texas

Sunglasses

Ford F350

Drone 

Bacon

Fishing Gear

Itunes Card

Money

Gift Certificate for a Family Day

Food

Time Alone to do what Dad Wants

Guys Night Out

Chores Free Day                                 

1975 CJ7

  

DON’T’s:

With 16 Votes:

TIE

With 1-6 Votes:

Clothes

Cologne

Gift Cards

Candy

Appliances

Socks

Spa Day (Shocker…)

Yard Stuff

Underwear

Pedicure

Golf Gear

Coffee Mug                                                                               

Bottle of Liquor

Golf Gadgets Sets

Goofy Shirts

Books

Gym Membership

Pinterest Creation

Flowers

Nothing

Jewelry, unless specifically requested…

Date Night and Family Time had the highest votes for DO's and as you can see, by a land slide, Ties were a definite DON'T! There are a few that popped up on both lists but I'm sure we all know the dad we buy for well enough to know if they are a DO or a DON'T for those few items.

Since the reasoning behind some of the answers I got back were pretty comical, I thought I'd share a few with you. Enjoy!

“If anyone had the choice to wear a tie or not, they’d NEVER choose to wear one.  They’re as close to a noose as we get in modern civilization.” – Bob Williams

“Don’t want… A tie, a tie, a tie, a tie, a tie!” – Joe Gonzalez

“Bacon. Nothing says I love you more than really darn good bacon.” –Phil Rice

“Men don’t benefit from cologne. We only wear it for our wives to smell.” – Eddie Kirkwood

“No underwear… Unless it’s lingerie for the wife.” –Anibal Campos

“Father’s Day is the wifey getting a great gift for the husband. I agree with lingerie.” – Greg Espinoza

*“Do’s and Don’t’s for Father’s Day Gifts” was written by Stephanie Espinoza. Though it was posted to hopefully benefit him and all the other dads out there for Father’s Day and he did participate in the survey, Eddie did not write it. J 

Can I Get Life Insurance for Extreme Hobbies?

What sort of hobbies are out there these days? Do people still collect stamps, baseball cards, or coins? What about outdoor hobbies like hang gliding, hot air ballooning, scuba diving, or rock climbing? I guess those could be classified as “Extreme Hobbies” or as Farmers puts it, “Insane Hobbies”.  For the thrill-seeking, adventurous crowd, luck may be on your side, when it comes to your Life insurance that is. There’s a possibility that your policy may cover your hazardous activities.  Be expecting there to be a few exceptions but if you are willing to pay extra for it there may be coverage for a few insane hobbies that life companies can insure.

While these ‘Extreme Hobbies’ are high risk, there are requirements for this coverage and it may be a little difficult to obtain. It all comes down to you. Being responsible, safe, having experience in your ‘craft’, taking known precautions and just being honest with your agent will definitely help in the process. To dig a little deeper, here are 5 extreme hobbies that insurance can cover and what needs to be in place for the possibility of coverage:

1.      Hang Gliding – If it’s just something you can’t live without coverage is possible. Though it may add to your premium, a certification and, of course, experience will help get you coverage.

2.      Hot Air Ballooning – Most insurers don’t have issues with

coverage for Hot Air Ballooners that have a pilot’s license and experience. With the number of accidents in the hot air ballooning category not being very high, your chances are pretty good to get coverage.

3.      Motorcycle Sports – Whether you are riding on a track at crazy speeds or riding to work, expect to pay an extra premium. Motorcycle riding for sport or not, still is dangerous. While wearing a helmet isn't the law, it will help!

4.      Rock Climbing – This is a tough one to cover. If you practice safe climbing with a harness and all the right equipment, there’s a chance of getting you into a Life policy. If you like to go out and climb a rock without a harness, the odds are not forever in your favor.

5.      Scuba Diving – This activity is one of the hardest to get coverage for. That’s not saying you can’t get coverage with this activity on your hobby list. If you have had lessons and preferably, have your certification, getting coverage to be shark bait, I mean, to scuba dive is a possibility.

It’s all about being responsible, taking precautions, and just being safe. It’s also a good idea to have your certification or license, protect yourself with any and all protective gear possible and just honest with your agent.  Tell them up front what your extreme sport is so they know what to look for in the best coverage for you.  If you are able to do all of the above, your agent may be more inclined to taking a risk on you and get you into a life insurance policy.