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Preparing for the Unknown with Cord Blood Registry

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Dad Central for the Cord Blood Registry. I received promotional item to thank me for my participation.

My wife and I are done having kids. When we got married we had been fairly certain that we would have two children and that would be it. After getting pregnant with our first child on our honeymoon, we were halfway done with our "plan" and were pretty much just reacting to life at the moment. As a new husband and now soon-to-be new dad, I wasn't sure what I was adjusting to more, the idea of being married or the idea of becoming a father in a few more short months. How do you really prepare for two of the biggest changes in your life?

We may have been different than most parents in that we chose to not find out the sex of our child before they entered the world. That meant no ultra-sounds and no pre-emptive testing to determine the health of our child. We thought to ourselves that if we did find out there were problems with the baby, would we terminate the pregnancy? No. Thus finding out there was something to then start worrying about prior the pregnancy would then only cause more stress on my wife and the baby.

One thing we knew a little bit about at the time but didn't research as much as I probably should have was how to take advantage of what was available to us to help with possible future health concerns was the ability to take some of the umbilical cord blood and bank it for future use for health concerns. Cord blood is being used as treatment for over 80 different diseases already and shows potential benefits for a variety of other diseases including various forms of cancer.

I can tell you that I'm sure one of the reasons I didn't pursue it for my own kids was a question of financial ability. If I remember correctly, it's been over 12 years now since we were working through our last pregnancy, the cost to obtain the cord blood wasn't the issue, it was the ongoing storage for making it available should we need it in the future. Those costs were seen more as an insurance type of cost and not a medical cost, so there was no coverage assistance for it. Luckily, due to recent legislation introduced, The Family Cord Blood Banking Act, allows healthcare savings dollars and tax savings associated with those costs.

If you and your wife are currently expecting and would like to have more information about Cord Blood Registry and banking options, you can find out more on the cordbankingbasics.com website. They're currently offering a $200 coupon off of their service that's available now through March 24, 2014.

Below is a graphic about an upcoming trial for using cord blood cells to repair issues with acquired hearing loss in children.

Cord Blood Hearing Loss Trial Infographic

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More on Growing Older As a Guy

"I participated in a campaign on behalf of Dad Central Consulting for Depend. I received products samples and a promotional item as a thank you for participating."

Taking it Easy

As I wrote about in my last post, the years keep rolling by for us. There's no pause or rewind button. Due to some health issues my own dad has been facing lately, it has caused me to think even more about my own frailty as a man, husband and father. As a colleague once shared with me on something he'd heard online, these bodies we think are invincible aren't much more than a fragile bag of blood and fluid that we do our best to take care of hopefully.

My dad, like most of yours, was also viewed in my eyes as this immovable force. His arms and hands were always rough and strong and stable. As he continues to age he's had some spinal issues that have caused him to be almost completely immobilized. Through recent surgery, he's hoping to recover that mobility and strength, but he's having to relearn movements and leg control that once came naturally and without thought.

It's tough seeing your dad age like that, but it's tough on yourself too!

If you're like me, as you were younger, you probably made Depend products the butt of many jokes. As I get older, I can tell you, it's no longer a laughing matter. I don't have any bladder control problems that I currently have to worry about. I also don't know of anyone in my immediate connections that have that issue. Perhaps that's because of Depend. I would imagine statistically that I should know someone that has to consider these challenges. Perhaps that's a credit to companies like Depend that make these types of products so that people can continue living their lives without having to worry about the issue. That's a good thing for people.

If you'd like more information about Depend, you can visit their website, hear real stories from customers or request a free sample.

If you still consider yourself "young", just be aware it won't always be like that. If you're "older", know there's things you can do to take control of some of these issues and get back to living. Keep it up and take it easy. You've earned it!

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Growing Your Game as a Father This Year

Disclosure: "I participated in an Influencer Program on behalf of Dad Central for ROGAINE®. I received a product sample and promotional item to thank me for participating."

Grow Your Game

As I get older the things that I think about through the day have definitely changed. I don't regularly think about it, but when I do I'm still not quite sure I'm really as old as I am. I'll be hitting 4 decades on this planet later this year and that just seems unfathomable to me. Some of the things I used to not give a seconds thought about was hair issues. Now it's falling out and thinning on top and then showing up out of my nose and ears like I'm some old grandpa! I'm getting old!

So as I participate in this campaign for ROGAINE through Dad Central I'm reminded of that aging process. ROGAINE has partnered with Men's Health magazine and created a website for Grow Your Game. The website highlights men's health issues and provides content and resources for me that are looking to improve themselves this year. There are topics about personal development, personal style, personal hygiene and more from various "coaches" that have been put together that write and promote this content. One of the people that has gotten behind this effort is Bill Rancic. You may remember that name from his appearance on TV show "The Apprentice".

For me, I've never been much of that Type A business professional all wrapped up in the total package and presentation. I've always tried to take care of my appearance and be aware of it and look professional, but not to the point that I'd consider those concerns getting in the way of other responsibilities. I'm a husband, and a dad and a friend first. I try to balance taking care of myself and presenting myself in the best light, but not being overwhelmed with that effort.

Lately, my biggest concern has been to become a better dad and husband. If I were to give advice to other males in that role with me it would only be because of things I've struggled with on my own and tried to improve and continue to improve.

Quantity and Quality Time Is a Myth

We've all been lost in this battle I think. The challenge is that you can't really schedule quality time. You have to just put in time and be available and when that happens quality time will sneak up on you and just happen sometimes. The other challenge is that time is a finite resource. There's only so much of it. It's not that you don't have enough time in your day, it's that your filling it with things that may not be what you want. If you're not getting something done that you think is important to you (like spending more time with your kids) then you're spending your time doing other things that perhaps aren't as important: too much time at the office, watching TV, time with friends (instead of family), sleeping in? Those things may not necessarily be bad, but if you're hurting for time in your schedule, take a look at these things and see if you have an area you can adjust. The other thing that I've used quite frequently in recent time is that when I say "Yes" to something/someone, I'm also saying "No" to something/someone else. I just may not know what that "No" was the answer to yet. Be protective of your time and your commitments.

Right Motives for Personal Development

My other growth area in recent times is to understand the real reason and motivation behind me always pushing myself to be better and learn more. I work hard ultimately to provide for others. Of course I get some benefits from that as well, but I want to make more money so that I can provide more for my family. So that we can do fun and interesting things together. And to provide as much of a secure life as I can for my wife and kids. In addition, I would like to make more money so that I can also help more people around me as events come into their lives and they need help with. I want to be a generous person. That's hard to do when you're scraping by paying your own bills all the time. I want to live a "simpler" life and make what I do earn go further than it has in the past. Hopefully I can achieve more of that goal in 2014.