Laughing just feels good. When you laugh really hard, tears may fill your eyes and your stomach may hurt, but it stills feels good. Laughter is fun. Probably some of your best memories are of you and your friends or family laughing together. You always remember a funny movie or a really good joke that made you laugh out loud. Laughter brings joy to your life.

Is laughter the best medicine?

Scientists have shown that laughter is healthy. When you laugh you have more energy and you breathe better. A good belly laugh is the same as 10 minutes of exercise. Laughter can also strengthen your immune system and keep your blood pressure and blood sugar levels in check.

What are you worried about?

When you laugh, you think about the good things in your life and you gain confidence that helps you solve problems. If you feel nervous or unsure in a situation, humor can relieve the tension. Ouch, you just hit your finger with a hammer or stubbed your toe, try to laugh. Your body is designed to deal with pain and laughter is the key. Feeling tense or nervous? Can’t relax? Relieve that stress by watching a funny movie or a comedy show on TV.

Humor and laughter can improve friendships. People want to be around a happy person; they want to feel good about themselves and the world. So if you want more friends, laugh more and share that laughter with others!

Laughter is contagious; when you laugh, others will laugh with you. So smile, laugh, giggle, or chuckle, and share that good feeling.

Sometimes people think that Memorial Day and Veterans Day honor the same people. But while Veterans Day recognizes the living veterans who have served their country in uniform, Memorial Day is to honor the soldiers and members of the military who gave their lives as sacrifices for their country's freedom.

Honoring Those Who Died in War

On this day, communities often celebrate with parades. Organizations such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) or the American Legion plan special celebrations to honor their fallen comrades. The song “Taps” is typically played at the gravesites of the soldiers during these occasions.

Flags, Flowers, and Concerts

It’s common to see American flags hanging in parks, in public places, and even mounted on parking meters in the town’s business section! Sometimes the U.S. flag hangs at half-staff in memory of the fallen soldiers. It's a tradition for the President of the United States to place a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Families who have lost loved ones in the nation’s wars take a wreath, or bring flowers to place on the graves of their deceased relatives. Outdoor concerts may feature bands playing patriotic songs by composers like John Philip Sousa.

Memorial Day Fun

Memorial Day was originally celebrated on May 30, but then the date was changed to the last Monday in May so that the day would be part of a three-day weekend.

This holiday is traditionally regarded as the beginning of summer fun, when people enjoy cook-outs, going to the pool, and spending time outdoors.

But in the midst of having fun, it’s important to remember the sacrifices made by the men and women in uniform, who gave their lives so that all the things that we value and cherish as Americans can continue to be enjoyed.

It's never too early to start teaching your children about money. Even preschoolers can begin to understand money concepts by playing pretend store or restaurant games.

Money lessons for five-year-olds

At age five, you can teach your child words like savings, bank, check, bills, and trade-off. A piggy bank is an easy way to demonstrate how the child can save for something that he or she really wants. Make a game of it; count the coins once a month, and create a chart showing how close they are to their goal.

When bills come, show what the family receives in exchange for payment. Explain that a trade-off is deciding not to buy something right now so that you can save the money to buy something that you really want later on.

Teaching 10-year-olds about money

When children are 10 years old, you can teach them about interest, loans, credit cards and taxes. Take buying a car for example. Explain that the sticker price on a car isn't actually what you pay to buy the car.

If the family is saving up for a vacation, explain that the time horizon is the length of time that it will take to save the money that's needed to go to Disney World. When you go to a store, show them the tax that's added onto the receipt.

Teaching 15-year-olds about money

By age 15, your teenager can learn about investments, retirement savings and compound interest. As they start to think about college, financial concepts will be more real to them and they can begin to pay closer attention to the money they earn, save and spend.

These early money lessons could help your kids make smarter financial decisions and avoid costly mistakes in the future.

Sunday May 11th is Mother's Day. Did you know that more phone calls are made on this day than any other day of the year? Planning to call your mom this Sunday? Read on for some other ways to make your mother feel special this year.

Expensive flowers and gifts are always nice, but not if you're on a tight budget. Here are ways to pamper your mom without breaking the bank.

• Dinner out - If Mom usually does all the cooking, give her a break by taking her out for dinner. It doesn't have to be expensive; Mom will enjoy time out with the family.
• Handwritten keepsakes - Why not write a poem, letter, or handmade card telling her how much you love her? These are often treasures Mom will appreciate for years to come.
• IOU vouchers for Mom - these coupons can be once-a-month gifts for things like washing her car, cleaning out the garage, or doing something else that you know she doesn't like to do.
• Make a Cooking Calendar - When she's wondering what to cook for dinner, she can check the calendar; once a week tacos, or Wednesday pizza, or Friday night salad bars. If you're really organized, you can even prepare a shopping list for the calendar so that the chore is easy for her to do.

But remember that the best gift of all is to say "I love you." You can’t wrap it up, but she’ll remember that you said it. And it’s a gift you can give her every day.

Now that we're ready for spring, it's time to start doing things outside again. Exercising as a family, whether you have toddlers, teens, ‘tweens, or all of the above, doesn't have to be a boring chore. Use your brain along with your muscles to try some new activities that will get everyone in shape while spending quality family together.

Walking is good exercise for everyone in the family; if you have a dog, take Rover for a walk every evening after dinner. If you don't have a dog, take the family on an evening walk to look for dogs; young kids will love going on a safe family safari to search for the neighborhood pets.

Don’t let rain ruin your exercise routine.

You can exercise indoors by turning the living room into a disco. Move the furniture in the family room to the side, so that there’s plenty of room. The kids can take turns being in charge of the do-it-yourself strobe light (give them a flashlight) while everyone else dances and sings to disco classics. It's energetic, it's fun, and everyone has a good time being silly.

Use the TV!

Another way to be active as a family is to turn your TV watching into an exercise plan. No more couch potatoes! You know how everyone heads out to the fridge for snacks when the commercials are on? You can use those minutes to stay in shape. There's time for a round of push-ups, sit-ups, marching, and follow the leader before the show comes back on the screen.

Growing your vegetables.

Spring is also gardening and yard work time; each child can choose a favorite vegetable to plant, water, weed, and take care of through the growing season. If they don't have a favorite vegetable, this might be a way for kids to see vegetables as fun food. Instead of being a family of couch potatoes, you can be the family that grows potatoes! If you don’t have a yard or it’s too shady, try container gardening - most vegetables grow well in containers.

Whether you and your family are indoors or outdoors, there are lots of ways to be active and have family fun.

The next time you're on an airplane, listen carefully when the flight attendant presents the safety instructions. What does she say to do if you need to use the oxygen? She tells you to put your oxygen mask on before you put the mask on your child. Why? Because you can only take care of your child if you've already addressed your most immediate needs.

Put yourself first.

That same advice applies when juggling retirement and college savings. Financial experts agree, even though college costs are soaring, most retirees will depend primarily on savings to fund their retirement years.

Once your child graduates, his or her earning potential gets underway in earnest, but after you retire, you’re living off your pension, social security, and savings. Thanks to improved standards of living, medical advances, and technology, retirement years can last for several decades. You want those years to be financially secure.

You know that you’re likely to spend more years as a retiree than your child will spend as a college student. That’s why financial advisors recommend that, unless your retirement depends on your children taking care of you during your golden years, you need to start saving now.

Start thinking college when baby is born.

Thinking only of yourself is not the answer either. Once you've accepted the need to plan for retirement first, your next focus is college for your kids. The earlier you start the college funds, the easier it will be. Parents who manage to save $300 a month from their child’s birth will have approximately $120,000 by the time their child is ready for college.

Funding your child’s college education can come from a variety of sources too. Be sure to check out your state's 529 plan or U.S. Treasury bonds. Check out this Wall Street Journal article for more information.

With today’s careful planning, tomorrow can be financially secure for you and your family.