Our guest writer, M. Ward talks about great online resources - accounting classes for women who want to become entrepreneurs or for those who just want to know more about bean counting. These classes are FREE. Read on!

When you’re starting your own business, you need to know a little bit about everything. But of course, most entrepreneurs don’t have a background in “everything,” so we have some things to learn along the way. Here are five good online resources to help you master the accounting end of your new business - for free!

Accounting Coach - This site is dedicated to teaching everyone the basics of accounting, so that you can apply the principles for your business or personal use. There are plenty of great courses. The only cost here is if you want to download their package, which will allow you to print materials easily for making notes and studying offline. This package is not necessary for the online courses. You can begin with their basics accounting course and move to more complex and in-depth courses as you need them.

Bean Counting 101 - This is a free online accounting course for non-accountants. It’s perfect for people who need to learn basics in a simple, easy to use format. While this site’s courses don’t go into as much depth as Accounting Coach, it’s a great beginning and may be all that’s needed for small business owners just getting started. It’s a beginner’s course, but it does cover all the basics, such as payroll, fixed assets and depreciation, and accrual accounting.

Simple Studies - This site offers tutorials in lots of accounting topics. The site also allows you to take diagnostic tests so you can see areas in which you need instruction. This tool allows busy business owners to focus in on areas where they are most lacking and skip areas they already understand.

Bean Counter.com - This site offers resources, including accounting tutorials, for accountants and people who want to understand accounting. You’ll find self-study classes in every aspect of accounting. There’s software and a special section devoted to taxes. Their tutorial “So, you want to learn bookkeeping” is a great reference for business owners just getting started. It gives the most important and basic bookkeeping skills for starting your business on the right accounting foot.

Bookkeeping Course.com - This is a set of beginning tutorials for an overview of accounting principles from balance sheet debits and credits to tax preparation. Designed for students who may want to later further their education in accounting, it works well for small business owners, too.

M. Ward writes about how to search for MHA programs.

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Curing winter blahs

Websites for women

This is a month celebrating the struggle to take back the power women had at the beginning of the world. Once, when people were just learning to be people and technology was camp fires, stone tools and using animal parts for survival, the human race figured out they needed a higher power.

The feminine aspect of God was the first personna that we recognized and worshipped. Through eons, women were respected, revered and cared for as valuable members of every nation and then something happened.

Women became second class, almost slaves. Disrespected and often abused. We have struggled long and hard to erase the negativity and repossess our collective and personal power.

We have made progress. We aren’t finished. Our daughters will finish the metamorphasis for us. There will be equal rights across the board. Someday.

Take some time out while we celebrate our history, and read a bit about women. Herstory. Refresh your memory. Think of all our sisters that came before us and will come after us.

I watched every moment of last night’s presidential debate, though I had to wake myself twice, and, I noticed, so did one or two audience members. Maybe Brokaw, too, actually, but that’s another story.

In that debate, I heard nothing I haven’t heard before. Obama and McCain think repeating childhood stories, hammering slaps at each other, and droning about who’s lying to whom will turn a tide.

Do they think we’re feeble-minded? Is McCain

Challenging your children, keeping them interested and keeping yourself engaged are ways to make home schooling more effective and enjoyable. A company called, Best Practise Network released a set of workbooks, study guides and CD-Roms starring everyone’s favorite cat, Garfield. Garfield, the familiar, rotund, grinning feline who loves lasgna, now loves learning and will help your home schooled child keep at the books with joy.

BPN describes themselves:

Best Practice Networks believes in continuous learning and that everyone is a lifelong student. While we emphasize our solutions for improving student achievement, we recognize the importance of giving everyone, regardless of life stage, an opportunity to grow.

Their Garfield It’s All About… series fits that image. There’s quality here - good paper stock, glossy soft covers, crisp printing and colorful illustrations. The CDs contain animations, interactive games and support material to enhance the workbook lessons.

There’s a Website with additional worksheets. Teaching materials can often be a big expense, but these appear to be very affordable, especially considering that they’ll be purchased over a period of time, as they are needed.

Titles ($9.95 each, includes CD) in the series include:

• Age 3-5 Letters and Words
• Age 3-5 Numbers and Counting
• Age 4-6 Math Readiness
• Age 4-6 Thinking Skills
• Age 6-7 Spelling and Vocabulary
• Age 6-7 Math
• Age 6-7 Reading and Phonics

There are titles for 7-8 and 8-9 age groups, too, with lessons in math, grammar, writing, spelling and science. Parents or significant others can work right in the books with young learners. As each book is completed, the next one picks up with the skills just learned and enhances them. The books are easily understood, have a short parent guide in the back and each has its own CD. The CD-Roms are reliable, not giving any trouble on loading or playing.

The fact that they can save activities to be resumed at a later time is a convenience parents can put to good use when home school time needs to be flexible.

It was difficult to find a negative about this product. The volumes are more affordable than many comparable series, and the quality is certainly competitive. Since the producer is a company steeped in educational tradition and activities, the lessons themselves are age-appropriate and very useable.

Features:

• “log in”- for each family member - kids can work at their own pace