If you look up the statistics on death, you’ll quickly find that you have a 100% chance of dying.

All kidding aside, the truth is that we will all breathe our last breath at some point, leaving our families with sadness and mourning. Additionally, they’ll be the ones planning our funerals.

You can relieve this stress by taking the time to plan your funeral beforehand. Of course, planning your funeral isn’t something you might eagerly anticipate. Yet, it’s a fact of life that you might want to address before you die.

This guide helps you learn how to plan your own funeral and the reasons to consider doing this right now. If you’re interested in learning these things, please continue reading this article.

Reasons to Plan Your Funeral

Many people view funeral planning as a routine part of their estate plans. An estate plan protects your assets and ensures that your loved ones receive your things after you die. However, estate plans have other goals, too.

While planning your estate, a lawyer might also recommend planning your funeral. Here are several excellent reasons to begin your funeral plans now:

To Relieve Your Family’s Stress

First, consider the way your family will feel when you pass away, especially if it’s a sudden and unexpected death. Losing a close loved one is hard, mainly because death is final.

Therefore, your family will face the burden of mourning their loss of you. This time is stressful for families, yet they’ll be forced to plan your funeral right away.

You can ease some of your family’s stress by relieving them of these duties.

For example, if you plan your funeral before you die, your family won’t have this burden. Instead, they can enjoy each other’s company and mourn for you.

They’ll still have tasks to do to prepare for your funeral, but they’ll have less to handle. As a result, they’ll have fewer decisions to make, and they won’t feel rushed to decide how to handle everything.

To Ease the Financial Burdens

Secondly, preplanning your funeral eases the financial burdens your family faces after your death. One of the critical parts of funeral planning is determining how to pay for it.

If you figure this out before you die, your family won’t struggle financially. Your family won’t have to cut back on the services you receive or ask others for help.

If you want to protect your family financially, preplanning your funeral is one of the best options. You’ll learn more about this funeral-planning aspect later in this article.

To Ensure the Right Funeral and Services

Finally, planning your funeral helps you ensure that you have the type of funeral, burial, and service that you want. If you don’t leave a plan for these things, your family might not know what to choose.

They might argue about the options, which can lead to more stress.

Once you die, you’ll no longer have a say. You’ll no longer be able to tell your family what you want, so it will be up to your close relatives to handle everything.

Instead of leaving them guessing, you can draw it all out through a funeral plan. As a result, they won’t have to guess, and you can have the funeral you want.

The Main Steps to Plan Your Funeral

You can see why planning a funeral is essential, but you might wonder about the steps needed to plan yours. Here are the primary steps you must take when preplanning a funeral:

Meet With a Funeral Home

The first thing you can do to begin your planning is meet with a funeral home. Before doing this, you must choose one. You can search your local area to determine your choices. Next, you might want to visit a few homes.

For example, do you have a preference from past funerals you attended? If not, you might want to drive by some local funeral homes to see where they are and what they look like.

You can also schedule appointments to discuss preplanning a funeral with one or two funeral homes. When meeting with a director, you can tour the homes and ask questions.

As a result, you’ll learn more about each funeral home, and you can use this information to choose the best one for your needs and desires.

Consider the Options

Planning a funeral also requires considering all your options. You can research funeral options to learn more about the details you must decide on or use for your funeral plans.

But, you can also learn more about your options by meeting with a funeral director. A funeral director can help you learn the value of preplanning this event. They can also help you learn about the decisions you must make.

Considering your options can help you plan a proper funeral for your needs, desires, and budget.

Purchase Life Insurance

The next step in planning a funeral is purchasing life insurance. While this step is not mandatory, it’s extremely helpful for your family. Life insurance comes in several types, and you can choose a policy based on your needs.

Life insurance provides a cash payout to the beneficiaries. You can name one person as a beneficiary or many. Then, when you die, your beneficiaries can file a claim on the policy.

After proving you died, the life insurance company sends a check for the policy’s value. Your family can use this money to pay for your funeral if you haven’t paid for it yet.

Settle the Plans

When you consider your options, you can select your plan. Selecting your plan helps you lock your funeral in place. Then, when you die, your family can follow this plan to provide you with the funeral you want.

Let Your Family Know

Finally, it would help to let your family know that you planned your funeral. Then, you can discuss this with them and tell them which funeral home you used for your plans.

You can also include these details in your will. You should also let them know where your will is, so they can find it when you die.

Decisions to Make When Planning Your Funeral

Your family must follow your funeral plans when you place them in writing, and here are some of the decisions you must make:

Burial vs. Cremation

First, do you want your family to bury you or cremate you?

You can compare some of the pros and cons of these options before deciding. One benefit of cremation is its affordability. It costs less than a burial.

Viewing vs. No Viewing

Next, do you want a viewing of your body? Even if you choose cremation, you can have a viewing, but it will cost more. The funeral home must prepare your body for the viewing before cremating your body.

If you decide to have a viewing, you might want to pick out your clothing. You might also want to give instructions about your hair, jewelry, or other details related to the viewing.

Type of Service

You can also decide what type of funeral service you want. For example, you can have a service at the funeral home or your church. You can have the service a few days after your death or at a later time.

Additionally, you might want to name some people to speak at your funeral service, or you could pick a singer to sing a song. You can also choose songs to play or sing at your service.

How to Handle Your Remains

You may also want to decide how your family should handle your remains. For example, if you want a burial, you can pick and purchase a burial plot.

If you choose cremation, you can choose an urn and decide which family member should keep it.

How to Cover the Costs

Another decision is how to cover the costs of the funeral. If you purchased life insurance, you may want to use the proceeds to pay for it. You can also purchase funeral insurance to cover the costs.

Your Obituary

Finally, it might also be helpful to write your obituary. Your family might need to update it after your death, but at least they would have a good starting point.

Don’t Wait too Long: Start Your Plans Today

As you can see in this guide, planning your funeral is helpful, important, and thoughtful. If you want to plan your funeral, you’ll need to speak with a funeral home to start the process.

You don’t have to plan the entire event in one day, but you shouldn’t wait too long. Instead, it would help if you considered starting the process today.

If you enjoyed this article, check out others on our site.

In the event there are one or more individuals out there you’d like to reunite with, how do you expect to go about it?

From outside family to friends, former classmates or coworkers and more, do you want a reunion?

Let the Internet Be a Helping Hand

When you’ve decided you want to make an effort to track down and reunite with one, can the Internet help you out?

In fact, the answer to that question would be a resounding yes.

So, take some time to get online and see what resources are available when it comes to finding people.

You can check out different websites and even social media to help you in this pursuit.

Whether you want to do a UK people finder or others, the goal is to find all relevant info online. That is about someone from your past.

This can include things like details on where a person of interest lives now, their phone number, a job and more.

Once you have relevant connection information, it is up to you to decide what you do with such details.

While specific search websites can be a big help to you, don’t sleep on using social media either.

Keep in mind that countless folks are on a variety of social networking sites on a regular basis. As such, you might be able to find the person or persons you are looking for via social media.

Some of the more popular social sites to check out would include:

By checking those and some other social media venues, you could find the people you have gone in search of. Unless they have locked social accounts, you can likely find out some recent details.

Look to Their Family and Friends Too

In your quest to track down one or more individuals, you can also look to people they have in their lives.

For example, were you friends with someone in high school or college and want to see what they are up to now? You may have lost touch with them over time and now have them on your mind.

If so, you could reach out to their parents, siblings or others you knew and had contact info for.

The same can be said when looking to find a former coworker or two. 

Do you still keep in touch with any mutual coworkers you and the individual had? If the answer is yes, you can always reach out to the mutual parties. See if they have info on where the individual may be now.

By using all the connections, you can be that much closer to landing the info you want to have in finding someone.

Last, make sure you respect one’s wishes when it comes to possibly reuniting with.

For one reason or another, the person in question may want to remain away. That is from one or more people trying to find and connect with them.

That said you will have to deal with what it is you end up with and not pressure the person into reuniting.

When you want to reunite with someone, what lengths will you go to so you can better make it happen?

How would you rate your video game experiences as being on a scale of great to average to bad?

If they could be better more times than not, what might you do to make things better?

By having the best experiences time and time again, you can get even more enjoyment out of video gaming.

So, where might one or more changes need to come?

Don’t Let Gaming Equipment Be the Problem

In looking at your gaming equipment, are you happy with how it serves you each time you play?

From a first-rate headset to the best gaming mouse pad and more, you want equipment to deliver each time you play. If you have too many hiccups with equipment, chances are you won’t have the fun you seek when sitting down to play.

As part of your effort to find the best equipment and accessories, it never hurts to head on over to the Internet.

Once online, you can do the following:

  • Gaming equipment websites – You get a better sense of what is out there in gaming websites. See what different pieces of equipment are, what they cost, how they are rated and more.
  • See what gaming experts say – It is also wise to go online and check out gaming experts and their two cents. That can be from people covering the gaming industry on a regular basis. You can visit their blogs, videos, podcasts and more.
  • Find out what other gamers say – Take the time to also find out what other gamers have to say. That is how they meet their equipment needs. You can find such individuals on gaming apps, social media sites, gaming forums and more.

The bottom line is to be the best informed consumer you can be and buy the equipment that will matter the most.

Do You Not Have a Well-Rounded Set of Video Games?

You may be someone who finds playing the same one or two video games over and over again as not that big of a deal.

That said would it not be more fun to have a well-rounded set of video games with which to select from?

You can cover many bases that include things like sports, crime and mystery, combat and so much more. Having such diversity will likely give you more enjoyment playing.

Finally, who might you be playing against more times than not?

Even though competing against the machine is an option, would it not be more fun to go up against other people?

If you said yes, take the time to find some other people to compete with.

You can compete against others in your home or extended family if they are into video gaming.

There is also the possibility you have some friends and co-workers who’ve taken a liking to gaming over time.

Finally, use some gaming apps that allow you to connect with other gamers all over.

When it comes to video gaming, enjoy it all you can and never be lacking for fun.

If you’ve been a video gamer for years or not all that long, odds are you have developed an appreciation for it.

With that thought in mind, are you apt to pitch gaming to family and friends anytime soon?

Doing so could land you some fellow gamers and along with that some competition before you know it.

If inclined to do so, think about reasons recommending video games to some people you know makes a lot of sense.

Video Gaming Continues to Grow in Popularity

According to Limelight.com, gaming is pretty serious for many people out there.

It was reported that the average video gamer dedicates some 6 hours and 20 minutes weekly on video games. If you play a little more or less, you still would be one who dedicates some worthwhile time to gaming.

So, among the reasons you may recommend gaming to some people you know:

  1. Equipment easy to come by – If one you’d recommend gaming to thinks equipment is hard to come by let them that is not so. While it is wise to spend whatever time it takes to shop for equipment, most of it will be easy to find. It is also rather affordable to boot. So, whether in need of the top gaming mice, a headset or other pieces let it be known these are not hard to locate. The key is taking time to view brands online. See what some of the top gaming experts recommend in buying equipment. If you have some family and friends close by and they have an interest in gaming, invite them over. Let them try out some of your gaming pieces to see what they may like. In buying gaming equipment, those you look to turn into gamers can be one step closer to playing.
  2. Gaming is a break – Whether one has a tough job, goes to school, is raising a family or some combo of those, life can be a grind. That said video gaming can prove to be a nice distraction from the daily beat. After a long day of whatever it is one does; turning to gaming can make for some fun times. It can also mean sharing the fun of gaming with their family members and some friends. Having gaming to look forward to can be a nice reprieve and relax one.
  3. Good means of making connections – Did you think playing meant stuck in a room on your own and not meeting people? If yes, by all means think again. Gaming is a great way to make connections and form some new friendships as time goes by. There are gaming apps you can come across online that allow you to connect with other gamers. Before you know it, you may have some new gamer friends that also share some other interests with you.

When you pass your love of gaming along to others, consider it one of the more positive things you have done as of late.

If you like to travel, you know all too well that it can cost a fair amount of money to get away.

With that being the case, it is important that you do as much as possible to save funds for each trip.

So that you can do this, it is wise to look for deals. Along with those deals, having a travel budget in place is a good idea too.

So, will you keep more money in your pocket on your next trip?

Search for Discounts to Save Money

One of the best ways to save money on future getaways is by searching for discounts.

Are you thinking about including a theme park or other such destination in your travel plans?

If so, get a good deal now on such a venue. You may want tickets to Disney World or another iconic theme park. No matter where you head, shopping early for deals can leave you with more money in your pocket.

In the event you will need an airline to get you to your destination of choice, also shop early for such needs.

Keep in mind that many airlines offer discounts throughout the year.

One of the best ways to find out about such deals is by going to a respective airline’s website.

You can also use travel companies online to track down savings on airfares.

Last, follow different airlines or your airline of preference on social media. This will make you one of the first to know when they are offering discounts.

When needing hotels and rental cars, the same logic applies as does with the airlines.

You have a little more leeway on hotels and cars at a later date than making airline reservations.

That said do not wait until the last minute to make such reservations. The last thing you want to have happen is that the hotel you wanted is going to be booked solid for when you plan to travel. Also, get a car rental reservation done so you are not left stranded with transportation.

No matter the reservations you need to make, be sure to stay on top of them to keep more money in your pocket.

Don’t Blow up Your Credit Card

While on your trip, be sure to use your credit card/s in a wise manner.

For instance, do not get the plastic out of your wallet each time you go to buy something while traveling. All this does is lead to a sizable credit card bill at the end of the day.

While you will need your credit card for airfares, hotels and rental cars, you do not have to use it for meals. As a result, try and use cash whenever possible in such situations.

Last, make sure you have a credit card that offers rewards. In doing this, you can get cash back for making purchases.

Whether on your own or needing a family getaway, do your best to save on your next trip.

When you do, you will enjoy the trip even more.

When you are a mom, you know that the pressures of daily life can add up.

That said it is important to make sure you are doing all you can with your health. Staying on top of your health is key for many different reasons.

So, will you stay healthy for you and your children?

Make Health a Top Priority

In doing all you can to stay healthy, keep the following pointers in mind:

1. Physical health – Your physical health begins with staying in the best shape possible. No, you do not need to be a marathon runner or triathlon competitor to be in the best shape possible. That said you do want to make sure that you get some form of exercise on a regular basis. Now, what do you do for exercise if physical pain is getting the better of you? One option is to try kratom capsules. If you were not aware, kratom is a herbal remedy. As such, it can help to relieve your pain over time. Without all that pain, you are better able to get the exercise you need and want to stay fit and trim. Also think about adding a workout partner. Having someone to do workouts with will provide you with more motivation to exercise. Last, it is important that you get a yearly physical. Even if you feel fine, that physical can help detect any underlying issues.

2. Mental health – Staying on top of your mental game is important too. You want to be sure that you do not let everyday stress get the better of you. As an example, being a mom can mean a lot of stress. From working a full-time job to all that comes with motherhood, life can get tough at times. As such, you can feel overwhelmed at times and If you’re struggling to maintain your mental health you can consider talking to an online therapist at thrivetalk.com. Find ways to relieve stress so it does not win. Along with the earlier mentioned exercise, talk to someone close to you about any issues. Whether your partner or a close family member or friend; get things off your chest. When you are on top of your mental game, you and your family are the winners.

3. Know when you need a break – Last, know when you need a break from the everyday rigors of being a mom. Although being a mom is probably the greatest feeling in the world, there are times when you will want a break. This may mean the grandparents step in for a bit and watch the children. Over the summer, you may think about sending your children to camp for a week or more. It might even mean a weekend getaway with your significant other. Having a responsible individual watch your children while you get a little R&R is fine. In fact, you may want to look at it as a need.

In being a healthier mom, make sure you know the importance of your health.

If you are not healthy, it can make things all the more difficult in taking care of your children.

So, how healthy are you?

Do you have to think for a while when it was your family last had a getaway? If you said yes, there’s a good chance it has been a while since your last trip.

With that in mind, is the time coming up where you and your immediate loved ones need to get away?

If needing a trip, where are you thinking of going?

Whether you stay close to home or go far away, a family getaway can be a lot of fun.

So, is it time to start planning?

Where Would You Like to Go?

In deciding where you and your family may want to go, first look at the options.

If money is a factor, you may want to stay closer to where you live. This can cut down on airline tickets, hotels, rental cars and more.

So, if you live in the Southern California area or not far away, would a day or weekend trip to Disneyland appeal?

One of the most famous theme parks going, Disneyland has entertained many over time. As such, it is not a surprise it remains one of the top attractions to this day.

Now, if money is an issue, don’t fret.

You can go online and search for Disneyland tickets at the right price for you.

With Disneyland, your children can enjoy rides, shows, characters in costume and more.

If you want to include Disneyland as part of your vacation, you could see a lot in one day. Remember, you can still go back at another point and time.

If thinking about a week-long journey, Disneyland and others could still be options.

For example, you may want to also get some beach time in or a trip to the mountains.

No matter where you decide to go, make sure fun is the order of the day (see more below).

Don’t Ruin a Trip by Stressing

When the time comes for you and your family to take your trip; don’t ruin it by stressing over different things.

For example, are you someone who has trouble getting away from your job? If so, the last thing you want to do is be thinking work when you are to be enjoying family time.

Do your best to get as much work done as possible before you head out on your journey. This will lessen the chances of you checking emails or phone calls to the office or clients on vacation.

If money tends to stress you out, do your best to leave those worries behind too.

When you take the time search for savings on your vacation, you have one less thing to worry about.

Last, get some ideas about your next vacation from the one you will be taking now.

See what works and what doesn’t work when it comes to how much you pay for theme parks, hotels, food and more. This will help you better plan your next adventure.

If your family needs a getaway to break the daily grind, what are you waiting for?