One of the most common ways to search for ancestry records is typing a basic query in Google. Most genealogy websites offer premium services and even if you manage to find free resources, there are a number of limitations that can stall your search for ancestry records because of the sheer complexity of the task in hand. In the end, the mighty search engine "Google" is the perfect choice to find remote links to your family history and ancestry. Who knows, a simple search could reveal you are related to Royalty and are next in line, sounds tempting doesn’t it? So how can you make the most of a globally recognized search engine and turn it into your personal family history resource to sift through mountains of metadata and find what you have been looking for? The answer lies in the following search tips. Search trick 1 To limit the number of search results you can use quotation marks in your search query. Quotation marks help you narrow down page requests and query hits. Most genealogy sites have online ancestry records that are open to public access and Google can narrow down the names from search query more efficiently using quotation marks. Search trick 2 You can use the minus sign to ensure that the search engine does not throw up redundant information. Place the minus sign directly before every word in your search query with no space in between to exclude such data. This trick helps you to eliminate the possibility of getting duplicate hit because of common ancestor names. Search trick 3 You can also get site-specific results by typing "site: SITEURL" before a term or group of terms to receive targeted results from that particular website. For example, if you want to receive specific page results from the Ancestry Records official website, simply enter site: ancestryrecords.com “yoursearchname” to get filtered results. Search trick 4 Select a date range to narrow down specific site results. If you know the time period in which you want to track your family’s lineage and progress, simply put the year in your search query. You might be wondering if it is even possible to get accurate results from a simple Google search query to track down results from billions of ancestry records. Note that there are many additional factors that determine the success or failure of your search query. While it is impossible to anticipate the hiccups you might face, these simple tricks can shed some light on your family history with one or multiple leads till you find a reliable source of information, naturally for free.

Buying a home is a dream for most of us, and it is hard to get one. From the tedious paperwork to the people and fees involved, there are tons of important things that go into buying a home. Additionally, if you're a first-time home buyer, there is a whole list of queries. But before you jump to conclusions, here are four of the loan programs that can benefit first-time home buyers. Read on! First-time home buyers' loan programs FHA The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is one of the agencies within the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is a good loan option for first-time home buyers. Moreover, the FHA program is also beneficial for those who have a shaky credit history. The FHA assures a portion of home loans that broadens the acceptance standards of the lenders. By applying for FHA, borrowers can qualify with as low as 3.5% down payment. USDA The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a home buyers assistance program. To be eligible for this program, you don't have to live on a farm. The USDA program for home buyers' assistance specifically targets rural areas and provides for 100% financing. The program also offers lender mortgage guarantee. Moreover, there are income limitations that vary as per the region. VA loans The active-duty military members, veterans, and surviving spouses are offered home loans by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. These loans offer viable interest rates, and you won't even need down payment for buying the home. The VA loans guarantee part of the loan, which helps lenders provide special loan features. In order to be eligible for the VA loan, one does not need a minimum credit score or is not required to pay for private mortgage insurance. If in any case there is difficulty in making mortgage payments, the VA negotiates with the lender on your behalf. Native American Direct Loan The Native American Direct Loan program has been helping the Native American veterans and their spouses buy homes on federal trust lands. Once an individual is eligible for the Native American Direct Loan, there is no need of a down payment or private mortgage insurance. In this case, the VA serves as the lender. If you choose the first-time home buyer loan, you get a fixed-rate mortgage for 30 years and low closing costs. So, if you're eligible, this is one of the preferred first-time home buyer loan program options you can choose.

Yogurt is a common product in one's shopping cart while visiting the supermarket. It is both nutritious and healthy and often is a part of the daily meal of people who are health conscious or are trying to reduce body weight. Greek yogurts are considered the most nutritious yogurts and are appreciated by majority of consumers. Some facts about Greek yogurt Greek yogurt is prepared in somewhat similar pattern as a regular one. At first, the milk is heated and then cooled to the desired fermentation temperature, which is 106 to 114 degrees Fahrenheit. After fermenting, bacteria grows, producing lactic acid and gets the milk protein to produce yogurt. This is also how regular yogurt is created. To make Greek yogurt, liquid whey and lactose are strained to leave behind a thicker-textured yogurt that is the Greek yogurt. Top Greek yogurt brands With time, the market is getting filled with so many varieties that it would make it difficult for you to choose the best Greek yogurt. It might confuse you to know which one is lower in fat and which one is filled with additional sugar and lactose. The main ingredient to look for is live active bacterial cultures and milk. The more ingredients it contains, the less healthy it is to consume. The following are some of the top brands of Greek yogurt: Fage: It is an authentic Greek yogurt. No additional thickeners are added to make the yogurt look thicker as compared to the regular ones. It is made from straining, which is the best possible way to get the ideal Greek yogurts. In the straining process, most of the sugar and carbs are removed. It is a snack rich in protein and ideal for low-calorie lovers. Wallaby: Wallaby is another top brand as it is ideal for a healthy diet. It is filled with bacterial cultures, which are essential to ferment the milk to produce yogurt. Moreover, they contain probiotics, which are necessary for a healthy gut. Chobani: It is yet another good option among fat-free and plain Greek yogurt. The brand Chobani offers many flavored yogurts, but the nutritionists and the health specialists recommend to avoid such flavored ones as they negate the benefits one can get from protein. Also flavored yogurts have a high sugar content in them. Chobani has flip-cup yogurts, which are better to consume as the yogurt is kept separate from the toppings like nuts or chocolate. If you want flavor in your Greek yogurt, add berries or honey to make it naturally flavored, instead of artificial flavors. Stonyfield: Stonyfield Greek Yogurt contains approximately 300 million live active bacterial cultures per gram, which are very healthy and fundamental for the digestive system. Stonyfield branded yogurts are said to be rich in probiotics. Dannon Oikos: It is the brand of Greek yogurt, which has the least quantity of added ingredients. It does not contain artificial thickeners like corn starch or carrageenan that is most commonly present in flavored yogurts.

Vitamin D is completely different from other forms of vitamins. Vitamin D is actually a hormone (rather steroid hormone) that is produced from cholesterol when the skin is exposed to the Sun. This is the reason why vitamin D is sometimes referred to as the sunshine vitamin. It is absolutely essential for optimal health. These days, we do not expose ourselves to sunlight for the adequate duration. So it becomes necessary for us to get more vitamin D from our diet or from supplements.
Let us begin with a simple question;
What is vitamin D?
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, just like vitamins A, D, E and K. This means that it dissolves in fat or oil. Vitamin D can be stored in the body for a long time. There are two main forms of vitamin D found in our diet:

• Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol): This is found in foods such as fishes that are high in omega-3 content and egg yolks.
• Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol): Found generally in some mushrooms.

Of the above two, D3 (cholecalciferol) is almost twice as effective as the D2 form in increasing the levels of vitamin D in the blood stream.

• What does vitamin D do to the body?
  Before breaking down, vitamins are pretty useless. They need to go through two conversion steps before they are activated. Vitamin D is first converted to calcidiol in the liver. This is the storage form of the vitamin in the body. Second, calcidiol from the liver is then converted to calcitriol, mostly in the kidneys. Calcitriol is the active steroid hormone form of vitamin D. Calcidiol converted to calcitriol travels through the entire body. It is then absorbed in the nuclei of the cells. There, it interacts with a receptor called the vitamin D receptor (VDR), found in almost every single cell of the body. When the active form of vitamin D binds to this receptor, it turns genes on or off leading to changes in the cells. This is similar to how most other steroid hormones work. It is well known fact that vitamin D affects various cells related to bone health, for example telling the cells in the gut to absorb calcium and phosphorus. Latest findings indicate that vitamin D is involved in other processes as well. This includes helping in the functioning of the immune system and even prevention of cancer.

So people who have vitamin D deficiency will have calcitriol (the steroid hormone form) deficiency as well. Thus, they have a deficiency of one of the critical hormones of the body.

Cookies are one of the most popular comfort foods; a cross between biscuits and cakes, cookies are the most versatile desserts. You can make cookies with many flavors: chocolate, oatmeal, raisins, coconut, peanut butter, nutty. Mostly flour-based, nowadays you will find cookies made with ingredients other flour for people who are health conscious. Oatmeal raisin cookies are one of the healthier options of cookies you can find. With the crunchiness of oatmeal and the soft chewiness of raisins, these cookie pack in a nutritious punch with the high fiber content of oats. The classic oatmeal raisin cookies recipe can be tweaked around to suit your taste buds. Here are 3 different oatmeal raisin cookies recipes to satiate your sweet cravings:

• Brown sugar oatmeal cookies: This oatmeal raisin cookies recipe requires 1 ¾ cups of packed brown sugar and 1 cup of softened butter or margarine to be beaten in a bowl until you get a fluffy and light consistency. To this, add 2 eggs and one teaspoon of vanilla and blend everything together. Then beat in 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 cup each of all-purpose flour and wheat flour and 3 cups of old-fashioned oats. Add some roasted raisins and place small flat balls of the dough on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes in an oven preheated to 350F.
• Tropical oatmeal cookies: This is one of the best nuts-based oatmeal raisin cookies recipes. You will need 3.25 oz. of macadamia nuts (coarsely chopped) and 7 oz. of dried tropical fruits and raisins (diced). In a bowl, mix together ¾ cup each of packed brown sugar, normal sugar, and butter until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add to this, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon each of vanilla and baking soda, 2 ¼ cups of all-purpose flour, 2 cups of rolled oats, 1 cup of coconut and the nuts and dried fruits. Place small flat balls of the dough on ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 375F until the cookies turn light golden brown. Make sure to preheat the oven at 375F.
• Nutella oatmeal raisin cookies: This is one of those oatmeal raisin cookies recipes that do not require any baking. The ingredients required are as follows: 2 cups of sugar, ½ cup milk, 2 tablespoons of butter, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, ¾ cup of Nutella, 2 cups of old-fashioned oats and a handful of roasted raisins. Heat the butter, sugar, and milk over medium heat and boil for one minute. Remove it from the heat and add vanilla, oats, raisins, and Nutella. On to a cookie sheet, place flat dollops of the mixture and cool it for 15 minutes.

Whether you are choosing a new case or planning to replace an old one, a new PC case can help in many ways. PC cases can improve cooling, provide ample space to fit in components, and let you move parts around inside the chassis. More importantly, they can improve the shelf life of your CPU if chosen right. There are three broad categories PC cases fall into. Budget Cases If you want to move your components to a new case and get the barest possible features without a thought on aesthetics or protection, get a budget case. These offer a basic level of protection and let you run your PC components just as they are. Mid-Range Cases This offer features such as soundproofing, cable channels for routing wires, extra port connection spaces and much more. Knowing the case dimensions is an important factor before you get one of these. Before you buy, check what components you have and their dimensions. This ranges from multiple cables, liquid cooling tubes, video cards and huge CPU coolers. Cross check whether all your components fit in comfortably and that the component's internal layout in place. You wouldn't want a long video card not fitting into the chassis due to problems with the internal layout which is why you need to check the dimensions. Typically, these support 3.5 inch and 5.25-inch devices. Avoid buying a three-bay case if your system uses a four-drive RAID array. Now comes the creative part - the design. You can choose the colors, textures and overall design of the case. Some cases offer a lighting system too which is fun but offers no functionality. Make sure the design doesn't interfere with the function of the components. Strike an elegant balance between design and functionality. High-End Cases If you've got a cash to spare for a chic and futuristic case, welcome to the world of high-end cases. This is where design and functionality max out. Prices can go beyond $200, and cases can come with a ton of advanced cooling features. They also have high-end equipment, fan controllers, and other switchable features. The soundproof acoustic foam covers the internal surfaces. You can get water-cooling loops inbuilt in the chassis. Cases can come with multiple hard drives and PCIs, ranging from 10 or more numbers in each category. Pricing can get bigger depending on the size and scale of the chassis. Whatever floats your boat, see if the case you're going for meets your PC requirements. You don't want to end up overspending for components you don't need. On the other hand, you don't want to underspend either and end up with something that doesn't meet your requirements.