I'm an organizer, a plan-maker, a woman of many lists. It's all part of my Type A personality -- the one that contributes to a bit of stress but also helps me stay on top of things. I like staying on top of things.

Lists have become more important to me than ever, thanks to cancer and chemo and my forgetful brain. If I want to remember something, I must write it down. If I let just a moment pass without recording the thought I want to keep, it's gone. So I have ongoing grocery lists, household to-do lists, task lists, even lists of questions I want to ask my doctor. Since I see my doctors just once every few months, I keep a running list. Sometimes the list is quite long when I arrive for my appointment. Sometimes I don't have time to cover each topic. Sometimes I transfer questions onto future lists.

It would be nice if I could get all my medical questions answered at each visit. I once read that the typical amount of time a doctor spends with a patient is eight minutes -- so it makes sense I never cross off all my list items. But in the future, I may do better at covering my bases, thanks to this advice I found in the in the July 2007 issue of Good Housekeeping.

Don Herbert, also known as television's science teacher Mr.Wizard, died at his home Tuesday of bone cancer. He was 89.

Mr. Wizard's target audience was kids (baby boomers: you may already know this) and his lessons taught youngsters to use the thinking skills of scientists through workshop experiments using simple household items. His 1950s series Watch Mr. Wizard was so good it won a Peabody Award in 1954, and Herbert was one of David Letterman' first guests when the show Late Night With David Letterman debuted in 1982. Herbert's show made it to Nickelodeon too and ran from 1983 to 1991. Reruns were shown until 2000. Nickelodeon's Mr. Wizard episodes are available here.

A native of Waconia, Minnesota, Herbert graduated from LaCrosse State Teachers College in 1940; served as a U.S. Army Air Corps pilot during World War II; and worked as an actor, model, and radio writer before reaching fame on Mr. Wizard in Chicago -- and then New York -- on NBC.

He is survived by six children and stepchildren and by his second wife, Norma.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is making it easier for consumers to read food labels. With a quick stop at a website called Make Your Calories Count, we can all learn how to better decipher and truly understand the numbers we find printed on the back of food items.

The FDA interactive site, featuring a cartoon character called Labelman, provides consumers with information related to healthful diets and calorie management. There are exercises, quizzes, and a training module available for download and printing.

The program, which presents two nutrients that should be limited (saturated fat and sodium) and two that should be consumed in adequate amounts (fiber and calcium), may be just the resource we need in our pursuits of better health and disease prevention.

Just before her 2nd birthday Allison Faith Webb, called Ally, was diagnosed with Wilm’s Tumor, a form of kidney cancer. At the time of diagnosis, the cancer had already spread to her lungs. Ally underwent 3 major surgeries, radiation and 3 different kinds of chemotherapy. She received care at Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City and at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. While her mother cradled her little daughter in her arms, Ally lost her battle with cancer. Ally's House, founded in memory of Ally, assists Oklahoma families who have a child with cancer. Ally's House helps families with medical expenses, travel expenses, clothing, groceries, short-term housing, overdue bills, prescriptions, hospice care, and if needed, funeral expenses.

As important, Ally's House hosts events for children living with cancer, like ice cream parties, arts and crafts parties, concerts and music events, amusement park trips and picnics. The foundation relies on donations in providing many of these services. If you can help, visit Ally's House for more information. If you know of a family who needs help, tell them about Ally's House. Allison's family says that the name, Ally's House, was chosen because each time Ally came home from the hospital she would exclaim, “We’re at Ally’s house!” Ally's House symbolizes a safe place of comfort and love. This is the mission of the foundation for families they serve -- to create a comfort zone of love -- in memory of their beloved daughter Ally.