Don’t Spend Your Whole Day Cleaning

One of the most frustrating aspects of being a Mother is how much disorder children bring into our lives. The house is strewn with toys, streaks of grape jelly decorate the walls, and the floor is sticky with who-knows-what substance. Your youngest child seems to wake up sick on every holiday and your middle kid throws tantrums in the most unexpected places embarrassing you to the core. Kiss predictability goodbye until you ship your kids off to college. Don’t let disorder drive you nuts. Instead of chasing your kids around all day picking up every block they toss onto the floor, or wiping down every sticky fingerprinted window, just relax. Does the thought of relaxing while watching tiny saboteurs rip your house to shreds evoke shudders of anxiety? Don’t let it. Here’s why you should wait until the end of the day to clean and tidy. If you do it any earlier, your house is going to get destroyed again. And again. And again. The result? Frustration and resentment towards your kids and your role as a Mother. Do this instead. Have a designated area in your house for toys. Either have your children play ONLY in that room or allow each child to select three toys to bring into the common area of the house. Right before dinnertime, put on some peppy music and make a game of cleaning up the house. Have the children put the toys back where they belong. As for messes, only clean them up immediately if they are going to cause a permanent stain. Otherwise, wait until your pre-dinner clean-up time to give the house a quick wipe-up. Why do the same thing over and over and over again and drive yourself crazy? Put one big clean-up time on your daily schedule and let yourself have fun with your kids the remainder of the day!

Got Bored Kids?

There is nothing more frustrating than having a bored kid hovering around you asking, “what can I do?” It’s important to teach children that boredom is a natural part of life and that they need to learn how to entertain themselves. If they’ve run out of ideas, resist plopping them down in front of the television to keep them occupied. Instead, sit down with your children and write out as many enjoyable activities that you can on index cards. Place the cards in a large fishbowl and have the children pull one out when they’re bored. If they aren’t in the mood to do that particular activity, give them one more chance to pick out a different card. If they’re still uninspired? Give them a chore to do. Have a different fishbowl with chores written on index cards. Chances are your kid will change his or her mind and go for the activity instead. Search the web for kid-friendly sites that list numerous children’s activities for ideas to write on your index cards. If you do need a break from your nagging children, allow a small amount of TV doled out in 30 minute increments. Don’t allow more than two hours of viewing per day.

Save Time On Doing The Dishes

Doing the dishes is drudgery at its best. It’s time-consuming, gross, and frustrating. If you have to wash your dishes by hand, it can take forever. Even if you have a dishwasher, you have to take time to rinse, and sometimes scrub the dishes before running them through to ensure they’ll get clean. Don’t miss a load or you’ll see a mountain of dirty dishes grow in your sink. Strange small flies may appear! Take control of this daily headache with a few simple tips. As mentioned, don’t miss a load. Getting behind on the dishes can throw your schedule into a tailspin and nothing is worse than realizing there are no clean spoons after you’ve already poured the milk into your cereal. Try to have an empty dishwasher each morning that you can add dirty dishes to as you go along. Once it’s full, run it immediately so you don’t forget. Paper plates are always great though not environmentally conscientious, but you don’t always need to use plates for everything. If you make a peanut butter sandwich for your child for lunch, simply place it on a napkin that acts as a plate as well as serves its original purpose. Have each family member use the same cup all day to avoid getting an unnecessary amount dirty. Also, clean food-encrusted pans immediately after use to save yourself from having to scrub later. Use these easy tips and dirty dishes won’t drag you down!

Look Less Tired

There isn’t a Mom in the world who gets the kind of sleep she needs or deserves, but it doesn’t have to appear that way! Leave your house looking fresh-faced and full of beauty sleep every day with these simple tips.

1. As soon as you wake up, splash cold water on your face for several minutes.

2. Wrap an ice-filled sandwich bag with a cloth and place it on your eyes for about five minutes. Moisturize your face with an SPF-containing cream.

3. Drink a large glass of water with breakfast to stave off dehydration for the day.

4. Continue drinking water throughout the day to avoid retaining water which can cause a puffy, tired appearance. Drink about 64 ounces per day if possible.

5. Dot concealer under your eyes and tap into dark circles.

6. Sweep petroleum jelly across your brow bones directly underneath your eyebrows and across the top of your cheekbones. Exclude powder from your make-up routine which can accentuate creases and wrinkles.

7. Brush your hair and make sure your clothing is clean and pressed to give you a more polished look.

8. Avoid salty foods and caffeine, both of which can make you look bloated.

9. Put some pep in your step. If you’re healthy enough to exercise, fifteen to thirty minutes can energize you and get your blood flowing giving you a healthy glow.

10. Clean your face and moisturize before bed and sleep on a satin pillowcase. Avoid sleeping on your side or stomach, but rather try to rest on your back.

Even if you only practice a few of these tips, you should look brighter and refreshed!

Clutter Control

Spring Cleaning is a wonderful annual event. With the rebirth of nature all around us we yearn to have a fresh start ourselves. Out with the old and in with the new. Well…how about just out with the old? No point in cutting the clutter around the house only to replace it with more clutter. Here is a great and easy way to tackle the clutter in your house this spring.

1. Attack one room at a time. Edit out anything that doesn’t need to be in there. Have a trash bag in the room and four bins. Label the bins: “Sell”, “Donate”, “Re-gift”, and “Storage”. Be discriminating and unsentimental. If you haven’t used or worn something in years, what’s the point of keeping it?

2. Take the “Donate” bin(s) immediately to your local thrift store or charity.

3. Plan a yard sale or list items from the “Sell” bin(s) online within a few days of finishing your Spring Cleaning. If you wait longer, the items will just collect dust and probably never leave the confines of your house.

4. Store the “Re-gift” bin(s) in a clean, safe place in your home that is easily accessible. Write a list of the contents and tape to the outside of the bin(s) to refer to when a special occasion arises.

5. Put away the “Storage” bin(s) in a space such as the attic or unused closet as soon as possible and write a list of the contents to tape to the outside of the bin(s).

Even though the term is “Spring Cleaning”, if you really want to keep your house in tip top shape, follow this advice each season!

How To Have A Good Day!

Life is full of surprises. We can’t control much of what happens in our lives from one day to the next. What we can control is how we react to it. Joy is learned. You can’t expect happiness but you can expect yourself to try to be content in any situation. It’s easier than you think! Try these simple steps to a more satisfying life and more good days.

1. Don’t let little things bother you. As cliched as this advice is, it’s timeless. Why let your day be ruined by a puddle of freshly-poured red juice on your carpet? Calmly clean up the mess. Will being angry erase the stain?

2. Think about all the wonderful blessings in your life. No matter how badly your day might be going, there is someone, somewhere, who unfortunately has it worse. Be grateful for what you have.

3. Give back. Whether you give your time or your money, helping other people is a sure way to put a smile on your face. Try to do one good deed a day, no matter how small. You’ll make the world, and your life, better.

4. Have a good support network. If you don’t live around family, or happen to have a lot of friends, go out and make some. Talk to your neighbors, go to church, or join a club. If you can’t get out, have people over to visit.

5. Treat yourself right. If you take good care of yourself, you’re more likely to have a good day. Eat healthy foods, get plenty of sleep, and nurture those around you as well.

6. Get organized. Clutter and disorder will only lead to frustration. Straighten up your life and edit out all that is unnecessary.

Now, have a good day!

So What’s For Dinner?

Dinner is often the most exciting meal of the day. Breakfast fuels up our engines to get us going in the morning. Lunch is there to hold us over and dinner, well dinner is what it’s all about! Dinner is the time everyone convenes around the table and discusses how his or her day went. We’re glad to be home from work or happy that the kids will be in bed soon so we can get a little “me time”. And who cares if the dinner dishes sit until the morning? No big deal. Take the stress out of this wondrous daily event with a little organization and planning. A friend once told me to know what you are going to make for dinner by noon that day, even if you’re going to eat out or get food delivered. Great advice. Some Moms (or Dads) are very organized and have a weekly or even monthly menu planned out. If you’re not wired that way, just try the daily method. When you go to the supermarket, stock up on meat sales and freeze it when you get home. That way you always have a main dish on hand. It’s also wise to stock up on cans of fruits and veggies as side dishes and dinner rolls are easy and fast to make. Or you can just skip the extra carbs. Find out when everyone is going to be home for dinner and then subtract the cooking time of the item that takes the longest. Plan to start dinner then. Don’t forget the extra time it takes for the oven to preheat or a pot of water to boil. And if you are craving carbs, they take time to prep and bake as well. Know all of these things well in advance of dinner time. Have one of the kids set the table, serve it all up, and bon appetit!

Don’t Pay For What You Can Do Yourself

A lot of people needlessly pay “professionals” to do things they could do themselves for free. In today’s shaky economy, wasting money in this way is foolish and impractical. When you come across a situation in life that you think you need to call someone to “fix” for you, do a little research to see if it’s something you would feel comfortable doing yourself. Examples of things you can do yourself at no cost are haircuts and color, housecleaning, oil changes, yard work and landscaping, pest extermination, minor home repairs and improvements, and home decorating. You can also commit to learn valuable skills that can help you cut costs like sewing, light carpentry, cooking, baking, auto care, and computer repair. If you don’t have these skills and have no desire or time to learn them, ask around to see if any of your friends or family members do possess them. Offer to do a favor for him or her in exchange for them helping you out. While it’s great to trust yourself to do some things on your own, there are certain situations where a professional should be contacted. Plumbing, electrical, HVAC, medical problems, etc are all best left to the experts.

Refresh Your Decor

Are you bored with the way your house looks? Is everything just collecting dust and getting old? Are you finding excuses to get out of the house just so you don’t have to look at your dreary decor anymore? Fear not. You can refresh the interior of your house very easily and quickly. What’s even better is that you can do it for free! If you want to be extra ambitious, buy new paint, but you don’t have to pay a penny to give your house a whole new look. Start by editing your rooms by deciding what you’re really sick of looking at and store the items. Try configuring furniture into a new arrangement in the rooms you want to refresh. Once you find one that works for you, take decorative items from other areas of your house, or from storage, and accessorize your rooms. If you don’t mind spending a few bucks on this transformation, purchase new or used decorative pillows and throws to add pops of color around the room. If you’re crafty, you can make these items using some favorite fabric. Finish off your new look by taking a walk around your house and collecting beautiful items from nature such as autumn leaves, unique twigs, or fresh seasonal flowers to drop into a vase. Free, easy, and fun!

Exercise By Doing Chores

You have to clean your house anyway right? And the yard is covered with a blanket of rotting leaves? Why waste time and money walking nowhere on a treadmill at the gym for an hour when you can burn calories and be productive at the same time? Bust out that rake and lose some weight. It only takes 20 minutes of raking to burn 100 calories for a woman who weighs around 150 pounds! Running around after your children all day no longer has to be an exercise in frustration but rather it’s an exercise of calorie-busting! As great as this information is to have, you also have to adjust your diet if you’re serious about losing weight. Check in with your doctor to make sure you are healthy enough to embark on exercise and calorie reduction in your diet. Have your doctor give you a daily caloric intake target to aim for and learn the art of counting calories. Search online for calorie-counting and calorie-burning tools to help you to meet your goals.

Decorating With Thrift Store Finds

Home is where the heart is. It’s a place of comfort and calm. A place where you can hang your proverbial hat and relax. Your home should be beautiful. To you. You don’t have to have a house straight out of the pages of an interior design magazine. Fill your house with things you like to look at that make you feel happy and comfortable. Decorating doesn’t have to take a lot of time or expense. Paint is relatively inexpensive and the fastest way to change, or refresh, the look of a room. Once you find the perfect color, complete the look of the room with some finishing touches. Thrift stores are amazing places to find furnishings and decorations for your home. Charming wooden bureaus, old unmatching china, and antique rug beaters can often be found at your local store. The prices are reasonable because the items are used and the stores want to move their inventory quickly. Items that are antiques or collectibles will be pricier. If you live in a remote area where thrift stores don’t exist, you can tap the virtual world of thrift shopping. Search online for auction sites or vintage stores to find those pieces that you are looking for. Once you’ve finished filling your house with treasures, only you will know what you paid for them. Enjoy your castle!

How Not To Lose Your Temper

Every Mom can relate to this scenario. You’re running late to get to your child’s PTA meeting. You just scarfed down your dinner and now your running around trying to stuff your kids into their shoes and jackets. You can’t find your keys and the phone is ringing. Just then, your two year old emits the odor of a dirty diaper. You freak out because you really don’t have time to change it but you can’t pretend no one is going to smell your kid at the meeting. You’ve reached your breaking point and you’re about to yell at everyone is sight. You don’t have to lose your temper. There’s a better way. Losing your temper not only scares everyone around you, but it also makes you more stressed out than you have to be. If you do yell, you’ll raise your blood pressure, get more upset and end up probably even feeling guilty for losing your cool. Try this trick instead. Good old-fashioned empathy. Put yourself in your children’s place and think about how they would feel if a big, old mean adult was screaming at them for no reason whatsoever. You are mad at the clock, and maybe even  yourself, but you aren’t angry with them. Close your eyes and take some time to picture the scenario and by the time you realize that you’ll accomplish nothing by losing your temper, you probably will have calmed down. Change your toddler’s diaper and get to the meeting, which probably wont start on time anyway, with everyone’s composure in tact.

Save Money On Haircuts

Professional haircuts can get expensive…especially if you have a large family. There are many ways to save money on haircuts. You can go to the inexpensive ubiquitous chain salons that are on every corner. Often, they offer coupons or “frequent-flier” cards making your trips there even more affordable. Another idea is to go to a beauty school. Look up local schools in your area and contact them to see if they offer their services to the public. Often the prices are a fraction of what they would be at a professional salon for the same services. If you feel really brave, consider cutting your family’s hair yourself. Buy a pair of clippers and hair scissors at the store and do a little research online to learn how to cut a few basic styles. Men and boys can easily sport a classic buzzcut and girls can wear long hair with cute bangs. Now, if you can just get everyone to sit still enough and trust you to go to work! If you don’t think you have the skills to be your family’s personal stylist, take them to the salon, but try to space out the time you go for as long as possible until your kids look like ragamuffins and your husband resembles a lumberjack. As for yourself? You’ll probably need to go to a salon for cuts, but boxed hair color can look just as good as the expensive salon service if you do a little research first to make sure you buy the right stuff. It’s probably better to leave highlighting to a professional. Look your best on a budget!

The Art Of Hand-Me-Downs

Hand-me-downs are a wonderful thing, unless of course you’re the kid who gets to wear them! Young kids won’t know the difference and probably wouldn’t care if they did. Older kids might be excited to get clothes from an admired older sibling or cousin, but at some point, they like to express their own style and personality. Sometimes the age difference between siblings is too great to make outdated clothes viable to be reworn. When hand-me-downs are an option for your family, they can be a great money-saving tool. The best way to plan to save clothes for a future sibling is to buy gender-neutral clothing. Take meticulous care of each item and remove stains and repair damage immediately. White clothing can be bleached if the label states as such. When your first child outgrows each item, inspect it, fold neatly, and store in a labeled bin by size. Shoes can also be handed down since kids outgrow them so quickly and they don’t suffer much wear. Gender-neutral shoes are also available for purchase and are a smart buy. Coats are a wonderful thing to hand down since they are usually more expensive but can be harder to find in gender-neutral colors and styles. Save some money by reusing perfectly good clothing for your children!

How To Form A Mommy Co-op

Imagine how wonderful it would be if a group of trustworthy Mommies got together and decided to help each other. One could watch the others’ kids while the rest did some shopping. They would return the favor by picking up her groceries while they were out. Or they could come up with a carpool schedule so everyone wouldn’t have to drive to school every single day. Sound good to you? Here’s how to set up a Mommy co-op:

1. Bounce the idea off of some of your closest friends or neighbors. Have those interested commit to the co-op and set up an e-mail account or group chat room to communicate with each other.

2. Come up with a list of chores or favors you’d like your co-op to help each other with. Choose a leader and use a voting system to make decisions.

3. Have a common calendar with everyone’s availability each month. Have each person express how they would like to contribute to the group. (Example: I’ll take the kids to school every day if someone runs errands for me, etc.)

4. Try to have a monthly meeting to make sure everyone is getting what she wants out of the co-op. Adjust accordingly.

5. Keep the co-op rather small so it can be managed successfully. Consider charging a small monthly due to cover gas expenses for Moms who contribute car-related favors.

No need to go it alone…let a Mommy co-op make your life easier!

Kid’s Clothing Tips

Kids go through clothes fast. Not only do children grow like weeds, but they’re also messy people who like to stain everything in sight with food and art supplies. Some Moms surrender and let their kids run around in these stained articles, while others would never think to let their child out of the house with a mere speck on their shirt. Buying clothes for kids can get expensive so follow these tips to save some cash on your kid’s duds.

1. Buy black. Not that you want little Susie to look like a goth-in-training, but black clothes hide any stain (besides bleach) you can throw their way. If black is too extreme for your taste, get dark colors and stock up on stain stick just in case.

2. Don’t buy pajamas or playclothes. Kids look adorable in the character-emblazoned pajamas on the market but they can be pricey. Instead, dress your children in comfortable clothing that has stains or holes in them. They can also wear these items as playclothes and spare their school and special occasion clothing from damage.

3. For girls, buy leggings. Leggings are very inexpensive, stylish, and versitile. They come in many colors, but of course, black is the most practical. They can be worn in any weather and grow with your child since they are stretchy.

4. Consider buying at thrift or consignment stores or off the clearance rack. Kid’s clothes really are disposable so don’t invest a lot of money on any one item. Let siblings wear hand-me-downs.

5. Buy cheap shoes. Children’s feet grow incredibly fast and will only fit in shoes for a short period of time.

6. Buy clothing as large as possible without the articles falling off your child’s body. Most kids can fit into clothes that are one size larger than their age. They will be able to grow into these items, thus getting more wear out of them.

Quick Mommy-Makeover

It’s hard not to suffer from a case of the “frumpies” when you are a Mom. Kids make it hard to take time to do your hair and make-up and are famous for encrusting Mom’s clothes with any variety of “stuff” from their sticky, little fingers. You don’t have to become invisible just because you’ve procreated; get yourself back into the beauty game! With little time and expense you can be that gorgeous woman you once were before you embarked on Motherhood.

1. Check your hair for grays and if there are too many for your taste, pick up a box of semi-permanent color. You can match your natural color or get wild and experiment with something a tone or two in either direction. If you don’t feel comfortable doing it yourself, see a professional. While you’re there, get an updated hair style and when you get home stop sticking your hair up in that unattractive ”suburb-bun”!

2. Put on a little make-up. It doesn’t have to be much, but unless you’re a rare natural beauty, everyone can use a little help to look polished.

3. Buy a few new outfits. They don’t have to be fancy lest you’d be reluctant to wear them around the kids. Try to buy something black or at least in a very dark color in case the kids do smear grape jelly across your shirt.

4. Give yourself a manicure and a pedicure. Again, nothing fancy, just make sure there isn’t a week’s worth of peanut butter caked under your nails. Feet can get really gross really fast so be sure not to neglect them either.

5. Finally, keep your skin moisturized, drink plenty of water, and get as much sleep and exercise as you can.

Moms always put everyone else first, but that doesn’t mean you have to put yourself last!

Save Time And Money on Make-up

A lot of Moms skip a daily make-up routine because they have no time or desire to engage in one. It doesn’t have to take long to look your best every day and a little pampering can even lift your spirits! At a bare minimum, wash your face and moisturize with an SPF-containing facial lotion. Dab concealer on trouble spots and under eyes to mask dark circles. Skip powder which can age you, but rather add a touch of petroleum jelly across the top of your cheekbones to give you a fresh, dewy appearance. Use a cream blush and blend well. Curl your eyelashes and sweep black mascara on the top lashes only. Finish your look off with a tinted lip balm.

If you think you can fit this routine into your schedule but you’re worried about the expense of the make-up involved, fear not, you don’t have to blow your budget to look great. When one of your favorite products goes on sale simply stock up and store it until it’s needed. Some of the cheaper brands offer products that are just as good, if not better, than the high-end ones. Experiment a little to find what works the best for you and stick with it. You deserve to look and feel beautiful!

Saving Money And Energy On Laundry

In these tough economic times, every penny you can save is a penny earned. Laundry can be a huge drain on your bank account so follow these tips to conserve funds and energy. Unless your laundry is absolutely filthy and covered in stains, wash it in cold water. Also, most of the time the short cycle is enough to refresh your clothing. Use half the amount of detergent you normally would. As for drying the laundry, you can always do it the old-fashioned way and dry it on the line. If you don’t have the time or desire to whip out the clothes pins and hope for good weather, here’s a modified version of line-drying. Neatly hang heavier fabrics like denim that usually take longer in the dryer on a hanger. Make sure all surfaces are exposed so mildew doesn’t form on the clothing. Also sweaters can be laid neatly on a clean towel to dry. Don’t leave the sweater on the towel for more than a few hours or you’ll have the aforementioned mildew problem to contend with. The dryer usually runs longer than necessary so set it for thirty minutes then check the contents for dryness. Add ten more minutes if clothing is still damp. Dryer sheets are nice to add a lovely scent to clothing, but are unnecessary. If you feel you need them, buy generic and use one sheet for multiple loads. Try to space out the days between doing laundry or consider establishing a weekly laundry day to save time, money, and energy!

Saving Time On Laundry

Many Moms complain about laundry being their least favorite chore. What makes doing laundry so annoying is not how much of it there is to do but how often it needs to be done. Stop doing laundry every day. Instead, wear as much of your wardrobe as possible and when you’ve run out of something to wear, have a laundry day. Make sure you put it all away on the same day you wash it or you’ll end up with mountains of clean laundry in every corner of your house. Another time-saving tip? Keep each family member’s dirty clothes separated in bins in or near the laundry room. That way you don’t have to sort it when you take it out of the dryer. Do each person’s load separately and voila, you can transport it to their room while it’s still toasty and warm. One more tip is to not fold the laundry. What?!? Yes, that’s right, don’t fold the laundry. De-wrinkle the clothes you want to wear on a given day by throwing them in the dryer with a wet washcloth for about ten minutes. Put everyone’s in at the beginning of the day to be more efficient and you’ll all have smooth threads!