How to Be a Travel Sports Mom - A Crash Course
October 8, 2008
So after many years on the sidelines, watching my kids play baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis and softball, I have now turned into the one thing I dreaded most…a travel sports mom. I managed to make it through 14 years as a mom without acquiring that title, but lo and behold, I couldn’t evade it anymore.
My very determined and driven 11 year old daughter has developed a love of softball. Give her a few minutes and she’ll run to put her mitt on and throw a few balls with you. It’s definitely become the thing she most wants to do. So we let her try out for our local travel softball team and she made the cut. We’re thrilled for her because that little round ball has become her passion, but now my husband and I must learn to adapt to our lives as ‘travel team parents’.
Already we see it is a new way of life. Softball has just by default become THE most important thing on our calendar. As we learn the ropes of this new role we must play, we have begun to ask other parents that have found themselves in this situation before a few questions about what we can expect over the next year as travel team parents. This is some of the advice we have received. We don’t know if this makes us excited or terrified of what lies ahead, but above all else, we just want our daughter to be happy. [Read more]
Got the Decorating Blahs?
October 6, 2008
Have you got a case of the ‘decorating blahs’? Do you wish you could change things up a bit in your house, to keep things looking fresh and interesting?
Redecorating isn’t something you can just do on a whim, because it’s usually costly and time-consuming. But, I’ve found some quick and easy decorating tips that can give rooms a new look, while spending little or no money and only taking a minimal amount of time and effort to complete. In fact, all of these decorating ideas are so easy to inmplement (and easy on the wallet!) that you can change the look and feel of a room whenever the mood strikes!
As always, please feel free to add any other great decorating ideas you may have. Your comments are always welcome! [Read more]
Find More Time In Your Day
October 4, 2008
How many times have you said “If only I had more time, I’d …”? 
Many of us have come to say this on a fairly regular basis, as our lives become more and more cluttered with things to do. Life seems to be getting faster, fuller, and more frustrating and we seem to be striving to make sense out of how it all got so out of control and what we can do to reclaim some balance in our life. Whether you work full-time outside of the home, are a stay-at-home mom, or are just trying to work out some of the ‘kinks’ in your time-starved day, this article is for you. Here you can find some ways to get off the time-robbing rollercoaster that is your life and put the brakes on, so you can find more time in your day and better enjoy the ride!
Below are 11 time-saving tips to help you find more time in your day…
Set priorities. Not everything has to be done ‘right now’ and some things probably don’t need to get done at all. Figure out the things that are important to you and get those things done first. The other extraneous things on your to-do list can get done if time allows, or you may choose to even cross them off your list because you realize there are better things to do with your time! [Read more]
7 Super Easy Chicken Recipes
October 2, 2008
“Mom, we’re having chicken…again?”, I hear my kids complain all the time. Well, they’re right. Chicken, chicken, chicken - that seems to be all we eat most nights! We certainly seem to eat more than our fair share of chicken! That’s because we try to limit the amount of red meat we eat, the kids don’t like fish, my husband doesn’t like too much pasta, and it’s the quickest way most nights to get out of the kitchen while putting a healthy meal on the table.
The main problem is that chicken starts to get boring after awhile. So I’ve developed a repertoire of the fastest and easiest chicken recipes I can make in just a few minutes, because cooking long, complicated meals is not something I love to do! [Read more]
Ten Quick Tips to Clean “Good Enough”
October 1, 2008
“Good enough” is my mantra for cleaning. When it comes to the dreaded task, I definitely don’t strive for perfection. My idea of a clean house is one that would pass inspection by the department of health, but not one where I would feel comfortable with the prospect of desperate housewife, Bree Van De Kamp, arriving at my front door with a basket of her scrumptious muffins. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I’d welcome the muffins, but I would not be inviting her in for a cup of coffee to go with them!
Let’s face it, routine cleaning is just plain boring! As soon as you’re finished cleaning something, it just immediately begins to get dirty again, and that drives me nuts! Being a goal-oriented person, I don’t like to do things that I know are on their way to having to be done again, even as I’m still completing the task at hand. So, I have made it a point of trying to find as many cleaning shortcuts as possible to clean “good enough” so that I can satisfy the powers that be (my husband, my kids, my mother, and occasionally my daughter’s friends, who seem to be dissatisfied with just about everything in their tween years!), as well as my own good senses, while still maintaining my sanity and a little time for myself. Here’s the kicker – you’d be surprised by how many compliments I actually get from people thinking my house is so clean! [Read more]