Laundry Tips From a Mom Who Knows

I would like you to all understand that this is not a practical tip entry.  This is an entry on all of the things that I hate about laundry and tips to make those things better.  I will not teach you how to remove stains or teach you how to avoid laundry from piling up.  To be quite frank with you…. I have no idea how to make there things happen.  Here is what I do know about laundry:

1. No matter what I do it will never be done.  I know some very nice people say if you do a load a day it will all be manageable.  Either way you still have to do a load a day.
2. For some reason my almost 3 year old still wears at least 3 outfits a day plus jammies.  This is a huge issue…  I could just let her be dirty all day.   I just do not think that is a good solution to my laundry woes.
3. My 9 year old is STINKY and CANNOT wear outfits more than once.  I just do not know what else to do about the stink her clothing is bringing to my laundry!  We already have deodorant, sprays and soap.  What else could there be.
4. Why is it that so few people in my house know how to wipe?  It AMAZES me.  I know it is a lesson we went over 1 billion times!  So why is it that it has not caught on.
5. There are times that I think that the pile is taller then I am.  I know that this is not too too hard being that I am only 4′11″ but still… this is not good.
6. I seem to be the only person capable of carrying the laundry up and down two flights to be washed.
7. God forbid you ask someone to help in any way.  It is like the sky has opened and we are all headed for eternal damnation.
8. Why is it that my clothing is never done?  I fold and wash and fold and wash and fold and wash but so few of the articles are mine.  How is this possible?
9. How hard could it be for one to open a drawer, stuff an already folded of clothing and and then shut the drawer be?  One would think that this is an easy task… right?  So why am I the only one who has mastered it?
10. WHY DOES EVERYONE LEAVE IT ALL UP TO ME?

I am seriously thinking about making disposable clothing.  I think that my tip for today is to quit trying and when they all find that there are no outfits to be had perhaps they will help more.

Becca

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Big Love On HBO

I am so excited!  In just six short days my all time favorite show will be returning to HBO.  Yes it is that time again!  Big Love will premiere season four Sunday night.  This show is twisted but I just cannot help but to love it.  I often sit and wonder what it would be like to have more then one of me running around.  There are benefits to plural marriage!!

• You do not have to be the only one washing the dishes, cleaning, doing laundry and cleaning toilets.
• Your children could wine to someone else.  You know Bill does nothing with the kids but to have three mothers is the best.
• You do not have to be the one sleeping with your husband every night.  Come on ladies; I know that I am not alone when I say that I wish I had the entire bed to myself every now and then!
• There are two other people around to be friends with.  You never have to even leave home.
• Everyone has a job and it is clear.  Not like now where all of the jobs are all mine.  They share the responsibility.
• The kids all have one another to play with.  Yes this is true with my kids but I think to have like 8 kids and a huge shared yard would rock!
• My husbands sex drive may equal mine.  No man can keep up with three women every night of the week, can they?

So as silly as it sounds I would love to have a second wife.  I of course have to be the first wife.  You know the one who controls it all.  The head wife in charge!  Just imagine a world with three of you…  The possibilities are endless.

*Please understand that I know there are negatives to plural marriage as well.

Becca

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Christmas Countdown 2009: Holiday Checklist

75 Days of Christmas Countdown:

55  Days Until Christmas

It is so important as the holidays approach to have a game plan.  I think that there are some simple things that can be done early.  These are not things that will be rushing the holiday.  They are things that will help you to be more prepared when they get here.

• Start Baking: There are many holiday treats that can be frozen and thaw well.  By starting holday baking a little at a time now you will have a chance to enjoy friends and family more at the holidays.
• Get the calender out: It is never too early to start firming up plans for the holidays.  If you are planning a holiday party discuss them with friends and family now.  If there is a special trip you would like to pick the weekend now.  If there is a special day you would like to go shopping with a friend confirm the date and make the plans now.  If you would like to go see Disney’s, “A Christmas Carol in 3-D” pick the date now.
  
• Update Address Book: All through the year people move, pass away and change their phone numbers.  Go through your address book and make sure that you have all of the correct addresses for friends and family.  This will mean that when it comes time to send out Christmas cards you will be ready.
• Make a Master Gift List: Write each person you need to shop for.  As you think of things that they will enjoy add it to your list.  Remember to leave room to check off when you buy it.  ALso remember to keep it away from the kids.  This also helps you hunt for the best price.
  
• Develop a Budget: This is more important this year than it may have been in years past.  Many people have said that they will be spending less this year.  This means that we will all have to plan more and spend less.  
  

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Christmas Coundown 2009: Christmas Cheer

75 Days of Christmas Countdown

60 Days Until Christmas:

Unfortunately this year we have had some turbulent, personal issues.  This has meant that I have neglected the first 15 days of my famous 75 Days of Christmas Countdown.  With all of that being said I think that the most important thing to address this year is Christmas Cheer.

What is Christmas Cheer you ask?  It is that special kind of happiness that only comes one time a year.  It is a time that we should all be a little nicer.  For some it is a time for family and friends and for others it is a time for giving back to their communities.  It is the desire to gather around with others and just be cheerful.

Now I am not sure why, but many people are lacking in their holiday cheer.  I have kept my mouth closed about this long enough.  I cannot contain my disappointment any longer.  It seems like Christmas has been taken over by the Grinch.  Christmas cheer is a quickly dying experience.  In the stores, on the street, in community centers, Christmas Cheer is dying.

So here is what I plan on doing about it.  I am going to be the Christmas Cheerleader.  I am going to spread Christmas cheer even to those whose hearts are three sizes too small.  I am going to help out our troops with the Girl Scouts, I am going to visit the nursing home with some presents, I am going to do everything I can think of to infect the people in this country with some good old fashion Christmas Cheer!  Join me in my quest to revive what we all love about Christmas!

Becca

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Webkinz Jr.

Webkinz has done it again.  Webkinz has released Webkinz Jr. which is a site made specifically for children ages 3-6.  I think that this is a wonderful thing.  I know that Emma has had a webkinz since she was 3 and enjoyed the decorating part of her room and the dressing of the pet.  I used to play all of her games so that she could earn money to do this.

Now there is a whole new Webkinz World for younger children.  I explored some and like what I see.  There are seperate areas.  The games are meant for the younger user and seem more educational.  All in all it looks very cute.  I just have to investigate some more to find out if there are actual Webkinz Jr.’s or if any Webkinz pet can be registered to the site.  I will keep you posted.  Perhaps I will give it a try with Analiese.

Becca

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Back to School: What Do You Really Need to Buy?

We are only 6 days away now and back to school is all I can think about.  I will admit that it is because I am anxious to see the kids out of my house back at school.  They thrive under structure which the summer just does not provide.  So as we get closer and closer I started to think about the fact that I have done NO back to school shopping yet.  For a few moments I was really worried.  My heart beat sped up and the headache started to come on.  I was in a panic yesterday thinking about how I will afford all of it and how will I get it in the next few days.

The more I thought about it the more I realized that there was just not a huge need, like I kept thinking there was.  So I made a list of what I needed to buy and what I wanted to buy.  I think that given the current state of the economy, I am not alone in my desire to separate wants versus needs.  The school does not help too much.  They want you to buy book sox.  I did find them in Walmart for $.50 each but come on.  Why is it that we do not reuse… You know the keys to a greener earth… Reduce, recycle and REUSE…?  Why do we have to buy something to cover a book?  I remember taking my paper grocery bags and spending time with my parents learning the fine art of book covering.  This was real bonding time.  Instead of this free option I had to add $2.50 to my budget.  Seems wrong to me.

Either way here is what I came up with:

Needs:

1. All supplies on the kids lists
2. A bookbag (we have decided to reuse old ones.  We are going to bedazzle them so that they are more fun this year)
3. New shoes for Abigail: She grew like a flower this summer

I think that all in all that is all of the NEEDS we have.  Grandpa and Grandma were nice enough to buy about 90% of the school supplies.  So once I buy shoes my NEEDS are met.

Wants:

1. New first day of school outfits
2. New fall wardrobe
3. New hair accessories to match all of their clothing
4. New lunch bags
5. A JanSport book bag for Abigail
6. Winter coats
7. Haircuts for the girls
8. Fall jackets
9. Book bag for Emma
10. New shoes for Emma

The thing is that these are only wants.  It became clear the more I thought about it that we did not NEED these things.  I usually spend about $800 on back to school.  This year I estimate spending about $100.  I am sure that I am not the only one tightening my belt.  Abigail has a birthday in three weeks.  I am sure that between myself and her grandparents she will be the best dressed kid in 4th grade.  Most of the clothing out there for back to school is too hot for September anyway.  I will let you all know how this goes.  I am anxious to see how bad I am going to feel for not buying into the back to school.  I think that I may feel bad for a while but in the long run it will all be just fine!  The kids ARE going to live through it.  They WILL still be dressed nicely.  The most important thing is that it teaches them a lesson.  Money does not grow on trees…

LESSON LEARNED:  You do not have to buy into the commercial hoopla.  You can resist and live through it.

Becca

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Time Out: Does it Work? Parenting Tips

Time out is one of those parenting tips that everyone throws around.  It is something that is supposed to work.  I think that it all depends on the kid.  I have found that there are some things that you have to make sure happen when you do time out.  They have worked for my oldest, my middle daughter and even my two year old gets the idea.  The trouble is that even I forget that time out can work because from time to time I get too emotional.

Yes it is true that I tend not to keep my cool.  I yell and yell and yell a little more.  Then I throw them in time out while screaming some more.  I yell most of the time they are in time out.  If they stay in time out that is.

Then there are those other days when I do time out right.  Here are the steps that you are supposed to take with time out.  I have found time and time again that when I follow them time out is much more effective.

1. Have an area in your house that is the time out spot.  This can be a step, a time out chair, a mat on the floor, or even a large stuffed toy
2. Do not make your time out spot in a child’s bedroom.  This is where all of their toys and things that they love are.  If they are told to stay there where is the punishment?
3. Only place your child in time out for 1 minute per year.  So if your child is 6 then they should remain in time out for 6 minutes.  This is because your child’s attention spans grow with the child.  You cannot expect a 2 year old to sit in time out for 10 minutes.  they just do not have it in them.
4. When you are placing your child in time out remain calm.  This is so that the message is not lost.  If you remember way back when you were a child I think that you will remember that you stopped listening once people were yelling at you.   Kids are no different right now.
5. Tell your child why you are placing them in time out.  Say, “Abby, I you need a time out because we do not speak that way in this house.”  This makes it clear to the child what they have done.
6. Set the timer and walk away.  It is important not to engage your child when they are in time out.  If they get out of time out, place them back and restart the timer.  DO NOT TALK TO THEM.  This feeds into the game that they want you to play.
7. When time out is over tell your child again why they were placed in time out.
8. Do not force your child to say that they are sorry.  This is my own personal belief.  All you are doing is forcing the child to lie.   If they are sorry they will say so on their own.  I think that you should never tell a child to say sorry when they are not.  Many times the child is not sorry.  You are not looking for sorrow.  You are looking for an understanding of what they did and that it was not acceptable in your home.

Sounds easy right.  If you look at Nanny Jo on Supper Nanny she will even make you think that it is simple.  For those of you who know me you know that I am not a sugar coat it kind of person.  IT IS HARD.  It takes a lot of work and you have to be dedicated.

One more note… It is alright that you take a time out if you need one.  I have done it before and it works.  Sometimes it is not the kids but the adult who needs a break.

Do not handle time out like my favorite episode of Lucky Louise.  He did it all wrong!

Becca

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Susan Boyle: The New Image

As I was watching TV yesterday I noticed something.  Susan Boyle can look beautiful.  I always find it amazing.  They took a rather homely looking woman who could sing and made her look beautiful.  I mean no disrespect.  I too can be homely looking.  My amazement is in the fact that make up can do all of that.  I am not a person who often uses makeup.  I just looked at Susan Boyle today and thought that she has gone through quite a transformation.  I can only imagine that with all of the attention she is not only feeling exhausted but she must be feeling beautiful.

I must say that it makes me think that perhaps a little more often I should put on some lipstick and eye shadow and feel good.  Perhaps I should care a little more.  As mothers we all let ourselves go.  We say we do not have the time.  We say we do not have the money but perhaps if we all gave ourselves a half hour a day we would look and feel a little better in the end.  I think that I am going to give it a try.  I will let you all know how it goes.

Becca

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Self Esteem and Peer Pressure

As a child we go through life acting like we should be different from who we are.  I am watching Abigail grow up and develop and am praying that I have instilled in her the ability to be herself.  I have never had the gift of just being me.   I guess I have spent too many years worrying that no one will like the real me.  As a kid it is hard to realize who you are and what you are about.  It is so easy to fall into peer pressure and go the wrong way.

I have spent the past 8 years helping my baby realize that we have to care for others.  I have showed her that we have to love in order to be loved.  I have tried to instill the idea that we feel good when we help others.  Most of all I have tried to remind her each step of the way in her short life that we all have brains and she has to use hers.

As she is blossoming I am starting to worry more and more about the lessons that I have taught her.  She knows that smoking is just plain bad for your health and stupid.  I have been sure to let her know that with just on cigarette she could be addicted for life.  I have tried to tell her about drugs and all of the bad things that they do to people.  It is not the people who are bad it was their choices.

I am sitting here in the summer before 4th grade hoping that she has the self esteem not to fall into peer pressure.  I am praying that she knows to say no as we have practiced.  I am praying that she knows that she can tell me anything even if it is bad.   I am praying that her walk down the teenage years is easier for her then mine was for me.

I am amazed how we give birth to these little angels and change them.  I do not know how to make sure that she stays safe other then to remind her each and every day that she has a mind of her own and pray that she is confident enough to use it.

Becca

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Summer Survival

Here we are just 6 days into summer and I am more then done.  The kids are NUTS.  The house is a mess and I think that I have pulled all of my hair out.  The $30 worth of crafts I bought on Friday have all been done and I have no gas to take a trip.  I am not sure where to go from here.  We are all a little cranky and the baby is wondering why all of these other people are on her turf in the middle of the day!  I am lacking the motivation to do anything about it and the patience not to boil over.

Why is it that Summer vacation is still something that we need to have.  It was started to accomidate farming.  I am sorry to say that there are few farming families left here in NY.  I know of just 3 in the town I live in.  Why is it then that we have not changed all of this.  Why can’t the kids just go to school in the summer?

I know that all of this sounds bad but I also know that I am not alone in my angst!  Please September come quick.  I am not sure how long I can hang on here!

Becca

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