12 Days of Holiday Organizing- It's that wonderful time of year again: the holidays are almost upon us. We know it arrives at the same time every year, and yet it continues to sneak up on us. Your holiday preparations can be less stressful if you create a holiday countdown to halt the holiday madness.
12 Days of Holiday Organizing: Countdown to A Successful Celebration- It's that time of year again: the holidays are almost upon us. We know it arrives at the same time every year, and yet it sneaks up on us year after year. However, your holiday preparations don't have to be stressful if you create a holiday countdown, a checklist if you will, to halt the holiday madness.
30 Quick Cleaning Tips for a Tidier Home- In the battle to maintain a tidy home, especially with children, we are always on the look out for great tips. We asked the FamilyCorner community to share with us what helps them most. Implement any or all of these ideas to make cleaning easier and more efficient!
5 Secret Parenting Time & Sanity Savers For A Peaceful Home- There are several ways to help organize your family to make your daily routine run smoother. Here are some great examples of how you too can master your morning and the rest of the day as well.
Achieving Balance in Your Family- In today's world, there are many demands placed on our time. As parents, it can be overwhelming to try to juggle work, school, social, and civic obligations. Add to this the desire to offer extra-curricular activities to our children, and soon the fabric of our lives is stretched too thin. Often, the effects are insidious, slowly sapping our quality of life and our sense of success. There are ways to avoid such a drain on our families' sense of well-being, and they require much less sacrifice than you might think.
Book Review: The Tao of an Uncluttered Life- This book tackles the challenge of
organization with an approach that is
inspiring and refreshing. From the
very start, we are encouraged to
imagine and visualize what a perfect
day would be like using the reporter's
technique of: who? what? when?
where? how? What a great idea! For
how can we even begin our quest for
organization and a balanced life
unless we know where we're headed and what we want
when we get there?
Conquering the Working Parent Battle- The morning rush. We've all
experienced it.
Encouraging the kids to get
dressed, eat, brush their
teeth and hair, and leave
the toys and the TV alone;
stressing to get out the
door so you’re not late for work and also so
you're not untimely with their daycare
provider’s schedule; saying your quick
good-byes at daycare drop off to make it as
easy as possible.
Decluttering Your Home Office- If you've got a home office, you know how challenging staying organized can be. Let's take a few moments to explore some tips for overcoming clutter.
Digging Out of Paper Clutter- Digging out from under stacks of paper might seem like a daunting and insurmountable task. Let’s face it, paper can be intimidating and overwhelming. And all of the chatter about a ‘paperless society’ is just that - chatter. In fact, the fax machine, copier, home printer, daily mail delivery, and other paper wielding invaders, just about ensure that we are headed in the opposite direction.
Getting Organized for Back to School- How many days left of summer? When does school start? Are those the voices of bored teenagers that I hear, or the whine of frazzled parents? Summer is coming to a close, and it's time to begin thinking of back to school basics. No, not the 3 R's, but how to organize your home for the back to school schedule. Here are 5 tips to help you jazz up those blues:
Getting Your Family Organized- Why do I have to do all the work around here? She's a slob! He never hangs up his wet bath towel!
These are battle cries heard all too often in the quest for family organization. But if we're all striving toward the same goal, getting and staying organized, then why are we nitpicking on how we get there?
How to Live with a Packrat- For those of you who take pride in your organizational skills, I congratulate you. And for those of you living or working with a packrat, you have my sincerest sympathies. As the wife of a "collector" as he prefers to be called, I share in your struggle for an uncluttered life. I too dream of a neatened living room, a straightened bookcase, and an invisible trail of paper in the office. Is there hope of ever surviving this challenge? Can you overcome the obstacles thrown in your efficient path every day? The answer is a resounding YES, and I'm living proof that it works.
How To Overcome Procrastination At Home- You can learn how to overcome procrastination even if you sometimes wonder how you will ever deal with that growing to do list.
How to Streamline Your Morning Routine- Whether you are married or a single parent, getting ready for work each day can be quite a challenging feat when you have children. Gone are the days of hitting the snooze button on your alarm repeatedly, then quickly showering and eating a Pop Tart(c) on the drive to work. Your alarm clock has been replaced by giggling children or whining sleepy-heads who await their orders for the day: wake up, put this on, no you can't wear your dance costume to school, stop hitting your brother, don't kick the cat, eat your breakfast, drink your milk, go find your socks. the list is endless. No wonder parents of young kids find themselves half-dressed or mismatched when they arrive at work later-- sometimes we're doing good to have socks ON, much less ones that match!
Managing Morning Madness- Are your mornings rushed, chaotic and disorganized? Then it's
time to get control and make morning a good start to a wonderful
day! When your morning activities run smoothly, and you're out the
door on time it can make your whole day feel better.
Managing Your Family- You've probably heard all the names: Domestic Engineer, Household Technician, Housewife, and SAHM (Stay At Home Mom.) Personally, I prefer to be called a Family Manager. I first read this phrase in the book The Family Manager (Word Publishing) by Kathy Peel.
Organizing the Disorganized Mom- Before my daughter was born, I always considered myself an organized person. My house was always clean, and my life ran like clockwork. I enjoyed planning meals and cooking. My spare time was spent decorating and doing crafts. When Sydney was born, something happened to me.
Organizing Your Homeschooling Day- When you decided to homeschool, did your first official day of school
leave you feeling really great - and did your second day leave you in
tears? Are you so busy with field trips, music lessons, and library runs
that you never seem to have time for math?
Planners - The Right One For You- Keeping track of all our responsibilities can be challenging. Your time is valuable. A good daily planner can help you spend your time more wisely at home, at the office, or around town. While I realize that one planner doesn't work for every mother, I've found two that will please the majority of the female population.
Power Wheels: 10 Steps to Organizing Your Mobile Life- xOrganizing your car is not just for the ultramodern high-tech gadget guru anymore. Move over, Sharper Image - the organizationally challenged are rising up, and they're on a budget.
Practical Tools for Procrastination-free Living- Many of us suffer from a serious debilitative ailment called procrastination. We put off washing the breakfast dishes, sewing buttons on otherwise wearable shirts, and clearing closet clutter for charity donation.
Below are just a few practical organizing tools for those who put things off until they are out of clothes to wear, can't find the kitchen counter, or spend countless minutes deliberating on what to wear in a closet full of castoffs and has-beens.
Sane Summer Schedules- Little League. Soccer. Horseback riding. Swimming lessons. Family picnics. Employer picnics.
Vacation. Summer camp. Visiting relatives. Just typing all those activities made me tired!
In addition to all of this, you may also include gardening, yard work, a wedding or two,
and a few rounds of golf, tennis, or volleyball. Let's not forget that you will still be
cleaning your home, cooking, taking care of your children, exercising, working, and keeping
up with your hobbies.
Schedule Number 682- Picture, if you will: a frazzled mom sits down at the
kitchen table with pencil and paper, ready to revamp
the schedule she wrote for herself last month. Meanwhile,
the laundry’s piling up, the children have the playroom
torn apart for the third time that morning, breakfast dishes
are still sitting on the counter, and Mom hasn’t even given
a thought to what she might make for dinner that night.
Do you see yourself in this picture?
Shortcuts to Organize Your Life- Although our official workday is shorter than those of our parents and grandparents, down from around ten hours to eight, today's parent is struggling to pack as much into a 24-hour period as possible. Once your job at the office ends, your real job begins as: taxi driver, tutor, cook, housekeeper, lawn service, mechanic, counselor, and first aid specialist. And even though you have established goals to help you be the best parent to your children, you often find yourself getting lost in the details-- washing dishes, picking up clutter, decorating for the holidays, paying bills, and making your home warm and nurturing.
Time Savers or Time Bandits?- It would seem that somewhere along the way, we have forgotten the purpose of the cell phone, the beeper, and call waiting. They're not here to cause stress, multi-tasking, or more work. Quite the contrary; they were invented to make routine tasks easier and to simplify our lives.
Time-Savers to Streamline Your Work Day- Leading time management experts agree that man cannot manage time, but there are some very effective ways to turn the tables so that it does not manage you. Listed below are tried and true techniques for controlling the workflow and streamlining the operations in your work at your desk and while on the road.
Fourth of July!
July 4th is almost here. Celebrate Independence Day this year with crafts, recipes and plenty of other ideas. Here are a few examples to get you started...
Fun Picture Riddles Help with Letter Recognition: Scholastic has done it again, releasing yet another fabulous book in its popular I Spy series. This time Jean Marzollo's witty riddles married with Walter Wick's vibrant photographs make for a fun and engaging read for children of all ages. Through the seemingly magical power of rhyme and repetition, children will obtain several early reading skills without even trying!
Family Matters Radio
FMR is a nationally syndicated radio program developed to help you live your best life, hosted by Caroline & Jacquie. No rants and raves - you get enough of that from your kids. Choose a segment below to begin listening!
It's that wonderful time of year again: the holidays are almost upon us. We know it arrives at the same time every year, and yet it continues to sneak up on us. Your holiday preparations can be less stressful if you create a holiday countdown to halt the holiday madness.
It's that time of year again: the holidays are almost upon us. We know it arrives at the same time every year, and yet it sneaks up on us year after year. However, your holiday preparations don't have to be stressful if you create a holiday countdown, a checklist if you will, to halt the holiday madness.
In the battle to maintain a tidy home, especially with children, we are always on the look out for great tips. We asked the FamilyCorner community to share with us what helps them most. Implement any or all of these ideas to make cleaning easier and more efficient!
There are several ways to help organize your family to make your daily routine run smoother. Here are some great examples of how you too can master your morning and the rest of the day as well.
Why do I have to do all the work around here? She's a slob! He never hangs up his wet bath towel!
These are battle cries heard all too often in the quest for family organization. But if we're all striving toward the same goal, getting and staying organized, then why are we nitpicking on how we get there?
For those of you who take pride in your organizational skills, I congratulate you. And for those of you living or working with a packrat, you have my sincerest sympathies. As the wife of a "collector" as he prefers to be called, I share in your struggle for an uncluttered life. I too dream of a neatened living room, a straightened bookcase, and an invisible trail of paper in the office. Is there hope of ever surviving this challenge? Can you overcome the obstacles thrown in your efficient path every day? The answer is a resounding YES, and I'm living proof that it works.
Many of us suffer from a serious debilitative ailment called procrastination. We put off washing the breakfast dishes, sewing buttons on otherwise wearable shirts, and clearing closet clutter for charity donation.
Below are just a few practical organizing tools for those who put things off until they are out of clothes to wear, can't find the kitchen counter, or spend countless minutes deliberating on what to wear in a closet full of castoffs and has-beens.
It would seem that somewhere along the way, we have forgotten the purpose of the cell phone, the beeper, and call waiting. They're not here to cause stress, multi-tasking, or more work. Quite the contrary; they were invented to make routine tasks easier and to simplify our lives.
Leading time management experts agree that man cannot manage time, but there are some very effective ways to turn the tables so that it does not manage you. Listed below are tried and true techniques for controlling the workflow and streamlining the operations in your work at your desk and while on the road.
Fun Picture Riddles Help with Letter Recognition
Win Fun Stuff!
Missed the last couple of newsletters? Haven't visited for a while? This section highlights articles and crafts that have recently been added to FC...
