Family Briefs

Do you ever feel like your life is bursting at the seams? And, not in a good way . . . that is where my life is right now - literally overflowing in all the wrong places - kids games, clothes (mine and the little people’s), unfinished projects, undone housework, unexpressed emotions, etc. Even my freezer is stuffed to overflowing!

We have so much stuff that we Read the rest of this entry »

Well, I’ll admit it. I don’t like to put anything in writing that I’m not going to stick to. That means, I don’t put down a new habit unless I ALREADY KNOW I CAN AND WILL DO IT. Call me a cheater if you must, but I prefer “success junkie.”

Once I started taking Read the rest of this entry »

Before I tell you my tip for this week, I wanted to spread a little link love and suggest that you could find other ideas and tips over at the Carnival of Family Life. Mom on Wheels is hosting this week, and there are over 80 entrants including one from my archives.

O.k.. Find some time for you. That’s my tip. I could just end there, but Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve had laryngitis at least 3 or 4 times since last summer, and I’m struggling with a bout of it again. What are you supposed to do when you’re a mom and you’re sick? You can’t write down your requests to your children because only one of them reads and he ignores my verbal requests already (why add insult to injury). You can’t use sign language (aside from the fact that you don’t know sign language, they wouldn’t understand it and probably wouldn’t “listen” anyway).

One trick I found that actually has worked best this time is Read the rest of this entry »

Were you ever a ballerina when you were little? If you didn’t take lessons, I bet you at least dressed up in a tutu at some time in your childhood.

When I was little I loved to dance, and I continued dancing classes well into my teens. At one time, I seriously considered going professional - I remember watching Fame, wishing I could go to a school of the arts. And I can’t tell you how many times I watched “White Nights” with Mikhail Baryshnikov!

Perhaps that is why Read the rest of this entry »

I recently listened to a podcast by Motherhood Uncensored on BlogTalk Radio about mommy guilt. As I listened, I found myself wondering if I had anything that I felt guilty about as a mom. During the podcast, there was a lot of talk about feeling guilty about not breastfeeding. Well, I couldn’t really relate there (although I agree there is a lot of pressure to breastfeed), because all 4 of mine latched on just fine and nursed for at least 6 months (baby #4 has the record at 12 months).

After listening to the podcast, I figured that I must do pretty well since I’m not really finding myself feeling guilty about anything. But over the next several days, I found myself Read the rest of this entry »

I was recently invited to a Pampered Chef party by a friend of mine. She told me if I couldn’t go, I could just order online. Now, I know, these parties can be fun sometimes and often are opportunities for neat free gifts. I’m just not a party girl. The whole socializing with people I don’t really know just ain’t my thang.

I’m not a regular Pampered Chef shopper (remember, sometimes I’m too frugal for my own good), but some of the proceeds from this particular party were going to support breast cancer. Now, as a woman, how can I pass that up?

As I flipped through the magazine, I spent hundreds of dollars - in my head of course. I finally decided that one item Read the rest of this entry »

Having four children means we get LOTS of birthday party invites. I realized last year just how expensive going to these parties was getting. My children believe we HAVE to go to every party we’re invited to - even if you don’t even like the birthday kid! If each child attends just 10 parties each year, and you can get away with spending just $10 on each gift, that’s $100 per year per child on birthday gifts!!! You do the math - four children at $100+ a year is over $400!!!!

Now, the parties we go to are usually great and chock full of Read the rest of this entry »

You fill in the blank. Change is _________________. I’ve always heard that “Change is inevitable.” “Change is good.” “Change is constant.” “Change is eternal.” Looking back over the last several months of my life, I would agree with all of these. We all have little bitty changes that happen every day (a nap schedule that shifts so the whole afternoon has to be re-planned, a palate that changes so that a child who once refused to eat hot dogs, now does, etc.).

The changes in my life I’m referring to are a little bigger. Now they pale in comparison to a major illness, the loss of a parent, moving to a new city, or starting a new job. I guess the biggest for me was Read the rest of this entry »

I was expecting company on Friday - mind you it was just my sister and her husband (no need to really impress them with my “clean” house because they know the truth ), but I wanted at least the BIG GRUNGE cleaned up (that means the bathrooms, kitchen, and vacuuming). I set about cleaning the kids’ bathroom first - how is it possible to get pee and toothpaste in so many different places? I am always horrified pissed off astounded! I got their bathroom all spic ‘n span and was quite proud of myself for completing the task so quickly.

The next morning, do you know what I found???? Dried toothpaste in the sink!!!!! And, of course, no one would confess to leaving the mess behind!!! I was so discouraged to find dried toothpaste all over the mirror faucet floor sink, I thought I might list the munchkins on ebay (I’d only have to be a little dishonest about their housekeeping habits). Read the rest of this entry »