Do Your Children Need A Schedule?

You have probably seen images of families on television where the children have their own schedules, full of activities from piano lessons to karate, and where even “play dates” are scheduled weeks in advance.

While most families do not have that type of lifestyle, it is still a good idea to keep your children on a schedule.  This is especially true for younger children, as toddlers need routines in order to feel secure in their environment.

If you have a toddler, you may want to start with something simple, such as a night time routine to get your child used to following a schedule.  An example would be bathing your child after dinner, putting on pajamas, reading a story, and going to bed.

Once they get the hang of that routine, you can start a morning routine, which could include getting dressed, eating breakfast, and playing with toys and going out to run the day’s errands.  When your child understands that routine, you can move on to an afternoon routine and then a dinner routine.

Your child doesn’t need to be a toddler in order to appreciate a routine.  Children of all ages can benefit from having some sort of schedule.  If you have elementary school age children, you can start establishing a routine of getting home from school, having them eat a snack as you go over any papers that they brought home that day, helping them with their homework, and then having playtime while you make dinner.

If you have kids in middle school or high school, they may need their own planners to help them organize their homework, after school activities, and social life.  This is a great time to start teaching them about scheduling, setting goals and defining priorities.  These lessons will help them immensely when they get to college.

Time Management for Work at Home Moms

Moms that work outside the home can leave the office and focus on their family, and when they are at the office they can focus on their work.  Many a work at home moms have heard the line, “it must be easy to work from home” or “you have time to get everything done”, some people mistakenly believe that.  The people who make these types of comments don’t understand the challenges work at home moms face.  Work at home moms need to find a way to blend both of those worlds into the same four walls.

Here are just a few time management tips to help work at home mom blend both the work world and the home world together:

Set your business hours and stick to them.  Post your business hours for your clients and family members and as a reminder to yourself of when your work day is done.  When it’s closing time, do just that. Close the door to your office and enjoy family time.  Remember if you worked in an office away from home you’d leave at closing and any calls you need to make would wait till the next day.  Apply the same thinking to working at home.

Outsource administrative tasks to a virtual assistant.  Doing so will free up some time in your schedule allowing you time to market your business.

Limit the number of times you check your email inbox.  There is no need to check your email twenty times a day.  Check it every morning at the beginning of your day and say an hour so prior to your closing time.  This is also a great time saver.

Avoid surfing the net just for fun during working hours by unplugging your internet connection if you can.  Once, you’ve completed your task plug it back in.

Networking via the internet can be good for your business when kept in check.  Participating in forum or social networking group can consume a lot of valuable work time unless you limit the sites you visit and how much time you spend there.  Be selective and join just the ones you really like and can benefit you.

Enlist childcare help.  If you have small children at home during the day consider getting some help to watch over them while you work or if you are comfortable with the idea, a two days a week or a few hours daily of daycare.  This will allow you time to build up your business and your kids will remain taken care of.

Implementing the tips above will help you get more done during your business day and allow you the freedom to spend time with your family.

Time Saving Cooking Tips

Cooking may not be your favorite chore, but it is something that needs to be done every day.  Thankfully, there are many time management techniques that you can use to make cooking a faster and easier part of your day.

One of the easiest ways to save time throughout the week is to plan your meals ahead of time.  This will free up the time you spend each night trying to decide what to make for dinner, racing to the grocery store, standing in line to pay for your purchases, and then driving back home to cook your meal.

Instead, you’ll sit down, write out the meals you’ll have during the week, and make one trip to the grocery store.  You can plan your meals according to what is on sale that week, which will also help you save money.

The following are some more tips to help you save time, but still provide tasty and healthy meals for your family:
* Start using your crockpot! This is a great time saving tool when it comes to cooking.  When you get up in the morning, you can throw your meal in and let it simmer all day.  When you are ready to eat, your dinner will be hot and ready to eat.

* You may want to consider freezer cooking.  With this method of cooking, you’ll spend one weekend preparing a month’s worth of dinners and then you’ll store them in the freezer.  At night, you’ll take out the next day’s dinner and let it thaw in the fridge.  When your family is ready to eat, just pop that night’s dinner into the oven.

* The casserole was very popular in the 1970’s, but it fell out of fashion during the 80’s and 90’s.  They’re making a come back among busy families and for good reason.  This is a one pot dinner that is quick and easy to make (and easy to clean, since there is only the one pot plus plates and silverware). You can find some cookbooks on Amazon.com or eBay to give you some inspiration.

* If you don’t have time to cook a whole meal, you can opt to have a soup and sandwiches night. You can find some great soup starter mixes in the soup aisle. You simply open the mix, add water, and any fresh ingredients you choose and let it simmer.  While that’s cooking, you can make up some turkey and cheese sandwiches and cut up some raw veggies and serve those with a side dip.  You’ll have a very filling and nutritious dinner.

* Short cut cooking is the process of mixing prepared food with fresh ingredients to create a quick meal with homemade taste.  For instance, you can purchase a rotisserie chicken from the deli and serve it with some pasta and a side salad that you made at home.

* You can also plan your leftovers in order to create quick and easy meals throughout the week.  For instance, using the chicken from the above example, you can take the leftover chicken meat and use it to make a stir fry or chicken salad sandwiches for the next day’s meal.

Time Saving Cooking Tips

Cooking may not be your favorite chore, but it is something that needs to be done every day. Thankfully, there are many time management techniques that you can use to make cooking a faster and easier part of your day.

One of the easiest ways to save time throughout the week is to plan your meals ahead of time. This will free up the time you spend each night trying to decide what to make for dinner, racing to the grocery store, standing in line to pay for your purchases, and then driving back home to cook your meal.

Instead, you’ll sit down, write out the meals you’ll have during the week, and make one trip to the grocery store. You can plan your meals according to what is on sale that week, which will also help you save money.

The following are some more tips to help you save time, but still provide tasty and healthy meals for your family:
* Start using your crockpot! This is a great time saving tool when it comes to cooking. When you get up in the morning, you can throw your meal in and let it simmer all day. When you are ready to eat, your dinner will be hot and ready to eat.

* You may want to consider freezer cooking. With this method of cooking, you’ll spend one weekend preparing a month’s worth of dinners and then you’ll store them in the freezer. At night, you’ll take out the next day’s dinner and let it thaw in the fridge. When your family is ready to eat, just pop that night’s dinner into the oven.

* The casserole was very popular in the 1970’s, but it fell out of fashion during the 80’s and 90’s. They’re making a come back among busy families and for good reason. This is a one pot dinner that is quick and easy to make (and easy to clean, since there is only the one pot plus plates and silverware). You can find some cookbooks on Amazon.com or eBay to give you some inspiration.

* If you don’t have time to cook a whole meal, you can opt to have a soup and sandwiches night. You can find some great soup starter mixes in the soup aisle. You simply open the mix, add water, and any fresh ingredients you choose and let it simmer. While that’s cooking, you can make up some turkey and cheese sandwiches and cut up some raw veggies and serve those with a side dip. You’ll have a very filling and nutritious dinner.

* Short cut cooking is the process of mixing prepared food with fresh ingredients to create a quick meal with homemade taste. For instance, you can purchase a rotisserie chicken from the deli and serve it with some pasta and a side salad that you made at home.

* You can also plan your leftovers in order to create quick and easy meals throughout the week. For instance, using the chicken from the above example, you can take the leftover chicken meat and use it to make a stir fry or chicken salad sandwiches for the next day’s meal.

For more help with your meal planning, check out my e-book: Meal Planning for Busy Moms. I also have a slow cooker recipe book in my shop. Both are available for immediate download and reasonably priced.