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Health Healthy Living Our Family Parenting

4 Essential Simple Health Tips To Teach Your Kids

The health of your kids is as important as your own, so you should teach them to be healthy. On busy nights, it might be easier to come up with excuses for eating fast food or not exercising three days in a row. Unfortunately, this can result in long-term health problems, and it sets a bad example for your kids. These health tips to teach your kids should be modeled by example, and it can be easy once you make it a habit.

Health Tips To Teach Your Kids

Health Tips To Teach Your Kids

Balance Your Diet 

A healthy diet is vital for a family. Children of overweight parents often develop bad eating habits as they grow up due to their parents’ bad eating habits. A well-balanced diet should include lots of vegetables and fruits for you and your family. Offer your children healthy snacks like nuts, berries, cheese and crackers, or popcorn if they ask for it. To start the day off right, make sure that everyone in the home eats a healthy breakfast.

Make Water The Number One Drink

Drinking water is essential, but it is also important to know what you are drinking as well as how much you are drinking. Children enjoy drinking soda, but instead of drinking that, they should drink water instead. Getting your children to drink water from an early age is a beneficial way to make sure that they will carry this healthy habit throughout their adult lives. In addition to water as the most appropriate beverage, there is nothing better than your Family Dentist recommending this as well. 

But when it comes to staying healthy with water, you also need to teach them that not all water is inherently healthy. As adults, you know when water tastes off, or if theres a weird color in the water. Plus, you know not to drink water from streams or natural bodies of water. But children don’t know that, and it’s something that they need to be taught. So, even when it comes to your home, is your tap water safe to drink? 

Some water companies are not nearly as cautious as they should be when it comes to safe drinking water, so you might always need to look into other companies like American Water. But with that said, you should teach your kids water safety and maybe even teach them about water filters, too.

Promote Good Sleep 

When you don’t get the right amount of rest, you can be affected in many ways, from feeling tired all of the time to reducing your concentration levels to affecting your metabolism. There will be times when you will have to stay up later during the night or when you will allow your kids to stay up late as a treat, but the whole family must get a good night’s sleep as frequently as possible. As with every schedule, keep one for bedtime that ensures that the entire family gets the proper rest and has a good night’s sleep. 

Medical Help 

If you make sure that you get the three main medical examinations you need, your children will continue getting those to the age of adulthood, and you will continue to do that for yourself. A dentist, a doctor, and an optician are all examples of these. Located in Wahroonga, Wahroonga Dental is a great family dentist that offers regular checkups for the whole family. 

Besides regular dental, medical, and vision checkups, addressing hearing health is equally important. Ensure early detection of any issues by scheduling regular hearing tests, especially if you notice your child struggling to respond to sounds. If needed, consult with a specialist who can provide suitable hearing aids to enhance their hearing ability, ensuring they do not miss out on any aspect of their development or daily interactions.

Making sure that your family is healthy and happy and healthy is one of the most important things you can do to ensure that. 

Health Tips To Teach Your Kids

There are several essential health tips to teach your kids, as described above. Get enough sleep and drink plenty of water as a starting point. You can then discuss exercising with your children and how to encourage them to include it in their daily lives.

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Adulting Family Activities How To Life Our Family

How To Reconnect With A Relative You Haven’t Seen For Years

Time has its way with us all, and sometimes, that can mean that the focus and direction of our life point away from other people. For instance, this is why two people can find themselves growing apart through no fault of their own. It’s just that they may focus on different interests or move elsewhere, or they may have other priorities. But there’s no need to fret about this outside of the obvious sense of sadness because time can bring people together much more frequently, too. While it might seem weird to reconnect with a relative you haven’t seen for years, you can make it fun and eliminate awkwardness.

Whether you’re moving closer or want to celebrate their first child with them, reconnecting can be seamless. Maybe you’ve just taken stock and are trying to stop taking the people in your life for granted.

Whatever the reason, reconnecting with a relative you haven’t seen for years can seem somewhat awkward at first. But never fear because you don’t always have to think this way. Here’s why:

Reconnect With A Relative

Reconnect With A Relative You Haven’t Seen For Years

Flowers Can Make A Greeting Special

Flowers can speak to the emotions you feel without you explicitly saying them. They also look beautiful and showcase temporary beauty, the need for cultivation, and care. This is, of course, the same stuff that relationships thrive on, and so flowers can be a lovely message to send along with your good wishes. We’d recommend utilizing the services of an award-winning florist to truly show how much thought you’ve put into it.

A Sincere Effort Can Be Lovely

Sometimes, we have to give a little to relate to someone. For instance, while it might be that neither of you has spoken for a while, genuinely asking after their side of the family, apologizing for not getting in contact, and inviting them for a coffee can show a sincere effort, humility, and the willingness to start again. At the very least, your effort can help you know you put your best foot forward, even if nothing comes of it. That has a massive benefit.

What’s The Worst That Could Happen?

Family relations, especially if they’re strained, can feel much rawer than any other connection. We sometimes find ourselves feeling worried about engaging in that kind of dialogue. You might worry that you’ll face rejection or that our efforts might hurt rather than help. One question is important to ask yourself though – what’s the worst that can happen if you make a genuine effort with goodwill in your heart? The worst is that the status quo of not speaking to someone may continue. But perhaps a dialogue can start. Maybe something can be opened. Little measures like that can often imply the most benefit. At the very least, you’ll respect yourself for having tried.

Reconnect With A Relative

With this advice, we hope you can connect to a relative you haven’t seen for years, even if it might sound worrying. You will be happy that you tried, and you might reconnect with a relative that you’ve missed. Have you ever had to reconnect with a relative? Tell us about it in the comments! 

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Adulting Family Activities Health Healthy Living How To Learning Meal Plan Our Family Parenting

4 Easy Ways For Parents To Lose Weight and Set a Healthy Example

Ways For Parents To Lose Weight

If you’re a parent, you likely don’t have much extra time in your day. Between work, family, and social life, your schedule is packed. Being so busy make exercising and losing weight almost impossible, but luckily, there are easy ways for parents to lose weight.

Consider signing up for classes and lessons like Body Transformations for Parents. These online classes can be easier to add to your daily or weekly life than you’d think. If that’s not possible for you, there are other things you can do to lose weight.

While dieting might be an option, finding the right one can take time. Adding some simple tips and tricks to your life will kick off that weight loss, though, and you don’t even have to go to the gym.

Ways For Parents To Lose Weight

4 Ways For Parents To Lose Weight

1. Work Out When The Kids Are Up

Many parents try to work out when their kids are asleep. That can be incredibly restrictive because not only can your children be up at the crack of dawn, but you could be exhausted at night. With constantly changing schedules, it’s hard to plan around sleep routines. Try working out when they’re up.

This approach can be easier than you’d think, especially if you let them join in on the fun. While this depends on what exercises you’re doing, basic yoga and other easy exercises are kid-friendly. You can also go on long walks with a baby in a stroller.

Finding exercises that your kids can be involved in can save you a lot of time and effort, too.

2. Don’t Eat Off Your Kids Plates

You could often see yourself eating some food off of your child’s plate. That’s especially true if they’re finished, and there are a few leftovers. Depending on the food, you could find taking a few bites irresistible. I struggle with this, especially when they have Wendy’s chicken nuggets leftover LOL.

As harmless as this might seem, the calories add up much faster than you’d think. If you’re on a diet, these small bites throw off your planning and tracking. Skip these unhealthy choices and make sure that you have healthy snacks when you’re hungry.

3. Deconstruct Your Dinners

If you’re a picky eater, it can be challenging to find healthy food that you like. You could take a different approach. Try deconstructing the dinners that you like. That will let you remove some of the unhealthy parts and replace them with healthier alternatives.

The number of meals you can deconstruct can be surprising, so it’s worth trying with some of your favorite dishes. You can break down the ingredients of pizzas, burgers, and even tacos to make them healthier.

4. Play With Your Kids

Your kids love playing with you, and you love spending time with them. Plus, kids are always on the move. Take advantage of this and spend more time playing with your kids. You’ll get so much exercise as you chase them around that you burn tons of calories.

Ways For Parents To Lose Weight

Parents don’t always have the time or energy to go to the gym. Thankfully, that’s not the only place you can exercise to help with weight loss. Use these tips for parents to lose weight and see how much of a difference it makes for you.

Losing weight can help make you more of a role model for your children. If they see you exercising and eating healthy, they’re more likely to do the same. Help them start on a healthy path for life by showing them what a healthy lifestyle looks like.

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Adulting Healthy Living How To Life Mental Health Our Family Parenting

7 Smart Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

Tips for Parents

There’s no doubt that being a modern parent causes a busy lifestyle, so tips for parents are always helpful. Whether you’re a working parent, a stay-at-home parent, or something in between, you always have plenty to do. You might have support from a partner or friends and family, but it still feels like you have a never-ending to-do list.

With lots of different things to do both at home and out of the house, juggling it all can be overwhelming. Getting organized can help, but it doesn’t necessarily eliminate any of the tasks you must do. If you feel like you’re constantly running around like a headless chicken, you need to find ways to lighten your load, and these tips for parents can help.

Tips for Parents
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Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Crazy

1. Make a List of Everything You Do

Do you know how much you do for yourself and your family? Making a list of all of your responsibilities can make it clear just how much you have on your plate. It might be a little frightening at first, but it can also be a good starting point.

Creating a list of everything you do could be a way for you to get the help you’re not getting. Does your partner insist they do just as much as you do when you know they don’t? Showing them your list might just convince them to start doing more. Creating this list can also help you recognize when you need to ask for help.

Another advantage of making a list is that it can show you which tasks are really necessary. It can help you decide which tasks could be altered, and which you might be able to cut out completely.

2. Adjust Your Standards of Tidiness and Cleanliness

Whether you’re a working parent or not, housework takes time. Even when you split household tasks with your partner and kids, it can still require a chunk of your time.

Being a parent does mean that you will probably feel like you’re always tidying up and cleaning in some way. One way you might consider changing things is by reassessing your idea of what clean and tidy means. Having extremely high standards might not be particularly realistic, especially if you want to get some of your time back. Decide what you can be happy with so you can keep up a standard that works for your family.

3. Hire a Cleaner/Housekeeper

Another option for saving time is to hire a cleaner or housekeeper. Some people feel reluctant to do this because they feel like it’s their job to maintain the home. If you can afford to hire someone, though, there’s no shame in getting help.

You don’t necessarily need to have someone come every day. A housekeeper visiting for a few hours each week can make a difference and save you from some time-consuming jobs.

4. Have Things Delivered

Tips for Parents
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Do you feel like you’re always going from place to place buying things? You have to do grocery shopping, clothes shopping, visits to the drugstore, and many other things.

If you’re always going from store to store and running errands, you must find ways to stop doing so much. One possibility is to get things delivered whenever possible. This can work best when you know exactly what you need.

You can order repeat prescription delivery for any medications or order your groceries online. Some things are better to buy in person, though, like things you should try on.

5. Create a Family Schedule

Tips for Parents
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If you have a long list of things to do but you’re never sure when you will have time, you might want to think about making a schedule. Instead of having one just for you, it can be for the whole family.

Begin by filling in certain things that are scheduled each week. Then, look for free timeslots that you can use for anything else that needs to be completed.

You could have a digital calendar, a weekly printable, or even a whiteboard. It gives you a sense of order and can be a way to get everyone helping around the house.

6. Stop Overscheduling

As a parent, you and your kids are likely always busy. You want to ensure your kids get to participate in extracurricular activities. Plus, you’re involved in lots of things too, from yoga class to the PTA and everything in between. Many of these activities are totally optional, and you might be giving everyone too much to do.

For every activity your kids do, you have to make sure they get there and have everything they need. Not only that, but your child might be tired from being overscheduled too. Remember that your kids put in a full day of school work, so extracurricular activities make their day even longer. Then, you have to plan for dinner after the activities, too.

Even though you want to ensure everyone has opportunities, sometimes you all need time at home to rest. Spending time together as a family unit is important, too.

7. Say No to Things

If there’s too much on your plate, it’s not necessarily all your own doing. Some things just have to get done, while other things can be requested of you from others. Remember that just because someone asks you to do something, it doesn’t mean you must say yes.

There are times when the best option is to politely refuse. Whether your refuse because it would interfere with your health or you have no time, don’t feel bad. If the thing they are asking would interfere with family time, you should also consider saying no. Reluctantly doing something isn’t going to produce the best results anyway, so learning to say no can really help you.

Tips for Parents, headless chicken

Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

When you feel like you’re always running around trying to get things done, you need to slow down and lighten your load. Use these tips for parents to stop feeling like a headless chicken. Take control of your life and make sure you do things that make you and your family happy and peaceful.

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Adulting Family Activities Home How To Life Marriage Our Family Parenting

How to Have a Happier Family Life

How to Have a Happier Family Life

Whether your family life is already blissfully happy or you feel like you have room for improvement, it is always worth thinking about what you could do to bring harmony and happiness to your home. There are no downfalls to having a happier family life. Instead, you will find that it makes your home life blissful, which is something everyone should strive for.

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Ways to Have a Happier Family Life

Improve Your Work-Life Balance

It can be tough to find the right balance between work and family commitments, but it is something worth trying. The less stressed and burnt out you are, the happier you and your whole family will be at home. This leads to more quality time you will be able to spend together.

How do you achieve a better work-life balance? Start by looking at your schedule and crossing out at least one commitment that isn’t really essential. Use the spare time you’ve created to have a family movie night or a trip to the park.

Do this every month and soon you’ll have a more streamlined schedule and a better work-life balance.

Live Healthily

Looking after yourself and your family is vital for everyone’s happiness. That means making a real effort, as a family, to eat healthy nutritious meals, exercise, and spend time talking about your feelings.

If one of you is going through a tough time healthwise, you should all band together and offer support. This might include having family therapy sessions, looking into sober living homes, or just clearing time to be together non-judgementally. The healthier you are, the happier you will all be.

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Practice Discipline

Discipline is important in families. Children need to be taught boundaries, not just for their own sake, but for the sake of the family as a whole.

Discipline can seem like a scary word, but it really isn’t about punishment – it’s about knowing what is expected of you and learning how you can stay calm, keep the peace, and do the right thing.

Disciplining your children in this way will give them healthy boundaries and healthy boundaries will lead to a happier life. When children know what is expected of them, everyone will be happier.

Listen to Each Other

As a family, it is important that you all take time to communicate with each other in the good and bad times. Listening, in particular, is a really important skill to learn.

The more your family feels heard and respected, the more they will open up and the easier it will be for you to solve your problems together. Of course, it’s also important to share your triumphs and revel in each other’s joys, too.

Be Flexible

When you have a busy family life, it’s important to be flexible if you want to avoid arguments and live a life with less misery, If you’re too rigid and inflexible, it will cause many arguments and end up with no one doing what they want.

Obviously, some commitments can’t be moved, but if it doesn’t need to be set in stone, don’t put it there. This will make life much easier and happier for everyone.

With all of these tips, you are well on your way to having a happier family life. What are some of the ways you create a happier family life? Tell me about it in the comments!

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Family Activities Learning Life Our Family

3 Ways Going Remote is Good For Families

going remote

As much of the world has employees working from home and children learning virtually, life seems to be a bit uncertain. Whether you are enjoying the remote lifestyle or you’re hating it, it is something we are all dealing with. Luckily, there are a few reasons that going remote is good for families.

Location is a primary concern when it comes to choosing workplaces and schools. In fact, it’s not uncommon for families to consider moving for work or school. Living closer to places of interest can give parents and children a better chance of finding high-quality education and employment. Now, however, location doesn’t seem to be so important.

Some parents were already familiar with the advantages of remote schooling by enrolling their children in online charter schools. Online charter schools have been integral to the homeschooling experience for many families, even before the pandemic.

Unlike the unexpected digital teaching approach that many traditional schools have had to implement in 2020, online charter schools have already mastered the art of providing high-quality digital education. They provide access to some of the best teachers in the world, making the location of staff and students irrelevant.

Consequently, they have become more popular during the covid crisis since safe and effective schooling methods have been essential. It has been a rocky road for most of us, but going remote isn’t all bad. There’s much to gain for families who choose to remain in digital work and school environments.

going virtual
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How Going Remote is Good For Families

1. It Fits into Your Lifestyle

According to a survey, most Americans want to keep working from home. This includes even after covid vaccines are safely rolled out to the population.

Working at home makes employment and education an integral part of your lifestyle, without causing disruptions. For many parents, their kids’ school schedule is one of the major issues when it comes to maintaining a full-time job. When parents have to see their children off to school and then be there when they get home, it is hard to work full time.

With going remote, however, parents can work in the morning before their kids leave (or start their virtual school work). Plus, parents can continue working after they get the kids home for the day. This gives parents the opportunity to work more hours while still being an active, supportive parent.

Think about it this way – if you aren’t remote and have to go to the office every day, are you able to be there for your kids while still working full time? You may be able to, but the majority of Americans are struggling with this. Going remote can change that, however, because you can be there for your children WHILE bringing in a full-time income. Win-Win, for sure.

While flexible work arrangements are available in some places, it’s easy to see how digital technologies can eliminate disruptive schedules for parents and children. 

If you are a work-from-home parent, read this post for Easy Tips on Working From Home With Kids.

2. It Helps Separate Households Share Custody Rights

When families do not live together, such as divorced or separated parents, it’s tricky to make everybody’s schedules fit. More often than not, one parent gets most of the custody rights, ensuring the safe continuation of education for their children.

However, when you replace physical schools with online institutions, both parents can share custody rights equally. It’s a new challenge for family lawyers, but many are willing to embrace it for the sake of families.

Additionally, it can also change the approach to the whole settlement process – you can see more about it here to understand how going remote can make the transition easier for children. In a remote world, there’s no need to worry about changing jobs or schools when one parent moves out. 

3. Going Virtual Makes Time to Explore Together

Families that travel together stay together. It is a silly statement, but one that is true. Sharing memorable experiences with your partner and children strengthens your bonds.

In the past, traveling has been extremely limited for families due to time constraints. Children only get so much time off school, and adults get even less time off work. This makes it difficult to plan long trips or to truly explore the world.

With going remote, however, there is no need to plan trips around school breaks and week-long vacations from work. Plus, when you travel during school breaks, tourist areas tend to be expensive and crowded. If your family is remote, you can plan these trips anytime of the year.

Of course, you will still have to work, but if you can take a longer trip, it wouldn’t matter if you had to spend time working during it. So, in this case, going remote is a good thing! It doesn’t matter when you embark on a trip, which saves you money and unnecessary stress! 

There is still a long way to go for families to get used to going remote for employment and education. We are only at the start of the path! But, there are already plenty of advantages that could improve our lifestyles and family lives.

We are on a learning curve to make our world safer and better for all, and perhaps digital workplaces and schools could play a significant role in that. If you have been against going remote, I hope these reasons that going remote is good for families will help change your mind!

What are some of the reasons you think going remote is good for families? Tell me about it in the comment section!  

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Big Kid Home How To Life Our Family Parenting Teenager

How to Handle Family Issues Positively in 2020

positive family, positive parenting

It’s no secret that 2020 has been a real struggle for most of us. With so many unknown situations occurring and life constantly changing, it’s been hard. Unfortunately, this causes many issues for families. Luckily, however, there are ways to handle family issues positively.

handle family issues, handle family problems positively, family conflict, family problems, positive family, positive parenting
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Challenging situations will affect everybody, be that in our jobs, or physical and mental health, and in our relationships with our friends and families. 

While it is natural in all relationships to experience rough patches, placing a global pandemic that leaves us all trapped inside all the time into the mix makes it worse. The feeling of wanting to escape or take it out on others around you increases dramatically.  

In challenging times you will need the support of your family to get you through. However, family relationships can be complicated at times, and conflict within the home is hard to escape from. 

Here are some of the things you can do to help to restore your family (dis)agreements during one of the most challenging global crises in the 21st Century. 

How to Handle Family Issues Positively

 1. Stop playing the blame game

Relationships, particularly within a family unit, are about more than just one person. Attempting to, or even suggesting changing any family member can invite defensiveness. Nobody likes to be told that they are doing things wrong or need to change.

When dealing with issues, it is vital to come at them from a place of wanting to fix them, not of wanting to come out on top. This may mean coming to tackle an issue by starting with your role in the disagreements or tensions within family relationships. By admitting your fault in it, the other person will be more likely to accept your suggestions.

If all of you seek to facilitate your own changes individually, the family unit will flourish as you all try your best to be a good mom, dad, husband, wife, son, daughter etc. Each person in the family unit has a responsibility to uphold, so it is important for everyone to work together.

Quite often, problems in relationships are just that: problems that need addressing. Stop blaming yourself or others and think about what the issues are that cause tensions. 

2. List all of the things that spark disagreements 

From not completing chores, to harsh tones in communication, small things can build up to a pretty big deal when managing family relationships. If you’re constantly asking your kids to clean their rooms, or your partner to give you some space in the mornings and these requests are ignored, you can feel disrespected and lacking in value.

That said, it may not just be you that ends up feeling that way and tensions may be high from a number of reasons. 

Have everyone in the family write out what they feel causes tensions within the household. Create a safe space in order to allow them to do so. The key is to not get offended by some of the responses you get. 

The lists should include all of the things that each family member fears talking about due to not wanting to run into any disagreements. Doing so will help to identify any potential issues within the family unit.

You may notice several family members will identify similar areas of concern which will make it easier to deal with the issues – especially if you can come to an agreement as to how they can be dealt with. Do this collectively and each of you will feel responsible for the rest of the family unit. 

However, if it seems impossible to write just a few things on the list because you argue about everything, then this determines that the issues run deeper than simple misunderstandings. 

3. Express concerns constructively 

It’s easy to come into addressing concerns with accusation, but as previously mentioned, issues are rarely to do with an individual and precisely to do with a root cause. 

Take the pandemic, for example. The outbreak wasn’t anybody’s fault. How it was dealt with and the things that have happened as a result have sparked a whole load of discontent and disappointment that certain things haven’t gone according to plan. 

Having each of you expressing your concerns constructively will open the doors to honest and open discussions. Ensure that any comments are not accusatory comments, but comments that demonstrate how you feel. Here are some examples of ways to open up a dialogue which limit the potential for conflict.: 

  • My concern is….
  • I feel/felt  (one word eg- sad, anxious, scared) …when/ that (what it’s about?) 
  • What are your thoughts about….?
  •  I would like to (and never use I would like YOU to…) 
  • How would you….?
  • I love it when… 

Attempt to move away from unhealthy, accusatory comments which go nowhere and more often than not end up causing further fights. 

4. Seek outside help 

Sometimes it feels impossible to deal with things on our own. This means we need a neutral, outside perspective to give us the clarity that we need to get through. Going through some family counseling together will help you all to work through any issues that you’re facing as a family unit. 

Family issues can occur as a result of traumatic experiences, so having a professional is necessary to help you to navigate them as a collective and deal with them head on. 

Their job is to help you all identify which behaviors are a direct response to the trauma and to give you the tools to work through them.

5. Prioritize family time 

Pre COVID-19, many families would struggle to find evenings to do things together. Now, forced time together isn’t always the blissful time together you had hoped for. Especially if you haven’t quite been as informed about the goings on in your family’s lives as you would have hoped. 

There may be tensions due to people feeling ‘misunderstood’ and ‘unheard’ which can cause friction. Even while at home, your teens may wish to spend more time in their rooms speaking with friends. However, it is important to try and figure out the things that most of you enjoy doing together and make those things a priority.

Find the joy in getting to know your family again. While going out at the moment comes with additional risks, there are plenty of things you can do at home. Small things done together can make the world of difference to everybody’s emotions during this incredibly challenging time.

6. Recognize The Right Decision For Everyone Involved

When you become emotional due to a domestic issue, it’s easy to do what you think is right without focusing on anyone else’s point of view. Once you calm down, you must swallow your pride and lose your ego. When you work together properly, solutions become so much more apparent.

Whether it’s something that leads to the contact of custody attorneys or something much less significant, be sure to talk it out and understand all angles. You’ll be a lot more content and issues will be handled so much more positively.

handle family issues, handle family problems positively, family conflict, family problems, positive family, positive parenting

Family conflict is impossible to avoid. Luckily, there are ways to handle family issues positively. The key is to work together as a family unit and figure out what the issues are.

Once you have determined the issues, figure out how to solve them. Involving everyone in the solution will make it easier, and it’ll make everyone want to do their part.

Do you have any other tips for handling family issues positively? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Adulting Big Kid Life Organization Our Family Parenting Printables Teenager

Free Printables: Paycheck Budget & Chore Chart

problem solving freebies, easy budget, budget for beginners, paycheck budget printable, weekly budget, easy chore chart, simple chore chart, free budget

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to create a simpler chore chart than what I’d previously been using. My original one was literally four pages long. Well, when I decided to buckle down and create the simple chore chart I was wishing for, I decided to come up with one other freebie, bringing you the two free printables I’m sharing today.

free printables, life-changing printables, problem solving freebies, easy budget, budget for beginners, paycheck budget printable, weekly budget, easy chore chart, simple chore chart, free budget

Simple Chore Chart Printable

The first printable, the easy chore chart, is intended to make it easier for my kids to get their chores done each day.

I wasn’t kidding when I said my original chore chart was four pages long. It definitely didn’t make it easy for the kids to pick chores each day, and it definitely didn’t inspire motivation.

Luckily, the new one has been a much bigger hit. It makes it easier to keep up on chores, and the kids know exactly what they should be doing that day.

I’ve noticed that the chores are getting done more quickly, sometimes before I even make it home from work.

problem solving freebies, easy budget, budget for beginners, paycheck budget printable, weekly budget, easy chore chart, simple chore chart, free budget

Paycheck Budget Printable

Since I was simplifying my life with the chore chart, I was inspired to simplify my budgeting method, as well.

Before, I had been writing my budget out on notebook paper every single pay period. Not a very organized method, I admit. It worked for me for a while, but I needed something a bit easier to wrap my head around.

I have a master list of when all of our bills are due, and each week I sit down to plan out what will need paid that week. I do this before I get my paycheck, and then the day I get paid, I reference my list and pay everything.

This printable can be used for weekly or bi-weekly budget planning and monthly budgeting, whichever you prefer.

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In “other expenses” I put things like food, gas, and cheerleading (which we pay weekly). In the “savings” section I put upcoming holidays and our emergency fund, which I distribute money to weekly, as well. “Extras” is for any extra money I’m putting towards debt.

Then, the final box titled “leftovers” is to figure out what I’m left with at the end of the pay period. I take our total income and subtract the total amount of money going out.

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  • problem solving freebies, easy budget, budget for beginners, paycheck budget printable, weekly budget, easy chore chart, simple chore chart, free budget

Final Thoughts

Printables make my life so much easier, and simple printables are essentials. I can’t keep up with multiple pages for a budget or chore chart. I need simple ones that allow me to keep all of my thoughts on that one page.

What do you think – do free printables help you simplify your life?

Categories
Adulting How To On My Mind Our Family Parenting

How to Balance a Busy Life and Still Take Care of YOU

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Guys, life is CRAZY busy. I’m sure most of you feel the same way. It’s an overwhelming feeling, just knowing that there is ALWAYS something to be done, and finding a way to balance a busy life is the only answer to easing some of those feelings.

I have this overwhelmed feeling quite often, but I’m realizing that it’s even worse this time of year. Back to school time in our household is absolutely insane. We’re going on week 4 of school and things are finally beginning to become more “normal” for us.

That’ll be thrown completely off next week, however, as my daughter is starting 3-year-old preschool and there will be yet another thing thrown into our already busy schedule. It’s so worth it, though. I’ll forever choose providing for my children and giving them every opportunity I can over living a “simple” life.

Our children deserve the best and, as parents, we all know that we’re going to give them the best life that we can. Even if that means running around like crazy from school to practice to work (yep, our teenager just got her first j-o-b!). The only thing we can do is find a way to balance the crazy schedules and stay sane while doing it.

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So what is a mom with a million things on her to-do list to do? Take a bath. Read a book. Listen to music. Watch her favorite Netflix show. Whatever self-care technique you prefer, DO IT.

As parents, we ALWAYS have a million things on our to-do list. Get done what can’t wait, and make the rest wait until tomorrow. Take care of YOU. After all, how can you take care of your child when your own cup is empty?

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Make a list

Each night before bed, sit down and write out all the things that need your attention in the coming days. This is the easiest part.

Prioritize

First, organize your list into things that cannot wait. Obviously you will have to get those done. Then, take all of the things that need to be done but can wait until tomorrow or until the weekend and put those on a separate list. You can add some of those to your “can’t wait” list the next day.

Schedule self-care time

You have got to take care of yourself. This is the single most important tip. If you aren’t taking care of yourself, you won’t be able to give much more to anyone else. For success and great parenting, you have to make time for yourself. Remember, self care isn’t just about taking a break every so often. You will also need to be in the best way with your health and wellbeing. It might be that you have an appointment to get suspected tinnitus checked out, this could be bringing you down. If you think you have this then take a look at tinnitus treatment options near you.

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Ask for help

Ask your partner, your parents, your siblings or friends… ask whoever you trust with your kids. They’ll be more than willing to help out, and you will be able to take a load off of yourself, even just for one day.

Remind yourself that one day, you’ll miss this

I know you hear this all the time, but it is so true. I get sick of hearing it myself sometimes, but it really does make life a little easier when things get hectic.

One day, life WILL be “simple”, and you’ll think back to the days when your kids were still kids and you were trying to figure out how to balance a busy life. Believe it or not, you will learn for those days back. Try your best to embrace is now… I know that isn’t always possible (TRUST ME), but with intentional reminders, you’ll likely find yourself in a better mood.

Make sure to spend time with your partner

Parenting really takes a strain on your marriage, but you guys are in this together and that means you have to connect in order for things to stay in sync. Nurture this relationship by scheduling regular date nights, even if the dates are in your living room. Just spend time together… have fun and talk.

For more blog posts on marriage, choose one of the following titles:

how to balance a busy life and still take care of you, what to do when life gets too busy, how to manage a busy life with kids, parenting tips

Final Thoughts on How to Balance a Busy Life and Still Take Care of YOU

Are you feeling overwhelmed with how much stuff there is to do each day? I’m with you! What do you do to manage it all? Leave a comment and let us know!

how to balance a busy life and still take care of you, what to do when life gets too busy, how to manage a busy life with kids, parenting tips
Categories
Big Kid On My Mind Our Family Parenting

A Letter To My First Born as He Starts Kindergarten – A Moms Honest Emotions

As you prepare to start kindergarten, I think back to your infant days, when you wanted to lie in my arms all day long. It seemed like you were always nursing, always needing me.

Back then, I took it for granted. I complained of being tired, sore, needing a break. Now, I want those days back. I want to hold you for 3 hours straight, cuddled up in our favorite chair.

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You’re off to kindergarten now, buddy.

It’s hard to believe that we are at this point in your life already. I’m sure I’ll feel this way each year, with each new grade, but right now it’s constantly on my mind.

I know you’ll love learning, making new friends, and having fun at school, but I can’t help but be a little sad. You are needing me less and less, I’ll be seeing less of you than ever before, and soon you won’t want to cuddle with me so much anymore.

I know that this is all normal, and it happens to every parent at some point. But, I wish I could be the one that could keep her babies little forever.

In 5 short years, you’ve grown so much and have become your own person, but you’re still mama’s baby. You always will be. I’ll never forget those days when it was just you and I.

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As you start kindergarten, I hope your infectious laugh continues, your kind heart only grows kinder, and you become an even better friend than you already are. I hope you learn so many new things and teach others whatever you can. Most of all, I hope you are happy on your kindergarten adventure.

I know you’ll have to get used to some things, like not having your teddy bear and blanket for an hour each day and not having Fridays off to hang out with me and your siblings and grandma. It’s a new time in your life, and the changes will be huge, but you’ve always been so resilient and open to change. You’ve never had an issue with change, and I am certain that will continue into kindergarten.

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You’re going to impact this world in a huge way, love bug. I wish I could be there for every tiny little moment of it, but we both know that isn’t possible. So, I just want to send some words of wisdom to you:

  • Be kind
  • Respect yourself and others
  • Stick up for those who are wronged
  • Speak up when you see someone being mistreated
  • Spread love
  • Stay true to yourself
  • Have fun
  • Smile and laugh
  • Learn all that you can
  • Try new things
  • Listen to your teacher
  • Be safe
  • Don’t be afraid to join in on the fun
  • Be yourself!
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I can’t be there with you at kindergarten, but always know that mommy will be here as soon as you get home each day to hear about all the awesome things that happened.

If you didn’t think the day was very awesome, that’s okay too. Mama will be right here to hear all about it and give you a big ol’ hug.

It doesn’t matter how big, responsible, and independent you become, you’ll always be mama’s baby. No matter what grade you go into at school, mama will be here to help you through it all.

You’ll do great, my kindergartner, I know you will.

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Love always,

Mama