Category: Parenting

4 Tips For Choosing The Best Gift For Your Child

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date March 16, 2021

In many ways, children bring joy and happiness into your life as a parent. When your child has been well-behaved and respectful, or when they are celebrating a significant milestone, you want to reward them. The idea of buying your child a gift sounds easy enough, but when the time comes, you might struggle to come up with the perfect gift. I’ve been there plenty of times, and along the way I have made note of some my favorite tips for choosing the best gift for your child. Perhaps for the last couple of months, your child has been attentive and obedient, or they attain a significant milestone in life.

How to Choose the Best Gift For Your Child

1. Prioritize Interest

While you always have a thousand responsibilities to attend to as a parent, making time for your child is essential to their overall development. Apart from bonding, you learn about your kid’s interests, allowing you to have better insight when choosing the best gifts.

Perhaps your child shows interest in dancing and is often making moves in front of the TV. When the time is right, schedule dance classes that will help your child approach dancing professionally. Likewise, if they are into art, sign them up for art classes. Some of the best gifts are experiences rather than toys and other items.

Ignoring your child’s interests will only deteriorate your relationship, and buying the wrong apology gift makes things worse. Your child wants you to have an interest in their life, and that means paying attention to what they truly love and find happiness in.

2. Ensure it is Age-Appropriate

Although to your eyes, your child will forever remain your baby, this should not mislead you into buying age-inappropriate gifts. Purchasing gifts that resonate with your child’s age increases the interest level and allows for better enjoyment.

For example, if your child is a toddler who can barely put two and two together, you should consider buying kids’ clothes instead of complex gifts intended for older kids.

Similarly, if your child is elementary age, you need to buy them something that will hold their interest. Buying them toys and activities intended for a preschooler will not be exciting for them.

3. Choose Educational Gifts

Educational gifts are always the best as they play a critical part in your child’s mental development process. With education being a never-ending process, there is no shortage of gifts to choose from in this category.

Think of rewards such as puzzles or other problem-solving material that helps sharpen your kid’s mind and taps into their problem-solving skills.

If you run out of creative ideas to educate your child with toys, opt for books instead. Buying reading material for your child ingrains a reading culture in their life that may stick even at an older age. Books are fun because you can buy books you loved as a kid and re-read them with your child.

4. Go For Durability

The best gifts last a lifetime and evoke positive emotions every time the receiver reflects on them. Your child deserves at least one gift that they will remember you by for years to come. Whether the memorable gift is a family heirloom that you pass down as a gift or something simple like a bicycle doesn’t matter, the essential thing is that it lasts.

5. Consider Sharing

If you have a small child who loves to play outside with other children, you should think about shareable gifts. Shareable gifts may include things like board games or multiplayer video games that they can play against friends. These types of gifts will help your child with socializing, too, which is a definite bonus.

Choosing The Best Gift For Your Child

It is always hard to choose the best gift for your child. With so many options out there, it can become overwhelming. Use these tips for choosing the best gift for your child and you will have an easier time choosing something your child will love. Do you have any tips to add? Let me know in the comments!

Tags gifts, Parenting

How To Parenting

Guest Post: 4 Amazing Factors To Consider Before Buying Toddler Clothes

Post author By Kiara Waylen
Post date March 14, 2021

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4 Amazing Factors To Consider Before Buying Toddler Clothes is a guest post written by Kiara Waylen at Aussie’s Innovative Business Ideas

Shopping for your kids must be a fun activity and the most exciting one for the new parents. The cute little shirts, frocks, and shoes look so attractive that you feel like picking every single one of them from the store. As your baby is the most precious gift, make sure that the clothes you buy are comfortable for the little one. The kids should be safe in toddler clothes, and you must be the responsible one for selecting the clothes.

There are so many brands and options available in the market that it will be an overwhelming task to choose any one outfit. You can follow the following advice that may help in choosing the right clothes for the kid. Whether you have a baby boy or a baby girl, the care should be equal for the babies who cannot express the irritation even if the clothes are uncomfortable.

Pick the Right Fabric

When the chubby cheeks and dimpled chin baby joins the family, you cannot wait to deck him or her up in the colourful, stylish, trendy, and bright dresses. However, toddler clothes may cause skin irritation and allergies, and the baby may have rashes all over the body. It indicates that the material is not suitable for the toddler.

When you buy clothes, remember that the child has overly sensitive skin. It is better to pick only the cotton materials for the dresses. You can also go for the equally good alternatives like the soy-based fabrics which have a gentle feel and smoothness. Organic cotton is undoubtedly the best option, although rayon from bamboo can work. But every child is unique, and you need to check whether any fabric is causing allergies to your baby’s skin.

Size Factor

Children at the beginning stage grow so fast that they outgrow the clothes within a couple of months sometimes. But that does not imply you will buy a bigger size so that the child can continue wearing it for a few months. Babies feel uncomfortable if you make them wear big clothes that hang loose on their body. But you can purchase one size bigger, as it is not an exaggeration when people say that children grow faster than the weeds. These babies will fit in the one size bigger toddler clothes sooner than you expected. But also remember to check the fitting as kids are uncomfortable in too tight clothes. Moderately loose clothes are helpful in providing the breathing space to the body.

Functionality

Your baby will not walk the ramp that you will search for stylish clothes only. The toddler clothes should have the functionality necessary for the age group.

The onesies are ideal when your baby cannot move much and only loves to move the legs. It is also easy to change diapers.
Kimono bodysuits are ideal for toddlers who stay comfortable in this style.
Front open shirts or frocks that you can easily put on or take off without irritating the baby.

Cost Factor

Buying expensive toddler clothes does not indicate that you are buying the best stuff for the kid. Also, do not opt for the ones that are low in cost with poor quality. You should not compromise with the quality for saving money and buy the top quality for the baby. If you like the quality, then only check out the price. The clothes should pamper the skin just the way you take care of your baby.

Conclusion

Finally, make sure you keep the above factors in mind while choosing the toddler’s clothing, also ask the toddler about their choice.

Tags Guest post, infant, Parenting, Toddler, toddlers

Family Activities How To Life Parenting

6 Ways to Help Your Kids Be Productive and Happy

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date February 25, 2021

Raising children and helping your kids be productive and happy isn’t always an easy job. With technology becoming an ever-present distraction, it is even harder than before. As a parent, you want to do whatever it takes to see your kids accomplish their daily tasks and live a life that matters.

Even so, it takes a good amount of time, energy, and patience to instill the necessary values. If done right, however, your kids could have peak performance for the rest of their lives. As a parent, you play a huge role in your child’s enjoyment, satisfaction, and overall development.

Use the proven tips below to set your kids up for successful and impactful futures.

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How to Make Your Kids Productive and Happy

1. Make Your Home as Comfortable as Possible

One of the best ways to raise happy kids is by creating a positive environment around them to make them feel loved and respected. Setting the tone for your home can be done by enforcing proper communication channels, using the correct language, and encouraging praise. It is also important to keep the physical space neat and in good shape.

Notably, kids love cute spaces. Having an exclusive spot for them in the house helps them feel wanted and loved. They will love that you cared enough to create a space just for them.

Plus, it gives them the liberty to decorate their space the way they want to. With additional custom-made designs such as the cabin beds at Cuckooland, you can foster creativity and innovation, making your little ones productive.

2. Give Them Daily Tasks and Responsibilities

Getting your kids to take out the garbage, do the dishes, or even mow the lawn shouldn’t be seen as a way of reducing the workload. Instead, it is a way of helping your kids live better lives. By making them follow a specific routine with well-defined tasks, they become responsible and, eventually, champions of respecting authority.

Learn how to be authoritative, but at the same time, not too strict or hard on your kids. Once in a while, give them huge responsibilities such as making dinner or deciding where to hang out. Then, watch how it will slowly cultivate confidence and decisiveness.

3. Inspire Core Values and Good Habits

According to scientific studies, if you want your kids to be dedicated to their studies, or lead straight lives, present yourself as one of the best role models they could have. Core values such as kindness and managing emotions go a long way in shaping their mental health. Make sure these values are instilled in your children by letting them see you practice them, too.

Teaching kids to respect the environment is also essential. Educating your kids on how to save energy and make eco-friendly choices is a great way to encourage them to develop positive values around protecting natural resources. This provides lots of excellent learning opportunities to teach them about renewable energy sources, such as those used by CleanChoice Energy, and to educate them on how renewable energy is generated.

As a caregiver, be sensitive at all times and make decisions from an empathetic point of view. Your kids are more likely to respond to this form of parenting than an authoritarian one. What most parents don’t understand is that kids absorb all their expressions, and those expressions shape and influence their young self-esteem.

4. Make Time for Them, Set Limits, and Be Consistent

Sometimes, it’s not about what your kids do that counts, but about what you do. How many times a week do you spend quality time with them? Are you a consistent parent, or do you always have excuses and reasons in-store?

Being a present parent enhances the productivity of your child by making them aware of parental authority. It also helps with adhering to rules and regulations. Setting limits ensures proper management of time and resources while enforcing discipline.

5. Make Your Happiness a Priority

Energy can be reciprocated and entertained by your kid’s ever-growing mind. Let’s face it – you also have needs, responsibilities, and expectations to meet. It can be hard to be fully present while managing the pressure, but you have to take it easy on yourself.

Getting everything done should not be seen as selfishness but as a means of enjoying quality time with your kids. Taking care of yourself and meeting all your desired expectations gives you a clear and relaxed mind to handle kids.

Mistakes You Should Avoid When Raising Your Kids

While it may appear easy to implement the above tips, it is also easy to make mistakes when raising your kids. Some of them include:

Shaming your children
Imposing micromanagement rules
Failure to give them a solid emotional base
Correcting your kids constantly without giving them room to make mistakes
Encouraging limited play instead of unstructured play

As parents, you should strive to provide the best for your kids. Transforming and molding them might feel like an uphill task and could cause some disagreement or stress, but it helps them grow into young, responsible, and productive individuals.

Help Your Kids Be Productive and Happy

Implement these tips, and you will be sure to play your part in helping your kids be productive and happy. With some concentrated effort and discipline, you can make it happen. Would you add anything to this list?

Tags big kids, family, Life, little kid, Parenting, tips, toddlers

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How to Make an Easy Last-Minute Valentine’s Card Box

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date February 9, 2021

I’m that mom who sees the note about the class Valentine’s party and only reads halfway through. I get the date and the number of Valentine’s cards we need, and that’s about it. Well, this time, my quick-scan method failed me because I didn’t realize we needed a Valentine’s card box!

As we were getting all of the Valentine’s Day stuff packed up for the next day, I re-read the note to make sure we weren’t forgetting anything. I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this. My preschooler needed a Valentine’s card box for school. Oops.

No worries, though. He had a cute Valentine’s card box for his class party that we made without running out to the store. Plus, it was super easy to make.

How to Make a Valentines Card Box

Step 1: Find a box that is big enough to hold Valentine’s Day treats and cards.

You can use literally any box you have. We used a pop-tart box. There are only 10 kids in his class so his didn’t need to be very big.

Step 2: Paint the box or cover it with paper.

It took a couple of coats of paint to hide the pop-tart logo. I let it dry in between each coat but it didn’t take long.

For some reason, the sides of the box were giving us the most trouble (or maybe I was just over it). So, we cut cute craft paper and placed it on each end. We didn’t do anything with the bottom of the box.

Step 3: Add stickers and other embellishments.

We had some Valentine’s stickers so my little guy put stickers all over the box. You could also cut hearts out of different colored paper and glue those to the box.

We cut his name out of cute paper and glued that on, too. Use whatever you have and be creative. Other ideas include letting your child paint designs on the box or adding glitter.

Step 4: Cut a hole in the top.

Make sure the hole is big enough to fit treats through and not just cards.

While this Valentine’s card box was nowhere near perfect, my little guy loved it. Sometimes it is all about taking the time to help them create something rather than worrying about a perfect result. Sure, I could have run out to Target and hoped they had some left, but this ended up being so much more fun and I didn’t have to change out of my sweatpants.

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Please tell me I’m not the only mom who does everything last minute?! And if you are a parent who plans ahead and already has their child’s Valentine’s card box ready, I’d love to see it!

*Does anyone in your child’s class have food allergies? If so, read this article: Keep Valentine’s Day Sweet and Safe for Those With Food Allergy.*

Tags craft, easy craft, Holiday, Preschool, Valentine's Day

Adulting Family Activities Life Parenting

5 Simple Morning Rituals For Your Family to Make Your Day Better

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date January 27, 2021

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Waking yourself up can sometimes feel like more of an effort than getting your children up for school. We all have those mornings where we would rather stay lying in bed than getting up and being productive. To get out of a bad habit and ensure your family has a bright and mindful morning routine, introduce these simple morning rituals.

Morning Rituals For Families

Wake Up Earlier

That’s right, as crazy as it sounds, waking up earlier is a great morning ritual to begin. Setting the alarm just 15 minutes earlier than your usual time can help you be more productive. Plus, it gives you more time to get yourself and your family ready for the day.

Wake up your children, your pets, and your partner if you rise first. You may want to make sure your pets are fed before starting the day, so getting that out of the way with yummy Pet-Ness treats will allow you to focus on the rest of the family.

Open The Curtains

You will want to wake up before the children to ensure you can start their day off positively. As soon as you wake, take advantage of the morning light by opening the bedroom curtains.

Getting light first thing in the morning will energize the brain and improve your mood. It can feel intense at first if you are used to leaving the curtains closed, but you soon add it to your routine when you feel the benefits.

Get Fresh Air

A lack of fresh air overnight, while you are sleeping, is a common energy stealer. Waking up and stepping outside for some air as soon as possible will fight off the tired feeling and wake you up.

You could take your children out to play while you drink your coffee to make the most of your morning family time. Not only will you all be getting fresh air first thing in the morning, but you will also make lasting memories.

Eat Together

It can be easy to fall out of the habit of eating breakfast together. Cooking a quick batch of pancakes or eggs with toast and sitting around the table will make mealtimes more regular and special. Eating breakfast will also increase your kids’ energy and help them have a productive start to the day.

Share Plans

While eating breakfast together, share your schedule and ask everyone around the table what they are looking forward to that day. Sharing positive thoughts and ideas can help boost everyone’s mood for the entire day. Talking over breakfast is a great opportunity to share any concerns or exciting news, too.

Integrating these morning rituals into your family’s routine can help everyone fight fatigue, be more productive, and communicate together before the day begins.

You don’t have to do them all right away. It might be easier to do one at a time as you ease into a new routine.

Does your family have any morning routines that you already do each day? Tell me about them in the comments!

Tags family, Family Activities, Home

Family Activities How To Life Parenting

12 Proven Ways You Can Make Your Family Life Easier and Happier

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date January 23, 2021

Family life has its challenges. It doesn’t matter where you live or how much money you have, you’re probably going to run into some struggles. That being said, there are numerous ways you can make your family life easier and more enjoyable.

If you’re not happy with the way things are for you right now, or you know you could do with less stress and more joy, try some of these suggestions!

How to Make Your Family Life Easier and Happier

Make Sure Everybody Has Responsibility

One of the best ways to make your life easier and more enjoyable is to make sure everybody has responsibility. They should have responsibility for their own space as well as the house in general.

If your teens have had friends over, make sure they know it’s their responsibility to tidy up. If they have been cooking or made a mess some other way, ensure you raise them knowing that it’s their job to clean it.

It’s also a good idea to ensure that your family has equal responsibility when it comes to any pets. Feeding, grooming, and walking pets, shouldn’t just be your job. Responsibility for both the house and pets will make you a stronger family unit and ensure your life is far more enjoyable.

Eat One Meal Together Each Day

Eating one meal together each day might not seem possible at first. After all, you have work, school, and other things going on. However, the meal doesn’t have to be dinner.

You could all have breakfast together, or if it’s possible you could have lunch together. If you can find the time to put all of your devices and work away and spend time eating together for a short amount of time every day, you will notice so many benefits. Studies have proven that doing this can help kids perform better at school, will help them avoid peer pressure, and more.

It doesn’t matter what you want to eat, whether you’ve got the best frozen Chinese food out of the freezer for a homemade takeaway, or you want to make your own pizzas and everyone gets a slice of each. As long as you’re taking the time to be together while eating, you’ll reap the benefits of a family mealtime.

At our house, we all eat dinner together each evening. We don’t allow phones or other electronic devices during this time, and we make it a point to talk about our day. One person begins by asking someone else, “What was the best part of your day?”, and the person being asked answers the question.

Then, the person who just answered the question will ask the next person the same question. We do this until everyone has talked about their day. It usually lasts the entire time because it really gets the kids talking.

Eat The Same Things Each Week

Eating the same things each week will help you get a handle on food prep, as well as your shopping. Eating the same meals on corresponding days throughout the week can help you to make mealtimes more of a fun tradition, too. You can keep your food budget down this way and ensure food shopping is more effective.

*For a free meal planning & grocery list printable, click HERE!*

Reduce Time Doing Laundry and Ironing

Doing laundry and ironing can feel like it takes ages to complete. However, with the help of items like ironing spray, you can minimize the time spent doing this and ensure your family remains clean and tidy.

It’ll help your clothes last longer, too. There’s no need to do a full wash after every single wear.

Child Proof Your Home

If you ever worry about your children hurting themselves at home, it’s a good reason to spend time childproofing your home. Here are some ways you can do this:

Ensure there’s nothing your children can get tangled up in, such as blind cords.
Avoid leaving children unattended if you have ponds, pools, and other bodies of water in the yard. It only needs to be shallow to suffer the devastating consequences.
Get down to their level and see if you can spot any hazards.
Cover up sharp corners.
Avoid having hard floors with no rugs.
Use dark colors and ensure materials wipe clean.

Find Fun Things To Do Together

Doing fun things together brings you closer together as a family. There are so many more things out there you can do instead of just watching TV or playing on electronics!

Why not go on hikes, try arts and crafts, or read together? These are the moments you will treasure when your kids have grown up. Plus, it’s always a good idea to avoid too much screen time.

Avoid Cluttering Up Your Home

When you have a family, the home can become easily cluttered. If you need help figuring out how to improve this, take a look at Marie Kondo on Netflix.

Keeping the things that truly bring you joy will make your home a tidier, happier place. Rather than buying your kids useless toys that they will use once and forget about (not to mention the plastic use and environmental impact this has), invest in experiences for them and things they can use again and again.

Download Apps

Apps can help to give you peace of mind. Some of them will help you know where your family is if they are out with friends or elsewhere. You can even use certain apps to control different parts of the house from a remote location. You can make it look like you are home by turning on the lights, for instance, even when you’re at work.

Take A Break From The Screen

When you take a break from the screen, you’ll have less stuff cluttering up your brain. You’ll also have more time to focus on your family life and immediate surroundings. Get creative and find new things to do!

Focus On What You Can Control

Rather than worrying about what you can’t control, focus on what you can control. You won’t always be able to stop bad things from happening, but you can put things into perspective and work on the things that are in your control.

Simplify Your Wardrobe

Coming up with capsule wardrobes for each family member will have a tremendous impact on both your lives and the planet. You’ll save money, have high-quality pieces you can use again and again, and find getting dressed so much easier. This guide will help you get it right.

Prioritize What’s Important To You As A Family

Different things are important to different families. Having a family motto can help you to define your values and morals and ensure your kids grow up to be great people. It’ll also allow you to better communicate with one another, and make decisions from a good place.

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How are you going to make your family life easier and more enjoyable? Let us know in the comments!

Tags family, Family Activities, How to, love, Parenting

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How to Have a Happier Family Life

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date January 20, 2021
6 Comments on 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.

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.

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!

Tags family, Home

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What Are Some Of The Ways You Can Encourage Imaginative Play?

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date December 29, 2020

Encouraging your child to use their imagination is very important. After all, this is an essential step in their learning process as it helps them develop skills and learn. The best way to get your child’s imagination working is through imaginative play. After all, if something seems fun, then your child will instantly be more responsive and involved.

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Luckily, there are quite a few imagination-based toys available in stores and on the internet. Even better, many toys for imaginative play are popular with young children. You’ll be able to find the perfect one for your kiddo that they will love.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

Click these links for a few ideas for pretend play that your kids will love:

There are also online play options and virtual school assemblies. This means that you are not faced with a shortage of options to choose from.

This blog post aims to give you a helping hand with this by simply providing you with some tips and suggestions regarding the promotion of imaginative play.

Figure Out What Type of Imaginative Play Your Child Likes

The key is to try out a few different things to discover what type of imaginative play your child likes. Stick with things that let them use their mind to unlock the door of their imagination.

There are lots of great toys available that are based around role-playing. One of the most popular options to go for is a kid’s kitchen. This gives your child their very own area of space where they can pretend to cook and create different meals.

This helps them because they will be able to become more familiar with different kitchen activities. Plus, they can use their imagination to create different scenarios.

Buy a Dollhouse

Another good option is to buy a dollhouse. These are great because they promote creativity as well as imagination. Your child will be able to decorate the rooms in the house and think of different scenarios between the dolls. Plus, this helps the child learn about family dynamics, the roles of different individuals, and the makings of a household.

Encourage Imaginative Dress-Up

There are lots of different dress-up costumes available from toy stores, and it is another good option to go for. After all, what better way to let your imagination run wild and get into true character than dressing up as something? The choices for dress-up are never-ending, and it is a good idea to let your little one pick which outfit they likes best.

Consider Other Play Home Items

If you are looking for something which is smaller or more affordable than a play kitchen, then there are lots of scaled-down sets. These sets encourage kids to learn different life skills. You can get cake baking sets, laundry sets, coffee making sets, and much, much more.

As you can see, there are several different ways in which you can get your child’s imagination working. Hopefully, the tips to promote imaginative play given in this article will have provided you with some ideas and inspiration. What are some ways your kids enjoy imaginative play? Leave a comment and let me know!

Tags Family Activities, How to, learning, Parenting, Toddler, toddler activities

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How to Handle Family Issues Positively in 2020

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date December 13, 2020

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.

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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.

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!

Tags big kid, family, How to, little kid, Parenting, Teenager

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Easy Stress-Busting Tips Every Work From Home Mom Needs Now

Post author By Sarah Barkley
Post date December 13, 2020
2 Comments on Easy Stress-Busting Tips Every Work From Home Mom Needs Now

work from home mom, tips for working from home with kids, work from home with kids, virtual learning and working from home, how to work from home when you have kids

Being a work from home mom may sound like the ideal solution to earn money while raising your kids. However, as any work from home mom will tell you, it is not always as idyllic as it sounds.

While working from home does allow you to enjoy flexibility in your day, it can leave you feeling like you are trying to do everything at once. You may feel as though you are not giving either your home life or work life your full attention. This can leave you feeling stressed out and emotional.

To make working from home efficient for you and your family, you need to find a way to ease the stress and strike a better balance in your life. If you are wondering how you can enjoy the benefits of working from home while minimizing stress, you should find these tips helpful.

How a Work From Home Mom Can Make It Work

Perfect Your Workspace

Perfecting your workspace is an essential ingredient for working from home successfully. If your work setup is not suited to your needs, you will feel uncomfortable, and it will be impossible to be productive.

If you can, try to create an area of your home that is dedicated to work, so that you can give your job your full attention.

This space should be as quiet as possible and away from the constant interruptions of your kids. If that isn’t possible, simply make sure your workspace is efficiently setup and allows you to develop a nice work flow.

Use headphones to minimize the sounds around you, or learn to tune them out when necessary. Plus, make sure your kids don’t mess with your setup or touch any of your work supplies.

Take Regular Breaks

While it may seem like a good idea to just plow through your work and get everything done as fast as you can, this is not necessarily going to make you more productive. Failing to take regular breaks can make you less productive rather than more. So, you may find that you are putting in lots of hours but not making as much progress as you would like to.

When you take a break, you are allowing yourself to clear your mind and then return to your task with a fresh outlook. This can be hugely beneficial, especially on more taxing tasks.

Plus, by taking regular breaks, you will find comfort knowing your kids don’t need anything right then. This will help you focus on your work rather than wondering what your kids are doing or if they need help.

Minimize Distractions

When you work from home, distractions are everywhere. It is so tempting to get sucked into chores when you are supposed to be working. When you have kids at home with you during the day, it can be even harder to resist this temptation. If you have five loads of laundry waiting to be washed, dried, and ironed, you may be tempted to crack on with this before you get started on your work.

However, once you start on your chores, you may find it difficult to slip back into a ‘work mindset’ and focus on your job. Wherever possible, try to ignore the laundry basket calling to you and, instead, use your work time just for work.

This will likely mean setting up your work from home space in an area where you can’t see the chores that need to be done. Then, you won’t think about them as often which will make them easier to ignore.

Don’t Be Afraid to Use Childcare

Being distracted when you are trying to concentrate is hugely frustrating. Even simple tasks can take ages to complete when you are repeatedly distracted.

With little ones at home, the chances of being distracted when trying to work are pretty high. You may find yourself struggling to get any work completed at all while the little ones are running around asking for snacks.

Using childcare may seem to go against the reasons why you chose to take a work from home job. However, there will be times when using a preschool daycare provider is a necessity. This doesn’t mean you have to use the service often, but it will be nice to know that you have the option.

Having a childcare provider on standby for when you need them is a wise idea. You can turn to this option for those times when you need to attend an important Zoom call or if you have a deadline fast approaching. There is nothing wrong with seeking childcare help when you need it.

Of course, with Covid-19 changing things constantly, it is important that you select a daycare that is staying open during these challenging times. If your children are grade-school age, many daycares are helping students complete their virtual school work, too.

Set Up a Work Space For Your Kids

If you find that your kids want to be right next to you all day, then make that work for you. Teach them how to be quiet while you are working, and teach them to work, too. Set up a space close to you that they can use as their dedicated work space.

Include a surface big enough for activities, a comfortable chair, and any supplies they may need. This includes pencils, crayons, markers, paper, etc. I did this for my daughter, and I included this awesome Lego desk organizer. She was so excited to build her own, and she uses it nearly every day as I work.

They will love sitting next to you as they work, and you can teach them some good habits along the way. With virtual learning being the norm right now, this can be a great option.

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Stick to Regular Hours

When working from home, it can be hard to create a separation between being an employee and being a mom. With no physical barrier between your working life and your home life, you can unintentionally merge the two. You might find yourself working at all times of the day and night to keep on top of things.

Creating the separation between your career and your personal life is essential, however. It is much easier to achieve if you stick to regular working hours. Setting a boundary and working only until a specific time means that once your time is up, you can stop thinking about work and focus on your family.

Learn to Switch Off

Switching off is something that many people find hard to do. It is essential, however, if you want to reduce the stress of being a work from home mom. Giving each aspect of your life your full attention and focusing on one task at a time is the best way to do this. It should help your stress levels to drop dramatically.

This doesn’t mean to only learn to switch off “work mode”, either. During important work times, you have to learn to switch off “home mode” or “parenting mode”, too. If you find that you can’t do this with your kids in the house, this is when you should highly consider childcare a couple of times a week.

Finding the work/home life balance is incredibly hard for parents. Now that being a work from home mom is becoming more normal, it is even more difficult. It is SO hard for moms to switch off “home mode” or “parenting mode”, even when their job is incredibly important to them.

Keep in mind that being a work from home mom won’t become easier overnight. As you work on these tips, it will take time to find the routine that works for you.

These tips for work at home moms will help, however, and they will get you started on a stress-free situation. Are you a work from home mom, and when did you become one? If you have any additional tips to add, leave a comment and let me know!

Tags adulting, Making money online, Parenting, work from home