Home and Garden

20 Easy Chores for Kids

Now that the school year is in full swing, our days are busier than ever. Between school itself, homework, after school activities, and instrument practice, little time is left for anything else – and certainly not chores! But I need the kids to make home a priority as well. The whole family benefits when the [...]

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How Much Candy do your Kids Eat on Halloween?

I must admit that I don’t set many candy limits on Halloween night. Maybe I’m just a kid at heart – but I remember the excitement of bringing home buckets of candy. We would spread our treasure out on the floor and sort it into piles. This is what we like, what we don’t like, [...]

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Days Ago Introduces: The Band

I previously reviewed a nifty little product called Days Ago. It is basically a little digital counter that counts days. You attach this gadget to stuff in your fridge – like leftovers, open jars of sauce or salsa, baby food, formula, you name it. Days Ago has always come in two varieties – one that [...]

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How to Stretch Your Warehouse Club Membership Fee

Shopping at warehouse clubs is convenient – but I’m not sure that I actually save money there. While buying in bulk can be cheaper, shopping the sales at grocery stores and taking advantage of double coupons might actually yield a better price. However, with a big family, it is easier for me to buy large [...]

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Is there anything to eat in your house?

I had a good laugh when I read this post by Motherwise Cracks. Apparently her kitchen is overflowing with food. (check out her pictures!) And yet, her children say, “There is nothing to eat!” My kitchen suffers from a similar fate. If it’s not washed, sliced, cooked, and served – well, then it just isn’t [...]

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Sidewalk Chalk is now Graffiti

Amanda at GoodyBlog reports that sidewalk chalk designs by six year olds are considered Graffiti in Brooklyn, New York. Apparently, 6 year old Natalie Shea’s mother received a citation to remove the “graffiti” i.e. sidewalk chalk drawings from her front stoop or she will be fined $300. Let this be a lesson to sidewalk chalking [...]

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Environmentally Friendly Lunches

Today is Blog Action Day. Over 15,000 bloggers around the world will be writing a post today about how to improve the environment. Here is my contribution. Every day I pack lunches for three of my children. And every day I am disgusted about the amount of trash that one lunch can generate. Everything comes [...]

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The Best Rice Krispie Treats Ever!

My kid’s friends love my Rice Krispie Treats. “You make the best Rice Krispie Treats ever!” is the compliment I usually get. Other moms are equally impressed. “You make your own Rice Krispie Treats?” they ask in awe. I am not really sure what all the fuss is about. I use the recipe that is [...]

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The Debt Free Diet

With the holidays fast approaching, I am trying to proactively control my spending. One interesting article that I came across is called Fiscal Fitness: Eliminate Debt with 10 Successful Diet Principles at ZenHabits.net Huh? Diet and debt? What do they have to do with each other? But as you think about it further, there really [...]

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Far Away Birthday Parties for Kids

In the last few years my children have received a handful of birthday party invitations to places that are somewhat far away (an hour or so by car). The venues range from sporting events, to arcade type centers/entertainment complexes, to dinners. The parents of the birthday child have very cordially arranged transportation (usually mom and [...]

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Benadryl Perfect Measure – Single Use Spoons

It is unfortunate that allergies are affecting more and more families. As a result, Benadryl has become a staple of first aid kits, diaper bags, and handbags. My son has food allergies, so I know firsthand. For years I have toted around a leaky bottle of Benadryl and measuring spoon or cup in a zip [...]