Real Life Solutions

Summer is here aand one of the great things about summer vacation is the trip in the family car. Are you ready for a road trip? Here are some tips to help you to organize your road trip preparation and make your you trip memorable.

Road trips can be fun for adults and kids. Most think about the drawbacks of being cooped up in the car for long periods of time. But, there is an upside to this scenario. The trip can be fun and hazard free.

With that said, here are some tips for good road trip preparation:

* Get the car serviced – No one wants to end up sweating in the heat in a car that has a flat tire or an engine that has run out of anti-freeze. Have your car checked out to be sure that all parts and pieces are working properly.

* Carry a car care kit – Just in case something untoward happens, be ready. Stock your trunk with jumper cables, a gallon of water, flags, flares, a jack and a flashlight. Don’t forget to renew your AAA membership to handle any roadside emergency.

* Keep the kids entertained – Many people forget about keeping the kids occupied when they start their road trip preparation.  For the road trip, try to think outside the box. If you bring the same toys and games that kids play in the house, they will get bored really quickly. Try something that will peak their interest and provide hours of fun.

Don’t forget the music CDs and DVDs that they haven’t watched before. Create a survival pack for smaller kids. Display it in a hanging pocket that can be suspended from the front seats so they can grab what they want without you having to constantly turn around.

* Bring supplies – When people eat in the car, it can get messy. Don’t forget plastic trash bags, baby wipes, hand sanitizer, paper towels, tissues and toilet paper. You never know when you might need it. For drinks, have sippy cups for toddlers. Plastic cups and straws can get messy for someone learning to drink from a cup.

* Extra sleeping gear – Sleeping in a car can get uncomfortable.  Another great road trip preparation tips is to prepare to make the care more pleasant with travel pillows, neck pillows for kids in car seats, blankets and comfortable shoes when you want to take your hard shoes off.

* Odds and ends – Thee are the essentials that we often don’t think of until we need them. This includes cell phone and DVD chargers, video camera and extra batteries, navigation system, first aid kit, sunglasses, cooler with ice and snacks, bags for dirty clothing and window shades to keep out the sun.

By using many of the road trip preparation tips above, you will be prepared to have a joyful time in the car.

If you’re looking for fun Easter party games for your next Easter party or gathering, you’ll love this article. There’s something here for everyone.

Here are some great ideas for fun Easter party Games.

It goes without saying the Easter party game of the day will be the egg hunt. These will be very much anticipated and depending on the ages of the kids you can decide whether to do a traditional egg hunt, a separate hunt for the younger kids and a more difficult hunt for the older children (to avoid the older children grabbing all the eggs and little ones being left empty handed).

More fun Easter party games –

You can also do a clue style egg hunt where you place different clues on cards and the children go from one clue to the next finding a small egg at each destination and a final much bigger egg or eggs at the last clue.

Egg and Spoon Race

Easter is the perfect time for this. You can use raw eggs which is the traditional way to play for older kids and can use boiled, dyed Easter eggs for younger kids.

The kids split up into teams and take turns racing against each other. The object of the game is to NOT drop the egg, the team who finishes first wins! This type of game is lots of fun and can burn off a tremendous amount of energy.

Pin the Tail on the Easter Bunny

Cut out a large bunny shape out of construction paper or buy a large bunny cut out and cut out the tail. Give each child a cotton ball with a double sided piece of tape on it, blindfold and let the children take turns pinning the tail on the Easter bunny. This is, of course, a spin on the traditional pin the tail on the donkey. Lots of fun.

Bunny Races

Using sacks or old pillow cases, set up a bunny race. Divide the kids into teams and let them take turns racing. They have to hop in their bunny sacks to the finish line.

Most fun Easter party games can be adapted to suit children of all ages with a bit of creative thinking.

(ARA) – Cyberbullying, the bullying of a person through the use of an electronic device such as a computer or cell phone, is becoming a growing national problem. Anyone can be a victim of cyberbullying, but students are frequent targets. From fake Facebook pages, to the posting of embarrassing videos and photos, to Kick a Ginger Day (harassing red-headed people based on a 2005 episode of South Park), more than 20 percent of today’s U.S. students, ages 10 to 18, report being a victim of cyberbullying (26 percent for girls versus 16 percent for boys).

Because of a number of highly publicized cases of cyberbullying – including most recently, the suicide of a Rutgers University freshman whose roommate posted a video of the student having sex in his dorm room – colleges, school districts, law enforcement and state legislatures are taking action to address cyberbullying.

More than two dozen states have specifically enacted legislation or updated statutes to address the growing problem of cyberbullying, according to FindLaw.com, the leading online resource for legal information. Most new laws mandate that school districts enact policies involving cyberbullying, and take steps to suspend or expel students who engage in it.

Here are some tips from FindLaw.com on what parents can do now to prevent cyberbullying, and what to do if you suspect that your child is being singled out by cyberbullies:

* Ask about friends or other kids. Your child may be reluctant to open up about being the victim of cyberbullying. Start the conversation by asking your child if he has heard about other kids at school who have been victimized. Because girls are more likely to be targets of cyberbullying, ask your student about groups of girls being mean to other groups or a specific girl, or if they’ve heard about boys texting inappropriate photos of girls.

* Watch for signs. Does your child seem withdrawn? Reluctant to use some forms of technology? Maybe depressed? These are generalizations, but if you’ve noticed any changes in your child’s behavior, he or she may be the victim of technology torment. Have you noticed your child exiting out of a computer screen or smart phone quickly when you walk into a room? Is he or she spending an increasing amount of time on the Internet each day (specifically at night) or using multiple online accounts? Your child could be a cyberbully.

* Set boundaries. It’s critical to talk to your child about cyberbullying – what it is and what to do if your child feels threatened. In addition, parents should set clear boundaries about your young person’s use of technology. Clearly communicate your expectations for responsible use of technology and that, while you respect your child’s privacy, you intend to monitor it. Explain the consequences if you believe your child is abusing or misusing technology such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, an e-mail account or mobile device, or if it is interfering with their school work.

* “It’s just a joke.” Many kids may not perceive that they are involved in cyberbullying. Creating a fake Facebook page, sending embarrassing photos of another student to each other with a cell phone or other actions involving the Internet or mobile communications may be perceived by kids as “normal,” what other kids at their school do, or as “a joke” or “prank.” In fact, based on school policies or local or state laws, those “jokes” could get your child in a lot of trouble.

* It’s illegal. Cyberbullying is serious and, in a handful of states, illegal. If your child is involved in cyberbullying another child, he or she could face legal consequences, and you, as a parent, could become embroiled in a lawsuit if the parents of a student victimized by your child sue your child for emotional damages. In a growing number of cases across the country, students are being held responsible for cyberbullying, facing consequences that range from expulsion from school to prosecution.

* Passwords are private. Tell your kids not to share their online passwords with friends. A common way that kids bully each other online (posting hurtful comments or sending fake messages) is to do so from another kid’s account.

* Friends don’t send embarrassing photos. Make it clear to your child and his or her friends – it is not cool to send embarrassing photos taken at school events, parties, dances and other events to other students, who may ridicule or taunt the student in the embarrassing photo.

* It can haunt you. What many kids and adults don’t realize is that what you post on Facebook and other social media can remain accessible on the Internet for years and years. Those hurtful comments, snide remarks and embarrassing photos (including inappropriate photos of their bodies or body parts) can be searched by college admissions offices and future employers.

* Others are watching. Parents should strongly recommend to their kids that they never, ever post or send to anyone photos of themselves in sexually suggestive poses. There have been numerous legal cases of boyfriends forwarding photos of their girlfriends (or ex-girlfriends) to other students. Such photos can make their way to the Internet and into the watchful eyes of child porn addicts.

* Monitor e-mails with teachers. It’s sad, but true: Students can be intimidated and bullied by their teachers and school coaches, too. Insist that your young person always copies you, the parent, on any and all messages with their teachers and coaches.

* School policy. Find out if your school has a policy about cyberbullying. Many schools are just starting to develop these policies (in some states, schools are mandated to do so under state law). Unlike physical or verbal bullying that takes place on school grounds, most cyberbullying takes place outside of normal school hours. Going through your Parent Teacher Organization (PTO or PTA), advocate that your school set a policy for cyberbullying outside of school hours.

* Safe place. Cyberbullying is very real and it is possible that your student could at some point be one of its victims. Ask your school to create a safe place or resource for kids to report cyberbullying – such as a voicemail tip line – and ask your school to invite speakers to address the issue.

For further information and how you can protect your child while on the internet and from cyberbullying, click here!

It’s often been said that children learn what they live.  So if you’re looking for a place to start helping your child build positive self esteem and self value, then you should show them your positive sense of self and strong self esteem.  Be positive when you speak about yourself and highlight your strengths. This will teach your child that it’s okay to be proud of their talents, skills and abilities. 

Your child also benefits greatly from honest and positive praise.  Find something about them to praise each day.  You could even give your child a task you know they can complete and then praise them for a job well done after they’re finished. Show your child that positive acts merit positive praise. 

When your child’s feeling sad, angry or depressed, communicate openly, honestly and patiently with them. Listen to them without judging or criticizing.  They may not fully understand why they feel the way they do, so the opportunity to communicate with you about it may be what’s needed to help them sort through a difficult situation.  Suggest positive behaviors and options as solutions, and make sure to leave that door of communication open so they know the next time they feel badly, they can come to you for help and know that you won’t judge or punish them for how they’re feeling.

Teach your child the importance of setting goals and developing a plan to meet that goal and complete that task.  Small projects are the best to start off with in the beginning.  Ensure that it’s an appropriate task for your child, and not too complex.  Don’t only give praise at the end of the project, but praise their accomplishments during the project as well.

Most importantly, tell your child “I love you” each and every day – many times throughout the day, in fact.  When they’ve behaved badly, remind yourself that it’s not them you don’t like, only their behavior.  Tuck short, sweet notes in their lunchboxes or coat pockets, or even send them a card in the mail.  Soon, they’ll learn to say “I love you” just as easily and honestly in return.

Are you a busy stay at home mom who feels like she’s working a full time job? Between children, activities and a spouse, being a stay at home mom can be really exhausting, but quite rewarding. If you’re a stay at home mom, or thinking about becoming one, the best thing to remember is to have a routine. Here are some tips for stay at home moms who are looking to save money and increase family time, all while living on one income.

Dress for Less – If you’re not going into an office every day, then it isn’t likely that you will need to spend hundreds of dollars each season on new work clothes. While you shouldn’t look like a mess, you can save quite a bit of cash by shopping at consignment stores or discount retailers. Keep your closet simple and organized and you’ll always find something to wear. As for your kids, they are constantly growing out of their clothes, so ditch the designer labels and focus on affordability.

Make use of shopping in bulk – If you have a large family, you may really benefit from shopping in bulk. Being a stay at home mom means thinking creatively. Buy out of season for certain items, and buy them in bulk if possible. Summer items like air conditioners, fans and sunscreen are often discounted in the winter and fall. Buy items like toilet paper and paper towels in bulk and store them neatly in a closet until use. Keep an eye on store sales to take advantage of the best prices or join a local warehouse club, like Costco or Sam’s Club.

Limit how much you dine out – Find weekly specials in your area when there are family deals or child discounts. If you’re not big on cooking, pick one day a week when you will cook for the whole week. Make dinners ahead of time and store them in the freezer. When it’s time to eat, pop them in the oven and you’re done!

Get organized one step at a time – If your home is messy or filled with clutter, set a goal to get organized. By learning how to have a more organized home, you will spend less time looking for things and cleaning around the house. Having an organized home will make you feel more relaxed, and you will feel more energized to get more accomplished. When you’re more organized, you’ll spend less time cleaning and decluttering and have more time to spend with your family.

About the author: Jacquie Ross is a professional organizer and award winning owner of CastAway the Clutter! Jacquie is a busy mom expert and works with moms, families and busy professionals to clear their clutter, manage their time and run their households more efficiently. She is active in her community and regularly speaks to social and professional groups and organizations on time management and organization.

Jacquie has written three e-books especially for busy moms and her twice monthly Timely Tips newsletter is chock full of organizing tips and techniques for busy people. Register today and receive a free copy of her special report, 21 Organizing Solutions to Cast Away the Clutter. Get your free copy now by clicking here.

Get your complimentary organizing goals worksheet when you sign up for periodic organizing tips
http://www.CastAwaytheClutter.com/Organizing_Newsletter.html

Many people are curious about the origin of Easter day. Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. It marks the end of Lent, which is the forty day period of fasting beginning on Ash Wednesday and culminating on Easter Sunday. Preceded by Holy Thursday and Good Friday; the day Christ died, Christians attend Church services on this solemn day to participate in the Stations of the Cross, denoting his Passion and death.

On Holy Saturday, a time of contemplation and solemnity, the sacrifice of the Mass is not celebrated. On Easter morning, however, the celebration begins with church bells signaling His resurrection.

Easter Sunday is a time of great joy for families who observe this day with traditional egg-coloring; egg hunts; fun crafts for kids; a special Easter dinner and a myriad of desserts. What does the egg symbolize?

Along with the origin of Easter Day, the egg symbolizes a rebirth; a renewal of life. In ancient times, the egg was given as a gift. The ancient Saxons celebrated the return of spring with a festival in honor of the goddess of spring and her symbol, the rabbit. Some say the word “Easter” is derived from the Anglo-Saxon “Eostre,” the name of the fertility goddess of spring. Therefore, the custom of exchanging eggs in springtime has been said to date back over 3000 years.

Speaking of eggs! On Easter morning many kids wake up and find Easter baskets filled with chocolate and other goodies. Easter egg hunts and getting treats seem to be the most favorite part of Easter for lots of kids.

Hopefully this article has helped you to understand the origin of Easter Day.

Many parents often wonder how to get kids to clean up after themselves.  It is a common struggle in many homes.  There are ways to turn toy clean-up time into a manageable affair. 

Usually after playing, children are easily overwhelmed when it’s time to clean up their toys.   You can take the struggle out of cleaning up with a few simple changes. Start early to teach good cleaning habits. Keep the amount of toys available for play to a minimum. Develop cleaning routines and engage dad to help put toys away at the end of the day.

1. Beat The Clock

You would not even believe how well this works in my house. If your kid gets very excited about challenges, this is definitely for your family. First, I come up with what I want my child to organize, whether it’s to clean up her toys in the living room, or to organize a drawer in her room. Then, I say, ‘I wonder if you can do ______ (fill in the blank with whatever you want done) before the timer sounds. Set small goals that your child can realistically complete within 3 minutes or 5 minutes. Promise your child a reward of YOUR time when you’re done. Perhaps you can go outside together and blow bubbles or maybe you can go for a bike ride–something that will truly entice your child to want to get the job done as quickly as possible. Once you start the timer, cheer your child on. Show your excitement, and be as silly as possible.

2. Turn up the tunes.

Cleaning and organizing doesn’t have to be a boring, monotonous task. Turn up the music–your child’s favorite– nice and loud. Then encourage your child to dance and dust (or whatever needs to be done) at the same time. Join your child and get some stuff done yourself while you’re at it. It’s energizing and makes it more like a party.

3. Think up little rewards your child would love.

My daughter loves it when my husband chases her around the sofa, while she giggles endlessly. A friend’s child loves it when her mom plays silly face games with her. Promise your child that when he or she does whatever it is you want them to do for 3 minutes, you’ll do the fun thing you come up with for 3 minutes. Then, keep repeating organizing, fun, organizing, fun, etc. about 4 to 5 times. Your child will get lots accomplished and have a great time while doing so.

4. Play ‘Basketball.’

For clothes, stuffed animals and other fairly soft items that won’t break, set up a clothes hamper in the middle of the room. Have your child toss the items that are strewn about into the hamper. He or she earns a point for each item that goes in–and gets second, third, etc. chances for those items that do not. Pre-designate some fun time together or fun rewards for so many points. For instance, 10 points gives your child the opportunity to have his favorite book read to him, 15 points gives your child her choice of the board game to play after dinner.

5. Role play.

Tell your child to choose an animal and then pretend they’re that animal while they’re cleaning and organizing, such as a frog or a bunny. A bunny might grab their stuff and hop somewhere to put it away. A kangaroo might hold some stuff in their shirt and bounce to the storage area. But, they can’t tell you what animal they are. You have to guess before the one minute timer runs out. Take turns with your younger children doing this. They’ll get a kick out of it, and the job will be done at the same time.

Get Organized Now – An amazing collection of 2,175 ideas, tips and techniques for organizing your home, getting rid of clutter, organizing your time, your schedule, your money, your paper, your family and much more!

When you think about Valentine’s Day you probably think about spending a romantic evening with your partner. Unfortunately this can leave your children feeling left out in the cold. They love Valentine’s Day as much as you do, so why not think of some family fun Valentines Day activities for the whole family to enjoy together?

You can plan a family fun Valentines Day Plan together for the entire family and then leave some time for your partner. Make heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast. For a different twist, add red hot candies to the batter. Allowing your children to eat candy for breakfast isn’t something you’ll do every day, but Valentine’s Day does come but once a year.

When you’re preparing their lunch or making sure everything is in their school bag, slip in a special Valentine for each one. Perhaps you can include a coupon for a ‘date’ with either parent to be used at a later date. Of course, if your children are older, you’ll want to be sure not to include anything that would be embarrassing to them if their friends saw it.

Another family fun Valentines Day idea is to take a little time to create a family photo collage or scrapbook from pictures taken during the previous year. You don’t have to make something elaborate, rather something your family can enjoy looking at as the years pass. Depending upon the ages of your children, you may want to allow each child to create one page to be included in the scrapbook.

Design a scavenger hunt for Valentine’s Day. Write up clues (or draw pictures for younger children) to lead them through the house. Have a wonderful sweet treat or movie the entire family can enjoy together as the final prize.

You may want to eat dinner with the children and get them to bed early. That will leave you at least some time to spend with your sweetie.

Rather than going out for Valentine’s Day, enlist the help of the children to prepare a family Fun Valentines Day dinner. Pizza is a great meal for Valentine’s Day. There is red sauce and white cheese on each one. Your children can also place some pepperoni on the pizza in a heart shape if that’s what they want to do.

Be prepared for there to be a mess in the kitchen, but try not to stress over it too much. Having toppings already prepared will make clean-up a little easier and you won’t have to worry about a little one cutting themselves slicing onions or another topping.

After dinner you could snuggle together on the couch and watch a movie together. If you think your family watches too much television you could also play a board game. When bed time comes, kiss the children goodnight and tell them you’re glad they are your Valentine.

When the children are finally down for the night you can concentrate on your main Valentine sweetie. Create a spa-like atmosphere in your bathroom. Draw a bubble bath you can share with your partner if your tub is large enough for both of you. Be sure to lock both the bedroom and bathroom doors to avoid any interruptions.

Use one of more of the above family fun Valentines Day ideas to ensure that the entire family enjoys this special day.

Valentine’s Day is a day for lovers but that doesn’t mean your children don’t need to feel special, too. Take time to do something special with your children to make them feel important. However, you’ll also want to get them into bed early enough to spend quality one-on-one time with your partner as well.

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When people start to organize their home they can easily become stumped when it comes to how to organize bills and mail in order to keep paper clutter to a minimum. It is easy within the shuffle of life to forget about a bill here or there. This article will focus on several different ways that will show you how to organize bills and mail and reduce the clutter caused by paper at home.

The first thing that needs to be done when looking at how to organize your bills and mail at home is to sort through your mail every day and collect the bills and set them aside. This only takes a couple of minutes and you want to strip away everything that is not needed…including all the advertisements normally inside.

When you’re done with this, you should make sure that you only have the actual invoice and return envelope left. This will cut down on the amount of extra paper that can get mixed in with your bills every month.

Your bills need to be kept within a specific place within your home. This is important because if you have bills floating through different rooms, you will not know when they are due and what bills still have to be paid. Put the bills in one specific spot every day after you have sorted the mail.

You might want to use a monthly spreadsheet as far as what need to be paid and that yes…the payments were made.

Knowing this information when you sit down will cut down on the amount of time needed every month and will be good so that you can come back to the bills weekly instead of making it a daily task.

With the demands on our time and energy today, it can be very hard to know what has been paid and what hasn’t been paid so the spreadsheet will be a friendly reminder for you. You should also have one person who normally does the bills because having two different hands in the pot can make things difficult to accomplish.

Finally, when keeping up with how to organize bills and mail, you may want to see whether or not you can build this into your weekly routine. Maybe you spend half an hour or 45 minutes on a Sunday balancing your checkbook and paying the bills. This will reduce the amount of time that you need every month to potentially pay bills because it is happening on a weekly occurrence.

Hopefully this article on how to organize bills and mail at home has given you some insight into some different methods that you can use. Remember that this is an ongoing process and you cannot just be organized with the bills by doing this exercise once a month. Work on this daily with the mail and weekly with the bills and watch how much easier it is when your bills are organized.

Remember that it only takes a couple minutes a day to keep yourself organized. This will cut down the amount of stress that you can potentially feel each month and you will feel much better in the long run from doing this.

To find out how to get organized and put these strategies to use right away, visit The Definitive Guide to Home Organization for Busy People today and get started.

Children who have food allergies may not understand why they can’t eat peanut butter like their friends, or why they react so badly to milk or wheat. As a parent, you want to know how to manage child food allergies so you can help them have a long, healthy and happy life.

Food allergies are more common than you might think. However, they may not be as severe in some children as they are in others. Thankfully, some children who have food allergies while they are very young can often outgrow them by the time they are five years old.

It is important to understand food allergies and recognize the symptoms. With an allergy, the body sees the allergen as dangerous and will start attacking the food or its components with antibodies. Food allergies have the potential to be life threatening so you’ll want to take them seriously. The antibodies cause irritation which can manifest as these symptoms:

* Swelling of the lips
* Difficulty breathing
* Tingling in the mouth – lips or tongue
* Hives
* Itchy rash
* Abdominal cramps
* Diarrhea
* Vomiting

Prevention is the best way to manage child food allergies. Keep your child from having access to foods containing their allergen. Learn to be diligent in reading food labels each and every time you go shopping, as foods may change without notice. Teaching your child to read labels will train them to do this once they get older.

Teach your child to recognize the food they’re allergic to. This might mean doing some research to find out what food items might contain their particular allergen. You’ll need to learn how to properly read food labels and if there are allergens listed it would be wise to avoid purchasing those foods.

Explain to you child the importance of not exchanging food with their friends. Even though their friends’ lunch may look good, there’s no guarantee there aren’t allergens in it. It is best that they eat only the food you prepare or purchase for them. Be aware when eating out that even though some foods aren’t on your child’s allergen list, there could be cross-contamination with foods that are.

Inform your school’s cafeteria and teacher of their food allergy. Talk with your child’s doctor about keeping medicine with them just in case they have an allergic reaction while at school. Your child’s teacher and front office should have contact information for you and your child’s doctor in case of an emergency.

Having to manage children with food allergies can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be impossible. With knowledge of your child’s allergens, you will be able to learn along with your child which foods are acceptable and those that aren’t.

With the pediatrician’s help you will also know how to treat your child should they have an allergic reaction. Finally, you’ll be able to let others know of your child’s needs and know that they can react quickly should it be necessary.  The key is to be diligent when you manage child food allergies so that the child stays as healthy as possible.