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Our Weekly Newsletter Provides: Free tips and resourses on the following topics and more: 

• Healthy Lifestyles
• Self Confidence & Motivation
• Stress Reduction
• Parenting
• Self-appreciation
• Tips on planning interesting and fun activities for
  the entire family
• Much more

Sign-Up Today and also receive a free ‘You Deserve a Break’ Report.  In this short and informative report.  I share many ways that you can give yourself the down time and the pampering that you deserve.
http://reallifesolutions.net/newsletter.html

Summer is coming up right around the corner. Families everywhere are planning out some fun vacations to celebrate the beautiful weather. Amusement parks and renting cabins are popular ways to spend your summer, but not everyone can afford them. Here are some no-cost ways to spend your summer with the whole family throughout the season:

Start a book club- Pick a spot in the backyard, and lay down a blanket large enough to fit the whole family. Have some cookies, lemonade and whatever snacks you choose to have. Use a book from the library and take turns reading it out loud. You can even discuss some things that occur in the book. Consider making it a weekly event and invite your neighbors and friends to participate as well.

Treasure Hunt- Some kids are into anything to do with pirates. You could plan a treasure hunt with their help. Scour your backyard, local beach or park and find things you could put into a treasure chest. The kids could also make some of their own items to place in the chest too. Spend some time searching for pirate information on the internet and use what you find to make up your very own treasure map. Then bury the chest or hide it in the house and let the kids try out the map they created.

Gardening- Make up a small garden or use a small portion of your existing garden. Let each of your children have a row or small area to use to grow whatever they choose to. Each child is responsible for taking care of their own crops. Help them research the item they chose to grow so they can see how to best care for it. When their crop is ready to harvest, they can reap from the hard work they put into growing it.

Help your child’s interests to grow- Find out what interests your child and help them research it. If your child is into sports, you can research their favorite team or print images off the net and start a scrapbook of their team. If your child is into crafts, you can research craft projects on the net and find some that are no-cost and interest the child. Teenagers may be more interested in playing a game of basketball, baseball or visiting a zoo.

Movie night- Some libraries have movies you can rent. Pick a night each week and watch a movie the whole family could enjoy. The children can take turns picking out what they want to watch for that week. Have your bowl of popcorn or whatever snack you choose, and sit back with your family in your own “home theater”.

There are plenty of ways to spend some fun time during the summer that doesn’t cost you money. Use your creativity, imagination, and get ideas from your children on what they would like to do. Plan some of those activities as a family and enjoy your summer.

For more help, visit Finding More Family Time for tips for a happy family life.

Spring Allergy Symptoms in Children and What to Do About It

Spring has sprung and so has the pollen.  Seasonal allergies affect millions of children each year.  Find out the symptoms and what you can do to relieve them.

The substances that cause allergies are called allergens.  Allergens can be anything from pollen to molds and fungi to dust.  These allergens are carried through the air until they land on your child.  Pollen is the reproductive spores of plants.  Allergy symptoms can occur from the pollen of weeds, grasses, trees, and mold. 

Sensitivity to these allergies is what brings on the histamine response.  This is the body’s reaction to the allergens being present in the child’s system.  Allergens enter the body through the mouth, the eyes, and the nasal passages.  Your child may experience:  sneezing, itchy, watery eyes, nasal congestion, chest congestion, coughing, and/or sore throat.  A child suffering from allergies may display one or more of these symptoms at a time. 

Allergies are often confused with colds and therefore misdiagnosed.  Cold symptoms usually include fatigue, fever, and body aches.  If any of these symptoms are also present, then your child is probably not suffering from seasonal allergies.

Pediatricians can run tests to find out the exact type of allergen your child is allergic to.  Blood work can be done to ferret out the offending allergen.  More commonly a skin-prick test is performed.

The spin-prick test is not painful to the child.  It involves lightly scratching the skin with different types of allergens.  This test is usually done on the back.  If the skin becomes red and swollen in certain areas, the doctor can determine what allergen is attacking your child.

Once the allergen is identified, the doctor will come up with a course of treatment. Prescribing medication such as Singulair, Allegra, and Advair, will block the reactions in the body that cause allergy symptoms.  It will take a week or two for the medications to fully circulate throughout the body.

There are practical things that you can do at home to safeguard against allergies.  Keep windows closed.  A good breeze will fill your home with pollen from the outside.  Use the air conditioning in the spring and summer if it gets warm inside.

Take a bath at night during allergy season.  The water will wash off any pollen spores and other allergens accumulated during the day.  Also make sure to use allergen proof covers on mattresses and pillows.

Allergies are a nuisance, but they don’t have to ruin your life.  Follow a few guidelines to keep your home safe from offending allergens.  Take your child to the doctor to properly diagnose his/her allergy condition and receive treatment options.

For more help raising happy and healthy kids, be sure to claim your free subscription of  Health & Fun tips.

For moms who work from home, balancing the home and business sides of their lives can feel downright impossible, especially when the reason they began working from home was so they could spend more time with family. However, many home businesses actually fail because moms don’t manage to balance business and home life. How can you juggle your family’s needs, your business needs and occasionally find some time for your needs without being a super hero?

The first thing any mom should do to achieve balance is to get the family involved. If your children and husband support you, you will find that they interrupt less often and are more likely to pitch in to get household chores done. You’re probably thinking that will happen the day the moon turns to blue cheese, right? However, if you mention that you need to get a major project done and will be able to buy a pizza and rent a video when you are paid, you may be surprised at how quickly everyone pitches in to help out.

If you have young children, they may not be able to understand the concept of waiting for a reward. To get your younger children involved, try explaining what you are doing in very simple terms and having them help you. Set up a small desk or table for your toddlers and add crayons and paper so they can help you with your work by drawing some pictures or writing a letter. Children that are a bit older can put stamps on envelopes and seal them, paperclip papers together or do other simple organizational tasks.

Of course, no matter how supportive your family and friends are, they are not going to be happy if you work 15 hours a day. Make sure that you ask for uninterrupted time to do your job or run your business, but also make sure that you schedule time for your family and friends. While you are making up that schedule, don’t forget your significant other. If you sit at your computer all evening after the children are tucked away for the night, you may end up with some serious relationship issues!

Once your family and friends are involved and you’ve scheduled time for them in your life, it is time to consider a few ways to make the most of your valuable work time. While you may be tempted to work non-stop during the time you have dedicated to your business, you should actually try to take some breaks. Taking a half-hour walk or having lunch away from your desk can really help you recharge your mind and keeps your body from growing stiff and tired. When you sit back down, you can do so with a clearer view of your goals and fresh energy and focus.

Also, don’t be afraid to make a “to do” list for your business. Write the four or five items you absolutely must do on your list and promise yourself that you will get them done before you visit your favorite forums or check your email. This can really help you get more work accomplished in less time.

So, although you may not have super powers, you can still have a home life, a business life and some time for yourself. The next time you are feeling overwhelmed, take a deep breath, ask your family for some help and try out a few of these great ideas for balancing your life.

Aritcle by Aurelia Williams -

I am dedicated to helping moms maximize their time. Visit my report at Finding More Family Time,  you’ll discover EXACTLY how to find more time for your family AND get everything else done too!

I know many moms out there are looking for ways to earn a little income at home (either full time or part time).  Well, Real Life Solutions has a page dedicated to Work At Home Ideas.  Be sure to check it out, you may see something that you like.

Take care and let me know if you see anything that sparks an interest in you

Don’t let the fact that school’s out deter you from doing some education things this summer. Learning can be fun!

Whew! The dog days of summer are here, and it’s time to mosey on outdoors. But you can still hear the kids whining, “What can we doooo?” Well, there are several things you can do, if you feel like getting creative. Don’t let the fact that school’s out deter you from doing some education things this summer. Learning can be fun!

Go on a nature walk.

Pack a light back-pack with drinks, a snack, a clear jar and a lid for collecting fun things, a change of clothes for the kids (optional, if you’d rather travel light), and books on birds and trees, if you have them. Find a safe place to roam, whether it’s a local park or your own backyard! Look at the trees, talk about the shapes of the leaves, how old you think the trees are, or maybe what each part of the tree does to keep it healthy. Watch some birds, and see if you can identify them. Talk about how they fly south for the winter. Examine bugs and collect a few to watch for a few days. Sit quietly and just listen to nature with your eyes closed. Look up at the sky and identify cloud shapes, tell each other of what they remind you. Enjoy your snack, pack up the back-pack, and tell your kids about your childhood summers during the walk home.

Hone those reading skills.

Why not make use of your local library? Make it a weekly trip, and let your kids each pick out 3-5 books. Visiting the library is a great way to teach children to care for things that they borrow and return them on time to the owner. Plus, making the transition back to school in the fall will be so much easier if they’ve made a habit of reading over the summer, especially if they’re choosing their own books.

Do you have a nearby children’s museum?

These are really growing in popularity, so chances are good that if your city doesn’t have one, a neighboring city does. What a nice day trip for you and your crew! Museums are great learning environments because they combine fun activities with interesting facts, all geared toward kids’ minds.

Learn about camping.

If you don’t have a tent, find a big blanket and some lawn chairs. Put the chairs in a circle, place the blanket over the chairs, give your kids some “equipment” and let them have their own kind of fun right in your backyard.

For a break from the learning, how about some water fun?

Fill a bucket of water and give your kids paintbrushes. Tell them you’d like them to paint the driveway. They’ll have a blast and stay cool at the same time. This is a lot of fun, and it helps your children “express” themselves without getting crayon on your walls! Don’t forget the things that you did as a kid to pass the summer days, too. Did you jump in the sprinkler? Fill a tub with water and play with water toys?

Whatever you do, enjoy the time with your kids. As fast as time flies with kids, it always seems to go faster in the summer!

Mia Cronan is an at-home mother of five children, ages 12, 10, 8, 5, and 2, living in northeast Ohio. She owns and edits http://www.mainstreetmom.com the magazine for modern mothers with traditional values. Mia can be reached at mia@mainstreetmom.com

MainStreetMom.com is the flagship site of http://EMCWebs.com.

I know 1st hand how frustrating it is return home after a busy day then slave over the stove or to rummage through the cabinets when you have hungry, impatient tummys waiting.  Visit http://reallifesolutions.net/personal/quick-dinner-ideas.html for your quick and easy dinner ideas.

A nice tie into this is learning how to do a little meal planning so that you actually spend less time cooking and more time really enjoying yourself and your familly. I am an avid meal planner and wrote this easy to follow article on how you too can plan your meals and free up your precious time: http://reallifesolutions.net/personal/meal-planning.html

As you know, I love hearing your feedback. Do you have any of your own personal tips that you’d like to share with me?  If so, just e-mail me and I am all ears

Here is a great resource - The Healthy Express Cookbook: 101 Fresh, Light & Quick Dinners.  Offers you healthy, home-cooked meals that are super fast to prepare — visit http://reallifesolutions.net/Cookbook.HTML to learn more

Your words, your dreams, and your thoughts have power to create conditions in your life.

What you speak about, you can bring about.If you keep saying you can’t stand your job, you might lose your job.If you keep saying you can’t stand your body, your body can become sick.If you keep saying you can’t stand your car, your car could be stolen or just stop operating.If you keep saying you’re broke, guess what? You’ll always be broke.If you keep saying you can’t trust a man or trust a woman, you will always find someone in your life to hurt and betray you.

Menu Plan Monday ~ May 5th

Well here we are at another week -  I can’t believe that May is in full swing.

Nothing fancy this week for us here:

Tonight:  Spaghetti

Tuesday: Baked Chicken, Scalloped potatoes, salad

Wednesday: Left Over Spaghetti, salad

Thursday:  Tacos

Friday: Pizza night

Every mom deserves a break. You can’t always take a day off just for you. However, you can pamper yourself any day of the week, right at home. These quick pampering tips for moms are sure to give you a quick boost!

Listen to your favorite music - When was the last time you bought yourself a new CD of your favorite artist? Turn on some motivating music for yourself. Listen to music to relax or pump up the volume and dance while you do the laundry.

Light some candles - Gather a few scented candles and light them for a soothing effect. Be sure to keep a few of the scents you like best on hand so you never run out.

Bubble bath - Fill your bath tub with hot water. Squirt in some nice-smelling bubble bath. Scents like lavender, mint and vanilla contribute a calming aroma.

Rose petal soak - Instead of using bubble bath or bath salts, drop some rose petals in your water just before you get ready to soak.

Rose petal foot soak - Soak your feet for twenty minutes in warm water with rose petals. The smell from the rose petals have a calming effect and the foot soak is sure to be a treat for mom’s tired feet.

Manicure and pedicure - What mom doesn’t deserve a nice pampering manicure and pedicure! Plan a special day out alone for this special treat. If you can’t afford to pay for this, invite a girlfriend and take turns pampering each other.

Save face - Buy an inexpensive tube of facial mask and soothing cream. Give yourself a facial while relaxing in the tub or soaking your feet in a rose petal foot soak.

Mother-daughter pampering - All moms need special pampering, but don’t forget to include your daughters from time to time. If you have a younger daughter, use some of these pampering tips we’ve provided for a fun mother-daughter night. Take turns giving each other facials and manicures, rubbing lotion on your feet or combing your hair. If you have an older daughter, save and plan for a special mother-daughter pampering day at the spa.

For more ideas on taking a break and giving back to yourself - visit Journey To Joy