Four Tips for Simplifying Christmas

September starts the season of celebration in my family.  Last year our list was insane.

The sad thing is that many of these things I can't cut out. We have 13 people in our family (his immediate family and mine). TEN of them have birthdays between September 1 and December 30. It makes things crazy.

I want to simplify.

Here are the big things that I am planning this year.
- Hubs birthday night in Indy. This is so needed for us.
- Pumpkin Farms (that is really just picking where we are going)
- Halloween -- I am seriously just buying costumes. No time to plan or make anything elaborate.
- Little Mister's birthday party.
- North Pole Breakfast!!!!
- Little Miss's birthday party. (I owe her a nice one I was so sick last year and it was just not fair to her).
- Christmas Eve: Pizza, Movie and PJ night!
- OUR CHRISTMAS MORNING!
- Wisconsin Visit for Christmas

Here are your 4 Tips to Simplify Christmas.

1. Plan for it.

Make a plan for it and stick to it. If I don't have a plan my stress level increases easily 10 fold. I like having my plan all in one place so I tend to make myself a planner for this time of the year.  This year I might print someone else's planner.

I really like this one from Live Craft Eat.  ** this is not an affiliate link, I just really like it.**

2. Say No. 

There are things that I just have to say no to. Like last year I went a little crazy helping out with the Christmas parties at church. This year I am picking one roll and I am picking at most 2 parties. It became a chore. So, we will be snack makers for 2 parties this year and that is it.

3. Be Flexible

Life happens. You have to roll with the punches. I just pray they are not the same punches as last year.

4. Be authentic

Your Elf on a Shelf does not have to be Pinterest Perfect. Be you. Your Christmas cards do not have to have the perfect saying, pose and outfits. (But if that is you and you rock it than do it!) BE YOU! Ask yourself what do I want my kids to remember about Christmas in your family?


What do you do to keep your busy seasons stress free and moving smoothly?

Time Management Tips for Busy Moms

When you go from Stay at/Work at Home Mama to Working Mama one thing becomes even more important.

Time Management

For me, I didn't want to give up any of the at home things I was doing when I started working out of the house. So I knew one of two things would have to happen. I would either have to give up something or become really efficient with my time.

Time Management was going to be the key to success for this now Working Mom.

Here is my A to Z list of Time Management Tips for Moms.

A: Anticipate -- Set aside a time of the week when you plan out your week. Is there a day you need to plan some carpooling? What appointments are this upcoming week that you need to plan for?

B: Block your Calendar -- I actually do this a few weeks at a time. I have a pretty set schedule so I can block in the big stuff and just fill in the weekly stuff in my anticipation session.

C: Cross off the Daily Tasks -- add those daily tasks to your DAILY to do list. Yes write SHOWER on that list. Write GET DRESSED on that list. There is something motivating about crossing things off a list. Did you do something you forgot to put on this list? Add it and CROSS IT OFF!

D: Dinner after the Dishes -- Plan out tomorrow's dinner after you take care of the dinner dishes (even if that mean tossing them into the sink to wash a different day --- yep I do that!) This way you don't have to worry about "What's for dinner?" at the beginning of the witching hours, I mean 4 pm.

E: Elsa it! -- What? Come on what do you think of when I say Elsa ... Let It Go! sometimes you just have to Let It Go - quit beating yourself up, God gives us grace, extend some to yourself.

F: Flexibility -- I am not referring to bending over backward to make it all happen. I am referring to life happens and there will times that you just have to bend.

G: GPS -- Use it to plan your routes so that you are  not driving all over town getting your errands done. Do you have to go to an appointment on one side of town, but still need get groceries? GPS and see if there is a grocery store near your appointment.

H: Honey Do List -- I know men hate this list. I am more referring to just delegating. Can your 5 year old feed the dog? Have them do it! Can your 15 year old change the trash cans? Have them do it! You (Sara) do not have to do it all!

I: Intentional -- Be intentional and mindful of your time. If you plan to spend 10 minutes on one task,, don't spend 20.

J: Jump Start -- This honestly has been the biggest stress reliever for me. When I wake up (intentionally) before the rest of the family I get to ease into my day, and not have to be "on" from the moment I open my eyes.

K: Keep relationships a priority -- It takes a village right? Be part of the village, not the one who is always working, always needing to accomplish this or that.

L: Leisure Time with Family -- All work and no play does not make for a happy family.

M: Multi-Task (When appropriate!) -- Folding clothes and ironing - This is a great time to catch up on some podcasts you want to learn from. Making dinner and having to wait for water to boil? Empty or load the dish washer.

N: Notepads -- Keep on handy at all times! You never know when you will need one! Inspiration can strike anytime, any place! Just last night I see a cute (expensive) cart for the bathroom at Target -- Oh I need something like that for circle time! Write down, look for cart for circle time.

O: Outsource -- Hire help if you need to or can. Can't do that, find ways to swap skills with friends. Do you need time to yourself? So does your bestie! Swap time with kids -- win/win! You and your bestie get to recharge and kids get playdates!

P: Prioritize -- Yes, do the most important stuff first. This also means do the stuff that you hate doing first. Get it done and get it over with!

Q: Quiet Time -- You are a busy mom.. Quiet time is necessary to recharge your batteries. For me this is time spent in actual silence, no music, no tv. Just quiet. So refreshing.

R: Running To Do List -- This is not your daily to do list, this is just the on-going list of things you want to get done. As you schedule time to complete these things you will move them from your Running To Do List to your Daily To Do List.

S: Shortcuts My Friend -- It is okay to use sauce from the jar. It is smart to prep your meals before hand. It is okay to use a cake mix. From a dietitian that just did a CPU for us at work -- "frozen vegetables are okay, so are canned -- I just want to get vegetables in them!"

T: Technology -- There really is an app for that. I am not a big app person for keeping my schedule, but let me tell you ... the alarm clock on my phone -- would not be able to function without it! I set it for everything! At work or at home, yep I use it all time. The repeat function saves me so much time. I just set them all up once and go!

U: Utilize Waiting Time -- this ties into appropriate multitasking. Don't try to combine two things that need focus, but if you are waiting for the cake to finish baking this is a great time to sort the pile of mail sitting on the counter.

V: Verbalize! The word is "NO" you need to use it. You only have 24 hours in 1 day. You need to sleep, rest, and eat at least 8 of those. That leaves you with 16. You will need to say "no." And no, it is not a cuss word.

W: While You Wait Bag: You have one for the kids. Toys, books, apps on the phone - you have things to keep them occupied while you are waiting for this or that. Have one for yourself. Toss a book in your bag, write out thank you cards or a note to someone, a knitting project you are working on. You can be productive while you wait it just takes some planning.

X: X out time for yourself. This is a must. If you don't you are going to crash and burn. Speaking from experience. THIS IS A MUST.

Y: You must USE it: It's great if you can make your day work perfectly on paper. You must open your planner and see what is going on. You must look at your lists and get things done. You must use it or none of this will work.

Z: ZZZZZ's You must get them. Sleep is not an option. Have a bedtime routine. Teach your body when to start winding down for the day. Get restful sleep you will be amazed how much more you will accomplish just being well rested.

Ebb and Flow of the Work at Home Mom

Just over a year and a half ago I wrote about the ebb and flow of our schedule.  We are in flux again, and this time it is much more stressful. After a minor mental breakdown over the weekend and break-through I think we are going to be okay.

So instead of showing you my "Facebook Happy Life" I am going to keep it real.

I am sure I don't have to tell you this.

LIVE IS HARD. Life as a Work At Home Mom is HARD.

Our reality.
1. Our 3 year old is out growing naps. Goes from full gear to crashed in the matter of nanoseconds. He wants to nap from 330 to 5 and be up until 1030 pm. Our 5 year old can make it until 7 without a nap then she goes into full meltdown mode.

The struggles with this

-- if I let them stay up they are a little unbearable the whole time they get to spend time with Daddy during the week. Then he doesn't get to spend all that much time with them after work.
-- if I force them to nap bedtime needs to be pushed back and I am worn out by the time 730 rolls around. (It literally is forcing them to nap. Threats of lost toys and lost playtime. Yeah, it's bad.)
-- I work during nap. This is when I get the most done. It is my laser focus time. ... for the last 2 to 3 weeks it has been discipline every 15 minutes and I have gotten nothing done.

2. I have been sleep deprived for 4 years now. -- but Little Miss is 5 ... yeahp. She was a great sleeper. She slept through the night by 4 months. She took naps great, and for the most part still does. HOWEVER she tosses and turns like she is sleeping in a darn washing machine! Her blankets end up who knows where, she can't find them to cover herself up when she gets cold at 3 am. So what does she do ... Mommy, can you help me? Listen to crying or just get up and do it? Ongoing discussion in my house. Then there is Little Mister. At the same time when Little Miss is getting cold so is Little Mr. instead of asking for help he is coming over with blanket and stuffies in tow to sleep with Mama.

The struggles of this

-- when is Mama supposed to get rest and recover from a full day of being Mama?
-- of course Mama has been trying to get work accomplished so she has been staying up late. When this insanity starts at 3 am I have maybe gotten 2 to 3 hours of sleep.

3. The job front is not as secure as one would like. That just adds a whole different level of anxiety. Is it ever going to end? Is it ever going to stop raining?

So I say again. Life is hard.

I went looking for some answers.

I went to church and walked out feeling so beaten up spiritually. Here is the funny thing - that is not AT ALL what the message was even about. I left church wondering if the love of Jesus was in my heart of just plain hatred. I didn't go home (Hubs knew I was going to take some alone time before I even went to church). I started venting - in the form of a blog post that will now, never see the light of day.

That is when I had a breakthrough.

The biggest thing I realized is that my schedule, my work time and non-work time needed to be revamped. The second biggest thing I realized is that I had to stop playing and delete Farmville2. It was doing nothing but causing anxiety and taking time away from important things -- like my kids. I realized that the enemy was using my attempt to get time in The Word against me. I was having thoughts like "It is not okay to read just 1 chapter a day -- if you can't read more you should read it at all." and "listening to The Word be read to you is not the same as reading it yourself -- you aren't even paying attention to it."

I realized that without changes my life would continue to spin out of control and fall apart.

Changes I am going to make - mainly I am going to go back to things that worked before.

1. I feel better when I go to bed, lights off by 10:30.
2. Life is better when I get quiet time in the morning. BEFORE everyone gets up.
3. I am going to find ways to adjust our schedule and keep the kids happy busy when I need to be working.
4. I am setting work hours and non - work hours.

I will keep you posted on how things are going.


Feel free to leave your work at home tips in the comments.

Workin' It at Home Mama

I had a great time getting my mind off of things going on last week by linking up with "Currently" over on Choose Happy. I decided to link up again this week.

Currently I am developing:

A robot unit! Oh this one is going to be so much fun. It is coming with an A to Z coloring book! It will come with many of the goodies you have come to expect. Hands On Centers, File Folder Games and No Prep Printables.

Currently I am loving: 

We made a big investment in my business this weekend. Windows 8 touch screen laptop. It is fast, and wonderful. My brother said the processor is "baller" and it has a whole lotta RAM. I am super happy with it.  You can't tell on this picture, but when I type with it the keyboard lights up. It is pretty, silver and it was under budget! I can not complain.

The best part of this is that my kids don't even realize I am working. I can sit right here by them play with them. When they walk off or drift off to something else I can do a little on the computer. These little bits here and there will really add up at the end of the week.

Currently I am updating:

I am not sure you can see it in the picture there, but this bundle is 479 pages! I want to get it up to snuff as stuff for Spring is starting to sell.  This bad boy is full of games, puzzles and activities.

Currently I am reviewing: Crossing Redemption by Carrie Daws 

I have already reviewed the first three of this series. I was incredibly blessed to be able to review this entire series.  Come on back on Tell Me About It Tuesday to read all about it.

Check out all the other bloggers and what they are currently doing over at Choose Happy.  

Work at Home Wednesday: Slow down to Speed Up

In an attempt to make my computer work faster I was cleaning off some old files.  Well, this should only be attempted by a trained professional.  I must have deleted something wrong files because it ... WILL NOT turn on.

This means that I basically have to use my father-in-laws computer to get anything and everything done.  This corner is what I see anytime I look slightly to the right.  See that purple crate in the corner of chaos - that is most of my work stuff.  I would move it to where ever I was working since I was working on a laptop.

Those bottom two shelves were basically empty!  There were tables in front of the shelves and blankets bundled up under them.  Complete chaos!

This cabinet was basically empty!  This does not even show the disarray that was the top of the desk!   

It was time to take a step back, slow down and get this area clean!  Then I would be able to take a leap forward.

Stuff that I couldn't really organize and that was not ours is hidden in the bottom of this cabinet.  I used containers I already had and just put things away really.  But look at it now!  So less chaotic!  I can actually sit here and get work done.

Do you hear the choir of angels coming from those rays
of sunlight?  haha 

Here is the best part 5 days later it still pretty much looks like this!  Only addition, a basket to hold the mass number of remotes! -- oh and temporary basket to hold all the medicines, tissues, wipes and because we have sickness going through the house needs.

WAH Wednesday: Idea Spark

I debated making this a WAH Wednesday post.  I was debating because this post doesn’t really have any tips about how to manage this whole work at home thing better.  I decided to share it today because of the true reason we decided to work at home.  Of course we want to be productive and successful with our work at home ventures.  But our reasons were much more than just being successful.

We wanted to be there as our kids grew up.
We wanted to be there for those firsts.
We wanted to be there for the memories.

Seeing that this is Christmas in July I am bringing you a list.  60 ideas to create more Christmas Memories.

Read More:

WAH Wednesday: Pre Planning for the Holidays

One of my hats is that I am a party planner.  You can check all that out over at Sweets and Soirees by Sara.  Today’s WAH Wednesday post is about planning.  This is more than just the party planning part of the holiday season.  This is making sure there is a plan to ENJOY the moments rather than be stressed the whole time.

Can planning really help you ENJOY more?  I have to say yes.  I have to start planning in July.  I know, you think I am crazy.  However, I have to start early.  From September to December 31st we have, 10 birthdays, 2 anniversaries, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Eve.  Not to mention any other parties that might be thrown.  I also like to have at least one sort of crafty type gift for most family members for Christmas, so early planning is necessary.

Read more:

WAH Wednesday: Well Fed + Well Rested

Do you have a time of day that is just horrible?  I have a meltdown hour.  Not a time that I meltdown, but an hour of the day that both kids decided it is time to have a meltdown.

I had solved this problem, but with recent life changes it is rearing it’s ugly head again.  It has taken really looking at our day to find out what is going on.  Meltdown hour in our house will happen anywhere between 4pm and 6pm.  Two things trigger meltdowns in our house.

Being Hungry and Being Tired

Then there is the meltdown that causes the whole day to just be ruined.
"Little Boy" (vintage Cabbage Patch Kid) and Blankie both needing baths.

Read More

What do you do to help your kiddos keep from melting down?

WAH Wednesday: Dress the Part

Recently we talked about the ebb and flow of life and how that effects our schedules.  We also talked about the importance of undivided attention where we also ignored my hotmessitude.

Today, I am not going to talk about the kids.  Yep, you read that correctly.  Today is about you Mommy.

What is your dream?  What is the image of the life you want 10 years from now?  What are you doing today to create that life?

Read More:

Motivation for The WAHM

Career options for Work at Home Moms are just as varied as those for Working Moms.  As a WAHM you might be a sales rep for a company.  You might be starting a direct sales business of some kind.  Maybe you had a job before you became a mom and are now just working that same job out of your house.  You might be staring a business of a different kind.  Maybe you want to become a professional blogger.  The list just goes on and on.

On thing is true:

These different career paths are going to lead to different challenges as a Work at Home Mom.  If you are in direct sales you are probably going to need to work more on weekends and evenings.  If you are a sales rep or still work your job just at home you are going to need to work more during the day.  There is one common challenge of all work at home moms.  We are working at home with our kids right here with us - especially over the summers.

If you were to search “WAHM Tips” you will find TONS of tips.  What you won’t find … tons of tips if you have attention seeking vampires YOUNG children.

Let me start by saying I love my children. I enjoy being able to be home with them. Sometimes they are attention seeking, energy draining vampires! When I first wrote this post my children were 3 ½ and 18 months. Two very active toddlers/preschoolers who most of the time get along, but when they don’t - watch out!  Not much of that has changed ...except the getting along most of the time!

Okay, so it has all changed - accept the attention seeking vampire part.

• My kids are now 6 1/2 and 4 1/2. 
• We have moved since this original posting.
• We have a year of school under our belts.
• Mommy went from working at home to working at a school to back to working at home.

This is STILL my typical day: They are playing - “Mommy will you read this?” Five minutes later, “Mommy can you get this?”  As soon as I pick up the phone to make a call - they are playing I have 5 minutes, right? Wrong. “Mommy.”  "Mommy!" "Mommy!"

Here are my WAHM Tips for when your children are 3 and under.

• Set times of undivided attention
  
  Undivided attention is the easiest thing I can do for them.  Not only will I show my children that they are more important to me than the computer or phone.  It will result in some great productivity time later. (When I say later it could be even just after 15 minutes!)
  
  For my two when they were really little I didn't use a schedule. If I get a request or two within 5 minutes.  I will save whatever I am working on and step away from the computer.  I am going to give them 30 to 60 minutes of undivided attention.  Turn off the phone alerts, close the laptop, turn off the monitor - do whatever you need to, to not be distracted. Typically the only reason I have my phone with me is because I am might take some pictures of us being silly. Give that time to your kids.  You will find that if you do this that next 30-45 minutes is going to be some productive time.
  
• Do your best to implement a schedule
  
  When my two were small we still had a basic schedule. They got up around 7:30, napped around 12:30 to 3:30, we ate dinner around 5, they got Daddy Duty from 7 to 8, bedtime was 8pm.
  
  I cannot tell you how much of a life saver even just this super basic schedule was. I knew if I was having a really unproductive morning, I would have from 12:30 to 3:30 for some laser focused productive time.
  
  I also knew that if I got up earlier than 7:30 I would have some great productivity there too.
  
• Embrace and accept flexibility
  
  There are going to be days that just don't work out the way you planned. Think about it if you were at a corporate job - stuff happens. Not as crazy as things at home, but stuff does happen. You need to accept that. I know I still do!
  

So now that they are a little older ... how does all of this change? WAHM tips for 4 to 7 years of age:

• Undivided Attention
  
  They still need it. When they are "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" they need my attention. I will get more done if I fill their attention tanks than if I leave them to their own resources.
  
• Implement a schedule
  
  Here is where our biggest change has happened. Now that they are older we can have a more set schedule.
  
  We still have a pretty basic schedule. They are not allowed to come out of their rooms until 8 am. (Every morning at 7:20 I get a hug from the back and "I have to go potty, see you again when the clock says 8 from the little one, but it works.) Mommy work time is from 5 to 8. From 8 to 10:30 it is kid time. I agree to spend time with them, I can answer the phone and take care of that one particular thing if it is quick, but that is their time. 10:30 to 11:30 is kid play time, Mommy work time. We have lunch around 12, and they have quiet time from 1:30 to 3:30. Kid time picks up at 3:30 until 7:30. Daddy takes over until 8:30, then it is bedtime.
  
• Embrace Flexibility
  
  I still have to embrace flexibility. It is different now though. It is more okay, a playdate here or story time there. I plan these things in and we plan Mommy-Work-Time around it. For example - these two love story time with Ms. Heather at our local IKEA. The plan is we don't do kid time that morning. Mommy, gets work done during that time so that we can go to IKEA. If they don't let me get work done, we don't go.
  

My biggest tip for you -- regardless of their ages: Find what works for you. Is getting up at 5 am just not an option for you? Well, is staying up later to get work done an option? Do you need to maybe enlist help one or two afternoons a week? That is not an option for me, but maybe it is for you. I actually have started paying my kids to let me work. They are trying to earn extra "commission" to get some big toys right now. So my husband and I agreed that they can earn up to a $1 a day to let mommy get some extra work time. We have only tried a few times, but it might work well.

Work at Home Mama --  YOU CAN DO THIS! 

WAH Wednesday: Beautifully Challenging

Working at Home could possibly be one of the hardest things I ever decided to do.  I have talked about our schedule before.  I truly believe that children thrive with routine, schedules and order.  So why is it the hardest thing in the world for us to master?  Why does it seem like it is always in flux?

I feel like I am constantly adjusting our schedule.  I know what it was this past week.  We had a pretty major change to our little world.  Hubs started working outside of the house.  We made some decisions about our careers and need to set better boundaries on some things.  So although it seems like everything is chaotic could it just be adjusting to the ebb and flow of our lives?

This is what has happened this past few weeks:

Prior to Hubs starting to work outside of the house again when Little Mister was woke up by the herd at 6:15 he would just fall back asleep.  Now that Mommy and Daddy are also getting up at 6:30. It is okay for him to not fall back asleep (in his little mind).  Seeing that he is awake this also means that Little Miss will be up not much later.  An important time of my day is now gone.  My morning quiet time.

With these changes that has also brought about nap changes.  By 10:30 they are both needing a nap.  The problem with this.  Little Miss wants to sleep until 12 and Little Mister wants to sleep until 1 - 1:30.  Good that I get to get work done in the morning (when I can be super productive) horrible in the fact that they need another nap around 5 - causing MAJOR meltdowns while I am trying to cook dinner.

This early wake up time is a good thing because we have a lot going on this summer.  This early nap time is not a good thing.  So I have to make some adjustments.  I can move lunch up to 11:15 and put them down for nap around 12.  But the fighting from 10:30 to 11:15 will have to be combated.  Simple! We will move preschool time up to 9am from 11am.  This will coincide with the summer camp they are going to and other things we have going on.  This also is before the heat of the day so we can get outside playtime as well.  I can just adjust my working hours easily enough.

This is what happens to the Work at Home Mom.  Life changes happen and it throws off our whole schedule.  The beauty of being a work at home mom is that we can adjust to these things most of the time.  For my marketing consultation job I have to be able to get some work done during business hours.  But for my party planning and writing I can work whenever, unless there is a deadline.  Schedules; a beautifully challenging thing.

{WAH Wednesday} Schedule

This feature is going to talk about our adventures as Work at Home Parents.

I have been a Work-at-Home Mom for the last 5 years.  I started my own business in 2008.  Now, this was before I was a mom.  I had it down and things were going well.  Then I became a mom and I had to change the way I did things.  I rolled with the punches.  We added another child and more punches.

In August 2012, I closed the doors on our in-house business options.  I had been praying for God to either close the doors all together or turn it around so that it would bring in the money we needed it too.  I am still working from home, but more in the writing aspect of things.  In October, we went from one work at home parent to two.  Boy, how did things change!  It hasn’t been easy.  In November, I added a marketing consultant to my plate.  It’s outside sales and 100% commission, it is so flexible and that works for us.  2013 rolled around and we need some steadier income, so I picked up a part-time job along with everything else still on my plate.

If you are keeping track the plates are: Marketing Consultant, Writer/Blogger, Part-Time Sales Associate and Mama.  It's a full course meal!

The key to success with working at home is having a schedule.  We had a great schedule before we moved.  It needed minor adjusting, but it was working well.  Hubs and I had a system.  Now that we moved our schedule isn’t working as well, mainly because Little Mister is having behavior/eating/sleeping challenges.  As parents we need to step in and be stricter with our schedule and set better boundaries.  It also doesn't help that we are getting limited cell phone service - different animal.

Here is our basic schedule - we work in outside sales and this works well for us.

We try to get up by 7:30am and get done with getting ready and breakfast by 8:30.  This way Hubs can be out the door by 9am.  He goes out and does the outside sales part of his job from 9 to 12 ish.  While he is out I get some blogging/writing stuff done.  Since Little Mister is still a morning napper I set Little Miss up with a quiet activity and get some calls out during naptime.  We make Little Mister get up by 12 and we eat lunch.  Hubs does some emailing work and minor follow calls.  We put both down for nap around 2.  This is the time that we blast out phone calls.  They get up around 4 and we close up for the day with our sales job.  I will get some more writing and blogging done after bedtime.  Hubs will get some research done for businesses to contact during that time too.

Seeing that we work from home we have very flexible hours.  We have found that if we are not careful we can get off task and the whole day is gone.  It is very important to be intentional about what we do each day and how we spend out time.

If you have read much on the site here you also know that this job is not bringing in the sales we need.  This flexibility is also giving Hubs the opportunity to find a better position.  Working at home is difficult on a good day.  However, it is so very rewarding.  I am thankful that Hubs has been able to spend some of this time with us.  I will miss him when he starts working at an office again.