When I was a kid, I loved the story, Cheaper by the Dozen. In this true story, the father of the Galbraith family, blessed with 12 children, is an efficiency expert. He is obsessed with identifying the most efficient and economical way to do everything. He shaved with two brushes because it was faster. He taught his children how to type so they could write faster. He surmises that with 12 children, they all need to learn to be as productive as possible in order to have a household that runs { Read more... }
Why it’s Hard to Start Projects and What to Do About It
My kids adore roller-coasters. Last year my husband took them to an amusement park and they had a blast going on ride after ride. I think one of the most interesting things about roller-coasters is how after pulling you up one really big hill, they can whip you around corners, up and down hills and through loop-de-loops. This all happens at break-neck speed. The funny thing is that there's no motor in the car. All the motion comes as a result of the momentum that's built being pulled up the { Read more... }
Why We have Quiet Time Every Day
After a particularly active morning with my toddler, I feel like I've wrangled a crocodile. This kid is busy, he's fast, he's strong, and he's loud! It's a real challenge to get through our homeschooling work with all the antics he creates! I love him to pieces but boy, does that kid wear me out! The nice thing is that because he's so active, he also wears himself out. Every day after lunch, I wrestle him up the stairs to his room, read him a story and tuck him into bed. He snuggles up with his { Read more... }
How to Pay for Christmas $20 at a Time
According to Gallup Research, the average American family spent almost $800 on Christmas gifts last year. If you charge that to a credit card, it will be an ugly bill to face come January. Wouldn’t it be nice to have Christmas paid for before it even begins? Here is a straightforward way you can do just that. Last year, Jesse Mechem of You Need a Budget (YNAB) issued a challenge to spend only cash for the holidays. I love the YNAB software (here's more on how we use YNAB to track our expenses { Read more... }
How to End Complaining Over Chores
My kids are getting a kick out of the fact that I'm writing a series on chores. Chores are a big deal in our house. We clean for about 10 minutes in the morning and maybe another 20 or 30 in the afternoon. When 3 or 4 people work diligently for this amount of time, a lot of work gets done! Shh – don't tell, but I think they are secretly proud they are trusted with so much important work. Attitude is key If you want your kids to cheerfully help out around the house, you must consider attitudes: { Read more... }
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 68
- 69
- 70
- 71
- 72
- 73
- Next Page »