Thursday 22 August 2013

Ready, set............jump in! No more excuses! Become a do-er.

Now when I say 'Supermom' I mean mom-that-can-do-just-about-anything-in-the that she puts her mind to mom. I don't mean Olympic skier or race-car drive. But I do mean...attempter, doer, and practicer.

My definition of Supermom is: Amazing Woman!

You have to become a baker, a laundry artist, a proficient cleaner, a gardener, an artist, an organizer, a referee, a decorator, a therapist, a doctor.........

Okay okay. The list goes on and never stops. Let's focus on the easy things. The doing part. I am not saying you have to be the best in everything but the closer that you want to become to Supermom status...the more stuff you need to TRY TRY TRY and DO DO DO! No excuses! Why not you?

These days you can do anything that you want to. You can learn about anything that you want to. I am going to admit, I find myself on Google, Pinterest, and you tube A LOT! But how else are you going to find out what you want?

How to make fondant?
How to make modge podge?
How to hem curtains?
How do I know when radishes are ready to harvest?
How to cut your own hair?
How to make natural cleaners?
....................................................................................and so much more. If you don't have a list...applause to you, you are amazing already BUT for most of us, our brains are over-racked with questions on 'How do I do that?" questions every time we see something that takes our interest.

About a month ago I wanted to start a garden. Between Pinterest and Google searches starting with 'how to' and you tube videos, I had my questions answered. Now when it comes to harvesting and storing, I can find my answers just a click away. I had the basic knowledge from my child-hood, but never had attempted this before on my own. I needed help!

After awhile I will be adding my own videos and posts as a Do-er to help out newbies like me. And I can add gardener to my list of Supermom skills!

I always keep a list of things that I want to make, do, accomplish soon. Among the items I have several craft ideas, recipes, or things that I want to do around the house. By starting your list you can start researching. Once you do it, even if you don't have 100% success, you learnt a lesson for next time and with practice comes superpowers!

When they say "How do you do that?" Or "How did you know what to do?" You can smile and say use my favorite sarcastic and humorous response '"It's because I am freaking awesome!" followed by, of course, "and it came with practice." This is where you can add in your 'wink' and they can stare at you in disbelief.

Tuesday 20 August 2013

Travelling With Kids. Sigh.

PLANNING A TRIP can be so exciting. You think about all the things you are going to do, make plans with friends and family, and daydream about the places you are going to visit. Everything is so exciting that sometimes you can't even find sleep....that is until you have to start packing. Then the headache starts.

Travelling with kids can be difficult but there are definitely some tricks to helping you maintain some of your sanity. It all has to do with being calm. Breathe! And planning ahead.

This week we are making the 14 hour drive to visit family in our home town. We make the trip at least 2-3x a year, and with 3 small children it sometimes can be a long one. With every trip things get a little easier, from hard learnt lessons and experience. We have become seasoned road-trip-with-kids travellers.
You need to learn how to become a over-packer. By over-packer, I don't necessarily mean 'pack a lot of stuff', but be conscious about what and how you are packing. You will need to not only pack all the essentials for your whole family, including your husband ( kudos for you if you have one that is a capable packer), but you need to pack smartly. I am not talking about the massive amount of clothing and toiletries for your vacation, but packing for the trip there.

Here are a few things that might help you from banging your head on the dashboard during your trip, or screaming out into the wilderness at a pullover.

1) Pack a DAY BAG

Anything can happen on a long drive. The worst are among car-sickness, bathroom accidents, and changes in weather, and did I mention car-sickness? I ALWAYS pack a full day bag for long trips. It saves me from pulling my hair out on the side of the road, and everything that is neatly packed in the back, to find something that I need in an emergency.

And it includes:

Wipes and diapers ( if needed)
Band aids
Face/Hand Wipes
A full change of clothes for each child ( in case of vomiting/ bathroom accidents)
A few plastic bags ( for diapers/ soiled clothes)
A few receiving blankets (great for wiping or to place on top of the wet seat that was once covered in vomit) or small towels.
A face cloth and a bottle of water ( to help cleaning up vomit)
A roll of toilet paper
Gravol

As you probably noticed, my list has a lot to do with the probability of vomit. Let's face it, it doesn't take a mathematician to realize that kid + car = vomit. Be prepared!
* Be sure to put this bag directly behind the passenger side seat, you may need to get into it from the side of the road as you strip off vomit covered clothes.......
AND a nice addition to the back seat is a large plastic bowl or ice cream bucket....and you can probably guess what it is for.

2) Pack SNACKS
Kids are ALWAYS hungry during travelling and always at the worst times. There are many long sections of highway that don't have anywhere to stop to eat, let alone anywhere for bathroom breaks. Even when you do find a small town, finding somewhere to eat is next to impossible if you are there too late in the day or don't want to go too far off route. When you do find a restaurant you have to weigh driving by or taking grumpy car-sick or jet lagged kids inside or driving on. Only the very brave stop with a pack of tired and bored kids at a restaurant. Drive through is usually a big head-ache with the potential mess, and gas stations - well they boast a large array of sugary snacks. Don't get me wrong, If you are OK with feeding your kids beef jerky and chips for supper....don't pack snacks.

You don't need to go crazy when you are packing a lunch. Of course you want to stay away from things that will go bad like mayo, or milk products. Of course, if you pack a cooler with ice packs...you can definitely bring a broader spectrum of foods.

I would suggest the following:

Fruit ( halved strawberries, oranges, apples, bananas....basically any type of fruit)
Granola Bars
Peanut Butter and Jam sandwiches
Dried fruit
Cookies/Muffins
Trail mix
Buttered buns
A previously cooled rotisserie chicken ( keep cold in your cooler)
Crackers
Cheese slices

3) DRINKS!
For the kids I like to have one Gatorade bottle each 1/2 filled with water and frozen and then topped up with cold water before we leave. Not only does it stay cold for all or most of the trip, but the way that the top of the bottle is designed will help decrease spills. It's a good idea to fill a cooler with cold waters, juices or pop as well. Don't forget to use the washroom when you can!

4) PILLOWS & LAP BLANKETS

These are a definite must for long trips. Depending on how you position them, it helps to take the stress off of the kids necks when they are asleep. No one likes to see their babes with kinked necks and heads bobbling in their car seats. A lap blanket can me great for adding comfort to them and keeping them warm as they sleep. PLUS usually during long trips I don't like to have the heat beating on me as we drive, and knowing that I can stay cool in the front while the kids are warm in the back, is a nice comfort.

5) LET THEM SLEEP

We have found that starting our drive very early morning or late evening has worked best. You can pack the kids right into the car while they are still wearing their comfy jammies, you already have clothes packed in the day bag, and you can stow their shoes in the back seat under their feet. It seems like the most comfortable way for them to travel, you can avoid heavy traffic, and you can let them sleep their normal hours of sleep. The last thing you want to do is to have kids sleeping all day in the car, and then be wide awake and tired upon destination. Just don't forget to get enough sleep for yourself.

Good luck and happy travels! :)

Friday 16 August 2013

Moving with kids!

Wow! Moving can really sock up your time, especially with 3 little ones running around you.
My last post seems like ages ago but can finally take a breath of relief....we are done moving in and organized..mostly.

How did we do it? Not quite sure. The house that we moved into was in drastic need of cleaning and cleaning. What I mean was..it was filthy. Turns out that before we moved in, and during the time the house sat on the market, a small group of 'squatters' decided that it would be great to move in and take advantage of the unoccupied space. Lovely! Grime and who knows what else lined the floors and the walls, and so many things that could have maybe been salvaged...well we just through them out at arms length.

But that was the easy part. Moving with kids, who can't stay off the floor, is not so easily accomplished.

Then I had a sudden light-bulb moment.

Cleaning like a mad woman I scrubbed and disinfected the entire living room area. Thank goodness there was no carpet! And then I proceeded to block it off from the rest of the house with a baby gate, playpen, and chairs. At first the kids cried and screamed at this arrangement but I was too stubborn to let them potentially be bombarded by some gross germs on every surface outside their new bubble.

We didn't have any internet yet, and the tv wasn't hooked up. What to do? The toys inside the bubble were being discarded in the corner and the lack of interest was increasing. I grabbed a few dvds and set them up to play in my laptop on a box. A blow up mattress with their pillows and a blanket became their couch. When they finally fell asleep from exhaustion on their new bed ( into the wee hours of the night as my husband and I cleaned and painted) I attacked the room they slept in with paint. It is amazing what we got accomplished.

So my advice to you. When you are moving, make a bubble. Put your kids in it, don't forget to always have food made/snacks or they will rebel, and label your boxes well. In the time of need, kids toys and movies ( for the move) can be a serious emergency kit to help you steer away from insanity!