Here’s the tip for today:

Whenever I’m doing a job around the house, I try to involve my children. For example, I might say, “Who wants to help me unload the dishwasher?” or “Who wants to make dinner tonight?” Thirty percent of the time they get really excited and want to help. Plus I make a big deal for the rest of the day about how important their contribution was to the household.

Author: Amy

From now will I will post Parent Tips from real Moms/Dads on Thursdays. I will gather them over the internet and if you want to contribute please send me an email to soleflor at gmail dot com or send me a DM to @soleflor if the tip has less than 140 letters and I will publish them. If you have a blog I will link to it, if you don’t no problem send me the Tip and I will post it with your name.

One of the ways to promote our blogs is to insert them in online directories in the appropriate category. Money is no excuse not to do it because there are so many free directories we can use, but even so, I have been neglecting my promotion. My major problem, my only in eternal lake of time.

From twitter to facebook, from StumbleUpon to friendfeed, googlewave and MSN, they all are time consuming and choices have to be taken. I have to confess that Snods, the game from Twitter has been a time consumer to me. I couldn’t rest until I was on the top 10 and to do so, I neglected my blogs.

My working life is also upside down (I mentioned this before), I even fall asleep inside my car in the parking lot imagine this…

Time management is something I need to do, organize everything, get a plan, get a schedule, but even a plan…I don’t have the time to do it. Quit my daily job, yes, that would be the ultimate option. But…not possible. Extra money is essential for me right now so blogging has to be on my plans.

I want to make a complete makeover at least to this blog, can you imagine that I don’t even have a badge for my blog? What a shame.

Right now, and before getting time, I need more energy to go on. I’m in bed right now with my two kids sleeping next to me and I know I have to be strong for them, but sometimes it seems that my strength just disappears…

Image by elementality via Flickr

A Family organizer for your close family at home is helpful when you are planning your schedules for the family members around you, but for those who are miles and miles away, the internet may be your savior. If your family members are computer savvy and wish to spend more time with you, an Online family planner may be the best route to take.

A planner or schedule for your family can help when every member of your family has something planned. Whether you and the husband have a got a busy week at work or the kids have one too many soccer games, it is important that you keep track of your schedule so that no one is confused about where everyone is. This makes it much easier to plan family events and outings where everyone is involved. Family organizers can be a small booklet that Mom carries around or it could be a large calendar that everyone has access to on the refrigerator. Either way it should fit your family’s lifestyle, whether you are a small family or a large family.

If your Grandparents live in Hawaii and your sisters reside in Montana and you live in Florida, how does everyone plan to get together? Family planning like that can quickly become confusing and can ultimately put a damper on everyone’s summer break. To make the task easier for the leader of the pack, try getting everybody to use an online family planner. This way everyone who has a computer at home can enter their breaks from school or dates when they are free. Then everyone can also enter their thoughts about family vacation and where would be the best place to visit or meet up as a family. Maybe you can check for outer banks vacation rentals. This method of planning seems to be a bit more logical than calling all thirty-nine family members in your address book and trying to plan a trip to Mexico.

If your family is already pretty organized, you may be able to upgrade the organization and make it a bit more fun with the online interaction. Your elderly family members may get a kick out of it and it will be much easier for the parents of four who are sitting at their computer in the four by four cubicles all day long. The online version may not be what your family needs, but it is well worth a try for all of the grief that it can essentially save.

Family planning for events is not a difficult task, but can become difficult with no organization. For help this year, when planning the ultimate vacation for twenty, try using a family organizer. Planning with long distance family members does not have to be difficult either, for this try using an online planning method where everyone, even your sisters in Alaska, can have access to everyone’s ideas and plans being contributed to this year’s family vacation. Good Luck!

Here’s the tip for today:

When dealing with a new sibling, try to spend one-on-one time with your older child whenever you can. Also, try to convince him that being older is better. Say things like “Well, we can go for a bike ride, but baby sis can’t go because she’s too little.” Or, “Do you want to go for ice cream tonight? Baby sis is too young for ice cream, so she misses out.”

Author: Eileen

From now will I will post Parent Tips from real Moms/Dads on Thursdays. I will gather them over the internet and if you want to contribute please send me an email to soleflor at gmail dot com or send me a DM to @soleflor if the tip has less than 140 letters and I will publish them. If you have a blog I will link to it, if you don’t no problem send me the Tip and I will post it with your name.

Criminality is increasing too fast and small companies are the ones more vulnerable to be robbed. I work in an office of a small company that has production facilities and a warehouse of plastic material. The material is expensive and the products we produce are useful to sell in local fairs and hypermarkets. Illegal market is growing too fast and last week the company decided to ask for a small business security alarm quotation.  The service was excellent and after approving the quotation they took only one day to put every think working.

We installed intrusion detection in all the offices, corridors and halls and besides that we installed video Surveillance in the production facilities, the warehouse and in all exterior access to the entrances. We also have one person that makes a check up to the facilities once a night to see if no alarm was disconnected.

The crisis is here and we have to protect what we have. Spending money in a security system might cost  a little but it will compensate the risk of not being protected.

I live in a condominium of 12 houses and three of them already have alarm system. I live near the a large pine field and I’m always afraid that some one might hide behind the trees and tries to get into my house at night. Maybe it’s time to get some safety system at home.

Do you have a security alarm at home?

I always forget to take pictures. I hate when that happens.

Last Winter my son’s bed went to my daughter’s room so that they were more cozy during the cold nights. This year we decided to do the opposite. As my son’s room it’s bigger we put my daughter’s bed on my son’s room. Well, my husband it’s the one that dismounts and mounts the furniture so he has all the work.

We also did this because my daughter got used to sleep in our bed and we thought that being on her brother’s room she would decide to sleep there, well we were wrong, she still prefers to sleep with me while dad sleeps in the couch.

Well we need to work this out!!

Image via Wikipedia

Well, kids are getting excited with Christmas and Christmas presents are a daily subject. From a guitar to a skate, from a Doctor Nenuco (doll) to a Skater Barbie this year we have a huge different from the last years. My son is not requesting very expensive presents. No Wii, no video games, no cell phones, no expensive gadgets. I’m very happy with his attitude and I believe without cheaper presents this Christmas will be a better one.

Image by s~revenge via Flickr

Once again I apologize for my lake of family posts, reviews and giveaways. I’ve been going through a very difficult time in my life and I’m having difficulty is doing everything I used to.

Tiredness and pain (physical and emotional) took over my body and last week and weekend besides working 40 hours a week I spend most of my free time sleeping. I speak only when I have to, I’m very “numb”, I’m not eating properly and therefore I’m taking some pills to put me on shape (I don’t need fat burners as you might imagine).

I know I should take a medical leave and go home and rest but I need the money and my bosses don’t believe in breakdowns and depressions. I wish I could find some kind of job I could do from home but it’s almost impossible to do so due to the crisis and the uncertain future we all leave on.

I’m a little behind with some due post so today and tomorrow I’m going to try to have them written to catch up with other important information that show up on my inbox.

Thank you all that still visit my blog.

Image by Paladin27 via Flickr

Having an administrative job in a company is the dream of many people. But believe be Jobs in Administration are not that easy. I have one and it would be great if it was in a large company. Since I work in a kind of “family type” company my administrative job resumes by doing everything from serving coffees to deal with export processes, transportation management, serving bottles of water, sending emails to clients, etc. etc. Well I might be wrong…I probably don’t have an administrative job buy a “do-it-all” job.

What do you think?

p.s. as you probably can see, I’m very disappointed with my present job!

Lately my life seems like a TV series with no end and with really bad people it.

I’m surprised with the arrogance and selfishness of some people, people that are my neighbors, people from next door.

As I mentioned on a previous post about our front yard new look, we (the condominium) were going to request a bank loan to pay for the new look. It was a collective loan and therefore we would be paying just a small monthly amount for 4 years. Well, the bank didn’t authorized the loan and I new meeting was scheduled to find a new solution.

The meeting started with bossy neighbors wanting to rule our life, our finances and our wallets. One the loan was not approved those who can pay wanted the others to get a personal loan or borrow money from someone so that the garden could be done. Some of the couples are having finances difficulties, some don’t have work and for me the garden is not a priority.

We, the ones having finance difficulties refused to ask for a personal loan. I owe credit card, I owe payday loan and They want me to as for a personal loan for a GARDEN? These people are crazy. And, I had to hear comments like: who doesn’t have money to pay, well just sell the house and go somewhere else.

Usually I stay quiet and silent on these meeting but this time I raised my voice and let it all out. People now my position know and I was supported by other neighbors in the same financial situation. I’m glad I was not the only one that talked against the new garden, especially now, when people are losing their jobs and life is tough. For now a new garden is like a new jacuzzi or a spa filter, they are not essential items. I need money for food, electricity, gas, water, clothes (for the kids…I manage with old ones), I don’t have money for a new garden.

The neighbors were really nasty, rude and really disappointed me and other people in the meeting. Now…I know who I  can count with in the neighborhood.

Well, by daughter has a radical bang.

Last Wednesday she decided to have a bang cut without my help. She waited until I was helping my son with school homework, she went to the bathroom, grab the scissors from the closet and *bang* she cut her bang.

She show up in the room where I was with my son and the only sound that came out from our mouths was ohhhhhhh!!!!!

She started crying an cried for one hour, finally she decided that if anyone asks her about the super short bang cut she will say it was her mother. Naughty girl!!!!

My son had his first Math test (5th grade) and as I expected the grade was not as much as I wanted. It was a positive grade (from 1 to 5 he had a 3) but I’m sure he can do better.

He did the English test last Friday and Tuesday he has the Portuguese one. I’m preparing a few exercises but he is too lazy to do them. I tell him that he needs to study, that he needs to practice the exercises but it seems I have to use a order fulfillment to make him realize of the importance of studying.

How do you convince your kids they have to study?