As you probably know, we recently moved to another state. The house came together pretty quickly. Sure we still need some art in a few places, but overall it’s not bad. The kids rooms are still in progress. The oldest only needs a rug, but lately I’ve been in the process of decorating the toddler’s room.

Since she has always slept with us, it is really important for me to make sure this is a room she LOVES. That way, she’ll get more excited about transitioning to her own space. Her favorite colors are orange and turquoise. This has been the basis of the room. I found a cheap toddler bed on Craigslist – last weekend we sanded and painted it turquoise. I still need to add a little art and a rug, some curtains and a quilt.

Once it is done I’m looking forward to sharing it with you. Until then, I’d love for you to share your toddler rooms by emailing or commenting with a link. I can’t wait to see them!

Hubs sanding down the Craigslist toddler bed

Cute new bed after several coats of turquoise

Did you know that January is National Organizational Month? Makes sense, considering all the New Years Resolutions made to “get organized this year”. I have always had a hard time getting organized. I even enlisted the help of a professional organizer (remember?). Well, now that I learned the basics of getting organized, I have found my house and life to run much more smoothly.

I thought I would take a moment to share with you my favorite organizational tools. Keep in mind that I am no expert, just a mom. The info I am offering are just from my own trial and error. As I post my favorite tips, I hope you will share the tips that work for you by commenting or linking your own posts.

CALENDARS/DAY PLANNERS:

I have used both the MomAgenda and the Franklin Covey planning systems. I must admit that I love both.

• MomAgenda is currently having a sale for 35% off AND an additional 10% off if you “like” their Facebook page.
• Many of the Franklin Covey products are currently on sale right now, too!

MEAL PLANNING/GROCERY SHOPPING:

I love cooking, but often take longer to figure out what I’m making or making a grocery list than it actually takes to cook it. I love 2 particular iPhone apps for planning meals and making lists:

• Epicurious – this app makes it easy to search for new recipes, then you can add them to your favorites and/or shopping list. Once you’ve gathered your recipes in the shopping list, tap “create list” and there is your shopping list! Perfection.
• Grocery IQ – perfect for when you already know what you’re making, this allows you to divide your list up by section and store. I use it for the grocery store, Costco, Target, and home improvement stores. This app also tracks your spending on each item and totals your list for you so you can estimate your total cost.

FINANCIAL:

My absolute favorite website for keeping track of our finances is Mint.com. It is FREE and allows you to enter all your checking and savings accounts, mortgages, debts (credit cards, student loans, etc), IRAs, etc. It will also offer suggestions on how to save money based on your spending. And, of course, “there’s an app for that”.

Hurried Homemaker was in no way compensated for this post.

I got this in my email today and HAD to share it with y’all! As you know, I have been working with Amy to ease my parenting stress. I am about 1/2 way through the course and am seeing tremendous results in my family! I will be doing a review for you and possibly even a giveaway, but if you are where I was not so long ago (need a refresher?) then SIGN UP NOW!

follow us on Twitter like us on Facebook 4 Weeks to a New You – Training That Fits Into Your Busy Life Amy McCready, founder of Positive Parenting Solutions, invites you to enroll in a NEW LIVE online course beginning in October. Positive Parenting Solutions LIVE is a 4 session course (plus 1 bonus session) packed with concrete strategies and step-by-step solutions to put an end to the most frustrating misbehaviors without nagging, whining or yelling – from you or your kids! It’s the best of all worlds…LIVE training from the comfort of your home, targeted solutions to reduce your parenting stress, live Q&A and measurable results after each session. To personalize your training experience, enrollment will be limited.  Sign up today. To see how it works and what you’ll learn, click here. Warm regards, Amy Amy McCready Founder, Positive Parenting Solutions www.PositiveParentingSolutions.com Join us on Facebook I invite you to follow me on: Twitter: Amy McCreadyPPS LinkedIn: Amy McCreadyPPS follow us on Twitter like us on Facebook Positive Parenting Solutions provides a comprehensive online parenting course and unparalleled problem solving support for parents of toddlers to teens. We help you correct misbehaviors permanently without nagging, reminding or yelling with the ultimate goal of raising confident, capable, and responsible kids. To learn more and for free training resources, visit: www.PositiveParentingSolutions.com Questions? Contact us at: info@PositiveParentingSolutions.com Our mailing address is: Positive Parenting Solutions, Inc Serving Parents Worldwide From Raleigh, NC 27614 Copyright (C) 2010 Positive Parenting Solutions, Inc All rights reserved.

I cannot begin to describe my excitement about this …

I have been working with Amy McCready of Positive Parenting Solutions to regain my sanity. After a long summer with my 2 girls, I felt like I might be losing it. Constantly asking, nagging, begging (whatever it may be that day) for them to do this or that. I knew my kids weren’t “bad” but I wasn’t feeling like the best mom. By the time school rolled around last week, I felt like I had failed at my first summer home with the kids.

Then I met Amy and learned that I just didn’t have the tools I needed to get the kids to mind.

I suppose if I were the spanking, punishing type I would have. But I am not. I vowed to not be strict or militant. I also vowed not to be the loosey-goosey type who lets her kids run wild 24/7.  But where was this happy medium I was searching for? I certainly wasn’t achieving it by myself.

So, as if an Angel from Above couldn’t bear to see me lose my mind, they brought me this webinar from Amy. I am now parenting my wonderful children with less stress and more joy. I didn’t think it would be fair to keep this all to myself, so Amy has agreed to share this FREE webinar with y’all too!

SIGN UP NOW and please share this with every parent you know. We should all get to enjoy the experience of parenting like this!

Last week was our first long family trip with two kids. We’ve taken the short 4-hour drive to Nashville with both kids, but we haven’t taken a full-fledged trip since our last vacation (which was when we had only 1 kid).  I asked around the Twitterverse and FB-union for some tips on traveling with kids and got a couple suggestions. The rest was up to us to figure out on our own, and we did. I will, in turn, pass along what I recommend.

The Challenges

• The oldest is 8 and the baby is 18 months … there are none in between, so we have a huge age difference to contend with.
• The baby is what one might call “high maintenance” – she is demanding, picky, and can throw a tantrum better than any 2 or 3 year-old I’ve ever seen.
• The trip required two early wake-up calls – as in 4am and 5am!
• Two airplane rides in one day with a toddler – doesn’t that sound fun?
• One of the planes was an 18-passenger tin can with no beverage service, much less a bathroom. (Of course we wouldn’t know about this challenge until after we were about to board.)

Tips from Others

• My friend Irene (@notsusiehomemkr) recommended ring pops … (doesn’t work for me since I try to avoid giving candy, but may for someone else)
• My cousin suggested the ABC game (great for kids who know their ABCs)

As you can tell, I didn’t get a ton of ideas from the world-wide web. So, it was up to me and the hub to figure it out. If you know anything about my family, you know that by “me and the hub” I really mean “me” because the hub got back in town only a few hours before we had to get up to catch the first flight. So …

Our Top 10 Tips for Traveling with Kids

1. Early AM flights are actually a good thing – tired kids sleep on airplanes
2. Wheel Easy Car Seat Travel Bag is perfect for toting along the car seat to check with baggage (there are a number of other options out there, but I found this was the most reasonably priced option for our travel needs)
3. Pack a small bag for the oldest to carry-on filled with all-age activities (a pad of paper, Crayola Twistable crayons, Play-doh, Rubik’s cube, and finger puppets filled our bag)
4. Have a change of clothes for each person in a carry-on. Fold each item in 1/2 and roll to avoid wrinkles.
5. Bring along a diaper bag for the little one, but have your diapers delivered to your destination ahead of time using a service like diapers.com.
6. Dress everyone in layers: We left Atlanta at 6am and it was about 75 degrees and humid. The plane was comfortable. We landed in Denver to 59 degrees and breezy. Then we got on a hot little airplane to get to South Dakota, where it was 89 degrees but windy. On the way home, it was FREEZING on the airplane, then warm in Denver, comfortable on airplane #2 and then HOT in Atlanta. Layers, people.
7. Nurse that baby on the plane. I cannot emphasize it enough – their little ears have the hardest time with the pressure changes. There were 2 babies other than ours on the plane at one point – I nursed, they didn’t. Guess who’s baby was screaming? (Hint: it wasn’t mine.)
8. Have to take more than 1 flight? Schedule yours so that your layover is about 2-3 hours. This gives the kids time to wander the airport, stretch their legs, get a snack, go to the bathroom, and play for a bit. And then take a nap on the next flight.
9. Different time zone? Try to keep everyone on the time zone in which you’re accustomed – this is only reasonable if you’re only an hour or two off.
10. Relax. Being uptight about every. little. thing. makes the trip stressful and difficult to enjoy. Every moment doesn’t need to be planned. There are bound to be hiccups that will throw things off a little. It is ok. Enjoy it.

Do you have other tips that I should have mentioned?

P.S. – Here are a few of my favorite farm-country pics from our trip:

Hurried Homemaker was in no way compensated for this post. We are actual customers of all products/companies mentioned above.

Getting organized is important to every mom I know. Staying organized is a challenge for every mom I know. GiGi at Vision Organizing has been helping me get my house in order so that I can finally feel like things aren’t so chaotic.

I had no idea when I quit working that keeping a home, a family, a life organized would be such a challenge for me. I had always worked. The house seemed to just run itself. Only it wasn’t … we were just burying it all. I’m paying for it now. Clutter, chaos, and craziness have ruled my house long enough. I’m taking control, thanks to GiGi.

GiGi is full of great ideas for everyone -no budget to tiny budget, she is quick to provide a solution or set of solutions tailored just for your needs.

If you want to take back control, or just need a little refresher course on getting it all together, this giveaway is for you.

Win a 1-hour phone/email organization consultation with Vision Organizing!

how to enter

giveaway is from june 28, 2010 to july 29, 2010 (10pm) – winner will be chosen randomly

MANDATORY ENTRY:

Leave a comment telling what you need help managing and why.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES (leave a comment for each):

• Show us a picture of your space that needs help (leave a link in the comment)
• Follow me on Google FriendConnect
• Subscribe to the Hurried Homemaker blog via email or reader
• Click on the “Top Mommy Blog” icon on the sidebar to vote for HH
• “Like” Hurried Homemaker on Facebook
• “Like” Vision Organizing on Facebook
• Refer a friend – have them include your name in parentheses with their 1st entry
• Follow @hurriedhomemakr and @organizer on Twitter and tweet I entered to win an organizing consultation with @organizer on @hurriedhomemakr – http://wp.me/pzsyA-se

Hurried Homemaker was not compensated for this post. We were provided with an organizing session to provide a review, but this in no way affects our opinion of this service.