Eco-Friendly Handmade Valentines - It's That Time Again!

'Tis time to shout your love from the rooftops! Or, at least, to shower your kids' classmates in candy hearts, right?

Just in time for Valentine's Day, Retrocrafted Paper Goods has added just a few special greeting cards and minis to make your loved ones feel special.

Here's a peek at what's in the store:


Be Mine


I Adore You

Want something special for your child's classmates this year? These 100% recycled, handmade minis are perfect!


Just For You


Be My Valentine

Go handmade this Valentine's Day!

Chubby Simply Won't Do Anymore

Between raging hormones, the holidays, the inability to exercise like I normally would, and stress eating, I gained an unsightly ELEVEN POUNDS between my miscarriage in September and the end of the year. While it may not seem like all that much in the great scheme of things, I'm normally quite a petite person. At 4'11" a gain of two pounds is noticeable - 10 is almost two pants sizes. Not good. Not good at all.

In the past, I've been a bit of a yoyo dieter, and I suspect that's what I can thank for my snail's-pace metabolism. Since 30, fighting fat, especially around my midsection, has been a nearly impossible task. Given my height, my calorie target for weight loss is in the 1200 vicinity. I don't know about you, but I'm HUNGRY when I try to live on 1200 calories. What's more, despite the fact that I make veggie-rich family dinners most nights, I'm notorious for trying to get away with starchy, salty, cheesy lunches and skimpy breakfasts, which I know are sabotaging my efforts. My "dieting" M.O. usually goes something like:

Breakfast - 100 calories
Lunch - 150 calories
Dinner - 500 calories
After-dinner snacks - 400 calories

Intellectually, I understand that, with habits like that, I can get 60 minutes of cardio six days a week (which I usually do) and still be chunky. Something's gotta give if I want to make a real, lasting change.

Last weekend after a particularly appalling (but I won't lie - delicious) dinner out with my husband, I resolved to change my approach. So, because I believe accountability is key when it comes to goal-setting and personal growth, let me tell you what I plan to do differently this time around.

1. Eat three balanced and filling meals each day, taking care to meet those good old food pyramid recommendations for fruits and vegetables.

2. NOT count calories, but rather focus on identifying low-fat, filling, nutritious foods that will keep me satisfied from one meal to the next.

3. Establish a realistic fitness goal and focus on achieving it rather than clocking a certain number of minutes each week. This summer I conquered the Couch to 5K plan which was awesome. This time I plan to go for 10K and beyond.

4. Decide on one or two low calorie, low fat after-dinner snack options that I will enjoy, but that don't encourage binging (goodbye, pita chips and hummus...).

5. Rid my home of "diet foods" like fat-free chips and sugar-free candy. They are not helping me to make healthy choices and do nothing to nourish my body.

6. Ultimately, within reason, let my body decide what size it will be. If, in three months, I can run for an hour at a time and can say at the end of each day that I've given my body the fuel it needs to be lean, healthy and strong, I can't complain if there's still a little pudge around my belly. After all, I'm a mom. It happens.

What do you think? Solid plan? I promise to keep you posted. Since last Friday, I'm down 2.5 pounds (mostly water, I'm sure - but so what?). Sweet. To be comfortably back within the healthy range for my height, I really need to lose about 10 more. To be at my pre-girlie weight, I need to lose 13.

Here's to doing it right!

Also, on a loosely related note, I feel strongly that every thirty-something woman I know should read Laurie Notaro's The Idiot Girl and the Flaming Tantrum of Death. I laughed so hard I cried - several times. The chapter on the broken treadmill was a serious kick in the tush for me (all wrapped up in a sassy, hilarious package). Read it!

Timer 2.0 - Who Knew??

Last week I wrote about ways for WAHMs (or ANYBODY) to stay on top of their housework amidst family and professional obligations.

One of my suggestions was to set a timer, giving yourself a specific amount of time in which to complete your household tasks. The goals are to a) force yourself to work faster and smarter; and b) avoid the "dread" factor by ensuring yourself that you're only going to have to work on those tasks you dislike for a short period of time.

Well, it occurred to me this weekend that perhaps the timer could have other uses...

Like (I assume) any mom of a preschooler, I struggle with keeping my little one focused, particularly on things she doesn't want to do - like cleaning her room, picking up her clothes or tidying up the playroom.

We recently implemented an allowance - tied to a set of simple weekly chores - which has helped, but still the announcement that it's clean-up time generally sends Little Miss over the edge. Because it seems like more drama than it's worth, I'm guilty of letting her procrastinate endlessly or do only a moderately acceptable job.

As of yesterday morning, her room was barely navigable, so I announced that it was, indeed, time to take it on. Before she had time to protest, I grabbed a timer and told her she'd have 20 minutes to finish her room. Since I also had chores to do, I told her I had to get the upstairs bathrooms cleaned in the same amount of time (thus eliminating the potential for "Will you help meeeeeeeeeee, Mommyyyyyyy?"). Naturally Ms. Thing wanted to know what would happen if we didn't finish on time. Since I hadn't thought that one through, I went with iPhone privileges. If I wasn't done, I didn't get to play iPhone scrabble, and if she wasn't done, she didn't get to play iPhone UNO.

Again, before the whining could commence, I started the timer and began RUNNING toward the upstairs bathrooms yelling, "Hurry! Hurry! We can do this!"

Much to my surprise, she followed me up the stairs and into her room, shouting, "Mom! Hurry! Don't forget to let me know how much time is left!"

I made a big show of "hurrying," running between bathrooms and panting as though I was exhausted. I'd shout, "Ten minutes left! We can do it!" and she'd reply, "Don't worry, Mom - I'm almost done!"

Whaddayaknow?? She finished her room BEFORE I'd finished the bathrooms and spent the rest of the time cheering for me. I pretended to cut it close, hanging up the final towel just as the alarm went off. There were high fives and "the cheer of greatness" (her invention) all around and, more importantly, NO DRAMA.

I tried it again later when we both needed to take showers and get ready. Again, she was finished first and thought all of my "rushing" was absolutely hilarious.

Sweet!

Now, I'm sure this little game will eventually lose its luster and I'll have to implement some kind of real consequences. But my thought is that, as long as I participate and keep the enthusiasm up, I can get at least get her once-a-week chores completed without unnecessary unpleasantness or procrastinating. For now, anyway.

Score one for Mom!

Dear Kid Saturday

Welcome to my first installment of Dear Kid Saturday for 2010. It’s been a really long time, I know. Since September, it’s been hard to talk about…family stuff. And frankly, my attention’s been focused elsewhere. As we head into 2010, however, we have every reason to feel optimistic, and I feel a renewed desire to celebrate the little moments that make parenting a preschooler so much fun.

So, without further ado, here’s this week’s letter to my special girl.

Dear Toilet,

You’ve been a dog now for about… three weeks?

It started as a game you played with the other dogs - you got on all fours, barked, rolled around with them. They went nuts, which you thought was hilarious. Pretty soon you wanted Daddy and I to play along. You wanted us to play “owner” and “pet shop guy,” and you begged to eat your dinner on the floor.

At first we tried to discourage you (honestly, the barking and following us is sort of… trying), but now we’ve settled into a situation we can all live with. There are a few rules - only girls get to go to school or to the grocery store, and no doggies are allowed at the dinner table. As long as we act out our roles and toss you a “biscuit” now and then, you’re happy.

Originally your name was “Princess Poodle,” but you changed it when Daddy tried to put you outside to go potty. You told us, “Call me Toilet now because I’m the only dog in the world that goes potty in the toilet!” OK then.

When you’re not being a dog, you’re doing some pretty amazing things. Over the summer you began sounding words out, and now you can read me a book with only a little bit of help. So cool! You’re also doing simple math in your head and asking insightful questions about science.

You get frustrated easily, though, so I’m careful not to push it. It seems that as long as there’s no pressure, you’re a learning machine. As soon as it becomes clear that I’m in any way invested in the outcome, you totally shut down (usually giving me wrong answers or repeating nonsense phrases - “eyeball alien” is your favorite). You’ll be starting kindergarten in the fall and I’m anxious to see if you have the same issues with your teachers…

You still spend most days singing. If you’re occupied with something - a game or a puzzle - you’ll sing pretty “aaaaaaah” songs that sound like the accompaniment to a fairy movie. When you play with dolls or, more commonly, your stuffed animals, you make up elaborate musicals, complete with ballads and big, exciting production numbers. You pick up lyrics quickly and love to play on the songs you already know by changing the melodies slightly or adding your own words.

You told me the other day that you’d like to learn how to “act out a character.” For a girl whose parents both have theatre degrees, that wasn’t a huge surprise. I’m investigating some kids’ acting classes… so we’ll see what we can do. In the mean time, I’m encouraging you to act out stories from your books, which you think is pretty fun, particularly if Mommy plays the wicked witch.

I love you so much, sweet girl.

More next week,
Mommy

Stuff I Love - Friday Edition

It's Friday, and the occasion calls for some eye candy. Today I'm serving up some delicious handmade treasures in tangerine. Enjoy!


OriginalsByLynnette


sketchbook


polishedtwo


retrofied


museglass


karingrow


Gingeroni1

WW - Who Needs a Human Baby, Seriously?

Overwhelmed No More - Getting Stuff Done!

Sort of a logical follow-up to yesterday’s post…

I don’t know about other WAHMs, but I find that I become easily overwhelmed when facing a work week that includes any of the following:

Doctor/dentist appointments
Preschool “changes” – short days, days off, weird drop-off/pick-up instructions
Extra work assignments*
A particularly dirty house OR
Impending houseguests/entertaining

*Extra assignments are great. I love them. I cherish them. They are a blessing. I can and do find ways to work around them. There – moving on.

There are a couple of ways to approach these situations: 1) freak out and act bitchy all week while running around frantically and being largely unproductive; or 2) find a way to get everything (or most everything) done without losing your mind. Most of the time, after an initial freak-out, I opt for #2. Here are just a couple of tidbits I’ve picked up along the way for making it work.

Plan Your Work/Work Your Plan
For a neat freak like me who doesn’t mind housework and lives for the efficient completion of errands and appointments, this is often the best approach. Since I don’t dread getting things accomplished, just become frustrated when there’s not enough time, I can usually set my mind at ease by putting together a plan at the beginning of the week that includes a sub-set of tasks to be completed each day.

For example, if I’m expecting houseguests on Friday, I might spend the early part of the week doing my usual household upkeep (just a few tasks per day) and the end of the week getting the guest room ready and shopping for meals. If there’s an extra “something” happening on a particular day – an appointment or a school event – keep your task list light and save time-consuming items for another day.

Also, I try to find things I can let slide, if just for the week. Let's be honest - - my dinner guests won't notice if I've not dusted our master bedroom in two weeks. If time's tight, it's off the list. Putting my plan on paper goes a long way toward eliminating worry and ensuring that my expectations for the week are reasonable.

Set a Timer
If you loath housework and errands and the very thought of getting your task list completed makes you want to put a fork in your eye, consider the timer approach. Set aside a single hour (or half, or 15 minutes) to attack household tasks. You work only until your time’s up, and save outstanding tasks for your next session. I do this with my work assignments sometimes, actually. I allow myself to spend 45 minutes of each hour working on the things I want to work on, and then spend 15 minutes working on those things I’ve been dreading. You’d be surprised how much you can accomplish this way while not feeling oppressed by those tasks you dislike.

Get the Right Tools
I’ve found that the right tools make all the difference when it comes to homemaking. And I don’t mean a maid (unless you can afford one, in which case GO FOR IT and then send her over here, wouldya?). Once upon a time we had a functional Roomba. If your birthday is coming up, ASK FOR ONE. That thing made my life as a mom and pet owner a thousand times easier. While I had to do a deep clean every now and then, my carpets and hard floors were, in large part, clean all the time with no effort on my part. Lovely.

Recently, I invested in a steam mop. Highly recommend it. I have a humongous kitchen with white tile floors and not only does it show absolutely everything, it takes forever to mop. When it starts to get dirty, I panic, especially if anyone outside our immediate family will be setting foot inside our house within the next few days. The steam mop is going to be a lifesaver. It deep cleans my tile and hardwoods in minutes without any scrubbing, buckets or icky water. Yay!

There are loads of things out there designed to make housework easier. While hard-core homemakers often scoff, I immediately investigate – and so should you! With the right tools, even the most dreaded tasks can be over in a flash, and you can get back to the work you (hopefully) love.

Good luck!