5 Minutes for Mom » Tackle It Tuesday

Tackle it Tuesday — My Photography Site

Janice — Tue, 22 May 2012 08:09:30 +0000

Janice here…

What is that “tackle” you have wanted to do for years, but life — and maybe some lack of confidence — keep getting in the way? You know the dream that lingers each night in the back of your mind as you go through your mental checklist of accomplished and unaccomplished.

This weekend I decided to finally do something I have wanted to do for years. Instead of putting it off another day, I shouted “Yes, I AM going to do it, whether ‘I have the time’ or not!”

So, you didn’t see me on Twitter or on Facebook, or even here at 5 Minutes for Mom. I was researching themes and planning my new site: Janice Croze Photography.

For me, as I am sure most of you bloggers can understand, the meaning of life is found in our stories — the creating, the sharing, the remembering. I feel when a person’s stories go untold, a part of that life is lost forever.

As much as I love to preserve and pass on stories through words, I also love to tell stories through photographs. I crave the thrill of capturing a story with an incredible image. It is an ultimate high for me.

There isn’t much to see yet at my new site — I am in the very beginning stages of building it. I don’t even have a logo yet. But, I am going to be working hard on it and will update you soon.

What is your passion tackle that you keep putting off? What is keeping you from tackling it?

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

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Written by Janice Croze, co-founder of 5 Minutes for Mom.

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Tackle It Tuesday – Mom-and-Me Time

Lolli — Tue, 15 May 2012 04:01:40 +0000

Lolli here…

If you were to go back through the Tackles that I have written over the last several months, you would see a very strong trend. I am not exactly proud of the trend, but it’s a reality that I have to face every day around my house.

The trend? Of all the projects I’ve tackled and the goals that I have worked on this year, none of them have been about cleaning, organizing, or home improvement. And that’s not because I have mastered those skills. No, sadly, those areas are the most neglected around my house.

Back in the days before I needed to earn a living, I was careful about keeping the clutter picked up, the carpets vacuumed, and the windows sparkly clean. But when my available hours drastically changed, I found that my priorities changed as well.

Suddenly I found myself considering cooking dinner, cleaning a few dishes, and washing a few loads of laundry as really productive.

In the middle of this shift in time and priorities, I realized that something new was happening. Instead of the old feeling of needing time away from home and kids, I was craving MORE time with my kids and more time just relaxing around my house instead of only working in my upstairs room.

I’ve made some changes to maximize the time I get to spend with my kids, and although they are not drastic, they represent a shift in my thinking.

How I make the most of mommy and me time:

I save my errands for after school so that I can take a child with me. Shopping with mom can be treasured time!.
I make a point of eating breakfast with my elementary school aged kids each morning (my middle and high schoolers eat FAR too early for me!)
I take advantage of car rides and bring kids along whenever possible.
Even though my kids are all independent readers, I make a point of reading out loud with them.
I join in with their chores (plus, seeing Mom cleaning with them always motivates them so much more than hearing Mom shout orders down the stairs).
As often as I can, I take my kids out on one-on-one dates with me. I love to see movies, so I use our dates as an excuse to see as many movies as I can.
I focus on THEM.

I think that focus, no matter what activity we are doing, is the most important factor in creating meaningful moments with my kids.

How do you maximize time with your kids?

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Photo source: Bigstock photo

Tackle it Tuesday-Prepping for the End of the School Year as a Homeschooler

Jennifer — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:35:46 +0000

Jennifer here-

Where I live, school is just about over. In fact, there are only 8 days left until school gets out and I am running a little ragged trying to get everything in order for when the kids are done. We homeschool so we have tests to prepare, transcripts to fill out, and more. Since I have teenagers, getting them ready for the end of the year is totally different than getting younger kids ready.

The biggest thing about tackling the end of the year with a teenage homeschooler is prepping them for the ACT. We’ve been using books from the library to help prepare for the test and I can only pray that my son is ready for this moment. I have to trust that I have done all I could as a mom and as a teacher to prepare him for this big major test in life.

What about you? What are you tackling this week?

Calling All Tacklers!

We’re looking for YOU – guest bloggers to post about your own tackles right here. If you are interested in showing off your tackles (we all need some tips and ideas!) then contact us . Thanks for your inspiring tackles!!

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Jennifer. You can find Jennifer blogging at Jen’s Journey and tweeting at @jennifer_sikora.

Tackle It Tuesday – Manage the Morning Mayhem

Lolli — Tue, 01 May 2012 04:01:49 +0000

Kat Tomasewski, mother of three, author of the blog Mom on the go in Holy Toledo and the book Minimize the Chaos in order to Maximize the Joys of Motherhood is our guest tackler today with some very helpful tips of tackling potty training when you have to leave the house.

How to Manage the Morning Mayhem

Getting dressed used to be a hung fiasco in our house, the children would grab an outfit that did not match, was out of season, or was not appropriate for the event we were late for. Now, in order to make our mornings run smoother I placed a hook on each of their closets and together we select their outfits the night before.

This has substantially minimized the morning chaos.

Our night time routine consist of me sharing our plans for the next day, I express what an appropriate outfit might be, given the activities we have planned for the next day. I then have them look through their closets and drawers for articles of clothing that best matches the information provided. Once I have given the okay on their selection we place everything on the hook, including any hair accessories (for my daughters).

How do you make morning routines easier for your kids (and you)?

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Tackle It Tuesday – Getting Ready for House Guests

Lolli — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:13:48 +0000

Lolli here…

Last Friday, after a busier-than-usual few days of trying to recover from a long trip to Disney World, I had to turn my attention to getting my house ready for weekend guests. The scene on Friday was less than ideal:

the kids had trashed the house while I was gone
my suitcase was still packed in my room
I didn’t have any plans for meals while they were here
I was in the middle of massive amounts of laundry

This is not a picture of my house, but last week, I felt like it was coming pretty close!
I realized as I rushed around trying to get things ready for my house guests that I was going to need to minimize and focus on the most important tasks. I guess that I was lucky – some house guests show up with NO warning. At least I did have some time, even if it was limited, to prepare.

I even had time to ask for opinions from my Better in Bulk Facebook fans and on twitter about what tasks to tackle first when getting ready for guests. With their help, I put these tips together:

How to prepare for house guests with minimal time

If you want to make a good first impression, tidy up the front room (unlike my husband who decided to clear out some empty boxes and stack them in the front room)
Clean the bathrooms (an especially important step if you are the mother of boys)
Get the guest sleeping area ready (we don’t have an extra room, so I need to make sure that the basement floor is clear)
Clean sheets and pillow cases (I always have to steal a few pillows out of the kids’ rooms, so a fresh pillow case is a must)
It’s ok to hide some messes behind closed doors (just remember to close the doors…)
Make a quick trip to the grocery store and stock up on cereals and milk and anything else that the crowd will want to eat. Plan a few meals (even if you end up going out to dinner like we did, it’s still a big help to have some food ready)

And the most important tip of all: remember that your house guests are here to visit YOU and spend time together, not critique your house cleaning skills.

I’m sure most of you are MUCH more organized than I am to begin with, but I was happy that we were able to have a pleasant weekend with our house guests, despite a dishes that remained dirty on the kitchen counter or the boxes that crowded the living room.

How do you get ready for house guests?

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Image from BigStockPhoto.com

Tackle It Tuesday – Donating Done Easy

Lolli — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 04:01:44 +0000

Kat Tomasewski, mother of three, author of the blog Mom on the go in Holy Toledo and the book Minimize the Chaos in order to Maximize the Joys of Motherhood is our guest tackler today with some very helpful tips for making donating easier and more accessible (because we all know that the easier it is, the more likely we are to do more of it!).

Get in the habit of donating

I realize most moms always have the best intentions of donating to a charity on a regular basis but it can be difficult – life gets in the way. Also with the current state of the economy most families are on a strict budget leaving little room for charities. But it can be done. After some trial and error we have adopted a foolproof method for collecting items for our local charities at a fraction of the price – and you can too with these simple steps.

Purchase a bin; you can decide what size works best based on how many items you will be donating and how frequently you will donate. (I have a small one I keep in my pantry and a larger one in the basement to place the items when the smaller bin is full).
Print off the charities wish list.
Tape that wish list on the inside lid of bin.
Before a trip to the grocery store reference the list with the weekly ad, note if any items are on sale, then take it a step further, clip for the cause, check your coupons to see if you have any for the items that are listed. Write those items down, grab the coupons, and hit the road.
When you get home place those items in the bin. I like to have my conveniently placed in the pantry but you can decide what location works best for you.
Then, determine a day that you will designate as donation day and drive to the charity and drop off your donation. I often wit till I have a large bin to donate, usually every other month.

Once you are in the habit of referencing the charity’s list prior to a grocery trip donating can become second nature and thanks to the weekly deals and coupons the items cost mere pennies.

Learning Opportunity

Whenever possible be certain to share what you are doing with your children. Explain why the bin is there, that others do not have everything that your family has, and why it is important to donate. Also, when possible, have your children go with you to donate the goods.

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Tackle It Tuesday – Making a Rental House Feel Like Home

Lolli — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 04:01:43 +0000

Today’s guest tackler is Michelle, mother of two and author of the blog Falafel and the Bee. Please welcome her!

Moving into a new place can be difficult..especially a rental where you can’t really change things too much. Most landlords would frown on you taking a sledgehammer to that unsightly wall blocking your view. Heh.

When we moved this past August, we were lucky to like almost everything about this house. Almost.

The Master bathroom was the deepest blue and painted really sloppily to boot!. I tried to ignore it and just live with it, but every time I went in there my critical eye couldn’t help but land on all the paint splatters, and the Pacific Northwest in me couldn’t help but feel I just needed something a bit brighter. Oh we like our light, we do, and this color just made everything dark.

Before

Anyhow, my husband was working this one Saturday, our girls were playing nicely independently, so I went into the shed to explore.

I found a brand new can of paint (the same color as our dining room~which I love, BTW). Yup. That did it.

I yelled to the girls that I would be painting. Got some fans and brushes and got to work!

In one afternoon, I had a brand new bathroom (and a really surprised husband!) with zero invested dollars.

After

Fantastic.

It’s amazing how a color change can give the illusion of more space…and make you feel, well… at home.

********

About the Author:

Michelle is the Mother of two girls nicknamed Falafel and the Bee. She loves to sew, create, thrift, recycle, parent, problem solve, clean, walk, photograph, and nurture. You can find her over at her blog Falafel and the Bee where she shares her journey through Motherhood with Creativity: Hand-in-hand.

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Tackle It Tuesday – Toy Organization

Lolli — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 04:01:44 +0000

Please welcome Debra Rutt aka “The Harried Mom” who has a tackle project we can all use!

Toys…One of mom’s biggest challenges

One of the biggest challenges any harried mom faces on a daily basis is the battle to keep the house tidy. It seems as soon as I pick up all the toys, books, stuffed animals and various games my two kids play with and put them back in their proper places, they’ve somehow found their way back out and are everywhere again! I’ve learned the key to keeping order in any room where kids hang out is to use toy storage furniture. These days, you don’t just have to rely on the old stand-by of a toy box, which is where my stuff was kept when I was a kidlet myself. I was amazed at the variety of options of boxes, bins and shelving out there. Here are some that I like the best.

The toy box

When you think of the words “toy box,” this is what generally comes to people’s minds. A huge sturdy bin that you can toss everything into and close the lid to hide all the chaos inside. These boxes are low and feature easy-to-open lids, allowing access for toddlers and pre-schoolers alike. The flat lid on this toy box is a bonus, as it provides ample space for stacking games or placing stuffed animals that might otherwise get crushed inside. Both kids and parents can use the flat top for seating as well.

These work well in bedrooms as well as in playrooms. My son has one in his room and it keeps his floor from turning into a crazy obstacle course for me maneuver through.

Sort-it bin units

In the kids’ playroom we have one of these “sort it” bin units. It features 12 interchangeable plastic storage bins in bright and vibrant colors. Each bin is dedicated to a specific kind of toy: cars/trucks, musical instruments, little people, animals, puzzles, train sets, etc.

All the bins are easily removable, which makes clean up so much easier. You can actually bring the bin to the toys and load them all in instead of taking them one-by-one to the unit. It’s also easy for my kids put their toys away in their proper places, so when they look for the cymbals the next time they want to play marching band, they find them quickly. Since there is no “set” place for the bins in the unit, you can place them anywhere you have a space on the rungs.

For extra safety this unit can be toggled to the wall with a standard tip restraint kit, so you don’t have to worry about it toppling over on your little ones. This unit also has handles at the top so you can move the whole shebang when it’s time to vacuum or re-arrange the room.

While these are great toy storage options, they work best in a child’s room or a devoted playroom.

The storage cube organizer

So what about toy storage for a more multi-purpose area like the living room or TV room? A room where, gasp, ADULTS, might congregate and not want to look at piles of your kids’ stuff?! In areas such as these, I prefer to put things away where they can’t be seen, but still are easily accessible for my kids when they are taking over the room. That’s why I love our storage cube organizer. It features six storage cubes where you can place books, toys, games or bins.

Ours featured five colorful canvas cubes that hold toys, stuffed animals and books. The sixth cube is for usually reserved for the toy d’jour of the moment, the one my kids can’t get to fast enough. All the bins have handles on them making it easy for the kids to take them out, get their toys and (hopefully) put them back. It’s also easy for mom to scoop up all the toys and toss them quickly in a bin to get them out of the way when company unexpectedly arrives. This is a solid piece of furniture and very durable. It also looks nice in our family room’s casual décor and doesn’t stick out like a proverbial sore thumb.

Be creative!

There are so many options for toy organization – and you don’t necessarily need to purchase some pre-fab system. If you use your creativity, you can turn items you already have in your home into quick-fix toy storage options. Shoe boxes are great to store Matchbox cars, little people or even dolls. Have an old beach bucket? You could store train tracks, tools or musical instruments in them. What about those plastic zipper bags that bedspreads or sheets come in? Those are perfect to hold lots of little pieces, like building blocks or Legos. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention!

These are great, simple and easy options for having a place for everything and keeping everything in its place.

About the Guest Tackler

Debra Rutt aka “The Harried Mom” is the mom of two kidlets under the age of five and is just trying to safely navigate her way through parenting, playdates, pre-school and a career in entertainment public relations. What she’s learned so far is that you have to able and willing to laugh at anything, but mostly at yourself. She writes about kids, family, food, career and all the randomness that goes along with it!

Blog: http://theharriedmom.com
Facebook: TheHarriedMom
Twitter: @TheHarriedMom
Pinterest: TheHarriedMom

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is organized by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Tackle it Tuesday- Do You need a Kids Command Center?

Lolli — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 04:01:08 +0000

Please welcome guest tackler, Sharon, busy mom of 6 kids. I am loving her method of tackling the kids’ school work and bags!

When your kids come home from school, do they dump out the content of their backpacks onto your kitchen counter? At night while you are trying to cook dinner, do you have to work around the piles of homework and lunch bags in an effort to empty the dishwasher, toss the salad, and pour milk into cups? If this sounds like you, perhaps it is time to put together a kids command center!

Designate an Area to Corral Everything Related to School

You need one place for school lunch bags, snack bags, library books, band instruments, school paperwork that you need to hang onto, etc. Last year, I dragged this baker’s rack into our dining room to hold all of the kids’ school gear. I chose the dining room because it is adjacent to the kitchen for easy access (since that is where we tend to do most of our homework), yet it is out of the way (meaning- I won’t have to look at all of that stuff constantly!) I also have put back into use this old toddler-sized coat rack to hang all of their school backpacks.

While we did hang hooks in the coat closet to hold backpacks, we quickly realized how often we needed to use them to find things from school and re-load homework at the end of the day… so we decided that we liked to have are backpacks hung close to the kitchen too. This small coat rack keeps them neat and off of the floor.

Give Each Child an Inbox

You need a place to store paperwork for each child that he or she can access when needed. An inbox for each child can hold paperwork for long-term assignments, folders for weekly classes (such as band), rosters for sports teams with contact information, and items related to afterschool activities (a Brownies notebook for example). I really do not use the inbox for daily assignments such as the nightly homework…. I actually keep that on the kitchen counter until each child has completed that evening’s homework, and then it gets loaded into its school folder and put into the backpack so we do not forget about it the next day!

I also keep a box of older-kid school supplies on this shelf (lined papers, index cards, hole punch, and stapler) so that the younger kids don’t use up those supplies for arts and crafts projects! I keep a jar of change (which my younger ones can use for math homework involving coins), small bills (for field trips), and my checkbook (which is accessed all-too regularly to fund after-school activities!) And my kids allowance jars line the top-shelf of our baker’s rack… (‘cuz it’s a much better place to keep them than in my kitchen!)

Create a Designated Spot to Hold Lunch Bags

With 6 kids, we have a whole lot of lunch bags, snack bags and water bottles, and the pile up of this stuff can make me crazy- the soft-sided bags just flop and fall over if stored on the kitchen counter. So it is nice to have a place to tuck them when not in use. I also store a small stack of clipboards here (which are the best tool to help kids get homework done when we are at a soccer field for a sibling’s sports practice). The bottom shelf holds an oboe and a violin (my 4^th grader plays the bass- which practically needs it own room!), a basket for library books, and folders for our after-school foreign language program.

So what do you think? Have I inspired you to create a kids command center? Leave a comment below!

My name is Sharon and I am the busy Mom of six children ages 11, 9, 8, 7, 6, and 6. People often ask me “How do you do it?”, so I created Momof6 – a place where I write about organizing your home, using a family calendar, creating household routines, hosting at-home birthday parties, and holding a DIY summer camp!

blog: www.momof6.com

facebook: SharonMomof6

twitter: @sharonmomof6

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is organized by Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.

Tackle It Tuesday – Kids’ Clothes

Lolli — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 04:01:18 +0000

Congratulations to our last two Land’s End gift card winners!

Jennifer Edgerton and Christina Ziegelmeier!!!

Please welcome guest tackler, Kathy, who blogs at Toddler Bites. She has some great ideas to share on organizing your kids’ clothes.

I have a motto: “If everything has a place, then it might get put back in its place (and not left all over the place).” Okay, so it’s not a very catchy motto, but I live by it just the same.

Tackling Kid’s Clothes can be one of those chores that just seem never ending and daunting. I have developed a system that I’d like to share with you that helps keep all those clothes neat and organized.

We wash clothes on Saturday and the kids help fold them up and put them away. I purchased a laundry basket for each child. They sit just inside the doorway of each of their rooms. These baskets were approximately $4 each at Wal-Mart. The baskets have handles, and I have taught the kids how to take their baskets to the laundry room and put them in the washing machine. We do each basket separately, so that we save time sorting. Each child dumps his clothes onto a quilt in the living room and, while watching television, folds and puts away until the pile has dwindled down to nothing.

We have designated drawers on the kid’s dressers. When the kids were younger, I actually cut pictures from magazines and taped to the drawers to show them where to put their clothes as well as where to find a certain clothes item. This really helped out when they were learning to dress themselves.

The top drawer is for underwear and pajamas.
The second drawer is for shirts.
The third drawer is for pants/shorts.

Their closets are for church clothes or nice “town clothes.”

The bars in their closets are LOW…at their level. You should have seen my husband’s face when I asked him to move them down to his waist level! But, it has been such a good thing for the kids! They can hang up their own clothes and can reach the shelf on top too. My daughter stores stuffed animals there. We’ll just keep raising the bar as they grow up (but I haven’t told my husband that just yet!)

(Notice a couple of other things in my son’s closet: I put a large bucket in there so he can tidy his floor quickly, removing all of those miscellaneous toys. I also have a metal trashcan for storing all those Nerf guns and Light Sabers.)

For organizing what the kids will wear each day, these Canvas Shoe Holders work wonders! My daughter and son both have them. His organizer is in his closet, as you can see above. Her organizer is in a corner of the room, as you can see below.

The top shelf is for pajamas (yep, so now they aren’t left lying on the floor). The other shelves are for their clothes…Monday through Friday. They know what they will wear each day. This has been a huge time-saver, especially when we are in a hurry to get somewhere!

These six shelf shoe holders (say that 5 times) are just $10 at Walmart.

So there you have it, my solution for Tackling Kid’s Clothes.

About the guest tackler:

Kathy Hutto is a Christian, wife, mother of two, homeschooler, Sunday School teacher, mom inventor, author, and the list goes on. She invented a line of toddler food cutters known as Toddler Bites, which are now sold through Price Products. The Sandwich Cutter cuts a sandwich into 9 bite-sized pieces and also works great for pancakes. The Hot Dog Cutter splits the hot dog and cuts it into ½ inch pieces across. Kathy also writes curricula that are sold through Currclick. She blogs at toddlerbitesblog.wordpress.com.

Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week?

Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post…

Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below!

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Tackle it Tuesday is organized by 5 Minutes for Mom managing editor, Lolli. You can find Lolli blogging at Better in Bulk and tweeting at @1momof5.