How I wish this site were up and going when I was planning our family vacation with my parents, my siblings and their children a few months ago! Or when I was planning the women's retreat for our church! If you do a lot of planning of events, this site is for you - whether it's a meeting, a conference, a funraiser for your child's school, a vacation, or a night out with friends.
Center'd offers you the following:
- You can post different options for the people in your group to vote on - location, time, what you're going to do, etc.
- You can locate entertainment, restaurants, or items of interest in a location of your choice.
- It provides a place for people to sign up for various jobs for the event you are planning.
- Everyone can see at a glance what's going on without you having to send multiple emails to everyone.
I haven't used it yet, but I'm looking forward to doing so.
Let me know what you think of it!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
A Little Humor for the Weekend
A friend sent this to me from an unknown source:
I actually kept my mammogram appointment. I was met with, "Hi! I'm Belinda!" This perky clipboard carrier smiled from ear to ear, tilted her head to one side and crooned, "All I need you to do is step into this room right here, strip to the waist, then slip on this gown. Everything clear?"
I'm thinking, "Belinda, try decaf. This ain't rocket science."
Belinda skipped away to prepare the chamber of horrors.
With the right side finished, Belinda flipped me (literally) to the left and said, "Hmmmm. Can you stand on your tippy toes and lean in a tad so we can get everything?"
"Fine," I answered. I was freezing, bruised, and out of air, so why not use the remaining circulation in my legs and neck and finish me off?
My body was in a holding pattern that defied gravity (with my other boob wedged between those two 4 inch pieces of square glass) when we heard, then felt a zap! Complete darkness and the power went off!
"Oh, maintenance is working. Bet they hit a snag." Belinda headed for the door.
"Excuse me! You're not leaving me in this vise alone are you?" I shouted.
Belinda kept going and said, "Oh, you fussy puppy...the door's wide open so you'll have the emergency hall lights. I'll be right back."
Before I could shout "NOOOO!" she disappeared.
And that's exactly how Bubba and Earl, maintenance men extraordinaire, found me, half-naked and part of me dangling from the Jaws of Life, and the other part smashed between glass!
After exchanging polite "Hi, how's it going" type greetings, Bubba (or possibly Earl) asked, to my utter disbelief, if I knew the power was off.
Trying to disguise my hysteria, I replied with as much calmness as possible "Uh, yes, yes I did thanks."
"You bet, take care" Bubba replied and waved good-bye as though I'd been standing in the line at the grocery store.
Two hours later, Belinda breezes in wearing a sheepish grin. Making no attempt to suppress her amusement, she said, "Oh I am sooo sorry!" The power came back on and I totally forgot about you! And silly me, I went to lunch. Are we upset?"
And that, Your Honor, is exactly how her head ended up between the clamps....
POWER OUTAGE DURING A MAMMOGRAM
I actually kept my mammogram appointment. I was met with, "Hi! I'm Belinda!" This perky clipboard carrier smiled from ear to ear, tilted her head to one side and crooned, "All I need you to do is step into this room right here, strip to the waist, then slip on this gown. Everything clear?"
I'm thinking, "Belinda, try decaf. This ain't rocket science."
Belinda skipped away to prepare the chamber of horrors.
With the right side finished, Belinda flipped me (literally) to the left and said, "Hmmmm. Can you stand on your tippy toes and lean in a tad so we can get everything?"
"Fine," I answered. I was freezing, bruised, and out of air, so why not use the remaining circulation in my legs and neck and finish me off?
My body was in a holding pattern that defied gravity (with my other boob wedged between those two 4 inch pieces of square glass) when we heard, then felt a zap! Complete darkness and the power went off!
"Oh, maintenance is working. Bet they hit a snag." Belinda headed for the door.
"Excuse me! You're not leaving me in this vise alone are you?" I shouted.
Belinda kept going and said, "Oh, you fussy puppy...the door's wide open so you'll have the emergency hall lights. I'll be right back."
Before I could shout "NOOOO!" she disappeared.
And that's exactly how Bubba and Earl, maintenance men extraordinaire, found me, half-naked and part of me dangling from the Jaws of Life, and the other part smashed between glass!
After exchanging polite "Hi, how's it going" type greetings, Bubba (or possibly Earl) asked, to my utter disbelief, if I knew the power was off.
Trying to disguise my hysteria, I replied with as much calmness as possible "Uh, yes, yes I did thanks."
"You bet, take care" Bubba replied and waved good-bye as though I'd been standing in the line at the grocery store.
Two hours later, Belinda breezes in wearing a sheepish grin. Making no attempt to suppress her amusement, she said, "Oh I am sooo sorry!" The power came back on and I totally forgot about you! And silly me, I went to lunch. Are we upset?"
And that, Your Honor, is exactly how her head ended up between the clamps....
Friday, June 20, 2008
An Intentional Summer for Your Kids
Rather than enduring through the summer, make it intentional! If your children are old enough, have them think through some goals for themselves over the summer. These could includes the following categories: physical, social, financial, vocational, spiritual, educational, mental, artistic, musical, and life skills.
If you have grade school children, you may need to talk about this with them. If your children are younger, think through the areas that would apply to your small children and come up with ways you'd like to see them grow over the summer. With our teenagers, we let them decide their own goals. Some of them included losing weight, expressing anger appropriately, speaking gentle words instead of harsh words, saving money for a car, learning how to manage money, and making new friends.
Some ideas for each category:
- Physical: eating nutritionally, running a mile in a certain time, learning a new sport, swimming lessons, care of hair and skin, an athletic camp, honing athletic skills, riding a bicycle/tricycle, fine motor skills, etc.
- Social: table manners, fun ideas for dates, sharing, please and thank you, not interrupting, telephone etiquette, how to be a good conversationalist, how to be a good friend, how to protect yourself on a date, what to do if your friends want you to do something you shouldn't, etc.
- Financial: saving, tithing, budgeting, opening a checking or savings account, investments, generosity, etc.
- Vocational: shadowing someone in a field of interest, researching a profession, field trip, internship, volunteer work, getting a job, how to interview, how to write a resume, how to fill out a job application, etc.
- Spiritual: vacation Bible school, memory verses, prayer, how to study the Bible, seeing God in nature, how to know God, restoring your relationship with God when you've blown it, finding a church you like, joining a youth group, etc.
- Educational: brushing up on needy subjects, summer school, work sheets, college visits, thinking through a major, keyboarding or computer skills, how to study, how to take a test, how to take notes, learning the alphabet or numbers or colors, learning how to read, etc.
- Mental: learning more about an interest, field trips, logic exercises, games, challenge programs, learning skills, memory techniques, time management, etc.
- Artistic: art lessons or classes, art time for drawing, etc., crafts, woodworking, sewing, jewelry, cartoons, knit, crochet, etc.
- Musical: lessons, learning a new instrument, concerts, symphonies, outdoor music programs, voice lessons, choir, band, camp, etc.
Life Skills: changing a tire, setting the table, ironing, mending, tying shoes, folding clothes, laundry, how to plan balanced meals, cooking, how to use household appliances, cleaning up toys, how to make a bed, etc.
Hope I gave you some food for thought. Tell me about your intentional plans for the summer!
If you have grade school children, you may need to talk about this with them. If your children are younger, think through the areas that would apply to your small children and come up with ways you'd like to see them grow over the summer. With our teenagers, we let them decide their own goals. Some of them included losing weight, expressing anger appropriately, speaking gentle words instead of harsh words, saving money for a car, learning how to manage money, and making new friends.
Some ideas for each category:
- Physical: eating nutritionally, running a mile in a certain time, learning a new sport, swimming lessons, care of hair and skin, an athletic camp, honing athletic skills, riding a bicycle/tricycle, fine motor skills, etc.
- Social: table manners, fun ideas for dates, sharing, please and thank you, not interrupting, telephone etiquette, how to be a good conversationalist, how to be a good friend, how to protect yourself on a date, what to do if your friends want you to do something you shouldn't, etc.
- Financial: saving, tithing, budgeting, opening a checking or savings account, investments, generosity, etc.
- Vocational: shadowing someone in a field of interest, researching a profession, field trip, internship, volunteer work, getting a job, how to interview, how to write a resume, how to fill out a job application, etc.
- Spiritual: vacation Bible school, memory verses, prayer, how to study the Bible, seeing God in nature, how to know God, restoring your relationship with God when you've blown it, finding a church you like, joining a youth group, etc.
- Educational: brushing up on needy subjects, summer school, work sheets, college visits, thinking through a major, keyboarding or computer skills, how to study, how to take a test, how to take notes, learning the alphabet or numbers or colors, learning how to read, etc.
- Mental: learning more about an interest, field trips, logic exercises, games, challenge programs, learning skills, memory techniques, time management, etc.
- Artistic: art lessons or classes, art time for drawing, etc., crafts, woodworking, sewing, jewelry, cartoons, knit, crochet, etc.
- Musical: lessons, learning a new instrument, concerts, symphonies, outdoor music programs, voice lessons, choir, band, camp, etc.
Life Skills: changing a tire, setting the table, ironing, mending, tying shoes, folding clothes, laundry, how to plan balanced meals, cooking, how to use household appliances, cleaning up toys, how to make a bed, etc.
Hope I gave you some food for thought. Tell me about your intentional plans for the summer!
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Organizing Your Kid's Room
Summertime is a great time to rethink your kid's room - no matter what age your child is. If your child is old enough to be involved, do it together. He/she will understand the system and be more likely to maintain it.
You'll want to purge, make the room functional based on your child's interests, and create a system. The hardest part is setting aside time each day for your child to maintain the system.
If your child has lots of little items, an inexpensive way to house them is in plastic see-through shoe boxes you can buy at the dollar store. He/she can label them or draw a picture to identify the contents of each shoe box. The shoe boxes can stack neatly on shelves. And the shoe boxes make the contents portable!
If you need help creating functional areas or maximizing space for kids, our Three Steps to Organizing Your Child's Room (http://1-2-3getorganized.com./books.html) will get your idea juices flowing!
You'll want to purge, make the room functional based on your child's interests, and create a system. The hardest part is setting aside time each day for your child to maintain the system.
If your child has lots of little items, an inexpensive way to house them is in plastic see-through shoe boxes you can buy at the dollar store. He/she can label them or draw a picture to identify the contents of each shoe box. The shoe boxes can stack neatly on shelves. And the shoe boxes make the contents portable!
If you need help creating functional areas or maximizing space for kids, our Three Steps to Organizing Your Child's Room (http://1-2-3getorganized.com./books.html) will get your idea juices flowing!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Increasing Your Effectiveness at Work
There are a number of things you can do to stay at your peak effectiveness during your work day. Experiment with the following:
- Take the breaks your employer offers to you. Go for a walk, go outside, climb a few flights of stairs - move! Just a few minutes of change refreshes your mind and your body.
- Multi-tasking is over-rated. It seems that all the hype about multi-tasking over the last few years has proven to be bad advice. The studies I've read recently show that people who concentrate on their task at hand do it more quickly and more effectively than those who multi-task.
Doing a couple of tasks requiring little concentration is always a time saver - just make sure you don't sacrifice quality for "efficiency." If you have to redo a task, it's not saving you time.
- Create boundaries for yourself. Don't volunteer to help someone else at the expense of your own duties. Don't let others waste your time. If you are in a noisy area, close your door or wear headphones to reduce sound if it's acceptable in your workplace. Go to a different location to work in quiet if possible.
- Eat. If you are running low on fuel, you will not be able to function properly. Have a healthy snack during your breaks.
- Drink. Keep yourself hydrated. Our well-known coffee cafes make their coffee three to four times stronger than regular coffee, and if you get a specialty coffee it's loaded with sugar. Stop for one on the way to work, and expect your energy to crash in a couple of hours as the caffeine and sugar wear off. Better to have some green tea. Or water!
If you need more help with time management at the office or organizing your office efficiently, see our books on those topics. Here's a link: http://1-2-3getorganized.com./books.html
- Take the breaks your employer offers to you. Go for a walk, go outside, climb a few flights of stairs - move! Just a few minutes of change refreshes your mind and your body.
- Multi-tasking is over-rated. It seems that all the hype about multi-tasking over the last few years has proven to be bad advice. The studies I've read recently show that people who concentrate on their task at hand do it more quickly and more effectively than those who multi-task.
Doing a couple of tasks requiring little concentration is always a time saver - just make sure you don't sacrifice quality for "efficiency." If you have to redo a task, it's not saving you time.
- Create boundaries for yourself. Don't volunteer to help someone else at the expense of your own duties. Don't let others waste your time. If you are in a noisy area, close your door or wear headphones to reduce sound if it's acceptable in your workplace. Go to a different location to work in quiet if possible.
- Eat. If you are running low on fuel, you will not be able to function properly. Have a healthy snack during your breaks.
- Drink. Keep yourself hydrated. Our well-known coffee cafes make their coffee three to four times stronger than regular coffee, and if you get a specialty coffee it's loaded with sugar. Stop for one on the way to work, and expect your energy to crash in a couple of hours as the caffeine and sugar wear off. Better to have some green tea. Or water!
If you need more help with time management at the office or organizing your office efficiently, see our books on those topics. Here's a link: http://1-2-3getorganized.com./books.html
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Refill Time
For those of you looking at the long expanse of summer wondering how you're going to have any time to yourself, think "refill time." This is something I've planned into our summer plans with our foster children this year.
Refill time is when everyone goes to their rooms and has some quiet time to themselves. Depending on the age of the child, this could includ reading, drawing, coloring, listening to music, journaling, playing a game, doing a puzzle, doing a word puzzle, playing quietly with toys - whatever refills them.
If your children are small, you will likely need to start with very short times, five to ten minutes for example. You can increase it over time, depending on the age of your children. Our girls are teenagers, and we try to take from one to two hours of refill time daily. It doesn't always work, but that's my goal.
Some of them have embraced it heartily. Others endure it and can't wait until it's over so they can be with people again!
With small children, you may need to show them what they can do during refill time. You can set the timer, or if they can tell time, show them when their refill time is up. The idea is to teach your children how to spend time by themselves, that it's ok to plan in quiet alone time in their schedules, and to give you time to yourself to refill.
What do you do to refill yourself?
Refill time is when everyone goes to their rooms and has some quiet time to themselves. Depending on the age of the child, this could includ reading, drawing, coloring, listening to music, journaling, playing a game, doing a puzzle, doing a word puzzle, playing quietly with toys - whatever refills them.
If your children are small, you will likely need to start with very short times, five to ten minutes for example. You can increase it over time, depending on the age of your children. Our girls are teenagers, and we try to take from one to two hours of refill time daily. It doesn't always work, but that's my goal.
Some of them have embraced it heartily. Others endure it and can't wait until it's over so they can be with people again!
With small children, you may need to show them what they can do during refill time. You can set the timer, or if they can tell time, show them when their refill time is up. The idea is to teach your children how to spend time by themselves, that it's ok to plan in quiet alone time in their schedules, and to give you time to yourself to refill.
What do you do to refill yourself?
Monday, June 16, 2008
Passing My Savings On To You - Lower Prices for My Books
I am no longer using a distributor and selling strictly from my website, which reduces my expenses. So I thought I'd pass my savings on to you!
- My books will now be $6.99 (Decluttering, Organizing Your Kitchen, Organizing Your Office, Organizing Your Child's Room, Time Management for the Office, Clever Cleaning, and Time Management for the Stay-at-Home Mom)
- My workbooks will now be $16.99 (Time Management, Planning Dinner, Downsizing to a Smaller Residence, Planning Your Child's Parties, Time Management for the College Student, Time Management for the Working Mom, Time Management for the Single Mom, Managing Your Time, Energy and Clutter with Application to Multiple Sclerosis
- Hassle Free Dinners CD will now be $16.99 (52 weeks of dinner menus, instructions, and grocery lists + lots more)
- My ebooks will remain at $5.99.
- My books will now be $6.99 (Decluttering, Organizing Your Kitchen, Organizing Your Office, Organizing Your Child's Room, Time Management for the Office, Clever Cleaning, and Time Management for the Stay-at-Home Mom)
- My workbooks will now be $16.99 (Time Management, Planning Dinner, Downsizing to a Smaller Residence, Planning Your Child's Parties, Time Management for the College Student, Time Management for the Working Mom, Time Management for the Single Mom, Managing Your Time, Energy and Clutter with Application to Multiple Sclerosis
- Hassle Free Dinners CD will now be $16.99 (52 weeks of dinner menus, instructions, and grocery lists + lots more)
- My ebooks will remain at $5.99.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
The Container Store's Travel Sale with Free Shipping
Just in time for summer travel! The Container Store - one of my favorite stores of all time - has loads of travel items on sale. And to make it even sweeter, they are offering free shipping, too.
My favorite on the list is the turquoise lap top bag. There are also travel organizers, cute luggage tags and straps, car organizers, and more.
Just thought you'd like to know about this great deal! Just click the title to see the entire assortment.
My favorite on the list is the turquoise lap top bag. There are also travel organizers, cute luggage tags and straps, car organizers, and more.
Just thought you'd like to know about this great deal! Just click the title to see the entire assortment.
Keeping Your Memory Sharp
A couple of days I watched a segment by Diane Sawyer on ABC News (www.abcnews.go.com) about keeping your memory sharp by exercising your brain. It's called neurobics. While regular exercise is important to our brain function, exercise specifically related to our brain is key.
How does this relate to organizing? We need all the help we can get to keep ourselves organized! By keeping our brains flexible and exercised, we stay sharp and ward off Alzheimer's.
Here are a few suggestions Marie Savard, ABC's medical consultant, offered to Diane.
1. Create new motor pathways in your brain by using your less dominant hand to do ordinary functions, like brushing your teeth, punching in the numbers on your phone, etc.
2. Close your eyes when doing ordinary activities and experience your other senses - smell, taste, feel, hearing.
3. Play games to increase your cognitive ability.
4. Create novelty in your life - learn something new, go a different route to work, change chairs at dinner, go down a street you've never driven down.
5. Make sure you get Omega 3 in your diet either through foods or capsule form.
Dr. Savard also mentioned avoiding four behaviors that start with S: sleep deprivation, a sedentary lifestyle, smoking and stress. Did you know that stress reduces your brain function? Yikes!!
Some valuable information to chew on!
What do you do to relieve your stress?
How does this relate to organizing? We need all the help we can get to keep ourselves organized! By keeping our brains flexible and exercised, we stay sharp and ward off Alzheimer's.
Here are a few suggestions Marie Savard, ABC's medical consultant, offered to Diane.
1. Create new motor pathways in your brain by using your less dominant hand to do ordinary functions, like brushing your teeth, punching in the numbers on your phone, etc.
2. Close your eyes when doing ordinary activities and experience your other senses - smell, taste, feel, hearing.
3. Play games to increase your cognitive ability.
4. Create novelty in your life - learn something new, go a different route to work, change chairs at dinner, go down a street you've never driven down.
5. Make sure you get Omega 3 in your diet either through foods or capsule form.
Dr. Savard also mentioned avoiding four behaviors that start with S: sleep deprivation, a sedentary lifestyle, smoking and stress. Did you know that stress reduces your brain function? Yikes!!
Some valuable information to chew on!
What do you do to relieve your stress?
Friday, June 13, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Cozi 2.0
Remember my reviews of time management organizing systems? One of those was Cozi, a free online program. Cozi has just rolled out its 2.0 version. Here is what they say are the upgrades:
- "Quicker and easier than ever to use. Sign in from any computer with Internet access. No downloads required. (To see all the new features and for the best experience, we recommend the following web browsers: Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox.)
- Full of features you've been asking for.
Try the new month calendar view and month printing.
We think you'll also enjoy the new family journal which is designed for busy families to jot down moments and memories they don't want to forget.
Plus, there's a recipe search in Cozi lists that helps make your grocery trips more efficient.
- Getting better, faster than ever. Enjoy immediate access to new features without having to download new software."
If you're looking for a new way to manage your time, I recommend Cozi as a great option! Click on the title above to be taken to their site.
What time management system do you and why?
- "Quicker and easier than ever to use. Sign in from any computer with Internet access. No downloads required. (To see all the new features and for the best experience, we recommend the following web browsers: Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox.)
- Full of features you've been asking for.
Try the new month calendar view and month printing.
We think you'll also enjoy the new family journal which is designed for busy families to jot down moments and memories they don't want to forget.
Plus, there's a recipe search in Cozi lists that helps make your grocery trips more efficient.
- Getting better, faster than ever. Enjoy immediate access to new features without having to download new software."
If you're looking for a new way to manage your time, I recommend Cozi as a great option! Click on the title above to be taken to their site.
What time management system do you and why?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Managing Invasive Herbs
Better Homes and Gardens (http://www.bhg.com) offers some tips for preventing your mint or other invasive herbs (tansy, catnip, comfrey, horseradish, lemon balm, hops, artemisia) from taking over your garden. A couple of ideas:
- Plant them in 12-inch pots and place the pots in the ground so that they are not seen. The pots keep the roots from running, which is how they normally spread.
- Plant them in large planters or half-barrels.
You may want to plant a different variety in each pot or planter.
The only invasive herb I have experience with is mint - my mint patch started out with just two or three plants three years ago, and now it has grown to a three foot by 2 foot rectangle. It is bordered by our house and a sidewalk on two sides, so its growth potential is limited. But the area where it is growing is rather unused, so we really don't mind it spreading. I love being able to walk out my side door and pick mint leaves for our herbal mint iced tea each day.
I know I shared this recipe before, but it's worth repeating. I collect a generous handful of both spearmint and peppermint. After rinsing off the leaves, I pour boiling water over them in a mug. I let it steep - the longer the better - and add about 3/8 to 1/2 cup of sugar for 1/2 gallon. It's so refreshing in hot weather! We take it to drink when we play tennis - far more refreshing than water.
Mint's abundance allows you to share your leaves or your plants with your friends and family. One of my next door neighbors now has a planter full of mint that she grew from some sprigs from our garden.
Did you know that mint is soothing and calming? And in olden days, a girl would chew a mint leaf before her beau came to call, to freshen her breath. And, of course, mint can be used in a variety of recipes.
- Plant them in 12-inch pots and place the pots in the ground so that they are not seen. The pots keep the roots from running, which is how they normally spread.
- Plant them in large planters or half-barrels.
You may want to plant a different variety in each pot or planter.
The only invasive herb I have experience with is mint - my mint patch started out with just two or three plants three years ago, and now it has grown to a three foot by 2 foot rectangle. It is bordered by our house and a sidewalk on two sides, so its growth potential is limited. But the area where it is growing is rather unused, so we really don't mind it spreading. I love being able to walk out my side door and pick mint leaves for our herbal mint iced tea each day.
I know I shared this recipe before, but it's worth repeating. I collect a generous handful of both spearmint and peppermint. After rinsing off the leaves, I pour boiling water over them in a mug. I let it steep - the longer the better - and add about 3/8 to 1/2 cup of sugar for 1/2 gallon. It's so refreshing in hot weather! We take it to drink when we play tennis - far more refreshing than water.
Mint's abundance allows you to share your leaves or your plants with your friends and family. One of my next door neighbors now has a planter full of mint that she grew from some sprigs from our garden.
Did you know that mint is soothing and calming? And in olden days, a girl would chew a mint leaf before her beau came to call, to freshen her breath. And, of course, mint can be used in a variety of recipes.
Need Some Additional Counter or Cabinet Space without Having to Redo Your Kitchen?
Short on counter or cabinet space? If so, consider getting a rolling kitchen cart rather than going through the headache and expense of redoing your kichen. Or use as a stop-gap until you redo your kitchen, if that's in your plans. Kitchen carts come in a variety of colors, sizes, materials, and prices. All you need is a little extra space in your kitchen.
My favorite is this red one (my favorite color!) from StacksandStacks. It is not your mother's kitchen cart! It's so pretty, it would make a beautiful addition to any kitchen.
This particular rolling cart comes in black, red, natural, and oak. You also have a choice of counter tops: wood, granite in a variety of colors, or stainless steel. What a nice way to expand your kitchen without the headaches! For more options and info, click: Kitchen Cart with Granite Top - White
My favorite is this red one (my favorite color!) from StacksandStacks. It is not your mother's kitchen cart! It's so pretty, it would make a beautiful addition to any kitchen.
This particular rolling cart comes in black, red, natural, and oak. You also have a choice of counter tops: wood, granite in a variety of colors, or stainless steel. What a nice way to expand your kitchen without the headaches! For more options and info, click: Kitchen Cart with Granite Top - WhiteMonday, June 9, 2008
Saving Time by Cutting Out Craft Clean Up
As you can imagine with teenage foster girls, we do a lot of crafts in the summertime. My organizing business is necessarily minimized so I can spend time with the girls while they are out of school.
This week we are painting terra cotta flower pots. We had to spray a sealer on them before painting. I grabbed my Glad Press 'n Seal and covered my patio table with it before spraying - no clean up!
It's been in the 90s this week, so we brought the flower pots inside to paint. Even though we have a white plastic craft table, I decided to cover that as well so we wouldn't have to be continually wiping up paint. Since we must do several coats, we have just left the Press 'n Seal on the table until our project is finished.
I'm so glad this idea popped into my head - what a time saver!
Do you have similar "light bulb moments" you'd like to share with us? We'd love to hear them!
This week we are painting terra cotta flower pots. We had to spray a sealer on them before painting. I grabbed my Glad Press 'n Seal and covered my patio table with it before spraying - no clean up!
It's been in the 90s this week, so we brought the flower pots inside to paint. Even though we have a white plastic craft table, I decided to cover that as well so we wouldn't have to be continually wiping up paint. Since we must do several coats, we have just left the Press 'n Seal on the table until our project is finished.
I'm so glad this idea popped into my head - what a time saver!
Do you have similar "light bulb moments" you'd like to share with us? We'd love to hear them!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Save Time, Energy, and Money - How to Spot Scams
Whether you're searching for a work-from-home job or a new marketing tool or a new kitchen gadget, beware of internet scams, according to the Better Business Bureau. The internet is fertile soil for the growing number of scams.
How to be a savvy researcher:
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Promises of huge income or amazing benefits to you are probably not typical. The fine print on diet program ads showing before and after results, says "results are not typical." This could easily be the theme song for most of these promotions.
- If a business opportunity requires you to send money before explaining exactly what the opportunity is about, watch out! Many of the popular ones are stuffing envelopes, putting together craft items, and doing medical data entry.
- Avoid multi-level marketing that concentrates on recruitment rather than selling products. Multi-level marketing of actual products, usually at home parties can be legitimate and income-producing. But when a commission is paid for recruiting new members for your downline and quality products are not the central focus of the business, walk the other way!
- Check with the Better Business Bureau (http://www.bbb.org) before shelling out any money.
- Www.scambusters.org also checks out both online and offline businesses to test validity.
- Never sign on the dotted line during a high-pressured meeting or promotion. Take time to consider and research.
- Pay attention to your gut feelings - if you feel uneasy about an opportunity, don't move forward.
- If you're a woman looking for work-from-home opportunities, go to Homebased Working Moms (http://www.hbwm.com) or Women for Hire (http://www.womenforhire.com).
Source: Shine from Yahoo! June 1, 2008
How to be a savvy researcher:
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Promises of huge income or amazing benefits to you are probably not typical. The fine print on diet program ads showing before and after results, says "results are not typical." This could easily be the theme song for most of these promotions.
- If a business opportunity requires you to send money before explaining exactly what the opportunity is about, watch out! Many of the popular ones are stuffing envelopes, putting together craft items, and doing medical data entry.
- Avoid multi-level marketing that concentrates on recruitment rather than selling products. Multi-level marketing of actual products, usually at home parties can be legitimate and income-producing. But when a commission is paid for recruiting new members for your downline and quality products are not the central focus of the business, walk the other way!
- Check with the Better Business Bureau (http://www.bbb.org) before shelling out any money.
- Www.scambusters.org also checks out both online and offline businesses to test validity.
- Never sign on the dotted line during a high-pressured meeting or promotion. Take time to consider and research.
- Pay attention to your gut feelings - if you feel uneasy about an opportunity, don't move forward.
- If you're a woman looking for work-from-home opportunities, go to Homebased Working Moms (http://www.hbwm.com) or Women for Hire (http://www.womenforhire.com).
Source: Shine from Yahoo! June 1, 2008
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