Mommy Tip Tuesday

Hey, it's that time again! Time to share your tried and true mommy tips and pick up some tried and true mommy tips as well.

Are you like me and sometimes find yourself late in the evening wondering what on earth you are going to blog about the next day? I do this often. Or sometimes, I will get up in the morning and have something in mind to blog but then remember I have somewhere I need to be and, therefore, no time to blog.

You'd be amazed at how many times I've gone to bed on a Monday night and, just after climbing into my comfy bed, thought, "Oh no! I have no tip for tomorrow!" You would think that I would have accumulated tons of them before even beginning this meme, but not so.

Well, here's my little mommy/blogger tip for you today: Did you know that Blogger now lets you schedule your blog posts? Yep, you can write several at once but have them post to your blog at different times. Times you've set up in advance. I've already done this with my Meyer Mondays and am looking to do it with my Mommy Tip Tuesdays.

This is what you do. When you are finished writing your blog post, click on the blue "Post Options" link in the bottom left-hand corner of the compose box. This will bring up your options directly below. Off to the right, you'll see "Post date and time". Just change the info in each box to the date and time you want your post to be published and that's it. It's so easy!

So if you find yourself trying to decide between two or three different mommy tips and can't pick just one, you can write about them all separately and schedule them over the next few weeks. Then each week, you can just sit back & relax come Tuesday morning knowing that your tip has already been shared with the rest of us thanks to scheduled posting!

Do you have a Mommy Tip you'd like to share? Post about it on your blog then return here and add your name and web address to the Mr. Linky below. We'd love to learn something new from you. Just please remember to link back to The Stumbling Christian in your Mommy Tip blog post so that your readers know where to find other great Mommy Tips and also join in on the fun as well.

Mommy Tip Tuesday

Happy Mommy Tip Tuesday to everyone! Got a Mommy tip to share? Blog about it and then come back here and add it to the Mr. Linky at the end of this post. Please, remember to link back to me so that others reading your blog will know where to join in the fun!

My Mommy Tip for this week really isn't mine at all. I'm totally stealing this one right out of a Martha Stewart magazine. Hey, if you're going to steal a tip you may as well steal from the best, don't you think?

Here are some cute little piggy banks you and your own little piggies can make in the time it take to huff and puff and blow a house down!

Here are the exact instructions from Martha Stewart:

Have a parent use a utility knife to cut a slit in a mini water bottle; make sure it's large enough to get a quarter in. Cut a hole in bottom of bottle for removing money. Wrap a long, wide strip of colored paper around middle of bottle; mark slit and cut out. Use double-sided tape to secure paper to bottle, lining up slits. Use two colors of paper for ears; cut small sections for insides of ears, then glue on larger pieces. Bend back bottoms of ears; glue to bottle. Use a hole punch to cut eyes from black paper and nostrils from pink. Glue in place. For legs, glue beads to bottom of bank on paper band.

Seriously, aren't those too cute? *oink* *oink* You can find more great Martha Stewart kid crafts here.

Mommy Tip Tuesday

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My Mommy Tip this week is of the "what NOT to do" sort. Scroll down a little and you will see my experience in this matter first hand.

I'm always interested in buying London artsy-craftsy things. I love encouraging her imagination and creativity. I would encourage all parents to do so with their kids. However, I would add to that encouragement a word on restraint and "age appropriate" art supplies.

For example:

I don't have anything against washable markers, per se. It's just that just because they are washable doesn't mean I want to wash marker off of stuff. Particularly my toddler:

Repeatedly. Yes, I said repeatedly because strangely enough I couldn't figure out the first 5-6 times that I put them in London's chubby little hands that she would keep putting them in her sweet little mouth!

But I finally learned and the washable markers went "bye-bye" at least until one of us can figure out how to use them properly. They'll be back, I'm sure. And when they are I may just allow London to use them to fill out her college applications.

Do you have a Mommy Tip you'd like to share? Please blog about it and then add your name and URL to the Mr. Linky below. Be sure to link back to me so your readers know where to find Mommy Tip Tuesday and join in on the fun!

Mommy Tip Tuesday

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Today's Mommy Tip is a bit of a product review as well. I recentlydiscovered Johnson's Bath Buddies for kids and I just LOVE their bar soap.

The bar of soap comes wrapped in a non-slip pouch that makes it easy for little hands to grasp. London has reached one more level of independence now that she can wash herself without my help. She even gets a kick out of washing her baby brother.

Another plus - it retails for roughly .99 cents. I've seen it for a bit less at Wal-mart, as well. But the best part is often times you can find coupons for Johnson's bath products at $1.00 off. So, if you keep your eye out, you can get this soap for absolutely FREE! And who doesn't like FREE?

You? You don't like FREE? Well, you're a freak - get off my blog!

For the rest of you, I found a coupon for you at MoneySavingMom.com. Go to this post and click on the third "here" for the $1/1 coupon (last line of the post). The first "here" for the $2/2 coupon will require you to download a coupon printer program that left my computer running in circles, so skip that one.

Do you have a Mommy Tip you'd like to share? Just blog about it and add your info to the Mr. Linky below. Be sure to link back to The Stumbling Christian in your post so others know where to join in on the fun.

Have a great day!

Mommy Tip Tuesday

Good Morning! It's Mommy Tip Tuesday again. If you have a tip to offer other moms today, we'd love to hear it. Remember, your tip can be about anything mom and/or kid related such as, getting kids out the door for school in the morning, craft ideas, fun & healthy snacks, potty training, keeping kids happy on long car trips, etc. Share your wisdom! I know I could sure use it! Blog about your tip then add your name to the Mr. Linky below so others can check it out. Be sure to link back to me in your post so others know where to find Mommy Tip Tuesday and join in the fun next time.

Today, I'm doing things a little different. Instead of offering you a tip, I'm looking for a tip or two from you. As I've said before, I struggle with getting London to eat. I'm happy with the smoothies in the morning but don't plan on feeding her smoothies 3x a day just to get something healthy into her.

And, really, WHAT she eats is not the problem I'm struggling with right now, it's WHEN. I'm struggling with snack-time. If I left it up to London, she would just snack, snack, snack all day long. And I don't mean on your typical "junk/snack foods" I mean yogurt, bananas, organic cereal bars, goldfish crackers or dry cereal. I don't have a problem with these foods, it's just that when it comes time to eat a meal, specifically dinner, she is not hungry and then it's a struggle to get her to finish her meal.

I've cut off snacks after 4 pm and this seems to be working pretty well. She's then hungry enough at dinner to finish her meal. She will then say that she doesn't want anymore but will immediately ask for a snack. If I feel she's eaten an adequate amount of dinner, I will allow her a snack. All this takes place around 6 pm in our home. She will then repeatedly ask for more and more snacks for the next 2-3 hrs. It's insane! I ask her if she's really hungry or if she just wants to eat because she likes it. She tells me she's hungry.

We've tried getting her to eat more dinner or tell her that she's allowed ONE snack after dinner. She is not happy with this new rule and will continue to ask for snacks. I have to literally get upset with her and sternly warn her not to ask again to get her to stop. But, if she's really hungry, I want her to have something. Argh! You can see why I'm pulling my hair out!

What are the snack rules in your house? How do you handle after-dinner snacking? Is there some trick to knowing if your child is really hungry or just wanting to munch out of habit?

Mommy Tip Tuesday

Good Morning! It's Mommy Tip Tuesday again - won't you join me?

Today, my tip is a book recommendation for those mommies out there with a new baby at home. Specifically, a new baby who may not appreciate being put down and getting themselves to sleep.

When London was fresh-out-of-the-chute-brand-new, I nursed her to sleep for each nap and at bedtime. Soon, it was time for her to learn to fall asleep without me or, more specifically, without my boob.

She was having none of it.

Just about that time, I stumbled across the book, "The Happiest Baby on the Block" by Dr. Harvey Karp and I quickly snatched it up! Boy, was I ever happy I did!

Dr. Karp gives expert advice on how to lovingly get your baby to sleep without resorting to leaving them to cry on their own. Crying it out was not an option for us with London. Kirby didn't get so lucky and was allowed to cry for 10 minutes or so before falling to sleep. London is the firstborn and, therefore, loved a little more. It's only natural. And the sooner The Boy learns this, the better off we'll all be. Now excuse me while I go throw a handful of Cheerios on the floor for his breakfast and point to where the milk cows are. I'll be right back.

I'm back! However, I'm cutting this short again because as I've been typing this a friend has called distraught with a "clutter emergency" so I'm headed over to help her clear out her living room and other areas. I love dealing with other people's clutter! Call me if you ever need stuff thrown away. I'm really good at it!

Unfortunately, I'm really good at buying more, as well.

Add your Mommy Tip! I'd love to hear from you!

Mommy Tip Tuesday

Welcome to the inaugural post of Mommy Tip Tuesday! Here's my tip for the week:

Cookie cutters aren't just for cookies! My daughter is a picky-picky eater. She will adamantly proclaim she does not like a certain food before ever trying it. She was the only child I knew who didn't like PB&J sandwiches. As one who considers a good PB&J a food staple, this was something I just could not abide!

I remember reading once that children not only want their food to taste appealing but to look appealing as well. So one day, I cut out the center of a PB&J with a bunny shaped cookie cutter and presented it to her that way. It was an instant hit and she's been eating them ever since. We have a variety of cutter shapes and I very wisely allow her to decide the shape each time.

Sometimes it's flower PB&J. Sometimes it's butterfly PB&J. Sometimes it's a house and sometimes it's a sheep. Heck, she's even gotten radical and chosen the CIRCLE cutter, of all things but, hey, as long as she's eating I don't care!

We've used the cookie cutters with pancakes, cheese crisps and pizza, too!

Got a Mommy Tip you'd like to share? Please blog about it and add your name and website to the Mr. Linky below. Please link back to me in your post so others know where to find me and add their own tips. Be sure to come back next week and share another Mommy Tip with everyone!

Mommy Tip Tuesday

INTRODUCING: MOMMY TIP TUESDAY!

As a new mom almost 4 years ago, I passionately soaked in every last word of every parenting book I could get my hands on. To this day, I still have a soft spot in my heart for the "Be a Perfect Parent Doing Exactly As I Say" genre. However, one thing these books never mentioned to me was that I could get a lot of great and useful advice from other moms who have been there, done that for absolutely free.

Now that I am the proud owner of two tiny people, I have a little advice of my own to give. Sure, it would all probably fit on the backside of a matchbook, but hey, at least I got something!

I'm inviting you to join me every Tuesday to share your tried-n-true Mommy Tips. These can be tips you've discovered on your own, tips passed down from your mother or grandmother, or just tips you ripped off from a friend that you now claim as your own and you're pretty sure she doesn't blog.

These tips can be anything from getting your wee-one to sleep through the night, dealing with sibling rivalry, a kid-friendly craft project, potty-training, homework routines - you name it. Basically, if it has anything to do with a kid or being a mom, it fits the description.

Next week Tuesday, I'll have a Mr. Linky set up at the bottom of my very first Mommy Tip Tuesday post so you can add your name and other moms can click over to your site to view your valuable insight. This is a great way to bond with other moms who are in the thick of it like you, bond with community, find other interesting mommy blogs and generate traffic to your blog.

Won't you join me?