How to Make Cleaning the House More Fun

January 6, 2012 by

The dust bunnies in the corners are starting to stare back at you, and you need to take a running jump onto your bed to make it over the mountain of dirty clothes.

You forget what color the floor in the kitchen was originally under all of the dirt, and you have gottenHouse Cleaning Made Fun into the habit of eating dinner straight out of the pan because all of the plates have caked on grime.

You know that you need to clean the house, but you never get to the task because cleaning is so boring!

Cleaning the house is certainly not as exciting as horseback riding down the beach, skydiving, or going to a music festival, but it doesn’t have to be the most un-enjoyable thing in the world either.

If you can make cleaning a bit more fun and entertaining, perhaps you won’t put it off for so long?

Also, if you are having fun when cleaning you will work quicker and be less distracted, so that your house will be sparkling clean sooner and you can get on with the more exciting things in life.

Here are some tips for spicing up your cleaning routine:

  • Set up an open garbage can or recycling bin across the room as a basketball hoop, and see how many scraps of junk mail, food wrappers, and other junk you can toss into can without missing. Try to break your own record!
  • Break the task into small jobs and reward yourself after you finish each one. For example, if you wash all of the dishes on the kitchen counter you can enjoy a chocolate, or if you organize your entire closet you can go out to a movie.
  • Try to beat the clock! Give yourself a deadline for finishing each task and try to get through it as efficiently as you can. The faster and more focused you are, the sooner you are finished and the more free time you have.
  • Try a new cleaning product. For example, did you know that there are cleaning slippers with scrubbers on the bottom for washing the floor with your feet? These sorts of unusual and quirky cleaning implements will turn your household chores into a fun game.
  • Crank up your favorite tunes and do a little dance as you clean. It will put you in a happy and productive mood.

Make cleaning more fun, and before you know it your home will look fantastic!

That wasn’t so bad, was it?

Filed Under: Home Care Tips Tagged With: , , ,

Fear of Failure? Tips for Keeping Your New Years Resolutions

January 4, 2012 by

Have you made yourself a New Year’s resolution?Goal Setting

The turning over of the calendar usually inspires us to resolve to make positive changes in our lives, but more often than not we fail to follow through on our promises to ourselves.

If you struggle to keep your New Year’s resolutions, perhaps these tips will help you stay on track:

Be more realistic.

If you set goals for yourself that are completely unattainable, you will become discouraged and give up quickly.  For example, if you want to start losing weight and gaining muscle, don’t expect to look like a body builder two weeks into the New Year. 

Make a goal to visit the gym every second day instead, and if you stick to this reasonable goal you will eventually start to see results.

Make a plan. 

If your New Year’s resolution is to pay off your credit card debt, you won’t get far if you keep on spending in the same way. You need to make a plan to do things differently to get different results.

Your plan could include creating a budget to see where you can save money, and then paying off a set amount per month until the debt is gone.

Talk about it.

If you keep your resolution a secret, there is no one to keep you to your word if you decide to give up. If you tell your friends about your goals they can encourage you and motivate you.

Break the goal into small manageable chunks.

Losing 30 pounds seems overwhelming, but losing five pounds is not so daunting.

However, if you focus on these small goals and lose five pounds six times throughout the year, you will be down to your goal weight of 30 pounds less!

These are just a few tips to help you achieve your New Year’s resolutions.

Experts say that it takes approximately three weeks for a new habit to form. If you can stick to your resolution for this long, your positive habits will soon become second nature. 

Filed Under: Personal Development Tagged With: , , ,

The Most Popular New Years Resolutions in North America

January 2, 2012 by

What are the most common things that North Americans make goals to accomplish in the coming year when New Year’s comes around? HereHappy New Year are some of the most common New Year’s resolutions, and tips for making them happen.

Spending More Time with Family and Friends

The polls have suggested that more than half of Americans vowed to spend more time with their loved ones in the New Year. As the years pass by we realized that one of most important things about life is who we spend our time with, and the urge is there to reconnect and enjoy quality moments with people we care about.

Why not set up a weekly date with a friend or a family member to enjoy a favorite activity together?

Lose Weight and Become Healthier

One of the most common New Year’s resolutions year after year is a goal to shed pounds, build muscle and eat better. January is a bumper month for gym memberships, personal trainers, and weight loss programs. It’s great to have a goal to lead a healthier lifestyle, as obesity is becoming a serious health threat to our nation.

However, creating and maintaining a healthy physique requires a long term change in habits and not just a short lived fad diet so make sure that the changes you are making are sustainable.

Quit Smoking

Many people make the vow on January 1st to put down the cigarettes forever, saving themselves from a higher risk of lung cancer and a host of other respiratory ailments. They are rewarded with better health and a sense of accomplishment if they are successful in kicking the habit, but it’s not easy.

Cigarettes are so addictive, and the statistics say that %99 of people who try to quit will fail the first time. However, don’t give up if you have tried to quit and failed. Get your friends to help you commit to kicking the habit, and promise yourself a reward every time you get through another week smoke free.

Get Out of Debt                               

Many Americans have a nasty debt hanging over their heads, whether it is a credit card, student loan, car loan, or something else. One of the most popular resolutions for the year for many people will be to eliminate that debt and get finances their back in the black again.

If you want to be successful in eliminating your debts, make a budget and a financial plan where you reduce your expenses and put a chunk of money every month towards paying off your loans. Stick to the plan and you will be debt free by the end of the year!

These are a few of the most common New Year’s resolutions in North America. What is your resolution for the year ahead?

Filed Under: Personal Finance Tagged With: , , , ,

Celebrating New Years Eve with Your Kids

December 31, 2011 by

If you have young kids and you cannot get a babysitter on New Year’s Eve, you will likely not be hitting the nightclubs and dancing until the kids new years partybreak of dawn.

If you are planning a quiet evening in with your little ones, you can put together a great New Year’s Eve party that the whole family will enjoy! Here are some tips for celebrating New Year’s Eve with your kids:

Decorate the House Together

You and the kids can have a great time in the afternoon decorating your house for New Year’s Eve. String up lights around and set up candles to create a party atmosphere. You can staple together colorful strips of construction paper to make homemade garlands. Get some balloons from the dollar store and some little noise makers that the kids can play when the clock strikes midnight.

Prepare for Staying up Late

If your children are quite small, it might be difficult for them to last until midnight without falling asleep. To help them have enough energy to ring in the New Year when the clock strikes 12, put them down for a nap in the evening or the late afternoon.

Invite Other Kids

If your friends or relatives are going out for the night and you are planning on staying at home with the kids, why not offer to babysit their children as well. The party at your house will be more fun when your kids have a few friends to play with!

Try to keep in small so that it is still easy to manage. Make sure that you have lots of fun games and activities planned! Why not go in the backyard with flashlights to play games or watch the stars, or have a dance party?

New Year’s Goodie Bags

A fun idea to make your New Year’s Eve party memorable is to put together special treat bags for your kids that can only be opened on the stroke of midnight. They can have small toys, books, calendars, and other little gifts for the New Year in them.

If you are celebrating New Year’s with the kids, it doesn’t mean that you are missing out on the fun! On the contrary, you can create a very special New Year’s Eve that you and your kids will remember forever.

Filed Under: Holiday Tips Tagged With: , ,

What Color Are Your Underwear? Strange New Years Eve Traditions from Around the World

December 30, 2011 by

Your family might have an unusual or funny tradition that you enjoy every New Year’s Eve, such as cooking a certain dish or watching a particular movie, or perhaps you like to go to a party with your friends and tie one on until the sun comes up.New Years Party noisemakers

However, how do your local festivities compare to these strange New Year’s traditions from around the world?

Dangerous Danish Customs

In Denmark, the thing to do on the stroke of midnight is to climb up on the nearest chair and leap off into the air. It is believed that this will banish bad spirits who are trying to follow you into the year ahead.

Just make sure that you are careful where you land or you could kick off the New Year with a broken bone.

Another destructive thing to do in Denmark on New Year’s Eve is to throw plates, glasses and other crockery at the front door of your best friend. This brings good luck, and the family who has the most broken dinnerware in front of their house is considered very lucky because they have the most loyal friends.

The Dead are the Life of the Party

Even if you are dead, you can still join in on the New Year’s Festivities in Chile. The people of Talca, Chile are known for celebrating the New Year in the cemetery with their deceased relatives.

They set up the graveyard with decorations and candles, and everyone socializes amidst the tombstones.

Love under the Mistletoe

In Ireland, unmarried women place the leaves of the mistletoe plant under their pillows because it helps them to attract the love of their life. They also believe that it will bring them good luck in the New Year.

Let Your Underwear Do the Talking

If you are celebrating the New Year in Brazil, Mexico, or Bolivia, you will want to put some thought into the color of your underpants. People here wear undergarments of particular colors on the last night of the year to signify what they wish for in the New Year.

For example, wearing unmentionables of red will bring an exciting love life, and yellow underpants grant the wearer economic prosperity.

These are just a few of the fun and unusual New Year’s Eve traditions that are celebrated around the world!

Filed Under: Trivia Tagged With: , , , ,

Tips for Hosting a Fantastic New Years Party on a Budget

December 28, 2011 by

New Year’s Eve is a time to party and celebrate with friends, and you want to plan your own evening get-together so that you can count down to midnight in style. However, after the expenses of the holiday season you don’t have much left over to spend on throwing a big bash!

Don’t worry; you can still ring in the New Year with a great party on a low budget. New Years Party

Here are some tips for cutting down the costs of your celebration:

Plan Ahead

Many people make their plans for New Years at least a month in advance and sometimes more, so if you are planning on hosting a soiree this year make sure that you get your invites out as soon as possible.

Also, planning your party in advance will give you lots of time to comparison shop for the things that you need and wait for party supplies to go on sale which will save you money.

Keep it Simple

You don’t need to cook up a three course meal to impress your New Year’s Party guests. Instead, start your party later in the evening so that guests will have eaten dinner before they arrive, and provide a few finger foods and snacks instead.

Buy the budget versions of pretzels, potato chips, and dips and then place them in your nicest bowls so that they look fancy.

Also, your friends won’t mind if you ask them to bring a few snacks or drinks to contribute.

Buy Cheap Liquor

If you are making mixed drinks at your party, you don’t need to buy the most expensive top shelf liquor. You will not be able to taste the difference in quality when you add all of the other fruity ingredients.

You also don’t need to buy name brand sodas such as Coca Cola or Pepsi when the cheaper versions taste pretty much the same when mixed with alcohol.

You could also consider making up a batch of Sangria, which can be made with very cheap wine and still tastes delicious.

Make Your Own Decorations

You can create a fantastic look to your party with a little bit of creativity, and save money on expensive party decorations.

Try stringing up your Christmas lights around the room to provide interesting lighting, and use lots of candles for a fun atmosphere.

Ask your friends to email you their favorite photos of the last year, and print them out. Display them on the walls to show off the best moments of the last 12 months.

You could even tape a large piece of paper to the walls and provide colorful markers so that guests can write their hopes, dreams and resolutions for the New Year.

Filed Under: Holiday Tips Tagged With: , , ,

Creating a Holiday Savings Fund

December 26, 2011 by

Do you find that every January, you stare at your credit card bill and your bank balance in horror, shocked at how much money you spent in credit card billsDecember on presents, holiday treats, decorations, special outings and more?

The holidays can be a very expensive time of year, and many people tend to get carried away and sentence themselves to a January of barely scraping by.

However, if you plan ahead for next Christmas, you will be able to buy all of the presents you need without even batting an eye or seeing your bank balance dip even once.

How can you do this?

Create a Holiday Savings Fund

It’s quite simple. All you need to do is to open a new bank account the week after Christmas and set up an automatic transfer to pay a small amount from your paycheck into the account every week. The amount can be as small as $10 per week.

Now, $10 per week will seem like nothing to you and you won’t even miss it. After all, it’s less than $1.50 per day. It’s the equivalent of two cups of coffee and a muffin at Starbucks every week.

If you can buy things on sale when you go grocery shopping, you can easily shave $10 per week off your shopping budget without even noticing the difference. You will get so used to having $10 less to spend each week that you will forget it was even there in the first place.

It All Adds Up

However, if you stick to the plan and save $10 per week by next December you will have a fantastic surprise. You will look into your bank account and find $520 that you have saved up effortlessly over the last 52 weeks.

$520 is a big chunk of cash, and it will probably be enough to cover all of the Christmas presents for your family! The best thing is that you can splurge on your holiday treats without having to go into debt.

A Holiday Savings Fund is an easy strategy to save up for the holidays, and you will always have enough to make the season special!

Filed Under: Personal Finance Tagged With: , , , ,

How to Stay Sane During the Holidays

December 23, 2011 by

The holiday season can be a stressful time! With so many presents to buy, meals to prepare, and guests to host, it’s easy to get burnt out holiday stressduring this time of year.

All of the pressure from all sides to create the perfect day can leave you feel like you are rushing around like a crazy elf trying to run Santa’s entire workshop by yourself. 

However, the holiday season doesn’t have to leave you exhausted and stressed out. Here are some tips for staying sane and relaxed during the holidays:

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

The trick to taking the pressure off yourself is to stop expecting every little detail of the season to be perfect. The important thing about Christmas Day is that your family is together and having a great time, and not how many different festive salads that you have prepared or how beautiful your tree looks.

Don’t worry about making your Christmas celebration look like a photograph in a Home Design and Cuisine magazine, and focus more on enjoying the moment instead.

Take Time for Yourself

Sometimes during the holiday season we are so busy running around shopping for others that we forget to care for ourselves. Make sure that you take a moment out of your schedule to take a walk, read a good book, or do an activity that you enjoy.

Ask For Help

Don’t overwhelm yourself by assuming that you can do everything! There’s nothing wrong with asking for a little bit of help!

If you are hanging the Christmas lights outside the house, why risk pulling a muscle when you could ask your teenage kids to give you a hand? If you are baking cookies, invite your young children, nieces or nephews to help you stir the dough.

If you just can’t figure out how you will cook the entire festive meal, your guests won’t mind if you ask them to bring a few dishes to the table, potluck style.

Remember, the holidays are a time for special moments spent together with the people that you love. Take the pressure off and don’t stress yourself out too much!

 

Filed Under: Health and Wellness Tagged With: , ,

Where to Hide Presents From Your Sneaky Kids

December 21, 2011 by

When your children know that there are Christmas presents in the house, they turn into little detectives leaving no stone unturned in their kid shaking presentsquest to figure out what they are getting this year.

However, you don’t want their curious prying eyes to ruin the surprise that you have planned for that special morning, so how can you hide the presents from your kids so that they will never find them?

Go High

If your kids are still quite little, you can use your height advantage to hide the gifts in a place that they will never look, such as the highest shelf in the closet. Push the gifts to the back and cover them with blankets or clothes.

Mobile Hiding Space

Why not try hiding the gifts in a duffel bag in the trunk of your car? If you don’t have teenage kids and you are the only one who drives the car, this is a great hiding place because you will always have the keys. When you are gone you won’t have to worry about sneaky kids because you will have the gifts with you!

Working Overtime

If you have an office with a locked door or a storage locker in your workplace, you can stash your secret treasures there. Your kids will likely never come into your workplace, so this is a perfect place! Just remember to take the gifts home on your last day before Christmas vacation!

Hide Them in Plain Sight

To really confuse your kids, you can hide their presents by wrapping them and putting them under the tree. However, so that they can’t determine what the gifts are by shaking them and weighing them, you will need to be clever and disguise them.

Wrap small gifts in larger boxes, and put heavy objects in to disguise the weight. Use oddly shaped boxes, and include things like jingle bells or rice that will make a sound when shaken. Your kids won’t be able to guess what the strange object is!

You can also leave off the names so that your kids don’t know which present is for whom, and simply write a secret code for yourself so that only you know.

Outsmart your kids this holiday season so that their burning curiosity won’t ruin the magical surprise!

Filed Under: Holiday Tips Tagged With: , ,

How Not to Gain Weight Over the Holidays

December 19, 2011 by

Peppermint candy canes, slices of home-baked apple pie, cookies shaped like Santa Claus, rich cups of hot chocolate topped with whipped christmas chocolate cakecream, and boxes of chocolates and candies stacked under the tree… it’s hard not to be tempted to indulge at Christmas!

However, if you are dedicated to staying healthy over the holidays and not greeting the New Year having packed on a few extra pounds, here are some tips to avoid gaining weight during the festive season:

Stay Active

One way to counteract the calories of all of those holiday treats is to burn them off through exercise! Head to the gym for a workout, or simply go play outside in the snow with the family. Cross country skiing is a great workout, and trudging up a snowy hill to slide down on a toboggan will get your heart pumping!

Fill Up on Healthy Food

Before you go to the Christmas party where you know there will be a buffet of fatty finger food, eat a healthy meal with lots of vegetables, protein and fiber. When you are feeling full those greasy treats will be a lot less tempting and you will eat less of them.

Cook Leaner

Why not see if there is a low-fat version of your traditional holiday recipes? Search for “healthy Christmas recipes” online and you will find several websites with great ideas for trimming the fat content out of your festive meal while still making it taste great!

Watch Your Liquid Calories

Holiday drinks such as Rum and Eggnog, Hot Chocolate, and Beer have a surprising amount of calories! When you are at a party, try alternating by having a drink and then a glass of water so that you only drink half as much.

Indulge Selectively

There are some special nostalgic treats that you should not deny yourself during the holidays, but remember to indulge selectively. This means that if you know that you want to have a slice of Auntie Susan’s famous Christmas Pie at the end of the meal, avoid also filling up on miniature sandwiches or potato chips beforehand.

If you allow yourself one or two very special indulgent foods, you will still enjoy your favorites and yet avoid gaining unnecessary weight from eating those shortbread cookies that you don’t even like.

Remember these tips and you will be able to stay lean and healthy throughout the holiday season, while still enjoying yourself!

Filed Under: Health and Wellness Tagged With: , , ,