$45.00
Archive for Family and Finance
Tips for Finding a Good Nanny
Posted by: | Comments
Finding a good nanny is no easy task. When you invite someone into your home to watch your children while you’re gone you have to have a strong trust that the person is going to spend their time doing the right thing and not teaching your children things that don’t jive with your own morals and standards, and that they’ll be honest and respectful of your home and family in your absence. It’s a rather large responsibility, placing an individual in your home like that. So how do you determine who makes the cut and who doesn’t?
1. Define your parameters
Before you even start looking for a nanny you have to determine what it is you want out of hiring one. Do you want someone who is going to watch your kids and clean the house? Do you want to provide strict instructions for them or let them do their own thing? Do you want them to take on tasks that fall outside the regular nanny duties? Defining what you want will help you choose someone who fits well into your household. Read More→
Who’s On Your Board of Directors?
Posted by: | Comments“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” – Proverbs 15:22
My friend, Brad, calls it their annual “Dixie Fraley talk.” Once a year, he and his wife, Nancy, meet with their personal board of directors, which includes their CPA, attorney, and financial planner. Brad and Nancy reveal their balance sheet, budget, giving plans for the year, along with plans to build their marriage and encourage their adult children. Then they open it up for comments and suggestions. Read More→
CWAHM’s Jill Hart Featured Today on MoneyLife Radio!
Posted by: | Comments
This Broadcast: Teaching Kids to Have a Giving Spirit at Christmastime with Jill Hart of CWAHM.com
by Michelle Shaeffer
Two things that are difficult for me as a work at home mom during summertime are finding enough time to keep up with business marketing and staying focused during the time I do manage to squeeze in. So I thought I’d share some strategies that help me stay sane when there’s sunshine, blue skies, and kids begging to go for a walk.
First, let’s talk about staying focused in the summer time. Lots of small online businesses find themselves in a bit of a summer time lull with slower sales. It could be because it’s harder to stay focused and on track with our marketing plans when that beach is calling for us and the kids are voting on the beach’s side.
So, what can we do? Accept that it’s summer time and give up? No! Just shift strategies a bit. Realize that it IS summer time and it is okay to let go and have some fun. If you work to stay focused and learn to automate more of your tasks, you’ll find you can get things completed quicker and enjoy your time without feeling guilty.
If you don’t have a business coach, accountability partner or mastermind group, get one. Right now. Seriously, go sign up for one and then come back and finish this article. Okay, finish reading and then go sign up. I don’t want you to forget to return. But you need someone to help you stay on track. If you know you’ll have to admit to someone whether you took smart steps in your business this week, you’re more likely to take those steps. Read More→
Guest Post: Can You Be a Better Parent With The Help of a Nanny?
Posted by: | Commentsby Candi Wingate
There are many reasons that families have nannies. Most reasons are something similar to ensuring proper, nurturing supervision of the children while the parents are otherwise occupied. However, there is another benefit. Did you know that nannies can help parents be better parents?
Nannies As Stress Relievers
If you delegate your routine household chores (light housekeeping, laundry, washing dishes, grocery shopping, errand running, etc.) to the nanny, then more of the time that you have at home with your children can be quality time (time reserved for interaction with your children). Additionally, if the nanny’s relieving you of these tasks makes you feel less stress on a day-to-day basis, you will be a more relaxed, patient, nurturing parent. Finally, there are times when parents simply need more than two hands to accomplish all that needs to be accomplished at any given time in the home (for example, what does a parent do if both of the twins are crying . . . in different rooms . . . and no other adult is at home to help?). By having a nanny, parents have another set of hands to help them attend to concurrent issues. In sum, by enabling more time to be spent in quality parent-child interaction, increasing a parent’s ability to be patient and nurturing, and providing an additional set of hands in times where multiple time demands are concurrent, nannies can help you be a better parent. Read More→
Guest Post: It’s Almost Summer… What’s a WAHM To Do?
Posted by: | CommentsHow developing a “Take Charge” attitude can help you keep your sanity, maintain your budget and 
make this the best summer ever for you and your family.
By Lisa Nishimura
It is 1:30 AM and our dog Mookie wakes me from a sound sleep by putting his cold, wet nose on me to let me know he needs a potty break. Since my husband is away on business all week, I can’t ignore the dog because one of 3 things will happen; I will wake in the morning to a mess, he will choose to let me know of his urgency by hoisting all 90 pounds of himself on top of me, or, worst of all, he will go wake the kids! As I lumber through the kitchen in my semi-comatose state a passing glance at the calendar on the refrigerator jolts me fully conscious. MY KIDS ONLY HAVE 2 MORE DAYS OF SCHOOL! Of course, I knew it was coming. But as is usual for me, everything spells impending doom in the middle of the night.
Some families welcome the end of the school year and the lazy, unstructured days that come with summer break. Our family consists of a dad with OCD, a mom with ADD and anxiety disorder, one kid with ADHD and sensory integration dysfunction and two other kids who can blow through a room faster than a cyclone. So while we welcome the beginning of summer, in our home structure, order and balance are even more important in the summer than during the school year. I’ve identified three areas of our lives where I can “Take Charge” before school is out so I don’t spend the entire summer counting down the days until school starts again. Read More→
How to Set a Valentine’s Day Table on a Dime
Posted by: | CommentsBy Kathleen Wilson
Valentine’s Day is a special day in my household, and I try to share the feeling of love and romance with all my family! One of the best ways to do that is to set a holiday table, and spend time enjoying good food and drink with your loved ones. (Include your kids in dinner, and save a special after dinner and dessert for romance!) Here are some great ideas for setting the stage for a romantic dining experience, without breaking your budget.
* Set a background for your Valentine’s Day dinner. Layer your table with fabrics to invoke the sense of a luxurious hotel. Use sheets, quilts, tablecloths and placemats in coordinating colors. Pink, red and white are all indicative of love, but so are deep jewel tones. Look around your linen closet to find what you may already own! Flat sheets can be found at the discount shop for $3!
* Invest in a roll of wire edged ribbon from the discount store. Tie bows around chair backs, glass stems, and silverware bundles for that extra touch. Read More→
Easy, Cheap and Elegant Valentine’s Day Decorating!
Posted by: | CommentsBy Kathleen Wilson
So you just got all the holiday decorations put away (or maybe you didn’t!) and here comes another holiday… Valentines! Never fear, I have some great budget friendly ideas for quick and easy decorations you can use to dress up any room of your home and show all your loved ones how much you care!
*Dress up your everyday dining area with heart shaped placemats. Pick up some large red or pink craft foam sheets from your craft store and trace and cut a large heart shape from each one with a pair of sharp scissors. Use a gold paint pen and write a one word romantic sentiment in the center of each one, just like the “message heart” candies of our youth! Edge the hearts with squiggles and swirls, or perhaps personalize each placemat with a name of a family member. These will wipe clean with a damp cloth, and add loving style to each meal!
*Pick up four or six silk flowers and a small roll of wire edged ribbon (white, red, or pink) from your discount store and tie one flower each to the back of each of your dining chairs. Make the bow larger than you normally would for drama. The wire edge will allow you to shape the bow into a full, romantic style. Use leftover ribbon to add some romance to your front door wreath, your mailbox, or a big bow on the headboard of your bed! Read More→
Preserving Thanksgiving Memories for Scrapbooking
Posted by: | Commentsby Rachel Paxton
Last year our family tried out a new way to preserve Thanksgiving memories, and the result was truly a treasured keepsake.
A day or two before Thanksgiving, my daughter and I used a turkey rubber stamp to make place cards for all of our family members. We colored the place cards with colored pencils and wrote people’s names on them with a metallic gold pen.
We then cut up strips of paper to put into a small basket to distribute before Thanksgiving dinner. The day of Thanksgiving, after all of the guests had arrived, we handed out the slips of paper and asked everyone to write down something they were thankful for.
Now you should have seen the looks I got! Keep in mind that there were family members of all ages, from young teenagers to adults. Most of them looked at me like I was crazy (because this memory-making stuff is all new to them), but I told them they had to do it before they could eat. Read More→
3 Delicious Left-Over Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes
Posted by: | Commentsby Shelly Hill
For the majority of Americans, it is a tradition to serve a roasted turkey dinner for the Thanksgiving holiday…however, once the dinner is over, we are faced with a lot of turkey left-overs.
I like to freeze my left over turkey in freezer-safe 2-3 cup plastic containers. During the next few weeks, I can defrost my turkey in the microwave and make some delicious dinner recipes for my family.
Tip: You will want to remove the skin and bones from your turkey before placing it into the freezer.
The following recipes are the ones that my family enjoys the most after the Thanksgiving holiday is over.
Stir-Fry Turkey with Cranberry Glaze
1 fully cooked turkey breast, cut into strips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons ginger
1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries Read More→
CWAHM.com is a dream that God has truly brought to life. I began CWAHM.com in 2000 while learning HTML. I thought it would be a fun hobby and a way to compile all the information I was seeking on working at home. I am a mom of 2 (1 boy, 1 girl), a wife and I do work from home. I accepted Christ as my savior at the age of seven as a Sparky in my church’s AWANA club. I have a Bachelor’s degree from Grace University in Human Development and Family Studies/Bible. I love working from home and I pray that CWAHM will be a blessing in your life as it has been in mine.