I’ll admit it.  I am a person who sends boring Christmas Cards.  Not the fancy ones people spend hours toiling over with a picture of the kids and the dog on the front.  Nothing hand made or personalised.

I buy the dregs from the near empty shelves at my local newsagent in the days before Christmas.  I can’t say they are very good, in fact they are the ones nobody else wants.  I remind myself that if I was more organised I could of ordered some nice custom cards earlier in the year.

This year the relatives might get a shock, because I’ve ordered my Christmas Cards online.  I wasn’t game to make my own custom card, although they let you do that, but I picked some nice contemporary cards.  They have a 10% discount if you order early so why not take a look?

In a few months time your friends and relatives might just be suprised you did.

Are you an Eco-conscious mom or mom to be? If so, you’re going to love this review!

Several weeks ago I was contacted by Earth Baby Organics with an offer to try their products, then share what I think. I was able to give my preference and within a few days a bottle of their Baby Tiny Bubbles Baby Shampoo and another of Forget Me Knot Detangler arrived.

The containers are 6 ounces and oh-so- cute with an endangered Tarsier Monkey on the label. A secure lid snaps into place, secure because I’ve dropped both bottles a few times and they never opened or spilled! They’re also easy to hold for those of you who aren’t as clumsy as I am.

Just like anyone who has a new toy, I grabbed each kid and popped them into a bath. When I was finally finished there were four fresh, clean DirtMonkies that smelled of a sweet tropical breeze, had really soft hair, and NO knots. Score!

Did I mention how far the shampoo goes? For each of my children I used a dollop about the circumference of a US nickel. That was more than enough to get a really good lather. For the baby-he’s 6 months old- I used just a few drops! He’s mostly bald, so even one drop would have worked.

An interesting note about the scent: While it reminds me of coconut, it also seems to have undertones of almond and banana. Mr Fletcher ( you remember him, right? Pitmaster of the open flame?), he loathes the smell of coconut but didn’t even blink when taking a whiff of the shampoo or detangler.

He also didn’t push the kids off his lap after use, which is more than I can say for how he treated me after I used a coconut shampoo. Wouldn’t stay in the same room!

At $15 USD for a 6 ounces bottle, these products are a steal for an Eco-conscious ‘Green’ product[s]. All natural ingredients, earth friendly practices, it’s all there. Mix in super fast shipping and customer service from staff that believe in their products…you totally have a winner.

Interested, yet? Well if you are, here’s some really great news:

Family Resource is in cahoots with Earth Baby Organics to bring you a giveaway shortly! So stay tuned and keep an eye on the Family Resource Twitter account. http://twitter.com/familyresource

For the full post, visit http://restlesschipotle.com/index.php/2009/03/28/root-beer-pot-roast-seriously/
I promise you won’t be sorry!

Root Beer Pot Roast

Season roast on all sides and set aside for 15 minutes while you prepare the carrots.

Heat a frying pan and add just a touch of olive oil.

Brown roast on all sides, just until you get that nice caramelization crispiness to the meat.

Pour 1/3 of the room temperature root beer into the slow cooker.

Add the meat carefully.

Add the carrots and onions if you are using them

Pour the rest of the root beer over the roast and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

Serves 8-10 hungry people

Recipe courtesy www.restlesschipotle.com

With the beginning of swim season in many areas, ear infections can be common. If you want to avoid antibiotics, check out this video for information on how to use natural remedies.

If your child is prone to Swimmers’ Ear, a condition where water becomes trapped in the ear after baths or swimming, use drops after every bath or pool session. Alcohol (plain rubbing alcohol) will work great. Be sure to watch for extra wax build-up, as alcohol can cause this.

Never, ever put anything bigger than your [or your childs'!] elbow in your [or their] ear! Cotton swabs pushed in too far can rupture the eardrum and cause deafness!

Every home should have a basic First Aid Kit in case of an emergency. The United States Government has issued a small list of items you should have on hand. Whether you live in the States or elsewhere in the world, the items below are always handy to have:

Things You Should Have:

For more information on other readiness issues, please visit www.ready.gov . Remember, anyone in the world can benefit from the information on the site. You can find information on how to prepare for natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and more.

Be safe and be ready!

By Joanne Kimes and R.J. Colleary with Rebecca Rutledge, PhD,
Authors of Teenagers Suck: What to do when missed curfews, texting, and “Mom can I have the keys?” make you miserable

As we all know and regret deeply, kids aren’t born with instruction manuals informing us of the intricacies of how they work. As parents, our only option is to learn as we go. When our kids were babies, we learned to nap when they napped, to put valuables up on the high shelves, and that m&ms make excellent bribing tools when potty training. But now that your baby is no longer a baby (although he still may act that way from time to time), there is a whole new set of instructions to learn.

Parenting a teenager is a fulltime job, because being a teenager is also a fulltime job. Sure, they may busy themselves with school, sports, and text-messaging, but their true raison-d’etre is to perpetuate their teenager-ness 24/7. Which means while you are slacking off doing things like breathing and living, your teenagers are doing things like plotting and scheming. (They will throw in some sleeping as well, what with being teenagers and all.) Because their lives are all about them, and yours is all about working, cooking, cleaning, paying the taxes, and still finding time for Dancing With The Stars, they have the upper hand.

Were you ever a lifeguard? Me neither. As Woody Allen once said, I don’t tan; I stroke. But as any lifeguard will tell you, the biggest threat to their personal safety is not a riptide or a shark. It’s a swimmer in trouble. Yes, the very person they are dedicated to help will, in their own panic and hysteria, threaten to destroy them both. Sound familiar? That’s because you’re the parent of a teenager.

When babies, your children caused you to become sleep deprived, overwhelmed, and drink excessively. Now that they’re older, they still cause you to become sleep deprived, overwhelmed, and drink excessively. As you’ve heard, the more things change, the more they stay the same, and that holds true for parenting as well. So how do you survive? How do you get through each day with the constant screaming, crying and demands (I’m talking about from your teens, not your babies). You follow the rules of course. For as lost as you may feel parenting your teens, there are some guidelines to follow to help you keep your sanity. Or, what’s left of your sanity after parenting for so many years.

Therefore, to help you deal with your troublesome teen, keep the following rules in mind:

The Ten Commandments Of Parenting Teenagers
1.You are always right. And if you’re not always right, it’s because your parents messed you up when you were a kid 
2.Praise in public, criticize in private. Most people do the opposite. Don’t be like most people.
3. Yes, you do have to tell them a thousand times. Stop counting and get over it. Now tell them again.
4.Your teens are smarter than you think, and stronger than you realize. So don’t go acting all superior just because you have wrinkles and credit cards.
5.Remember they are growing up a lot faster than you did. Advantage, you. Growing up fast is way overrated.
6.When they really screw up is when they need you most. If your parents comforted you in those situations, remember how good it felt? And if they didn’t, remember how much worse it made you feel?
7.Their defeats are 50% yours, but their victories are 100% theirs. Not exactly sure what that means, it showed up in a fortune cookie. But it feels true.
8.Remind yourself, they won’t be teenagers forever. Someday you will look back on these years and laugh. Definitely. Probably. Maybe.
9.Love them enough to let them hate you. Don’t be their friend. Be their parent. Friends come and go. You’re all-in.
10.Whatever doesn’t kill you, makes you bleed internally.
11.(Bonus Commandment) You can do this.

If you keep these commandments in mind, you’ll be much better equipped to tread through the dangerous road of teenhood. These rules will enable you to survive the tough times filled with defiance, rebellion, and constant eye-rolling. Like anything else from working a remote control to getting through airport security, familiarizing yourself with the rules will makes things run much smoother (although I still manage to carry-on some forbidden article like one too many ounces of liquid, that sends me straight to the frisking area). Print out this list of commandments and keep it close. Stick it on the fridge for battles at home. Keep it in your wallet to for troubles on-the-go. And remember, if you can manage to get through this difficult stage of raising teenagers, in a few years when they move out, you’ll be rewarded with a lovely spare bedroom to convert into your dream room! 

Copyright © 2009 Joanne Kimes and R.J. Colleary with Rebecca Rutledge, PhD, authors of Teenagers Suck: What to do when missed curfews, texting, and “Mom can I have the keys?” make you miserable 

Author Bios for Teenagers Suck: What to do when missed curfews, texting, and “Mom can I have the keys?” make you miserable
Joanne Kimes has written for a number of children’s and comedy television shows. This is her eleventh Sucks book. She lives in Studio City, CA.

For more information please visit http://sucksandthecity.com/

R.J. Colleary attended Emerson College and moved to L.A. to become a writer for shows such as Saved by the Bell, The Golden Girls, and Benson. He teaches writing to graduate students at Chapman University and works steadily as a playwright. He has survived two teenagers and is currently surviving one more at home in Sherman Oaks, CA.

Rebecca Rutledge, PhD is a clinical psychologist who specializes in family therapy and individual therapy for children and adolescents. She writes columns for Your Health, Memphis Women’s Journal, and the Shelby Sun Times, and lives in Memphis, TN.

We’ve all seen the commercials for pro-biotic yogurts. Is it true that we need extra bacteria in our gut to keep us regular? Popular physician, Dr. Joeseph Mercola talks about the benefits of pro-biotics.

Father’s Day is coming- this Sunday! What are you going to do for Dad?

This year the kids and I are going to make Mr. Fletcher feel like a king. No, not king, but King with a capital K. The plan is:

Dad sleeps in- normally he gets up to make the coffee while I run around nuts getting the kids ready for the day.

Dad is left alone to enjoy his meal, then to do as he likes for a few hours.

After that, I’ll begin prep for the cookout. I’d love to be the one to man the grill, but in this house, hubby is the Pitmaster. I swear, that man just can’t stand for anyone to touch the grill. It is like the ultimate insult to his manhood if I try to takeover. He’s perfectly o.k. If I make more money than him, he believes women are the equal to men in every way.

Except when they try to take over his grill.

That’s when you see this enlightened individual go completely Cave Man. “Urg. No. Grill mine.”

Oh well. After that, Dad will get more relaxation and maybe we’ll even get some alone time when the kids fall into bed. Somehow I think that’s going to be the toughest part of the day. Parents around the world know, when Mom and Dad want to have even 5 minutes alone, that is when the kid radar goes off.

I found a list of frugal gift ideas on About.com in case you want to skip the tie this year.
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/specialoccasions/tp/Fathers_Day.htm

Personally, I think the very best gift is time to himself with no demands. It’s cheap [free!] and gives him a little peace of mind. Who knows, maybe he’ll do the same for you!

More gift ideas:

http://www.canada.com/life/fathers-day-guide/Recession+proof+Father+gifts/1689775/story.html
http://mommysavers.com/frugal-holidays/frugal-fathers-day-gift-ideas.shtml
http://www.buildingcamelot.com/2009/06/03/dad-awesome-fathers-day-gift-ideas/

You may have noticed I have been missing in action for a while. A big part of why was the sudden decline in health of my mother. She is a diabetic with many health problems that stem from prolonged neglect of her diabetes.

You might wonder what this has to do with you. With diabetes on the rise, chances are that you have or know someone that has a type of this disease. If left unchecked it can lead to serious health problems. Spending years neglecting your diabetes can lead to:

Heart disease
Eye problems [blindness]
Nueropathy- nerve damage in limbs and more
Slow to heal wounds
Infections
Amputations

My mother was diagnosed in her early 30’s. Today she is almost 60 and because of the neglect, is in a skilled nursing facility. She needs to use a powerchair to get around, but today her health is so bad she cannot even use that. At the time this blog went on hiatus she had another in a line of heart attacks which nearly resulted in her passing.

All of this comes from neglecting diabetes. You cannot eat as you wish any longer, once diagnosed. Blood sugar spikes then crashes imbalance and confuse the body. Natural healing processes are interrupted. Brain chemicals are thrown into a constant state of imbalance leading to depression, memory loss, and odd ‘highs’.

If you or someone you love has diabetes, please care for yourself. Educated diabetics that do not live in a state of denial are healthy diabetics. You can be healthy, happy, and enjoy a long life.

Diabetic Living Online offers hints and tips on living with diabetes and when you visit the site a pop-up offers you a free year of their print magazine.

First Encounters — Not a Time for Fairytales

By Simon Oaks,
Author of Will Marry for Food, Sex, and Laundry: How to Get Him — and How to Keep Him

Everyone puts on a show to impress someone at the beginning of a relationship. You meet a guy, you feel a connection, and you want the connection to develop into something stronger. You don’t want him losing interest in you and moving on, so you exaggerate a bit to keep him interested. Guys get that. It’s only natural.

But first impressions count with guys. You shouldn’t come with fine print that he’s going to miss and regret later. This is a key area where women shoot themselves in the foot, and it’s so unnecessary. The balance of power in the world of dating belongs to women. You hold the power of veto. You are always the one who can say, “Thanks, but no thanks.” However, he might walk away if he finds out your first meeting happened behind a facade. So don’t give him a reason not to trust you.

Statistics say men lie five times more often than women. (Now ask yourself, is that true, or did I just make it up?) Despite human progress and enlightened times, we’re still slaves to our genes. Males are hardwired to impress women. Watch the elaborate dances some birds go through to win over a female — puffing up their chests and using their feathers to exaggerate how big they are. Human males are no different. They’re going to tell you they’re richer, stronger, taller and more important than the next guy to win your affections.

The problem is that our equal opportunity world has skewed the curve somewhat. The days of women sitting back, waiting to be picked up are over. Women can now go on the offensive and pick up guys if they desire. With these turned tables, it has become more important for women to impress men.

This new need for women to be proactive when picking up guys increases the chance that you might exaggerate, or fudge certain details to land your man. Don’t try to be like us, ladies. Stay true to who you are and don’t let the game turn you into an ugly player.

Don’t false advertise. Make yourself interesting, but please don’t invent stuff. Wild exaggerations backfire for two reasons. First, he feels pretty dumb for believing you. Second, you’re not the person he’s looking for. He wanted the person you pretended to be, not the real you.
So don’t tell him that you’re up for threesomes with another girl if you don’t mean it, or he’s going to be mightily disappointed. Trust me, he is. Don’t portray yourself as a hard-drinking, party girl who likes to play fast and loose like Samantha from Sex in the City if that’s not you. No man likes to discover his sex kitten is in fact a quiet cat that likes to sleep eighteen hours a day.

The problem kicks in when the exaggerations go beyond shaving a few pounds off your usual weight and using a pushup bra. A minor exaggeration shouldn’t develop into a full-blown lie and you want to avoid the Cinderella syndrome. Sure, she ended up with Prince Charming at the end, but do you really think the Prince bought the whole glass slipper-thing hook, line, and sinker? Think again.

The Prince’s Version

After the clock chimes twelve and he’s left holding nothing but a glass slipper, he checks in with his boys to report on the night.

“Dude, did you see the hottie I was with?”

“Yeah, man. Who is she?”

“Calls herself Cinderella. She’s got a real nice ride. Doesn’t go anywhere without her entourage in tow. And she sports these tiny glass slippers. Where the hell do you buy glass slippers?”

“Don’t know, bro. Did you get her number?”

“Nah.”

“Reeejected!”

“No way, man. She was in a rush. I did get one of her glass slippers though. She’ll be back for that bad boy.”

After waiting around for the three-day no-call period, the Prince figures his glass-footed beauty must’ve forgot where she left her shoe, so he launches a full-scale search to show off his power.

It takes him a while, but he tracks down Cinderella. Only a whole lot’s changed from the night of the ball. Her carriage has turned back into a pumpkin, her entourage is a pack of rodents, and her knockout designer number is just a bunch of rags.

He knows these are just superficial things, but he can’t shake the fact that she lied. If she lied about all that, what else is she hiding?

Despite what the fairytale says, Prince Charming isn’t going to be as easily forgiving. The issue here is that no guy likes to be deceived. He feels stupid. And regardless of what he previously thought about you, you just turned real unattractive real fast.

Now it sounds like I’m making guys out to be angels. They aren’t. Just like you, when they first encounter someone who catches their eye, they’re likely to exaggerate just as much, if not more. The key difference between you and him exaggerating is that you expect it. You have a heightened sense for bullshit. Your bullshit detector is NASA quality in comparison to his.

Just remember, be yourself. I know this sounds dumb, but it’s not. If you’re a quiet girl, then be a quiet girl. If you’re a sassy lass, then be a sassy lass. Different men will be attracted to different kinds of women. There are men out there who prefer a quiet girl as much as there are guys who dig dangerous ladies. By not being yourself, you’re not only attracting guys you won’t like, but you’re turning off the guys who would like you for being you.

Excerpt adapted from Will Marry for Food, Sex, and Laundry: How to Get Him — and How to Keep Him ©2009 Simon Oaks

Author Bio
Simon Oaks, author of Will Marry for Food, Sex, and Laundry: How to Get Him — and How to Keep Him, is a California transplant from England, who swore he’d remain single for life. But now this former racecar driver turned writer is a bachelor turned husband, and is letting the women out there know the secrets behind making a man commit. He’s been happily married now for ten years to his American wife, Julie. The two live together in Richmond, CA.