Ha! Any real work at home mom will tell you that just isn’t so. In fact, keeping the kids out from underfoot while you work, and still making time to spend with them every day, is usually an ongoing challenge.

Here are some of the strategies that I’ve used, and that other moms have shared with me over the years, to manage the kids when you work from home.

Send the kids to a daycare or dayhome. I know, you want to work from home so you don’t have to send your kids to someone else for the day. But if having them home is keeping you from getting your work done, this can be a lifesaver. The good news is, because you won’t be commuting, and because you have control over the hours you work, they may not have to go to daycare as often or as long as if you held a job outside the home.

Hire a mother’s helper. Is there a teenager in your neighborhood who would like to earn some extra cash by playing with your kids for a few hours each day? They don’t cost as much as a dayhome provider, and there is the added benefit of your children staying in your own home.

Work around your children’s schedules. Some moms find it most practical to work whenever they’re able to… during nap times and late at night.

Switch with your spouse. If you have a supportive spouse, a popular approach is to switch roles with him when he comes home from work. Have him take care of the kids while you do your work for the day.

Movies and TV. I hate to recommend using movies and television as babysitters, but if used carefully, these can be a great help!

Teach children to work independently. I was homeschooling my children when I began to work from home. I would give them work to focus on for several minutes at a time, while I did my own work. They learned to work independently, and I was able to work at home while homeschooling my children.

Most importantly, yield to reality. For some work at home moms, your business may not take off the way you want it to while your children are still young. If being available for them is a priority for you – as it is for me and many others – there will probably be times when your business will be shortchanged so you can fulfill your children’s needs. The good news is that as your children grow, they will need you less and less, giving you more time to focus on your business.

And when that time comes, you will miss the days when young children vied for your attention.

Article Source: http://www.wahm-articles.com

Denise Willms is a Publicity and Marketing Virtual Assistant and work at home mom of two teenagers. Do you want to know more about how you can work at home too? Visit www.wahm-articles.com and search for work at home articles on the topics you’re most interested in. While you’re there, go ahead and subscribe to the weekly WAHM Tips newsletter. You’ll get new WAHM expert articles delivered to your inbox each week!

Don’t we all want our children to grow up to become kind, thoughtful, responsible adults who make a difference in the lives of others?

As parents, how do we accomplish such a task?

Perhaps looking toward Valentine’s Day themes can inspire ways to help our kids grow up into the adults we envision in our favorite dreams for their futures. Can we not spread the important notions honored on Valentine’s Day throughout the rest of the year?

1. Get started by saying “I Love You” more often. In today’s hectic world, we don’t always stop to say “I Love You” enough. It’s as important to say it as to hear it. If we want our kids to express their love freely and say it more to the people who matter to them, it starts with the example we set as parents. So, if we remember to say “I love you,” chances are our children will, too.

2. Make time throughout the year, not just on Valentine’s Day, to do something nice for the people you love. It doesn’t have to be flowers or chocolates, but anything that will make someone smile – a thank you note for a favor done, a donation in their name to their favorite charity, a plate of sandwiches on moving day. Giving of yourself is often the greatest gift. Get your children involved and they will learn how satisfying it feels to do something nice for someone else any time of year. Be sure you show them the gift of an item or action is the best part of giving when it is made without the expectation of receiving something in return. There is truth to the old saying that it is better to give than to receive.

3. Enjoy yourself often. Life doesn’t always have to be serious. Today’s Valentine’s Day activities are often meant to be silly and sappy, not to be taken seriously. Approach life this way and have fun with it. And take your children along with you.

4. Help your children find pleasure in the small things. On Valentine’s Day, we’re happy with a few chocolates or pretty flowers. If our children see life is not all about material items, they, too, will take the time to stop and enjoy simple pleasures.

5. Remember, everyone, male and female, can use a few more hearts in their life. If they are on the list to show our affection on Valentine’s Day, they should be on that list every day of the year. If your kids see you expressing your affection to your loved ones on a regular basis, that will become their example to follow.

Valentine’s Day is a day of hearts and giving. We can help our children make it last all year.

About the Author:

Jennifer Kirkpatrick is a busy mom of two and an entrepreneur who creates and sells unique items for kids of all ages. Visit her online store Pipsqueak Boutique for great baby gifts. And check out her clothing line, Define*Me Clothing for fun personalized kids clothes.

To be someone’s Valentine is to be loved by another. Romantic? Of course, but Valentine’s Day is not the sole property of loving couples. It can also be a wonderful day for loving families.

Here are some ways parents can use Valentine’s Day to introduce new family traditions and create some special memories for their kids.

1. Food is often the way to the heart. How about getting the whole family involved in making a heart-shaped meal. Place a cookie cutter into a pan. Pour in an egg or some pancake batter to cook into a heart-shaped breakfast treat. Using a heart-shaped template, trim French toast or sandwiches into a heart-shaped lunch. A larger template can make a Valentine’s Day pizza a favorite dinner or evening treat. And don’t forget the heart-shaped cookies. Get the kids involved in the preparations, and let them decorate their heart-shaped goodies with pink sprinkles or red strawberries. They’ll love it that much more.

2. Kids would love a Valentine’s fashion show. Have each participant, including Mom, Dad and even Brother, put together an outfit from items found around the house. The only rule is that the models can only wear white, pink or red. Get creative – a silk flower bonnet, a white tablecloth evening gown, a red sports equipment ensemble. (Older siblings can help younger ones who are unable to do it themselves.) Then, invite Grandma and Grandpa to see the crazy ideas everyone has come up with to showcase their Valentine’s spirit.

3. Create a family gift that will keep on giving. Work together to create a jar of special notes — include anything that will make the other people in the family feel loved when they read them (a special memory about a great time together as a family, a meaningful poem or quote, something you love about every member of the family). Work on them individually or together. Then, over the next several months pull one from the jar during family nights and share it.

4. Set up a Valentine’s Day scavenger hunt. Hide Valentine’s treats around the house with clues that lead family members from one spot to the next. This is an easy game to modify for children of different ages simply by setting different levels of difficulty for the clues — little ones can be given pictures and older children can follow written clues.

5. Instead of giving gifts, make “coupons” for each other. Every person could give one or two coupons to every member of the family to redeem whenever they want. Parents could exchange backrubs or a night off from the dishes. To their children, they can give an extra bedtime story, a special meal or treat. Children can make coupons up for their parents and siblings for hugs and kisses, help with another’s chores or a week of taking out the garbage.

Get creative. Put on your thinking caps and you can make great Valentine’s Day memories your family will treasure forever.

About the Author:

Jennifer Kirkpatrick is a busy mom of two and an entrepreneur who creates and sells unique items for kids of all ages. Visit her online store Pipsqueak Boutique for great baby gifts. And check out her clothing line, Define*Me Clothing for fun personalized kids clothes.

Preschool-aged children should be doing a wider variety of household chores. In our home, I keep my preschoolers’ chore list short and simple, but they have come a long way in learning to clean up after themselves.

Not too long ago, I was still helping my four-year-olds get dressed in the morning. That was one of the first tasks to be put on their chore chart! I thought if I made it a “chore”, and that if doing chores would earn them a special reward, then they would be more motivated to get themselves dressed in the morning, and I was right.

Another chore I have my preschoolers do is put their dishes in the sink after they eat, including scraping their plates into the garbage can first. The first couple of times I had to remind them to do it after they ate, but very quickly it became a new habit for them and they started doing it without even thinking about it.

Young children have a way of making your home look like a tornado tore through it. Picking up all their toys day after day gets really tiring, and some days I just want to give up. I don’t make my boys pick up every single toy laying around the house, but every afternoon I have them do a general cleanup to get most of their toys put away where they belong. If you label containers for them, this exercise is also a great way for teaching them simple words as they look for the correct container to put away their toys.

At night time my boys put on their own pajamas and brush their own teeth. There are many rinses available that make brushing teeth fun for kids…who wouldn’t want their teeth to turn blue!? My boys look forward to brushing their teeth every night.

Every night before bed my boys get to choose a small toy from a “treasure” box I put together to reward them for doing their chores. This box is full of small plastic lizards, frogs, stickers, temporary tattoos, and other small toys. You would think a child wouldn’t go to all that trouble just for a small temporary tattoo, but you would be surprised. The novelty still hasn’t worn off for my kids, even after several months. They really look forward to picking out their treasure every night.

My main goal in choosing these simple chores for my children was to have them start doing the things for themselves that I do for them day after day. It frees up more of my time for other household chores, and they are learning to take more responsibility for taking care of themselves.

Article Source: http://www.wahm-articles.com

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who is the author of What’s for Dinner?, an e-cookbook containing more than 250 quick easy dinner ideas. For more recipes, organizing tips, home decorating, crafts, holiday hints, and more, visit Creative Homemaking at www.creativehomemaking.com