If you are tearing your hair out with the weather and the kids are already driving you potty then you might want to try doing something different.
When life isn't going smoothly it can be really easy to grumble and moan about everything that is going wrong, or getting on your nerves, but never actually doing anything about it. (And then guess what things get even worse).
I know I am guilty of this sometimes. Sometimes it is because we are stuck and just can not decide on the best course of action to take. Sometimes it is just because we quite enjoying doing the victim thing.
Often we will seek the advice and support of friends who will share their solutions and observations of the situation, which we then completely ignore and carry on talking about our latest problem.
And if you are the one on the receiving end of the grumbling, how frustrating is that!
Perspective and objectivity is a great thing and we all possess it but not about ourselves.
So if something is getting you down or irritating you try taking a step back and tackling the problem in a different way.
Still stuck - then talk to a friend or a close family member and ask how they see the problem.
Listen to what they say and rather than disregard it with the familiar yes...... but.....syndrome, see how perhaps you can take some, or all of their wise words and use it.
You never know you might not get what you have always got but something different and a lot better.
Now I am off to take my own advice.
Labels: busy mothers, happy kids, keeping kids busy
I am normally so profound but this is my thought for the day.
I am lucky enough (at the moment anyway) not to have been flooded out like many people throughout the UK seem to have been this summer. Sometimes it isn't till we lose something which we have taken for granted that we start to appreciate how lucky we were - or indeed are.
My husband's family live in Gloucester and although none of them have been flooded nearly all are currently without water. It seems like a real team effort is going on up there to help each other out and serve the wider community.
My Mum is always telling me that this was what it was like during the war....
The thing is that now most of the time we are just busy doing our own thing and it isn't until a crisis occurs either to us, or someone we know that we jump into action.
Sometimes such a small act of kindness or thoughtfulness can bring unexpected pleasure to the giver as much as the receiver.
Labels: floods, gifts
Have you been outside today and got some fresh air?
Going for a walk - or even just sitting outside in the garden in the fresh air can be a real mood enhancer.
If you work in an office there maybe an unspoken pressure to work through lunch. Or perhaps you may
feel that you have not time to take lunch. The
thing is research shows that people are more productive, have greater creativity if they take breaks. And to take a break and get some fresh air, whatever the weather, whatever the season, will enhance your mood, give you more energy and ultimately that will lead to an increase in productivity.
Try it and keep a diary of the days you take lunch and get out in the fresh air and the days you don't. It works. I promise you will feel so much better and be so much more productive.
Yesterday I put on my blog a list of fruit and veg which count as five per day. Today here are some further ideas of how you can make fruit and veg fun to eat.
Hope you find it helpful
More tips on getting our five fruit and veg a day
So how can we make sure we all get our quota.
Finger foods are popular with adults and children. Encourage fruit to be eaten at breakfast. Either on cereal or as finger food.
Any left overs can be saved for afternoon snacks later or packed up to be eaten later at lunchtime. (Banana's and apples may need a squeeze of lemonjuice to stop them discolourng.)
Chops up bananas, apples, or seasonal fruits. Supermarkets also sell a wide range of frozen fruit like pineapple.
What to do with that rotting fruit.
SAM'S TOP TIP
I have a very simple suggestion that I have found to work at getting pretty much ANY kid to eat fruit! Thankfully my little boy is not a fussy eater at all but some of his pals are!
If like me you find yourself chucking out fruit that goes off before anyone gets round to eating it, instead chuck it all in the blender - soft fruits & the juice from oranges work best if you are wanting something quick & easy but other fruit like apples can be cooked first.
I mix in a little honey if it needs sweetening but usually find that with pineapples, mangos, peaches and such like it is sweet enough. If I have yoghurts that are nearly out of date then they go in too. Basically make a smoothie or a juice drink out of anything you fancy.
Then pour the mixture into lolly moulds & freeze.
FRUITY POPS are the most fave pudding in our house!
Hope that might be useful - very simple I know but then I always find that best.
Labels: busy mums, fruit and veg tip, top tips with fruit, vegetable and children
At Help for Busy Mums we like to do just that. Help.
So just to show you some of the "stuff" you can find on our website I thought I would let you take a look at our tips on Healthy Eating and making sure you eat your five fruit and veg a day. There's a lot of confusion about this... so I found this reference very useful. Hope you do too.
For more tips visit http://www.helpforbusymums.com
Eating Healthy Food
How to make sure you eat five fruit and veg a day
Are you getting enough vitamins and minerals?
What is a portion?
One portion is about 80 grams, which could be half a grapefruit, a slice of melon, a handful of grapes, an apple, two satsumas, three dried apricots or a tablespoon of raisins. One portion of veg could be three heaped tablespoons of peas, carrots or sweetcorn or a bowl of salad. A medium-sized glass of 100% fruit juice also counts.
What counts?
- Fresh, frozen, tinned and dried fruit and vegetables.
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Pure fruit and vegetable juices.
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Veg in ready meals, takeaways, pasta sauces and soups.
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Fruit in puddings.
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But watch out for added salt/ fat/ sugar in takeaways and ready meals - check out the labels.
What doesn't?
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Potatoes, because they are considered a 'starchy' food like bread and pasta, but these are all important parts of a healthy diet.
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More than one glass of juice - even if you drink lots of it during the day, juice has hardly any fibre and has loads of sugar which is bad for your teeth.
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More than one portion of beans or pulses a day, because they don't give the same mixture of vitamins and minerals as fruit and veg.
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Jam. Vitamin pills and supplements, as they don't contain fibre.
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Munching your favourite fruit or vegetable five times a day. You need to eat a variety to get the maximum benefits from all the different nutrients.
Are there any shortcuts?
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Slice banana into your cereal.
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Snack on an apple, banana, handful of grapes or raisins rather than a packet of crisps.
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Have a glass of orange juice.
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Dip veg sticks (e.g. carrots, celery) into salsa sauce.
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Stuff salad bits such as cucumber, lettuce and tomato into your sarnies.
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Add extra vegetables to pizza, pasta sauces and soups.
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Stir fries, stews and casseroles are any easy way of combining up to nine vegetables in one go.
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Replace stodgy puddings with a hunk of melon or a fruit salad.
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Make a smoothie - blend low fat natural yoghurt with two handfuls of blackberries, blueberries or raspberries.
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Make fruit kebabs by threading bite-sized chunks of apples, pears, strawberries and pineapple onto wooden skewers - you could even grill or barbeque them.
Labels: benefits of healthy eating, five fruti and veg a day, healthy eating
http://www.helpforbusymums.com from the website that helps busy mums.
As I was sitting eating my breakfast this morning I watched the pictures of flooding in South Yorkshire and the Midlands in horror. How would I feel if my house flooded?
Yes houses and areas of the UK have flooded before, but the scale of this seems immense and the possibility of a reservoir being breached and the damage that would result, seems catastrophic in proportion. I wondered what I would try and salvage.
This footage was immediately followed by an apology from Fiona Phillips on behalf of GMTV, who apparently had cut their news report the previous day to go live to the US and show Paris Hilton being released from jail.
There had been a number of complaints about whether under the circumstances this
was really very appropriate. I may not have complained - but I do agree with the feelings of those who do. Cutting from disaster to show triviality does appear a trifle insensitive!
And yet, sadly, I know my teenage daughters who love fashion and are intrigued by celebrities life styles, would have watched the Paris Hilton news item with interest.
Now wouldn't it be good, if Paris Hilton keeps the vows she made when she was released yesterday from prison and use her celebrity to do some good for others.
That would be such an great example to her followers. Lets just hope that makes the news too ......although it may not be so newsworthy. but given her reputation and fame, it would influence many other young girls for the better I am sure.
So come on Paris start using your privilege and fame to set a good example to young women and how someone like you, if you put your mind to it can make a real difference.
Http://www.helpforbusymums.com
The website to save Busy Mums time.
Labels: bbc news, celebrity, floods, Paris Hilton, young girls
I listened to interest to LK today this morning as I sat tapping into my computer. There was a lady whose name I do not remember, (and would prefer not to remember anyway), who was vociferous in her views. She actively avoided employing women who may end up having babies.
As in theory this applies to any woman who has not completed the menopause it does seem rather dangerous to attack such a large proportion of the working population.
There is a huge number of employable people who are reliable but require flexibility and in return the employer will be rewarded by loyal staff who will be with them for many years.
Successful companies, whether they are small or large, know they need to look outside the box and offer time share, flexible working, maybe not for everyone but for some personnel. Surely whoever you employ, whether they are old, young, male or female you want them to be reliable and a pleasure to work with. And if they stay a few years so much the better.
Lets face it, it is not just women with young children who may need extra support - none of us know what crisis is lurking round the corner.
I am not about to have any more children and my kids are in their teens, but I don't think I would like to work for an organisation who was not family friendly. - It tells me these organisations don't value their staff.
I bet if you would also find the staff turnover would be higher than those with a more proactive attitude to the challenges their staff present to them, whether that happened to include little bundles of joy or more serious problems.
Http://www.helpforbusymums.com/Coaching-to-help- busy-Parents.html offers business coaching for working parents.
Labels: children and work, famiily friendly companies, parent coaching for working parents, proffessonal motivaltion coach
