Here’s a Quick Way To Manage Your Business and Family Time Easily With Planners and Calendars

Here’s a Quick Way To Manage Your Business and Family Time Easily With Planners and Calendars

Our family has a long history of entrepreneurship. My in-laws were self employed and my husband is also.  Not only do I blog, I’m also the unofficial office manger for his business, so we’re always visting our favorite office supply store to pick up supplies.

Visiting the office supply store is akin to a trip to the candy store for me.  I enjoy looking at the latest technology gizmos and gadgets to stay on top of our game, whether it’s for the home office or personal time management. My husband is the technophobe so I’m the one who gets all giddy. He’s so unlike his late brother who we called “professor gadget” who had to have the latest electronic wonder of the moment.  My husband is of the school of thought that sometimes tried and true methods work the best and you don’t have to keep ahead of the curve or spend tons of money or be confused by technology.

People who work at home can take pride in the fact that not only are they entrepreneurs building a business that they are proud of, but are also saving money by doing so.  Of course, certain specific equipment and technology is needed to help them accomplish that end result.  Sometimes I feel I am over-scheduled.  I have a Palm Pilot PDA, my iPhone and I use Google Calendar.  On one of my most recent trips to the office supply store I visited the calendar and planner isle.  I was back to that old school of thought and am now using pen and paper as well as a leather-bound Franklin Covey Day Planner.

Manage Your Time With Calendars

If you haven’t seen the new calendars lately, you should check them out!  They’re unlike the flimsy pocket ones that are freebies from your insurance agent, or like the ones your mom carried in her purse.  Today’s calendars have taken on new and exciting functionality and purposes.

Several calendars that I can recommend that are functional and appealing to the eye are Mom’s Plan-It and Mom’s Family Calendar by Sandra Boynton.  You can record every family member’s schedule using pens and stickers.  The family calendar enables you to record each family member’s activity for the month by their name.

If your kitchen is the central gathering place for the family, hang a calendar in an accessible spot for everyone to enter their weekly schedule.  Family calendars can help you to coordinate both business commitments and family life.  Delegate the duty of entering the information to whomever is the most responsible family member.  As a WAHM you can even enter the days and hours you will be working on the family calendar to try to get some productive work time scheduled.

Manage Your Time With Planners

Planners can also be used in conjunction with a desk calendar.  When broken down by hours, planners work better for business.  The time slots that were listed on your family calendar can be broken down into micro project commitments in a planner.  You’re never without your schedule as a planner is very portable.

Franklin Covey offers a line of planners for a variety of needs.  There’s so many planners on the market today – choose yours carefully so you don’t end up with features you don’t need.  Look for ones that include:

• Removable pages

• Sections for notepads or notes

• Address Book

• Places to hold business cards

• Tabs for easy look-up

• Vinyl pouches for messages, bills, etc.

Staying on top of your daily work while keeping your business straight isn’t an easy task and needn’t be expensive.  Even if calendars and planners are considered so yesterday by our techno-savy kids, they get the job done and less expensively.

My motto – whatever floats your boat.

Thanks for visiting! Comments are always appreciated!

EXERGEN TemporalScanner Artery Thermometer – Review and Giveaway (CLOSED)

My regular readers are aware that I am on Granny Daycare duty during most of the week.

The last 10 days have really put me to the test.  Slugger, my 9 month old grandson, had his 9-month checkup recently, and received an immunization.

The next day, he came down with an extremely high fever of 103, along with associated teething pain and diaper rash.

To make a long story short, after multiple phone calls and trips to the doctor’s office, for the next 10 days he was home with prescribed antibiotics for a double ear infection, sore throat, yeast infection, runny nose, and possible upper respiratory infections.  Everybody took turns staying home with him – me, Grandpa, my younger daughter as well as his mom and dad.  There’s nothing like having a sick kid in the house.  You just feel so badly for them, as it’s really difficult to communicate just “where it hurts.”

As a parent and grandparent, I have a pretty good idea, but the most accurate measurement of when to call the doctor is by taking a child’s temperature.

Exergen TemporalScanner

I’ve recently had the opporunity through Mom Fuse to review the Exergen TemporalScanner.

The Exergen TemporalScanner is an infrared thermometer that captures temperature by scanning the heat that comes off a person’s forehead (via the temporal artery).

It’s non-invasive, easy-to-use (only takes 2 seconds) and extremely accurate.  Similar to gliding your hand across a child’s forehead, the Exergen TemporalScanner gauges body temperature by capturing the naturally emitted heat from skin over the temporal artery, which runs across the forehead and is directly connected to the heart via the cartoid artery.

How I wish something like this was around when I was a young mom!  This high-tech thermometer is a great tool for Dr. Mom and for new/expecting parents. Since it’s non-invasive, there are no ears and no rears and parents don’t have to go through the painful experience of taking their sick toddler’s temperature .  Do you ever feel like you need a helper with an extra set of hands to help you hold your moving baby or toddler?

Two dozen studies were conducted to test the accuracy and reliability of this thermometer, and almost 50 percent of hospitals and pediatricians are using the Exergen TemporalScanner as well as recommending it to parents everywhere.

Features include:

• Only thermometer manufactured in the United States

• Environmentally Friendly-No Mercury

• Automatic Shut Off after 30 seconds

If you’re a mom, grandmom or daycare provider, put this on your list of must-haves for the First-Aid kit!

It’s also a great gift for the new mom-to-be for Baby Showers.

Available at Amazon and at WalMart, Walgreens, Costco, Babies R Us, Toys R Us and Sam’s Clubs nationwide.

Suggestion Retail:  $50

For additional information, visit www.temporalscanner.com

Moomette’s Magnificents Reviews is hosting a Giveaway Contest! For a chance to win, one (1) winner of an Exergen TemporalScanner.

Please include a way of contacting you. Should you be the contest winner, this information may be shared with the contest sponsor in order to send your prize.

Main Rule: (remember if this rule is not followed your comment will be deleted and then no others will count)

1) Just visit www.temporalscanner.com and leave a comment about what you like best about this product that wasn’t mentioned in this post; AND

2)Leave a comment about one of your worst episodes trying to take someone’s temperature

Now for extra entries (each task will get you 1 extra entry):

~One Extra Entry: Sign up for my free Newsletter updates through my Feedblitz link (on the top of my left column or let me know if you already are, in a separate comment)

~One Extra Entry: Add my banner button to your sidebar or add me to your blogroll, and come back here and leave the link (I will be checking)

~One Extra Entry: Blog about the contest on your blog linking to my blog and the site

~One Extra Entry: Stumble this post and leave your SU name (I will be checking) in a separate comment

~One Extra Entry: Repost this to Facebook and link it here

~One Extra Entry: Favorite Moomette’s Magnificents Reviews in Technorati and leave your name (I will be checking) in a separate comment  (the link is on my left column if you scroll down) or both.

~ One Extra Entry: Follow Me on Twitter or FriendFeed and let me know your Twitter name in a separate comment.

~One Extra Entry: Tweet about this contest (Retweet button at top of post), and come back to this post and leave the URL link to the Tweet so I can check. You may Retweet once per day until the end of the contest, but please leave a separate comment for each Retweet, along with the permalink

Make sure you comment separately for each task after the required entry task so you will get credit for each one ~ and leave your e-mail where you can be contacted.

This contest will run until June 4 at approximately 11:00 pm.

Winners are chosen by Random.Org, if you want all your chances counted, make sure you leave individual comments, not all of them in one!

*Winner has 48 hours to contact me or another name will be chosen.

*Include your email if it’s not enabled.
*Open to USA and Canada Only
*Rules for each entry must be followed to be valid.

What Room Of The House Will We Find You In?

Saturday’s find me trying to play catch-up and get ahead on my posts. You’ll also find me at the grocery store, and doing all my housework!

I like to kick-back though, and relax in between all the posting. This little quiz is mighty accurate I think as I like to cook. Reminds me of when we used to play Clue all the time….

You Are the Kitchen

You are creative and inspired. You have a lot of projects going on. You are also a homebody who enjoys a cozy night with a nice home cooked meal. You are generous and giving. You enjoy taking care of people. You have a knack for knowing what each person needs most.

What Room of the House Are You?

Fasta Pasta Microwave Cooker – Review

Do you ever come home from the office and face getting dinner on the table in a hurry?  Perhaps you have to run the kids out to the next lacrosse or baseball practice, dance lesson or choir practice.

If you work from home, cooking dinner may be even more of a challenge if you weren’t able to leave the house to pick up what you need.

Every Monday and Wednesday I have to get dinner ready by 5:45 pm for my family as my charming  son-in-law plays softball at 6:15 – talk about a short time frame!  Any type of pasta main meal was always my fall-back  dinner.

Fasta Pasta Microwaver Cooker

Thanks to Mom Fuse, I’ve had the opportunity to review rel=”nofollow”Fasta Pasta, a revolutionary microwave cooker that’s an entirely Made in the USA product that cooks al dente pasta in 15 minutes!

At first I was sceptical, thinking, I’ve been cooking pasta in a boiling pot of water for over 35 years, so how can anyone improve on this method?  Well, they did, and I am a believer now!

This “As Seen On TV“ Fasta Pasta cooker is really easy to use, and cooks any type of pasta – linguine, spaghetti, lasagna noodles, shells and ziti.  It can also be used to microwave vegetables and used as rice cooker.

There are holes to measure serving sizes (for spaghetti), and there’s also a colander/strainer to drain the water once the pasta is cooked.  No more lifting heavy pots, with chances of spilling boiling water.  Because you use only a maximum of 2 cups of water to cook the pasta, the Fasta Pasta is an environmentally Green product since it uses less water, thus, helping to save the environment

Features Include:

• Made Entirely in the USA -BPA free (Recycle5 symbol stamped on bottom)

• Inventor insists on Helping Support American-made products

• Cooks food even without a microwave turntable

• Dishwasher Safe

I also received a Fasta Pasta cookbook featuring fast and easy recipes for complete meals that can be cooked in 15 minutes or less.

I pride my reputation for reviews in that I’m a Baby Boomer Grandma Who’s Been Around the Block. I can honestly say that Fasta Pasta will become one of my most frequently used kitchen items.

Do you know a recent graduate who’ll be going off to college this year?  This would make the perfect gift!  It’s also a great gift for moms, daughter, grandparents and the RV and boating crowds!

For More Information: Fasta Pasta

Available on Amazon and in select kitchen shops.

Don’t miss this one.

Cheaper Alternatives to Costly Family Fun

How can you best describe time spent with your family? How about … Priceless? In today’s downturn economy, the term ‘priceless’ may not exactly be accurate. Even a Saturday afternoon trip to the movie theater with the tween set can set you back a pretty penny after buying tickets, drinks, popcorn and candy bars.

Movies and Music

My youngest daughter, 22, is a Nanny in the summer, and has been babysitting the neighborhood kids since they were toddlers. Even once a month, taking the kids to see the latest movie releases at a theater can put a serious dent in your wallet.

Drive-In theaters are a unique alternative. In certain parts of the country, some are still around. When we vacationed up at The Cape, we always used to try to get to The Wellfleet Drive-In Theater at least once. It’s an institution up there, and during the week, is used as a famous flea market. The Drive-In theater admission prices are less expensive than a regular theater, and you’re allowed to bring in your own cooler stocked with snacks and drinks. Most show movies not yet released on DVD, so the kids get to see fairly new releases.

Take advantage of reduced-price matinees that are shown at some theaters. On weekend days, take in some kid-oriented moves without the exorbitant expense. You still get to enjoy the theater experience.

It goes without saying that most kids wouldn’t pass up a chance to go to a concert. Tickets to see favorite bands have risen steadily and are far from cheap. Local newspapers and websites often list free outdoor events, especially in the summer.

In years passed, our family has enjoyed Concerts In The Park where we took the kids to see the Kingston Trio. The kids really enjoyed that one because we always used to have the tape (that’s how long ago it was) in when we would drive up to Cape Cod for summer vacations

Community Park and Recreation Departments will hold ‘Family Night’ concerts where you can enjoy less-known bands without the huge crowds and high decibel level sound systems. Pack a picnic basket, bring a blanket, set out some lawn chairs and enjoy a nice summer evening together.

Thankfully, cheaper alternatives to costly family outings are possible while staying within your budget allowance. Opportunities abound where you can experience, for a fraction of the cost, just as much fun, and just as many are Free.

Don’t forget to check out your local library for Free Passes!

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Wordless Wednesday – Connecticut Tranquility

Happy Wordless Wednesday!

Random Tuesday Thoughts – Boston Harbor – Connecticut Daytrip and Whoopie Pies

Sunglasses and Whoopie Pies

I have the hardest time hanging on to my sunglasses. I used to have a clip-on pair that was magnetized that came with my prescription glasses. When I changed prescriptions, the sunglasses no longer fit on my new pair.

When I was up in Penn Yan, New York in the Finger Lakes Wine Region, I bought several clip-on pairs at the Windmill that were reasonably priced. The Windmill Farm and Craft Market is really cool. There are over 100 vendors of farm produce and handcrafted items produced by local artisans. The region has a high population of Amish, and I was able to also find not only some beautiful crafts, but also baked goods! I tasted my first Whoopie Pie there!

Wordless Wednesday Moments

When I was up in Vermont visiting charming son-in-law’s parents, I opened my email one day and found out through Bargain Briana about a digital camera special going on at Walgreens. Well, I was outside of Montpelier and no Walgreens was to be found. Through emails and phone calls, I was able to have my daughter get one for me back home in Connecticut. The special was only going on for one day, I think. After rebate, the camera came to about $10.

I really enjoy taking scenery photographs, so now I keep the digital camera in my car for when I happen upon a photo shoot that I think might be worthy of being featured in a Wordless Wednesday moment.

Contest Rules

I’ve been running quite a few Giveaways and Contests over on my Review blog and WAHM blog lately.

What I don’t understand is what’s so hard about following contest rules? They’re pretty simple usually – just visit the sponsor’s site and leave a comment about what you like about the site and why you’d like to win the prize. If the rules aren’t followed, the entry doesn’t count.

I’ve been finding comments such as “I’d love to win this prize.” End of Comment. Sorry, but you’re automatically disqualified if you leave a comment like that. Learn to read and follow instructions.

I always allow for extra entries too.

Hope you all enjoyed the long Memorial Day Weekend! Check out my photos from our daytrip to Boston for a wedding on the harbor and then our daytrip to the Connecticut Shoreline!

For more Random Tuesday Thoughts, visit The Un-Mom!

Social Networking Women

If you’re new to working from home or thinking of being a WAHM, you must be actively involved in Social Networking.  I’d like to share a great article with you referencing  some ideas and tips to help you work smarter while connecting and exchanging ideas. You’ll still be able to get your name out and recognized in the blogosphere while increasing your productivity and managing your time.

Social Networking Women
By Liz Lichti

If you are one of the many work at home social networking women then you know how time consuming it can be ‘tweeting’ to make potential business connections and keep up. I find too it’s hard to stay focused with all the interesting people on Twitter and links to cool sites. Fun, yes. Profitable? Not so much.

I often wonder how these people who have thousands of follows have the time to attract them let alone keep up with them. I know I have spent my share of late nights following new people, tweeting and direct messaging to feel too burned out for any kind of marketing the next day or to meet the demands of my family.

Have you noticed? It seems as though every other person on Twitter has a link in their message to increase your followers in one week, one month, 60 days, while you sleep,… and the list goes on.

Have you noticed? There are Twitter accounts that have actually generated tens of thousands of followers within an incredibly short time. They appear to be the large businesses with a staff doing the tweeting for them or celebrities who don’t even follow anyone yet have over 100,000 followers.

So, how does a smart entrepreneurial woman work from home and play in the big league without compromising her family obligations or bank account?

The solution? Good social networking software tools and by good I don’t mean those free viral, multilevel programs that everybody else is signing up for.

If you want something that works, do your research and be prepared to invest a little bit of money in a program that will not only increase your followers, but that will also teach you how to market to your new followers in a hands off, highly effective approach.

That way you can be a social networking mama and manage to do it all, make decent money and still have time for the most important things in life.

Start doing your research now, so you can start saving time. With the right program I believe you can be among the top most successful social networking women and get big league results on autopilot.

If you wish to skip the research part you can check out a product that I just happened to stumble on while, you guessed it – on Twitter!

It’s new and absolutely cutting edge and the proof is in the results. I was skeptical as always, but the people promoting it were real people like you and me doubling their followers (this is conservative) within one week and making money doing it.

Now, I’m not a die hard Twitterer, but I was impressed. I thought this information was worth my time to share it, but you be the judge. Click here to learn more.

Article Source: Ezine Articles

Memorial Day Memories – Down At The Connecticut Seashore

Connecticut Seashore

I hope everyone had a safe Memorial Day Weekend and took pause to remember loved ones as well as all those who have served and gone before us.

Saturday was spent up in Boston attending our nephew’s wedding. It was on the Boston Harbor waterfront, and the weather and scenery were marvelous!

We took a day trip today and spent the holiday with family, and new friends who graciously invited us for a cookout down on the beautiful Connecticut shoreline. Many of my readers know I absolutely adore the beach and warm weather, the hotter the better.

The weather was absolutely spectacular – clear and with a warm breeze. You could see the 12 miles across Long Island Sound clear all the way over to New York.

We enjoyed good conversation, fabulous seafood, and homemade strawberry shortcake!

It was so much fun to watch ‘Lil Moomette frolic in the “pool” as she called the “ocean” (OK, so Long Island Sound isn’t an ocean, but it is salt water!); and to watch Slugger, who’s 9 months, discover what sand is! He’s the typical boy! It’s exciting for me since I only have daughters, and to me, boys just investigate and discover things and plow head-on! Nothing phased him ~ not getting sand on him; touching seaweed, or crawling over seashells and driftwood!

Let me know how you spent your day!

ExPat WAHM Mom In Brazil: Meet My Friend Linda – Guest Post

Today I’d like to introduce you to my friend Linda, one of my Twitter friends/followers.  Linda is an expat work-at-home Mom Living in Brazil.  Follow Linda on Twitter @brazilianlinda

I have been inviting bloggers and writers to share their ideas and experiences with my readers who are interested in Working from Home.

If you have a WAHM topic of interest that you’d like to share and be a Guest Blogger on Moomettesgram’s Musings, please contact me (see Contact tab above).

The Wonders of WAHM Life in Brazil

I believe that if I hadn’t moved to Brazil I would not be a WAHM. Instead I would probably be very career focused and working for some busy company in London while juggling mom life. Only that I swap my London mom life for a Brazil mom life, the best choice I’ve ever made.

There isn’t really a term for WAHMs here although many moms work from home doing something or have their own little biz where they help sustain the family.  There are many moms who are at home doing nothing at all and that is accepted in general. So when I say I work at home I have to emphasize that I really do work at home. I don’t just clean my house all day like most Brazilian “done de casa” (housewives)

That I work online makes it even more difficult for them to understand and just like my husband first was doubtful they don’t really see how anyone can make any money working online.  I love living in a sunny country and I believe that is part of what keeps me happy and less stressed. There are times though I get stressed and because my work is always so close it can be tough relaxing. To make sure my family does not get neglected I have restricted my working hours to only during the day. When my husband comes home I try not to work unless I really need to and a project cannot wait until the next day.

Being a WAHM outside of Europe or US has its downsides when it comes to getting paid. There is yet no way to transfer money from PayPal to a Brazilian bank account here so you need a backup plan if you want to work online. Thankfully I do have a UK bank account so I don’t have to worry about that, but if I hadn’t perhaps I would have resisted along the way.

I feel very blessed to be a WAHM and to live in a wonderful country like Brazil. There are many things I wish I could change here, but I love it just the same. I believe that my International view of life only helps me grow as a person and as a professional. I am a very positive person and life has taught me that nothing is impossible so let me leave you with a few positive tips that can help the everyday WAHM life go a bit smoother;

Don’t stress yourself over things you cannot change. Have a schedule for how you do things and you will be able to run your biz much easier.

Money can be a complicated issue; do remember that sometimes we need to invest in ourselves and our biz for it to grow. By being a frugal mom you can invest more in your business and as it grows so will your bank account hopefully. Extra tip: If you are an online WAHM then joining in with the moms at Mom Masterminds is well worth the monthly fee.

I believe that in order to be a fully efficient WAHM you need to be organized. Take a look at how you run your business and see what you can do to improve it today. Take the time needed to set up automated ways to run your biz.

It doesn’t matter how much you know if you don’t act. Use what you have now to prepare yourself for tomorrow.

Bio: Linda Hernestal da Silva is a Swedish Web Designer and freelance writer in Brazil who loves to help other wahms. You can find her at Berries and Cream Blog Design where she helps moms get a design they love and at A Mommy in Brazil where she writes about the adventures in Brazil and you can follow her at Twitter.

Disclaimer: Guest Post opinions are strictly those of the author.

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