During this episode, I share ten recurring themes that I found myself repeating during many of my podcast episodes.  They are not in any particular order, they are just some thoughts that I think all busy moms (including me) need to be reminded of periodically.

10 Thoughts

1. Say No – to outsiders, to yourself, and to your children.
2. Don’t be afraid – don’t live in fear of the unknown or of bad things happening.
3. Don’t judge other moms or feel the need to compete with other moms.
4. Enjoy your kids.
5. Stay in the moment.
6. Don’t expect perfection – from your kids, from your spouse if you have one, and especially not from yourself.
7. Take care of yourself and don’t feel guilty for doing it.
8. Live below your means and make sure you have enough margin.
9. Train your children – it takes more time, but it’s worth the investment.
10. Create systems for your life.

And most of all, remember to dream big!

I just want to say thank you to everyone who has ever listened to this podcast and reached out to me.  It is a huge encouragement to me when something I share in this podcast makes a difference in someone’s life.  And remember, although I am not currently podcasting, you can still reach out to me!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Last week we talked about how important friendships are for our children and teens.  Today Carlin and I discuss the role of friendships for busy moms and dads.  We also discuss how friendships can impact your health and the role that online friendships can play in our lives.

Episodes Resources

• Friendfluence by Carlin Flora*

Episodes In This Series

• The Importance of Friends I
• The Importance of Friends II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I read an article a few weeks ago that surprised me.  It said that research has shown that if you don’t have enough friends, your risk of dying is the same as if you smoked 15 cigarettes a day.

I wanted to understand better the roles that friendships play in our lives, so I read the book Friendfluence by Carlin Flora*.  She was kind enough to join me for this podcast episode so we could discuss what the research and leading psychologists say about the Importance of Friendships.

Episodes Resources

• Friendfluence by Carlin Flora*

Episodes In This Series

• The Importance of Friends I
• The Importance of Friends II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode as I finish the discussion with Carlin Flora about The Importance of Friends.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

How often have you found yourself embarrassed by your children’s behavior?  I know for me, with 8 children, there have been many times that I have wanted to hang my head in shame over something my children have done.  But I know that good parenting means that instead of yelling at my kids for embarrassing me, I need to train them on what the appropriate behavior is.

I talked about this and other issues with Hal Runkel, author of the book Scream Free Parenting* during today’s podcast episode.

Episodes Resources

• Screamfree Parenting: The Revolutionary Approach to Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool*
• Screamfree.com

Episodes In This Series

• Scream Free Parenting I
• Scream Free Parenting II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode as I talk about The Importance of Friends.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I have always said that God gives us children not JUST so that we can raise them, but so that we can finish growing up ourselves.  Have you ever found yourself saying, “My children make me want to scream!?”  I admit, I’ve said that.  And while our children may instigate that feeling in us, they aren’t the ones that make us scream.  We do that all on our own.  The truth is, becoming a scream-free parent actually has very little to do with our children’s behavior, and everything to do with our own.

Because this is such a huge issue for so many parents, I’m very excited to talk with Hal Runkel today, author of Scream Free Parenting*. I hope that it encourages you that you can gain control over the way you react to your children.

Episodes Resources

• Screamfree Parenting: The Revolutionary Approach to Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool*
• Screamfree.com

Episodes In This Series

• Scream Free Parenting I
• Scream Free Parenting II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode as I continue the discussion with Hal about Scream Free Parenting.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During today’s episode, I’m going to finish the discussion about sibling rivalry with Dr. Todd Cartmell, author of the book, Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry*.

A lot of parents are tempted to think that siblings fighting is normal and that there is nothing they can do about it.  While sibling rivalry may be common, and your children may bicker and squabble, it is something you can definitely do something about.

In his book, Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry*, Dr. Todd Cartmell gives 10 specific steps that you can follow that will help you to improve the sibling rivalry in your home.

The Ten Steps

1. Create a strong family bond
2. Connect with each child
3. Eliminate comparing, labeling, and competition
4. Require sibling respect
5. Improve sibling communication
6. Step toward solutions
7. Teach sibling survival skills
8. Reinforce positive sibling behavior
9. Use sibling consequences that work
10. Put them on the same team

Episodes In This Series

• How To Overcome Sibling Rivalry I
• How To Overcome Sibling Rivalry II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode as I talk about Scream Free Parenting.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

But as frustrating as it can be, I know that for me it can also become depressing because as a parent, I truly want my children to be friends as well as siblings.  So it is something that I work very hard to ensure doesn’t get out of control.

During today’s episode, I’m going to talk about sibling rivalry with Dr. Todd Cartmell, author of the book, Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry*.

His book is very straightforward with ten steps to improve the relationship between your children.  If the sibling rivalry in your family is out of control, I would definitely recommend his book, but only if you’re willing to put in the work that is needed to correct the rivalry.  There are no magical words that will fix this issue, but be encouraged that time and effort can definitely make a real improvement.

The Ten Steps

1. Create a strong family bond
2. Connect with each child
3. Eliminate comparing, labeling, and competition
4. Require sibling respect
5. Improve sibling communication
6. Step toward solutions
7. Teach sibling survival skills
8. Reinforce positive sibling behavior
9. Use sibling consequences that work
10. Put them on the same team

Episodes In This Series

• How To Overcome Sibling Rivalry I
• How To Overcome Sibling Rivalry II

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next week’s episode when we finish the discussion on sibling rivalry.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Parenting styles are the “emotional climate” which characterizes your home and the manner in which you raise your children.  This differs from parenting practices, which are the specific steps you take to parent your child.

The Four Parenting Styles

• Authoritarian
• Authoritative
• Permissive
• Uninvolved

Episodes Resources

• Simple Parenting Style Quiz
• More in-depth Parenting Style Quiz

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode when I discus  how to overcome sibling rivalry with Dr. Todd Cartmell, author of the book Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry*.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this week’s episode, Brett joins me as we talk about some of the tools that we use to stay fit, as well as our current exercise program.

I’ve always worked very hard to teach my daughter during her teenage years that it is important to exercise and stay fit.  But I don’t want her to ever feel that it is all about her outward appearance.  It is important to stay fit so that she is healthy, not so that she can look good in a bikini (if she ever chose to wear one).

I’d love to hear what types of exercises you do to stay fit or if that is one of your current struggles.

Episodes Resources

• Article – 19 Reasons To Get In Shape That Have Absolutely Nothing To Do With How You Look In A Bikini
• Fitbit Flex*
• P90X3* with Tony Horton by Beach Body
• Lose It app
• Pull-up bar*
• Pull-up assist* (shown in photo)

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next week as I talk about parenting styles.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

This week I finish the discussion with Kara about parenting your children with scripture.

Episodes Resources

• National Association of University-Model Schools – naums.net
• Parenting With Scripture* book
• Parenting With Scripture website
• Seeds of Faith CD series*
• Jonas Family Bible Verses
• Durbin Family Bible Verses

Episodes In This Series

• Parenting with Scripture Part 1
• Parenting with Scripture Part 2

Thanks for listening! Please join me for next weeks episode as I talk about fitness.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this episode, I am joined by Kara Durbin, author of Parenting With Scripture*. We discuss how we use Bible verses as we train and raise our children.  We share some of our favorite verses and give examples of what that looks like in daily life.  

Episodes Resources

• National Association of University-Model Schools – naums.net
• Parenting With Scripture* book
• Parenting With Scripture website
• Seeds of Faith CD series*
• Jonas Family Bible Verses
• Durbin Family Bible Verses

Episodes In This Series

• Parenting with Scripture Part 1
• Parenting with Scripture Part 2

Thanks for listening! Please join me next week as I finish the discussion with Kara about parenting your children with scripture.

*Amazon Affiliate Link

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

To intentionally parent means that you spend more time being proactive and learning how to move away from reactive parenting. During this podcast episode, I discuss the differences between proactive and reactive parenting styles. I also share seven principles that Jim and I use in parenting our children.

It’s important to understand your own parenting style. Reactive parents normally wait for their child to act before they react. Proactive parents normally act, and expect their children to react. By it’s very nature, reactive parenting tends to focus more on the negative behaviors of your children and how to discourage them.  Whereas proactive parenting focuses on encouraging the positive behaviors of your children.

Proactive parents aren’t perfect.  And children of proactive parents aren’t perfect.  But you’ll find a lot more joy in your parenting once you are able to become more intentional and focused on the positive behavior you wish to develop in your children, as opposed to being focused on disciplining the negative behavior.

7 Principles of Proactive Parents

1. Proactive parents want their children’s hearts, not just their outward behavior.
2. Proactive parents take into account their children’s strengths and weaknesses.
3. Proactive parents train their children ahead of time how to behave.
4. Proactive parents set house rules and consequences.
5. Proactive parents are consistent with consequences.
6. Proactive parents spend more time encouraging positive behaviors than disciplining negative ones.
7. Proactive parents ensure they are meeting their children’s needs.

What kind of parent are you?

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk with Kara Durbin about parenting with scripture.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

This is the second part of my interview with the Orange Rhino mom.  Two years ago, she decided she wanted to completely stop yelling at her children.  But unlike most moms, she actually followed through on her desire.  She set herself a challenge to go 365 days without yelling at her children.  And then she started a blog to hold herself accountable.

If yelling is something you struggle with, you’ll find some great encouragement and ideas on how to actually make the change so you can “yell less and love more” during this podcast episode.

Episodes Resources

• The Orange Rhino Blog
• The Orange Rhino Facebook Page

Episodes In Series

• How To Stop Yelling at Your Children Part I
• How To Stop Yelling at Your Children Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week when I talk about parenting your children intentionally.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode, I’m joined by the Orange Rhino mom.  Two years ago, she decided she wanted to completely stop yelling at her children.  But unlike most moms, she actually followed through on her desire.  She set herself a challenge to go 365 days without yelling at her children.  And then she started a blog to hold herself accountable.

We had a great conversation about how she actually managed to stop yelling.  If this is something you struggle with, you’ll find some great encouragement and ideas on how to actually make the change so you can “yell less and love more” during this podcast episode.

Episodes Resources

• The Orange Rhino Blog
• The Orange Rhino Facebook Page

Episodes In Series

• How To Stop Yelling at Your Children Part I
• How To Stop Yelling at Your Children Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week for part two of this discussion.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

The best way to insure that your child is feeling loved is to express your love to them using all five of the love languages.

The five love languages are – Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch.   You can find out more about them in the book The 5 Love Languages of Children* by Gary Chapman.  The book also contains a series of questions that can help you discover your child’s dominant love language.

During the first part of this podcast series, I discussed the first two love languages – Words of Affirmation and Quality Time.  During this episode, I cover the remaining languages – Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch.

You may be more comfortable with just one of these languages (probably your dominant one). But you neeed to show your family love in all of the love languages, not just your preferred language. By expressing your love with all of the love languages, you will help your children grow into adults who can show love in all of the love languages. That is important for healthy adult relationships.

And if you use all of the languages, while focusing on your child’s dominant love language, you will definitely make your child feel loved.

 Episodes In Series

• Do Your Children Feel Loved? Part 1
• Do Your Children Feel Loved? Part 2

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about the importance of not yelling at your children and how you can learn not to yell at them.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

During this podcast episode I discuss the concept of love languages from the book The 5 Love Languages* by Gary Chapman.

The book really made an impact on me when I read it years ago and I highly recommend it.  I learned that it doesn’t matter how much I love my children if I don’t express it in a way that is meaningful to them.

During the first part of this podcast series, I discuss the first two love languages – Words of Affirmation and Quality Time.  You’ll find out which Jonas children are dominant in these love languages and how I make sure that I am showing them love in a way that matters to them.

Please join me next week as I finish the discussion on love languages by discussing the remaining languages – Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch.   I’ll also talk about how you can learn which love language is dominant for the members of your family.

 Episodes In Series

• Do Your Children Feel Loved? Part 1
• Do Your Children Feel Loved? Part 2

Thanks for listening!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

And while it’s great to be excited and plan for the future, we have to be careful to not wish away today.  Despite the difficulties, we need to fully engage in every phase of our life.

Can you relate to any of these comments?

I’m 38 weeks pregnant. In some ways I’m ready to have this birth over and a baby in arms. In others, I have so much to do and I know time with my two girls will never be quite the same again. But I don’t feel like doing much right now!
– Andrea

Oh my gosh, PJ. I really struggle with this. I have two little ones under 3 and I just want to be done with diapers and crying and the little one not walking or talking… I know I need to cherish this time, but it’s so hard when I’m SO TIRED! (And when I usually have poop on me, LOL!)
– Dana

I have been wishing time away for two reasons…One, I’m 39 weeks pregnant, and I just want my baby to get here! Also, the winter thing. I am so done with snow, ice and freezing temps. I want green grass and sunshine!
– Jenna

I spent two years wishing time away. My husband was waiting for an organ transplant. When that day finally arrived I decided that I would no longer wish time away and enjoy EVERY day. That was 15 years ago. We thank God and his donor family for giving this precious gift.
– Norine

During this episode, I share some of my struggles in this area and share some strategies to help you not wish away what you’re currently dealing with.  My hope is that after listening to this podcast, you can find yourself relating more to these comments:

You know, I would find myself wishing it was the weekend etc… But then I realized I was wishing my life away and couldn’t reclaim those moments past. So I have been trying to ‘Live the moment’ so to speak, hard to do in a culture that rehashes past news event over and over and places such large emphasis on planning every moment of the future.
– Susan

No, I am really working on living and loving the moment of time I am currently in. It has made winter much prettier to me and more enjoyable. I should have done this long ago.
– Maureen

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week when I discuss love languages and how they affect your family.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During last week’s episode I was joined by Jill Savage, author of the book No More Perfect Moms* and the Hearts at Home Conference and website.  During this episode we continue discussing how important it is to  not expect yourself or your loved ones to be perfect. We need to set realistic expectations so we can find joy with our family.

Episodes in Series

• Don’t Expect Perfection with Jill Savage Part I
• Don’t Expect Perfection with Jill Savage Part II

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about not wishing away today.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

During this podcast episode I talk about our tendencies as busy moms to expect perfection of ourselves.  I’m being joined by Jill Savage, author of the book No More Perfect Moms* and the Hearts at Home Conference and website.  We give you some insight and practical tips for adjusting this tendency toward expectations of perfection in your own life.

Episodes in Series

• Don’t Expect Perfection with Jill Savage Part I
• Don’t Expect Perfection with Jill Savage Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I finish talking with Jill Savage about No More Perfect Moms.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

I also know that Jim and I are not going to live forever.  Some day my children are going to be grown adults without me there to unite them.  The relationships they have with each other matter to me and it’s our goal to strengthen family bonds now, so that the children can always count on each other.

During this episode, I discuss why having a strong family unit is important and I give you ten steps to strengthening your family.  Developing a strong family does take time, but it is an investment that is worth it!  You’ll also get to hear Emery’s opinion on our family as he joins me to answer some questions.

Listener Questions

Amie: Should you require your children to go to every game/event of their siblings? Some of these seasons are really long!

Amie: Should friends be included/allowed at an already planned Family Night?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about the expectations of busy moms and their ideas of perfection.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

Because our kids do not learn the same, think the same, behave the same, or respond the same, we should not parent them the same.   During this episode I share 8 principles that I hope will help you to figure out what this actually looks like in your daily parenting.

Listener Questions

Susan: How do you handle treating them differently in punishing and rewarding so that you don’t get protests from them that it isn’t fair? Or how do you help them understand that it’s ok not to be treated equally in punishment/rewards?

Andrea: I need help in this area. My youngest is constantly comparing everything and we keep telling him that “fair isn’t equal”  We give him examples of what we do for him and his sister that is different based on their preferences and needs. He understands for about a second and then gets upset when there is a difference that appears unfair.

Amy: Do you feel that younger children get different treatment than older kids since there are more toys, money, time etc. for them then the older kids did? being the oldest of four i felt that a lot growing up. but then again.. i got out of the house first

Amanda: How do you deal with kids telling on each other and when do you step in?

Nicole: My kids are only 1 year and 16 days apart in age. My son is 7 and daughter is 6. Is it ok to have birthday parties together and how long is it ok? We have always done them together but when is a good age to let them have their own? We have separate themes for each of them so keep it individual for them.

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week when I talk about how to strengthen your family unit.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

If you missed that episode, the concept is that there are 8 basic ways that people learn.  Every person has all 8 smarts, but we tend to be dominant in some of them.  Understanding how your children are smart can really help you to better understand their behavior and better parent them as individuals.  

During this second half of the interview, we finish summarizing the eight intelligences.  We mention specific ways that understanding our child’s smarts (and our own smarts) can improve our relationships with our children and particularly our teens.  And if you’re a public school parent, I ask Dr. Kathy about the best way to talk with your child’s teacher about how your child’s smarts are affecting his schooling. 

The Eight Intelligences

• Word Smart (Linguistic intelligence)
• Logic Smart (Logical-Mathematical intelligence)
• Picture Smart (Spatial intelligence)
• Music Smart (Musical intelligence)
• Body Smart (Bodily-Kinisthetic intelligence)
• Nature Smart (Naturalist intelligence)
• People Smart (Interpersonal intelligence)
• Self Smart (Intrapersonal intelligence)

Episode Resources

• How Am I Smart? A Parent’s Guide to Multiple Intelligences* by Dr. Kathy Koch
• Identifying Multiple Intelligences Checklist by www.CelebrateKids.com

Episodes in Series

• How Am I Smart with Dr. Kathy Koch Part I
• How Am I Smart with Dr. Kathy Koch Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about parenting your children as individuals.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

When I became a homeschooling mom of eight unique children, knowing that each child potentially learned differently really improved my parenting and teaching skills.  

A few months ago, I came across the book “How Am I Smart? A Parent’s Guide to Multiple Intelligences*” by Dr. Kathy Koch of www.CelebrateKids.com.  The book takes the intellectual and psychological study of multiple intelligences, and turns this information into something extremely useful for parents.

During this podcast episode, Dr. Kathy joins me to talk about multiple intelligences.  This is important information for anyone.  Whether your children are homeschooled, public schooled, or pre-school, knowledge of HOW your children (and yourself) are smart can lead to a much better understanding of your children’s behaviors and misbehaviors.  Learning about multiple intelligences will also strengthen all of your relationships including those with your children, your spouse, your friends, your coworkers, and even yourself.

The Eight Intelligences

• Word Smart (Linguistic intelligence)
• Logic Smart (Logical-Mathematical intelligence)
• Picture Smart (Spatial intelligence)
• Music Smart (Musical intelligence)
• Body Smart (Bodily-Kinisthetic intelligence)
• Nature Smart (Naturalist intelligence)
• People Smart (Interpersonal intelligence)
• Self Smart (Intrapersonal intelligence)

Episode Resources

• How Am I Smart? A Parent’s Guide to Multiple Intelligences* by Dr. Kathy Koch
• Identifying Multiple Intelligences Checklist by www.CelebrateKids.com

Episodes in Series

• How Am I Smart with Dr. Kathy Koch Part I
• How Am I Smart with Dr. Kathy Koch Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I finish the discussion on “How Am I Smart” with Dr. Kathy.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

During this episode, I talk about the principles that I follow when it comes to instilling a strong work ethic in my children.  I also spend some time talking to Jade about her thoughts on working hard.  As the youngest Jonas, I thought it would be interesting to hear what she had to say about the topic.

Are you happy with the work ethic that your children have?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about multiple intelligences and how that affects our parenting.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

In speaking with many businesses and business leaders over the years, Eric has found seven common traits that employers are looking for.  We discuss these traits, what they mean, and why they are important.  These traits are:

• Positive Attitude
• Reliability
• Professionalism
• Initiative
• Respect
• Integrity
• Gratitude 

As a parent who wants my children to succeed, I’m definitely working on making these core values an intrinsic part of my children’s character.   Which trait do you see most lacking in America today?

EPISODES IN SERIES

• Teach Your Children Work Ethic With Eric Chester Part I
• Teach Your Children Work Ethic With Eric Chester Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about how to teach work ethic to your toddlers and young children.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

Around here, work is a fact of life; it isn’t a punishment. I start teaching my children work ethic from the time they are toddlers. I feel that work is something that all of us will spend the majority of our lives doing and I work hard at teaching my children to enjoy working and to take pride in their work. I also teach them that it is important to find work that adds value to our society and to other people’s lives.

I recently read the book Reviving Work Ethic* by Eric Chester and even though it isn’t written to parents (the subtitle is: A Leader’s Guide to Ending Entitlement and Restoring Pride in the Emerging Workforce), the book contains a lot of wisdom for parents looking to instill work ethic in their children and teens.

I was so happy to have Eric join me during this podcast.  We cover a lot of ground as we talk about how work ethic has changed in America and how it really isn’t being taught to most of today’s children and teens.  We also discuss what parents can do about it and the fact that young people with a strong work ethic really stand apart from their peers and have a better chance at succeeding in their jobs and careers.

What do you think about work ethic in America?

Episodes in Series

• Teach Your Children Work Ethic With Eric Chester Part I
• Teach Your Children Work Ethic With Eric Chester Part II

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as we continue the discussion of work ethic with Eric Chester.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

While it is difficult having children who are picky eaters, it is also difficulty being married to one.

I know this because I married a picky eater and have watched Jim struggle throughout the years dealing with multiple foods that he didn’t like.  Fortunately, Jim wasn’t content to remain a picky eater and has made tremendous improvements over the years in the variety of foods he can consume.

Jim joins me during this episode to discuss his “picky eater journey” and to help answer listener questions about being (and raising) picky eaters.

Listener Questions

Rosa: wow I guess I was lucky. My son would eat ALMOST anything. I hate Brussle Sprouts, cooked cabbage, Hominy and English peas, and he hated them too, so I never forced him to try anything that I didn’t like.

Bonnie: Any help/recipes I could get would be greatly appreciated!

Jane: haha ! Im an adult and I’m a really picky eater , always have been. Don’t like milk (allergic anyways) don’t like red meat, don’t like rice, can’t eat half the fruits because of allergies, so I think it would be a great subject

Suzanne: I have an almost 3 year old who would live on chicken nuggets and corn dogs if we let him. I try to make him try one bite of everything , but even that can turn into a stand off. How can I encourage and not nag too much?

Jennifer: If you know how to get a picky eater to try new things and eat healthy, “real” food, I’m ALL ears

Sarah: my 1st 4 kids weren’t picky, so I am at a loss that our 5th child is super picky, think it stems from GI issues as an infant/toddler and a restricted diet during that important time…but my question is…how do I get him to broaden his diet horizon as it seems to only become less diverse by the day (he is almost 5 and lives on cheese and carbs, and veggies he picks from the garden himself)

Amanda: How do you feel about trying to hide veggies in other foods to have kids eat them? How are ways you encourage kids to eat new things? My kids are 1 & 2 so we are just starting to run into obstacles.

Lisa: I am 32 years old and have never had red meat, seafood, many vegetables, even pork because I was a picky eater as a child and never made to try anything. My diet consists now of carbs and chicken. Not very nutritious. I do try something new every 5 years or so. So I would say it is very important to push kids to try things when they are young.

Sara: well, this is a complex issue for us because 2 of our kids are on the autism spectrum, and have pretty intense feelings about their food. It’s very difficult to know when to stand firm, and when to flex. How about this as a question: What do you think about supplementing with something like pediasure, or do you think just adding daily vitamins will be enough. I don’t like all the ingredients, so I’m faced with a dilemma. I need to find more ways to sneak in those missing vitamins and minerals. If you had a child that had a very limited diet, what ingredients do you think you would try most to sneak in? For example, I can never recall what certain things are good for, but I made whole wheat pancakes last night and snuck in oats, chia seed, ground flax and hemp seed. Added a little brown sugar to disguise any bitterness, and plenty of blueberries. All I know is those are healthy things, but that is only one of my tricks. Do you know any others?

Terri: I have an under 2 kiddo who seems to barely eat anything.

Laura: I’m just trying to figure out how they appear out of kids who will eat anything, and how I can help stop the transformation from occurring to my youngest. My oldest ate anything we gave him…until about two, when suddenly it had to be white or cheesy. Not that we give in to that, but…still it’s hard to get him to eat just whatever. His little brother is almost two and still eats most of what he is offered. I can feed him minestrone, or curry, or whatever, And I’m kind of dreading a sudden revision of that to “is this mac’n’cheese mama?”

Sara: Our picky eater led to his having severe food allergies. Or son, Reed, suffered with severe headaches for years until we had allergy testing done. So if your child is a picky eater, try the best you can to get them to eat a variety of balanced foods and not focus on one type of food- in his case he only ate “white” food basically which meant wheat/ carbohydrates. I was unaware that your body would shut down with allergic reactions when you ate only certain foods. It was found he was severely allergic to egg whites and wheat from having eaten only foods made from these.  We did not think it was worth fighting every day every meal ..Reed was NOT interested in getting attention from his picky eating; it extremely bothered him – worried him as well when he had to be away from home. I am not sure what is the answer but possibly liquid foods to get other food groups in a child may have helped.

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

How does your family do with picky eaters?  Is it something that you find yourself continually battling?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as Eric Chester and I discuss work ethic.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this episode I share why I think it is important to invest time into training your children not to be picky eaters.  I also talk about several of the strategies that I regularly practice, as well as mistakes I try to avoid.

Are your children picky eaters?  If so, how bad has it gotten?

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as Jim (a recovering picky eater) joins me to discuss his picky eater journey and to answer listener questions.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

This is the final podcast episode in this series on teaching your children to cook.  Emery and I conclude the series by answering listener questions.

I loved having Emery (age 13) join me during this podcast.  It was amazing (and validating) to hear his confidence when it comes to cooking.  I hope that it encourages you that it is never to late or too early to work with your children on becoming proficient in the kitchen.

And I would like to encourage you that if you are a Busy Mom that isn’t comfortable in the kitchen yourself, you too can learn!  Start with some basic soup, stew, and chili recipes and expand from there.  Don’t be afraid to experiment or be afraid to fail.  It happens.  You can always keep some eggs in your refrigerator.  Scrambled eggs are a super easy quick dinner if your planned meal “failed”.

Learn with your children and have fun while you do it!

Listener Questions

Lisa: I know your kids cook, I’d love to have recipes for what they do. Mine are 11 and 13 and I’d really like to start putting them in charge of some nights but don’t know where to start.

Rosa: How do you teach them about substitutions for an ingredients they are out of without having to ditch the recipe they want to make?

Jennifer:  How do you keep them focused to the finish?

Kathy: I am a new, stay at home mom who needs some easy recipes and good kitchen staples. I never cooked when I worked and am at a bit of a loss in the kitchen.

Beth:  I have to say, I am not a great cook. :/ My husband does all of the grocery shopping and cooking (he works from home so it’s easier for him), but eventually I will take over (when we start having children and I leave the workforce). I am going to need some major help figuring out how to shop and cook – it’s embarrassing to admit, but I don’t even know where to start. Do you cook from memory or a cookbook or both? Thanks again!

Darla: My daughter is ten and she has recently shown an interest in baking. She wants to bake by herself but it is hard for me to totally give the kitchen over to her. Because of health issues she eats grain free and coconut/almond flours are expensive (not to mention all the other organic ingredients we use). So a mistake could be costly for our limited budget family. We are a homeschooling family and I strongly believe that learning to cook is a wonderful learning opportunity and essential.

Sharon: What about cleanup?

Vicki: Can they teach me?

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Resources

• How to Write a Kid-Friendly Recipe
• Sample Kid-Friendly Recipe – Split Pea Soup
• Zojirushi Rice Cooker (this is marked down $100 right now)

Do your children help to cook?  If so, what do they do at their current age?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week when I talk about picky eaters.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

So during this episode, I am joined by my son, Emery, who is now 13.  Emery has been cooking for years and he shares some of his thoughts and feelings on children (both himself and others) learning to cook.  Emery also helps me answer listener questions and I think you’ll love hearing what he has to say.

Listener Questions

Lauren: How did you start getting your kids involved in the kitchen? Mine love to help with cakes and things but how did you know what tasks to give them at what ages?

Karen: At what ages did you let them do a particular task (knowing that it of course varies per child) like use a knife, cook at the stove or remove something from the oven etc. On the flip side, what are the best ”jobs” for the little ones to start out with?

Monica, Maria, Amanda: I’d love to hear how you have them do it at various ages: under 6, 7-10, etc.

Dwell: Interested in hearing about young children in the kitchen….my oldest is 7.

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Resources

• How to Write a Kid-Friendly Recipe
• Sample Kid-Friendly Recipe – Split Pea Soup
• Zojirushi Rice Cooker (this is marked down $100 right now)

Do your children help to cook?  If so, what do they do at their current age?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as Emery and I finish the series on teaching your children to cook.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

By the time they are pre-teens, they are fully capable of following a recipe and making most meals.

This podcast series is broken down into 3 parts.  During this first episode, I discuss the reasons why you should teach your children to cook.  I also cover some of the safety rules with teaching children cooking skills.  And then I give you an idea of some of the tasks my children are able to handle in the kitchen at different ages.

Resources

• How to Write a Kid-Friendly Recipe
• Sample Kid-Friendly Recipe – Split Pea Soup
• Zojirushi Rice Cooker (this is marked down $100 right now)

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Do your children help to cook?  If so, what do they do at their current age?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I continue the series on teaching your children to cook.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I’ve had a lot of practice over the years making a food budget stretch.  During this episode I share what I feel are the best ways to save money when food shopping on a budget.  This allows me to buy the greatest quantities of the healthiest food that I can.

Topics Covered in this Episode

• How a garden saves you money
• How a pantry saves you money
• The importance of a price book
• Basing decisions on unit pricing, not sales
• Shopping frequency
• Bulk items and whether or not to buy them

Listener Questions

Courtney: Do you account for growth spurts? It always seems like no matter how much I buy on the lean side or major shopping stock up its gone! Other moms of 6+ children report the same thing

Janae & Bethany: Do you use coupons? I find them more of a hassle than anything, and they hardly ever apply to what I need to purchase – but some people say they save so much money, I wonder if I should rethink.

Leah: I only have one child and he gets breakfast AND lunch at preschool/daycare. Is the meal planning for one meal and budgeting on groceries worth it money wise?

Becky: Thoughts on the tight budget family – shop clearance/sale bins or plan ahead with flyers?

Jennifer: How far ahead do you plan/shop? One week, two, or more?

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

What are the best ways you have found to save money when food shopping?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I discuss teaching your children to cook.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

In this episode, Jim joins me and we discuss what we witnessed, how we helped, and what we learned.  We saw many “everyday heroes” this weekend – people who gave of their time and of themselves to reach out and help complete strangers.  God put some truly average and yet extraordinary people at that accident scene and we are proud to now call some of them friends.

How do you react when there are people in need?  Are you giving enough of yourself?  Are you teaching your children how to help others in need?  I challenge you this week to reach out to someone who needs help.  Get the whole family involved.  And please let me know in the comments what you did.  Our family would find it a huge encouragement.

Thanks for listening!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

In this episode, I talk about how to set up a meal notebook and use it to facilitate your meal planing.  I assume that you do have a pantry, so if you haven’t already done so, please listen to the podcast episode 43 on setting up your pantry and integrated food shopping list.

Episode Resources

• Sample kid-friendly recipe
• Food Shopping List

Listener Questions

Janiece:  Hi PJ. We have five children between the ages of 7-15. My 13 year old daughter has many food allergies and my 11 year old chose to go vegetarian about a year ago. Everyone eats a good amount of fruits & veggies except for my daughter with allergies.  She “dabbles”. How do you suggest I keep shopping and cooking orderly with the additional complications of “special diets.” It’s very time consuming at this point. Thanks so much.

Jane: Does your family eat meat or are you more vegetarians? And do you make your own ice cream with goats milk by chance?

Gena: How do you do it? I am a fairly organized person, but when it comes to grocery shopping I must have some kind of problem. At NO given time can you go in my kitchen and say “I want to make this” and actually make it without going to the store…not gonna happen.

Ashea: Meal planning is my biggest area I need to work on. We are a homeschool family so we are home a lot and I feel like all I do is constantly think about the next meal and what it will be. I think if I would get into the habit of planning ahead it would make it a lot easier. But where do i start?

Karen: Getting tired of cooking… been cleaning my pantry and it is very overstocked with stuff I haven’t used… I overbuy sometimes.. how can i clean up my pantry with only 2 people home?? son is away at college… I started taking inventory and typing a list…

Marilyn:  I would like to come up with a solid plan for meals. I cook at least one big day a week – soup, beans, rice, bread, salad, etc. It will last for almost a week, but I still don’t really have this down.

Karen: How do you get them all to eat the meal? I always seem to be making a couple of meals a night…unless it’s pizza

Hallie: My homeschooling, goat & chicken raising friend has five kids ages 8-18 who are always hungry. She’s looking for meals that keep them from getting hungry so soon after meals. She also wants snacks that feed the brain besides nuts. Their budget is so, so small.

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Do you struggle with the food side of motherhood?  If so, please leave me a comment so I can answer your questions in the upcoming episodes.

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week as I discuss food shopping on a budget.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

In this episode, I explain how I integrate my pantry and my food shopping list so that food shopping and having ingredients on hand is simple.  It takes time to put the system in place, but the result is savings in time, money, and stress.  And that (I believe) makes the investment worth it.

This first part of this podcast series covers the pantry and the food shopping list.  Next week’s episode will tie in meal planning and answer some listener questions.  The following weeks will cover food shopping on a budget and how I teach my children to cook.

Episode Resources

• Food Shopping List

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Do you struggle with the food side of motherhood?  If so, please leave me a comment so I can answer your questions in the next episode.

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week as I discuss meal planning.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Erin: Do you do any special baking and do the kids get involved/excited?

Susan: What are your gift giving traditions? How much do you give to each kid, to extended family members, to neighbors, teachers, & others who are special to you? If I could get this out of the way & be at peace that what I am giving is enough, then I could be more at peace with the season.

Episode Resources

• 2013 Holiday Planning List
• Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Clutter Series
• Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Control Journal episode
• Operation Christmas Child
• Lamplighter Publishing
• Vistaprint
• Homemade Marshmallow Recipe
• Jonas Family 25 Holiday Events

 Episodes In The Series

• Simplify and Organize Your Holidays Part I
• Simplify and Organize Your Holidays Part II

Do you do anything special with your family over the holidays?  I’d love to hear any ideas that you have.

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week as I discuss organizing your pantry and shopping list. 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

To manage our holidays, I’ve put together a master holiday planning list that I use starting the first week in October.  Feel free to use this list for your own personal use and for sharing with others.

Episode Resources

• 2013 Holiday Planning List
• Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Clutter Series
• Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Control Journal episode
• Operation Christmas Child
• Lamplighter Publishing
• Jonas Family 25 Holiday Events

 Episodes In The Series

• Simplify and Organize Your Holidays Part I
• Simplify and Organize Your Holidays Part II

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week for Part II of the Simplify and Organize Your Holidays series.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Sara: I have twins (almost 4) and a little one (almost 2). I struggle with multitasking with them around, especially now that we are down to just one short nap in the afternoon. Trying to avoid TV but with such short attention spans I have a hard time keeping them entertained while I get my work done. We homeschool but even with little projects and play around that I sill am getting little done. I’d love some advice! LOVE the podcast, looking forward to new episodes!

Sarah: Multitasking- How do you make sure schoolwork is getting done on those days you have to be busy with business stuff? How do you prioritize the two?

Melody: How do you handle farm chores and juggling babies? I haven’t figured that one out yet.

What about you?  Do you try to multitask and find it doesn’t work well for you?  Or have you figured out some wonderful things that you can accomplish at the same time?  I’d love for you to share what’s working (and not working) for you.

Thanks for listening! Tune in next week for simplify and organize your holidays part 1.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

As with anything, the best way to teach your children to be polite is to be polite yourself. Modeling the appropriate behavior will always be more effective than any amount of lecturing. But you do need to train your children to be polite.  It takes constant reminders and reinforcement to make being polite a habit.

During this podcast, Jim and I discuss some of the ways we teach our children to be polite. These include teaching them:

• to say “please” and “thank you”
• to share (even when they don’t want to)
• to ask and not demand
• to use “I” statements and not “you” statements
• to give people the benefit of the doubt and not assume the worst
• not to interrupting others (how to properly join a conversation)
• how to listen
• to consider the feelings of others above their own  “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” Philippians 2:3-4

What about you?  Have you had a rough time dealing with children (not necessarily your own) or adults who were very rude or impolite?  What are some of the things that you think should be intrinsic manners that we all exhibit?

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as I talk about multitasking.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Note: photo is what was left of our old church after the March 2nd F4 tornado.

It’s not a fun topic to think about, and hopefully I’ll never need any of my preparations. But if something bad does happen, I want the stuff that I could have dealt with taken care of so I can deal with the emotions and needs of the moment.

During this podcast episode, I discuss the need to think through your family’s possible risky situations. Jim and I periodically talk about and update our plans for

• storing food and water
• evacuating family and livestock
• managing extended loss of electricity (food storage, lighting)
• cooking and heating without electricity
• sourcing clean water
• seeking safety in storm shelter

Listener Feedback

Katie: The military has all sorts of activity books, checklists, and guides for families for all sorts of natural and other disasters online. We make sure to have a “hurricane” bag- just something with essentials (crank lights, flares, 1st aide, non perishable food, etc) and to familiarize ourselves with whatever new area in which we live.

Tara: Tornadoes – we have a storm shelter with three days water, a flashlight and any other things. Just never know where a twister might hit.

Lenea:I’m working on a 3 month supply. Not just having it but also using it so I know what to do when I really need it. To help me get a variety of items I became a consultant for Shelf Reliance. They have a program called the Q. I set a budget and a “wish list” of food storage items that I want and each month I get that budgeted amount of food sent to my home. It has really helped me get organized and get the items I need/want.

Rebecca: We can’t even afford groceries, and preparing with a disabled child only allowed one month’s supply of anti seizure meds is about as pointless as can me. Wish I could, guess our family will be in the first to check out. Yayness.
Note from PJ: Preparedness isn’t just about having money to stockpile stuff. One of the best ways to be prepared is with knowledge and by having a plan. That is free and just requires your time. Oftentimes, it is people without money who fare better than the “rich”.

Becky: We keep a bag by the door with water flashlights emergency info etc. Meds are always ready to go easily. Just added an emergency phone charger and radio. every 3 months I rotate the snacks and water. We are in OK so tornados and in winter ice storm threats make us stay prepared.

What about you?  Have you thought through some basic needs in case of a disaster or unexpected crisis? This is not about preparing for the end of the world, this is about being able to meet your family’s needs despite the circumstances surrounding you.

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as I talk about being polite.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Listener Questions

Charlene: What tools do you use to note that the goal is completed?

Laurel: Homeschool goals?

Abigail: What do you do to motivate you to continue towards a goal when it gets hard?

Kara: How do you teach goal setting to your children?

Rebecca: How do you know how high to set the bar? I am doing some goal setting myself, but I don’t want to set a goal that I can’t achieve… but I don’t want to set the bar too low because then there will not be a challenge.

Resources Mentioned

Here is a link to the episode about my control journal that I reference in this podcast.

What about you?  Are you good or bad about meeting the goals you’ve set for yourself?  I’d love to hear what your goals are and how you’re going to make sure that they’re not just dreams, but something you can successfully accomplish.

Thanks for listening! Please join me next we as I talk about being prepared.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

We also talk about what it is like to leave all of our children and the things we do to prepare to leave.   This trip we made sure that our will was updated and that all of our information was accessible if it was needed.

Do you have things prepared in case you leave and don’t return?  It’s not something we like to think about, but it’s something we need to take care of regardless.  Please share if you’re prepared and I’d love to hear what you do with your important paperwork.  I’m trying to figure out where to store mine and whether or not I should just get a safety deposit box.

Here is a link to the podcast episode about setting up a control journal that I reference.

Thanks for listening! Please join me next week as I discuss achieving your goals.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode I talk about why it is important that we not find our joy in checking items off our to-do list. Instead we need to stay in the moment and enjoy the actual living of our to-do lists.

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as I talk about being prepared to leave.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I’ve decided there are five reasons it is important to allow some spontaneity into my life.

1. It keeps things fun and makes me happy.
2. It keeps the children guessing.
3. It changes the tone of the day.
4. It takes advantage of opportunities that arise.
5. It builds memories.

During this podcast episode I discuss these reasons as well as share some of the ways that I’m spontaneous.  Emery also joins me and shares his feelings about spontaneity in our family.

Do you ever make time for spontaneity?  I’d love to hear about any spontaneous things you’ve done with your family and what the results were.  I’m always looking for new ideas!

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about staying in the moment.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I’ve learned how important it is to say “no”.  It is important for me and it is important for my children. Because when you say “no”, it frees you up to say “yes” to other things.

But just because it is important, that doesn’t make it easy.  During this podcast episode I discuss the fact that I have learned to say “no” even to some important things in my life.  Indigo joins me and we discuss some fun family things and how she feels about Mom telling her “no”.

For me, I have the most difficulty when I have to say no to my Goat Milk Stuff customers.  I find myself wanting to give them everything they ask for.  I’d love to hear in what situations you most struggle with saying “no”.

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about the rewards of spontaneity.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I’d love to hear what you thought of the series and if you homeschool what your biggest goals are.

Episodes in series:

• Homeschooling Part I
• Homeschooling Part II
• Homeschooling Part III
• Homeschooling Part IV

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week when I discuss learning how to say “no”.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

There are many different ways to homeschool.  This series gives you an idea of not only how we homeschool, but how we continue to enjoy homeschooling.  Tune in next week as we finish this series on homeschooling.

Episodes in series:

• Homeschooling Part I
• Homeschooling Part II
• Homeschooling Part III
• Homeschooling Part IV

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I continue the discussion of homeschooling.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

This is part two in our homeschooling series.  Jim and I finish our initial discussion and then start answering some of the questions we received.  I was sick when I recorded the introduction and you’ll hear it in my voice.  But the interview sounds fine.  Tune in next week as we continue answering homeschooling questions.

Episodes in series:

• Homeschooling Part I
• Homeschooling Part II
• Homeschooling Part III
• Homeschooling Part IV

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I continue the discussion of homeschooling.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Jim and I sat down and talked about homeschooling for over 2 hours.  I have edited our conversation into this four part homeschooling podcast series.

This first part discusses our reasons for homeschooling, the benefits of homeschooling, and our two main homeschooling objectives. If we accomplish those two goals, we consider our homeschool to be a success.

Episodes in series:

• Homeschooling Part I
• Homeschooling Part II
• Homeschooling Part III
• Homeschooling Part IV

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I continue the discussion of homeschooling.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode, I discuss in detail how my control journal is organized, in the hope that something I do can help you to organize your life better.  I talk about how I use all the following sections:

1. Goals/Tasks
2. Calendar
3. House Chores
4. Shopping
5. Holidays
6. Contact & Reference Info
7. Special Stuff

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about homeschooling.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

We just returned from a vacation to Topsail Island in North Carolina, and during this episode, Indigo and I talk about the trip and the fun times that we had.

Are you able to take family vacations?  What’s the favorite vacation you’ve ever taken?

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I discuss how to organize a control journal.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast, Brett and Colter discuss what they learned from their trip and how they feel about the way they are being raised as compared to the rest of their Outward Bound crew members.

What about you?  Have you ever let your children do something away from home for an extended time period?  If so, how did it go?  If not, do you plan to?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week to hear me talk about family vacations.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast, I am joined by my friend Kim and we discuss the line between being protective and over-protective when it comes to music, books, physical challenges, and spirituality.

Where do you fall on the spectrum – under-protective? protective? or over-protective?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week to hear Brett and Colter discuss their Outward Bound excursion and what it was like to be away from the Jonas home for 2 weeks.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Jim joins me on this podcast episode to discuss what a typical Jonas day looks like.  We both agree that we have no typical day, but have a schedule that we set that acts as a framework for our days.

We also share some of the insights that we’ve learned over the years and how we view our to-do lists and the tasks that we need to accomplish throughout the day.

What does your typical day look like?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week to hear my thoughts on being a protective vs an overprotective parent.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

When I look at my life, I’ve come to realize that I live my life with very little privacy.  I’m always surrounded by my family.  There are regularly people in my house.  I blog about the things that daily happen to us.  And people are always watching me when I go out with the family.  In fact, when Jim and I went to New York (just the two of us) a few months ago, we both commented on how strange it was that nobody was watching us.  We realized how much attention we drew just by the size of our family.

And I’m ok with that.  I think living my life with transparency is better than heavily guarding my privacy.   It makes me want to be a better person knowing that people are watching.  I want to be a better wife and mom because people are watching me and that carries over to the times when people aren’t watching me.

During this podcast episode, I’m joined by my friend Prayse Dangler, a fairly new wife and mom.  We discuss the concept of privacy and how it relates to our personal lives and our children’s lives.  I also share a very personal experience about a struggle that I kept private and the lessons I learned from that.  This episode really isn’t designed to “teach” anything, but just to spark some thought.

I’d love to hear from people what you think about this topic and how the issue of privacy plays out in your life.

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week to hear about what my “typical” day looks like.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode I talk about the intense experience we’ve sent Colter and Brett on to help them meet new people, have fun, and build their leadership skills.  I also interview Emery who is very insightful on some of the leadership skills of the Jonas family members.

If you’d like to strengthen your children’s (or your own) leadership skills, there are four principles that are discussed:

Knowledge: To lead people, there needs to be a solid knowledge base about the subject matter. Help your children to become confident in their knowledge and it will be easier for them to lead.

Opportunity: We have to step back and allow our children the opportunity to lead.  If we’re always stepping in, we do not allow them the chance to be leaders.

Example: Set an example for your children of how good leaders behave.  Bad leaders “push”; good leaders “pull”.  Point out examples of good leadership for them to mimic.

Confidence:  While you can’t give your children confidence, you can help them to cultivate it by allowing them the opportunity to fail and giving them lots of  opportunities to practice their leadership skills.

What about you?  Are you a natural leader?  Or is it something you had (or still need) to develop?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week when I talk about privacy and how it affects our lives.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Children are smart.  They realize that if they can’t get attention from Mom and Dad by being good, they can certainly get it by being bad.  Parents need to be smarter. Parenting is a lot more fun if we can harness their desire for our attention and use it to effectively parent.  By carving out time for our children we drastically reduce a lot of the misbehaviors that make us question why we ever became parents.

During this podcast episode I discuss how our family handles the following issues:

Preventive Parenting:  I have found that proactively providing individual time with my children goes a long way toward minimizing discipline problems.

How Much Time is Required: My goal is to meet each child’s needs.  There are times when different children (depending upon their age and circumstances) require more individual attention.  I never set an amount of time that will work (e.g. 10 minutes twice a day).   I’m flexible and pay attention to my children to know when somebody needs to spend extra individual time with me.

How to Fit One-On-One Time into Busy Schedules: I get creative.  I do very few things alone, but often have one of the children as my “buddy” so I get to spend time working side by side with just them.  It’s important, so I find a way to make it happen.  There are certain of my children that definitely require more of my attention than others.  I find a way to make it work.

Child Directed or Parent Directed Time: Depending on how busy the family is determines who gets to choose how individual time is spent.  When the schedule is crazy, I choose.  If things are fairly smooth, I let the child decide.

One-On-One Time or Buddy-Up: There are individual children that enjoy sharing their special time with me.  When I can Buddy up this special time, it works great.

Quality vs Quantity: Children need both.  You can not just have one without the other.  While you must find a balance, that balance will constantly change as the needs of the family shifts.

Time with Spouse: Don’t neglect your spouse and make sure that he gets attention and one-on-one time with you as well.

Overall, spending one on one time with your children should be fun and not a stressful thing to add to your to-do list.  Don’t feel like there is some magic number you need to achieve.  Be aware that your children need your attention and have fun giving them as much of it as you can.

What about you?  Are you able to spend enough one-on-one time with your children?  Or do you need to spend more?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week when I talk about how to teach your children to be leaders.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode, I discuss seven P’s that I practice in my disciplining efforts.

The Seven P’s are:

1. Personal
2. Persistent
3. Punishment fits the crime
4. Preparation
5. Prevention
6. Practice
7. Perpetual

Listener Questions:

Melissa – How do you effectively discipline your children in public? My boys made a huge scene in the grocery store today and I got loads of looks from other shoppers.

Debbie – what tips do you have when a kid who once was compliant, now fights the simplest things like brushing teeth, let alone getting school work done.

Danielle – How to handle whining when talking to the child about why they shouldn’t do whatever it is they’ve done.

Elizabeth – How to make a child who squeels/screams whether she is hurt or not and doesn’t even realize that she is doing it, how do you make her stop?

Patricia – What is the best approach when you are having a conversation with another adult and the child insists on interrupting?

Thanks for listening!  Tune in next week when I talk about how to give each child one on one attention.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

According to Swenson,

“Margin is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed.  It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations.  Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating.  It is the leeway we once had between ourselves and our limits.”

During this podcast episode I talk about how important it is to restore margin to your lives.  Brett joins me and talks about this concept at work in her life.

I also share with you some of what I have done over the years to make sure that I keep enough margin for our family to succeed.  Like most things, the amount of margin in your life is dynamic and you have to continually revisit and readjust.  Otherwise, today’s fast-paced culture will rob you of your margin and the result is stress and a feeling of being overwhelmed.

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I discuss disciplining yourself, and your children.

I have a short (5 question) podcast survey.  I would really appreciate it if you would take 2 minutes to fill it out.  Thank you! Click for Survey 

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

I use chores to build a strong work ethic into my children.  It isn’t always easy.  Raising children who do their chores regularly and with a cheerful attitude takes a LOT of work on my part.  I have to dedicate a portion of my day to inspecting their chores and training them on how to do their chores efficiently.

Even though I could do the chores faster (and better) than my children, I don’t (often) succumb to the temptation to do everything myself.  I put in the effort when the children are young, so that later on I am rewarded with children who are incredibly capable.

During this podcast I discuss how chores work around the Jonas house and provide some suggestions for getting your children to do their chores.  Plus I talk about how I handle the complaining that inevitably comes when it is chore time.

Indigo also joins me on this episode and you’ll get to hear the adjective she chose to describe how she feels about her chores.

I hope you enjoy listening to the episode and learn something that can help with chore time at your house.  What about you?  Do you struggle with getting your children to do their chores?  What is the most hated chore in your household?

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about restoring margin to your life.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

I think that as parents we cannot teach our children to control their words unless we first learn to control our words.  During this podcast episode I discuss some of the things that I have been learning and some of the changes that I’m trying to make with how I speak.  I even share one “bad” word that I’m trying to eradicate from my vocabulary since my children have started saying it and I don’t like hearing it out of their mouths.

Brett also joins me to discuss tone of voice and some of the things that she struggles with when it comes to her brothers.

I hope you enjoying listening to this episode.  I would love to hear an example of how you’ve used or received words that have hurt you or built you up and how it changed you.

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about the importance of chores.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

So what about you?  Do you need to start building a platform? Do you have any idea where you’ll be in five years and what you’ll be doing?

Unless you have a crystal ball, the answer is no.

And because you can’t forsee the future, you should consider building a platform now.  If you’re not sure what I mean when I use the term “platform”, listen to this podcast episode where I interview Michael Hyatt, author of the best selling book, Platform.*  It is a book I recommend, especially if you’re not sure what the future holds.

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about watching your words.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

*Amazon Affiliate Link

Join me on the podcast as I share the importance of learning and some of the ways (and things) I learn.  Fletcher also joins me on this episode and is very enthusiastic about what he wants.

What about you?  Are you learning and growing and challenging yourself? Are you using your “free time” or your “me time” to learn something? Or are you wasting those opportunities on simple amusement? Please leave me a comment and let me know something you’ve read or learned recently.

Thanks for listening!   Join me next week as I discuss building a platform for the future (not a physical platform).

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode, I interview my friend, Kristie Williams, who is a nurse practitioner.  Please do not construe the information on this podcast as medical advice, but we wanted to give you some information that could help you make decisions.

As a parent, you need to find and develop a relationship with a family practitioner or pediatrician.   Ask that doctor to help you educate yourself so you are more comfortable in making decisions about the health of your children.

I’m pretty slow to take my children to the doctor.  What about you?  Do you find yourself at the doctor’s office frequently?

Thanks for listening!   Join me next week as I talk about learning.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

So I make sure that I do everything possible to strengthen our immune systems and keep us healthy.  I don’t try to avoid all bacteria and viruses and germs.  Instead I try to build our immune systems so that we can handle whatever gets thrown our way.

During this episode, you’ll also hear a little bit about my upcoming trip and why it’s a first for me.  Plus Greyden joins me and talks about getting sick, staying healthy, and gifts.

I hope this episode gives you some ideas and encouragement to help you strengthen your family’s immune systems now, long before cold and flu season arrive.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you’ve found to be helpful in keeping you healthy.

Thanks for listening!  Join me next week as I talk about when to visit the doctor.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Then I play an interview that I recorded with Karyn Ranzau, the owner of Little Pink Ladybug.   In addition to pre-made hairbows, Little Pink Ladybug offers a patented template that teaches others how to create their own bows.  She also has several information products that show you how to sculpt particular hairbows.  As another entrepreneur who turned a hobby into a business and obtained patents, Karyn has some great insight to share.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you thought.

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as I talk about how to strengthen your immune system.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way.  America is still the Land of Opportunity and with the right mindset and business plan, you can create a business that  not only meets your financial needs, but that can grow and provide a retirement and a future for your family.

Once you have the right mindset, begin to go about it in the right way.  If your dream is a small business, start laying the foundation today.  Use some of the many resources on the web to put together a business plan.  Read lots of business and marketing books.  And mostly, start to dream and dream big!

In this podcast episode, I share some of the things that I have learned from starting and building Goat Milk Stuff.  Plus Jade and Brett join me at the end for their opinion on the business.

Please leave me a comment and let me know if you have a dream of starting a small business or if you’re happy with the career you have.  I’d love to hear about your dreams and goals.

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week as Karyn Ranzau and I discuss her business, The Little Pink Ladybug.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this podcast episode, I discuss my current trial and how I deal with it.  I also interview my friend Sarah, who was childless for the first 14 years of her marriage.  Sarah shares her experience and I hope that it encourages you if you are struggling with something in your life.  If you would like to contact Sarah, her email is josaaaco at yahoo dot com.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you have struggled with and how you maintained your perspective.

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as I talk about starting a small business.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Being financially able to grow the business so quickly allowed Jim to join Goat Milk Stuff full time.  Now all ten of us work together.  This wouldn’t have been possible if we were still in debt.

If you are struggling financially, I encourage you to listen as I offer ideas and tips that can help.  If you are currently on the path to debt free living, I hope that our story truly encourages you and keeps you working toward your goal.

Please leave me a comment and let me know if you’re desiring to live debt free or already are!

Thanks for listening! Please join us next week as we discuss being in control.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Studies have shown that people with clutter problems tend to use the following words to describe themselves:

• Overwhelmed
• Stressed
• Anxious
• Non-functional
• Non-productive
• Suffocating
• I can’t breathe
• Embarrassed

If you can relate to any of these words and feelings, please address the fact that it may be the physical clutter in your home that is causing these emotions.

In fact, observations have shown that as people “clean up”, their energy seems to rise.  Often times, the clean up and reduction of clutter motivates people to tend to other issues in their lives such as being stuck in an unsatisfactory occupation, losing weight, or living in an unhealthy relationship.

Various studies have also shown that the average American only uses somewhere between 20% and 30% of the stuff in their home. So you should have a lot of room to get rid of stuff that you really don’t need.

During today’s podcast episode, I’ll be answering listener questions about how to deal with the clutter in their lives.  It’s a long episode as there were a lot of detailed questions.

I hope you enjoy this concluding episode to the clutter series and that you are motivated to make a real change in your life to a simpler lifestyle.  You and your family will be benefited by the change.

Please leave me a comment and let me know if this series has changed the way you approach the clutter in your home.

Episodes in series:

• Getting Rid of Clutter Part I
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part II
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part III

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as we discuss paying off debt.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Or read the Getting Rid of Clutter Part III Transcript.

This is an extreme example, but as you can imagine it made a HUGE impact on the boys.  They got to see first hand how bad clutter can get if we don’t regularly battle against it.

People let clutter accumulate for many reasons.  But eventually, there comes a time when it must be dealt with.  You may hear (or speak yourself) some of these reasons why people hang on to clutter and allow it to accumulate:

• I might need it later
• I could get money for that
• I’m going to finish that
• I spent a lot of money on that
• Somebody gave it to me
• That’s an important memory
• I don’t have time

During this podcast episode, I’ll address these excuses and give you some solid encouragement on how to counter these fears.  Because the last thing you want is for people to have to some day bring dumpsters and garbage trucks to your home to empty it.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you thought of this episode and where your home stands when it comes to clutter.  You can also call the feedback line at 240-230-SOAP and leave me a question that I will answer on the final episode on clutter.

Episodes in series:

• Getting Rid of Clutter Part I
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part II
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part III

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as we continue the discussion of getting rid of clutter.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

This podcast episode is part one in a series on clutter.  During this podcast episode, I am joined by my friend Lori Lynch.   I asked Lori to join me because her home and most of her possessions were destroyed by the F4 tornado that recently ripped through our area.  In an instant, her life was instantly decluttered of all her possessions and I thought she could offer a great perspective on what is truly important.

During this podcast we’ll be talking about the tornado, the blessings that came from it, and the perspective that the tornado gave us on the clutter in our lives.   The next episode will discuss some of the types of clutter as well giving tips on how to make some difficult choices on what to remove.  I’ll end the series by discussing ways to organize what remains and how to keep your home clutter free on an ongoing basis.

I would love to know what you thought of this episode and where your home stands when it comes to clutter.  You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

Episodes in series:

• Getting Rid of Clutter Part I
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part II
• Getting Rid of Clutter Part III

Thanks for listening! Join me next week as we continue the discussion of getting rid of clutter.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Find out how I define fitness and why it is so important to the kind of wife, mother, and friend you are.  During this podcast episode, I also share some of the ways that I stay physically fit in the hopes that they encourage you.

Colter joins me to talk about fitness and what types of physical exercises he enjoys.

I would love to know what you thought of this episode and what your fitness goals are. You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

Thanks for listening! Tune in next week when I begin a series about getting rid of clutter!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

And if you’re not drinking enough water, you’re not going to feel as well as you could.  During this podcast episode I discuss why it is important to drink water, how much you should drink, and how to know if you’re getting enough.

Emery also joins me for a little while to discuss his feelings about drinking water instead of sodas.

I would love to know what you thought of this episode and whether or not you think you’re getting enough water throughout your day. You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

Thanks for listening! Tune in next week when I talk about exercise!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Eating enough fruits and vegetables is just one piece of the puzzle, but it’s a vital piece.  In this podcast episode, I’ll share what and how I eat to make sure I’m getting my needed vegetables.  I’ll also talk a little bit about getting those vegetables in your children. It may not be easy, but getting enough colorful fruits and vegetables is a necessary way to keep you healthy and full of energy so you can get it all done!

I’d love to know what you thought of this episode and if you have any great fruit or veggie recipes you’d like to share.

You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

Thanks for listening! Tune in next week when I talk about the importance of drinking water!

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Over the past couple of months I personally discovered that it isn’t always enough to get 8 hours of sleep.  The quality of our sleep can often be just as important or even more important than the quantity.    Brett joins me and answers questions about the role of sleep in her life and what happens when we don’t get enough of it.  I hope this episode helps you to make proper sleep a priority in your life so you can be the mom you are capable of being!

I would love to know what you thought of this episode and what the biggest obstacles to a good night’s sleep are for you.

You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

Thanks for listening! Tune in next week when I talk about how to eat enough fruits and vegetables!

You can read the Podcast Transcript or subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

During this episode, I discuss some of the things that I do, and some of the things that I don’t do.  (I told you it was a myth – not even I can do it all!)

You’ll even get to hear from Indigo as she joins me and helps me pick the winner of the Goat Milk Stuff gift certificate.  I’m hope this episode is encouraging to those moms who feel like they can’t get it all done. After recording the episode, I put together my own lists of some activities that are Important and some activities that are NOT Important.

I’d love to hear some of the things that you’re ok with not doing, so please share them!

Thanks for listening! Please join me next week when I discuss the importance of sleep for busy moms.

You can read the Podcast Transcript or subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast:

Leave a comment here with something you heard me say on the test podcast and you’ll be entered into a $10 GMS gift certificate giveaway. The winner will be announced on episode #1 of my new podcast. Listen to that episode, “The Myth of the Mom Who Can Do Everything,” (airing 3/7/2012) to see if you are the winner!

It makes my day to hear from people who have enjoyed the podcast.  You can comment on the blog post below or leave a message on The Busy Mom’s Survival Guide feedback line at 240-230-SOAP.

You can subscribe to the Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast: