Jeanie's S.O.S.
Save Money
I always feel a bit glum when Christmas is over, but a new year filled with holidays, birthdays and other celebrations is on the horizon. And they provide great recycle/reuse opportunities.
- Save those pristine--and expensive--bows. Put a little tape on the bottom and voilà! You have a lovely gift topper...all the more beauteous because it's free.
- Remove name tags from gift bags and they're ready to reuse.
- Once they deflate, shiny mylar balloons work great as basket stuffing. Crumple them up and place them in the bottom of the gift baskets you create. Plastic Easter grass strewn around her home drove my mother-in-law nuts. The crumpled balloons can replace Easter basket grass.
As always, monitor small children closely. Almost any celebratory items can pose choking hazards for precious little ones, so store your items in a safe place.
Photo courtesy of Anusorn P. Nachol @freedigitalphotos.net
Organize
A cosmic gravitational vortex sucks junk from throughout the galaxy and dumps it all into our front hallway. I've dubbed the area, "The Forbidden Zone."
Do you have an spot like that? An area when shoes, mail, and stray polo ponies accumulate?
Break down your forbidden zones with a bit of detective work.
1) Identify what types of items fill the cluttered area. Newspapers? Backpacks? Duck-billed platypus?
2) Create a "home" where the items should go instead. Everything in your home needs a home.
3) Enlist everyone in the family to help. (I dub this call for help, "Encouragement" because "Bribery" and "Coercion" sound bad.)
4) Put things in their newly designated homes. Coats go into the closet; mail goes into an inbox, etc.
Simplify
Are you suffering from brain fog? Fatigue? Moodiness?
Drink some water!
Even mild or temporary dehydration can alter your brain function and impact your mood.
Dr. Mercola shares, "About three-quarters of your brain is water, and when dehydrated, your brain actually shrinks in volume. This shrinking is what causes a dehydration headache.
Fortunately, within 20 minutes of drinking some water, effects such as these are reversed. Dehydration-induced headaches are also rapidly alleviated once you rehydrate.
A Harvard study found more than half of American children are dehydrated.
If your kids struggle with frequent fatigue and mood swings, consider making sure they drink sufficient amounts of water. Kids are at higher risk for dehydration (as) they're more prone to drinking ... soda and fruit juice instead of plain water."
Click here to learn more.
And the next time someone accuses you of being grumpy, just growl, "My brain is temporarily shrunken! Lay off!"
Photo courtesy FrameAngel @freedigitalphotos.net
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