The roller coaster that is my mind

Fynn and I headed to our lessons this past winter … I have to say I won’t miss lugging that thing on the subway …I’ve been all over the map today, and am only starting to feel settled down at 9:30 at night.  Fynn’s in bed, exhausted, M’s working, the radio faintly playing in the kitchen, and our fans do battle with the humming of A/C in the buildings around me. 
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Recession-Lessons = Stronger Smarter Family (by Darah)

Image courtesy of MyEyeSees, via FlickrEverybody is pouting about the Recession and how it has negatively impacted their lives. I get it. Perhaps I am no longer moping since we were the Recession Pioneers; we actually began downsizing our lifestyle twenty-seven months ago, were “beaten beyond recognition” and now have only one direction to go from here- UP!

Nevertheless, our sulking time is long gone!

Being such “Seasoned Veteran Recession-ists,” our family’s coping methods have evolved over time; now they’ve become the quintessential Recession Survival Skills.

Here is a concise list of some “Recession-Lessons” learned that have unexpectedly enhanced our family life and continues to school our kids in business …
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Tip Tuesday : Make time to talk

Image courtesy of bastet in the sky with diamonds via Flickr and CC. I don’t know about you, but finding time to talk about the big things is always a challenge.  It feels like there are so many other important things to do, that making time for something like talking has a lower priority.  It seems to get relegated to the rare date nights, which turns them into something more torturous than a date ever should be!  I find that heavy talks, or simply the painful “big subject” ones need a few extra things to make them work. 

  • Schedule the time and the subject
  • Grab a snack
  • Get your favorite drinks
  • Find a comfortable spot … bring your info to the bed or the couch or the back porch, someplace where you’re both relaxed.
  • Put on some music to keep the mood light.

Formalizing it does help in many ways, and is better than relying on a hurried phone conversation, or the 5 minutes when you’re both getting ready in the bathroom in the morning.  It doesn’t have to be long, but taking a few minutes to set the stage really helps the discussion along, and keeps it from muddying up the bed or the date or the morning routine.  Let me know how it goes!

Friday Roundup ...

Happy Friday all, hope your week has been a good one?  I’ve found a few gems this week, check ‘em out and stay cool …

  • ThredUp is a gently-used clothing exchange, and though I haven’t tried it myself their interface looks super easy to use, and if you’ve got a pile to swap give it a try!  Most of my kid’s clothes are beyond ‘gently used’ by the time they’re done with them :).
  • Cassie Boorn is hosting something cool : 20-something Self-Letters.  The idea is you write a letter to yourself, at age 20.  There are some great ones to read on there already.  I think I need to do it myself, and if I do I’ll try to get up the nerve to post it here!  Thx to Wedje for the tip. 
  • The EWG’s Shoppers Guide to Pesticides is super handy and a great idea … a list of the best/worst foods when it comes to pesticide residues.  Avoid the Dirty Dozen if you can’t buy organic or unsprayed, and choose the Clean 15 instead.  Take a look and grab the printable too, I was surprised by what I saw!

Catch you Monday!

Tip of the Week : Google for Coupons!

If you order anything online, I hope you already know about this one.  If not (like the friend I spoke to yesterday) get ready to save!  Any time you go to buy ANYthing online, first Google “Gap Coupons” or whatever company or site you’re ordering from.  You’ll get a big list of sites like CouponCabin or MyCoupons or whatever, and I almost never fail to find a relevant coupon that gives me anywhere from 5 to 20% off of my order, or free shipping, or something like that.  I never spend more than 5 minutes looking.  Beware of the ones that are only for some special group that you don’t belong to (like students or whatever) but most of them are entirely legit. 

My example from last week …

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