Works For Me Wednesday: Sock-Loss Prevention

By MAD21

It seems that I am constantly coming across people talking about how they are so frustrated on laundry day due to the apparent disappearance of socks. They never leave in pairs... at least matching ones.

I've seen some good suggestions, and some bad, over the last few months. So I figured it was time to share what I do with those pesky socks that are determined to abandon their mate.

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Works For Me Wednesday: Who Goes First?

By MAD21

Picture, if you will, two sisters going into rest time. They always get a story before having to turn the lights out and be quiet. All of the things that need to be done before retreating to the bedroom get done. All is calm until... "It's MY turn to pick it out!" "NO! It's MYYY turn!" "NO! My turn!" ..... "MOoooOOOOMM!!"

It only takes so many days of this happening before you have no patience left and realize you need to find a better way to help your kids get along, and learn to take turns and share. (And be happy about it-HAHA!) Something needs to happen both for them, and for you.

Our girls are finally both old enough that they can do a lot of the same things, have a lot of opinions, and almost always want to go first or be the one who gets to choose something. I, like any parent, am always on the look out for fun ways to get things done. And this situation is no different.

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Works For Me Wednesday: Help! The Toys Are Taking Over!

By MAD

For this week's themed edition of WFMW, I get to turn the table on you, my reader. I get to ask, "What works for YOU?" Yay for me!

My girls are still at the young stage when their toys all take up a lot of space. Doll houses, little people houses (barnes, stables, amusement parks, train, circus, playgrounds... you get the idea), kitchen sets, dress-up clothes, big plastic cars, dress-up Elmo, dress-up Larry (veggie tale), train sets, big leggos, bouncy balls, hula-hoops, store sets, stuffed animals, and drawers full of all the assessories that go along with all this stuff.

Initially it wasn't too hard to either give toys away, or put them away until our younger daughter was old enough to want to play with them. But now our girls have similar interests and love to play with the same toys.

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Works For Me Wednesday: Breakfast Shortcakes

By Alan

In our household, a Saturday morning tradition is that Daddy makes breakfast for the girls, while Mommy tries to sleep in. The favorite version of breakfast is based on a simple recipe that appears on every box of Bisquick: Strawberry Shortcakes. (Disclaimer: No, we aren't affiliated with Betty Crocker or General Mills, and we get nothing for this recipe from them.)

Since we're making breakfast shortcakes (think big gooey cookies), and not a fruit dessert, we changed the recipe considerably.

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Works For Me Wednesday: Christmas Cards

By MAD21

Since our girls were born, I've tried to get Christmas Cards out every year that include something that tells our family and friends what we've been up to during the year. In this stage of our lives, I've found it so hard to keep up with them because we are always so busy. So it's a good way to reconnect.

Something I have always done when we send cards to people, is trace my girls hands in the cards. I think I started doing it because my entire family lives 3000 miles away, and by including their handprints it was a way for them to see my girls grow. I realized after awhile how much I liked including that handprint because it was almost like sending part of my girls with the card. In the same way that we sign our own names.

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