Less than Perfect Parents

Finding a Trusted Caretaker

I’ve alternated between being a stay at home mom and a working mom throughout different stages of my son’s life. For the first five year of his life I was mostly home, working in a restaurant on the weekend nights so I could be home with him the rest of the week. Then I was a preschool teacher from his kindergarten year until he was about ten years old. Those hours were perfect because I would work while he was at school and get out right as he got off the bus, if I had to work while he was off of school he could just come to work with me. Then I was a stay at home mom for two years before returning to work full time this past October. Although I absolutely love my job, finding care has been very stressful. I’ve been pretty lucky so far because my son played on his middle school soccer and then basketball team and would have practices and games after school most of the time HOWEVER the days he didn’t have practice I would almost have a nervous breakdown trying to find someone to get him after school. Plus he’s decided he doesn’t want o play baseball anymore so I now have zero after school care for him. He is old enough to stay at home sometimes but I really don’t think he’s ready to be home alone after school for three hours every day. Plus summer is coming up and I have no idea what I’m going to do with him for 60 hours a week (fulltime job plus commute time). I have literally been PRAYING for an answer.

Then I lucked out and came across care.com which is basically a website that brings babysitters and parents together. There are lists of babysitters and nannies so you can browse and look who you think would be right for you. The part I loved is that you can see background checks as well as recommendations from other parents. You can also see pictures, ages, experience, education, and hourly pay as well as a little area where they can tell about themselves. I liked that because I know the mother of a quiet baby girl would be looking for something totally different than a mom like me who is looking for someone to care for her wild sporty older boy.

A few other benefits include being able to see which days and times each babysitter is available, which extra duties they are willing to offer such as light housekeeping, meal preparation, errands, grocery shopping, travel, crafts, swimming supervision, and carpooling. They also include if they are trained in first aid, CPR, CRN, Doula, Special Needs Care, and Trustline Certified.

I’m going to be reviewing these profiles to find someone parttime now so that my son will be used to his caregiver by the time summer rolls around and they have to spend more time together. I may even find someone he likes enough to spend a Friday night with so that I can have a date night! I’ll let you know how it goes!

If you want to check it out for yourself just enter your zip code above to start searching!

Labels: Children, Family, Just for Dads, Just for Moms, Parenting, Safety

Keep Your Kids Safe

One of the things we worry about the most as parents is keep our kids safe. We see so many instances in the news of the kidnappings and killings of children, of serial molesters and rapists, and of the rampant use of child porn.

Here are some scary facts:

· Over 2,100 children go missing every day, that’s one child every 40 seconds.

· 1 in 6 boys is sexually abused before the age of 16.

· There are 728,345 registered sex offenders in the United State.

· The re-arrest rate of convicted child molesters is 52%

Now I don’t think we need to live in constant fear because that would not allow our children to develop properly but I do think that we, as parents, need to be aware. One great tool to help with that is to sign up at kidslivesafe.com.

If you sign up you will be able to:

1. Search, map, and view complete sex offender profiles.

2. Receive an instant email alert when a sex offender moves into your monitored area.

3. Safely monitor your children online.

4. Use their Emergency Response Profiles if your child is lost or abducted.

5. Learn your city’s true crime rate.

6. Use their learning center to stay up to date with critical child care information and resources.

Empower yourself to protect your children!

*I am a Kids Live Safe affiliate.

Labels: Children, Family, Health, Just for Dads, Just for Moms, Parenting, Safety

Valentine's Day Fashion

Here is some cute items from Victoria's Secret to make you feel comfortable no matter if you're single or in a relationship. Either way these will make you feel great when you're wearing them!

Which of these is your favorite?

Labels: Fashion, Just for Moms

Valentine's Day Gift Guide

Sometimes it can be so hard to find the perftect gift for that special man in your life. I came across a great gift guide on Perry Ellis that finds gifts based on your love's personality. Here are a few of my favorites:

Sweet Sophisticate

Charming Creative

Rugged Romantic

Ladies, does your guy fall into any of these categories? For the men, do any of these best describe you?

Labels: Dads, Fashion, Holidays, Just for Dads, Just for Moms

Great Tool to Mange Money

I can be obsessive about my finances. I have always spent hours balancing my checkbook, tracking investments, creating monetary goals, designing budgets, researching ways to save money on products I already use. About a year ago I signed up for and it changed the way I managed my finances. I go on my at least once per day. It helps remind me of my goals which motivates me to take all opportunities to make extra money as well as a reminder to avoid spending money needlessly.

What’s great about Mint.com

1. It’s FREE! That means there’s no risk to sign up!

2. Easy enrollment. It takes less than 5 minutes to register.

3. All of your financial information is in one place so you can see your assets, liabilities, and net worth at a glance.

4. You add every one of your accounts to your mint.com profile so every time you log in you have every account and it’s information automatically updated. You can see what's happening with all your accounts–checking, savings, investments, retirement–at any moment of the day.

5. It lets you create budgets and track them. I love that it notifies me when I go over my budget in a certain area. It’s great to have a reminder when you don’t realize how much you’re spending!

6. It’s safe and secure! has uses the same 128-bit encryption and physical security that
banks use. Our practices are monitored and verified by TRUSTe, VeriSign and Hackersafe, and supported by RSA Security.

7. It protects you 24/7. increases your financial security through email and text alerts that notify you about any large purchases or unusual changes in your accounts and more.

8. is a well respected way to manage money. It has been a Money Top Pick, a PC Magazine Editor's Choice, and we've won awards from Kiplinger's, The Webby's, CNN Money and more. It has over 6 million users.

I do receive payment for anyone who follows these links to sign up but I want my readers to know I would never recommend something unless I felt it was a fabulous product. Even before I became affiliated with this company I have recommended this service to so many of my family and friends and they have all thanked me for introducing them to this incredible service. I get so many requests to promote different products and I turn most of them down because I don't feel that it's something I could put my name behind. With I was so excited for the opportunity to become an affiliate so I could promote a product I truly believe in. So head on over today and sign up for ! You can thank me later!

Labels: Finances, Just for Moms

Look Great While Losing Weight

I know most of us have set New Year’s Resolutions that have something to do with working out and losing weight. I know if I’m going to be dragging myself to the gym I’m at least going to look decent. The hardest part of going to the gym is getting there and with these three looks you’ll look forward to getting ready and showing off your great work out outfits. Best of all, you can get free shipping on these orders by clicking the link below and using the promotional code. I stocked up on all the workout clothes I’d need for the year!

Black and White:

The first look is the most subtle. It's just black and white and covers the most as it comes with long pants. You could also just throw a plain black or white T-shirt over this if you'd like more coverage.

Red:

Red stands out and gets you motivated. I love capri workout pants because you stay cool while working out yet don't have to reveal all of your legs.

Neon Green:

This look is when you're confident enough to call attention to yourself with neon colors and wear revealing shorts. I know I personally am not at that point yet but some of you fit moms may love these. If you've got it you may as well flaunt it!

Have you been working out a lot this year? Which one of these outfits do you like the best?

Labels: Fashion, Fitness, Just for Moms

Frostini

Photo Courtesy of: © Starbuck Liqueurs

I love smooth and creamy drinks in front of a warm fire on a cold winter night. I can be pretty picky because I’m not a big drinker but this martini never disappoints. It’s made with Starbucks’ Cream and Coffee Liqueurs and peppermint schnapps topped with some fresh mint. Sometimes I even add just a little dark chocolate shavings for a little chocolate flavor with my mint. It’s sooooooooo good!

Ingredients:

1 part Starbucks Cream Liqueur

1 part Starbucks Coffee Liqueur

1/4 part DeKuyper Peppermint Schnapps

fresh mint sprig for garnish

Preparation:

1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice.

2. Shake well.

3. Strain into a frozen cocktail glass.

4. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

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Labels: Food and Drink, Just for Moms, Recipes

For the Holidays!

With the holidays coming many of us have many different activities we have to go attend such as parties, plays, school functions, lunch dates, and many more. I know I have many days when I have different functions scheduled back to back that I need to look nice for. I needed a couple outfits that I could wear in different settings. Here are two that you can look nice in no matter what holiday activities you need to attend.

Dooney & Bourke, Old Navy, All Saints, Coffee Shop

Coats by Coffee Shop
Boots by All Saints

Caparros, Daks London, Topshop, Merona, Good Charma

Longsleeve Tops by Merona
Sandals by Caparros

Labels: Fashion, Just for Moms

Simply Red by The Limited

Red is the color of the holidays! From the fall hues of Thanksgiving to the red and green of Christmas to striking red on New Year's Eve, red is perfect for any function this season. With red, the key is to just let a little say a lot. Here are some great looks from The Limited:

Satin Peek Knit Tee

I love this shirt because of the way it falls. It helps to define your waist yet is forgiving of any imperfections. It is sophisticated yet comfortable and I think the look of effortless elegance is what we're all going for when we dress up a little.

This shirt can be paired with:

Bias-cut Pencil Skirt

The next look is a flattering plaid that is side zipped and lined. It's easy to vary how casual or dressy this skirt looks based on what you match it with. I've offered several different shirts below so you can determine what fits your style best.