Work at Home, Set and Police Your Boundaries

The best and worst part of working at home is you're always home. Oxymoron? Yes. Dilemma? Yes. You're available 24-7, which is good for others. For you, not so much. My youngest son put it well--"Mom, you don't work at home, you live at work." If you work at home, it is essential to learn to set and maintain boundaries with family, interruptions, schedule.   Work at Home, Set and Police Boundaries

To Lose Weight, Maintain Relationships, Feel Better, Abandon Calorie Counting Sometimes

I'm going out to dinner with my husband tonight. He has to work another six-day week (nights) and may be working seven nights a week again (why do they not hire a new person when someone quits??) And I am on a diet. 96 pounds gone, woo hoo! But sometimes, all that calorie counting, denying myself gets tedious. So I take breaks from calorie counting when we go out to dinner. I mean I still watch what I eat. But not so obviously. It's annoying to be on a date with someone who is always preaching diet, or food allergies or gluten-free, or vegan. My relationship is important to me too. So when I am lucky enough to get a night with husband, I don't rub the diet in his face. And you know what? I feel better and it doesn't derail my weight loss a bit.   Diet Tip Abandon the Diet Sometimes

Healthy Ways to Get Back to Work After Vacation

We got back from our trip to Detroit-New Orleans on December 30. We had a fantabulous time, seeing our son in Detroit and daughter and son-in-law in Lafayette. Getting all four kids together for the holidays was a wonderful blessing. After getting home, husband still had a few days left of vacation and we enjoyed them to the fullest. Needless to say, it's a little difficult and depressing to go back to work after holidays. So here's how I'm ramping into work.   Getting Back Into the Work Groove After Vacation

Plus-Minus Inventory for Mental Health

I got notification that a site I write for wants me to pick up another beat, which is similar to one I already write. I'm grateful for the opportunity and that they appear to like my articles. But I'm also torn. So I'm going to do a PMI--a plus minus inventory. I used this with special needs students in decision-making lessons. It's like a pros and cons list. It's a helpful flow chart to coordinate data and impressions in making an important choice.   New Writing Opportunity, My Plus-Minus Inventory

Banish Winter Blahs or (at Least) Balance Blues and Bliss

The calendar says "spring." Days are longer. Birds are twittering joyously, emerald shoots peek up from melting snow and spring-new sun shines gloriously. Why then, when the world is coming alive, do I feel blue? Here are reasons, plus spirit-lifters to beat depression or at least balance winter blahs with springtime bliss!read more

How to balance family summer schedules with sleep-late teens

Summer vacation means different things for kids than it does for parents. Older kids and teens look forward to staying up late and sleeping late. Mom and dad, unfortunately, don't have that luxury. We still have that four-letter word (work) to look forward to. Here are tips to balance family life (and keep your sanity) with late-blooming teens and early-rising parenting. How to balance family summer schedules with sleep-late teens