It’s Stuff-itis season… the season when we are bombarded with messages of all the STUFF we deserve ourselves or need to gift to other people to show them we love them. We experience it every year, this idea that pervades our consciousness – in the malls, in our media, and in our culture – that with all the giving of stuff comes joy, love and connectedness. And yet, every year after all the wrappings and bows are stuffed in the trash and we’ve collected our stuff in a pile, after they join all the rest of our stuff, we don’t feel any different than we did before. We go back to the disconnected, running around we did back in September that was necessary to fuel this culture of stuff. We go back so we can do it all over again.

What does it all mean?

And there it is. The thing that we are really searching for: meaning. It turns out that The Grinch was right… Christmas doesn’t come in a box. We all know this. We just need reminders.

So how can we infuse our celebrations with meaning? Are there gifts that are more aligned with what we really want to share with our families and friends? – that we see them, that we are grateful for who they are and the moments of life we share with them and that they share with us.

So here are some ideas on ways to capture and share – not just pictures – but moments. And apropos of Thanksgiving this week, reminders of moments of connection that we can all be grateful for.

Picking one thing every day to be grateful for and noting it in some external way is powerful. Write it in a journal, or post it on your bathroom mirror… doing something every day for 30 days is a great way to create a pattern or a practice of gratitude. You could join the thousands of other people who are doing this online on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #30daysofgratitude.

Here’s an idea: collect your 30 days of gratitude and have a personalized book printed… there are any number of online services that will do this for you: Shutterfly, Paper Coterie, Blurb… and then you’ll have a tangible thing to remind you throughout the year of the things you already grateful for… and because gratitude is viral (so to speak), it’s that much easier to find more things to be grateful for.

Get your kids in on the fun too! You could do a gratitude book for your family or your kids could do books for themselves… and if you start today, you’d still be done before Christmas! If you add pictures, it’s even more powerful!

Along the same lines, you can share gratitude with your family. Picture calendars are a staple gift for the grandparents, right? How can you infuse it with the spirit of gratitude? Ask your kids to help you pick twelve things that they are grateful for and find pics to match.

If all of that organizing seems like too much, just pick one picture and make a memento box. (THIS is totally my speed). Then throughout the year when your child brings home an art project from school or leaves you a sweet note, you can put it in there. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found myself all weepy when I stumble across these little treasures. The keepsake boxes also make great gifts.

Okay… maybe Christmas can come in a box.

Out of the blue, my 8 year-old declares, “I’m into chores now!” in that that slightly amusing way that only a tween girl can declare. So at our next outing to Target, she went in search of a chore chart. Then at home, she and her 6 year old brother went about the serious business of filling it out. (No sarcasm here. Really.)

This is serious. They are taking it seriously and so am I. After all, the more buy-in from Team Sharon, the more cooperation I’m going to have, right?

I heard a friend of mine say once, “You can’t get mad at your teen for not doing any chores if they’ve never had to do it before.” Good point.

Them: What should we put down?

Me: You could put down the chores you are good at and like to do.
(How’s that for Yoga Parenting?!)

Them: So how much do we get when we get all our stars?

Me: Huh?

Son: How many dollars?

Me: You don’t get paid for chores! You get a clean room, dishes to eat off of, and happy dogs.

(crickets)

Me: …and an extra 30 minutes of screen time, IF you each earn 3 stars a week.

Over the next two days, the boy vacuumed and put everything in the playroom away. The girl made the bed and fed the dogs. Together, they emptied the dishwasher. Wow!

I’m going to call this a successful lesson learned from Ann Jordan on responsibility. They took ownership of the whole thing and so far, it’s working.

I’d love to hear from YOU on how you manage chores in your house. But don’t say you do them all yourself!!! Leave me some pointers, will ya? … in the event that this is just a blissful “phase.”

Related Articles

How to Empower Our Kids: Responsibility

—

Practical Mommy is Ria Sharon, co-creator of the Yoga Parenting course. Are you ready for parenting to be easier, more fun and less stressful?

One of the added perks of expecting a new member of the family is designing that very precious nursery. For me, that was really fun! During my visit with Corey Goellner, owner of Goodnite Rooms, she shared the latest trends in nursery design.

Makes me want to do it all over again! Well, the nursery… not so much the pregnancy/baby part!

—

Practical Mommy is Ria Sharon, co-creator of the Yoga Parenting course. Are you ready for parenting to be easier, more fun and less stressful?

I really detest cooking in the summer. Did I mention it’s 100 degrees in the shade these days? And frankly, my kids and I have more fun things to do that take too much time in front of the stove. Like last night, we were on a mission to squeeze in a few more episodes of Avatar: The Last Airbender. But the mom in me said chips and twizzlers just was not going to cut it for dinner. So while the girl was in the bath, the boy and I whipped this up in 10 minutes!

And the best part was they loooooved it. Both my 8 yo and 6 yo asked for seconds. We finished the whole thing, which meant I didn’t even have leftovers to put away!

So here’s the recipe, which Rachael Ray-style, is not very exact. My 6 yo sous chef and I kinda made it up as we went along.

• aidell’s cooked chicken and apple sausage,chopped

• 1/2 zucchini, chopped

• handful of button mushrooms, chopped

• 2 eggs

• pre-cooked white/brown rice. It’s better if it is made at least 1 day prior. Ours happened to be a week old.

• salt to taste

• 1 tbs of vegetable oil

Heat vegetable oil on medium high in frying pan or wok. Add EVERYTHING, one by one in order of how long it takes to cook. I added the chicken sausage first until brown. Then, the mushrooms. Then, the zucchinis. Then cleared a spot in the middle. Dropped in the two eggs. Mixed it all together.

We added the salt in each serving bowl to taste.

By the way, this recipe so in the spirit of traditional fried rice. Really, put anything in there you want. Leftover steak is especially good.

Do you have any go-to quick dinners? I’m always looking for more ideas!

—

Practical Mommy is Ria Sharon, co-creator of the Yoga Parenting course. Are you ready for parenting to be easier, more fun and less stressful?

Ever since a trip to Italy years ago, I’ve been in search of the perfect Pomodoro. It’s a fabulous summer recipe, light and healthy. After many years, I’m proud and happy to say, I just made it up myself! Thus, it is super easy!

8 roma tomatoes
2 tbs. of olive oil
basil (fresh or freeze dried)
olive oil spray
1/2 cup of fresh grated parmesan cheese
mozarella (optional)
salt to taste

First, place the tomatoes in the broiler, sprayed with olive oil, and sprinkled with a bit of salt and basil. Broil until tender (10-15 minutes).

Cool.
Mash.
Add parmesan cheese.
Add 2 tbs. of olive oil
Mix.

That’s it! Pour on pasta and top with fresh mozarella!

I’ve already made it twice this week and my 6 year old loved it. Here’s another tip: make a whole pot of it and keep adding stuff. Great options: roasted vegetables like zucchinis and mushrooms, meat, eggplant, bacon. The possibilities are endless.

I also used it to make bruschettas for lunch one day. How’s that for practical.
The secret was the cheese — which I didn’t realize until I re-created my grandmother’s famous bolognese sauce.

—

Practical Mommy is Ria Sharon, co-creator of the Yoga Parenting course. Are you ready for parenting to be easier, more fun and less stressful?

Do you ever feel overwhelmed and stressed out when it comes to packing for your family vacation? It doesn’t have to be a daunting task. Why not try something a little outside of the normal routine? Time to take hold of a new concept in packing … sans stress!

—

by Expert Mommy, Catherine Horgan

Officially, school’s out for us in the BIG BUTTERFLY HOUSE (that’s what my kids call my house). But Expert Mommy, Claire and I have some homework for you! Last Friday, I came home with *gobs* of stuff from school for each of my kids — I’m talking grocery bags-full of stuff. And I remembered this great idea from our organizational expert, Claire Keeling!

Materials:

• Binder

• Digital Camera

• Printer

• 3-hole puncher

• laminating sheets (optional)

—

Practical Mommy is Ria Sharon, co-creator of the Yogi Parenting course. If you are ready for parenting to be easier, more fun and less stressful, sign up for a free Yogi Parenting lesson.

Spinach Lasagna

Whether you are making the only spinach version or the spinach with meat version, homeamade lasagna is quite easy. I usually try to make an extra pan as it actully tastes better the second day!

Spinach Filling

2 lbs small curd cottage cheese (may substitute Ricotta cheese if desired)

2 – 10 oz packages frozen chopped spinach – thawed

1 tsp garlic powder

salt to taste

Tomato Sauce

3 jars spaghetti sauce – your choice of spices

**For a meat version – Brown 1 lb ground beef (or more if desired) and add to spaghetti sauce before beginning to assemble.

**may use tomato sauce and add Italian spice (basil, oregano, garlic) to taste

Lasagna Noodles

1 box, I prefer the no-cook variety. Simply assemble dry noodles in the following instructions and bake as directed.

Assembly

In a 13 x 9 pan prepared with nonstick cooking spray, assemble in layers:

• lasagna noodles
• spinach filling – use a spoon to spread a thin layer evenly over noodles
• mozzarella cheese

End layers with mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 350F for 1 hour. Lasagna should be golden and bubbly.

Serve hot and enjoy!

—

by Expert Mommy, Dina-Marie Oswald

If your little one is as imaginative as mine is, then you absolutely have to do this project.  Not only will it spark your child’s imagination, but it will get them moving, too.  Perfect for indoors or out, this jet pack will have your kids soaring!

All you will need are 2 empty chip cans, 4 full pieces of construction paper in any color, 1 piece of red or orange paper, glue, tape, decorations (stickers or glitter), and an old back pack.

This can easily be modified by omitting the back pack and using yarn.

First thing you will want to do is have your child decorate 2 sheets of construction paper any way they want.  I let my son have at the glue and glitter.  For a much less messy version, you can use markers and stickers. 

While your child is decorating, you can take the other two sheets of construction paper and trace circles on them.  I used a salad bowl and it worked just fine.  Grab anything about 7-9 inches in diameter.  Trace the circle and cut.  You will then want to cut a slit in the circle that reaches the center.  Now turn the paper onto itself to make a cone.  Use glue or tape to hold the cone shape.

Now cut strips of the red or orange paper.  Cut a piece of tape long enough to fit completely around the circumference of the chip cans (an estimation will be just fine, no need to measure).  Lay the strip of tape down sticky side up and place the strips of paper on them.  Be careful to only put the strips on the lower half of the tape.  You want there to be enough tape to still attach to the can.  Now place the tape inside the open end of the cans just along the edge.  You can affix on the outside or on the inside.

Your child’s artwork is about to become the decoration of the rockets.  Glue or tape their embellished construction paper around the chip can.  Carefully run a bead of glue around the rim of the closed end of the cans.  Now just place your cones onto the glue.  I strongly recommend using glue instead of tape for this part, I know from experience.  If you want this instant, you can always use hot glue and not have the long drying time.  I tend to not use hot glue since I have four little hands “helping” me with projects.  I am worried my two hands aren’t going to cover all four from reaching for a hot glue gun.

Lastly, glue your rockets to the back pack.  We got this back pack at our thrift store.  If you do not have a back pack you can easily use a pencil to poke 4 holes into each can.  Two holes near the top (parallel, but closer to one side so they easily lay against your child’s back) and two holes near the bottom.  String one piece of yarn or twine through the holes at the top and another through the bottom holes.  Now you can tie the rockets to your child’s chest area and waist.

I created the back pack version because I did not want to be asked a hundred times a day to tie the rockets on.  A back pack can easily be put on and taken off by my 3 year old.  Now the only problem is I have to make another one, because my youngest wants one too.

This could be your child running off to explore strange new worlds.

by Expert Mommy, Kim Young

Oh no! It’s 5:30 you just arrived home from toddler ballet, the baby is crying and her siblings are getting restless. As you toss them a pretzel rod and rummage through your kitchen cabinets, your thinking I have to be more organized, there has to be a better way. There is a better way to feed your starving children, yourself and significant other without, cutting short on nutrition and making 2 meals (one for you and one for the kids. I used to be so guilty of that) Here are a few things to do, which will get you through those time crunch hours.

1) Always keep ingredients of a few favorite meals in your pantry. I love Annie’s organic Mac and Cheese or a bag of frozen stir-fry veggies mixed with chicken. Anything you can think of that takes about 15 minutes to make.

2) Keep a running list of things you run out of on your fridge or somewhere close by. Soon as you see you are out or low on something, jot it down.

3) Have a meal you and your spouse love, but this kids not so much? Make your meal, but omit the sauce for the kids or don’t combine it all together. Whatever their issue is with it, simplify and enjoy the meal the way you want it too.

4) “Don’t knock till you try it, put a little on your plate! Some kids think it’s great!” This was a little jingle sung by some cartoon on Saturday mornings when I was a kid. It has always stuck with me. Remember your kids watch your reactions to food and should be encouraged to try it before making any “Yucky” comments.

5) Slow cookers can be your best friends. Find a few of your favorite crock pot recipes and take the time to do a least one a week. A great meal that you literally just had to throw together.

6) Resort to take out! I know some days we just don’t have it in us. Find the best 3 take out places around you and ask about their most nutritious dishes. Another option is to stick to a main dish and you add the fruit and veggies at home.

This is a good start! Don’t forget that some stores offer personal shopping and all you have to do is pick it up! Not a bad way to go even if you use it only once in a while. Remember to make you plan, have a few things to fall back on, try new things, Betty Crocker knew what she was talking about with the slow cooker and never be afraid to ask for help. That’s what good friends ( and spouses) are for.