Tag: mom blogger

Tips And Tricks To Keep Up On Housework

~ quirkymoms486 ~ 42 Comments

Is it even possible to be a neat freak but not even like cleaning?

Well it’s defiantly a thing in my world. I love a clean house and things to be exactly in their place but I hate the getting there part!

Housework in general is just A LOT OF WORK. Throw in a kid or two and a husband? That’s a tornado waiting to happen. Toys all over, socks meant to be thrown into the hamper end up right next to it. Dirty dishes in the sink, Random half-eaten snacks in the couch cushions.

So now on top of our busy as it is schedule just trying to be a normal wife and mom, how are we supposed to keep our house looking like no one lives there as well?

My house is in by no means clean all the time, but navigating through this new mom life I have found a few tips and tricks that help me maintain my housework.

And, I am sharing them with you today in hopes that it might make your cleaning duties a little bit easier each day as well.

Quick Pick-Up

I do this throughout the day so it dosen’t need to be done at night. Just go around your house after some play-time is done and quickly pick up some toys, or put away kitchen items left out from breakfast or lunch. I do this a couple times a day that probably only amounts to 15 min a day so that I don’t have to do as much pick-up at night and can get under the covers faster and finally breath.

Fold Your Laundry On Your Bed

I am the queen of laundry procrastinating. Right along with cleaning bathrooms, laundry is my least favorite housework. Putting laundry in the washer and switching it out into the dryer? Easy. Folding it and putting it away? No thanks. So what I have found that works for me is to fold my laundry on my bed and if I feel like leaving it there for a couple hours that’s fine, but I know at some point it will get put away because I need a clean bed to sleep in.

Wipe Down Counters and Tables At Night

I’m sure we all do the after dinner clean up which is good! I’ve found that wiping down my counters after dinner and my kitchen and coffee tables at night really eases my mind. That way when I wake up in the morning they are clean and ready to go and it just starts my day off right.

Clean The Shower While In The Shower

A big hack right here ladies. Buy a scrub brush that holds soap in it. Fill it up with equal parts white vinegar and dawn dish soap. I don’t do this all the time but it’s an easy way to keep up on your shower cleaning, it works great at getting soap scum off and it’s an easy way to do a quick clean while you are even in the shower as well!

Frequently De-Clutter

I know, the big dreaded word de-clutter. It’s a huge task and it’s at the center of our frustration when it comes to housework. Too much stuff. Why do we have this? Where did this come from? Have we even ever used this? I am guilty of pushing off de-cluttering every single year but I have found that the more frequently I do it, the easier it is to keep up on. A de-cluttered house makes a huge difference to us moms, so just keep up on it little by little and you won’t find yourself with the overwhelming task of a huge clean out in January.

These tips help me out when it comes to the everyday chaos of life. Having a clean home makes us feel a little more put together in the world so I hope these tips help you out as well!

Do you use any of these tricks to keep up on your housework?

What other tips and tricks could you give all of us Quirky Workin’ Moms so housework doesn’t consume us?

Also, if you are interested in a free weekly cleaning checklist let me know! I’ve been thinking about making one 🙂

Need A VERY Last Minute Mother’s Day Gift? How About A DIY!

~ quirkymoms486 ~ 22 Comments

I used to be on top of everything. Birthday? I had a gift two weeks before. I love to be prepared and a planner but since becoming a mom, I totally get it!

Being late, forgetting things, the chaos, it makes so much sense now. I have become the person who feels guilty about getting things last minute. With that though, I have also found the love for DIY gifts!

I love DIY gifts, they are much more sentimental and the effort means a lot.

Are they messy? Yes, especially when you are trying to do one with a squirmy 9 month old.

Are they perfect? Heck no! Most of the time they look like blobs and are going in every direction.

Are they fun? YES! I had so much fun making these with my little one even when he did swipe his painted hand across my arm and got close to my face once.

So for Mother’s Day, I went the crafty way and I love the outcome and can’t wait to keep mine forever.

DIY Mother’s Day Flower Pot

You will need:

  • Glue Gun
  • Cardstock Paper
  • Washable Non-Toxic Kid Paint
  • Decorative Straws
  • Scisors
  • Sharpie

First, the messy part! If you have older kids it won’t be too messy because they can do it on their own but babies and toddlers are messy! Lather up those hands with some paint and get to making lots of handprints! I cut them out as best as I could after they were dry.

Next, I free-hand drew some flower pots and cut them out so they defiantly aren’t perfect.

After that I wrote Happy Mother’s Day on each of them with a sharpie. I also put the year down at the bottom.

Then it’s assemble time! Heat up your hot glue gun and grab your straws. Hot glue your hand prints to your straws so they become the stem of the flower.

Then you will flip your flower pot over and hot glue your flowers to the back of the flower pot.

Once that is done, I hot glued the flower pot and flowers to a pretty piece of cardstock so it can be displayed!

Easy peasy right!? Only takes a day to do and you have a cute homemade Mother’s Day gift!

I can’t wait to hand them out and display my own!

Let me know if you end up making these, or if you did a different DIY for Mother’s Day!

Oh and what is everyone doing? It’s my first Mother’s Day so I am thinking mimosa’s for breakfast! 🙂

Happy Mother’s Day all you mama’s! You rock!

Edible Cookie Dough! YUM!

~ quirkymoms486 ~ 14 Comments

Who is OVER this virus?! I know I am.

It’s been hard being cooped up in the house. I went back to work Monday (BLAH!), and I miss being home with my girls and hubs.

During the time of self-isolation, I indulged (as I’m sure we all did) in some major sweets! My go-to: EDIBLE COOKIE DOUGH! 

Just admit it! Your favorite part about making chocolate chip cookies is the cookie dough. I know that’s mine. 

My oldest daughter loves to bake, but she’s been a little preoccupied with Pokemon to want to help in the kitchen. It’s my littlest daughter who has been helping me make it. She claims she is the “Secret Ingredient”! So sweet! 

The very first time I made it, I wanted chocolate chip cookies SO BAD, but we were out of eggs! During this time, it isn’t so easy just running to the store, so in comes this recipe.

We made quite a few successful batches, but there were some fails as well. I’m going to give you some of the tips I found along the way!  
 
First things first, did you know you shouldn’t eat raw flour?! It should be cooked before you indulge in this snack. I simple pop my flour into the microwave for 60 seconds. Maybe more or less depending on your microwave, I stop around 30 seconds, and whisk it around, otherwise it’ll clump together. I then let it cool. It worked better when it wasn’t as hot! 

Second, don’t be a #hotmessmom like me and forget to pull out the butter. It should be at room temp. If you do end up forgetting, just soften it in the microwave! 

Third, I say vanilla is “optional” because I ran out after my second batch, and no one really noticed a difference. I thought it was richer with it, but again it’s “optional”. Don’t make your hubs go out and get it if you’re out! 

Last but not least, chocolate chip to dough ratio is COMPLETELY OPTIONAL! I LOVE to have chocolate chips in every dough bite, BUT my hubs just wants to eat the dough and no chocolate. Weird, I know!  

Sooo, Without further ado, I present my recipe for EDIBLE COOKIE DOUGH! 

INGREDIENTS: 

  • 1 c. unsalted butter (room temperature)
  • 1 c. brown sugar
  • ¼ c. granulated sugar
  • 2 t
  • 1 tsp. Salt
  • 2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1-2 tbsp. Milk
  • 1-? C. chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS: 

  1. “Cook” or heat up your flour. The internal temp should be 165 degrees.  
  1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together on low to medium speed, butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. It should be creamy, and a light brown color. YUM! Beat in the salt, and the vanilla (if you have it!) 
  1. Beat in flour until combined. I add about ½ a cup at time so it doesn’t explode everywhere! It will start to come together. SLOWLY add your milk a little at a time. Fold in your chocolate chips with a spatula. 
  1. ENJOY!

This is honestly such a quick and easy recipe!  

I hope you enjoy this treat as much. Let me know if you end up making it!

Also, if you have made a similar recipe already.

Hot Mess Mom

~ quirkymoms486 ~ 8 Comments

If you are a hot mess mom, raise your hand!

Here I am, two different blog posts written (but not completed), running around the house doing laundry, while feeding the girls a bedtime snack at 10:15pm! My life never ends as a mom. Motherhood for me looks like this on a daily basis. Balancing working, cooking, cleaning, play with the girls, doing “school” work, it’s the season I am in and I am LOVING it.

I love being a hot mess mom. I know that sounds super crazy to some. OF COURSE I would love to have a daily schedule, get work outs in, meal plan, but living with no schedule has allowed me to enjoy every moment that I’m in with my family.

Obviously we are in the middle of this global pandemic. I don’t want to talk too much about it, but during this time, I’ve really been able to sit back and enjoy the life that I have. However, to make sure I don’t lose my mind or the kids theirs, I did set myself some ground rules.

Sleep “Schedule”

I set an alarm for eight o’clock every morning. We’re letting the girls go to bed a little later, so they sleep in a little. Waking up at eight allows me to watch some t.v. and drink my coffee. I also try to get to bed by 11.

School Work

All school work has to be done by noon. Then we have lunch, and the rest of the day is free time! The kids are LOVING that they don’t do school work for 7 hours a day.

House Work

My hubby and I really have tackled this together. We try to get dishes and laundry done while the girls are doing school work, so we can enjoy that free time as well!

I am a hot mess mom, and I am proud to be it! Our life isn’t perfect, but it was perfectly made for me.

Today’s blog post was supposed to be a recipe for my family’s favorite sweet treat: edible cookie dough (YUM!), but once again being a hot mess mom, everything in the universe stopped me from doing it!

However, it will be here next Thursday, so don’t forget to stop back by!