How to Make the Most of Your Time as a Stay at Home Mom

Any woman who has ever had children but needed that extra paycheck to make ends meet knows what a sacrifice it can be on both parents to have mom stay at home to be with kids until they start school. Yes, the couple did opt to have children and yes, the couple did know that they would be giving up some things to make it happen but with just a bit of organizing, mom can make the most of her time while staying at home and actually, if planned well, they might not even need to sacrifice financially either!

Why Not Get that Online MBA While Staying Home?

One of the things that many moms do during those four or five years they stay at home waiting for their kids to hit kindergarten age is to advance their degrees. There are student loans, scholarships and grants available for serious students who want to further their careers and this would be the perfect time to approach a leading school of business at a high-rankinguniversity to apply to an online masters in business administration program.

Freelance Part-Time from Home

Whether you are enrolled in a masters in business administration program or are studying to be a nurse practitioner, there are skills you have that you could easily use from home to supplement the family income. Have you thought of helping prepare income tax returns during tax season? Or, what about working as a medical transcriptionist from home? Any kind of freelance work you can do within your field of expertise would help financially but will also give you much needed experience when the time comes for you to hit the pavement looking for a job in the outside world.

Try Your Hand at DIY Projects to Save Extra Money

Many moms learn to sew and even dabble in a bit of carpentry while staying home with the kids when they are little. You’ll never believe just how many women actually start a lucrative business by dabbling in DIY projects, utilizing skills they never knew they had. One lady started a multi-million dollar granola company from home with her son in California and there are thousands of other stories just like that. From learning to use a lathe to baking world-famous cakes, a do-it-yourself project just might land you in the hall of fame! You never know, so why not give it a shot?

There is no reason why you can’t do something with your time while staying home with the kiddies until they reach school age. Although spending that time is all the reward you’ll ever need, there is something to be said for earning a bit of extra money at the same time. You don’t need to sacrifice an extra check and you don’t need to sacrifice time with the children. It’s just a matter of learning how to make the most of your time as a stay at home mom. Who knows what the future may bring. Just enjoy what you have now and let tomorrow take care of itself – and surely it will.

How To Improve the Chances of Pregnancy

For some people, pregnancy seems to come extremely easily – but for others it can be quite some time before they manage to conceive. Assuming you fall under that latter category, it is important that you do everything you can to improve your chances. The good news is that there are a lot of steps that you can take which will help tremendously.

Tracking Fertile Days

The most important aspect of increasing your chances of pregnancy is to ensure that your intercourse is focused on the days when you are most fertile. Generally speaking, this means that the day of ovulation, and two days prior to that are the days that you should be focused on.

Unfortunately for many people identifying these fertile days is a bit difficult. If you were to ask around on social networks for mothers such as https://moms.com/ - you’ll begin to realize that fertility cycles tend to differ from woman to woman as well as cycle to cycle. As such, the typical ovulation calculators that you would find are not wholly effective.

If you want to be certain that you’re tracking your most fertile days correctly, you need to chart your own fertility signs. Among the signs that you’re going to want to track include your cervical fluid and basal body temperature. Other signs that are also important include observing changes to the cervix, OPKs, and so on.

It is for this reason that you might consider using an app like the Fertility Friend app. Not only will it help you to chart your signs so that you can positively identify your most fertile days, but it will also provide other tips, such as these 2 great tips on ways to get pregnant app.

Make no mistake, trying to get pregnant can often be a difficult and stressful period for both you and your partner. However it is important that you try to alleviate that stress as much as possible, because it will hinder rather than help your chances. Be sure that your attempts to get pregnant don’t become a chore, but rather try to remain positive while attempting everything that you can.

Should you have any real difficulties over a prolonged period, it may be helpful to consult an expert in fertility and have both you and your partner tested. From there, you can move on to other methods of inducing pregnancy – if required.

What to Due? Preparing for Baby #2 Giveaway!

Welcome to the What to Due? Preparing for Baby #2 Giveaway!

Hosted by Spit Up is the New Black

I've teamed up with Ashley over at Spit Up is the New Black to celebrate the welcoming of baby #2! She's hand selected products for, and in preparation of, a second child, and has partnered with over a dozen amazing companies to offer one lucky reader over $1,700 worth of baby essentials!

#DueWithBaby2 Prize Suite:

• Sarah Wells “Maddy” Breast Pump Bag
• Britax B-Agile
• Britax B-Safe
• $100 Gymboree Gift Card
• Naturepedic Organic Cotton Ultra 252 Seamless crib mattress
• guzzie+Guss G+G 401 Rock
• Boppy Custom Fit Total Body Pillow
• Tiny Love Discover the World Mat
• California Baby Calming Newborn Tote
• aden + anais classic crib sheet
• aden + anais mela bamboo swaddles
• Tommee Tippee 360° sealer™ Diaper Disposal System
• Tommee Tippee 3-Pack Closer to Nature Bottle 5oz
• Freshly Picked mocs
• Little Treetops My Mom is Blogging This onesie
• Undercover Mama Slim Mama
• Pink Lining Mum on the Run bag
• The NüRoo Pocket
• Bebé PODPants
• I See Me! personalized big sibling book
• Philips AVENT Breast milk storage bags

ONE lucky winner will win ALL of the items listed above! 

To enter to win this suite of prizes, please use the entry form below. 

Open to residents of the contiguous US states, ages 18+. 

Giveaway closes 7/31/14 at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!

Entry-Form

This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook or Twitter. Prizes to be fulfilled by Britax, Sarah Wells, Gymboree, Naturepedic, guzzie+Guss, Philips AVENT, Boppy, Tiny Love, California Baby, aden + anais, Tommee Tippee, Freshly Picked, Little Treetops, Undercover Mama, Pink Lining, NuRoo, Bebe PODPants, and I See Me. Color and/or style of prizes may vary. Prizes will be shipped separately. Neither Spit Up is the New Black nor any blog in which this giveaway is posted is held liable for lack of prize fulfillment. Open to residents of the 48 contiguous United States, ages 18+.

Happy Birthday Mom!

It's your day so let's celebrate! I may be miles away but I pray for good health, long life and prosperity for your birthday. Take care always Mom and enjoy your day. We love you!

M. O. M.

Moms are not just mothers who follow their kids around like a dog wagging its tail waiting for a treat. Moms are not just wives who serve their husbands and make sure that everything is in order in the house, the meals are cooked and the kids have been fed. Moms are not just career moms as well who juggle work and family to ensure that both worlds are taken cared of. Moms are definitely not just caregivers, nannies, house help, cook, first aider, driver and all the other tasks that we moms can do.

I'm beginning to think that moms are like super heroines. We can do so much more with the time in our hands without complaints.  We just do it. No questions asked. And most times, we are the most unappreciated, underpaid and definitely unrecognized in the lot.

You know what, your lives won't be as easy as it is now without us - great moms! I am redefining the meaning of MOM now. Mom is no longer the term of endearment our family calls us. It's no longer the term used to indicate we are mothers. Mom is...

M - mom

O - over

M- matter

Yes, we are moms over matter. We can defy anything. We can do almost everything. Multi-task, take care of the bills, walk the dogs, feed the kids, wash the clothes, press them too, prepare meals for the family, run errands, drive, put on make up, work, get pregnant, give birth, have periods, have very painful periods, go through menopause and so much more. We are M.O.M.s!

We deserve this Mother's Day!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL GREAT MOMS OUT THERE! 

Vacation Count Down

We're Manila bound this coming Friday - 17 June and I cannot contain my excitement any longer. I don't feel like going to work anymore as the days near. I just want to board the first flight to Manila the soonest possible time. 

I guess this is brought about by my desire to see my mom who is suffering from mild memory lapses. It's not very critical but I don't want it to lead there. She started having this memory lapse after her stroke last year. I just hope her memory improves.

Anyway, I just want to pull the days so it will be Friday already. I am already in my vacation mode! So, I won't be posting too often for the next 2 weeks as I enjoy my very much needed rest and relaxation. I may check in once in a while if I get assignments. I'll be blog hopping again as soon as I am back in Dubai. 

Vacation time! Tuh-tah for now.

Waking Up Disoriented

I had a very bad day yesterday in the office. I also received a phone call from my sister about my mom's stroke. She was rushed to the hospital but is now recovering.

I woke up this morning feeling a bit disoriented, puffy-eyed, dizzy, exhausted from all the crying, confused and absent-minded. I have been looking for some of my stuff but I could not figure out where I kept them last. I knew I have been missing my polo boots and other business outfits which I haven't worn for some time. I was also searching for my other purses which I could not remember where I kept.  What is going on?

Oh, I am so young to forget things. Could this be stress or sheer exhaustion for being exposed to people who does not matter but gives me tough time 8.5 hours, 5 days in a week? 

The Subscriber Cannot Be Reached

Too many phones in my mom's house but I cannot even reach a single one. Either the phones are busy or they are off. I am getting restless and a wee impatient after calling my mom, sister and niece's cell phones countless times. All I get is that monotonous recorded message from the communication provider which says "the subscriber cannot be reached, please try your call later." Arggghh!

I chat with my mom and other relatives on a Friday since it is my off. This is the only time I can spend tete-a-tete time with her without any interruption and where the charge rate is lower. Unfortunately, I think her phone ran out of charge or she left it somewhere. Oh well, I guess I will have to "try again" later.

The Mom Song

I love this so much so I am sharing it to all moms and their kids. Some countries are celebrating Mother's Day on 22 March and others on 10 May. Regardless of when you celebrate it, this one's for you.

The lines are very familiar... I heard them from my mom! hahaha...

What a Dismay!

Uh-oh! I knew I have been very bad with my eating habits the past few weeks because of the holidays. How can someone resist mom's home-cooked meals since the nearest decent meal I can prepare is popping an instant meal in the microwave and that's it! I know, I am bad. Like I earlier conveyed, I never liked cooking so if someone cooks the kind of meals I love very well, who am I to resist???

With all the gorging happened during the holidays, I was so dismayed to see how my measurements shoot up like a NASA rocket ship going to space exploration. I am not kidding but I can call myself "Little Miss Piggy" now...hahahaha. I cannot believe the figures right before my eyes as my daughter laughs her bum off on how big the numbers are on my body measurements. As in B-I-G! Coming from an ex-super-skinny person like me, yup, the numbers are way too big for me to fathom. Wow! How can I ever, and not just ever, successfully at that, lose weight for good? I have lost and regained and lost again and when I lose it, I just want it to stay that way. Any tips??? I am desperate now and this calls for serious measures. Not gastric-bypass. I think I am still skinny for that but I need healthy habits to kick-in again. I need proper food to eat at proper times. I know that when you speed-eat, you tend to gorge more. I think I have to stop that.

Oh my, and I have a wedding to attend to and I need to look fab in a long, formal gown. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, like the Beatles sang, "Help!!!!!"

Vacation time!

Yey! I have been waiting for this moment since I had my last vacation leave ;) Hahaha. I just can't wait to leave this place and head home for a nice R & R with my mom and daughter. Hubby's staying here because we'll have our annual family trip to Italy when I come back.

My heart and soul is already aching for home. I have been thinking about this trip to Manila for ages! Tomorrow is the flight back home. It's not a long leave though but no matter how short the leave is, it's still a vacation leave I won't trade for anything else!

I have already set my publishing option scattered to the days while I am away. I may pop in once in a while to check on the blog scene but then again, just forgive me for not replying to comments yet as I'll be busy shopping ;), malling, catching up with family and friends and simply having R & R.

So, I'll be checking in again after 2 weeks. Until then, keep leaving your nice comments, greetings and wishes in my blog! I'll be happy to respond the soonest I settle again after the leave. Ciao!!!

Manila, here I come!!!!!!! Mabuhay!