How to Balance Your Home Life and Work-at-Home Career

Now that my kids are back in school for the year, I’ve found a lot more time throughout the day to focus on improving and expanding my work-at-home business.

But, like any other mom knows, with the new school year also comes a wealth of new activities and responsibilities as kids start to get involved in more and more extracurricular activities.

This means that not only will I have to make sure that I am available to prepare their lunches and help with homework, but I’ll also have to be able to rearrange my schedule at the drop of a hat so that I can make sure they get to and from where they need to be, as well as have all of the necessary supplies.

This full and hectic schedule is hard enough for even a full-time mom to maintain, and is even harder for a mom who is starting her own work-at-home business to juggle.  Because of this, I thought I would share a few of my own personal tips that I use to help balance my work and my responsibilities as a mom.

My most useful suggestions are:

·    Keep track of your upcoming tasks with to-do lists.  Whether you organize these lists by day or subject, having all of your upcoming tasks directly in front of you will help you to stay on track and ensure that you accomplish everything you need to.
·    Shop online for everything—even groceries!  Nothing interrupts your workflow quite like having to run a errand, so get all of your errands done online and have everything delivered straight to your door.
·    Use your crockpot everyday.  This is how I make almost all of my dinners throughout the school year, whether it’s simple soup or something a little more complex, like chicken marsala.
·    Don’t try to do it all—no one can.  Of course we all want to be supermom, but the fact is, it’s impossible.  Some things will have to be sacrificed or at least put on the back burner, so don’t get discouraged if you find yourself having to let some things slide.

Hopefully these tips will help you as we embark upon a new school year.  And if you have any useful suggestions of your own, feel free to leave them in the comments section!

Finding a Car that Suits My Family and The Environment

Now that my kids and I have moved into a more suburban neighborhood of the Chicago-metro area, I’m finding that I use my car more and more every day.  One of the things I loved best about living in the heart of the city was the ability to walk to whatever I needed.  It’s not only environmentally friendly—which, if you know me, is very important—but awfully convenient considering the lack of parking and traffic issues throughout the city.

But nowadays, I basically need my car to go everywhere and anywhere, whether I’m picking up a loaf of bread or taking a weekend away with the kids.  So, with that in mind, I’ve started looking around for a newer and more environmentally friendly vehicle, as my Range Rover is anything but.

I need something roomy enough to accommodate me and three kids, but still be proactive for the environment.  So far, I’ve narrowed it down to these three cars:

1.    Lexus RX 450h Hybrid,
2.    Cadillac Escalade Hybrid, and
3.    Lexus LS 600h Hybrid.

These vehicles are all pretty comparable, with the first two being SUVs and the last being a more expensive sedan, so the only real test left is to see how they drive.

The sad thing is, as bad for the environment as it may be, I really do love my Range Rover and would buy another one in a heartbeat.  It was my first big purchase after I started making a great living on eBay, and I have a pretty strong attachment to it.

But there is no such thing as a hybrid Range Rover, and I really can’t compromise on that factor.  So, I start test driving cars at the Cadillac and Lexus dealerships tonight, and I’m taking the kids with me for some added input.

And while I’m sure I could use eBay Motors to sell my Range Rover off for more than what any dealer will give me for it, I’m more inclined to try to use the Cash for Clunkers program, so that it doesn’t do any more damage to the environment than it already has under my use.  But if the money for the program runs out before I make a decision, you can bet eBay Motors is where I’ll be headed.