5 Ways To Celebrate Leap Day 2016 (It's THIS Monday)

 

This Monday is special – after all, it's only every four years that there's a February 29! Yes, 2016 is a leap year in which an extra day is “added” to keep us in sync with the solar calendar (aka the time it takes the earth to make a complete orbit around the sun). While we think of a year as being 365 days long, it's actually 365 and ¼ days long. Thus, to even it all out, an extra day is added with this Monday being The Big Day.

 Here are some suggestions on 

how to celebrate this Leap Day:

 

• Try something different. This is an extraordinary day, so why not do something out of the ordinary? Nibble on a new food, bust a new move (in the gym or any place), speak to a new person, try your hair a different way, learn a new word, etc.
  
  
  
  
• Make this Leap Year Cocktail.
  
  
  
  
• Write a letter to yourself that you'll open in four years, outlining what you'd like to accomplish in that brief span of time. Better yet, write a letter to your kids that they can open in four years!
  
  
  
  
• Check out this Leap Year Trivia. 
  
  
  
  
• Do something that you probably should do every few years that can be accomplished in a day, like paint the front door, clear out the attic, or purge those old papers.  
  
  
  
  

  

  Jump into this Leap Day by doing something different!

  
  

Special days beg for something extraordinary. Deviate from the norm just a bit, for one day. You'll be happy you did!

Thanks for reading!

10 Things To Do Before The Kids Go Back To School

Although no one, except retailers, wants to think about the end of Summer, it's only 7 weeks until my kids go back to school. And there's still SO MUCH to do! Here's a list of things you might want to accomplish before sending the minions off with their backpacks to another year of higher education:

1. Make a list of places/activities you want to see/do before the Summer ends. These are things you will regret if they're not done. For us, there are some water-parks we want to visit, friends we need to see, etc.  Try to end the Summer with no regrets!
   
   
2. Buy bathing suits and Summer-related items now, while they're on sale. Stores are busy stocking up for Fall and Winter and you can get some great buys now. I know Diva is going to be at least one size larger next year (all bets are out on the Teen who might wind up being 8' tall by the end of August), so buying bathing suits in a Large is a no-brainer. 
   
   
3. Take inventory of your in-house school supplies. It's time for me to empty out the old backpacks and put away any supplies the kids have sent home. Then I'll take stock so I can replenish our School Supply Cabinet in anticipation of the coming year.
   
   
4. Evaluate backpacks and lunch sacs to see if the kids will need new ones. By September, the stores will probably be low on both, so seize the moment!
   
   
5. Make sure you've gotten any necessary doctors' visits in. I dropped the ball on this one and now the kids aren't getting their physicals until the second week after school starts. That's not altogether bad, since they'll be able to get their flu shots at the same time.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Make a list of the projects you plan to accomplish in the Fall after they're in school. Mine include some painting, re-grouting, and a Momvacation Day at the beach.
   
   
7. Send musical instruments in for tuning and cleaning.  Every year while we're on vacation, we send Junior's woodwind instrument in for regular maintenance.  This way, come that first band practice, he's ready to go.
   
   
8. Check school websites for deadlines. The deadline to order Diva's school supplies through the PTA is coming up. Thank goodness I checked the website! Also, Junior has packets he needs done before the first day of high school. Funny how he never mentioned those. Similarly, sports forms are usually due in sometime during the Summer.  Stay on top of this now, so you don't have a sidelined kid in the Fall.
   
   
9. Start filling out your calendar for the Fall/Winter. Putting Back-To-School nights, etc., on the schedule now means you won't forget them when things get hectic in early September. 
   
   
10. Download some free planners at http://www.productiveflourishing.com/free-planners. This site lists all kinds of planners including ones to help you blog, monthly planners, productivity jumpstarters, etc. They can help you with all kinds of projects.
    
    
    Summer is moving all too quickly! Continue to make memories now and plan for the upcoming months. Parenting is hectic enough – get ahead of the game NOW! 

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15 Uses For Old Books

Got old books? Here's how to re-use them!

 

So you've got a pile of books you and your kids haven't read in a long time. You've donated some to the local library, hospital or nursing home. Now what? Never fear! Here are 15 uses for those old tomes:

1. If they're textbooks, sell them on Amazon, Ebay, or at Cash4Books. 
2. Make a Book Safe – Cut out the center of old books to hide valuables (you can find instructions here. A word of caution: I made this as a present for my son and although it was time-intensive, Junior is now able to hide some of his valuables from his little sister by merely placing the safe among the books in his bookshelf.
   
3. Use Modge Podge to decoupage a table top, lamp shade, etc. The illustrations in many children's books are especially good for this.
   
4. Stack them to add height to a lamp (see photo). We
   

   

   Use books to increase a lamp's range.

   needed more light in this area, so we stacked books underneath. The result:  more light and a great look!
   
5. Use them as trivets. I'm always bringing warm pans to the table, but don't want to harm the surface. Old books work great to protect tabletops from too-hot plates, pots and pans.
   
6. Make a picture frame from an old board book (you can find instructions here). What a great, unique gift!
   
7. Make shelves to hold small knickknacks or other books. This is a wonderful craft (the how-to is here, especially since you can match the shelf to your room's décor.
   
8. Re-use the pages as kindling, mulch, packing material, or as wrapping paper.
   
9. Make a unique night-light. These instructions from craftster.org list this project as a “lamp,” but I think the amount of light given is really more suitable for a night-light or accent light. 
   
10. Make coasters. Take inexpensive ceramic tiles (the kind you find at Home Depot), a few book pages, decoupage using Modge Podge, and varnish. You could even add a photo or two.
    
11. Decorate a notebook. I'm always using salt-and-pepper notebooks I pilfer from the kids. They take on a more adult-look when covered with pages from a book.
    
12. Make a clock. Take a beloved book, glue the pages shut, cut out room for a clock mechanism and numbers (available at local craft stores) and you've got a clock which subtly reminds us to “Take Time For Reading.”
    
13. Decorate a portable calendar. I buy the inexpensive appointment calendars from the Dollar Store. Decoupage book illustrations or passages from an old book for a “classier” look to your calendar.
    
14. Turn an old book into a purse (find instructions here).
    
15. Make a planter for succulents (click here for the how-to).

Yes, your old book can be a planter!

Do you have any other uses for books? Please comment below! I'd love to hear from you!  And, as always,

Thank you for visiting!

My 8 Favorite Smartphone Apps

I haven't done any reviews here in a while and it's high time! 

This has nothing to do with this article.  I just like the photo. 

My current cellphone is a Samsung Confuse...I mean Infuse.  I chose it a few years ago because of it's very large screen (4.5 inches!) and although it's been an okay phone, I've always found it somewhat confusing; thus my nickname for it.  Anyway, until I get a new one (any suggestions, people?), I am still living in the Infuse and thought I'd share my eight favorite apps with you.  All are were free, although I'm not sure if they still are, and were found via the Google Play Store.  They are not listed in order of preference; I think they're all good.  Again, these opinions are purely mine; investigate on your own to see if they might suit you. 

1.  Cozi Family Calendar - I've had an account for this calendar (the website is http://www.cozi.com/live-simply?redir=home) for a few years but never used it until recently.  I now LOVE it!  I can post stuff on there, even though I still write it down in my paper calendar, and my husband gets updates on his phone.  I set it to send weekly email reminders to family members so that even my son, who does not have smartphone, can get the schedule for the week.  No more "Mom!  You didn't tell me..." conversations.  No more missed appointments!  No more "I didn't know I had a game" arguments!  The app also contains ToDo lists, a grocery list, and has a Journal feature so you can "jot down a quick story" and/or add a picture.  Do I rely on it?  Nope.  Don't believe in getting even more dependent on electronics than I already am.  But it IS a pretty nifty and fun app.

2.  AP Mobile - Since we don't get a daily newspaper delivery anymore (too expensive and wasteful) I rely on this app for delivering my news.  You can get Top Headlines, Entertainment, Oddities ("18 Foot-Long Sea Creature Found Off CA Coast"), Technology, Business, Lifestyle, Travel, and Health & Science Headlines. 

3.  Beat The Traffic - My buddy, Ann, introduced me to this app this past summer.  When I play hookey down the Shore, this app helps insure I make it back in time to pick up my daughter from school.  It shows current traffic hotspots I should avoid or those I will inevitably hit which is great because my local radio station doesn't always have updated info.   It also lets me create a route and save the places I use the most.  It does have other features which, I guess, would allow me to set up traffic alerts and access webcameras, but you have to upgrade to get those.  Since I don't want to spend the money, I just use it for traffic info. 

4.  My Personal Memory Trainer - Memory exercises have been proven to improve your memory and now that I'm menopausal this, combined with a a cup of Salada Brain Boost Green Tea (it contains Gingko and Ginseng), is helping me stay on my game.  The app works on improving spatial and working memory, focus, chunking, and your concentration skills.  It also charts your progress.  A fun app that works the grey matter. 

5.  UVocab - This is another fun app that helps me learn.  Truth be told, I am a wordgame-a-holic and I love learning new words.  This app not only gives me new words to learn, but it tests my vocabulary and shows me the words I failed on.  I can then learn them and take them off my Failed list.  I'm having a blast with it and my daughter gets a kick out of the fact that while she has her vocabulary list to learn, so Mom has one, too. 

6.  TeslaLED - A simple, yet very bright light I've used in hotel rooms to check for bedbugs, during power outages, and just in the dark to find my way and not wake up a sleeping husband. 

7.  Newshog - Yes, AP Mobile is where I get my news, but Newshog gives me Lifehacker updates.  In case you don't know about Lifehacker (see the list of Sites I Like to the right of this post), it's an incredible site that has "Tips And Downloads For Getting Things Done."  I've learned a lot from it and LOVE reading it.

8.  Weather Channel - Every day, my kids ask me about the weather and every day I check this sucker.  It lists the weather for the next 9 days and I can see hourly predictions as well.  Is it always accurate?  No, but it's probably up there with anything I hear on the radio. 

So why am I listing only 8 apps I love and not a nice round number like 10?  Because that would be a lie!  There are apps that came on my phone which I don't use and can't get off the damn screen and that really ticks me off.  The eight above are the ones I use all the time; they, along with my clock and camera, are the ones I depend on every day. 

Have a great day!  Thanks for reading!