http://www.sheknows.com/ Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:00:00 -0800 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/847087/monday-mom-challenge-dont-shoot-the-messenger We’ve all heard the phrase, “Don’t shoot the messenger,” right? And pretty much know how to apply it to criticism or bad news situations. But does it apply in other situations? Do you dismiss words -- even kind ones -- because of who says it? And what if the manner of communication really is the issue? http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/847087/monday-mom-challenge-dont-shoot-the-messenger Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 24 Oct 2011 08:00:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/843169/monday-mom-challenge-write-it-down How many times has something happened and you have thought to yourself, “I should write that down?” But you didn’t -- and you lost it. Whether it was a particularly cute trip of language by your four-year-old or a feeling you wanted to remember, it’s gone now. As great as Facebook and other social media sites are for encouraging you to put moments like this out there, sometimes you need to write them down in a more permanent, deliberate way. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/843169/monday-mom-challenge-write-it-down Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:00:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/842315/monday-mom-challenge-have-more-fun-this-fall The kids are settled into school and the household routine is chugging along. It’s not quite the November/December holiday crazy time -- yet. You are in the midst of the precious few weeks in fall when you can take advantage of the season and the somewhat settled feeling and relax a little. Let yourself de-stress and have some fun in this transitional time. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/842315/monday-mom-challenge-have-more-fun-this-fall Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 10 Oct 2011 11:00:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/841817/monday-mom-challenge-dont-be-a-drama-queen It’s true. Life can be pretty dramatic. You’ve heard the adage: “Truth is stranger than fiction.” Well, real life can be more dramatic than many Tony-winning Broadway productions -- and that’s before we add to the drama with exaggeration and inflating issues for our own attention-getting benefit. There’s enough big stuff to go around that we really don’t need to create drama in our lives. Get some perspective on where you’re at -- and don’t be a drama queen. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/841817/monday-mom-challenge-dont-be-a-drama-queen Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:00:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/840519/monday-mom-challenge-expand-your-musical-world You’re a one genre, one station kind of girl. That’s okay -- really. But are you missing out? And as your kids develop their own musical tastes, will you be left bewildered, wondering how anyone can call that music? Your musical bubble, as enjoyable as it is, is still a bubble. Time to branch out. Expand your musical world. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/840519/monday-mom-challenge-expand-your-musical-world Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:08:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/837661/monday-mom-challenge-read-a-book Remember when we all used to carry a book around in our bags? Whether it was a novel we were so enthralled with or a self-help book, having an actual book handy was a common thing. Now, with the rise of smartphones, you’re more likely to see a mom waiting in the bleachers at soccer practice checking email rather than reading. That’s fine and all, but this fall, however, buck the trend. Put down the phone and read an actual book. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/837661/monday-mom-challenge-read-a-book Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 19 Sep 2011 06:26:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/841093/monday-mom-challenge-be-prepared-for-an-emergency Planning for the unthinkable is kind of…unthinkable. How can you plan for the total unknown? If an emergency happened, would you know what to do? Would you know where to begin? Would you lose precious management minutes in a panic? How about, instead of living in denial and anxiety, you take steps to be prepared for an emergency. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/841093/monday-mom-challenge-be-prepared-for-an-emergency Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:30:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/837237/monday-mom-challenge-laugh No doubt about it, being a mom is serious business. There’s so much responsibility, so much to worry about, so much to do that it can feel hard to find the fun in the daily grind. Oh, but how much it eases your mood when you find yourself making funny faces with your little one! Buy into that, cherish that -- make time for that every day. Every day, make time and find ways to laugh. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/837237/monday-mom-challenge-laugh Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 05 Sep 2011 08:23:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/838405/monday-mom-challenge-embrace-household-imperfection The sign in the trinket shop says it all: “A clean house is the sign of a wasted life.” You know exactly what it means, too. You know you should be more concerned living and experiencing and enjoying life with your family instead of scrubbing the tub to hospital sterilization levels. You know that the time you spend with your kids, engaging with their cute faces and thirsty minds, is more important than when the last time the windows were washed. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/838405/monday-mom-challenge-embrace-household-imperfection Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 22 Aug 2011 06:48:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/833633/monday-mom-challenge-shake-up-your-exercise-routine The idea of getting on the elliptical fills you with, "Ugh." You need a break from warrior three, no matter how pretty and easy you make it look. Your overall fitness has stagnated. When your time to exercise is limited to begin with you’ve got to like, if not love, what you do. It’s time to shake up your exercise routine. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/833633/monday-mom-challenge-shake-up-your-exercise-routine Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 15 Aug 2011 05:05:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/838395/monday-mom-challenge-share-the-household-load Crazy-busy, that’s how you describe it to friends. Your family is crazy-busy with school and sports and work and church and other activities you can’t even think of right now. In all that busyness, sometimes the state of the house slides into messy -- or even downright disaster. It’s so hard to find the time to get it clean and together and nice looking. And it’s easy to feel resentful about that. Why is it always you, Mom, who is worried about it? http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/838395/monday-mom-challenge-share-the-household-load Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 08 Aug 2011 06:04:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/835567/monday-mom-challenge-state-the-obvious We’ve all had moments of incredulity: something happens and the outcome is so obvious to us, but appears to be a surprise to others. Or we act in a way we think is obvious, or don’t say what we feel because we’re sure it’s obvious, and the outcome isn’t exactly how we expect it to go. Our logic centers are left slightly stunned or deeply shocked. An instance where we thought, “It goes without saying…” But maybe we should have. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/835567/monday-mom-challenge-state-the-obvious Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 25 Jul 2011 04:24:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/834159/monday-mom-challenge-let-go-a-little-or-a-lot Parenting is full of contradictions. You keep them safe and healthy and close -- so they can leave and live without you one day. You teach them about making good choices and responsibility -- but you need to let them fail and understand consequences. You support and guide and channel -- but at some point you need to be hands off. You supervise -- but sometimes you need to leave them alone. In short, you need to teach your child independence long before he or she is ready to be independent. But how? http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/834159/monday-mom-challenge-let-go-a-little-or-a-lot Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:11:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/835159/monday-mom-challenge-take-a-hard-look-at-your-eating-habits Yes, we get it. Your relationship with food is complex. It’s more that eating and enjoying nutritious food that gives you the energy to live a healthy life -- it’s tied up in body image and self-esteem and societal expectations. It’s enjoyment, moderation, too much and too little, and everything in between. Take a hard look at those eating habits, both healthy and less than, and consider the messages you are sending to your kids. And you thought an apple was just an apple -- sliced very thinly and arranged just so with a measured teaspoon of sunflower butter? Nope. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/835159/monday-mom-challenge-take-a-hard-look-at-your-eating-habits Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 27 Jun 2011 07:05:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/828643/monday-mom-challenge-is-it-time-for-you-to-switch-careers If you are one of the many moms who have a second job outside the home, you likely have thought long and hard about work-life balance. You balance your career and the time and educational investment into it with the needs and demands and joys of family life. But when you think about your work life, when was the last time you asked yourself, “Is this the right job for me? Do I love what I do?” If the answer is not an unequivocal yes, it might be time to make a change. It might be time for a new career. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/828643/monday-mom-challenge-is-it-time-for-you-to-switch-careers Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 20 Jun 2011 09:33:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/828009/monday-mom-challenge-get-in-touch-with-your-inner-artist Do you ever look at crafts and artwork and think, “I could never do that!” Do you get frustrated crafting with your kids, thinking it’s not good enough? Do you marvel when your friends show you their newly spruced up powder room and wonder how they even conceived of it? Do you daydream of an Etsy shop of your own -- even if you have no idea what would be in it? Yeah, lots of us do. But there’s a little bit of artist and creative talent in everyone -- even moms who think they can't be creative. You just need to let it out! It’s time to let go of that self-doubt and allow your personal creative expression to shine through! It's time to get in touch with your inner artist. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/828009/monday-mom-challenge-get-in-touch-with-your-inner-artist Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 13 Jun 2011 07:01:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/832515/monday-mom-challenge-make-and-keep-a-deal-with-yourself You don’t have to be The Donald to be an expert deal-maker. In fact, the negotiating and deal-making skills of most moms rival those of Fortune 500 CEOs. We might even be better! Sure, Donald can negotiate a real estate deal to make millions of dollars look like a bargain, but can he get a toddler to eat those carrots? Can he make feuding teenagers reach a compromise? Probably not. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/832515/monday-mom-challenge-make-and-keep-a-deal-with-yourself Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 06 Jun 2011 08:50:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/815467/monday-mom-challenge-create-a-fabulous-father-s-day-1 Father's Day is coming up quickly, and it's time to show Dad how much you care. Whether it's something traditional or tasty or silly , planning a day of celebration with and for the dad in your household is a wonderful way to show how much you appreciate him. Start planning now for a day filled with family fun, fatherly appreciation and great memories for the kids. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/815467/monday-mom-challenge-create-a-fabulous-father-s-day-1 Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 23 May 2011 06:27:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/830303/monday-mom-challenge-take-a-risk Were you, in your youth, a risk-taker? Before you became a mom, did steep hills on your mountain bike not faze you in the least? Did you actually jump out of a plane? Was adrenaline your friend? And did you, after having kids, drop all that? Are you all about attached to the ground safety now? Has your comfort zone become smaller and smaller? Maybe it’s time to break out of the classic mom mold and get in touch with your inner adrenaline junkie. It’s time to take a risk. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/830303/monday-mom-challenge-take-a-risk Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 16 May 2011 06:03:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/830747/monday-mom-challenge-face-your-fears Everybody is afraid of something: illness, failure, lightning, spiders. Even if a person claims to be afraid of nothing, there’s a pretty high likelihood that person has at least experienced fear in the past. It’s a very basic human emotion -- often a protective instinct and sometimes associated with hope and expectation. No matter what your fears, they are a part of your life, and you have to learn to live with them and manage them. Sometimes, though, fear borders on phobia and holds you back from life. Is it time to face your fears so you can move forward? http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/830747/monday-mom-challenge-face-your-fears Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein Mon, 02 May 2011 06:04:00 -0700 http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/829153/monday-mom-challenge-define-your-family-traditions Routine. Kids tend to thrive on it -- and adults find comfort in it, too. Whether it’s the rhythm of a morning as the house rouses or the comfort of bedtime patterns starting with the youngest member of the family and flowing right through to your lights out, ritual is a part of our lives. http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/829153/monday-mom-challenge-define-your-family-traditions Parenting Parenting Tips & Advice Parenting Advice & Columns Monday Mom Challenge Jen Klein