4 Ways To Take The Stress Out Of Parenting

Parenting can feel like an uphill struggle at the best of times. Although it is one of the most rewarding roles to take on in life, that isn’t to say that sometimes it can become stressful if not managed effectively. You can lighten the load by taking the stress out of parenting, and read below for ideas on how to get started.

Don’t Juggle Too Much

One way to easily burn out and find parenting stressful is by juggling too much. You may want to do it all, and by attempting to do it all you will find you only end up struggling to get anything done. Do one thing at a time, and focus on one task at a time. Learning the ropes and prioritizing is all part of the job of parenting, and through trial and error, you’ll find a routine that works for you. That being said, it’s also important to be realistic; set out enough time if you know that teatime and bath time will take a certain amount of time, for instance, otherwise you’ll find yourself struggling to get your children to bed when they need it. The morning is a particularly important time to work out, so try and get a realistic routine in place, which you will only be thanking yourself further down the line.

Take Some Time Out

Taking some time out for yourself to mentally reboot is not a bad thing. If anything, your family will benefit from it as you’ll be back to your best self after having some time to let go of any stresses and strains you’ve been holding onto. This can be as simple as having a long hot bath, going for a run twice a week, or booking a massage. The mental and physical benefits on our mental health of having me-time have been proven time and time again, so counter this into your schedule pronto. Visit heavenandearthmassage.co.uk to get an idea of some of the massages and treatments available.

Get Enough Sleep

Getting enough sleep is absolutely essential if you want to be able to manage the day to day roller coaster of parenting. You want to be able to enjoy your time with your children to cherish all the special moments, and you’ll find you naturally have more energy and manage tasks better. Sleep deprivation is a common problem with new parents, but you can find tips online to help pull you through and get back on track.

Ask For Help

You are not failing if you occasionally ask for a helping hand to manage all your commitments. If you are running a household, or have a job, and are having to manage other responsibilities, realize that asking for help is okay. You could work with the other parents at school to help with drop offs and pick ups, or maybe give yourself an evening off and ask your parents or in-laws to watch the children. Accepting help from your network of friends and loved ones can help you mentally reset and take some time, so you don’t exhaust yourself. 

How Influencers Help Businesses Retain and Gain

In marketing, trust is key. Without it, it is hard to develop brand loyalty. Businesses that are not trusted can come up with exceptional service or products, but still stay stagnant because there will be customer churn from time to time. For you to succeed in your business and minimize customer churn, you need to get to your customers in a way that will build long-term relations and inspire trust.

One of the best ways you can market your brand and retain customers is using other consumers to gain the trust of your consumer target market. People will be more likely to buy products when the people they admire say that they have had a good experience with the company’s product or service. This form of marketing is called influencer marketing. This form of marketing provides incentives to consumers to share the company’s information on behalf of the business.

Because influencers are consumers, your target market is likely to find the information more trustworthy. Influencer marketing can help you to grow your business and retain more customers in the following ways:

Improves your social media presence

To have effective marketing, you need to get to customers where they are. The fact is that you will find 81% of the U.S consumers on social media. When you establish a social media presence, you will have a better platform for being successful in modern marketing.

In most cases, many businesses have social media accounts, but they post content to reach their audiences. There are those who pay for sponsored ads, and they get their word out. But when you use an influencer to propagate your business information with details of your social media links, you will open the door for the vast network that an influencer has to learn more about your business and connect with your brand.

Builds customer loyalty

There are different ways in which you can engage with influencer marketing; there are companies that pay influencers directly in different markets; others offer incentives like freebies, discounts, or tickets to concerts for people who share marketing information on their social media, or through email, or in person.

Due to the nature of incentivizing influencers, companies reap a two-fold rise in customer loyalty. Influencers who have earned commissions, won prizes or been positively affected because of their experience with the product or service, tend to be more loyal to the brands they market. On the same spin, new customers who jump on the bandwagon to use the company's products through influencer marketing trust the influencer and this stretches to the brand. This will increase the likelihood that they will remain loyal once they are satisfied with the brand.

Expands your reach

An influencer is someone who is socially active and has many connections. Ideally, influencer marketing is done online, and this requires an influencer who has a large following on social media. An influencer’s reach may depend on the demography of social media networks they have.

Since personal relationships are what influencers use to develop their social media networks, or by sharing similar interests with others, they have an easier time to reach users than a business. For example, most businesses only have a few likes or friends on social media, because users are there to socialize and not make purchases. Now, this makes influencers have a broader reach which businesses use to tap to attract consumers.

Identifies relevant leads and markets

Influencers have connections because of shared interests and personal relationships. Moms, for instance, tend to have their own network on social media. As a result, influencers build niche markets. When you want to use influencer marketing, you can reach a specific niche, and this will generate leads.

Author Bio: Adrian Rubin is a freelance writer and climate change advocate.

Tuba Christmas at Municipal Auditorium 2018: A Holiday Tradition

I remember seeing a picture of my friend Liz and her beautifully dressed children at Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts at Christmastime 2014 and I was so envious of the fact that she got them all together to do something so cool and expensive. We had never been to Kauffman Center, let alone for anything CULTURAL and cool. I was afraid it would all cost too much money anyway.

Well, she told me it was called Tuba Christmas. And it's FREE. She got 10 tickets (general admission) and I was able to secure enough for my family for one of the Friday noon performances for 2015. Here are some pics from the under-an-hour performance (which counts toward homeschool fine arts, by the way)! Then keep scrolling for the link to get your tickets for 2018, but note the venue change. See you there!

Here's how to place your order!

UPDATE FROM 2017
DO NOT BE LATE, because in 2017 we were late and even though we had tickets, they would not let us in. There were a bunch of others who were also late and they herded us into some stuffy room to watch the whole thing on a tiny television. We did not stay because there were not enough places to sit, it was hot, there were crying babies, and nobody could see or hear what was going on. Although with the venue change, I wonder how this might change.

How to Make Your Home More Family Friendly

Your home is the center of family life, which is why you must ensure it is safe, functional and comfortable for your growing kids each day. While every family dynamic is different, there are some alterations that are a must in every home.

Whether you are set to move into a new home, or you simply want to make some simple tweaks to create a more practical space for your children, take the time to read the below advice on how to make your home more family friendly.

Protect Your Property Every Day

Nothing will be more important than the health and safety of your children, which is why you must aim to protect your property at all times. For example, you should install a burglar alarm to not only deter trespassers but to notify both you and the police if an intruder enters your home. You could also install outdoor lighting, which could prevent trespassers from stepping onto your property.

Create a Fun Playroom

If you want to provide your children with a space to play together in harmony, you should create a fun playroom for your kids. For example, you could covert a spare room, basement or attic into a fun space they can call their own. Fill it with craft items, comfortable bean bag chairs, a TV, desks, toys, and books, which will encourage them to have fun, learn, and create memories together.

Update Your Old Radiators

It is important to warm up your home to protect your family’s health, especially during winter. If your radiators are failing to produce enough heat, or you don’t have many located throughout your home, it might be worthwhile investing in stylish, efficient column radiators, which can effectively heat up your home. So, when the cold season strikes, you will be able to keep your family nice and warm.

Buy Flexible Shelving

Mess and clutter can quickly creep up on you when raising children. Shelving could, however, be the perfect solution to a problem, as it can ensure every item in the home has a place. For example, a bookcase will provide plenty of space to store your kids’ books, trophies, toys, and proud possessions. While living room shelving can keep heavy, sharp decorative items out of your kids’ reach.

Pick Durable Materials

If you want your furniture to stand the test of time, you would be smart to pick durable materials that can withstand everyday family life. For example, a leather sofa, thick drapes and dark fabrics are the perfect choices when raising children.

Find Double Duty Furniture Solutions

Add space and function to your home by finding double duty furniture solutions. For example, you could buy a beautiful dresser that could also be used as a changing table, or you could buy a luxurious dinner table that can convert into a fun pool table the kids and your other half will love. It will create a more practical, family-friendly home, which will reduce clutter and add floor space.

Why Making Time For Weightlifting Pays Back In Dividends For Parents

I get it. We all do. You’re a parent. You didn’t get much sleep last night. Your job is really adding to the stress this week. After you drop off one of your kids for soccer practice you have to go and pick the other one up from their friend's house. By the time you get home from that, practice is over and you're back on the road.

You're tired. You're stressed. You already skipped the gym once this week, so would it hurt to skip it one more time? I mean, all you want is to kick your feet up for a little bit and relax for once this week. Is that so bad?

Well, although I don’t blame you, you may want to do your best to endure and hit the gym anyway.

Why, you ask?

First of all, if you are willing to cut the gym out of your schedule today, it becomes easier and easier to do so in future situations. And we all know how hard it can be to get back into a fitness regimen once you have fallen off the wagon.

But here is why it is so important.

The time you save by skimping on squats today you are losing in the long run.

You see, weightlifting does a lot more than just increase how “swole you are”. It provides an immense amount of health benefits. So much so that one study found that doing some light training for 20 minutes a day actually reduces the risk of early death by as much as 32%.

It doesn’t stop there. For those 65 years of age and older, hitting the weights has shown to be incredibly important. In fact, those in this age group who strength trained twice a week actually had a 46% lower odds of all-cause mortality.

Getting to the gym will save you time by earning you time. All by helping you live longer, which I am pretty sure everyone would enjoy.

On top of this, the quality of that time as we live is much better. By this I mean the quality of life is improved. Firstly, by reducing overall levels general aches and pains as well as pain associated with certain disorders. On top of this, lifting helps you to maintain and improve your functional capability and therefore functional independence.

While you are still physically able to move about and enjoy yourself, your cognitive and mental health also continues to be maintained and improved through weightlifting.

Combine this all together and you are getting more time. You are also getting more time in the sense that you will lead a more engaged, active, and fulfilled life in your later years because of the benefits of weightlifting.

I know it is hard with the hectic, crazy world that is parenthood and adulthood but remember this one thing. Just 20 minutes is enough to make a massive difference grand scheme of things. And your worth that time!