Real Simple and Ivillage

Happy Tuesday my lovies!  How are you? How was your Monday? Ours was good just wet and very very rainy - which I LOVE!  I LOVE all things thunderstorms and rain - as long as there are no tornadoes or floods around. :o)  Anyway, on to the website that I promised I would tell you all about.  The website is called:  IVILLAGE - and is a great website for anything and everything you can think of and a real community.  On their website there is a link for their message boards which has other links that will take you to things like parenting advice, food and recipes, crafts, pets, etc.  Last week I was contacted by Tamara, over at Ivillage, and was asked by her to fill you, my readers and followers, in on a new community challenge that they have coming up beginning on March 29th that I will be following and think you will want to do the same. 

Here is some valuable information that will give you some insight into what this particular post is all about:

Real Simple and iVillage are teaming up on the Get An Extra Weekend Community Challenge. When you join, iVillage will send you small, manageable steps to make each day more efficient--giving you a weekend's worth of free time! Readers can sign up now and tips will start flowing March 29.   Here are just two exclusive tips as a sneak peek of what you can expect:

(from Elizabeth Graves)

MAKE A NO-BRAINER BREAKFAST

First things first: a no-brainer breakfast does not mean skipping breakfast! It’s absolutely the most important meal of the day. It fuels your body with energy and nutrients. And studies reveal eating breakfast is essential to losing weight—and keeping it off—since people who skip breakfast tend to overeat later in the day (for more smart eating tips, log onto realsimple.com/eatrightforlife). Lack of time usually stops people from eating each morning. So here’s my quick, no-excuse strategy: Every Sunday, I buy five individual containers of plain Greek yogurt, a great source of protein and calcium. Then I scoop 1/3 of a cup of low fat, high-fiber cereal into five snack-size plastic bags. I toss a yogurt and a bag of cereal into my purse each morning, and then combine the two and enjoy them at work. When I’m craving a little sweetness, I add fresh fruit or drizzle on some Agave Nectar Syrup, which I keep in my desk drawer.

(from Danielle Claro)
CLEAR CORD CLUTTER

Whether your family computer lives in a home office or occupies a corner of the living room, it’s likely to be hanging out with a lamp, a printer, and perhaps, separate speakers—all with their own wires, each with a will of its own. To keep cords under control, grab an empty paper towel or toilet paper tube and cut it from one end to the other with a pair of scissors. Snap the tube over the cords and, using duct tape, attach the whole shebang to the underside of the desk, away from the leg area. You can also use paper tubes to corral lengthy extension cords by loosely winding spare footage and slipping it inside a roll (no scissors needed this time).

So be sure to log on to http://challenges.ivillage.com/get-an-extra-weekend and see what they are all about! Be sure to sign up (it's free) so that you don't miss out on any good tips!  I promise you will not be disappointed.  I have been a member of http://www.ivillage.com/ for about 10-11 years now and continue to go to that website to search out answers for anything I may be looking for when it comes to parenting, scrapbooking, etc.  It has always been a great source for information. :o)

P.S.  I was not paid to advertise or tell you anything about this website or the challenge, in any form or fashion.  I have truly used the ivillage website for the last 10 to 11 years and find it a very valuable source of information and was more than happy to fill you in on this great website.  I hope you will take the time and go check it out.

Have a great day and stay dry.  I am really enjoying the rain - one main reason is because it's NOT SNOW! LOL 

P.S.S - I'm sure I'm driving all of you crazy with my background changing constantly, but, I can't find anything specific that I really really like.  I can't decide if I want a background custom made for me that stays the same or if I want to continue to change it every month with the seasons, holidays, etc.  What do you think? Any ideas? Would love your opinion! :o)

Lots of love and hugs my friends,