Mommy Has to Work

4 Practical Reasons to Shop Online

September 8, 2015 By Anne

Most people realize the potential of what online shopping can deliver. However, there are still many out there that are intimidated by purchasing goods on the Internet. In reality, buying goods off of websites can be more practical than going to your local retail stores. The only real difference is the lack of instant gratification. Instead of having an item now, you must wait for shipping deliveries.

Getting What You Want

In many situations, retailers will only supply items they think they can sell in a local community. If there is something you like that isn’t popular with the general public, it may be difficult to find that particular product. Shopping online allows you to get exactly what you want regardless of the local market. For example, visiting sites such as http://www.DontPayFull.com can deliver many items that you may not have in your area.

Saving Travel Time and Expenses

Shopping online allows you to buy the goods you want without having to leave the home. If you normally commit to a great deal of shopping, Internet stores can help you save a lot of money in gas. When you tally up all of the minutes you spend on the road and standing in the checkout line, you may be wasting a large portion of your day.

Security Measures

Many people are afraid of shopping online due to security threats. The truth is, shopping in person can be just as risky. In many situations, it can actually be more dangerous to hand someone your credit card than it is to shop online. Because of this need for enhanced security, most legitimate online shops go to great lengths to protect your financial information.

Shopping From Anywhere

Most online stores nowadays have mobile integration available. This means you can buy nearly anything you can think of while on the move. This could be perfect for those days where you see something you like while walking down the street. Instead of trying to remember to shop for it later, you can do it from your phone in a matter of minutes.

Shopping online has never been more safe and secure than it is today. With billions of dollars being spent buying goods online annually, technology and security are in constant development in order to provide the best experience possible. Don’t settle for what your local shops are stocked with if you have something else in mind. Virtually any item can be bought from the comfort of your own home.

Anne

I'm a mother of 2 who likes to get involved in too much! Besides writing here I started a non-profit, I'm on the PTO board, very active in my community and volunteer in the school. I enjoy music, reading, cooking, traveling and spending time with my family. We just adopted our 3rd cat and love them all!

Slow Cooker Corned Beef

September 2, 2015 By Sharon

This super juicy, tender corned beef can be prepared the traditional way by adding cabbage and carrots to the slow cooker. No one in my house eats it that way though so I make sandwiches on rye bread with a swipe of mustard, or, our favorite, hash and eggs.

Corned beef with spice packet
1/4 cup Mustard (I prefer Grey Poupon)
1 cup water

Put the beef in the slow cooker fat side up. *This is important since the fat cooking down into the meat is what’s going to make it so juicy and flavorful.*

Mix the mustard and water together until blended. Pour it over the beef. Sprinkle the flavor packet over the beef.

Cook for at least 8 hours on low. *this is also important. If you cook it on the high setting, you’ll be stuck with a corned beef brick. Booooo!

Remove the corned beef from the slow cooker and let in rest for at least 20 minutes.

Slice for sandwiches or… Make corned beef hash and eggs!

For the hash, slice about half of the corned beef and then chop it up into small pieces. It should just fall apart from it being so tender. I use “country style” frozen hash brown potatoes but you can use any style or fresh potatoes. Cook the hash browns until brown and crispy and then add the chopped up corned beef straight on top. Mix it around and let the beef brown a bit too. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook your eggs. I prefer sunny side up or over easy so the yolk is runny and the hash soaks it all up.
YUM!!! Enjoy!

Sharon

My name is Sharon Geyer. I am originally from New York City and currently live in beautiful Ponte Vedra, Florida. My husband and three kids keep me very busy as a stay-at-home mom. I also teach ballet, organize community events, and I love to read books. I typically choose historical fiction when reading something new but I also enjoy science fiction and fantasy, and the occasional romance novel.

What can you do to your home to save some money?

August 29, 2015 By Anne

The fact is that running a home is not getting any cheaper. Your household energy bills never seem to go down, no matter how many news stories there are about the collapse in global oil and gas prices.

New technologies such as fracking are in the news, but for many people, it is a struggle to simply make ends meet each month. Any way you can save some money around the home on energy use will always be welcome.

Here are some useful tips to make the most of a few cost-cutting measures that won’t affect your lifestyle.

Know your usage

One of the main ways that you can cut down energy bills is simple – the less energy you use, the less you pay. This means that you can make savings without having to replace any equipment or invest in new technology.

There are a number of ways to work out how much power you use and how you use it, which is the first step on creating your own energy plan.

From intelligent smart meters, online calculation tools, and even phone apps, there are lots of opportunities to learn about the energy use in your home, and to use the information to make money-saving changes to your behavior.

For instance, making sure your washing machine has a full load is a really easy step to take. Around 90 percent of the energy used for washing clothes is used up by heating the water, so the more you put in, the more you save.

Spending more time at home with the whole family, you can sometimes end up feeling a bit more isolated and separate. With everyone split up into different rooms, you might not actually be spending much time together at all. You may need help forming a Conservatory Conversions.

A converted conservatory can revamp up your home into an open living space, allowing you to connect with your family again.

Low-cost solutions

There are some very low-cost solutions that can save you dollars in the long run. Simply changing from old, power-hungry light bulbs to new, energy efficient LED ones can be a great economical investment. Likewise, making sure any new items you buy such as fridges, washing machines and cookers have good energy ratings is an essential part of keeping bills down and also doing your bit for the environment.

Determine your budget ahead of time with a prepaid light company. What is a prepaid electricity? They are energy plans in which electricity is purchased and paid for before it is used.

Tackle heat loss

One of the biggest drains on a household energy budget can be heat loss during colder months. Loft insulation is a major way to make sure that your home is not losing heat that costs you money to generate. Windows can also let heat escape from a home, so fitting stylish wooden shutters can not only look great but also help you to cut your utility bills.

Around the house, simply turning your central heating down by one degree can make a real dent in fuel use without any noticeable effect on your indoor environment at all.

Simple answers

Global energy issues seem so difficult for governments to deal with, but thankfully, tackling some simple tasks and making small changes around your home can make all the difference to household outgoings.

You can easily make savings with little or no outlay. All you need is to want to do it; and who doesn’t want to spend less on household energy bills?

Anne

Resist – The Resistance Series Book Two By Tracy Lawson

August 27, 2015 By Sharon

Spoilers!

“…[the OCSD] is a modern Leviathan, and if people aren’t afraid of it, they should be. It squanders the fruits of the labors of others to remind us of its power. We are forced to bow before it and accept the crumbs it offers.”

Resist, the second installment of The Resistance series, picks up right where book one, Counteract, left off. The country has been on lockdown for decades after the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense (our villain) was established to protect the people from ongoing waves of terrorist attacks. At least that’s what the OCSD tells the public. The masses sheepishly go along with endless restrictions and are willingly drugged to “stay safe” from terrorist use of chemical weapons. Life is now one long acid trip. The director of the OCSD is poisoned and Careen (our heroine), and her cohorts are blamed.

Cue The Resistance!

A new OCSD director, Dr. Madalyn Davies, is put in place, this one even more power hungry than the last. The Resistance fights the system by rallying the public to their side. Peacefully and successfully at first. But when Davies makes drugging and controlling the public again a priority over feeding them, all Hell breaks loose. There are riots and looting and innocent people die. In response, the Resistance sprinters off and makes countless mistakes, because they, “have to do something”. This tactic doesn’t end well. With the evil government agency breathing down their collective neck, how will Careen and the Resistance continue to fight?

Resist is a great story. Sometimes, important things happen with little or no pomp, so you have to pay close attention to what you’re reading. Resist pulls the reader in with a dose of tense action. But for me, when reading a book, it’s all about the ending. I felt defeat and disappointment at the end of the book. But that’s because I was finally throughly invested in the main characters. And I’m dying to read book three.

Tracy Lawson is an award-winning author of two nonfiction books. She’s enjoyed creating the characters Tommy and Careen and looks forward to continuing their story in more volumes of The Resistance Series young adult novels. Tracy lives in Dallas with her husband, daughter and three spoiled cats.

Sharon

Best Gifts To Keep On Hand For Last Minute Birthday Parties

August 24, 2015 By Anne

Have you ever been invited to a last minute party and don’t have time to go buy a gift? Why not stock up on a few gifts to keep on hand to use anytime? Check out these nine gift ideas.