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Tips for The Family Manager 
 
Article Categories:
The Organized Home
Home Based Business Ideas and Tips
Family Finances 
Product Reviews: Household
Product Reviews: Great Gift Ideas
More Practical Matters for the Family Manager
Recipes
Holiday Articles
 
Browse Articles: 
Home-Based Business Ideas and Tips
Is There a Legitimate Way to Work at Home? 
Working from home can give a mother the best of both worlds. Here, Tag and Catherine Goulet, authors of Dream Careers, answer the question: How can a mom find legitimate ways to work from home?

Product Review: Site Build It Review

Quiz: What's Your Dream Job?
Get some clues to your dream career by looking at what you enjoy doing in your time off. 

Home-Based Business Ideas and Information
There's nothing quite like having your own home-based business. Get informed and inspired with these articles and tipsheets, designed to help you find success with your own home-based business.

Come explore more: Home Based Business Opportunities; Home Business Magazines; Home-based business columns; Inspiration and Humor; Subscribe to our new FREE newsletter: Home-Based-Business-News

Insider's Guide to Selling on eBay
Whether you're getting started - or getting serious - about making money online from eBay, here's what you need to know. Includes how to find items to sell for maximum profit. 

Home Based Business Inspiration: Barb Gunselman, creator of Bella Bandanas
We love to profile women who have built a business out of adversity, and Barb has done just that. In doing so, she celebrates initiative, femininity, and the power of a woman to rise above a diagnosis to create beauty and freedom in her life. Here's Barb's inspiring story. 

Starting a Home Greeting Cards Business
Do you like to create pictures and designs, or writing? Do you love to look at the greeting cards in your local stores? Then a greeting cards home business could be for you. This is a business with incredible growth, and income potential. It also gives the greeting card home based business owner several options in the business itself.

FranklinCovey Coupon Codes
Monthly online coupon codes for these top-rated productivity tools.  

Travel Reward Credit Cards

Work-at-Home Crafts Business: 5 Tips for Success
You CAN sell your handmade crafts. A simple home business is possible. Follow the five steps below and watch your craft sales soar. 

How to Start a Daycare Business
Tips and ideas for getting started with your own home daycare.

Cool Tool: Site Build It
Here's message from a Stay-at-Home Mom who has created her own online business:
 
How to Start a House-Cleaning Business for Less Than $200
Starting and running a house-cleaning business on a limited budget.

Working at Home with Small Children
Strategies that have worked for me - and other successful home-based business owners.

Three Keys to Being a Bodacious, Successful Woman in Business
Deciding to start your own business can be exciting and empowering. It’s bodacious! To keep that lovin’ feeling and make your business successful, keep these three keys in mind.

Promoting Your Online Business
The essential steps to promoting your online business and earning more.

Dell Promotional Codes (just bought a Dell...LOVE it.:) 

Ten Tips for Working at Home with Young Children
Working at home can be stressful, especially with small children in the house. Where is the balance between work and home when home IS work? Here are some suggestions to help both you and your kids make the most of each day at the home office.

Why Mom Should Start a Home Based Business Today Carrie Lauth offers 5 very good reasons (which mean way more than the money you'll earn.)

Quiz: How Successful Will You Be in an Online Business?
Use the following questions as a tool to identify what you'll want to work on as your build your success. By Jamie Jefferson.

Make Money Scrapbooking 
For many of us with a passion for scrapbooking, it would be a dream to profit from it. Imagine the ability to scrapbook at home, at crops, even retreats - and get paid for it, too! Particularly because scrapbooking is such a hot industry right now, the opportunities abound to make this dream come true.

The Secret to Self Motivation: Tips for Internet Entrepreneurs and Network Marketers If you are a home based or internet business owner, you know the importance of staying motivated. And you also know that, some days, it's more difficult than others. But home based business success is based on consistent and persistent effort, so staying inspired and enthusiastic is an essential key to success. Here are four important tips for keeping motivation high. 

Work that Works for Sensitive Souls Six steps for transforming your career, by Jenna Avery. 

Starting a Daycare
A how-to guide and complete business package.

Joel Comm's Adsense Secrets Book "What Google Never Told You About Making Money with Adsense." Features proven tips, case studies, and more. We dramatically increased daily google adsense revenues from the tips in this book. Highly recommended.

Direct Sales Consultant Tips: Ten Tips for Choosing the Right Direct Sales Company  Direct sales can be your ticket to a profitable home-based business. But how do you know which company is right for you? Here are ten things to look for as you research your options.

Scrapbooking Business Articles
It's amazing how many ways you can earn money from this booming industry. These articles provide you with a variety of options...from custom scrapbook artist to event planner.  

How to Do Hard Things
A wonderfully helpful article that can motivate you to do just about anything. By Suzanne Falter-Barns.

Creating a Business that Brings You Joy Create the business that your heart desires, and have fun, too. Even established business can pick up some ideas here. 

How to Find Energy for Your Dream When You Work Full-Time You can build a better job. Here's how, from Suzanne Falter-Barns. 

Eight Quick Ways to Nurture Your Creativity
Feeling burned out by simply being too busy? Nothing kills your ability to create faster than stress and burnout.Here, 8 key ways to refresh your soul and stoke your creativity so you can keep up your active pace and produce the creative output you need to.

So You Want to Be a Freelancer? Where to find work and how to make money. 

Building a Business Out of Adversity When the going gets tough... Four inspirational stores just for entrepreneurial moms. 

Staying Motivated in Your Home Business Tricks of the trade from some of the web's most successful WAHMs. Read these, and share your own tips. 

Cereal Mom One WAHM comes to terms with her priorities...while trying to keep those soggy Cheerios off of her business projects.

Tips for Working at Home with Kids: And Never the Twain Should Meet Give your career and your family 100 percent. Elena Fawkner of "A Home-Based Business Online" tells us how.

Coping with the Need for Social Interaction When WAHMs need someone to talk to...

How to Avoid Home Business Scams
Many of us would love nothing more than to make money and stay at home. That's why we're sometimes tempted by those less-than-reputable (and less-than-ethical) companies that rely on spam to get the word out. Here's a guide to weeding out the scams. 

How To Keep Your Home Office Running When the Kids are Home Sick Helpful tips and advice by Parentpreneur Club editor Donna Schwartz Mills.

Tips on Working at Home with Kids  You’re one of the lucky ones.  You have managed the best of both worlds by choosing to stay at home with your children while still advancing in your career. Here are some tips on making it work.

Mom, the Glamour Queen Every mom who works from home will appreciate this day-in-the-life account of a successful writer and mother. By humor columnist Linda Sharp.

Desk Dilemma Momscape is pleased to debut "Homefront Humor," Tammy Harrison's column for homebased working moms. This week, Tammy and her husband tackle a home office improvement.

So You Want to Be a Freelancer? Where to find work and how to make money. 

Tips for Asking for an Alternative Work Arrangement
Find the best work/family balance for you. Then make a proposal. Kirsten Ross of Womans-Work.com shows us how. 

Weighing the Costs of a Career  The old adage is true: It takes money to make money. Maybe more than you think. Find out if going to work each day is costing you. 
Alternatives to Full-Time Work Studies show the majority of us wish we could spend more time with the family. Here's a guide to making it work. 

Time Boosters for the Busy Woman: The Portable Office Stay organized and efficient with these quick tips. 

Practical Matters
Stop Junk Mail
Eight things you can do today to dramatically reduce the amount of junk mail you receive. Mother Earth will thank you.

Avoiding the Morning Rush
Seven strategies for bringing peace to Your morning routine.

Five Quick & Easy Games to Improve Your Memory
Are you always fidgeting for a notepad to jot a list? Can't remember someone's name? Forget details of conversations that you just had? Here are five proven, simple and easy games/techniques to help you improve your memory.

5 Steps to Kid-Friendly Surfing
It's a jungle out there, but not if you create a safe-surf policy, kids will experience the Internet's benefits without its hazards. 

Free Living Will
RocketLawyer.com offers a Free Living Will - and a service that allows you to create essential legal documents yourself. 

Time Management
A Dozen Guaranteed Time Savers, by Suzanne Falter-Barns.

Cooking.com Coupons
Significant savings on cookware. 

How to Get a US Passport
It's a good idea to apply for a passport even if you don't need it immediately, so that you'll always have the option of going abroad at short notice. Here's a quick guide to getting the process started.

Computer Backup Basics
Your family's computer is home to your most precious data. But what happens if you drop your laptop and damage the drive -- or worse, if your house floods? Here's how to create a backup strategy that's right for you.

Create a Web Site or Blog for Your Family
You don't have to know much about technology to create your own family web site or blog--it's easier than you think.

Digital Camera Buying Guide
Discover the simple basics of digital cameras and smoothly transition from film photography to digital photography with the digital camera that is best for you.

5 Steps to Kid-Friendly Surfing
It's a jungle out there, but not if you create a safe-surf policy, kids will experience the Internet's benefits without its hazards. 

A Dozen Guaranteed Time-Savers
Practical time management advice for everyday tasks.  

Find the Right Work-at-Home Opportunity Resolve to spend more time at home. Here's how. 

How to Stretch One Income Twice as Far If you stay at home with your children, you know that part of your job is to stretch those ends until they meet.  Here are some tips for stretching every dollar.

Increase Creativity
8 Ways to Nurture Your Creativity, by Suzanne Falter-Barns.

Understanding Common Identity Theft Threats
Here are the top ways ID theft strikes and what you need to know about the threats so you can be better prepared.

Preparing to Enter the Work-Force While You're Out Fun, rewarding ways to prepare for re-entry.  

Ten Ways to Live in Creative "Flow" A step-by-step guide for a more fulfilled creative life. 

Auto Insurance FAQs
What you need to know, from nolo.com

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Car Insurance The low-down on a universal expense. From nolo.com.

Protecting Yourself When You Deal with Insurance Companies Be prepared for the day when you will need to file a claim. A little know-how now could save you a lot of money later. From nolo.com.

Wills: Frequently Asked Questions  Wills are as complicated as they are important. Here's a good starting point for your research. From nolo.com.
 

Finance 

Discount Running Shoes: Finding the Best Running Shoes for you (Cheap)
Here are some tips to make sure you choose the running shoe that's right for you, at the best price.

How to Save Money on Gas
Eight surprising ways you can save money at the pump. 

How to Save Money on a New Car 
What you need to know before you visit a dealer.

The $1800 Grocery Bill
Darren has four kids and routinely spends a huge amount at the grocery store. Here's advice for slashing your grocery bill, from "The Dollar Stretcher" columnist Gary Foreman. 

Budget Organics
Many of us would love to go "all organic" with their food choices, but that can be a pricey proposition. Here's how to prioritize your organic food purchase.

How to Protect Yourself When Shopping Online
Shopping online allows us to research and find just the right product at the best price, anytime of the day or night. But how do you maintain your safety and privacy in the online environment? Here's what you need to know to protect yourself when online shopping. 

16 Simple, Everyday Ways to Save Money
As a mother with three kids and a very hardworking, hungry husband, I have discovered that absolutely nothing is cheap. I have also discovered that it is the small, daily changes we have managed to make that have had the most profound impact on our budget. Here are 16 of the simple, everyday changes that have worked for us. 

Discount Travel
We've just started a new page that tracks the web's best deals on flights, hotels, and all-inclusive travel packages. 

Benefits of Online Shopping
When it comes to shopping, more and more of us are letting our fingers (and our mice) do the walking. Here are seven reasons it makes sense to shop online. 

Saving Money on Groceries 
Seven simple strategies to reduce your grocery budget. 

Lower Monthly Bills 
Simple things you can do each today to reduce your monthly bills. 

Living on One Income
Tips for reducing your expenses. 

How to Reduce Credit Card Debt A four-step process to gaining financial freedom and eliminating your debts. By Jamie Jefferson.
Debt Reduction and Debt Elimination Articles by Leo Quinn

Debt Reduction Strategy Organizing Your Finances: Think Outside the Shoebox

Personal Debt Reduction Forget Thinking Outside the Box - Get Outside the Box

How to Get an Instant Pay Raise

Just Ask! Ask and you shall receive & knock and it shall be opened &send an email and see what happens.

The ONE Law You Should Be Breaking

Whatever You Do, Don't Save Money!

Save Money with Momscape's Promotional Codes and Online Coupons from our favorite online stores.  

Home & Garden
7 Little Things You Can Do to Organize Kids' Rooms  Karen Fritscher-Porter shares some ideas you can implement today.

The Continuously Clean Bathroom
Don't spend any more time on this chore than you have to. Brandie Valenzuela gives some good tips. 

Camping Food Ideas: Cook Ahead Campouts Spend more time enjoying the Great Outdoors by planning ahead. Here, recipes and tips to help you do just that. 

Makeover Your Home For Spring And Summer Tips for brightening your world (on the cheap). 

Ten Minute Tricks to Help You Get Organized Organize your life - ten minutes at a time. Maria Garcia shows us how...

Making Your Home a Refuge How to make your home more "homey."

Tips for a Pleasant Smelling Home Pleasant aromas are instant mood-lifters. Find out how to bring the good scents home. 

Spring Cleaning the Frugal Way How to clean your home with common household items. It's better for the environment, your pocketbook, and your health...

And the Two Shall Become as One
Family fun on a budget.

Ten Tips to Help You Overcome Procrastination End procrastination in your life...right now. Kathy Paauw tells us how. 

How Busy Parents Can Stay Involved
Whether you work outside of the home, run a home office, or take care of other children, you too can be a part of your child's school life that they will remember for a lifetime." By Amanda Formaro.

"I've Got to Be Me" One supermom shares her secret for getting everything done and staying sane. 

How to Make a Picnic Kit for your Home or Car  Sometimes, the best time for a picnic is right now. If you're not prepared, valuable picnicking opportunities could be passing you by. Even as we speak...

Conscious Prioritization Jacqueline McLaughlin Hale, editor of Between Friends, tells us how we can consciously create a life of balance and joy. 

Conquering Kids' Clutter Professional organizer Debbie Williams helps us keep the Hot Wheels and Pooh paraphernalia from taking over the living room. 

Organizing Closets  Debbie Williams helps us create and maintain functional, organized space. 

House Cleaning Tips Housecleaning. It's a dirty word in my house. Minimize the time you spend with your dust rag with the help of Jeff Campbell, author of
Speed Cleaning.
    
Special Holiday Articles for the Family Manager

Rekindling Your Holiday Spirit
Are you feeling the need to bring new life, meaning, and enthusiasm to you and your family's holiday season this year? It's not too late to implement a few of these inspirational ideas.

Holiday Stress Management: Parenting Strategies for Destressing the Holidays
Educator and author Paula Statman on making the holidays more enjoyable for the entire family.

Twelve Great Homemade Presents to Make with Your Kids
No need to spend a fortune. Your kids will love making these presents for grandparents, cousins and teachers, and the recipients will treasure them. Here are twelve ideas for gifts you can make together.

Eight Ways to Nurture Respect this Holiday Season
How do we teach our child respect and limits this holiday season? Here, insights and ideas from therapist and author Dr. Joanne Baum.


Holidays with Ease: A One-Pot Turkey Dinner with all the Trimmings
Here is a great solution to getting the meal with all the trimmings without spending hours and hours in the kitchen or facing a week of leftovers.

Special Thanks this Thanksgiving
"What if your appreciation this Thanksgiving took on a new look? What if the blessings you count this year included situations that aren’t usually regarded as helpful, useful or valuable?" Some Thanksgiving 'food for thought' from Chick Moorman and Thomas Haller, authors of The 10 Commitments: Parenting with Purpose

Teaching Children to Appreciate Nature on Thanksgiving
"Helping children to become aware of our connection to the land and the gratitude that it is due is the biggest step in helping ensure that future generations treat nature with love and respect." Here are wonderful ideas from author Mark Stevens.

Holiday Traditions for Families
Here are 25 meaningful ways to celebrate your togetherness this season.

Keeping Materialism Out of the Holidays
Ten ideas to help you prevent the wants and whines from stealing the season.

Creative Gift Wrap Ideas
When you're talking about presents, presentation can be everything. Here are 14 creative gift wrap ideas.

Thanksgiving Traditions: Nine Ideas for Families
Ideas for starting new family traditions – and for revering the old ones.

Simple Indulgences for Autumn
During this hectic time of year, it’s vital to take some time each day to simply enjoy your life and your family. Here are a week’s worth of ideas, especially for autumn.

50 Ways to Find Serenity During the Holidays (when serenity is the last thing on your mind). Re-centering ideas by Maria Marsala.

Making the Holidays More Meaningful An important article by Debbie Milam. 

Have a Channeled Holiday Take a little time to tune in this holiday season. Ideas from Suzanne Falter-Barns,  author of Living Your Joy.  

Affordable Gifts for Christmas Simple ideas from Debra Amery.

Packaging Homemade Goodies as Holiday Gifts Beautiful presentation ideas for your "gifts from the heart."

Tasty Holiday Traditions Yummy recipes to enjoy and share. 

Elegant Bows for Easy Holiday Decor Holiday decorating is easier than you think. By using bows, fashioned from inexpensive ribbons, your house, whether inside or out, can be festive and inviting!

Tips for Thanksgiving Pre-Game Jitters
No, I’m not talking about the football game, I’m talking about everyone’s coming to your house this year for Thanksgiving and you’re getting the pregame jitters. Good tips from Susan Dunn. 

Ten Great and Quick Party Foods
Quick ideas for an impressive, inexpensive spread. From Tracey Flynn. 

Holiday Soul Snacks
Soul Snacks are spontaneous time-outs: creative ways you can nurture your spirit in 15 minutes or less. Here's a week's worth, specially designed to help you balance the busy-ness this holiday season.

Holiday Stress Management: Four Tips for Moms
Decking the halls and spreading good cheer takes a lot of energy, and no one knows that like a mom. Here are some tips to make sure you enjoy every last fa-la-la.

All I Want for Christmas...Parents, You May Be Surprised Columnist Linda Sharp asks kids what one thing they would like this season that doesn't cost a dime. The result? A must-read for every mom. 

Making a Difference this Holiday Season Ideas and links to help you get involved. 

Real Families Fight Tips for keeping family functions festive this holiday season. 

Wants and Wishes How to acknowledge your children's wants this season without giving in to their demands. 

The Joy of the Season "The joy of the season is still alive and well, it always has been. Maybe we've just been too distracted to notice..." How to recapture and embrace the magic of the season. 

Gifts for Foodies: The Top Ten Books of 2000 Great gifts, as recommended by Cheri Sicard, editor of Fabulousfoods.com

Cookie Baking, Decorating, Storing, and Shipping Tips Nothing evokes the fond nostalgia of the holidays like the aroma of fresh baked cookies. Make someone's day by creating - and sharing - the spirit of the holidays. 

Momscape's Guide to a Stress-Less Holiday Season Let the stress of the season melt away. Here's how...

Cultivating an Attitude of Gratitude Gratitude keeps us centered and wards off jealousy and negativity. Learn about the little things we can do each day to nourish a sense of gratitude - in ourselves and in others. 

Organizing for the Holidays: Ho, Ho, Ho... or Bah Humbug!
Save your time - and your sanity - with these holiday organizing tips. 

Gift Shopping for Busy Moms Take the Momscape challenge: finish all of your Christmas shopping today (with our help).  

How to Pick the Perfect Gift for Anyone on Your List Simple tips to save you time and money. 

Break Tradition: Be a Holiday Loser "Tradition has it that the average woman will gain about seven pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years Day. With a little advanced planning, a dash of determination and a sprinkle of self-discipline you can break tradition and lose weight this holiday season."

24 Creative Holiday Gift Wrap Ideas
The purpose of a present is to make the recipient feel treasured, and with a little special care in the gift wrap, you can do just that. 
Here are 24 creative gift wrap ideas. 

The Short List: Some Thoughts on Time
Is there a subject more charged than that of time, especially among parents? It's the source of many of our conversations ("How are you?" "Busy!") and much of our guilt. Here are some thoughts on taming our own perception of time.

Home Maintenance Checklist for Fall and Winter
Here is a handy checklist of fall and winter home maintenance tasks to prepare your home (and your family) for the colder temperatures ahead.