Just a little background of where I am coming from, I am a stay home mom of a 10 year old home schooled 4th grader and a 2 year old pre-schooler. My daughters and I just relocated to Doha, Qatar to be with their dad who was away from us for almost 4 years.
My Top 5 Mommy tip to new/other mothers would be the following:
- 1. The best interior decorating tool is to have a useful broom and dustpan. A regularly swept house is always at its best. It may not necessarily be a glossy cover magazine candidate, but healthy and clean is good to go.
- 2. Wrap your leafy green veggies with newspaper. It keeps them fresh longer in the crisper section of your ref.
- 3. Buy beef or pork bones. Boiling them long and slow makes the best soup ever. Your kids will have stronger bones and will be visibly filled much to their delight.
- 4. It is never too early to give them assignments for house chores. My youngest was still crawling when she, using her cloth diaper started making swiping gestures on the table where she was propped. Now almost 2 and a half, she knows what cleaning things are for. Action! Use!
- 5. Carve out your alone time. Do yoga, shibashi, quigong, abs workout, whatever! Just have your moments alone to clear your mind or your pores. They make being with your kids much fresher and less stressful.
Tip #2 and #3 were given to me by my dad’s sister who was our wedding sponsor. So far, her tip has stood the test of time.
The first tip is from the book by Sarah Ban Breathnach, Simple Abundance.
The last 2 tips were culled out of experience. Still the best teacher there is.
As to moving houses and relocating overseas, the best advice would be the following:
- 1. Research
Check travel baggage requirements. Find out the alternative cost of shipping items to your place of destination. Double check rates and moving company tract record. Look into complaints and testimonies. If you have network of friends, you can maybe find out the possibility of them bringing some items for you gratis. This can really lessen the prohibitive cost of relocation.
- 2.. Get organized. Draw up your list of things to be given away, thrown , stored and to be brought for airline check in or hand carry. The most important things I brought along were vitamins, a set of antibiotics, Coconut Virgin Oil ( very good for aches, pains and bites etc) and my Banana Enzyme extract which is a good source of Alkaline that improves the PH levels of drinking water.
My worry for their 9 hour flight convenience was laid to rest by the in seat video of Qatar Airways that kept the kiddos busy plus the Kiddie Travel Entertainment bag as well. The scientifically timed hot meals served helped alleviate jet log upon arrival to our destination.
- 3. Rolling a piece of clothing into a small compact bun tied with a rubber band works wonders over conventional folding and pressing down hard. It clears up more space for other things in the luggage.
- 4. Clear plastic envelops for tickets, passports pens and other important documents for easy retrieval from your handbag.
- 5. Mint candies to keep one’s breath fresh always and your self cool!