April 13th, 2012 -
 Photo Credit: Taunews.com As a one of the many New Jersey women who is a busy mother and wife, I know how hard it is to find the time to fit exercise into your schedule. With all the things we have to get done in a day, it’s a wonder what we do accomplish. Physical activity however, is important to fit into your schedule if we want to have the energy to do all that we do. When choosing your physical activity, it is important to choose things you enjoy. When you do work out make sure to do at least 10 minutes of activity. Any less than that and you will not receive the same health benefits. Although you may not realize it, just doing some of your everyday tasks can be exercise too. Here are some ways though, that you can sneak your workouts in throughout the day.
At Work:
There are many ways to incorporate exercise into your daily work routine.
• If you ride a train or bus to work, consider getting off a stop early and walking the remainder of the way.
• Use your coffee breaks and part of your lunch break to take a walk around your workplace. Ask a friend to join you so you have some company.
• Join an exercise program at work or a gym nearby.
At Home:
Some of your daily tasks or routines at home are great forms of exercise.
• Clean your house or wash your car.
• Walk around the park while your children are at their sports practice.
• Push a younger child or baby in a stroller.
• Mow your lawn.
• Walk your dog.
• Get everyone involved and take a family walk or bike ride.
At Play:
This is where you can really have fun and use your imagination. Try to think of a sport or activity you have always been interested in and give it a try.
• Go swimming, biking or skiing (snow and/or water).
• Take an aerobics, yoga or dance class at your local gym.
• Play golf and use a pushcart or carry your clubs.
For more ideas on getting moving check out www.choosemyplate.gov. So all you women out there, let’s get to it. And remember, whatever activities you do choose, just have fun!
April 6th, 2012 -
 photo courtesy of www.phbodybalance.com Water — the liquid that has almost no flavor but is vital for life. What would we do without it? Yet many New Jersey women avoid water by drinking only flavored drinks such as carbonated beverages, caffeinated beverages, and juices. Although juices do contain a high percentages of water, they cannot do for a woman‘s body what simple water can do. Sodas, coffee, tea, and energy drinks just do not give your body the amount of water it needs for good health.
Why is it so important that we New Jersey women drink enough water every day? I was reading an article in The Healthy Moms Magazine the other day and found some helpful facts about water that I would like to share.
Beautiful Skin
Drinking enough water improves the quality of your skin. The water you drink “flushes” out of your body the pollutants that cause discoloration, acne, spots, blotches, etc. Water also keeps your skin moist and soft so that it does not dry out and feel rough.
Elastic Skin
 photo courtesy of ph.makeupandbeauty.com The more water you drink, the less baggy your skin will be underneath your eyes and on other parts of your body that easily become stretched out. Your skin will instead retain its elasticity and stay tight. This is especially true for women who have lost a good deal of weight.
Slender Body
Speaking of losing weight, water both breaks down the deposits of fat in your body and reduces the swelling that occurs when your body retains water. (Your body will store water and swell when you do not drink enough to keep its thirst quenched.) Therefore, water should be a major part of your diet if you are trying to lose weight.
Ache-Free Body
Headaches, migraines, and menstrual cramps can often be cured with water. Sometimes, dehydration is the cause of an ache to begin with. If you make a habit of drinking water regularly, you will experience fewer of these aches and pains. And when you do experience them, water is often the needed solution rather than a painkiller.
Healthy Muscles / Free Movement
Since your muscles have to be moist and lubricated in order to move and contract smoothly, water is crucial to your body’s ability to move freely. Keeping your muscles hydrated will allow them to function the way they were made to function. You will feel more confident and free if you can move easily.
(www.thehealthymoms.net)
What Is “Enough” Water?
 photo courtesy of www.sciencephoto.com The general rule-of-thumb regarding how much water to drink each day is the “Eight-&-Eight Rule”: Drink 8 glasses of 8 ounces of water daily. To be more accurate, women need to drink 9 glasses (2.2 liters total) every day, according to the Institute of Medicine (www.mayoclinic.com). Either way, if you drink between 8 and 9 glasses per day, you will reap the health benefits of water.
Water is good for improving health and beauty; water is our friend. Of course, there is much more to the study of water’s health benefits; I have only listed a few facts that I found interesting and thought some of you New Jersey women might also like to know. If you are aware of other good reasons to drink plenty of water each day, please leave a comment below! I would love to hear from you!
April 4th, 2012 -
 photo courtesy of www.telegraph.co.uk Does this sound familiar to you: you are driving in your car, thinking about your schedule or a relationship, when suddenly you blink really hard and realize that your eyes had closed for a few seconds and you had just started drifting off into a dream? So you straighten up in your seat, shake your head hard, yawn, and turn up the radio. But a couple minutes later, your vision goes out of focus, you start to swerve, and then you wake up just in time to jerk back into your own lane. If you have ever struggled to stay alert on the road, you having experienced “drowsy driving.” Drowsy driving is extremely dangerous, and we New Jersey women should prevent ourselves from ever driving that tired.
A statement I read on DrowsyDriving.org really served as a wake-up call (no pun intended) regarding just how dangerous drowsy driving can be. Let me quote it for you here:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conservatively estimates that 100,000 police-reported crashes are the direct result of driver fatigue each year. This results in an estimated 1,550 deaths, 71,000 injuries, and $12.5 billion in monetary losses.
That is serious! Therefore, we need to take our alertness while driving seriously. How do you know if you are a person who stands a high chance of falling asleep at the wheel? If you can state any of the following statements as true about yourself, you are at high risk of drowsy driving and need to take extra precautions:
DROWSY DRIVING CAUSES
- I am a young adult between the ages of 18-29; therefore, I have a much higher chance of being too tired to drive than people of other age groups have. (If I am not between 18-29, I still need to be careful but am probably getting more sleep each night than the young adults are.)
- No matter what my age is, I work a night shift or a rotating shift with a constantly changing schedule — or I work 60+ hours each week — thus, I, too, risk being too tired to drive.
- I am a commercial driver who drives for long periods without a rest; therefore, I also stand a high chance of driving drowsy.
- I have kids; thus, I will automatically be more tired than women with no children.
- I deprive myself of sleep, or I suffer from sleep apnea or insomnia and have not treated my disorder; therefore, my body will naturally struggle to stay awake while driving.
- I am experiencing jet lag; thus, I am definitely not fit to drive yet.
- I have taken medication with side effects of drowsiness; therefore, I should not risk driving at all.
Here are signs you should watch for, to warn yourself of when it is time to stop driving and get some sleep:
DROWSY DRIVING WARNING SIGNS
- Your eyelids feel droopy, you blink too frequently, and the road keeps going in and out of focus.
- You begin to rub your eyes and cannot stop yawning.
- Your head feels heavy and wants to hang down.
- Your thoughts are no longer making sense; they begin to form dreams.
- You cannot remember the past mile or so.
- You run stop signs, skip other traffic signs, and miss your exits.
- You drift, swerve, drive on the rumble strip on the shoulder of the road, or tailgate.
- You become irritable, and your body feels fidgety and uncomfortable.
(drowsydriving.org)
 photo courtesy of www.fortworthinjurylawyersblog.com What is the solution for drowsy driving? STOP DRIVING IMMEDIATELY AND REST. Ask someone else to drive. If there is no one else, then you must stop and sleep, no matter how inconvenient it may be for your schedule. If there is no place nearby with a bed you could use for sleeping, pull over to the side of the road and sleep in your car. It is better to be inconvenienced than to be dead or to cause the death of others! We New Jersey women are responsible for the lives of our passengers and lives of everyone else on our New Jersey roads, not to mention our own lives.
If you have any stories or thoughts about drowsy driving, please leave us a comment!
April 2nd, 2012 -
Since we New Jersey women spend a great deal of time in our cars — hauling around children and groceries, driving to work, or running errands — then it is worth putting a little effort into accessorizing our vehicles in cute and creative ways, don’t you think? Why not let our personalities show through our vehicles (whether used or new) and have some fun with decorating? We are more likely to enjoy driving all the time if we appreciate our cars’ appearances and feel “at home” among our own choices of car accessories.
Steering Wheel Covers
 photo courtesy of www.mosquitocreekoutdoors.com Steering wheel covers can provide more grip to your steering wheel, more warmth for your hands in the winter, protection from an extremely hot steering wheel in the summer, comfort for your hands on long drives, and more pizazz to your car. Numerous styles of steering wheel covers are available online and in stores. You can choose a more professional look or a style with some personality. The possibilities are endless!
Seat Covers and Floor Mats
 photo courtesy of www.cakitches.com  photo courtesy of www.cardecor.com For women who often cart around several passengers but want to keep their floors and seats clean (or for women who merely desire fun car interiors), choosing cute seat covers and floor mats is a good way to go. There are all different kinds of these coverings available. You can find inexpensive coverings at your local Walmart or Target, or look for more expensive and durable ones online. Covers designs vary almost as much as people do, ranging from cartoon characters to animal prints to the logo of your car model. Keep in mind the weather where you live: if it is often extremely cold, the seat covers and floor mats you choose probably need to be fuzzy or furry to create more warmth in your vehicle.
Custom License Plate Frames
 photo courtesy of www.ebay.com Frames for license plates can be a fun way to express your personality. Are you proud of the amazing history of our American nation and still hold out hope that we can be as great as we once were? Are you thankful for our soldiers who are willing to sacrifice their lives for our freedom and safety? Then a patriotic license plate frame could be a good choice for you. Choose a frame covered in pink flowers if you are a girly girl. Maybe you are a deep thinker and appreciate philosophical quotes; there are frames for that, too. If you want to share and proudly represent your religious beliefs, try a faith-based store or shop online for frames with symbols or quotes that express your faith.
Matching Themes
A great way to make your car both cute and chic is to choose accessories that match or bear the same theme. For instance, if you have Disney-princess seat covers and floor mats, then a steering wheel cover with Disney princess crowns printed on it would complete the theme. If your theme is fruit, then try to match all accessories by choosing ones with fruit designs. You can even have matching air freshener!
(Sources: www.divinecaroline.com, www.helium.com, www.cardecor.com)
Whether your personality is more eclectic or more tasteful, why don’t you spoil yourself a little bit and decorate your car with fun accessories that will brighten your day every time you drive? All of us New Jersey women drivers deserve some enjoyment on our drives! If you have any other fun accessorizing ideas to share, please leave a comment!
March 30th, 2012 -
Does it ever frighten you when you hear stories in the news about the deaths of children in freak accidents that involve cars — such as kids’ being run over in driveways, or playing unattended in cars and crashing them?  One of the most heartrending stories like this occurred on May 21, 2008. A famous Christian music artist, Steven Curtis Chapman, and his family suffered a serious and completely unexpected loss. Steven and his wife Mary Beth had three biological children (who were young adults at the time) and three adopted Chinese girls of young elementary-school age. The youngest adopted girl, 5-year-old Maria, was outside in the yard and needed help to reach the monkey bars, and seeing her 17-year-old brother Will Franklin (the youngest of the Chapmans’ biological children) arriving home in the car, Maria ran to meet him in the driveway. Unfortunately, she ran directly into the car’s path. Will Franklin did not see her at all and hit her with the car, and she passed away. (blogs.tennessean.com) Although it is not pleasant to dwell on thoughts like this, we New Jersey moms should at least be aware of these kinds of stories and know how to prevent them from happening to our own precious children.
3 Tips for Preventing Accidents in the Driveway
- One of the most important lessons we can teach our children is to never get too close to cars, unless it is time to climb inside for a drive and we mothers give permission to do so. If our children understand that (1) moving cars are extremely dangerous and (2) even when it might seem that no one is in a stationary car, there could be someone in there and the car could suddenly start to move, then they will develop a healthy wariness that will prevent them from ever being in a car’s path accidentally. If playing in the driveway can be avoided altogether, the chances of accidents in the driveway drop greatly; but if your kids ever do play in the driveway, remind them to keep a safe distance from cars that may pull in or out!
- Always keep your car keys out of your kids’ reach. That way, they can never pretend to drive the car and unintentionally start it and crash.
-
 photo courtesy of www.tysingermercedes.com If your car does not already have a camera installed to help you see behind the car when it is in reverse, then I strongly encourage you to get one. Such a camera will help you see everything behind you as you back the car up, which will prevent little ones from getting run over due to being too short to be seen in the rear-view mirror.
(www.girlslovewheels.net)
Of course, there are plenty of other tips I could share, but I think I’ve shared enough for this blog post. Just remember to fully check all mirrors, blind spots, and any cameras even before pulling your used or new vehicle out of your own driveway. If you have any other safety tips that you can share with us New Jersey moms, please leave a comment!
March 28th, 2012 -
ATTENTION: To all New Jersey women out shopping for a new or used car by yourself, come visit my husband’s car dealership (Sansone Jr.’s 66 Automall) here in Neptune, NJ;  and shop for your perfect car through our “Women Selling Cars to Women” program! Let our experienced female staff walk you through the steps toward deciding which vehicle is right for you. They are women just like you, which means they can think like you and understand you, your needs, your desires, and your questions. Then they can answer all of your questions in an easy way to understand.
I thought I would share some of the customer reviews that have been posted on our dealership website. These are reviews from women who came to our dealership and were helped by our saleswomen. Are you unsure about buying a car through a female auto-buying program? Read these reviews and be reassured that our saleswomen know how to help you buy a car.
This first review is from a New Jersey woman named Donna:
When I heard about the “Rent 2 Own” auto program that Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall dealership in Neptune was offering on TV, I was hesitant to call. Having terrible credit, I was not treated nicely by two prior NJ dealerships that promised me the world. Fighting through my hesitation, I called Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall and spoke with Michelle. From the time I spoke with Michelle on the phone to the time I drove my new car off the lot, I was treated with such respect… I was not used to this with my credit problem. With $600 down, a percentage of your monthly car payment going towards your down payment and being placed by Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall in a free credit restoration program, it is a WIN-WIN situation. I still can’t believe I have found a dealership where there are no GIMMICKS. Just nice, honest people that want to help you. Thank you Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall in Neptune for giving me the chance to improve my credit and still drive a new car. YOU ARE THE BEST.
Here is a review from a mom named Marsha. Her young son was actually the one shopping for a car, and after he had made his choice, Marsha was the one who bought the car for him.
For the last week, my 19-year-old son Justin has visited the showroom many times—he loved the Optima SX on display there.
Joann, his sales rep, was marvelous…She did not get impatient with him nor did she tune him out, since he was only 19—she answered all of his questions on each and every visit, and worked with him every time he went into the showroom—she treated him with respect and kindness each and every time—and I truly admire her for these traits and her kindness.
On Saturday, I went into the showroom to purchase the car of Justin’s dreams, for Justin, and I had the MOST wonderful car buying experience…
I felt right at home, being a member of this wonderful Sansone Jr’s 66 Kia family.
I have high regards for the way your business is run and you should be VERY proud of the outstanding customer service that is offered there.
 photo courtesy of www.drivingnewcars.com
And last but not least, please read this great review from a woman named Susan, whose car had suffered serious hurricane damage. It is always good to have a trustworthy car dealership who can help you in emergency situations!
…I want you to know what a fabulous team of people you have working for you (Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall). It’s the main reason I came back to buy another Kia from you…
Hurricane Irene flooded my Kia Forte and my insurance company totaled my car. I was devastated. However, I knew I could try to replace my Kia with you. We walked into Kia and I was greeted by Cathy Traub who listened to my story and immediately started looking for a replacement… I had a new 2012 Kia Forte within 3 days and I drove it home without paying for it (yet) because my insurance check [hadn't] come in yet… This [was] the best car buying experience ever! Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart!
Let these stories reassure you: our team of women are here to help you. You will not face any uncomfortable situations, disrespect, or confusion. And if you are interested in becoming a car saleswoman yourself, stay tuned for when we are hiring!
March 26th, 2012 -
Putting a birthday party on for our kids every year requires us New Jersey moms to be on our toes! Creativity is needed every year in order to keep the birthday parties fresh and new. After you have done a sports-themed birthday, a princess birthday, a cartoon-based birthday, a swimming birthday, an artsy painting birthday, a park birthday, etc., you can easily run out of ideas. When that happens, consider having a Jersey Shore Pirates birthday party!
 photo courtesy of www.jerseyshorepirates.com The Sea Gypsy ship rests in the Riverfront Marina on the Metedeconk River in Brick, NJ — less than half an hour away from my husband’s car dealership. (By the way, if any of you women ever need to buy a car, stop by the “Women Selling Cars to Women” section of our Nissan/Kia/Suzuki dealership here in Neptune, NJ, where you will be helped by car saleswomen who will understand your needs and questions about cars.) Aboard the Sea Gypsy is a friendly crew of pirates known as the “Jersey Shore Pirates.” Take your special birthday child and his or her siblings and friends to spend 1 hour and 45 minutes with these pirates on an exciting (and completely safe) adventure that kids love!
Jersey Shore Pirates Activities
From start to finish, your kids and their friends will have a blast as the crew aboard the Sea Gypsy walks them through the adventures. (You and any other parents who come along will enjoy it, too!) Before even leaving the dock, the kids will:
- have their faces painted
- dress up in fun “piratey” clothes
- learn pirate words (eg. swashbuckle, hoist, mateys, arrgh, etc.)
 photo courtesy of www.tripadvisor.com After they are ready to go, the Sea Gypsy will set sail to begin the adventures! The adventures include (but are not limited to):
- firing “water cannons” against a pretend enemy pirate who stole the keys to the treasure
- winning back the keys to the treasure
- reading the treasure map and a message from a bottle
- hunting for the treasure
- raising the treasure up from the water and onto the ship after finding it
- dividing the spoils (each child gets to take home a small pile of the “treasure”)
Pirate Adventures-Jersey Shore is a fun activity that can work not only for birthdays but also for field trips, family vacation activities, day trips, and other special occasions. From one New Jersey mom to another, I thought I would share this entertaining idea for kids. Next time you are desperately trying to come up with an idea for a birthday activity, hop into your New Jersey car or truck and drive to Brick, New Jersey, for a day of clean fun for your kids!
(www.jerseyshorepirates.com)
March 23rd, 2012 -
 photo courtesy of www.neptunetownship.org Spring is in the air, and the joy of Easter is on its way! Easter Sunday falls on April 8th this year. That is just a little over two weeks away! How many of you New Jersey women have already made your plans for Easter? Will you be spending the holiday with family? If you are here in the Neptune, NJ, area next weekend, bring your kids (5th grade and under) to our annual Easter Egg Hunt! It will be held over on Old Corlies Avenue at the Bert Willis Fields, about 4 minutes away from my husband’s car dealership. The Neptune Easter Egg Hunt is a lovable town tradition. The date is set for Saturday, March 31st at 10:00 A.M.; but if it rains, the hunt will be postponed to the next Saturday, April 7th. Make sure your children bring their own bags or baskets to collect the eggs in! (www.app.com)
Then, for Easter Sunday with the family, let me share with you some delicious recipes that are in keeping with the Easter holiday feel:
Easter Brunch Pizza
Kids love this! Pizza that looks like an Easter egg can easily become a fun Easter tradition for your family. You will need the following ingredients:
- 1 (16.3-ounce) tube buttermilk biscuit dough
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
- 1 1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan
- Toppings for decorations (we used red, yellow, and green peppers, red onions, and cooked breakfast sausage)
 photo courtesy of familyfun.go.com The dough from the tube must be divided up into biscuit-sized pieces and then halved. On a dry cookie sheet, lay all the halves of the biscuits down and carefully mush them together with a rolling pin or with your hands. Sculpt the dough into the shape of a large egg. This is the pizza crust. Bake it in the oven for 8 minutes at 350°. Let it cool.
In a bowl, mix the oil, parsley, and garlic together. When the crust is cool, use a brush to gently smear this mixture onto the crust evenly. Add a layer of mozzarella cheese over the mixture, with Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top of the mozzarella.
Finally decorate your pizza egg with any toppings you desire. Try to make it really look like an Easter egg. Bake it in the oven again for about 5 to 10 minutes, just until the cheese is melted.
(familyfun.go.com)
Ham and Egg Casserole
Here’s a nice dish that utilizes eggs — an Easter symbol. The ingredients are as follows:
- 12 eggs
- 1 carton (15 oz.) ricotta cheese OR cottage cheese
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend (8 oz.)
- 2 cups chopped cooked ham
- 1/4 cup minced green onions
 photo courtesy of www.incredibleegg.org The steps to make this are few and simple. Make sure you preheat the oven at 350° and grease a 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish before starting on the ingredients.
In a bowl, thoroughly mix the eggs together by beating them.
Then add all the rest of the ingredients and mix them in evenly.
Finally, pour the mixture into the baking dish and bake it in the oven for about 40 to 50 minutes. You will know it is done when you can insert a knife into the center and remove it clean. It will look “puffed” and “golden.”
(www.incredibleegg.org)
I hope you enjoyed these recipe ideas! Do you have any fun Easter recipes that you would like to share with other New Jersey women? Leave us a comment! And don’t forget to bring your kids to the Neptune Easter Egg Hunt on March 31st, just a few minutes away from Sansone Jr.’s 66 Automall!
March 21st, 2012 -
In my previous post called “New Jersey Moms Motivate Their Kids — Part 1 (The Chart),” I shared an idea that can help New Jersey moms overcome their children’s memory slips and carelessness regarding responsibilities and chores. The idea I shared is called the “Rewards Chart,” and it works very well as positive reinforcement for accomplishing multiple tasks. Now, I would like to share with you several other tips that will really make a difference in your kids’ motivation to fulfill their daily duties.
Set a Timer
 photo courtesy of declutterorganizerepurpose.wordpress.com Set a timer for the amount of time in which you expect your child to complete a certain task. Decide on a reward for finishing on time (or early) and a consequence for not finishing by the time the timer beeps. For instance, if you set the timer for 10 minutes, a good reward could be getting to stay up 10 extra minutes before bedtime, and a good consequence could be having to go to bed 10 minutes early. Make sure that your child understands ahead of time that doing the job within the time limit will only be accepted if it is done right. (www.empoweringparents.com)
Sing a Song
Sometimes, silly or cheesy songs can brighten the mood when chore time comes around. Make up funny words to a familiar melody, or sing words that relate to the task at hand. The appropriateness of this depends on your child’s age, of course; so keep that in mind. Focus on the Family offered a great example of a clean-up song to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell”:
We’re picking up the blocks.
We’re picking up the blocks.
Hi-ho, the derry-o.
We’re picking up the blocks.
Pay the Servant
Create a system in which each of your children are assigned certain chores. If one child does not complete one of his or her chores, and another sibling completes the job for that child, then the neglectful child should be required to pay the sibling who did the job. After one or two times of this happening, you will find that the neglectful child will begin to make chores top priority!
Make It Fun
 photo courtesy of www.visualphotos.com Whenever you can, join in the chores with your children and make it fun! If it’s time to do the dishes, step in and help sometimes, and tease and splash or do whatever it takes to get a smile or laugh. Children will not dread their chores as much if they have fun while doing them. Here’s an idea if your kids have to water the lawn or garden: after they are done, let them run through the sprinklers!
(www.focusonthefamily.com)
Chores do not have to be a chore! I hope you found these tips helpful for motivating your children to complete their responsibilities each day. Do you have any more tips for us New Jersey moms? Please share!
March 19th, 2012 -
Would your kids rather play and watch movies than clean their rooms or make their beds? Or do they have a tendency to forget to brush their teeth in their excitement to play outside with their friends? Are you tired of reminding them all the time? How do we, as New Jersey moms, motivate our kids and help them remember on their own to complete their daily responsibilities?
In this post and the next, let me share with you some clever ideas that work better than nagging them all the time. Positive reinforcement and more fun ways to accomplish tasks can put chores and responsibilities at the top of your children’s to-do list in their minds.
The “Rewards Chart”
 photo courtesy of www.etsy.com Make a chart for your kids, with vertical and horizontal gridlines making boxes at least the size of your thumb. You can draw this chart with a ruler and a sharpie, or you can create one on the computer and print it up. Keep it in plain view at your child’s eye-level on the fridge. Put your child’s name at the top of the chart. Label the rows down the left side with each of the chores and responsibilities your child is required to do each day. You can even color-code them to distinguish between morning and evening tasks. Across the top of each column, label the days of the week in order. Buy some simple stickers (smiley-face stickers work well) from a dollar store and keep them where your child cannot get them without you.
 photo courtesy of www.rainbow-creations.co.uk Meet with your child in front of the chart twice a day — once after they should have completed morning duties and once before bed. Get the stickers out. For each task your child completed, let him or her place a sticker in the corresponding box on the chart. Tell your child that there will be a surprise reward after the entire chart is filled with stickers. Then follow through when the chart is full. If you draw your charts to only last a week, then the reward at the end can be small, like ice cream or a new toy. If you make big charts that last a month before they are finished, the reward should be much bigger to make the month’s work worth it in the child’s eyes. In that case, a trip to the zoo or the fair might be in order. After your child has finished a few charts and been rewarded each time, he or she will have developed good habits of getting chores done and will no longer need a chart!
Doesn’t that sound simple? It really is, and your kids will love it. Make a chart for each child, and see how quickly their memories sharpen up. Rewards charts can help any New Jersey mom motivate her kids without nagging. It brings more joy to both mother and child. How many of you women out there have used this idea successfully before? Share your stories with us! Leave a comment!
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About me
My name is Chris Sansone and I’m a wife and mother of three children. My husband owns a Nissan, Kia, Suzuki and pre-owned car dealership in Neptune, NJ. Here you’ll find a woman’s perspective on all things related to car buying and ownership, as well as articles about family and fitness.
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