Family

I cloth diapered my son from infancy through toddlerhood and most of my friends thought I was nuts. They wondered what would possess a modern day mom to diaper the old-fashioned way. The truth is, I'd heard about how much better cloth diapers are for the environment and I'd read reports about how they are also better for babies, but it's the information that I kept hearing about all the money I'd save that finally persuaded me to ditch my disposable diapers for cloth ones.

Most moms have, at one point, had a baby changing table. But once the baby is too big for it, what then? Sell it at a garage sale? Save it for your sister-in-law? Shove it in the storage shed or garage? Instead, create some needed storage space for your laundry room, mud room, kitchen, front porch, sewing room or any other area that is in need. Don't have one? You can pick one up at a garage sale these days for $10 or less.

Teaching your children the basics of money management can be an intimidating task, especiallly if you are not very sure about your own money handling skills. Taking a simple approach, one that you perhaps even start following yourself, can give your children a solid foundation from which to build a lifelong common sense money approach.

The sales are a fading memory, as are the news stories showing wide-eyed six-year-olds entering the brave new world. Kids have begun to figure out their new routines. This year, as we have for the past few, my daughter and I celebrated instead of going back to school.

It's dinner time. You can go to the cupboard and grab the box of instant-just-add-tuna and slap it on the table. Or, you can take the time to prepare a thoughtful meal. Parenting choices can be like food choices. Anyone can stay home with children and take care of them. Deciding to raise your children following the principles of attachment parenting elevates child rearing to an art.

If life is what happens when you're not looking, maybe you need to get your eyesight checked. Here are some tips to keep romance in your sights and keep your love alive even while coping with the busiest of schedules. Pick up a few good habits, and make the most of the time you have together.

A middle-aged couple sat in a marriage counselor's office. "I don't understand why we waste our time here; our marriage is already over," the woman cried, her husband shifting uneasily in his chair. "My husband, he doesn't love me."

"What are you talking about," the husband said, turning to the counselor, "I don't know why she says things--"

Thank you."

For many of us, it is an autonomic response, like breathing or blinking. "Thank you" is a reflex action--a phrase we spurt out at the end of a conversation, mostly to signal its end.

I thank people for calling, for writing, for bagging my groceries, for stopping me on the street to pet my dog. If you are like me, you catch yourself uttering the phrase at least a dozen times each day, but have you ever really stopped to think about what it means?

I had a wonderful career before I had children. Once our first daughter came along though, I was glad to leave the fast track behind to stay at home and enjoy all the good and bad that came with raising a child. What I didn't count on, however, was having the added responsibility of looking after a husband who chose to work from home.

It's easy to be fascinated by other people's love affairs and desire to have what they have, especially if the relationship is intense, happy, and seemingly problem-free. These great love stories epitomize an ideal that everyone would love to attain.

However, keep in mind that you are seeing only the public image of the relationship. You don't see the work that goes on behind closed doors. All relationships take effort to be successful, especially great love stories.