10 time savers for busy moms

"Why are you always doing two or three things at once?" my husband asked me recently.

"Well, duh, I'm a mom," I wanted to say. But what I said was, "That's how I have to get things done."

True, isn't it? For any mom?

In addition to multitasking my way through the day (which I don't really do all the time), here are other things I do to make the most of my time or to make tasks easier.

1. Prepare the night before. I am not a morning person, as much as I would like to be. It's easier for me to get breakfast, papers, bills, etc. ready the night before I need them than to try to force my brain to work in the morning. When my son goes to school, his lunch and backpack are ready at night too.

2. Use lists. I'm a big list maker. If I can find the time to focus on things I need to do or prepare for (like my two-year-old's upcoming birthday party) and write down what I need while I'm concentrating on it, this saves me time later because all I have to do is refer to my list. And then I better not lose that list! Lists are essential for regular tasks like food shopping, too.

3. Buy more than you need at one time. If something you use all the time is on sale, scoop up more than you need! You know you'll eventually use it, and you'll save yourself another trip to the store. Of course, this can't apply to things like fresh produce, but this tip does help save time for most other household items.

4. Give your kids incentives. I like to think this isn't the same thing as bribery. But it might be. For example: "I'd be happy to buy you a toy car if you help me in the store by being a good boy." It doesn't always have to be a newly purchased item: "I'd be happy to take you swimming if you are nice to your sister this morning." Because, let's face it, kids who don't behave or get along can slow down the operations of a family.

5. Delegate. Who says you have to do it all? Give your kids and other household members tasks that are appropriate for their age. My country-raised stepmother would say, "Many hands make the burden light." And the mom happy.

6. Get into a routine. I know many people think routines are boring, but I think routines can actually help a family save time because everyone knows what to expect. When you have young children (who thrive on routine anyway), they usually won't put up a fuss when the family does what they expect them to. As many moms know, if there's ever a break in routine, you might lose time by dealing with a fussy, cranky little person.

7. Make smart use of technology. I admit I can get sucked into Twitter or Facebook, and lose track of time having fun catching up with online friends. But some technology does save time, like online and/or automatic billing, and the new Starbucks Card Mobile and Starbucks for Android, which let you pay with your phone. Fast and easy!

8. Save time at the library. This is one of my favorite time savers that I like to share with other moms. There's a great program at my local library system that allows you to reserve a book online from any library in the county library system, then keep it on hold for you at whichever library you choose. Instead of me driving to several libraries or even just rummaging the shelves at my local library, the librarians do it for me. Then all I have to do is ask for the book at the front desk, check out and leave. And it's free! Check your local library system to see if reserving books is available.

9. Combine trips. It's amazing to me how much time my family spends in the car, just driving to and from places! If you can save some shopping or pick up/drop off time for a trip that takes you nearby, that saves time and gas.

10. Factor in some down time. Time seems to go by quickly when you are busy trying to get through a to-do list. But time seems to slow down when you do -- so make the most of it.

For me, saving time and making family life easier has to do with being organized and taking a little time to think things through. It also really helps to have a supportive husband who enjoys helping out. If you can't do it all, ask for help -- from a family member, neighbor or friend. Someday when you have more time, you can return the favor.

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I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Starbucks blogging program, for a gift card worth $30. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

Southern Florida backroads road trip

I love Florida (where I live), and I love exploring. I love road trips, and I love nature. So this weekend at the SheCon conference when I heard about the Chevrolet Drive Green Challenge -- asking bloggers what they would do with a Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid for a week -- I knew that I'd have to respond with a driving tour of my favorite backroads areas of southern Florida. The Tahoe Hybrid is perfect for natural areas because it's less polluting. If you're thinking about a Florida trip or want to get acquainted with some of Florida's more-natural or lesser-known areas, check out my grand plan!

Big Cypress National Preserve

Day One. I'd gather my family and head west along the Tamiami Trail. The Tamiami Trail was named for the two cities that it connects -- Tampa and Miami. There are wonderful natural areas along this road, along with Miccosukee tribe settlements. My family would visit the Shark Valley Visitor Center of Everglades National Park (take the tram tour, or bike along the 16-mile paved path through the grasslands full of gators). Then we'd take the bumpy, unpaved and wild Loop Road (which the Tahoe could handle) in Big Cypress National Preserve to Sweetwater Strand, one of our favorite places to see gators and listen to birds. Farther down Tamiami Trail still within Big Cypress is a beautiful picnic area with a boardwalk -- a great place for lunch. My family would make a stop at famed photographer Clyde Butcher's Big Cypress Gallery and Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park (if the mosquitoes weren't too bad), then pass the smallest post office in the United States and head south to Everglades City, where we'd stay in one of the nice inns there after watching the sun set on Florida Bay.

Day Two. After taking a boat tour of the bay, my family would continue west on Tamiami Trail to Marco Island, home of one of my favorite beaches in Florida -- Tigertail Beach. We'd watch the kayakers pull their kayaks across the water, caught by low tide, and watch oystercatchers and reddish egrets hunt for fish. After lunch, we'd head north to the Immokalee area and look for wildlife along the boardwalks of the Audubon Society's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. We'd stay as late as we could for the best/most wildlife viewing chances (or until one of our sons got too tired and cranky), then drive about an hour and a half to Sanibel Island on the coast to crash at a beachside bungalow.

Sanibel Island

Day Three. My family would play at the beach on Sanibel and look for shells, doing the "Sanibel stoop." We'd take the driving tour through the main tract of J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge, where in the past we've spotted a yellow rat snake, horseshoe crabs and lots of bird species like black-necked stilts and magnificent frigatebirds. The wildlife refuge is one of the nation's birdwatching hotspots. The island shops and restaurants would be fun to explore during the afternoon, and then we'd take a sunset cruise in the Gulf of Mexico and see some of the other barrier islands. And we'd stay another night.

Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest

Day Four. Reluctantly, my family would leave Sanibel in the morning. But we'd head east through Florida panther territory for a side trip to Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest. This is pretty, open country (not much like a tree-thick forest) and a great place to drive through to see the lay of the land. Maybe we'd see an endangered Everglades snail kite soaring over the slough or a rare crested caracara looking for prey. Driving northeast toward the Gulf again, we'd visit Myakka River State Park outside of Sarasota. Myakka is one of my favorite all-around state parks. My family would love to ride the Gator Gal (dubbed the world's largest airboat) on the lake and climb the Canopy Walkway. Then we'd camp in our tent or stay the night in one of the park's cabins.

Myakka River State Park

Day Five. There are some really nice trails in Myakka, and so much to see in the park. But eventually, we'd leave the Myakka River area and drive east to the Peace River. Both rivers flow into the Gulf of Mexico. My family would have to stop at the Canoe Outpost to do a paddling trip down the river. Many people get out of their canoes along the way to look for fossils -- and my husband and I have taken this trip twice and seen some amazing fossils other people have discovered, including jaw bone from a mastodon. We've also seen some of the biggest alligators on this stretch of the river! After our paddling trip, my family would drive east to Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park. We've spotted a couple of different kinds of snakes here, and alligators too. But the best thing we've seen at this park in the past is the beautiful night sky. Because the park is far from the light pollution of the coastal cities, Kissimmee Prairie is a favorite for stargazers and astronomy groups. So my family would have to camp here for the night and hope for a clear, dark sky.

Day Six. After waking up to the sound of birds singing in the morning, my family would hike some trails in the prairie, then pack up our tent and drive clockwise around the Lake Okeechobee to DuPuis Reserve, a forest with a wonderful scenic drive perfect for the Tahoe. My family would also get out and hike along the trails, hoping to spot a bald eagle or other bird of prey. There is a lot to see in the forest. When we were done exploring, we would drive south past the sugar cane fields back to our home. And probably collapse.

Day Seven. My family would be tired but happy after all that exploring through the backroads of southern Florida. Before turning in the Tahoe after a week of adventuring, maybe we'd take it on one last little trip, to the nearby Everglades buffer area just to see the sawgrass and the ospreys that look for fish that are so common in this part of the River of Grass.

Southern Florida is a region that is wonderfully rich in beautiful, diverse natural areas and history that you learn in the parks. I feel lucky to live here and near so many great places that, frankly, we're too busy with daily life to go see very often. So, yeah, I'd give the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid a workout covering all that territory. It would be an adventurous week with my family!

All images are my own.

A treat with Good Humor

We are a big ice cream family, mainly because my husband has to eat ice cream every single night. He has eaten ice cream every night since college. And it has to be chocolate.

I didn't get a lot of ice cream while I was growing up, so treats like Good Humor bars were not something I was even aware of (even though Good Humor is celebrating its 90th anniversary!). In fact, when I was in fifth grade, a boy named Jesse was going over his spelling list and came to the word "humor" but said "hummer," and the teacher then made a joke and started calling Jesse the Good Hummer boy.

True story.

Sadly, that classroom pronunciation mistake was my first introduction to Good Humor.

It's easy to see why Good Hummer ... sorry, Good Humor's Chocolate Eclair and Strawberry Shortcake are so popular. There's really nothing else like them.

There's also nothing else like being pregnant and craving a box of ice cream, so I gave my coupon for a Good Humor treat to Madeline at Barefoot Childhood, who is going to have her second child soon. The nice and good-looking people at Good Humor provided the coupon to me to write this review.

You could score a Good Humor treat like Madeline during Good Humor's Sweet-Stakes, which ends on Sept. 6 (Labor Day, ah the official end of summer). To celebrate 90 years of frozen creaminess, Good Humor is offering instant-win prizes inside specially marked 4 oz. single-serve Good Humor Strawberry Shortcake, Chocolate Éclair, Toasted Almond and Candy Center Crunch bars. Then instant winners will be automatically entered in the $10,000 grand prize drawing when they redeem their instant-win prizes online.

To keep up with Good Humor, check out their Facebook page.

Enjoy dinner and a movie with McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants

There are only a few weeks left of summer (officially). Did you get to have any fun? If you're due for a date night or some fun on the town with girlfriends, check out this great deal from McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants: From now through Sept. 30, any guest who purchases a dinner entrée will have the option to add a movie ticket to their bill for just $5.00. They call it Reel to Reel. (Get it?!) Enjoy a pre-screening dinner, skip the box office hassle and walk away with a discounted movie ticket!

Click here for a list of McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants around the country and their nearby cinemas. You can also find McCormick & Schmick's locations here.

To help you plan your dinner-and-a-movie night out, McCormick & Schmick's is generously offering a $25 dining certificate to a lucky reader. To win, please leave a comment about what you would order at the restaurant and what movie you would like to see afterward. I'll randomly choose a winner on Aug. 18.

Do your kids Create? Comment and win!

Are your kids Disney lovers -- or maybe art lovers? Then you probably know about Create. It's an online entertainment portal launched by Disney last summer that allows you to design images, make comic books and create pictures with favorite Disney characters from Toy Story 3 to the Jonas Brothers. Create users can also interact with one another. I tried it out. It's fun! I could show you my masterpiece mess of the Disney fairies ... but I'd rather not because your kid would laugh at me.

Anyway, Create just added a new feature that lets you publish your creation to the Group Wall, where it becomes part of the mosaic like the Mickey Mouse image above. Awesomely cool! The Group Wall mosaic is updated in real time so users can watch as new artwork is added, and it features unique tools allowing you to locate your artwork within the mosaic!

To promote this amazing new feature, Disney.com is giving away great Disney prize packs: magnetized white board w/ erasable pen that kids can create their own creations on, as well as a pair of pink ear bud headphones! I have three to give away -- please see below.

Create is the No. 1 ranked community-family and parenting destination on the Web. The easy-to-use creativity tools offer an entirely new way to interact with Disney characters and stories. Guests have access to Disney character art and graphics to design your own works of art, then share them with other guests online. You can make artwork, comic books, music videos, animated pets and more, all using Disney characters and graphics.

And it's free!

You can share your online art portfolio with friends, which makes it even more fun for kids.

To win one of three Disney prize packs, please leave a comment below detailing what you or your child like to do on Create, or a way that your kid has been creative this summer. Winners will be chosen randomly Aug. 2. Contest open only in the U.S.

iPod apps my kids love

Some awesome friends gave me an iPod Touch a year and a half ago for helping to take care of their son, and since then my love affair with my iPod has been going strong. I love to check my e-mail and use Twitter and Facebook in the palm of my hand. Once I found out there were iPhone apps for kids, well, I definitely fell even harder for my iPod Touch.

I've downloaded several apps for my preschooler (my baby is intrigued, but more interested in chewing on my iPod) -- some free, some fee -- but these are the ones he enjoys the most:

Itsy Bitsy Spider. This app tells the story of the spider in the famous nursery ryhme/song, but with a twist here and there -- and kids have to touch elements on the screen (like the spider) to advance the story. Cute and fun.

Preschool Music. There are four games here, with birds, sheep, sea creatures and other animals to entertain little ones with rhythm and tunes.

Preschool Adventure. This app is made by the same company as Preschool Music, so the graphics are in the same style. There are six games here for kids to teach colors, numbers, shapes, matching and farm animal sounds, and a game where kids put a monkey's body parts in the right places.

Cat Piano Jr. I admit, this was the first app I downloaded -- for myself! It's only a piano keyboard, but in addition to hearing a piano, you can choose a variety of kitty voices to "sing" the notes. The results can be hysterical.

I love my iPod Touch, but there's room in my heart for the new iPad. It would be great to win one, and I’m participating in a contest at Best Kids Apps, a blog about iPhone apps for kids, for a chance to win an iPad. Which would totally make me an uber cool mom! Or at least feel like one...