Miscellaneous Mom Sites
FamilyFun.com - This companion website to Family Fun magazine is full of great crafts, recipes, games, and more. My favorite recipes were the Fun Food Pranks for April Fool's Day - my kids would love them! The nice part about Family Fun is that they have incorporated videos.
FlyLady - FlyLady.net is one of the most popular homemaking sites online. It is hard to do it justice in a summary paragraph, but I will try. FlyLady, AKA Marla Cilley, is a cheerleader for homemakers needing to put a little order in their lives. FlyLady came to th
Frugal Village - From Sara Noel of the syndicated column Frugal Living, Frugal Village emphasizes simplicity, family values and eco-frugality. From cutting down the food bill to finding alternative uses for everyday items, Frugal Living examines smart, easy ways to save money. Noel is frugal – not cheap – and applies common sense in cost-cutting endeavors. Her approach is practical and fun and not bizarre or extreme. Noel practices what our sister site Menus4Moms.com practices and preaches - stockpile when items are on sale so you don't have to pay regular price. Be sure to check out her stockpile pictures!
Get Organized Now - This site will help you to analyze your space and get it organized, whether your space is a desk or a room or an entire house. Get Organized Now has a newsletter (archives can be viewed on the site), articles, and a forum where you can connect with others
Hillbilly Housewife - I have seen more people recommend this website on my Yahoo groups than any other. Miss Maggie, the creator of the website, is a homeschool mom who has written many articles for well-known publications and websites. The Hillbilly Housewife website, where s
Last Night's Dinner - Feeling uninspired in the kitchen? I stumbled on this cooking site that is worth a visit if only to admire the food photography. Jennifer Hess is a published food writer living in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband. The blog is only a few months old, but the pictures of her meals are beautiful and it reminds me that presentation does indeed make food more (or less) appealing. Browse by date, category, or ingredient.
Living on a Dime - No matter what your income level, this site will challenge you to think about how your money is spent. Founded by two women who each paid off an extraordinary amount of debt on income that is close to the poverty level. Great for teaching kids about budgeting!
Mom's Break Printables - Although a little hard to navigate, this site offers so many printables you are bound to find something useful here. From teaching you how to create your own iron on transfers with crayons and printer paper to customized candy bar wrappers, Mom's Break has something for everyone. Just remember to tally up how much printer ink you will use to be sure it really is cost-effective to print at home rather than buy!
Money Saving Mom - MoneySavingMom.com is an upbeat and encouraging blog dedicated to helping you find great deals, stretch your hard-earned dollars, and live on less than you make so you can save more and give more. Published by Crystal Paine, a homeschooled mom, the site covers a wide variety of topics. On the homepage don't miss the series of posts detailing freezer cooking day at the Paine household. The easiest way to navigate the site is to click on Categories at the top and go from there.
Old Fashioned Living.com - Old Fashioned Living is a large site not directly related to homeschooling but full of great ideas. The site hosts believe we can learn from the past to make the future a better place for our children, and the set out to provide the online resources to do
Pioneer Woman - Whether you cook for your family or your children help, this is a helpful site with some yummy (although not particularly healthy) ideas. [Note - This site is for moms only. Not all entries are kid-friendly.]
Real Simple - While the number of magazines just keeps growing, there are few that are worth the paper they are printed on. Real Simple is one of the exceptions. This magazine is favored by women of all ages looking for an answer to the clutter and confusion of their lives. From no-fuss 30 minute meals to how to organize your closets, the Real Simple website helps you to simplify your life.
Suburban CEO - I love this site. The mission statement on the main page really resonated with me:
This site is for every woman who wants to stay at home with her children but has had to reluctantly admit that she often feels frazzled, overwhelmed and not totally fulfilled. This site will help you identify the five missing pieces from modern life as an at-home mom and become CEO of your own life. By doing this you'll be able to:
Make staying at home with kids as intellectually challenging (and far more rewarding) than any career.
Build a better social network than any of your working friends.
Take your house from quiet isolation to being a thriving hub of activity.
Set aside your resume: "having it all" does not necessarily mean having a job!
By looking at the differences between our lives today and the lives of woman 100 years ago, Suburban CEO draws what I consider to be enlightened conclusions about why women who stay home today are less satisfied and more frazzled than their predecessors. Unlike sites that over-analyze but have no answers, the Suburban CEO has ways to replace what she calls the 5 missing pieces and get you working toward a more fulfilling lifestyle.
TotalMom.com - Homeschool mom Hannah Keeley (author of Hannah's Art of Home, Hannah Keeley's Total Mom Makeover, and The Total Mom Energy Diet) has put together this website as a complete resource for the mom who is trying to do it all and stay sane in the process. The website contains articles, an online magazine (Whole Home), video tips, blog posts, and more. Get motivated looking through the website of this very real "Total Mom"!
