Mum 2 Mums - Seven Mummy Tips I Wish I Knew Years Ago

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1. WATERMELON IS A SUPERFOOD
Watermelon is your go-to gastro food. When my kids have gastro or any breed of tummy upset, watermelon is their best friend. Its mild flavour, super hydrating quality, and vitamin and mineral content make it a winner for sick kids. Skip the expensive hydration iceblocks and go straight for the watermelon!


2. WINDEX FOR SHOES
Cleaning black school shoes is a breeze with Windex. No messing around with polishes and scrubs, oils and rags. It is a quick spray with the Windex, a wipe with the paper towel and hello shiny new school shoes! We are time-poor as mums so anything that saves time is a winner.

3. GUMPTION FOR ... EVERYTHING
Gumption is a Mummy Essential. For cleaning scratches and drawings off walls. For cleaning drink stains off porous surfaces. For cleaning benchtops after sticky substances have set in. For cleaning paint marks from toys off the floor when kids drop the toys. For cleaning built-up stains on your white plates and mugs. And wait for it - for cleaning spots off white and cream-coloured carpets. You name it. Gumption will do it. It's like this product was invented by a mum who had just lost it with the stains in the house.

4. WANTS Vs NEEDS
One-third of everything you buy for bub that you thought you absolutely MUST HAVE will end up on Facebook Marketplace with your "hardly used" description attached. And you will have to sell it a one-tenth of the price you paid. Keep this in mind when you're at your next mum's group catch-up, see something that someone else has and feel that "need" rising. You may not need it after all.

5. VICKS FOR BITES
Vicks Vapour Rub is the fastest way to stop your kids from scratching their insect bites. My babes are highly sensitive to mosquitoes and scratch all night if I don't put an end to the irritation. I once read that Vicks was a great alternative to those expensive bite creams from the pharmacy and well, not only is it true but it is better than an alternative. Pop on the Vicks, slap on a bandaid, and by morning the marks, irritation and swelling are a thing of the past.

6. SECOND-HAND PRAMS
Prams are like new cars. The moment you take them home, you will scratch them in the first week and their resale will have dropped by 40% before you get them out of the car. Let's face it - these essential items are expensive. They are not an item you should scrimp on. The good ones are good and expensive, and the cheap ones will drive you mad until you give them away and go and get an expensive one. Yet, purchasing brand new, while super satisfying at the time, is a major parenting expense you can avoid. As I said - they lose their resale value very fast which means that if you are wise and shop around on places like Marketplace, you will find exactly what you are looking for at a more than reasonable price from a mum who bought one, got gifted one, and doesn't need two. Shop wise!


7. MEALS Vs HUNGER
Hungry kids will create more issues than children who don't eat their quinoa and pumpkin seed porridge. We all want our kids to be healthy and make good food choices. We are all attuned to the ongoing battle between what kids want and what kids need. I feel your pain. It is really hard at times. I have friends who abide by the rule "they will eat it if they get hungry enough". I'm not convinced. After three kids, I have seen too many scenarios where getting food into a child needs to take precedence over the healthy eating pyramid. Sometimes what we want as parents and what we might have to accept as practical at this point, are two different things. Of course, this can't be the case every single day. I am talking about the exception rather than the rule. What I have found is that kids who haven't eaten and are becoming increasingly upset and stressed lose their ability to focus on anything else. At these points in time, I have chosen food, whatever food I can get into them, over the quinoa porridge. Once the kids have eaten and calmed down, then we have a much greater ability to deal with the situation at hand and discuss solutions for the future. Keep them hungry and the situation may just drag on.

I do not profess to have this mummy stuff perfected. I am learning every day. We are all doing the best we can for the ones we love the most. May the above seven tips make your mummy journey slightly easier.

#tips
#kids
#health
#parenting
#shopping

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