Fire Plan Exit Strategies - Contributed by Denise Meyer

We are aware of how important it is to have a Fire Safety Plan, which includes having two ways to exit from every room in your home, regularly tested smoke detectors, and a meeting place for your family. But how does that plan differ when there are more babies than adults? What if you are alone with 3, 4, 5 or more babies?

Although prevention is vital, a good place to start when planning your strategy is proactive preparation. Most experts agree that you have less than 3 minutes to exit a burning building, which is not enough time for multiple trips. So the best way is to carry everyone out in one trip, which seems easier said than done. Here are a few ideas that make it possible:

Test Kitchen: No Eggs French Toast

We recently found out that our 7 month old is allergic to just about every ingredient the nutrition facts have to warn you about. Peanuts, Milk and Eggs are among the list. Not only do we have to be careful of the foods we feed him, but the doctor reminded me that Breastfeeding is best especially for babies with allergies. But because he eats what I eat, I have to maintain the same cautious diet. So I’m dedicated to providing breast milk until he’s one year old when he’ll be retested for his allergy to soy and see if that supplement will even be possible. In the interim, I have been adjusting to the fact that I used to eat at least two servings of Peanuts, Milk and Eggs daily and now I have none. There was actually a one-month period of withdrawals and nausea because of that drastic change. Now that my options are limited I have had to come up with new ideas on how to enjoy meals the rest of the family will like, minus the ingredients I cannot have...

Summerize Your Kitchen

The spring season has arrived and of course summer is just around the corner. This is a great opportunity to shed the winter hibernation weight and take advantage of the seasonal growth of veggies and fruits. Here are a few tips on how to encourage healthier eating for your family while preparing for a busy season of outdoor activities...

Confession of the Month

To my dear husband,
I know you hate it when I forget to fill up and add the Downey Ball to the washing machine. When I remember that I forgot, I throw the empty ball in just in case you check.
Love Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaartha

The Mother's First Encyclopedia to Stains

I do my laundry on Thursdays. I take that back. I START my laundry on Thursdays. And by Sunday I have most of those clothes in their assigned rooms. Sometimes, by Monday, they are actually in the drawers and closets in which they belong. For some reasons never previously specified… I HATE LAUNDRY! In the first 25 years of my life I never once needed a stain remover and it took me under two hours to get all my laundry done (when my mommy wasn’t doing it for me anymore). When my first son was born, stain remover became a staple in the home and laundry was completed in under two days. Now, as a full time mom in charge of the household laundry for four residents, I have become accustomed to my own technique of getting the grueling task done…

If You Can't Say Anything Nice...

After our recent week in Chicago I realized that online reviews aren’t always the most reliable sources. The hotel we stayed at was a decent place to stay but the maintenance of the rooms proved to be slightly neglected in our experience. With two children in tow we had to move rooms in the first ten minutes because my husband couldn’t access the Internet that he had requested for business. Luckily we hadn’t yet unpacked...

Tools of the Trade: Travelling Food Processor

Do you ever wish you had brought something along with you and tell yourself numerous times that you'll be sure to add it to your purse, car, diaper bag when you get home, for next time? Well, if you're anything like me, by the time you get home you've forgotten that thought and the next time you get out, you find yourself looking for the item again. So scratch that idea of packing a million little things you'll need later. Now, enter the MacGyver in all of us (and if you don't know who MacGyver is, then you must be young enough to know what Google is). Back to MacGyver...