#make5min

Photo courtesy of Studio Sculpt Pilates

It is time to start thinking about bathing suit season (like it or not...) and dealing with any winter weight you may have picked up from one of my fabulous recipes ;-) 

Since I have not doubt been a party to at least one of those extra pounds the least I can do is create a new Pinboard full of Fitness Tips for the Clueless Chick that all of us can do. Most of the workouts take under 5 minutes and we can all get up 5 minutes earlier to squeeze in a little work out, yes you can. 

My challenge to you is to add an extra 5 min to your daily routine in March. I’ll be checking up on you! And I expect some good status update :-) Tweet me your progress with #make5min My promise to you is that I will start with the 5 Minute Plank in honor of my friends at Studio Sculpt Pilates and report back on my progress so keep the pressure on. 

Already have a fabulous workout routine?  You go!  Spend your extra 5 minutes doing something for yourself.  Feed your passion with some unapologetic Pinterest time or sit down and have a quite cup of coffee by yourself.  

#make5min for yourself!

Good luck!

Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick#1

www.CluelessChick.com

Sippy Cups and Suits: Survival Tips for a Working Mom

Carolina Parent Magazine

Today Carolina Parent Magazine published my March 2014 blog Sippy Cups and Suits: Survival Tips for a Working Mom.  In addition to having my all time favorite Clueless Chick image of my 3 boys, it is a blog that means the world to me because we can all use a few good survival tips ;-)

I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you'll share your go-to survival tips with me!  We're all in this together!

Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick#1

www.CluelessChick.com

Planning the Perfect Mardi Gras Party

WNCN Today 02.25.14

Next Tuesday is the infamous Fat Tuesday which means our I was on WNCN Today this morning sharing some of my favorite Mardi Gras party planning tips from Party Planning Tips for the Clueless Chick with Page Crawford:

Traditional Mardi Gras Grub and Garb (purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power).

• King Cupcakes.  King Cake is a very traditional Mardi Gras treat, usually a braided Danish dough with a small baby baked inside, covered in purple, green and gold decorations.  Why not think beyond the Danish dough?  If you’re a cupcake fan make King Cupcakes!  Simply bake your favorite cupcakes and add purple, green and gold sprinkles.  Or even better yet, make your own colored sprinkles:
• Colored Sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

2 drop food coloring

Pour sugar into ziptop bag or a jar with a tight fitting lid. Add food coloring, close tightly and shake for 1 minute or until all of the sugar is colored.  Add additional drops of food coloring for a deeper color.  TIP: Purple = 2 Red + 1 Blue

• Simple Decorations.  The beauty of Mardi Gras is that you can reuse your favorite decorations from other holidays, sprinkle in some beads and you have yourself the perfect Mardi Gras decorations!  Grab your green serving pieces from St. Patrick’s Day, your gold decorations from Christmas and your purple from Easter and you have everything you need.  TIP: Buying solid color decorations and serving pieces is a great way to save money, what’s better than a single platter you can use for 3 different holidays?!

• Shots of Color.  Another staple of Mardi Gras is over the top cocktails so have fun with it!  Make the perfect Mardi Gras Jell-O shots with grape, lime and yellow Jell-O and a few party syringes.  Mix the Jell-O as directed, let it cool a bit, then draw up the Jell-O into each syringe and refrigerate for a few hours.  TIP: Feeling extra crafty? Layer all 3 colors in each syringe by adding grape first, chill for a few hrs, add green, chill again then add yellow and chill a final time.

• Beautiful Masks and Crazy Beads.  You simply can’t have a Mardi Gras party without beads and a beautiful mask.  Our friends at BuyCostumes.com sent us these fabulous red velvet masks on a stick.  Why are masks on a stick so fabulous?  Because they won’t mess up your hair or leave marks on your face ;-)  Then of course there are the beads.  When it comes to Mardi Gras beads, more is better.  Beads are the perfect as:
• Party favors for your guests: greet them at the door with a strand or two
• Decoration: hang them from light fixtures or pile them up in a glass vase
• Prizes:  use them as prizes for your party games

For all of my DIY party planning tips pick up a copy of Party Planning Tips for the Clueless Chick and following the Clueless Chick on Facebook and Twitter.

As I mentioned on the show, you can come and meet me in person at the Celebrate your Baby Bump Day Expo at GreenPea Baby Store in Cary, NC on Sunday 3/2 from 2-5pm.  We are going to have some fabulous giveaways and great insider tips for picking and packing the perfect diaper bag!  Register to attend today!

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

Newborn Must Haves

WNCN Today 02.18.14

More babies are born in September than any other month of the year which means a lot of you have just started preparing for a new baby!  Today I shared a few of my favorite insider tips from Pregnancy Tips for the Clueless Chick with Page Crawford on WNCN Today #TipsonTues.  Here are my personal favorites for making your first days at home a whole lot easier.

•     Saving on Cleanup Time.

o   Keeping Clean.  Having a new baby in the house means lots and lots of dishes to wash.  Make life a little easier with the right tools like the Munchkin bottle brush and dishwasher basket.  With the right tools, your endless dish washing will be much easier.  You can also put a small tub in the kitchen sink to collect dirty baby bottle parts so you don’t lose any down the drain.  TIP: A baby bottle brush is also perfect for washing your own water bottles and wine glasses (aka Mama’s sippy cup).

•     Making Changes a Little Easier.

o   Portable Changing Station.  In addition to the changing table in your nursery, you can save yourself some time and energy with a portable changing station so that you can change a dirty diaper anywhere in the house.  A super cute and personal favorite is the SaraBear Diaper Caddy from Munchkin.  These baskets are perfect for toting diapers, wipes, changing pad, diaper cream, etc.  

o   Disposable Changing Pads.  Yet another way to make life easier is with disposable changing pads, which are not as disposable as you would think.  These Munchkin Disposable Changing Pads are perfect for your diaper bag, portable changing station or to protect your changing pad.  They are compact, durable and best of all can be tossed when things get too messy.

•     Keeping Baby Protected.

o   Infant Carrier Cover.  As a new parent you always want to keep baby protected from the sun, elements, and stranger’s germy hands.  One of the easiest ways to keep baby protected on the go is with The Shade from Imagine Baby which fits right over your infant carrier.  You can easily keep an eye on baby and slip her in and out of the car seat in a snap.  Best of all, The Shade is compact enough to slip into the side pocket of your diaper bag.

If you are looking for all of the best ways to prep for baby, pick up a copy of Pregnancy Tips for the Clueless Chick and following us on Facebook and Twitter.

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

Having a Fun and Easy Valentine's Day

WNCN Today 02.11.14

Ahhh, Valentine’s Day; red roses, jewelry and chocolate.  With Valentine’s Day just 3 days away there’s not much time left to plan the perfect day for your Valentine.  On WNCN Today with Page Crawford I shared some of my favorite insider tips for making your Valentine’s Day a little easier whether you’re planning a dinner at home, making Valentines for the kids at school or looking for a fun way to share Valentine’s Day with friends.

•     A Valentine for Your Sweetheart.

o   Glow Bracelets and Rulers.  When it comes to Valentines for the kids at school, fun and usable gifts beat candy hands down.  Who doesn’t like a glow bracelet?  And what is cuter than one attached to a Valentine’s Day note that says “You Light Up a Room!”?  Simply punch a whole in two corners of the card and insert 1 bracelet.  Or, pick of a set of 3 rulers at the dollar store and make a “You Rule!” Valentine’s Day note to tie to each ruler.  The kids will love having their own ruler for crafting and parents will be happy it isn’t candy!

•     Sweet Snacks and Easy Crafts.

o   Heart Shaped Cake.  Making your own heart shaped cake is much easier than you think, and you don’t even need to buy a heart shaped baking pan!  Grab your favorite cake mix or recipe and bake in a (1) 9x9 pan and (1) 9” round pan.  Once the cakes cool, remove them from the pans, place the square cake on your platter in a diamond shape, cut the round cake in half and place 1 half next to both the top right and left edges.  Then frost and enjoy!  TIP:  Make any boxed cake mix extra moist cake by using whole or buttermilk instead of water.

o   Mini Heart Cakes.  If making your own heart shaped cake is still a little too daunting, pick up one of these adorable heart shaped silicone muffin cups from Mastrad.  For under $20 you can make heart shaped muffins, cupcakes, brownies, cornbread, omelets, or even heart shaped crayons.

 

o   Think Outside of the Box.  Finding the perfect Valentine’s decoration or treat box can be as easy as searching for red or pink party favors.  After all, who says your Valentine’s Day decorations can’t be pink polka dots or red stripes?  I found adorable pink and red cupcake boxes from BirthdayExpress.com and they are perfect for Valentine’s Day!

If you're in the mood to do a little entertaining, don't forget to check out my Valentine's Day Brunch Tips in Carolina Parent Magazine.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

You can find all of my tips at www.CluelessChick.com and by following us on Facebook and Twitter.

Party Like an Olympian

This week we will be kicking off the 2014 Sochi Olympics, so you know what that means, I shared my favorite tips for throwing an Olympic theme party with Page Crawford on WNCN Today!

Whether you’re inviting all of your friends over to watch the opening ceremonies on Friday, or just looking for a way to have some fun with the kids while you’re watching Bode Miller tear up the mountain, there are a few fun ways you can celebrate like an Olympian.

•     Medal Count for Kids.  Get the whole family involved in the Olympics with your own US Medal Count activity.  All you need is a piece of paper with a column for Gold, Silver and Bronze medals.  Each evening, update the US medal count with a tick mark for each medal.  At the closing ceremonies count the total number of medals! 

•     Olympic Ring Painting for Toddlers.  Get crafty with your kids in the spirit of the Olympics.  Pull out your paints and use disposal ketchup cups or slices of a paper towel roll to create the rings on a piece of paper, a paper plate or your Olympic medal tracker. 

•     Olympic Torch Centerpiece.  Make your own Olympic centerpiece with a vase and some tissue paper.  Simply grab a bud vase, or any vase with a narrow top and a few pieces of red, orange and yellow tissue paper (yes, leftover tissue paper from your last birthday works perfectly!).  Flatten out all of the tissue paper and layer each color on top of the other.  Lift all pieces of tissue from the center; crimp and twist to form a cone then simply place the cone into the top of your vase.

•     Olympic Cookies.  Make yourself some tasty Olympic medals by simply threading ribbon through a fudge stripe cookie.  The best part is that after your medal ceremony you can munch on your winnings :-)

Don’t forget some “real” Olympic medals of your own from BirthdayExpress.com so that you can host your own medal ceremony.

Tune in to WNCN to catch all of the Olympic action!

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1