What to do Wednesday? -5 Essential Mac Tricks!

We have had our MAC for years now, but sadly, I did not know most of these helpful tricks!

Check out Kim Komando's List of 5 Essential MAC tricks you need to know!

Tip Tuesday! The Power of a "thank you" note

How many of us remember to send a "thank you" card to our friends or family that give us a present or invited us over for dinner?  Is just an e-mail or text an appropriate way to show someone how much you appreciated their hospitality?

Just a note of thanks

Since I was very young, my mother, instilled in my brother and I, the importance of "thank you" cards.  Every year, on December 26th, we were at the kitchen bar making our homemade Christmas "thank you" cards!  We could not play until those cards were finished.  It took me many years to understand the statement I was making by sending a "thank you" card! E-mails and texts are nice but that extra effort you do to take out that card and write a couple sentences of thanks, makes all the difference in the world!  As an adult, I am always happy to receive a "thank you" card!  I try my best to send out my "thank you" cards,  I fail at times, but I do my best to make sure I acknowledge the fact someone gave me a gift or invited me to their home for a meal.

Life is busy and the stresses we encounter everyday are enormous, but take the time to send that "thank you." You never know how happy you will make someone!!

Best Laid Plains- Weekend Fun

Our  "un-planed" Visit to Al-Mara Farm
 Midland, VA

I honestly do not think you can hear the saying, "don't sweat the small stuff" too many times!  What was supposed to be a long weekend visiting family in PA, turned into an awesome weekend with staying in town with just our little family.  We had everything planed to visit family but illness made us stay in town, and it turned out wonderful!  Since my husband already took the days off, we used it to our advantage.  We did not schedule anything and just went with the flow! It is rare these days, that my husband gets two days off in a row, so this was a treat!

Yes, I love to schedule and be organized, but we all NEED a break!  It helps to re-charge and re-focus. Taking time to just "be" is sometimes all you need to stop and appreciate life.  I know, between my husband and I, we could not tell each other enough, how blessed we felt.  That feeling rubbed off on our children, so we felt accomplished.  All the weeks' stresses and hurts melted away with this past weekend.  Problems I took to heart were re-evaluated and put aside.

Take time to just "be" with your family!  Structure is good but meant to be broken at times. Tomorrow is back to the grind, but I feel focused and determined to make it a wonderful and positive week!

How does your family re-charge?

Cheers!
Tatiana

Traditional or digital grocery List? (what to do Wednesday)

My paper list

What kind of grocery list do you use when you go shopping?  Do you use your smart phone, a traditional paper list, or nothing at all!?

To save money, time, and SANITY, you should always have a list!!  There are a ton of great FREE Applications you can use on your smart phone to aid you in your shopping endeavors! (I will list the applications below)

Although, I love the fact that a digital list is always with me, I still prefer the "old fashion" method of a paper list. My #1 reason is my two year old daughter!! Anytime she can get her little hands on my smart phone, she does.  Since she is almost always with me when I shop, it can become very challenging.   So, for now, until a digital application can read my thoughts, I am sticking with my paper and pen.  **ONE exception is my Wegmans App.  They have a wonderful application.  I usually make my list at home, on my computer, and save it to my profile.  I also print my list, so you see, I still use a paper list.  Their website is wonderful, it saves your previous grocery lists, tells you what is one sale, gives you an estimation of total cost,  and sorts your items according to aisle.

So, tell me, what do you use???

Here are list of some applications that can help you the next time you shop!

1. Grocery Gadget
2. Zip List
3. Grocery IQ
4. Grocery Smarts (App for comparing coupons)
5. Our Groceries
6. Wegmans App

Happy Shopping!!  

Don't forget to enter my contest for a free Holiday Planner the link is here: Enter Holiday Planner Contest!

Cheers!
Tatiana

UPDATED! TCB Giveaway- A Bowl Full of Lemons Holiday Planner

Holiday Planner Giveaway

So, yes, the enviable is going to happen, and the holidays will soon be upon us!  Don't worry, just be prepared!  I want to thank you all for being so supportive of the launching of my new business, that I am giving away a great Holiday planner (download) from one of new favorite websites, A Bowl Full of Lemons. I have amended this prize, I will also be printing this planner out and binding it (at Staples) like the picture above. 

For the past month, I have been using their Rainbow Planner and have been loving it.  It has helped me plan for family, appointments, and my new business.

My Rainbow Planner from A Bowl Full of Lemons

I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions and ultimately know if this planner helped with your holiday preparations.

To enter the drawing, just click below.  You can enter twice.  For one entry,just "like" my page Taking Care of Business Facebook Page, for two more entries just comment on my blog on how you prepare for the holidays.  That is it! Happy Planning.

Thank you again for your awesome support!!

Cheers!
Tatiana

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Weekend Inspiration - Coach John Wooden

Pyramid of Success

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are." - John Wooden

It is important to take time to reflect, whether it is a weekly visit to church or a reading of inspiration, we all need to regroup and focus on what is important. Life is so busy, so complicated, but so wonderful!  Sometimes it gets so hectic and hard, that we forget just how wonderful.  Mass(church) is my personal place I go to "re-group."  I also enjoy reading inspirational words from others who have led and who were once great examples.

I recently found a great website that is filled with inspirational quotes and stories on how to gain personal happiness and success.

Coach John Wooden

If you never heard of Coach Wooden, let me introduce you!  John Wooded coached UCLA to 10 National basketball championships.  He was known as a man of great character, conviction, and straightforwardness.  John Wooden touched so many people, that a website was created in his honor.  At Coach Wooden you can learn about this man's life and also read his words and theories on happiness and success.  Besides reading all his great quotes, there is a great "pyramid of success" he outlines.  It incorporates loyalty, friendship, and other qualities we should all strive to obtain and share.

I hope you check out this inspirational website and most of all, I hope it leaves you something to feel good about!

"Be true to yourself, help others, make each day your masterpiece, make friendship a fine art, drink deeply from good books - especially the Bible, build a shelter against a rainy day, give thanks for your blessings and pray for guidance every day." - John Wooden

Cheers!!

Margaritas, Please! Party Planning Thursday

Cheers!

I believe my love for entertaining stems from my Nana and mother.  I remember growing up hearing the roaring stories of all the entertaining my grandparents did for their friends.  My grandfather owned the local liquor store and my grandmother was very involved in local politics.  So, they had everyone from the Arizona Governor to their best friends over for some good food, cold drinks, and loud music.
They never let a glass get empty and they never sent someone home hungry.

Entertaining is what brings family and friends together.  It is a way to tell your loved ones that you care about them.  You do not need fancy food or expensive champagne.  Choose a simple theme and go from there to create a vivid atmosphere for your guests.

My "go-to" drink for entertaining my friends is a margarita.  Margaritas are considered water where I come from.  I especially love serving margaritas during the holidays.  It is unexpected and always enjoyed by our guests.  Of course a "Mexican themed" menu is typical, but not necessary!! Your holiday ham to the roast turkey will not be ruined if you start off with a cold margarita.

Here is my recipe for a delicious Margarita:

1.5 parts Silver Tequila
2 Parts Margarita mix, I prefer Jose Cuevo
.5 part Grand Mariner
splash of orange juice
squeeze of lime
kosher salt

Mix all ingredients, up to kosher salt,  with ice in a shaker.  Take your lime and rim your glass.  Dip glass on a plate of kosher salt.  Pour mixture in glass with ice, and don't forget to cheers!


Don't forget, you do not have to offer other wine and spirits when you are serving margaritas.  One sip from your green drink, and you will make your guests smile the whole evening.

Tip Tuesday-Delete web accounts you no longer use

I have been guilty of using applications on my smart  phone and personal computer, in the past, only to never use them again. For example, The DailyDigi News.  I had high hopes of using it, but never did.  Delete Your Account  is a website that makes it simple to delete your account.  You first type in the website, and Delete your Account will take you directly to the page where you can simply eliminate all your personal information.  You are probably thinking, why should I even bother? The reason is; you may have some personal information just floating in cyber world!! You do not want that information to fall into the wrong hands! 

Manic Monday...it does n't have to be! 5 simple steps to help your mornings

How do you prepare for your morning or week?

The following are 5 things we do in our home to prepare for the next day and week!

All ready for the next day!

1. Make the lunches the night before.  I make my son's Pb&J sandwiches on Sunday.  I make around (10) then flash freeze and eventually deep freeze.
2. Layout clothes/bookbag the night before.
3. Prepare your meals/dinners for the whole week, on a day that you have extra time.  For me, that is Sunday. There are tons of applications out there that can help you prepare. One source I use to prepare my meals is Plan to Eat.  "Plan to Eat" even makes your grocery list!
4. Give yourself 10 extra minutes in the morning.  By simply waking up 10 minutes earlier each day, you are giving yourself  10 minutes to drink your coffee or check your e-mail, sometimes that can be priceless!!
5. Keep with a routine.  For example, we routinely do the same thing every morning, so the kids know exactly what to do; change clothes, brush teeth, make bed, comb hair, etc...

Mondays do not have to be manic!  Make a plan.

How to protect yourself from getting hacked!

It was only recently that I was getting ready for bed and thought I would check my e-mail one last time.  It was then I noticed two e-mails from Walmart.com saying thank you for  my recent purchase of $200 for playstation video games.  My oldest child is 6 and my husband does not have a playstation, so I knew INSTANTLY that someone hacked my information.  After digging further I learned not only was I hacked that evening but a couple times last September, through my Paypal account!

This happens to all of us, right? I was so disappointment in myself that I let this happen.  But it was then, that I vowed, this would never happened again!

Protect yourself!

Here are some tips I learned:

1. Spend 5-10 minutes, daily going over your accounts and make sure everything looks legit.  Look out for vendors you never purchased from before or charges that look suspicious.  For example, I had (2) charges on my bank account for $94.64.  They were from the same company for same about of money.  Even if you can only check every couple days, the sooner you are aware, the sooner you can rectify the problem.
2. Change your password every couple months.  Yes, this may seem annoying, but worth it!  Keep a log of your passwords in a place that only you can access. 
3. Make sure you have a decent security software on your computer.  Also, make sure it always up-to-date.
4. If you shop on your mobile device, make sure the device is locked.  If someone steals your mobile device, they will be able to access everything by just going to your browser
5. Make sure the website you are using has a "S" at the end of  the https.  For example: "https.//amazon.com/"  If it does not, think twice before using the site.
6. DO NOT SHOP on a public Wifi network.  According to the "Business Insider," public browsers are porous. 

If you have any other tips, I would love to hear them, please comment below!!

Loving, A Bowl Ful of Lemons!!!

The website, A Bowl Full of Lemons, has been around for some time, but I was just fortunate enough to find it!! It is a great resource on organizing your home and life! There is so much useful information, that it will take you days to navigate through all the tips!! There is everything from planning your day planner, to organizing your kitchen pantry (in which I recently accomplished, thank you very much!) Make sure you check out the website!! I guarantee you be enjoying and using the site, daily!

A Bowl Full of Lemons