Here’s a reason to shove your husband out of bed on the weekends so he can tend to the kids while you catch some extra Z’s: women need more sleep than men.

If women don’t get the sleep they need, they’re much more likely than men to be grumpy, according to a Duke University study mentioned on the Daily News website.

According to the study, women are more prone to the health complications that come from not getting enough sleep, from heart disease and depression to a general, “Don’t mess with me!” vibe.

If you really can’t get to sleep, stay asleep, or there’s just too much to do at night or early in the morning to get all your sleep in at once, naps still count toward that sleep goal, so grab one when you can.

The Sleep Foundation says there’s no magic number when it comes to how much sleep a person needs because it varies based on age and individual needs.

However, since the range of seven to nine hours gets tossed around quite a bit, I’m betting that the average mom needs closer to nine hours than seven.

I need nine or ten, which I don’t usually get. My husband needs less than me, around seven to eight, though he usually doesn’t get that, either.

You know that saying, “If Mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”? Horrible grammar aside, it’s often true, and now there’s one more thing the family can do to keep her (you) happier.

Do you need more sleep than your husband? Who’s more likely to wake up grumpy if they don’t get enough sleep?

Photo credit: 21TonGiant

A new study says children who watch more than three hours of TV a day are more likely to fight or steal by age 7. Are you raising a criminal?

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I fell in love with Jennifer Aniston on Friends, and cried with her when her marriage ended with Brad Pitt, and have enjoyed many of her movies.

While she is no stranger to looking sexy, she’s always pulled it off and still maintained her girl-next-door image. With her role in We’re the Millers, I’m wondering if she’ll be able to do that.

From the trailer, the movie has elements of comedy to still make us laugh as Aniston is hired by her pot-pedaling neighbor, Jason Sudeikis, as his pretend wife as they build an “all-American family.

They find a couple of hooligan teens to be their children before heading to Mexico to pick up a small load of marijuana for Sudeikis’ boss. The small shipment turns out to be huge.

In the trailer, Sudeikis says, “This is not a smidge. You’ve got me moving enough weed to kill Willie Nelson.” It did make me laugh. The task becomes a fiasco when they learn they’ve really stolen the drugs from a drug lord.

The goal is to get the marijuana across the border.

In the short trailer, Aniston is seen giving Sudeikis’ character a lap dance while wearing a long platinum wig. Later, she strips down to a lace bra and underwear to prove to the drug lord that she really is who she says.

I admit, for being 44 her body looks great. It’s toned and tanned. In fact, it looks great for a 20 year old!

We’re the Millers is scheduled to hit theaters on August 9. The trailer is rated R and so is the movie.

Photo credits: movieclipsTRAILERS

How hard do you work to make special memories for your kids? How much does Pinterest make you feel like a slacker mom?

And how much would it really matter if you could schedule and do all the things you see on that site, plan all the fancy week-long vacations you want?

I’m not saying you should never take your kid to Disney World or throw them the birthday party of a lifetime, but don’t beat yourself up about not being able to take the time to cut their sandwiches into the perfect holiday-appropriate shapes every day, every season.

A friend of mine let me watch a video about what motherhood’s like and what a child remembers when they’re grown. I’m still in the process of taking a few minutes every time I have a quiet moment to try to remember my own childhood memories.

Know what I remember?

• Getting Blizzards from Dairy Queen every year before we drove around to look at Christmas lights with the heat cranked up in the truck.
• Skinning my knees and having my parents clean them with that evil, burning Bactine spray.
• The funny blow-up Santa display that we used one year in the place of a Christmas tree.
• Knowing I could say whatever was on my mind without judgment.
• Feeling like a valued member of the family with an opinion that mattered, even as young as seven or eight years old. My dad would ask me what I thought about career-related decisions he had to make. I don’t know that he seriously took my opinion into consideration, but being asked for my thoughts was nice.

We took the occasional beach vacation, but I don’t remember much about them except that I loved the beach—the wind, the air, the cute shops we’d pick up souvenirs in, and just feeling relaxed.

Try to remember some of your own memories. Really dig and see what the themes are like for you.

You’ll feel as if you can take a load off your shoulders, like you can take that extra few minutes at night to chill with a glass of wine and a sitcom instead of sifting through the pins on Pinterest, beating yourself up for ruining your son or daughter’s childhood by not painting them a perfect mural on their bedroom walls or making those fancy themed desserts.

No vacation or craft is going to make or break a childhood. How safe and loved you make your child feel—and sometimes that security does come from traditions, but they can be simple—will be what she remembers when she’s grown. We could all probably afford to lighten up and take it easy on ourselves from time to time.

Photo credit: kevin dooley

My mom knew from an early age that she wanted to be a wife and mother and not pursue a career. My daughter’s already saying she can’t wait to grow up so she can get pregnant and have babies (though she also wants to design cars and be an astronaut).

Me? I barely even entertained the idea of children until I’d met my now-husband; I knew he’d be such a good dad, it made me want to have children with him.

Up until that point, all I could really visualize was a career. Which career I wanted to have changed over time, but the fact that I wanted one remained constant. Sure, I saw children in a distant future as a possibility along with a white picket fence, and I wanted someone open to the idea, someone who would be an involved dad if there were kids, but there was never any undeniable desire to settle down and have them.

I was so removed from the idea of children that I was never a babysitter and I generally ignored other people’s kids because I had no idea what to say to them or how to act around them.

That means the first serious thought of going through a pregnancy and having a baby didn’t even occur to me until I was 20 or 21. It still took until I was 24 to actually go for it.

The fact that I barely thought about kids until I was an adult and then ultimately decided I wanted anywhere from one to eight seems kind of unusual to me, but maybe it’s just as normal as knowing your whole life that you want to have children some day.

It seems like most women know they want to have kids at a pretty young age, whether they want a career to go with them or not. When did you decide you wanted to have children?

Photo credit: Schwangerschaft

Stella McCartney was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire. The London-based designer received this top honor and was pinned by Queen Elizabeth II herself. For the occasion, she tested out what is already emerging as one of Fall’s big trends: the skirt suit. Wearing her own cinched navy design, she made her way to Buckingham Palace for the ceremony.

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I hate going to the store to buy clothes.

Don’t get me wrong – I love clothes. I just hate seeing something that looks adorable on a mannequin and trying it on only to find that I look like Julia Child wearing one of Kate Moss’s hand-me-downs. Even the mannequins in plus size shops are about a size 4.

I thought mannequins were supposed to show you sort of how the outfit would look.

I have enough self-esteem issues from magazines, movies, and television. I sure don’t need to have what wisps of remaining self confidence that I have whisked away by mannequins. How horrible is it when you don’t feel like you measure up to a plastic woman with a stick up her butt?

Sweden is such a forward thinking country. Some of the stores are using mannequins that are closer to the size of a healthy, average woman, about a size 10 -12. Women can go to the store and see clothing on bodies that aren’t perfect. How refreshing.

It seems to me that if retailers began using a variety of sizes in their displays (say a size 10, a size 14, and a size 8) they would see an increase in sales. Women would be more likely to notice the clothes, for one thing. I don’t know about you, but I rarely actually see a display anymore.

They’d also be less frustrated with their own imperfect bodies in the dressing room, and it would be easier to see what looked good on which body type.

Do you think retailers in the United States will ever do it?

source: HLN

photo credit: fontplaydotcom via photopin cc

It seems spring took its sweet time getting here, but pretty soon, allergy season will be in full force. I can’t take any of the over-the-counter drugs for allergies because they turn me into a zombie for three days at a time.

It’s scary, and it’s not just that I get a brain fog other people can’t detect. I get incredibly irritable and my husband even remarked once in Target that it seemed like I had taken something a lot stronger than an allergy pill.

Aside from embarking on an allergy shot mission that will last years and barely provide relief in the meantime, I’m looking for natural allergy relief that won’t make people wonder if I’m going to try to take a bite out of them.

• Neti pots: I’ve used one with some luck. Once I got past feeling like I was going to drown myself, the neti pot provided a little relief. I got kind of nervous about the brain-eating amoeba and stopped using it, even though you can get around the potential hazards by using boiled, distilled, or filtered water. I may try again soon.
• Quercetin: According to Mother Nature  News, quercetin, found in citrus fruits, broccoli, onions, garlic, parsley, tea, tomatoes, and other foods, is also helpful, but you probably won’t get all of it you need from your diet if you have vicious allergies like I do. Taking a supplement could help, but for best results, you’ll want to start six weeks before allergy season starts.
• Butterbur: According to a study mentioned at WebMD, daily butterbur supplements (four tablets per day) can help control symptoms of hay fever as well as some of the OTC drugs that turn some people into zombies.
• Spicy foods: Flavor up your meals with cayenne pepper, hot ginger, wasabi, and chili powder. According to the same WebMD article, the spicier the meal, the more likely it is to thin the mucus secretions and clear out your nasal passage.
• Omega-3s: Mother Earth News also points out the benefits of getting enough fish, flaxseed oil, eggs, and other sources of omega-3 fatty acids in your diet. If you get enough, you’re less likely to suffer from allergy symptoms.

I do find that I feel better when I eat a balanced diet and take omega-3 supplements, and I’ve gotten temporary relief while eating spicy foods before. What are your favorite natural ways to treat or prevent allergy symptoms?

Always check with your doctor before starting a new supplement or experimenting with natural cures. Some foods, though generally healthy, could interfere with certain medications or health conditions. If you’re pregnant or nursing, consult with your obstetrician, too.

Photo credit: Joelk75

Every time I get my teeth cleaned, the hygienist reminds me to floss in a kind way. A year ago, she asked, “Have you been flossing regularly?” I felt my face turn red. While I did floss, I couldn’t really say it was a regular practice.

She said that my gums had receded some, and that while I did a good job brushing, that only cleaned the outer surface of my teeth. “Flossing cleans the tight space between your teeth,” she said. I knew that, but what I didn’t realize was the importance of cleaning my teeth at the gum line.

The hygienist explained that this is where stubborn tartar develops and plaque builds up. This causes inflammation and an infection in the gums. The bacteria from this infection can actually get absorbed in my bloodstream and lead to problems including heart disease. Why floss? A heart attack can happen even in healthy people!

While part of me wanted to think the stuff she told me was scare tactics, the logical part of my brain said she had nothing to gain from telling me these gory details.

I came home with a renewed commitment to floss with thoughts of platelets meshing with bacteria to create a blood clot! Plus my father-in-law lost his two bottom front teeth at age 52 because they became loose and fell out from – you guessed it – not flossing!

That emphasized flossing benefits in a very personal way.

Glide slides easily between tight teeth without shredding.

One of my problems is that my back teeth are so close together, I have a hard time getting the floss to slide between them without shredding or breaking. The hygienist recommended Glide dental floss. It’s what she uses in the office, and it is thicker but flat and it glides between my teeth in one piece.

Using the Glide dental floss has made it much easier to get the job done. When I went to the dentist this time, my gums were fine and the hygienist bragged to the dentist that I was doing a good job taking care of my teeth. 

Photo credits: meddygarnet, Amazon.com