By Melissa Batai

There seem to be two types of people in this world—those who love to clean and those who don’t. I have plenty of relatives in the love to clean camp who seem to (gasp!) relax with cleaning. I, on the other hand, can find plenty of other things to do besides cleaning such as doing my work, reading or playing with the kids, or just relaxing with a good book. I make sure I keep up with the laundry, dishes, and meal prep every day, but the actual cleaning? Not high on my priority list.

If you feel like I do, then you may enjoy the book Motivated: Caring for Your Home When You Don’t Feel Like It ($9.99) by Hilary Bernstein.

About Motivated

In this ebook, Bernstein’s entire purpose is to motivate you to clean your home on a regular basis. She explores 16 ways to motivate the reader, and I confess, she motivated me!

Bernstein tackles motivating the reader several different ways. She appeals to Christians by giving Biblical verses and principles. She uses science to argue that having a clean, uncluttered house is good for your health. She reflects on how your environment affects your mental health and your attitude. Honestly, I never thought so much about the state of my house as I did while reading this ebook!

My Thoughts

This book made me start cleaning my house more. I realized, thanks to Bernstein and the cleaning she motivated me to start doing, that keeping up the house doesn’t actually require that much time, especially if it’s already tidy and decluttered.

One thing Bernstein didn’t talk about, which I wish she would have, was children and chores. On the one hand, I love that this book is truly written for every woman, but on the other hand, if you’re part of a family with children, I believe they should play a role in helping to clean the house as they definitely help make the mess. I would have liked to have seen Bernstein have a chapter on a role the children play in helping to keep a house clean.

In addition, she mentioned how important it is to set up a daily cleaning routine, and she gives the reader six steps for creating that routine, but if you’re not a naturally tidy person, I don’t feel there is enough guidance. I would have loved to have seen a sample of Bernstein’s own daily and weekly cleaning routine. However, I did go to her blog and discover that she has many, many articles written on house cleaning and homemaking, so if you have the time, that may be a good place to find more detail on a cleaning routine.

This is an ebook unlike any other with the sole purpose of helping motivate you to keep your house, which in turn, can make you feel better about other areas of your life. If you’re struggling to be a good steward of your home, this book can help.

(UPDATE: This post has become very popular among people looking for tips to redo their plastic outdoor toys.  It has been three years since we did this project, and it's time to repaint! The paint has held up VERY well, considering that we treated the table poorly during winter storage, and the boys jump off it run their bikes into it.  If you decide to do this project, please follow the directions VERY carefully.  I can only vouch for how well it worked for us using the EXACT method below.  If you don't have time to allow it to be properly cleaned, prepared, and dried between coats, this isn't the project for you.  We are glad we did it, but it was work! Please note that any other brand or type of paint may not give you the same results.)

We were blessed to receive several very nice plastic outdoor play items from my sister, who used to have a daycare.  These items were sturdy, but had shown quite a bit of wear to their surface, both by being bleached by the sun, and by having lot of scuff marks on them.  Normally, I wouldn't care about such things, but since the colors were also outdated, I wondered if we could give them a face-lift with some Krylon Fusion for Plastic Spray Paint I had seen in-stores.

We decided to test out this product on something small to start with: the Little Tikes Picnic Table.

Here is how we did it:


1.  We took apart the picnic table by removing the plastic bolt covers and using the power drill to take out the bolts.





2.  We gave the table parts a thorough washing with a solution of dish soap and water; then we sprayed it down with a hose.  (I used a small brush to get into the crevices of the joints.)



3.  We let the pieces dry standing up to let all the water out.  (This took about an hour on a breezy day.)


4.  Then, the painting began!  Using 3 colors of Krylon, we sprayed a nice coat of paint on the pieces according to this design:  magenta would become red, yellow would become white, and turquoise would become blue.  (Patriotic seemed much better than the "90's" theme it was currently sporting.)




The pieces were sprayed on one side first, and after they had 15 minutes to dry to the touch, we flipped them over for the second side.  The hardest coat was the white, which required quite a bit of paint to cover completely.  (The red had the best coverage.)



We even removed the "Little Tikes" name plates from the side of the picnic table.  (They popped out with a screwdriver.)  My husband covered the center with tape, so we could give the outer edge of the logo a fresh hit of the red paint.



We had to remember to spray the little bolt covers, too.


5.  Now, after a minimum of 1 hour drying time, it was time to put everything back together.  We used the drill again to put the bolts and covers back on.


We also did a little touch up on some places that we missed due to lighting issues in the shop.

Here is our final project -- (excuse the late night lighting.)



All in all, we were VERY happy with the new look of the table, and we used about 3 cans of the Krylon at $4+ each.  I would do this project again with a hand-me-down or very cheap piece of plastic outdoor play furniture.  It would also work great for giving a face lift to any of your older or outdated-looking pieces.


You can find the Krylon Fusion for Plastic at your local Walmart stores in several colors to match your DIY style.

I have seen so many yummy recipes for kale and sausage soup; since my husband took the plunge to buy kale from our supermarket for the first time ever, I thought it would be a good way to use up a little-known ingredient.  I took an original recipe from The Pioneer Woman and adapted it with what I had on hand.  It turned out pretty well, and was much lighter than similar recipes that call for heavy cream and broth.

Sausage and Kale Soup Recipe

First, the ingredients:

• 1 bunch Kale, cleaned and torn into small pieces
• 6 whole Red Potatos, Sliced Thin
• 1/2 red onion, Chopped 
• 1 pound Italian Sausage (removed from casing)
• 2 cups water
• 2 cup skim milk
• 1 packet turkey gravy mix
• Pepper to Taste

1. To begin, prepare your ingredients.  Wash and tear up the kale into bite sized pieces.


Dice the red onion.





Do you have any special way to cook kale?  We really enjoyed this delicious sausage and kale soup, and we look forward to trying this unique ingredient in other dishes soon!



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February was National STEM month, and you've probably heard a lot about STEM, STEM education, and STEM careers? But what is STEM? And why is it important to you? We'll try to explain.

What Is STEM?

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. It's a term used to encompass a variety of studies -- and, more recently -- an entire group of careers. You've likely heard about it in regard to education. The U.S. has fallen farther and farther behind other countries in many of these educational areas, and so the focus has been on getting our kids back into being competitive with a global market of very talented and bright future scientists and engineers.


As a parent, that means that we'll be bombarded with messaging about how important it is to provide our kids with opportunities to develop essential skills that will be the foundation for future learning in these fields. What they do as little ones most definitely can have an effect on what they can learn in secondary educational classrooms.

As a homeschooler, there is even more pressure to try to find learning opportunities that build STEM skills for the future. Many products and programs will be sold to us with the hope of filling in the gaps in current education and helping our kids become both comfortable with math and science learning and also competent.

Answering  "What Is STEM?" for Your Family

In the photo above, you can see me as a child. I'm surrounded by my cousins, who all got the same kind of doll for Christmas.

There is nothing wrong with dolls. (In fact, I believe there are a number of dolls for boys that can help develop healthy skills.) But I was very clear that I wanted a chemistry set for Christmas. I circled the one I wanted in the BIG Book from JCPenney that year. I asked Santa for it. And, I was delighted when he brought it to me. By listening to my requests for STEM-related hobbies, my parents were doing their part in ensuring that even a tiny little girl who liked to spend way too much time playing alone in her room could learn and grow. I didn't end up going into a STEM field (I'm a writer), but I homeschool kids who may. The critical thinking skills I learned from this chemistry set are still used today!

Here on LillePunkin', I often review and share my family's homeschool experiences with items in the STEM category. Since the category is so broad, almost any product or course that requires the kids to think critically or use scientific method can be considered a STEM product. Some are much better than others. There are many exciting opportunities right now for parents to buy products and try out services that they can use at home. You do not have to be a homeschooler to do so. Afterschool, weekends, and summers are a great time to supplement their STEM learning with innovative and memorable activities that build skills and -- more importantly -- help them develop a passion for this type of learning.



Since it is common knowledge that girls aren't as likely to go into STEM fields as boys, there is also a pressing need to get girls into these learning opportunities earlier. You'll see that many of the products on the market are designed for girls, but that doesn't mean that boys can't learn from them, as well. In fact, there is quite the discussion around the true answer to the question "What is STEM?" Some experts claim health-related fields, such as nursing, are not truly STEM fields. Try telling that to my daughter who has had to take courses in biology, chemistry, and physics!

Now that we've answered the question "What is STEM?", you've probably wanted to know some ways to incorporate STEM learning into your homeschool or home. We're putting together a best of STEM resources for families soon. Stay tuned for our take on our favorite items in a variety of price ranges!