Parent Hacks

Jennifer is a smart, smart mom. Here's her secret for getting out the door relatively unburdened by her kids' "special" treasures:As the mom of five kids age 11 and under, I have had a lot of experience dealing with little ones. It takes an enormous amount of time and energy to ge...

Janell's got the right idea when it comes to keeping bibs close at hand:We have so many bibs and no storage space for them. We noticed there was a bar on the back of our high chair that could hold all our bibs! They are out of site and exactly where we need them when we need them!

For the dress-uppers in your life, from Tracy:We had a bunch of neighbor kids over and ran out of dress-up dresses and skirts... so we took one of our play sweater ponchos and just used it as a skirt. This particular poncho has a tie around the collar, so we were able to tie it a little tighter t...

Tracy's face-and-table cleaning hack is as fun as it is practical:Back when my kids were babies, we'd keep a box of baby wipes on the kitchen table to use for post-mealtime cleanup. Once the kids got older, the wipes dried up because they just weren't getting used as much. But we sti...

Christmas Books from Kids Craft Weekly Amber will never let you down with her simple, elegant crafts. $10 for two downloadable, printable mini-books (one on cards, the other on crafts): weeks of fun. Buzzy reduces pain of s...

If you're like me, your gold coffee filter is sitting, forgotten, at the back of the kitchen cupboard. Brooke put hers to use simplifying oatmeal baths:I've found that the very best thing for my toddler's occasional diaper rash is a warm water soak with oatmeal. The creamy water reall...

Brilliant cool-weather problem-solving, Jessica!My toddler wakes every night crying because she kicked off the blanket and is cold. I took another crib sheet and cut the elastic away except for the two corners on the ends. I tuck those corners under the mattress and let the rest of the sheet cove...

We're nothing if not practical here at Parent Hacks. Tell me if this hack doesn't revolutionize bathtime at your house! From John:We've completely eliminated the need for bath toys when traveling (and at home) by conjuring big bubbles from thin air. With baby shampooon my hands (strai...

Well, everyone, Halloween is upon us. I'm proud to say that I finished the kids' costumes and they're happy with the results (they're Link and Zelda from The Legend of Zelda video game). Pumpkins are carved (and sprinkled with cinnamon), house is minimally decorated, treats are pu...

Books For Treats Give books instead of candy! Just read about this in one of my favorite newspaper comic strips, Luann.

Yet another pumpkin carving discovery! If you draw the jack-o'-lantern face onto the pumpkin with dry erase marker, you've got clear lines to cut AND you can wipe off the marks with a towel when you're finished!Related: Best of Parent Hacks: Halloween tips

Carve a Candle-Friendly Pumpkin Hatch - DIY - Lifehacker DUH. Thanks for this, Jill!

I admit I'm a PowerPoint shunner. Having been exposed to one too many boring slideshows, I find I've blamed the messenger. But this addition to the Parent Toolbox (especially after Kristen's amazing slideshow illustrating her husband's deployment for her kids) may have turned it a...

The most time-consuming part of roasting pumpkin seeds is separating them from the stringy pumpkin innards  -- a slimy job, to be sure. But here's one occasion where laziness pays off: I roasted our seeds last night after a cursory rinse, leaving most of the pumpkin strings attached. To...

Fix Me A Snack: healthy family-friendly snacks You can never have enough... Clear-lidded spice container makes a good die roller! How smart! Keep the dice on the table by containing them in a little clear-lid...

Natalie's quick thinking saved her plenty of cleanup time:Just this weekend I was looking for a surface on which my three year old could go to town with some new playdough and silly putty. Her art table is from IKEA, the small wooden square table variety with a cloth on top of it.  Wel...

method: Pumpkin Stencils! And here I was thinking about carving my Jo'L in the shape of a soap bottle! Cute, and a great jumping-off point for creativity.

If you're looking to stock your Halloween party with some good movies, you can't go wrong at Amazon's huge Halloween DVD sale. I'm not a fan of scary, and even I found stuff I love -- Tim Burton's Corpse Bride ($5.49!), The Iron Giant ($5.49!), Jason and the Argonauts ($5.99!), plus many more for...

In today's Amazon Friday sale:Are you hosting holiday guests this year? Aerobed once again makes a showing on sale: the AeroBed for Kids is 40% off today ($59.99). The kids' version has a 4-inch safety surround to help prevent little ones from rolling off.You'll also find tons of stuff in the Kit...

Stephanie's delicious cure for the hiccups:Here's my totally painless [and high protein! -- Ed.] cure for the hiccups: Give your (older child only please!) a silverware spoon full of peanut butter and have them eat it all at one time. Volia! Hiccups instantly gone! I think it works becaus...

Just heard this yesterday and intend to try it out: you can prolong the life of your Jack O'Lantern if you sprinkle ground cinnamon inside the cut pumpkin (including the cut top). Apparently, the heat of the candle also makes it smell good!Any more tips for preserving your Jack O'Lantern?Related:...

Ah, the beauty of distraction. The trick is to find that thing that really lights your kid up (it's different for every kid, and not always what you'd imagine). From Rachael@Pineapplebabble:My daughter is 13 months old and has eczema so every single night, without fail, we lotion her up. As you m...

Raise your hand if you have ever a) bought a birthday present for your kid's friend while on the way to the kid's birthday party, and/or b) hopped in the car with minutes to spare before the start of said party only to realize you have no idea where it is. I've never done either of these things, ...

If you haven't already dropped by the smart personal finance site Wise Bread, do. I discovered it when they joined the FM posse, and I'm hooked. Family Budget spreadsheet by Wise Bread View more documents from Julie Rains. Their contribution to the Parent Toolbox is so s...

10 Simple Freezer Tricks to Save You Time and Money - Lifehacker I WANT to make better use of my freezer. Some inspiration.

THE CUTENESS! Oh, and the hack's good, too. From Erin:While on vacation with my aunt, my daughter (almost 2) messed up a ton of outfits while eating applesauce. She loves to feed herself, but is such a messy eater. My aunt had the brilliant idea to put a straw in the top of the applesauce so she ...

The too-big hamburger bun? No longer! From Ellen:When we make hamburgers we don't make a full-sized burger for our 3-year-old son. So instead of wasting a full-sized bun on the little burger, we take the heels of the current loaf of bread and cut out a circle from each using his kiddie-sized cup....

Use extra costume fabric for doll clothes As if awesome homemade costumes weren't cute enough, Amida used the extra fabric to whip up a matching costume for her daughter's doll!

Got the flu? Diaper cream works for grown-ups, too. ONLY click this link if you want more detail than that! (Adam is a pretty funny writer, though).