Real Simple

Have you ever read Real Simple magazine? It is one of my favorites. I love the recipes, the comparisons and all the nifty tips it offers. Love it. And a few weeks ago, I actually caught one of the Real Simple episodes on PBS. A blessed day indeed. Though I love the magazine, I don't love clutter, so two weeks ago, I threw 4 years worth of the magazine away.

Of the 587 nifty tips in the stacks I threw away, I've managed to remember 2 and they're worth passing along today.

For those of you lucky enough to own a CHI flat iron, please know that it comes in very handy when the hem of your capris is wrinkled beyond belief. Works great on hair ribbons and collars too. And if you have some of those cute cargo pants with the ties at the bottom that somehow always manage to get twisted up in the dryer...pull out that CHI and put it to work. Simply amazing.

And remember this for your next birthday party when you're serving cake and ice cream to a crowd. Before the party, line your muffin tin with paper or foil cups and scoop ice cream into them. Put your muffin tin in the freezer and when it's time to serve, just plop the paper cup of ice cream down on the cake plate. I'm telling you this because I was at a birthday party on Saturday watching two parents struggle to serve cake and ice cream to about 15 kids....and they were both a dripping mess by the time it was all said and done.

I guess I must've read somewhere that rubbing alcohol will remove blue sharpie from skin because as we were walking out the door for our picnic today, Abbey showed me her foot that she "accidentally" colored blue. With. a. permanent. marker. Or maybe it just came off easily because it was freshly colored. Either way, the alcohol took it off (or most of it anyway) and if you have any tips on how to keep your kiddos from painting themselves with permanent marker, I'd love for you to pass 'em my way.