Wrapping my kids in cellophane
As a busy mother I'm always looking for new ways to make my life just a bit easier. It was a while back that I came up with the idea of wrapping my kids (4 and 5) in cellophane.
This originally started as an effective measure against the cold Oppland winters, which is highly effective and is still the most practical usage overall. I'll simply wrap them up (legs together, arms in) and throw them in bed. As you can probably predict, the only issue with this is one relating to the bathroom -- although I've been able to greatly mitigate this with the simple "no cocoa past 7" rule.
If it's especially cold I'll wrap up their little heads as well. Fortunately, I DO usually remember to create breathing holes. I'm not an idiot.
I've since discovered many benefits of kid-wrapping. Not only does it keep them warm throughout the night but dry as well, and what I also consider a big plus is that it makes my young ones compact and portable, which was a great asset when we were preparing to move from the country to the suburbs. While loading the truck with my brother Erik, my kids were a consistent nuisance; finally I just wrapped both of them up and, amidst their protests, threw them in the back of the truck with the rest of my belongings. Made things a lot easier.
Now, although I hate to admit it, I'll occasionally find myself wrapping one or both of them if I'm a little too stressed and I lose my patience. From there I'll just lean them against the corner like a couple of old rugs and continue going about my duties.
I think what's especially interesting is that my oldest has obtained anonymous fame after being spotted one night, and is actually now an iconic figure in Norwegian folklore known as the Hundorp Mummy.