Blog Posts by Team Mom Staff

Working parents constantly struggle with finding a healthy balance between their careers and family life. Should they just learn how to thrive with controlled chaos? On Easy Does It, designer Cortney Novogratz shares her secrets with host Ereka Vetrini.

Related: Compromising my way into work-life balance

Novogratz and her husband, Robert, are a design team and property developers who purchase homes, refurbish and then sell them. On their HGTV show Home by Novogratz, they are known for creating homes that mix modern and vintage styles, turning "drab places into creative places." But along with their many design, television and book projects, the two are parents to seven children.

The Novogratz Family

Because the couple are business partners, their home functions as their office and a work portfolio. Work-life balance might seem easier because they create their own business hours. But they still face the same challenges as other working parents. "We're constantly on the go, asking ourselves how we want to

Life is hectic, with or without kids in our lives. But parenting adds a different kind of stress and our kids often pick up on it. Did you know children can "catch" their parents' stress? Finding simple ways to ease the thick layer of tension in your life becomes even more important. Meditation expert Karen Maezen believes that finding quiet time on a daily basis can help parents find a calmness that can benefit the whole family. She tells Away We Grow host Diane Mizota why even five minutes of quiet time is essential to handle the stresses of every day.

VIDEO: How family dinners can inspire better communication with your kids

"Paying attention to life as it is -- right now -- you learn how to handle the stress of ever day," says Maezen Miller, who is also a mom and Zen Buddhist priest. Before she became a parent, she felt she had the "perfect life," but she didn't know how to be happy. Meditation changed her world.

Maezen Miller knows first-hand how difficult it can be

Kids understand the art of lying at an early age. Parenting expert Maureen Healy says fibbing is a part of a child's natural development and helps him or her test limits and learn about acceptable and unacceptable behavior. While Canadian research indicates that toddlers who lie are often highly intelligent, what happens when stretching the truth, or avoiding it altogether, becomes a problem? And how should mom and dad react?

Related: How to get your kids to stop lying

"They're trying to outsmart us from the beginning," says Healy, author of Growing Happy Kids, tells Away We Grow host Diane Mizota. "So if your child is telling a little lie, I guess there good news is they're probably super smart."

How can you tell if your child is lying? They get the wiggles. If your kids fidget, have unusual eye contact--or can't make eye contact at all--that's a sign there's some truth being stretched. "They might be changing their stories, or if they're normally one way they might be

Studies have shown that sharing dinner as family can help kids form good eating habits and boost their self esteem. But by sitting down to eat a meal with your children, you can also teach your kids the art of communication. Celebrity chef and mom Cat Cora gives Away We Grow host Diane Mizota her tips for helping kids open up at the dinner table.

VIDEO: Make dinnertime your family destination

When not co-hosting the Bravo series "Around the World in 80 Plates" or working on her many culinary-related projects, Cora is with her four sons. As a kid, Cora had dinner with her parents every single night of the week. Her memories of that special time with her mom and dad clearly influence her desire to carry on the tradition in her own family. She says, "I knew my parents cared. I knew that they were involved. I knew that they loved me. It does really make a difference to gather, and it gets to be quality time."

But Cora's secret weapon to get her boys to the table starts before

Teaching your kids about the dangers of strangers can be overwhelming and frightening for both you and your children. But using the term "stranger danger" may not be the best way to educate kids, says Pattie Fitzgerald, founder of Safely Ever After. Data shows 90 percent of sexual abuse happens to children by someone they know. Fitzgerald talks with Away We Grow host Diane Mizota and shares her tips on how to protect kids from predators.

Related: Should you discuss kidnapping with your kids?

"Stranger danger really doesn't serve our kids because it's not strangers," says Fitzgerald. She recommends parents use the phrase "tricky people" to describe who children should be aware of because it encompasses people that they know and don't know to varying degrees. "We're basing it not on what somebody looks like, but what they say, what they want to do with a child. And that's how you know it's a trick."

So what signs should your kids look for when they suspect someone is a "tricky

Can parents host a Halloween-themed party for their kids without breaking the bank? Celebrity event planner Brian Worley tells Easy Does It host Ereka Vetrini how to create a spooktastic affair with simple household items.

When it comes to Halloween decorations, your house is the "best shopping place in the world," says Worley. Use what you have to create a gloomy glow, include candles, mirrors and picture frames. Purchase inexpensive cobweb material and add it to your decor.

And you don't have to worry about decorating every single room in your house. For in an instant spook factor, cover a black tarp with Christmas lights, cobwebs and other Halloween trinkets. Worley also recommends that you stick to dressing up three key areas that receive the most foot traffic: the entryway, the kitchen, and the bathroom.

Food also serves a double purpose at your Halloween shindig. A table filled with Halloween-themed treats like Boo Pops is delish and decorative.

As with any party that

Are you tired of spending your weekends cleaning the house instead of spending time having fun with your family? According to home expert Kelly Edwards, you can easily solve this problem by making little changes to your daily routine and making cleaning a lifestyle choice.

"Now, that doesn't sound very exciting," Edwards tells Easy Does It host Ereka Vetrini. "However, when you think of it in the context of, 'I'm gonna wake up in the morning and I'm gonna immediately make my bed, or when the mail comes in I'm gonna go through it and I'm done. Or something like right before dinner, throw in a load of laundry...that way when you put the kids to bed, you can fold it. Done, done and done. At the end of the week, it's like 5 loads are done."

VIDEO: De-clutter your home...and your life

Edwards believes that by tidying up over the course of the week, you'll free up time on your weekends. "You're not literally siting there worrying on a Saturday or Sunday about cleaning your house instead of