5 Things I Do at Night to Set Up My Morning for Success

I am a creature of habit. I could easily eat the same thing for lunch every day (a tuna salad sandwich, Doritos, and grapes) and I would be completely satisfied.  In addition to being a creature of habit, I can get completely overwhelmed at the length of my to do list. Because of these two characteristics, I tend to rely on my routines. My routines tend to make me feel safe and they give me a sense of security. They also help me know what to do next so that I do not get overwhelmed. The routines that I follow are: my morning routine, my afternoon routine, and evening routine. I also have my Sunday routine or my GYST day routine.

However, my evening routine is the most important routine that I follow every night. Without my evening routine my mornings would be chaotic. Without my evening routine I would be lost and behind all day long.

So, here are........

5 Things I Do at Night to Set Up My Morning for Success

Clean the Kitchen. There is nothing that makes me feel behind in the morning than walking into a dirty kitchen.  Just taking a few minutes in the evening to do the dishes, clean the counters, and sweep the floor can make a world of difference in my attitude and my productivity.  I try to clean up right after supper each night and empty the drainer before I go to bed (I don't have a dishwasher).

Plan your day. This is an important one for me. I plan my day the night before so I don't forget an appointment or an activity that one of the kids has to go to. I even plan the most mundane things like laundry, brushing teeth every morning and every night.


Declutter the living spaces. I cannot go to bed with a messy house, it causes too much stress for me.  It's the one habit from my childhood that I cannot break.  I take 30 minutes to declutter the living room, the kids bedrooms, and to do a quick swipe in both bathrooms. It's alot less stressful (at least for me) to wake to a clean house then to wake up to a messy one. Am I right?


Read. I try to take the last hour or so before bed to read a chapter in the book that I am currently reading. This helps me to relax and actually helps me sleep better at night.


Go to bed early. Finally, I try to go to bed early every night. There are times that this just does not happen, but most nights I am in bed by 930pm.

What things do you do at night to have a successful morning. I would live to hear in the comments below!

 

50 Self Care Ideas That Will Keep You Sane

Self care has always been a topic on the internet, especially now with the holidays fast approaching. During this crazy time I think it's important to take care of yourself and reward yourself for just getting through the day or even the week. So, today I am sharing 50 self care ideas!

50 Self Care Ideas That Will Keep You Sane

Take a bath

Do a face mask

Go for a walk

Try a new workout class

Treat yourself to a yummy holiday drink

Go shopping

Or at least go try on clothes that make you feel great

See a movie alone

Binge a TV show

If you live near it, go to the beach

If you live near it, go hiking

Check out a local museum

Bake some cookies

Rearrange your furniture 

Buy some flowers

Journal

Clean out your closet

Organize drawers

Clean up your house

Listen to a good playlist

Make a new playlist

Go on a solo trip

Make a grateful list

Say NO more

Take a nap and catch up on sleep

Take up a new hobby

Color

Binge a podcast

Go 24 hours without social media

Take a personal day off work

Try a new skincare regimen

Mute people on Instagram/Twitter who make you feel bad about yourself

Get a massage/facial

Go to bed at 8PM every night for a week

Sleep in

Use an acupressure mat

Have a staycation weekend in a hotel alone

Try a new wine

Go to your place of worship

Pay it forward

Go find the perfect lipstick/lipgloss

Have dinner delivered from your favorite place

Dance around your living room to your favorite songs

Get dressed up and sit at a bar and order a fun drink

Stretch/foam roll

Have a picnic alone and read

Reconnect with an old friend

Go to a meetup group/bible study etc

Play with puppies/kittens/your favorite animal

Adopt a pet

What is something you do for self-care? What would you add to this list of 50 self-care ideas?

 

6 Basic Steps Towards Easy Meal Prep At Home

One of the best pieces of advice that I have for people in terms of saving money is to get into the habit of preparing your own homecooked meals at home – Restaurants are expensive. Takeout is expensive. Delivered food? Expensive. Prepackaged meals? Expensive. All of that stuff drains your wallet far faster than you might realize.

So, what’s the argument against cooking at home? Many meals require some degree of skill to make and although that skill level is often pretty low, it’s still present. There’s also the time issue and the energy issue and the equipment issue – each solvable, of course, but they again provide resistance against preparing food at home.

So, here are six basic things you can do to work towards effortless meal preparation at home.

1. Experiment when you have more time in the kitchen. 

The time to learn how to cook is not when you come home from a long day at work and feel absolutely exhausted, or when you just don't have the time and can’t afford anything going wrong. Often, people find themselves in these positions without any sort of cooking skills which makes cooking feel overwhelming or impossible.

2. Plan a little.

While it’s fun to imagine a home chef just throwing things together based on whatever’s in the cupboard, the truth is that it only really works if you have a lot of staples on hand, and if you’re reading this article, you probably don’t have a lot of staples on hand and also probably don’t have any ideas of how to use them.

That’s why, at first, it’s a really good idea to follow recipes carefully. A good recipe tells you what you need to have on hand right at the start, so plan ahead a little and make sure you have all of those things on hand. This will probably involve a trip to the grocery store, but it’s far better to do that before doing anything else.

3. Make a dump meal. 

This is about the easiest thing you can make at home. It basically just requires a slow cooker – it’s really the only kitchen implement you need for this. All you have to do is just put a small set of ingredients in there in the morning, turn it on low, and come home to a finished meal. Some of the ingredients might require a cutting board and a knife to chop up a vegetable or slice up a piece of meat, and you might need a can opener. It can’t get any easier than this – in fact, I find such meals to be less hassle than actually ordering food or going to a restaurant, and they’re cheaper, too.

4. Make macaroni and cheese.

 Almost everyone likes macaroni and cheese. It’s such a simple, pleasant food that can be made incredibly straightforward to please children or fancied up to please almost any palate. It’s also one of the easiest things on Earth to make, so I usually encourage people to make this as one of the first things they prepare in the kitchen. Each of my children – all of them pre-teen – have pulled this off with success.

5. Make scrambled eggs.

If you like to eat scrambled eggs at all, I strongly encourage you to learn how to make scrambled eggs. It’s an incredibly simple and flexible thing you can make for yourself or your family, it works with every meal, you can mix in almost anything savory, and it reheats well if you have extras.
Just crack a number of scrambled eggs in a bowl – however many you like – and beat them with a fork until they’re consistently yellow, a minute or two. Add a bit of salt and beat that in for a few seconds, then let the bowl sit.
Take a teaspoon of butter and put it in the middle of a skillet. Put it over medium heat and let the butter melt, then use a plastic spoon or a spatula to move the butter all over the skillet until the skillet is coated. Add the scrambled eggs and let them cook for a minute, then slowly pull that plastic spoon or spatula along the bottom of the skillet to pull up egg curds off of the skillet’s bottom. Do this over the entire bottom of the skillet, then repeat every thirty seconds until the eggs look like slightly wet version of the scrambled eggs you’d normally eat, then remove from the heat, wait a minute or so, and serve.
You can obviously mix lots of things into this recipe. Almost any savory vegetable works, as do most cooked meats and most cheeses. It all turns out delicious and with such little effort.

6. Handle Dirty Dishes the Smart Way

One of the big obstacles for many people in terms of cooking at home is dealing with the cleanup. If you eat at a restaurant, it’s done for you; if you get takeout or delivery, you can just toss the wrappers and other items. On the other hand, if you cook at home, you have to deal with all of that stuff.
A dishwasher makes it much easier, but even then, there’s some extra work involved. Also, many apartments and some homes (like my parents’ home) don’t have a dishwasher and don’t have space for one.
 Here are a few strategies I know from having lived most of my life in places with a kitchen too small for a dishwasher.

Have good tools. Have a strong scrubbing brush and a dish rag at your sink, along with good soap at hand. If you don’t have those things, it’s going to take far longer to wash dishes.

If you have a two bin sink, keep one sink full of water with a bit of soap in it. Just block the drain, fill it perhaps a quarter full with hot water, and add a bit of soap. Then, put your dishes right in that soapy water throughout the day, perhaps adding a bit more hot water once in a while. Just let the dishes soak. It’ll make it much easier to wash them when the time comes, and the other sink bin will be free.

If you have a one bin sink, get a large plastic bin, put it beside the sink, and keep your dirty dishes in there. This keeps the sink free of dishes so that you can easily start in with cleaning whenever you’re ready. Just toss dirty dishes in the bin for the moment, then wash everything in the bin at once when you’re ready. Since the sink is empty, you can dive right in. If the bin is watertight, you can put a bit of hot soapy water in there to soak some of the dishes, as noted above.

If something has caked-on grease or food pieces, pour a bit of vinegar, a bit of baking soda, and a bit of soap in it and fill it with hot water and let it sit for a long time, like a day. After that, it becomes really easy to wash. This takes care of basically every nasty caked-on grease problem I’ve ever faced.

Wash things in “streak order.” What do I mean by “streak order”? Start with stuff that will show streaks easily – glass items – then move onto silverware, then plates and plastic items, then pots and pans.

Have a drying rack beside your sink to put dishes in to dry, plus a ton of drying towels. Most things can air dry relatively quickly once rinsed, but a drying towel is great if you need something dry immediately.

Buy dish soap in bulk, then have a pump to dispense it. You don’t really want a bulk bottle of dish soap at your sink because it’s heavy and it takes up lots of space and when you pour it, it dispenses large amounts of soap. However, bulk soap is cheap.
These tactics turn hand washing dishes into a pretty easy task, even if you don’t have a dishwasher.

Final Thoughts 

If you can handle the things above, you’re already well on your way to cooking a wide variety of things at home. Move on to trying other simple dishes – pasta, for example, is incredibly simple – and try variations on the things you already know, like adding tarragon to the scrambled eggs.

 

 

10 Daily Sanity Saving Habits for Moms

Hi Friends and welcome back to the blog. Today's post is all about daily sanity saving habits for moms. Now, some of these I took directly from my mom and some I figured out on my own. Either way all these habits are helpful in saving a mom's sanity.

So, let me share,

10 Daily Sanity Saving Habits for Moms

1. Have quiet time. For me, this is about an hour before my kids wake up. I sit and work on my bible study, answer emails, or just sit and enjoy the quiet.

2. Prepare the night before. What part of the morning is the most stressful for you? Take that one thing you dread and do a little prep for it the night before. Lay out the kids clothes, shower, prepare breakfast, do baths, or just preset the coffee pot. 

3. Do one load of laundry every day. This really helps in keeping "Mount Washmore" at bay. Just remember to fold and put away. Let's be honest, sometimes I forget that step. Don't we all?

4. Clean as you go. Giving yourself plenty of grace, clean up as you go. If you make dinner, wash those dishes right then. If you see a million crumbs under the high chair, grab a broom and do a two-second sweep.

5. Play with your kids. Slow down and enjoy your little people. Offer to play a game or build blocks. Do something that you know will bring a smile to their face.

6. Do one large chore. Knock out one of the bigger chores everyday. Clean a bathroom, vacuum the floors, organize a drawer,..etc.

7. Have kid clean up time. Instead of the house being a tornado throughout the entire day, choose a couple times a day for them to clean up their messes. A good schedule might be everyday before lunch and then again before bedtime.

8. Meal plan. Save yourself the stress of picking meals every few hours and plan them out. Not only will this be a time saver but a money saver as well.

9. Be thankful. There is always something to be thankful for. Let gratitude drive your attitude and actions throughout your day.

10. Have a regular bedtime for your kids. Kids love routine, even if they fight it sometimes. Make your routine as lengthy and as fun as you want, but get the munchkins to bed so you can recoup and have some quality time to yourself or with your spouse in the evenings.

What is an essential daily habit for you?

 

5 Non-Selfish Things I Do For Myself Everyday

I think as moms it can be easy to feel selfish for doing things for yourself. Personally, I  think the opposite. As moms, the ONLY way we can fill everyone’s cups is to fill ours first. There are non-selfish things I do for myself every day that 100% make me a better mom and a happier person which in turn makes my kids see that it’s good to do things for yourself. In today's blog post, I wanted to share 5 Non-Selfish things I do for myself every day that you should consider adding to your list.

 

 

 5 Non-Selfish Things I Do For Myself Everyday

Exercise first thing: Every morning I work out first thing. Moving my body helps me start off my day in the right way.

Read: Reading truly brings me joy. It also provides an escape when things feel heavy and it’s something that settles me. Especially at night.  I will post my book recommendations soon.

Connect with people important to me: This may mean going for a walk with a friend, having a FaceTime chat, or talking on the phone. I need to connect with people daily. It’s so important to me.

Take walks: If the weather allows for it I try to take a walks every day. Always with my husband, or by myself, the fresh air really does wonders.

Take care of my skin: This is a no-brainer. Doing my morning and evening skincare routine every day is a non-negotiable. I don’t care if I am sick, busy, or whatever. I always make time to make sure my skincare routine is done and my SPF is on.

What is something you make sure you do for yourself every day?

 

 

March 2024 Goals

Happy March everyone!! It's hard to believe that it's March already (where did the time go!) and that Spring is around the corner. Since I didn't share my February goals I wanted to make sure that I shared my goals for March.

March Goals

 

1. Read two books book (finish reading (If There Be Thorns and Seeds of Yesterday).

2. Drink 100oz of water daily.

3. Start using my habit tracker in my bullet journal every day.

4. Eat more fruits and veggies (I have been lagging on this and I really need to fix it).

5. Walk 6 days a week and strength train 3x per week.

6. Have at least two at home date nights with the Husband. 

7. Organize the girls' bedrooms (purge old toys and outgrown clothes).

 

8. Complete one bible study this month. 

9. Add more resources to my Teachers Pay Teachers store (have a total of 50 products by the end of the month).

 

What are some of your March goals? Share them below!

 

10 Tips For a Cleaner Home

 You can drastically stretch the time between weekly and daily cleaning just by following these 10 simple tips for a clean home. 

1. Make your bed

As the focal point of the bedroom, an unmade bed can make the whole room look messy. By making the bed, the room instantly looks tidy. Strive to do this every day, it makes a world of difference.

2. Empty the dishwasher each morning

If you have ever timed yourself then you know that emptying the dishwasher takes only about 5 minutes. Empty the dishwasher while the coffee is brewing or while the kids are getting ready for school. An empty dishwasher lets you put breakfast dishes in so they don't pile up in the sink all morning.

3. Clean up after each meal or snack

Dishes, pots and pans, food containers and spills all make your kitchen look messy since you already emptied your dishwasher. Load dishes after every meal or snack and then wipe down your counters with a homemade all purpose cleaner.

4. Do a load of laundry daily

No one wants to spend their weekend doing laundry and you won't have to if you do a load everyday.  Can't decided what to wash first? Use a laundry sorting hamper and grab the one that has the most clothes. Worried about mildew? Use your washing machine's delayed start (if your machine has one) so that the load is finished when you get home and transfer to the dryer.

 5. Wipe your sinks and faucets

Toothpaste spatters and hairs in the sink look gross. Food spills in the kitchen eventually stink. Grab a disinfecting wipe and spend a few minutes cleaning the sinks and faucets before you leave for work in the morning. Or use a microfiber cloth and a daily sink spray to clean, disinfect, and shine your sink as you go.

6. Sort and recycle paper right away
  
Keep papers from piling up on the kitchen island and dining table by dealing with the mail when you walk in the door. Run junk mail through the shredder, then put bills and letters in your mail sorter to pay or answer.

7. Use floor mats at every exterior door.

Even if you can’t train your family to not wear shoes in the house (which really reduces household dust) you can keep some of the dirt out by placing floor mats both inside and outside of each exterior door. Vacuum or shake the mats outside every few days.

8. Tidy counters before bed

Before you head to bed give the kitchen a quick glance and put away any clutter. Wipe the counters down with an all purpose disinfecting spray.

9. Nitpick your carpet.

We’ve all heard that we should vacuum high-traffic areas at least every other day, but not everyone has the time or energy for that. Get in the habit of looking over your floor and picking up small messes (cat hair, scraps of paper, etc.) between regular, weekly vacuuming and it will look nicer all week.

10. Run a kitchen sweeper or sweep the kitchen floors nightly 

Let’s face it, brooms and dustpans are a hassle and, thanks to their cords, vacuums aren’t much better. Use a multi-surface sweeper each night to pick up crumbs and pet hair from the kitchen floor so your kitchen always looks company-ready.

Performing these tips to keeping a clean house takes only a few minutes a day but they’ll keep your house looking constantly clean and make your regular, deeper cleaning tasks much easier.

What are some of your tips for a cleaner home? Please share in the comments below!

4 Ways to Take of Care Yourself During The Winter Months

I feel like during the holidays we can run ourselves ragged. It’s so easy to forget to take care of you while you’re busy trying to find the perfect gifts, go to all the family parties, and do all the things. Today I am sharing 4 ways to take care of yourself this holiday season so you don’t feel like you need a vacation come January!

4 Ways To Take Care of Yourself During The Winter Months 

 

 Take Care Of Your Hair: With all the parties and events, you can really damage your hair this time of year. Plus colder weather can make your scalp dry and flakey! Especially if you’re one of the 50 percent of people who have issues with dry, itchy scalp and dandruff, which can get worse when the temperatures drop. I recommend using a tea tree and peppermint-infused product from Head & Shoulders that will ensure the only flakes on your shoulders this winter are snow.
  
Take Care Of Your Mentality:  I  am a big fan of yoga. This is a great ways to take care of your mentality so the holiday stress doesn’t get to you! It’s one of the most stressful times of year.

Take Care Of Your Sleep: It can be so easy to want to do ALL THE THINGS. Sometimes you have to say no to something and get the extra few hours of sleep. Otherwise you will make yourself sick and you may not be able to do any of the fun stuff you want!

Take Care Of Your Body: While it can be easy to want to indulge in all the cookies, pastries, drinks, etc. remember to take care of your body with moderation. Everything in moderation. Also, this is not the time of year to skip the gym. Make sure to give yourself time to get some workouts in, even a 2 mile walk around your neighborhood. It will make detoxing after the holidays SO much easier!

 

 

10 Simple Ways to Practice Self Care

It’s important to show compassion for others, but it's also important to show ourselves that same level of kindness. Beyond bubble baths, here are some ideas.

 One of the best things that we can do for our minds and bodies is to take a break and remember that we are worth love.

For some people, adding self-care into a daily regimen can seem inconvenient, or even intimidating. Your first defense might be “I don’t have time for that,” or “I have too many other things to do.” But repeatedly putting the needs of others before our own can can lead to a lack of “me time,” which can, in turn, create stress and resentment and prevent us from being our best selves.
Research has illustrated that adding self-care into one’s daily routine reduces stress, decreases the chance of mental and physical ailment, increases productivity, and inspires feelings of happiness. By giving ourselves a daily dose of compassion, we’re able to approach our work and relationships with a clear, happy mind, thus allowing the cycle of positivity to continue.

10 Simple Ways to Practice Self Care

 

1. Eat healthily and mindfully.

Too often we eat our meals while multitasking, thus denying ourselves the pure experience of nourishing meal. Would you work on the computer when having dinner with a loved one? Treat yourself with that same level of respect, and allow yourself to indulge in a meal without any distractions.

2. Keep track of your accomplishments.

While there are great merits to a “to-do” list, we must also recognize the things we’ve done. At the end of the day, make a list (either mental or write it out) of the productive things you’ve done that day. Did you nurture a relationship? Do the laundry? Complete a work assignment? No matter how small, you deserve a pat on the back.

3. Express gratitude.

Just as it’s beneficial to keep track of what we’ve done, it’s also good to notice what we have. Keep a journal by your bed, and note the things that you feel lucky to have. Everything from clean sheets to a good friend is worth noting.

4. Gift your inner child.

What were some of your favorite things when you were little? Did you love sidewalk chalk, picking wildflowers, or eating marshmallows? Treat your inner child to a little present and allow the warm feelings to wash over you.

5. Create a cozy space.

Does your bedroom look they way you want it to? If it doesn’t, maybe add some candles or fun throw pillows. By building a space that feels warm and inviting, you establish an inviting retreat for when tough times arise.

6. Read a book.

Finding a book you love is a great way to feel happy. It feels wonderful to look forward to a good story, and the act of reading helps encourage a sense of peace.

7. Move your body.

What people say about exercise and endorphins is true; getting active increases feelings of happiness. This doesn’t mean you need to hit the gym. Rather find a form of physical activity that works for you. Go dancing with your friends, enjoy a Saturday morning hike, or go on a bike ride.

8. Unplug from social media.

Instagram and Facebook have some benefits, but does it really make you feel better to expose yourself to everyone’s online versions of themselves? Most often people only report on their success, and so it can be hard when you’re comparing your entire life to everyone’s highlight reels. Take the time to break away from social media, and allow yourself to focus on the beauty of the moment.

9. Create something.

Whether it’s a batch of brownies or a pastel drawing, getting artistic allows us to feel mindful and productive.

10. Build a self-care kit.

Fill a pretty basket with some of the things that make you feel special. It could be nail polish, gummy frogs, coconut lotion, treasured photos, or a new pair of socks. Place your pick-me-ups in a pretty basket, and keep it in your bedroom or bathroom for when you need an extra dose of love.
Remember, by being your best self you’re able to share those beautiful feelings with those around you. Search for the good, share your peace, and watch the positivity grow.

What do you do for self care?

 

6 Basic Steps For Easy Meal Prep at Home

One of the best pieces of advice that I have for people in terms of saving money is to get into the habit of preparing your own homecooked meals at home – Restaurants are expensive. Takeout is expensive. Delivered food? Expensive. Prepackaged meals? Expensive. All of that stuff drains your wallet far faster than you might realize.

So, what’s the argument against cooking at home? Many meals require some degree of skill to make and although that skill level is often pretty low, it’s still present. There’s also the time issue and the energy issue and the equipment issue – each solvable, of course, but they again provide resistance against preparing food at home.

So, here are six basic things you can do to work towards effortless meal preparation at home.

1. Experiment when you have more time in the kitchen. 

The time to learn how to cook is not when you come home from a long day at work and feel absolutely exhausted, or when you just don't have the time and can’t afford anything going wrong. Often, people find themselves in these positions without any sort of cooking skills which makes cooking feel overwhelming or impossible.

2. Plan a little.

While it’s fun to imagine a home chef just throwing things together based on whatever’s in the cupboard, the truth is that it only really works if you have a lot of staples on hand, and if you’re reading this article, you probably don’t have a lot of staples on hand and also probably don’t have any ideas of how to use them.

That’s why, at first, it’s a really good idea to follow recipes carefully. A good recipe tells you what you need to have on hand right at the start, so plan ahead a little and make sure you have all of those things on hand. This will probably involve a trip to the grocery store, but it’s far better to do that before doing anything else.

3. Make a dump meal. 

This is about the easiest thing you can make at home. It basically just requires a slow cooker – it’s really the only kitchen implement you need for this. All you have to do is just put a small set of ingredients in there in the morning, turn it on low, and come home to a finished meal. Some of the ingredients might require a cutting board and a knife to chop up a vegetable or slice up a piece of meat, and you might need a can opener. It can’t get any easier than this – in fact, I find such meals to be less hassle than actually ordering food or going to a restaurant, and they’re cheaper, too.

4. Make macaroni and cheese.

 Almost everyone likes macaroni and cheese. It’s such a simple, pleasant food that can be made incredibly straightforward to please children or fancied up to please almost any palate. It’s also one of the easiest things on Earth to make, so I usually encourage people to make this as one of the first things they prepare in the kitchen. Each of my children – all of them pre-teen – have pulled this off with success.

5. Make scrambled eggs.

If you like to eat scrambled eggs at all, I strongly encourage you to learn how to make scrambled eggs. It’s an incredibly simple and flexible thing you can make for yourself or your family, it works with every meal, you can mix in almost anything savory, and it reheats well if you have extras.
Just crack a number of scrambled eggs in a bowl – however many you like – and beat them with a fork until they’re consistently yellow, a minute or two. Add a bit of salt and beat that in for a few seconds, then let the bowl sit.
Take a teaspoon of butter and put it in the middle of a skillet. Put it over medium heat and let the butter melt, then use a plastic spoon or a spatula to move the butter all over the skillet until the skillet is coated. Add the scrambled eggs and let them cook for a minute, then slowly pull that plastic spoon or spatula along the bottom of the skillet to pull up egg curds off of the skillet’s bottom. Do this over the entire bottom of the skillet, then repeat every thirty seconds until the eggs look like slightly wet version of the scrambled eggs you’d normally eat, then remove from the heat, wait a minute or so, and serve.
You can obviously mix lots of things into this recipe. Almost any savory vegetable works, as do most cooked meats and most cheeses. It all turns out delicious and with such little effort.

6. Handle Dirty Dishes the Smart Way

One of the big obstacles for many people in terms of cooking at home is dealing with the cleanup. If you eat at a restaurant, it’s done for you; if you get takeout or delivery, you can just toss the wrappers and other items. On the other hand, if you cook at home, you have to deal with all of that stuff.
A dishwasher makes it much easier, but even then, there’s some extra work involved. Also, many apartments and some homes (like my parents’ home) don’t have a dishwasher and don’t have space for one.
 Here are a few strategies I know from having lived most of my life in places with a kitchen too small for a dishwasher.

Have good tools. Have a strong scrubbing brush and a dish rag at your sink, along with good soap at hand. If you don’t have those things, it’s going to take far longer to wash dishes.

If you have a two bin sink, keep one sink full of water with a bit of soap in it. Just block the drain, fill it perhaps a quarter full with hot water, and add a bit of soap. Then, put your dishes right in that soapy water throughout the day, perhaps adding a bit more hot water once in a while. Just let the dishes soak. It’ll make it much easier to wash them when the time comes, and the other sink bin will be free.

If you have a one bin sink, get a large plastic bin, put it beside the sink, and keep your dirty dishes in there. This keeps the sink free of dishes so that you can easily start in with cleaning whenever you’re ready. Just toss dirty dishes in the bin for the moment, then wash everything in the bin at once when you’re ready. Since the sink is empty, you can dive right in. If the bin is watertight, you can put a bit of hot soapy water in there to soak some of the dishes, as noted above.

If something has caked-on grease or food pieces, pour a bit of vinegar, a bit of baking soda, and a bit of soap in it and fill it with hot water and let it sit for a long time, like a day. After that, it becomes really easy to wash. This takes care of basically every nasty caked-on grease problem I’ve ever faced.

Wash things in “streak order.” What do I mean by “streak order”? Start with stuff that will show streaks easily – glass items – then move onto silverware, then plates and plastic items, then pots and pans.

Have a drying rack beside your sink to put dishes in to dry, plus a ton of drying towels. Most things can air dry relatively quickly once rinsed, but a drying towel is great if you need something dry immediately.

Buy dish soap in bulk, then have a pump to dispense it. You don’t really want a bulk bottle of dish soap at your sink because it’s heavy and it takes up lots of space and when you pour it, it dispenses large amounts of soap. However, bulk soap is cheap.
These tactics turn hand washing dishes into a pretty easy task, even if you don’t have a dishwasher.

Final Thoughts 

If you can handle the things above, you’re already well on your way to cooking a wide variety of things at home. Move on to trying other simple dishes – pasta, for example, is incredibly simple – and try variations on the things you already know, like adding tarragon to the scrambled eggs.

 

 

 

9 Ways to Get the Most Out of Your Day

 "I don't have time."

If you're like most people, you probably say (or think) those words quite often. It's easy for lack of time to become a catch-all excuse for not doing something that you know you should—like exercising, preparing a healthy meal or just slowing down, breathing and taking a few moments for yourself.

Between work, family needs, school and the endless deadlines and demands crowding the to-do lists, it can be tough to find a spare minute to return an email, much less to meditate, meal prep or make it to the gym. It may seem like if you just had one extra hour in the day, you would finally be able to fit in all...the…things.


But the truth is, no one has an unfair advantage in the time department. We are all given the same 1,440 minutes each day and it's up to us how we choose to use them. Of course, there are certain non-negotiables that simply must get done, like working and bathing and caring for children. With some thoughtful planning and foresight—and maybe a few clever tricks—you can boost your day-to-day productivity, though, and maybe even find some extra pockets of time to squeeze in what's been eluding you.

9 Ways to Get the Most Out of Your Day

 

 1.  If you can't do a lot, do a little.

It's easy to become paralyzed by the prospect of a large, time-consuming project or long-term lifestyle change, whether that's organizing an entire garage, swearing off all sugar or exercising for 90 minutes every day. When you hold yourself to sky-high standards and then miss the mark, it's common to fall victim to the "all-or-nothing" mentality, which sounds something like this: "I missed spinning class, so what’s the point of even going to the gym?" or "I've already gone past my daily calorie allotment, so might as well have this pint of ice cream."

Instead of overwhelming yourself and setting yourself up for failure, look for small ways to chip away at your goals, such as de-cluttering a single drawer, walking for 15 minutes or making room on your dinner plate for broccoli even though you gave into the pancakes for breakfast.

2.  Eat the frog first.

There's an old adage—one which many believe was originally coined by Mark Twain—that if you eat a live frog first thing in the morning, you can rest assured that nothing worse will happen to you over the course of the day. Obviously, we're not suggesting that you add reptiles to your meal plan, but we do like the idea of tackling the most challenging or insufferable tasks before you have a chance to talk yourself out of them. Hate going to the gym? Schedule a sunrise boot camp class to get it out of the way. Dreading the dentist? Request a morning appointment so it’s not looming over you. The early accomplishment will also give you a boost of confidence and motivation to carry you through the rest of the day.

 3. Schedule "you time."

We know, you've heard this one before, but that's because it's worth repeating. And before you object that you can't carve out a whole extra hour for yourself, recognize that you can start with just 15 minutes. Put it on your calendar and treat it like a real appointment, just as you would a work meeting or a doctor's visit. Maybe it's right when you wake up, at the latter part of your lunch hour or in the space between dinner and bedtime, but make sure that it's on your calendar along with your other tasks. During that stolen quarter of an hour, do something that brings you joy, relaxation or enlightenment. Maybe that's reading a few pages of a novel, writing in your journal or blog, or just connecting with supportive SparkPeople members. As this starts to become a habit, try to gradually add a little more time until you've worked up to the full hour per day that you deserve.

4. Exercise.

It turns out that hitting the gym (or the sidewalk or even just the living room floor) delivers benefits that go far beyond a slim, strong physique. Studies have shown that regular physical activity during the workday can also boost productivity and reduce stress levels. Participants reported that they had better time management, mental focus and interpersonal performance on exercise days as compared to non-exercise days. So in theory, by sacrificing just 30 minutes to take a walk, you could improve the quality of your output for the remainder of the day.

5. Ask for help (or hire it).

It's natural to want to maintain control over all aspects of your life, but you can only have so many balls in the air before they start hitting the ground. Sometimes, delegating tasks to others is the only way to ensure that they get done. No, you can't hire someone to run three miles for you—but if you can afford to hire a service to clean your house or mow your lawn, or ask family members to pitch in to help with running errands or walking the dog, it could free up some valuable time to focus on your own health, fitness and wellness.

6. Eliminate unnecessary activities.

While everything on your plate might seem essential at first glance, there are likely some superfluous things that can be trimmed. For a few days, track your activities just as you would track your food or exercise, then review the list. If you spot any items that aren't absolutely necessary and aren’t moving you toward your goals—such as scrolling through Facebook or watching that extra Netflix show before bed—give them the boot. You'll likely be surprised by how much extra time emerges.

7. Learn to say no.

This can be a difficult one, especially if you're a "people pleaser" who has trouble turning down requests or invitations, but it's key to reclaiming control of your time and making room for the things that are important to you. Whether it's a high-calorie restaurant dinner, a time-consuming project or a social event with people who don't make you feel your best, passing on an invite or request can actually be a fulfilling (and thrilling) experience.

Some quick tips for politely and effectively saying no: Start out by thanking the person for thinking of you, be honest about why you're declining and make it clear that you're rejecting the request and not the person who's making it. It might seem difficult at first—especially if you've earned something of a reputation for being a "yes" person—but with a little practice and some pushback, it will start to get easier. And with every no, you'll be saying yes to something that serves you better.  

8. Take meaningful breaks.

If you don't build periods of mental and physical rest into your day, you'll find yourself taking unintentional (and potentially detrimental) ones. For instance, you might schedule two or three 15-minute walks throughout the day, giving your mind and body an opportunity to recharge while also sneaking in some mini calorie-burning sessions. Or you could plan to reconnect with an old friend during a coffee break. Without these planned time-outs, though, you're more likely to succumb to mindless activities that offer little to no benefits, such as gossiping with co-workers, grazing on unhealthy snacks or spending too much time on social media.

9. Sleep your way to productivity.

While it might seem like more waking hours is conducive to getting more out of your day, the time you save by shortening your snooze time will likely mean sacrificing some of your energy, focus and creativity. Resist the urge to burn the midnight oil, choosing instead to rest and recharge so you can hit the ground running and be functioning at your highest level the next day.

Each morning when you wake up, you have a new opportunity to use your time more wisely and get more out of it—not just more productivity, but also more enjoyment, relaxation, enrichment, connection or whatever defines a successful day for you. By being a little more thoughtful about how you utilize the hours in each day, you can dramatically increase how much you’re getting out of them.

January 2024 Goals

Happy 2023 friends! I hope everyone has an amazing Christmas and a Happy New Years. I shared my goals for the new year on Monday, so tonight I am sharing just my goals for January. Hopefully this will inspire you to share some of your goals as well!

In January I want to....

Read at least 2 books
Practice Yoga 2 times a week
Work on Instagram growth
Have blog posts written through the month of February
Start planning A's birthday party
Have two at home date nights with the Husband
Drink more water
Track my food daily using My Fitness Pal
Walk at least 40 minutes 7 times a week
Eat healthier (more fruits and veggies)
Cut all sweets ( I have a major sweet tooth)

Start the 75 Soft Challenge

Have 2 or more movie nights with the girl

Do you do monthly or yearly goals? I would love to know some of your January 2023 goals?

 

 

 

2024 Goals

First, I want start off by wishing everyone a Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a safe and wonderful New Years. This year we decided to stay home, had some dinner, watched a movie together, and played a few games. I cannot believe that it's 2024 and that it's also time to share my yearly goals. I plan to share my January 2024 goals this week. I also plan to share some posts describing how I reset for the new year. So be on the lookout for those posts in the coming days and weeks.

 

In 2024 I want to.....

• read at least 24 books
• have a successful year blogging
• set up a fitness plan  and stick to it
• complete the 75 soft challenge one time
  
• eat healthier
• have at least 2 at home date nights with the Hubby
• have more family movie/game nights
• celebrate special and wacky holidays with the girls
  
• work on my meal plan
• launch my meal planner on Amazon
  
• launch my daily planner on Amazon
• Launch my Payhip store (digital products)
• Add products to my Teachers Pay Teachers store
  
• Work on social media (Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok) 
• Set up Patreon for my blog and my Payhip and TpT stores
  
• set and establish routines and habits
  

What are some of your goals for 2024?