Laundry is one of those things … Some people like it, some hate it, some ignore it, some obsess over it. Here’s the thing though –  EVERYONE has to do it (unless you’re wealthy enough to hire someone to do all of it for you of course). Ignore it, let it pile up and take over your closets – it still needs to be done.

Here’s where I’m at. I don’t love laundry but I don’t hate it. Putting clothes away annoys me for some reason. I truly detest ironing and find as many clever ways as possible to avoid it. Most importantly though – I almost never let it get behind.

This wasn’t always the case. In the past I would wait as long as possible to do my laundry. I have no earthly idea what nonsensical reasoning was telling me that waiting to do my laundry all at once, in one miserable marathon session, would make it easier, but that was exactly my habit. In college I could go through $15 in quarters in one day, trying to catch up my laundry. I think that’s pretty typical for a 19-year-old. I’m not 19 years old anymore though and I’m guessing that you’re not either.

As a former laundry piler, I’d like to offer a few tips on how I keep our laundry under control.

Have a place for dirty laundry

You can’t be mad at your husband for leaving his dirty socks on the floor if there isn’t an accessible place for him to put them. Where should your kids put their dirty bath towels? Make it easy on your family members and yourself by having designated spots. I have one hamper in my daughter’s room, two in my room and one in the laundry room that’s for towels, napkins, rags, etc. This works well for me. Find out what works for you.

Avoid catch-all spots

We have a glider in our bedroom that always seems to have something thrown on it. It was in a convenient spot where it was easy to toss things. I moved the glider and made a decision that nothing was going to be on it. Every time an article of clothing ended up there, I threw it on the floor. Maybe that doesn’t sound any better to you but for some reason, I’m much more apt to pick things up off the floor rather than off my bed or the chair. I have a point to all this – if you have a catch-all spot where clothes pile up in your room, do something about it.

Have it sorted

I don’t like to handle dirty laundry any more than I have to. With kids in the house the dirty laundry can be pretty icky sometimes (I assume the same applies if you have teenage boys?). So, I sort-of pre-sort. For instance, the hamper in the laundry room that holds towels, dish cloths and napkins – only holds those things. When it’s full I toss it all in the washer. No, or very little, sorting required.

In my bedroom I have a green hamper and a white hamper. They fit nicely in the closet, out of sight. The green hamper holds all the colors/darks and the white hamper holds the whites/lights. Again, when a hamper gets full I just take it to the washer and put it all in.

Put it away

Earlier this week I found myself in an annoying spot – I’d gotten a little behind on my laundry. It’s unusual for me to be that behind so I determined to spend the whole day catching it up. I had 6 loads of laundry. 6 loads of laundry makes a LOT of folded piles. As I stated earlier, I don’t like putting laundry away. However, I purposed beforehand that I wouldn’t get behind on the putting away and that I’d try to have one load put away before the next was dumped on the couch. By the end of the day I’d done it – all of the laundry was washed, dried, folded and put away. I thought to myself – I like keeping up with it MUCH better.

Let me tell you friends, it feels good to be caught up on laundry on a regular basis. I’m not perfect at it but I’m much better than I used to be. How do you fare? Is laundry the dreaded chore that’s always behind or have you found a way to manage things that works for you?

As a side note, I found a blog a little while ago about all things laundry called Mama’s Laundry Talk. It’s cute and definitely worth checking out!

Why I do what I do ~ I think dentists need to change what they are called to something a little more kid-friendly. Chloe is going for her first cleaning tomorrow. I said, “Chloe, tomorrow you get to do a grown up thing and go with Mama to the dentist!” She started crying. I asked if she knew what the dentist was. She said, “No, but I don’t want it!” Oh boy … I can see this is going to go well.

photo by .j.e.n.n.y.

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I’m a changing season kind of a girl. As the season changes approach, I anticipate them with a little excitement. I live in the northeast of the United States where season change is pretty drastic. We have very long winters, long springs, short summers and short autumns (in my opinion at least).

There are some things I love about the change from summer to autumn; things like crisp air, apple picking, brilliant foliage, pumpkins, mums, cider and all the spicy scents I associate with the season. There’s another aspect that isn’t quite as obvious though; the return of routine. Summer is a little more carefree for us. On nice days I try to get out with the girls and do something fun. We have trips, short vacations, camps and excursions planned all throughout the summer that disrupt the ebb and flow of life. I like the distractions and the new, fun things but I don’t think I could take the sort of schedule year ’round. By the time autumn rolls around I’m primed for it.

I’m ready to settle back in for a somewhat predictable routine. Life calms down for a minute and I get to take a little breath. It feels good. It’s fine to let things go for a bit. My menu planning and grocery shopping were a little haphazard this past month and my cleaning schedule has been pretty haywire (read: frantically get to it when I can). Also, Chloe skipped more nap times than I would have liked, which left us both slightly cranky at times. I’m alright with those things every now and then but I’m going to feel happy about settling back into our routine. I find comfort in the predictable parts of my life.

Here’s why:

• When I have a plan and a schedule that remains similar from week to week there are fewer things forgotten.
• When my meals and grocery list are put together properly I spend less and eat better.
• When the kids are in the flow of their routine their attitudes are much more compliant and generally happy.
• When I’m in the groove of my regular schedule I feel less frazzled.
• When I have a plan of attack for regular housework that is generally the same each week, I can usually get it all done.
• When my house is together-ish and the kids are happy-ish it makes me one smilin’ mama … which makes David one smilin’ hubby.

See the circular effect here? Are you a routine kind of a person or do you thrive off the unexpected? What about the change of seasons? Are you as wild about them as I am? When do you love the most about autumn? (I think it’s so much prettier to call it autumn rather than fall).

Why I do what I do ~ We were in the car a few days ago when Chloe randomly asked me if she could ride the “Miracle Round.” That’s right – the Merry-Go-Round that I apparently keep in my trunk

photo credit: DeaPeaJay

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One of the ways I take the annoyance out of the meal-planning/grocery shopping routine is with Meal Cards. I’ve been using these for a few years now and they have really helped me out. I’ve mentioned them before but I thought I’d take the opportunity to introduce the idea on it’s own today.

I’m not a really creative food person. I don’t have the envious talent of finding things in the pantry and creating something new and fantastic on a whim. It just doesn’t come to me. (That’s why I like RecipeZaar) I am a decent cook though. I just need to have a good idea.

Enter- Meal Cards. Here’s what I do: I write the name of a meal I know our family likes on the top of an index card. Under the name of each meal I write the ingredients needed to make it and where the recipe is located (online, cook book). Then, each time I think of another meal we like or we try a new one that we end up liking I add another card. They are like recipe cards but easier. I’m sure you could do an easy version of this in a spreadsheet. I just like the ease of being able to grab an index card right out of the box the moment I think of it.

So, when I sit down each week to do my menu planning I grab this little stack of cards, pick out some meals, check the listed ingredients and add the ones I’m lacking to my grocery list. It’s like it does the thinking for me. I don’t have to look up each recipe to see if I have all the ingredients because the information is all right there.

Here’s that Shepherd’s Pie recipe that Kelli asked for

Why I do what I do ~ I had to make a trip to the grocery store tonight for a forgotten ingredient (it happens to the best of us). It was just Chloe and I. We began walking through the parking lot when Chloe froze, began to tremble and pointed ahead saying, “Mommy, save it” in the most desperate tone. Frantic, I looked ahead in the busy parking lot and saw nothing. A little panicked, my eyes open a little wider, I ask “Save what?” She hoarsely responded, tears filling her eyes, “my grape.” I peered about 20 feet ahead of us and saw a small grape, gently rolling through the parking lot away from us. Holding her hand I gracefully chased it down and ‘rescued’ it. She stopped and looked at me. “I need it,” she whimpered. I looked at the grape, to say it was caked in dirt would be an understatement. I told her it was too dirty and I’d have to throw it out but I’d buy some more in the store. That one just wasn’t good for eating anymore. She began to cry right then and there, not the bratty-child cry (we all know that one), she began to cry the broken-heart cry. I melted. I rubbed the graped on my jeans, put some spit on it, rubbed it again, wiped it with my shirt until it looked shiny again and handed it to her. Her eyes lit up, she ate it and I prayed she wasn’t ingesting motor oil. Go ahead – judge me. There are worse things

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You may or may not have noticed that I’ve been away for a bit. I’ve been absent from Twitter, haven’t kept up with my Reader and sat back as the unread messages in my email inbox steadily multiplied. I had a lot going on this month so I had no other choice but to sit back and allow some things in my life to get ahead of me.

Ordinarily I like to keep up with things. I begin getting nervous if I feel like I’m getting behind in anything. If I perceive the possibility in any given week that I may not get everything done that needs to it makes my chest tighten a little and I begin to get all anxious inside. Some of you may be rolling your eyes at me, a self-professed control freak, while others are nodding in agreement, but whatever your reaction please understand that for me, letting go of things takes courage.

Under no circumstances do I willingly allow things to fall behind. I must be forced to step back as I wring my hands, wondering if everything I hold on to so tightly will dissolve into nothing without me. I realize how this makes me sound – self-centered, truly it is not a healthy attitude and one I continually submit to God, but I’m trying to be honest here. Now for the good news – I should really know better by now because each time I’m forced to take that step back I’m greeted with an unanticipated side effect – a clear head. I’m able to come back to each thing with new-found clarity; a new purpose, goal or idea that excites me.

• I was away from my husband for 6 days and you all know from his trip to Peru how well I deal with that. I came home to him wanting to be a better wife.
• I was away from my blog, writing, and all to do with that for a week, but ended up leaving it alone for over 2 weeks. I’m back now and I can’t wait to pick things up again. I love this blog. You’re all still reading, right?
• I was away from my house and coming and going so much that I got behind on my housework. Oh do I hate that. I’m home now and tackling things in a sensible manner, not an all-or-nothing frenzy. I can’t wait to make my home refreshing again.

I think there are a lot of things in life that can benefit from taking a step back – finances, jobs, relationships, ministries. Sometimes we (I) just need a breather, a moment to catch our breath and regain that beautiful perspective that makes things right. I’m grateful for my step back. I think it renewed my outlook in a healthy way. I’m looking forward to what’s ahead for my little space that you all honor me by reading.

Why I do what I do ~ I made strawberry Jell-O for the girls today. After they woke from their naps I told them I had made it and they were all excited. One of my nieces yelled, “We’re having Yellow!”

photo credit: Search Engine People Blog

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This post was originally published on October 30, 2008. Enjoy! ~Nicki

Ahhh … such a weakness for me. My intentions are good. I just want to help. I don’t want to let anyone down. Of course I can do that.

I’ll be plain and to the point on this one. Just because you have the time or the means to do a particular thing does not mean that you should do it. In short, just because you can doesn’t mean you should. You can over-commit in different ways.

• Your Time. You will be far more fulfilled when you do a few things well, not many things mediocre. Look at your schedule for the week. What things are absolute must-dos? Maybe things like grocery shopping, housework, cooking supper, caring for your children, or a date with your husband. Take care of the must-dos, but don’t feel like you always have to be the cupcake-maker, field trip-goer, church cleaner, and volunteerer. You are not the savior of everything. Say no sometimes! Again … don’t get me wrong, you should be positively contributing to your community in a selfless way, but never at the expense of your own family.
• Your Kids’ Time. Hmmm, a tough one. I’ll leave it at this: Do not allow your children to be involved in so many things that they can’t possibly become great at one of them. If your child wants to play a sport, take dance lessons, music lessons and also be on the chess team, when is she going to have time to practice all of those things? The over-scheduling lifestyle begins very early. Help your child develop healthy time-management skills while she is still young.
• Your Money. Have you scheduled every last penny? Are you honestly betting that not one little, unexpected event will come up? If you can’t change your income, then you have to change your expenses. Weed out the budget. Over-committing your finances is a trap, an anxiety-maker, and a fight-causer. Don’t do it. If you want the best for your family, clean up the finances and let money be the least important thing in your life. For more on this, check out Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover.

Have you ever given something up for the sake of a less-stressful schedule? It’s tough but I’ve done it and it was definitely worth it. What do you think?

Why I do what I do ~ so that my nieces can come to my house instead of daycare while my sister is working. I love to hear them yell “Auntie Nicki!”

photo credit: Brief Gasp

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I have a really busy week going on right now. We just got back from camping, which means unpacking and washing a ridiculous amount of stuff (it rained the whole time). While I’m cleaning up from the camping trip, I’m also preparing to leave again on Sunday. Chloe and I are going to be away at a Kids Camp for a week where I’ll be heading up the crafts and helping with activities. Unpacking from one trip to pack for another. Normal for some of you, completely insane for a person that must be prepared for absolutely every scenario, like me.

What’s a girl to do? I have a LOT of things to get done over the next few days and I need to find a way to do what I need and not be a frazzled mess to my family. To be honest, it’s a real challenge. I can be ready and have everything perfect when I leave – house spotless, cupboards stocked for hubby and almost everything else I own packed for me and Chloe. It would come at a cost though – stress and chaos in my home. Is it really worth it? I don’t think so.

The first logical thing to do is prioritize, right? I make a list of everything that needs to get done with the most important things at the top. Usually, this works well for me. I’m motivated to get through the items at the top of my list to try and tackle the less-urgent to-do’s, feeling more energized each time I cross a new item off the list. You notice I said that usually works for me.

Then there are weeks like I’m having right now – crazy weeks. There are too many things to fit into my waking hours and I’m too grouchy of a person to sacrifice my sleeping hours. I prioritize the best I can but I’m just overwhelmed with the number of things that have to be done along side all of the usual things that fill my days. I work and work and everything still seems to be in upheaval. I don’t feel like I’m making any progress. So here’s what I did – my moment of brilliance and clarity in the whirlwind I like to call my home – I decided what things I’m NOT going to do.

I crossed off:

• Keep my house picked up. While my house remains messy for a better part of the day, carpeted with things like naked Barbies, plastic dinosaurs and mounds of laundry, I usually pick it up every afternoon so that each night I go to bed with a somewhat-picked-up house. Not this week.
• Sew a messenger bag. I know this sounds weird but I’ve really been wanting to sew a cool, new bag for myself to carry my new netbook in – I even have all the materials for the project. It’s not happening this week though.
• Make crowd-pleasing meals. I ordinarily try to make a few meals a week that I know my hubby and/or daughter will drool over. These meals frequently take more time or energy. Not this week. We had bacon, eggs and home fries tonight.
• Stock pantry. This wasn’t actually on my list. This is more of a “wish I could do this for you honey” task. Truth is though, he’s great at grocery shopping – yes, on a budget – and also great at cooking his own meals. So he’s actually the one to cross this off my list. *MWAH*
• Writing extra blog posts. I don’t have the time to spare to write double the amount of posts for next week while I’m away, so I’m not going to. I’m going to republish a few posts from 6 months ago when only 8 of you were reading them (you know who you are – you guys are awesome ) Hopefully all of my new readers will enjoy them and we can get a little conversation going. Back when my blog was a couple months old my site crashed and I lost all comments on my early posts, so let’s generate some new ones!
• Keep up with Twitter and my Reader. Sorry, you probably won’t catch more than a glimpse of me on Twitter and I probably won’t read your posts until next week, forgive me? I’ll get to them, just not this week.
• Line-drying clothes. Go ahead. Think I’m terrible. So far I don’t feel bad because it’s been raining every day anyway. Ordinarily I try to plan my laundry so that I do most of it on days that are dry and breezy. Not this week though. I’ll hang out towels or sheets but all of our clothes are jumping right in the dryer this week.

Crossing off a few items with no intention whatsoever of doing them – was freeing. Instead of not being able to get to these tasks and feeling guilty about all of the things I didn’t accomplish, I chose not to do them, freeing myself to focus on my newly-shortened list – which is still long but for some reason, feels a lot more do-able. I’ve given myself permission to cheat this week – no, it’s not a new lifestyle, not at all but it is helping me take a breath and get done what I need to and that feels good.

Why I do what I do ~ I videoed Chloe sitting at the piano and playing while singing songs she made up. It was really adorable. I loaded it on the computer and let her watch it. She immediately hopped off my lap when it was over and ran over to the piano. “I want another movie Mommy.” I recorded for 8 more mintutes while she did things like smile at the camera, take reflective pauses and purposefully not finish songs so I’d keep recording, assuring me, “I’m almost done.”

photo credit: ManoharD

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We live our lives out and our minutes turn into hours, days and weeks and then one day we look back on them and see from a distance what has been occupying our time. Sometimes we’re pleased with what we find and other times we realize that our priorities need a little shuffle. At one point or another, most bloggers end up writing the “priorities post.” At least most of the bloggers that I read have written it. Well, here’s mine.

If you’ve maintained a blog for more than a month and kept it up then chances are excellent that you really love doing it. Blogging isn’t instantly rewarding and there isn’t much to gain from it at first unless you’re one of those overnight successes. That said, there’s something addicting about it, something that draws me to write, to work on it, to generate new ideas and explore new ways to engage my readers. There’s something that connects me to the people that are kind enough to read my words and share their thoughts. There’s something that makes me want to do well and make this thing a success.

Whatever it is that draws me toward blogging can also very easily draw me away from other things. I think it’s similar to my relationship with chocolate. I love it but I can’t have it exclusively. There must be – balance. My life, like most people, is pretty full and the summer only makes things busier. You might have noticed, although I suspect not, that my posting has been slightly lighter for about a month now. I decreased from 6 posts per week down to 5. I no longer post on the weekend at all and occasionally I’ve missed a week day too.

Not too long ago that really frustrated me. If I don’t write then there’s nothing new on my site.  There’s another cool thing about blogging though – it keeps you accountable. I can’t write about priorities and emphasizing what’s important in life without first examining my own. Sometimes our priorities can be dead-on right in our head but wrong in how they’re played out. This website is important to me but it isn’t even close to most important. So I’ve made a choice – I’m not going to put myself under that kind of pressure anymore. I’m going to do the best I can and leave it at that – for now.

I’m working on a priority shuffle and schedule shuffle. For me they go hand in hand right now. I need to figure out the balance of taking care of the things I’m responsible for (cleaning the bathroom, grocery shopping) while keeping my focus on the things I love (God, my family). Blogging isn’t part of either of those categories but falls in the category “This makes me feel great about myself and I really enjoy it.” Hmmmm … balance.

Here’s what I used to do – work on my blog during the girls’ nap time. This isn’t working for me anymore. Their naps are changing and I don’t get as big of a time slot as I used to and it’s tough for me to make up time when it gets cut short.

Here’s what I need to do now - figure out which days will work best to work on my blog in the evenings and fit all my work into those slots. This might not sound like that big of a deal but it really is. Routine is important to me because it’s what makes things run smoothly around here. I don’t like to mess with it if I don’t have to.

Here’s what I need from you – patience. You’ve already shown it if you’re still reading this post. I’d also appreciate some feedback. Leave a comment or send me an email and let me know what you like about my site. My time will be best spent writing things you actually want to read

Don’t worry, I’m not even close to being out of ideas, not at all. I presently have 13 drafts waiting to be nurtured and a bunch of others buzzing around my brain. I just haven’t had the time to pour into them that I’d like and I hate to poorly develop an idea that I really like. I like what my site is turning into and the type of people that it has drawn. It’s exactly what I had hoped for.

Most sincere thanks to each of you for reading my thoughts, ideas and completely-off-topic ramblings. I hope you’ll stick around because once I get my routine back in order I plan to crank out some awesome content

Why I do what I do ~ David introduced me to the world of blogs a while ago. He mentioned something about writing one and I brushed him off. Sounds like a lot of work for no reason. I was so very wrong (if there are indeed degrees of “wrong”). For me, blogging has gotten more and more rewarding the longer I’ve been at it, which has been almost 8 months.

~Trivia Question: Can anyone name the Monday-night comedy where a lead character argues that “wrong” is an absolute and not subject to gradation, such as  ”more wrong.” He’s then refuted, “It would be a little wrong to say a tomato is a vegetable, it would be very wrong to say it’s a suspension bridge.” This totally cracks me up. You get a big, fat gold star in my book if you can name the show. (My husband may not answer)

photo credit: visual.dichotomy

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Today I decided to clean out Chloe’s closet. It’s the collection spot for all things out-grown, off-season or just in my way. It got to the point where things began to fall out on me when I opened the doors (sort of like my freezer was). I thought it could probably use some attention so I decided to make it my nap-time project.

Well, it should have been my weekend project. There are not words for how ridiculous this mess is. I am completely ashamed of myself for letting it get to this point. I’m a stinkin’ stay-at-home mom! THIS is the stuff I’m supposed to be doing! Anyway … moving along.

The best way to deal with a heaping mess of this degree is to lay it all out so you can get an idea of everything that needs attention. As I write this I have piles all around my living room. Clothes are sorted by size and other items by purpose. I have a throw out pile, a sell pile and a few things I’d like to save. It’s tricky for us because we intend to have more children (or at least one more) so we don’t want to get rid of too many things but the amount that we’re saving is beginning to get overwhelming.

When the space in my home is not being utilized in a productive manner it becomes more of a nuisance than a blessing. My daughter has a fairly large closet, which I loved when we moved into our home but I have allowed it to enable my laziness rather than help me be more efficient. When my daughter was an infant I had a really great system for packing her things away in an organized manner. I would save empty diaper boxes and place them next to her hamper in the closet. Then every time I did laundry I would toss any outgrown clothing into the box so that her dresser and closet never had any items in them that were too small. As soon as the box was full I’d take it out to the shed and replace it with a new one. That worked really well for me while Chloe wore diapers but she hasn’t worn them for over a year now so my system has halted.

The worst part about being unorganized with kids clothes is that you have no idea what you have. Which means …

1. You don’t know what you need so you purchase things you may already own.
2. You can’t find what you think you must own so you end up needing to purchase it.
3. You can’t bless anyone else that may need something you have because you can’t find it.
4. You don’t purchase the things you actually need because their dressers are full of clothes that don’t fit them.

Kids grow out of clothes fast … really fast. It’s tough to remain organized and know exactly what you have and be aware of the things your child needs under the best circumstances. What I have done with Chloe’s closet is so far from being the best circumstances that it’s not even within sight of them. I’ve made my blessing into a liability. I need a fresh start. The closet is currently empty and I’ll put (fewer) things back into it tomorrow … with an empty box next to the hamper.

What do you do with your children’s outgrown clothes? Do you have a great system that works for you or do you have a closet like Chloe’s?

Why I do what I do ~ Becoming a mom has made me into an emotional sap (ok … I already was one but now I’m worse). Seeing all those tiny baby clothes makes my throat threaten to close and my eyes get all stingy. I can’t even clean out a closet without a mini-meltdown.

photo credit: -Marlith-

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I began having this problem a few weeks ago. Preoccupied, I’d open the freezer quickly only to have my reflexes tested as a frozen item darted my way, threatening to impale me. Every time I’d clench my teeth, ever so gently replace the item and mutter, “I’ve got to clean out this freezer.” I don’t know how many times that happened, more than 10, before I finally decided I didn’t want to lose a tooth to a pound of frozen beef (I’m short, they fly right at my face). It was time to organize/clean out the freezer.

To my surprise, it didn’t take very long at all. The first thing I did was bring the trash can, lid off, over near the fridge. I knew I’d need it. Then, I quickly pulled everything out of the freezer and set everything in piles on my kitchen floor (if this is going to take you more than a couple minutes you’ll want to use coolers), including a pile of stuff that needed to go. Then, I placed it all back in the freezer in a more organized manner. I threw out the popsicles from last summer and repackaged the 7 lonely fish sticks in the bargain-sized box, nothing earth shattering. The whole thing took less than 10 minutes.

What’s the result? I know exactly what’s in my freezer. I won’t buy more of something that I already have plenty of and I’ll be able to find what I need without feeling like I’m playing Where’s Waldo. Love it. Also, I can actually buy more things to freeze because I created a little space in there. Before, I was dreading buying anything else frozen because I wasn’t sure how it would fit.

Here’s what it looked like before. This is actually a little embarrassing for me …

But, *pleasant sigh*, this is what it looks like now.

That made me feel so much better … hmmm … what else can I organize? Have you organized anything that really simplified things for you lately? Have you been meaning to organize something?

Why I do what I do ~ This morning Chloe came out of her room with her piggy bank (which we keep up high, I have no idea how she got it) and said, “Mama, piggy’s hungry. He needs some poins.” Me – “He needs some what?” Her – “He needs some poins.” After I got over my giggle and emptied my wallet of all my loose change (about 8 cents) it got me thinking. Is this the start of my ten-year-old saying, “Mom, it’s about time I start getting an allowance.”

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I made some homemade guacamole a few days ago to have it as a healthy snack option this week (as opposed to cookies and ice cream ). I buy the huge bags of tortilla chips because we’re big fans of them but as the chips get lower it gets more and more annoying to store the few chips in the enormous bag.

Of course I could toss them in a smaller bag but in the interest of being less wasteful I came up with a “why haven’t I thought of this before” idea: cut off the top of the bag. Seriously, I have no idea why this seemed ingenious to me but it was a lot less hassle and not as messy. I hate to reach my arm way inside a greasy/salty bag just for a couple chips.

Have you ever had a time when something so obvious occurred to you? Make me feel a little less silly and tell me what it was!

Why I do what I do ~ Today I said to Chloe, “Don’t move a muscle,” in an effort to get her to stand still for 3 seconds. A little while later I heard her say to her cousin, “Stay still, don’t move a whistle!”

YNAB-You need a budget. Yeah you do.

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