Works For Me Wednesday

This is something that HAS worked for me in the past and I'm starting to do again to make my life EASIER!

"Precooking your ground beef, chicken, etc..."

Did you buy ground beef in bulk?
Is meatloaf on the menu tonight?
Are you making some chicken breast or thighs and bought those in bulk?
Why not just double up?

Basically, if you are going to make meatloaf for dinner, why not make two instead of one and freeze the extra?

Bought a 3lb package of ground beef? Separate them into 1lb portions, fry them up and freeze them individually.

Cooking Chicken breast? Why not just go ahead and double up, slice the extra up and stick it in the freezer for a future meal?

TRUST ME, this makes life a whole lot easier! Especially if your in your 3rd trimester,LOL!
Seriously though, it's a budge saver too! Some nights we are just TOO TIRED to cook and it is so easy to say "let's grab a bite to eat" which isn't always the healthiest on our bodies or our wallets. It doesn't take that much longer to do and saves time and dishes later on.

Ground Beef already cooked from the freezer:
* Tacos
* Soups
*Casseroles

Sliced up Chicken already cooked from the freezer:
*Fajitas
* Casseroles
* Salads (great for summer)

Really, the options are endless and I LOVED taking cooked meat out of the freezer, microwaving it and making tacos with no skillets to wash and eating on paper plates for an easy night on me!

Don't stop there, these are just a couple ideas to get your creative juices flowing!

Works For Me Wednesday

Coupon Organizing
Putting inserts in file boxes.


Got the idea here.

It has REALLY worked for me and is SO easy to find the inserts that way. I don't staple mine like she does because I usually only have a couple/few of each week and that's a little too much work for me. :o)

Works For Me Wednesday

"Shiny Sink"

For me, there is nothing better than coming downstairs in the morning to a spotless kitchen. It makes the whole downstairs feel "clean" to me, crazy I know but it really does. I've had many conversations with friends about our homes feeling chaotic and out of our control at times and once it gets bad, it's usually so overwhelming to get back on track and feels like an enormous burden! Each night before I go upstairs, I add any of the dishes we've accumulated after dinner to the dishwasher, spray down the counters one last time and wipe out the sink. I push start on the dishwasher and head on upstairs for the night!
DONE.

About a year or two ago, I found FlyLady. This is a GREAT website designed to help you take control of your home. It's a great motivator, but was a little too much for me to stick with, but then again I am NOTORIOUS for starting something and not sticking to it. :o) If you do very well with lots of structure, you may love it and stick with it better than I did. Who knows, maybe I'll get back on her daily email list again.

Anyway, the #1 thing I did stick with and LOVE is the "spotless sink" idea. Basically, it's kind of corny but FlyLady says...


"Your very first BabyStep is to go shine your sink. Don’t listen to those voices that tell you that is not going to help your messy house. This is exactly where I started and this little habit has changed my life! Take this BabyStep in faith and go do it. Here are the directions for shining your kitchen sink. After you do this; you will keep it shiny by drying it out after each time you use it and making sure when you go to bed that it is shining so it will make you smile in the morning. This is how I get to hug you each day! That shiny sink is a reflection of the love that you have for yourself."

To learn more about it, you can check her out here and sign up. It is of no cost and you get cute little motivating emails daily to keep you going.

Works For Me Wednesday

I am going to try to stick to "weekly" Works for me Wednesday tips to share with all my fellow mamas out there!

This week's Topic:

LAUNDRY . . . "Does it EVER go away?"
Simply answered... "NO!"

How do I keep up with one of my most DREADED household tasks (besides the bathrooms of course!)?

* A LOAD A DAY *

Each night before I go to bed, I pop a load in the washer. If it's a day the kids and I stayed in pjs (come on, we ALL love those days!) then I leave them in there and just add to it the next night.
*
As soon as I wake up in the morning (always try to get up 30 minutes before kids to have some quiet time) I pop those clothes in the dryer. When my 3 year old wakes up, I sit him at the table to eat and fold away.
*
Now, the hard part....putting them away!
I have one of those mesh 3 compartment lightweight baskets that I keep in the laundry room downstairs (or you can use individual baskets). I sort the folded clothes in there, hang the ones that need to be RIGHT OUT OF THE DRYER, and head upstairs once my little one is done with his breakfast and is ready to change his diaper and get dressed for the day.
*
Head upstairs, make a stop in each room (usually his first) and take the 3 minutes or so to make the bed and put the clothes away.
*
This routine for all three bedrooms takes me under 15 minutes and my biggest task is done for the day!
*

I know it seems like it's broken down so much and I am NOT A STRICT ROUTINE type of person, BUT this is something I've stuck with for quite a while and it just works for me. My mindset is totally different when by 9am, I have no dirty clothes and cleaned up bedrooms. It makes me ready for my day!

Hope this tip helps some of you, tailor it to your family's needs and schedules of course!

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!!