I, like many of you, struggle to keep my head from rolling off of my shoulders at times. I've been pondering of how I can continue to press forward with my love for blogging, give my peanut all of the love and attention that her squishy-self deserves, keep the home from burning down, and staying dedicated and motivated at work. If there were 2 more of me, that'd be great, but since there's not, I have come up with a few ways to stay organized and simplify this amazing, extraordinary life that I am loving as a new mother.
First up, the computer. We're a technology-driven generation who relies so much on the electronics that we keep close at hand. One of my biggest power-sucking favorites is my laptop. I use her for everything. (Sidebar... have you ever realized that everything in your life is a her? My bike... she was beautiful. My laptop, I love her. My car, her name is Remi. Interesting thought, right?... okay, moving on!) Back to the laptop... how many of you are like me and use your computer for everything, so your background looks a little something like this....
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It takes you more time to find the file you're looking for than it does to work on it! I needed a little simplicity... starting with organizing my desktop. I opened up my Control Panel, looked at the dimensions in pixels of my screen, and got to work in Pic Monkey. What I love about this little hack is you can find literally any type of background image you want on Pinterest. Want it to have Fall leaves and cocoa mugs in the background for the upcoming months? Do it. Are rain drops and dragonflies your thing? I'm sure you can find that to. I opted for a pop of color with a floral-feel, and threw in a few square boxes to organize it to suit my current needs. I love my new background!
Next on the list... we won't be going into too much detail about this one (spoiler alert, keep a look out this weekend for all details behind this beauty). My new planner cover! You're going to get an inside look at how I am keep afloat with my day to day shenanigans plans. But since I just got my A5 planner cover in the mail this afternoon, I couldn't miss the opportunity to show it off in a quick sneak peek! Isn't she beautiful! My love for the color mint now gets to be with me everywhere I go!
Okay, I know it's cruel to show you nothing but a cover of something that's so fantastic, but it really does deserve it's own little breakdown. So, to keep your inquiring mind off of those gorgeous 6 rings of goodness... let's get into the deep stuff. Cooking. For the past 5 months I have been trying to figure out how to juggle work, then picking up peanut, and getting a good cooked meal on the table. A light bulb went off and I knew just what to do... Pinterest to the rescue!
I created a board with 7 meals. That's it. 7. No more scrolling through my dinner board that has 563 recipes to figure out which one I want. I now decide in the beginning of the week what I'll be making, and move those recipes into my new board for the week. At the end of the week, I clear them out and lather, rinse, repeat. Now all my recipes are easy to find and even quicker to throw together!
Is anyone else already doing this? Am I just slow on the roll? This literally has saved me all week. I knew what I'd be making, and what I needed, and the recipes were just on click away! And now I have enough One Pot Cajun Pasta to last week for the next 17 meals since I haven't quite gotten the hang of cooking in smaller portions. Oh well, waste not!
Finally, when you have all of these delicious recipes at your finger tips, of course you're going to need to do a little grocery shopping! Admittedly, grocery shopping is my "me time". In order to get the most out of that half hour I spend browsing around the grocery store, I created a pretty little printable to make sure I get the job done efficiently. Now I just pop over to my menu board and scribble down what I need, and boom! I'm set and ready to go! Isn't it lovely?1
There you have it, friends! These are the quick little things I have put into place that have helped me simplify the ever-growing craziness of life. I am so happy for everything that has come my way, but I am only human and some days I feel like I am doing the juggling act in a one-woman circus. Do you have any tips or tricks to keep the hectic schedules at bay? Stay tuned for the best part yet, and the possibility to score your own version of one of my favorite organizing tools :)