Monthly Musings: Ways We Make Our Weeks Easier

I haven't answered one of these Monthly Musings in forever, but I liked this topic -Ways We Make Our Weeks Easier. I am not an organized person by nature {thanks, Dad!}, but having a family of 5 it really is so much better when I try a little harder to fight my nature, ha.

1. Paper planner, digital calendar or other option?

I LOVE our digital calendar from Skylight. We've had it maybe 2 years now, and it's awesome. Everyone has a color, I can add to it from the calendar or an app on my phone, I can assign chores, make lists. It's the BEST. 

2. Meal planning, meal prep or wing it?

I try to meal plan, it doesn't always work {see above about my disorganized soul}, but life is definitely better when we have a plan. It usually ends up being 2-3 meals/week with leftovers or thrown together 'things'. {The girls love to ask for a 'plate of food' and that's just me throwing a protein, a fruit, and a veggie on a plate.} I do have a goal this year of trying more new recipes, but that's hard with the picky eaters I have. {Last week I made tomato soup and a dumpling bake, neither were big hits. I've got spring rolls, sausage & chicken jambalaya, and baked chicken tzatziki up next!} There are 2 things everyone will eat - spaghetti and tacos, so it gets really discouraging to try new things...and no one eats it. 

3. Do you choose your outfit the night before?

Nope. But given I work from home and wear workout clothes, there's no need! I do try to get Paige to pick her outfits out as she is D.I.F.F.I.C.U.L.T. about clothes. She can derail the whole morning.

4. Tips for managing laundry and ironing

I don't iron on a regular basis, so I just do it when needed. What's great about having older kids is Drew and Trent are now doing their own laundry!! The downside to big kids is they are great about washing/drying, but they are NOT great about getting them out of the dryer and back in their rooms. Ha! Working from home is great here too because I can always throw a load in during the day and keep things moving. 

5. Grocery shop instore or online?

ONLINE all the way! We have a Texas-only grocery store chain that everyone in Texas LOVES. Their app makes online shopping easy peasy, and you can choose curbside pickup or delivery. I usually do curbside as there aren't any outrageous additional fees - a slight markup for the groceries themselves {unless you need it super quickly} but some days delivery saves me. I do just about anything to avoid actually going inside the grocery store. {grin}

6. Best tips for getting out the door in the morning without chaos?

Do as much as you can the night before! I pack lunches, tell the girls to pack their backpacks, try to get Paige to get her outfit organized, etc. The more we have done the night before, the easier the morning is to manage.

7. Share your easiest dinners for crazy weeks

The crockpot is your friend. The easiest meal I make in the crockpot is frozen chicken breast, salsa, corn, and black beans - you can cook it all together, add some grated cheese, and serve over rice or tortilla chips or eat in a tortilla. We've also done fun grilled cheese sandwiches or quesadillas for quick meals.

8. Best tips to keep your house organized during the week

3 tips: 

1) Start the week off in a good place. I try to get the house cleaned up on Sunday {making everyone pitch in!} - it's so much easier to keep it nice if the week starts off good. 

2) Do a little bit throughout the day. Again this one I'm lucky to work from home because I can wipe down the counters or organize the pillows on the couch, etc. while on a call or while I'm warming up lunch, etc. 

3) Get your kids involved! I'm not great at this, but I'm really working on making the kids pick up after themselves RIGHT AWAY. I will go get a kid out of their room to put their plate in the dishwasher. And then go get them again if they left their silverware out. It shouldn't be all on me!

9. Share your easiest breakfast.

I love to make sausage balls on a Sunday. Then I can warm them up {or not because they are delicious cold} and pair with a fruit for the girls. {Trent doesn't eat breakfast.} They're also great in their lunches too. Or a quick 'I'm not cooking dinner'. Basically they're perfect.

10. Share your Best overall tip not covered yet.

This one is going to seem so silly because it took Brent and me 20 years to start doing it, but we now make our bed every morning. It makes our room look so much better and gets my mind right to keep moving in a positive direction.