I like to be organized and sometimes it actually happens. I get overwhelmed when things are out of order. Moving 2 kids into our house and life has created a massive challenge and plenty of confusion. I will not tell a lie. It has been overwhelming at times. So lately I’ve focused on ways to change the chaos into complete serenity one step at a time. OK, I get that serenity is likely a long way off but some day they will move out like the others did!
My approach is simple, deal with what I am able to now and work towards future projects. I’d like to tackle one big project a week just to keep my expectations at a sensible level so I don’t disappoint myself. One project was to create office “space” for Papa to work with. He often works from home and uses the dining room table because there aren’t a lot of options now that the office houses bunk beds. I brought a cabinet into the dining room to store his officey stuff in so he now has easy office clean up without piles of books, printer, laptop all going in different directions. This should make his life a little easier and the house a little neater.
We have also been working at putting the living room back together after the fireplace removal in November and December. That was a huge task that isn’t quite complete. The cabinets are built and in place but I need to finish painting and then doors can be added. This should get the living room to a more organized state.
Being a working mom is tough. I don’t know how a lot of moms do it with young kids. I remember my mom working when I was a teenager and I would help out by starting supper before she came home. However, with little kids they just can’t do that! So everyone lands home at its crazy time because everyone is hungry and food has to be prepared and there is only so much time to manage everything before bedtime for kids. I decided to change my approach to this issue that some days can really wear me out or we eat food that isn’t the best option for us (pre prepared garbage). I needed a plan that was a healthy option and could make life easier… I found Pinterest.
Pinterest, for those of you who have yet to discover it, is a virtual bulletin board where ideas can be saved (pinned) and shared with others. The ideas are endless. For a few days I just looked and looked but then I realized that looking makes nothing happen. So I looked and found inspiration. It started with my bathroom that was waiting for paint. I had the paint and supplies ready but had not made the time to tackle it. When I saw my color on Pinterest and how serene it was I was off and painting! Bathroom paint finished and I am one step closer to my serenity. OK I just showed you what Pinterest does to people… off on a tangent because one idea leads to another.
Let’s get back to my plan. Meal preparation. I prefer to eat real food not processed food so when I found the idea to make ahead and freeze meals to throw in the slow cooker the wheels started to turn. List in hand I picked up all items I would need to make 8 meals. 2 each of 4 recipes. I got a little carried away on a couple of ingredients because when it’s on sale you need to double the supply. I ended up preparing 14 meals for $99 so in the end a family of 4 will be fed for $7 – try doing that at McDonalds! One afternoon of chopping, dividing, bagging and freezing. Now when I work late and there is nobody home to start supper it can be waiting in the Crock Pot. So simple… what took me so long to try this? Everything for a meal is stored in one bag – meat, veggies, seasoning. The bags are labelled with instructions –for example: add 1 cup water cook low for 8 hours, serve on rice. I expect this supply will last us into March and then I’ll have another Prep Day.
I’m still thinking about what the next project will be. I might need more Pinterest time to get inspired again!

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This entry was posted on Friday, February 10th, 2012 at 11:41 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.