Day 30: Seeing the Finish Line

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

In writing all of these posts, I've really tried to write to first help myself.  Selfish, yes, but I think we are all striving to help ourselves feel better and less stressed because then we can impact, help, and love the people around us more.   Like most of us, I struggle daily with little stresses and those evil little thoughts that enter my mind.   After tomorrow I will literally go back and read what I have written and see what I have put into play in my life and what I still need to work on.  What have you started or stopped doing that has helped you have a Less Stressed Nest?  What have you organized or created that made you smile and feel proud?

I always have tried to make my crazy nest a calm, happy place.  Is it easy?  No.  But I love my hubby and kiddos to the ends of their toes.  They are what I do everything for and the reason why I strive to make our home a place of love, happiness, and peace.

Tomorrow will be my last post on this 31 Day adventure!  I can't believe it.  I hope you'll tune in to read it.  Several of the last posts have not linked to all of the other posts in the series--I am working on that, so if you've missed any of the posts, you can catch up.  I can't wait to finish all of the projects I shared and started and have in my head in the coming weeks.

Day 29: Prioritizing Tasks

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Today I wanted to talk about how my little brain thinks when it comes to prioritizing tasks.   I'm curious to know how you go about your tasks when there are a lot of them.  Do you do the most pressing first? The most desirable first?  What kind of task-doer are you?

Tasks can be stressful, that's for sure.  Especially when there are many, many things going on at home or work or both and you are not even sure how you are going to get it all done.  Sound familiar?

Recently one night (okay, tonight) I had to decide whether to tackle many things that needed done for school (gradecards, reports, filing.....) or tackle many cleaning tasks that needed done in my house.  Experience tells me that I always seem to pick what makes me feel better visually.  For example,  I would clean off the counters first before doing the bills because I can't stand the visual clutter and I always have a hard time concentrating on tasks that need a lot of attention when I can see clutter around me.  

When deciding this most recent priority, I knew that lately school is really stressing me out because I always feel behind, scrambling, and like the list of things to do and that are due soon is getting out of hand.  I chose to work on my school stuff at home, even with dirty bathrooms and gross floors.  Normally this would drive me crazy, but the stress of school and the amount of work that needed to be done that I knew I couldn't get done during the school day HAD to get done at home, and SOON.  Putting off cleaning (which I do get help with, but it's more my crazy little self that has a problem with it than anything else) was difficult for me, but I had to make a choice.  The world will not end with my furry floors and icky bathroom sinks.  Will it?

Sometimes you have to weigh the tasks and figure out, in the long run, which is going to give you the most stress relief when you are done.   How do you weigh your tasks?

Day 28: It's Okay When Life Gets in the Way

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Here I am posting for today at 7 PM.  This weekend we were able to go up and see my sweet step-daughter, Kaitlyn, up by Cleveland where she goes to school and is a senior.  It's about 3 hours away from us.  She plays soccer for her college team and today was Senior Day.  We had a nice visit with her yesterday, went to see a movie, then out to dinner and our littlest, Riley,  got to spend the night with big sissy at her apartment, while the boys, hubby, and I stayed in a nearby hotel.

Today during the game today it poured freezing rain.  We huddled together in the stands to cheer for our girl, fighting over umbrellas, grumbling when the neighboring umbrella dripped water on us,  yet giggling and cheering with numb, shaking fingers holding umbrellas and hoods up.  I have no idea how Kaitlyn and the other players played so hard in those conditions.  It was wicked-nasty out.  Riley kept saying, "I don't like that Sandy," referring to the incoming storm.

Now home, a little bit ago I was in our laundry room, sorting all of our weekend getaway items, wet clothing, blankets, gross, rolled-up socks, and winter coats.  

I could have gotten stressed and overwhelmed by those wet piles but I didn't.  I could have worried that I hadn't thought ahead about what I was going to write about for today but I didn't do that, either.  Because when life happens, those fun, memory-filled, proud moments come, you need to be 100% present and grateful and not worried or you'll miss the important stuff.  Being with family is about the most important stuff there is.

Sometimes it's hard to put things in perspective, ranking them in order of importance.  Listening to my daughter read is more important than looking at Pinterest.  Having a good conversation with my hubby is more important than folding laundry.  Showing my boys that I care by stopping what I am doing to help them or really, truly listen to them is more important than blogging.  

I hope you let life get in your way and put things in perspective.  You'll never look back and wish you had folded more laundry or were on your phone more. 

Day 27: Ready, Set, Go! Part 2

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Yesterday I gave you 10 things you can do in 5 minutes or less to help you be more organized and feel in control of your nest.

Today, I've got 10 more!

1.  Wipe down the fronts of all of your appliances
2.  Sweep your front porch, back porch, or both
3.  Throw a load of laundry in,  fold a load of laundry, or put a load of laundry away
4.  Make a phone call you've been meaning to make that will take less than 5 minutes
5.  Go into your e-mail and delete all unwanted/old/unnecessary e-mails
6.  Go into your phone and delete all unwanted/old/unnecessary contacts, texts, voicemails, apps, etc.
7.  Read a magazine article you've been meaning to read.
8.  Sort through your magazines and catalogs--make a pile to keep and a pile to donate or pass on
9.  Wipe out all of your bathroom sinks
10.  Zip around a room in your house that has lots of misplaced items.  Take an empty laundry basket you.  Put all items in the basket that don't belong to that room and have each member of your family put any item that belongs to them away.

Day 26: 5 Minutes...Ready, Set, Go! Part 1

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Okay...you have 5 minutes which is about how long I have to write this post.  Seriously, aren't we all running around like we're crazy sometimes?  Or if you aren't physically moving, your mind is...I made a quickie list of things you can do to feel more on top of things that take 5 minutes or less......tomorrow will be Part 2.  Set your timer.  Ready, Set, GO!

1.  Wipe off your kitchen counters.
2.  Do a quick clean-up of your junk drawer.
3.  Unsubscribe to retail e-mails that you never have any intention of buying things from.
4.  Reply to an e-mail (s) you've been meaning to but have put off.
5.  Write a quick thank-you note or 'thinking of you' note,  put a stamp on it, and throw it in your mailbox to be mailed.
6.  Get in your car and throw away any trash and remove any items that shouldn't be in there.
7.  Cross days off the calendar that have passed and look ahead to the next couple weeks and take note on what is coming up and what you need to do to prepare for those things.
8.  Open the fridge and make things a little more organized in there.  Old take-out? Throw it away.
9.  Tackle the pile of papers/mail/coupons that are sitting on the counter.  Sort them and discard/recycle anything that is junk.  Set the timer again to file or handle things that need done from that pile.
10. Open your pantry or food cupboards.  Like the fridge, go through and straighten, organize, and go through items.

Time's Up!  What'd you get done?
Tune in tomorrow for 10 more 5-minute tasks that will make you feel in control and all-accomplished!
You're on your way to a Less Stressed Nest!

Day 25: What's Your Small Stuff?

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

You've probably heard the book  Don't Sweat the Small Stuff  by Richard Carlson.  If not, you've at least heard that piece of advice.  Problem is, the small stuff is what's so hard not to sweat.

I swear I am the calmest of persons when teaching during the day with special needs students all doing and asking and needing different things.  I handle chaos pretty well.  At home I can juggle 10 things at once.  In times of strife or trouble in my life, I step up and figure out what to do.  But the small stuff, I let it get to me.

I could make a list of small stuff that bugs/urks/irritates/stresses me.  I actually started one as I wrote this post but got almost embarrassed because  I realized as I was typing that my stuff isn't even small stuff.  It's MICROSCOPIC stuff.  I laughed out loud!  I allow those silly little things to steal my joy, my positive thinking, and slowly harden my heart and poison my mind.  You know those 'things'-the thoughts you know you shouldn't be thinking, but that rambling is constantly going on in your head never seems to stop.....unless you take control of it.

Love this quote:

Source

So true!  So what's your small stuff?

Day 24: Simplifying the Holidays {What Really Matters}

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

In today's post I wanted to talk about how we can simplify the holidays.  So many times we don't because we worry what others will think and that we will let people down.

Think about that.  How many times do we keep up a tradition, whether it be using our best China or making 20 different kinds of cookies, just because that is what our family or friends or colleagues expect?  I think that most of us actually love traditions, for they give us those warm, fuzzy feelings that are familiar and loving for all ages, young and old.  But at the expense of our sanity?  Or budget?  Or health?  Now if you love a tradition, and it truly brings you joy, then, by all means, keep it up.  I'm talking about the ones that are a lot of work and you're doing them because you don't want to disappoint, feel guilty, or not meet others' expectations.

Source

Keeping up the image of a perfectly decorated home, the perfect meal, 20 different kinds of handcrafted and iced cookies, different, unique gifts for each person, IS EXHAUSTING.  Stressed is not how you want to spend your holidays.

Source

No one ever looks back on a holiday and says, "Boy those matching serving platters she had were amazing." They think about how the holidays made them feel, the sounds of sweet laughter they heard, the smells of food that were made by loving hands, and the coziness that, when spent with loved ones, enveloped them.

This year, I do plan to be more organized and on top of things.  And I do plan on making some cookies, making my house pretty, and buying and making gifts for others.  What I don't plan on doing is  rushing, worrying, procrastinating, and stressing.

Source

What are your plans to simplify and enjoy the holidays more this year?

Sharing With:
The Inspired Room, Fall Nesting Party

Day 23: Meal Planning {Kinda}

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Surely you've heard of meal planning, the genius idea of planning, prepping, and cooking meals ahead of time then freezing meals until ready to thaw and eat.  Some people do it so well they literally have it down to a science.  I'm envious of those people.  Good Lord.

Source

I can't get into it that much.  It's not that I don't want to have my meals planned for a month and have the positive results of all that entails.....it's that I don't have the brain energy or time to devote to planning that far in advance.  Call me lazy, but I can't (and I guess won't) do what these superwomen do.   Could I change my tune someday?  Maybe.  Till then I'm doin' it my way.  {Insert powerful laugh}.

Okay, my way isn't really a way but it's my version of doing something, albeit small, to semi-plan in advance (key word) what the family is eating.  I write it down on my Message Board I made {HERE}, one week at a time.

It gives me such satisfaction in my craziness to know what I am making and having for dinner.  Even if it's leftovers.  It's like one less thing to cram into this little brain of mine that is way overloaded already.

One of the hundreds of us who have been working hard on our 31 Days Series is Jessica with her
"31 Days of Freezer Cooking".  It's good.  Really good.  It made me want to venture more into this way of cooking.  You definitely need to click on over and check it out.

Source

For right now I am content with my hubby and I sitting down and planning what we are eating for the week.  We talked about trying to "double batch" some things and make some things ahead that are doable for us.  I also plan to learn as much as I can from the experts on this topic, although you will never probably find me cooking for an entire day or  10 pounds of beef at a time. :)  Hey, baby steps.  I am finding what is making me less stressed.  Isn't that what matters?

Source

I am totally curious about you---do you do meal planning?  Freeze-ahead meals?  Stress nightly over what to have for dinner?   Tell the kids Frosted Flakes or Cheerios?  How do you make your meals and meal planning less stressful?

Day 22: Organizing with Labels

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Today will be a short post on labels.  I am slightly obsessed with them.  They add function, organization, and style to almost any container, basket, or item.

Here is a collection of a few labeled things I found around blogland.  Hopefully, like me, you will be inspired to make or create some of these.  Many of these are from BHG and you can get these printable labels downloaded free on their site!

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Awesome, right?

Day 21: {Organized} Gift Wrap

Just joining in?  Read the entire series {HERE}.

Whew!  I can't believe it is October 21!  Where has October gone?  I have been working on those white cabinets as much as I can.  I never realized how useful those could be!  Remember my master bedroom closet that I embarrassingly showed you that used to contain my craft supplies?

See the orange drawered organizer?  That used to hold my acrylic paints, adhesives, and other crafty stuff.  I brought it down to the basement to see if now that it was empty of craft supplies it could hold some of my gift wrapping supplies.  Guess what?  It fit perfectly in one of the other tall white cabinets down there!

At the top of the this tall cabinet are all of our photo albums.  I'm not quite done with those yet.

I made labels for each drawer.

I added fun contact paper to the back of this cabinet.  It added so much color and prettiness!  It took me about 10 minutes to line the back of the cabinet--I am going to see what else in my house I can put (removable) contact paper on!  I love that stuff!  I found mine at Marshall's recently-two rolls for $6.99!  I wish I would have picked up other prints.   The tall metal container holding the rolls of gift wrap was from my daugher's room.  She actually has two of these and we have never used both.   I don't think she has realized one is gone.  :)

I love how each drawer is labeled and I can find things so easily.  All of this stuff used to be in a shallow plastic container under my bed!  I am thrilled that it is so easily accessible and looks so much better now

How does organizing my gift wrap go along with my Less Stressed Nest series?  I'll tell you how.  Organization lessens stress and saves time allowing me to enjoy my family and other things more.  Pretty, organized spaces calm and relax me and make me happy.

What have you organized lately?  What's on the list?

Sharing this project with:
The Girl Creative:  Just Something I Whipped Up
Skip to My Lou
Not Just a Housewife-Show Me What Ya Got
Bloom Designs