This Year's Lifehacks, Part 2

Ready for lifehacks, part 2? Here we go.

• Breakfast = Daily scriptures & gratitude journal time. (And no computer before these things!) A few months back I mentioned to Suzi that I was having trouble keeping up my scripture study, and she shared her morning routine. It is simple. During breakfast, while you are stuck eating, read a little scripture, and write 5 things in your journal that you are grateful for. (It can't be the same things every day.) I've slipped up the last few weeks, but before that I read 5 verses aloud from the scriptures and talked to the kids about them. Then as I ate my cereal, I listed my 5 things. It had me writing in my journal almost every day, and gave a nice little snapshot of life. A few things I wrote down recently:
  
  
• weather cool enough to snuggle at night
• met a new friend at the park
• playing "Go Fish" with Gracie & Steve in a tent in the playroom for family night
• the closet that connects the kids' rooms (they love to play in there)
  
  
• Find a place for things you always lose. And always, always, always put that thing back in its place. Same concept as picking the same row to park your car, I guess. I have specified spots for my chapstick, keys, phone, checkbook, my currently-reading book, phone charger, Kindle charger, and glasses. I know this is a DUH. But it took me too long to figure out.
  
  
• Take a break. I take at least a 30 minute break for myself every day when the kids go down for nap. (Gracie doesn't nap anymore, but she still has to stay quietly in her room reading books. The downtime is good/calming for everyone.) I put them down at 1:30, and then have half an hour to scan Pinterest, eat my lunch, etc. Husbands need breaks, too, so let them have one.

• Make up things to look forward to. Some days are just hard. Maybe the kids wake up early from nap and I get frustrated. Maybe the hubs has a late night at work. Those days I try to give myself something to look forward to. Sometimes it is just a trip to window shop at Target with the kids. Target heals most wounds for me. :) Other times we get a special treat, do a craft, or pile pillows on the floor and watch a movie. Make a bad day good, in other words, by breaking your routine a little.

• Do one load of laundry, start to finish, every day. Two years ago I had a laundry day. I did laundry all day. It was terrible. I was kind of stuck home to do it. Now I do one load every day. Toss it in when I wake up, move it to the dryer when the kids are occupied with Sesame Street or lunch (it is in the basement so they can't come down--steep awful stairs), and fold/put away later. When I stay on top of this, it is amazing. When I don't, it is the same mess it was when I had a laundry day. I highly recommend this if you are hating on laundry day. :)
  
  
• The 15 Minute Cleaning Solution! I found this on Pinterest, and it changed my life. Don't be fooled by the cheesy layout of the page; this info was GOLD for me. After reading this, I have two lists that I typed up, printed out, and posted on my fridge:
  
  
• Things to clean every day (like making my bed, wiping down the kitchen counters, doing one load of laundry, etc.), and
• A list of each room with all the things that need cleaned in it.
  
  Then you just do all the things on list one (easy, stuff you should do anyway) and take 15 minutes (all together or in chunks of 2 or 3 minutes when your kids are playing--this is what I do) to work on ONE room. Cross off what you finish, and the rest waits for next week. Our house is a little bigger than I'm used to, so I actually attack one room every-other-week. I still pick up clutter, obviously, but the real cleaning stuff is on the list.
  
  You don't have to have lists. I just feel really good when I cross things off. I make them JUST for that feeling. :) Happy to share these, too, if you are interested.

• Enlist helpers. Gracie is now officially old enough for chores. Every morning she gets up, makes her bed, gets dressed, pours her own milk and cereal (from special Gracie-size containers), and unloads the kid dishes from the dishwasher. Those she has to do. When I remember, I ask her to do other things, like put away her clothes. She gets stickers on a sticker chart for the bed making and the dishwasher, as well as any additional chores except stuff that is just part of cleaning up after yourself (putting clothes in a hamper, clearing your place at the table, etc.). When her chart fills up, she gets a Frosty at Wendy's. Sweet.
  
  I also encourage them to help me clean. They often fight over a turn with the vacuum, and Gracie has her own spray bottle (filled with water) to clean the table with. I usually have to clean up after these things, but they are getting used to contributing to the house, and that is worthwhile.
  
  
• Do one thing. I learned from The Happiness Project that when you're feeling down/overwhelmed, to just do one thing. The author, Gretchen Rubin, suggests tackling a "nagging task" (one of those things that just niggles at your brain but you always avoid because you don't HAVE to do it now... like changing your cable contract, or rolling over your IRA, or whatever...).
  
  It also works when you are intimidated. Like maybe you move somewhere new and need to make all new friends. So start by saying hi. Or maybe you're trying to write a book, and that is kind of crazy. Just write for one or two hours a day, when you have a moment.
  
  
• Read books AND know how to use your library. If you, like me, don't have time to casually, luxuriously wander the aisles at the library because YOUR KIDS DON'T WANT TO! then stop trying to. Peruse Goodreads (see what I'm reading here) or Your Next Read for ideas, and then set up a hold list at your favorite library. They will call you when your book is available, and you just walk in, pick up the stack just for you, and check out. I've done this even with books that are readily available at my library, just to reduce the hassle. (Holds are FREE out here! Some places they cost a tiny fee--still worth it, most times, if you ask me.) My father in law calls the hold system his "library sherpa." :)
  
  And if you have an e-reader (Kindle, Nook, etc.) check out the digital loan offerings! I love borrowing library books on my Kindle. I don't even have to return them when I'm done--they return themselves!
  
  Reading books is amazing, because you can get lost in a great story in front of your kids, and it is considered GOOD parenting, as opposed to getting absorbed in a TV show, which is sometimes less entertaining, and is considered BAD parenting. Sweet. Read some books.

I know that was uber long. I partially do these lists for myself, to kind of track my progress, and to remind myself if I later forget something that really helped with life around Casa Walton. (We do not actually call it that.)

But also because I find other people's ideas really inspiring, and if I share mine then maybe you will share yours? Yes? Pretty please? What do you do that makes your life easier?