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Senin, 21 Agustus 2017
Managing My Time Part 2 of 2
Here, in part 2, I will share with you my strategies for organizing bills, mail, and coupons as I manage my time as a mother of a large family.
This is part 2 of “Managing My Time”. *smile* In part 1 I talked about why it’s valuable for moms to manage their time, and then how I do that using my desk, a calendar, a day planner, how I organize reading material, grocery shopping & errands. Here, in part 2, I will share with you my strategies for organizing bills, mail, and coupons as I manage my time as a mother of a large family.
Being disorganized in the areas of bills, mail, and coupons can carry costly penalties. For the first 5 years of our marriage we did not have a good plan for managing these areas. Mail stacked up on the counter which caused bills to sometimes be lost or more often late because there was no plan for how to make sure they got paid by their individual due dates. And if a bill disappeared in the mail somewhere and never arrived at our house in the first place then we would not know it was missed, causing late fees to be accrued and credit to be damaged by late payments. Damaged credit scores affect the amount of interest people have to pay on loans and credit cards, and can even effect whether or not someone gets employment as employers are looking at credit scores now. When that missed bill did arrive the following month with twice the amount due, sometimes we could not afford to pay it in full which would cause a financial problem to have to manage until it was caught up. Once an organizational strategy was finally established, however, there hasn’t been any of these costly penalties – and the stress of disorder has been alleviated (which of course affects everyone in the family). *smile*
Being disorganized in the areas of bills, mail, and coupons can carry costly penalties. For the first 5 years of our marriage we did not have a good plan for managing these areas. Mail stacked up on the counter which caused bills to sometimes be lost or more often late because there was no plan for how to make sure they got paid by their individual due dates. And if a bill disappeared in the mail somewhere and never arrived at our house in the first place then we would not know it was missed, causing late fees to be accrued and credit to be damaged by late payments. Damaged credit scores affect the amount of interest people have to pay on loans and credit cards, and can even effect whether or not someone gets employment as employers are looking at credit scores now. When that missed bill did arrive the following month with twice the amount due, sometimes we could not afford to pay it in full which would cause a financial problem to have to manage until it was caught up. Once an organizational strategy was finally established, however, there hasn’t been any of these costly penalties – and the stress of disorder has been alleviated (which of course affects everyone in the family). *smile*
Managing the mail
When my husband brings the mail home every day now he places it on my counter/desk for me to organize. But I never let it stay there. Now, I have time in every day for that day’s tasks, but not for today’s and yesterday’s tasks (mail, laundry, etc.), so the mail must be dealt with as it arrives each day. I immediately throw away the junk mail, an easy first step which reveals what is left for me to put away. Then as soon as is convenient – but always that same day – I put the rest of the mail, mostly bills, away as well. Within about 3 minutes my counter is clean and functional again, and nothing from the mail will be forgotten or missed.Managing bills
To pay bills we personally do not choose to utilize automatic bill-paying options because we do not want to have chunks of money disappearing from our bank account when ever the bill-senders are ready to take it. We decide when the bills get paid ourselves (but still by their due date of course), in compliance with when my husband is paid.
Bills always get paid on time, we live within our means, but the timing needs to be managed by us. To organize our paper bills I purchased a simple 5x10-inch accordion file at the local office supply store. I labeled the first 3 tabs with the numbers 1, 2, and 3, representing each pay check in a month (most of the time there are two pay checks in a month, but occasionally there are 3 in one month).
When a bill arrives in the mail I open it up that same day, separate the bill stub from the rest of the letter, highlight on the bill stub the amount due and the due date so I can see those quickly and easily and there are no mistakes made (sometimes there are other amounts listed as well, and other dates). I shred the rest of that bill’s letter in our paper shredder. We bought a nice one off of Craigslist.com (“confetti style” shredding is important to avoid identity theft). I then file that bill in the accordion file behind either the #1 or the #2 tab, depending upon whether it needs to be paid from the first pay check or the second. Since my husband receives his pay check every two weeks, we pay our bills every two weeks as well. I simply gather the bills out of the appropriate tab and pay those as a group. With this method I see how much total money is going out in bills from that pay check, and how much will be going out the next pay check, to help us gauge what additional spending can be made at certain times. I can also make sure that bills are paid right off the top of a pay check first thing, so there is not over-spending and then discovering that there is now not enough money left to pay the necessary bills.
Next, to keep track of what bills we have, when they are due, and about how much is due on each one I made up a “Bills Due” chart (you may download a copy of my chart for free from DropBox if you'd like). I list our bills down the left side column in the order that they are due in a month. The tithe is always paid right off the top of the pay check. From there the rest of the bills are then listed in chronological order as to when they're due. The bill due on the 3rd is next at the top, then the bill due on the 7th, then the one due on the 10th, etc. down to the bill due on the 30th.
When a bill arrives in the mail, I mark on the Bills Due chart the date that particular bill is due. This serves two purposes. First, I can see at a glance if a bill did not arrive this month because there is no date written down for that bill. Second, I can know when a bill is due in a month (beginning, middle, end), so I can estimate how much will be due from the next two pay checks if I’d like, which helps us spend money wisely and carefully. See photo below (to enlarge double click on it). I keep this chart folded in half in the very front of my bills accordion file.
In the column marked “Amount” I write down for each bill either the exact amount (i.e. mortgage), or an average amount (i.e. electric bill) that will be due. This again helps me plan how much money will go out in bills in the next few weeks by knowing the usual due date and the amount.
In the row marked “tithe” there is a place for two separate check marks. From the first pay check I put a check mark in front of the back-slash to show myself that I paid it, and from the second pay check I put a check mark to the right of the back-slash.
My Bills Due chart is especially helpful for bills that are due every other month, and bills we get quarterly. These bills can be much harder to keep track of, and without this chart it’s very difficult for me to anticipate when they will be due in the future and hold that in my memory for 3 months *cringe* so I can plan our spending carefully.
When a bill arrives in the mail, I mark on the Bills Due chart the date that particular bill is due. This serves two purposes. First, I can see at a glance if a bill did not arrive this month because there is no date written down for that bill. Second, I can know when a bill is due in a month (beginning, middle, end), so I can estimate how much will be due from the next two pay checks if I’d like, which helps us spend money wisely and carefully. See photo below (to enlarge double click on it). I keep this chart folded in half in the very front of my bills accordion file.
In the column marked “Amount” I write down for each bill either the exact amount (i.e. mortgage), or an average amount (i.e. electric bill) that will be due. This again helps me plan how much money will go out in bills in the next few weeks by knowing the usual due date and the amount.
In the row marked “tithe” there is a place for two separate check marks. From the first pay check I put a check mark in front of the back-slash to show myself that I paid it, and from the second pay check I put a check mark to the right of the back-slash.
My Bills Due chart is especially helpful for bills that are due every other month, and bills we get quarterly. These bills can be much harder to keep track of, and without this chart it’s very difficult for me to anticipate when they will be due in the future and hold that in my memory for 3 months *cringe* so I can plan our spending carefully.
Managing coupons
Another way to manage money carefully and frugally is by using coupons. However, years ago the coupons that I clipped with the intention of saving us money never got used because they were not put in a place where I could see them, or use them by their expiration date, and remember to have them with me when shopping. You wouldn’t think it would take years for me to come up with a better plan *smile*, but it did. Now I only use coupons for the stores that I already shop at every week: Costco and Wal-Mart, and maybe for an occasional trip to Jo Ann Fabrics or Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I do not clip coupons for grocery or other items at lots of other stores because I don’t have time or the ability with lots of young kids with me to drive around to all different stores in order to “save money” with coupons. I would actually make up the difference in the amount of money saved by the gas money spent driving all around! *laugh* So I keep coupons very simple, and I usually have about 4-6 of them at a time clamped to the top of our refrigerator door, next to my Master Grocery List (See also - Charts and Lists That Save My Sanity). I do also shop at the dollar store periodically, Value Village, and the Good Will to save money, however. Before I go shopping each week I check to see if I have any coupons for items I’m already purchasing (I do not purchase items simply because I have a coupon for them). If I do have coupons to use then I’ll staple them to the top of my grocery list in an effort to not lose them, and to remember to use them.
For those of you friends who use crazy amounts of coupons *wink*, I do have an idea for you of how I would manage those if I needed to. I would try using another accordion file, like the one I use for bills, and I would mark the tabs one for each week in a month: “week 1”, “week, 2”, through “week 5” (for those rare months when there’s an extra week or part of one). Since using coupons within their due dates seems to be the main issue, I would file each coupon in the week that it would begin to be available for use. Then before shopping each week I would check in the pocket of that week’s coupons and see if there’s any I would like to use. If I choose not to use some that have dates which reach in to the following week, then I would move them to that following week’s pocket so that I have the option of using them still. Any coupons that I chose not to use or have expired I’d throw away. When coupons are good for as long as a month then I would put them in the first week’s pocket that they’re available for use, and simply move them to the next week’s pocket until they were used or expired. You could also do a similar system using paper mailing envelopes, clamped or paper-clipped together in order by week.
With an organized plan in place that has become habit, managing mail, bills, and coupons takes almost no mental energy or attention (the reason I forgot to include these systems in part 1 of “Managing My Time”! *laugh*). I simply keep these systems running smoothly, daily putting things where they belong, and leave them alone until I pay bills every other week. No worry, no confusion, and there are pretty much no mistakes. *beam*
Blessings on your efforts!
You may also be interested in some of my related posts:
Managing My Time, part 1 of 2 - Why it's valuable & How I do it
Orderliness - A Closer Look
Charts & Lists That Save My Sanity
Enjoying Being at Home
Managing My Time, part 1 of 2 - Why it's valuable & How I do it
Orderliness - A Closer Look
Charts & Lists That Save My Sanity
Enjoying Being at Home
Senin, 14 Agustus 2017
Out of the ordinary
Extraordinary things are happening around here. Meaning, things slightly away from our boring little norm. Let me elaborate [while also proving there is a SomeEcard for every occasion]:
1. I am working tomorrow. I only drug myself to the gym two days this week and my current goal is three days. So what am I going to do? Call it a slacker week and be done with it? No. I'm going to get up at 5:30 am on a Saturday so that I can make it to the gym before work. The gym is actually at my work, so that helps. I'm feeling like I deserve an extra cookie [or glass of wine] for this heroic feat. I'm also quite nervous about using the public shower in the locker room. I hope I don't contract some sort of fatal disease.
2. I am almost finished with my scrapbook. That means I've whipped through nearly 200 pictures in a matter of a week or so. Damn, I should do this for a living. If only I didn't have that pesky full time job to limit my spare time:
3. When I was hired to this new job in October, I was promised a "very nice" raise within six months. I had my 90 day review with my boss and apparently I am the bomb. Not really, but she is going to get me my raise. As soon as she figures out how to calculate the total. A little worrisome, since she is the boss and should know this....but whatev. I'm HOPING it's about 5k for the year, but we'll see. This type of bonus NEVER happens in PT so you have to savor every wage increase. From here on out I'll only receive my measly 3% cost of living raise each year. Literally, that's it. So I deserve a big fatty raise before my potential earnings flat line for life. I plan on stalking my boss for the amount on Monday.
4. Not only that, but I totally forgot about my 5k sign on bonus! I get the first 1/3 of it with my next paycheck [after heavy taxes, of course]. The next 1/3 is due after a year and the last of it after two years. Talk about a nice little surprise!
5. I was home for 30 minutes this evening before I noticed this monstrosity. Look closely. It's not the fluffy white beast on the couch that throws me off. Nor the fact that the couch isn't perfectly aligned with the wall decor [although that DOES really bother me a lot, now that I see this picture]:
It's the hideous Packers dolls on my shelves! Not okay. Nate apparently thought he'd "decorate" with his little treasures and place them in one of the most prominent locations in our apartment.
I'm sorry, but they are so ugly and TOTALLY don't go with my photography/wedding/ pimptastic theme. He bought these in Spain in a moment of weakness, being mesmerized with the green and gold painted wood. Once he returned to the USA he realized these things are all over the place. Not exactly an authentic Spanish souvenir.
6. Remember how I whined about the weather? Well apparently it's a lot worse than I thought. A "Winter Weather Advisory" has been announced due to wind chills in the negative thirties!! Please read below and feel very sorry for me.
Minggu, 13 Agustus 2017
In the Cookie of Life Teachers are the Chocolate Chips Free Printable
Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week!
I love Teacher Appreciation Week...and not just because I am a teacher ;)
I like giving little goodies to my kids teachers throughout the year (and giving them THIS questionnaire at the beginning of the school year is super helpful)
Because of my Back to School printable I know that both my girls teachers love Chocolate Chips Cookies, so earlier this school year I made a printable and attached it to a mason jar full of homemade cookies!
Since Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up, I thought I would share the printable with all of you!
This is a super simple and who doesn't love homemade chocolate chip cookies?
You could even add a gift card to this if you wanted to make it extra special.
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Here is what you need:
-Printable {download at the end of this post}
- Wide mouth Mason Jars {I got mine HERE}
- Bakers Twine/String
- Chocolate Chip Cookies (I use THIS recipe)
I love mason jars & think everything looks cuter in a mason jar, so that is why I like to put things in mason jars as gifts :)
And, I also love bakers twine, so I just wrap a bunch of it around the mason jar, add a tag & viola!
Super cute gift!
Of course, you could always put the cookies on a paper plate & cover it some clear wrap and bakers twine and the printable to that, but I like mason jars because it is easy for my kids to carry and/or put their backpack and I don't have to worry about the cookies getting smashed! :)
Here is the printable:
I love Teacher Appreciation Week...and not just because I am a teacher ;)
I like giving little goodies to my kids teachers throughout the year (and giving them THIS questionnaire at the beginning of the school year is super helpful)
Because of my Back to School printable I know that both my girls teachers love Chocolate Chips Cookies, so earlier this school year I made a printable and attached it to a mason jar full of homemade cookies!
This is a super simple and who doesn't love homemade chocolate chip cookies?
You could even add a gift card to this if you wanted to make it extra special.
Here is what you need:-Printable {download at the end of this post}
- Wide mouth Mason Jars {I got mine HERE}
- Bakers Twine/String
- Chocolate Chip Cookies (I use THIS recipe)
I love mason jars & think everything looks cuter in a mason jar, so that is why I like to put things in mason jars as gifts :)
Super cute gift!
The mason jar fits about 5 cookies (and keeps them nice & fresh!)
{Click to download. Right click & then Save.}
If you have read my blog for a while, you know that Cookies are some of my FAVORITE treats!
The girls and I LOVE making cookies, especially cookies that have chocolate chips in them.
I was browsing through my Recipe Box and realized that I have several Cookie Recipes that use Chocolate Chips, so here are some recipes you can use for this printable:
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Monster Cookies:
Chocolate Chip Snickers Cookies:
Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies:
I have really yummy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe also, but I realized I haven't blogged that yet! I will try and blog that soon :)
Need more Teacher Appreciation Ideas?
Here are some other free printables that I have on my blog that would be perfect for Teacher Appreciation and/or End of the School Year Gifts!
Cupcakes in a Mason Jar + Free Printable:
{HERE}
I'm so lucky to have a teacher like you Printable (I add a gift card to this)
{HERE}
Thank you for being my Teacher (Cookie in a CD Sleeve with gift card)
{HERE}
Thanks a latte for all you do:
Get the printable {HERE}
I love this idea because this is what is inside the box....my favorite Anthro mug & coffee gift cards :)
Thanks for helping me bloom printable:
{HERE}
The World Needs S'more Teachers like You Printable
Printable {HERE}
S'mores Bar Recipe {HERE}
So, there you have it.
Several easy (& cheap!) gifts you can give the teachers/coaches/office staff in your life as a way of saying Thank You. These work for Teacher Appreciation Week, End of the School Year or Just Because!
And, the beauty of these gifts is that you could always attach a $5 or $10 giftcard to any of these treats (if you want to)
If you have read my blog for a while, you know that Cookies are some of my FAVORITE treats!
The girls and I LOVE making cookies, especially cookies that have chocolate chips in them.
I was browsing through my Recipe Box and realized that I have several Cookie Recipes that use Chocolate Chips, so here are some recipes you can use for this printable:
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Monster Cookies:
Chocolate Chip Snickers Cookies:
Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies:
I have really yummy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe also, but I realized I haven't blogged that yet! I will try and blog that soon :)
Need more Teacher Appreciation Ideas?
Here are some other free printables that I have on my blog that would be perfect for Teacher Appreciation and/or End of the School Year Gifts!
Cupcakes in a Mason Jar + Free Printable:
{HERE}I'm so lucky to have a teacher like you Printable (I add a gift card to this)
{HERE}
Thank you for being my Teacher (Cookie in a CD Sleeve with gift card)
{HERE}Thanks a latte for all you do:
Get the printable {HERE} I love this idea because this is what is inside the box....my favorite Anthro mug & coffee gift cards :)
Thanks for helping me bloom printable:{HERE}
The World Needs S'more Teachers like You Printable
Printable {HERE}So, there you have it.
Several easy (& cheap!) gifts you can give the teachers/coaches/office staff in your life as a way of saying Thank You. These work for Teacher Appreciation Week, End of the School Year or Just Because!
And, the beauty of these gifts is that you could always attach a $5 or $10 giftcard to any of these treats (if you want to)
Trust me, as teachers, we ALWAYS love gift cards :)
Happy {almost} Teacher Appreciation Week to all my fellow teachers out there!
Keep up the good work! It's almost Summer....we can do it!!
Hope some of these ideas are useful to you!
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And, as a reminder, I have a $100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway going on that ends on Friday!
Click HERE if you haven't entered yet!
Sabtu, 12 Agustus 2017
Motherhood with Vitality! Part 1 of 2
In this part 1 I will cover practices to encourage being well-rested:
I am often asked by people who know me or just see me out and about, how do I have such vitality and joy with my children - and especially with so many children? I'm happy to share with you what I've learned along my life journey, and I hope it will bless you as well.
I didn't realize how many habits I've gotten in to over the years until I listed them all in parts 1 and 2 together! *laugh* Writing out things like this is such a help to me, too. *smile* This is a great reminder for me to maintain doing what the Lord has shown me; and each of these things I'll talk about truly has a profound impact on my every day. Some of the items I'll share take discipline, and some of them are easy little "mom tips". *smile* Some things I do enable good, quality sleep which of course effects energy during the day; and some of the things I do in addition to getting enough rest. Doing life ON PURPOSE in the area of having energy for my day not only helps me feel my best, but energy and joy are also a gift to my husband and children.
- Adequate quality and quantity at night
- A weekly schedule
- Afternoon naps & "play alone times"
- No false energy
- Bedroom ready
- Regular bed times
- Exercise
- Being in shape
- Ear plugs
- Spiritual freedom
I didn't realize how many habits I've gotten in to over the years until I listed them all in parts 1 and 2 together! *laugh* Writing out things like this is such a help to me, too. *smile* This is a great reminder for me to maintain doing what the Lord has shown me; and each of these things I'll talk about truly has a profound impact on my every day. Some of the items I'll share take discipline, and some of them are easy little "mom tips". *smile* Some things I do enable good, quality sleep which of course effects energy during the day; and some of the things I do in addition to getting enough rest. Doing life ON PURPOSE in the area of having energy for my day not only helps me feel my best, but energy and joy are also a gift to my husband and children.
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Let's begin with practices that can encourage moms to be well-rested. There are multiple things we can do intentionally to make this more likely to happen.
Adequate night time sleep
It is absolutely crucial that moms, especially homeschooling moms, receive quality and adequate quantity of sleep most every night. I know this is no small matter, and believe me that I do not say this flippantly - but it really has to be a top priority if we are going to be able to be energetic, alert, creative, patient, peaceful, have something left at the end of our day to offer our hard-working husbands when they arrive home, and have endurance for not only our days but our entire week. I need 7 1/2 hours of sleep per night ideally. I protect this with great care.I am blessed to have a husband that protects my sleep with me as well. *smile* If I'm staying up later than is good for me, after a while he will gently ask me, "Are you watching the clock?" He encourages me to head to bed on time, and he is always understanding if I need to sacrifice something in order to get enough sleep. Some times I think I'll be able to do something on an evening, such as work on a post together with him, stay up to talk, or watch our weekly date night movie, but when I an just too tired he is always encourages me to go to bed. We actually quite frequently have "half a date night" at a time, because we're both too tired at the end of the week to watch a whole movie on Friday night. *chuckle*
If I am going to be able to rise up early in the morning and be productive and ready for the day, I have to get to bed on time. I know that it is tempting to stay up late and have quiet time to yourself - but if you're like me, your family will pay for your lack of sleep the next day. It actually is being responsible to get to bed at a regular time, and it is a gift to yourself, your husband, and your children for you to be well-rested. I'll talk more about how I get enough sleep in the following points of this post. I'm a much happier person, and I can generally handle life well when I'm well-rested.
A weekly schedule
A weekly schedule
It is absolutely crucial that I have a weekly schedule in place for myself and our children so that I do not expect 27-hour days out of myself, instead of my given 24 (which I used to do - and I failed at it every day *chuckle*). *smile* I am responsible for discipling our children (with my husband, under his authority and direction), homeschooling, keeping our home clean and orderly, preparing healthy meals, and maintaining my health physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I can only do this successfully when I am proactive about budgeting our time each week; deciding in advance what should happen, when it should happen, and making sure to get all of the most important things in ~ without sacrificing other important things. Getting a lot done has to be intentional - it will never just start happening one day if you wait long enough. *hugs* When I have a schedule in place I can rest better at night and even during the day time, because I know that there is a time set aside for all of the most important things in my life; I don't have to stress about "getting it all done" (generally *wink*)If you like, you can read more about scheduling in my posts: why a schedule is valuable, how I manage my time, how I go about creating a schedule exactly, schedules for varying family sizes, what to do with weekends, and more. *smile*
Afternoon naps & "play-alone time"
Giving our bodies a rest and re-grouping time is so, so good! We teach our children to nap through age 5, and they feel so good after having a rest, and their behavior reflects it in the afternoon for the remainder of the day compared to not having a nap. Our older children also have an independent quiet activity time during those same 2 hours every day, and when I've been pregnant or have had lots of young children I would usually have a nap for 30-45 minutes as well. Even if I don't sleep, my body is restful, my feet are up for a while, and I feel so much better. During our 2-hour alone time we can have uninterrupted thoughts, and no one disturbing our concentration and activities. It's a time to work on things that are not practical to work on with toddlers and babies around like during the rest of the day (not that the "littles" are a bother, they're just active and curious and things like sewing needles would be dangerous for them). The oldest children and I do a whole variety of independent things such as sewing projects or mending, baking, reading or listening to an audio book or message, painting, scrapbooking, drawing, organizational projects, letter writing, photography, or set up the whole play room with Transformers to play with without anyone knocking them down. *smile* Everyone is in a separate area. If an older child is in the family room or kitchen area with me we do not talk to each other during that time. All is quiet, and we come back together again after this time feeling renewed and refreshed.
No false energy
I've always been very guarded against drinking caffeine for it's obvious addictive tendencies, but also because it gives a false sense of being healthfully rested. Caffeinated coffee, tea, and energy drinks - they'll lash back in the end, from my experience, and from what I hear others talk about all the time. If we live day in and day out with out enough rest (commonly because we desire to "have our cake and eat it, too"; staying up late for our own personal time, but still having energy the next day from caffeine to function in our day) we're likely to bring on sickness from not resting our bodies enough. With caffeine people also experience irritability, increased appetite, and caffeine is a diuretic which eliminates the precious water I was so intentional to drink all morning. Many (if not most people I know) have migraine headaches and such when their caffeine wears off. In my opinion it's far better to simply make sure we have good sleep - quantity and quality. False energy will never serve me like real, genuine energy does. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that caffeine is a sin. *laugh* I do love my grande white mocha latte, but I get decaf. Once in a while, however, I do utilize caffeine, such as needing to get through the Sunday morning church service awake and learn something despite having been up repeatedly Saturday night with a child who has the flu. I choose to make exceptions when it would benefit me once-in-a-while, but it is not a life style. I'm actually even very hesitant to have caffeine on any morning because that tends to rob me of my afternoon nap which makes me feel so much better the rest of the day. When I've had caffeine and then miss my nap as a result (when I've need one), I've tended to get up from lying down scowling, tired, irritable, and not smiling when my husband arrives home for dinner.
I also do not have caffeine at night because then I'm very tempted to stay up and get lots of things done with that false energy, or if I do go to bed I likely cannot fall asleep. Either way I then begin the next day tired, and often times feeling like I can't do life. In my opinion, caffeine just doesn't do good things as a general rule.
Bedroom ready
I also do not have caffeine at night because then I'm very tempted to stay up and get lots of things done with that false energy, or if I do go to bed I likely cannot fall asleep. Either way I then begin the next day tired, and often times feeling like I can't do life. In my opinion, caffeine just doesn't do good things as a general rule.
Bedroom ready
Having our bedrooms at optimum sleep-enabling readiness can greatly effect both the quality and the quantity of our rest! I wrote a post called "Sleep Better - How to Make Your Bedroom a Better Place to Re-Charge", which explains how the amount of light, the temperature, the amount of stimulation, and the amount of messiness can hugely effect how well you sleep at night. I encourage you to read it. *smile* And I found the information for that post from a very sweet lady, author and sleep expert, Malia Jacobson, who has a great blog called The Well Rested Family. It is full of valuable information for adults and children alike - I had never before taken the time to read up on the "science" of sleep, but I am learning so much! And I highly recommend your checking out her blog!Regular bed times
I and the children need regular bed times. I know how much sleep I need for optimum health, and I know how much sleep each child needs for their optimum health - so establishing regular bed times helps make sure we get that amount to help us stay healthy and feel our best. After all, life is hard enough without adding exhaustion to it! If I don't get to bed on time, I can't easily get up on time either, which effects everyone in the family.It's time to be objective. The facts are, I need 7 1/2 hours of sleep at night for optimum health and energy. I also need to get up at 5:00 am in order to be ready for my day. So I simply back up on the clock from there to determine what time I need to, therefore, go to bed, which for me is 9:30 pm. Now I'm not legalistic about this; sometimes life happens and I have school work I have to finish correcting, or a child needs me and so I get to bed later. But I strive for, and have self-discipline for getting to bed on time. I am sometimes tempted to stay up and enjoy that quiet "me time", but if I'm honest, my family pays the price for that when I don't get enough sleep. I need to be my best to please the Lord, doing my very best with the task He's given me as wife and mother.
The children also need to be in bed on time for their own optimum health and well being! Their ability to have a great day is effected by their being rested; therefore, my day is also effected by their being rested. *smile* I need them to be well-rested! If I do not do my best to enable them to get enough sleep (to not be over tired, or under tired), then how can I realistically expect cooperation, obedience, smiles, good attitudes, servant's hearts, and accomplished academics from them?
Exercise
It's no secret that when we exercise, our bodies sleep better at night. I am very busy at home, and rarely sit down; and I even strive to get as much movement in to my day as possible by making that extra trip up the stairs even if it could be avoided. I hoist up those toddlers and carry them up the stairs, too, and not laboring under it but getting up strong! *smile*I have not been able to get out for exercise walks on a regular basis because of several reasons: I've had pregnancies and newborn babies back-to-back (10, 11, 12, 13 months apart); during pregnancy exercise would make me extremely nauseous for a few days afterwards; and my husband has never been home during daylight hours of the morning when I could go walking (I don't feel safe walking in the dark alone). There will be seasons later in life when I'll easily be able to get out for walks during the daylight hours.
In the mean time my husband and I purchased a really nice, used elliptical exercise machine off of Craig's List - and we LOVE it. It's the best exercise I've ever done, giving a full body work out that makes me pour sweat, plus it's in our garage for access whenever I can get to it! I've had seasons of working out in the mornings, and seasons of working out during the children's nap time, which I've preferred surprisingly enough. I really can't get up earlier than 5am because I can't get to bed regularly before 9:30 pm. So - afternoon time it is. *smile* I shoot for 5 days a week, and then if I miss a day or so at least I got in 3-4 times. I haven't been able to get back in to exercising again quite yet since our last 4 babies all were born within 22 months, but soon I will be back in to it. I so look forward to my body feeling strong again and being my trim self! And even if the Lord gives us more babies in the interim (we're praying!), we will not be in baby season forever and then it will be the time for getting aggressive with getting in shape more again.
Being in shape
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Just to mention here along with exercise that if a mom is pretty over weight, it's unlikely she'll be able to achieve ample energy and vitality. Weight really burdens us all down, and we need freedom from it. I fairly recently learned about, purchased, and read Wendy Jeub's book called, Love in a Diet. Wendy has 16 kids, and she is trim and energetic! Her book is small and only costs $7.47, but it's packed full with practical tips for every day moms to enable them to lose weight and find that freedom! I lost 10 lbs. after I read it...then I quit for a while feeling overwhelmingly busy with babies and kids *chuckle*...but then I got back into losing that baby weight again. *smile* And if you're interested, here's how I recently pursued, Losing the Baby Weight! and lost 65 pounds; and part 2, of Losing the Baby Weight!, including the book, Trim Healthy Mama, and a really important book called, Made to Crave.Ear plugs
I had become such a light sleeper with so many babies I was listening for, either on baby monitors in their own bedrooms. And my husband's loud breathing and/or snoring kept me awake for years. I didn't want to use ear plugs initially because I was afraid that I'd miss a child's call for me. But eventually I learned to trust the Lord that He would enable me to know when I was needed, or that Bobby would hear the calls for us, and I tried Mac's silicone ear plugs. Miraculous! I've used them for years now and I sleep so well! And, which is truly amazing to me, I still hear our children if they cry or have coughing due to being sick. God is faithful. My husband's breathing/snoring no longer keeps me awake, and I sleep soundly. So, so nice. These ear plugs can be found at all the grocery stores I've been to, or they can be ordered online.Spiritual freedom
I struggled for years with insomnia, but I didn't realize it for years. And I've been free from this struggle since then. After hearing dozens of personal testimonies about a great ministry called Be In Health, I finally read pastor Henry Wright's book called A More Excellent Way. He shares strait from scripture about people's health both physically and emotionally and how it is connected with spiritual issues. I also attended 2 classes on this material. I've also found freedom from over a dozen other struggles. It is life changing; I highly recommend it. *smile*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So, I hope that having a window in to how I enable myself to be energetic and joyful in life has given you some good ideas for your own life as well! The Lord is so faithful to teach us how we can best serve Him when we ask him. Now just so it's said, I haven't always felt vivacious and joyful. *chuckle* I have had my very difficult times and days just like anyone else. But those days aren't a life style; enjoying life is my life style.
This information may seen like a lot to think about, but I want to encourage you to take your parenting seriously and take your vitality seriously. Parenthood is really a career and should be treated even more seriously. We need to always be learning, studying, growing, implementing what we learn, and working hard. We can just "get through it", but that's really torturous; or we can embrace where we are and achieve success and vitality in life!
Blessings on your efforts!
You may also be interested in reading:
Losing the Baby Weight, part 1 and part 2
Recommended resources:
Malia Jacobson's, The Well Rested Family blog
Love in a Diet, by Wendy Jeub
Trim Healthy Mama,by Pearl Barrett & Serene Allison
Love in a Diet, by Wendy Jeub
Trim Healthy Mama,by Pearl Barrett & Serene Allison
Minggu, 25 Juni 2017
Last Week of Summer
This was our last official week of summer.
School starts for me next Wednesday.
(Moment of silence while I wipe my tears away)
I tried to pack as much as I could into these last couple weeks of summer.
Here is what we have been up to, via instagram!
Summer means Chardonnay.
My BFF was in town for a wedding (us at the Rehersal Dinner)
The Bride & Groom:
Oh yeah, and they had Coldstone at their wedding!!!!
4 flavors, the stone, and all the toppings. It was amazing.
I got another chair from my Grammy (from the 1 room school house in Colorado)
You may remember the yellow one. Well, I spray painted this one pink for Claire's 3 year old photo shoot. Love it!
This past weekend another one of my best friends from high school came into town for our soccer reunion. Our coach (who coached us for 6 years) has lung cancer and just finished his chemo. We had a reunion to see him & celebrate.
The next day, I had a playdate at my house with more friends. We have been friends since Middle School! Between the 5 of us, there are 15 kids!!!!
I had to put up a fence around my garden because our dog (Kevin's dog) was eating all my tomatoes & strawberries. Grrr.....
Our lawn was looking so green. Then we decided to air out our pool cover on the grass for 30 minutes. Bad idea. Huge dead spot on the grass now. Watering it extra to bring it back to life.
What I eat for lunch everyday in the summer.
Grilled cheese with tomato on Sourdough. And, I got some bottled Mexican Coke at Costco (real sugar instead of corn syrup. So good!)
The Crete Myrtles are blooming. That always reminds me of the end of August & when Kevin & I got married. 9 years next week!
My sister & Jason came over for dinner along with one of her best friends & fiance'.
They brought Chipotle for dinner. Win!
They asked Kevin & I to read scripture at their upcoming November wedding. So honored!
I have been going into school this week to get my classroom organized.
I cleaned out almost every cabinet & drawer. After teaching for 8 years, my stuff was getting cluttered!!!
One of the days, the girls came along because I had no one to watch them.
Good thing my room has a TV (and lots of coloring materials!
What I could eat for dinner every night.
Tomatoes & Basil from my garden with Mozzerlla, salt, pepper & balsamic vinegrette.
And, It's It for dessert.
2 cookies with ice cream in the middle dipped in chocolate.
A San Fransisco treat! So good!
They were on sale so I bought 3 flavors. Coffee is my favorite!
Hydrangeas from my yard:
On the Summer List, Kate wanted to have a Popsicle Party.
So, we had a swimming playdate with popsicles!
Thankfully Popsicles were on sale this week!
(Moment of silence while I wipe my tears away)
I tried to pack as much as I could into these last couple weeks of summer.
Here is what we have been up to, via instagram!
Summer means Chardonnay.
My BFF was in town for a wedding (us at the Rehersal Dinner) The Bride & Groom: Oh yeah, and they had Coldstone at their wedding!!!! 4 flavors, the stone, and all the toppings. It was amazing.
I got another chair from my Grammy (from the 1 room school house in Colorado)
You may remember the yellow one. Well, I spray painted this one pink for Claire's 3 year old photo shoot. Love it!
This past weekend another one of my best friends from high school came into town for our soccer reunion. Our coach (who coached us for 6 years) has lung cancer and just finished his chemo. We had a reunion to see him & celebrate. The next day, I had a playdate at my house with more friends. We have been friends since Middle School! Between the 5 of us, there are 15 kids!!!!
I had to put up a fence around my garden because our dog (Kevin's dog) was eating all my tomatoes & strawberries. Grrr..... Our lawn was looking so green. Then we decided to air out our pool cover on the grass for 30 minutes. Bad idea. Huge dead spot on the grass now. Watering it extra to bring it back to life. What I eat for lunch everyday in the summer. Grilled cheese with tomato on Sourdough. And, I got some bottled Mexican Coke at Costco (real sugar instead of corn syrup. So good!)
The Crete Myrtles are blooming. That always reminds me of the end of August & when Kevin & I got married. 9 years next week! My sister & Jason came over for dinner along with one of her best friends & fiance'. They brought Chipotle for dinner. Win!
They asked Kevin & I to read scripture at their upcoming November wedding. So honored!
I have been going into school this week to get my classroom organized. I cleaned out almost every cabinet & drawer. After teaching for 8 years, my stuff was getting cluttered!!!
One of the days, the girls came along because I had no one to watch them. Good thing my room has a TV (and lots of coloring materials!
What I could eat for dinner every night. Tomatoes & Basil from my garden with Mozzerlla, salt, pepper & balsamic vinegrette.
And, It's It for dessert. 2 cookies with ice cream in the middle dipped in chocolate.
A San Fransisco treat! So good!
They were on sale so I bought 3 flavors. Coffee is my favorite!
Hydrangeas from my yard: On the Summer List, Kate wanted to have a Popsicle Party. So, we had a swimming playdate with popsicles!
Thankfully Popsicles were on sale this week!
Claire enjoying doing her own hair: 
So there you have...a glimpse of our last week of summer. Seriously depressed about school starting.
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