Are you wanting your kids to stop asking for screens all summer? It's time to set up the expectations.
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This is the first post in a series all about creating harmony in your home with routines and rhythms. I wanted to create this for you because one of the biggest concerns I hear from moms all the time is that they do not know how to manage their day. They feel overwhelmed by all the tasks they have to get done and if they work from home or homeschool then they are not even sure how to get it all in. Not to mention having time to do something for yourself.
Do you ever feel like this? Do you feel like your life is out of harmony? I didn't use the word balance here because this is near impossible in my opinion. I do believe you can create harmony in your home and that is just what I have worked over the years to create.
For years I was overwhelmed, consumed by the daily tasks and not knowing how to manage my time. The days felt unorganized and by the end of it I was exhausted mentally and physically. Does any of this sound familiar to you? Maybe you aren't overwhelmed and you are managing your time but you don't have any time left for yourself or the things that you love to do. I figured out a way to get my daily tasks done, work from home, homeschool and still have time for myself.
Priorities are Where it's At!
It all started with me asking myself some questions. I believe the first step to creating harmony is figuring out your priorities. Grab yourself a tea, coffee or one of my recipes for a yum, caffeine free drink here and ask yourself what is most important to you in life. Think big picture first. Pick at least 5 priorities that you are not willing to negotiate. List those out on a piece of paper in order of importance with some space between each one.
Some question you might ask yourself are:
What do I want the focus of my day to be around?
Who do I want to serve daily?
What can I do each day that will bring my home joy?
How do I want to feel each day?
Once you have gotten your 5 priorities listed out, then you can begin to fill in some of the key goals for each one that will help you stay focused on that each day. For example, if one of your priorities is family, what are you going to do for your family that keeps this in check? I homeschool so that would go under this category. Make sense? Maybe wellness is one of your top priorities right now, so you write down cook healthy meals.
It's not enough to just write down your top 5 priorities. That will leave you still feeling uncertain about what you need to be doing each day to stay focused on these and keep them in check. You can get as specific as you want but what I wouldn't do is write down so many goals that you are right back where you started feeling like you will not be able to harmonize it all.
My Priorities
I will tell you mine but not so that you can compare or feel like these have to be yours. I will share mine because having an example has always helped me move forward and brainstorm my ideas.
Faith
Family
Freedom
Fun
Some of my goals under these are time with the Lord and prayer, homeschooling, self-care, cooking healthy meals, exercise, dancing and going on dates with my hubby.
Your goals do not have to happen everyday but there will be some that do and these become your ultimate non-negotiables. In time you will find that the ones that seem to be extra will begin to fall into harmony with your routines and rhythms.
So get started with this today. I know it's going to make a difference in how you see your day first of all. This is the first step to creating harmony in your home and a rhythm that works for you and not the other way around.
Get my printable priorities print out here. Are you going to start working on this today? Are you ready to start getting your day back?
Do you want to come hang out with some other moms working toward joy and releasing the overwhelm?
Are you ready to take your Mondays back?
I used to dread Mondays. Like I literally would get all down and out on Sunday night waiting for Monday to roll around. Then I decided to take my Mondays back. Read to the bottom for some recipes that have helped me with Monday motivation and to get good sleep on Sunday night. Here's what I started doing...
Start by Resting on Sundays for Mondays to be Great Again.
I'm serious! This may sound counterproductive but I found that when our family started resting, playing and taking Sundays as a true Sabbath, Mondays didn't seem so bad anymore. We read, play games, take walks to a local coffee shop, hang outside, spend time with the Lord and just do what we love to do. I often do yoga or bake in the morning. Every Sunday looks different except for our time with the Lord. That stays consistent and a top priority.
Set Yourself up Sunday night for Monday Morning Success.
I fill up all the diffusers with motivational blends to turn right on in the morning.
I make the coffee and set it up to start automatically.
I look through my planner for the week ahead.
Put my oils on to get the best sleep possible.
I try to read something at bedtime that inspires me for the week ahead. It's usually about faith, being a leader or home schooling.
Wake up to Motivational Mindfulness.
When I wake up I go straight to my devotions. Right now I'm using the YouVersion Bible app.
I say a prayer to start the day and rejoice with the Lord in the day He has made.
Make Mondays Great Again by Taking it Slow.
I know, sounds totally undo-able and it might be for you right now. I'm not sure what season you are in. When I started staying home with my kids and began to see the idea of time freedom from working from home, I decided to take Mondays slow. This means we do not have a lot on the schedule. I do not run errands. I don't try to do all the things in one day. I look at the week ahead and make sure I have a good handle on what's going down.
You might say I changed a Sunday well spent brings a weeks content to a Monday well spent!
Oh and by the way here are some of my favorite morning blends to put in the diffuser to get going:
Power Hour
4 drops Motivation
2 drops Peppermint
Rise and Shine
3 drops Lemon
3 drops Valor
2 drops Lime
Here are my favorite sleepy oils:
Rutavala Roll On
Lavender
Stress Away
Valor
Ylang Ylang
Ready to start using oils, grab them here. It matters what you use. The quality will make a difference on how it works.
We only get one chance to live in peace and joy. I wasted many years not doing that. So I'm here for it now. I will do what it takes to manifest that and give that to my children.
Comment below what you think about Mondays.
Want to come hang with some other women trying to take Mondays back and bring back peace into their homes, join here! We want you there!
By the way, want some more tips on how to live a healthy lifestyle without all the overwhelm, go here!
Meals Made Simple so You Can Save Time
How are feeling about being in the kitchen right now? Do you dread it or is it a place you find comfort? Either way I'm going to show you how to simplify it so that you are in there for less time but still getting healthy meals on the table. I have been meal planning for the last few years and have found a way to cut down my time spent on planning, shopping, and cooking. I was tired of not knowing what I was going to cook and found myself making excuses not to feed my family healthy meals. Now I have more time and my priority of feeding my family nourishing food happens. We feel better and are the most well we have ever been. It's given us a better quality of life. It only gets easier as I go because of the rhythm I have created doing it.
So here are my tips for meals made simple:
Meal planning:
- Once a week take about 30 minutes to an hour to plan out your meals for the week, especially dinners. If you are just starting out, you may want to fill in breakfast and dinner. At this point, we have a certain rotation of items for these two meals to keep it easy. Write down all your meals somewhere; for me that's a paper planner. Then make your grocery list for what you will need for the entire week ahead. I love to use these: Knock Knock All Out Of Pad Grocery List
Here's a few tips on meal planning:
- Don't forget to take inventory while you are doing this. You may have something you need already in your fridge or pantry or you may be able to work with something you need to use to create a few of your meals.
- Look for quick recipes...30 minutes or less. I use Pinterest and actual cookbooks. Here is my Pinterest Boards for you to take a peek: Pinterest. I have a lot of recipes on there.
- When possible double a recipe or make enough food for at least one night of leftovers and some lunch for the week.
- Keep staples that you use often stocked. Don't overbuy what you don't need. A cluttered pantry makes it hard to cook in my opinion. I have been using Thrive Market to keep stocked and have healthy ingredients delivered straight to our door.
Grocery shopping tips:
- Now it's time to grocery shop! I have found the grocery to be less crowded toward the end of the week, especially Thursday. I prefer to go in the morning. If this isn't possible for you, try to find a time when the grocery will be less crowded. When you go in with your list stick to it, this saves me time and money. I can usually get through the grocery with a week's worth of groceries to feed a family of 5 in about an hour. I also just started giving Thrive Market a try for staples and snacks to save time too.
Time Saving Tips:
- When chopping veggies for one meal chop enough for any other meals you have that week.
- Prewash any fruits and veggies you can to be ready to pull out.
- Prep what you need before you begin cooking. Get all your ingredients out.
- If possible, cook dinner in the late afternoon to heat up later. I love doing this! It gives me extra time to sit before dinner and relax a bit.
I hope you found these tips helpful. This is what is currently working for me during this season of my life. What tips do you have? Comment below. I would love to hear from you. I'm sure you have something I can add in that will help me making it even more simple.
Also check out my YouTube channel for recipes. Grab your free meals made simple month of dinner ideas here.
Do you sometimes wish that all screens for kids and teens would just go away so you didn't have to deal with them at all? I hear you! Here's some tips for managing screen time while still having happy kids. I have done this and my kids have stopped begging daily.
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