As a self-employed, work-from-home mom of 3 energetic, non-school-age children, my days can be very VERY unpredictable… and this lack of structure starts to wear on me after a while!
Today I’m sharing a few basic routines I’ve implemented that allow our family to thrive, even when every day is different. I think the concepts could be implemented into many different family situations too.
One of the things I love most about scalloped potatoes is that it’s a delicious MAKE-AHEAD side dish that can instantly be transformed into a MAKE-AHEAD main dish with the addition of some chopped ham!
If you’re looking for a hearty winter meal (or yummy potato side dish) this is the recipe for you!
Despite starting our week with 3 sick kiddos, we had a great week with slightly warmer temperatures and Dave home a bit more due to exams.
I finished a couple more books, did a few small projects around the house, and updated our important document binder… so overall, a pretty productive week for me!
Simple living can sound like an overwhelming task for many of us… and it CAN be at first.
However, I know from personal experience that when simple living becomes a habit, or “an unconscious pattern of behavior,” it just feels right, and easy, and oh so simple you won’t even be able to imagine living life any other way!
As we start a fresh new year, I thought it might be fun to revisit a time when I started over fresh with my business — that time I rebranded my entire blog and business!
Believe it or not, it’s been almost FOUR years since I changed the name of my blog and my business — which means I’ve officially been “Andrea Dekker” for longer than I was “Simple Organized Living” — crazy!
Have you ever pushed yourself too hard… to the point where you hated an activity you once loved?
As we strive for new goals and resolutions in the coming year, I want to highlight the negative impact of pushing too hard. It’s one thing to strive for a lofty goal… it’s another to completely burn out and start hating an activity you formerly enjoyed.
Freezer cooking has been a crucial part of my efforts to simplify my life for over 10 years now. I have saved myself countless hours in the kitchen, thousands of dollars at the grocery store, and bucket loads of stress due to planning ahead and having ready-made meals in the freezer ALL THE TIME.
However, aside from some leftover soup, we currently have ZERO full meals in our deep freezer right now! Today, I’m sharing why…
Although I’m not nearly as frugal as I was 10 years ago, I still try to use our money wisely, get the best value, and save when it’s not too much of an inconvenience.
One of the ways I save quite a bit (without sacrificing much time, effort, or quality of product) is by simply asking the right questions to the right people.
Sometimes, I think we get sucked into thinking that all busyness is bad, unnecessary, and something that could or should be avoided — like if our lives are busy, we’re doing something wrong.
But in reality, busy times are often just part of life. They are not always avoidable, nor are they always bad…
So often, we talk about “maintenance mode” in a negative way — as in “I’m so busy, I have no time for anything. I’m simply in ‘maintenance mode’ trying hold the pieces together.”
That is NOT the type of maintenance mode I’m referring to today though — I’m speaking of it in a much more positive light, as a current goal for my business!
As I’ve done for many years now, I’ll be taking the week between Christmas and New Years as a short blogging break. It’s such a nice time to step away from my computer and social media for a few days, and I always come back after the New Year with so many blog post topics and ideas!
Today I’m sharing our 2016 Christmas card, and a little bit about what I hope to do (and not do) over our Christmas break!
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