Back to our routines.

Posted in Blood test, California, Flylady, home stuff, Uncategorized by Chris N

Since Sunday we’ve been slowly getting back to our daily routines. B has been outside nonstop with cleaning out Rubi( the RV) and cleaning it (which it doesn’t need much). He’s getting the pool ready to fill which is always a process and he’s doing endless outdoor chores.

I’ve been catching up with my Flylady routines and seems like today I’m mostly done with everything. I might do a kitchen deep clean later this week.

I like routines and I do better with daily lists and that sort of thing. I always prioritize what is most important to do and get that done first. Today, I have on my list to get out the dehydrator and start drying herbs that are in the garden like oregano, lemon thyme, regular thyme, and tarragon. I think there is some parsley too that can be harvested. We are going to have a bumper crop of garlic and that’s exciting. I guess planting in containers works best for some things and then the earwigs and other things don’t eat the seedlings so they have a chance to grow. The garlic is in 4 barrels so that’ll be a big harvest. I planted the onions around them so once the garlic is done I’m hoping the onions take off. In the 2 big galvanized tubs( they are 2×6), we have tomatoes, peppers, dill, parsley, fennel and I’m not sure what else.

The asparagus we planted last year don’t seem to be doing very well. Only 10 have come up and we planted at least 24. Maybe the soil conditions aren’t quite right. B has already harvested some radishes that he’s growing in an old clawfoot tub that he’s converted to a planter.

I haven’t done any decluttering as of late because where the house is now, seems good. I’m still debating getting rid of some canning jars but since canning season is just starting I think I’ll wait and see what I actually use. I plan on canning salsa, pickles, tomato sauce, and, a few other things. No jams this year as we don’t eat a lot of jam and I still have some marmalade and pepper jelly to use.

Tomorrow I go down to Sacramento to see Dr. L. My numbers came back just slightly over high normal at 19.9mg/L high is 19.4mg/L. last month I was at 18.3/L so a fairly big jump. 1.6, but I’m not too worried yet.

10Jan2018

Minimalism, Creating routines

Posted in decluttering, minimalism, Uncategorized by Chris N

HDT quote.jpg

Thoreau says it all in this quote, I think.

We need to think about what we buy, what we consume and what we do with it all after we no longer need it. Plus, how many hours did you work to get that new whatever. It’s certainly food for thought.

But today in my minimalism series, I want to address routines. So you’ve decluttered, purged, donated, thrown away, and organized whats left. Now comes keeping it going by creating routines. Daily, weekly, monthly.

When I started my minimalism journey it was Flylady that helped me get going. I was starting a new chemotherapy after remission of 4 years. The chemo was fairly easy to tolerate 21 days on 7 days off. But the steroids were tough, so I found FlyLady and started implementing the 15-minute rule and followed her weekly zones.

There are 5 zones and every 5 weeks you go thru your whole house. Since decluttering and purging, tidying and housework are a breeze. My biggest zone, and by that I mean the most time consuming, is the kitchen. I can do all the other rooms in about 10 minutes. I also do the weekly home blessing which includes washing mirrors and dusting.

She also has an evening and morning routine. I do the morning one based on what I need. For instance, I do 1X of laundry a day, I swish and swipe the bathroom in the morning, I make sure the counters are clean and the sink as well. Of course, I make the bed daily. I think the evening one would be especially important if you have kids going to school and need to plan lunches etc.

I think it’s important to create your own routine based on what your life looks like. If I had young children, I’m sure it would be different, working professionals will look different too. Start with the basics

make your bed
tidy the living room or any room that needs picking up
1X laundry a day, done from start to finish
clean sink
wipe bathroom down
empty dishwasher
plan dinner

I plan dinner with a weekly rotation but I plan specifically in the morning what I ‘m doing for dinner.

Keep at it. It took a while to get my routine down and it will you too. Do the most important things first and then schedule 15 minutes for the rest and see how much you can accomplish in 15 minutes.

There are tons of Pinterest ideas for routines to check as well.

14Jun2016

Daily routines and simplifying

Posted in minimalism, simplicity, Uncategorized by Chris N

We dropped a small load off at Goodwill and then took some very nice cookbooks to the ASPCA bookstore and those white dishes to their thrift store. I really like taking the nicer stuff to the Pet thrift store. They seem to have a very nice collection and seem to be doing well. I already have a few more things loaded into the van and if I’m up to it , I’ll go thru some more stuff in the barn. I know I’m going to get rid of more Christmas stuff and Life magazines but when is the question.

My daily routine started when I did Flylady. It’s still the same for the most part. having a daily routine ,morning for me, but some people do morning and evening,keeps the house and laundry tidy and organized. If you do a daily routine it really helps in the flow of the day. I make the bed(of course), empty the dishwasher if it hasn’t been done the night before, take out laundry and wipe the bathroom with Costco wipes. If I need to prep for dinner such as crockpot Thursday I do that in the morning too. I make sure the counters are clear and things put away. Also, put things away that might be out of place. Of course, we don’t have young children so it does make it easier.

Minimalizing has been a huge part of how simple my daily routine is since there’s not a lot of things to dust, or put away or maintain. I would completely advise minimalizing your things so as to simplify your life. It’s certainly a journey and a process. But as I go layers of stuff and layers of my self a lot is revealed and let go of. It’s interesting how different decluttering books speak to different parts of oneself. the Don Aslett books are really fun and kinda quirky, but they Do get the message across. You really don’t need 12 rusty screwdrivers. Or that family heirloom you think one day will be valuable. Then, of course, the Kondo way of does it spark joy. Then now I’m working on the concept of ,if we moved would we take it. It does force you to look at things differently. Of course, some things we wouldn’t take but still need now. So it’s all a process.