TEN TIPS for making life a little easier

I have ONE daughter and life gets pretty hectic. I try to organize myself the best I can to make our lives a little easier. Here are some tips I use--do you have some great tips?

1. Morning time is almost unbearable in my house. I have done a few things to try to make it a little better for myself and my daughter. The biggest fight we have in the morning is what clothes to wear. Even though Sophia is only 4, she has become a fashion diva. She has decided that she will not wear pants anymore-DRESSES ONLY! After a few days of this fight I decided to pick clothes out the night before for BOTH of us. I even pick an extra outfit for Sophia because there are mornings when she doesn't want to where the dress she picked the night before.

2. The next thing that I have found makes the morning easier is packing our lunches the night before. I usually bring leftovers for lunch for myself and Sophia's preference now a days are ham and cheese sandwiches. I pack them and put them in the fridge and put the non cold items in our lunchboxes for the next morning.

3. I have found that it is easier for me to get everything organized and packed before I wake up Sophia in the morning. I am blessed that she LOVES to sleep in.

4. Once I pack everything in the morning, I hang the bags on the doorknobs so everything we need is ready to go at the door. I am forgetful too so this ensures I do not leave anything behind. I start hanging things the night before if need be.

5. While clothes can be a problem in the morning; shoes are the other half of the problem. I finally bought shoe hanging racks and hung them up on the wall next to her closet. When she takes her shoes off, she knows to put them in the shoe hanger so we do not have to look for shoes in the morning. They are all in one spot.

6. Rides in the car can be tedious with a child if they are constantly telling you they are bored. I have ensured that Sophia will NEVER be bored in our car, whether we are driving 10 mins to school or 2 hours to grandpa and grandma's house. I got coloring books and TWISTABLE crayola crayons and colored pencils (no pencil sharpening in the car, books that Sophia can read to herself, maze books, and a few small toys to keep in the car. I have organized them in reusable shopping bags which hang over the backs of the front seats.

7. I have a problem of keeping track of small items. I lose things often. I decided to buy an ottoman that is also storage and when I need to put something away for "safe keeping" I put it in the ottoman.

8. Keeping track of smaller items is one thing I have a hard time remembering but I also have a hard time with appointments. I have tried keeping a pocket calendar but then i would never remember to look at it. I was overjoyed when I bought my blackberry though because not only can I put my appts. in there but I have the phone set to RING at me BEFORE the appt to remind me. I put the appts in when they are booked so i don't forget to put it in.

9. Grocery shopping is always a chore for people. I do not always have time to do this but I have found that when I do, it makes my life easier. I flip through recipes and plan a menu for the week. From this menu I make a grocery list to bring with me. This is helpful because I not only have a list for the store but I also have meals planned for the week.

10. This brings me to my last tip which goes along with the last tip. Once I bring the groceries home, I make Sunday a cooking day. I cook at least 2 of the recipes I have planned and freeze them so I can take out a prepared meal and heat it during the week. This makes late nights a relief when I come home and know that I do not have to cook dinner after a long day.

I hope you can use one or all of these tips to make YOUR life a little bit easier.

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Thanks for reading!

Dawn