How I Save Time

 

One of the things that I struggle with daily is the issue of saving time. I'm always looking for ways to make life easier, to have to 'do' less, to make things more seamless. I've rounded up my favorite time saving tips and services that undoubtedly make my life better! So that I have more time for things like couch snuggles with P and watching Outlander.

I order my groceries and have them delivered. I've oscillated back and forth on ordering groceries over the years and currently I'm in an ordering phase. It's not always perfect, I don't always get exactly what I want, but it's close enough and honestly, that's good enough for me when it saves a couple of hours on a Saturday morning. Currently, we use Fresh Direct and have been pretty happy with it.

I hired a cleaning service. We had a cleaning service, then decided to cut back, and now we are back on the train again. The reality is that with both of us working full time, neither of us is willing to spend a couple of precious weekend hours really cleaning the place. And let's be real: I'm never going to do the kind of deep clean that the professionals will.

I wash my hair less. Once upon a time I was a religious daily hair washer. Over time, I've gotten down to about twice a week. I know it sounds crazy, but I can't even tell you how this has singlehandedly changed my life. Not only is my hair less greasy, looks better more frequently, but I don't spend precious morning time grooming. I still shower (hair goes up in a bun), bust out the straightening iron for a touched up look, and of course put on a least a touch of makeup, but not having to wash, dry and straighten hair daily is such a time saver.

I got an Amazon Prime subscription. Ok, it's technically Shaun's, but we both use it and it is awesome. Whenever we run out of diapers and wipes, there are no trips to the store. I simply place an order on Amazon Prime and it arrives in two days. Upcoming birthday party or gift giving occasion? Almost everything can be found on Amazon. Even if I need to update my sock drawer, Amazon is my go to. It has eliminated so many trips to the store, I can't even say enough how this service changes our life daily.

I spend a little time each week meal planning. A quick daily meal plan informs my grocercy list and also keeps me sane during the week when I have less time to think/plan/worry about what we will be having for lunch or dinner. It also allows me to keep meals simple and not waste any food.

I do some food prep on weekends. Admittedly this doesn't always happen and on some Sunday's I feel as though I could prep all day long and still not tackle enough, which is not how I want to spend a Sunday. I do what I can, and every little bit helps! Yesterday, I made some shredded chicken in the slow cooker and hard boiled some eggs. Just that little bit makes packing breakfast and lunch a little easier.

I bathe Penelope every other night. I know you are probably questioning my personal hygiene priorities at this point, but in reality unless P has had a particularly dirty day, I don't see the need for a daily bath. This alleviates so much time pressure a few nights a week.

I use commuting time productively. I make a promise to myself to use my morning commute productively each day. Whether it's writing up a blog post in Notes, checking and making a to do list (I use Wunderlist which syncs across my devices), or simply checking in on my calendar for the week to get my head in the zone, I find this is a great use of my 15 minute train ride. And then I get the evening commute to read or just listen to music.

What are your time saving tips and tricks?

What are your thoughts on eating in bed?

I mentioned that Penelope and I were solo on Friday evening and for me, that means I get to do and watch whatever I want once she goes to sleep.

And so I did what anyone in my position would do. I indulged in one of my all-time favorite guilty pleasures: eating in bed. I put on my pajamas, cooked up one of my favorite comfort meals, climbed into bed, and ate my dinner while sitting pretty watching Outlander. When Shaun is home, I'd never get away with this. He hates when I eat food in bed and in all the years we've been together, I've never seen him eat food while in bed. Occasionally if he falls asleep on the couch, I'll creep into bed with my dessert and catch up on a show he would have no interest in, but this is a rare occasion.

And so what I want to know is: what are your thoughts on eating in bed? Am I the only crazy one? It is such a glorious indulgence!

PS: We also had a pretty great weigh in on instagram on Friday night.

A-mazing Spring Weekend

This weekend was nothing short of perfection in the weather department. I've been longing for sunny spring days and this weekend we got two of them. The cherry blossoms were in bloom, the playgrounds were packed and we all benefited from a very healthy dose of vitamin c. There's nothing quite like ending the day with a tinge of sunburn, windswept hair and a strong desire to make a cocktail and fall asleep early from outdoor exhaustion.

Shaun occasionally refs soccer on spring weekends and this Saturday he had a tournament which meant that Penelope and I were on our own from Friday night to Saturday night.

After Shaun left on Friday, I broke out the popcorn machine for our girls night. Penelope loves it and so do I. It just makes movie night feel really special, like an event. I love that. Once Penelope went to sleep, I curled up in bed to watch the latest Outlander and I also started The Jinx. Full blown obsession on both.

Saturday we were up early and hit up music class.

Afterwards, we ran back to our apartment to get ready to head out for the day. We were heading to Brooklyn to visit my sister Kim for the day. It's so rare that we have a free weekend day to leisurely do this kind of thing and it was awesome.

We started with lunch at Avlee, a charming little Greek restaurant. We dined on pita and baba ganoush, gyro bites, Greek salad and chunky fries. It was the perfect fuel for an afternoon at the park!

We headed over to the park and ran into Kim's future mother-in-law and some friends. This is what I love about city living.

Many trips down the slide and a swing meltdown later, we were off to cool down in the shade and indulge in my favorite cold summer treat - ice cream! We found a gelato place nearby and P and I each got a cup of strachiatella.

Penelope was also enamored by the amazing array of Italian cookies and so we both picked out one of those as well. M&M for her and a pinioli for me, in case you were wondering. We walked back to Kim's to try on bridesmaid dresses, and then Penelope and I headed out of dodge to meet back up with Shaun. We picked up dinner to bring home and crashed hard and early on the couch.

On Sunday, we were awoken by Fresh Direct and our grocery delivery. We've been using this a lot lately and it's been a huge time saver for me on the weekends.

We packed up the car and headed to Hamilton Park in Jersey City. It was another glorious day, if slightly windy, but I didn't mind at all. We started with coffee and juice at Smith & Chang General Goods, the cutest (and yummiest) little coffee spot I ever did see.

We had lots of swing, slide and playground time. Our favorite way to spend a Sunday.

It was so nice out so we decided to have brunch al fresco, but unfortunately Penelope had other plans in mind. So we ended up not staying and just heading home so that she could nap.

Meanwhile I made these cookie butter cookies from Monday's post and Shaun dusted off the patio furniture that's been hiding under a tarp for the last bunch of months.

We ended the weekend with dinner (grilled turkey burgers & oven-baked fries), watched Chicken Run with Penelope (on Netflix now) and I broke out the last piece of carrot cake from the freezer. P was in bed on time and then Shaun and I drifted off to sleep while watching Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. A great weekend that made me so very excited for all of the warm weather weekends in our future!

 

How was your weekend?

 

What is your favorite fuel for the day? Mine is coffee, every time.