Change is here!

I picked up some mason jars today - smaller sized ones. 

Yogurt, jelly, jam, dressings, and other items I plan to make will fit nicely in these! 

It's all part of my big lifestyle change!  One thing at a time, small changes, and waiting until one habit is properly ingrained before moving on to the next!

But where is this change leading?

Here is a list of things I want to be easy and stress free in my life!

Money - the big one!  That's the one everyone stresses about no matter what you're income.  It seems to me that the more money I get, the harder it is to manage.  I have so many random bills now that I never used to have.  From cable tv to gym memberships, to online subscriptions and, of course, the mobile phones!  I think it's time to review what I'm spending my hard-earned money on, and if it is worth it.  Do I really need a meal planner to write up my shopping list?  Is it really easier, or am I justifying a 'new toy' to feed my ego? All my bills need to get this level of scrutiny!

Food - surprisingly this isn't just about what I get at the grocery store.  It's what I can grow in my garden, removing chemicals from my diet, do I want to go full organic?  Can I fit that in my budget?  What about the ethics of the food I eat?  Do I buy eggs based on money, or ethics, or do I sacrifice time to get my own chickens?  How much of this lifestyle could I embrace? 

Health - And then there is the 'fat' issue.  I will admit right here and now that I am not fat.  Borderline overweight? Yes!  At risk due to abdominal fat?  Yes!  Unhappy about how much fat I have on my body?  Yes!  But is fat really the issue?  No!  The issue is the food I eat is making me tired, sick, and unhappy - literally!  It is affecting my mental health and my physical health (really, you can't affect one without affecting the other!).

Resources -  I use a lot of resources.  We try to recycle but I have a lazy family (that includes me, admittedly).  Our power bill is shockingly high, we waste a lot of food, we waste a lot of everything!  I have always thought of myself a bit of a greenie, but the reality of my life is not in any way sustainable.  I even throw our green waste in the wheelie bin!

Me - Yup, I get a category all to myself.  I need, for my mental health, ego, etc, to finish my PhD.  I need to get my confidence back and get that agoraphobia monkey off my back.  It's time to start living again, achieving my goals, and feeling good about who I am!


I've committed to a few things of late.  First is the Commando program.  Not going well!  I have been sick, or had major work commitments the last 3 weeks.  Second is my PhD - I need to get with a full-time program to finish on time.  No more 'optional' box (and yet here I am at home instead of uni!).  to meet this, we bought a new car so that both my husband and I can pick up the kids.  And lastly, I bought a Thermomix!  I don't get it for a few weeks yet, but when I do, I'm changing our food completely!

One thing that I read consistently, is that big changes mean big crash!  Small changes are the way to go.  But I want those changes to count!  I NEED a calm, easy routine to work within.  One that meets all my goals.  One that is kind to me, my family, and fits my lifestyle.

Day 13 of Prep: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly!

Let's start with the good, on what I shall call Black Sunday!

Lunch.. baked salmon!  Unbelievably easy - a quick 5mins to blend breadcrumbs, basil, parmesan cheese, and some olive oil - coat over the salmon pieces and bake for 30mins!  I did have plans to do an awesome 'just baked' picture using my newly found photography skills however the children smelt it as soon as I took it out of the oven and had helped themselves before I had a chance to grab my camera!  This was the little bit that was left for me!

I spent the day attacking my pile of photographs that I have collected over my 20 adult years (complete with a few stolen from Mum's albums!) and a made a bit of headway with 50 photos uploaded, edited, and details added.  Only a thousand odd left to go!

Yeah, I was a cutie!

The bad.. no weight loss this week.. 64kg so there is a slight increase.  I will blame two nights of alcohol, and a huge excess of carbs in the preceding two days!  Planning is important!

The ugly.. I smoked a few cigarettes!  Blargh!  After getting in twelve good days of not smoking, a bit of alcohol last night was enough to crush my willpower.  Back on the patches tomorrow and a stern lecture to my hubby about how he wants to quit as well!  It's not like I enjoy it, or even get any satisfaction from it!  It's just laziness and boredom and addiction. 

Tomorrow is going to be a challenge and the whole week has the potential to crash and burn on me with the whole family having throat infections and sniffly noses.  I will find solutions, not excuses!  I want to get this whole planning and commitment thing down pat before the program starts (in two weeks!  EEEk!).

I'm totally rocking it already - a few lessons learnt (which are better learnt now then during the program!) and quite a few successes under my belt!

Day 1: Shine my sink!

This isn't the first time I've 'done' Fly lady.  I discovered her 8 years ago when pregnant with child number three.  For six months my home was organised, I was relaxed, and then Chaos (aka DS3) arrived. I've tried a few times to get back into that same routine but my life is very different now - what worked then isn't working now.  Back to the drawing board.. Or in this case, Baby-steps.. I go!

A while back I downloaded the Home Routines App.  It is very 'Fly lady' friendly and so I entered all my old routines in and promptly forgot about it.  Today I deleted all my old routines and instead followed the apps guide to starting with Baby-steps.  I titled a routine 'Baby-steps' and numbered tasks 1-31 to be checked off each day.

It's not complex!  Over the next 31 days, with a few days off next week because I'm travelling, I will build up the basics of my routine.  But for today, I only have to keep that sink clean and dry!

Some helpful notes..

I didn't wash up - just pulled out the dirty dishes and stacked them.

It only took a few minutes so I also scraped up a tea towel and clean cloth from the washing and hung them on the convenient rails under the sink so I can keep it clean and dry all day.

I scrubbed the sink with Gumption, rinsed and dried it, then sprayed on Windex and shined it using the tea towel.

I made myself stop after I wiped the splash back and window frame, realising that I would end up in the land of perfection and failure.  There is mess on either side of the sink, and the cupboard doors below are dirty.  It was time to stop.  

I will probably do a bit more later but not as part of my Fly lady Baby-steps!  That will come later!