Changes you've made to make life easier

[dotfurio]

I'm hoping to share some tips on changes you've made that have made your life easier or just better somehow. Things that once you've started you wished you had done sooner. We are all so busy that sometimes we dont stop and think if there is a better way to accomplish something. I just recently placed my first order to have groceries delivered to my home. My work schedule is erratic and it takes me 3 hours to food shop and put away all that food each week. For the past year or so I have been dreading food shopping. I'm hoping grocery delivery will make my week a bit better. I was resistant for so long because of the extra cost but I'm pretty sure I'll make up for it by not impulse buying! Any tips or thoughts you'd like to share?

We take quite a while grocery shopping, too. Winco, Sprouts, Costco, sometimes Trader Joes, and lastly Vons or Albertsons for anything we couldn't find anywhere else. DH and I have thought about trying Instacart, especially for the stores we don't buy produce at. We're worried the shopper won't be as picky about produce as we are.

 

[Christine]

We stopped cutting the lawn, vacuuming, doing laundry, doing dishes...pretty soon we're going to stop showering to save even more time.

Seriously, the biggest time saver we have is in food prep. We only cook once a week, on Sunday. We cook enough to last from Sunday-Thursday dinners for everyone. So Mon-Thur we only need to heat and eat. Same for the kids lunches when school is in. On Sunday, we make sandwiches for the week and make about 20 snack bags. On a school morning, we just grab a sandwich, a snack bag, a piece of fruit from the fridge and a bottled water...takes 2 minutes or less. I do the same for my stuff. I prep a weeks worth of protein shake powder, breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks so I never have to do it after work and it only takes me a minute to pack for the day.

Yes, that makes for a busy Sunday morning (the whole thing takes about 60 minutes with DW and I working together) and a lot of dishes to wash Sunday night, but it's an invaluable time saver during the week when our schedule is out of control busy.

It helps not to be picky with this routine. I won't eat a sandwich that is probably older than 12 hours. Not worried about sickness or anything, I just like my food to taste like it was "just made." I could never eat a sandwich on Thursday that was made on Sunday. Fully admit I'm a princess!

 

[barkley]

when the kids were younger/school aged-

a plastic (laundry basket) was in the car when we picked them up at school or bus stop-EVERYTHING in their possession went into it. when we entered the house both everyone's shoes and that basket were put right by the door (inside the house) next to coat tree. after the kids got settled with a snack i got the basket and retrieved lunch containers to put in dishwasher, school paperwork, misc stuff that was day specific (like sports on certain days/activity stuff for certain days). homework was given to kids who upon finishing had to put back in backpack along with paperwork i had finished (in basket), next day's activity/sports stuff into basket, lunch for next day was packed and put into fridge. the next day when we were rushing out the door they grabbed lunches to put into backpacks, we grabbed the basket and were out the door.

'snack shack'-designated area in the pantry w/snack sized items. kids were given a designated number to grab for lunch. had to do it before they went to bed b/c the lunch boxes would be in the basket by the time the got up.

again-back in the day w/kids in school and both of working full time. power cooked a couple of weekends per month. browned tons of ground beef and put up in 1 pound zip locks to make quick meals. made multiple lasagnas, enchiladas, a whole turkey or roast (pulled pork/bbq beef) and batched it into both dinner servings and some lunch sized. made big batches of meatballs, froze on cookie sheet and then froze in a bag (easier to separate).


these days-

all pet food on auto order from chewey. paper towels, toilet paper, laundry detergent, woolite big bottles, cat litter, puffs (multi packs) all ordered from target and timed for when they give a $5 gift card. i break orders into 2 multiple of $35+ so i get free shipping (and use the $5 gift cards on the next round of orders). they schlep the 30# cat litter containers to my door which is adjacent to the garage so much less lifting and carrying for my old, achy back.

beginning 1/18 i started doing just ONE massive grocery trip per month. i keep a running list and hit walmart, costco, trader joes and any other odd place i might need to. beyond that trip it's just produce, dairy and maybe to stock up on a REALLY good sale but only if i'll already be in the vicinity of the store. it's a pain to spend a whole day doing it BUT seeing everything spread out all at once reminds me of what we've got so i'm not as tempted to buy more than we need (i keep a running list on the fridge for everyone to add to w/the caveat that i get to edit). this has resulted in a lower grocery bill as well as fewer instances of eating out.

planted mint and basil in ornamental pots on the deck. they are the herbs i use fresh the most in the summer and it was less expensive to buy a plant vs. one bunch of each that will go bad in a few days.

i buy hearts of romaine lettuce (come 3 or 4 in a bag). i clean and chop one at a time which go into a container for quick salads (lasts much longer than the bagged salad greens). i also container other salad stuff-julienne beets, water packed artichoke hearts quarters, asparagus and sliced mushrooms. just as dh is pulling the food off the bbq i can put together salads in a flash.

3 laundry baskets in laundry room (everyone puts their stuff in these)-towels/bedding, general clothing, fleece/gentle. makes separating to launder much faster and easier.

 

[eeyoresmom]

I bring a salad to work everyday with grilled chicken. I change up the other veggies day to day but always chicken and romaine. I used to grill my chicken for the week every Sunday but just started doing it monthly and freezing it. Soooo much more efficient. I was just in the habit of doing it every Sunday

 

[eeyoresmom]

Is the grocery delivery service you are using Instacart? We tried Instacart when it was new to our area because I had coupon codes which made the higher prices essentially even out for us the week we used it. While it was nice to have someone drop our groceries at the door, it took me a while to set it all up on the app. For each item, I had the option to submit an alternative one in case it was not available. That was time consuming to input, but I felt like I needed to or else I would have to run back out if it wasn't available and they didn't substitute it. It turns out, a few of the items were unavailable so the shopper had to move to the alternative I selected. Instead of just purchasing it, the shopper sent me a text to confirm it was acceptable. I was not near my phone when these texts came through (I was driving), and after about 20 minutes, the shopper called me to confirm. I confirmed it, but though it defeated the purpose of me entering the alternative in the app if they were going to have to rely on me to confirm it anyhow. Just buy it!

So, although I loved avoiding the grocery store, I didn't have a significant time savings and the pricing would be too high to justify continuing to use it for us. If you have a Wegmans in your area, they offer curbside pick-up at select stores which I found more convenient and easier.

No, its PeaPod. I'm not crazy about Stop and Shop but PriceChopper has just started home delivery and I'm hoping they add my town very soon.

 

[SC Minnie]

This sounds trivial but a couple of years ago I organized my closet by color. All my tops are grouped together by color, pants by color, and sweaters by color. Makes finding what you need in the morning so much easier. When doing this I also found that I had multiples of the same color and kind of top.

 

[OhMari]

We built our retirement home and we put in a walk in shower, not a bathtub. We do have a bath tub on the other side of our home, we have a split ranch. I love that we can close our door to our side of our home. When our older kids and grand kids come they have the basement bedrooms and a bathroom and 2 bedrooms and a bath on the other side of the house. It gives everyone privacy. Now I just am working on getting a swimming pool. it is something I wanted my whole life.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I do several of the things already listed and at this point don’t think I could go back to the “old way.” We do the vast majority of our shopping online, have the bulk of our groceries delivered, all bills set up to auto-pay, have a robot vacuum, pay a neighborhood kid to cut the grass, and do a fair amount of bulk cooking and freezing meals to cut down on daily cooking. I’d be happy to streamline and simplify life even further though, so keep the ideas coming!

I started using Fly Lady over 10 years ago and wish I had started earlier. My house is always ready for company. I follow a morning routine that takes less than 10 minutes most days and I can not emphasize how much easier my life seems. You can follow the suggestions as much or as little as you want and the peace of mind it has brought to me is wonderful.

Tell me more!

Wow, 3 hours? We hit 2 stores and stopped to pick up coffee on the way home and were home and had everything unpacked in 90 minutes yesterday morning. We shop once a week. We have Schwans also, and love their products, but the hassle with delivery is you HAVE to have someone home to accept the delivery within the delivery window.

AmazonFresh gives you the option of attended or unattended delivery. I always choose an unattended morning delivery and just collect the groceries off my front steps whenever I wake up that day.

I had a bunch of kids so they could do my house chores.

Ha! My one year old absolutely loves helping with cleaning related tasks and I’m all too happy to let him. I may have bought him his own Dustbuster.

And on that subject, babywearing is my most useful lifehack, currently. DS loves being wrapped to my back, he stays content, quiet, and out of trouble, I have both hands free, no need to mess with strollers, I can maneuver through public places quickly and easily... It’s going to be a real bummer when he gets too big for it.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

I send all my clothes to the laundry - everything comes back stain free, folded or ironed as needed.
Super easy to drop in the dressers or hang in the closets.
Once (or twice if needed) a week I get dirty clothes picked up and clean clothes delivered. Not doing laundry saves a ton of time.

Food delivery
House cleaning service

 

[TipsyTraveler]

Another one — I disconnected my doorbell a couple of years ago. No more midday interruptions, dog barking, baby (or myself) being woken from a nap.

 

[Ben E N]

During the school year I get up at 3:30 and hit the gym by 5. My workout is done by the time the typical early risers are waking up. I am energized for the rest of the day, got my workout checked off the list, and sleep like a baby when its time to go to bed. It may sound crazy, but after a week or so its the best.

Oh yeah, another added bonus is my typical one hour commute to work gets cut down to 35 minutes due to reduced traffic and having a gym close to my work.

 

[Klayfish]

During the school year I get up at 3:30 and hit the gym by 5. My workout is done by the time the typical early risers are waking up. I am energized for the rest of the day, got my workout checked off the list, and sleep like a baby when its time to go to bed. It may sound crazy, but after a week or so its the best.

I'm with you. DW and I get up at 4am every weekday, all year round (except when on vacation of course). We're in the gym by 4:30am, hitting the weights hard. It's a tough routine to get into, but once you do it's wonderful. We've been doing this for well over 10 years now. It's nice to have a mostly, if not completely, empty gym.

 

[PollyannaMom]

mickyzzzzz05 said: ↑
I started using Fly Lady over 10 years ago and wish I had started earlier. My house is always ready for company. I follow a morning routine that takes less than 10 minutes most days and I can not emphasize how much easier my life seems. You can follow the suggestions as much or as little as you want and the peace of mind it has brought to me is wonderful.

I tried that years ago, but the constant e-mails overwhelmed me.


Some things I've done at various times over the years (some temporary, some permanent) -

Stopped folding wash cloths. The stacks were always falling over in the linen closet. We just have a big basket for them in there now.
One particularly bad cold season, I switched to paper towels by the bathroom sink. It cut down so much on passing germs around!
One summer, I declared one night a week "breakfast for dinner" so I didn't have to think.
Last summer I set up two plastic storage crates (like milk crates, only narrower) and moved the pool towels downstairs. - So much more convenient!
I also did a lot of decluttering last summer. I need a refresher, but it really helped.
Hiring someone to mow the lawn!
A checklist for daily tasks that I go through every evening (when my brain is otherwise mush) to make sure it's all done.
Got rid of the loveseat in the "formal" living room and put in another bookshelf.


And the newest and best has been DS getting a car. I had no idea how much easier life was going to be!
...

 

[tvguy]

AmazonFresh gives you the option of attended or unattended delivery. I always choose an unattended morning delivery and just collect the groceries off my front steps whenever I wake up that day..

Schwans has unattended delivery too. But with in a 3 hour window, and all in the afternoon. Given that DD has to be at work at 2 am, I have to be at work at 3 am, and DW has to be at work at 4 am, not sure Amazon delivers THAT early.

 

[2China2009]

I woke up one day about 5 years ago and had the stark realization that I needed to simplify our lives. I worked for 1 year to get our house in order,pay bills online and line up kids activities that were close to home. As a single mom my girls are now older and they all have their chores which makes my life simple. For us living in a small home and only living in the upstairs we have very little to clean. Besides cleaning the kitchen everyday we do not need to clean the bedrooms and family room much at all. We have wood floors so we rarely need to wipe them down, but do vacuum 1 week. We do wash once a week and line dry mostly everything. Our grocery stores are very close so I can hit those up any day of the week. We are home bodies so we are not running around 24/7 which saves wear and tear on our car, less gas to be used and overall less money spent. We live frugal b/c we have too,but we also have a lot of fun. We love our easy streamlined life.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

During the school year I get up at 3:30 and hit the gym by 5. My workout is done by the time the typical early risers are waking up. I am energized for the rest of the day, got my workout checked off the list, and sleep like a baby when its time to go to bed. It may sound crazy, but after a week or so its the best.

Oh yeah, another added bonus is my typical one hour commute to work gets cut down to 35 minutes due to reduced traffic and having a gym close to my work.

I'm with you. DW and I get up at 4am every weekday, all year round (except when on vacation of course). We're in the gym by 4:30am, hitting the weights hard. It's a tough routine to get into, but once you do it's wonderful. We've been doing this for well over 10 years now. It's nice to have a mostly, if not completely, empty gym.

Oh dear! I’d have to go to bed at 7:00 PM in order to wake up at 4:00 AM every morning! It’s still light outside then. Not sure I’d ever adjust.

 

[lovin'fl]

Will admit to being super lazy so this question is right up my alley. A major focus in my life. LOL.

Last kids graduated HS in 2017 and we sold big house with high maintenance yard. Bought a townhome with an HOA that maintains all outside stuff (power washes, cleans gutters, cuts grass, mulches, fertilizes, replaces dead shrubs...). It also has a first floor master. When kiddos are off to college, we can basically shut down the upper floor and all I clean is kitchen, living room, master and 1.5 baths. I can do full clean in 45 minutes. Though if I keep up a little every day, then I never need to do a one time full on cleaning (save that for when we have guests coming). Same goes for laundry...do a little every other day then it's quick and easy to fold and put away.

And when we moved, I purged massively. We only have the stuff we need and use frequently. I have stuff placed and set up strategically for ease (I realize the importance of this as I am staying at my mom's and she doesn't have things set up for convenience as she hordes and clutters).

I love getting meal kits like Hello Fresh. Saves time on thinking about what to make, shopping for ingredients and portioning them.

I also like to have a structured schedule. Doing things the same set time and/or day makes it quicker and easier. Though all of these things are much more do-able since we have all kids in college. Harder with littles at home.

 

[larissawbb]

I stopped reading the news. It doesn’t save me much time but sure saves me a lot of aggravation!

 

[Ben E N]

Oh dear! I’d have to go to bed at 7:00 PM in order to wake up at 4:00 AM every morning! It’s still light outside then. Not sure I’d ever adjust.

After acouple of 3:30-4:00 wakeups, you can go to sleep even if there's fireworks shooting off outside. I typically go to bed around 8:15, so I get just over 7 hours a night during the week, then nap on the weekends.

 

[cabanafrau]

We've planned renovations and upgrades to our home around making as many things as maintenance free or simple upkeep wherever possible. We've planned landscaping upgrades around the same idea, almost exclusively focusing on perennials that need little care and minimal water once established, with the exception of the hydrangeas.