My New Favorite Lunch Recipe...

Most days, lunch for me is a big salad and/or some soup, or some leftovers from the previous night's dinner... but sometimes I get a craving for a really good sandwich. Who doesn't, right? My typical sandwich choices are hummus or cashew cheese, piled with lettuce, tomato and other veggies on sprouted grain bread (or a wrap) 

But lately... I have a new Sandwich Love... it's called Chickpea-Avocado Salad and it's DELICIOUS. It's sort of similar to the non-vegan sandwich staples chicken salad or egg salad. But vegan, and amazing in every way. It not only tastes great, it's also super nutritious and really satisfying. It's the perfect sandwich for summer picnic.

Chickpea-Avocado Salad Sandwich

1.5 cups of cooked chickpeas, mashed

1 large ripe avocado

1/2 med purple onion, finely chopped

splash of lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Put everything in a bowl, and mash/stir until well blended. Serve on toasted bread with lettuce, tomato and any other veggies you like (sprouts work great!) Alternatively, you can serve it up in a wrap, in lettuce leaves, on crackers... etc. You can make this salad up ahead of time... it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

YUM!

Routines! Part 2

So, last post I talked about how my daily routines help me keep up with my busy life. Today I'm going to talk about my weekly routines.

While my daily routines keep up with the basic daily needs of my home and family (basic tidying, daily meals, laundry, etc) my weekly routines take care of everything else I need to get done to keep my home running smoothly, such as paying bills, planning meals, errands, cleaning, etc.

In order to balance home needs with our very busy schedule of homeschooling stuff, activities and work obligations, I spread out household responsibilities throughout the week. That way, I only have a few things to do each day, so I can squeeze them in at the beginning and end of the day, or between our activities or obligations during the day.

Monday:
Quick Home Blessing (a throwback to when I used to follow Flylady, back in the day)
Good bathroom cleaning
15-20 minutes of detail cleaning in one room (wherever needs it)

Tuesday:
15-20 minutes of detail cleaning in one room
Sort mail, tend to paperwork

Wednesday:
15-20 minutes of detail cleaning in one room
Errands: Target and Trader Joes

Thursday:
Write up menus and shopping list for the week
Whole Foods, any other necessary errands

Friday:
Clean out Fridge
Big grocery shop for the week
Sort mail, tend to paperwork, pay bills, etc

Saturday and Sunday 
Food prep (to makes weekday meal prep a little easier!)
Home and Garden Projects

I keep all of this together on printed "to do" lists for each day, which also include the regular classes
and activities we have scheduled for that day. For one-time events, or something specific to a single day, I also have a post-it "to do" list attached to write those things down. I keep these lists on a clipboard on my desk, so I can refer to it as needed throughout the day. I also keep a journal near by, to jot down things such as recipe ideas, plans for special events like birthdays or holidays, notes about things to do with the kids, etc.

The transition back to work has been so much smoother than I thought it would be, largely due to these basic routines. As I increase my work hours in the coming months, I'm hoping these routines will continue to keep my home in shape and my family happy.

Routines! Part 1

It's been a very busy couple of months around here, as I've been launching my new business, SimpleLife Home Solutions, while still managing my home and family and homeschooling 4 kids! I'm trying really hard to keep the balance, and so far, so good! Being my own boss, I'm in charge of my own schedule, and can arrange my client appointments and office time around the kids schedules, so that is very helpful.

But the absolute most important thing I have, that makes it possible for me to juggle work, home and family, is that I have some really solid routines in place... things that I do each day that make my life run a little bit smoother. Over the years I've developed a variety of daily and weekly routines that help me keep up with everything I'm responsible for. The most important of these are my Morning, Afternoon and Evening Routines.

Getting my day off to a good start in the morning actually begins the night before, with my Evening Routine:

1. Pack The Man's lunch for tomorrow

2. Set up the coffee pot

3. Finish folding the day's laundry (see more about my laundry routines here)

4. Do a quick 10 minute "tidy up" around the house (This one is super important. Doing a quick clean up each night means I start every morning with a tidy home! This makes a HUGE difference in my attitude in the morning!)

5. Check my calendar, and make sure we have everything we need for the next day's activities, classes, appointments, etc.

6. Make my "to do" list for tomorrow.

7. Lay out my clothes for tomorrow.

This routine usually only takes about 45 minutes or so. After I'm done, I end my day with a nice hot shower to wash away the stress of day, and I make it a priority to spend some time with The Man of the House (so important to a relationship to make sure to reconnect each evening, after a busy day apart)

After a good night's sleep (or as close to a good night's sleep as I get these days... ), I'm ready to tackle a new day with my Morning Routine:

1. Get myself up and ready. (Once upon a time, I'd make the bed, but now The Man does it, as he's the last one up!)

2. Wipe down the bathroom.

3. Put the teakettle on to boil.

4. Empty the dishwasher.

5. Fix breakfast, dole out vitamins, fill The Man's thermos for work.

6. Put in first load of laundry.

7. Cat boxes

8. Sit down with my coffee to check email, etc

9. Before we head out the door, I make sure the kitchen is tidied up, and switch the laundry.

Once these things are done, I can go about tackling whatever is on our agenda for the day. Our schedule varies greatly depending on the day of the week, but the middle of our day generally consists of various classes, chores, activities, appointments, schoolwork for the kids and work for me.

By around 4-4:30, I start my Afternoon Routine...

1. Keep the laundry going

2. Start dinner prep

3. Empty dishwasher, if needed (with a family of 6, our dishwasher usually gets run twice a day, after breakfast and lunch, and after dinner)

When these three basic routines get done, the most basic needs of my family are met: our home is fairly tidy, we're fed, and we have clean clothes. If all else falls apart in our day (which does sometimes happen!) at least we have that.

Next post, I'll be talking about weekly routines, and how those build on my daily routines to keep our lives running smoothly.