Stress Busters

I have had a lot less time to be domestic lately.  I also have not made it to the gym in forever.  I got laid off and started a new job which requires me to be in the office 5 days a week ugh.  Along with this huge change my husband has also made a career shift, he has started his own consulting company.  There is no lack of stress in the Domestic Goddess' household these days.  So here are a few tips on how to cut back on stress.

1. Divide and conquer.  With ever-changing work schedules we must adapt to new chores and let some things go. 

2. Hire help. The HOA came around and wrote very detailed lists of needed home repairs.  This list included pulling out a storm damaged bush replacing it etc and cleaning the gutters.  Gutter people were quick and efficient and only cost $40.  We went with landscaping the whole front ares $360 for labor and supplies.  Not naggin' husband or ending up with a HOA fine Priceless.

3. Go outside. It is impossible to relax when you are surrounded by a mess so just leave.  Go outside in the backyard and grill.  Eat on the patio and the pile of dishes in the sink will not matter.

4. Eat icecream.  There is nothing better after a long hard day than sitting down with a little tub of Ben and Jerry's.  Next to your hubby on the couch eating some Carmel Sutra that's the life.

Life is all about the little things the little joys, the little wins, the little endulgences. Keep your chin up we are all works in progress :)

I hate grocery shopping! It is inefficient!

I hate grocery shopping!  I do business process documentation for a living and grocery shopping is so inefficient!  You take the food off the shelf you put it in the cart; you take it out off the cart you put it on the belt;  you take the bags out of the cart and put them in the car; you take the bags out of the car and carry them into the house; then you take the items out of the bag and put them away. That is a total of five times that you touch the food by the time you get it put away.  Let's not mention the times you will handle it to prepare it, cook it, and store the leftovers afterward.

Now this obsession with the inefficiencies of the process of food preparation is why I used to solely use Let's Dish for my meal preparation. I would be able to go into Let's Dish and the food would be all selected and chopped. All I would have to do is measure it out into proper portions, take it home, freeze, then cook, and eat and there were very few leftovers.

Now that I am on the Domestic Goddess journey I am sucking it up and going grocery shopping etc. I write my list as I decide which recipes to eat that week.  I take your list and the items are all over the place.  I shop at Wegman's because they have everything I could need and if you compare prices they have the best prices on staples (milk bread frozen veg). But that store is huge!  It has been designed to make sure you have to walk down every aisle.  They sections for meat, dairy, bread, and produce are at the four corners with groceries, retail, bulk food, organic, bakery, specialty cheese, organic, toiletries, all mixed in throughout the center. I went from my half hour at the bloom to pick up toiletries and produce to well over an hour and a half at Wegman's.   I am always back tracking to get items in a different department that I have already been through.

Domestic Goddess Solution: This week based on an insert from Rachel Ray Every Day magazine I am putting my grocery list in order according to department in the grocery store.  If I have to go to the store I am not going to waste time wandering around.  In order to make sure your list doesn't get mixed up with last minute items leave a couple of spaces between departments when you write your list.

TIP: Rewrite your list if you get it too jumbled with last minute items. Two minutes at home can equal 30 in the store.
Or try an iPhone app for list making http://www.macworld.com/appguide/article.html?article=136247

What's Brown and Sticky ?...a Stick

This article is about being a super mom AKA the big mean mommy down the block.  I am very concerned about outdoor safety.  No I am not going to debate the big issues of people on watch lists, or Lyme diseased ticks, or the UV containing sunlight.  My concern is sticks!  Well actually 4 year old boys with sticks whether used as guns or to whip his friends. These stick wielding boys make me cringe.  (And when my dear, sweet, angel starts to emulate this whipping behavior on her best friend (me) I am not amused.)  These sticks are not normal sticks either they are branches.  The multitude of blizzards this winter season has left our common area covered small to medium sized branches.

Domestic Goddess Solution:
This weekend when our little family went out to play (and no one else was on the playground) I made game out of picking up the sticks and putting them in a big pile. This was fun for Sary because she got to play with a bunch of sticks while we cleaned up.  Then my hubby Jake carried the debris to the curb while I pushed Sary on the swing.   I feel a little guilty for ruining their fun but that is why I left all the kid appropriate sticks laying around, worm-digging sized not whipping sized.

TIP:
If you choose to clean up branches don't forget the gloves. (or you will end up with a a splinter, like the huge one I had in the palm of my hand)