On the heels of New Year’s come the New Year resolutions that we all make. 

Whatever the goals or resolutions: healthier way of eating, weight loss, financial goals, marriage goals and/or spiritual goals they all can be accomplished if we set ourselves up to succeed. 

I prayfully chose a word and a Bible verse to focus on throughout this year. 

Now that a theme word, goal or resolution has been chosen, what’s next? How do we make sure we are setting ourselves up to succeed? We do this by having a plan. 

Tips to set yourself up to succeed

1. Pray

Every morning spend time praying over your resolution. Seeking God about your goals will help you stay focused and aligned with God’s will for your life. Ask God to help you succeed! Just like Eliezer did in Psalm 145:18

2. Plan your day

Make the time to plan your day, week, month and year out. Write down your goals and the plans you have to accomplish. Thinking ahead will help you achieve your goals. For example, are you trying to eat healthier? Plan out and prepare what you will eat for the next day or week. Stock the fridge and pantry with healthy foods and snacks. Plan what exercises you will get done and when you will do them. 

3. Don’t procrastinate

Look at your goals and the plan you have set into place to help you achieve your goals. Now get on it! Do not procrastinate. If you’re trying to save money and pay off debt; don’t wait till the next paycheck or the next month to start on that stricter budget. Start today! Start now!

4. Get help

Bringing other people in your life that will encourage, motivate and hold you accountable while you are working on your resolutions is a huge help in succeeding. Accountability holds you responsible to your goals, plans and actions as you work on your resolutions.

5. Stay flexible

Bumps in the road happen to all of us. Be flexible enough in your plans by allowing bumps in the road to happen and not throw you off course. Be clear about your goals, but flexible in the process of achieving them. Remember life happens and that is OK. 

6. Stay positive

Stay positive about your goals and resolutions. Even if you have had a bad day, week or month; you can still bounce back, refocus and accomplish your goals. Stop those negative thoughts in their tracks. Philippians 4:8 reminds us of what God wants us to think about. 

What steps have you put in place to assure that you accomplish your goals? What are you doing to set yourself up to succeed? 

The post Set Yourself Up to Succeed appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Successful Goal Planning for Any Time of the Year Creating a Dreamboard For The New Year 3 Simple Methods to Save Money and Stop Wasting Food

Written by Karen @ To Work With My Hands, Contributing Writer

Setting Goals is probably practiced in January more than in any other month of the year. It’s a new beginning, and with it, we usually want to make positive changes in our lives and homes.

That’s a good thing! But, as with most things, setting goals is a learning process. Since I began setting goals, I’ve had some successes, some bumps, and some downright failures. 

Here are 10 tips I’ve learned for setting goals for the New Year:

1.Keep it reasonable

One of the greatest culprits for goal failure is trying to do too much.

In my earliest attempts at goal setting, that’s exactly what I did. I started January excited, found February a little challenging, began slipping in March,and sometime during April, I totally lost steam. Just looking at my notebook lying on the shelf roused feelings of condemnation and failure. 

I’ve learned that it’s far better to set fewer goals, reach them, then set new goals during the year, than to have a huge list that becomes overwhelming. Keep the goal list as a servant – not a taskmaster.

2. Make Your Goals Specific, Measurable, and Time-Sensitive

When you’re first getting started with goal-setting, it’s easy to set some ambiguous goals.

Goals such as: ‘be a better mom’, ‘learn to be more patient’, ‘spend more time reading the Bible’, or ‘do more for others’ are all simply too general.

These goals are so vague that it’s impossible to know when you’ve reached them.

For your goals to work for you they need to include 3 key elements:

• They must be specific. Instead of trying to be a better mom, set a goal to have a baking session with your daughter once per week, or to read through an adventure story with your son each month. These are specific, concrete goals.
• They must be measurable. If you can’t measure your goals, you won’t know when you’ve arrived. If you want to read through the Bible this year, set a goal of reading a certain portion each day and at the end of each day, you will easily know if you’ve made it. 
• They must be time-sensitive. Without the gentle pressure of time, we can amble around, accomplishing very little toward our goals; they easily get pushed onto the “back burner”. Knowing exactly when your goals are due to be finished keeps you focused and on track.

Perhaps you want to write 4 notes of encouragement to friends by the end of the month. That goal is: specific (write notes), measurable (4), and time-sensitive (by the end of the month), and is much more concrete than “do more for others”.

3. Break Goals Down into Smaller Pieces

When you have a goal that can be broken down into smaller, bite-sized pieces, you’re much more likely to reach it. If your goals are specific, measurable, and time-sensitive, they are almost always easily broken down.

Looking at one of your annual goals, break it down into monthly bites, then weekly and daily bites. If you have a goal to declutter your house by the end of the year, you can tackle one room per month, working on books one week, clothes another week, and toys another, etc. 

Or, you may choose to set a timer and devote a certain amount each day, jumping right in and tackling everything in the room at once. What you do specifically isn’t the most crucial point – finding what works for you in small pieces is.

4. Evaluate Regularly and Make Adjustments

Setting aside time each week, or at a minimum each month, to evaluate your progress is critical.

Keeping track of how you’re doing, and where you’re going next keeps the ball rolling.

While you’re evaluating, you may find that you need to make adjustments. When something unexpected comes along, you’ll probably need to adjust your goals. Maybe you need to shift the time of day you work on a particular goal. Maybe you need to devote more or less time to one. 

Or, perhaps after giving it a fair shot, you realize your goal just isn’t a priority for you anymore and you choose to lay it down. Adjusting goals is perfectly reasonable, and I doubt very many goal setters have made it completely through a year without making adjustments. 

5. Write Them Down and Keep Them Visible

It may seem like an insignificant thing, but having your goals visible can make or break your momentum.

We are all busy! It takes constant effort to keep the schedule in check and to make choices between the unreal number of options we have to choose from when spending our time.

If your goals don’t meet your eyes frequently, you will likely forget them!

Of course, to see them, they must be written down or typed out. Goals that are simply swirling around in your head are short-lived. Recording them makes them concrete. 

6. Don’t Focus on Just One Area of Your Life

When setting goals, it’s easy to focus on a single area of life.

Just as in school, however, setting goals in a broader range of areas makes us better rounded. 

Some areas to consider setting goals in are: personal (spiritual, physical, and mental), marriage, children, family, finance, business, education, and community.

7. When You Mess Up

There have been plenty of times in my efforts toward reaching goals that I’ve messed up.

I’ve dropped the ball, lost momentum, gotten off track when unexpected things happened,; and simply despaired because it was too overwhelming.

The most important thing to remember when you mess up is DON’T GIVE UP!

Find your place, make adjustments, and begin again. Any small step, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction. Keep moving and you’ll be making progress! Over time progress adds up.

8. Don’t Fall into the “To-Do” List Trap

Another easy trap to fall into when you beginning goal-setting is to add “to-do” items to your goals list. 

While to-do’s have their place, they aren’t the same as goals and shouldn’t displace them. As a matter of fact, your goals will likely – and should – show up on your to-do lists!

There are so many things to accomplish every day and the list can get longer than we can practically manage in a hurry. Make sure you don’t set goals like weekly grocery shopping or taking the dog to the vet in February.

But, your goal of reading that book with your son can show up on Monday’s to-do list, by blocking out a specific amount of time to devote to it.

9. Forward Momentum Counts

If your goals are broken down well, it may seem that some are insignificant on a daily basis. That simply isn’t true.

If you set a goal to remove just one item that is no longer useful from your home each day, you will have removed 366 items by the end of this year!

Every step forward counts. As long as you aren’t falling backward, every step forward puts you closer to reaching your goal, even if you have to slow your pace along the way and perhaps adjust your ending date.

10. Keep Going by Setting New Goals

Reaching a goal is an exciting and exhilarating feeling! Once you reach one, however, it isn’t time to stop.

Are there other goals in the same area that you’d like to work toward? Maybe you had a very long list at the beginning that you knew was unattainable and chose to cut some items. Now you can add one of those back onto your list. 

Setting and working toward goals is a learning process, just as working through them is, but the rewards you reap and the investment you make in your life and the lives of others are worth the effort. I set goals because I don’t want to simply tick off the days of my life, missing opportunities to grow and be a blessing to others. I hope you’ll be encouraged to set some this year too.

Here are a few of my favorite goal-setting resources:

The One Quality You Must Develop to Reach Your Goals

How to Change Your Life By Setting Goals

The 2 Most Powerful Words for Reaching Your Goals

The To Work With My Hands’ Setting Goals Series

How about you? Are you setting goals for 2016? Do you have more tips to add?

The post 10 Tips for Setting Goals this New Year appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by Christine @ So Domestically Challenged, contributing writer

A few weeks ago, I was invited by Rachel to be a contributor here on Day2DayJoys.  I read her invitation.  I got excited.  I closed my email and made a mental note to get back to her…and I did get back to her a few days later.

She invited me to do a post.  Immediately, at least 6 great ideas popped into my head.  I was thrilled.  I was energized.  I was ready to go.  But here I sit, in the last few hours before my first post is set to go live, and I have nothing.  Those half-dozen great ideas have betrayed me: each one seemingly fantastic until I realized that I couldn’t find the words or it just wasn’t so interesting after all.

Here I am, a blank.  I’ve spent days analyzing my life and motivations, reading notes I’ve written, mind-mapping, reviewing books, magazines, Pinterest…and nothing.  Have I truly lost my mojo?

The truth.  I turn my focus inward to look for reasoning.  The truth, though I hate to admit it, is fear.  I have procrastinated since day one because of fear.  Not that I have any kind of real fear for my own well-being.  No, my fear is distinctly first-world.  My fear is of disappointing, failing, not being good enough.  My fear makes me feel like a child, but is a fear I always tell my own children they have to push through.

The reality is that I procrastinate because I’m scared of failing and scared of the unknown.  I figure this is an issue that probably faces a lot of us, so for my first post, my introduction to you, I’m going to share 5 ways to stop procrastinating and get things done (in the future).

5 Ways to Stop Procrastinating: 

Commit

Saying “I’m going to do this later” or “I’ll have time after work on Thursday” are open-ended and set yourself up to keep moving the day or time you’re going to do something.  Instead, make a “To Do List” every day, and write in how much time you’re committing to the task and when, just like an appointment: “I’m going to write my post from 5:45pm-6:30pm on Tuesday night”.  Writing it down has the added bonus of somewhat tricking your brain into believing that the task absolutely has to be done at that time.

Reward Yourself

As I write this, I’m craving my three biggest vices: a cup of coffee, a coconut Outshine bar, and a book….okay, not a book.  I want to play spider solitaire online.  Guilty.  I know that I’m going to enjoy doing those things a lot more when I don’t have anything else hanging over my head, stressing me out.  I’m not going to allow myself any of those things until this post is complete!  Not only does the reward give me something to look forward to, but it also takes away my ability to use any of those things to procrastinate: “I’m going to get back to working after this ice cream”.  Bam!  A two-fer.

Visualize the Future

This is actually something I do with my family and my Girl Scouts when they’re stressed and it works great for both long-term and short-term issues.  Take a minute, relax, breathe and go through the steps of what is going to happen next.  Work it out.

I’m going to keep typing.

I will get to the end of what I want to say.

I will read it back to myself.

I might hate it.

I will make sure it’s correct and of good quality.

I will submit it.

Some people might not like it.

I might be asked never to write again.

I will keep breathing.  I will keep living.

Tomorrow, I will write about something else.

In a week, I won’t even think about it anymore.

Break a Job Into Tasks

Sometimes a job can seem stressful and overwhelming because it’s got several steps to it that don’t immediately sort themselves out in our minds.  Try breaking a job down into various smaller tasks and write out a checklist.  Even if you don’t have time to do an entire task, you can look at your list and get a few parts done.

For example:

Brainstorm talking points
Type up post
Review & edit
Format post
Add links
Take photos
Edit photos
Add photos to post
Submit post

Stop Being Your Worst Critic

Where did we all learn this?  Every day is like one long Dove commercial, but instead of just criticizing the bags under my eyes or my flabby middle, I criticize my entire being: “I just did that because I’m an idiot” or “I could never understand that” or “I’m a terrible housekeeper” or “I wish I was better/smarter/more comfortable with myself”.  Sometimes even confident-sounding statements to yourself can be undermining you: “I’m just going to fake it until I make it” or “I’ve still got it” or  “I was great at that when I was younger”.   All of these statements have an implied “there’s something wrong with me”.  We send ourselves these constant messages that we are somehow less than our full potential, and worse than that, we quietly start believing it.  Instead, make statements that are inherently true and non-objective.

I am a mother.
I am a wife.
I am a mentor.
I am a writer.
I am enough.
My words/actions/abilities are enough.
And they are all perfectly me.

Do you procrastinate?  Why do you think you do it and what do you do to fight it?

The post 5 Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get Things Done (in the future) appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by Karen @ To Work With My Hands, Contributing Writer

Today is the first day of our new school year.

Today the books are out again, all fresh and crisp. Everyone is excited, and everything is new – for now.

But within a few weeks – maybe even days – the newness wears off and my children will wonder how they got duped by those pretty, crisp-covered books again. Sound familiar? 

After 20 years of homeschooling, we still sometimes struggle. But along the way, I’ve learned a few ways to help minimize the struggle and keep ourselves from losing the joy of homeschooling.

1. Be Organized

Long before the first day begins, I’ve made plans. Beginning with curriculum choices and stocking up on school supplies, I also clean out our school cabinet and work areas. Some years lots of changes need to take place. Other years, just some tweaking is all that is required.

Next, I create a schedule for the year. Looking at what needs to be accomplished by each child during the year, I break those goals down into monthly, then weekly bites.

2. Clear Expectations

Just because I know where we are going, doesn’t mean that the children necessarily do. In an effort to help them own their work, I let them know what the plan is for the year.

The older boys appreciate knowing exactly what they need to accomplish for the year and can more easily plan their study hours around outside activities.

The younger children get weekly goal lists that help them stay on track with their independent work, and to know what is coming up in the subjects we study together. They can see a clear path and have an understanding of what it will take for them to finish for the week.

3. Rewards

Through the years we have sometimes used rewards. At other times, we haven’t. Our children known that schoolwork is simply a part of their lives, and we don’t give prizes for getting it done. However, there have been times that we found it helpful for them and for us to positively encourage them along.

When we have a particularly trying subject, hit a difficult time in personal motivation with one child or another, or even have family events that compromise our normal school schedule, we have used incentives to help make the work more rewarding.

Let’s face it. If you’re 7 years old, it’s hard to see the long-term benefit of learning math facts day after day, especially when the going gets tough.

Since our younger children struggled last year with getting their independent work finished without lots of pushing, this year we’re giving them the opportunity to earn a point each week when it’s finished early. Work finished on time is expected, but finishing before it’s expected will be rewarded.

Following the idea our library uses each summer during the summer reading program (which my children just completed and thrived in this point-earning system), the children will be able to save up earned points and cash them in for special activities that they enjoy.

4. Shake Things Up

I’m a routine/schedule/stay-on-track kind of mom, but realize that although routine provides stability, know that it can also produce boredom – especially in children who are wired differently.

Having a solid routine in place works well for most days, but I’ve found that when I throw in a change of pace every now and then, they’re better energized for the more typical days.

Packing up the books and spending a day at the park, enjoying a field trip without the books, taking a day to watch DVD’s on our current science or history topics, or just taking a day off on that first crisp morning after a scorching summer to take a hike or bike ride can all be ways to recharge the batteries by getting out of the routine for a day.

5. Margin

If there’s one thing that I continually struggle with – even after so many years of homeschooling – its margin.

There’s so many wonderful things to do, so many exciting things to study, so much to learn. It’s way too easy to over schedule, over plan, and overdo.

Learning to shorten my personal to-do list each day is also spilling over into the school to-do list. There simply isn’t enough time to do everything and when I try to cram it all in, we lose margin. When the unexpected happens – and it will – the whole cart gets upturned.

The answer is to under schedule. If we can accomplish 5 days of science each week, I’ll only plan for 3. If we get the extra 2 days in, that’s great. If we don’t, that’s okay and we aren’t falling behind.

Leaving room for the unplanned and for just having breathing room is essential for making it through the year without hitting the February slump and getting burned out or feeling like we didn’t quite make it.

If your homeschool runs anything like ours, the first week can be pretty exhausting. Even after all of these years, and relatively short summer breaks, I still marvel at how much change is generated when we get back to school.

But with a few tactics in place, it can be a rewarding week that is just the first step toward a productive and enjoyable year. And when we look back at all that we will have accomplished next spring, I’ll be armed with knowledge to make the next years even better.

What are your tips for a successful homeschool year?

The post 5 Tips For a Successful Homeschool Year appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by Karen @ To Work With My Hands, Contributing Writer

Are you one of the many people looking for ways to improve your diet this year?

We all tend to realize after the food overload throughout the last few weeks of the year that we need to realign our diets. The new year is a perfect time to make those “resolutions”. 

But, instead of making resolutions that are often not realized, why not set reasonable, workable goals instead? Making positive changes in our diets is really not that hard when we have a plan with small steps and measurable results.

I’m not here to tell you anything new or amazing. Just basic, common-sense goals that we can implement all year long and make progress toward a better diet.

Nobody needs to be told why we need to eat better. I doubt anyone hasn’t heard of the “Standard America Diet” dilemma which, unfortunately, isn’t limited to the United States. It’s the how that we often get tripped up by.

Today, I’m sharing with you 7 Simple Ways to Improve Your Diet  that will put us on the road to healthier habits.

 1. Drink plenty of fresh water every day.

Water makes up a significant portion of our bodies, by both weight and volume, so it makes sense that a hydrated body is a healthier body.

Although every body is different, the standard recommendation of 8 glasses of water each day is a great target to shoot for. More is required when you exercise, are sick, or are pregnant or nursing. As your body gets accustomed to being well hydrated, it will be easier for you to determine when you need extra water. 

2. Consume whole grains.

One of the easiest ways to ditch so much processed food is to make it yourself, and one of the first places I started was with whole grains.

There’s an amazing variety of grains to nourish our bodies with, and the benefits are numerous. The most important is the nutritional advantage that is lost when grains are refined and stripped of most of their nutrients. Consuming whole grains supplies the missing vitamins and minerals that the processed versions have lost.

3. Include natural probiotics in your diet.

While our intestinal tracts already contain beneficial bacteria, at times the population can be compromised, such as when there’s an illness or the use of antibiotics. And during the winter months when there seems to be a an increase in both, it’s even more important to ensure that you’re maintaining a healthy level of beneficial bacteria in your system.

Natural probiotics are a delicious and easy way to boost your population and keep it at a healthy level. Excellent sources include yogurt and kefir, and if you’re culturing them yourself, you can avoid additives that your body doesn’t need.

*Note: You can make kefir at home with this starter here, be sure to follow these instructions. 

 4. Eat plenty of fresh fruit.

Honestly, this one is easy for me. I have loved fruit for as long as I can remember, and my children have learned the habit too. There’s such a wide variety of fresh fruit to choose from that there is no reason to get bored with just a few choices.

And, by eating a variety, you’re giving your body a wide range of naturally occurring vitamins and minerals that aren’t available in processed foods. Enjoying fruit in season is a great way to get the best fruit has to offer, and is easier on your food budget.

5. Eat plenty of fresh vegetables. 

Eating fresh vegetables is just as important as eating fresh fruit. So many of the vitamins and minerals that our bodies need to operate well are contained in fresh food.

I’m not a raw-foods only advocate, but I do try to include a reasonable amount of raw foods in our daily diets. Offering some grape tomatoes, baby carrots, celery sticks, or cucumbers alongside our lunch menu, or for snacks, is an easy way to get fresh veggies in our tummies, and a side salad with dinner gives us even more fresh vegetables in our diet.

As with fruit, there’s such a large variety of vegetables to choose from that there’s no reason to tire of the same old things.

6. Don’t forget to add legumes to your diet.

I’ll admit that this is one I struggle with. While I love the taste of dried beans, peas, and lentils, I sometimes just forget about them until I get a hummus craving.

Since our family is not vegetarian, we get plenty of opportunities to consume protein from meat, but in addition to protein, legumes also contribute healthy carbohydrates and varying amounts of good fat to our diets.

Once again, God has blessed us with such a wide variety of legumes to enjoy, with their varying colors, shapes, and sizes, that there’s no need to get caught in a rut with them either. Try pinterest for great, healthy ideas!! 

7. Season your food with fresh herbs.

I’m not one to season foods heavily, but bland is not very appealing to many people beyond toddlerhood, and I’ve even had a few toddlers who didn’t appreciate their food bland either.

Growing your own herbs is so rewarding and there’s nothing as fresh as stepping out of your kitchen to collect herbs right from your garden to toss into the pot. Even if you can’t grow your own, the availability of fresh herbs is getting wider – even in winter. 

Fresh herbs add not only amazing flavor, but numerous nutrients that our bodies thrive on. There’s a lot of vitamins and minerals packed in those little leaves, and only your imagination can limit the uses in your diet.

I hope you see that eating healthier doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Taking the time to take baby steps and allow them to become habitual – and enjoyable – is the key to long-term success. I encourage you to take your time, and enjoy the journey.

Disclaimer: I am not a healthcare professional, nor do I encourage any particular popular diet. I’m talking about a common-sense approach to eating the foods that God has created and provided us with.

I’m also aware that many people have food allergies or health conditions that preclude them form consuming many grains or sources of natural probiotics. It’s not my intention to attack their needs. I’m simply outlining a reasonable plan for people who have no problems consuming most foods. If you have allergies or health concerns that prohibit you from following along, just do what you can and feel the freedom to skip the rest.

I hope you’ll join me in taking baby steps to improving our diets this year. This week, we’ll jump right in with the first one: water. Be sure to visit my Facebook page and follow along for goals, tips, encouragement, and to share your successes.

Do you have anything to add to the list? What do you consider is important to a healthy diet?

The post 7 Simple Ways To Improve Your Diet This Year appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by KT @ One Organic Mama, Contributing Writer

So I strive, each year, to create a book of photos of my family.  I take thousands (seriously) of pictures, and my 5 and 2 year old would never see them if I never printed them out and looked at them – so I started making one photo book a year.  They love to sit down with them and talk about our friends and family.  I love that they can enjoy the many pictures I take.

I wanted to add a new touch to my 2015 photo book.  I always narrate it with the happenings of each month – which are easy to remember since there are so many pictures – but I wanted to capture my kids as they are – freeze them at their ages.

So… I resolved to do just that in 2015!

I have a plethora of Ball jars… who doesn’t right?!  I picked the 3 biggest ones I have… You know the ones that would allow you to pickle an entire zucchini, to put on the windowsill in the kitchen.  Since I am not pickling anything today (its -10 with the windchill in MA) I figured I won’t miss the jars.  So here is how I set them up:

Capturing Moments with Jars:

Jar 1

Jar 1 will collect memories.  Fun, silly, sad, happy, memories from 2015.   You know – like the day my 5 year old came off the bus ECSTATIC that he got the surprise bag (show and tell bag) for tomorrow! OR the day my 2 year old came to terms with the fact that there is definitely a baby in mommy’s belly, and definitely NOT one in his Each memory will be dated.  Each month I will devote a page of our photo book to those memories.

Jar 2:

Jar 2 will collect quotes.  Not quotes from me… I don’t want to remember most of what I say… but quotes from the kids… and my nephews too Quotes like, “Mom, does 1,000 come after 129?” or “Mom, can you please make the baby in your belly a sister?”  Each quote will be dated.  Quotes will then go right on column two of our memory page in the photo book for each month. 

Jar 3:

Jar 3 is for making memories!  Jar 3 gets spare change and money from the year.  I have to admit – I am a terrible saver – BUT – I have disciplined myself to get rid of change and leftover money from each week into the jar.  Additionally – any gift money (from Christmas, anniversaries, or Birthdays goes into the jar too).  Basically, any money that we won’t miss (money left over from weekly groceries, or found in the car, etc) will get put into the jar.  Come vacation time – we will use the money collected throughout the year.  Our vacation is always such a treasured memory making time and this savings plan makes it easier to enjoy. 

I put a basket filled with strips of paper and a marker next to the jars – so it is easy to jot down our happenings each day.  Also… I hope by the end of the year – my 5 year old will be able to contribute some memories too!!   I love making the photo books to enjoy with the kids – and I think this touch will really help me to remember how they were in 2015!!

How do you capture and enjoy your memories as the years go by?

The post Capturing Moments, Resolved appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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It’s a new year, which means new goals right? 

Well, a HUGE goal I’ve had for a while now was to clean my oven. Boy or boy was it yucky and I have been using it almost a year without cleaning it, yes– I did just confess that. 

You see, we bought our first house, a Log-home and moved in (in January of last year), got mostly unpacked, had a homebirth, started a new school year and got on with life. Time passed and I kept telling myself I’ll do it later. Later came and went but while my parents were visiting for Christmas, my mom got it started. 

I am pretty sure the oven hadn’t been cleaned in years, if not decades.

With a little elbow grease and this natural recipe, we got our oven to look (almost) as good as new, considering it is a 20 year old oven. 

Natural Oven Cleaner

5.0 from 1 reviews

Natural Oven Cleaner... Easy as 1, 2 & 3!!

 

Print

Clean your oven naturally without all the harsh chemicals.

Author: Rachel

Recipe type: Natural Cleaners

What you need:

• baking soda
• vinegar
• *optional: lemon essential oil

What to do:

1. Gather ingredients, remove racks
2. Before your ready to start cleaning, make a paste using 2 parts baking soda, 1 part vinegar, adding in about 10 drops of lemon essential oil if you'd like to, set aside
3. Spread paste all over turn oven. Turn oven on high for about 30-40 seconds, then turn off, let sit for a minimum of 1 hour or overnight
4. Get a washcloth or scrubber and begin scrubbing all over, residue should begin to come off
5. Rinse washcloth or scrubber as needed, scrub and repeat using paste
6. Once finished, wet a wash cloth and wipe out all remaining paste, and you should have a shiny clean oven

Notes

*I used dōTERRA lemon essential oil

3.2.2885

We got started using the recipe above. Since it’s non-toxic and all natural, I felt safe letting my kids help, after all this helps with teaching them that everyone needs to share the workload as well as teaches them responsibility. You probably can see a spot in the middle, well, we scrubbed and scrubbed but couldn’t get the 20 years of baked on residue in the middle but maybe next time, it’ll come off. 

As I noted in the recipe, the Lemon essential oil is not a mandatory ingredient but I recommend it because not only does it help make your cleaning area smell wonderful, it helps to break down the grease and helps to make the surface area sparkle!  

How do you keep your oven clean? 

The post Natural Oven Cleaner… Easy as 1, 2 & 3!! appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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More and more mothers are turning to working from home in order to maintain the family budget but still stay home with their children. Whether it’s working for a network marketing company or hand making goods for an Etsy store, mamas across the country are finding ways to be home with their little ones- but it’s not always easy!

I am one such mama, and I am here to tell you- it is NOT all rainbows and butterflies and paychecks here in Work-At-Home-Mamaland. It is quite possibly the most difficult and taxing thing I’ve ever taken on- but it has been so worth it.

Today, I want to share with you some of my top tips for increasing productivity and joy as a work-at-home-mama! I hope that integrating these attitudes and routines graciously into your family will be as much of a blessing to you as it has been to me.

Top tips for increasing productivity and joy as a work-at-home-mama:

Make a priority list

It has been paramount to finding harmony within my home for me to really, honestly decide what my priorities are in my life. Once I declared that my daughter and her happiness and development were more important than my business, that helped me make daily decisions about where to spend my time. I have a written list of my priorities in my office, and it has really helped me focus on what matters most.

Take strategic planning retreats

Once a month, or perhaps once a quarter, carve out an afternoon or a day to plan your next weeks/months out ahead of time. Consider big events and goals that you will need to attend to, and things that may distract you from them as well. Being prepared will help make your day-to-day life run more smoothly.

Set measurable and attainable goals

This is key to feeling successful and keeping yourself motivated! Whether it’s a certain number of sales, a rank advancement, a number of blog posts, or releasing a new product, set goals for yourself. Then, break that goal into smaller goals! In our house, we ask: how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time…

Set business hours.

This is another really important part of being a wahm. For you, setting aside business hours might mean hiring a babysitter for a few evenings a week or asking a friend to watch your kids in the mornings. Like me, it could mean that your business hours are simply “naptime”….whatever that looks like for that day! You can be as flexible or structured as you need to be, depending on your schedule and priorities, but having these set hours enables you to turn off “work mode” and focus on family during the other parts of the week, and truly be present with them!

Look for “harmony” rather than “balance”.

Work and life balance is a buzz phrase these days, but I want to challenge you to take it further- prayerfully find harmony in integrating your work into your family. If your kids can help you stuff the pillows you are sewing, or your husband can help you talk through a business proposal, let them! Seek to let everything you do be done out of love.

Be willing to throw it all out the window.

One of the most important traits of the happy and successful wahm is the ability to be gracious with herself. Some days, business just doesn’t happen because family and homemaking need to come first. And that’s okay! We are blessed to be able to make those decisions.

Do you work from within your home? What steps do you take to increase productivity and also be present with your family?

The post Finding Harmony and Productivity for the Work-At-Home-Mama appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by Jenn @ A Simple Haven, Contributing Writer

Last fall, not taking great care of myself finally caught up with me: I was exhausted, stressed, sick more often than usual, and emotionally all over the place.

After catching what I’m pretty sure was shingles, I finally went to my doc, who asked some basic questions: Was I getting enough sleep? Exercise? Water?

Um, not so much.

Except the water. Thanks to what I lovingly refer to as “my sippy,” I excel in hydration.

She ran some blood work; turns out I was vitamin D deficient, too.

While poor self-care wasn’t the only cause of all my funky symptoms, hitting this low point helped me realize I needed to prioritize taking care of myself—specifically in sleep and exercise.

For me, the sleep issue was pretty straightforward: I just needed to go to bed earlier.

But as a stay-at-home-mom of two small children, regular exercise was going to take a little more creativity.

When my kids were younger, I’d pack them into the double jogger and we’d all enjoy some fresh air together.  Now, everyone wants to walk, ride their trike, or Stop. Every. Two. Feet. To. Pick. Up. Rocks.

I won’t say I’ve arrived at any miraculous solutions to the mom-exercise question or that I’ve become awesome at consistently exercising myself.

But through trial and error and the input of friends, I’ve got a few ideas worth trying.

Mom-Friendly Exercise Ideas

Prioritize it.

As Michael Hyatt says, “figure out your why.” Decide why exercise is important to you. Write it down. Then set some S.M.A.R.T. goals related to fitness.

Find a buddy.

Share your exercise goals with your spouse or a close friend and see if they might work out with you.  You could get up early to walk, run, or do a gym class with a friend.

And even if you and hubby don’t work out together, sharing your exercise goals can help you support each other in your individual workouts.

Maybe he goes to the gym on the way home from work, but is willing to take the kids when he gets home so you can go run. Or you both get up early, but he runs while you do a workout video.

I recently heard of a group of moms meeting up at a park to workout; with gates shut and an open field, the kids played while the mommies ran.

This used to work.

Get up early.

If you can get up even thirty minutes before your kids, you’ve got time to exercise. Do a workout video or go for a run/walk. Or if you’ve got a gym membership and you can get there early enough, do it.

If you’re not a “morning person,” I submit that it’s possible to become one.

On the other hand, if you’ve got little ones getting up through the night, this is probably not the season for morning workouts.

Be strategic.

Take advantage of chunks of time when someone else can watch your kids. Can Dad play with them in the backyard for 20 minutes while you do a two-mile run?

If you have family close by or a good sitter, it might be worth it to schedule regular childcare so you can get a run (or bike ride, etc.) in consistently.

Even trading childcare with a friend or neighbor once a week could guarantee you an hour of workout time.

Join a gym.

If finances allow, there are decent options, and the childcare situation works well, a gym membership might be an easy answer.

They make my workouts…more fun. :)

Include the kids.

Not my favorite solution, but often a doable one. During the winter, I got hooked on a ballet workout video. My kids would join in as they were able and after a while, would request to “do ballet exercising.”

A friend of mine bikes with her husband; they pull their kids behind.  Another friend is a committed runner and until she had her third baby, regularly jogged with her kids in the Double Bob.

Change your definition of exercise.

Unless your workout goals involve training for an event, we can probably just define exercise as intentionally moving your body to keep it strong and healthy.

And in that case, a myriad of things can count as exercise: gardening, mowing the lawn, pushing a kid in a stroller while carrying another one, following your trike rider around the neighborhood, going on a hike with your family, playing tennis on a date with your husband…the list goes on.

Hiking with him on my back = exercise

Keep it in perspective.

If I go back to the basics of my worldview (and steer clear of cultural messages that define beauty as merely physical), I’m simply exercising to take care of the body God gave me.

Not to be perfectly toned or look exactly as I did before I had kids.

And with that perspective in place, I can probably fit adequate exercise into my weekly schedule after all.

Do you fit regular exercise into your routine? How? Or, why is it a struggle?

The post Mom-Friendly Exercise Ideas appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Written by Kari @ Living Strong Health & Wellness, Contributing Writer

It’s that time of year when people all over the world are bringing out their goal sheets and making their New Year’s Resolutions. I love this attitude and drive that so many of us jump into, but unfortunately, for the majority of people, the excitement isn’t long-lived. This leads to unsuccessful resolutions, goals going unchecked and tons of frustration, which ultimately leads to people who just give up on having goals altogether.

All of that is going to change today, because I am going to show you how to not only set goals for yourself, but how you can actually successfully check these goals off as “COMPLETED”!

Setting goals and actually accomplishing them can be very simple, yet we make it so hard and set ourselves up for failure. I am going to teach you how to once again gain control over your life, your goals and your future. I have created a sample goal plan below that will give you a template for planning all your goals – no matter how big or small! I believe that successful goal planning involves three simple principals: Write it down. Break it down. Get it done.

Let’s look at these a little closer.

Write it Down

Keeping your goal in front of your eyes is a major key to success (Habakuk 2:2). The more you see it, the more the image on the inside of you regarding the goal will change. *If you are doing more than one goal, stick to 10 or less. Once you check all those off – begin adding more. It will be less stressful and you’ll accomplish more!

Break it Down

This is called reverse engineering. Sounds high-tech, but it’s so simple. In laymen’s terms, it means – break it down into smaller goals. Doing this makes that BIG goal look not so daunting. Now you’ll have mini-goals that are much easier to accomplish and offer less reason to quit. Instead of one 6 month goal, you’ll break it down into tasks for months, weeks and days – all of which lead you to that one 6 month goal.

Get it Done

You’ll never complete a goal if you don’t take action. You must be a doer and you must be determined. Create practical deadlines and stick to them. Do something everyday that will move you closer to your goal. Be specific – don’t be general or vague. Keep your goals in front of you daily and so something EVERYDAY that moves you closer to completing your goal. Use props, photos, quotes – anything to remind you every time your eyes fall on it.

Never let setbacks keep you from moving forward. If you missed a day of action or you made a mistake – don’t ever think, “Well, I should just stop – this will never work.” No! Keep moving forward. Okay, so you slipped and haven’t been consistent with your goals. What will quitting accomplish? Nothing. Time is going to pass anyway – so why not make it count for something? Jump back into the game and keep moving forward.

Why do all of this?

To be successful and to get your goals accomplished. Why even take time to make goals, think about them, then quit a week into it out of frustration and lack of motivation? I’m all for success and making things happen. Use the sample goal below to help you draft out your goals for 2014 and make a quality decision that you WILL complete each and every one. I am going to use a common goal for so many people – weight loss- but these steps work for ANY goal. Maybe you want to spend more time with your kids, exercise more, organize the basement, have more date nights with your spouse – this process works for any goal! If you find you are meeting those mini-goals faster than you expected, all you need to do is revise the remaining timeline. It’s simple. You’re in control. If you find you’re falling behind, see where you can kick it up a notch. Whatever you do – don’t give up. Ever.

SAMPLE GOAL PLANNING

WRITE IT DOWN

Goal: Lose 35 pounds

Deadline: July 1st, before our family vacation

BREAK IT DOWN

January: lose 8 pounds

February: lose 7 pounds

March: lose 6 pounds

April: lose 6 pounds

May: lose 5 pounds

June: lose 3 pounds

GET IT DONE:

January: eliminate grains for 3 weeks; completely eliminate soda and energy drinks; walk 30 minutes daily 6 days a week: drink 64 ounces of water a day; create a monthly eating plan; take measurements, get weight and before photos to document

February: continue eating plan; eliminate all refined sugar; walk 60 minutes daily 6 days a week;  drink 64 ounces of water a day

March: eliminate all caffeine, including caffeinated coffee and tea for entire month, walk 60 minutes daily 6 days a week; drink 64 ounces of water a day

April: eat real and whole foods, eliminate soda, energy drinks, dessert coffees; walk 30 minutes daily 5 days a week; do 15 minutes of resistance/strength training two times a week; drink 64 ounces of water a day

May: continue eating plan; walk 30 minutes daily 5 days a week; do 15 minutes of resistance/strength training three times a week; do 30 minutes of pilates/yoga two times a week; drink 64 ounces of water a day

June: continue eating plan; walk 30 minutes daily 5 days a week; do 15 minutes of resistance/strength training three times a week; do 30 minutes of pilates/yoga three times a week; drink 64 ounces of water a day

*due to space I will not be breaking these down further, but with your goals, break them down smaller to tasks for the weeks and days as well, the more you get specific about your goal, the more likely you are to do it.

Looking back at the reverse engineering for the goal “LOSE 35 POUNDS BY JULY 1ST” you see how easy it becomes. Getting up everyday facing a 35 pound weight loss can seem overwhelming. Getting up everyday working at losing 2 pounds a week or 8 pounds in 4 weeks seems much more doable and practical. It also won’t put a road block in your mind like 35 pounds can.

Once you lose the first 8 pounds – your motivation will be running high. You do have to make sure you have a plan, though. You can want to lose 35 pounds, but if you don’t plan on changing your eating habits or you don’t want to include physical exercise – your goal is going to remain untouched. Nothing ever gets accomplished by sitting on the sidelines. You must get up and do something – something different then you are doing now.

So, make 2014 a year of completed goals, successful dreams and get yourself in a position to be that person who sets out to reach goals and actually reaches them – then goes beyond. It is possible! Write it down. Break it down. Get it done. Those three simple steps will change your life. Just watch and see!

What goals or resolutions will you apply these principals to so you can finally say, “COMPLETED!”?

The post Successful Goal Planning for Any Time of the Year appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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