Overcoming Roadblocks to Organization (Part 2)

Last week I challenged you to identify your bad habits, determine the good habits with which you can replace them, and choose one good habit you will begin implementing immediately.

Here are some more tips to help you get past those Roadblocks to Organization.

1. Purge Often — One sure way to get more organized is to get rid of things.  You need a whole lot less than you think you do.  (How many clothes can you wear at one time?  How many toys can your children play with at one time?  How many dishes can you eat off at one time?)
2. KISS — Keep it Simple, Sweetie! If you make things too complicated, you're not going to do them. That's why you want to look at what your current organization style is, and work with what you already have.  There's no need to create some new, complicated system of organization.  You just need to discipline yourself to have a place for everything (purge those things for which you can't find a place!), and to put things away immediately.

3. Clean Up Every Day — Use baskets to help you transport things to their “home”, but don't keep the things in the basket for weeks at a time. Take the basket with you whenever you leave a room.
5. Keep a Calendar — Writing things down is the best way to ensure that you get things done. You can use old-fashioned pen and paper or you can use a program like Evernote, Cozi, or  Google Calendar. However you choose to keep your calendar, this is the one thing that will help you the most.  (You can't just write things on it, though!  You have to look at it every day!)
6. Forgive Yourself — No one is perfect, mistakes will happen, backsliding will happen, and your organization might get off track. Just stay aware.

Which of these do you most need to work on?

Free eBook – One Month of Devotional Meditations

My mom is working on a full year's worth of devotional meditations.  She has finished volume 1 and would like to offer it to you free of charge.

Each day of the month, she shares a passage of Scripture as well as a few thoughts as to how it spoke to her heart.

If you are not sure where to begin in your time alone with the Lord, this eBook is a perfect place to start!  All Scripture is from the King James Version of the Bible.

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*Please note: the download will be sent to your email.  Check your spam folder if you don't see it in your inbox.*

Don't forget to leave a comment letting my mom know that you appreciate her putting this together for you!

Freezer Cooking Guide: Which Foods Can You Freeze?

Last Friday I posted 4 Reasons You Should Be Freezer Cooking. 

Today I want to talk a little bit about what you can and cannot freeze.  If you know these things, you can easily turn many of your favorite recipes into freezer recipes.  No need to try to find a bunch of recipes that are specifically labeled “Freezer Recipes”.

Do Not Freeze These Items: (or freeze with caution)

Apples
Basil
Celery
Cheese
Chives
Cottage Cheese
Cream Cheese
Crumb Toppings
Cucumbers
Custard
Dairy (milk, sour cream, cream cheese, yogurt)
Fried Food
Frosting
Grapefruit
Grapes
Lemons
Lettuce and leafy greens
Limes
Mayonnaise
Onions
Oranges
Parsley
Pasta
Peppers
Potatoes
Radishes
Rice
Salad Dressing
Salad Greens
Sauces
Sour Cream
Sprouts
Watermelon

Some of the above items can be frozen if you know what you're doing and understand what changes freezing will make to them.

Cheese — You can actually freeze cheese as long as you understand the texture will change. It will be crumbly, (shred it first) and you can't eat it as is, but you can use it in a casserole as a topping. So, if you put cheese on top of a casserole that you're going to pop into the oven to reheat anyway it's fine. But if you plan to slice it for a sandwich, you probably don’t want to freeze your cheese.

Dairy — Freezing dairy will change its consistency; however, you can add it to soups and casseroles without any noticeable difference – especially if you reheat them slowly.

Fried Food — You can freeze fried food as long as you wrap it right, and then reheat it correctly. For something like fried chicken be sure to cool it down while draining off the extra fat, then wrap with freezer paper and then put it inside an air tight container. To reheat, put in the oven frozen after unwrapping on a greased pan.

Grapes — You can freeze grapes if you plan to eat them frozen. If you try to thaw them they will turn to mush.

Leafy Greens — You can chop and freeze leafy greens if you plan to use them in soups or stews.

Onions & Peppers — You can chop these and freeze them to use in recipes. Chop and let them dry on a paper towel first to drain off extra moisture. Spread them on a cookie sheet and freeze for about an hour before putting them into airtight freezer bags.

Tomatoes — You can chop them and freeze into serving sizes or recipe sizes in airtight containers. You can only use them for sauces after freezing or in a soup or stew where texture isn't as important.

Oranges & Citrus — You cannot freeze the fruit but you can freeze the zest. Zest onto a paper towel, and let dry out a bit, then freeze in one layer on a pan for about an hour. Pour into a airtight container to use in recipes.

Rice &Potatoes — They freeze fine in casseroles and dishes, but it does change their texture a bit. You cannot freeze them raw; you must precook and then freeze.

Pasta – While many places have pasta on the ‘no freeze’ list, you can freeze cooked or frozen pasta. It is recommended that you freeze pasta for some dishes uncooked because it will cook during the reheating and you don't want to overcook it. But, you need to use prepared dried pasta and not freshly made pasta that isn't dried.

Below is a list of foods that generally freeze without any problems:

Baked Goods (freeze already baked or freeze the dough)
Baking supplies (nuts, chocolate, coconut, flour, etc.)
Broth
Fruits (any besides citrus)
Fresh Herbs (freeze in ice cube trays with a small amount of water)
Meat
Sauces
Soups
Vegetables

Now that you know what does and doesn't freeze well, you can easily determine which of your favorite meals you can prepare for the freezer.  Next time you make your favorite recipe, double it and put the extra in the freezer for a busy night!  You won't even be tempted to pick up a pizza knowing that you've got healthy food already prepared!

What is the first meal you'll prepare for the freezer?

Overcoming Roadblocks to Organization

Once you have determined the reasons you procrastinate and have identified your organizing style, it's time to overcome your personal roadblocks and stop the excuses.

Failing to plan is planning to fail. If you don't plan for success based on your own personality and way of doing things, you will continue to be frustrated and disorganized.

 Sometimes disorganization or procrastination is the result of your circumstances (lack of time, lack of money, etc.)  Sometimes it's simply your personality.  Either way, you must determine what your personal roadblocks are and make a plan to overcome them.

The best way to fix a bad habit is to replace it with a good habit.

Your task for today is to do the following:

Take out a sheet of paper and divide it into two columns.  On one side make a list of the bad habits you need to change. On the other side write down the good habit with which you should be replacing each bad habit.  However, make sure the good habits are still in keeping with your own personality.  Don't try to make someone else's organizational methods work for you.

For instance, if you are a “Piles Polly”, always piling things around the house so you won't forget to deal with them, make a designated place to pile those things.  Use a basket or inbox to hold bills that need to be paid or other mail that needs to be sent.  Instead of  piling things on the counter or coffee table that need to be put away in another room, use a large basket to hold those items and carry it with you when you leave the room.

The “Basket Betty” can continue to use her basket methods with just a couple minor tweaks.  Instead of just keeping things in baskets to keep them out of sight, label each basket to hold one category (bills to be paid, items to be put away in another room, items to be donated, etc.)  Then you won't have to rummage through several baskets to find what you need.

“Neat Nelly”, who keeps everything hidden out of sight in closets, can continue to do so as well.  However, she should do a thorough de-cluttering, keeping only a few items.   To keep things neat and organized, you should keep much less in a space than what actually fits in there.  When you stack things one on top of another or have to reach behind things to get to something else, you end up toppling things over and creating a disorganized mess.  Once you've determined how much can fit into your closets or cupboards without stacking or layering items, do not allow yourself to add anything else to your collection unless you get rid of something else.

Once you've made your list, choose one (just one!) habit that you're going to implement this week.  Don't try to change everything all at once or you will get overwhelmed and give up!

Leave me a comment and tell me what habit you're working on this week!

How to Define Your Home Style

My home has not been redecorated since I got married nearly 8 years ago.

I've been looking around recently and thinking that I would like to redecorate some of the rooms, but I just haven't been able to find a starting place.

I think the biggest reason for that is I just wasn't sure what I liked or what my personal style was.

Something that is helping me tremendously with defining my home style is to look for inspiration on the Havertys website and Pinterest boards.

Once I started pinning things, I could easily recognize what colors my eye is drawn to. I noticed I was pinning cool colors like grays, light blues, and yellows.

I also took the style quiz on the Havertys website and found that many of the images I had pinned showed up as some of my quiz results.

My style was defined as a mix between cottage and eclectic.

Cottage was defined as:

You are casual and informal. You eschew anything that conveys “stuffy” and instead collect items full of charming character. While you have an interest in outdoor activities, your home is a haven

Eclectic was defined as:

You are independent with a broad range of interests. An artistic original, you are creative, intelligent and capable. You break with conformity.

Both of those definitions are pretty accurate and convey the style that I want in my home.

So, although I felt lost at first, I now have a really good idea of my personal home style. I know what colors and styles I want to look for. It was a lot easier than I thought once I collected the images that attracted my eye all in one place!

Visit Havertys.com to take your own style quiz or to find a store near you. (They're currently running a St. Patrick's Day sale, so it would be a great time to stop in!) I'd love to know what your quiz results are!

Havertys is also hosting Home Fashion Workshops. The next workshop, to be held April 12, will be on the theme “Staycation” and you'll learn how to create three different looks: Calm, Cozy, and Coastal. Sounds like fun!

You can find lots more home design inspiration on their Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest accounts, as well on the Havertys blog.

Havertys helps you bring your vision to life. Visit Havertys.com to find a store near you, deatiled product information and design tools that will truly inspire you.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Havertys. The opinions and text are all mine.

4 Reasons You Should Be Freezer Cooking

Have you ever made freezer meals?  If you haven't, I want to try to convince you that you should be doing it regularly!

Here are 4 Reasons You Should Be Freezer Cooking:

1. Saves Time

It takes just as much time to make one enchilada casserole as it does to make two or four. It just takes bigger pans and containers. Anytime you double, triple, or quadruple a recipe, you'll be saved the time preparing that meal at another time.

2. Saves Money

By having meals already in the freezer, you will not be shopping as often. When you don't go to the store, you don't spend any money!

3.Better Nutrition for Your Family

When you get too busy the temptation is to go through the drive-thru or pick up pizza.  You know it's not healthy, but you're hungry, the kids are hungry, and you're exhausted. But imagine you have healthy food at home that you can easily reheat and serve!

4. Enjoy  Last Minute Guests

If you struggle with finding time to have company, you will free yourself by having meals pre-made in the freezer.  You can even invite guests at the last minute without worrying about what in the world you will feed them.  You can focus your time on sprucing up the house while dinner heats in the oven, then enjoy your time with your guests since you haven't been frazzled by trying to get everything done.

Have you ever done freezer cooking?  Do you need to be doing it more often?