5 Ways to Declutter Your Life

I am overwhelmed.

Is it just me or is it hard to focus on just one thing at a time these days? We're pulled in five different directions, doing three things at once, while two different electronics chirp, beep and buzz at us with reminders and notifications.

As part of my goals for the year I want to live a life of less. I want less of what I don't need so I can enjoy what I have more. I'm working on a minimalist journey. This is happening in multiple ways. I'm getting rid of obligations that don't serve me, I'm getting rid of physical items from our home that we no longer use or need, and I'm simplifying my online life.

5 Ways to Declutter Your Life

Unsubscribe from unwanted e-mails. Making a quick count, I manage four e-mail addresses every day and more than that on occasion. My inbox is one of the most cluttered spaces in my life. I am unsubscribing from e-mail lists from places that I no longer engage, or retailers where I rarely shop. It's very nice to see a manageable number of unread e-mails and not waste time deleting things that don't interest me.

Turn off push notifications on your phone. You don't need notifications every time someone posts into a Facebook group or tags you in a funny meme. Those notifications can easily derail you from your important tasks during the day. My phone only alerts me for calendar reminders, calls, and text messages. Anything else isn't urgent. It's very easy to get sucked down a rabbit hole from getting game or social media notifications. Avoid that all together by turning off push notifications and only engaging in the apps when you have time or when you've planned to. Turning off Facebook notifications in particular has made my life so much better. Speaking of Facebook...

Clean up your Facebook groups. For some reason Facebook allows your friends to add you into Facebook groups without seeking permission. The consequence is consistent notification of postings in a place you didn't opt-in to. Don't feel bad about ditching a group you aren't interested in, even if a good friend invites you.

Clean your work area at the end of each week. This was actually just suggested to me recently and I love it. It is understandable that you don't always have time to clean up your desk as the week gets hectic with deadlines and responsibilities. At the end of each week before you retire into your weekend clean and straighten up your work area. This sets you up to come in to a clean space on Monday morning which will help with your mood and productivity.

Clean out your fridge each week. One of my goals is to get better with eating leftovers. I'm not quite there yet, so I often have one serving of a meal leftover longer than it is edible. Cleaning out your fridge weekly keeps things neat and organized. This makes sure you can see what you have available so you remember to eat them and don't double purchase things.

Clutter - whether digital, physical, or mental - does nothing to serve you. I'm looking forward to getting rid of more excess so I can always be close to what is important. Live more with less.
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Related: Four Ways to Decrease Toy Clutter

Super Food Smoothie Recipe

I've had a lot of trial and error in developing my super smoothie. I think I've finally settled on a tasty, healthy, super smoothie recipe. Here's what I put in, and why. 

Half a container of plain Greek yogurt: Probiotics, calcium, potassium, protein, zinc, and vitamins B6 and B12. This provides a base for a nice thick smoothie. 
Two handfuls of baby spinach OR two frozen spinach cubes: Getting extra veggies in the form of a smoothie is healthy and tasty. Spinach is constantly on "super food" lists. It provides anti-cancer qualities, Vitamins A and K, and fiber, among many other benefits. 
A cup of frozen fruit that generally includes strawberries and blueberries: fiber, antioxidants, Vitamin C. 
One banana, fresh or frozen (I freeze them myself): I HAVE to have a banana in my smoothie. If there is no banana it doesn't have the thickness or sweetness that I like. Bananas are high in potassium, and great for cramps/pain from workouts and PMS. 
One tablespoon of honey (sometimes): I only use honey if the berries I've chosen make the smoothie too tart. 
One tablespoon of flaxeeds: Reduces risk of cancer and diabetes, fiber, and omega 3 fatty acids. 
1/2 teaspoon of Matcha Green Tea powder: Super antioxidants and energy booster. 

The Three Stages of Pregnancy Sleep

A lot of people, upon hearing you're pregnant, throw around the old adage "sleep now, because you won't get any sleep when the baby gets here." This has to be one of the worst pieces of advice ever because most women begin to have sleep issues early on in their pregnancy. Here's how it goes: 
Stage 1: You are newly pregnant and can't sleep because A) your mind is like OMG I'm going to have a baby!, and that can very easily keep you up at night and/or B) the changes in your hormones give you insomnia. 
Stage 2: You can sleep again! BUT, now you are using the bathroom all.the.time. so your deep sleep is interrupted by frequent evening bathroom breaks and sometimes it can be hard to get back to sleep after the trip to the throne. 
Stage 3: You've gotten really good at sleep walking yourself to the bathroom. You can stay mostly asleep, keep your eyes closed, feel your way to the bathroom and make it back to the bed without really waking up. Great right? Yes, except now you have this huge belly, so you can't sleep on your stomach. Doctors recommend not sleeping on your back. So you're down to two sleeping positions, left side or right side. You've lost the ability to comfortably just roll over from side to side, so you have to fully sit up to switch positions when one side gets numb, which is likely to happen. 
One of things that did help with sleep for me was this (affiliate link) pregnancy pillow. Especially towards the end of pregnancy. Being able to have this between my legs and rest my stomach on it was great. 
All this sleeplessness, and the sleeplessness to come, will all be worth it though because you are magic, and you have a life growing inside of you. You are incubating the future, and I'd say that's pretty cool :-D

13 Snow Day Activities for Kids

We are in the midst of a snow day. Snow days pre-kids meant relaxation. You slept in, made a big breakfast, and caught up on TV. Now the idea of a snow day comes with a little trepidation: how do I entertain my toddler on a snow day?!  Here is a great list of snow day activities for kids, some that I've tried and some I look forward to trying.

1. Read books. Here is my list of our top 10 books for toddlers.

2. Allow for some limited screen time. We love the Kidloland App.

3. Break out your magnet letters.

4. Create a sensory station from household items.

5. Utilize plastic balls.

6. Play with store bought play-dough or make your own play-dough.

7. Create an in-door obstacle course.

8. Try one of these five finger games.

9. Use this printable to play Superhero Tic-Tac-Toe.

Source: Mom's Messy Miracles

10. Create a number path.

11. Do mess-free painting.

12. Paint the snow.

13. Make slime.

Source: We're Parents Blog

BONUS:

7 Sanity-Saving Indoor Play Ideas For Toddlers In Winter

18 Snow Day Activities to Keep Keeps Busy and Happy

20 Engaging Things to Do When You're Stuck in the House

50 Things to Do on a Snow Day with Kids

Trip to Adventure Aquarium (vlog)

When you have a toddler it feels like a "lazy" Saturday or Sunday is harder to manage than a weekend full of activities. We've been trying to get out and have weekend adventures with BabyCakes on one day of the weekend and then do activities and play at home on the other.

A few weekends ago we were planning to go ice skating/watch the ice skaters and hang out at the Philly Bluecross Riverrink, but because of the unseasonably warm weather in the area the ice was actually broken so the rink was closed. On a whim we decided we would check out Adventure Aquarium in Camden New Jersey and I'm glad we did.

I think I may have been more amazed by the aquarium than BabyCakes. My favorite was the Nemo and Dory tank. It had a tank full of clown fish and one blue tang. It was so cool to see the movies represented in real life. I was also blown away by a GIANT turtle they have in the Ocean Realm exhibit.

We had a really nice time. I think we'll plan to go again during some off hour during the week one day so there are less people and we can browse more leisurely. Here's a vlog from our trip:

It's Shamrock Shake Season

It's March already. Two months of the year 2017 are gone. March ushers in spring, March Madness, Lent, St. Patrick's Day and Shamrock Shakes! McDonald's has some new and innovative things happening around the Shamrock Shake this year.

For a limited time McDonald's is offering the Chocolate Shamrock Shake, adding chocolate to the classic minty flavor. In addition to the new flavor there is a new way to DRINK the Shamrock Shake, the STRAW (Suction Tube for Reverse Axial Withdrawal).

the STRAW was created specifically for effectively drinking Shamrock Shakes. Only 2,000 of these innovative straws were manufactured and guess what? McDonald's sent me two, one for myself, and one to give away to one of my lovely readers along with some other goodies.

Now through March 9th enter to win this Shamrock Shake Prize Pack which includes:

1 the STRAW
Small Shamrock Shake T-shirt
McCafe Tumbler
10 Shamrock Shake Coupons (must be used at participating Southeastern PA, Southern NJ and Kent & New Castle Counties DE stores)
$50 McDonald's Arch Card

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