Happy Monday!!
Boy, I can’t even begin to explain how insane life has been lately!! Our real estate business is really cranking, and we are getting better at SYSTEMS!! I must say that while I have heard all of the gurus say it, I haven’t truly mastered the ability to get systems into play quite yet. However, I am bound and determined to make it all happen! I am very much aware of what our reality looks like here in New York. My children will be “distance learning’ from home this upcoming school year. My husband and I will continue to grow our real estate company and with that will come new avenues and obstacles. How exciting!
I am implementing these top 5 Hacks starting now, so I wanted to share them in case you too find this new way of living a tad overwhelming, and maybe need a little inspiration to try something new. It’s never too late to add a bit of structure!
- Menu Plan
That’s nothing new around here, but I am not 100% consistent. I do find that when I do plan out a week, whether or not I actually follow it, that’s ok. It keeps the stress from worrying, “What’s for dinner” happening at 4:55 pm. Here’s my idea for this week:
I am trying out Hello Fresh this week–I have not done a meal service since my son was born in 2015. I am honestly in such a cooking funk, and we don’t feel comfortable ordering take out (we have only done it TWICE since Covid.). I will let you guys know what I think of it! I loved that the meals are healthy and family friendly! If you’re interested in trying it, here’s a $40 off code for you! I actually love cooking, but I loathe having to think of what the heck to feed my family all of the time. These two meals look delish!
2. Meal Prep (for yourself!!)
Kind of along the same lines, but here it’s taking a few extra minutes and prepping at least ONE meal. If you do more, great!! I thought making this breakfast casserole would be a great way to give me one less thing to do in the morning. I want to start focusing on my morning workouts again, so I thought this would be a good start! PS I am going to do my first round of WHOLE 30 starting Monday July 27th. I’m getting ready!
Or at the very least, know what you’re going to eat for a snack! I am loving the Medical Medium’s Heavy Metal Detox Smoothie.
3. Chore charts & Chore Sticks
I can’t take credit for these cute things, but Jordan Page from Fun Free Or Cheap sure can!! She is a powerhouse mama of 8 (yup, she just had a set of twins) and she has her kids do these daily. We just introduced the kids to this idea, and Brooke can read so this will be awesome. She wanted to start Sunday night, but we will begin first thing Monday. You can tailor your chart to read anything you want. As for the sticks? Write down whatever house hold chores you need done. Now the kids can’t get on their electronics UNTIL all the boxes are checked. It will teach them responsibility, mommy won’t go crazy trying to do everything and everyone wins.
4. Get out in Nature (preferably first thing!)
The more we leave our home and explore our beautiful city, the better our days go! We can’t go every day, but when we wake up early and get outside, everything seems to be more productive and better. Whether it’s a walk in front of the mansions on the lake, a sandy secluded beach, or this cool Turning Point Park, it’s always an adventure! Even if you can’t really leave, can you take a quick morning walk around your neighborhood?
How cute is this baby deer? Mama was right by.
5. Choose Your WHY and focus.
We have wanted to work together full time in real estate for a very long time. There are so many times things get hard, and it’s easy to numb the difficulties. Don’t. Feel the pain and work through all of the tough times. Since being home, we have put our heads together and sat many hours staring at each other wondering what to do next. And we would brainstorm so many ideas, act on a few and then we just kept doing them. Small steps will get you to move forward. You can’t accomplish every goal and dream right away, but once you start checking off some small ones, you build momentum. Late nights, early mornings, days where most people are off BBQing and playing, we are working. Sure we take days at the beach, but a lot of the time, our phones are in hand working. Every little bit counts and you can’t knock the hustle!!
Side note, this photo means a lot to me for so many reasons. I had Bradley take it and even though it’s not a home we ended up not even interested in buying, it was part of our journey. Bradley was looking off at some kids playing in a pool a few houses down, and a part of me felt a little sad. I know going house to house is not always fun for a little kid, but this is our life and with the virus, we can’t go out and do too much to socialize. I looked at him and explained that if we work hard now, we will be playing in a much bigger pool one day. I know that it will all pay off, it is time to strike while the iron is hot (and the virus is around) and in the future, we will all be living our dream life. But really, the funny thing is, even though we don’t have a pool right now or a beach house, I still am living an amazing life. Who would have ever thought we could both be with our children this much (and it’s a lot!) when they are this young? That is such a gift. So while the world is wonky and coronavirus is crazy, we don’t let that stop us. If your dreams are big enough and your why is strong enough, anything is possible.
