Smoothies and milkshakes are the best in the summer…cool, refreshing, and depending on how you make them, they can even be healthy. They’re way cheaper made at home than purchased at a restaurant, and they’re fun to make. But blenders…blenders are not fun to clean.
Taking all the little pieces apart and trying not to impale yourself as you wash them is a pain and takes a long time, so I wanted to share with you how we clean our blender at home. It’s so easy!
Once you’ve made your delicious cold beverage of choice, empty the blender of its contents right away into glasses. Now, before you enjoy said drink, fill the blender with warm water and add a bit of dish soap (fill it to the same height as the previous contents). Now, put the pitcher back on the stand, put the top on, and blend away. The soapy water will get into all the same nooks and crannies as the drink you just made. It’s important to do this right away so nothing gets dry and sticky.
Now just rinse and set on a towel or in the dish rack to dry! Easy! :)
Do you have any cleanup tips for the kitchen?
So there’s a daunting list of tasks on your list and you have no idea where to begin. Sometimes you just pick a task at random and go. Sometimes you don’t start on your to-do list at all just because it looks so scary. Well, the first thing on your to-do list should be “organize my to-do list.”
If you want to get through that list, you need to put things in order. It’s possible to waste lots of time figuring out what to do next, and it’s also possible to over think it so much that you just give up. You can avoid both of those problems by sorting your list before you begin. I organize my to-do list using the following 4 categories:
1) Quick. Any task that will take me less than 5 minutes comes up to the top of the list. At home, that can be something as simple as “feed the cats” or “add orange juice to the shopping list.” At work, usually it’s sending a follow up email, or searching for a blue pen in the filing cabinet. It’s important to do the tasks that take the least time first for two reasons. Firstly, it boosts your energy. If you can cross off multiple things in the span of 10 minutes, you’ll feel totally productive and energized to do more. Secondly, if someone is waiting on you for a quick answer, you will boost their productivity by getting the answer to them as quickly as possible.
2) Urgent. Anything that must be done by a certain time or by the end of the day should be next on your list. At home, this might include paying the electric bill or making an important phone call. At work, it could be finalizing a presentation or finishing a spreadsheet. Either way, get those things that are very urgent out of the way next. You’ll feel a lot of relief when those tasks are over!
3) Important. Next, tackle the things that are important but might not have a strict deadline. This could be clipping coupons for shopping on the weekend, or setting up a meeting that isn’t until next week. These are things that need to be done but aren’t as time-sensitive as the tasks mentioned above.
4) Can wait. These are the tasks that are just kind of floating—we know we need to do them at some point but they really can wait. At home this could be hemming a pair of pants you don’t wear very often. At work it could be reorganizing your filing cabinet.
To-do lists come in all shapes and sizes. There’s really no one way to make a to-do list—just find what works best for you, whether that’s on a piece of notebook paper, on your iPhone, in a planner, or on a bunch of post-its. I keep my work to-do list in an old-school paper planner. I keep my “at home” to-do list on TeuxDeux.com.
Depending on what you use to record your to-do list, you’ll have to figure out how to organize it. For instance, when prioritizing my work to-do list, since it’s on paper, I use highlighters. (Pink for “quick,” orange for “urgent,” yellow for “important,” and green for “can wait.”) On TeuxDeux.com, I just drag and drop the tasks into the appropriate order based on the 4 categories above. Do whatever you find increases your productivity the most.
How do you organize your to-do list?
images via Flickr (To-do list book. by koalazymonkey) (So much to do in the back by boboroshi)
Check out this amazing recipe I discovered in a recent issue of AllYou magazine—black bean and mango tostadas. Inexpensive, fast, healthy, and delicious…what more could you want in a meal? When JB and I make it, sometimes we substitute pineapple for the mango, and last time we doubled the black beans and turned it into four burritos (lunch leftovers!). Whatever works for you! But trust me, you want to try this. It’s awesome.
via myrecipes
via Dweebist
In the midst of the busy life, the new house, preparing for an anniversary trip, much insanity at work, and new health problems arising in my little family, it’s easy to get busy doing things and forget to just “live.” This might sound abstract, but it really inspired me this morning. Hope it inspires you, too.
We all have those chores that we loathe, that we put off until the last minute because we just hate to do them. For many people, laundry is one of those chores. Fortunately, I don’t mind it so much (don’t worry—I make up for it by hating to wash dishes). Here are a few tips from my own experiences that might help ease your laundering pain.
1) Wash all different colors together. I sort by type (towels with towels, jeans with jeans, bedding with bedding, etc.) rather than by color. Do keep in mind that this won’t work if you’re washing a brand new pair of jeans (they should probably be washed separately a few times) or anything else that might dye other clothing. But in all my years of doing laundry, I’ve always washed everything together (at least since the days of college and having to be very thrifty with my quarters) and have never ever had a color bleeding debacle.
2) Use cold water for everything. I know your mom told you that warm or hot water gets your clothes cleaner, but she was mistaken. Unless you have some serious stains to tackle, just use the cold/cold setting. You’ll save money by not using the extra electricity to heat the water, and you won’t have to worry about running the shower or the dishwasher while the laundry is on.
3) If you use liquid detergent, measure it out into your handy measuring cap and then throw the cap into the washing machine. This way you’re sure to get all the measured detergent into the wash, and you won’t have a sticky cap to deal with afterward. And even if you accidentally throw the cap into the dryer when you transfer the clothes, it should come out unscathed.
4) Don’t use fabric softener or dryer sheets on towels. I know we all hate the static, but we also hate those towels that are all smooth and don’t absorb liquid! Especially when you buy a new set of towels and they don’t seem to dry well, wash them the first few times without any fabric softener…the same substance that takes away the static also coats the towels in a film that makes it difficult for them to absorb.
5) Easily de-wrinkle a load of dry clothes with a damp washcloth. If you’re like me, every once in a while you’ll forget you have dry clothes in the dryer and you’ll leave them there overnight. The result is a load of extremely wrinkled clothes when you finally remember them. Well, who has time to iron an entire load of clothing? (Not me!) Dampen a clean washcloth, throw it into the dryer with your clean clothes, and set it on a short cycle (10-20 minutes). The washcloth kind of steams your clothing and they come out de-wrinkled!
I hope these tips help you in your future laundry endeavors. Do you have any laundry tips to share?
If my love for all things English and grammar wasn’t already apparent…here’s an Etsy roundup of all things punctuation!
Little Sterling Silver Question Mark Studs, $15.00 at CatherineMarissa’s Etsy shop
Quotation Mark Earrings, $7.50 at nerdgoddess’ Etsy shop
Question Mark Vintage Typewriter Key Necklace, $15.00 at KeysAndMemories’ Etsy shop
Ampersand, $21.50 at silverlining11’s Etsy shop
via Etsy
Seeing this precious paper doily garland on Nice Package makes me want to host a tea party or some other adorable type event.
tutorial here via Nice Package
If you try it out, I want to see pictures! :)
