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organizing | diy | frugal living

Do It On A Dime

How to “Do It All”

by Filed Under: Organization

I’ve been requested a lot recently to do a video about finding balance. I’m not an expert on the matter, but I do have a lot going on (oh man a lot…it’s bananas over here right now!), and here are a few of my favorite tricks for simplifying my day.

Be sure to enter below to win a planner from Personal-Planner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My favorite ways to “do it all”

1)  Identify what’s important and QUIT BEING SO AVAILABLE.  Forget your phone, 90% of the time it’s just a distraction (I’m still really working on this one!)

2) 80% of the importance of what you are doing can be found in just 20% of your day.  Focus on the first 20% of your to-do list.  What you think is urgent usually isn’t.

3) Make a list and plan accordingly.  I find it easiest to have a planner that shows each member of your family.

4) Work hardest before 12…your productivity decreases after lunch so always front-load your day.

5) Have each item in your checklist include a number so you can quantify what you are getting done.  Don’t write “do laundry” write “do 1 load of whites and 2 loads of colors”…hold yourself accountable!

6) Forget perfection and embrace grace.  It’s not about a perfect house, or doing it all flawlessly.  Give yourself a break.  Enjoy your family.  We have a messy kitchen for HOURS every night and we don’t care!

7)  Find systems that actually simplify.  It’s usually about simple changes.  Sort your mail next to your recycle bin.  Do your laundry where you put it away.

8) Maximize each trip (in and out of the house).  Take as few steps as possible and do as many things as you can each time you get up out of your seat.  You will end

9)  Get SLEEP.  Sleep is necessary for productivity and most people get far to little.  Aim for 7-8 hours of GOOD REST.

10)  Create a breakfast station and kick-start your morning.

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Giveaway ends August 28th 2015 at 12:00 am EST. Open internationally.  Winners must be 18 or older or have parental permission.  Winner will be selected randomly by Rafflecopter within a week of the giveaway ending and be notified by email. Winners have 72 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.  The products offered for the giveaway is free of charge, no purchase necessary. My opinions are my own and were not influenced by any form of compensation.  Personal-Planner provided the planner for giveaway in this post.  Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Youtube are in no way associated with this giveaway.  By providing your information in this form, you are providing your information to me and me alone.  I will use your information only for the purpose of contacting the winner.

Dollar Tree School Supplies Haul & Giveaway!

by Filed Under: Dollar Tree, Organization

I have been teaching for 9 years (crazy!), and this time of year always gets me so excited for getting back into the classroom.

As a teacher, I have seen (and requested students to have) a LOT of school supplies.  Finding budget friendly options is sort of a past-time for me, so I thought it would be fun to share with you my favorite school supplies from Dollar Tree… and give them all away in this video!  I had so much fun shopping for this.

Whether you are a home-school mom, sending your little ones off to school, or a student yourself, I hope you find some of these products/ideas helpful.

Check out the video and enter below!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway ends August 22nd 2015 at 12:00 am EST. Open internationally.  Winners must be 18 or older or have parental permission.  Winner will be selected randomly by Rafflecopter within a week of the giveaway ending and be notified by email. Winners have 72 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.  The products offered for the giveaway is free of charge, no purchase necessary. My opinions are my own and were not influenced by any form of compensation.  Dollar Tree, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Youtube are in no way associated with this giveaway.  By providing your information in this form, you are providing your information to me and me alone.  I will use your information only for the purpose of contacting the winner.

*This is not a sponsored video.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Easy Zucchini Pizza!

by Filed Under: Money Saving, Recipes

Finding creative ways to eat healthfully doesn’t have to be time-consuming or stressful.  Zucchini pizza is one of our family favorites, and it’s so simple to make!

We love gardening, and even if you don’t have a garden, zucchini and tomatoes are in season so this meal is doubly inexpensive.  You can find the original recipe and cooking instructions here.

And here’s an easy step-by-step tutorial:

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Organizing Motivation

by Filed Under: Organization

Sometimes we get stuck in an organizing rut.  Believe me…I do, too!  So here are two quick ideas that will help re-fuel your fire to get back at it.  I tried to include tangible examples so you can see how it’s working in my home.  I hope you find them helpful!

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Adventures in Florida!

by Filed Under: Advice & Vlogs

It was nice to round out this summer with a trip to Sarasota, Florida.  We spent a week on the beach soaking up the sun and enjoying some of the wildlife.  Here’s a recap vlog and a scary encounter (for me anyway) with Flamingos!  Eep!

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Japanese Dollar Store | Daiso Store Tour

by Filed Under: Dollar Tree, Organization

When I was in California for VidCon and to visit family, I was eagerly anticipating dropping by Diaso– the largest Japanese Dollar Store.  It’s a colorful and cheerful budget-friendly haven with a massive (and I do mean MASSIVE) selection of food, housewares, organizers, office supplies, crafting supplies, and more.  To add the icing on the cake, everything in the store is just $1.50 (unless otherwise marked).  Talk about complete marketing brilliance!  Sold!  Get me another suitcase!

After hearing from so many of you and I would be head over heels in love with this place, I took some of my vacation time to tour it.  And because I’m crazy and love this sort of thing, it was a definite highlight of my time in Cali.  I visited with my Aunt Karen, and she loved it just as much as I did.  I feel like there were so many items I didn’t get the chance to film, but there were lots of highlights (namely the incredible organizing sections) that made this trip warrant at 8 minute + video.  Hold on to your hats and don’t look away…or you might miss something. 😉

If you are looking for a Daiso near you, you can check out their website.  They have locations in California, Washington, (and recently, Texas) in the US.  But they are also in Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and lots of other countries as well.

I’m definitely team “bring Diaso to the East Coast.”  Who’s with me?

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Vidcon 2015

by Filed Under: Organization

This year I traveled to California with my sister-in-law for Vidcon 2015.  VidCon is short for “Video Conference” and is the largest video blogger convention hosted in the Anaheim convention center every summer.  The conference was started by John and Hank Greene and just celebrated it’s 6th year.

This adventure was my first experience traveling for and truly investing in my YouTube channel.  Living in North Carolina, outside of my standard “naptime editing”, leaving comments, or random meetings with viewers out and about (I always love that!), I don’t get the opportunity often to be in a place with so many creators and be challenged to grow.  We have family in the area, so that made everything even sweeter.   Plus I mean, it’s sunny Southern California!

The following videos summarize the entire trip…thoughts, feelings, emotions, and an exciting collaboration!.  Hope you enjoy!

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

From Diaper Box to Organizer!

by Filed Under: DIY Projects, Money Saving, Organization

I know we all have diaper boxes or Amazon boxes sitting in the recycle bin.  Why not take some jute twine and a little hot glue and make them over to create a classic organizer.  It’s so easy and is pennies on the dollar compared to expensive rope organizing boxes.  Hope you give this simple craft a try!

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

Dollar Spot at Target | Toddler Haul

by Filed Under: Dollar Tree, Teaching

Every couple of months I pick up a few inexpensive finds from the Dollar Tree and/or the Dollar Spot at Target.  Carson doesn’t go to day care yet, so all learning takes place at home.  Very inexpensively you really can find a lot of great resources for keeping busy and learning!  Here are a few favorite finds and how I store our learning activities.  Simple and effective.

P.S.  If you are a teacher, you need to get to the Dollar Spot now!  There are some classroom resources!

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*This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own.*

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