Life hacks

[thisisasurvivor]

Aibu to ask for your life hacks

Very unorganised

So far this year

I got a set of cards ready for birthdays , thank you etc

Have cash in the house for clubs etc

School uniform set out for each day on a Sunday

Ok so far that's all

Any one else any good ones???
❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️

I think the yabu poster meant either that it should go to chat or that lifehacks are often not hacks, but common sense, OR something our grandmas used to do.

My lifehack is not to listen to 5 minute crafts😁

We each have a wire storage basket in the airing cupboard, so you can take out each person's clothes to put away, already sorted.
Not as basket, but a bag for too small clothes/ charity shop donations.
A sharpie in the fridge door to write the date on jars, when they were opened (they often have "eat within 3 weeks..." etc) then you know when to eat up or throw away.
A chest freezer for buying discount food close to the date.
Slow cooker for big batches of stew, curry, chilli etc.
A running shopping list, so you write stuff down as soon as you need it.
The general policy of one and a spare for cleaning, washing, foodstuffs. When you open the spare you need to replace it.
Get everything ready the night before.

1. white board on freezer listing all contents- and portions. I use tick marks for each portion and easier rub out a tick as I use each portion
2. I use a technique from Japan used in manufacturing and production to organise things. It’s about eliminating wasted time and resources for people looking for things/tools on production lines. Every item in garage and utility is hung up but on open displays behind the item is a picture, the outline (can be drawn in marker on garage wall), or name of the item . When you’ve finished using anyone can put it back in exactly same place- but more importantly you can spot tools that you’ve left in the garden flower bed easily as you’re putting them away as you can see they’re “missing”. Look up “5s “ lean manufacturing if interested. Also used the “red tag” technique ruthlessly nice on a PTA shed ..good I loved blitzing 20 years of crap 🤣🤣🤷🏼‍♀️
3. make organising and tidying as easy as possible- buy the right storage, put it in the right place near where it will be used, use labels generally
4. 8 week rolling menu. Yep, a hell of a lot of effort to create. But nice dne lasted me the 20 years plus whilst kids were growing up and I ŵas working full time. Everyone knew what was fr dinner. I didn’t have to keep plan each week. I did swap in some recipes and put others over time, but the basic stayed in places. 8 weeks meant that we had a big variety of dishes, and people looked forward to a articulate thing when it turned up as they hadn’t had it for “ages”. When kids go to late teens and Uni holidays, they’d also be able to start cooking dinner without having t consult me . Sadly, I even had each weeks shopping list in excel all ready to go (god this I s probably outing as I was known for this at work🤣🤣)
5. have a list on fridge with en- as you use the last of anything or see you’re running out write it down we immediately. Same goes with anyone else in household age 8 upwards
6. reminder lists shared on phone with kids, and separate one with husband
7. shared calendars . And now if making arrangements with any friends or family I add them onto invites myself so they can’t claim they forgot 🙄
8. Teach your kids to use a washing machine from age of 5 🤣🤣😱, semi joking, but if they can use a games counsel they can sort their en laundry, get it in a machine and turn it on.
9. last, but most importantly, as soon as you begin working after having kids get a cleaner if you can stretch to it. Forget holidays if needs be 😉😱, cleaners reduce domestic burdens and more importantly family arguments and frustration. Cleaners are bloody marvellous for stopping arguments.

Books of stamps and envelopes to save trips to the post office

Also packs of brown paper rolls like 2£ so you don't have to always buy the wrapping bags when sending gifts

I make myself a strong G&T when DH is bathing DC.

Now this is my ultimate dream 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌

Keep a diary
Put all the appointments in there haircuts, dentists, etc then you know exactly when you last went to the hairdresser, dentist, doctor etc.
Always take a bottle of water out and some paracetamol.

@thisisasurvivor

Wish I could be as organised as you

But teaching kids to use a washing machine is absolutely one of my top tips. Been ama with my teenagers. I still do laundry but if they want anything else washed they can sort it out themselves

Purchase gifts throughout the year on an ongoing basis. Obviously being mindful of what finances allow.

Do this for birthdays, Christmas, everything - just whenever you see something someone you know would love, get it if you can. Keep a "present box" or similar to store it all in.

I've found this life changing!! No more panicked last minute gift buying, and I've usually managed to find something lovely for someone by the time the event comes. I also pick up beautiful cards for all occasions whenever I see them.

When I blow dry my hair in the bedroom I blow the hairdryer on the blinds to fist them.

Ffs dust them. Not fist them. Ffs.

Should add though, biggest life hack, educate yourself financially. Make every £ work for you.
use all your tax allowances to the full, where possible ( granted you need some household income to do this)
save for a pension hard and as soon as possible- never give up a pension, sell a defined benefit pension or not pay into one as big tax breaks, when you are 6-8 years away from retirement use the government free money pension advice session (1 hour) to understand your choices and plan for those,
know how to manage your debt
set an annual budget and review spends against it to adjust behaviours- key if married and kids to ensure you both stay aligned,

Do the free open uni financial basic course Martin Lewis helped set up to better understand everything to do with financial planning

and generally read everything Martin Lewis has to say 🤷🏼‍♀️

I NEED your eight week meal plan 😁
we are stuck in such a food rut

Crucial

This has really got me thinking now !!!!

In all honesty I just don't think il be retiring or not until I'm late 70s 🤞🤞🤞🤞

Love this so much

I spent 1k on Amazon last year buying shit !!! Shit expensive Xmas presents they barely touched

Amazon has been deleted for good

🤣🤣🤣👍

Great thread OP.Definitely motivated me to get my arse in gear!!

Can someone please explain the ice cream in the freezer after shopping one? I don't get it... what else would you do with ice cream??

@Newlifestartingatlast you are inspirational! I'm most envious of your 8 week rolling menu and shopping lists.

Did we have the same childhood?

Takes small bow

I had a pretty full on job but was a lean manufacturing expert and applied this at home. Bit sad really

im now retired and living on my own due to being widowed and kids all grown up. But I still do most of this. I figure it’ll help me with any impending dementia for a while 🤣🤣🤣

I have been working hard over the last few years to make my stressful busy life as smooth as possible. It’s still a work in progress but I recommend the following

1. birthday app - I use Hip. You add all your birthdays and it counts down for them all. I also bulk buy cards from whistlefish and keep them all in a tin. With a big family, this is essential for my life.
2. xmas present list app - life saver and helps remember and organise all the gifts and how much being spent
3. shared calendar I use TimeTree but there are others- game changer
4. snoop finance - tracks all my bills, all my bank accounts, alerts me, shows me trends in spending. It’s genius.
5. period tracker on Apple Watch along with a small period drawer for all my period knickers and sanitary items. Simple but means I’m always really organised and prepared.
6. two storage boxes in bedroom - one for summer clothes, one for winter that I rotate.
7. each month I make a to do list on my phone notes page for all the life admin that needs to happen. I then tick them off as they are done.
8. have a cleaner
9. have a partner who pulls their weight around the house
10. don’t expect perfection

keep clean socks in a basket by the door / near where the shoes are stored

Supermarket leather wipes for school shoes. They clean even the muddiest shoes brilliantly, and leave them shiny and polished.
One wipe does both boys pairs and takes seconds in the morning when I'm juggling other things!
(The wipes are biodegradable)

An 8 week menu plan?! OMFG, I'm in awe (and would love to see this menu plan!!). I love so many of the other hacks on here too.

I'm a single parent to 2DC, working FT. Here are my hacks:
-Batch cooking things. Also, my IP and my Thermomix are bloody brilliant and I use these pretty much every day. I do need to do a menu plan though!
-Folding bedlinen (fold quilt cover, sheet and pillow case, and then stuff these in the matching pillowcase).
-Put a load of washing on as soon as there's enough laundry for a load (saves me doing 3/4 loads in one go and the house looking like a bloody state). I stick washing machine on overnight on a silent wash - then I can hang it out first thing (assuming it's not pissing down). I finish it off in tumble drier if I need to. -Dried laundry is folded/hung/put away immediately. I make the kids help me with this.
-when we wash/change bedlinen, I strip beds first thing in the morning and put fresh bedlinen on straight away. Takes 15mins tops to do all three beds, if I draft the DC in to help me. Then it's done and sorted before we head off to work/school.
-I can't afford a cleaner, but did save up and get a robovac about 2yrs ago. It vacuums the whole ground floor of house every day. V handy when you have cats (and DC!).
-family calendar with everything written on it.
-not really a hack but I'll put the dishwasher on every night, and/or wash up after every meal (XH would leave stuff for days and I hated it!)
-my 4 cats have a Litter Robot as a litter tray (clean once a week, change bag every 3 days), an automatic feeder for their dry food and a water fountain (clean once a week).
-I get up a bit earlier than I have to and use that time to do admin, check and reply to emails, do a bit of studying etc

I do need to buck up my ideas with decluttering, and filing.