Page 5 | Life hacks

thisisasurvivor · 2023-02-21T18:09:12+00:00

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??? ❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️

MrsMikeDrop · 22/02/2023 02:35

If you have young children. Ziplock bag in pram, car and handbag with basics. A nappy, travel wetwipes, bib, hat, socks, plastic bag. Just the essentials for an emergency.

DifficultBloodyWoman · 22/02/2023 03:58

SchoolTripDrama · 22/02/2023 00:24

Who gives a crap is EXTORTIONATELY expensive! Just because each roll has a fancy wrapping. I actually laughed when I looked at the price! 2 x Aldi luxury 3 ply 24 packs for £10 (They're big rolls too!).

Whereas 48 rolls from WGAC - £44 😳

Show quote history

Aldi in Australia has just started selling Who Gives a Crap paper. I’ll check their prices next time I am there.

sashh · 22/02/2023 04:12

Milk and cheese freeze well.

Milk can be frozen in ice cube trays so that you can just pop a 'milk cube' in a tea or coffee. Useful for me as I'm lactose intolerant so I don't buy milk but also useful if you have an occasional visitor who doesn't take the same milk you do.

I freeze left over food as 'meals' eg in my freezer there is a vegi chili in a zip lock bag which is inside another ziplock with 2 flour tortillas.

Roast dinner - freeze as meals.

You can do it with food bought as frozen eg 3 fish fingers and some chips that can be shoved in the oven / airfryer. Useful if you have someone eating later than a family meal.

OrderOfTheKookaburra · 22/02/2023 06:25

Apply sun cream to DC's face with a sponge makeup applicator. Stops the tears as it is much gentler!

Bulk buy black socks (or whatever colour schools socks) - that way pairing up is easy. When they start wearing out bulk buy from a different store so that the bands are visibly different and easy to pair up. When socks from store 1 are all worn out re buy from store 1 again. That way you don't pair up similar looking but one new-one old socks. Same basic socks for the whole family.

Keep some small ice cube trays handy for freezing leftover tomato paste, lemon juice, herbs, pesto etc into. Once frozen put that small cubes together into a bag and use as needed, they defrost very quickly. Stops wasting jar fulls of things when you only use a small amount before it goes off.

If you're freezing individual/not enough for the whole family left overs, add them that bag to a larger bag with other leftovers in the freezer. Then you can do a left overs night and everyone can choose what they're going to have.

Amboseli · 22/02/2023 06:35

@Newlifestartingatlast 100% agree. The most important life hack imo.

Amboseli · 22/02/2023 06:39

@OrderOfTheKookaburra i use the small sauce pots with lids you sometimes get with takeaways to freeze small portions of leftovers.

Startwithamimosa · 22/02/2023 06:46

@Newlifestartingatlast you are my God 🙌

Newlifestartingatlast · 22/02/2023 07:18

StressedToTheMaxxx · 22/02/2023 00:34

Number 4 - does this mean you had a list of 56 meals to go?? I struggle to think of different meals on a weekly basis, I couldn't even think up 55 different things to cook if it was my specialist subject on mastermind 😬😂 Good on you!

Show quote history

Yep near enough , a few favourites like chili got repeated monthly, but otherwise …
I worked on a pattern each week: one vegetarian, at least one fish, something spicy, a pasta, something with rice, a Sunday special , plus a random ish ( but also included an eat out/takeaway every fortnight.

itsnot so hard then to find 8 different pasta dishes, 8 different vegetarian etc

Newlifestartingatlast · 22/02/2023 07:22

BinturongsSmellOfPopcorn · 21/02/2023 22:48

YY to the freezer whiteboard. Ours is divided into the same number of sections as we have freezer drawers, so as well as knowing exactly what we have it also saves frozen fingers from extended rummaging to find the item you want.

Keep a cloth next to every sink. Each time you use the sink give it a quick wipe, and get everyone in the household to do the same. No need to be thorough because its done so often, so it takes 2 seconds and doesn’t feel like an effort.

Omg..why had I never thought of dividing my board into drawers! Right, it’s going to get wiped tomorrow and this improvement done. 🥳

Yogity · 22/02/2023 07:22

I keep a little bubble wand in my handbag to handle toddler tantrums in public withmisdirection

Newlifestartingatlast · 22/02/2023 07:31

EmmaEmerald · 22/02/2023 00:05

Newlife thanks. Sadly, it looks like more space is needed for that kind of system. I'm thinking I'm going to need to keep some sort of inventory.

Not really, it sort of looks that way, but they’re using vertical space as well. You can do this with just say, individual dividers/boxes in a drawer . So rather than one single drawer full of mess that no one can find anything, use the colour coding method- each divided area gets a colour label, and items in that area get a dob of coloured nail varnish, or permanent marker on them. It looks more space because things are more spaciously laid out, and that’s achieved because half the stuff has been thrown, store elsewhere etc. but you can still apply the methods by cramming stuff in

TwoLeftSocksWithHoles · 22/02/2023 07:43

Taking MN's lead on abbreviating wrds, I hve strtd dg it fr my ems.

Its m qkr 2 typ & us lss ink if ppl prnt it. Sum ppl say it dffclt 2 rd bt I dnt gve a st.

FindingMeno · 22/02/2023 07:44

Put reminders on your calendar for repeat tasks (eg when you flea the cat , count forward 5 weeks or whatever, and put a note on the calendar that it's due,)

Designate a space in the kitchen and bathroom for back ups. It's easier to do a shopping list as you can see in one place what's been taken out for use and you can replace it.

Have an am and pm basket and put in each what you use at that time of day ( eg vitamins, night cream, medication)

Keep a note on the fridge of the time and type of medication, like painkillers, that family members have taken so you know when the next dose can be taken and keep an eye on doses over 24 hours.

Have a well-stocked larder/ pantry.

Test smoke alarms on the 1st of each month.

Try to store like with like and as close as possible to where they'll be used. Eg a dog walk basket with lead, harness, poo bags etc by the front door

Use napisan in every wash. Stops bacteria build up in the machine so it doesn't get whiffy and helps stain removal.

Keep a headtorch next to the bed, and a torch by the trip box. Also keep an easily accessible power cut box.

Buy machine washable door mats.

Tanktanktank · 22/02/2023 07:48

I am known for killing houseplants. I bought my DH a little arrangement of succulents for our wedding anniversary in lockdown and am really trying to keep it alive.

so I only water it on the first of the month. Reminded when I get ‘pinch and punch for first day of the month’ by gleeful DH who always remembers. Got him back this month by getting my cousin in Auz to remind me 🤣

StClare101 · 22/02/2023 07:58

I also bulk buy cards, paper and presents for birthday parties. I wait for a sale.

We also have a “grown out of” drawer and a “too big” drawer (we get a lot of hand me downs). Makes it easy to cycle the clothes through.

Family calendar. We each have a box for every day. If it’s not on the calendar it’s not happening.

Online grocery lists split into basics v occasional so I can dump the basics in every week. I find shop to boot better than waiting around for a delivery.

Splitting the admin load with DH. He does the school stuff and I do the extra curricular. He also pays all the monthly and quarterly bills etc.

I buy the kids clothes twice a year only. We just do a big buy given outside of core winter they wear the same stuff year round (we are in Australia).

Getting the kids to step up. They have daily chores and yes it takes patience but so great once they are up and running. The pack and unpack the dishwasher, make their beds, pack/unpack their school bags. Put their dirty washing into the laundry and fold their own clean clothes.

They are also expected to remember when to take their library bag, wear sports uniform etc. That’s a work in progress…

PandasAreUseless · 22/02/2023 08:28

declutter so that absolutely everything has a place. Then maintain with a one-in-one-out policy.
if you live with a partner, make sure they do their fair share of domestic labour

Elsanore · 22/02/2023 08:38

user1471517900 · 21/02/2023 18:39

I put ice cream in the freezer after shopping so it doesn't melt.

😂

SleepingStandingUp · 22/02/2023 08:53

I have a huge 3 month wall planner in the bathroom so I can see it when I'm on the loo. Wipes clean so I just wipe at the end of month and write up the next month. Colour for each person. If it's on there, it happens.

sashh · 22/02/2023 09:29

Re white boards on fridges / freezers - just you the fridge door. Unless you have a fancy hidden in a cabinet type fridge.

quirkychick · 22/02/2023 09:44

The Japanese technique of putting an outline where a tool goes, we used use in infant classrooms to show the children where the equipment or toys went.

I have a very simple meal plan (I used to have a more rigid one). So eg. Monday - fish, Tuesday - chicken etc. so I can choose based on what was in the supermarket. Easy to remember, too.

We have a calendar with a column for each person plus a noticeboard with medical appointment letters etc next to it. I also put everything colour coded onto Google calendar, so I get a picture of the week and a notification prior to an event. I put things for me on it, such as exercise, meeting friends etc. so it's all treated as important.

Seaography · 22/02/2023 10:25

Haven't read though them all yet but thought I would add the things that help me.

Shared email for bills/nursery etc, only use it for this so it doesn't get cluttered.

Share and sync calenders, DH finally learned to use it when events clashed and mine was in the calender and his wasn't! He had to sort childcare.

Spend an afternoon filling all important dates in the calendar, insurance renewal, contract end dates, birthdays etc. Set to repeat yearly and have alerts at a time that is suitable for you to do something about it. New things go in that very moment or I will forget.

Every 4th Thursday evening I have alert to order my prescription and look at the next 4 weeks. If car insurance is due I will run a couple of comparison sites, write cards/pick presents etc. If I can see a very busy week coming up I will plan some easy meals/batch cooking etc so it is stress free. Even when I have a lot to do it never takes more than an hour and I know I am ready for everything!

While generally my rule is declutter as much as you can in some cases it works to have extras. We have bags for swimming, gymnastics, yoga etc. Each has own Hairbrush, ties, towels, water bottles etc as needed. When home bag is sorted straight away and repacked, when kit is washed it goes straight into bag. Basically as soon as you get it get everything ready for the next day!

It helps to look round your house and see the problem areas, also think about stressful points of the week. What can you do to make them easier? It can take time to build routines and find what works for you but I am getting their slowly.

For me I have to prioritise ease of use over aesthetics. I may want things to look Insta worthy but if it doesn't work for me it will only look nice for 1 minute a month!

BlueberryBuffin · 22/02/2023 11:36

There was another thread here a while ago about the little bits and pieces that would make life easier. Something like "what can I buy with £100 to make my life easier"
Good suggestions were buying extra teaspoons, clothes pegs.
Can't remember other suggestions.

QuestionsFromThePublic · 22/02/2023 11:57

Anytime @Piglet89. Best thing I discovered last year. I have never tried audio books before. I can listed to books on my walk, decluttering or cooking. Borrow Box has me very productive.

coodawoodashooda · 22/02/2023 13:05

quirkychick · 22/02/2023 09:44

The Japanese technique of putting an outline where a tool goes, we used use in infant classrooms to show the children where the equipment or toys went.

I have a very simple meal plan (I used to have a more rigid one). So eg. Monday - fish, Tuesday - chicken etc. so I can choose based on what was in the supermarket. Easy to remember, too.

We have a calendar with a column for each person plus a noticeboard with medical appointment letters etc next to it. I also put everything colour coded onto Google calendar, so I get a picture of the week and a notification prior to an event. I put things for me on it, such as exercise, meeting friends etc. so it's all treated as important.

I love this food plan idea! Thanks

AlwaysLatte · 22/02/2023 13:16

Started buying stocking fillers now (we usually have a lot of stockings with family staying).

I buy multiple lots of things when they're on offer (eg Method cleaning products currently 1/3 off)

If I make a chilli or Ravi etc I make a double amount and freeze half.

Follow a timetable for all the housework tasks.

5x sets uniform each all ready on a Sunday, and bags/books/shoes/lunches all done the night before to make mornings more relaxed (even have time for scrambled eggs etc instead of frisbee them a croissant or bowl of cereal).

I think generally getting ahead with things is so much less stressful!