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Archives for 2012

Goals for February 2012: Removing Clutter – Part 1 of 2

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Photograph Credit: Flickr (Angie Torres)

After posting my book review of Crystal Paine’s The Money Saving Mom’s Budget, I shared my bite-sized goals. These goals were both long-term and short-term.

This month, I will update you on my progress, adjust the goals, and concentrate on Crystal’s second month goal of removing clutter. Let me urge you to make goals. Be intentional with your time and make each moment count.

Have you purchased Crystal’s book, yet? If not, you can listen to the first chapter via Oasis Audio through February 12, 2012, or via YouTube. If you like what you hear, then buy your copy through Amazon.com for $10.99.

Transitioning from January to February, I will keep some goals, adjust others, and continue making progress with new steps. Today, I will share my physical and family goals. Then next week, I will share my financial and business goals. If you feel comfortable doing so, post your goal(s) in the comments for accountability and encouragement.

Physical

Drink 1 glass of water per day. Accomplished! New Goal: Drink 2 glasses of water per day. To meet this goal, I choose to drink my water before any other beverage. It is working for me.

Eat breakfast each morning. Good, but I need some more work. Most days I eat breakfast, but the weekends are still sporadic. I will continue with this goal in February.

Exercise for 20 minutes at least 3 times a week. This goal is harder than I anticipated. If you follow me on Facebook, then you know that I am struggling. Zumba is working, but I can only complete 2 sessions a week due to the soreness. I will keep this goal for February as I build up to 3 times a week.

Family

Plan at least one family outing/activity each week. Accomplished! Our family enjoyed a day at the park, visited a science museum, constructed a Valentine’s Day project from Home Depot, and hosted a Super Bowl party. Making memories with my family encompasses why I focus on using time wisely. This goal will remain a top priority throughout the year.

Spend 10 minutes with each child each day. Good, but more work needed. Some days are busier than others. I need to make this special time a top priority and not just fitting it in between projects.

Allow children to help with a household task each week. Training my children is time well spent. They get personal attention while learning a skill. My girls enjoy laundry, general cleanup, and setting the table. With a little help, my 6-year-old son prepared a simple breakfast. I will continue this goal for February.

By focusing on a few goals, I am making progress. In some cases, the progress is slow which works for me. I want to set my goals high enough to challenge myself, but not so high that I cannot touch success. Finding the happy medium is a process. Starting with a few small goals puts me on a path to reach higher goals in the future.

Start where you are. Not too long ago, my goal involved getting out of my pajamas by the time hubby walked through the door. Some days that did not happen. Why? Because life happened. Embrace the setbacks with the accomplishments. Enjoy the process while moving forward, and happy planning!

(This post includes affiliate links where Using Time Wisely receives monetary compensation. Click here for my disclosure policy.)

Question: How are your goals shaping up? Please add your answer to the comments.

Valentine’s Day: 5 Party Ideas and More

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Photograph Credit: Flickr (Tomek Burdzinski)

Love is in the air. My girls are getting excited about attending a Valentine’s Day party later this week. We will be writing out cards and making containers to carry our love notes.

Celebrating holidays has been a family tradition since I was young. My mom made each holiday special with little tokens, games, and memories.

Party Ideas

If you are hosting or looking for ideas for your love celebration, then check out these 5 party ideas to get started:

1. Theme: Express Family Appreciation is my kind of party.

2. Game: The Famous Pairs word scramble game sounds like fun.

3. Food: Love this Heartwarming Pizza entrée idea.

4. Cards: Free printable color-by-number Valentines.

Free E-Books

Need a few more ideas? Check out these free e-books:

1. Finding Cupid E-book

2. Valentine Crafts for Kids

3. Dessert Recipes for Valentine’s Day

Lots of ideas to get your creativity flowing for your Valentine’s Day celebration. In using time wisely, borrowing ideas saves me energy and time. Hope you find your inspiration quickly. Happy planning!

Question: How do you celebrate Valentine’s Day? Please add your answer to the comments.

Cleaning: Ceiling Fans

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As I continue to work through my home room by room, I clean from top to bottom and from left to right. In each room, I start with the lighting fixture and/or the ceiling fan.

With my 5’4” stature, I often use a chair or step stool to reach the fans and lights. This method allows me to reach all the surfaces. For the most part, this system keeps my home clean. But once or twice a year, I work through my home giving it a deep clean.

The deep clean requires getting above the blades to see what dirt and dust needs removal. Most of the rooms have small amounts of dust build-up. The one fan that accumulates lots of dirt and grime is the kitchen fan. Located near the stove and oven, the fan collects grime due to the settling condensation on the blades mixing with the daily dust.

As I worked around my kitchen, I spent a good 30 minutes wiping down each fan blade and light globe. The result was a clean fan and a filthy floor.

But in working from top to bottom, I only need to clean each item once. The floor is the last item cleaned in each room.

In using time wisely, I rose above the fan, examined the situation, and the cleaned off the grime. Though it would have been easy to overlook the dirt-covered blades on the fans, I chose to rid my house of the clutter, dust, dirt, and grime.

Cleaning the ceiling fans thoroughly keeps our home clean. By completing the deep cleaning twice a year, I save energy and time for the next six months by dusting the surfaces. As you schedule your cleaning, consider deep cleaning occasionally while keeping your surfaces clean. Happy cleaning!

Question: How often do you clean your ceiling fans? Please add your answer to the comments.

Life Insurance: Policies for Spouse – Part 1 of 3

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Slow, steady, and consistently organizing those important documents will get your paper piles organized and easily accessible.

Concentrating on this second box of important documents, our personal insurance documents fill the first file opening in our accordion filing system.

The second slot holds the head of household life insurance documentation.

Having completed the second file opening last week, let’s focus on the third opening which has life insurance policies for the head of household’s spouse.

If you are a single-parent with an adult child with his own insurance, you can place his life insurance in this next file slot. Remember to adjust the filing system to work for you. 🙂

In my filing system, this third slot holds my life insurance documents. Like Paul, I also have three types of life insurance:

Term – Part 1

Combination whole life and long-term care – Part 2

Accidental death insurance – Part 3

Term Life Insurance Policy

Realizing the pros and cons of term life insurance, Paul and I decided that term insurance met our family’s needs. The premium price fit our budget, and the policies have served us well.

With our original 10-year terms coming to an end in the next couple of years, we are planning to replace these policies with new 20-year terms. Yes, this is a significant increase in our annual premium, but the term will extend through our children’s childhood.

Using SelectQuote, I chose my term life insurance policy. In replacing our current policies, we are again working through SelectQuote. Impressed by the service, detail, and accuracy of information, I found our agents helpful in securing our term life insurance policies, and I look forward to working with them again.

In this file opening, I keep these documents about my term life insurance policy:

1. Summary Page. This summary page indicates the policy number, insurance company, contact information, beneficiary information, and website access information and passwords.

2. Receipts. Each year I receive a premium notice with the policy number and amount due. After paying the premium, I note the date, amount, and payment type. I then keep each year’s notice as proof of payment for the life of the term. If there were a question about the policy cost, I will have proof of our payments.

3. Privacy Policy. When my insurance company merged with another company, the privacy policies changed. I keep the new privacy policy notice with the policy for future reference.

4. Merger Documentation. Since my policy was with the first insurance company and that company merged with another, I keep all merger letters and endorsements for the life of the term.

5. Beneficiary Changes and Notifications. When our lawyer completed our estate planning documents, he handled the beneficiary notices for our life insurance policies. To protect my family, I have chosen primary and contingent beneficiaries. These notices stay in this file.

6. Policy. This booklet details my contract with the insurance company including how, what, where, when, and how much they will disperse the policy amount to my family in the event I pass away. Having all these details nailed down now will cut the amount of stress on my family after my death.

7. Additional Correspondence. The last items in this bundle are the application, copy of first payment, and notes from SelectQuote conversations.

Placing these items in order, I paper clipped them together. These items are the first of three bundles housed in the third file opening of Box 2. Keeping these documents together with the other insurance documents saves me energy and time.

In using time wisely to support these files, I check these documents annual to protect my family. Your important documents are more than just paperwork. They are your family’s protection, and spending time to get organized will save them money, energy, and time. Keep organizing!

Question: What type of insurance have you chosen to protect your family? Please add your answer to the comments.

Papa John’s: Super Bowl Coin Toss Experience

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Photograph Credit: Papa John's

With college football season at a close and one football game left, Papa John’s is gearing up for the opening coin toss on Sunday, February 5.

With the votes tallied, America voted that the opening coin toss will be heads. If America is right, then Papa John’s will give all Papa Rewards members a free one-topping pizza and a free Pepsi Max 2-liter!

You have until Sunday, February 5 at 5:59 p.m. to complete the free Papa Rewards registration.

After registering, watch the Super Bowl coin toss at about 6:00 p.m. on your local NBC station. If the coin lands on the designated “heads” side, then visit Papa Rewards on Monday, February 6 for details to redeem your free gift.

In stretching your dollars, taking 2 minutes of your time to complete a free registration might result in an inexpensive dinner for your family.

While using time wisely, I spent a few moments to register. Since our family enjoys pizza and plans to watch the game, this Papa Rewards member is rooting for heads in this Super Bowl coin toss experience. Enjoy the game!

Question: For which team are you pulling? (Teams are New York Giants and New England Patriots.) Please add your answer to the comments.