A Day in the Life (August)

One of the things that Amy and I decided to do when we met up in Richmond last month was start writing our “A Day in the Life” posts on a monthly basis, because you guys always seem to like them. Not that our lives are that interesting–the opposite, in fact!!–but it is aways fun to read about other people’s routines and borrow some ideas .

Both of our kids start back to school on August 26th–our son will be a sophomore in college and our daughter will be a high school junior–so we’re still on a summer schedule here. My husband is the only one who isn’t and I’m sure he’s looking forward to the days when the rest of us aren’t still in bed when he leaves for work! He’s a morning person; I am more of a night owl and need a decent amount of sleep at night to function. I use the Sleep Cycle app and have for many years; it tracks my sleep quality but also wakes me up during a window of time when it’s the least painful!

One thing that really has helped me sleep through the night without waking up is wearing an eye mask; Amy wears one, too, and even mentioned it during our trip to Richmond post! Mine is just one that I was given by Lufthansa during an overseas flight, but since the elastic is almost shot on it, I intend to buy this one next that’s under $10 and highly rated.

Coffee is the first order of the day, before I even brush my teeth, people! My usual mug holds 18 oz which seems about right. 🙂

Mug | Keurig | Nutpods (almond and coconut milk)

If I don’t have anywhere to be right away, I like to sit on the porch with my coffee. I also try to read my First 5 app or another “paper” devotional (I’m reading this one right now; my friend Becky handed it down to me when our son graduated from high school).

I’m a list maker and usually have a pretty long to-do list written out for each day, plus I’m also one of those nerds who will write something down that wasn’t on the list just to cross it off! After a quick review of what’s supposed to happen for the day, I head upstairs to get ready.

I tend to dress in layers because even though I keep the house in the 70s, when it’s almost 100 degrees outside, I’m usually freezing inside! I bought this cardigan during the recent Nordstrom Anniversary Sale and have to say it was worth every penny. While I usually put it on over my PJs when I first get up, you can see that I have zero qualms about wearing it outside of the house!

Do I need to clean this mirror again or what? I think it’s the vintage glass that just always looks a bit cloudy.

So, I’ve mentioned this before, but I am at a stage of my life where I get dressed with hair and makeup every day. Every once in awhile I’ll stay in leggings or joggers if I’m doing yard work or something, but that’s not the norm. I know it has something to do with the fact that my kids are older and I actually have time to get dressed (and places to go during the day!), but I also just prefer feeling like that’s been checked off my list. Plus I live in a small town and I always, but always, run into people I know when I’m out and about.

Moving back downstairs…if I eat breakfast it’s something small like a bowl of granola with almond milk, or a Perfect Bar (peanut butter is my favorite flavor; you can buy them HERE online but they’re only $1.99 each at our ALDI). If I’m really starving I’ll make a piece of avocado toast and top it with a friend egg. But here’s a confession: not only do I often skip breakfast, but more days than not I’ll eat one meal a day, at dinnertime. Apparently there’s an actually diet called OMAD (one meal a day) but trust me, I’m not doing it as part of a diet! It’s just kind of the way my body works. If I’m hungry and think of it, I’ll eat fruit with cheese and crackers for lunch, or a few handfuls of nuts, or a taco salad (we almost always have ground turkey taco meat in the fridge). I drink plenty of water during the day so I’m always well hydrated, and if I feel hungry I eat. I just usually don’t feel hungry until dinner. I’m in my late 40s and my weight is pretty stable and has been for my entire life, so I guess it works for me!

This is the time when I usually settle down at the kitchen table to get some work done (the round table through the double doors. We also have a dining room again at Magnolia Cottage which I’ll show you soon!). If I have orders to fill for my Etsy shop, I’ll get those started, then I’ll check the Google calendar that Amy and I share to see what’s on the schedule for the blog.

I am a dinosaur and still use a paper planner for most things; I just need to see the day/week/month/year laid out in front of me to make sure I don’t double book or forget things.

| My Planner (mine is 8 x 10 with a flexible cover) | Le Pens

If you’ve seen me mention some of these things before, it’s because when you have a good system in place, you don’t mess with it!

Depending on the day, I might work on blog or home-related things all day. Since we’re in a new house, I have tons of projects to do, then I take photos of them so I can share them with you. There’s also quite a bit of time spent replying to emails from brands and reviewing contracts for upcoming sponsored work, and of course posting on social media. I try to reply to reader comments daily but it’s usually more like weekly since they can really pile up. Don’t stop commenting, though–we love to hear from our readers and sometimes it’s nice to know that you all are still out there!

One of my biggest tips for workday productivity is not to be immediately accessible to everyone and anyone. While I usually have my phone nearby to reply if my family needs me (example: my son took summer classes overseas, so I never wanted to miss a call from him!) I try not to drop everything to immediately respond to texts or phone calls. I find that to be a huge time suck for me, and so many times, people assume that when you work from home, you should be constantly available. As our business has grown, I’ve also had to limit the amount of volunteering I’ve done, especially during the third and fourth quarters of the year, which are by far our busiest. Fortunately, this has coincided with the kids being older and my presence not being as necessary at school or in their extracurricular activities. The one thing I won’t give up is volunteering weekly at our local thrift shop. Proceeds go to benefit those in need in our community, plus the crew I work with is so much fun.

No lie, the most fun part of the day is when I get to try on clothes and look for sales to share with you guys. I just went through my closet and gave a ton of stuff away since the closets are so small in Magnolia Cottage, so I am trying to focus on quality over quantity for future purchases. This pink blazer is on my list to try for fall–I can already picture it with jeans and my blue gingham espadrilles. It’s 50% off today (no coupon needed) so I’m going to order it so I can give you all a thumbs up or down. My husband thinks this “market research” is just a way for me to justify my online shopping habit, but who has time for that kind of negativity? 😉 Plus, I return everything that isn’t absolutely perfect because like I said–limited space in the closet!

| Pink Blazer |

Most days have a few appointment or errands that need to be done. Currently I use the Mile IQ app to track my personal and business mileage but I am definitely open to suggestions if you use another one and love it.

Dinner time varies at our house. When it was just my daughter and me last year, we would eat late after she got home from ballet. Now that my husband is back with us, it’s been closer to 7pm, but since her fall ballet schedule starts up again tonight and she won’t get home until close to 9pm, we’ll see how that works out. Since I frequently have evening meetings to attend for one of my volunteer commitments, we might have to eat dinner in shifts some days!

I would estimate that we only eat out a couple of times a month and most nights I cook. We have a few favorites that stay on constant rotation (I’m talking about you, tacos!) but the usual is a lean meat, poultry, or fish and two vegetable sides. We love roasted kale (ok, my daughter and I do) or pretty much any vegetable lightly tossed with olive oil and roasted. I do most of my grocery shopping at ALDI and try to get to our weekly downtown farmer’s market for vegetables, although I haven’t done a great job of that this summer since I was moving and everyone else was gone and I’ve already confessed about my weird eating habits. Amy and I are planning another “Day in the Life” that revolves around dinner time recipes and routines, so I’ll share my favorites then. I don’t know about you, but I am always looking for easy and good dinner recipes.

Bedtime (and yes, that’s Amy’s bedroom and not mine because mine is currently a hot mess!) is usually sometime between 10pm and midnight. I usually get into bed when my husband does but I’ll read or answer emails for an hour or two before I go to sleep. We’re also planning to share our evening routines with you so you can look forward to seeing how many tubes and bottles of stuff go on my face before bedtime and how long I brush my teeth (ha!).

Next month, we’re going to team up with several other long-time bloggers and we’ll all share a day in our lives. In the meantime, click here if you’d like to read our previous A Day in the Life posts.

Thanks for stopping by!

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