tips for managing your busy life!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MyDayWithEnergy #CollectiveBias

“I’m so busy.”

“I’m so overwhelmed.”

“I’m so exhausted.”

Sound familiar?

I don’t care if you have 4 kids or none, are married or not, or work outside the home, inside or a mix of both. We’re #allthethings. #allthetime.

Working from home is a privilege, for sure. I have the flexibility to allow for sick kids, appointments and making my own hours. But it also means that I tend to pretty much work all the time. My “office” is where I live – and in my kitchen no less – so if I have a few minutes, I’m working. And having no set schedule means that I can easily lose track of time, and easily run out of time for anything else.

And there’s a LOT of “anything else.” After-school activities. Volunteer commitments. Family time. Couple time. DINNER time. And the occasional lunch or drink with a friend.

So a typical day goes like this: wake up, get Noah breakfasted/packed up/off to school. Then, barring any appointments, workworkwork till pick up. After which we go to some activity or hit up the playground. Then it’s back home for homework, dinner, family game, shower, books, and bed. If possible, Mike and I settle in to catch up on some shows before turning in.

Whew.

So I was delighted to be asked to share how I keep organized AND keep my energy up by partnering with Emergen-C® Energy+.

First step?

Picking up my Emergen-C® Energy+ at Walgreens:

Let’s go!

Meal Planning/Prep These two? CRITICAL to my sanity. Once a week I sit down, look at the next 7 days and select a meal for each day that I’ll be cooking at home. I print out the recipes from my computer, cut and paste the ingredients into a shopping list and then reorganize the ingredients by category. BOOM. No more thinking about “what to make tonight.” No more, “darn, I forgot I needed xxxx ingredient.” I put a reminder in my phone for the days I need to pick up the more perishable items, and all that’s left to do is cook!

Prepping goes hand-in-hand with meal-planning. Even if you have just 5 or 10 minutes in the morning (or the night before), you can get a head start by filling the pasta pot, chopping vegetables or breading chicken. Small tasks like having that cup of rice measured, or the skillet already sitting on the stove, save bits of time that add up when you’re racing in the door at 5:30.

Have an arsenal of “shortcuts”  How can you save time without sacrificing quality? With all manner of shortcuts. Think one-pot/sheet-pan dinners, parchment paper sheets for quick and easy clean-up, and time-saver/high flavor ingredients like pre-cut frozen vegetables, seasoned salts and infused oils.

Self-care I know, where’s my hashtag? But it’s important. Use a meditation app to get in 10-15 minutes of mindfulness before your feet even hit the floor in the morning. Commit to ANY form of exercise, to set you up for the day and set a great example for your kids. A $10 manicure? It forces downtime and feels like a little luxury. And – for me – opening up a book while waiting on line or at the doctor’s office is about 1000% more rewarding than scrolling Facebook.

Note-taking, reminder-making People make fun of my ginormous wall calendar, but it works for me. At a single glance I’ve got a visual of my entire month, with plenty of room to write in (and cross out) my ever changing parade of dates and appointments. That said, I deploy my phone’s notebook too. For example – ever walk into the drugstore for something, and then realize that there might be a few more things that you needed – but just can’t remember what? I have a note dedicated to the items I regularly purchase – mascara, cotton balls, sunscreen, etc. – so a quick glance helps to jog my memory. I also have a note with every birthday and anniversary I need to remember, so that when I’m at the card store I can stock up a few months in advance.

Portable, easy, “back-pocket” snacks I revamped my diet about 2 years ago. As I’ve reached “a certain age,” my old tricks for weight loss were no longer working, and my energy levels had reached an all time low – especially at that “witching hour” of about 4:00. I pretty much eliminated all flour and dairy from my morning and afternoon meals and snacks and began seeking out more high-protein options to keep up my energy, and that “hangry” feeling at bay.

Part of this change includes what I call (and you’ve probably seen all over the web) “back pocket” recipes. Quick recipes that are easy to remember and even easier to execute. Like these fast, easy energy bites:

Or these 3-ingredient cereal bars. Simply melt 1 cup of your favorite nut butter with 1/2 cup honey. Stir in 3 cups of any cereal and press into an 8 x 8 pan. Sprinkle with some flaky sea salt if you like, chill, and then cut into bars. They’re PERFECT for on-the-go hunger pangs and can go vegan or gluten-free, depending on your ingredients.

tips for managing your busy life!

sherisilver

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Servings 16

Calories 186 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup tahini
• 1/2 cup honey
• 3 cups cornflakes
• flaky sea salt optional

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 186kcalCarbohydrates: 22gProtein: 4gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gSodium: 59mgPotassium: 111mgFiber: 1gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 138IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 29mgIron: 3mg

did you make this recipe?tag @sherisilver on instagram!

And while I love my morning iced coffee – and will never give it up –  I appreciate the fact that I can get natural caffeine throughout the day from green tea in Emergen-C® Energy+*. Emergen-C® Energy+ is a powder-packed formula with natural caffeine from green tea to focus your mind*; calcium, magnesium, potassium and other key nutrients to help replenish your body*; plus 7 B vitamins to fortify you and Vitamin C for immune support.*

Just add water to create a refreshing, fizzy drink mix!

Whoa – I feel calmer and more organized just reading this!

Seriously – do I do all of this all of the time? Nope. We do plenty of take-out, I skip meditating more often than I care to admit, and I’m not immune to the doughnut case that beckons when I’m at the grocery store.

But.

Having these systems in place drastically increases my potential for staying on top of things. And that’s the best we can hope for in these busy, overwhelming and exhausting times – don’t you think? How about you? Would love to know YOUR strategies for keeping life “on-track!”

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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