5 Ways to Find Simple Motivation

I've realized that I am not the most self-motivated person ever. But I've also realized that there are things I can do to work with the little bits of motivation that I do have once in a while.
Here are some simple ways find some motivation (I'm referring mostly to house work/projects, but could be for anything):
1. Set a Deadline. Maybe it's today, or tomorrow, or next week, but it's a deadline and it will help to know when it has to be finished.
2. Set Goals. Make them SMART Goals, but make them none the less. This will help to make sure it really can happen.
3. Use high energy times. I have been finding that if I make myself get up earlier than everyone else, I can use this time to get a lot done. It's quiet and I have energy and excitement for the new day, so it's a great time for me to get things done.
4. Have people over. Whether it's for a meal or a night, this helps me to be more motivated to keep the house cleaned and finish projects we are working on around the house (like the kitchen right now).
5. Make a plan. Just like making a meal plan helps me to stay motivated to make healthy meals for my family, so does making any other plan. It helps to know what I want to do and how I want to do it (could be a to do list or a chore chart, for example).
Bonus. Don't get discouraged. This only leads to feeling less motivated to keep going, even (and especially) when you feel as though you haven't been doing well. There are always rough days, or days when it feels like nothing gets done, but there is always usually tomorrow (if you start the day right!).
This might be more of a reminder for me today than for you, but either way, I am going to go follow some of my own advice...
This is what Works For Me.

Menu Update...

I did get some motivation to look up a few easy recipes and make it to the store this morning...

Yesterday we snacked enough on fruits and nuts (and a surprise loaf of pumpkin bread from my mom!) that we weren't hungry for lunch, which means we still have the soup we were going to eat available for today or tomorrow.

Then when we got off work and picked up our son (in the middle of the afternoon) we decided it would be a great (non-rush) time to go get some pancakes at IHOP since it was National Pancake Day and they were free! We did get a side item and tip, but it was a great meal for next to nothing! And it saved having to figure out dinner!

So I picked up just a few things this morning (before any snow rush started at the stores) and will also be able to make some things from ingredients already on hand. On the list:

homemade baked oatmeal
homemade granola
a spinach salad with bacon, eggs and mushrooms on top
a chicken and rice dish with bacon and carrots and a cream cheese sauce on top
a "cabbage roll" soup dish
another chicken and rice dish with carrots and onions, for later in the week
and stuff for a big breakfast for a meeting tomorrow: eggs, bacon, potatoes and mushrooms

I didn't have to buy a lot, and shouldn't have to do much for any of these meals, but I'm pretty excited about all the dishes we'll get out of the ingredients I've got.

Meal Planning Conflicts

I mentioned here how I seem to have a habit of planning too many meals for what we actually end up eating in a week. Even in a regular week I thought maybe I had planned too much for this week, and the funny thing is that it is already Thursday and we have only had two of the recipes I planned for, the Apple and Sausage Pie and the Blueberry Snack Cake.
Random things happen that we don't get to all the meals.
Sometimes it is that there are more leftovers from a meal than I planned for and we eat the leftovers before preparing extra meals.
Sometimes one of us will get a craving (I am pregnant, and my husband gets pregnant cravings too!) and we will fill that craving and save the planned meal for another time.
Sometimes other plans come up for a meal that we hadn't planned on, like getting invited to a friend's house.
So, this week.
I got some cheap, and oh so good, avocados from the store and we made some guacamole. Honestly, this sometimes becomes a meal for us, and it did. For two nights this week. That, along with some bread with dipping oil that my husband was craving.
Then last night we made the pie and it was really good. So good, that since we were short on prep time tonight, we decided to eat the leftovers for dinner.
It was simple, and good. And what's really exciting is that, as picky as our son has become about trying new foods, he tried all the ingredients in this. Before it was all put together, but I was excited still. He tried the crust and liked it. He tried the apples after they were cooked in onion and garlic, and liked them. He tried the sausage, and like it. He tried the feta cheese and liked it. Success on many fronts with this meal! I recommend it!
I also made the Blueberry Snack Cake for breakfast this morning and it was a hit as well. So much so that I forgot to get a picture of that one.
Lots of meals yet to try. All ingredients already purchased. We are invited to a friend's for dinner this Saturday. I think we might have some meals for next week.

Meal Update

I did find a little motivation tucked down deep the other day. I picked some recipes, made sure of what we have going on in the next couple of weeks, planned my trip and even took my 8 month old with me. The one thing I would change about taking him with me? I would make a cart that allows him to sit facing where I am going. He doesn't want to look at ME while I am shopping! He is constantly trying to turn around and look at where we are going and what I am doing when I am getting stuff off the shelves. Why don't they make legs holes going the other direction...at least as an option??

Yesterday I thawed out some chicken I had in the freezer and cooked it in the slow cooker with a bbq mixture. When it was done, I shredded the meat and we now have chicken bbq for sandwiches for lunch for a few days.

For a breakfast meeting this morning I made Sausage and Cheese Crescent Squares. Simple and delicious!

Tonight for dinner we are going to have this Oh-So-Easy Tomato Cream Soup with grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. The weather has cooled off a little here, very much on the way to truly being Fall, and I am very excited to start making more soups again!

Tomorrow I am going to make these Apple, Cheddar and Turkey Meatballs (I have made them before and they were great!) to have a few but mostly add to my freezer stockpile that has been depleting lately.

If I stay ambitious tomorrow, I am also going to make these Flaxseed Morning Glory Muffins to have in the freezer. They are really healthy, but they are really good too!

Hopefully this new motivation sticks for a few days so I can get all this made like I have planned. And with the holiday weekend I don't need meals planned as we will be away. Yay!

Meal Plan......

Right about now is when I should be double checking my plans for the week, double checking my recipes to see what else I need to get, and finalizing all meals for this week.
I am slightly uninspired to do this at the moment.
But I am slightly inspired to try and see what all we can make from things we already have on hand. Don't know how long this will last, but my husband is great because it gives him a challenge, and he is great because he is willing to make things up and try new things!
We started today with an amazing potato leek soup, and I'll let you know how the rest of the week turns out. Got any great "pantry" recipes to get my mind wandering?