The Life We've Been Dreaming

“We don’t need to wait for external circumstances to perfectly align in order to show up for the life we’ve been dreaming.”
~Ingrid Mathieu, PhD

Happy 4th!

"Our country is not the only thing to which we owe our allegiance. It is also owed to justice and to humanity. Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong."
~James Bryce

Happy 4th of July to you and all of your family!

Perfect Day

“You can’t live a perfect day without doing something
for someone who will never be able to repay you.”
~John Wooden

But Why?

I give a lot of advice on saving money, going green, eating healthier and simplifying your life, but none of that matters until you ask yourself:

Why?

Why do you want to save money? Why do you want to cook from scratch? Why do you want to change your cleaning style?

There is a countless number of ways that we can improve our lifestyles. Most people strive to improve themselves daily, even in the tiniest form, but no lifestyle change or personal improvement matters unless we know what drives us.

Every person has different priorities in their life. Some people feel that eating healthy, cooking from scratch and buying only the purest ingredients is the most important part of living. Others feel that what we consume is irrelevant if we are destroying our planet with chemicals and plastics. Then again, what is the point to all the cleaning and cooking when it takes time away from spending every moment nurturing our children?

One thing many bloggers can tell you is that they have been attacked in some way for their priorities. They were not green enough, clean enough, pure enough or parent enough.

But those attackers are missing the point. The purpose is not to be perfect at everything. It is not to be better than anyone else. Rather, it is to improve ourselves and our lives. Those bloggers have asked and answered the question "why" and have set forth to live out their answer.

So, before you move onto the next blog post, vlog or book, take a moment to ask yourself "why?" Why do you want to change? Why do you want to improve? Why are you searching for tips and tricks?

Until you know the answer, you can never fully embrace the new techniques you seek. Decide your priorities and watch your life transform to fit those priorities.

Learning your purpose and motivation is one of the most amazing moments of your life and is essential in improving your day to day living, no matter how big or small.

So Pin-tastic!

Pin pin pin! As I have mentioned before, Pinterest is certainly my daily guilty pleasure. I am constantly in awe at the fantastic array of tips, tricks and inspirations that grace the pin boards.

Here are some of my most recent favorite pins:

Life and Health

What your skin is telling you about your health.

Source: ulookhaute.com via TyKes on Pinterest

Seven steps to happiness

Source: holykaw.alltop.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Do-It-Yourself Ear Drops

Source: onegoodthingbyjillee.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Organizing and Cleaning

Vinyl tiles on wire shelving

Source: thekranzfamily.blogspot.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Homemade dishwasher detergent - REVISED!

Source: onegoodthingbyjillee.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Food

Flour-less Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Source: fortheloveofcooking.net via TyKes on Pinterest

 

 

Bake bread in a crockpot

Source: artisanbreadinfive.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

For Fun

Source: google.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Check me out on Pinterest for more fun ideas!
Need an invite? Contact me!

Tap Into Your Core

“You will struggle to live a pleasure-filled life if you do not tap into your core self and who you really are and instead waste precious time wondering why you don’t have the job, the looks, the money, the family, etc. etc. etc. that someone else has.”
~Terri Cole

Build A Door

“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.”
~Milton Berle

Love, Not Judge

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
~Mother Teresa

Don't Carry a Grudge

“Don’t carry a grudge. While you’re carrying the grudge the other guy’s out dancing.”
~Buddy Hackett

Perfect Preparation

"Every experience God gives us, every person He puts into our lives, is the perfect preparation for a future only He can see."
~Corrie ten Boom

This Won't Work For Me...

I love to read blogs. I read tons of housekeeping, cooking, parenting, marriage and self-improvement blogs that offer unlimited amounts of advice, tips and new ideas on how to improve many areas of one's life.

Not only do I enjoy the articles, but I also like to peruse the readers' comments which can be very insightful and offer unique twists on ideas. But one type of comment seems to appear far more often than the rest:

"Great idea! But this would never work for me because..."

I have seen why fifteen minutes of cleaning a day will never work because a home is too big. I have read that healthy diet changes are impossible because the kids will never go for it. I have gawked at the number of people who cannot improve their marriage because they say their husband will never change. I have cringed at how many excuses one can come up with for why they will never lose weight.

Obviously not every idea is for everyone. Everything I read does not necessarily work for me either. But that is not the first thought one should have when reading a new idea.

If you read something and your first thought is all the reasons why it will never work for you, then you will never improve your life. To grow as a person, you must first change your mindset. For every excuse you come up with for why something will not work for you, try thinking of one reason why it could work for you and say those reasons out loud or write them in the comments. This will, at the very least, open you up to giving it a try.

Want to lose weight? Think of all the reasons why it is possible and do not even allow yourself to say why it is not. Dying to improve your cleaning routine? Take the new tips you read and apply them to your home and your lifestyle. If fifteen minutes a day is not plausible, then keep the concept and up the time to twenty or thirty minutes a day. Looking to revamp your eating habits? Find what you like, cook it and give your family the chance to change without assuming that they never will.

If you want to improve yourself, you must focus on the reasons why it is possible. Do not allow yourself to think of why it may not be. See someone doing something you wish you could do like losing weight, saving money or keeping a clean home? Then commit yourself to doing the same.

The next time you read a blog on improving yourself, I challenge you to think of all the reasons why that idea will work for you. I challenge you to leave a comment stating: "Great idea! It will be tricky, but I can make this work by..." I challenge you to change your way of thinking and live for improving your life instead of merely longing to do so.

The Funny Thing About Homemaking

There are many different walks of life. Each person chooses a separate path. Those paths are full of decisions, worries, joys, judgments, contentment and sadness. Some are happy with their paths and others are desperately seeking new routes. But they all come back to the same starting place:

Home.

Whether you are a bachelor trying to make it in New York City, a housewife living in the country, a youth still residing with your parents, or a man building a hut in the rain forest, we each have a place we call home. Our homes vary as drastically as the paths we have chosen yet they are all still called home.

And every home needs to be made and kept, whether it be an entire house, a tiny bedroom, or that mud hut in the forest. Each home needs to be created, cared for and loved by those residing in it.

The funny thing about homemaking is that it does not fit only a few walks of life. Homemaking pertains to everyone. Methods change, but the basic principal remains the same. We each long for comfort within our homes.

We each hold onto the peace of knowing that space is ours, not to be judged or condemned by our Facebook friends, Twitter peers, or blogging comrades. People often ask what we do for a living, if we are married or if we have children. Rarely will someone think to ask if our homes are well-kept, if our laundry is done or whether our beds are made. With the exception of those few unexpected visitors (like the mailman today who needed me to sign for a package as I was sporting my stained college shirt and holey pajama pants), our home is ours to enjoy as privately or publicly as we choose.

Homemaking is in each of our paths. It is an important part of who we are and who we strive to become. Let us not forget to make those homes havens of relaxation, freedom and joy.

For more homemaking articles, check out: 5 Minutes for Mom

Earth Day Resolution

There are so many wonderful things that people do to celebrate Earth Day from litter pick-ups to planting trees. But so often it ends there.

Rather than just performing a grandiose task to celebrate our awesome planet, this year use Earth Day as a time to make a resolution to change your lifestyle.

Start with simple changes at first. In fact, try just starting with you. By focusing on how you can keep your own body "green," you will naturally make greener choices for the environment. Cutting out preservatives, skipping chemical beauty products and switching to natural cleaning techniques will all help you become healthier and protect our planet each and every day!

Remember that every little bit counts. To start, resolve to join me in the Clean and Green Challenge! By making tiny changes to our everday cleaning products, each one of us can make a big difference!

So don't let it end with Earth Day. Let it begin with Earth Day!

<div align="center"><a href="http://the-north-forty.com/clean-and-green-challenge/" title="The Clean and Green Challenge - TheNorthForty"><img src="http://the-north-forty.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/CleanandGreenChallenge.jpg" alt="The Clean and Green Challenge - TheNorthForty" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

 

Check out some of my favorite Earth-friendly homemaking posts:
Everyday Beauty Products
Tea Tree Oil Disinfecting Cleaner
Washing Soda Uses
Shower Curtain Cleaner
Homemade Laundry Detergent
Homemade Cloth Diaper Laundry Detergent

For more homemaking tips, check out: Mom's the Word, Far Above Rubies, Growing Home, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Time Warp Wife and The Better Mom

Be in the Best Place

"You are responsible for your life, and doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.”

~Oprah Winfrey

Do It Now

"Whatever you want to do, do it now. There are only so many tomorrows.”

~Michael Landon

Life, Love and Peace

"For I remember it is Easter morn,

And life and love and peace are all new born."

~Alice Freeman Palmer

Photo Credit

Easter Pins!

Easter is almost here and there are so many fun and beautiful ways to celebrate such a glorious holiday! What better place to find ideas on making it a super special day for you and your family than the fast-growing virtual pinboard of Pinterest.

I wanted to share some of my top Easter pins to help you make the best of your Easter Sunday:

All-Natural Easter Egg Dye Recipes

Source: bhg.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Easter Bunny Flour Tracks

Source: thelarsonlingo.blogspot.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Homemade Candy Easter Eggs

Source: soufflebombay.blogspot.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Easter Chick Craft

Source: happyhooligans.wordpress.com via TyKes on Pinterest

 

Check me out on Pinterest for more fun ideas!

Need an invite? Contact me!

April Fool's

"April 1. This is the day upon which we are reminded of

what we are on the other three hundred and sixty-four."

~Mark Twain

Care for All

"Everyone of us needs to show how much we care for each other and, in the process, care for ourselves."

~Princess Diana

Change

“If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude.”
~ Maya Angelou