You know we like to make things quick, cheap and easy here at organized CHAOS online, and this time we hit the mother load! In the past, when we shared a recipe with you, you’ve only been able to print it. You have asked us if we would include a feature that would allow you to save the recipe. You also asked if we would include a grocery list with each recipe. It’s always want, want, want with you. (Oh my gosh, we’re so kidding!!!)
We have been looking for a way to make this happen, and we finally found it. We have partnered with Ziplist. It’s a FREE web-based service that will allow you to:
- Save our recipes to your own recipe box that you can access from our website.
- Save recipes from other websites to your recipe box
- Have your saved recipe ingredients added to your grocery list (which you can edit)
- Save your favorite grocery stores, then immediately have access to their current specials
- Create menus
There is a mobile app available for both iPhone and Android, so you can take your grocery list with you, and check items off as you buy them. I’ve used other mobile grocery lists, but Ziplist is by far my favorite. (Nope, we’re not getting a kickback from this service…we just love it!) Did I mention that it’s FREE?
So how does it work?
Tomorrow we start our “89 Days of Pumpkin” recipe series (I KNOW! We can’t wait either!). You’ll notice that our recipes now include a “Print” button, and a blue “Save Recipe” button. If you don’t need to print the recipe right away, you can click the blue “Save Recipe” button. You will then be prompted to create an account with Ziplist. It’s quick to do, and again…it’s FREE. Once you create your account, you’ll not only be able to save organizedCHAOSonline’s recipes, but recipes from a ton of other sites like Martha Stewart, epicurious and bon appetit. All your saved recipes will end up in the same place – your personal recipe box!
Once you’ve created your account, any time you click the blue “Save Recipe” button, you’ll be able to save the recipe to your online recipe box, then add the ingredients you need to your weekly shopping list.
You can access your recipe box at any time through the “Recipe Box” link on our site.
Ziplist also provides you this cool little button that you can drag to your computer’s bookmark toolbar so you can quickly save recipes as you come across them!
When you ask, we listen. We hope you love this little tool is what you’ve been looking for, and that you love it as much as we do. Spend some time wandering around their site to see all the other cool things you can do. Fill up your recipe box with our scrumptious pumpkin recipes starting tomorrow.
Are any of you already using Ziplist? It would be great if you shared your experiences with our readers in the comment section below.
Enjoy, and let us know what you think!
We love findings projects to get you organized, tips for ways to organize, lists to help you organize. We just plain love being organized. So what’s the big deal? Some people function perfectly well in chaos, so why would they bother to try getting some organization into their lives?
Being organized isn’t just a trait that comes pre-packaged in OCD-type personalities. Many disorganized people have been forced into becoming organized, whether they wanted to or not, because of changes in their lives. When you go from single to married with kids who are involved activities, you’ve got to be organized. If your career moves you into a position that requires more of your time, you’ve got to get yourself on a schedule to accommodate work and your home life.
Aside from the obvious benefits to being organized, here are some others that you may not have considered…
Being organized…
#1. Frees up more time.
- Think of getting ready to go to a birthday party. If you’re running around looking for the outfit you were going to wear because you’re not sure if it’s clean or not, looking for gift wrap, looking for the invitation that had the address on it, shushing the kids, snapping at the spouse, frantically checking the clock, then screaming out the door. Yeah, been there. If you had prepped, you could have had a leisurely breakfast, spent some time with the kids and arrived early.
#2. Saves you money.
- How many times have you bought a new jar of mayonnaise, a printer cartridge, a screwdriver, all the time thinking “I swear I had one”? After the mayonnaise is opened, the cartridge has been loaded and the packaging from the screwdriver is in the trash..ooops, there it is!
#3. Lets you set a good example.
- When you’re smack dab in the middle of your unorganized rampage (see #1), is this really an example of time management you want your kids to carry into their adult life? Kids watch their parents, learn from them and then mimic their behavior. How many times have you said “This is how my mom did it”? Good grief, I pat each towel after I fold it, which is a really weird habit, but apparently that was my mom’s confirmation that towel was done being folded. See? Kids pick stuff up subconsciously.
#4. Gives you a sense of freedom.
- When everything around you is cluttered, it can cause you anxiety and feeling overwhelmed can cause depression. Do you watch hoarders? Those poor people. So many of them I think once they realized things were out of control, it was just too big for them to fix. I know that when I walk into my office, if it’s a pit I feel “heavy” and unmotivated. Once I clean that sucker up though, I feel lighter and more positive.
#5. Makes you more productive.
- This, I think is true in both household productivity and work productivity because the same principles apply. At work, if you have to dig through files for a missing report, search through notebooks for a log-in and password, run to the store for copy paper, sift through 50 emails to find the attachment someone sent you…you’re wasting a ton of time. Same applies to running a household. If your spending time searching for things, redoing things, running back and forth gathering and prepping, you aren’t being productive. Organization results in better performance at work and at home.
# 6. Gives you more energy.
- Being unorganized saps your energy. Plain and simple.
#7. Improves your health.
- Anxiety, depression and high blood pressure are byproducts of stress. Slowing your life down by organizing your life can significantly improve your general health, and also calm your mental chaos.
#8. Lets you think more clearly.
- When you’re sitting in a tidy space, you’re not distracted by things that you need to attend to later. Your mind is free to focus only on the task you have at hand
#9. Improves your creativity.
- When things are messy, I can’t think. If I’m trying to work or make dinner and there’s clutter everywhere, I’m not productive. As in #8, if you’re distracted by things you need to do or should do, your mind “can’t breathe” and isn’t open to new ideas and creative thinking. You’re stuck.
#10. Makes you proud.
- I don’t know about you, but when I’ve made the effort to tidy up a space and I can easily locate what I need to find, I’m pretty damn proud of myself. A lot of times it hard to get started getting things cleaned up, but I love the sense of accomplishment once its done. Now you’re not stressed out if someone unexpectedly drops by, and you’re not going into other peoples homes wishing your house looked like theirs. You now look to others like someone who takes pride in their home.
#11. Gives you confidence.
- Like mentioned, sometimes a mess can get cray cray out of control to the point of overwhelming. Do you have a room that at one time was functional but now has become nothing more than a place for you to dump your junk? Is it your worst organizing nightmare? If you tackle that sucker and organize it back into a room, something you thought was impossible…well, you can probably pretty much do anything, am I right fancy pants? So how overwhelming does that silly little messy junk drawer seem now?
#12. Balances your life.
- If you’re now able to spend less time on the little things in your life and more on the important things, the quality of your life just improved. If you’re not weighed down by clutter and a long list of “to-do’s”, you can sit down and read that book guilt-free, have time to paint your toenails, and spend time on hobbies and things you love to do.
#13. Makes you efficient.
- When you’re not wasting time looking for things, and can easily find your keys, your checkbook, your kids immunization records, the bike pump, etc. the task you need those items for is getting done more quickly. As you continue to organize your life, a little at a time, you’re gaining valuable time in your life.
So…what areas of your life are your biggest organizing challenges? How can we help? Are you ready to start de-stressing your life by organizing it?
