Highs and Lows of Life in Phase 2

Highs and Lows of Life in Phase 2

Highs and Lows. Grief and Loss. It is part of Phase 2.

We have recently experienced the terrible lows of life’s grief and loss followed in the same week by incredibly joy and highs of life. Recently, in the same week Nancy lost her mother, after a long struggle in hospice and then 7 days later, our youngest child got married.  See the video above to hear our story.

That is Phase 2 of life in a nutshell. You have lots of highs and lows. You can have a new grandchild born, then your family can experience a tragedy. The most important thing is as life throws these highs and lows at you that you don’t get stuck in the lows. Understand these will pass and there will me good times ahead.

If you are feeling overwelled there are resources available.  First talk to your doctor about how you are feeling. Don’t keep it to yourself. You can talk to your faith leader, spouse, friends, or anyone you trust. 

National suicide hotline: Call 988 on your cell phone across the US.

Friends, enjoy your highs and work through your lows.  We wish you all the best through these times of your life.

Have a beautiful day,

Mike and Nancy

New Life on the Farm

New Life on the Farm

daughter with new grandson

Mike and I took a trip down to Texas as our daughter and son-in-law have given us our third grand baby.  We have three grandsons now!

Baby lamb

They live on a farm with 3 dogs, 3 cats, 2 cows, 9 sheep and too many chickens, turkeys and geese to count.  They raise and sell both eggs and chicks.  It is a fun and exciting place to be on the spring.  Not only do we have an new grandson, there are many new babies on the farm.

Life on the farm

Living the empty nest, phase 2 life is honestly the best.  Even though Mike and I are not yet retired and still run our own business, it is running well with an amazing team which enables us to travel and enjoy our blessings.

Baby chicks

Baby goslingIncubating goose eggs

Have a beautiful day friends and enjoy living in phase 2.

Nancy

New life on the farm

 

What’s Coming Up in 2023

What’s Coming Up in 2023

Friends,

As you all know, a new year is a time for us to review our goals and plans.  And for us, 2023 is going to be a full year.  I thought I’d share with you what we have coming up.  

  • 3 Cruises are Scheduled, one in January, July and December
  • Grandbaby #3 coming in March
  • Grandbaby #4 coming in April
  • Gaining a daughter-in-law, wedding in July
  • Currently planning to judge 8 barbeque contests
  • Sharing our story with our franchise we own coming to YouTube and this website in February and March
  • Eat clean with limited processed foods and sugar
  • Move my body 5 times a week
  • Meal plan weekly
  • Cut back my days at our business to 3 days a week
  • Care for my mom 3 days a week
  • YouTube videos and blog posts a minimum of 1/week

Suffice it to say, it is a busy schedule.  I’m a pencil and paper girl and Mike likes his schedule and planning online.  Regardless of how you do your planning, it is best to have it written somewhere where it can be reviewed and revised.  

I am using 2 planners.  They are very different.  The first is the Homemaker’s Friend by Sue Hooley and it is a daily planner.  This is my 5th year to use her planner and I love it.  You can find it in our Amazon store here.  I’ve also linked the Zebra pens I use there as well.

Commit 30 daily planner

The second planner I’m using is Commit 30.  It is a daily/hourly planner that focuses on reaching your goals through 30 day increments.  This can be found on the Commit 30 website.

This is my first year to use the Commit 30 planner, so I’ll let you know how it goes in the future.

My biggest goal this year is to remain healthy through clean eating and moving my body.  I sometimes feel as if I’m slowing down and I want to stay in Phase 2 for many years to come.  I want to live life to the fullest and enjoy each and every day God gives me. 

As a reminder, Phase 2 in our life is when we are becoming empty nesters and around retirement time.  Phase 3 in our life is when our health declines.

Please feel free to share your plans and goals for 2023 in the comments below.  Also, if you haven’t yet, consider subscribing to our YouTube channel.  We are trying to continue growing with it.  Thank you.

Make it a great Living Phase 2 day friends,

Nancy

 

Spring Cleaning in the Second Phase of Life

Spring Cleaning in the Second Phase of Life

Spring Cleaning in the Second Phase of Life

There are many articles and lists out there telling you how to spring clean your home.  I don’t have the time or energy to spend several solid days doing a deep cleaning of my home.  However, I feel like my home needs to have a thorough cleaning each year.

I’m going to share with you my method of spring cleaning geared to those of us living in phase 2.  Perhaps you do something similar or have modifications to my method.  If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

To begin, write down, on paper or in a word document, all the areas of your home that need cleaning.

I’ll show you my list here, but yours will be reflect your home.  Don’t forget those outdoor spaces you may have such as a pool house or garden shed.  Here is my list.

  • Living Room
  • Entry
  • Office
  • Kitchen
  • Dining Room
  • Back Hall
  • Laundry
  • Master Bedroom
  • Master Bedroom Closet
  • Bathrooms
  • Kid’s Rooms
  • Basement Family Room
  • Craft Room
  • Furnace/Junk Room
  • Garage

Next assign a month to each of the spaces you have listed. 

Consider the time of year you are making your assignments.  For instance, I want to clean the garage when it is warm outside rather than in the cold winter.  I want to clean the furnace/junk room during the dreary months of winter as there are no windows in that room for me.  I don’t want to be in the furnace room during the summer and miss the sunshine.  I like cleaning the living room in January as it is when we are putting away Christmas decorations so that room is already out of sorts.  I also know we have travel plans during the summer, so I want to do areas during those months that are quicker and easier to deep clean.

In my list, I’ve grouped the kid’s rooms together.  Now that they are moved out of the house, and their rooms are only used as guest rooms, it doesn’t take long for me to give them a good cleaning.  I also have grouped bathrooms together as that seems easy and logical for me to do them at the same time.  Again, your list will look different than mine depending on your spaces.

I now have assigned a month to each of the spaces listed above.

  • Living Room – January
  • Entry – January
  • Office – October
  • Kitchen – May
  • Dining Room – January
  • Back Hall – June
  • Laundry – September
  • Master Bedroom – July
  • Master Bedroom Closet – July
  • Bathrooms – April
  • Kid’s Rooms – November
  • Basement Family Room – January
  • Craft Room – March
  • Furnace/Junk Room – February
  • Garage – August

Write the rooms on the corresponding month in your calendar or in your planner.

Once I have decided when each area will get its thorough cleaning, I then write the rooms on the corresponding month on my calendar. 

Did you notice I didn’t schedule any area for deep cleaning during the month of December?  That month is too busy for me both at work and with family life so I’m not going to add to it.

At the beginning of each month, I know what area of my home will be getting a good thorough cleaning.  Baseboards will be wiped down and windows in that room are washed.  I pull things out of cabinets to wipe them all down.

It is the time to declutter.

Friends, use this time to get rid of those items no longer needed or wanted.  As we move into the second phase of life, our interests and focus change.  Use this as a time to breathe new life into that space.  Although we may not be ready to downsize, it is something to keep in the back of our minds so what we declutter now will be less we have to do in the future.

If a space seems overwhelming, break it up into multiple areas.  Also consider breaking it up into more than one month. 

This month I have started working on our back hall.  There is a very large closet in our back hall which is just off the kitchen.  It serves as a pantry for me as well as holding all my cleaning supplies.  Earlier this week I purchased containers to fit on the shelves to hold various items and I am in the process of labeling the containers:  sauces, canned vegetables, and so on.  Containerizing small items is a great way to improve organization.  My plan is this will keep like items together and things won’t get pushed to the back where they are not easily seen.  Since this closet is my pantry, as I sort through my food, I will be checking expiration dates as well.    

Living in phase 2 sometimes means we need to do things a bit slower and that is just fine.  Do what you are capable of doing and celebrate each small step along the way.

Here’s to happy Living Phase 2.