September, 2012 |

Recipe For Apple Dip

September 30, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 12 Comments

This weekend I was busy catching up on my reading (email, magazines, blogs). I made myself a simple snack to munch on that is as tasty as it is simple. I had a bag of apples from the store so I am trying to use then all and not waste any. Besides the apples I used these two ingredients:

Then I mixed equal parts of both creamy cream cheese and Nutella spread to make an amazing dip.

The sweet, but not too sweet spread was perfect with the crispy apple slices!

Ahhh fall! What were you up to this weekend?

Filed Under: Fall, Recipes · Tagged: apple dip made with cream cheese, apple dip recipe, apple dip with Nutella, apple snacks, apples, dip for fruit, easy apple dip recipe, healthy snacks, Nutella recipe, simple apple dip, snacks

Make Ahead Taco Salad

September 28, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 11 Comments

Today I am sharing a quick taco salad recipe which is perfect for making ahead. With busy fall schedules, I love making this the day before we have it. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 pkg Taco seasoning (any brand)

1 head of lettuce, shredded

1/2 cup red onion, chopped

1 small can kidney beans (rinsed & drained)

1 avocado, peeled and diced

1 tomato, chopped

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 bottle Catalina salad dressing (any brand)

Corn or tortilla chips

Cook ground beef in a frying pan over low-medium heat until brown. Add taco seasoning mix packet, but do not add any liquid. While beef is cooking, combine shredded lettuce, onion ,beans, avocado, tomato and cheese in a bowl. Add ground beef to the mixture. If you are going to serve this the next day or later, cover the bowl and refrigerate until serving time. If you are going to serve soon, add salad dressing (I use about 2/3 of a bottle, but you can add more if you like). Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy! What is your favorite salad for dinner?

Filed Under: Recipes, Summer · Tagged: easy catalina taco salad, easy salad, easy salads, make ahead salad, prepare ahead dinner, salad, simple dinner, summer salad, taco salad, taco salad with catalina dressing

How to Improve Productivity

September 26, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 83 Comments

As a former productivity analyst and manager, let me tell you that one of the biggest causes of inefficiency is interruptions. (As I wrote this first sentence the phone rang…no kidding!). So today I am sharing a few suggestions that research has shown that can help you be the most productive with your time.

1. Prioritize what you need to do, based on what you are trying to achieve. For example, if one of your goals is to write a paper or blog post, and another goal is to respond to emails in 24 hours, and another is cook dinner, you will have to pick which is more important at this given time. Yes, sometimes you can multi-task, but only if the tasks are relatively simple. If you try to do too many things at once, you can become distracted.

2. Determine how much time to allocate to each task, then schedule blocks of time for each tasks. So if I have 1 hour to do three different tasks, it helps to estimate how long each task will take so that I can plan accordingly. If the three tasks combined will take me 2 hours, something needs to change. It also helps if you can add a little bit more time when estimating your time block, because a little free time can be a welcome gift.

3. Control your environment as much as possible. If you can, do not answer the phone, check your cell or read email when you are focusing on a task. While this may not always be possible, try to eliminate as many distractions as possible. If you are at work and can shut your door or put a Do Not Disturb sign, it can help reduce face to face interruptions.

4. Check your email a handful of times a day. Have your email program sort you emails by sender so that you can read them when you have a necessary block of time. If you check your email constantly, it will distract you from your other tasks. When you are focused on responding to emails, you tend to be more productive in responding. See more email organization tips here.

5. If you are a blogger, consider scheduling some of your Facebook posts and/Twitter posts in advance so that you are not on these programs dozens of times a day. Unless your job is in social media, you probably do not want to be on these platforms more than that, at least until you have accomplished your other tasks.

6. Make sure to set aside time for yourself. If you do not schedule breaks or downtime, it will catch up with you and cause you to be frustrated. Get outside for some fresh air and take in the beauty of the day. Unplug for a while. A clear mind does wonders for productivity.

What is your most frequent interruption?

Filed Under: Blogging, Home Organization, Planning Organization, Productivity · Tagged: improving productivity, increase productivity at home, increasing productivity, organizing, prioritizing, reducing interruptions

Simple Pumpkin Pancakes

September 24, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 15 Comments

So now that it’s officially fall, I am ready for some fall breakfast. Today I made some really simple Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes. I use a pancake mix to save some time. I chose a wheat mix as a base. Here is the recipe:

1 1/2 cups pancake mix

3/4 cup plus 3 Tablespoons milk

1/3 cup canned pumpkin

1/4 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

Preheat a skillet or flat grilling pan on medium heat. In a bowl, mix ingredients together until almost lump-free.

Mix ingredients until batter is pourable. Pour onto hot skillet. I like to make mine mini-size.

Cook over medium heat until light-medium browned.

Serve with syrup and/or whipped cream if you wish!

What is your favorite fall breakfast?

I am sharing this at

Filed Under: Fall, Recipes · Tagged: breakfast, fall breakfast, pancakes, pumpkin pancakes with a mix. pumpkin breakfast, pumpkin pancakes with mix, recipes with pumpkin, simple breakfast, simple pumpkin pancakes

My Food Story

September 21, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 4 Comments

Hello! Do you know what today is? Besides the last day of summer? I’ll give you a hint….it is a food holiday. For the answer, head on over to Food Stories.

Food stories is a terrific blog that not only has great recipes and stories, there is a food holiday calendar too! That’s where I am today and I am sharing one of my food stories. If you have a moment, please leave me a comment over there so that I know that I didn’t lose you along the way. Thank you for checking out my story.

Filed Under: Recipes · Tagged: Food Stories, guest post, my food story, pecan cookies, pecans, recipes, simple pecan recipe

Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall

September 21, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 2 Comments

Today is the last day of summer. This year Southern California has been very true to summer. We have had many warm days. As much as I love summer, I am ready for fall. I have done some fall decorating, and recently, I participated in the Goodbye Summer Hello Fall swap hosted by The Vintage Modern Wife.

My assigned partner is Myranda and her blog is PrettyLivingPDX. Myranda is a sweet and funny person (her story on the lost dog had me laughing out loud). Anyway, I wanted to share the sweet things she sent to me in preparation of fall.

First she sent me this adorable red mug with some tasty cocoa mix,

Then there was some orange mango-ade. How she know I love mango, I don’t know. I had to share this with my hubby because he found it in the fridge. It was delicious!

And then she gave me some cute nail polishand spa supplies for the relaxing in the tub. Ahhhh!

Thank you Myranda! I had fun being your partner ! I hope you have a wonderful fall season!

Filed Under: Blogging, Fall · Tagged: blog fun, blog swap, end of summer, first day of fall, hello fall

Decorating Mini Pumpkins

September 20, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 37 Comments

Today I am decorating some little pumpkins using decorative tape and scrapbook stickers.
I have a lot of scrapbook supplies from my scrapbook days (now I do a lot of it online).

First I picked up some miniature pumpkins from the market.
Here they are undecorated.

I just cut the tape and the borders to size and adhered them to the pumpkins.

Here is the after shot. It took me about 20 minutes and makes a great craft for kids and anyone really, that is not too messy (read paint, glitter, etc.) It’s officially here on Saturday! Are you excited for fall?

Filed Under: Crafts, DIY, Fall · Tagged: crafts, decorating with tape, DIY, fall, fall decorations, kids crafts, mini pumpkins, pumpkins, scrapbook supply crafts, simple halloween crafts

Simple Apple Muffins

September 19, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 14 Comments

Today I made apple muffins because I love apples, especially in the fall. These muffins are great for breakfasts, for snacks and for lunch box treats. I use a baking mix so they can be put together pretty quickly with these ingredients:

2 cups baking mix (such as Bisquick or Jiffy)

3/4 cup applesauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, mix egg and sugars together to combine.

Add baking mix, applesauce, oil, cinnamon and milk until blended.

Put into greased muffin tin or muffin tin lined with baking cups. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

They are so light and fluffy. This recipe makes about 14-16 standard muffins.

What is your favorite apple recipe?

Filed Under: Recipes · Tagged: apple cinnamon muffins, apple muffin recipe, apple muffins, applesauce muffins, easy muffins, fall muffins, fruit muffins, lunch box treats, muffins from baking mix, simple muffins

DIY Wall Art

September 17, 2012 · by Organizedisland · 11 Comments

A few weeks ago, after searching for artwork for her apartment, my daughter could not find the right painting at a reasonable price. So she decided to make her own. She came over to our house and bought some canvas and some acrylic paint at the craft store. The paint colors were chosen to match her apartment decor.

First she took a blank canvas and started sponging the first color.

Then it was time for the other colors

until the entire canvas was covered.

Next, she took some black and white paint for contrast, and added some features. In this case, a fleur de lis and some flowers.

Then we set the painting outside to dry. This is the finished product:

It came out really nice and is the perfect color scheme for her apartment. It also did not cost a lot. It inspired me to try to paint something too, I will let you know how it goes. Have you painted before?