People often ask how we stay organized with projects and household tasks—“Do you make lists? Use an app?”—so today we’re sharing the three tools we rely on every day. Some are digital, some are old-school, but all of them help us stay aligned on projects, purchases, and daily tasks. We’re also showing progress on a long-overdue outdoor update that nearly drove one of us up onto the roof. And finally, we’re baffled that some people don’t have a “side of the bed” they sleep on every night—seriously, tell us your system.
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What’s New
- That photo shows only the primer stage, but it gives a clear sense of our shed’s makeover as we paint it to match the painted brick on our house.
- We debated spraying, but decided hand painting with a brush and high-nap roller made the most sense because the siding is textured. Between brushing into grooves and the time needed to tape and tarp for spraying, the brush-and-roller approach felt more straightforward.
- Next on the list: painting the doors (we’re using Benjamin Moore’s Tranquility to match the rest of the exterior doors) and installing window boxes we ordered. After seeing how the beach house shed held up with one, we were eager to add them here too.
- About 60 seconds before I heard wasps under the dormer eave, this photo was taken—Sherry joked I looked like I was napping up there. Reminder: it’s only primer, which explains the cool blue tone.
- We’re excited to paint the doors, install the window boxes, and share the finished photos soon.
Can We Just Talk About Sides Of The Bed?
- There’s been a surprising online stir about people who don’t have a designated side of the bed each night. The reactions range from amused to incredulous—what’s your take? We added a quick survey so you can weigh in.
- Please share your habits in the survey below; we’re genuinely curious how many people rotate sides or stick to one nightly spot.
Listener Question: Keeping Life Organized
- Sherry’s planner attracted her for its simple checkmark list layout that encourages concise entries and lets you physically check items off—an unexpectedly satisfying habit-builder. It’s an 18-month planner that’s been helpful in keeping priorities visible.
- We use voice assistants to maintain our shopping list hands-free. Adding items from different rooms is convenient, and the list syncs to our phones so we can check things off in the store.
- Shared Google Docs are key for project organization, especially for renovations. They help us create clear, shareable lists, budgets, and timelines when planning trips or coordinating work.
- We’ve tried Trello in the past and appreciate how visual boards make progress easy to follow, though we didn’t adopt it long-term after using it intensively with our publisher.
We’re Digging
- We rearranged the bedroom so we could lean a large arched mirror on a dresser to mimic the presence of a window. Big mirrors can reflect light and create the feeling of added space when placed where the eye expects a window.
- If you’re considering a similar trick, pick a mirror size and placement that balances the room and draws the eye to where a window would naturally appear.
- On the reading front, I enjoyed the historical non-fiction Dead Wake about the Lusitania sinking and it made me want to revisit Devil in the White City. Both are gripping for fans of well-researched narrative history.
- Starting tomorrow we’ll be doing month-long personal challenges: a water-only month to cut back on soda, and a walking month to boost daily steps—small habits with big benefits.
If you’re trying to find something we’ve mentioned before, we keep a master list of items and past “We’re Digging” features in our episode notes, plus a compiled list of books we’ve recommended on our Book Club page.
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Thanks for listening—see you next time!
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