Nicole

Homemade Vegan Mole Sauce Recipe

For the past week, I have been in the mood for all things pepper. Call it a last ditch effort to hold steadfast to the foods of Fall or needing to spice up my every changing vegan diet at home, peppers have just seemingly been on my mind.

And with Cinco de Mayo right around the corner, I couldn’t think of a better time to share with you one my favorite recipes, homemade mole sauce.

A recipe that I have adopted from a family friend and former part-time childhood caretaker, Ms. Katie. This recipe was her grandmother’s recipe for Chicken Mole, brought with her to the United States from the Puebla state in Mexico after she naturalized as a citizen in the 1960’s.

I remember loving the smells coming from Ms. Katie’s kitchen as a child. Especially the roasting of chiles for her grandmother’s mole sauce. This recipe, a vegan version of this time-honored classic. It is a sauce of memories. For Celebrations. Of dreamers. This is my homage to her.

Friends, I want to keep things on the level with you. This recipe is amazing but its also very time intensive.

Between shopping for all the ingredients, prepping the ingredients, and cooking everything, this Homemade Mole Sauce sauce will no doubt take more than an afternoon to make. There are no shortcuts. There are no hacks or copycat techniques to amend the process. You cannot rush this dish, so be sure to time block your afternoon accordingly.

The time it takes to make this recipe, for me, are well worth the efforts. The flavor of this mole is deep, rich, fragrant, and decadent. This is the ultimate low-and-slow simmered dish.

Keep in mind, this recipe is ingredient heavy. With close to twenty ingredients in this dish, it requires its own dedicated shopping trip to pull together. All ingredients that are needed and cannot be substituted. For the following recipe, I will be grouping ingredients by steps to make it easier for you to pull together.

While it took me a day to make, the sauce ended up being beyond delicious. The perfect mix of savory and sweet. If you’ve ever had a desire to make a vegan version of it, here’s the ultimate recipe for you!

Step 1: Making Stock

The base of mole sauce is traditionally chicken stock. For my recipe, of course, I will be using frozen homemade vegetable stock. To prepare my stock, I added it to a stock pot, added fresh herbs from my garden, and brought it to temp for 2 hours on low heat. The finished stock should have a dark color and had rich great flavor.

Step 2: Drying Your Peppers

The savory factor in this dish comes from a variety of dried peppers. Specifically ancho and pasilla peppers.

You will need to roast your peppers on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees until fragrant. Then add them to a bowl with about 2 cups of boiling water to reconstitute for 30 minutes.

Once the peppers are reconstituted, remove the stems and seed each pepper. Then add the seeded peppers and steeping liquid to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside for later.

Step 3: Prepare Your Spices

Mole sauce contains several amazing spices. The key is to toast the spices in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. This brings out their flavors and will greatly improve your final product. After toasting your spices, grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Set aside.

Step 4: Prepare Your Vegetables

The body of the mole sauce comes from vegetables. To make your base, rough chop all the vegetables and add them to a baking sheet. Bake them at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Once the veggies are roasted, add them to your blender along with 2 cups of vegetable stock and blend until smooth. Strain the blend to remove any seeds. Then, add the blended vegetables to a large stockpot. This is the base of your mole sauce.

Step 5: Prepare Your Fruits, Nuts, and Starches

This recipe features different kinds of nuts. While almonds and peanuts are commonly used, they can be substituted for pecans or walnuts. Like with your spices, you will need to toast your nuts in a pan on low heat for 2-3 minutes in 2 tablespoons cup of vegetable-based spread until fragrant.

Once your nuts are lightly browned, add your raisins to the pan also and cook 1-2 minutes until soft. Then, add your toasted fruits and nuts, along with 1 cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stock pot along with your vegetable base. Add your toasted, ground spices at this time as well.

You will also need to cook a plantain in an additional 3 tablespoons of vegetable-based spread on medium heat for 3-5 minutes until browned.

Lastly, you will need to fry several tortillas until lightly browned in your leftover vegetable spread. Once browned, add them with an additional cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stockpot.

Step 6: Chocolate

Finally, finally, you will get to use the star ingredient in this dish, Mexican chocolate.

You will need to be specific when purchasing your chocolate. You will need Mexican chocolate and not common milk chocolate or dark chocolate. This chocolate is hard and very sweet. Its what is needed in this dish. You can find it at any Mexican market or online as well.

To prepare your chocolate, simply cut into cubes and add to your stockpot.

Step 7: Simmering

At this point, all of your prepared ingredients should be in your stockpot ready for simmering. Start your simmer by adding 2-3 cups of additional vegetable stock to your preferred thickness.

Simmer on low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 10 minutes to avoid sticking. If your mole gets too thick, add additional vegetable stock accordingly.

When the sauce is done simmering, season it well with salt to taste. From start to finish, this recipe will take no less than 9 hours to complete.

How to serve your sauce:

I like to add air fryer fried tofu or Gardein chicken-less strips to my mole and serve over rice. But this sauce would be delicious on anything. I have served it in the past with black beans, over enchiladas, or as a layer in a 7-layer dip. It’s pretty hard to beat this sauce. It’s that good!

With that said, this is my vegan version of Ms. Katie’s grandmother’s mole sauce recipe. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I have over the years. Now I want to ask, has anyone else tried to make mole before? If you have any tips to make it easier, leave a comment below!

Yum

Vegan Mole Sauce

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 9 hours

Yield: 6 Cups sauce

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Serve warm over rice with air fried tofu, Gardein chicken-less strips, and enjoy!

Ingredients

4 cloves garlic
2 medium onions
3 small tomatoes
8 black peppercorns
1 stick cinnamon
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
6 dried ancho peppers
3 dried pasilla peppers
2 cups hot water
2 tablespoons almonds
1/4 cup peanuts
1/4 cup pecans
1/4 cup raisins
6 cups vegetable stock
1 plantain
4 corn tortillas
3 ounces Mexican Chocolate
1/4 cup vegetable spread
1 package no-chicken chicken stock cubes
10 cups filtered water
2 stalks celery
2 carrots, chopped
10 black peppercorns
2 dried ancho peppers

Instructions

Step 1: Making Stock
Use your stock vegetables to create a stock. Cook for 1 hour. Add chicken-less bullion cubes. Cook for an additional hour. The finished stock should have a dark color and had rich great flavor.
Step 2: Drying Your Peppers
Roast your ancho and pasilla peppers on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees until fragrant. Then add them to a bowl with about 2 cups of boiling water to reconstitute for 30 minutes. Once the peppers are reconstituted, remove the stems and seed each pepper. Then add the seeded peppers and steeping liquid to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside for later.
Step 3: Prepare Your Spices
Toast the spices in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. After toasting your spices, grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Set aside.
Step 4: Prepare Your Vegetables
Rough chop all the vegetables and add them to a baking sheet. Bake them at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Once the veggies are roasted, add them to your blender along with 1.5 cups of vegetable stock and blend until smooth. Strain the blend to remove any seeds. Then, add the blended vegetables to a large stockpot.
Step 5: Prepare Your Fruits, Nuts, and Starches
Toast your nuts in a pan on low heat for 2-3 minutes in 2 tablespoons cup of vegetable-based spread until fragrant. Once your nuts are lightly browned, add your raisins to the pan also and cook 1-2 minutes until soft. Then, add your toasted fruits and nuts, along with 1 cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stock pot along with your vegetable base. Add your toasted, ground spices at this time as well. You will also need to cook a plantain in an additional 3 tablespoons of vegetable-based spread on medium heat for 3-5 minutes until browned. Then fry several tortillas until lightly browned in your leftover vegetable spread. Once browned, add them with an additional cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stockpot.
Step 6: Chocolate
Cut your chocolate into cubes and add to your stockpot.
Step 7: Simmering
Add 3 cups of additional vegetable stock to your mole. Simmer on low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 10 minutes to avoid sticking. If your mole gets too thick, add additional vegetable stock accordingly. When the sauce is done simmering, season it well with salt to taste.

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April 2018 No-Spend Update

It’s hard to believe that today marks the last day of April in my 2018 No-Spend Year!

Unlike other months, April was a relatively easy-going month in terms of our no-spend progress. This past month I didn’t need to make any large repairs at home, replace any items, or seasonally prepare anything at home. Overall I spent a total of $212.14 on groceries and toiletries while saving our family $881.62.

How I saved:

$116.00 on requesting interlibrary loan books for of my reading club selections.
Used earned Amazon gift cards to purchase $100.00 in household goods for my ETSY shop.
Groomed pets at home which saved us $70.00.
Sold unused household items on Facebook local groups and made $125.00.
Reviewed a phone case and saved $20.99 off the cost of buying a new case.
Was gifted a care package of Lush Soaps and saved $40.00 by not buying toiletries.
Used free Redbox codes twice for family movie nights and saved $3.00.
Utilized free Hulu with our family Spring plan and saved $7.99.
Traded crochet handtowels for homemade preserves, nut butter, and produce; saved $50.00.
Donated to charity for tax receipts in deductions totaling $150.00.
Ate from our pantry and freezer for one week saving $64.00.
Cut my family’s hair at home. Saved $70.00.
Sold used books on eBay. Earned $64.64 after seller and PayPal fees and shipping labels.

I was very encouraged by my savings this past month. Especially with what I was able to put back from selling things around the house. It still surprises me how small things still seem to creep into our home. This was due largely to having participated in a YouTube minimalist collab this month really helped me reprioritize my decluttering habits at home.

Around the house:

This month also saw the end of this year’s robotics team at my husband’s school. To end the year with a bang, my husband and our local robotics team were able to try out a STEM learning kit I received from Circuit Cubes. They had a ball with this kit. If you’re in the market for affordable STEM learning kits, check them out here.

Spring has also found its way into my garden. I’ve spent a lot of time germinating seeds, weeding flower beds, pruning crepe myrtles, mending the trellises for our climbing roses, planning to build additional compost bins, and turning the last of fall’s leaves into mulch for the warmer months ahead.

I also made a batch of my DIY rose food. It’s my go-to for keeping my climbing roses looking their best year after year. As you can see, the results speak for themselves!

This past month also saw the creation of a small venture on this site, Anchor app mini-podcasts. Each Thursday I post a 5-7 minute mini musing over my week, home, and ideas rattling around the noggin. I’d love for you to check them out each week! I’m also working on my upcoming regular podcast and two ebooks set to be published later this coming season.

I’ve also gotten back into the habit of prepping my household cleaning caddy each Monday. Making batches of all-natural bleach, wood polish, and countertop cleaner. I’ve also been experimenting with a DIY black soap cleaner, so stay tuned for an upcoming recipe as well!

Needless to It has been a busy time at home. A time of progress and enjoying more of the simple life at home.

So, friends, I want to ask, did you participate in our no-spend, or your own frugal April, be sure to leave your comments about what you learned! If you didn’t participate, I’d still love to hear how and where you saved the most this month! Share your stories below!

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Healthy PCOS Living Tips with Glucerna

This post is sponsored by Glucerna but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

For the past year and a half, I have been on a journey to live a healthier, more vibrant life. My main reason for this path of health-mindedness? I am currently living with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, or PCOS, one of the most common hormonal endocrine disorders for women in this country.

Living with PCOS essentially means that the hormones produced in the ovaries aren’t functioning as normal. With this syndrome hormones, our bodies chemical messaging service, regulate all physical responses needed to properly process growth and energy production.

Women are at higher risk for PCOS if they:

Have a mother or sister with PCOS.
Are obese.
Have a family history of heart disease.
Have a family history of Type-2 Diabetes.
PCOS can be passed down from either your mother’s or father’s side.

Over the past year, I have found a lot of affirming research that proves that PCOS symptoms can be managed by simple, fun, affordable methods at home. Here are my nine favorite personal tips for how I manage the symptoms caused by PCOS.

Researchers have found that one key to living with PCOS is managing insulin levels. Especially when you are also living as a diabetic. A 34-year-old diabetic as I am. As I am. Which means that several times a day I have to test my blood sugar levels, say a little prayer, and hope that all of my dietary, snacking, and lifestyle choices have helped me to stay within a healthy blood sugar range. This is my life several times each day. Because staying on top of my blood glucose levels at home is beyond vital for me.

To keep on top of my blood sugar levels, I test my blood sugar levels with a blood glucose system daily.

I do this by monitoring the foods I consume weekly as past experience has shown me that when I dine on carb-heavy fare my blood sugar levels experience insulin spikes. These spikes lead to changes in hormonal balance, and can greatly affect my PCOS.

To prevent these spikes, I make the conscious effort to limit carbohydrates and refined sugar-based products, such as diet sodas, candy, dried fruits, refined grains, juices, and coffeehouse drinks to between 10-12 grams per day. For me, it’s all about choices.

I also intentionally make time for myself. I make relaxing my mind and body a personal priority. I like to indulge in budget-savvy ways of rejuvenation such as a bubble bath, watching an old movie, devouring a new book, or a great afternoon snack.

(Please note that while these tips work with me, it’s important to discuss your meal plan with your healthcare provider if you are pre-diabetic or have diabetes.)

Some of my favorite on-the-go snack options are 1/4 cup hummus with raw cucumber, a sliced apple with 2 tablespoons almond butter, or a chilled Glucerna® shake.

Glucerna® shakes help me manage my hunger with CARBSTEADY®, a delicious way to safely include digestible carbohydrates designed to minimize my nighttime blood sugar spikes.

I like having choices and variety in my evening snacks. Just making sure to choose better, smarter meal or snacks each evening. Which is why I opt for Glucerna® Shakes, in both yummy chocolate and vanilla, gives me great, daily snacking options. Because each shake is a total protein powerhouse as each shake contains 15 grams of protein, only 6 grams of sugars, and 1 carb choice per bottle.

Another bonus? Glucerna® Shakes are specially designed for people with diabetes. With these awesome shakes, I know that I can indulge my nighttime sweet-tooth while opting for healthier snacking options that will in no way undermining my daily blood sugar monitoring success.

What’s even better? Not only do these shakes have 50% more protein than leading weight loss shakes, but they contain 66% less sugar, making them a very smart choice to easily manage food cravings. They are also conveniently located in the diabetic section at my local neighborhood Walmart Supercenter store.

Now when I really want to indulge in a really luxurious treat I have other options as well. I use the Glucerna® Shakes to make a cool, creamy Strawberry, Peanut Butter & Chocolate smoothie treat!

To make this smoothie I simply blend up the following, per serving:

1 cup frozen strawberries
1 Glucerna® Chocolate Shake
2 squares of good dark chocolate
1 dollop of dairy-free, sugar-free whipped cream

As you can see, these Glucerna® Shake smoothies are scrumptious and are one of my favorite treats!

No matter how you serve Glucerna® shakes they are out of this world! But what I really love about these shakes, are that they help enrich my diet with a good source of digestive supporting fiber and 25 additional vitamins and minerals. Because in the end, its all about everyday progress when it comes to managing pre-diabetic and PCOS symptoms at home!

This season, you’ve got to check out these awesome snack options the next time you are in-store at Walmart Super Centers, right in the Diabetic supplies aisle. And check out iBotta this month for new money-saving rebate offers on Glucerna as well!

So, friends, do you have PCOS or diabetic symptoms that you daily manage? Have you ever tried Glucerna® shakes? Do you have any tips for living with PCOS symptoms? I’d love to hear about it!

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Helicopter Cool: How Apps Can Make Parents Manage That Difficult Balance

It’s a quandary that all Moms and Dads face. Do they want to be the cool parent or a strict helicopter parent?

Cool parents enjoy the admiration and adulation of their kids, but they’re plagued with worry that their liberal sensibilities may inadvertently land their kids in a situation that they’ll be unable to cope with, or (worse still) leave them vulnerable to the many insidious threats that the 21st century holds for kids.

Or do they become the stricter kind of helicopter parent who keeps a watchful eye on their kids’ activities both in the world or online?

This may give us a better chance of protecting our kids but it also brings the risk of alienating our kids and causing them to harbor resentment towards us later in life if we’re always standing over their shoulder. Moreover, if we insulate our kids from risk entirely we run the risk of them becoming overly timid and frightful adults.

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Fortunately, the miracles of the digital age allow us opportunities to more easily walk that fine line. We can keep an eye on our kids from a distance while giving ourselves the peace of mind that comes from knowing they’re safe. Here are some great apps to help you do just that:

ChoreMonster

Ugh! We all hate that feeling that comes with knowing you’ve got to convince your kids to do something they don’t want to do. But you also know that pitching in with the chores builds character and helps them transition into adulthood more easily.

Fortunately, Choremonster can help to incentivize kids to help out with the chores without your needing to turn into a nagging parent. The app’s subtle use of gamification makes household chores almost, dare we say it, fun.

The trouble with most kids is that they aren’t yet mature enough to know that cleanliness is its own reward and they need incentives. The app allows you to create a list of chores on the app to which your son or daughter also have access to their own login. They can mark chores off when they are done and earn points which can be used to “purchase” rewards of your choosing.

Family Orbit

There are lots of parental control apps that allow you to make sure your kids only access appropriate content and more that can allow you to track their whereabouts for your peace of mind. But if only there was one that did both and more. Family Orbit is a parental control and monitoring app that’s your one-stop shop for parental control.

You can block inappropriate content, lock or unlock their phone instantly and track their whereabouts on a real-time map. Thus, you can have complete peace of mind without breathing down their necks.

Quizlet

No parent enjoys nagging kids to do their homework or study for their tests and exams. But kids rarely understand the importance of their education and would much rather spend time with their friends. Fortunately, apps can make doing the right thing a little easier for them.

Take Quizlet, for example, which allows you to quiz them (or them to quiz themselves) on a range of subjects using custom made flash cards.

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CosyKiller Subscription Review

Please note, this review was sponsored by CosyKiller. All opinions are my own. Thank you.

If you know anything about me, you know I love nothing more than a great book. Especially a cozy with teeth! Then if you could combine it with a subscription service that doesn’t require me to hunt down a book, visit a bookseller, or prowl sales sites online, now that’s golden! Which is why I have been loving the CosyKiller subscription service online from Kickstarter.

While most subscription boxes give you something a couple snacks, toiletry samples, or coupons to purchase future subscriptions, CosyKiller gives you something a bit different. It’s a new subscription box coming from Red Herring Games that is a monthly murder mystery series. A subscription packed out with easy-to-solve, mystery clues that let you solve a case.

Cosykiller is a groundbreaking project. It’s neither a book nor a board game. it’s a storyline. A series of events which allows the subscriber to process evidentiary clues in order to solve a murder set in the golden age of fiction. Something more akin to old-school murder mystery radio programs.

Each box is packed with clues, in the form of keepsakes and mementos, which you’ll need to review in order to unravel your monthly mystery.

What is critical to solving each crime, deducting suspects, and piecing each series together is all up to you. No conclusions are drawn, except those you make for yourself!

CosyKiller is the brainchild of Red Herring Games LTD. The award winning specialist murder mystery company for the past decade that has provided sleuths like you and me!

My lastest CosyKiller subscription included a book, small clues, and a letter of information to get me started. All packaged neatly in zero-waste cardboard and wax packaging. Which was a bonus for me!

Currently, on Kickstarter CosyKiller is offering subscription plans at a massive discount; you can pay-as-you-go, monthly, or annually. With boxes starting at 25.00£ GBP, roughly around $34.00 USD. Making now a great time to think outside the box for an upcoming graduation, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day gift ideas this season!

I really enjoyed the complexity of this subscription. It’s a service that I would love to receive each month. A subscription that’s more than one-and-done. It’s designed to make you think, react, and play. And that’s just about everything you could ask for as a bibliophile extraordinaire! If you love murdery mysteries, you’ve got to check this service out for yourself!

Now if you are interested in getting this service for yourself, click here for more information. Now, friends, I want to ask, are you into cozies with teeth too? And are you interested in CosyKiller? Let me know your thoughts below!

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Spring Cleaning Must-Dos That Will Save You Money

It’s okay to admit it, we all love spring cleaning! Normally, deep cleaning the house is a drudgerous chore but when the seasons turn and the sun decides to put his hat on, this once menial task takes on a new sense of purpose and significance.

The good old fashioned spring clean is actually a time-honored tradition going back centuries, echoed across a range of cultural and religious traditions. In Jewish customs, for example, the Passover represents a particularly special time for the Jewish community as it marked the end of their bondage in Egypt.

In various Christian traditions, including Catholics, who clean their parish churches altar the day before Good Friday. While those in the Greek Orthodoxy clean the house vigorously for the week before Lent.

Likewise, the Persian New Year celebration of Nowruz coincides with the first day of spring and traditionally involves a process of “shaking the house”, spring cleaning and spending more time with family and friends.

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It’s quite telling that the spring cleaning instinct transcends barriers of culture, tradition, and geography.

Of course, it’s also human nature that the longer days, and the warmer and more hospitable weather would fill us with a renewed sense of hope and optimism. It speaks to something primal in our psychology, telling us that it’s okay to come out of our caves and start foraging for food now that the crops have begun growing on the trees for us to harvest and enjoy.

It’s a time when we cast aside the old and all the psychological and emotional trappings that come with it. We rid ourselves of clutter and the psychological barriers that it places upon us and invite in the new with a sense of newfound optimistic cheer.

But while the act of spring cleaning can be psychologically liberating, it also presents us with an opportunity to carry out some much-needed maintenance which will save us a lot of money throughout the coming year.

Thrifty households will find all sorts of ways to save money this season, and by incorporating some of the following activities into your spring cleaning regimen, you can ensure a year of prosperity without any unpleasant home maintenance surprises lurking around the corner:

Clean the pool

If you’re lucky enough to own your own pool, this is usually a symbol of wealth, prosperity and success… But this doesn’t mean that you’re above saving good money on pool care if you can.

Good maintenance is essential to maintaining a healthy and beautiful pool. But in the colder months when it sees little or no action it’s not surprising that many owners let their pools go to seed. Nonetheless, before you start using the pool again, get a professional like ABC Home and Commercial Pool Services to give it the once-over.

A pro will be able to clean and maintain your pool in a way that ensures you won’t have an expensive repair in the summer months.

This could mean something as simple as skimming out debris and ensuring that the water is pure and clear. It could also mean testing the pool’s pH, chlorine levels, alkalinity, calcium hardness and cyanuric acid to ensure that the composition of the water in your area doesn’t damage the intricate workings of your pump.

If necessary they can even drain the pool and wash it in acid to ensure a flawlessly clean look. Sure, this may require an upfront cost (unless you’re prepared to put the time and effort into doing it yourself), but it will give you a perfectly healthy and crystal clear pool that’s just perfect for the spring.

Clean out your AC

You’ll likely become a lot more reliant on your AC as the summer months approach. But if you don’t put the effort into ensuring that your AC is clean and well maintained now, it’s likely that it could cost you a great deal later in both repair costs and in unwanted medical bills.

Spring is a perfect time to carry out a deep clean and service of your AC unit to make sure that it’s functioning optimally and doing its job in filtering out pollutants and allergens. Replace the filters to ensure that harmful dust, pollen, and animal dander aren’t getting into the air in your home and interfering with your health.

Cleaning your AC unit will also help to rid the internal workings of harmful bacteria like the Legionella Pneumophila which results in Legionnaires disease. These nasty bacteria can enter your body through moisture particles in the air from an unclean AC unit.

While you can clean out your own AC unit; a pro will be able to tell you what you can do to make it as energy efficient as possible and make savings all year round.

While you’re at it, take some time to give your ductwork a thorough inspection as this too could end up costing you a small fortune in wasted energy (and even risk damaging your unit itself).

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Turn the clutter into cash

Removing clutter is an essential and psychologically important aspect of spring cleaning.

Clutter is a surprisingly oppressive presence in the house and it can not only make concentrating difficult, it can aid depression and anxiety. But as tempting as it may be to throw it all straight into the trash, could at least some of it be turned into cash?

Clean and lightly worn clothes are pretty much always of value to someone on eBay as are your books, DVDs, and CDs. If you’re prepared to inventory them, post them online then keep them somewhere out of sight and out of mind until they’re all sold you can kill two birds with one stone.

Keep an eye out for unwelcome guests

It’s unlikely that you’ll be getting as comprehensive a look at your house as this in a few months, so while you’re cleaning and scrubbing every room of the house, keep an eye out for signs of unwelcome guests who could prove troublesome in later months.

Knowing how to spot signs of flea larvae, bed bugs or the early signs of termite infestation could save you a small fortune in professional exterminators’ costs later on down the line, while also giving you the peace of mind of knowing that only your family and guests will be enjoying the ambience of your home this season.

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3 Administrative Tasks Bloggers Should Do Daily

Please note, this post is sponsored by Diamond Bloggers. All opinions are my own. Thank you.

There are so many daily tasks that bloggers perform daily. Some mundane such as checking our SEOs or altering tags and categories. Others are more interesting like the creative endeavors that make blogging fun and exciting. The tasks that help to make the everyday humdrum of working from home more enjoyable. So if you’ve been in a blogging rut remember the following 3 creative endeavors to help you jumpstart your administrative process moving forward this year:

Advertising

For anyone who has made that transition to blogging knows that bloggers are nothing if not writers and art directors of their own personal public relations firm. To our credit, blogging has helped me to understand just how important crowdsourcing advice and tips can be when it comes to promoting and sharing my work with others.

Approachability

Blogging allows me the ability to be able to reach out to my audience in new ways each day. My platforms allow me to have a digital platform to express my feelings and commentary to others in a manner that is both approachable and accessible to others. Something especially important to me as an introvert extraordinaire.

Cultural Engagement

Bloggers have a constant opportunity to create a culture of honest engagement. Allowing anyone at any level to speak their mind, throw in an idea, or express their opinion about your work in small, feasible ways. Blogging allows you to be able to ascertain who your readers are, populate your media kit for potential clients, and create new seasonal campaigns. Work that helps you be a more creative writer, director, and interviewer moving forward.

Friends, those are the 5 ways that blogging helps you be a more creative director in your own digital perspective at home. Now I want to ask, how does blogging help you be a more creative person at home? I’d love to hear about it below!

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