Being an ‘adult‘ is hard work! Cooking, cleaning, washing, ironing, paperwork, bills, earning money, the list goes on! It’s not something that you learn about at school; just something you’re expected to figure out as you go. It’s been just over 6 months since my partner, Matt, and I moved into our first house together. Moving in with your partner is a really special experience and a huge milestone in any relationship! We’ve finally settled in and started some good habits as new home owners.
Becoming more organised with food shopping
Having a routine when it comes to food shopping has saved Matt and I time and money. For the first few months of us living together we avoided doing a ‘big food shop’ and just nipped to our local shop every other day to pick up meals we fancied. Each time we went we would spend only £10-15! But over the week that easily adds up. Plus not having our meals planned it meant we ended up buying a few more takeaways.
According to Google the average person in the UK spends £38.50 on food per week. Which was a bit of a shock as we were definitely spending more than that! So we decided in 2021 we would stop buying as many takeaways, and start doing one ‘big food shop’. So far so good, we’ve survived January takeaway free (not sure if we can resist all year though)! Plus we’re saving £15 a week on our weekly food shop!
For us, the key to a good food routine has been meal planning. Spend 5 minutes making a list of meals you want to eat in the next week (include breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and drinks)! Then write a list of all the ingredients you need for those meals and cross off all the ingredients you already have in your kitchen. Simple!
File all your paperwork/ bills
I have to admit I love organising things. So I really enjoyed sorting all of our paperwork/bills. My top tip is the sooner the better. Paper work really does build up very quickly. Having all your paperwork filed and labelled well makes finding important documents so much easier.
We brought ourselves a filing cabinet, £50 from Argos, and suspension files. Top drawer is full of ‘life’ related paperwork; car paperwork (according to number plates), work related, education certificates and vaccination information. Bottom drawer is full of ‘house and bills’ related paperwork; mortgage, bills, life insurance, building work certificates, warranty for furniture and instructions for appliances (e.g. boiler).
Tidying the kitchen every evening
Anyone else out there feel happier going off to work knowing the house is clean, tidy, ready for when you come home? I am definitely one of those people! I seem to feel more productive knowing the house is tidy?!
Every evening Matt and I spend 10 minutes together washing and drying the pots, and wiping down the sides. It starts the day off right seeing a clean kitchen! Once you’re home from work, eaten dinner and collapsed onto the sofa it’s hard to get back up again.- especially to do the pots. Blaze some music as you do it or put on a podcast or Youtube video. If you live with someone doing it together can help motivate you.
Cooking meals from scratch
In the past I’ve been guilty of resorting to ready meals and takeaways. Since we’ve become more organised with food shopping we seem to cook more meals from scratch. There are so many benefits to cooking this way; you see exactly what’s going into your meals, tailor meals to meet dietary needs and a a great sense of pride! Especially if it tastes good!
I love flicking through a cookbook and picking a recipe to have a go at! Matt brought me a lovely wooden cook book stand to add a decorative touch when cooking! I find a lot of recipes online. Some of our favourite meals include; BBC goodfood beef curry, slow cooker chicken thighs, and veggie lasagne.
Sharing responsibilities
This has been a biggie for Matt and I; as I’m sure it is for many-other’s out there living with someone! It’s been a learning curve establishing a cleaning/housework routine that suits both of us. We have found dedicating a morning on a weekend, blitzing all the washing/drying/ironing of clothes and cleaning the house, works well.
Sharing responsibility has been important for us; we both work full time and have busy schedules. We have a joint account which we equally contribute to; from this we pay all our bills, food and household essentials.
I absolutely love being a home owner and owning it with Matt! Ever since we moved in it has felt so easy. Finding a routine takes time, and I believe there’s so much we can learn from each other. For anyone else out there moving into their own place, good luck and be sure to share your good habits, I’d love to hear!
