A "Dish" of the Simple Life

Life is just plain hard, isn't it? We all try to make it better, easier and happier but it still ends up being hard. You can simplify life by incorporating technology and gadgets, but what if you can't afford those marvels or they won't fit in your home? You don't just give up, do you? No! You just make it work. Heck, what did people do 75 to 100 years ago when that piece of technology didn't exsist? They made due. For me, the item I am lacking is the Dishwasher. My husband and I have been living for the past 4 years in an apartment built in the 1930's. When it was built, people didn't have dishwashers in their homes and theowners have never remodeled the kitchen to fit into the 21st century. So, we've had to adjust to the lack of a dishwasher - among many other things - and I'm here to tell you that it is completely possible to live without one! Here are some warnings and rules for your dish washing hands to live by:

• Be sure that if you live with someone, are married or have children you set up a schedule or a regular routine so that no one is surprised when it is their turn to do the dishes. This will reduce fighting over who has to wash at that particular moment. Maybe, the kids always do dinner dishes and switch off between cleaning and drying. If you've got a roommate, make sure each person does their own dishes or whoever did the cooking does not have to do the dishes after that meal. Whatever works for you!
• I also recommend NEVER EVER letting your dishes pile up in the sink. I know it's hard because sometimes you just don't want to do them. But if you wash them after every meal or at least in the afternoon, prior to dinner, and then again after dinner you will save yourself a headache, a stinky kitchen and ruined dishes. Plus, as the dishes pile up the task becomes more and more daunting which in turn makes you not want to do them more. It can be a very vicious cycle.
• If you will be leaving dishes in the sink for a little while, be sure to rinse them off first. The last thing you want is old, crusty food stuck to yournice dishes. It will be harder to clean if you don't do this and to top it off, by rinsing first you will decrease the likelihood that you kitchen will smell.

I have also tried out quite a few Dish Racks in the past 4 years, so here are some that I think work really well for different reasons:

The Bamboo Rack works well for people who do not go throug

h a lot of dishes and want a nice way to dry a few dishes, but also store the rack away with ease.

The In-Sink Dish Rack has been a fantastic option for my husband and I. We really don't go through too many dishes, but enough to where the Bamboo Rack doesn't work for us. We also have a small kitchen with hardly any counter space, so having a a rack that sits on the counter was not practical. Plus with a smaller rack, we have no choice but to work through our dishes faster.

The Counter Top Dish Rack is the best option for those of you with a family and a decent amount of counter space. But if you are going to go this route, I recommend purchasing a larger rack to make sure you have enough room for all the dishes. Try looking at KitchenAid or any 2-tiered racks. This one is awesome!