Carrie Talbott Carrie Talbott

Jesus Follower | Word Stringer | Avocado Eater

  • Home
  • Blog
    • Declutter & Organize
    • Faith
    • Health & Wellness
    • Neighbors
    • Parenting
    • Recommendations
    • South of the Border
  • About
    • Family
    • Faves
      • Blogs & Sites
      • Books
      • Magazines
      • Ministries
    • Home Savvy Organizing
  • Book & Articles
  • Shop
  • Connect
  • Home
  • Blog
    • Declutter & Organize
    • Faith
    • Health & Wellness
    • Neighbors
    • Parenting
    • Recommendations
    • South of the Border
  • About
    • Family
    • Faves
      • Blogs & Sites
      • Books
      • Magazines
      • Ministries
    • Home Savvy Organizing
  • Book & Articles
  • Shop
  • Connect

No Widgets found in the Sidebar Alt!

  • Gratitude,  Marriage,  Rest,  Road trip,  Vacation

    3 Trips, 2 Countries & a Ring: The Benefits of Travel & How it Can Energize Your Family

    September 1, 2023 / 14 Comments

    Did you get away this summer? Doesn’t matter if it wasn’t a gigantic vacation; even a day trip can get you out of your normal routine mentally and emotionally.  With the help of two ministries, some friends, and a knack for creative adventures, I visited three places, all of which either energized my heart, mind, or body. Some did all three and left me beyond grateful for the break. Stop #1: Ensenada YWAM My niece is on staff at Youth With A Mission, so a few of us went down to visit her. I hadn’t crossed the Mexican border in about three years; felt strange to visit the city near…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Not Your Grandma’s Kind of Ghost: Writing and Editing for Someone Else

    April 1, 2017

    Thanksgiving Hacks to Keep You Grateful. And Sane.

    November 16, 2019

    The Day I Deleted Her Info: Saying Goodbye to a Lifelong Friend

    June 18, 2018
  • Mother's Day,  Organizing,  Recommendations

    7 of My Favorite Amazon Products to Organize Your Home, Car, and Backyard

    April 28, 2023 / 8 Comments

    Ready to get organized before summer? As a slightly Type-A woman with an organizing business, I can tell you firsthand… the products you use to get yourself organized matter. From your kitchen, closet, and car, to your bathroom and backyard… I gotcha covered with some of my favorite products. The reviews are in, and these organizers take the cake! Kitchen LOPASA Ziplock Bag Organizer for Drawers or Wall Oh my gosh… where has this been all my life? In your drawer or attached to your pantry wall, this bamboo beauty keeps all your plastic bags organized in one spot. Need something larger to hold your plastic wrap and tinfoil, too? Take…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    A Unique Mother’s Day Gift Guide for all the Young Moms, Busy Ladies, and Older Women

    May 3, 2022

    Fun Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

    May 1, 2020
  • Chores,  Clutter,  Organizing,  Spring Cleaning

    8 Simple Things We Can All Declutter and Donate Before Spring Cleaning Our Homes This Year

    February 24, 2023 / 10 Comments

    Lest you think I’ve mastered decluttering in my own home, let me assure you… it’s an ongoing battle. I mostly write these things to hold myself accountable, but I’m stoked you’re coming along with me today. This of course is not a complete list of what could be decluttered before spring cleaning. It’s just a nudge to help you start. And clearly, to help me start again too since I found more things I could easily part with! So here are my eight things to declutter instead of cleaning around them. Spring cleaning can happen next month. First, let’s work on getting rid of these…. 1. Outdated Electronics From VHS…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    An Open Letter to My Kids – I Fired the Housekeeper

    May 28, 2016

    7 Clean Cleaning Songs + 7 Cool Cleaning Solutions

    January 23, 2018

    Because You Live Here, That’s Why: Kids and the Battle of Chores

    March 18, 2017
  • Health & Wellness,  Parenting

    Chronic Disappointment: 5 Ways Our Family Has Dealt with a Year of Long Covid Pain

    February 4, 2023 / 36 Comments

    This week marked one year.  Also known as Long Haulers, this title is for people who still experience symptoms more than 4-12 weeks after being diagnosed with Covid-19. If we’d known our teenage son would go this far past three months of being sick, I’m pretty sure we would’ve bought stock in heat packs, ice packs, melatonin, back scratchers, electrolytes, muscle rub, and baby aspirin.  Here are the five things we’ve done in order to deal with the never-ending pain and frustration. 1. Tests, Drugs, Pain Killers I gave western medicine a chance at the beginning for two reasons. One, to make sure our son Brock didn’t have anything life-threatening…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Not Your Typical Pediatrician (Weight While You Wait)

    February 6, 2016

    Heart Attack vs. Acid Reflux: How Our Trip to the ER Taught Us the Difference and How To Be Prepared

    January 14, 2023

    Cooking Tips & Tricks from My Classically-Trained Le Cordon Bleu Neighbor Chef

    September 15, 2018
  • Health & Wellness,  Stress

    Heart Attack vs. Acid Reflux: How Our Trip to the ER Taught Us the Difference and How To Be Prepared

    January 14, 2023 / 58 Comments

    After an hour and a half of sleep last Tuesday, I awoke to a gnarly feeling across my whole chest that grabbed both shoulders, clenched my ticker and wouldn’t let go.  If that’s too manly of a description for ya, here’s a more feminine version: I felt a smidge of pressure around my décolleté with a petit side of warm fuzzies gently pushing on my heart. Any-way… the point is I couldn’t sleep. Back, side, front, other side—didn’t matter. I couldn’t get comfortable and the pain intensified so I finally got up. Within minutes I stood in our family room staring at my phone arguing with myself about whether or…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Cooking Tips & Tricks from My Classically-Trained Le Cordon Bleu Neighbor Chef

    September 15, 2018

    Reclaiming Minutes & Health: 5 Things I Stopped Doing & 5 Things I Started

    April 27, 2019

    Chronic Disappointment: 5 Ways Our Family Has Dealt with a Year of Long Covid Pain

    February 4, 2023
  • Christmas,  Friends,  Gifts

    5 Ways to Untangle Your Tinsel: Tackling Christmas Without Tackling Your Family

    December 3, 2022 / 6 Comments

    Ever found yourself stressed and annoyed at just the thought of getting ready for Christmas? I know—it can happen to anyone. Our culture tells us we can do it all but fails to equip us with the tools to get there. So when I catch myself thinking, “This year is going to be so much better than last!” I know high expectations are looming. Here are a few things I’ve started doing that help make this season a tad less hectic. Disclaimer: The way I created this list was by struggling with all five of these things. So don’t you dare think I have these mastered or even managed. I…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Carols In The Closet

    February 20, 2016

    All I Want for Christmas This Year is a Book. And Star Wars Baby Yoda.

    December 12, 2020

    Christmas Eve Chaos: The One Where We Went to Church Dirty and Avoided Our Friends

    December 3, 2021
  • Stress,  Technology

    My 4-Day Frustrating Forced Phone Fast: What I Learned in the Silence of Being Unplugged

    November 5, 2022 / 14 Comments

    Day: Saturday morning Location: Apple store Issue: Stripes on screen I stood on the curb at the quaint mall, 20 minutes before they opened, fifth in line. I hid my irritation around the nearby strangers, but inside I felt my nerves starting to get on each other. It’s fine. I’m sure it’ll be fine. It’s just stripes. A few stripes are fine. It’ll be fine, right? Oh my gosh—what if it’s not fine? “Hi. How can I help you?” I turned my phone in the man’s direction. “I have an issue.” “Ohhh, yes.” He tried to hide his best-guess diagnosis, but I knew he knew. My issue consisted of irregular…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Reclaiming Minutes & Health: 5 Things I Stopped Doing & 5 Things I Started

    April 27, 2019

    Heart Attack vs. Acid Reflux: How Our Trip to the ER Taught Us the Difference and How To Be Prepared

    January 14, 2023

    Thanksgiving Hacks to Keep You Grateful. And Sane.

    November 16, 2019
  • Organizing,  Recipes

    Leaves Turning 80: New Season, Old Skin, and an Organized Dental Office

    October 14, 2022 / 6 Comments

    My before-and-after title works better if you’re a Wheel of Fortune fan, I know. Lucky for me, my dad is a lifer.  I grew up with the sound of an audience clapping and the tick, tick, ticking wheel coming from my parents’ room… Every. Single. Week night. The memory sits permanently nestled in my hippocampus with no plans of vacating the premises.  Like, ever.  Faithful as a sunset, the 7:00 show always caused a tug in my soul. Do homework or solve a puzzle with my dad? I didn’t love the show, per se, but the before-and-after category always sucked me in. See what I’m doing here? Turning leaves, Vanna…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Creating an Organized New Year: The 3 Best Places in Your Home & How to Start

    January 7, 2022

    Three Summer Vacation Hacks to be More Organized: How to Pack Smart, Move In, & Return Happy

    June 30, 2023

    8 Simple Things We Can All Declutter and Donate Before Spring Cleaning Our Homes This Year

    February 24, 2023
  • Courage,  Honesty,  Stress,  Thanksgiving

    Baby Steps, Bob: How to Replace the Overwhelming Thing with the Next Thing

    September 23, 2022 / 16 Comments

    If you’ve seen one of my favorite movies, What About Bob, you know taking baby steps (literally) is what got Bob Wiley out of his own head.  Repeating the words “baby steps” also got him on a bus, through a sliding door, and on a boat… all things that previously terrified him. Similarly, if you’ve read Bob Goff’s books or listened to his podcast, you know he loves the word ambition. Always challenging people, he does a great job of encouraging his audience to figure out what they want and go for it.  Sounds effortless coming from a man who already possesses ambition… and a bank account to back up…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Corner Office Syndrome as a Boss: When it’s Always Lonely at the Top of the Business or Ministry

    January 10, 2021

    Dear Stay-At-Home Mom: I Figured Out Your Problem

    October 1, 2016

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022
  • Faith,  Neighbors,  Stress

    September Fire, Welcome Rain: The Disaster in SoCal This Week and How Your Family Can Help

    September 9, 2022 / 2 Comments

    If you hadn’t heard of the town of Hemet before the 5th of September, you’re not alone. Nestled inland from the Temecula Valley and Riverside, it’s not exactly a vacation destination. It’s the town we go through to get to Palm Springs, Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead. If you’ve never been there, here’s some context: And just a few miles away sits the de facto international Scientology headquarters; a huge and bizarre compound you would not want to be a part of.  Combine all that with a handful of garage meth labs, a growing fentanyl problem and one of the highest homeless populations in Riverside County. So it hasn’t exactly…

    Read More
    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    10 Años of Blessings… and Mud

    February 27, 2016

    Easter Fail

    March 26, 2016

    Two Cops & a Black Eye: Our Up Close & Personal Encounter with Physical Abuse

    February 4, 2022
123

Welcome!

You’re here! And I’m Carrie. From full-time camp kid to unconventional missionary for 12 años in a 3rd-world country, I’m now a profesh organizer and writer who loves plants and guac. Life is short, so I’m smiling while I have all my teeth, but I still have issues. Always remember… when life hands you lemons, give them back. You deserve avocados.

Sign up for Carrie Talbott Ink Blog

* = required field

Amazon Affiliate
“I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

  • Character
  • Faith
  • Friends
  • Health & Wellness
  • Insider Scoop
  • Marriage
  • Neighbors
  • Parenting
  • Reading
  • Recommendations
  • Rest
  • South of the Border
  • Stress
  • Uncategorized
  • Vacation
  • Writing
© 2023 Carrie Talbott Ink.
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Book & Articles
  • Shop
  • Connect