“Things you’re forgetting to do regularly but shouldn’t” – AKA, all of the things on Erica + Katie’s adulting to-do lists. 😉 At CUR headquarters earlier this week (aka, at my kitchen table), we were doing some brainstorming on the laundry list of items we’re responsible for handling as adults that we…might forget. At least, forget to do as often as we should! There are actually quite a few things that should be a sortof regular maintenance list, because they’re truly important and too-often overlooked. So, make your list and check it twice – here are all of the things you’re forgetting to do regularly…but shouldn’t!

1. Water your plants. Coming from the two dead orchids and one dead African violet in my office. 😉
2. Check your gas tank, oil, and tire pressure. Hoping I’m not the only loonytoon around these rosy parts who has coasted her way to the nearest gas station before – right? 😉 Really though, add “check oil” to the week’s to-do list, and double check your tire pressure. Especially with temperatures dropping, they could probably use a bit of air right about now!
3. Get your dryer vents cleaned. Katie told me this and – REAL TALK – I didn’t even know what it meant. I thought she was talking about the little lint sheets you have to clean out after each dryer run – nope! Apparently you have to get actual vents cleaned professionally; her HOA actually requires that everyone in the community gets it done AND submit the receipts to prove it. Who knew?!
4. Check your smoke detector. Does yours have batteries right now? Do they work? Better safe than sorry, ALWAYS!
5. Check your credit score. QUICK: do you know your credit score right now? We talked all about credit before, but it bears chatting about again because credit is SO much more than the swipe of plastic or a shopping spree. Credit – and your credit score – can impact whether or not you’re approved for a loan for a car, or a mortgage once you’re done with renting. It simply communicates to banks whether or not you’re a “trustworthy” liability to receive lent funds, by indicating how likely you might be to pay them back and pay them back in a timely manner. But it can be unwise (+ blatantly dangerous) to let your credit score go unchecked. If there is a negative item on there that you might not even know about yet, it can do some serious harm to your credit score, which could take YEARS (literally) to fix. Just one negative item on your credit report could hurt your score by as much as 110 points. 110 points!!!! Removing it won’t help to raise your score back overnight, but the team at Lexington Law can work to help remove items on your credit report that may be unfair, unverified, and/or inaccurate, so that your credit score is truly reflective of your responsibility + trustworthiness to potential lenders.
6. Invest in credit repair if need be. I’ve talked about it before, and for good reason! The credit repair leaders at Lexington Law may be able to help. Credit repair is always worth considering if you’re a good fit for it. While you’re never guaranteed free money in the credit repair process, you may be eligible for funds back if you’ve been victim to things like identity theft, student debt, medical debt, divorce, or military leave and your credit has been negatively affected by it. Call a credit consultant at Lexington Law or sign up online for a credit report consultation to see if credit repair is the best next step in your own credit journey! Sign up for a Lexington Law credit report consultation here! 
7. Check expiration dates on medication, beauty products, sunscreen, and pantry food. I blogged a quick little graphic a few years back to bookmark with the average shelf lives of what’s in your makeup bag – save it! But every single one of the aforementioned things DOES expire – and can harm you if you don’t abide by those dates. Make a list and check it twice, to ensure everything that goes in and/or on your body is still good!
8. Change your water filter. In your fridge, in your pitcher filter, and/or in your Keurig. They get gross without it!
9. Clean your cell phone screen and keyboard. Studies have found that cell phones have approximately 10 times more bacteria on them than toilet seats. EW, right??? I bought this device from Amazon to effectively clean my iPhone using UV light – definitely recommend. Especially for any fellow mamas in the house – if your baby/kids have any access at all to your phone, you don’t want those germs in their mouth!
10. Change your pillowcase every night. Or at least every other day! Might sound extreme, but that’s what experts recommend given how much oil, sweat, and even dirt can build up on your pillow from daily use. They can end up harboring bacteria and can even cause allergies or damage your skin and/or hair.
11. Checking bank statements. I learned this again the hard way just recently – my credit card was declined at the cash register. I thought, Hmm, that’s odd – I ALWAYS pay off my credit card in full and was nowhere near my credit usage limit, so why on earth was I declined??? Turned out, I had recently switched bank accounts and my had forgotten to switch over my AutoPay, which acts as backup to ensure that at least my minimum monthly payment is paid if I don’t go in to manually pay off my card by the given date. Since there was a mixup, I had been charged interest, a late fee, AND my card was “turned off” until the problem was remedied – and I hadn’t received a phone call or any sortof other communication to let me know what had happened or why. I only found out by going in myself to check everything out – so it’s worth adding to your regular list, to avoid unnecessary fees or interest rates on late payments! (Note: Being late on a payment by over a month can end up negatively affecting your credit score, too. Lexington Law has great advice on how to avoid and/or remedy late payments on your credit report right here!)
12. Change your loofah, hairbrush, nail files, Clarisonic brush head, and toothbrush. A plastic loofah should be changed every two months (but sooner if you spot mold or any other weird growth). Your hairbrush that you’ve had since the 10th grade? That should’ve been thrown out in the 11th grade – they can grow bacteria, too, and should be replaced every 6 months to one year. Your nail file and toothbrush should be replaced every three months, and same with your Clarisonic brush head if you’re using it daily in your skincare routine.
13. Get your jewelry insured + inspected. A great tip courtesy of Katie in our brainstorm for anything + everything we’re forgetting to do regularly but shouldn’t – ha! If you have any high quality pieces, be that your wedding set or an heirloom piece you inherited from family, make sure it’s insured. And if it’s insured, some places offer regular inspections + cleanings with your insurance to keep your best, favorite pieces in the best possible shape. Worth asking about!
14. Get your homeowners insurance up to date with your belongings. Especially if you’ve recently invested in anything bigger or of higher value – you can never be too careful in case of emergency!
15. Double check the location of your passport, marriage certificate, birth certificate, social security cards. Really, ensure all of your most important documents are in the same place, and that that place is fire and waterproof – so, a firebox. 😉 J + I were planning a trip for early 2020, and needed all of our documents – and let me tell you, it’s HELLA stressful if any of the above are out of place. The hassle to get new paperwork is *also* stressful, so do your due diligence from the getgo and keep everything together , right in the place it belongs!
16. Get general car tune-ups/preventative care. Friends, it’s wintertime – ain’t nobody got time to end up stranded on the side of the road because of a big problem that escalated unnoticed from a small problem. If you’re like me and just play the “Call Dad” game if/when the check engine light comes on, now’s the time to pick up a manual and read up to know when it’s time to get a closer professional look.
17. Schedule checkups at all of your doctors: general, OBGYN, dentist. I KNOW I KNOW, so many of us *strongly* dislike the dentist. And the OBGYN. And maybe the doctor too, although those checkups are usually less, *ahem*, invasive. But those routine appointments can end up being life-saving, literally. I know MULTIPLE people who were convinced to get checked up after YEARS of putting it off, only to find out that in that passed time, they had developed cancer. The whole point of many of those pesky routine checkups is to catch + prevent anything from developing into something much worse down the line, so it’s important to make space on your schedule to make it happen.

 

Anything else you’d add to the list, of things you (slash we) forget to do often but really, well, shouldn’t?

Especially given the nature of the post, I’m guessing I forgot a thing or two – ha! Help a sistah out in the comments below with anything + everything else that should be on our collective TO DO list!

And of course, for any help when it comes to your credit, give the credit repair leaders at Lexington Law a call – they’re there to help.

 

*Thanks to Lexington Law, a brand I lovelovelove, for sponsoring this post. As always, all opinions + thoughts presented are entirely my own. Thank YOU for supporting the brands that support Coming Up Roses!