What Small, Inexpensive Things Make Your Life Better?

What random items make your life easier? This morning, my friend Andy was telling me about his beloved rice maker. “You get three-quarters of dinner done by throwing in some rice and pushing a button,” he mused as we walked down the street. “Every time I do it, I have the actual thought, ‘Wow! this makes my life easier!'”

Inspired, I asked the CoJ team how they’d answer the question, and I’d love to hear yours…

Joanna Goddard, editor
Lifesaver: Headache fixer

The other day, I stopped by my friend Izzy’s, and her son was wearing this goofy hat thingy. When I asked why (on earth), he explained that it was curing his headache — apparently, you store the gel cap in the freezer and just slip it over your head when needed. How amazing is that??? We ordered one for our house, and when I found myself with a headache last night, the soft cooling wrap made me feel SO much better. 10/10, what a time to be alive.

Maureen, marketing director
Lifesaver: Trunk organizer

This trunk organizer holds groceries bags upright, keeps our stuff (extra diapers, beach towels, umbrellas) from sliding everywhere, and folds down when we aren’t using it.

Jenny, food columnist
Lifesaver: Puff pastry

When I have puff pastry in the freezer (always the Dufour brand), I feel like dinner is always half-way made. It has to be thawed yes, but once it is, you just add cheese and vegetables and you know dinner will be met with applause.

Joanna Goddard, editor
Lifesaver: Peg game

Kids are often running around our house, and one hack to keep them occupied / out of trouble / away from my cheese stash is to set pick-up games on our coffee table. We’ve loved Play-Doh and Tenzi, but our recent fave is this peg game, which anyone who grew up going to Cracker Barrel on road trips will recognize!

Joanna Goddard, editor
Lifesaver: Exfoliating mitts

Now that I’m going on dates with cute dads, I like my skin to be soft in case they put a hand on my arm or shoulder or leg. Of course, I’ve been “moisturizing every square inch of my body,” per my bff Gemma’s instructions, but I also came across these exfoliating mitts, which I now keep in the shower. After scrubbing my body, I emerge as slippery as a dolphin, a description that I’m not sure sounds sexy but I promise feels really smooth and silky and good.

What about you? What little things do you swear by? We’d love to hear.

P.S. Five more inexpensive things that make life easier, and what it felt like to have sex for the first time after divorce (on Big Salad).