Confession time: I am horrible at time management. I am not even sure I should be writing a post on this. I can admit I've never been good at this, but especially since being a stay-at-home-mom. I love to be lazy, sit around and zone out. Thankfully, God is changing that part of me and after lots of prayer and relying on Jesus for His help every minute of every day, I think I am a little better at it. Not great, mind you, but better...and I thought I could share some things that have helped me.
1. Get off the computer and/or tv. I used to spend so much time on the computer, it was hindering my ability to take care of my family properly. Don't get me wrong, I still spend some time surfing, blogging, facebooking, but not near as much as I used to.
2. Try to get as much done during nap times as possible. If your kids are too old for naps, it might be good to implement some kind of "quiet time" or play-alone time in their rooms in place of a nap time. This is when I get my blogging done, laundry, shower, mopping, dusting, most of whatever is on my list for that day. Thankfully both mine still nap, but I think Jude is getting ready to give it up. That makes me sad.
3. Knock out easy tasks first thing in the morning. Making my bed, getting laundry started on laundry days, putting clean dishes away can all be done not long after you get up and start the day.
4. Fold laundry while watching a show - it will help you fold quicker. Or, I heard an even better suggestion today. Pray for your children and husband while you fold their clothes. Pray specifically for them, as they go about their day, where they will go and what they will do. I love this idea and think I'm going to start doing it!
4. Fold laundry while watching a show - it will help you fold quicker. Or, I heard an even better suggestion today. Pray for your children and husband while you fold their clothes. Pray specifically for them, as they go about their day, where they will go and what they will do. I love this idea and think I'm going to start doing it!
5. Make a chore list, gals. And while we're at it, let's not even call it a chore list. That sounds like a list of duties and not delights. Let's call it a delights list. I want to share with you my delights list, because I was lost before I made it-and put it on my refrigerator where I will see it every day. HERE is mine, and that's just an example. Make one that works for you and put it somewhere where you can see it every day. I have to look at this thing every morning to see what needs to be done. My personality type is so that I like to check things off when they are done, so I have a little box beside each chore to check it off when I'm done with a task (which is why I have make bed on my delights list. Because, let's face it; if it wasn't on the list, I wouldn't do it) And be specific in your delights list. If you just write "Kitchen" on a certain day, things like wiping down the cabinets and appliances may get overlooked. Also, don't worry if you don't get to a certain delight on the day its supposed to get done. If I don't get to something, like mopping my floors, I either fit it in on another day, or save it til the next week. Things can get overwhelming if you keep stacking until you have 40 billion things to do and you give up doing any of them because its just too much to do! This way, if you want to have someone over unannounced for dinner or coffee, then you won't have to worry about running around crazy trying to get the house presentable.
6. Make a flexible daily schedule. I've found that if things don't get written down, then they won't get done. So, I schedule a time for just about everything. Even if we don't get our stuff done in the allotted time, its always good to have a goal, to have something to go by. I am not a militant, organized person by any means. Notice I said flexible. If anything, I am probably too laid back. But, I'm more likely to remember to actually do things like "outside play time" or "music time" if they're written down. (I also schedule outings and such. Tuesdays are our library days, Fridays are our field trip or play time with friends days, etc).
I'll stop here for now and save the others for another day. I need to make a disclosure here: I have not totally mastered this. My house is not spic 'n span, in fact, there are clothes sitting in the hamper waiting to be folded and put away right now. I don't want to seem like I have it all together and everything is perfect at my house. And don't even get me started on how kids can mess up a house in 5 seconds flat. I live this every day. But with God's help, I work hard at it, and running a household, whether you are a working mom or a stay-at-home-mom is work, ladies. It's not drudgery work, or at least it doesn't have to be. You can be purposeful about your household/daily delights and be a planner, I promise things will go a lot smoother and your husband and kids will appreciate you more because of it.
I found this thoroughly inspiring today as I write this post:
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