As a “stay-at-home-mom,” my primary job is caring for my family and managing my home. But you certainly wouldn’t know it by how I spend my time. Honestly, the cleaning, cooking, laundering of my job bores me to no end. I would rather do pretty much anything than fold my family’s laundry. Which is why my mom spent three hours folding the laundry that I let pile up in my bedroom last weekend (thanks, Mom!).
After seven years as a homemaker, you’d think I would have figured out some sort of a system to get the mundane parts of my day finished more efficiently. But I’m fairly undisciplined, so all of these tasks take me forever. I’m realizing that I need a new system. Rather, I need to create a system to get all of the boring stuff done.
Here’s my new plan: I am going to use two of my favorite activities, blogging and chatting with my friends, as the motivator. I can’t do the fun stuff until I get the following completed:
- all people, including me, fed breakfast and dressed
- breakfast dishes done
- dinner planned
- one load of laundry folded and put away (seriously, the one thing I detest the most)
- living and dining room picked up
My house is fairly uncluttered, so these tasks (apart from my kids eating, which takes forever) should take me about 1.5 hours.
I am looking forward to being able to wake up before my kids and completing most of these tasks without interruption. But right now my baby is still waking up 5-7 times a night to eat, so sleeping until he wakes up needs to be my priority. Clearly we need to do some sleep training soon so Mama can keep her sanity. (UPDATE: Just read a post on waking up early. Very motivating!)
Why am I sharing this? It may be quiet around here some mornings as I force myself to keep my family and “job” as my first priority. There may be more posts in the afternoon for awhile, especially as I convince my chunky baby that nursing every 90 minutes in the middle of the night is indeed not necessary.
And some of you struggle as I do. What tasks to you need to get done before you hit the blogosphere, Facebook or go to work?
Leave a comment! I’d love to hear what your daily priorities are!
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Wow, I had no idea you were doing ALL this on so little sleep. You do an amazing job and I love following you!!
I am at such a different stage in life. I get up right before my kids leave the house(I am not a morning person at all). They come down at 7:35 and need to leave at 7:45. Some days we drive them other days my daughter drives herself and brother. I then grab my tea, check my mail and get lost for way too long.
In my perfect world I keep thinking of great ideas to organize myself and do some kind of schedule, but it never pans out. You and all the others have caused me to rethink the schedule…maybe I will even try and act upon it this time. 🙂
I second the http://www.flylady.net. The Flylady has changed my life. For me, the most important things are: making my bed, one load of laundry each day, shining my sink, and thinking about dinner first thing in the morning so something is thawing. If I can do those each day, then everything else seems like it either falls into place, or if not done, seems minor. It’s all about routine!
I hate housework as well so I set the timer for 5-10 minutes per room and clean like a crazy woman. After an hour, all my chores are done and I can get on with my day. You would be shocked at how much you can accomplish in 10 minutes! My home stays clean and I can do as I please…well what my 2 year old pleases.lol
Thanks for the post! And reading the comments is so encouraging as well! I think the way I have chosen to manage is to keep the blogging/reading/facebooking for after the kids are in bed. I love to blog, but honestly I find myself getting too obsessed about it and need to keep balanced. I bought the motivated mom’s planner (through Kelliegh’s site, actually!) and it has really, really helped. I also purchased the planner through http://www.school4jesus.com which has additional resources. It’s just SO hard to set routines when you’re nursing and you have such a little one….so cut yourself some slack 🙂 But I totally agree about waking up early. That’s something I am always trying to be better about. It’s hard when you stay up late reading blogs!
I don’t know how you’re managing on so little sleep either! If baby would sleep longer stretches I’ll bet you both would feel better!
Although I was amazingly productive and organized in the workplace, at home I’ve never managed to be very efficient. Not at any point in our children’s life; things are always kind of chaotic. But laundry is probably my strength–I’ll try to wash and dry a couple loads a day, but maybe not fold and put away yet. The trick I use is to stack all the clothing items like pancakes to keep them from wrinkling, toss all the socks/undies/little items into a basket, and gently lay the “pancakes” on top. Then, when I’m ready I’ll fold a bunch all at once, ideally while watching TV. Each family member has a basket for their laundry, and if the system works, will take and put their items away. More likely, the basket sits in their room a few days, but at least we have clothes to wear.
Thanks for your blog; it’s very encouraging.
Obviously I am your #1 most selfish blogger. All these gals are supporting you, encouraging you, and commending you for getting your priorities straight. The obsessive couponer in me is freaking out, saying: “WAIT! How will I know what to buy at safeway if you’re doing all these important life balance things!?!” 🙂 Just teasing (sort of)- I cannot even believe you get up that much during the night & you’re able to juggle all the stuff you do. keep up the great work!!!
Oh, don’t be impressed. I haven’t slept in six years so my body has just adapted!
Thanks for making me laugh!
Oh, you need the Motivated Moms planner!! Check out my post. It is a life saver!! http://kelleighratzlaff.com/life/becoming-a-more-motivated-mom/
Flylady.net
15 minutes at a time
I run around doing chores for an hour before my husband gets home. He has no idea we’ve been in sweats sewing, painting, playing and making huge messes all day. 🙂 That’s my routine! I work best under pressure. It’s probably the same idea as waking up early, but I just can’t summon that kind of energy at 6am. Kudos to you and good luck!
Flylady!!! http://www.flylady.com
I second this suggestion. It is a wonderful site…you and your house will never be the same 🙂
but I believe it is http://www.flylady.net
Hope that helps
You already know my routine but I’ll share it anyway. Organization is not my problem, it’s stopping to enjoy life even when it’s unorganized.
things i always keep consistent in my day (3 kid 4 and under):
-lunch at 12:30 and rest time at 1
-depending on if the baby is sleeping, i’ll take that time for myself. No phone calls, no dishes, just sitting in the quiet.
-snack time after rest, and dinner at 6:30. Clean up at 7, bedtime 7:30.
Laundry on Friday’s, fold that night in front of the TV, put away Saturday morning. I fold into the basket so it’s outside their room Friday night and ready to go the next morning.
i try to pick a day to clean bathrooms and such and the dishes and kitchen r cleaned up every night while the kids clean up with dad.
oh, this is the link to her other post on incourage.me
http://www.incourage.me/2010/03/has-this-world-been-so-kind.html
Loved the article you linked to about waking early. This blogger also was on: http://www.incourage.me/ about this world not being our home!! great, and “incouraging” site!
Babywise is an awesome book for putting your baby on a schedule. I used the ideas and my first baby was sleeping thru the night by 8 weeks. I highly recommend it. Sink reflections, by Marla Cilley is awesome for scheduling and routines. Or you can go online to flylady.net. I love the ideas of the flylady, just haven’t been able to get myself into the swing of it.
One more thing…I do a load or two of laundry daily. If it piles up I know it will take me forever to catch up. I put in a load as soon as I’m out of bed and have it as the goal to have all laundry done by lunch.
I was always a very spontaneous person until I was a stay at home mom. When I had two little ones I would take my kids to the park, the zoo, build blanket forts with them in the living room, but cleaning…..ugh, not so fun. I found a lot of freedom in setting up a daily schedule so that I don’t have to “think” about cleaning. Instead it’s just part of the routine. Setting a timer has been a great motivator for me. I set the timer and have to get everything done before it rings. The hardest part is getting started, but once I’m cleaning and start to see results….I’m in a grove! I have 5 kiddos 10 and under and have it as the goal for them to do their own laundry. One of them is doing this. The others fold and put away their laundry, but it is also their job to deliver it and sort it in the laundry room. It’s slow going when they’re little, but so worth the investment as they get bigger. Loved the post!
I have 4 kids and tons of laundry. I usually pile up 6 or 7 loads, wash them all in one day then when everyone goes to bed I treat myself to a favorite TV show or movie and fold and sort while watching. The next morning everything is folded and in baskets ready to be put away. Even the youngest can put their own clothes away and maybe a load of towels.
Make laundry folding night a treat and you won’t dread it!
Hope this helps.
YES!! I totally struggle with the same things! And I find the daily chose to be annoying to no end. I did something similar to this awhile back with coffee and reading the bible. I always wanted my coffee, but when it came time to actually sitting down and reading well that is another story. I did it and read through the New T estimate. I think it is good and import for us to set boundaries for ourselves. While someone might say you don’t need to set rules…I and my personality need them 😉 Great post and looking forward to hearing how you are accomplishing it daily. Still struggling and trying to learn how to lay my desires down and die to myself…because God has called me to me a mother and homemaker.
I can totally relate with keeping the job of homemaking a priority! I hate laundry as well… more than ANY other chore!! What I do now with my laundry has helped me so much, so it may help you as well… I don’t sort my cloths by color, I wash EVERYTHING on cold and I wash by theme. I wash my kids cloths together in one load, towels together in one load, my husband’s cloths in one load and then mine. It is so much easier to take them out, fold them and put them away because I am only going to one room at a time, not all over the house. So far I have not made any cloths pink by washing all colors together, but I do have to be careful that if I do have a new item to wash that I am more thoughtful about how I wash it. I also only do one load a day so basically everyone has a day and it has been so much more manageable! I hope you are able to find a system that works for you! One other thing that I sometimes do to help out with laundry is when it is warm out of the dryer, I separate everything on the couch and fold INTO the laundry basket. When I am done folding everything is ready to be put away and I don’t have to carry all the piles individually to where they need to go… Have a great afternoon of being a stay at home mom!!
All I need to do is go pull the laundry out of the dryer and finish the lunch dishes while the kiddos are still sleeping, but instead I’m reading EVERYONE of these comments… ugh! =)
But, it sounds like I’m not the only one. =)
It’s always so refreshing to hear that I’m not the only one! 😉 In fact, I made a deal with myself a little over a month ago now that I just needed to get some of those mundane things done before the fun too. For me, I try to do this list before I hit the computer…make bed, clear bathroom counter, dress and feed children (though this often happens while I’m on the computer…my kids take FOREVER to eat too), unload/load dishwasher. I really need to add doing a load of laundry to that list. I also think that getting up an hour earlier than my kiddos would really help me out too. I know that I always end up feeling better when I do…I just relish my sleep and can’t force myself to get up. I think I’ll work on making myself some lists just so I can stick to it. Thanks for sharing your struggles. It reminds me that I’m not the only one on “Planet Mom”. 😉
I have been home with kiddos for the last 13 years. This is my last year that someone will be home with me during some portion of the day. The last 2 years, my husband now travels 3 weeks (Mon-Fri) out of the month and I found I have to stay on track or it’s just a domino effect!
I am far from organized but these are the little things that help me.
1. I take my shower and get dressed (hair still wet and no make-up) before I wake up the kids for school-believe it or not it makes a HUGE difference.
2. I have a timer on my washer. I load it the night before and a load starts about an hour before I wake up. Then I throw that load in the dryer while my youngest (first to head to school) is eating breakfast. I fold it shortly after he has lunch. Each child is in charge of getting his/her clothing from the laundry room (I have labeled baskets) as part of their chores after school.
3. My kids have had chores from the time that they could grasp the concept (about 18 mos). Even something as small as just putting away the silverware or setting a table makes a HUGE difference. Now that I have a teen and preteen, they take turns emptying the dishwasher and garbage/recycling.
4. Every night for about 10 minutes we have what is called mad dash cleaning. We all go together room by room and put everything in that room away. The kids have gotten so it’s a competition now to see who can put away the most things the fastest.
5. Be OK that things can’t be perfect while you have little kids. My childhood memories aren’t of how clean my house was but of the time that I spent with my parents and siblings. Hard to remember when there’s a pile of laundry looming at you but important to do so!
I love getting up early, meaning one hour before the kiddos and I can accomplish so much more plus have a chance to think through my day, start laundry, enjoy my coffee and read/think in peace for 15 minutes. Once my kids started sleeping through the night, this could happen…..good job thinking through your priorities. I think doing that every quarter helps me keep perspective!
Thank you for the motivation. I am a list person and a visual person. I love the link you put in there that led me to Simple Mom and her multiple downloads of checklists! Oh I am so excited to start to implement these – especially the chore chart for our oldest. Thanks again for all you do to help us save money and now time!
I love her downloads! Thanks for reminding me!
Thanks for this post!
I struggle with being home during the day now that both my kids are in school full days!
My main prio each and everyday is showering and getting dressed….so easy to wake up, get kids out the door, grab coffee, check email/blogs/facebook and get sucked in all day until my kids are home from school already and Im still in my jammies with breakfast dishes in the sink still! LOL! soo sad!
I got so much more done when I worked full time out of the house or when my babies were home….bc I had to!
Thank you for the post! I have the same problems. You have motivated me to set up my own daily priority list. It’s really nice to know I’m not the only one that struggles with this.
My theory is that I’m never the only one, regardless what I’m struggling or dealing with!
I can’t believe you’re still lucid enough to put deals out on your blog after waking up to feed your child that many times a night and then carry on your day with all those other tasks! I’d be a walking zombie! I’m right there with you on the laundry thing, I can wash, dry, and fold with the best of them, but then the folded clothes go right back in the basket and never get put away until the tower is threatening to topple, crushing my son under its behemoth stack of towels.
Planning dinner? I make up two week menus twice a month. I don’t assign days to anything other than Taco Tuesday and leftovers on Sunday, so each morning I choose what to make and make sure frozen stuff gets pulled out of the freezer.
Laundry? Start a load in the washer first thing, then move it to the dryer as you sit down for breakfast. Everyone can work on folding and putting stuff away.
I think leaving the computer off until you’ve accomplished some stuff is excellent. Just make sure you’re also including your kiddos in the household stuff. 🙂
I got laid off a year ago and I’ve had the hardest time adjusting having a whole day to get things done, and very little accountability so I set up a system to keep me on track and make the most of my time when my daughter is at school. When I was working I used Outlook tasks to keep me going all day so I have all my household chores in Outlook so that I don’t get distracted and I get the satisfaction of marking things “complete” as I move through my “to-do” list. I never get everything done but it keeps me on track.
Daily: dishes, pick-up our living room, check blogs, get the mail
Mondays(today!) My main task is the laundry because if I do one load a day I forget about it in the washer or dryer and it either gets stinky or wrinkly. This also means I have to stay home on Mondays to keep switching the loads.
Other days: I rotate through whatever seems most pressing on my “tasks”. Sometimes its the dirty toilets, other times vacuuming or working on the budget. Once I mark a task complete it won’t pop up again for another week, or other time frame that I have decided that it needs to be done in so I don’t have to remember when the last time I did a particular chore, I just check my tasks!
FYI – chores TOTALLY bore me too so I started downloading audio books through the Washington County Library Co-Op using Library2Go. Saves my sanity and keeps my mind from wandering to other more “challenging” projects. If the book is good enough I even spend extra time cleaning so I don’t have to turn it off. 🙂
The audio book suggestion is awesome. I was going to mention it. It’s free from your library and does indeed keep you doing the boring stuff longer. Dare I say, even look forward to doing them! *gasp*
Great post! Ever since I started blogging, I struggle with this on a daily basis. This is how I’ve finally got my days figured out:
Morning and afternoon are for hanging out with my little man. Mornings we try to arrange playdates, have time at the park or run one or two errands (MAX!). Afternoons we generally just play outside or walk down to the mailbox (which seems to take an hour and a half!).
Nap time and after bed time are my blogging times. I only allow myself to sit down at the computer after the house is picked up, laundry is either started or folded, dishes put away and at least one or two items off my non-blogging to-do list finished. This helps me stay less stressed also. When I know there are things to be done, I can’t focus on the blog or on anything else and it makes me anxious. 🙂
One thing I’m working on is focusing more on my husband. 🙂 Now that baseball season is upon us, he could lost in the TV for hours and I could get lost in the computer for hours. We are trying to make more time for each other. I know, SAD!
I have the same issues with laundry. I’m the type to only wash when I’m down to the last clean item, and even then, I wash my clothes, put them in the dryer and take them out of the dryer only as I need (instead of hanging them up and putting them away). If it weren’t for my husband being a little OCD when it comes to laundry maintenance, our laundry system would be a total wreck!