This week's WFMW is all backwards ... and that IS a good thing for me!! I have been running around since December 18th with no right wrist. Yeah, I broke it just after my 13th anniversary last year and it is the hand I use most often. I have been in a old fashioned elephant leg cast. Wedding vows in FULL force! :)Since I have been in a cast, my hubby has been doing ALL my work for me .. after working all day away from home AND he has been taking care of me .... let me just admit .. I AIN'T a great patient. HA .. My last surgery was Friday, so after my meds wear off this weekend, I won't have ANY excuses .. hahahaha
So, basically I have to start ALL over doing it my way ... cleaning, organizing, switching seasons for clothes, getting a schedule ... getting the house in order .. so things can get back to normal. I have had 13 weeks of someone else doing it all for me and I have become ummmm .. a little lazy.
Where o where do I start? My biggest fear is that I want do it all AT ONE time and I know I can't do that or else we won't be able to function. I will have things everywhere ... I mean everywhere. I am also a BIG coupon mama and have to start that again too ... did you know gas and groceries have gone up since Christmas?
Is there a trick to have things "seem" organized, until I can get it all clean and in place and things/our household back to normal? Chests, Rubbermaid, boxes, closets, shelving? what? I need some tips to get it all in place, before it is um you know .. really together.
7 comments:
I think you can make a lot of progress by putting things in the general area where they are supposed to go, then fine-tuning the organization later.
Otherwise, I say, just pick the thing that bugs you the most and get that back on track. Once you see progress in one area, you'll be that much more motivated to keep going.
Good luck!
Check out FlyLady. She helps you get organized. Most of the suggestions are pretty obvious, but I must admit I don't think about cleaning and consider more efficient ways to do it. Therefore, she is genius!! Household charts and everything. My children manage to make a huge mess right after I clean something, so I understand about having to re-organize a lot. I had to do that when I finally got to come off of bedrest with #5. I try to stick to the cottage rule: if it is not both lovely and useful, get rid of it. The less there is to dust, the happier I am!! :)And we have a mess quiet often... we have 7 people in about 1100 sq ft. Lots of baskets and boxes.... :)
When I start getting overwhelmed I just remind myself, "one thing at a time" and work on the thing that bothers me the most first. Eventually it will all get done, just remind yourself that it didn't happen overnight and it isn't going to be back to normal overnight either.
This will seem too simple, but when things get out of control here at my house, I walk from room to room to room with a notebook and make a very detailed list of things that need done. Then I prioritize the list, and when I have some time to work on the list, I simply work on the FIRST THING on the list. It makes it feel way less overwhelming...just focus on the FIRST THING. Then once it's crossed off, the new FIRST THING is your focus.
And I'm a list fanatic...there's very little that feels better as a housewife than crossing things off my list! :)
Momma Bird has a great idea! I do something similar, but I use a site called "My Ta-Da Lists." It's totally free, and you can make as many lists as you want. I don't just have them for each room, I have them for sections of rooms. For instance, I have one list called "Large Kitchen Counter" that lists every task from putting food away to wiping under the toaster. I can go back to the site any time, but what I did was to print the pages out and put them in page protectors. They are all in an 8.5 x 11 household binder. I check off my lists right on the plastic with a dry-erase marker.
Oh...and I detest housework so I'm always looking for different ways to do it. Someone mentioned the site "Random.org." There is a free sequence generator there. So I plug in a range from, say, 1 to 14 (for 14 separate jobs in my living room) and it comes back with the numbers in a random order, and that's how I clean. Hey, the queen isn't coming any time soon, but at least my house is somewhat presentable every day!
When in doubt, start by just throwing away stuff, donating, etc. I just gave every single piece of size 6 clothing to my sister -- I'm pregnant and won't see that size again till I stop nursing at the very least, and that's a long, long way off. It feels like such a relief not to have all those clothes just lurking there making me feel guilty about not being that size. I am REALLY trying to purge more of my house to get rid of so many things that have just hung around and gotten moved from place to place for no good reason. Like books... I'm a huge reader and used to show off my books, like a huge ID tag in my house that said "HELLO!! I AM A READER!!!"... now I read them and pass them on, keeping just a few absolute favorites.
Good luck! I had a broken foot this fall so I hear ya on the finally coming back to life bit. :-)
FlyLady is a good suggestion because she teaches baby-steps.
Our out-of-season clothes are in the laundry room on shelves. My kids will go get a pair or 2 of shorts, & I'll start watching their pants for signs of being too short/tight. I toss those in the Goodwill box, which makes room for the next seasons clothes in the dresser.
Post a Comment