Guest Post ~ Getting Organised…. Tips for Mum’s.
This time last week, we began to get our “command centre” organised to hopefully help iron out some of our organisation issues. I am always seacrhing out tips from other Mums about how they stay organised! Why re invent the wheel when so many Mums have so many amazing and simple ideas! So today’s guest post, by Alyce of Blossom Heart, is all about organising….tips from one mother to another!
If there was an award for procrastinating, I’d be a runner for top prize. If it was an Olympic sport, I’d be on the podium. I build tasks up in my head as being much bigger than they really are. That to do the various household chores will take fooooorEVER! But after having almost 3 weeks of solo parenting while my husband was away, I had to get my butt into gear because there was no one else to pick up after me.
Firstly, each night, or morning, or any time I think of anything I need to do, I jot it down in the appropriate section of my diary (I have it divided into morning, afternoon and evening) – if it’s something I plan to do while Jonathan sleeps, it goes in the Afternoon box for the day. Or if it’s something I can do at night, like some sewing, it goes in the Night box… I think you get the idea.
A couple of other things I’m implementing to get this butt into gear and to get my life into some sense of organisation…
- No computer at night unless necessary. By this I mean actually watching the TV with my husband instead of reading blogs at the same time. By necessary I mean by study, or looking up holiday activities with my husband, or booking flights for a surprise last minute trip in a couple of weeks!
- Do the dishwasher and laundry everyday. I recently posted about how to be efficient in the laundry, including doing at least one load each day. I also make sure I empty the dishwasher and restack it so that it can go on after dinner’s all done. Repeat the next day!
- Employ my little helpers. Jonathan isn’t even 2 yet, but when I remember, I get him to help me do some tasks – he loves putting his plastic bowls and plates back in their own little cupboard under the sink and putting some cutlery away (with mummy’s help of course). And don’t you dare get in between him and the washing machine! I’ll hand him the dirty clothes to put in, and he’ll hand me the clean, wet clothes to put in the dryer. Even Isabelle helps – she hates being left alone for too long, but is happy enough cooing away on the spare bedroom floor while I make the spare bed, or jumping in her Jumperoo while I clean the kitchen.
There a couple of things I still want to put in place:
- Cleaning schedule. I’m not a good cleaner. That’s usually my husband’s department (along with cooking tea… I love it!). But I’m planning on making a little list of a few tasks to do each week, and dividing it up between the days. Mondays might be bathroom day, or maybe vacuuming, or perhaps bed sheets?
- Cooking routine. Yes, my husband cooks most of the meals in our house – he loves unwinding after work by getting creative in the kitchen. And he ROCKS at it. I can literally count on one hand the number of meals that have bombed in the 3 years we’ve been married. But by a cooking routine, I mean cooking food for Isabelle. She’s almost at the solids stage, and has had her first couple of tastes (providing some classic First Food faces!). We cook up fruits and veg, puree the hell out of it, freeze in a silicone ice cube container and store them in containers in the freezer. It can be time consuming, but done in bulk, it saves time and money. So I need to work out when it’s best to get it all done each week/fortnight!
I have to say, getting my life in order feels great. I feel energised, organised, and the lack of guilt I used to feel over not getting enough done each day is wonderful! Here’s hoping I can continue this permanently…
Alyce is a stay-at-home mum to Jonathan, 22 months, and Isabelle, 5 months. She procrastinates blogs over at Blossom Heart about life as a wife, mother and a woman… and anything else that strikes her fancy.
What helps you stay organised? Any tips? “My Pigeon Pair” could use any help we can get!