This is a topic that always comes up when women are talking.
"Oh I've been sooo busy lately!"
"There just isn't enough time in the day!"
"I don't know how to get it all done!"
"I can't keep up."
It's a common theme in all of our lives, no matter what our circumstances are. It doesn't matter if you have one kid or 7, work outside the home or stay home or work from home, married or not.......the tasks seem endless and the days too short. I find that I pendulum between "super-mom" and "losing-it-mom" most of the time. How do I find balance? I know I can't be super mom and I don't ever want to be losing-it-mom, but how do I do that?
One thing I have discovered is that the more kids you have, the worse it gets! There are more mouths to feed, more messes to clean, more stuff in the house to manage, more fighting going on, more training needed, more love to give, more safety concerns, more, more, more! I think it is possible to "wing it" (as is my personality and my preference) if you've got a couple kids - maybe - but past that and it's either going to be complete chaos or things are gonna run smoothly (aka discipline and a plan).
For years we've had the same old problems in our home -
I can't seem to keep up with the laundry (now it is worse than ever!)
There's too much clutter and we can't find what we need when we need it.
The dishes are endless and the kitchen is always a mess! (Matthew doesn't dare try to cook in there most of the time)
My office is a dumping ground and too small of a room with too much going on in it.
On top of all that, I am trying to get a workshop for my new business set up in my basement and because power tools and foster children don't mix, that means we have to have a whole room made for it - build a wall with a lockable door and move all my storage........
STEP 1: DECLUTTER
I am in the midst of GETTING RID OF AS MUCH STUFF AS POSSIBLE. Most of it is donated or thrown out and a few things have been sold, but there is much more to sell/get rid of. I think one issue is that, sure, I get rid of lots, but I get given lots, too! I'm gonna have to stop giving other people's junk a loving home.....that's all there is to it.
STEP 2: ORGANIZE WHAT YOU'VE GOT LEFT.
This is so much easier said than done and it's gonna be difficult if you still have too much stuff (which most of us are guilty of). The way I am doing this is I am making a list of all the things in my entire house that need storage. Example: Bedding, clothing, dishes, out of season platters/baking pans etc, sewing, keepsakes, toiletries, toys, files, artwork, tools, craft supplies, out of season clothing/coats/hats/mitts etc. , baby accessories (highchair, cradle, exersaucer, swing, etc). Then I decide where it should be stored, how much room it needs, if it needs to be purged further, and what it should be stored in.
What you store something in makes a HUGE difference. For example, all my kids clothes that don't fit are stored in rubbermaids labeled according to size, so every time I do laundry, the small pile of "no-longer-fits" is easy to put away in storage. But it's NOT easy to put away (even though it's so nicely categorized) cuz the rubbermaids are in a dark room in the basement - they are stacked on each other - and I have to unstack them, find the right one, and then take the lid off to put the stuff in = HASSLE. So what happens instead is I throw all the clothing in a grocery bag, run it down the stairs....and pitch it in a corner or on top of something to deal with on a rainy day. So I need to get some bins that have slide out drawers, like those craft carts, I think. Or dog food bins, or something like that, to store our out of seasons in.
IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO USE YOUR STORAGE SOLUTION THEN IT IS NOT A SOLUTION.
That's enough for today, I think. I guess this is now a "getting back on your feet" series and this is part 1. It's all about time management, stuff management, and discipline......not fun, but necessary and VERY rewarding :) This is gonna be fun! See you soon...........
"Oh I've been sooo busy lately!"
"There just isn't enough time in the day!"
"I don't know how to get it all done!"
"I can't keep up."
It's a common theme in all of our lives, no matter what our circumstances are. It doesn't matter if you have one kid or 7, work outside the home or stay home or work from home, married or not.......the tasks seem endless and the days too short. I find that I pendulum between "super-mom" and "losing-it-mom" most of the time. How do I find balance? I know I can't be super mom and I don't ever want to be losing-it-mom, but how do I do that?
One thing I have discovered is that the more kids you have, the worse it gets! There are more mouths to feed, more messes to clean, more stuff in the house to manage, more fighting going on, more training needed, more love to give, more safety concerns, more, more, more! I think it is possible to "wing it" (as is my personality and my preference) if you've got a couple kids - maybe - but past that and it's either going to be complete chaos or things are gonna run smoothly (aka discipline and a plan).
For years we've had the same old problems in our home -
I can't seem to keep up with the laundry (now it is worse than ever!)
There's too much clutter and we can't find what we need when we need it.
The dishes are endless and the kitchen is always a mess! (Matthew doesn't dare try to cook in there most of the time)
My office is a dumping ground and too small of a room with too much going on in it.
On top of all that, I am trying to get a workshop for my new business set up in my basement and because power tools and foster children don't mix, that means we have to have a whole room made for it - build a wall with a lockable door and move all my storage........
STEP 1: DECLUTTER
I am in the midst of GETTING RID OF AS MUCH STUFF AS POSSIBLE. Most of it is donated or thrown out and a few things have been sold, but there is much more to sell/get rid of. I think one issue is that, sure, I get rid of lots, but I get given lots, too! I'm gonna have to stop giving other people's junk a loving home.....that's all there is to it.
STEP 2: ORGANIZE WHAT YOU'VE GOT LEFT.
This is so much easier said than done and it's gonna be difficult if you still have too much stuff (which most of us are guilty of). The way I am doing this is I am making a list of all the things in my entire house that need storage. Example: Bedding, clothing, dishes, out of season platters/baking pans etc, sewing, keepsakes, toiletries, toys, files, artwork, tools, craft supplies, out of season clothing/coats/hats/mitts etc. , baby accessories (highchair, cradle, exersaucer, swing, etc). Then I decide where it should be stored, how much room it needs, if it needs to be purged further, and what it should be stored in.
What you store something in makes a HUGE difference. For example, all my kids clothes that don't fit are stored in rubbermaids labeled according to size, so every time I do laundry, the small pile of "no-longer-fits" is easy to put away in storage. But it's NOT easy to put away (even though it's so nicely categorized) cuz the rubbermaids are in a dark room in the basement - they are stacked on each other - and I have to unstack them, find the right one, and then take the lid off to put the stuff in = HASSLE. So what happens instead is I throw all the clothing in a grocery bag, run it down the stairs....and pitch it in a corner or on top of something to deal with on a rainy day. So I need to get some bins that have slide out drawers, like those craft carts, I think. Or dog food bins, or something like that, to store our out of seasons in.
IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO USE YOUR STORAGE SOLUTION THEN IT IS NOT A SOLUTION.
That's enough for today, I think. I guess this is now a "getting back on your feet" series and this is part 1. It's all about time management, stuff management, and discipline......not fun, but necessary and VERY rewarding :) This is gonna be fun! See you soon...........
You are preaching to the choir over here! I am drowning under laundry and clutter with no end in sight. This summer, I felt like I was making a dent in it, but now that homeschooling has started for the year, it is overwhelming again and the amount of stuff just keeps growing.
ReplyDeleteI find that it helps if I label my bins on the side and the top. That way, I can find them more easily, but pull out drawers would be a good idea, though if I did that, my kids would get into them and pull things out of the drawers, so I know it wouldn't work for me.