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Cleaning Up:  How Do You Manage Your Time?  |
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therusticcottage
True Blue Farmgirl
4439 Posts
Kay
Vancouver
WA
USA
4439 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 3:12:24 PM
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I've seen others ask about time management and this topic has been on my mind for a couple of weeks now. I know that as Farmgirls we all have lots to do just to keep things running smoothly. Throw hubby, kids, and animals into that mix -- and a full-time job for some -- and things can get out of control very fast.
I just never seem to be able to get everything done that I want to do in a day. Sometimes I feel like I just drift throught the day not accomplishing anything. I either let the house go so that I can work on sewing or other projects or the projects and house go by the wayside while I work outside. Then there are the days I don't get anything done because it's my day to go into town to shop. Today I went to help Steve's grandma and didn't get home until 2:30.
Please share your daily schedule or time management tips. Also, Aunt Jenny mentioned chore charts for her kids. I need help with that for my one kid. HELP!
Kay - Living in Beautiful Washington State
"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face."
--Eleanor Roosevelt |
Edited by - therusticcottage on Aug 02 2005 3:13:15 PM |
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connio
True Blue Farmgirl
535 Posts
connie
springtown
texas
USA
535 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 4:04:09 PM
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Hey Farm Girls!
Time Management. This has been the bane of my existence all of my adult life. I have attended numerous seminars, read dozens of books (when I was organized enough to find them after I brought them home), subscribed to the Fly Lady website and a few others that I can't even remember, but alas, things are better but not wonderful.
I have learned to move faster, have given up needing to be perfect in all that I do and have also learned to say no to requests in the community. I also recently resigned from the last Community Board on which I was serving and from a book group that read titles that I did not even like.
However, there is still NEVER ENOUGH TIME. I have considered getting a higher paying job so that I could hire people to help, but in a way this seems counterproductive because I am enjoying being at home and doing my own tasks. Fly Lady calls taking care of these tasks "The Weekly Home Blessing", I believe.
Will look forward to hearing from all on this. In the meantime, I will leave the library to go home, take care of the animals, do about 8 loads of wash, mop the floors, vaccum, water the plants and crash so that I can be at a meeting by 9am tomorrow morning.
Really wish that I had more time to chat here, create mail art, read and work with my flowers.
Connie
cozycottage |
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little feather
True Blue Farmgirl
83 Posts
Tawnya
Walnut Creek
California
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 4:45:36 PM
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Oh, this is a good one!
I work full time, have Hubby, my three sons- will travel!
I do all the house cleaning, cooking, shopping, laundry, bill paying- you name it.
My Hubby- Mr. Wonderful- fixes everything and anything, is making a deck, made me a closet, does wallpaper, tile, painting, you name it. He's you're all around Mr. Handy Man.
So- I'm not complaining here! I feel the load is balanced, most of the time. Hee hee..
What I do- I make little post it notes- everywhere! Pay this bill, make this phone call, buy this, go there, make this appointment, blah, blah, blah....
During the Mon.-Thur., my nightly routine is- cook dinner, clean up dinner, make lunches, help with homework, do laundry, get kids ready for bed. Now, for my "free" time, I log on here, take a much needed shower for peace, and kit the bed. If it's TV night for Hubby and I, I will pull out my knitting. If not, I read- or we will watch a movie.
Fri. night- MY night. I come home, let the kids do what they will- and CHILL out. Which for me is reading, working on my quilts, knitting or trying to learn to a new craft.
The weekend is for cleaning house, home projects, gardening (my haven!) and if I'm not too pooped- I will work on my quilts or work on some of my "charity" projects. - Mostly Sundays after Church. I go around and make my donations- or take time to work on the Children's toys.
I'm hoping to add Mail Art to my list very soon! As soon as I get the address list.
BUT- throw a wrench into my well oiled plan and I'm lucky to get much done at all. And, doesn't it seem that the wrench gets thrown in more often than not?
I guess, I would say- multi tasking is my key to sanity!
Of course- there is NEVER enough time to do the things you want to do- once you find them......
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 6:51:17 PM
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I make deals with myself...like..."if I get two loads of laundry done and hung on the line I can sew for an hour" or "once the living room and family room are clean I can knit for 30 min" or stuff like that. I love flylady but don't always stick to it. I should though!!
My chore chart for my kids is really easier than a chart..it is a little plaque with 4 pegs along the bottom (one of the unfinished ones you can get at any crafts store) that I painted and put four Jobs (ours are: pet helper, kitchen helper, bathroom helper and trash helper) along the bottom just above the pegs and then I have 4 little "tags" actually cloth little pillows with their names on the pillows, with little jute twine loops to hang on the pegs. Each Saturday morning I moved the names down to the right one peg, to the next job....I tried changing it daily..that was a nightmare..I was always forgetting to change it or the kids were making deals with each other and not keeping up with it..not a good plan..so we went to weekly and that has worked great for us. I put a little list of what the job means (they conveniently forget otherwize) and hang it in a handy spot fo that job...inside the cabinet in the bathroom for bathroom helper, by the dog food for the pet helper, etc..I list every detail so they can't play dumb. They arn't done until they check the list.
Oh...I sound like warden in a kid prison I guess..but we have another rule that I love. The TV is not to be turned on until ALL the beds are made. I LOVE it...the beds always get made.!!
I get the kids school clothes ready for the whole week on Saturday for the coming weeek. The kids and I made fun foam tags that say Monday thru Friday on them and their names and they help me pick out their outfits for the week. That saves me alot of time in the mornings when shcool starts..I don't do it so much in summer....and saves alot of headaches too. My youngest daughter has a wierd sense of "style" and would go to shcool dressed like Halloween every day if I didn't plan ahead.
I like the post it note idea too..I do that with things to add to my lists..which are everywhere. If I cleaned up all the lists It would look alot less cluttered here!!
I try hard not to get stressed out when my plans don't work out though, life is just too short to miss out on making aprons or watching little league games to have a perfectly clean house (not that mine EVER is perfectly clean!)
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things! |
Edited by - Aunt Jenny on Aug 02 2005 6:52:44 PM |
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little feather
True Blue Farmgirl
83 Posts
Tawnya
Walnut Creek
California
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 8:31:44 PM
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Aunt Jenny,
I love your idea for the chore chart! That would help out so much here with these boys. They fight all the time about whose turn it is to do what- and, yes, the deal making! My goodness- it's enough to drive a Mom batty!
I am also going to use your idea of making a list of what the "chore" actually consists of! That is perfect! We are ALWAYS having to remind them, "did you clean out the dog's water dish and give them fresh water?", "did you rinse off the plates and put them in the dishwasher?", I'm sure you can relate!
I make lists too- every weekend, what needs to get done. But, I try during the week to just use my post-it-notes. It keeps me from becoming overwhelmed. If I have only say five little notes of stuff I need to make sure gets taken care of, I feel like; Hey, I can do that. Also, what I love most- recycling my post-its! Gone- done- next!
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost |
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therusticcottage
True Blue Farmgirl
4439 Posts
Kay
Vancouver
WA
USA
4439 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 9:12:17 PM
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Jenny, I love your idea about the plaque. I could do a peg for hubby too! I could have Steph help in one area each week so she's always changing -- that would work. And she loves lists so that would be a big help so she knows exactly what to do. Getting the school clothes ready for the whole week is an absolutely excellent idea. This is always where we have trouble and then there's arguing every morning.
I know that I need to learn to relax with my house, and I really have compared to how I used to be. When Missy was little I used to even pull out all the furniture to clean behind it every week. But now if there's dust -- oh well! I do get stressed out if there's clutter and work every day to keep it picked up. But if I had a whole bunch of kids I'd probably relax more with that one too.
Thanks for sharing all your ideas.
Kay - Living in Beautiful Washington State
"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face."
--Eleanor Roosevelt |
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Whimsy_girl
True Blue Farmgirl
576 Posts
USA
576 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 9:29:33 PM
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Aunt Jenny, I also use flylady and love her. At the old house when my computer was on the main floor I had everything spotless, now my computer is in the basement and I don't leave it on all the time to get the reminders, so by the time I check it it's all at once and so overwhelming I don't do anything!!
Not to mention, the baby wasn't a mobile unit yet so I only had one kid to pick up after now with the 2 things are being destroyed faster than I can get them put back together.
During their naptime is the only time I get in the garden which looks great  but the rest of the house is getting pretty rough. Most of the time if I can keep the main rooms clean I'm ok, but it seems that as soon as I clean something up there are toys all over the clear space I just made. (They are 22 months and 9 months so they don't get the concept of putting toys away yet)
you can be oh so smart, or you can be oh so positive. I wasted a lot of time being smart I prefer being positive. James Stewart in the movie HARVEY |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2005 : 9:59:44 PM
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I never have figured out how to have my garden look great at the same time my house looks great...so right now the garden looks worse than the house..last week the garden looked better..oh well.
My kids are 10, 9 and two 8 year olds and we have another thing called "tattle chores". If one of them tattles on another (if it isn't someone hurting someone or doing something innappropriate) they get a chore for tattling. It helps me get little things like sock folding and porch sweeping done and gives them time to think about whether they will tattle again next time. If anyone hits anyone that person has to clean up dog poop. Boy, this summer has been a very non violent summer. I have had to do all the dog poop scooping myself most of the time. I figure as long as they know what the consequence will be it is their choice.
One thing that I always do is that no matter what the living room has to be really clean by 10am. And I like the bathroom to be clean too. I actually try to do that the night before. They are the first room people see. I love the clean the kitchen, so that comes easy to me..the family room and bedrooms are what is left..and the laundry room/ sewing room never seems to be all the way clean. But...at least the front of the house always looks good.
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things! |
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Eileen
True Blue Farmgirl
1199 Posts
Eileen
USA
1199 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 09:19:13 AM
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I had chores lists at my house too while I had children living at home all the way through high school! The kids called me the warden when they thought I could not hear them. Somehow they always thought I must have had eyes in the back of my head but it was really just a mirror on a wall that I could see from one room into another. I am not sure if they ever figured that one out. Any way the lists I made were f lists.On a weekly basis each child would rotate to the next list. I had calligraphied the originals and photocopied many copies of each one. There was a check box for each day of the week the job needed to be done in front of each job and when done the child would get to choose a special sticker from the sticker box to put on the page. I had to change this as the children got older into monetary rewards but it still worked like a charm. We had 3 children so the fourth list was of things that they could do volunterily if they wanted to earn a little extra money for a special treat at the end of the week. Jenny, at my house animal care including dog poop was a designated duty and responsibility of the priveledge of having animals to love and care for. They did not get out of it at my house.
Discipline was handled in another way that I found very effective. If they were fighting or physically abusing eachother they had to sit in a chair facing eachother until they both could think of something positive to say about and to the other one. My daughter still to this day tells me how much she hated this exercise but how much she appreciates it now because it taught her the value of her siblings in a way a lot of kids do not get. Property damage issues in discipline involved repairing the damage at their own expense. This does not mean an accidental baseball through a window this means a deliberate act of breaking something belonging to someone else. I still have the original copies of the chores lists in my ceder chest.
Eileen
songbird; singing joy to the earth |
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quiltedess
True Blue Farmgirl
296 Posts
Nancy
Priest River
ID
USA
296 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 09:31:54 AM
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I like www.flylady.net to help me. I'm never fully organized though. I blame it on ADD because I flit and float from one thing to another without hardly thinking about it until I have 15 unfinished chores going. I like lists too, but Flylady has helped me more than anything. She's big on routines and that makes a lot of sense.
Nancy |
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Fabulous Farm Femmes
True Blue Farmgirl
792 Posts
Diane
Lakebay, Tacoma
WA
792 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 10:12:57 AM
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I have a confession to make: I am a recovering perfectionist/clean freak. It started when we were sent overseas by the military to a foreign country where I had no radio,no phone,no neighbors who spoke English, couldn't drive,husband worked nights & slept all day, no money and two small children.It actually got so bad that if I had to leave the house to go somewhere, the ENTIRE house had to be spotless and my family was waiting in the hall while I mopped the floors behind me as I left....This continued until we resettled in our home town 10 years later and I had wasted most of my kids childhood cleaning and picking up instead of playing, which I now regret more than just about anything in my life.
As I got older, had some therapy and (screw you Tom Cruise)found out I was clinically depressed and started with some antidepressants,and since the whole world has changed.Found out it was all about CONTROL.From an abusive childhood with an alcoholic mother who never expressed joy,and then the isolation of the foreign country, my room and later my home was the only thing I had control over.And control it I did.What a waste of time.I have tried to apologize to my kids, and now they are older they seem to understand, but I still greatly regret that time.
So girls, if your sewing room is messy, so at least you are sewing! If the kitchen is messy, at least you are cooking healthy meals for the ones you love. Whimsy Girl, you will have toys all over your floor for a little while longer, but that means you have toddlers who need you to play on the floor with them. They are little for SO short a time,and that's why they call it a LIVING room..live in it.When we all stand before the Lord someday, the little dresses you made and the meals you made and the fun you had and the love you gave are going to add up to something wonderful, and the lack of perfection and worry as wasted time.
Okay I'll get off my soapbox now!
Okay I'll get off my soapbox now! |
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little feather
True Blue Farmgirl
83 Posts
Tawnya
Walnut Creek
California
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 10:59:19 AM
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Fabulous Farm Femmes:
Reading your post reminded me of one of one of my favorite poems. It's posted on my frig just so my Husband and I never forget- never take for granted. I hope y'all like is as much!
If I Had My Child to Raise Over Again
By: Diane Loomans
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If I had my child to raise all over again,
I'd finger-paint more and point the finger less.
I'd do less correcting and more connecting.
I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.
I would care to know less and know to care more.
I'd take more hikes and fly more kites.
I'd stop playing serious, and seriously play.
I'd run through more fields and gaze at more stars.
I'd do more hugging and less tugging.
I would be firm less often, and affirm much more.
I'd build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I'd teach less about the love of power,
and more about the power of love.
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Fabulous Farm Femmes
True Blue Farmgirl
792 Posts
Diane
Lakebay, Tacoma
WA
792 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 10:37:56 PM
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| AMEN! |
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Whimsy_girl
True Blue Farmgirl
576 Posts
USA
576 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 10:52:01 PM
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You are very right about that Fab Farm Femmes, I didn't intend to sound like I was complaining about my kidlets, but rereading my post does indeed look that way. I try to spend as much time with them as I can, thats why I reserve my cleaning times to their naptime. It's just hard to do the garden and the house in that amount of time... I suppose I COULD be cleaning now, but after 10:00 at night, if I'm going to short myself on sleep to do anything it's going to be doing something I enjoy :)
I Really liked that little poem from above, I printed it out to put on my fridge!
you can be oh so smart, or you can be oh so positive. I wasted a lot of time being smart I prefer being positive. James Stewart in the movie HARVEY |
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Fabulous Farm Femmes
True Blue Farmgirl
792 Posts
Diane
Lakebay, Tacoma
WA
792 Posts |
Posted - Aug 03 2005 : 11:06:23 PM
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Whimsey Girl, didn't think you were whining...we ALL remember what it was like when the kids were little...I got a year and a half long reminder when my suddenly single mom daughter moved in with a 3 and 1/2 year old, a one year old and a 3 month old.They were here for over a year, a long hard year, but we just rolled with the punches this time. The house was a wreck most of the time, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Sometimes God gives you a second chance.
My Grandma used to remind me "This too shall pass".And it does, faster than you will ever think once they are grown..hang in there! |
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TheSoapMaven
True Blue Farmgirl
691 Posts
Susan
LA
USA
691 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2005 : 05:28:47 AM
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Fabulous Farm Femmes you made me spit coffee!!! Yeah...that Tom Cruise is an expert, I'd say. NOT!!! Anyway. I keep a notebook. Lists and lists...list that carry over. Actually going to buy a new one today. The old one is filled to over filled! I am in a state of disorganization at the moment and it is making me crazy. Our (home)school starts here Sept 5 and I am working on lesson plans. I have picked up two possibly three new wholesale soap accounts so I am working on that and am really blessed to see orders in my mailbox everyday. Plus with autumn approaching, I have an open house to plan!! Any suggestions on that would be much appreciated.
Somehow the most important things get done. Gardening is slowing for now...we will plant fall garden first of Sept. My mom is doing really well right now, thankfully. So all is good in this 'hood. Busy as bees but SO blessed.
Blessings & Bliss!.· ´¨¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
((¸¸.·´ .·´ -:¦:-~Susan~
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´*
Wife, Mother, Natural Woman, Savonnière, Writer, Baker, Gardener.
Wife to Jerry for 27+ years
Mom to Zach, Gesikah, Nathan, Hannah, Rachel and Benjamin
Yetta to Sam
Proprietress of Dahlem's Soapworks
http://www.thesoapmaven.com
"It's no bad thing to celebrate a simple life" ~ Bilbo Baggins
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Kathigene
True Blue Farmgirl
160 Posts
Kathy
New York
160 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2005 : 08:10:41 AM
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I really belong in this forum. I'm recently out on permantent disability and although I do things slowly I thought having the whole day to myself would mean that I would start to see progress made in my house but I was amazed at how many days zoomed right by with nothing done.
Of course, my life is complicated by a number of health problems. I have mixed connective tissue disease. Basically that means that my body is trying to kill itself. It's a rare auto immune disease. The major symptoms are joint pain and mind numbing fatigue. But what I learned early on was that even if I worked for 10 minutes and rested for 20, as long as I kept going I could get get quite a bit done.
I've had this disease for 20 years or more and now I have a bunch of stuff going on in my back and last year they discovered a herniated disk in my neck. I had surgery for the neck - not because of any pain because I wasn't having any but because I could no longer walk in a straight line and I was getting so weak that stepping up on a curb was a challenge. I had hoped that walking more normally would alleviate the pain from my back. Nope!! Oh well so finally I decided I couldn't put myself through this any more and I took the advice of my doctors and left my job.
I'm also depressed! (I feel the same way about Tom Cruise. What the heck does he know!!) I lost my mom about 10 years ago and it was like my reason for living disappeared. I had taken care of her for half of my life. I was 42 years old and I had left college when I was 20 or 21 to come home and take care of her. Yes, I had a full time job, and trained my dogs but every waking moment really was focused on keeping Mom comfortable and alive. She had lung and heart disease from smoking. But eventually I got on with life! Started dating a little -Try that in your late 40's. Got more active in the dog training. Got laid off from my job of 20 years but got a new one right away. And a better one I might add.
Then two years ago my oldest sister died. She was only 15 years younger then my mom and twenty years older then me. Suddenly Mom was gone again and along with my sister all the family history went with her. I have one sister left but she also has lung cancer and has already outlived what they thought she would. And she doesn't talk about her childhood. If I have a specific question, she might know the answer but she doesn't really care about that stuff the way my mom and oldest sister did. Suddenly I'm the only was who does, and I don't remember as much as I should.
I also begain to realize that the last 5 or 6 years I've been living like a kid with ADD. I don't have any problem focusing but I think that with the challenges of the new job, deteriorating health, the new difficult commute that came with the new job, I had nothing left for home. So when I got home everything just landed where it landed and stayed there forever!!
So what have I been doing to get myself out of this mess!! My first life saver is a Palm Pilot or what ever suits your life like it. I tried all the paper planners and they are just too big for me to carry around with me. I bought the cheapest one on the market a few years ago and for the first time in years I didn't lose phone numbers and miss appointments. I had it about 4 years and then I went to a dog show in Buffalo NY in January and I killed it leaving it in the car!! Bad bad owner!! Well I thought I could get along with out it. That was a mistake!! I was losing numbers and I missed appointments. So I gave up and bought a new one. Yes the initial investiment is high but it is the only thing that keeps me on track!! I try to be religious about syncing the computer and handheld which is one of the things that is important to do. And if you treat it well it will last a long time and you don't need one with bells and whistles you need the most basic model out there.
The second thing that I found helped me is to make a rolling to do list. I tried doing this in the computer software that came with the palm pilot but I might not open it and then gets covered up by that fun game or that interesting article and I forget it's there. The to do list is in a honking big thick date book I got on sale. I use various glittery colored pens in it and it sits where I see it almost all the time. I can't forget it because it's sitting right there looking at me but it's pretty and glittery and colorful so it doesn't annoy me it just reminds me. And especially if you are really stuck put down stuff you love to do or know you are going to do so you have the pleasure of marking it off. And reward yourself!!
I try to keep a "to buy" list but I'm not very successful with that since I never seem to bring it with me, however once I write it down I seem to be much more apt to remember it so just writing it down does help. I may try a post it note type thing with my big old date book.
I've just started a craft project list hopefully so I won't just pick up what's at hand but do what I really want to do next and also so that when yarn or craft paint is on sale I can look in my list and say oh yes I need 3 bottles of colonial blue etc. Or that I don't buy duplicates. I'm also going to start a house projects list with the same type of things in it. That's going to be awfully long!!
I sound like I know what I'm doing but my problem is staying on track. If I look in my date book I used it on 3-29 and then on 5-10 and then again starting this month. But I know that when I was using it every day in January, I got a lot done. So I know it can work for me.
I hope you guys have managed to make it through this long message. I feel so at home here. I carry MaryJane's book around and keep handing it to people to look at. And I think I might just buy a bunch of them and give them to everyone on my Christmas list, in the hopes they will remember what is important in life.
Kathy in New York
Dogs make such good friends because they wag their tails rather then their tongues. |
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Fabulous Farm Femmes
True Blue Farmgirl
792 Posts
Diane
Lakebay, Tacoma
WA
792 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2005 : 12:56:29 PM
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| Soap Maven Susan- sorry I made you spit coffee-hope it didn't stain anything good.Well, really, Tom Cruise at this point knows about as much about reality as Osama Ben Laden knows about Catholicism. Give me a break. Yeah, if you can hire any kind of help in the world you want..housecleaning, cooking,drivers therapists, nannies..well then one might have time to try vitamins and exercise. But the rest of the world trying to keep meals on the table, bills paid and keep a smail on our face when we are so depressed we want to take a dirt nap, well that plan just doesn't work too darn well.It's like Madonna feeding the chickens in her designer gown..great idea if you can afford 10 more designer gowns when that one gets ruined with chicken poop. If I wore my nice dress to feed the chickens, more than likely I'd be going to church with chicken poop on me. |
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quiltedess
True Blue Farmgirl
296 Posts
Nancy
Priest River
ID
USA
296 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2005 : 5:08:03 PM
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Kathigene:
You are very wise. You have got a "system" that works and you don't give up even if you've gotten off track for a bit. Your words were inspiring. If you can do it with such disabilities, I can certainly do it with my healthy body.
Nancy |
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prairiesun
Farmgirl at Heart
4 Posts
Kansas
USA
4 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2005 : 10:11:17 PM
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| It's great to know I am not the only one running around like CRAZY! I don't even have pets, kids or a yard and I feel like there needs to be 8 more hours everyday just so I can sleep! As I am sure many of you also feel the same way, but I have soooooo many interests and still have to manage to pay bills and do daily chores. I am often reminded of a great quote 'The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get', so don't forget stop and enjoy the journey once in a while. The worst part about having not enough free time is not being able to 'chat' as much as I would like. There is such a great supply of knowledge, humor and inspiration from all of you. Here's to another busy day... |
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Kathigene
True Blue Farmgirl
160 Posts
Kathy
New York
160 Posts |
Posted - Aug 06 2005 : 07:11:52 AM
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Hi every one! One piece of the puzzle that has saved me hours and will eventually probably save me from ruin is on line bill pay. Three years ago I was having really dumb things like getting the cable and phone shut off because I hadn't gotten around to sending the payments. It wasn't a case of not having the money, it was a case of not having the time or the discipline to sit down and write the checks.
Now every single bill that can automatically come out of my checking account does. I admit that the way I get paid really helps. I'm paid on the last working day of the month and on the 15th of the month. So I always know when there will be money in the bank. If you're paid on every other Friday that complicates things a little more but I still think the overall convience is worth it.
A few of the bills I have to actually go on line and initiate the payment so I have to make sure I remember and if I had it to do over again I would have made them automatic. And I have a total of three annual bills left where I have to write checks. Dues to the dog club I belong to, the snow removal contract, and the auto club. This not only saves me tons of time but is slowly healing my credit score which was in tatters just because I was always late with everything.
Do I worry about on line fraud? Yes but in my opinion, what I've gained from doing things this way FAR out weights any increased chances I might be taking and actually I've read recently that more fraud starts with info gotten from your paper trash on the curb then from anything on the internet. And I no longer go into a panic every time the lights flicker that I might be months behind on my utility bill and I don't lay awake at night worrying that I haven't paid this or that. It has been a huge relief!!
It doesn't cost me a cent to do this through the bank I use and I would shop around and look for a bank where it doesn't cost you anything but remember you're saving on stamps, checks and the precious thing that you can never get back Time.
Kathy in New York
Dogs make such good friends because they wag their tails rather then their tongues. |
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therusticcottage
True Blue Farmgirl
4439 Posts
Kay
Vancouver
WA
USA
4439 Posts |
Posted - Aug 06 2005 : 08:12:04 AM
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I just joined the FlyLady website and am working on getting organized. Just keeping my sink shining and picking up the living room before bed has helped immensely. It's nice to get up in the AM to a completely empty sink and neat living room. Now if I could just get my daughter to pick up her room!?! Yesterday I took 5 minutes to tackle the edge of the counter where I tend to pile papers. That is totally cleaned off and everything put away. I think in terms of the whole picture instead of breaking it down into bites then I get overwhelmed. These little steps have made me feel so much better. Plus I'm getting moving earlier instead of sitting around drinking coffee in the AM.
And I've decided that I'm going to save the big sewing and stitching projects for when I'm cooped up inside after the rains start. I'm going to be outside playing in my yard and enjoying the sunshine as long as I can.
I totally agree about online billpay. We've paid our bills that way for over 4 years and love it. It saves so much time for me.
Kay - Living in Beautiful Washington State
"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face."
--Eleanor Roosevelt |
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Kathigene
True Blue Farmgirl
160 Posts
Kathy
New York
160 Posts |
Posted - Aug 06 2005 : 10:49:56 AM
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One thing that I'm thinking of doing that I haven't gotten to yet is setting up my shredder on a shelf in the garage near the door into the house. I'm trying to stop the "enemy" paper from entering the house!! I'm wondering if that would be a good place to put a file cabinent for paid bills. And I'm never sure how long to keep anything. Lots of things I never even see the actual bills any more. I look them up on line after I am notified that the bill is there for viewing. So the paper bills - how long do I need to keep them? Can I scan them and toss the paper? I've actually decided that I only need one month to make sure it acknowledges that last months payment was recieved but that's still kind of giving me a scare. But with my current paper unmanagement I probably couldn't find mail I recieved last week unless it's still in the van.
One warning though is to never leave the shredder plugged in if it's one of those auto feed models and most of them are now. Curious fingers and silly dogs and kitties might find it and set it off. And you know I might not want to share my house with mice but I don't want to find one in my shreder. ICK! Why did I think of that?
So the battle continues but I still can't say how much all the support and joy felt in the messages on these forums has helped me in the last few weeks. I feel arms of fellow sisters patting me on the back telling me I will get it done! Thank you all!
Kathy in New York
Dogs make such good friends because they wag their tails rather then their tongues. |
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Whimsy_girl
True Blue Farmgirl
576 Posts
USA
576 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2005 : 5:13:28 PM
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Oh how sad! I've been taking advantage of the fact that the girls have been entertaining eachother all day long.. and I've managed to waste the whole day looking stuff up online and posting here instead of doing anything around the house... someone else had mentioned how addictive this site is and how she keeps getting sucked in.. I don't recall who that was but I totally agree with them!! With no one needing my attention today my butt is starting to take the shape of my computer chair..
I'll leave and then think of something else I forgot to look up or ask and I keep coming back!
you can be oh so smart, or you can be oh so positive. I wasted a lot of time being smart I prefer being positive. |
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julia hayes
True Blue Farmgirl
1132 Posts
julia
medical lake
wa
USA
1132 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2005 : 9:53:54 PM
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This particular notion caught my attention. 'time management' 'the conveniences of daily life' 'there's never enough time'..I was considering these cliches while bent over my washing machine today and I was struck with an epiphany. Our work as homemakers truly never ends. The laundry never really gets completely done. Sure we may finish the last load but there's the end of the day's clothes and that dish rag that didn't make it into the load etc.. our work is continuous, often thankless and unrecognized, sometimes boring and mundane and yet I wouldn't trade my job for one outside my home. I've decided to change the saying
"If only I could get all my work done so could sit down and relax"
to something a little more forgiving and reflective of how we ought to "manage" our days
"If only I could relax and get some work done!"
We live in a muddled, hurried, complicated, overscheduled and incredibly inconvenient society/culture. We talk about simplifying our lives as if its a goal one strives to achieve instead of a reality one simply incorporates. Here's to descheduling our schedules...Here's to pausing in the moment..Here's to breathing deeply knowing that life is a short-lived gift!
How do I manage my day? one moment at a time and anything that gets done work, fun or otherwise is a success!
Blessings, Julia
being simple to simply be |
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greyghost
True Blue Farmgirl
650 Posts
Lynn
Summerville
Georgia
USA
650 Posts |
Posted - Aug 09 2005 : 5:23:45 PM
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My mother swears by FlyLady and had me try it out, but I have to admit I absolutely hated it! All those emails telling me to clean my sink - nag, nag, nag!!! I hated the visual clutter in my email box! My sink is usually clean anyway, my hubby creates the "hotspots" if he gets the mail & I just run along behind him on his days off, putting things away. HE may need flylady, but I don't!
I rarely seem to have the time to work on projects like sewing but I realized it's a hang-up I need to get over. It isn't that I don't have the time. I work from home but my work gets heavily concentrated for about two weeks a month and then I am practically free for the other two weeks. My husband, however, still works full time. And I feel guilty if I spend a day happily sewing away while he is working.
It's a mental problem I just can't seem to get around, even though I work 18-20 hour days on those two busy weeks! |
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Cleaning Up: How Do You Manage Your Time? |
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How Do You Manage Your Time?
