Posted by

Monica

Posted on

August 27, 2013

Posted under

Daily Life, Family, Transparency

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5 Comments

I’m an OG, Baby

And by OG, I totally mean Organizing Gangsta.

When you have one child in full-day school and another in half-day preschool, the dilemma inevitably arises — how on earth should I spend my time??

On the one hand you can cram every single second with stuff that you never get to do alone — pee, shower, laundry, cleaning, dance around the house, exercise.

But on the other hand you can enjoy what you what you never get to enjoy alone — sit still, watch non-animated television, paint nails that are adult-sized, write, read, dream, think, pray.

And so today — after I dropped my youngest off at preschool — I found myself facing the conundrum head on and worried to death I’d make the wrong decision. (I mean, it’s a precious four hours [not counting 40 minutes total drive time if I do decide to go home and back] and wasting even a minute is tear-inducing.)

And since he’s in preschool four days a week, I realized today that I need to very carefully strategize how to best to utilize these minutes of liquid gold.

So that’s what I did. I strategized today, and I made a plan. And I actually (wait for it) — PUT IT IN WRITING.

(Gasp! Shock! Awe!)

Listen.

I know.

It is absolutely NO SECRET that I’m an anti-organizationally-gifted wife and mother. I’m very shoot-from-the-hip when it comes to meal planning, house cleaning, day-planning and everything else that requires home economical-type things.

But something happened today. I can’t describe exactly what happened when I dropped him off…but suddenly, I had the energy to do everything.

I exercised and them came home and cleaned bathrooms. Then I showered. Then I worked. Then I ate lunch and did laundry. Then I picked him up and we came home and he chilled and watched his new favorite show Paw Patrol while I got iced coffee ready and refrigerated, the kitchen straightened up some more, and laundry switched out.

It was as if that side-heel-clicky-jump thing I did in the parking lot after drop-off elicited magical productive powers.

Just look!

(Do you see the column for dinner? It’s GENIUS!)

Yes, I realize there are a lot of gaps to fill. Yes, it only goes through Thursday (let’s pace ourselves, shall we? Rome wasn’t built in a day). And yes, I realize this doesn’t include my work-related tasks and how to tackle the beast that is this book I want to finish writing by my 41st birthday just nine months from now (metaphorically mystical music inserted here). And of course, it doesn’t include time to work on the other fabulous project that I’M SO EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE SOON.

But y’all.

For me, this is HUGE. Not only do I have a pseudo-plan for my ~~life~~ days, I’m also getting Jaana onboard the “magically erase your responsibilities away” train. And she loves it! Just look!

I know what you’re thinking and I’ve already thought it: it’s been ONE. DAY.

Yes, that’s right.

But that one day ROCKED.

And this one day not only rocked, it was highly effective. And if a day to the Lord is like a thousand years, then this productive day of mine is like a thousand productive years to Him.

Which is more productivity than my mind can even handle.

(So I can totally bow out whenever I want and be done and you can’t. say. a. word.)

I promise I’m not going to turn into a home-organizing, meal-planning blogger — they amaze me and leave me speechless and I can’t compete. Plus, it’s just not in me and I couldn’t pull it off anyway. (And if that’s what drew you here, I am so sorry…you totally got punked.)

But I have to ask (just to plan ahead for the next thousand years, of course):

Do you have any easy, non-OCD, non-intimidating ways you stay organized you think I might try for a day??

Posted by

Monica

Posted on

December 31, 2012

Posted under

Reviews

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4 Comments

Getting it Together!

UPDATE: All the free copies of Kayse’s ebook have been distributed! You can still purchase your copy for just $3.99 by clicking one of the below options. Enjoy!

Purchase as a PDF for just $3.99.
Purchase for Kindle on Amazon for just $3.99.

– – – – –

The party line is that my husband knew what he was getting into before we got married.

I can cook some meals but am terrible at meal planning. Typically I run to the store after school and grab what I need for that night. I keep surfaces pretty clean but anything deep is in desperate need of professional help. I have brief bouts of organization — but if you’re type A and come over to my house you’re going to have a bit of a panic attack.

Just before Christmas actually, I felt really proud of myself because I bought two storage containers; in one I put all our paper/picnic items and in the other all gift/wrapping items. It was exhausting. When my husband opened the pantry and saw them he got pretty excited, because organization is his middle name. Really! (No, not really.) But his master’s is in Organizational Leadership so he gets all geeked out with anything organize-y in the house.

I, on the other hand, usually get geeked out with a DVR folder full of Rachel Zoe just waiting to be watched. (Will this ever come on again?!)

(Don’t judge me!)

It’s not that I’m lazy (really!) or just don’t care. I do — I really, really do. I think the crux of it is that there always seems like there’s so much to do that I get totally overwhelmed and just shrug it off altogether. The problem…as is with most areas of my life…is that I have no plan.

When my bloggy friend Kayse told me about an e-book she wrote about setting up a home management that works, I have to be honest. My first reaction was, “well, isn’t’ that nice.” Because I knew she was super-excited about writing it, and even more excited about helping woe-be-gone’s like me get a handle on our disarray. But after I read the book, my next reaction was, “okay…I think I might could do this.” (I often talk to myself with random southern lingo that is not native to me.)

Because what Kayse helps me do is make a plan.

Now granted, her plan includes creating a cute and crafty binder to house all this system and information. And I’ve never once scrapbooked or anything…so my binder is plain and not fancy. But the beauty is that you can do whatever you need to in order to make it work for you. And the best part is the over 30 printables included that help you systematically make a plan.

The part that has helped me the most is the daily and weekly cleaning tasks. Because it helps me make a plan and instead of getting overwhelmed that all the bathrooms need scrubbing at one time…I just list out which bathroom I’m doing on which day. And I can eat that elephant one bite at a time. I also love the takeout tracker and babysitter information. Because my junk drawer is stuffed with restaurant menus and here in the mountains, schedules change based on seasons. And my pathetic jotting down of the kids’ info on the dry-erase board is at times haphazard and incomplete. Poor sitters.

The great news is that Kayse’s e-book is available today and there are many ways to get it!

Purchase as a PDF for just $3.99.
Purchase for Kindle on Amazon for just $3.99.

There’s also going to be a fun Twitter party on Thursday, January 3 at 10 pm Eastern using the hashtag #gettingittogether. This will be a fun way for us all to talk about New Year’s Resolutions, home management tips and tricks and more. And who knows…I might be able to tweet that I have organized all the photos we’ve had sitting in a box for ten years. Anything is possible.

If all that isn’t enough — one lucky person is going to win a free set of custom printables from Kayse’s book. You’ll be able to choose your own colors, fonts, etc. Just enter the giveaway via Rafflecopter below and who knows…it could be you! Click the graphic below to enter.

Thanks y’all — hope you had a blessed Christmas and are eagerly anticipating a blessed and most favorable new year!

I received a free copy of “Getting it Together; Your Guide to Setting up a Home Management System that Works” for review. I was not compensated, and these opinions are my own.