How do you simplify your life...

[WarriorMama]

...when you're feeling really overwhelmed?

 

Do you get rid of stuff by decluttering, institute routines, simplify school plans, hide in the closet and refuse to come out...? :tongue_smilie:

 

I'm having trouble adjusting to a lot of extra stuff on my plate lately, and I feel like I'm not getting anything done. Everything seems chaotic all the time. I would love to hear any amazing tips/coping strategies you lovely folks might have to share. :bigear:

 

Sometimes the trenches of motherhood are downright scary. ;)

[swellmomma]

I am in the process of doing this right now. I did declutter a lot of stuff, and though I have much more to go I am stepping away from that part of it and working on rhythms/routines. If I can get us all on a stable routine that should eliminate some of the stressors, like kids bickering or whining etc. What I have found for my own kids is having that consistent routine means they know what is coming next and it cuts down on the fighting etc. It helps me too, because sometimes there is just so much to do you don't know where to start and having the routine helps me just move on to the next thing on the list. As we settle more into our routines, I will go back to culling what we have until it feels like a managable amount of stuff.

 

I have also found that I need to be willing to cut myself some slack and accept that we will never be able to academically get to the point so many her have, and while I will continue challenging the kids I do not have to make it all so bogged down/tedious, nor do I have to do *EVERY* awesome program I learn about here in the hive. They really can just do 1 math, 1 LA, 1 Science etc curriculum and do well academically. Also I am doing more of our stuff as written rather than tweaking everything so much that I have essentially written a new curriculum. Letting someone else do that planning, etc makes life easier. THough I really like the tweaking/planning, not having to do it is freeing.

 

I am also making a choice each day to bring more beauty into our home. It might be through baking, or some pretty flowers from the garden, or some nice music, etc. Just something each day to brighten the atmosphere of the home and make it a place we *want* to be, rather than feeling trapped by the duties to be done here.

[Stacia]

:grouphug:

 

For me, it has helped to --

• massively declutter (have made strides, but am still working on it)
  
• simplify school (in that I reduced a lot of the huge amount of books I had; now we have what we are using this year, plus just a few extra items. I no longer have loads of stuff sitting there taunting me because I wanted to get around to it, but never did.)
  
• reduce our outside commitments a bit too
  

Basically, going w/ a 'less is more' mantra is working for me....

[WarriorMama]

I am in the process of doing this right now. I did declutter a lot of stuff, and though I have much more to go I am stepping away from that part of it and working on rhythms/routines. If I can get us all on a stable routine that should eliminate some of the stressors, like kids bickering or whining etc. What I have found for my own kids is having that consistent routine means they know what is coming next and it cuts down on the fighting etc. It helps me too, because sometimes there is just so much to do you don't know where to start and having the routine helps me just move on to the next thing on the list. As we settle more into our routines, I will go back to culling what we have until it feels like a managable amount of stuff.

 

I have also found that I need to be willing to cut myself some slack and accept that we will never be able to academically get to the point so many her have, and while I will continue challenging the kids I do not have to make it all so bogged down/tedious, nor do I have to do *EVERY* awesome program I learn about here in the hive. They really can just do 1 math, 1 LA, 1 Science etc curriculum and do well academically. Also I am doing more of our stuff as written rather than tweaking everything so much that I have essentially written a new curriculum. Letting someone else do that planning, etc makes life easier. THough I really like the tweaking/planning, not having to do it is freeing.

 

I am also making a choice each day to bring more beauty into our home. It might be through baking, or some pretty flowers from the garden, or some nice music, etc. Just something each day to brighten the atmosphere of the home and make it a place we *want* to be, rather than feeling trapped by the duties to be done here.

 

So much wisdom in this post. You should be my Yoda. :D

 

:grouphug:

 

For me, it has helped to --

 

• massively declutter (have made strides, but am still working on it)

• simplify school (in that I reduced a lot of the huge amount of books I had; now we have what we are using this year, plus just a few extra items. I no longer have loads of stuff sitting there taunting me because I wanted to get around to it, but never did.)

• reduce our outside commitments a bit too

Basically, going w/ a 'less is more' mantra is working for me....

 

I'm DRASTICALLY cutting back on outside commitments this year, which is a really good decision for us, I think...but I feel terribly guilty about it. Sigh.

 

I'm also trying to go with the less is more approach. My theory is that if we simplify, and I feel less stressed and frantic, my children will benefit much more from having my full, non-crazy attention than from being rushed around trying to do a million different things. But I had no idea it would take such an emotional toll to cut things!

[LaxMom]

So much wisdom in this post. You should be my Yoda. :D

 

 

 

I'm DRASTICALLY cutting back on outside commitments this year, which is a really good decision for us, I think...but I feel terribly guilty about it. Sigh.

 

I'm also trying to go with the less is more approach. My theory is that if we simplify, and I feel less stressed and frantic, my children will benefit much more from having my full, non-crazy attention than from being rushed around trying to do a million different things. But I had no idea it would take such an emotional toll to cut things!

That's what we did last year. It went a long way to restoring sanity so I could take on the other things - decluttering, streamlining, making a schedule - that contribute to me being completely addled.

[regentrude]

...when you're feeling really overwhelmed?

 

Do you get rid of stuff by decluttering, institute routines, simplify school plans, hide in the closet and refuse to come out...? :tongue_smilie:

 

I declutter on a regular basis - getting rid of stuff is very freeing. Clean surfaces, space in the closets - priceless. I try not to bring things into the house.

I carefully think about each outside commitment before I agree. I work and homeschool and try to keep other recurring things to a minimum. I learned to say no.

I do not procrastinate. The more odious a job is, the sooner I start it because I want to get it done.

Our school plans are straightforward and simple. Solid rigorous academics in the core subjects, no time wasted on coops, crafts and hands-on projects (my kids despise these anyway). What kids can do independently, they do without my interference (which is most of school)

 

With these strategies, I manage to lead a structured, uncluttered, unhurried life. We are busy, but not overwhelmed.

[Mrs Twain]

The main thing that has helped me (especially when I had little babies and really struggled with getting anything done) was making a schedule.

 

I made a schedule for household jobs. I would schedule what days to do the laundry, clean the bathrooms, pay the bills, water the plants, etc. I would just list three or four things per day to get done. I wouldn't put a time on it, just a list. That way I only had three or four things to be concerned with that day, and I knew all the other things would get done on their own days. That took a lot of pressure off of me and made me much more organized.

 

I also make a schedule for homeschool. We try to start on time every day and follow the schedule through all of the subjects. That way I don't have to worry so much about school. If I just follow the schedule and do school according to our plan for the year, the kids will get through all of their subjects.

 

Definitely it helps to have the house organized. It takes a lot of time to look for misplaced things. Having a place for everything and everything in its place is a great help.

[Alphabetika]

I never answer the phone.

[desiree77]

:lurk5:

 

I hide in my bedroom, but that's not the best solution.

[Peela]

I write to do lists- gettig it out of my head and on paper helps.

 

I declutter- sometimes radically.

 

I get up early to have some me time. Often when you slow down, take some time, things don't seem so overwhelming and you can get done what needs doing, in a shorter time. Instead of speeding up - slow down.

 

Look at what is sucking your time. For me, spending time here is easy and something I love to do- but sometimes I realise I have other things to get to, and I would really feel better at the end of the day if I had done some art, some writing, or cleaned something extra- rather than spent that extra hour here.

 

With homeschooling- we stopped early afternoon regardless. Whatever we got done, we got done.

 

Cut myself slack. Can't do it all. Cant read all the books I would like to. Can't have all the experiences I would like to. Can't be the perfect parent. Can't have the perfectly clean home. But I can try to get my priorities straight and hug my kids every day, and make the time to listen to them.