s/o from Discouraged, now organizing to have time for the components of your life

[I.Dup.]

*donning flame retardant suit* One attitude difference is that 100 years ago, women had to do certain things. They had to cook supper or their family would starve, had to keep a garden, mend clothes, etc. I think we would all find the ability to do these things just fine, if we knew supper wasn't just a phone call away. Again, this gets back to technology - this time as an enabler - and I'm not complaining. LOL Then there is the one I think I will get flack for. I see women constantly patting each other on the back for doing nothing. Let's take my friend "Jane." Jane manages to find time to post pictures and updates to facebook every day. Jane freely admits to spending 6 or more hours on line every day. Meanwhile Jane's kids literally tear her house apart, her husband works 10+ hour days but does almost all the dishes and laundry, and it is his "job" to bathe and put kids to bed because she is "off work" once he gets home. Jane's friends and family tell Jane all the time that she works so hard, that she needs more time to herself, that her husband is a jerk if he suggests that maybe something isn't working about this situation. I see way too many women who are similar, albeit not quite as drastic as Jane. I have been a mini-Jane at certain points. Thankfully, my mom is old school. While almost everyone around me patted my back, she gave me some tough love and practical advice. She gave me the kick in the butt that I needed. I imagine this would have been far more typical 100 years ago.

 

I understand what you are saying, and I feel badly for this woman's husband. :( But are you SURE that is what is going on? It can be hard to know the state of one's marriage and family from the outside.

 

I don't think it was so common, but I also don't think it is a bad thing - in moderation, of course. This is the beauty of technology. If we are using these tools wisely, we have that time available to give to our kids. If we are not, then we are missing that time and we don't have the good excuses that our foremothers (ha, there is a new one) did.

 

I don't think any of us would argue against spending time with our kids, but I don't think it even occurred to our foremothers to have the kind of guilt attached to motherhood the way that we do- I don't think they needed an "excuse" as you say because their lives just weren't child centered. They didn't feel it was their duty to entertain their children and be their best buddy like we do.

 

Well, I think we need some down time during the day. In the past, these might have been more like seasons. In the summer you were busy, busy, busy but in winter you were indoors and maybe doing quiet handicrafts. Women had sewing bees, chatted together at the well, lived in extended families so they had other women to talk to and help, in the winter you could sit around the fire and read the Bible or tell stories. My grandmother in law told me once about how every morning she'd see her husband off to work and then wash the diapers, hang them to dry, and dress up herself and the babies to go walking down the main street of the town. All the other moms would be walking too and they'd all stop and chat with each other. My grandmother recalled how her mother would always read the paper every morning and put off doing the dishes, and it used to annoy her father! So while there was a lot more drudgery, especially when you think of the pioneers eking out an existence, there were definitely down times, too. I think socializing was a big deal too. My parents were of the WWII generation and they were always going to cocktail parties and bridge parties, even while they were raising a big family. My neighborhood of lots of second generation Catholic immigrants were all like that. I think I probably do indulge in the Internet to the detriment of my tidy home, but frankly, while I do want a pleasant house, I don't need perfection. I need and like the information, conversion and interaction I can get on line. I think it is a simple case of finding the golden mean in our new era, where people relax and connect in a different way.

 

I agree. I think it's about finding that balance. I don't know why we have so much guilt associated with time spent online, I know I struggle with it. Even though my marriage is perfectly fine with the time I spend online (my dh loves being online too) my children are happy and well cared for, my home is managed and tidy...yet I still struggle with guilt over spending time online. I think it's because I feel I should be spending every second not cleaning with my children, playing with them on the floor or interacting with them all the time.

[Halcyon]

I think it comes down to self control and self discipline to be honest. AND you have to actually want your house to be organized, neat, files put away neatly, kids' bedrooms clean. There are many people who could care less about these things, and they relish simply sitting, reading books, surfing the internet and relaxing, being outside, whatver. That's totally cool.

 

But if you DO want a clean home, organized home office and a smooth running homeschool, I think you need to have self-discipline. You need to make your priorities and you need to stick with them. For some people, this comes easily. For others, it does not. My very best friend in all the world is a master procrastinor and fully admits she has little self-discipline when it comes to exercise, her organization, her diet, etc. And to be honest, I truly don't know how to aid her (she has asked for help). She is INNATELY this way ( i have known her since she was 6 years old). Or maybe it had something to do with how she was raised--whatever. My point is, she very much WANTS to change, but cannot. What about a person like this? It's all well and good for me to say "Just do it" but what if she doesn't, and ends the day feeling defeated and frustrated? Anyway, that's a bit off track.

 

My point is this: I think many people need to exercise the muscle of self-discipline. I think it is like any other muscle that atrophies without use and strengthens, over time, when used often. Perhaps it links it with the idea of "routine" and "habit"; do something for 30 days and it will become a habit, that sort of thing. Maybe it is the self-discpline associated with STICKING to that habit--be it cleaning your sink, or emptying your inbox daily. It's something that in the beginning you need to almost force yourself to do (like working out, for exanple) and then over time becomes "expected".

[Halcyon]

How did everyone's day go? did you clear your inbox? get your tasks done? My older son was at Christmas hockey camp today, so I had the ability to get a few tasks done and that made me happy!

 

I found a good tip in one of my internet hunts: if you use a paper to do list or manager, when you copy over an undone task from a previous day to the current day, write the next iteration of a number next to it so you know how many days this task has been on your list. For example, the very first day you add the task, the number next to it would be {1} as this is the first day you have put it on your list. The next day, assuming the task is undone, you would write the task again and put {2} next to it. The recommendation was that if the numnber next to it is 3 or higher, you need to re-evaluate why this task isn'tt getting done--is it too complicated? have you not broken it down into simple enough steps? do you need something to get it done that you don't have? are you just procrasting? Then you can figure out how to get the task done or put it on your Someday list because it may just not be that important.

[Lynnae]

My inbox is empty, and my Motivated Moms tasks are done. I even cleaned and rearranged my bedroom today. It's so nice to have a mostly clean house!

[regentrude]

How did everyone's day go? did you clear your inbox? get your tasks done?

 

I'm feeling at a loss... being off work for two weeks, I have nothing left to do. No tasks, no projects. I am driving my kids crazy with my mad mission to declutter - their rooms are the only ones that have any items left that we could possibly get rid of.

[thessa516]

How did everyone's day go? did you clear your inbox? get your tasks done?

 

It went well. Not only did I get all the Christmas stuff put away, but I also decluttered and organized all of my Christmas decorations. I was also able to mark some house stuff off my Pending Actions list thanks to a quick trip to Target.

 

Little side note: I was so excited to find these motion-activated lights at Target tonight. I have lots of little ones that love to leave lights on - I think this is going to help immensely! They turn themselves off after 10 minutes of no movement.

 

In the meantime, I've been working on my goals and actions list for 2013. I have goals set in 4 areas for each month up til April.

[laughing lioness]

How did everyone's day go? did you clear your inbox? get your tasks done?

 

 

I finished our current read-aloud, worked on sorting books (3 more rubbermaid bins to get rid off and several more files to the burn pile, read more in GTD, talked with dh about a project we are working on and planned our closet project (we want to install a light, which means wiring, which means cutting out dry wall- argh! which means re -drywalling and texturing, etc) but at least it's planned now, am making GREAT strides in sorting dh's files and am going to consolidate everything in one file cabinet and label, talked with ds 18 about 2012 Review (from the link I posted earlier) and plans for after graduation/ tweaking spring semester (his last!). Good day!

 

I'm feeling at a loss... being off work for two weeks, I have nothing left to do. No tasks, no projects. I am driving my kids crazy with my mad mission to declutter - their rooms are the only ones that have any items left that we could possibly get rid of.

 

 

According to Allen (GTD) "as you begin to apply these methods you may find that they free up enourmous creative and constructive thinking. If you have systems and habits ready to leverage your ideas, your productivity can expand exponentially." It sounds like you are on the verge of an exponential idea/ energy surge!

[Tawlas]

I'm playing around with evernote, adding a million notes. Do I need to use my desktop in order to sort things "into" a tag. For instance, if I want to sort five different notes into the tag "baby's room", do I need to go into each note and add the tag, or is there a simpler way? I've been using my iPad and there doesn't seem to be a lot of online helpf for the newest version of Evernote for iPad. My desktop isn't working - maybe the video card got rattled loose in the move? Screen won't display anything although the connection is good.

 

I'm trying not to get frustrated as I have a wall so boxes full of books, boxes of toys upstairs and down and many boxes to be unpacked into closets but I can't do anything until I have shelving built and/or installed. We've just moved and my husband is super busy plus sick. Don't feel organized at all and it's starting to affect my brain! I'd really like to get the GTD system set up. I checked out the tuturial on The Secret Weapon (thanks for that rec!) and thought I'd set it up that way as I was stumped at how to set it up on my own. They use a PC in the tutorial though and I'm having a tough time making the translation.

[Deee]

Hi everyone,

I've only read up to page 2 of this thread and must now stop to go and do something, but I just had to say a huge THANK YOU! This thread is the Christmas present I really needed

D

[LMD]

How did everyone's day go? did you clear your inbox? get your tasks done? My older son was at Christmas hockey camp today, so I had the ability to get a few tasks done and that made me happy!

 

 

Halcyon - are you my friend? You just described me (in your first post) to a tee! And it motivated me, I just cleared out my inbox - :lol:

 

Today was a lazy day, my older 2 are camping with my in-laws so it's just DH, the little one & I. We're also getting over a bug so tired, and I was tired from actually exercising yesterday morning, so I procrastinated most of the day away... and DS' behaviour was the proof :glare:

 

I did clean up my bedroom & the garage/playroom though, and make a list of the sections I'll need in my 'everything' binder. When we go to the shops on saturday I'll get some dividers to get it organised.

 

Oh, actually I sorted out all our dvd's, they were a mess because someone :ph34r: never puts them away properly...

 

And now I'm going to clean the kitchen and start dinner.

 

TracyP - I get what you're saying and I agree. I have never felt like I need to nag DH to work when he gets home, because I know he works harder than I do most days...

[imagine.more]

 

 

Could you start with your own belongings? Or it it joint belongings that need to go?

 

 

It's joint belongings unfortunately, my stuff stays pretty under control.

[imagine.more]

Thanks, this really helped me, especially your observation about the task vs project issue. I know I've been making that mistake with some things and now I can fix it.

 

 

 

 

Keep reading and it will clear up!

 

Basically (the way I am doing it which might not be exactly right), you will go through your list and pick out what you will do and what you are going to let go of. Anything that can be done in under 2 minutes, just do it right now. Then, decide what are projects (a project is anything with more then one step). I am putting each project on it's own card with a list of "next actions" (the steps to get things done). Then I go though my project cards, pick the next actions I want to accomplish and put them in the correct context.

 

How this helps in real life--

For the past YEAR, my to-do list has said "order kid's birth certificates". EVERY WEEK, I copy that little to-do onto my list and it never gets done. But I'm realizing now that that is because it is a "project" and not a "task". So, on my "@home office" card, I write "copy birth certificate request form" and on my "@errands" card, I write "get $80 money order". Now, when I'm in my office, I can look at my card and realize I need to copy those forms. See how this helps get things done?

 

You'll also come up with stuff you want to do but not right now. That is where the tickler file or the monthly notebooks or the "great ideas" list come in.

 

Just keep reading and it will all clear up!

 

[LMD]

Alte - I stole your chore card idea, I just got finished printing up 40 weeks of chore cards! I have a magnetic peg on my noticeboard specifically for them. Then I'll schedule the bigger once or twice a year jobs as we go month by month through the year - there's only really 7 of them, and they're only about an hour or two worth of work so it shouldn't be too hard to do!

:D

 

Also, my inbox is sorted! And my MCT Island package is in Australia according to the USPS tracking :party: - it's organisation related because it means it'll *hopefully* be here soon so I can school plan for 2013! :willy_nilly:

I also had a productive morning where I somewhat stuck to my morning schedule and exercised. So all round I'm feeling pretty good!

 

Now I'm going to spend some quality time with my little DS!

 

Hope everyone has a productive day.

[Momma2Luke]

I think that although there were always distractions, the semi-addictive quality of the internet, coupled with it being impossible to spend time on it without doing something else simultaneously, is somewhat unique.

 

 

 

 

I would definitely agree with this... I read a fascinating article a while back (trying to remember where!!) on how the neural pathways in our brains are VERY different from the neural pathways of previous generations thanks to the internet, facebook, tv, etc... and how once these neural pathways are established, cravings kick in (we have to check facebook, smart phones, message boards more and more often) and these same pathways make it more and more difficult for our brains to do things like sit down with an actual book, write with pen and paper, or do productive things without technology....

Fascinating stuff..

[PrairieSong]

I have only read a little of Switched and don't have Getting Things Done--may get it through interlibrary loan--so I am kind of lost when you all are talking about this system, but I did go through a LOT of old papers today and threw away or filed or recycled a ton of stuff. I also started a big list in a spiral notebook of all the things I need or would like to do and am adding to it as I think of more items. Housework, homeschooling, groceries, doctor and dentist appts, hobbies, exercise, etc. Then I will start putting everything into categories. I also bought a calendar/ organizer for my purse for the new year, one with full-sized pages and a pretty cover because that's important, lol.

 

One of these days I will read GTD so I will understand what you ladies are talking about! Until then I will keep plugging away.

[LifeLovePassion]

I found GTD on audio book, I'm so stoked that I can listen to it!

[PrairieSong]

 

But if you DO want a clean home, organized home office and a smooth running homeschool, I think you need to have self-discipline. You need to make your priorities and you need to stick with them. For some people, this comes easily. For others, it does not. My very best friend in all the world is a master procrastinor and fully admits she has little self-discipline when it comes to exercise, her organization, her diet, etc. And to be honest, I truly don't know how to aid her (she has asked for help). She is INNATELY this way ( i have known her since she was 6 years old). Or maybe it had something to do with how she was raised--whatever. My point is, she very much WANTS to change, but cannot. What about a person like this? It's all well and good for me to say "Just do it" but what if she doesn't, and ends the day feeling defeated and frustrated? Anyway, that's a bit off track.

 

My point is this: I think many people need to exercise the muscle of self-discipline. I think it is like any other muscle that atrophies without use and strengthens, over time, when used often.

 

 

I am like your friend. NOT born organized. However, I have been forced to become somewhat more organized over the years, as our kids were born and especially as we began to homeschool. I am not saying I became Mrs. Perfect Housewife. I never won homemaker of the year, but I had to devise systems for cooking, shopping, meals, laundry, or we would have been living in total chaos. I am naturally creative. My brain is wired that way, to love music, art, literature, and creating things with my hands. I always have more ideas than I can do, and don't understand how anyone could ever be bored. Time can get away from me very easily. It is very difficult for me to estimate how long something will take me to do, whereas my business-minded husband can tell me almost to the minute how long something will take. It boggles my mind.

 

My dh is a Type A personality, and I joke that I am Type Z. There have been times I have hated being this way. I hate forgetting things, disappointing people, realizing that I have overscheduled or over committed myself AGAIN, and will not be able to get done what I want to or should. I have stayed up till the wee hours sewing Halloween costumes or wrapping presents on Christmas Eve.

 

And yet, people like me do have our strong points. I am flexible. I am patient with young children. I have good ideas. I guess I just wanted to share this for the other people out there like me, or people who know someone like me. You are not a misfit. You are just blessed with different gifts than the born organized person. You can still be organized but it will be in a different way, a way that works with your strengths and personality.

 

Sorry, did not mean to hijack the thread. Just wanted to wave to all those out there like me, the Type Z creative ones. There is hope! And I am glad for all the different people in the world.

 

Back to your regularly scheduled organizing thread.

[PrairieSong]

I found GTD on audio book, I'm so stoked that I can listen to it!

 

 

Great idea!!! I am going to look for it.

[Lynnae]

I'm so excited! I got rid of 3 bags of clothes and a box of kitchen stuff today! I also cleaned underneath the kids' bathroom sink. It was a disaster!

 

My inbox is empty, and I'm still working on my Evernote system, but I'm making progress.

 

I have Switch checked out from the library and a request in for GTD (since I apparently got rid of the copy I bought a few years ago...grrrr).

 

I've been faithfully doing my Motivated Moms checklist every day, and my house looks neater than it has in a year! LIfe is good.

[charlestonmom03]

My friends have always considered me to be super-organized, but it is a surface-level of organization (as in, everyone else thinks I'm organized but I feel like I'm just barely keeping up with all that needs to be done) and it caught up with me this year when baby #5 arrived. This thread has been so helpful. I've been reading GTD and today I started going though my desk and files. I got rid of a ton of paper (Target receipts from 2010!). Now I'm working on converting all our paper US Savings Bonds into electronic bonds. Getting rid of all this paper feels so liberating! Tomorrow it'll be on to dumping owners' manuals and the rest of the filing cabinet.

[Soror]

PrairieSong thanks for sharing. I am a Type A myself but have a couple of "Type Z" friends. I love them dearly but sometimes they do drive me batty. I find we compliment each other well though.

 

I went through dd's room yesterday and have a huge pile of books to get rid of and some other misc things. I'm finally getting an old and somewhat broken piece of furniture out as well. I had hopes that dh would fix it, but reality is that it isn't happening and her room is too full as it is. So I had to rearrange in a few spots to make room for the totes in there. I still need to wash walls and would love to touch up paint but dh needs to do some patching of holes a bit ( I always make too many holes for pictures!). I had to rearrange our craft cabinet yesterday as well since we were inundated with new supplies.

 

On the docket today is the pantry/laundry room. I need to go through some of my food supplies and reorrganize. I'm hoping to rearrange them to make room for our dirty clothes to fit into there. I'm thinking I'd like to have a big hamper in the laundry instead of individual baskets in each room. Dh has to work tomorrow so perhaps I'll work on deep cleaning throughout the house and Sunday we can tackle the basement together. He is anxious to start finishing it as well. We have to be picking up the furniture soon so we need get things prepared sooner rather than later.

 

Going through the rooms is helping me see where we need to work on improving our organization and also get a better idea of some organizational items that might help things run more efficiently. I'm making prioritized lists for each room. For dd's room I'd like an over the door shoe holder for the closet and a "new" nightstand. For ds' room I'd like a rack for his closet and a shelf of some kind for the closet for misc toys. For the laundry room I'd like a big size hamper, I'll have to measure today to see how much room I can squeeze out.

 

We are also *maybe* just maybe figuring out somewhat of a schedule with the new baby (of course as soon as we figure it out it will change I'm sure!).

[Lynnae]

 

On the docket today is the pantry/laundry room. ...

Going through the rooms is helping me see where we need to work on improving our organization and also get a better idea of some organizational items that might help things run more efficiently. I'm making prioritized lists for each room. For dd's room I'd like an over the door shoe holder for the closet and a "new" nightstand. For ds' room I'd like a rack for his closet and a shelf of some kind for the closet for misc toys. For the laundry room I'd like a big size hamper, I'll have to measure today to see how much room I can squeeze out.

 

We are also *maybe* just maybe figuring out somewhat of a schedule with the new baby (of course as soon as we figure it out it will change I'm sure!).

You are making me tired, and I haven't even gotten out of bed yet! LOL Good for you!

 

I like the idea of going through each room and making a list of needs. I'm going to have to do that.

 

On my docket today is probably our bedroom closet. It's the only part of our bedroom that I didn't get to when I rearranged things earlier this week, and it's driving me crazy. And I'm going to add to my "to buy" list a closet door. I hate that I can see the contents of my closet all the time. Sometimes our neverending "fixer" house can be a pain. But I'm thankful for it anyway.

[luvnlattes]

I swear, half of my trouble with organization came from teaching myself to finish strong. And I'll even tell myself that, when I'm itching to get working on a project. You have to finish this first.

 

 

I can so relate to this. In fact a couple of weeks ago I wrote, "Finish what you started," on my whiteboard as a reminder. It may become my motto for 2013.

[Soror]

I've got the laundry/pantry mostly cleared out. 15 - 5 gallon buckets emptied and moving somewhere else. I moved some stuff in the kitchen to replenish supplies, which then necessitated clearing out a few cabinets. I have a couple of cabinets to go. I then need to work on the organization of the food left in the pantry and sweep and mop. It really needs some touch up painting but I don't know if I feel brave enough to tackle that, with a newborn whoever knows when I will have to stop.

[PrairieSong]

Well I took a morning nap! I am recovering from a bug I got on Christmas Eve and now ds 13 has it, but he has a fever as well. We are home while the others went to the extended family gathering. Phooey. I hate being sick/having sick kids during the holidays. Oh well. Ds just wants to lie around so I think I will tackle the kitchen, laundry room, and my bathroom, and finish a little bit in our bedroom that I cleaned yesterday.

 

So if I have to be home with ds, I'll take advantage of the time to be productive. Reading what everyone else is doing inspires me!

 

 

[Critterfixer]

Did something interesting yesterday: a year in preview. I've always done the review thing, even if only in my head, but none of my revelations seemed to make it into the new year. So this year I planned ahead by the months and listed things I know will need to be done under the month they should occur in. I also placed things like "get sister birthday gift and card" in the month before they are due to be sent. This year I did a gift card, and as she lives all the way across the country and we don't see each other often she hinted to me that she would have preferred an actual gift. So now I'll be ready to get that done ahead of time for her birthday this year.

 

A tip for the poster who wanted to paint but knew she would have to stop at times: A plastic bag and a wet rag. Wrap the roller or the paintbrush in the wet cloth and bag it. Then you can break for an hour or more, come back and you are ready to start again. You can also cover your paint trays with plastic wrap or a trashbag and they keep pretty well that way unless it is very hot.

[imagine.more]

A friend of mine gave me the idea to use a pocket chart and index cards to organize projects and next action items. Yesterday I put up a huge diy corkboard in my sewing room to organize my index cards on. I also started a brain dump of stuff onto paper...that is going to take longer than I thought!

 

Being snowed in is helping me to focus on organizing for sure! I got dh to read the first chapter of gtd too and I think he's on board which will really help me since we have so much joint projects that we need to be organized together to be truly effective.

 

I love that a bunch of you have new babies too, my youngest is 4 weeks and I'm definitely making up for lost time since I let a lot of things slide during pregnancy.

[Soror]

Hi Manda, it is funny how many of us have new ones! I'm just so excited to have energy again I'm trying to keep from overdoing it! The laundry/pantry is done except for a few tiny details. I swept and mopped, even pulled out the washer and dryer, boy it needed it. I straightened up the shelves and washed the walls. After using the magic eraser it looks much better, even though painting it would still be good it will wait.

 

I finished all my food shelves in the kitchen, the only one left that I didn't do today or recently is under the sink. I need to wipe all the counters in there and also sweep and mop but I've got to break for now. I've now got a big tower of buckets I need to move and haven't decided where yet, either the basement or the shed. I also did a bit of organizing in the basement. I had never finished putting the girls clothes up after I had to switch them out for winter. I just didn't have enough energy when I was pregnant. I'm glad to finally have them out of the way and in the closet. The rest of the basement mess is mostly dh's tools. He isn't the best about putting them up when he is done. We also have bee supplies down there as well but that is dh's thing and he has to decide where they are to go.

[Critterfixer]

Bee supplies are just plain huge! I've got a hive body, a medium super and a small super in my closet right now awaiting swarm season, and my freezer has frames with foundation. My dad keeps bees, and the garage is just full of hives, supers and the lot. And of course the wax stuff has to be kept protected. He's got them all on shelves, but there is no doubt--they take up space.

[Moxie]

Did anyone sign up for Power of Mom?? Looks interesting but I hate spending money if it isn't AWESOME.

[Soror]

Bee supplies are just plain huge! I've got a hive body, a medium super and a small super in my closet right now awaiting swarm season, and my freezer has frames with foundation. My dad keeps bees, and the garage is just full of hives, supers and the lot. And of course the wax stuff has to be kept protected. He's got them all on shelves, but there is no doubt--they take up space.

 

Tell me about it! I'll be glad when we figure out where to put them.

[Lynnae]

Did anyone sign up for Power of Mom?? Looks interesting but I hate spending money if it isn't AWESOME.

 

What is Power of Mom?

[Coffeemama]

Here's what I've done so far (Disclaimer: I wrote a detailed post yesterday but it is now among the missing) :glare:

 

First I read GTD and Misti's blog. Then I started a braindump, but couldn't focus on it while surrounded by piles of thing that needed to be done, so I decided to skip right to the processing inboxes. I had (still have) many "inbox piles" in various rooms. But as I started that process I realized that what I REALLY needed to begin with was organizing/re-labeling all of the files in my file cabinet so that I would have a place to put everything I was sorting.

 

I don't think I usually exhibit such ADD behaviors (my friends think I'm quite organized). However, I kept having a feeling of starting in the middle. Organizing is going much better now that I have the early stages of a strong working file system in place. I hit a small stumbling block yesterday when it came to getting rid of a lot of old paperwork. I had started tearing it up, but felt uncomfortable with the amount of personal information, so I saved a big pile for tonight. My DH is going to start a fire so I can burn it all.

 

So tonight I will pour myself a nice glass of pinot noir and have a burning party. :party:

Thank you to everyone who has posted their ideas, plans, and suggestions. This thread has been so useful!

[laughing lioness]

Here are some big changes I've made since reading GTD this past week:

Put "errands" on it's own page instead of on a calendar day. Knocked out 5 going to town today- I still had a few (ran out of time) but it's no biggy 'cause of how I'm thinking about it.

Also, made project pages, with action steps for the projects. We've done this before, but dh and are working on a PROJECT right now that includes both of us doing stuff that is new to us - which is intimidating. But, it's all under action steps, so it's broken down in to manageable steps.

Keeping lists for stuff I just want lists for. I'm kind of a list gal, so I love the permission to make lists about stuff I just want to list- fun and freeing

Ds 18 is doing a "look back/look forward" year end eval, year ahead dream/planning. (using the questions from the links posted earlier). We changed up a bunch of coursework for him this spring based on some goals.

[Runningmom80]

Thank you everyone for this thread! I feel like you all have saved my life, as dramatic as that sounds. :laugh: I have 2.5 year old twins, and I have not been organized or motivated to do much but take care of my kids for 3 years. I'm finally digging out of the twin haze, and feel like I can get some things done.

 

I have 2 pages of notes, front and back, from this thread. :hurray:

[Moxie]

What is Power of Mom?

 

 

Someone mentioned this on the first or second page.

 

http://powerofmoms.com/store/m-o-m/

[Lynnae]

 

 

Someone mentioned this on the first or second page.

 

http://powerofmoms.com/store/m-o-m/

Thanks. That doesn't really look like my style.

 

I've had a pretty successful day today. I've kept up with my Motivated Moms. I cleaned up my computer, deleting everything I don't need. And I cleaned out my bedroom closet. I even installed another shelf to help organize the closet. I am so happy with my new, organized room!

[Mystie]

Wow! Great job ladies! Reading about everyone's progress is inspiring. I caught up on laundry today, but feel like Christmas influx is self-generating. No matter how much garbage I toss or things I put away, more appears. :)

 

I've gotten a reorganization bug with each newborn. I think it has to do with how good being NOT pregnant feels. :)

[Joules]

Wow! Great job ladies! Reading about everyone's progress is inspiring. I caught up on laundry today, but feel like Christmas influx is self-generating. No matter how much garbage I toss or things I put away, more appears. :)

 

I haven't started much yet, but I'm finding this thread very inspiring! I want to say a big thanks to you, Mystie. The 31 days is awesome and dh and I are looking at all of the apps from the digital management pages to see what works for us. But my biggest thanks is for making the Simplified Dinners e-book. I see these menu/pantry things all the time, but being GF/DF there is just too much adapatation for me. I just didn't have the energy to convert everything. I was so excited to find that you had a GF/DF option and all of the recipes look great (and simple enough for me to make!)

 

So, my progress is reading through GTD and Mystie's pages, and working with dh on the grocery shopping, menu planning, pantry simplification project. (My brain is too messy to dump yet, I think once I get the kitchen working, I'll have more time and energy to handle the rest of life.)

 

I also want to share one tip that I've been working on for a couple of months. This whole project may make it a moot point, but it's given me some insight. I was getting so frustrated with having a dozen things on my to-do list each day and by the end only being able to cross off 3 or 4. It's demoralizing. I know that I have a special situation with several additional jobs in my life besides homeschooling mom, but I wasn't cutting myself any slack. So, to find out where my time was going, I started writing down every single thing I do, most of which are urgent and never make it onto any list. First, it was gratifying at the end of the day to see how much I had done. Second, I have a big spiral notebook full of all of the tasks that I do so I can better start figuring out how to fit them all in a 16-hour day. I just thought this might help someone else.

[Mrs. A]

wow, it sounds like everyone is really starting to "get things done"! ;)

 

thanks to Mystie's simplified pantry posts, I have reorganized my pantry and have created a master pantry list and have organized my menu planning . What a weight off my shoulders! I absolutely hated menu planning and making grocery lists before and I can't believe I have found myself looking forward to it these past couple weeks!

I also have begun to reorganize my household notebook so that it will actually work for me and I feel like that will be successful as well. next on the list is to preview the coming year and decide on habits I want to establish.

[Soror]

Misty- I'm with you it is amazing how things can multiply!

 

On my list today is deep cleaning the kitchen, washing & polishing cabinets, sweeping and mopping, washing out microwave and frig. I'd also like to dust, sweep and mop the great room. We will see how much time and energy I have we have church this evening so I only have only about 2 to get work done.

 

If I can finish the great room and kitchen today that leaves wall washing and windows for big jobs, then we can start fresh with a nice and sparkly clean house for the new year. I am starting the Whole 30 on Tuesday so I need to meal plan but that will likely be on Sunday. I cannot decide if I want to add to my household binder or buy a date/address book. I need to finish reconciling the budget for the month/year but that will be done on Monday. I already have our preliminary budget for the new year. I do need to work on simplifying our accounting as I was keeping it very detailed this year while working to pay off the house and I do not have to be quite as anal this year.

[Runningmom80]

Well, I've gotten what I feel like is a lot accomplished! I set up an evernote account for DH and I to share, and we linked our google calendars. I also printed out most of what I need for my home binder. (I thought about going digital, but I'm such a pen and paper girl, I know this is better.)

 

Now I'm working on lists and piling everything up. I'm going by room with the piles right now, I may just do it that way. A big pile will totally overwhelm me and I'll end up not doing it justice. i'e, hiding it somewhere.

 

I also made a rotating project board to use with post its. :) http://cornflowerbluestudio.blogspot.com/2012/02/diy-rotating-goal-list.html

[PrairieSong]

If I read Mystie' s web site posts "31Days to GTD for Homemakers", would it still be beneficial for me to read the book? I am about 1/3 of the way through the 31 days. It makes sense, but it's not all brand new information. Maybe he's just pulled it together in a unique way. I am just guessing as I haven't read the book.

 

On the slate for today: continue my brain dump, do what was on my to do list for yesterday that I didn't get done (UGH), and continue reading Mystie's web site.

 

Off to slay my dragons!

[Murphy101]

I have only a few things on my projects to complete. But they're bigguns and they're mostly selfish to my mind, which is why I tend to not ever get around to them. Sigh.

 

30-60 minutes personal upkeep time at least 4 mornings a week. Get in a work out, go for a walk, put on some makeup, do my nails, take a detox bath, have the chiropractor work out all my knots - whatever.

 

1 hour at least 3 times a week on continuing my NaNo novel.

 

Create a more pleasant home environment. That's Happiness Project related. Today, I bought new curtains with a Christmas gift cert. Normally I would have just bought groceries or school books or some other "need" but by golly, I bought curtains!

 

The other is about decluttering some. And just not looking some. I'm writing off two kids rooms because I'm tired of yelling at them to clean them. The rest of the house and the garage are being reorganized.

 

I'm getting more crafty. Crocheting more and painting and generally having a grand time with the kids doing it. I'm no longer waiting until after school to do fun projects.

[Soror]

Time for myself is the top of my list as well. I was thinking about this morning about 4 am when the baby was restless and I couldn't sleep. I don't think it is selfish because it makes me a much nicer mother and wife :)

 

Kitchen is swept and mopped here, even pulled out the stove and frig. Cabinets washed and dishwasher unloaded. I need to wash out the microwave and frig still. Hopefully I will still have time to sweep and mop the great room. It depends on how the baby cooperates. Dd cleaned toilets and ds picked up in the greatroom. I really want to get all the physical stuff done to do my mental stuff for the new year. Dh is now working tomorrow so that gives me another day to do my upstairs projects. I'm feeling a bit OCD right now though and having a hard time stopping myself from finding different things to clean and do.

[Lynnae]

Discouraged this morning. I took the last week off from freelancing/blogging to get the house in order, and it was looking great. But this morning I have to get back to work, and I have no idea how I'm going to do everything. The kitchen is a mess, the toddler is taking all the books off the shelves, and I have so much to get done today.

 

Do any of you work from home? How do you manage it all?

[Halcyon]

I just found out that Chalene Johnson, who does Turbo Fire, is doing a 30 day decluttering and organizing challenge in the New Year. Not sure what it is going to entail, but if you sign up you get emails and worksheets and such to do, and there's a board to partipate in, I think. You can sign up here: 30daypush.com

 

If anyone else signs up, let me know!

[Halcyon]

Discouraged this morning. I took the last week off from freelancing/blogging to get the house in order, and it was looking great. But this morning I have to get back to work, and I have no idea how I'm going to do everything. The kitchen is a mess, the toddler is taking all the books off the shelves, and I have so much to get done today.

 

Do any of you work from home? How do you manage it all?

I work 3 afternoons/evenings a week. It's not easy but I manage by basically tidying constantly. How old are your kids? I don't have a toddler, which probably explains why i can keep things under control. Toddlers are HARD!

[Lynnae]

I work 3 afternoons/evenings a week. It's not easy but I manage by basically tidying constantly. How old are your kids? I don't have a toddler, which probably explains why i can keep things under control. Toddlers are HARD!

 

I think my 2 year old is my biggest problem. My almost 15 year old helps a lot, but she's also very slow with her schoolwork, so that takes up a majority of her day. And my 10 year old helps too, but he's in school and gone most of the day.

 

I guess I just need to wait for the 2 year old to grow up a bit more. :)

[Runningmom80]

 

I think my 2 year old is my biggest problem. My almost 15 year old helps a lot, but she's also very slow with her schoolwork, so that takes up a majority of her day. And my 10 year old helps too, but he's in school and gone most of the day.

 

I guess I just need to wait for the 2 year old to grow up a bit more. :)

 

 

I have two two year olds, and a six year old, and what I discovered, about 6 months ago, is that I needed to deal with less stuff. Less clothes, less toys, less DVDs, less linens, less decorations, less everything! I donated a bunch of stuff, threw away the rest, and I've been able to keep at least the main area of my house presentable. That's not to say that it's always perfect, some days the living room floor is covered in toys, and no matter what I do it's rays that way. Those days I just lower my expectations, a lot. :)