Day-in-my-life #1
Becky recently suggested that I do some "Day-in-the-life" posts, sharing how I schedule my days and manage my time. I think that sounds fun! But more than that, I believe it will provide me with some motivation and accountability as I work at becoming more disciplined and organized with my time. If I know I'm going to have to post my day for everybody to see, it might help me to stay on track! So here's the first installment...
I don't have a minute-by-minute or even hour-by-hour schedule. I've tried that and found it very hard to stick with. Micah's work schedule is variable, so mine is too:o) Instead, I am trying to follow a general outline of regular duties that need to be accomplished.
I'm also trying to take a moment every day to write out a to-do list of all of those ever-changing little details that need to be attended to. I try to prioritize these details as I fit them into the bigger picture of my day. It's nice to be able to check things off and see my accomplishments!
Here's my outline (As a general rule, I try to do #1 and #2 first thing in that order. #3 and #4 are always flip-flopping around:op) :
1. Wake up, shower and dress for the day. Since I've been working from home, I've tried to make a point of continuing to dress nicely everyday (makeup, hair, the whole thing...though I usually don't bother with June Cleaver's pearls and high heels;o), even if I'm not going to leave the house. Yes...I'm sure I would save some time if I didn't worry so much about it. But I don't want to let myself slack in this area! My husband deserves my efforts to look nice for him. And I feel more fresh, more energetic, and more focused when I've outwardly prepared for the day.
2. Tidy house. This includes making the bed, straightening each room, and making sure that the kitchen (especially dishes and counters) is clean.
3. Business duties. This takes a variable amount of time each day, and the duties are often different. My prioritized "to-do" list comes in here.
4. Homemaking tasks. Same as with "Business duties"...different things everyday. There may be errands to run, cooking or baking to do, laundry, a room or closet to organize, or in-depth cleaning projects. I figure out what needs to be done each day as I make my to-do list. Currently, I'm not following a weekly schedule, such as: Mon-grocery shopping, Tues-clean the bathroom, etc...although I may eventually try to adopt a more regularized approach. We'll see. First things first!
OK...so here was today:
9am- I woke up, dressed, and talked with Micah for a bit (That sounds horribly lazy...I know! But we did go to bed about 2am last night. Like I've mentioned before, our schedule is flexible, so we tend towards being night-owls as is our nature:op )
At about 10am, we ran out to the hardware store to buy some paint for the dressers I'm working on refurbishing. I pushed off #2 on my general outline, so that I could start painting before the heat of the day caught up with me. We got home, Micah left to go do some jobs away from home (his work responsibilities involve outside jobs, as well as working at home to prepare and file reports), and I painted. I finished about 12:30pm.
Micah was home for lunch, so I made us some salads with a side of baked brie and crackers.
After lunch, I did some of the tidying (#2) that I had neglected earlier. Then I sat down at the table and made some "business" calls, wrote some emails, and did a few business tasks. I also found myself blog-surfing a bit, but I tried not to get carried away:op
Late afternoon, I took a shower to wash off the dried paint on my skin. Then I responded to a letter from a friend (snail-mail! Yes...I have a friend which I actually hand-write letters to on a regular basis. We've always done it that way and just never stopped!)
I prepared a dinner of leftovers, and Micah and I ate together. About 8am, we took our evening walk together.
For the rest of the evening, Micah's been working on the computer, so I've been on the computer myself doing some reading and blogging. I also took a break to talk to a friend on the phone. But now that it's 12:45 am, I'm going to sign off and start thinking about going to bed. Maybe tomorrow can be an earlier start?:o)
Notes to self: This evening, I neglected cleaning up the kitchen after dinner. That will mean waking up to a messy kitchen in the morning...not fun! I need to really work on cleaning the kitchen immediately after we finish eating (For some reason...dinner seems to be the hardest for me!).
If anybody else wants to take the Day-in-the-life challenge, I would love to read about how you manage your time! I'm sure I have a lot to learn from more experienced homemakers. Please comment and let me know if you post on this subject!
I don't have a minute-by-minute or even hour-by-hour schedule. I've tried that and found it very hard to stick with. Micah's work schedule is variable, so mine is too:o) Instead, I am trying to follow a general outline of regular duties that need to be accomplished.
I'm also trying to take a moment every day to write out a to-do list of all of those ever-changing little details that need to be attended to. I try to prioritize these details as I fit them into the bigger picture of my day. It's nice to be able to check things off and see my accomplishments!
Here's my outline (As a general rule, I try to do #1 and #2 first thing in that order. #3 and #4 are always flip-flopping around:op) :
1. Wake up, shower and dress for the day. Since I've been working from home, I've tried to make a point of continuing to dress nicely everyday (makeup, hair, the whole thing...though I usually don't bother with June Cleaver's pearls and high heels;o), even if I'm not going to leave the house. Yes...I'm sure I would save some time if I didn't worry so much about it. But I don't want to let myself slack in this area! My husband deserves my efforts to look nice for him. And I feel more fresh, more energetic, and more focused when I've outwardly prepared for the day.
2. Tidy house. This includes making the bed, straightening each room, and making sure that the kitchen (especially dishes and counters) is clean.
3. Business duties. This takes a variable amount of time each day, and the duties are often different. My prioritized "to-do" list comes in here.
4. Homemaking tasks. Same as with "Business duties"...different things everyday. There may be errands to run, cooking or baking to do, laundry, a room or closet to organize, or in-depth cleaning projects. I figure out what needs to be done each day as I make my to-do list. Currently, I'm not following a weekly schedule, such as: Mon-grocery shopping, Tues-clean the bathroom, etc...although I may eventually try to adopt a more regularized approach. We'll see. First things first!
OK...so here was today:
9am- I woke up, dressed, and talked with Micah for a bit (That sounds horribly lazy...I know! But we did go to bed about 2am last night. Like I've mentioned before, our schedule is flexible, so we tend towards being night-owls as is our nature:op )
At about 10am, we ran out to the hardware store to buy some paint for the dressers I'm working on refurbishing. I pushed off #2 on my general outline, so that I could start painting before the heat of the day caught up with me. We got home, Micah left to go do some jobs away from home (his work responsibilities involve outside jobs, as well as working at home to prepare and file reports), and I painted. I finished about 12:30pm.
Micah was home for lunch, so I made us some salads with a side of baked brie and crackers.
After lunch, I did some of the tidying (#2) that I had neglected earlier. Then I sat down at the table and made some "business" calls, wrote some emails, and did a few business tasks. I also found myself blog-surfing a bit, but I tried not to get carried away:op
Late afternoon, I took a shower to wash off the dried paint on my skin. Then I responded to a letter from a friend (snail-mail! Yes...I have a friend which I actually hand-write letters to on a regular basis. We've always done it that way and just never stopped!)
I prepared a dinner of leftovers, and Micah and I ate together. About 8am, we took our evening walk together.
For the rest of the evening, Micah's been working on the computer, so I've been on the computer myself doing some reading and blogging. I also took a break to talk to a friend on the phone. But now that it's 12:45 am, I'm going to sign off and start thinking about going to bed. Maybe tomorrow can be an earlier start?:o)
Notes to self: This evening, I neglected cleaning up the kitchen after dinner. That will mean waking up to a messy kitchen in the morning...not fun! I need to really work on cleaning the kitchen immediately after we finish eating (For some reason...dinner seems to be the hardest for me!).
If anybody else wants to take the Day-in-the-life challenge, I would love to read about how you manage your time! I'm sure I have a lot to learn from more experienced homemakers. Please comment and let me know if you post on this subject!
posted by Erin | 11:47 PM
9 Comments:
Hi Erin, it's 4 in the afternoon here, you must be up very late! It's nice to see fresh note when I dont expect to though :)
Tania
This was fun to read Erin! Thanks for posting it.
And just because you got up at 9 a.m. doesn NOT make you lazy! As long as your husband is happy then you are doing great! (o:
Oops....I see a typo, I didn't preview my comment after typing it.
I also wanted to add that I've thought about doing one of these before because I find them so inspirational and interesting to read....but I do not wish to be criticized or made to feel as if I need to defend myself so I've never done it. Maybe I'll have to not worry about the critics and give it a go...hmmm....we'll see. (o:
Hello Erin,
I really enjoyed this post! How to "redeem the time" like this is what I've been trying to look closer at too, though my own ramblings in the area (http://thebluebirdofhappinesscomestotea.blogspot.com/2006/07/there-is-center-in-seeking.html) are still in process. I love the directness and simplicity of your approach, wish I could emulate it more. And I love checking in here, luckily it's easy since I link to you on my own blog. Thank you being such a kind inspiration : )
Blessings, Wendy
I love your blog! It's always so neat to me to read other ladies' everydays.
If you are interested, I have started a yahoo group for conservative homemakers. We'd love to have you, if you would like to join. The link is groups.yahoo.com/group/conservativehomemaking.
Yvonne
I love seeing how people spend their time. It sounds like you had a very productive day!
Hi Erin,
It is so nice to see how you spend your day! After reading it, I thought I would tell you to make sure you give your husband a big hug (I am sure he knows how much you appreciate him already, but more doesn't hurt). You see, I was just talking to a girl at work last week and her marriage is suffering horribly because her husband refuses to let her stay home with her children (they have two). She is hurt by his materialistic desires overruling what is best for their kids it is causing them serious problems. They could afford for her to do it, but he doesn't want to cut back on their lifestyle. She could use some prayers.
You are so blessed to have a husband that shares your beliefs on the importance of your role as wife and future mother. And I am blessed that I am learning from you what a priceless gift that is and not to be overlooked when I think of marriage for myself.
Take care,
Leigh
Erin,
This was very fun(and interesting) to read! I can't imagine having my husband home with me during the week! That must be wonderful! You seem to be staying quite busy, and it sounds like you are very content where you are right now. Thank you for sharing. In Christ,
Samantha
Thank you for commenting, everyone! I had originally meant to do "day in the life" for a few days in a row, but I got too busy and it didn't work out. I'm working on getting more organized now, so I'll try to do one or two more once I adjust to my new schedule.
Mrs. B, I don't know who would criticize you for posting your day! Like you told me earlier...if your husband is happy that's what matters:o) I for one would love to read about your days!
Wendy, thanks a bunch for your sweet words! And thanks for linking to me!
Yvonne, I appreciate your words, and the invitation:o)
Leigh, thanks for sharing your thoughts and reminding me not to take my husband for granted. I'm going to take your advice about the hugs:o)
Samantha, Micah isn't home all day. It varies...he's home some days more than others. But I do like it when he's home. We would both love for him to be able to work from home at his own business someday!
Post a Comment
<< Home