My New Routine

This week I went back to work and a radically new routine. Mr S starts quite early so I came up with a plan to make it possible for us to eat well at the end of the day and to make the most of the 'extra' time in the mornings. It's a lot easier this week because we had a public holiday and demands at work this week are light on.

What worked:
-having a very specific list of "easy" tasks to do in the morning, so I don't have to think too much
-a menu plan a week ahead, and sticking to it, choosing dishes which are manageable
- feeling that it does make a difference getting a few jobs out of the way, for example I've already done my bills for the week, and I'm about to menu plan so that frees me up this evening
-keeping TV off
-having rewards, e.g. Fridays no cooking

What didn't work:
-everything worked :) but it was harder on the days it rained which made it dark and cold

In order to make this work, my biggest challenge was to get to sleep earlier.  It's slowly getting easier to go to sleep at 8pm. I've also got no excuse this term for not having a homemade lunch each day. 

I feel really tired now... so much so that I was wondering whether next week I might actually come home next Friday and have a sleep!!! Probably not a good idea.

Examples of the food plan:
-a.m.   Mon       rice cooker on, cut up vegies,   after work take a few minutes to make fried        rice
-a.m.   Wed      cut up toppings, thaw dough, make savoury scrolls,     after work put toppings on pizza and bake
-a.m    Thurs     make pasta bake, more to do for that dish so no extra jobs except making       lunch
-a.m.    Fri        no meal prep, eat leftovers for dinner

One week down. How many to go?  
Let's see!!

Goals for April

My post labelled Goals for March is now Goals for April. Perhaps it would be more aptly named Goals for the Next Few Weeks, Reflecting on Goals for the Last Few Weeks.

These days I feel I'm getting back to a routine where I have more choice over what I can and can't do. My back's going well. My car's going well. Mr S's brother has gone back home. Holidays are over. I welcome the time  I now have to plan  and reflect.

Goals for March...and thereabouts

• I now drink more water. My drink bottle fits snuggly in its place near my seat in the car. It's spill-proof and easy to carry around.
• Getting up early. This worked well before the holidays. During the Easter break I continued to get up early to take Mr S to work. I've also been going to bed earlier. Hopefully I can keep up this new habit.
• Exercise. I've done a good deal of walking in the last couple of weeks and I have just started running again, that is for a few minutes. It certainly feels good.
• I'm really pleased I brought in time to create.  I'm still reaping the benefits and enjoying the simple changes I've made to the decor.
• Housework!! Ugh!!! I got Mr S's brother to vacuum once. Does that count as achieving the goal of one key job a week? I did clean the shower this past week. (My excuse is my back. It tires easily.)
• Reducing screen time/Increasing "focus" time. Overall I've been on the computer a lot lately. On a few occasions I've consciously chosen not to switch on the computer or TV. 
• Friday Bill Time going very well and keeping me on top of matters financial. 

Goals for April into May...looking ahead....

• Exercise. Walking and running three times a week.
• Drink more water.
• Get up early. Not easy now that it is dark and cold in the mornings. I am enticing myself with a chai latte this Thursday morning. I am not a morning person so I need to make it "pleasant".  Tomorrow morning I'd like to bake biscuits for Mr S to take back to work. Could be wishful thinking!
• No FB till Friday. 
• Listen mindfully. Need to do something concrete to make this a definite part of my life.
• Try, try, try to do one key cleaning job a week.
• Around the house. Take out house picture to frame and come up with the next concrete step. What do I need to fix it in place in the frame which is empty and waiting to be used?
• Invite a friend over and prepare something to eat, whether it's a snack or a meal.

 I think that's enough. If I can achieve some of these goals this week I will be happy indeed. It always helps when I have focus and time to reflect. I become more mindful of how I approach my whole life and I become more open and more aware of ways in which I can do this. So,  I'm hoping for continued, quality thinking time. Waking up earlier, my Friday evening routine and less screen time are definite ways I can achieve that. I also want to keep in mind one of my main goals which is to be healthy and that only comes about by working at it. With all these thoughts in mind I'm set and focussed for a productive week.

Simple living Sunday: When I say simple what do I mean?

Finding a hidden treasure when decluttering this week.

I always have holidays at this time of the year so it's a great opportunity to evaluate where things are at in my life. Even though I'm fairly happy with where things are at in terms of my simple living goals I wanted to try to define what simple living means to me. I came up with the following:

making a conscious choice to live  mindfully, 

making choices that are people-friendly and earth-friendly 

and which enable life to be simple and uncomplicated. 

The last part could be an oxymoron as I can be intense at times especially when my inner chatterbox is in "anxiety mode" which is why simple and uncomplicated are important parts of the definition.

Simple and uncomplicated means that my life does not have to be determined by the media and marketing world. I can live my life free of advertising persuasions. It means that  shopping is intentional moreso than a way to pass time. At Christmas time I chose not to buy presents for friends. I know some people put a lot of time and thought into gift-giving but when I see the amount of things in my home I find I choose not to add to the clutter and, ultimately, landfill. I have plenty so I don't feel the need to gather more and I'm not sure that Christmas is meant to be about that sort of gift-giving. That's something which I hope to explore a little more come Christmas 2015!

Simple and uncomplicated - I'm learning- means that life's goals can be achieved just as well using the simplest of methods rather than resorting to expensive or complicated methods. Simple and uncomplicated is also where I find my life balance. Weeding the garden is one of my most enjoyable recreational activities. I find it therapeutic and I find it energises me.

Simple and uncomplicated means that I don't have chickens and sprawling vegie gardens and I don't make everything from scratch. One of my life purposes is to teach and to be present to those students and that requires time and energy. I'm happy to do that work so bringing chickens into the equation would not fit at all. There are weeks where the dishes don't get done so it's important for me to know what I can manage easily (=simple) and what would make life  unnecessarily stressful (= complicated). It means I do what I can when I can.

This week I've gotten into the swing of making sure simple living can happen in my home by decluttering the tubs and cupboards in one of the unused rooms. At one point I was quite dismayed to see the amount of stuff I had stacked away as I really do try to be careful about what I hold on to. Once I got past that stage it felt good knowing that I could focus on making way for a nice, inviting work and relaxation space. It's been very satisfying carting loads of stuff off to the local op shop but just a tad frustrating knowing I haven't yet finished. Stay focussed!!

It's time for these papers to go!

These tubs have been sorted. Just one cupboard to go...

Sunshine after days of rain

So on this windy, overcast Sunday, it's back to the grindstone. I want to make a vegetable lasagne for dinner,  I'll probably relax after that as I've been feeling tired lately and I don't have any pressing deadlines at the moment. The sun's coming out which is heartening as this  house is dark in summer when the light is low.

Have a good week.

Goals: One key cleaning job a week

October

 

I got off to a fabulous start with my goal to do one cleaning job a week, that is, over and above the mandatory jobs of dishes and clothes washing.

Week 1       My mum was coming over so the floor got swept      and mopped.

Week 2     I had a young person coming to stay so the toilet and basin got done before the second weekend had arrived.

Week 3         I had a lovely weekend away for a friend’s 50^th.  No cleaning.

Week 4         Not sure what happened but the time seemed to go. Another week passed and I didn’t get the cleaning done.

A new month has started and I’m hopeful that this month I might get the jobs done. There’s a public holiday this week so that will give me some extra time.

I really think that more cleaning would happen if it weren’t for the gardening. I suppose I make that choice as it’s a feature of my home and I've made it a priority. Now with spring and the warmer weather there's even more to do. 

 

I think working full time, as well as having other things that need to be done in any given week, means that I can’t do everything so housework is one of those areas which is “cut back”.  One thing I know is that I don't want my life to be work, work, work.

GOALS: Too busy to clean

CLEANING GOALS

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I pushed cleaning down the planning list to make room for some of my preferred goals. This has worked very nicely. I find I approach the week with a keener anticipation knowing that I will get to enjoy working on my “preferred” goals.

However, I don’t want to neglect housework completely. I actually dream of having a cosy little cottage which is warm and inviting and a lovely space to be in. With that in mind I came up with a ‘modified cleaning plan’.



Some days



Other days

The plan works like this:

·        Washing clothes and doing dishes get done regularly.

·        Each month I aim do the following four jobs.

o   Sweep and wash the floor

o   Vacuum carpeted areas

o   Clean bath and toilet

o   Clean shower

The problem is I have not been getting these jobs done. Life is busy. Things come up. I work fulltime etc. etc. So, upon reflection, I am putting this out there to try to make me more accountable.

This October can I do all four jobs?

• Sweep and wash floor  - Done 5/10. Because mum was coming over!!

A pleasing, yet surprising, start!! Well done!

How do you fit everything in when life is so busy?