Monday again…

My word, it doesn’t take long for a week to roll around again! We have had a lovely weekend, very productive, but not busy, if that makes sense! We made a sandpit for the toddler, I cleaned out my office, and I’m halfway through my current quilting project.

So, now the mojo is back on board, I’m getting stuck back into the routine. For now I’m just going to roll with my little weekly cycle, I think it will be a couple of weeks until I’m caught up enough to deal with weekly themes or obscure jobs. I’m actually thinking of switching from the weekly theme/obscure job routine, to picking a larger job I’ve been procrastinating on, and working say 15 minutes a day on getting that project done.

With that plan in mind, today’s room of the day is that bedrooms. I got stuck in & dusted & cobwebbed our room on Friday, but the other bedrooms need to be done, beds need to be stripped & changed, all the general stuff. I might even try & get the windows cleaned! Procrastination project for this week is to sort out Duckling’s toys. I gave his room a good tidy over the weekend, and my current setup of drawers, boxes & a bit of a mishmash just aren’t working anymore. So I need to:

*sort out toys & rotate
*redistribute into boxes
*put baby toys into seperate box/drawer ready for baby
*run up a couple of bags for puzzles without boxes

I’m sure I’ll work out more as I go along! But if I get at least these things done, I’ll be happy!

Thursday

The mojo is back! I just kicked my own butt, and I have found my mojo (or at least part of it!). THe focus rooms are still as tough to get through, but I am cruising through my daily jobs, and my night routine, so at least there is some order in the house. My room of the day for today was the loungeroom & office, and all I managed to do was dust the hallstand (though I did duct & cobweb our bedroom as well).

Not much of a post today, but I finally have a chance to get some sewing done, so I’m out of here!

Wednesday

Bathroom & Laundry day today. I have grand intentions of getting back on the daily room routine, but I think I’m still fair too unmotivated to think about tackling the Domestic Guru routine, especially the obscure jobs & the larger weekly tasks, which is mainly what I use it for!

I think I may need to spend this week & next going back to doing things the way I did before I discovered DG, and go flat out in my daily room until it is spotless, no matter how long it takes. I did this for a while, pre-DG, using the same weekly rotation through the rooms I use now, and it only took a couple of weeks, and I was burnt out, as I was trying to do too much. Then I discovered the Domestic Guru, and realised that bite sized chunks meant I was more likely to stick to the routine long term. So rather than go with my “flat out” approach, I kept my room rotation, and introduced the half hour limit suggested at Domestic Guru, as well as the obscure jobs & weekly focuses.

But now I have gotten behind, between a sick child, and lack of motivation. So I am throwing caution to the wind, and going back to my way, just for this way & next, until I feel like everything is under control again. A mini-spring clean if you will. Then, once everything is spick & span, I’ll jump back on the Domestic Guru wagon, with half hour limits & extras.

But then, a good routine should be flexible, shouldn’t it? I think that’s why I don’t stick religiously to one system, but have developed my own weird little hybrid of many systems, because a system that works for one, won’t work for all.

Tuesday

Blergh. I am feeling so unmotivated this week. I don’t know if it’s the colder weather, or the pregnancy, or what, but I just feel like I can’t be bothered with housework. I’m getting the basics done, but my daily rooms are neglected, cobwebs abound, and I just look at them and think “I should knock them down…tomorrow…”.

So I’m going to go easy this week. Just my daily chores & new habits, and I’ll try & do a bit in whatever the day’s rooms are, but no obscure job, no weekly stuff. Just me & my own little housework rut routine. I’m supposed to be doing the kitchen & dining room today… I’ll be happy if I can get 15 minutes done in the kitchen on top of my dialy chores.

Just for a laugh…

I’ve seen this game floating around a few blogs, and nearly fell out of my chair laughing when I completed it, and got the results…

63 As a 1930s wife, I am Superior Take the test!

I am so not a 1930’s housewife!

Monday again!

How quickly the weekend comes to a close, and the work week starts again! Unfortunately, I spent most of my weekend up to my eyeballs in bookwork, not much fun, but one of those jobs that must get done. I finally found 20 minutes to site down & work on my quilt last night, after a week of not touching it.

Focus Room – bedrooms

Obscure Job (from Domestic Guru) – dust the top of furniture that you can’t see, ie, top of wardrobes etc.

Weekly Focus – TOY WEEK (from Domestic Guru) – Sort through the kid’s books. Throw out full colouring books, fix torn pages, donate outgrown/unused books.

Day Five – getting domestic!

No focus rooms today, instead, it’s a free day to catch up on chores missed during the week, larger jobs that didn’t really fit in a focus room, or finalise weekly tasks. This week’s theme is Fix It Week (from Domestic Guru), so my task for today is to mend some pants that the fabric has fallen apart in (six weeks after I bought them – not happy Jan!), and to check the buttons on DH’s work shirts and replace any that are missing. I’m also using domestic day to try & finally get on top of the mess in my office.

How are all your new habits going? I have found my habits have become quite ingrained, and even after a couple of nights off with a sick child, last night I just found it came automatically to put on a load of washing, and do my half hour ironing. That has to be a sign of a good habit, doesn’t it?

Have a great Friday!

A productive day…

Today has been quite productive. Now that Duckling is feeling better, I am free to get stuck back into the housework. One job that I got done, that has been bugging me for ages – the kitchen hotspot.

A before shot:

This little table found its way into our kitchen during our bathroom renos, and has stayed. Unfortunately, it tended to be a catchall for all the crap that didn’t have a home. So I cleared it off, and created:

The Organisation Station! The white board has our menu plan for the week on the left, upcoming events on the right, and bottom right is a spot to write down shopping stuff. I have my diary open on the table, so both myself & DH can see what is coming up this week, both regular & non regular, and I have commandeered an unused milk steamer jug to use as a pen holder. The little yellow notebook is part of my finance tracking system, if I have it there, I am more likely to use it!

I also did some baking this morning, and made some biscuits. Very simple, but very yummy!

Ahh, it feels so good to be on top of the housework again. I might even have a chance to catch up on my focus rooms this afternoon while the little one is napping.

Day Four

Just a quick post today, as the small one is still unwell. We had a bit of a vomitting incident last night, so I have a couple of piles of washing to get through today. Luckily the clouds have cleared off, and it should be a lovely day to get the washing dry.

Focus Room – Loungeroom/Hallway/Office
Obscure Job (from Domestic Guru) – wipe down kitchen cupboard handles with disinfectant
Weekly Tasks (from Domestic Guru) – Fix It Week. Organise to get broken stuff fixed! Stop procrastinating!

Have a great day!

The Benefit of Routine

It can be a drag sometimes, doing the same old thing every day, but the last couple of days have shown me how important it is to have a solid routine, and sticking to it. With a sick, clingy toddler the last couple of days, I haven’t had much chance to do housework. However, but sticking to my routine of ensuring the kitchen & loungeroom are clean before I go to bed of a night, and folding as I take my washing down, have helped me to keep a reasonable amount of order. While my focus rooms remain neglected, I know that either a) I have Friday’s as my domestic day to catch up, or b) it’s only a week until it rolls around again (for jobs that can be left an extra weel).

It really is just a matter of taking baby steps. I have been a stay at home mum for over 18 months, and only now di I feel like I have a routine that works for us. New habits and routines are introduced slowly, so that I don’t feel overwhelmed. I’ve found after a week, a new addition to the routine has become a habit, and something that I do without thinking. I’ve also found I’ve become more productive, I have picked up my neglected hobbies, and now get frustrated with just sitting and watching TV.

Where did I start? I just started doing a focus room for 1/2 hour a day (as recommended by Domestic Guru. I didn’t stress out if I didn’t get everything done, it wass just a matter of establishing the routine of doing it. I found it only took a couple of weeks, and I was getting the focus room spotless in that half hour, and then, I started adding extras, like menu planning, or chucking a load of washing in of a night.