establish and maintain household routines

I would like to be more in control of my time, in stead of goofing around and then paaaaaaaaanicccccccc

I’ve done some of it, and what I haven’t is redundant with another goal.

Our current lack of hot water means there’s no hope of a routine. I can’t do dishes, I can’t do laundry, I can’t even shower (and thus won’t exercise). We’ve only been without it for about 40 hours right now, and we’ll have it again by noon. But the timing was bad. Back to work and school began yesterday, and with that was supposed to be a return to normalcy. Now I’m just hoping to get through the week!

And then there are things happening next week that will disrupt the routine somewhat.

I should give up on this goal, but I’m not.

means getting to the point where we are maintaining a tidy home and keeping up with the cleaning schedule. I do follow a cleaning schedule quite diligently, but I’m not keeping up with it. And we’re forever trying to catch up.

When I can get 100% of my cleaning schedule completed, and can maintain that schedule over 90% for a reasonable period of time, I will consider this goal done.

We got partway there and never made it.

But with the new year almost here, I’m going to give it another try. We all enjoy the benefits when we stick to this.

I’d made a rough draft of a chore chart, and we had it on the fridge, and we were both going to look at it each day and doing our best to do our chores.

Then we had family over and I got embarrassed to have the chart there, so I hid it. And so we stopped looking at it.

Last night, S and I were talking about it, and we both agreed that we want it back. We want the chores done. We like not having to decide what to do each day. We like the feeling that we’ve done the chores we’re supposed to do and are now free to go off and do something relaxing, guilt-free. This is a major point: Without the chart, we just look around and feel overwhelmed by the number of things that need to be done. With the chart, we’re handed a manageable chunk and we know the other things will be done in due time.

So today I’m going to find that chart and put it back on the fridge.

and the drafting of a chore chart, and S and E being on the same page as I am, I’m pretty optimistic about the “establish” part of this goal.

I think there’s a lot to be said for having it all mapped out so you just have to do it, not forever having to figure out what to do.

a chart of chores. E was hanging over my shoulder, very interested, because he saw his name (his column says things like “piano lesson” and “watch a movie.”)

My hope is to begin the routine 9/5, when E starts first grade. I don’t kid myself that the draft chore chart is thought out particularly well, but it will give us something we can refine.

I’m putting in the chores we need prodding to do (in-depth kitchen cleaning) rather than things we do automatically (unload the dishwasher). I’m also making an extra column of things that we can look over each week, deciding what needs to be plugged in (schedule appointments, mow lawn).

Also, because our weekends are so erratic, I’m trying to leave things for weekends that won’t mess us up too much if we miss them (dusting) rather than vital things.

As part of the refining process, I want to put fun stuff into the routine. Routine doesn’t necessarily mean all boring things. But I’m also scheduling the treadmill in for myself. (Oops, must not think of this as something to dread.)

We’ll see. This worked once before, but then we stopped for some unknown reason.

Before Christmas this year, I read? heard? someone compare it to a final exam. You have to get the right gifts, food, decorations; wrap, cook, and set up—being gracious and pulled-together all the while. Cramming all this in is like studying for finals. Although the celebration of Christmas is more fun than a final, I understand the comparison. And the test seems hardest for moms.

Now that this is behind us, and we’ve gone through a recovery period, we’re starting to get back on an even keel. I feel more together. Things are getting done. There’s more hope of accomplishing routines.

Once S gets back from the weeklong conference he’s flying off to soon. Ugh.

In the past, we had a lovely chart which saved us from much bickering. We divided all the chores, assigned each to a specific day, and that was it. We did it on schedule, or we had to play catchup, and we knew who was doing what. But this hasn’t been working out lately. No week is routine, for one thing. Sigh.

Second, I’ve been getting up at 5:00 and I’m not so sure this has been working out. I do treasure the quiet time to get my head together and sip my coffe in peace. Peace is hard to come by otherwise and I treasure my alone time.

However. I miss S. He hustles in the morning and is out the door. Then E has been staying up later, going to bed more often at 8:15 than 7:30. And I’m wiped out by 9:00. So S and I don’t see each other enough anymore. We can’t talk about the stuff we have to talk about, let alone hang together.

Part of the original plan for the early rising was to use the treadmill before work. If this isn’t happening (and it isn’t) then I need to revisit the early morning thing. If I’m working off hours, it might as well be at night, companionably near S, exchanging remarks as thoughts occur to us.

The other problem is, I am exhausted by 9:00 but rarely get to sleep before 10:30. So I sleep under 7 hours most nights, and I’m one who needs her 8+ hours, unfortunately. Consequently, I’m wearing myself out and getting sick. For two weeks straight I’ve started the week healthy (having caught up on sleep over the weekend) and ended up with severe cold symptoms at the end of the week.

So this needs some serious thought. It’ll be 5:00 tomorrow as I plunge into another busy day, but I have to figure out whether my evenings are productive enough in my tired state. If not, but they’d be more productive if I’d slept later, then I should sleep later. If I can’t be more productive in the evenings (when well-rested) then I do need to keep up with the early mornings.

Or maybe a compromise. Early mornings on alternate days? That might work. Then I get a rest regularly. Yes, I think I’ll try that this week. I’m glad I started thinking about this.