I know that if I'm organised that I feel so much better. If I don't know what I'm doing or when I have to do it by then I feel out of sorts. Call me an old bore but I like to have clear organisation in my life. I'm one of those people that who can quite easily use self discipline to stick to a plan. In 2009, I decided to get debt free and never borrow again and I've stuck to that. Not been so good on dieting but I haven't fallen off the wagon, I've actually stopped it and decided to get off it.
There have been many plans that I've decided upon and have stuck at. I decided to pay off as much mortgage as I could and downsize and I've done that. There have been somethings that I decided on many years ago and I've stuck to them. One of those is to have a good work life balance. I've suffered stress in the past and I make a point of keeping myself well.
Like everyone else, work is work and I can't change that but I can change me. One of the things I've changed over the years is to get myself organised so I can relax when I get in from work. It might seem so obvious but a bit of work at the weekend makes my life easier and virtually stress less over my working week. What I do doesn't cost me anything and anyone can do.
Here's some of the things I do to make my life less stressful.
Menu planning, I know what we're eating day to day. Cook once, eat twice means I have days like today where I ca just come home from work and not have to cook. I also plan most of our breakfasts and lunches. In the morning, food goes into the slow cooker, potatoes and carrots (if that's what we're eating) are peeled and left in a saucepan of cold water. Our meals are ready just to cook when I get in.
House chores. The kitchen gets cleaned daily and it's always left clean and tidy before we go to bed. Cleaning of areas of the house are done on a rota so I do something every day.
Laundry is separated when we take it off so I don't have to sort when I wash it. I also have a simple wardrobe for work and out of work do nothing needs much thinking about.
Appointments, I always make these in advance so my hair, dental and doggy grooming appointments are always made as I leave the last appointment so there's no scrabbling about to get my hair done or keeping the dogs clipped.
So and teachers will get this, last week if any term or half term is busier and it's times like this that I'm thankful for my own organisation because Dear Reader, I'm totally shattered and it's only Monday!
It's going to be a week of slow cooker meals, coming home and putting my feet up to recover for tomorrow.
Until then,
Love Froogs xxxxx
As a retired teacher I get all that and did exactly the same. Do you succumb to a cold/illness three days into the holidays when the pressure is off. Enjoy your half term break you deserve it.
ReplyDeleteAh, we all get ill during the holidays and always comment on how consciencious we are when we get back !!
DeleteI am just the same, without my organization I too feel out of sorts. I am a bit OCD. I like everything just so.I keep an organised house so I can sit down after dinner and relax for a couple of hours.......
ReplyDeleteI too feel better with plans & structure. Tuesday is bedrooms, bathrooms & bin days. Makes things so much easier.
ReplyDeleteI too am highly organised I find that if I am not because something has come up and I fall behind with things, I feel overwhelmed trying to catch up.
ReplyDeleteYes!Yes! I am the same. I put things away where they belong and then I don't have to waste time and energy looking for things. I keep a calendar with all appointments, important dates, etc. I plan meals, shop once a week, and cook from my plan. We have long ago paid off the mortgage and live debt free. Taking care of your body is the most frugal and best investment you can make. Way to go, Froogs!!
ReplyDeleteAnother highly organised teacher here, perhaps too persnickity (sp?) at times, but I do like things a certain way. Makes my life run much smoother.: )
ReplyDeleteAs I am already retired, I don't feel the press of work so much anymore, although the house is fairly large and it certainly could use more cleaning than it gets. I do like having a schedule from week to week---having none at all didn't work well when I first retired. I have M-W-F as "free days" and on Tuesdays and Thursdays I go to the next town for the gym, to buy groceries, and to do other errands such as the bank, hairdresser, etc. I combine my errands so they can all get done on the two days I'm in town. On"free" days I may schedule coffee or lunch with friends, or make doctor or dental appointments, etc. I am also careful to make them for times convenient for me, meaning just before or after lunch, so I still get my full "drinking coffee and reading the papers time" before I have to go out. I also CAN reschedule everything except the gym if circumstances require it---the yoga class goes on whether I am there or not, but I most often am there. I also have to tidy up the kitchen either as I cook or after we eat, as I do not want a mess in my way in the morning when I am NOT at my best. I am working on paring down our possessions but I don't get a lot of co-operation from the gentleman to whom I am married. He's a pack rat!!
ReplyDeleteI'm semi organized. Mentally I am retired. Physically I go to work 5 days a week. :) There is a need to be organized even semi to remain frugal. My mornings are a well thought out plan. I know what I am going to wear, my lunch was packed the night before and anything I need to take to work is either already in the car or waiting with my keys by the door. I shower at night, too. If anything or anyone gets in the way of my morning routine my day is off. Thankfully, hubby works nights on the weekends and stays in bed until the house is clear weekday mornings, daughter kisses me goodbye as I stumble to the bathroom and I am last to leave sometimes taking the dog with me for puppy daycare. It is a well worked out system until.....
ReplyDeleteOh, I get it. Ditto here. I'm permanently shattered at the moment.
ReplyDeleteJ x
Ok, I need to be organised for my peace of mind, but actually I can't stick to the plan. For now I can deal because I work only 5h a day. I need a new plan.
ReplyDeleteI am totally chaotic. You would need to lie down in a darkened room after a day with me in my house! Though retired,I live in a five bedroomed house on two acres where we keep bees, grow our own veg and fruit, keep chickens, raise lambs and pigs and provide day and respite care for people with special needs.We are blessed with a loving family and many friends who are constantly popping in, I am on a couple of committees and for fun paint, sew and generally make do and mend. As you can see I really ought to be organised and really mean to be, but I tend to drift off and do other things (or sit down to check my emails and loose myself on blogland like now) rather than tidy or hoover etc. The only way in which I am really organised is that I meal plan and make shopping lists as I cook everything from scratch and HATE waste.
ReplyDeleteI do try I follow flylady.net for any help I need as she has a 'do anything for 15 mins' which helps when I dont feel like doing anything, also there are ideas for splitting the work up over the week which I find useful it is a very good site. Hope this may help others by posting here. Its great to at least feel organised and know what to do and when, a little less fussing and a routine does help.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's routine and organisation that help things flow more smoothly. With birds, animals and currently building work going on it's important for me to know what's happening when and make sure that I have 'down' time and 'me' time whenever I can otherwise I would be pulling my hair out.
ReplyDeleteBoth the kids and the teachers get seriously tired and stressed heading towards any school holiday, having your routines in place can only help as you say.
I used to be organised . . . then I retired! Now, one day drifts into another and weekends don't exist (unless the Formula 1 Grand Prix race is on the TV). I live alone so family meals are rare, very rare; I forget to pull things out of the freezer until it's too late in the day so end up eating a sandwich/something on toast/ porridge instead of a balanced meal. But I enjoy the freedom of retirement - I go to a beach if the sun shines, or a walk through the woods; I can spend time gardening or merely sitting in the garden with a book and a cup of coffee - and no-one grumbles at me because I'm not organised. I realise a rota for the housework would give my home a tidier appearance, but hey - I rarely have visitors unless they ring first to make arrangements, then they arrive to a clean house and a freshly-baked cake. :) I guess after all those years of split shifts, hard work, organising a house and family I feel entitled to 'switch off' and R E L A X.
ReplyDeleteI`m organised from sundown of Sunday to Wednesday night as I work part time and then look after a toddler overnight.Thursday is usually semi organised when we have loads of play time with Alyssa. Thursday eve I`m usually shattered from work and babysitting.
ReplyDeleteI get a bath and early night, then I can be much more myself from Friday to Sunday, just doing a few odd jobs around the house, a bit of tidying and occasional gardening. Then, its back to being organised again for another 3 days. I usually make my 3 days worth of working lunches ready on Sunday eve. During the week I generally cook something simple every night, after work as well. The kitchen gets cleaned after every cooking session when I do the washing up. DB keeps it tidy during the days, so we have no major cleaning to do. Bathroom and toilet get done every 3 days, often in the evenings. Bedroom and living room get sorted on a Friday or Saturday, and so does the washing. I have a routine and it doesn`t stress me out as it`s spread over the week. I still find time to blog and switch off with a good old cuppa in between.
I wish I was organised, but I don't do too badly. I shop and menu plan. I write everything down in diary, on calendars etc. Atm I am planning a wedding and a move abroad, so the house is not the tidiest, but hey, that's how it is sometimes when you have two young kids. I do prefer to be tidy and organised, though, I think it cuts down massively on stress :)
ReplyDeleteI wish I was organised, but I don't do too badly. I shop and menu plan. I write everything down in diary, on calendars etc. Atm I am planning a wedding and a move abroad, so the house is not the tidiest, but hey, that's how it is sometimes when you have two young kids. I do prefer to be tidy and organised, though, I think it cuts down massively on stress :)
ReplyDeleteI do much better when I'm organized, too. The weekends ARE key. If I don't make my work meals ahead of time, I'm more tempted to stop and get junk. The apartment has been a mess the last few weeks, so I spent a long time today getting back towards a better balance. Feels much better.
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