I spent the other day walking around downtown Los Angeles like a tourist, visiting Angels Flight (the world’s shorts railway), Grand Park, lunch in Little Tokyo, and the Broad Museum. Jonah is off to college any day now and I’m trying to soak up every minute!
I’m having a bit of a hard time transitioning to a fall routine. The weather is still plenty hot, and there is still a kid around the house all day! I am feeling the pull of brand-new, back-to-school routines, but also resisting, on the other hand. Can anyone relate?
But I am enjoying how the weather cools down in the evenings and the overcast mornings. I’m trying to remember to light a candle when I get up, before I have my first cup of coffee of the day. I’m currently loving this one.
Whenever I start to feel overwhelmed, I start making lists. To that end, I’ve written out a weekly rhythm/schedule for homemaking.
Monday
- Food prep for the week: hard boiled eggs, energy bars, cut up veggies, etc.
- One load of laundry
- 15 min in zone of the week
Tuesday
- Clean bathrooms
- One load of laundry
- 15 min in zone of the week
Wednesday
- Paperwork/Desk Day
- One load of laundry
- 15 min in zone of the week
Thursday
- Wash sheets/towels/rags
- Dust
- Floors (sweep/vacuum/mop)
- 15 min in zone of the week
Friday
- Errands
- Menu plan
- 15 min in zone of the week
Saturday
- Fridge/Pantry wipe down
- Grocery shopping
- Deep clean kitchen (Ben actually does this)
Sunday
- Rest!
Theoretically, this all seems so doable! I work part-time, so my idea is to basically take 30-60 minutes after lunch to accomplish this. But I made this list over a week ago, and not a single day has gone according to plan! Granted, a lot of my afternoons have been taken up with getting Jonah ready for school, some birthday prep for Ben, etc. But I’m not sure why I’m resisting!
I’ve recently taken on another marketing client, so I’m working a bit more than usual, and frankly, I find my energy is a little on the low side after lunch. Maybe I just need a strong cup of tea to gather my energy for tackling these projects. I know that once I actually get going–I really get on a roll and have a hard time stopping. So, maybe I just need to pull up my big-girl pants and dive in.
I’m going to create a daily block schedule as well–so that I have realistic time periods set aside for everything I need to do in a day–with plenty of margin. Housework and paid work are both so much more pleasurable if you stop and have a cup of tea and knit a few rows, or sew a couple blocks every once in a while.
Do you rethink routines this time of year? Care to share?
Yes! I can relate. Just got home close to midnight last evening after a week away. Drove with my daughter from Michigan to California so that she would have a car at college. Oh, and we brought her cat. Talk about exhausted, with good and bad vibes, but mostly good. She is of the age where we are able to talk about things that matter, sincerely. We enjoyed checking out a few fabric stores along our route. I was pleased to see her “good” taste in fabrics. We suffered through some very dry deserts, up and down. And we explored Napa Valley and surrounding areas as we found her new place of work and searched for the rest of those “must haves” and “would really like to haves”. Different college this year – so far from home. Now to repair the house mess, Make a list like yours, listen-listen-listen as my Autistic son gives me the update and get ready for foot surgery limitations. Life!!