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Radvent Day 2: Balancing

Friday, December 2, 2011
How do I do it all? Pretty simply, the answer to this question is a firm I DON'T. Not even close. But, I really like to think I can (don't we all?). I have a chronic case of "list overkill." On a typical weekend, I will think the following is an achievable list of tasks to accomplish: 1) Clean the kitchen, 2) Sort through our closet and pull out things we don't wear anymore, 3) Have a garage sale, 4) Make eight, 6-foot tall wooden growth charts by burning the lines and numbers on with a $10 wood burning tool from Wal-Mart, 5) Grocery shop, 6) Take Lincoln to the park, 7) If there is time, pull out weeds from our back garden and re-mulch it.

My list overkill usually leads to me being way disappointed when I only accomplish one --or maybe two, if I'm really on a roll--items from the list. Lucas tries to talk me down from my massive to-do lists, but I just can't stop.

Last January, I made this chore chart to help me keep the house in better order. And it worked! I only tackled one or two chores per day, and at the end of the week I got to see all the little magnets moved below the line. After Bennett was born, the chore chart may have taken a little hiatus, but I am pleased to announce that it went back into rotation this week! I found that if I tackle the two jobs right after breakfast and before Bennett's first nap, I have a higher likelihood of actually getting them done. No one is fussy yet, we usually don't have anywhere to be...it's just a good time of day for getting things done.


I am going to keep my to-do list for this weekend at a manageable level. Here goes:

1) Clean the living room.
2) Put out the Christmas decorations.
3) List items on Craig's List.

(It is pretty hard to stop at three. I won't lie.)

4 comments:

  1. That is a great, manageable to-do list for the weekend! :D

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  2. We had a list of 32 projects to get done over the summer...still have several to go, but the key was to set goals on having things done by a certain time/date. In the house we do things over the course of a few days....like Christmas decorating. Yesterday it was the advent set, a wreath, a vase of poinsetta blooms, and a snowman. Tomorrow we will wrap the banister with greens and lights...little by little we bring things out, otherwise it is overwhelming.

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  3. Kelly, I think we might actually be separated at birth. I have the same mental battles and have to fight the overwhelmed feelings everyday. And the chore chart thing? I'm totally making one up for our house - I NEED it.
    Oh, and when you mentioned the radvent 2011 idea, I went to the princess lasertron blog and got all excited about joining you until I had to self-talk myself back down from the ledge. It is entirely unrealistic for me to add one more thing to my "list" after just returning to work on Thursday. Sigh...talk about CHALLENGING and BALANCING. But maybe it was good for me to "join" radvent mentally because I feel like admitting that I probably shouldn't try to tackle it was kinda part of the point?

    We might be tortured souls :o)
    Jen N.

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  4. If it makes any of you feel better (especially you Terri) my house looks like Christmas threw up and there is no one to clean it up!
    I have 3 1/2 pages of "goals" to do and I am still working on getting more than one crossed off!

    ReplyDelete

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