Learning to schedule saves me money
Can you feel it? The weather is warming up and the robins are hanging out all over the yard. Spring must be here or at least in close proximity. Watching my children play lacrosse in the yard tells me it is here.
For me, this means I no longer have my evenings free or Saturdays and there is lots to coordinate on a daily basis. I am not complaining, just stating the facts. I’ve learned the hard way how to make this less painful on myself. I use to run myself ragged and fed my family junk. This was my situational disorganization. I couldn’t keep up with household tasks not to mention have a social life. Not anymore, I have developed my “ A” game.
The 1st thing I do is get it on the calendar. For example, just today my 7th grader’s schedule for lacrosse came out so I marked the calendar and then added it to my phone. I like a 2 step system. It helps solidify it in my brain!! My high schooler’s schedule I have a rough idea of so I mark off that time on the calendar as well. The only thing I haven’t filled out is the game schedule, that won’t come for a couple of weeks at the earliest. No problem, I have a rough idea of that so I just make myself unavailable for anything during the evening on weekdays and anything during the day on Saturdays. This is something I stubbornly refused to do for a couple of years and I was the one who ended up running crazy….no more of that!
Scheduling is so important to me as a mom and an entrepreneur. It is money to me. It can make me money or cost me money. It also helps my husband know what’s going on with our family.
One other key use of scheduling assists in meal planning. This is what stopped the eating out of junk food and saved our family money! With a little planning, I can coordinate meals around the schedule. For the late nights, I know I need to plan a quick meal. Many times I can use leftovers to feed us on those nights by cooking extra on the nights we aren’t as busy. I know that many people are not a fan of leftovers but it beats starving! The other super helpful thing I use is my crockpot. The best invention for me! I can program mine and make a delicious, healthy meal for my family without even being there. It’s almost like cloning myself!
I am thankful that my children have limited themselves to one sport for the most part. I know that it can lead to situational disorganization if I don’t take the necessary steps to prevent it. Live and learn, that is my motto. I do think it is important to learn and make myself better today than yesterday.
Perhaps you have a system or maybe you don’t. If you don’t have a system why not give this one a try or tweak it and make it your own.
For more organizing tips and inspiration please go to www.organizeyouinsideandout.com or Like my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/darlene.illig
