Tips to Tweak Your Schedule (Guest Post)

Since we all need a little order in our lives (I know I do), this post should help you keep on task.  This Mama Says teaches you tips to Tweak your Schedule.

How many times do you wake up in the morning with the full intention of crossing off everything on your “To Do List” and then when your head hits the pillow you realize that maybe one thing was done?!?! The next day, you wake up and start the cycle again…

There are so many things fighting for your time that cleaning, errands & chores easily loose precedence! How many times do we say to ourselves, “I don’t have time right now. I’ll do it later when I’m not so busy.” Guess what??? That “not so busy” moment… NEVER happens!!!

We are left with two options.
Option #1 – Frantically clean right before guests arrive. Cleaning off counters, vacuuming, spraying febreeze & shoving things anywhere, but in plain sight. (We’ve all been there) This can get real old, real fast if you often have drop-in guests.
Option #2 – Adapt cleaning into your daily schedule. This allows you to maintain your home, instead of letting it become overwhelming. And this way you do not have to abandon your normal daily activities to spend a day cleaning.

Here are some tips:

• Make a daily routine for chores that need to be done daily. Ex: dishes, laundry, wiping down counters, etc. This keeps small chores from becoming big chores. I have always loaded & run the dishwasher every night, but now I need to make it a point to empty it every morning, so that we can load it throughout the day, instead of the dishes piling it up during the day.
• Start young when teaching your kids to clean up after themselves. With children in the house, they are the majority cause of the messes. If you have them clean up after themselves, you are not only teaching them responsibility, but also helping yourself.
• Assign age-appropriate chores to your children. Again, teaching them responsibility & saving you time.
• Break up large tasks into smaller blocks of time. Actually set a timer to get as much done as possible & then decided to be done when the timer goes off.
• Keep a running list of chores that are done less frequently and aim to accomplish one a week. Things like, cleaning out a closet, making a donation pile, weeding your garden, cleaning your couch, etc.
• Create a schedule for chores that need to be done weekly. Ex: mon-vacuum, tues-kitchen floor, weds-dust, ect.

Beth is a 25 year old wife & mother of 4 children and blogs at This Mama Says. She’s been a “smart shopper” for a few years now… Started out of necessity & has turned into a passion. As friends & family started hearing of her shopping experiences they became very curious, so she ended up starting a blog & teaching a class. Her blog is mostly about saving money, shopping smart, other helpful household tips, and a few other random things.

Photo Credit: faqs.org