Its interesting how throughout my married life I really never recognized the satisfaction you can get from taking care of your family. I did take care of my family - but really it was more of a team effort. Kids and husband always pitched in; that's just how we did things. And, of course, I've always worked full-time (and then some. :D) So, my "satisfaction" meter for my contributions were really always tied to my career. Now that the former career is gone, I've taken over almost all household duties. What I've also found, however, is that the day seems to fly by and if I'm not careful, nothing gets done!!!
I had this conversation with a couple of good friends the other day and we concluded that distractions sabotage your time. We start by checking email, and the next thing you know we are researching something. Maybe we stop and put in laundry, only to realize that something needs to be put away in the garage. And that's kind of how the day goes until around 3 p.m. So if you're not disciplined and a little "scheduled", it can be very frustrating - especially for someone who used to accomplishing all chores in the evening hours only! So besides looking for business ideas and re-activating my real estate career, I have been researching how others deal with this phenomena.
The first thing I uncovered is the Household Journal concept. Simplified, its the blueprint for how your days should go; the schedule of how and where your housekeeping (and your "self-care") get done. (Notice I said SHOULD!) It also includes kids calendars, meal plans, grocery lists, just to name a few things. It can go as far as to include all home repairs made, decorating choices, etc. You can purchase the book and use provided templates or just make one yourself. I have made my own (from materials I already had on hand and FREE templates on the Internet!) and am working with it now. I will provide more specifics at a later date as I want to see how successful I am in using this new tool. This is definitely not just for women at home but women working outside the home. I can see great value for both.
I've also discovered a great website for grocery lists (where you can actually store prices!!) I think most people routinely buy the same things so the set up for this is very easy.
www.grocerylistwizard.com I tried many sites before I found this one and I like it the best!! When you are done "checking" your items on line, you print out a list sorted by category (produce, dairy, etc) and if you've entered your prices, the price prints along with an estimated total of your grocery bill. It makes shopping much more efficient as all items are grouped together. I really do love this site!
I'm also trying new and different cleaning methods. Baking soda, cream of tartar, lemons are just some of my new favorite cleaning methods. As well, I am finding that keeping a routine where each room is tidied at night is making cleaning much easier. (This is also part of the Household Journal which I'll get to in a later post.) My favorite step is just making everything shine! The house always looks so nice when you've polished the table or shined the stainless fridge. It almost makes you forget the junk in the closets!! (But only almost - I have one more closet to go and I will have reorganized my house except for kids rooms.)
So I am taking care of my family - even in the dreaded kitchen, turning out edible meals - sometimes even great meals! And I love the satisfaction I am getting; it makes me want to do more and more for them. So once I get this all figured out and routine, I seriously want to work on helping "others" - those not in my family. This is all part of finding "greater purpose".
