Help?!? I need a routine... or two.

[scattered]

I hope I'm not stepping on somebodies toes by starting a new thread, but I seriously need help with routines as all of mine have suffered a lingering painful death and were left to rot somewhere years ago.

My only routine to speak of now is dragging myself (and I do mean dragging) out of bed 30 minutes before I need to be out the door, throwing something on... this may or may not include make-up, filling up my two thermos cups with coffee and rushing out the door at the last minute. Thankfully I have a private office that I share with my DF/DPartner and she does nothing but quietly snigger at me if I decide to put on a little make-up at my desk. She is a very down to earth person and doesn't where make-up nor does she need it. I on the other hand tend to have people asking if I'm okay when I don't where it.

At the moment my schedule is rather confusing... I work two 12 hr shifts and two 8 hr shifts, but that is supposed to be going to five 8 hr shifts (8-4) soon I hope. I have weekends off and usually split holidays with my DP (ahhhh one of the few perks of being a Nurse Manager). At home my DS's usually fend for themselves when it comes to meals because when I get home I take up residency in my chair.

So here goes I need help! I'm a single DMom with 2 awesome DS's; DS19 works 3-4 days at Hardee's and is going through the process to join the Navy , DS13 starts back to school on Tuesday and will be a busy 8th grader taking all honors classes including advanced band and Spanish. DS19 will be leaving us soon so we need to figure out a schedule to keep the house out of CHAOS and help us (namely me) quit living with regrets.

Please help? Any and all advise greatly welcome.

[Dove]

Hi Scattered! Welcome to the village . Oh, & new threads are always welcome around here!

It seems as though the 3 "D"s --dinner, dishes, & duds (laundry) are the most important things to do on a regular basis to keep a home running smoothly. Write down a menu plan for each week to avoid the, "It's 6:00 -- what's for dinner?" dilema. Even something as basic as chicken on Monday, pasta on Tuesday, etc, may help remind you to prepare for dinner in the morning or the night before. Run the dishwasher every night if it is full, & unload every morning.

Try to do one load of laundry every weekday, whether it is clothing, sheets or towels, all the way from washing to folding & putting away.

Consider assigning each weekday one chore, such a vacuuming on Monday, cleaning bathrooms on Tuesday, etc. to keep the house consistently clean. Add more detailed cleaning as you get comfortable with sticking to a basic routine.

On the days you work a 12 hour shift (I've done that in the past & know how tiring it is) don't do any chores at all. In fact, your kids are old enough to help out with all of the above. Maybe when your 19 year old makes dinner for himself he can prepare a plate for you to heat up when you get home .

Many of us have read books by the original SHE's, Pam Young & Peggy Jones. Their first book, "Sidetracked Home Executives" is a quick, fun, & humorous read that explains the cardfile method they invented to get housework under control. Years later they wrote, "Get Your Act Together", which really trimmed the amount of household cards down from what they originally used. I'd recommend reading them in order for some great ideas & inspiration about routines.

Also, try to carve out some quiet time for yourself every day of your busy life. And always keep reading material in your car, so if you are picking up your 13 year old from an activity you can relax while you wait.

Hope some of these ideas help you! The PWYC (Post When You Can) thread here is the one where most of us post. Looking forward to seeing you there

[scattered]

Dove thank you for your response.

Many of these items we do already do, I say we because the DS's are no strangers to chores. Of course what I have discovered is what my DAunt/BFF (I'll explain some other time) the Y factor. The Y factor is mainly a vision problem in that those of the male type do not "see" the dirt, clutter, etc... This has been proven over and over in my house, you may have seen it, it is when they say something is "Clean" and you look at it and see that it is barely tidy, if that.

I searched my library for the books you recommended they unfortunately are not available in eBook version so now I have to debate whether to check out the real version or buy it. They did have one called Get Your Act Together I may check this out once I am done with my current book.

How do I get over the habit of being lazy?

Any other wonderful suggestions to my situation?

[Nancy]

You might consider putting a reminder in your phone of your weekly list.
If you are more tech. savy than me I put my groc. list in it but can never get to that screen when I needed it! LOL!