As I look at my calendar and try to figure out how I'm going to get all the things done that need doing over the next 10 days I almost get overwhelmed! It's easy to get so caught up in the to-do list that you forget to focus on the right now. Like right now, I'm sitting here eating my thrown together lunch of cucumber chunks in Italian yogurt dip while enjoying the peaceful quiet associated with nap time. I need these quiet moments before I start the hustle and bustle of showers, errands, snacks/meals, and who knows what else comes my way. Yes, I may be blogging, finishing my shopping list, eating, and chatting with friends all during this "down time" but it's a rare moment during the day when I can do that.
So how do I prep for a long week like this? Well, making sure I still get in my bible every day is key. It helps me feel grounded, centered, whatever you want to call it as my days go haywire. I also know that it requires a little more pre-planning than I usually do. For example, this week instead of having a few quick meals, nearly everything will be crock-pot based. When I get home from the store, I'll combine all my ingredients into gallon freezer bags so in the mornings I can plop the contents into the crock pot and go, go go!
Laundry can back up on me quickly. Sunday I'll focus on getting all our clean stuff put away so we can find what we need faster during the week. I usually have to wash two loads a day to keep on top of everything so I'll have to commit to getting everything done in the evenings before bed. Speaking of wash - yes, there will be a lot of disposable plates and utensils this week. It will make cleanup easier so I can focus on getting the priority things done and still hit the sack at a reasonable hour!
Keeping my house picked up (this is where my big kid helps me a lot) also helps me feel less like my world is controlled chaos. Now I'm not talking mopped floors and vacuumed carpets, but dishes in the dishwasher, counters cleared off, toys picked up, and laundry in the hamper.
When all else fails, I'll just have to enlist the help of my wonderful hubby to help me get it all done. :) Sometimes you just don't have enough hands, and this is where your helpers are critical. If I can tell him, "It would be a huge help to me if you could run a load of dark laundry today" he is able to do that for me and I'm already one load ahead for the day! It's not fair to just say, "Can you help me get all this done? I really am overwhelmed." Asking him to do specific things that he can work into his schedule is great.
What do you do to prepare for an exceptionally busy or challenging week?
So how do I prep for a long week like this? Well, making sure I still get in my bible every day is key. It helps me feel grounded, centered, whatever you want to call it as my days go haywire. I also know that it requires a little more pre-planning than I usually do. For example, this week instead of having a few quick meals, nearly everything will be crock-pot based. When I get home from the store, I'll combine all my ingredients into gallon freezer bags so in the mornings I can plop the contents into the crock pot and go, go go!
Laundry can back up on me quickly. Sunday I'll focus on getting all our clean stuff put away so we can find what we need faster during the week. I usually have to wash two loads a day to keep on top of everything so I'll have to commit to getting everything done in the evenings before bed. Speaking of wash - yes, there will be a lot of disposable plates and utensils this week. It will make cleanup easier so I can focus on getting the priority things done and still hit the sack at a reasonable hour!
Keeping my house picked up (this is where my big kid helps me a lot) also helps me feel less like my world is controlled chaos. Now I'm not talking mopped floors and vacuumed carpets, but dishes in the dishwasher, counters cleared off, toys picked up, and laundry in the hamper.
When all else fails, I'll just have to enlist the help of my wonderful hubby to help me get it all done. :) Sometimes you just don't have enough hands, and this is where your helpers are critical. If I can tell him, "It would be a huge help to me if you could run a load of dark laundry today" he is able to do that for me and I'm already one load ahead for the day! It's not fair to just say, "Can you help me get all this done? I really am overwhelmed." Asking him to do specific things that he can work into his schedule is great.
What do you do to prepare for an exceptionally busy or challenging week?
For me, if the kitchen is clean, I feel so much less overwhelmed. I didn't get around to unloading the dishwasher yesterday, so the sink was full, and I hate waking up to that sight. So, before I left to take L on our adventure today, I asked J to empty the dishwasher for me so I could clean the dishes when I got home. Well, I got home to find not only the dishwasher emptied, but the sink dishes washed, too! It was such a nice surprise.
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