Back to the Basics

If you know me very well, you know that I love the holidays and everything that comes with them.   I relish every moment, every party, every -ahem- unscheduled day.  By the time January 1st rolls around I am ready to get back to a basic way of life, and so are my children I must say.

We weren't able to go to church this morning because neither Jeremy or I were feeling well, so I have have taken this day to rest and get ready to jump back into routine tomorrow.  I'm just finishing up the next two weeks of lesson plans so I will be all ready in the morning! :)

A couple of things on my agenda for the week:

• Back to 5am wake up and workouts.
• Get the children used to school routine again.
• Christmas decor taken down and put away. NEATLY.
• Continue gathering stuff for Goodwill and the general declutter.
• Implement the new chore responsibilities.  (This will take more than a week I'm sure.)

The title of my post really sums it up, we're just getting back to it this week. :)

Also, I'm really excited to be participating the The Bible in 90 Days Challenge hosted by Mom's Toolbox!  We start tomorrow and I am really looking forward to the challenge and the awesome way to start the new year. If you would like to participate, click the link to read what it's all about.  There are reading guides there to help you see where to read each day.

If you are interested in reading the New Testament in 90 days, that's what Lauren will be reading, as well as what I will be reading to the other girls.

Planning for the Week.

The house is quiet, I'm feeding Judah and wanting to get to bed soon, but I have all these things running through my brain that I really need to accomplish this week. So I'm sitting in my recliner, blogging from my new Blackberry. :).
I feel.like I'm skidding into the new week at full speed and just trying to put the brakes on a little bit so I can gather my thoughts..

1.Seriously, go to bed on time and get up on time. I'm already starting badly due to things outside of my control. We have been terrible at getting to bed on time since Jeremy has been off of work, but it's essential so I have to be a stickler.

2. Lesson planning. I would like to get always be two weeks ahead, right now I'm not ahead at all.

3. Zone work. This week I'm in zone 3 which is the kids rooms and it could not have come at a better time. We will organize closets, clean out dressers and do some general decluttering.

4. Have a baking day. Make tortillas, waffles, banana bread, granola, pumpkin muffins, and zucchini muffins.
Those are my major goals for this week. Tomorrow I am going to have a planning session to work it out legistically. I am expecting a good week!

Planning for the Week

I've had all these things bouncing around in my head that I would like to accomplish this week, so I'm gonna join with my friend Lindsey and blog my plan for the week. Maybe I'll even update it to let ya'll know where I'm at with it. We'll see. :)

First Goal: Begin the habit of getting up at 5:00am. I was doing 5:30am but that really is not quite early enough (and truth be told, it hasn't even really become a habit) for me to get a good workout in, have ample quiet time and be ready to wake the girls at 7:00am. They say it takes 28 days to make a habit, so here's to day 1!

Zone for the week: Master Bedroom
Declutter the closet and bureau, make a clothing inventory, wash the windows, detail vacuum.

Start reorganizing the kitchen a little at a time. I've been trying to come up with a new plan for the kitchen to make it make more sense as to where everything is and I think I finally have some good ideas. It will take a little time, so I'm just going to do this as time allows the next few weeks and if it's not done by the time I'm in the Kitchen Zone, I will finish it then.

Maybe "fallify" the house, on a budget of zero dollars. This should be fun. :)

This is of course besides all my other "normal" stuff. I'm expecting a good week. :)

Getting Back on Track

I'm pulling out the big guns. This nonsense has gone in for far too long. It's threatening the sanity of our family and I have to put a stop to it. What is this monster of which I speak?

Disorder. No schedule. Chaos.

Call him what you want he goes by many names.

For the past few months I have been "flexible". You know the pregnant, tired, just getting through the day kind. Now that pregnancy has been relieved and the baby has been birthed so I've been the no sleep, new baby kind of "flexible". Now, don't get me wrong I need to be flexible and I have learned some good lessons about letting some things go so more important things can get accomplished. I have also learned the lesson that my family needs me to keep them on schedule and none of us really thrive without it.

So the large home organization/schedule binder has come out. The schedules and charts have been revamped to fit our family where it is now and I am ready for action. So although this is a very simple post about getting back on track. I just want to say it loud and clear for the world (or the few people that read this blog.. "hi, mom" :) ) to hear: SCHEDULING WORKS FOR ME!!!