Monday, November 3, 2008

The Organizational Dilemma

I have a confession to make. It's been two years since I have read Simplify Your Life: Get Organized and Stay that Way with my SIL Tanya ... and, I've fallen off the organizational wagon. Simplify Your Life is a terrific book that isn't corny or impractical -- rather it encourages you to create systems of organization in your life that in turn help you to SIMPLIFY. Now, most people would say (go ahead guys, you can comment) that my house is neat, clean and put together. My dilemma is that I am very creative, spontaneous and sporadic (see poem below). I need to be purposeful. So, I am recommitting myself to getting back onto the organizational wagon. For the next month I'll be talking now and then about Simplifying & Organizing specifically in the areas of Housekeeping, Scheduling, Meal Planning, Beating back the Clutterbug, and Projects. Join in. Comment. Suggest. Encourage. What works for you? What hasn't worked for you? I am going to be throwing out some ideas -- share some of yours. Take the journey with me and tell me how you are progressing.
Left unchecked, my world can be like this If You Give A Moose a Muffin spoof poem that some creative genius wrote:

If You Give a Mom a Muffin
If you give a mom a muffin,She'll want a cup of coffee to go with it.
So she'll pour herself some.The coffee will get spilled by her three year old.
She'll wipe it up.Wiping the floor, she will find some dirty socks.
She'll remember she has to do some laundry.
When she puts the laundry in the washer,She'll trip over some snow boots and bump into the freezer.
Bumping into the freezer will remind her she has to plan supper for tonight.She will get out a pound of hamburger.
She'll look for her cookbook. (101 Things To Make With a Pound of Hamburger.)
The cookbook is sitting under a pile of mail.She will see the phone bill which is due tomorrow.
She will look for the checkbook.The checkbook is in her purse that is being dumped out by her two year old.
She'll smell something funny.She'll change the two year old.
While she is changing the two year old the phone will ring. (Of course!)
Her five year old will answer it and hang up.
She remembers that she wants to phone a friend to come over for coffee on Friday.
Thinking of coffee will remind her that she was going to have a cup.She will pour herself some.
And chances are,If she has a cup of coffee, Her kids will have eaten the muffin that went with it.

2 comments:

a. borealis said...

LOL - that is great. You pretty much summed up my life as a mother, tripping, bumping, and spilling my way into remembering what I ha(ve)d to do.

I look forward to your posts on simplifying!

Anonymous said...

I have a new meal planning system that has been really helping me to simplify. I love to cook, but I am a creative type and tend to be indecisive and rather prone to last minute inspirations. Considering I have a 4, a 2, and a 3 month old I needed to do something different!!! I was overwhelmed at the grocery store and could barely function while managing the little ones. My daughter was over sleeping for preschool because we were eating dinner so late. Sandy sat down with me and helped me come up with an emergency plan designed for my current situation, but as I have been doing it I think it would be great for anyone trying to simplify. The basic idea is that I have a catagory of meal that I make for respective nights of the week. For example monday is soup night, tuesday is "out" night, weds is pasta night, thursday is meat night, and friday is sandwich night (paninis make it a bit more interesting). Weekends are more spontaneous. It makes planning and going to the grocery store so much easier. Out night is supposed to be either take-out, or eat-out but has ended up being left-over night. Thursday is my usual shopping day so I can get fresh meat or fish. For now I am limiting myself to some very simple recipes in each catagory. I have not found it at all boring. In fact by limiting myself I have been more enthusiastic about cooking.

Thanks Sandy!!!!