Mar. 23, 2009 - Getting Organised #3 - My Routines

Our lives are made up of mini routines and since I’m in ‘getting organised’ mode it is a good time to reflect on my personal mini routines.  Flylady is all about mini routines.  There are two that I am going to focus on

1. My Morning Routine
2. My After Dinner (Before Bed Routine)

I have used many systems over the years, Flylady and Emilie Barnes are probably the two most influential in my life. 

My Morning Routine

My biggest threat to a good start to my day is my emails and writing.  I like to write/blog in the morning and yet once I start it is really hard to stop so the time ticks over and before you know it – it is well and truly time for lessons to start and I haven’t even had breakfast!  So number one challenge is to have self control, to write notes so I can get to my writing later, and to keep an eye on the clock!

4.30am Wake up – Check in (email, Diary, Dinner)

5.00am Quiet Time

6.00am Exercise

7.00am Shower – Bed/Swish/Swipe/Sweep

7.30am Daniel Devotions (a time of training) and Breakfast

8.00am Homebless

8.30am Family Devotions

This routine is based on what already really happens so I know it is do-able and yet I am setting it as my routine just to sharpen it up a bit.  The times are only a guide – often my Q.T. only go for ½ hour, and I may read for another ½ hour or I may start on another project.  This timing gives the opportunity to walk for longer than ½ hour though I rarely am away from the house for 1 hour.  The times allow me to see that it is possible to do all this in the time I have allocated and yet reality is that it is a list of activities that flow, one from the other, regardless of the time.

My Evening Routine

This routine isn’t as consistent as I would like it.  I have 1-2 things a week happen in the evenings so on those nights my routine looks totally different.  I’d like to get into the habit of starting earlier in the afternoon and getting most of my evening routine done before dinner.

This routine is my after dinner routine.  We have 1-2 night time commitments a week and this throws out this mini routine.  My plan is to be aware of this, and in the light of wanting to establish a habit, consider these things before dinner if I am not going to have time after dinner.

Evening Routine starts after dinner

1. While the children are doing the dishes, I’ll blog (record keeping for our day)
2. Office Desk – this is to mainly tidy it, and update my overall to-do list

The next three points are the basis of Flylady’s Before Bed Routine

3. Tidy the house – this will take 5 minutes since the house is generally tidied as a part of the kids 5.00pm jobs.
4. Tomorrow – check my diary, food, clothes, lessons for tomorrow
5. Time out – take some time for me (this maybe blogging, reading, scrapbooking but hopefully not working!)