It's been a new kind of school year for me. My youngest started full day Kindergarten so I find myself in a whole new era of my life. I've chosen to "go back to work" and pick up more piano students. I have a part-time job (maybe more--28 piano students is a lot) and it's been interesting trying to balance all of my responsibilities.
I had a friend ask me the other day how I stay on top of all my "Mom Jobs" when I'm working so much. It's simple. I do 3 things every single day--that has made all the difference!
1. Do the Dishes
It's my goal to have the sink cleared and kitchen clean before my kids come home from school. It
works the best if I do this first thing in the morning but that doesn't always happen. This might sound funny to some but because Justin is rarely home at night, I'm not always able to square the kitchen away at night and there is always the morning mess. I also consider the kitchen squared away when I put homework assignments at the kids table spots with their after school snack...waiting for their arrival.
2. Do Laundry
I used to have one day in the week when I would do all the laundry but it's impossible now so I've been doing at least one or sometimes 2 loads of laundry every morning. I fold right out of the dryer and there is always a clean pile of clothes for the kids to put away each night when they're getting ready for bed. I've never ever stayed so caught up with laundry before!!!
I'm very diligent about putting dinner in the crock pot each morning or putting together a casserole that can be tossed in the oven between piano lessons. Sometimes I just prepare as much as I can like cooking the chicken, dicing the veggies, or making the salad to put in the fridge. It's so nice to have dinner already prepared at the end of the day!
These things might seem so simple but because I take the time to do them first thing and it's habit then I can skip through the house and have them usually done in under an hour. This leaves me hours to fill with not only piano lessons but exercise, scripture reading, school volunteering, family history, helping friends with kids, temple attending, dates with my honey and even attending institute!
When my weekend approaches I'm ready to have an unhealthy pizza night (been eating healthy all week) and just hang out on our Friday nights because the house is all squared away and the family helps me deep clean with our Saturday Job Jars. It's been a perfect way to upkeep!
