Tackle It Tuesday (Sitting Routines & a Few Other Loose Ends)

Today officially starts the beginning of my school routine. I realize that school started a couple of weeks ago BUT it took me that long to get the house back in order! Yesterday while driving to Sedalia, I thought about what I wanted to get accomplished this school year and I realized that I wasn't going to get these goals accomplished without sitting a daily routine for the school year! This morning during my quiet time, I developed my daily routine:

Monday/Wednesday/Friday:

5:45-6:00 am-Wake, shower & dress

6:30 am-Quiet Time

7:15-7:30 am-Wake the girls (Boys get up around 6:15 & are on the bus by 6:40 am)

7:30-8:30 am-While the girls are getting ready for school, empty dishwasher, put a load of laundry in, make beds, check email.

8:30 am -10:00 am-Head to gym-work out.

10:15 am-10:30 am-Take quick shower & dress for the day.

10:30 am to 12:00 pm-Work (CMSL)

12:00 pm to 1:00 pm-Eat lunch/Take break.

1:00 pm-4:00 pm-Housework, CMSL (if need), start dinner plans, etc.

4:00 pm-Start evening routine (recheck calendar) Every other Wednesday, work at the Academy from 4:00 to 8:00 pm.

5:00 pm-Start Dinner

7:00 pm-TV off/Homework time with kids. Every other Wednesday, attend Community Live @ Church.

Tuesday and Thursday: On Tuesday morning, the morning routine will be the same as M/W/F. At 12:30, I will be attending the Tuesday Bible study group. We will be studying a book by Joyce Meyer call "Battlefield of the Mind." The study will continue until November 13.

On Tuesday after the study, I will be picking up the girls and taking them to dance. They have dance from 4:30 to 8:15 pm. The evening routine will be the same as my M/W/F unless Connor has a soccer game.

On Thursday mornings, I will be attending, Take 2. A bible study at my church. Not sure what I'm taking yet. Our first meeting is this Thursday. Bible study is from 9:15 am to 11:15 am. After Bible study, a group of us usually go out for lunch. I really cherish this time, it's a great time for me to reconnect with a group of women & talk!

Thursday afternoon: We usually are done by 1:00 pm. I'm planning on using this afternoon to run errands-grocery store, etc.

On Thursday's, the girls have dance from 4:30 until 7:30 pm and I work the front desk on Thursday's as well.

With my daily routines in mind, here are my evening dinner plans:

Monday-Cook.

Tuesday-Cook.

Wednesday-Quick & easy meal for Community Live night & crockpot meal for work night.

Thursday-Crockpot dinner.

Friday-Family fun night-eat out, pizza, etc.

What are we having this week?

Monday-done

Tuesday-We will be eating dinner early (around 4 pm). Connor has a game in Smithton at 7:30 pm & we will be leaving town around 5:00 pm. We are having Garlicky Spaghetti & Chicken Tenders. I'm sure that Connor will eat again after his game. The rest of the family can eat when they get home.

Wednesday-Chili Pork Chops, Steamed Veggies & Salad.

Thursday-Something in the crockpot-not sure yet.

Friday-We will be eating out, if Connor plays on Friday evening in Smithton.

Last tackle it project....tying up loose ends or things that I need to do today (or this week will work too!) still!

1. Finish entering MYSA registrations. Mail them out this evening.

2. Get dance bags ready for girls.

3. Finish cleaning girls room.

4. Finish packing up garage sale items in garage.

5. Call library to make donation of garage sale books.

6. Set up meeting to get tapes transferred to CDs.

7. Freezer Chick meals done.

8. AFA blog.

Okay...I think I'm done! What are you tackling?

Total Mom Makeover-Week One-The Starter Mom

I purchased a book by Hannah Keeley called "Total Mom Makeover:The Six-Week Plan to Completely Transform Your Home, Health, Family, and Life" a couple of months ago. I decided to spend my summer working through the book. The Introduction had me hooked:

"I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror as I walked by with a basket full of laundry fresh out of the dryer. My hair was pulled back in the same scrunchie that I had worn to bed. My face, pale & washed out, had not seen a dab of makeup since last Sunday, and the drab gray sweatshirt that I wore only accentuated the fact that I still had twenty-five pounds to lose. But who has time to shower and dress when you have a house to clean and three kids to look after? And even if I did have time, what was the point?"

WOW, could I relate! I feel that way most days with four children, volunteer activities, a part-time job, etc. etc. What was the point? However, I am worth the effort!

So, now I'm on a Total Mom journey....what is a Total Mom? Keeley describes a total mom as "a woman who is changing the face of homemaking and motherhood. Caring for her home & family is not something she does on the side. It is a priority for her, and she loves what she does. She is smart, energetic, powerful, confident, balanced, and sexy. She doesn't sit around and wait for things to happen. She makes things happen!"

Each week is broken down into a Total Mom Needs Pyramid. Each day, I will read out of the book, do some exercises in a journal, and put what I have learned into practice.

Here is a breakdown of what I can expect to accomplish each week:

Week One: The Starter Mom-tear down that faulty pyramid, acquire tools to construct a better life, learn how to develop a vision, make every motion & moment count, how to speak my way to success & develop a winning attitude.

Week Two: The Basic Mom-begin meeting basic needs & build foundation for growth. Learn how to eliminate toxins from my diet, clutter from my home & (this might change my website rating form G to something else!) boredom from my sex life. As well as develop my own inner fashionista and learn key strategies to increase my energy level! Week 2 will be exciting!

Week Three: The Secure Mom-free myself from the fear & uncertainty that tomorrow holds and establish a sense of security in my life. Plug up the leaks in my wallet and work exercise into my daily routine. And develop methods to manage my temper as well as my housekeeping responsibilities.

Week Four: The Nurtured Mom-work on love & relationship needs. Be nurtured not only through relationships with friends and family but through my relationship with myself. Make mealtime special & create a nurturing home. Develop key strategies to make my marriage work.

Week Five: The Confident Mom-will focus on meeting need for personal esteem & competence in all areas of my life. Learn to trust my inner voice & pursue my destiny. Develop muscles in my body and organization throughout my home. Learn beauty secrets that will boost my confidence as well as appearance.

Week Six: The Total Mom-Move on to living the Total Mom life. Fine-tune those attitude skills & experience life to the fullest. Love to meet your children's' basic needs as well as my own personal need for solitude. Develop techniques to help keep up with the life that I created.

Should be an exciting journey. I hope to share my journal with you on my blog & share insights to my discoveries!

Tackle it Tuesdays #6 (Goal Setting)

One month in the new year has come and gone and I'm not any closer to getting my goals for the New Year in my routine. This week's Tackle it Tuesday is getting my goals and routines on paper and to start implementing them this month.

Here are the areas/routines that I would like to establish and accomplish this year:

1. Spiritual

2. Physical

3. Daily Routines for Work

4. Daily Routines for my Home

The first area, which I feel it the most important is setting goals and routines for my Spiritual Life and Well-Being. I think this is key to making sure that all of my other goals will be meet.

1. Have a small devotion and prayer each morning. I have several devotionals to choose from. I think I will start with "God Calling" Edited by A.J. Russell. Here is what the inside cover says about the book "Here is a devotional that will bring the reality of God and His constant concern for you into your heart every day of the year. Whatever your circumstances, God Calling cannot fail to bring you closer to God. It will help you overcome your daily worries and draw you ever closer to the peace you're seeking."

2. I am involved in 2 Bible Studies this Spring semester, they are Pathway to Purpose for Women: Connecting Your To-Do List, Your Passions, and God's Purposes for Your Life by Katherine Brazeltonand 12 Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur. Each study doesn't involve intense study like a Beth Moore study would but each needs attention. So each day I need to devote time to reading and doing the homework in each class. My plan for this semester is to alternate each day for reading and studying each book.


The Second Area is Physical, I would like to lose the extra weight that I have gained. Here are some concrete goals (establishing and carrying them out will be another story):

1. Start drinking water each day (as I take a drink of my Dt Dr Pepper!). I don't particularly enjoy drinking water. Most of you know that I'm a die hard Diet Dr Pepper fan and drink 6 to 7 cans a day. So weaning my system into drinking more water will require more effort on my part (and a miracle....I think that I will add this to my morning prayer to God....please encourage and remind me to drink water instead of soda each day!) I know this is key to achieving the over all goal...losing 50-74 pounds.

2. Start working out at least 3-4 times a week. My kiddos get on the bus by 7:45 am each morning, I can be at the gym each day by 8:00 am and get a good hour work-out in before tackling my day. So...here is my plan for the week:

Monday-Work out 8:00-9:00 am
Tuesday-Work out 8:00-9:00 am
Wednesday-Work out 8:00-9:00 am. Weight Watchers meeting at 9:30 am.
Thursday- Work out after Bible Study/Lunch at home or at gym (depending on my mood)
Friday-Work out 8:00-9:00 am.

3. Start counting my points each day with Weight Watchers. I am allowed 26 points per day plus an additional 35 points for the week. I can add those 35 points equally to each day or save them for a special treat during the week, like a dessert, dinner out etc!

The third area, I need to tackle is establishing specific routines for work. I run a competitive soccer league and there are times when I don't have as much work to do and times where I can't seem to get anything done but work and I really don't to be working at midnight! I think establishing specific routines each day or setting a time line will help those weeks not seem so overwhelming.

Here is what needs to be accomplished for the month of February for work:
1. Brackets set and email out to teams. Need to complete by Friday.
2. Email referees regarding the remaining Futsal schedule. Get schedule set by Wednesday.
3. Email coaches and managers regarding the CMSL Referee Clinic. Need to complete by Wednesday.
4. Set up email group list for Spring 2007 season. Run a test email. Need to complete by Friday.
5. Email referees regarding the Spring season. Need to complete by end of next week.
6. Get black-out dates on spread sheet. Complete by 2/13/07.
7. Spreadsheet to Mick, all registered teams and amount due. Complete by 2/9/07.
8. Referee and Futsal pages sent to webmaster. Complete by 2/15/07.
9. Start working on schedule. Complete by 2/23/07.
10. Schedule coaches meeting and AGM. Complete by 2/12/07.


The last area is establishing daily routines for getting my house in order and de-cluttered. This, I believe, is also key into having a happy and healthy home for my family. I get emails each day from the FlyLady and haven't looked at them much during the last couple of weeks and my house looks like it! I like how she divides your home into zones and each week she tackles that zone. For the month of February, however, I'm going to make a general To-Bo list of everything that needs to be done and tackle it over the month of Feb and starting in March after I have put out all of my Hot Zones I can start the weekly zones and work on keeping my house clean!

Here is what I need to get done this month:
1. Catch up on laundry and put laundry away! Not just set it in each room.
2. Run sweeper in each room.
3. Mop kitchen and bathroom floors.
4. Dust.
5. Organize my closet.
6. Pick up LR and FR and return items to appropriate rooms.

This list doesn't look like much but with my work schedule, it's a doable plan for this month.



Okay....now that I tackled my goals for the month of February, you will need to check back and see if I'm getting them accomplished! Check out other Tackle-it-Tuesday participants at 5 Minutes for Moms! Have a good week!

Slacker off Duty! Dreaming of Spring...

Greetings fellow bloggers!

I have taken a little break (not by choice) in blogging and haven't blogged in a week and a half except to blog on Thursday why I haven't been blogging!

Blogging keeps me accountable for getting things done around my house, with my job, etc. I really enjoy the Tackle it Tuesdays, the Works For Me Wednesdays and the Thursday Thirteens. I am able to get many things accomplished because I blog about them and show my before and after pictures. I love crossing things off my to do list on my blog because not only am I seeing my progress but my blogging friends are too and you are encouraging me along the way!

It's a new month and I am still working on my goals for the New Year. I made very little progress during the month of January, it might be because of the ice storm, snow and the freezing cold weather that depresses me and I'm just not motivated to get going on those goals. So.....with one month of winter behind us....one month closer to spring....I need to get a move on my goals and to do list. What are they you ask? I'm glad you asked....my accountability blogging friends....I'm going to start the first full week of February with what I need to get done this week....

1. Workout.
2. Clean off desk.
3. Menu plan for this week. Post on Monday.
4. Get Recital packet information from Sherry....get packets out this week!!!
5. Get caught up on laundry. Put laundry away.
6. Straight each room in the house.
7. Work on brackets for CMSL.
8. Read first 2 chapters by Tuesday for Bible Study. (Tuesday's Bible Study)
9. Read for Thursday's Bible Study.
10. Mop floor in kitchen.
11. Mop floor in bathroom.
12. Run sweeper through out house.
13. Clean out car....unload car from dance competition.
14. Hotel information ready for Booster meeting on Tuesday evening.
15. Check on iPod status for the girls' shuffles.
16. Meet with Mindi.

Well...this should give me a good start. Check back to see if I get everything crossed off this week!

Will Exercise For Comments

I'm joining Trying To Catch Up in her exercise challenge...I will exercise for Comments!



Here is my commitment for January:
Blogger Pledge:
I will exercise for comments.
Time Period: January 1- January 31
Type of exercise: Sit-ups
Pledge: 1 sit-up per comment

It appears to be pretty easy.. every day I will check my blog for the number of comments received on blog posts that day. I will do sit-ups for every comments placed on my blog. For example, Barbara, posted 5 comments on my Thursday Thirteens Blog and therefore, I need to do 5 sit-ups. You can either leave me one long comment or several little comments to encourage me to do more sit-ups!

You can support me by commenting on my blog or making your own pledge to exercise for comments. Let me know if you are pledging too. I will visit your site and comment to support you!