Routine Part II

Ya'll gave some really great suggestions on yesterday's post. I'm going to take ya'll up on having the kids help out. Shannon's suggestion to pick up and take care of things right then and there is really good too!

Here are some routines we've been trying to incorporate. The results always re-amaze me. We fall off the bandwagon and jump back on and it is these little routines that get us going again. Like ya'll said, different seasons change the way we do things, but the following always help me get back on track.

Nighttime: In the Hebrew calender days start at 6pm, so that means our day starts in the evening because we like this idea. Before bed, these are the things I need accomplished so that my morning goes smooth.

• tidy house. this does not mean detail cleaning, everything just needs to be tidy and in a place
• clean kitchen floor. swept, mopped or spot cleaned
• run the dishwasher every single night-even if it's only 3/4 full
• if we have someplace to be the next morning, all the kids clothes needs to be laid out and ready to wear

Morning:

• get up and get dressed to shoes. after my shower i might put on comfy clothes if we are staying in and no make-up, but i put my shoes on. if we are going somewhere for the day, i get my smokey eye and big texas hair on right off the bat. or is it back? not sure how that saying goes.
• make my bed. do you know how long it takes to make your bed? 60 seconds. or less. can you believe that? it feels like it takes 48 minutes.
• open the blinds. this is so important. you have to let that sunlight into your home. we'll be talking about this in a few weeks because i have a surprise for ya'll coming up!
• unload the dishwasher

During The Day:

• at some point during the day, get in my chair and spend time with Jesus. i don't care if you are a morning, afternoon, or night person for this. i don't care if you spend 3 minutes or 30. the impacting thing is that you stop. sit. listen. all you need is a bible, pen, paper, a cup of cream helps too. i mean coffee.
• clean as you go. it's like shannon said, if you take care of things right then and there it's done.

Cleaning as you go has been the one thing that is changing the face of the way our house looks on any given day. Change the toilet paper right away. When you are pulling the sheets of the bed to wash them, give the dresser tops a quick wipe down with a pillow case (your perfectionism will tell you not to do this because that's gross, but it looks nice and dust free when you do). Wipe down your sink really quickly after you get done getting ready each morning. Give that mirror above the sink a quick wipe down every morning. Put your beauty products out of site. Take those damp towels and give the toilet a quick wipe down before you toss them in the hot, soapy washing machine.

Utilize 5 minute breaks in your day. Pick a cluttered spot and tackle it. Your house will start to perk up after several 5 minutes of blessing it.

When you start incorporating these little routines your house begins to self clean itself. You wipe down a counter that already looks clean. The fun part, you never get yucky looking sinks or mirrors again, you are always ready for company, and your family gets to enjoy a warm, cozy, tidy home.