We are starting August and our family calendar is already scheduled out to Christmas vacation! Summer vacation…. Aack ….. Where did you go?!?!?! I am sure I am not alone silently screaming, I HAVE SO MUCH TO DO before summer is over!!!
Here is my highlight reel, don’t be jealous now – it is exciting: the yard fence needs mending, the storage shed needs to be cleaned and Christmas stuff put away (yah, don’t ask), 6 cattle and 4 sheep need to be trimmed, fluffed, prepped and ready to rock fair (my girls amaze me and they will rock fair), and then there is the aftermath from the spring flooding we still need to clean-up, and of course getting my house spic and span for when family visits from out of town. The list goes on and on, and I just get lost in the everyday stuff like weeding the garden, feeding my family and tidying the room I am standing in, laundry — don’t even get me started on the laundry.
My husband and I both work, my 15-year-old has a summer job, that leaves the nine and four-year-old to get stuff done and I say, “Go for it!” Okay maybe not, but how are we going to get everything done and still have time for what really matters? Important moments like slowing down and catching grasshoppers with my 4-year-old, having a movie-date with my 9-year-old, taking a few extra moments to appreciate my 15-year-old whose time for me is running out, and using up over two years’ worth of gift cards to steal a few date nights with my hubby.
Just thinking about the above-mentioned tasks makes my heart-rate skyrocket, a bead of sweat forms at my hairline, and my brain goes numb. But this year, after I calm down, I am going to win this overwhelming battle of project stress and tackle each item (you would think I would say “with vigor”) but I am going to say, “with a system” here. You might ask why? While tackling a list with vigor sounds impressive, in my experience one cannot keep the stamina of vigor all summer long and after one failing attempt at vigorously marking something off a list – the rest of the list goes to the wayside.
So, here is what I am thinking . . .
Get it done with household scheduling!
1. Create a list.
I am going to start with a realistic list of what projects need to get accomplished this summer. If I don’t think we will get it done it’s not going on the list. The list is supposed to be a tool. I don’t want to set us up for failure by setting unattainable expectations.
2. Use a Weekly Household Task Calendar.
Then I am going to break down that list into a daily schedule for all five Gilleard household members (that is right, five – I am not a one-woman show here and four-year-olds can work too). Things like: Who and when we are weeding the garden; when we will fit cattle/shear sheep, plus the day-to-day stuff – washing/folding/putting away laundry, vacuuming, dishes. From my experience, if you don’t task out the responsibilities incrementally, you lose enthusiasm only seeing the end-product and not getting there. So, if you show something like day 1: weed half of vegetable garden; day 2: finish weeding vegetable garden – you see the end-product but you can visualize the time it takes to do it.
3. Reward Your Family.
Yes, there is a “high” in accomplishing a task, but having a nice reward system is a good incentive too, especially for the little ones who maybe don’t feel the full reward of mending a fence or cleaning out a storage shed. This also fits into the “important things” task list. When we finish our task for the day, we settle in for a bit of family time. Ice cream anyone? Family flick? Swimming? Babysitter?
Do you use household scheduling? Maybe you have a better system! What helps you get things done while still having time for the best parts of summer?
Happy Summer!
Autumn
Autumn Gilleard, was born and raised in Western Montana Autumn lives on a ranch with her husband, two daughters, and son. She enjoys spending time in the outdoors with her family 4-wheeling, fishing, rafting, and hiking. When not out on a adventure with her family, you can find her at the Missoula Taekwondo Center. Where she trains as a black belt and part of a competition team. (She is Worth the Fight……Hahahahah)
