Weekends, time to catch up on taking care of your home, yourself, spend lots of time with family and friends, and get as much fun in as possible before the work week starts again. We have very high expectations for our weekends, all within 48hours. So, it’s no surprise that a lot of us, including myself wake up Saturday morning feeling anxious to get our least favorite activities out of the way so we can start to enjoy our weekend.
This post all started on a Saturday morning when I was sitting and analyzing my to do list that still hadn’t been touched at 8:30 in the morning, thinking gosh I’m going to be doing the not so fun things till noon. Not anyone’s idea of a great Saturday morning. So, how do you wrangle in the mayhem that builds up all week so it does not destroy your weekend?
Well, there are a lot of ways to go about this throughout the week that would result in a happier healthier life for all of us. However the fact of the matter is I am lazy sometimes, I suck at organizing(seriously it takes me FOREVER to organize even the smallest mound of anything in any space), also I hate household work (I am not one of those people that enjoy or obsess over cleaning). If you can relate to that particular situation then this might help you. If you are tired of keeping up throughout the week then this might help you.
Here it is, the secret of controlling Saturday morning mayhem……..
Focus
Focus on what’s really important to you and ACCEPT that you will have to let some other less important things go until another time. I know, it’s not easy, it took me years to be comfortable with this method but I am so much happier now that I am able to focus on what’s important and let other things go. For those of you like me that are looking for a step by step procedure of how to focus and let other things go, you can find it below.
Step 1) Ranked List
Make your list, you know, the list of everything NOT fun you are feeling pressured about taking care of over your weekend. Obviously a mental list is completely legit, I personally prefer a handwritten list, I like the visual. Now rank your list of what’s most important to you, 1 being the most important and the higher the number the less important it is. Check the scenario below the steps for an example.
Step 2) Decide on Time to Spend on List
Decide how much time you actually have to spend on taking care of items from your list, based on your other commitments. This time limit will vary for most. On a weekend where we don’t have more than 1 or 2 social engagements that are each only a couple of hours, I don’t mind spending 3-4 hours on my list. On a weekend where we are booked solid with people coming over or a family day trip or volunteer etc., these are the weekends I need to really hone in on what’s important. Give yourself a time range that makes sense for you and your family, this might only be 10 minutes on on a couple of items like dishes and laundry, just try to be realistic with the time you have to work with.
Step 3) Focus
Focus on checking off items from your list that are most important to you, and that fit in the time you set aside for your list. That is it, finish what you committed to, and let the rest go. Now you can focus on time with family and friends.
Step 4) Let Everything Else on Your List Go
Let the rest of your list go. How do you let it go? Well, this is the part I struggled with most so I imagine it’s where others struggle too. There is no one answer for all, but I can tell you what I do and hope it helps you.
At the end of a weekend of only finishing one to three items on my list, and the list is forefront in my brain nagging me, I talk to my family and friends, the ones I prioritized over my list. That’s right, I text the friend I met up with and tell them how grateful I am we had time to spend together, and how much fun I had. I talk to my child and my husband and tell them how grateful I am we could take that family outing, and how much fun I had. If you are really struggling this is a great time to pull out the pictures from the weekend and maybe text the person you went out with or show your family your favorite picture, and ask them which picture or moment from the weekend was their favorite. This picture discussion really helps me, I specifically call out the memories we made together, and memories with my family and friends are priceless, and way more important than a tidy home.
EXAMPLE OF WRANGLING THE MAYHEM ON A CRAZY WEEKEND
Step 1) My Ranked List
3) Laundry (seriously important down to my last couple of pairs of underwear and socks)
8) Mail/Bills (so many papers, everywhere)
5) Miscellaneous Clutter (it’s all over the place, it covers every flat surface in my home, and I have no idea when or how it came to be)
4) Dishes (the sink is full and dishes are starting to spread to the counter, maybe add paper dishes to grocery list)
7) Sweep (how do kids track in so much stuff, seriously we could 4 times a day and still have stuff on our floor, it blows my mind)
6) Pets (we have caged pets and weekends are the time I dedicate to wiping the smell away)
2) Grocery Shopping (we could live off from PB&J and apples for a week if I pick up some bread….)
9) Yard Work (it’s never ending, it just keeps growing)
1) Make my child pick up after themselves (When my child was younger they loved to clean up, gosh do I miss those days. Now my pre-teen needs to be followed every second of the day to ensure whatever they get out gets put away, needless to say I lose track periodically and by the weekend it’s out of control)
Step 2) Time Available to Spend on Your List
One of my busiest weekends include a Friday night outing after work, a Saturday morning activity for my child, a Saturday afternoon/evening social engagement, Sunday morning church, and Sunday afternoon/evening Scout meeting. There you have it, I believe this is representative of a weekend for most families, and it’s impossible to think we are supposed to juggle all of that while working full time and caring for ourselves and a home. So on a weekend like that, how much time do you spend on your list? Not very long, maybe 2 hours.
Step 3) Focus On What’s Most Important
Ok, number 1, make my child clean up after themselves. This I can do while multitasking item ranked number 3, laundry. I recommend from my experience that you take your child around to show them their biggest messes, and then tell them you are doing laundry and you expect them to be done picking up when you are done with the laundry. Obviously you want to set them up for success so pick out the mess(es) that is driving you most crazy. Then keep an eye on your child providing helpful reminders and time reminders as you collect the laundry, put it in the washer, and fold/put away some laundry from earlier in the week that was left sitting out.
Honestly our morning is probably gone after that since we also had to get ready to go and have some breakfast, so we are out the door. Chances are I will revisit my list, most likely stay up Saturday night to place an instacart grocery delivery for Sunday, and Sunday night plan to toss around some dishes before hopping into bed.
There you have it, children tidying up, laundry managed, grocery shopping done, and at least one load of dishes down. All within 2 hours.
Step 4) Let the Rest Go
So much left to do for later, it drives me crazy. This is when I text the friends or family we met up with for our social outing Saturday, and remind myself how much fun I had with them. Then I ask my child what their favorite part of the weekend was, and sit down with them to look through the pictures from the weekend. With every photo we look at, my child and I have something to say about the memory made, and I can’t help but smile and know I couldn’t be happier that I chose my family and friends over my list. Be sure to fall asleep Sunday night with that last thought on your mind, the happiness and memories made by what you chose to focus on. That’s how I let the rest go, by focusing on the positives that came out of my weekend.
Let the rest go and take time to enjoy the little things in life
