Do you know what you are going to do during the day ahead...as soon as you jump out of bed? Or is it all a mystery? I used to have a plan as to what my day would be...now I wait for my body to tell me. I might linger there making plans that never come into fruition....or I could be on a roll and get started doing one thing after another. I think that this is true for many women.. of an age. Some days find me full of energy and then there are the others...where I have to push myself.A wonderful meal planned in my early morning hours...might become a bowl of soup and sandwich, when it comes to making it later on in the day. I devised a plan years ago to solve that problem. When we first married...we ate our big meal around 5pm and there I was cleaning up the kitchen during the early evening, while Joe was sitting out on our garden bench...enjoying the early evening....oh, he'd help me clear the table and would do most anything I asked, but most times I just did it myself. I thought to myself, "Hey...I want to be out there in the evening...watching people go by and visiting with neighbors." Thus began the change in meal time...we started eating our big meal at 2pm. Now, when evening comes...I can enjoy myself too. I sometimes put dinner on early in the morning. I've learned how to fix a meal and do a bit of housework at the same time. It's all cleaned up by 3 or so
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When it comes time to clean the house...I used to do housework like clock work. Always changed the sheets on Monday...all my life this was the plan. My mother did it and I followed.Tuesdays were ironing days...(thank heavens we can eliminate that). Wednesday and Thursday we cleaned the house and did the grocery shopping. and on Fridays she always baked for the weekend...and I did the same. We needed fresh cookies, cakes or pies.....maybe a loaf of bread. Saturday morning we tidied up and got ready for the weekend...and on Sunday...a big dinner with family, maybe, after Church. Remembering back...I am much more relaxed in my weekly planning. As I go through the week, I might remember in the back of my head what my Mom did, but I don't follow that routine. I have to admit feeling a little guilty when my bedding goes a day or two beyond Monday and I still have that mindset of baking on Friday going on in the back of my head.Old habits are hard to break....I have to be honest...as a woman there is always a teeny tiny feeling of guilt.
Finding these humongous grocery stores are more trouble than they're worth sometimes.By the time we shop at these giant stores, drive home (45 minutes to an hour) unload the car...and then find room in the cupboards and fridg...we are pooped. I usually find a frozen entree to fix for the meal that day....or we eat leftovers. Sometimes we are so tired that we stop at a restaurant and eat a meal. Here would come the guilt again...how could we justify eating a meal on the way home, when our car is full of food? Well, that's easy for me to do now. No problem. Yesterday I tried something new.... I shopped here in town at our two medium sized stores..Joe went to the "big store" after having the car serviced the day before. I sat at the kitchen table and made out a very detailed list for both stores. Only the items that were on sale were purchased along with a few essentials. ...resulting in not spending much more than I would have at the big store. The advantages of the smaller stores...not as many choices (didn't take near the time shopping) My thinking is that we should be satisfied with what our local stores offer, use coupons and buy specials that our stores offer,...and at the same time support our local businesses. I don't have to have 20 different brands of mustard to make my choice. I started out yesterday morning by taking my two lists to the grocery stores. After I shopped at one store, the person bagging asked if I would like help out to the car.I answered, "Yes." Then I went on to the next store and after checking out...my groceries were loaded into my car by a friendly fellow. I came home and asked Joe to bring them in the house....and then it took me a couple of hours to put them all away. I rested between....trying to tidy cupboards, and the refrigerator at the same time. We had frozen stuffed peppers Ala Stouffer's for dinner. Much easier...no hassles and I think that I saved money by not having all the choices and temptations of the big store and also on gas.
Today is up for grabs. I started out by making the bed and fixing us a breakfast drink and then coming here to read a few blogs and write a post. It is after 9 and I'm not dressed for the day. It's time to start doing "I don't know what yet" I'd better hurry :)
Oh, my stars... this got long. I'll have to continue tomorrow. If you are hanging on to this thrilling post...bless you.
Balisha
10 comments:
Balisha, I think you are just naturally well organized; you probably get that from your mother. I, too, prefer to shop our neighborhood store, a Kroger store. It is quite large enough for my body. I can't do the really big stores any more. I have brought home a frozen meal for that day, too. It's a great boon. Many times we bought deli pimento cheese and had sandwiches and fruit, simple. Then there have been times when we were so tired after doing all that, packing everything upstairs to the kitchen, and stowing things away, that we went out to eat at a restaurant... considered the outing a treat, and didn't feel a bit guilty about having a kitchen full of food at home :) I suspect that eating the large meal at that early hour is better for us. We do that sometimes. I need to make that a regular habit. Your post is not too long at all. I enjoyed it and was right there along with you through the whole thing. Nice.
This was a fun post, I needed a smile and this supplied it. This morning I made the bed, got the dishes washed, and straightened up some in my little creative space. Forward progress.
Enjoy your day ~ FlowerLady
My mother passed the weekly schedule along to me, too! I thought it was so unnecessarily rigid when I was a kid, but in my own household over the last 25 years, having a routine has been invaluable.
I love posts like this, Balisha. It gives us insight into others lives and we can often find a common thread. So...I agree with you on the slowing down as we get older. Sometimes I envy my kids for all that they can pack into a day. But I am very firm about starting my day 'my way'...a cup of coffee and some blog reading. And when dinner is cleared up by eight, that's my time to read. In between? I make a loose plan the night before. I try to do at least one productive thing a day. Shopping for food is a big one. I choose the bigger stores because I find them to be less expensive. I adhere to my list of basics and plan meals in my head as I go along. Sometimes I pick up a frozen entree for dinner or a ready made chicken or meatloaf. This is not the day to slave before a stove!
I have many down days where I just treat myself to doing nothing more than reading and puttering. We deserve that.
XO,
Jane
Okay, I think I could have written this post, only not nearly as well as you did! Actually, I've only thought the same things you've written about, many times lately. Now we too just plan for me not to cook after grocery shopping and other errands. And it's a frozen dinner or leftovers or stopping by Subway driving home to pick up something to save for dinner. And you're right--GUILT. We have a small community grocery store within 2 miles. No, they don't sell anything organic or grass-fed, but I'm just about convinced we'd do better saving our gas and shop there with maybe a once a month trip to the big stores 30 minutes away.
Eating the main meal for a late lunch sounds wonderful and as soon as my husband retires full time we are definitely going to that.
Oh, it is so nice to find out that there are other women out there of a certain age who come up with doable solutions. Thank you for writing this!
I love the smaller grocery stores--a bit more expensive, but sometimes I can find things there that aren't at Wal-Mart. I love that they take your groceries out to the car and put them in the trunk for me--I have often told them I'd pay them to ride home with me and carry them into the house for me. I still have my cleaning routines--just seems to make these long day alone a bit better to be organized.
I wish I was an organized I get that fom my mother. I am looking forward to the day when I can decide that day what I want to do.
But work calls every week day.
Cathy
I enjoyed your post, Balisha. I have simplified my life too after losing Bob. I buy many of my groceries at a Dollar General store a mile away instead of driving way out to our Wal Mart six miles away.
I even buy a few things at Country Mart...even though they are quite expensive.
And I take a list so I don't buy unnecessary items.
I enjoy my breakfast and lunch the most and something very light in the evening and sometimes just cereal and fruit. May be because my day begins at 4:30. Have not ate out in weeks - mostly because of the flu in this area. Miss this occasional treat...
We women seem to always have guilt don't we? Now here it is the weekend and today is my off day. Currently I am being very productive....I am browning ground beef and sweet sausage to make in lasagna later on WHILE reading blog posts from Claudia's party. However no matter what I get accomplished today I can assure you that later on I'll feel guilty that I did not do enough or I'll feel guilty about something or other! :)
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