Ever Feel Overwhelmed?! Here's a Great Solution!

Do you ever feel overwhelmed before you even get your day started? Like you're behind the 8-ball before your feet hit the floor? Ever wish you had more time in your day to finish your never-ending to-do list? Do you struggle to find time for yourself with so many responsibilities pulling you in every direction?

Have you ever had one of those days? You know the kind I’m talking about.  Where you’re literally scrambling from the minute one of your kids wakes you up in the morning -- until the time you fall in bed that night. You know you’ve worked hard and taken care of needs nonstop throughout the entire day, but it seems like there is very little to show for it.

I've often felt this way, especially lately with a busy family schedule (gotta love when end-of-the-year activities overlap with the start of summer sports!) and a very full client load for my organizing business, not to mention trying to keep up with this blog and the 365 Items in 365 Days Facebook group!

Help! I Need A Flexible Cleaning Routine!

Do you have a spouse who works shifts?  Is it hard to work your cleaning tasks around their sleeping schedule and your family time?  Today I'm going to be sharing some tips that will help you create a really flexible cleaning routine so you can still have a clean home, even if you can't follow all the regular cleaning routines you come across online.

Creating Fall Routines So You Don't Get Overwhelmed

Well, it's happened.  Summer holidays are over and school has started.  Notice I didn't say "summer" is over.  It's not.  Even though it feels like fall here today, summer doesn't officially end until next week and I for one plan to enjoy every little bit of it I can still :)  It's going to be warm, sunny, and even humid this weekend so I'm not putting away our summer clothes and sandals yet!

But, despite what the calendar tells me, it is definitely fall because school has started.  And with fall comes new activities, goals and routines.  September is kind of like January in that it's a new year.  Whether you have kids or not, the school year is a sort of reset.  A fresh start.  A good time to establish new habits.

It's also a very busy time as various activities, clubs, lessons, and sports start up again.  It can be overwhelming if you're not organized.

Routines help keep you organized and reduce that overwhelming feeling when you get really busy.

Today I want to share some of the ways we're getting organized for fall in our home and give you tips to help you set up a fall routine as well.

How Being Organized Helped Us Get the Most Out of Summer

Sometimes organizing and summer don't go together.  Everyone likes the lazy days of summer right?  Why organize your lives and have routines or schedules?  Why make plans? 

I know it's already back-to-school time, and I've got a post coming next week outlining some tips for getting organized this fall.  But before I do that, I wanted to look back on our summer and share how being organized helped us to get the most of the season, even though it wasn't what we expected at the beginning.

3 Ways to Stop Your Kids From Saying "I'm Bored!"

Do you have kids at home during the summer?  If so, you've probably heard THOSE words more times than you can count.  The dreaded "I'm bored!".  Or if your kids are more dramatic it may sound like, "I'm booooooooo-oooooord!".  Sound familiar?

Whether those words are uttered in the middle of summer holidays or on the first day, it's always frustrating for parents.

Here are a few ways I've found helpful for limiting how often I hear "I'm bored!".  Feel free to share your ideas in the comments too.  They may come in handy :)

Creating A Summer Cleaning Routine for Kids

Do your kids help you clean the house in the summer?  Or during the school year?  Or both?  There are lots of different philosophies on kids and chores, especially for summertime.

I know many parents get overwhelmed keeping up with cleaning, while also taking care of their kids all day, and trying to spend time making memories together.

So it can be helpful to have your kids chip in and help clean the house.  It's also a great life learning experience and it teaches them to be more responsible.  Summertime can be a great opportunity to help your kids learn some new tasks too because they have time to practice them and gain mastery and independence.

How To Organize Your Summer

This is the first week of summer holidays for my kiddos and so far we're loving it!  We've been taking it easy, enjoying the warm weather, and working out our plans for what we'd like to do with the next 2 months.

As I mentioned in my July Goals post, today I want to share some of our summer plans and routines with you and give you tips to help you organize yours.  Hopefully they will give you some ideas, especially for those of you who have already been on summer holidays for awhile and are perhaps at that "I'm bored" stage :) 

8 Tips for "Take Back the House and Get Back to Routines Day"!

What?  You've never heard of "Take Back the House and Get Back to Routines" day?  With all the crazy holidays out there, I'm surprised Hallmark hasn't picked up on this one!

I love the holidays and the lack of structure.  It's often a little crazy before and during Christmas with everything that needs to be done and all the gatherings and events to attend.  But around here, the days after Christmas/New Year's were relaxing and fun.

But, I also love structure and routine, and an uncluttered house.  Which is what today's all about!  This morning I'm sharing what I did last night and what I'm doing today, to take back the house and get back into routines.  And along the way I'm sharing 8 tips to help you do the same! 

Organizing a Learning Time for Your Kids

Do your kids like learning when they aren't in school?  Like in the evenings or on weekends or during summer holidays?

Some kids are intrinsically motivated to learn all the time.  And some aren't.  Some kids, like mine, might be a bit of both.  They don't dislike learning, but given the choice to do something learning-oriented or playing, they'll choose playing every time.

Today, I'll share some of what we've been doing around here and then give you tips for setting up a learning time for your kids.

10 Tips for Setting Up a Cleaning Routine for Kids

Do you struggle to get your kids help you clean the house?  Are they expected to contribute to the upkeep of your home?  Do they have a cleaning routine?

Today I'll share how I organized our cleaning routine this summer and some tips to help you set up a cleaning routine for your kids.

Summer Update and Photo Challenge News

How is your summer going?  We're into the second half and we've had a lot of fun so far.  It's going by quickly though!  

Today I want to give you a quick update on our summer and let you know a few last-minute changes coming up for the blog this month, especially as they pertain to the Great Photo Purge Challenge.  

I mentioned in my August goals post that it's been a busy summer, but as I've reflected on it more this week, I've come to realize that a number of changes have happened to make this summer feel even busier.  

Organizing Our Summer: Weekly Activities

Last week I showed you our daily summer routine.  If you missed it, click the link and check it out so you'll know what I'm talking about :)

Now, here's the bottom half of that routine page:

Organizing Our Summer: Daily Routine

Do your kids like routines?  Or do you like routines?  It's great to enjoy more relaxed times in the summer after being tied to to all the schedules dictated during the school year.  But most kids {and moms!} thrive in an environment that is still somewhat structured.  Routines help with that.

So, today I want to share with you the routine I put together for the kids and I this summer.  Actually, I made two routines.

Command Centre: Routines

Do you often find yourself getting overwhelmed before or after school?  Are there arguments on the way out the door?  Do you wish you could have a more peaceful start to the day?

There is always a certain amount of stress or anxiety that accompanies transitions, and the shift from home to school and back again can be somewhat unsettling for kids (and for us!).  But you can reduce that by following routines.  

Today, I'm going to share our before and after school routines.  They're a key part of our kitchen command centre.

Command Centre: School Gear

Are mornings crazy at your house as everyone is rushing around trying to get everything they need for the day?  You know, things like lunches, homework, signed agendas, and money and permission forms for field trips.

To help make mornings less overwhelming, here are a few tips:

1. Set up a place where everything is kept together.  
2. Do as much as you can the night before.  
3. Put together a routine for each person in the family to follow before and after school so everyone knows what is expected of them.  

Organizing Our Summer

This week officially marks the start of summer on the calendar, although my kids are in school for another week and a half.   As summer approches, our family is looking forward to some down time after the school year!  We love summer :)


This is the first time I've been home with my kids in the summer (other than when I was on maternity leave with each of them) so I'm especially looking forward to making lots of great memories.  Financially, we're hoping my hubby gets plenty of calls from Canada Post to go in for work, but we're also hoping for a lot of family time all together (he's a new relief letter carrier without a lot of seniority).

I've struggled writing this post and leading up to this summer because my inclination would be to plan and organize our summer in great detail, but I don't want to be like Danny Tanner in this old clip from Full House: