i wanna be os...

lynsayjane

hey folks, well i've started reading this thread for the past couple of days and am soooooo impressed by how well you all seem to cope with work/business' while raising kids, having m*n around etc etc. i'm on my own and can't manage! so i'm looking for your help!

basically i need to find more time to myself. At the moment it feels like i run around all day between work and the gym, struggle to clean the house properly/regularly...don't worry tho i'm far from a visit from kim and aggie! But recently i've started to get tired and i think all this rushing around has started to affect my health (got a dr's appt on monday morn). Due to also being dfw i don't go out anymore and all my fun stuff is cancelled (no tv, no cinema card as of sept )

so any advice you guys can give mt to make my life more efficient would be much appreciated. I so want to be more like you guys cause i want to find a man and have kids but if i can't look after myself without a minor breakdown how will i ever manage a family :eek:

sorry for ranting on...xxx

redballoon_2

keep reading the boards, they are full of help and advice and i am sure you'll get the hang of it all.


good luck and welcome to os!

taplady

Hi Lynsayjane! welcome to old style!;) none of us are perfect believe me!:rolleyes: but with all the advice available here you should be able to make a big difference to your quality of life without spending loads of dosh, in fact you'll probably be spending much less but gaining so much more!:D You'll be adicted in no time!;)

Linda32

Hi, don't be to hard on yourself. You say you run around from work to the gym, why not call the gym "your time", rather than somewhere you "have" to go to On the other hand, can you change the exercises you do to one's you can do at home

As for cleaning, well you say your on top of it, thats good enough, honestly I do one room a day, apart from Fridays when I have wine with Tea and we go to the pub :beer: I've tried various routeens (sp) and this seems to work best for me. Whole house cleaned from top to bottom every 8 days or so, thats good enough for me.

No TV, just think of the rubbish your forced to miss If I had to choose I'd go for the internet over TV anyday.
You'll pick up loads of tips on here that you can adapt for yourself, maybe join a library for a good book and a bottle of wine.

Best of luck in your new lifestyle, let us know how you get on.

lynsayjane

thanks folks. i do try my best but like you say i can be a little hard on myself! i guess we all are at times.

my first step is to be more organised and try to get myself into a better routines as, like most folk on here it seems, i have a sleep problem!!!

tonight i made home made pea soup, after eating some for dinner there was enough to take for lunch at work tomorrow and a portion frozen which will do for dinner one 'rushed' night :j

i've toyed with the idea of bm sc etc (i got the initials down already!) but i don't eat enough bread to warrant it, my loaf goes in teh freezer to stop it going off before i can finish it, and with just me here i don't think a slow cooker is much use. i'm gonna try the bulk cooking and freezing thing, that would give me more time in the evenings.

the gym is me time i suppose, i do really enjoy it, but i think between lack of time, energy and money it may be going sometimes...i can never make up my mind over it! i'm starting to do my higher english in a couple of weeks so i may struggle even more!

well thanks for the suggestions so far, look forward to more! am off to do the dishes and pack my bag for tomorrow and (hopefully) be in bed at ten, lights out at 11!!!

sweet dreams all xxx

GIRLPOWER_2

you don't need a BM to have HM bread and a small SC would mean cheap cuts of meat, stews etc could be frozen to give you more time in the evenings. I would also say stop paying for the gym and clean the house as it would save money, give you good exersise and make you feel just as good in a different way.. and free cash up so you can go out and have fun. x x

larmy16

I think rushing around and lacking energy is the enemy of OS living. It is very difficult to be organised when you are working FT and on your feet doing a physical job (me). I have every sympathy with the OP. Sometimes I feel I am drowning in clutter and undone jobs. Just keeping up with the washing and ironing makes me feel worn out.

Eating properly seems to go out of the window. Also recently I have stopped writing down what I am spending and I used to be addicted to doing that!

Time to turn over another new leaf I think! Also cut down on computer time.:o

I love this website though - it makes me feel among kindred spirits.

Hazel01

I haven't ironed for years....the clothes just get laid flat over an airer when they come out of the machine and my kids, partner and I put up with the vaguely lived in look of the clothes. Mind you, it does help that my OH works in a manual job- no crisp white shirts needed. (Also I make my kids wear polo shirts for school as these don't need ironing)
My mum, on the other hand, bless her, irons EVERYTHING including pants, tea towels, flannels, sheets......:rotfl:

andrealm

I never iron anything either, if you hang things up quickly they don't need it. Our iron is only used if my OH is going to a wedding or a job interview and has to wear a shirt, other than that we don't bother.

lynsayjane

i have very few items in my wardrobe that i bother to iron. for work i wear black trousers and fitted t shirts, neither of which need ironed! i have one or two skirts that look like i've been dragged through a hedge if i don't, but i bung them in the wardrobe and iron as needed. i find that saves having piles of ironing needing done.

Snow_Angel

lynsay jane - my boyfriend doesn't have a tv at his place and we don't miss it at all. Also, on the MSE freebies board there's a free cinema ticket thread (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=229906). they update it all the time so keep an eye on it!
I'm pretty new too, so i enjoy reading all the posts and I have learnt SO MUCH just in the last few weeks - everyone on the OS thread is amazing. They're going to save me from graduating next year in vast amounts of debt - just wish I'd found this at the beginning of my first year!
Anyway, nice to have you around :T