i wanna be os...

nabowla

I'm in the same boat as the OP. I'm single and totally failing at any attempt to get myself organised. Every couple of weeks I think "right, time to start again", am good for a week and then it all goes to pot. Tidying, cleaning and cooking are my downfalls (does that leave anything that I'm good at?!) Just as well you guys can't see the state of the flat at the moment....

Think I need to waste less time on the internet!

Kelinik

Just wanted to say hi lynsayjane, its great over here - the amount I'm learning is amazing and any questions get answered with loads of great advice, loving it!

summerday

Hi Lynsay Jane,

I have seen your posts on DFW, and you seem to be doing pretty well! Maybe with the 'me' time thing you could schedule 'appointments' in your diary for relaxing bubble baths, or watching fave tv progs, so that way you know you have something relaxing and enjoyable to look forward to? If you write a date and a time down for these things you are more likely to stick to it, and plan your chores etc around it.

I know it's hard working FT as well, there is only so much you can do. With the housework I find it helps to batch cook some meals and put portion-sized tupperware boxfulls into the freezer to save time cooking, and do cleaning in short sharp bursts (there have been some flylady threads on here which are good, as far as I can gather Moggins is the Queen of this ).

Sarah x

QueenB.

Well i am quite new here as well and also a DFW and i know how hard it is to get started but you will get so much advice and support on here:D

Apart from OS saving pennies i love the way it is teaching me to be adaptable and creative, i also feel better as a mum as i love the fact that my kids expect lots of home made treats and have idea at all what a microwave meal is. I enjoy the feeling of not being so reliant on what has become the norms of todays society in fact it is just rewarding in so many ways:j

But it is hard work and it is best to start small and get into some type of routine, i'm still at that stage. Look at it this way you are preparing for your future not just where money is concerned but in so many other ways.

dumpy

I only started reading the OS board a few months ago but it's really changed my time management. (I was already fairly money minded, well my other half told me I squeaked as I walk...)

I think I spend about 30 minutes every weekend working out a meal planner for the week, and writing a shopping list. I then hang the menu for the week in the kitchen and buy the stuff I need for that week. I take account of the fact that some evenings I may be home later and then I choose quicker to cook meals for that day.

It sounds like a really obvious thing but it has saved me hours every week. I don't come home from work and stare at the fridge and discover I don't have anything to eat. Then I don't need to go out to buy stuff (and waste money and time) I don't spend time saying "what should I have" and I don't think sod it and graze on rubbish and then not have a proper meal, which means that I've eaten healthily and so don't suffer from feeling run down.

Housework.... hum, well I'm not ace at that but I do try to do a little everyday, but I do have an extremely high tolerance to mess....

I think if you have a plan and stick to it, you don't drift around which wastes time and makes you feel like you haven't acheived anything.

But also and most importantly, if you have a bad day don't beat yourself up about it just move on and try and improve tomorrow.

lynsayjane

i've been doing meal plans for the past few weeks, i picked it up on the dfw board before i started on here. can't say i'm always good at sticking to it, it's hard on a sunday night to work out what i'll fancy that night never mind the rest of the week, but i'm down to about 40 a month on food shopping so it's working.

i'm trying to be better with myself about bad days. i write a diary and i evaluate each day as it passes, i'm trying to not feel guilty for bad days, i can't be perfect all the time! and trying again the next.

i'm getting a full blood work done tomorrow at the nurses. the doc is a wee bit worried about me but says that it seems i'm just having a bad time at work which is getting me down, and once that changes things will pick up, but she wants to check my thyroid for more problems, and is checking for anaemia and diabetes while she's at it.

handed in my cv at the gym yeaterday so fingers crossed!!!