The Modern but Old Style Homemakers Club

life_in_termoil

Anyway ive wasted enough time on here so I better get "something" done. TTFN Sun is shining here and if I dont crack on I wont get chance to sit out and enjoy it.

juliapenguin

Great to hear from Chaos Monkey on the other side of the world!

I'm getting so homemakery that I've even found the time to email my brother about how to cook Delia Smith Simple Stroganoff. I made it for him and his wife once and they really liked it. He's taken voluntary redundancy and needs to do more cooking as his wife has a long commute and he wants to support her.

life_in_termoil

This week ive made a start on making my rented house a home. Ive decorated the downstairs loo!! Just finished masking off the hall/stairs and landing so I can paint that over the next few days. Im only repainting it the same colour (magnolia!) but im using vinyl silk instead of the matt thats already on so at least I will be able to wipe off the grubby finger marks without rubbing the paint off as well!

My house is rented unfurnished but it already had curtains up (and they are still up!) I have seen some red gingham material in a shop in the town so I will make a curtain for the downstairs loo. Only need about a meter and will cheat and use wonderweb to hem it haha (I have got a sewing machine but not got a clue how to use it!)

Can you buy iron on velcro?

Chipps

mesh wrote: »

I've got a question for all you homemakers:

What time do you get washed and dressed in the mornings? Being at home in the morning is still a massive novelty for me, but I'm already finding that slobbing round in my nightie until 10.30 doesn't make me feel good. It's nice not having to be washed, dressed and walking down the road to the bus stop at 7.30am, but I seem to be going to the other extreme.

When I'm not working at the office (which is most of the time) I still get up at the same time, and we basically keep to the same morning routine as when I am going in, i.e. we both get showered & dressed, he makes cups of tea & breakfast & I make packed lunch(es). That way, once he has gone to work by about 10 to 7 I am all ready to do whatever housework jobs etc, & take a good coffee break later in the morning! I find that if I don't stay in routine, I feel much more tired & don't get as much done - somehow seem to waste the time rather than enjoying it!

Careful_with_that_Axe

I'm a night owl and don't go to bed before midnight. I have ill health and sleep particularly badly and need an awful lot of sleep, so don't often rise before 11am by which time half the day is gone. To save energy, I only really get dressed if I am going out to shops etc, so slob in T-shirt and sweatpants at home. My struggle is to balance the use of the limited energy I have to do both housework etc and things that give me pleasure like crafting. A physio once told me to use the energy I have for things that I enjoy and it has been my downfall as I've taken it on board too literally! That's why my de-cluttering is so important to me - less stuff = less mess = less housework right?!

I have guests (who take me very much as I am) arriving on Friday til Tuesday am and then Sister coming for a week to help finish the de-cluttering and organising on Tuesday pm. I am so looking forward to having a tidy and sorted house! Being able-bodied she can do in an hour what I can achieve in a week. She's a hard task master so I will finish the week exhausted but happy I hope.

To try to beat the Sunday blues, I take as much sleep as I need on a Sunday as there's less of the day to fill that way. Today is for paperwork filing, shredding and cuddling the cat for as long as she will tolerate it.

parsniphead

life_in_termoil wrote: »

By that I mean........fish n chips on a Friday, Roast dinner on a Sunday?

When I was growing up we always had chippy tea (fish n chips) on a Friday and a roast on a Sunday. I used to do this but now seldom do mainly because I cant afford a chippy tea every week and sometimes I just cant be bothered to cook a roast.

I always have a sunday roast but fish and chips is on a monday (rebel):D. When I lived alone I never cooked a roast but enjoy it now.

juliapenguin wrote: »

I've got a question for all you homemakers:

What time do you get washed and dressed in the mornings? Being at home in the morning is still a massive novelty for me, but I'm already finding that slobbing round in my nightie until 10.30 doesn't make me feel good. It's nice not having to be washed, dressed and walking down the road to the bus stop at 7.30am, but I seem to be going to the other extreme.

During the week I get up at 5.15 am but only because I have to take DH to work. I do tend to leave the baby in his PJ's until I get home but get ready for the day myself. On a weekend we tend to sleep in until 8.00am.I hate wandering around in pj's. Perhaps I should learn to relax a little.

I must admit I'm finding that I'm not getting as much done as I expected since being at home all day. I think I have fallen into the trap of thinking I have all day to get stuff done then finding the day has gone by. Any tips to be more organised?

juliapenguin

Chipps wrote: »

When I'm not working at the office (which is most of the time) I still get up at the same time, and we basically keep to the same morning routine as when I am going in, i.e. we both get showered & dressed, he makes cups of tea & breakfast & I make packed lunch(es). That way, once he has gone to work by about 10 to 7 I am all ready to do whatever housework jobs etc, & take a good coffee break later in the morning! I find that if I don't stay in routine, I feel much more tired & don't get as much done - somehow seem to waste the time rather than enjoying it!

This is such a good idea. I'm finding that I fritter time away - I think THAT is the problem with me being 'just' a homemaker rather than being a homemaker itself - I need to feel that I have a routine and achieve things same as if I was working outside the home.

juliapenguin

Careful_with_that_Axe wrote: »

I am so looking forward to having a tidy and sorted house!


and cuddling the cat for as long as she will tolerate it.

I've decluttered 90% of my belongings and it feels amazing -I'll never acquire loads of stuff again. It's so easy to keep everywhere clean and tidy, and you can never have a big pile of ironing when you don't have a big pile of clothes!

I'd love to have a cat to cuddle again! My best ever cat Thomas William decluttered himself 4 years ago by dying at the age of 4

juliapenguin

parsniphead wrote: »

I must admit I'm finding that I'm not getting as much done as I expected since being at home all day. I think I have fallen into the trap of thinking I have all day to get stuff done then finding the day has gone by. Any tips to be more organised?

This is the problem. I'm starting to think that I need to act more like it's my new job and have proper routines, allowing for all the things I need to do for good mental health, like rests, walks, taking care of my appearance, reading for pleasure, reading as therapy (I'm doing a Neuro-Linguistic Programming for Dummies Workbook which is really helping, then I've got a Mindfulness book to read after that) as well as all the housework and household chores.

juliapenguin

This weekend I've seen the first real benefits to us as a family unit of me being at home more - instead of spending Sunday washing, ironing and doing other chores, we went to see an Italian film and a weird art exhibition, and after tea we're going to go out for a walk and maybe a drink in a bar instead of doing anxious last-minute lesson preparation because I've been too stressed out to get on top of it all earlier in the weekend.

I'm starting to enjoy this...