Can you do OS and work full time too?

dorry_2

hi :wave: chipps

:T congratulations on your new job, wow after 25 years at home!!! I am sure you are going to love it. The thing about work, for me is that it
becomes your own private place, all of your own and so worth the effort of leaving home behind! I am a real home bird, so when I started back in January, 5 days a week, 30- 34 hours a week, normally term time only, it was a bit of a shock. I manage some os and do some blogging.

This is my plan of attack,(they is 4 of us, me, oh and ds2 11 and the dog)

get up 7 am, click teasmade on for me and oh to have a cuppa in bed

run bath, wash hair and blow wave hair.

8am ds2 has breakfast,

8.10am do quick whip round ( can't stand to come back to it untidy:mad: ) cean toilet and put bleach round bathroom sink and toilet

8.15, eat oastso simple and drink coffee

8.25 --put dishwasher on

8.30. take ds2 to school, arrive at work for 9.15.

I am normally home each day by 4ish, then I hoover downstairs, put washing in and put tumble on

make tea, normally something easy, chicken curry or something out of the slowcook.

after tea, load dishwasher, ready to put on again in the morning

I never do any housework on a night, big no no, I find I can't relax then don't sleep. Unlike frogga, I need loads of sleep, go up and normally asleep by 10 every night

I do ironing for the week on a sunday morning, some of the things don't need ironing, cos they have been tumbled. I know it is not very cheap, but it saves me time and that way I can work more, so worth it for me:p

I clean bathroom on a saturday

I always order food shopping on a Wednesday evening from Tesco, to be delivered, Friday teatime, I use vouchers on here for free delivery

sans_2

I love these threads!

Frogga I wish I was as motivated as you. I drag myself out of bed Monday - Friday at 6:30am only because I have to. Alarm goes off about 6:20am allowing me to hit the snooze button. On the odd day I do get up at 6:20am but that is rare.

Normally wash up any random plates/cups from night before (DH and DS evening snacking). Sometimes I will put a load of washing on and take it to my mums to hang outside (so it doesn't get wet if I do hang it out with the poor weather)
Get washed/ready for work.
Get DS(3) up and his trains etc then leave the house between 7 - 7:10am.
Drop DS(3) at my parents (mum looks after him whilst me and DH are at work). Mum makes my breakfast and lunch to take with me.
Drive to bus station then get a bus into town at 7:30am.
Arrive into town between 8:20-8:35am.
Get another bus which takes me closer to work (otherwise it's a 20 minute walk)
Start work 8:45am - 5pm (Mon - Thurs), Finish at 4pm Fri.
Normally after work I might pop into Boots for a browse as I'm passing it anyway before catching a bus back home between 5:20 - 5:35pm.
I may pop into Asda for a nosey at bargains if bus gets me back at 6:15pm.Depends if I can be bothered.
Thursday I almost always pop into my local Boots for a browse as it's late night shopping.
Pick up DS(3) then home around 7pm.
DH has dinner ready/prepares it. I do the dishes afterwards then pretty much head upstairs.
Get me and DS(3) washed etc then into bed by 9pm.
Usually sit with laptop on MSE/eBAY with tv in background. Will watch something if I am interested but don't really follow any soaps.
Bathrooms/toilets are cleaned pretty much every time I use it. Again I try to give shower a quick wipe after every usage and a proper clean when it needs it.
Clothes washing is done usually every second day but mostly at the weekends.
I always make the bed at the weekend but on a weekday as I am the first to leave the house it doesn't get done.
I am very anal about anyone that dares keep their shoes on in our house so floors are generally quite clean as we are at work most of the time. I hoover at the weekend.
I have 'to do' lists in my handbag all the time. I feel a bit better organised that way.
Do a main shop monthly and very rarely need any top up shops. I buy juice/snacks as and when necessary/feel like it. I'm not too bothered if there isn't any.
I don't iron so I guess I save time in that dept.
Try to read DS(3) a book or one of his Thomas the Tank Engine magazines in bed (as he still does not want to sleep in his own bed)
There are a million things I'd love to do but don't seem to find the time or energy.
Fri after work I allow myself so me time - usually at Boots until 5pm so that I can get back at home by 7pm.
Sat-Sun - the latest I get up is 9am. I try and aim for 7:30am but it's usually more like 8am. I tend to get my petrol and do any small chores like go to the bank, pay council tax on a Saturday. Sunday I try to do very little except housework.
I love Ebay and try listing a few things here and there which pays for all the bits and pieces I buy from there. If I sell anything I will get it all packaged up weighed, work out postage costs online and stick enough postage stamps on it. I then give them to my parents to post for me.

That's all I can think of.

ceridwen

Yep - I do the list thing. Always have a list in my handbag of stuff to do in town (shopping or otherwise) and keep that one on the go (constantly updated as I do a bit of it).
List for housework (Week 1 I do x/y/z and Week 2 I do a/b/c). List on side of fridge of all those odd jobs that will do one of these days when I have the time (aim to be making progress with say 2 of these at a time - so the list doesnt get steadily longer and longer!).

Its quite an incentive to add something I need to buy to the list the second I have just used up whatever food/etc it is - thinking of the doing without or corner shop prices I will have to do otherwise).

Chaos_Theory_3

In the past I have had really good routines for keeping the place looking good as well as working 40-60 hours a week. These have lapsed recently as I ended up getting so resentful of himself and son-thing just leaving everything for me to do, I went on strike for a week....I now have no idea where to start. It's such a mess!

*grabs timer and sets it for 15 mins*

Wish me luck....

Dontpanicyet

Wow Frogga...you have inspired me!! I usually wake about 4.30 and then lay there, drifiting in and out of sleep and get up feeling really groggy at 6.30. Tomorrow, I'm going to get up when I WAKE up:j and get loads of stuff done. Must be harder in the winter though?

You refer to a flylady thread about housework - can any MSE's point me in the right direction please?

Chipps, I agree about the meal planning. Maybe make and freeze your lunchtime sandwiches? Definately do a MEGA shop online, once a month, (plus investigate veg box deliveries) then you will only need a very quick topup shop in your lunchbreak. Wash/iron a little amount every day, or record your fave progs and have a mammoth session on Sat afternoon or whenever fits in. Oh and remember, dust won't kill you and it doesn't smell.

sunset_gold

After 17 years in the City, then 15 years raising a family, I have now got a job starting December 2nd 3 days a week, leaving 8am and home by 4pm (hopefully!). I have been trying to re-plan out my week to fit everything in, but think that by Sunday night I will be flaked out on the sofa! [IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/user1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpg[/IMG]

This is how I have changed my routines:

Monday - Friday
(5.30am - 8am)
Hot drink to wake me at 5.30am, hang up washing from last night, put on another load, empty dishwasher, set chilled food onto table for kids breakfast, walk dogs, feed dogs/chickens, hang up 2nd load of washing, prepare dinner (out of freezer/ into oven on timer/slow cooker..that sort of thing), get kids out of bed/into shower/break up rows over who's turn it is in the shower 1st....etc.

Monday - clean house, clean out chickens, bake cakes for week, go to gym...kids dancing lesson 6pm - 7pm
Tuesday - work....kids GCSE class til 5.30pm
Wednesday - work....kids dancing lesson 6.30pm - 8pm
Thursday (rubbish collection day, sort out recycling, empty house bins, put out rubbish) - work....kids scouts 7.30pm - 9.15pm
Friday - clean house, clean out chickens, food shopping, batch meal cooking for freezer, go to gym.

Then around the kids taxi service in the evening and before bed... cook dinner, washing up, load dishwasher, load washing machine, set table for kids breakfast, take food out of freezer.

Then there's the constant nagging at the kids to do homework, go to bed, get up out of bed!!!

I know this all sounds completely normal daily life to most people, but I fear I will never fit it all in.

The old-stylers threads I read give me pictures of efficient, frugal, busy, happy people and I want to be one too, so I ask if you would share your invaluable time saving tips that you rely on for being an old-styler please?

moanymoany

For the first two or three weeks you will probably feel tired - after that you will have adjusted.

I would suggest that before you start you make a meal for each evening that you are working and freeze it. Before you go out you can get it out of the freezer ready for that evening.

Also, a good idea is to have a few of the meals that can be cooked from frozen for the days you (might) forget!

If you have the freezer space make the cakes in advance - if not BUY them. Get the cheap value stuff, it will make your family all the more grateful for your home made!

By the way - if you do all of that without going out to work I think you have turned into Wonderful Woman.

I would pick out essentials and get them at the head of the list - anything else is left to chance!

OddjobKIA

Buy Lots Of Coffe

mioliere

Good luck with going back to work! You'll probably find you work harder on your days off than at work! My advice is to meal-plan for a week at a time, or longer if it suits you. Delegate chores to the rest of the family - having a working mum means team work from the whole family. Also, as Moanymoany has said, BUY cakes if you don't have time to make them.

One of the most important bits of advice I can give is not to beat yourself up trying to do too much and, even more important, factor in some 'me' time on your days off. You will adjust once you have been working for a few weeks and probably find you get a good routine going.

floss2

Why not work out a rota for showers, and set the kids tasks to do to earn their pocket money (mine used to change their own beds, tidy up, drag the hoover round, and had to wash & dry up every night - as did me & my brothers from me being 7 yrs old). As you've spent 15 years bring them up, its time they started to help out now you're going back to work.

Also, don't fall into the trap of "he/she doesn't do it the way I do, so I will do it myself"....there lies the path of a martyr! You have to learn to bite your lip, and either put up with it, or gently direct them until they learn to do it the "best" (mum's!) way.

Apart from anything else, you are setting them up for a lifetime of independence & an ability to manage their own homes by teaching them basic housekeeping & chores....for which you will be thanked by future partners!