Tuesday, August 13, 2013

ROUTINES


Good morning, everyone!

I was thinking yesterday, we always talk about projects and decorating on our weekly post, but I thought it would be interesting to share how we go by keeping our homes clean, organizing our spaces and some of our daily routines.

Mine have changed a lot since I stopped working outside the home and I have to say, sometimes I miss it, and then I realize how blessed I am to be able to be home and take care of my family. 
My job title these days is "Domestic Engineer" and I am sticking to that! LOL

We are not quite "empty nesters" yet, so with that in mind, we built this large four thousand square feet home five years ago. It is great to have all the space, but not so great keeping up with the every day maintenance. 

It doesn't help that I am one of those crazy people about cleaning, thanks mom! :) 
So I had to come up with a plan to organize my daily routine, get it all done and not kill over! LOL 
Oh, and I forgot blogging! Got to make time for that!

I love to get up early in the morning, around 5:00 am and enjoy the peace and quiet that time of the day has to offer.
This is when I answer my emails, check on the blog and enjoy reading all your post.
With a coffee cup in hand, you will find me here.




Normally I get a couple of hours before everyone start getting ready to leave for work and college and that is when my day really starts. I clean our home every day. Yes, I know, I am nuts, but I just can't have it any other way.

I start with cleaning whatever breakfast dishes are in the sink and wipe down all the counters.



 
Then I dust, sweep and vacuum the bottom floor of our home. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I also mop the floors.

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When all that is done I move on upstairs to make beds and clean bathrooms. The kids make their own beds and pick up their rooms, so all I have to worry about is our bedroom, bathroom and doing a little vacuuming. 






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And when all that is said and done, this is pretty much the way I feel. :)


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An it is NOT over yet! I still have to cook.

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Let me tell you, this family of mine get a full course meal every day!
Don't know how much longer I will be able to keep this up! LOL


And while dinner is cooking, I try to get a load or two done.


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Friday is my grocery day.
The day before, I always make a menu for the following week and get my coupons ready.
I love coupons and most weeks I am able to save as much as fifty dollars off my grocery bill.



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And in the afternoons, I always have a couple of hours to myself before everyone starts arriving home.
That is "me time".
Some days I will sit down in my library and enjoy reading one of my favorite books.





Sometimes I work on whatever project I got going on that week.
I love spending afternoons in my craft room!


And in the evenings, after dinner, we like to relax and enjoy watching a little TV and family time.


 



Of course, these routines change on those days I have errands to run or just want to go out and do a little shopping in my favorite stores.


So, are your days as busy and crazy as mine?
I would love to hear what your routines are and how do you manage your time to keep up with your homes and still find time for all those things you like to do, like projects and decorating. :) 

Tuesdays at Our Home is live right now. 
Stop by and join in the fun! 

I hope you all are having a wonderful and fun week!
See you soon!




15 comments:

  1. its only 9 am and I am totally exhausted and ready for a nap just reading your post. sheesh.
    I clean and wash once a week- kitchen is a daily of course and once a month I have a lady come in and do " the full Monty Clean" from ceiling to floor.

    You are a Master Cleaner~!

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  2. I liked this post. It's so true, we always post about what special thing we're doing and rarely blog about our everyday.

    You have a huge home (4,000 sq feet is a lot of square footage)and I'm sure it takes a ton of energy to keep it all going. I admire your routine. I tend to blog at the end of the day, while watching TV. My household chores do get done, but not in nearly such an organized fashion. I'm much more organized about my chores during the school year and tend to let it all slide a bit in the summer. As September rolls around, I need to get back into that menu planning mode. I tend to menu plan on a Sunday or Monday and traditionally don't plan out the weekend meals. Weekends are a bit more free wheeling and I'm never sure exactly where we'll wind up.

    Enjoy your lovely home!

    - The Tablescaper

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  3. I have to confess to being totally disorganised! It's silly really, because reading your post makes me realise that you have a lot more free time because you have a routine. I might have to follow yours!

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  4. I loved this post! I enjoy hearing about everyone's routines. I deep clean the whole house once a week, but I still feel like I'm cleaning every day. :) I can honestly say I've never gone to bed with a dirty dish in the sink. Ha! I have to pick up and straighten everything before I go to bed. I'm just weird like that. :) I love waking up to a clean house. I do laundry twice a week. I try to get my chores done early in the day so I can relax and enjoy the afternoons. I try to have one day a week where I don't have any chores or anything else that I have to do. I call that my "do nothing" day. LOL! By the way...just seeing those pics of Hob Lob, Kirklands, and Michael's makes me want to shop!! :)

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  5. I am in love with your craft room. Its the perfect size and very well organized. I'm jealous! :)

    Jennifer @ Decorated Chaos

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  6. You have a beautiful home, thank you for sharing. The thing that struck me the most was at the end I saw your name...Maria Elena, that was my mom's name. She passed away 1 year ago. You have a beautiful name as well. Thanks again for inviting us into your home.

    Liz

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  7. HI Maria Elena - Thank you for the tour - your home is the perfect combination of beauty and comfortable. It is absolutely perfect. And so glad to know I'm not the only one who has the frazzled crazy life! Hugs, Holly @ coconutheadsurvivalguide

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  8. Hi Maria Elena. Your home is so lovely and inviting. I too am a bit of a compulsive cleaner. We have two dogs that live indoors with us, so that alone means I vacuum daily. I do mop my bare floors twice weekly as well, and in between times, I run a quick wet Swiffer Mop over the floors. I love to have sparkling clean bathrooms, so those get a through cleaning at least twice a week, and a daily fluffing as well.
    Hugs,
    Kris

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  9. We just moved into a home that is about 4,500 square feet, and includes 4 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms! Our old home was less than half this size. Because I have 2 little boys and a third on the way, I have to stick to a slightly less complex cleaning routine. ;-) I also homeschool our almost 7 year old, our oldest.
    So, I assign a couple of cleaning chores for each day of the week, so that the house if fairly presentable at all times. I do laundry on Monday and one other day during the week, with towels being washed on Thursday. I also dust as I see fit on Mondays. Tuesday is my day for cleaning all of the floors in the house- quite a task. And Thursday is my bathrooms day. Since we have 6, they don't really get all that bad. ha
    And of course, the daily kitchen work and picking up after people all day. ;-)I am training my boys to start picking up after themselves better, though....

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  10. Your home is beautiful and magazine worthy! I remember having your energy when I was younger and your schedule resembled mine.I was a LOT MORE organized also. But now that I'm an older retired empty nester, I've kind of been slacking! You know the old adage, "if you want to get something done, give it to a busy person"? Well, that is SO TRUE! I accomplished a lot more when there were kids in the house and I had more to do. I'm afraid I've become a slacker! I know I need to pick up the pace and get even MORE done! Energy begets energy! OK, I'm convinced, I'm done being a slacker...I'm motivated! Thanks!

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  11. Oh, I forgot to thank you for featuring my post this week! That was fun! Thank you! Thankfully I don't have to CLEAN the 49 rooms in the mansion!

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  12. We are not quite empty nesters either! I also get up early and enjoy the calm before the storm!!
    My routine varies, since I watch my youngest grandson two to three times a week, plus with school starting for my oldest grandson, there will be days (because of his parents work schedule) that I will have to either pick him up or take him to school! Laundry is done Mondays and Thursday's. I have to vacuum twice a day, because of the dog hair. So, my routine . . . would be considered a routine of chaos!! Things get finished just not the same thing on the same day! Thankfully though my family helps so I still have time for me. My reading is done while I am on my eliptical.

    Maybe one of these days I will have an actual routine.

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  13. You are one busy "Domestic Engineeer" that is for sure and your beautiful home show it! Thank you for hosting! Xo Tammy

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  14. I used to clean like you, but decided to give myself a break and let up a little bit. My home is still just as clean, but I'm not over-doing it. I divide up my chores throughout the week so that I'm not running myself ragged getting my home clean. My hubby thinks I overdo it anyway, but if I was cleaning the way I used to, he would probably retire me to a 500 sq. ft. home. One thing I try to remember is if I were on my death bed, would I wish I had done more cleaning? I don't think so! Relax a little, Maria Elena, and take time to smell the roses.

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  15. Wow, Maria, you really are organized with this! I just kinda "do it as I see it"...lol! I don't have a set routine. I just kinda clean each day, as I go along. With the girls away at school and dear hubby traveling during the week, it has gotten really easy to keep things neat and tidy. I just make an effort to do whatever there is to be done, as soon as I see it.

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