Archive for July, 2011

I need careful time management. Seriously. Today, I wake up and I am faced with several things I would like to do. First, the facts.

I have a full-time helper at home and my kids go to school for half a day.

That is plenty of time right? Right? Wrong! Half a day is a very short time indeed. Take today for example. These are some of the things that I have at the back of my mind which I would like to do.

1. I want to clean the windows, change the sheets and wipe the cupboard doors. But you have a helper? Yes, but someone still needs to supervise her.
2. I want to do my exercises which I have been badly neglecting. That one certainly needs some working on!
3. I need to have a look at the kids’ books to prepare to help with their revision for their coming tests. Hey! Tuition teachers and school teachers need preparation. I am guiding and teaching my children at home so definitely I need some preparation too. You can’t teach without preparation.
4. I can’t wait  to get started on the two books I bought over the weekend. “Teach Yourself Visually Worpress” (Gotta conquer this wordpress fear I have) and “Get to #1 on Google”. There is no point writing pages and pages of good content if it is not found. I think my blogs have better potential as a Money Making Machine. *Ahem* I just have to figure it out.
5. I have to finish up my crossstitch project. Really, I must work on this one before my eyesight gets worse.
6. I just found a new contest to enter. Must work on that slogan. (Don’t view this one as trivial or a waste of time. Nosiree. I have won many contests before, some of them valuable items with a little work.)
7. I have to work on my piano songs. Been neglecting playing for so long. Speaking of which, I have to help the kids prepare for their piano concert.
8. I must help the man pack for his working trip.
9. While we’re at lists, I almost forgot that I haven’t gotten the courage to call up my gynae for an examination yet. I think I’ll probably procrastinate on that a little more first.
10. The new fridge we bought has yet to be delivered….
11. Then of course, there are my blogs and my Squidoo lenses to maintain….
12. Oh and I almost forgot. Today is Monday. My kids always look forward to Mondays and Fridays because I have scheduled gym time for them. Actually, we just go to the porch to kick a football around or my girl may run around with her kite and try to “fly” it on our tiny porch dragging it all over the floor and plants but even then, we have to make time for it and it requires effort to make it happen. Effort as in “Hurry up and finish your homework!”
13. I should probably forget about trying out any new recipes for the family or making more homemade kaya jam.

Help! I need Time Management

Some people have said to me. “You know, if I have to stay at home like you every day, I will go mad!” I suppose they mean mad from boredom. I am going mad from having too much to do and not knowing where to start! I have no time to be bored. If you add to this, the times when the kids fall ill or have more activities, then I have even more to do.

So how do I manage my time? I guess, I will just have to draw up a time table for myself the way  I draw one up for the children. So, here it is, my timetable for the day….

1. Finish up this blog post.
2. Supervise helper to clean windows and wipe cupboard doors. Leave the bedsheets to tomorrow.
3. Exercise. Get moving!
4. Do my contest slogan thingy.
5. Supervise Lunch
6. Read my new books/Do a few cross stitch lines
7. Help the kids with homework
8. Supervise teatime
9. Help the kids with piano
10. Organise gym time for the kids
11. Supervise meals Dinner
12. Plan what to pack for the spouse
13. Change batteries for the alarm (I forgot to put this on my todo list)
14. Help! I better get moving NOW!

We have done our errands like banking etc and I have a helper to help me with the meals and washing the childrens’ uniforms and shoes and ironing and cleaning the toilets. If I have to add these to my list above, I will go mad. Yes, I will certainly go mad staying at home, not from boredom but from having too much to do. I am “lucky”. Lucky that I have a helper to help me with some of the more mundane but necessary tasks so that I have more time to spend with the children. However “lucky” comes at a price. It isn’t cheap to have a maid and there is a loss of privacy. My maid has been with us for 3  years. She plans to work for one more year before returning home. I guess I better enjoy this time now. Otherwise, housework will become my “exercise” and I have to say goodbye to my books, piano, cross stitch, contests, blogs and squidoo lenses. Where would I find the time?

This post was written by hand before I typed it out. I really do not prefer to write in this manner. I prefer to type out my writings because I think and jot down my thoughts much faster than I can write. Typing makes it much faster and almost simultaneous. Sometimes, I type so fast I get all sorts of typo errors because again, my thoughs move faster than my fingers.

I look forward to each day….

I have been writing a lot lately. I truly enjoy writing. There is something wonderful in having discovered something you love and being able to do it. Each night before I sleep I would think about the 101 things I want to write about. I look forward to each day to write down all those thoughts and ideas. In writing online, there is much to learn too. HTML codes, CSS Codes, etc. It is fun to learn but I wish I had more time to do it.

I love writing but I must say that I love writing for myself. There is no restriction, no deadline, no edits. I can write anything I want, freely. (well, almost freely). Since it is online writing there is some form of self-cencorship that I feel compelled to do. Writing may not be quite as fun if I had more restrictions than that.

Practices Makes Perfect…

I find that when I write everyday or several times a day, then I have more to write, otherwise my words dry up like a well in the hot summer sun. Whenever the children have school holidays and my priority shifts towards them, naturally, whether it is 7 weeks, 2 weeks or even just 1 week, then I lose my momentum and the words become stuck. It no longer flows freely the way it does now.

When I write daily, the words simply pour out from my mind onto the computer screen or in this case, a piece of paper. It pours out almost effortlessly.

It is wonderful to do something you love…..

In my mid 40s, I have discovered (no, sorry, I have not discovered, I have always known) my love for writing. It is just that I was not able to do so before this but now, thanks to blogging I can indulge in this favourite pastime which I love…. Writing! It is wonderful to be able to do that which you love.

What is your favourite hobby, pastime or love? Have you found it? I hope you have.

One recent Saturday, sister invited me and my girl to my  niece’s Ballet Concert. My niece is doing her Grade 8. She is a good dancer very good at choreographing dances. Her ballet background helps her. My sister breathes a sigh of relief from all that taxing her around for her ballet classes for years. It is worth it. She is a confident and poised young lady. They really grow up so fast. I remember, she was my girl’s age not very long ago.

Anyway, there we were, 4 mums and 4 daughters. It was a lot of fun going out, just mums and daughters. After the concert we went for Roti Canai. Everyone had a good time. The younger girls bonded and chatted though they were at first shy.

As for my son and his father. Well, they did not stay at home. No, no. They went out for a movie and Roti Canai too on their own. They had to go for a 7 o’clock movie on a Saturday night. There weren’t any good cartoons playing, so they went to watch a martial arts movie in Cantonese which my boy does not understand. I think he was the only little boy there. The rest were courting couples. Hmm…. why would a courting couple want to watch a martial arts movie for??

The boy and his father had a good time too. A precious bonding time.

I think that it is important for us to spend one on one time with our children whenever possible. It creates memories and helps us bond with our children individually. I am glad that my husband suggested taking the boy out for a movie and supper instead of just staying home. It must have been a special evening for them too as it was for me and my girl.