The good kind of efficiency

Now that I dogged on being too efficient (or trying to multitask to an unhealthy extreme), I thought I'd share some of my efficiency tips that might actually be helpful. As Grasshopper Mama would say, you're welcome.

-I believe that every minute counts. As a result, I do small tasks whenever I can. For instance, now that both kids are self-feeding, I can wash the dishes or sweep the kitchen while the eat, and still talk with them. Instead of worrying about not being able to finish a task, I just try to get it done.

-Since I have to change diapers/pull-ups (one day she'll e dry consistently!) first thing in the morning, I see no point in exerting energy to re-dress them in pj's. So, I get them dressed before we're even out of their rooms. Saves a stressed out dressing later. I have always hated missing a spontaneous outing b/c we're not ready!


-I like routine- it's predictable. We have a good one that works for us:

• So, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, I get up with the kids, feed them, play with them, then I work out (we have an elliptical we got free) for 30 minutes.
  
• How? I can hear you ask it...well, both kids like "moo-mees" as Luke excitedly says and points to the TV, so they get gated downstairs with a movie while I work out. I usually pray as I go to get some extra prayer time in. (not trying to sound spiritual, that just works for me).
• Then, while I cool down, I play with the kids again and give them some more face time.
• Next, they get fruit snacks and do room time together in Rebekah's room. Luke loves this part of the day, and it tickles me to see them play together. (side note- this morning they were playing for 45 minutes when I poked my head in- they both looked up and chirped, "Hi!" at the same time. AWESOME!) The point of room time is 2-fold- 1) give them time together with no movies and 2) get myself showered w/o an audience.
  
• Now, we are all dressed, so we can hit the day!
• On off-exercise days, I try to make sure we do something fun together, such as a park or a fun errand or a play date. I chose Wed's and Fri's as off-days to make getting to our scheduled play groups easier.
  

-As you can see, in general, I have a set plan of when I'll do things, and then I flex on it when I need to. For example, I told you that I work out on specific days. However, I can rearrange that schedule if something pops up. I want to work out 4xs a week, so I look for ways to make up missed days and plan ahead to ensure I don't miss one. Similarly, if it's not a work-out day, I use the kids' room time to clean the flat or start dinner prep.

-Now that I mention dinner, I smile. Cooking is one of my strengths. :) I love planning it, ordering it (yea for delivery!), unpacking it, and cooking it!

• When I plan my menu, I do it 2 weeks at a time. For budgetary reasons, I try to cook every 2 days. I'd love to have the money to cook every night, but that simply is not the case. So, we do a lot of soups and bigger meals that we can stretch for another meal. So, in implementation, I actually cook 2 nights in a row, then we eat the left-overs 2 nights in a row. That way, we don't eat the same meal 2 nights in a row.
  
• I always keep sandwich meat, cheese, bread, tortillas, butter, tuna, canned soup, fruit, and pretzels around. So I vary those items to make grilled and fresh sandwiches. I also make a killer salad, so I grab some of the items too for a fresher lunch. Bless Josh for loving all food!
• When I actually plan, I try to think thru my meals to maximize each ingredient. For example, if I'm buying feta cheese, I try to think of meals that will use all of it, so none is wasted. This goes for meat, fresh herbs, etc.
• I always try to wash dishes as I cook. You don't have to stand over boiling pasta or simmering meat- use this time to prep the rest of your meal, and then to wash the dishes you've been getting dirty as you cook. Again I can hear you wondering how to do this with children? Well, Josh usually gets one-on-one time with them while I cook. Sometimes this necessitates gating them away from me. I know, I'm that fun. Otherwise, I put the kids at the table and let them color while I cook.
  
• Another time-saver is prep work. If I'm chopping onion to saute with some ground turkey, I try to think if I'll need more chopped onion later in the week. If so, I go ahead and chop more than I need, which saves time later. Case in point, we ate turkey rashers this morning for breakfast (with our french toast- yummy!). I knew we'd do a salad for lunch, so I made some extra to throw in the salad for added protein. Furthermore, as I flipped french toast, I chopped the other salad ingredients and washed the lettuce, so it would be ready after church.

-Maybe one more thing I'd share is how we roll out the evenings. Josh and I have become a really good team. I cook/clean (b/c I like doing both), he plays with kids (since he hasn't gotten to during the day as much). We do dinner. Josh reads them a Bible story and talks about with them while I do dishes. Then, we play with kids (remember, the no computers from 5-7pm). We do baths ever other night. At bedtime, Josh puts down one and I do the other, and we switch so both kids are used to both of us. Then, around 7:30, both kids are down. We catch up, watch some shows online, and try to be upstairs at 10pm. We have started reading books together at night, so that gets us time, so we can go to bed by 10:30, which we both need.

I think my main thought is that doing things as you can, with a plan, and therefore AHEAD can only help lessen feelings of overwhelment. (yes, I made that word up)

If you're wondering about the picture, I added it because when I shared this post with Facebook, it was grabbing weird things since I didn't have an image anywhere in the post. What scandal. So unlike me. So, this was a favorite of us. I posted a long time ago how we had such grand adventures even before moving across the pond- this was one of my faves- Alaskan cruise. And it was pre-children and pre-30, so I still fit in a size 6. Those were the days. Not really. I much prefer having Rebekah and Luke to not.