Establishing Routines
Originally published at The Vintage Wife. You can comment here or there.
Since becoming pregnant I have begun to think about all the things that I need and want to get done before the baby arrives. I have a lot of goals I want to accomplish and a lot of projects I want to finish. I also know that very soon I will have a lot less time to spend on myself, my house, my friends, etc. If I don’t start forming some new habits now it will only get more difficult later down the road.
Organization is a big one for me, as it is with many people. My house always seems to be mostly clean, but there are always piles of ’stuff’ tucked away places. These things move around a bit. One day they will be on the kitchen table, after clearing it for dinner they will end up on the bedroom floor, and the next day stuffed behind some more junk in the closet. I want to either eliminate these piles or find a real spot to put them. Organization shouldn’t be so difficult, but I really need to establish some sort of a system in order to deal with all this stuff. I plan on starting with our hall closet and taking out things that are just placed there because they have nowhere better to be. In doing all this this I also plan on donating quite a lot of stuff to the thrift shop, as I really am going to need more space for the baby things we are already accumulating.
Establishing a cleaning schedule is another thing I need to get in the habit of. My house is usually in pretty good shape, but this is due to running around like a crazy person tidying up before a guest comes by. If instead of relying on the hours before a friend arrived to clean, I did the vacuuming a certain day of the week, the bathroom another, and so on, life really would be a lot easier. It would also save me during those embarrassing times when someone drops by unannounced, and I have to apologize for the state of my house. This week I want to sit down and figure out a schedule that seems realistic, and really work towards sticking with it. Cleaning doesn’t have to be such a chore if it is broken up throughout the week.
Another thing I want to do is get more consistent with my hair styling. I love nothing more than having an easy to care for do, but with a baby on the way it really is becoming more essential. I am already starting to feel self conscious due to my expanding waistline, so I have been making an extra effort to get my face, hair, and nails looking their best. When the baby does come, I don’t want to use him or her as an excuse not to continue caring for my appearance in such a manner. I want to continue to look polished, with neat hair, fresh face, and nice clothes. I bought rollers that stick to the hair, and don’t need to be clipped in (as I had been previously using) for ease. I also bought some of those bendy triangular shaped clips to pin curl my hair at night and tie up in a scarf. I had tried in the past to use standard clips, but they poke my head too much, making for an uncomfortable nights sleep. I also tried bobby pins, which when they aren’t flying across the room while I try to open them, are really a pain to put in (and they chip my nails if I am not careful!). The bendy clips I found are perfect, since they lay flat to the head. Anyhow, I have been trying my hardest to put in the clips every night (except for when I plan on washing my hair the next morning), and what I have found is I am actually spending LESS time on my hair than when I would not curl it, but pin it up in some ‘easy’ hair style.
The older I get the more I realize that people really are creatures of habit. I am really hoping that I can hold onto as much of my new routines as possible throughout this pregnancy and after the baby is born. I am sure it will be difficult in the beginning, but hopefully with this early preparation I can figure out how to work these things into my new life.