Sunday - Saturday

As mentioned in several previous posts, I am what you might call, a bit of planner. By trade, by nature, by desire. I plan my outfits, our weekends, his meals, my errands, our future and about everything in between. I feel relaxed when everything is in it's place, on schedule and organized. I tend to think I am pretty good at keeping things in order, however, lately, we have been so busy, that I feel like the little things are escaping me. And because I know better than to think things will ever slow down completely, I decided I needed a plan (a more detailed plan that is) to keep me on track.

For example, I feel like the laundry has been piling up until the basket is ready to topple over, the bathroom has been neglected for weeks, I have a check from June that I still need to cash, a stack of thank you cards to write, and more "return" piles in my car than I know what to do with. Accomplishing these little things with a husband, friends, family, an 8-5 job and a life for that matter, requires quite the balancing act. My hat is off to those of you who throw a kid or two into the mix!

And so, yesterday afternoon, I did the extreme. I put together a Sunday - Saturday routine to keep me from going nuts.

Some would find this crazy (and let's face it, slightly annoying), but I find it therapeutic. Just knowing that things will. get. done., and now on a designated day, makes me happy as a clam. Here's what my week looks like.

Sunday: AM - Bills and Letters, PM - Grocery List and Plan Menus for the Week
Monday: AM - Work Out, PM - Grocery Shop
Tuesday: AM - Laundry and Iron, PM - Trash, Recycling and Cat Stuff
Wednesday: AM - Work Out, PM - Run Errands, Do Returns
Thursday: AM - Light Chores and Cleaning, PM - Personal Appointments and Maintenance
Friday: AM & PM - Free Day
Saturday: AM - Work Out, PM - Deep clean the house 1x per month

Chris quickly saw that this did not include hanging out with him, making dinner, feeding the cat, meeting up with our friends, etc. I'm pretty sure he thought our lives were about to take a turn for the worst - heh heh. I had to ensure him that this is obviously ON TOP of the day-to-day things that get scheduled in.

Anyways, I made a simple excel doc., laminated it and posted it up in our kitchen. I am already loving it - Have gotten my run in and have my returns lined up for after work today!

What do you do to stay organized? I am ALWAYS up for the latest in organization techniques...

Maddie's Garden Party

I am finally getting around to posting pictures of my first 'kid fiesta' gig. Here are a few pictures of Maddie's Garden Party a few weeks ago.

Happy Birthday to Maddie

Cupcakes, lemonade & birdcages - oh my

Flower pom pom's - courtesy of miss Martha Stewart

For paper flower instructions, click here. These were the best idea!! We hung them in Maddie's room when we were finished for an easy decoration - cheap and easy!

I "dressed" the table with several items that I already had around my house, i.e. pink candle holders, flower ceramic votive holder, etc.

Place Setting with take-home straw and flower gem candy dish (actually a votive holder from Pier 1)

Centerpiece with real grass sod (my original idea was to lay a whole strip down the middle of the table, but it turned out to be much too large. Note to self: measure before hand!)

'Pot Painting' Table with individual Terra-Cotta pots, paints, stickers, etc.

Strawberry Lemonade (TIP: Use Frozen Strawberries. They last longer and float better)

Goodie-bags filled with seed packets, individually packaged dirt, bubbles, and some good ol' fashioned sugar - aka starburst

Pictures of the Birthday Girl and her friends as you walked in

I hope to do another party soon - I have lots of ideas :)

WalMart

How do you do it?

I mean, I know how you do it (so no need to post a comment giving me an answer), but really, how are your prices just that much lower than my beloved red-basketed counter part?

Your trends may not always be quite up to par and I may feel a bit (aka: totally) out of place as the blond haired blue eyed white girl as I walk into your Denver's Northeast neighborhood location, but you really do swoon me with your prices.

I took the leap of faith last night after realizing that my 4-year old nieces birthday party decor was outdoing my entire household ensemble. I had a come-to-jesus over all of the loot that covered our dining room table and made 'Keep' (because this stuff really is that adorable) piles and 'Return' (because it's a 4 year-old's birthday party for goodness sakes, not a freaking wedding!) piles and decided, grudgingly, to head to ol' Wally for what remained on my list.

Mind you, I have seen the Michael Moore films, WalMart The Documentary, read Fast Food Nation and am cautiously aware of their buying power monopoly that they hold over the little guys- and I have sworn off that Smiley Face "mascot" time and time and again. But, what, with $2.50 pints of Ben & Jerry's, $1.50 Crystal Light packets, $1.00 paper products and a whole bargain home section dedicated to the latest trends (i.e., stuff that I can't resist right now but will most likely hate in a month), who can really say no to this box store full of crap / completely necessary items? Not to mention I found a sea of pink birthday stuff perfectly suitable, and much more reasonable, for a little girls 'Garden Party' on Saturday.

I. am. excited.

All in all a good trip with loads of savings.

Thoughts on WalMart....Love it? Hate it? Ban it?