Thursday, May 24, 2007

MY TIME-MANAGEMENT SECRET LOL AND A LAYOUT

A few sweet people asked me to share my secret (well, it's NOT really a secret) So here is A LONG article about it... Sorry for the bad english ...

First of ALL, I'M NOT AN EXPERT... I am just a regular SAHM who has her OWN way to plan her day... What works for me doesn't have to work for you...

So here I GO...
I want to talk about my day first... I usely stay up around 7 or 8 am... (Not that I want to )
I don't have to tell you that I get dressed, go to the bathroom etc LOL..
So I grab my kids and i go downstairs... I always check my email first... Just to see if there is something important in my mailbox (Otherwise I can't focus on anything else )

After that I do the random things... Like changing diapers, feeding Dilara etc.

I have ALWAYS a notebook next to me during the breakfast... I jot down a to do list for that day... NOT SCRAPBOOK RELATED... I plan my day in advance so I can start my day with a CLEAN mind ( I think you all know what I'm talking about... We all have a HUGE to do list up there ;) It's SOOO HUGE that it seems like we're loosing control of it... )


I usely give myself till 12 am to clean my house... ofcourse with a lot of breaks... And then I prepare the lunch... After the lunch I have all the time to be there for my kids... Dilara usely sleeps when I'm cleaning and Alara helps me with the dishwasher ;) We dance around the house.. Fight a little... But it's SO MUCH FUN...

In the afternoon we take our MUCH NEEDED NAP together... AW that feels so good LOL

I told my family and friends that it's NAP time after 3 o'clock... They totally understand that THANK GOD... Having 2 little SWEET devils in the house is REALLY hard sometimes.. And this is something I just need to do.. But there are days that I don't have the time for it... That's ok too... But most days I'm in DREAMLAND ;)

AWAKE, feeding, changing diapers, cooking, dinner, cleaning...

Well, finally I have the time to watch tv or to fight with my HUBBY ;)
Alara goes to bed around 9 pm... After that I STILL HAVE A KID TO TAKE CARE OF... But Thank god she's a sweet baby... She only cries till midnight LOL..

But when do I scrapbook??? After 11 pm... Yes I know it's late... But I don't mind it AT ALL... I'm a NIGHT OWL... During the day I keep on dreaming about scrapbooking.. And when the night falls It's time to let it out bwahaha...

Everybody has a moment in the day that they feel the most CREATIVE... It's NIGHTS for me but it can be morning, afternoon or evening for you... That's the important thing I think... Finding out your CREATIVE MOMENT...
I suggest you to pay attention to it... Live your day like you always do and try to figure out what works the best for you... Even if it's 15 minutes a day... Ali edwards wrote an AWESOME article about it.. 15 minutes a day will be a lot of hours a month ;)

I'm a SAHM... Maybe you are a working MOM, or just working without being a mom ;)

My advice is the same for you... alright, you can't take a nap during the day... SO go to bed at a decent hour BUT look if you can create some time in the evening to SCRAPBOOK... If that's NOT possible you have still the WEEKENDS ... Maybe you can do some preparations for the weekend... Planning pages, printing photo's etc... So that everything is ready when you have the time...

HOW DO I MANAGE MY DEADLINES:

I have a seperate deadline list... As you can see below: (sorry I needed to cut out something on my list... A secret YOU KNOW LOL)


I change this list every few days... I arrange my deadlines in the order I want to do them... Sometimes I have to ad something else SO I START A NEW ONE... This list gives me SO MUCH PEACE... I never miss a deadline or a contest I wanna do...

And to keep track of my deadlines and other appointments I printed out a calendar... 1 for this month and one for the following month.. So I can plan everything immediately ;) I hang it above my laptop so I can't miss it...
I am working on my schedule for next month... It's not empty as you see above LOL

If you have a question for me PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ASK.. AND PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU'RE READING THIS.. I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW WHO I AM SPILLING SECRET TOO LOL .. THANKS FOR LETTING ME SHARE... REMEMBER I"M NOT NOT NOT A JOURNALIST OR AN EXPERT...



I leave you with a layout I did yesterday... This one is for webscrapping.com... AWESOME KIT... I love it... (btw: this is the finished version of the layout you see in the pic above ;)




If you want to be in the drawing for my GIVE-AWAY make sure to comment on the post below...





58 comments:

Beckie said...

Loveing the LO and wow girl you fit alot into your day! Me thinks I need to have one of those note pads!!

Anonymous said...

WOW! THESE AND ALL OF YOUR PAGES ARE SOO BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL! I JUST FOUND YOUR BLOG THROUGH SIMONE. OFF TO ADD YOU TO MY LINK LIST.

Anonymous said...

SORRY......SIMONE AT DAILY DOSE OF SPAZZ.

jess said...

WOW!!! I love your layout, especially how you've done that spiral!!!

I love how you sit at breakfast and make a list!! i think i'm going to steal that idea from you!! Its such a great way to plan the day!!!

I love how all your friends and family unsderstand and support you for your 3pm nap time! it would be awful to be woken up during it!!!

Thanks for showing us a day in your BUSY life! It was great to read!!

Xx jess

Holly Terra said...

How fun! You crack me up! LOVE what you did with the Kit! Love how you outline things with the black too!

Anonymous said...

wow you do awesome work! I found your site throw http://craftyme-kimberly.blogspot.com/

I will come back and read more later :)

Michele Kovack said...

WOW! This layout is gorgeous! I scrap too but not this beautiful!

Deanna G. said...

love the layout :) and how you journaled on the pic. awesome work, emine!

Anonymous said...

Love this layout! It is so beautiful!!!!

Little Lulu (aka Laurie Dagg-Labine) said...

Emine....

your day sounds like mine! Diapers and kiddies...and scrapping by moonlight!!

thanks for sharing and FYI your layout totally KICKS IT!

Bethany E. said...

Emine...this was so wonderful to read! I'm a SAHM too and it's great to hear your perspective! The layout is just GORGEUOS!!! Thank you for sharing it :)

I've just started visiting your blog daily and it is one of my faves! Please keep posting!!

Barbie said...

It must be so much easier to be organized when you have kids... maybe i should try that =) im lucky if i get anything done...i give u props... and love the layout

Anonymous said...

that new LO is awesome!! Love that orange, girl!!

Anonymous said...

I really love how you layed out how you start your day and end your day, Emine. You are such a mom bcoz' you really need to organize your time esp. w/two girls around. I admire you, Emine. I am so glad to call you my friend. You are an inspiration to me!!! Love, love, this LO!

Anonymous said...

Hi Emine, I've been wanting to tell you for a long time - there's nothing wrong with your english! Stop apologizing! :) I love that LO, and I'm always in awe of women who can get it all done. Now the only question is when you sleep!:))

Anonymous said...

I think this is the first time I write a reaction on your blog. But I have to say your LO is one of the best I have seen of you!!
I love your look on time management, I think you have to reveal where you get all the enery you need to have a scedule like this. (I guess in that napmoment).

Doei Astrid

Je@net said...

Aller eerst ff zeggen dat ik je LO super gaaf vind!!
En petje af hoor voor je dagindeling! M'n kids zijn inmiddels volwassenen en ik weet nog goed hoe et altijd rennen en vliegen was (en toen scrapte ik nog niet eens ;-)
Hi, hi, en je lijstjes zijn hier heeeel herkenbaar! Ben gek op strepen! LOL

Ingrid said...

Hi Emine, thanks for sharing your time management schedule. I was one of the persons interested in the way you manage your busy schedule. :-) The checklists seem a good idea to me. Why didn't I think of that myself? LOL! One of my problems is that I spend too much time on the Internet reading blogs (like yours), message boards, etc. I guess that's what they call addiction, right? I think I can better start with the household in the morning and "reward" myself with some Internet time in the afternoon. I scrap in the evenings, and that works well for me. Thanks again for sharing. And your LO is awesome. You have a great style. Keep up the fantastic work, girl!

PS: And like Hagit, I too would like to know when you go to sleep (except for the nap in the afternoon). :-) If you start scrapping at 11pm you probably go to bed very, very late at night.

Anonymous said...

Hoi Emine,

Ik zal ook eens een keertje een reaktie achterlaten. Ik lees je blog trouw (bijna) iedere dag dus dat wordt dan ook weleens tijd. Leuk om te lezen dat je ook een "lijstjes" mens bent, ben ik namelijk ook. Geweldige LO!!

Groetjes van Corinne

FauveDesign said...

Really interesting!Love the layout,looks so yummy!

Anonymous said...

Salut friend!
how are you?
your lo is great, I love the colors chosen!
have a great day and see U later on SIS or msn!

bisous!

Prolix
{ThE fReNcH tOuCh}
http://prolix.typepad.fr

Lilian Schneider said...

Hi Emine<
I guess I'm not the only list-freak out here! I like to make taskslists too. For my scrappingtasks I bought some blackboard paint and painted a blackboard on my scraproom/ guestroom.
It's great that you are so organized on one side and then can let go of that to go wild with the scrapbooking don't you think?
I love the layout of your little girl!

Vanessa said...

bedankt voor de tips
ik heb het afgeprint!! zal er werk van maken mijn time management is een hel!

Elizabeth said...

I really like your day, it sounds a lot like mine except I don't have any baby's to watch!! Mine is 10! And that layout totally rocks too! Sure you can add me to your blog, I'd be honored!!!

Tammy said...

I LOVE that layout with the swirls... gorgeous and creative!

Essie said...

Great job with planning your day. I make a list to, on a whiteboard in the kitchen. LOL. Love your new LO and the spiral! Love. es.

Natalie said...

I'm also a total list person. I have to make one every single day. It's the only way I stay sane. Thanks for sharing about your day!

jakey said...

Love your use of juicy colour girlie!

(I am a list maker too!, drives my dh mad!) hee hee!

JoAnn V. (http://joboogie.typepad.com) said...

Emine! Girl, I swear - I can't thank you enough for finding my blog and for me finding yours! I love this post - it gave me a lot of insight to an organized, mommy, wife, and scapper diva like yourself - which I truly hope to BE someday! *lol* I just gave birth to my son in February and to find time to scrap is very precious! I really loved hearing you organize your time! It's something that I strive to do! :)

Love you LO - your really have great style! Love it! :)

Melonie said...

Beautiful page as usual Emine. I love your tips. I am a SAHM too and I also need my nap with the kids but only about 30 minutes. Then I am re-charged and ready to scrap for the next 2 hours.

Familie Kubben said...

What a gorgeous LO Emine! I love it!!

Jen Harrison said...

This layout is gorgeous. I love it. Everything about it. You are really making me love orange :)

Adrienne said...

Busy Mom!! Thx for sharing how you get through the day :)

NOW, that ORANGE spiral is just so cool!!!

anita said...

Hey Emine, I'm a nightscrapper too!!! Best time to be creative ...

Silvitanova said...

OK. I'm jalous of the nap! I wasen't relaxed enough: always something to do, always that phonecall for work.
I love your LO. You are always so 3-d in your work. Love that!

Unknown said...

I am totally a list maker too!!!

Shelly Brewer said...

Busy busy days!! lovin that lo.

Net said...

That cord wound into a spiral is fab! You are one clever lady.

Rachael said...

Love your lists!! I used to do that and got out of the habit. I really need them and I think you've inspired me to start again!

Your layout is just beautiful! Love what you did with the twine!

Nicole Carro said...

Emine, this was a fabulous article from a fabulous lady! Thanks for the tips...love the We B LO - the orange twine is awesome!

Jennifer Matott (Sigmagirl) said...

you did an amazing job with the layout! Thanks for the tips of time management... you are one busy lady!

Shelley said...

you know, girlie.. i am going to take some of your advice to heart and put it into place this very weekend. i SO used to be a list maker... and since i began working from home fulltime, that list has gone by the way side! thanks, emine.. for the positive influence!

Beckie said...

Meant to say! LOVE that song too! Downloaded it to the ipod and put on my blog (hope you don't mind!!) So Rocking!!!

sollie said...

You are organised!! Wish I could stick to a list too.

Irene said...

My goodness girl - you should be a project manager! Thanks for sharing your great techniques with us. I envy you for being able to scrap after 11 - I can't do anything after 10 pm.

Brigitta said...

I used to be allergic to to-do lists tnx to my ex who was list obsessed, but seeing as there is no order in my daily life at all, it might just be a good idea to start using lists myself ;-)
I'm definately not a nightscrapper, nights are for sleeping haha, best time for me is between 11 and 3 (maybe 10-4)

Anonymous said...

Emine, What a way to organize your time! Great tips for everyone - I all ready left you a note on the We B site about your LO - You are an amazing artist! - Sure you will be famous one of these days! - just keep taking those risks and putting yourself out there..... you are all ready so lived by many!

Shelley said...

leaving a second comment... i TOOK your advice.. tODAY. with breakfast... kennedy and i sat down and made a list. ok, so she watched. but she kept saying.. "help you momma? i can help you?"

so far.. HALF of my list is DONE! thanks, girlie, for the inspiration.

xoxox

Shelley

Just Sew Sue said...

I like the coiled fibre on your layout. Did you plait it yourself?

Sue

domestic goddess said...

so love thsi LO emine, saw it over at SIS and fell in love it xx

Rianne said...

Hallo there,
I think that since you started with the orange, as your style, the lay-outs get better and better.
Wow again.
You keep on surprising me !!
greetings, Rianne

Ginger John said...

I love this layout. It's gorgeous. You have a very unique style I admire. :-) It's fun to look and see the different ways you use your stash of scrapbook stuff.

mary h. said...

Gorgeous layout! I too have to make lists and lots of them. It's bad when I don't or when I lose those lists. LOL! I make so many lists that my oldest now makes her own to do lists. She's only 7 for pete's sake.! Am I passing down some OCD tendencies or what.

I miss those naps, btw. Enjoy them while you can.;)

Unknown said...

Emine-
What a great way to do things! I have a planner and as far as I get is adding daily things that are different each day. LOL. I know how it is with two kids, though! I have two girls, too...love 'em, but some days I get really tired!

michelle said...

i love this layout sista! I am a "wee hour" scrapper, too. I fit it in after my family has gone to bed for the night so i don't "take away" time from them. but my 2 yr old is getting more creative, so he paints while I get scrapping done - i love it. I am definately going to use that calendar and list thing though!

Iris said...

I really love your story!!! I was great reading it!
And I fell in love with your LO! It's just so sweet! I love the collors and materials you worked with!

Anonymous said...

Love reading your blog unfortunately i can't find the time every day ;-)

Ania said...

Not bad..I need to do some kind of list myself aswell..missing out on so much fun because I think i can remember them all haha. Love your style, congrats on the yummy nisa-goodies! :D