*Madge's Magical Menage Management
*
"Magic comes from planning and hard
work."
Welcome to this collection of various
musings on home management. They are the result of my continuing
years of struggle with home vs family, plus reading of some of the
best home organization references and and the sharing on the
Sidetracked Home Executives bulletin
board.
I have a bias toward the Sidetracked
Sisters 3x5 card system; others like the computerized lists that are
currently available; some like the Messies "flipper" system. Whatever
works for you to keep track of the little day to day things to do or
the monthly, seasonal or yearly bigger things to do is fine. I think
organizers are great for keeping track of appointments, meetings, and
information about the people and things in your life. 3-ring binders
are probably the answer for big projects and recurring events like
Christmas, where the process is similar year after year & the
menus are prone not to change.
Note the motto under the title. You can
work very hard, but if you don't plan, you will still find your life
and home out of control. You can plan all you want, but if you aren't
willing to work, things will never come together. And planning
doesn't stop when the tools come out. Pay attention to what might be
the more efficient technique or vacuuming path. Look for new tools in
the grocery store. Read the efficiency and household organization
books.
A magician's job is to make tricks look
effortless, so we aren't allowed to see the hard work and planning
that goes into them. Unfortunately, families don't appreciate
everything that goes into running a home smoothly until they try it
for themselves. Nor did we, until we became the family manager. So
here are some of the tricks of the trade, the legerdemain of
housekeeping. Plus, a guide to putting together your own Christmas
planning notebook to give you the time, money & energy to do the
service and participate in the activities that can make Christmas
special and memorable.
Crisis Cleaning, or What to do when your mother-in-law the
immaculate housekeeper lets you know she's coming for a visit (or in
my case, Father in law) real soon.
Magical Techniques Techniques & tools to make cleaning easier.
Organizing Christ into Christmas: Planning ahead to find time
for service, worship & family at Christmas time, plus both new
& old ideas to make Christmas more meaningful.
Learning Lent Some
thoughts and meditations on how to make Lent a richer experience. Both
personal and family activities are included.
Wardrobe Wizardry Thinking about your wardrobe: ways to make it work wisely.
Uncannily Simple Unpacking :How to handle 997 miscellaneous moving boxes.
Upcoming attractions: soon, soon, a look
at some popular general organizational and motivational books from
the homemaker's point of view.
