Well, it’s Saturday of the long weekend and I already feel like my weekend is shot. I have a weakness when it comes time to finding a balance between getting things done and having fun. Today was raining, so I told myself it was a good day for getting some inside stuff done. Instead we went to Gymnastics, had an amazing lunch at Cora’s and went shopping at two of my favourite stores. I then had a wonderful, long nap, woke up and made finger puppets all afternoon (yeah, I’m a loser). I even got to have banana-chocolate-peanut butter crepe with whip cream for dessert after dinner! It really was a perfect day, so why do I feel so grumpy?

It’s the pressure of spring. I feel it. I feel the clock ticking away on the all things I have to get done and there just isn’t enough time before summer arrives. Gardens to plant, grass to cut, weeding, washing windows, pool to open, pots to plant, deck and fence to stain, patio to power wash…the list goes on and on. Not to mention all the inside stuff I want to do. Finish bathroom trim, install downstairs air conditioner, clean out my laundry room…endless stuff to do.

Tomorrow we are golfing all afternoon (I even got new pretty clubs) and having a “Lost” date night (no kids whoo whoo) at night. Again, perfect day. So where am I going to find the time to get anything done? Truth is, I’m not. I need to learn to let go and just enjoy myself, despite the never ending mountain of chores. That being said, I know I’ll feel better if I get one small thing accomplished, and here’s a tip to help you do the same.

I made a list. I made a list of all the stuff I want to get done in the next few weeks and vowed not to add anymore until those are all gone. I then added gimmies. Yeah, it’s a golf term, I’m preparing for tomorrow! Gimmies are those small, quick little things you can do anytime but you’ve been putting off.  I added things like: Patching kids inflatable toy, replacing toliet flap, moving Izzy’s summer clothes down to her lower closet bar and replacing batteries in kids toys. None of these things will take more than 15 minutes for me to do, but just getting to check something off the list will make me feel a million times better about my weekend.

Here are some example gimmies you can add to your list: Replace burnt out light bulbs, replace furnace filter, hang a picture, organize junk drawer, put all your condiments together in one area of your fridge (seriously, you gotta do this one)…I’m sure you get the idea and have lots of things you can add. Remember, gimmies should take you no longer than 15 minutes to accomplish. So have fun this weekend and still get to check something off your list!