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I don’t know why I am struggling so much with this challenge. Last week, I cleaned the house from top to bottom. It looked really good! Then we had a very busy four day weekend.

Friday – My SIL flew in from LA and settled in for four days.
Sabbath – Two friends drove up from Portland to see us and SIL; they stayed overnight.
Sunday – Portland friends left. Hubby’s childhood friends came over for a couple hours and then we went out for the rest of the day.
Monday – My SIL flew out in the evening.

In between all of that, we explored Seattle. Hours of city driving and visiting restaurants and shopping districts and country drives.

We had a lovely time!

But come Monday night, I was wiped out. Tuesday, still exhausted. Wednesday, still exhausted. Then I spent the rest of the week with no motivation for anything productive.

Why can’t I do what needs to be done on a regular basis instead of tackling everything at once and then letting it pile up again? So frustrating!!

I’m exploring and praying about several ideas of why I struggle so much – Laziness. Lack of motivation. A house that, once cleaned, still doesn’t feel like home.

I don’t mean to complain. I really don’t. Just sharing what’s going on.

Last week, we took our cat to the vet. Still waiting on test results. Provided we don’t need to spend any additional money, we are still hoping to order our new bed on Friday. Maybe sleeping in the master bedroom on a regular bed, instead of in the living room on an air mattress, will help us feel at home. Maybe I’ll be able to get some quality sleep. Maybe then I’ll find my motivation and energy again.

I hope so!

She looketh well to the ways of her household,

and eateth not the bread of idleness

Proverbs 31:27.

I had detailed plans for my September challenge. Originally, my plan was to focus on eating fresh fruits and/or vegetables at every single meal. I thought that would be a great addition to our attempts at a healthy diet. However, hubby and I are still sleeping on an air mattress. We order a bed on Friday afternoon but that will use up the entirety of our account. It’s just not good timing for an additional grocery expense.

Instead, at the very last minute, I decided that I’m going to spend September focused on my job – that of being a fulltime homemaker. It seems these days I do anything but my job at home. I mentor a Bible reading program, write blog posts and read others’ blogs, knit, and study Japanese. All of these are good things but they are not the most important thing in my life. Outside of my relationship with God, my relationship with my husband is the most important thing and that includes my duties as his wife.

This week, my focus is on finding a loose schedule. Attempts at strict scheduling while still in Arizona failed miserably because my husband works from home. He works very long hours but is not on a strict schedule. Sometimes he takes breaks during the day. Sometimes he works all evening. And sometimes he works through the night. All of this, since he was working in our living room, made it difficult for me to develop and keep a homemaking schedule. A good portion of his job is phone support and conference calls and that requires me to be absolutely quiet.

Right now, my husband is working out of our dining room. That is the same situation as in Arizona but it seems he is on the phone less. Eventually, he will be setting up an office downstairs in our spare bedroom but has to wait until we can afford to purchas office furniture. For the time being, a loose schedule is the best I can do.

For the past few days, I have shut my laptop and not allowed myself to use it until after 10AM. This gives me several hours to read my Bible, eat breakfast, and complete various housekeeping chores. Getting on the computer first thing in the morning is a difficult habit to break, but a necessary one. I can waste hours on the computer being “productive” by responding to emails, reading blog posts, finding new recipes, browsing knitting patterns, etc. Again, these are all positive things but they need to be limited.

I will spend the rest of the week coming up with a loose schedule and a list of housework that needs to be done each day, each week, and each month. I have bookmarked several websites that discuss homemaking binders and will report back at the end of the week!