Using Time Wisely

Organized to save money, energy, and time

You are here: Home / Archives for Household

Saving Time with a DVR

by


DirecTV: Digital Video Recorder (DVR)

At this time, our family has a DirecTV DVR which records my favorite programs. Then when I decide to watch the program, I can use the remote to play my program. If I get interrupted, then I can pause or rewind the program. I can also stop it and return to it at a later time. I also save time because I can fast forward through the commercials which shaves about 13 minutes off each hour. My husband rarely misses taping an Atlanta Braves baseball game on the DVR. He enjoys watching the game. With the DVR, hubby watches a 3 hour game in a little over an hour. The DVR is a great tool in our home that allows us to watch the programs we want, when we want, so we can use our time wisely on other tasks.

In helping us save time, the DVR has the following neat features:

  • Record series option: I really like that I can record a complete series without having to setup the recorder for each episode. For example, when I first recorded THE AMAZING RACE, I used the guide to find the showing of THE AMAZING RACE. Then I selected RECORD. By selecting RECORD a second time, I now will record the entire series.
  • Record options: Once the program is set to record for the series, I can then select the program and review the options. Since CBS usually is showing a sports program, which can go into overtime, I have set the program to START on time but to END 1½ hours later. After having only recorded half of  one episode of THE AMAZING RACE because a game went long, I now schedule plenty of time for the show to end.  Now, I don’t miss the last two teams to arrive at the pit stop. 🙂
  • Keyword search: I like this option during football season. I am a HUGE Florida Gator fan. (Yes, I know they were not in the NCAA final 4, but they played a good series of games.) Though I don’t watch much basketball or baseball, I do enjoy football. The keyword search helps me to find the Florida game quickly. I just use the remote to access the MENU and SEARCH options. Then I select the KEYWORD search. I use the remote to type in FLORDIA, and a listing appears of all the channels showing the game. This search option is great because if Florida is hosting a team, then Florida is listed as the second team. A regular search would not pickup the information without the name of the first team, but the KEYWORD search picks up all programs that include the name FLORIDA in the title.

Do you have a DVR? If so, what features help you to save and use your time wisely?

New Scrubbing Bubbles Toilet Cleaning Gel

by

Photograph Credit: SC Johnson

When my husband was shopping at Sam’s Club, he received a sample of the new Scrubbing Bubbles continuous clean toilet cleaning gel. He brought home the cleaning sample, and I added it to my cleaning supplies.

THE PRODUCT

In preparing for company to visit, I cleaned the half bathroom and decided to use the new product. I cleaned the toilet from top to bottom like I usually do. After the toilet was cleaned, then I used the new Scrubbing Bubbles continuous clean toilet cleaning gel:

  • Opened the box and read the instructions.
  • Put the dispenser together.
  • Using the dispenser, stamped one star-shaped gel dot onto the inside of the toilet near the rim.
  • Flushed the toilet to activate the gel.
  • Put the cleaner away and out of reach from my children.

The gel will dissolve a little with each flush. The instructions state that each stamp should last for 1 week. After 2 weeks of use, our stamp is still in place. It has not yet dissolved all the way. When the stamp has dissolved completely, then I will just stamp another gel dot on the inside of the toilet. Our 1 dispenser holds 6 stamps and will last at least 6 weeks. Woo Hoo!

ENTER CHILDREN

Since I cleaned the bathroom after my children had gone to bed, I did not consider that they would notice that there was a star-shaped object in the toilet. (You see where I’m going with this story? It’s not really that bad.) The next evening, my son calls my husband into the bathroom to show him this object in the toilet. My husband recognized the cleaning product and explained the process to our son. Then our son shared that he had touched it because he “wanted to feel it.” My husband had him wash his hands and then brought our daughter into the bathroom to show her as well.

LESSON

Remember that children are inquisitive. They like to explore and are not afraid to try new things, like touching cleaning supplies that look fun and interesting. Now that I am aware that they are observing changes, I will be more careful to inform them of any changes. We will need a field trip (in this case, to the bathroom) with an explanation and demonstration. If my children understand the new product, then they will know to leave it alone. I will also allow them to watch me stamp the next star-shaped dot on the inside of the rim. Including them in the process usually keeps their curiosity at bay.

I’m thankful our son came to an adult for an explanation. This situation could have resulted in a trip to the hospital had our son decided to taste it instead of feel it. I hope this warning not only reminds me to include my children when I try a new product, but also helps you remember that little ones are very curious.

Goal-oriented or Task-oriented?

by

Goal-oriented or Task-oriented

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Do you find that you start many projects at once with none of them getting completed? This is my daughter.

Goal-oriented

She is goal-oriented and loves to get out different sets of toys with the goal of organizing. She likes to line up the dolls, sort the silverware, and stack the blocks.

If the baby comes over to play with an available organized pile, then my oldest daughter gets so upset because she is not done with those items.  At the end of playtime, she has all these little messes.

She then gets overwhelmed with pickup because she did not pickup when she was done with the silverware or blocks. We are working on getting out one set of items, playing with them, and putting them away before getting out something else. It is a work in progress, but with this system, the pickup progress is easier to manage.

Task-oriented

Where my daughter is goal-oriented, I am task-oriented. I like to select an item on the To Do list (i.e. make tea), and complete that task.

In our household, the kids and I drink about 3 gallons of tea in 2 days. Now, I could make tea everyday, and sometimes I do. But I prefer to make 4 gallons of tea every 2-3 days. I just like having the refrigerator stocked, the tea maker in its place, and the counter cleared off.

Often life intervenes, and I get distracted by good things. But when I get back to my task, I just keep on going. When my task is finished, then I move on to something else. This system works for me, but it may not work for you.

You might be goal-oriented like my daughter, who would probably prefer to accomplish the tea-making task at a set time each day. For example, after dinner make a pitcher of tea. These same individuals prefer to tackle a load of laundry each day.

The laundry pile, like the tea making, is a continuous cycle. I prefer to spend a day or two doing laundry to get it done. Again, life happens, and sometimes I need to do laundry during the week and then on the weekends.

Just knowing how you approach projects might help as you schedule your tasks. The goals are to get things done and don’t get overwhelmed while using time wisely.

Question: Are you goal-oriented, task-oriented, or both?

1 Minute of Cleaning Now, Saves 5 Minutes Later

by

Do you clean messes as they occur? A wet mess is easier to clean than a harden mess. If a glob of toothpaste falls on the bathroom counter, then the minute to stop and wipe it up while wet saves me 5 minutes of scrubbing later. If I were to wait until bedtime to address the sticky mess, it will be hard and require extra time and energy to scrub it clean. Here are some other messes that save me time by cleaning them now rather than later:

  • Boiled over pasta water on the stovetop
  • Heated spaghetti sauce in the microwave
  • Leftover food on dinner plates
  • Spilled milk in the refrigerator
  • Cups knocked over onto the carpet
  • Drips during a meal on the table/high chair
  • Fabric softener dribble on the washing machine

When I notice that these messes have occurred, I do my best to clean them up immediately. Though I want to clean up every mess quickly, I don’t always succeed since I may be in the middle of helping another child or just don’t know that the spill happened. When I find the mess, I try to clean it while it is wet. By doing so, I save myself lots of time and energy from scrubbing a baked-on or hardened mess.

Do you attempt to clean up spills and messes right away? By staying on top of spills, my home will be a cleaner place, I’ll save time and energy from having to scrub, and I can spend my time wisely with my family.

Oh, What a Little Rest Can Do!

by

I had great plans to get some tasks accomplished, but I was out of steam. Instead of trudging on at a slow pace to get accomplished what I could, I decided to take a nap. Just taking about an hour nap re-energized me. I awoke feeling refreshed. My two older children were busy playing an X-Box game together while the baby was still taking her nap.

With some uninterrupted time to work, I was able to get the following accomplished in about 20 minutes:

  1. Started dinner.
  2. Unloaded the dishwasher.
  3. Began a load of laundry.
  4. Reloaded the dishwasher with dishes that had been previously rinsed.
  5. Put away the cooled chicken broth from my split chicken breasts purchase.
  6. Welcomed hubby home with a clean kitchen, dinner cooking, and a rested, smiling wife.

Though pressing on and working to accomplish that To Do list is admirable, sometimes taking the time to rest will help you to recharge and accomplish more tasks in a small amount of time. For me, I chose to nap which was my best choice for using my time wisely. How about you . . . can you accomplish more after a little nap? I’d love to hear your thoughts!