I am a planner. I always have at least three lists on the go. I have lists of lists I need to make. Pre-pregnancy some of these lists would be in my head, but mum brain has put an end to all of that. My whole life needs to be written down, or I’ll forget about it.
I love having a plan and, to be quite honest, spontaneity scares me slightly. Unless it’s planned spontaneity – that’s fine. If you’ve set aside a block of time to be spontaneous and have all necessary equipment for such spontaneity (spare clothes, enough nappies, sufficient food, water, etc.) that’s acceptable. Just about.
Here are a few things I love about planning:
We always have enough food (most of the time)
This is very important to me. If I don’t have food, I get grumpy.
I plan our meals for the week so that I can buy exactly what we need and no food gets wasted. I hate doing meal planning, but I do it. It saves money, results in less waste and means fewer last minute dashes to the shops, which aren’t that easy with a two-year old and a baby and no car. Also, if I leave it to the end of the day to decide what to cook, we’re probably having something and chips and it won’t be ready before 9pm. My brain cannot make decisions about food at the same time as coping with child teatime/bath time/bedtime and associated tantrums emotions.
The problem is, my husband is not a planner. He is a drifter. He does things on the spur of the moment and has whims. Whims that result in him eating a banana, for example, when he normally doesn’t, so we don’t have enough. Or not eating a banana when he has been for the past few weeks, so it goes brown in the bowl. Or adding things into the trolley when we go shopping, thus throwing out my carefully crafted meal plan…
I don’t go insane staying at home with two small children
Most days I have a vague idea of what we’re going to do – nothing crazy, just something like taking the children to the crèche or going to the playground. That way I have something to aim for. I may plan for it to happen in the morning and I end up having to put the children down for their nap in the morning because they’re being awful, or I may plan to leave at 1 o’clock and not be able to get the children out of the door until 3, but at least we have a goal.
The housework gets done (at some point… usually)
I have a list of all the housework that needs to be done. Getting round to cleaning the floor may take a fortnight or so but at least I know I have it on a list, which is practically the same as doing it. “Clean the windows” has been on my list for the past two years. I’m not sure when I’ll have the time or energy to do it, but at least I’ve acknowledged that it needs to be done.
I am prepared for every eventuality when we go out
Need a blanket? Here you go. Baby teething? Would you like calpol, calgel, teething granules? Toddler weed all over herself? I have a spare change of clothes. Suns out? Let me get the sun cream and hats. Peckish? Here have a cereal bar.
I have an excuse to buy stationery
Who doesn’t love a good post-it note, a few pens, a notepad or two, a diary, a planner and anything else they can find in the sale section of posh bookshops?
It gives me things to look forward to
Spontaneity can be exciting, of course. But what about the build up of anticipation when you know you have something to look forward to and, better yet, to make lists for?
And last, but by no means least, I get to cross things off to-do lists
This is the big one. If you’ve never had the pure and immense satisfaction of crossing something off your to-do list that’s been on there for months (or years), you haven’t lived. The buzz is incredible. When I finally get round to washing the windows, I’m going to be floating on air.
Now I just need to get my family to just stick to the plan and we’ll be grand.
The Mulberry Bush 
Very good 😀
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