Clothes Out
I am cracking up because I created such suspense over the reinvigoration of my blog with a quick post on IG and FB with a photo including a pile of clothes with my bra placed on top. (You'll see soon why this is a funny forecast.) The crazy marketer inside of me did that on purpose. It’s funny because as I took the picture I almost chose to restack my clothes to exclude the bra. But nah! I would not have been true to self. That would not have been authentic…and y’all and your squeamish eyes weren’t gonna have my girl LaToya looking cross eyed at me for not being authentic.
Here’s the true start to the madness that’s about to ensue…
How do I do it all? Just How? How? It all starts with preparation and intention. Each night for me is a close of the day. (I’ll dig deeper into this later.) But mostly it is a preparation for the next. It sounds silly, old fashioned, even cliché to some. But I swear by being ready the night before.
Each night set out my clothes, all the way down to my underwear. I’m so strategic, OCD maybe, that I stack my clothes in the order I put them on: (top to bottom) bra, underwear, socks, bottoms, camisole, shirt, scarf. This eliminates the confusion and closet staring that can last way too long each morning.
Side Note: I’ve oddly enough trained myself to setup my home and prepare for my day as if a disaster or tragedy took place. Like, if we lost power or I lost my sight I could manage through my home with extreme ease.
This simple act of setting out my clothes gives me more time to do the important things in the morning like pray, read, and share with my son. I make my choices based on the weather and day’s activities. If I have a wardrobe change at some point I try to make it simple. I figure out which items I can leave on to maximize my time and gear…because I don’t like laundry.
Soooo…I should mention that this is all linked to creating and adhering to a rigid laundry regimen. I’ve sucked at this in the last 2 months because I was swamped with the blessings of life. But when I’m on task these tasks set me up for utter success.
I’ve had folks laugh at me when I tell them what I do. Oh well, IDC. But let me tell you it works. Mona taught me. I hated it as a child. Then as I matriculated through college, and on to parenthood I swear by the methods below, even though I miss the mark sometimes.
Choose a day to do laundry for each person in the house. This eliminates the W/D backup and fussing.
Load the laundry early in the day.
Do other tasks, either around the house or work/errands. This way you don’t feel like you are sitting around waiting on it to be done.
Switch the laundry when those tasks are completed.
DON’T LEAVE THE HOUSE. When the laundry goes to the dryer the key is to be nearby and ready to put it away. I swear no one ever remembers laundry from the dryer. NO ONE!
Fold it away RIGHT AWAY! Don’t wait! You will not do it later! I personally start my sorting and folding while watching TV in the living room. I set a limit to be done by the end of a 30-minute comedy. My son usually joins me, and I enlist his help with socks. (See how I killed 2 birds with 1 stone? Family time and laundry…BAM!)
Put it away RIGHT AWAY! Don’t wait! You will not do it later! Now listen, I HATE PUTTING AWAY LAUNDRY! When I do it right away, with my schedule it frees up so much of my life. It makes it easier to find the clothes…that I need to prepare for the next day.
I know somebody is rolling their eyes saying “I know I did not just waste my time for this.” That’s cool. Then this post was for the person who had an “aha” moment. Taking the time to prepare for the next with this as an anchor point is crucial. It’s no different than a teacher preparing lesson plans or a surgeon preparing a surgical procedure. You would not want either professional ill prepared for their daily tasks. So why is what you do any less important? It’s not!
Make the time right now…go! Check the weather and your calendar, and set out your clothes for tomorrow. You’ll be thankful in the morning. It only takes a few minutes. In coming posts I’ll discuss the other factors to preparing for a day of utter success.
Stop playin’! Go do it now!
Besos..Love & Light
March 2018