The Daily Breakdown....

My week has now been broken down into days with a specific focus. The next thing was to expand each day and breakdown what tasks needed to be done regularly.

I decided to only include things that could be done in 2 or 3 15 minute intervals. If I hadn't, I would have quickly found myself hyper-focusing on something and trying to perfect it for 4 hours.

WD1 - I intentionally didn't build anything extra into this day. For me, beginning my work week without other things to distract me is very important. I use my first day at work each week to plan out work tasks and objectives for the rest of the week. That's plenty, and it just gets everything rolling smoothly.

WD2 - Project Day -
This is the day I make any appointments that need to be made for myself, my husband or our pets. Haircuts, doctors/vets, whatever.
Additionally, I always have projects that needs to be done. (Who doesn't?!?!) I use this day to either develop a plan for a project I need to start, or to work on a current project that is underway. Recently, I got plans together to begin painting the inside of my house. I spent one project day planning it out (colors, materials, cost, etc). The next project day was spent figuring out when to get the project underway, setting the deadline for the completion of it, deciding if I would need help and planning a time to have the help come out. The next project day, I began getting materials together. Then I began to work on the painting project a little at a time. I worked on painting myself during my project days and then finished it up one weekend when my family could come and help.
This is what works for me. Some people may just dive right in and tackle something like that in a weekend. And that is absolutely fine. I like to spread stuff out and do them at a slower pace. It's just how I roll.

WD3 - Office Day
This is my set time each week to pay bills, balance the checkbooks, mail anything that needs to be mailed, file anything that needs to be filed, and keep on top of our household budget.
Piles of paper were killing me. I took time one Sunday afternoon to go thru everything and straighten it all out (It took forever!). Once I did that, I vowed I'd never let stuff get out of hand like that again. Taking my office time each week ensures I get everything done at once, and I don't have to think about it again.

WD4 - I devote this day to my part time job. I get orders ready to ship out, contact clients, work on correspondence and check my inventory. Sometimes this takes more than 45 minutes, so I have to make sure this day falls on a day when I work the early shift.
You can use this day for whatever you need...or for nothing at all!!

WD5 - Planning Day
This is another day that sometimes get shifted around. I try to plan things so it will fall the day before my first day off for that week.
I do all my menu planning (1 or 2 weeks out), shopping lists, lists of errands that need to be run, getting things ready to go to the Post Office, etc.
I also plan out the upcoming week and get prepared for anything that would take extra time later.

DO1 - Cleaning and Errand Day
This day goes hand in hand with Planning Day.
The first thing I do is my weekly cleaning routine. It takes me about 2 hours in the morning from beginning to end. Once my house is tidy, I can move on with the rest of my day and get my errands done.
Since I planned all my errands and shopping the day before, it's just a matter of getting in the car and going.

DO2 - Free Day.
Zip.
Zilch.
Zero.
Nada.
Nothing.

Details....

With a basic plan for each week in place, the next step is to add in all the other details. Homekeeping & chores, menu planning, activities, appointments, trips...anything and everything.

Going in, I knew I needed to designate a day for certain things like paying bills, grocery shopping, etc, so those were tackled first.

WD1 - Nothing extra...get the week started on the right foot.
WD2 - Project Day - Book necessary appointments and work on an outstanding project (work or home)
WD3 - Home Office Day - Pay bills, work on budget, correspondence, etc.
WD4 - This is the day I use to focus on my part-time job (it's one I do from home) You can tailor this day for something that is specific to you and your family.
WD5 - Planning day (in reality, this day moves around to fall on the day BEFORE DO1. Menu planning, planning errands (shopping lists) and planning the upcoming week.
DO1 - Shopping and errands
DO2 - Free day

Next, I broke down my household chores by day. The objective in doing this was to free up one of my days off. I had begun to feel like I never had anytime to do what I wanted to do, because there was always something around the house that had to be done. I felt like I never, EVER, had a day off. The solution was as simple as setting aside time each day to tackle chores. That kept me from having to spend the entirety of a day off cleaning and running errands.

There were 2 key elements that made the system work for me.
The first one was time.
I gave myself a set unit of time to do each chore...15 minutes. I knew I could do pretty much any chore in 15 minutes as long as I didn't get sidetracked or hyper focused.

The second element was breaking down the chores that needed to be done each week as opposed to the ones that needed to be done less often.
Weekly -
Vacuum
Dust
Quick-clean bathrooms
Sweep and mop kitchen
Sweep porches
Clean front and back doors
Change bedding

15 minutes for each item on the list meant I could do everything in less than 2 hours. That could easily be done on one of my days off, or they could be spread out over 4 days (2 chores per day). Some weeks I'm industrious enough to do a couple per day, other weeks, I leave them all to one day. It just depends on the week and what other stuff is going on.

Next up, the daily breakdown...