What’s your favorite part of fall? The crisp autumn air? The crunchy, colorful leaves? Counting down until the Pumpkin Spice Latte becomes available? Yummo!
For many, the savory moments of fall may be pushed to the wayside as schedules overload and the to-do list runs on and on. The relaxing memories of summer fade as carpools, meetings, deadlines, and responsibilities pile up.
But may I challenge you to relish the autumn moments? [Tweet this]
Here are 5 tips to managing your fall calendar:
- Less is more. [Tweet this] Look for duties and responsibilities to cut out. Learn to say “no” when you’re spread too thin. Rather than giving partial attention to many duties, honor just a few with your best attention.
- Take time to enjoy the beauty and the wonder of God all around. [Tweet this] Block out time to savor the wonders of God in your life. Take a walk through the neighborhood. Walk your dog around the park. Play with your kids outside. Set your alarm early to watch the sunrise.
- Unplug technology. [Tweet this] Schedule in technology-free time for you and your family. Instead of being semi-present during your time with friends and family, challenge yourself to be fully present without text messages, television, or Facebook.
- Plan your meals in advance. [Tweet this] With a little time and prep, this time-saver and stress-reliever saves the endless last-minute grocery runs or money spent eating out. Make at least one crock-pot meal a week and save the left-overs for lunches that week. Click here for some of our favorite slow-cooker recipes.
- Expect the unexpected. [Tweet this] Cars break down. Coffee conversations linger on. Meetings start late. Instead of finding yourself frantic when schedules don’t line up, build extra time into your schedule. Leave an additional 15 minutes to get places. Schedule meetings or responsibilities with buffer time in-between. In the excess time, allow yourself to slow down and breathe in the moments.
Here are some of my favorite time management apps: Evernote, Wunderlist, and Simply Us.
What are your favorite parts about fall? What tips do you have to make this the best fall ever?
Thanks for the great and quick reminders. Now back to the show.
Good list! We love settling into September. I’ve graduated one kid to college and still have 3 at home, but I learn new things to make life here run more smoothly. We’ve always had a problem with the snacks that go in lunches. My kids blow through them. I make them make their own lunches (not cuz I’m lazy, but cuz they’re able) and this year I loaded up on all the little treats they like and divided them into three 2 gallon zipper bags-one for each month of fall. They know that once those bags are empty , they’ve got no snacks to accompany their lunch sandwiches. They aren’t dipping into the snack bag after school but instead they’re making creative snacks like quesadillas and English muffin pizzas. I feel brilliant. Who says old dogs like me can’t learn new tricks?
Pumpkin bread baking in the oven on a cool crisp day…waiting with great expectation for fall!
Number 5 leapt right off the page, for me. Building in extra time would go a long way to smoothing the Scheduling Frazzles. Thanks Margaret!
You are supermom! Love it!
Holy yum. I can almost smell it through my computer screen.
I’m with you, Missy. Maybe we should just have someone else set our clocks 15 minutes ahead without telling us…. hmmm could work!