The Time Budget

I first heard of a time budget from Jessica Fisher from Life as Mom…and really, I wasn’t inspired to create one!  I mean budgets in general speak of limits and hard choices.

But last spring when my work hours increased, it became clear that I could use some help making a rough outline of my day.  This isn’t a moment-by-moment schedule; it’s simple blocks of time.  I could know at a glace where my attention should be during the day, and I could make a place for everything I needed to include at any given time.

Making a time budget was essential to help me to see the hard lines of my day.  I followed Jessica Fisher’s advice and read Tell Your Time by Amy Lynn Andrews.  She walked me through thinking through who I am, what my priorities are, and where they fit in the day.  Here’s my (simplified) time budget:

5-6:30–work

6:30-8–morning routine

8-12–homeschooling

12-1–lunch/clean up

1-3–naps/work

4-5:30–chores/outside

5:30-6:30–prep/dinner/clean up

6:30-9–hangout/bedtime routine

A key to successfully working with a time budget?  Blocking off more time for each block than necessary.  We don’t have 4 hours of school to complete each day.  But blocking off all that time means interruptions don’t derail us.

When I went to copy this from the time budget I made in May, it was all off.  In only 5 months, things had changed enough that I really needed to update the budget.  This is a practice I’ll need to revisit every so often as work responsibilities change and kids’ ages and stages change.

On Friday at 1:30, Mystie Winckler from Simplified Organization and Brandy Vencel from Afterthoughts will be presenting a free webinar called Work Your Homeschool Plan, all about

• creating a workable plan for homeschooling
• brainstorming solutions for hard days
• doing the work of showing up

It will be a great time to be inspired, get fresh ideas for the rest of Fall, and ask questions about specifics.  Come join us!