time management

I've toyed with all sorts of things. For a while, I had a sheet with assigned activities to assigned hours ... but life with three kids didn't really meld with assigned time-frames, kwim? Bottom line, I have no idea where the time goes or what I do with it half the time! I have my first post-three-kids journal in, so I'm trying to work that in. What I find works best for me is to make a list (I am definitely a list-maker!) and then do one thing, or part of one thing, from it every hour. So, 8:00, choose "Dining room" from the list, clean off the piano. 9:00, dining room table. 10:00, stuff off the floor, and so on. I feel like I let my kids entertain themselves (or make them entertain themselves?) most of the time, and I don't know how to work that in. The other stuff seems easier. The kids are unsurprisingly resistant to being put on a list and done when their number comes up!

I don't know. Right now I feel like my whole life is a self-improvement project. Greater efficiency, development of exercise regimen, healthier diet for us and the kids, better parenting, more patience, more and better quality time spent with the kids, cleaner house, more time for writing ... you get the picture! It's tiring just to think of it, and kind of makes me feel like a failure that there's so much of my life I seem to need so much improvement on. I'd try and tackle one thing at a time, but all of it needs to be worked on in equal levels of importance ... and I'm afraid if I put anything off, it will end up always on the "I'll work on it next year" list. Like writing has been for about 7 years now!

I guess the bottom line is I'm just not sure how to manage time with three kids and not feel guilty that something isn't your top priority. It was definitely better when there were just two - after Charles reached about 18 months. So I figure in about 16 months from now, I'll have a better handle on it! Also ... taking ideas for how to manage time and work on all those improvements in the meantime!