Sanity-Saving Schedules
May 20, 2020
1 min read
Quarantine has pushed everybody to the limits at one point or another. If your days home with kids is stretching you and you haven't yet considered it, maybe a schedule or flexible routine would bring some stability to your home.
This sample schedule was adapted from the one created by Jessica McHale, and our favorite part of it is the bedtime treat of staying up an hour later for kids who stick to the schedule with good attitudes! (Of course, that kind of delayed gratification might do well to be reinforced throughout the day with fun games thrown in...more about that to come:)
Reading about sanity‑saving schedules made me think back to the chaotic month I spent juggling a new job, a toddler’s first day of preschool, and a weekend marathon of online courses. I was surviving on coffee and frantic to‑do lists, convinced that I had to be constantly productive. Then a friend suggested I block out “buffer blocks” – 30‑minute windows where I do nothing but breathe, stretch, or just stare out the window. I tried it on a Tuesday and, surprisingly, the rest of the day felt smoother; I wasn’t as irritable and actually finished more tasks because my mind wasn’t overloaded. Since then I’ve kept a simple schedule: work, a short walk, a quick check‑in with my kid, then…
Reading your piece on “Sanity‑Saving Schedules” instantly took me back to the chaotic semester when I tried to juggle two graduate courses, a part‑time job, and a volunteer commitment at the local shelter. I thought I could survive on sheer willpower, but by week three I was constantly forgetting deadlines and my sleep schedule was a mess. The turning point came when I forced myself to block out a 30‑minute “reset” window each evening—no emails, no work, just a quick walk and a notebook entry about what actually got done that day https://adstandards.com.au/issues/wagering-advertising That tiny habit turned the whole routine around; I started finishing assignments early and even found time to read for pleasure again. Your reminder about treating the…