Seven Minutes a Day

Think you don't have enough time during your busy day to organize and maintain your home on a regular basis? I recently came across a journal entry by a mom of 2 young children who realized the importance of what I call "double duty." She decided to make a list of all the things she accomplished during the 7 minutes it took to boil noodles for macaroni and cheese. These are her results:

-Put away clean dishes
-Assisted a potty-training toddler
-Cooked a grilled cheese sandwich
-Washed dirty dishes
-Sliced an apple
-Sent two emails
-Washed and dried two sippy cups
-Filled said sippy cups: one with milk, one with water
-Sock mopped the floor
-Assisted potty training toddler, again
-Planned dinner menu
-Mentally mapped out a scrapbook page
-Microwaved a cup of coffee
- All while carrying on a conversation with an over-talkative five-year-old, above the noise of a crying and whining toddler!

Holy cow! I think this mom travels faster than the speed of light in her home! I ALWAYS do something while cooking... other than just the cooking. But wow, this is a challenge that I am ready to try!

"Double duty" is something that I am constantly battling with my 11 yo. Almost every morning, he microwaves a bowl of oatmeal for himself - takes 1 minute to cook, another minute to cool. That's two minutes! Know what my son does during those two minutes? Absolutely NOTHING! He stands there and watches the bowl go round and round inside the microwave. Arg! I have told him countless times, don't just stand there! You're wasting time! Do something! I've told him that in the time he just stands there waiting for his oatmeal to be cooked, he could have gone upstairs and cleaned his room, he could have emptied the dishwasher, he could have taken out the recycling... If he moved fast enough, he could have accomplished all three of those chores! However, did he stand there again this morning? YES!

After reading about aforementioned Miss Super Mom, I'm now motivated to set a timer and keep track of everything I can accomplish in just 7 minutes.

What about you? Surely you can carve 7 minutes out of your busy schedule. What can you accomplish in just 7 minutes a day? You might be surprised!