My Daily Schedule

Gina from Patra's Place asked me how I manage to find so much time to stitch. She was wondering if I clean my house or if I have a housemaid. I thought I'd share my reply with everyone.

No, I don't have a housekeeper, I do my own cleaning. And it's funny that Gina asked this question because there are days when I feel like all I do is clean something!

Honestly, I'm just very efficient with my time. My husband and I get up early, 5:00 a.m. everyday. We have a cup of coffee and watch the weather and then he leaves for work at 6:00. When he leaves, I do my cleaning and my chores. I'm very routine and scheduled and quite organized and yes, my house is very clean and neat. I can't stand a mess anywhere! I take a quick break at 7:30 to watch "Simply Quilts" on HGTV and when that's over, I finish up my chores and then I get to my work.

I do my design work usually from about 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. although in the Winter, I usually work more hours because I don't have outside work to do.

While I'm working, if I have laundry to do, I run my washer and dryer and when I'm done with my work for the day, I fold the laundry and put it away.

Then I stitch. My husband doesn't get home from work until 6:00 or 7:00 at night so I have alot of time by myself.

I guess some of my extra time comes from the fact that we don't have children (although 4 cats must equal at least one child!) and I'm not one to cook. It's not that I don't know how, I just don't enjoy cooking so I don't do it. We eat alot of salad and fruit and Scott does alot of cooking outside on the grill. Even in the Winter! So without cooking, there isn't alot of kitchen cleanup. And that's where I get some of my stitching time.

I need to stitch. If I don't have a little time to stitch almost every day, quite honestly, I don't feel good. It's where I find my peace.

I try to plan my stitching time (in the Summer) for when the ballgame is on. Most of you know I love the Chicago Cubs Baseball team! So I stitch while watching baseball and when that's not on, I put a DVD on to listen to while I stitch.

I usually listen to the Classical station on the radio while I do my design work and I listen to my CD's while I clean. I like Classical music alot and I listen to that while I work because it isn't usually distracting. When I'm cleaning, I like something a little more upbeat. I'm quite fond of movie and musical soundtracks. My current favorites are CATS, Chicago and Phantom Of The Opera. I'm also quite taken by Mozart's Symphony #25!

On Saturday mornings, I go grocery shopping, run to the bank, the post office and any other errands that I may have to do. Sometimes I work in the afternoon on Saturdays and sometimes I stitch or sew.

So that's pretty much my daily routine. I clean, I work, I stitch! On the weekends, my husband and I go to Flea Markets, Antique Shops and Swap Meets. (Swap Meets are flea markets with car parts. Scott is a car-guy!)

I suppose many people would think my life is boring. Maybe to some it is. To me, it's usually peaceful. And that's the way I like it.