It's a new old me

Why is it Good Habits are so hard to form but so easy to break! While bad habits are easy to form but hard to break... For years and years, I've been in the wonderful habit of making a To Do List first thing every morning -- and then accomplishing everything on that list (if humanly possible) each day. For some reason (blogging, computer games, life) over the past several months, I stopped making that list and my house is suffering because of it. How did that happen?! So this morning I resolved to get back to my To Do List habit. Apparently "no list" is an excuse to be lazy -- and lazy just isn't something I aspire to be! Another benefit to a daily To Do List is that I get things done early in the day. I'm up at 6am, have Jeff's breakfast cooked, his lunch packed, me showered and dressed, and the kitchen cleaned up by 8am. When my List is in full swing, I usually have either the upstairs or the downstairs vac'd, sheets changed, bathrooms glistening by 10am. One morning a week I run errands, and I'd have those done by noon. I had so much more free time! Now I'm still up at 6am, still get Jeff's breakfast on the table and his lunch packed, the kitchen cleaned by 8am, and then I turned into a slug. Jump on the computer and before I knew it, it would be noon or 1:00, and I'd have nothing done. I'd say "just one more game" or "just read one more blog" and the next thing I knew, it would be 3:00. I'd run around like crazy trying to get surface cleaning done, and that'd be it. NO MORE! I've blown the dust off my Super Housewife Cape! With pen and lined pad in hand, I shall show my magical powers -- be gone dust! be gone cobwebs! be gone clutter that's piled on the bookshelves while I had my nose buried in computer games! be gone gritty floors! be gone non-sparkling bathrooms! be gone I say! So my self-challenge has a goal of re-establishing my GOOD habits (making a To Do List, getting housework done before computer time, blogging later in the day) and doing away with these nasty bad habits (waaaayyyy too much time on the computer, signing up for too many swaps, too much TV time, etc.). It takes 21 days to firmly establish a good habit. Today is #1. My To Do List this morning was this:

• Make bed - done
• Clean master bathroom - done
• 2 loads laundry (wash, dry, fold, put away) - done
• Clean kitchen counters - done
• Sweep kitchen floor - done
• Dust family room & dining room - done
• Take out trash - done
• Re-arrange family room furniture (tonight with Jeff's help)
• Sort and box video's and dvd's in family room for keep or yard sale - done
• Dinner prep - done
• 15 minutes paper sorting in office - done
• Menu planning, grocery list - done

I have to admit - it feels SO much better to have a productive day than to slug the day away in front of the computer! How about you? Do you spend too much time on the computer or in front of the television or in some other non-productive fashion and wish you didn't?