Ta-Da Lists

We’ve all used a to-do list from time-to-time. Some of us live by them. However, have you ever tried a ta-da list. It’s the exact opposite of a to-do list. Instead of listing all of the things you need to do, it’s a list of everything you’ve accomplished.

I was feeling quite frustrated about how much I didn’t get done while Moanna spent the last two weeks at day camp. The first week of day camp we had a lot of obligations and appointments. As soon as I would start on something it would be time to leave, and all of the running around left me tuckered out. The second week of day camp, I was much more productive, but still didn’t feel good about not getting more done. I really felt like my house should be spotless, every piece of paper filed and every errand and phone call made. I wanted to have my to-do list completely empty by the time the two weeks was up. Reality check. Those expectations are not realistic for about 90% of the population. Add being pregnant to that, and I really had set myself up to feel like a failure. That is NOT something you want to do when you are a big ball of emotions to begin with.

After I threw a few fits and marinated in some good old self loathing, I remembered something. The ta-da list. A ta-da list is a list of things that have been completed. I used to send a ta-da list to an old boss of mine every week so that she could see all of the things that I was doing. I also used to write myself ta-da lists from time-time in college to see that I was in fact making progress on my projects.

Given my punishing mindset and having trouble feeling like I had made the most of my time over the past two weeks, I knew it was time for a ta-da list. As soon as I started listing off the things I had done, I started to feel the weight and guilt lift away.

Ta-Da List of Things Accomplished While Moanna was at Day Camp.

Cleaned out my jewelry box – Eliminated the things I don’t love and organized what was left.

Cleaned out Moanna’s clothes – Eliminated what doesn’t fit anymore and organized what was left.

Organized the kitchen cabinets and counter – Rearanged things to make the kitchen easier to use. Constant work in progress.

Cleaned the kitchen fan – To be honest, I supervised Steve while he cleaned the fan.

Went to the salon – Hair cut, eyebrow wax and bikini wax.

Wrote – Wrote most of a series of posts that will go up in the coming weeks, and wrote some other stuff too.

Cooked – Cooked some good food and regained control over my kitchen. Life is so much better with a happy kitchen.

Did laundry – Caught up on laundry. The day goes so much better for us when we can find out clothes.

Ran errands – Post office, shopping, and so on.

Washed the shower curtains – They were past due for a cleaning.

Swept the ceiling – Don’t ask. It had to be done.

Researched – I did a fair amount of online research on cloth diapers, baby wraps, homeschooling… NOT Birkenstocks!

Cleaned the bathrooms – twice.

In addition to this list of chore-type-things, I also took advantage of the opportunity to be a couch potato and enjoy the silence. Steve and I were also able to enjoy a couple of daytime dates, and be couch potatoes together. While these things don’t win awards and make me feel guilty, I know it’s important to throw responsibilities and to-do lists aside so I can reboot.

We should probably write ta-da lists everyday. Not that a to-do list isn’t important, but I find my ta-da lists much more motivating. Seeing all that I have accomplished gives me the strength and encouragement to do more. I have a feeling that as this pregnancy progresses and once Deuce arrives these ta-da lists will become quite important. When there is a new baby in the house, it’s hard to see what you’ve accomplished at the end of an exhausting day that has left your house a nightmare and you covered in baby vomit. However having a ta-da list that says: Nursed Deuce x times, changed x diapers, did x loads of laundry, read to Moanna, fixed dinner, bathed the kids – can show you that even though it doesn’t LOOK like you did much, you were busy all day and actually accomplished quite a bit.

The next time you’re feeling like an unproductive bum, try a ta-da list. You will feel better about the world, and it will give you the motivation to add more things to that list of accomplishments.

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