Thursday 3rd March – Grown-Up Time

Your Daily Tasks

1. Launder denim and anything heavy duty lingering at the bottom of the laundry basket.

2. Clean and polish all light switches and plates throughout the house.

3. Clean and disinfect hairbrushes, make-up brushes and sponges.

4. Tidy and re-organise your handbag and purse, filing receipts and banishing junk.

5. Use a soft vacuum attachment (or a hairdryer) to gently blow away any dust accumulating on books on bookcases.

6. Choose one surface in the house to completely de-clutter.

7. Clear a sunny windowsill ready to start growing seeds.

8. Treat yourself to an hour on the sofa with a cup of tea and a book.

9. Have a long, slow yoga nidra session before bedtime.

Routine Tasks

1. Change tea-towels in the kitchen.

2. Make beds.

3. Empty and refill dishwasher.

4. Scrub and spritz the loo.

5. Light candles.

Your Daily Treat…

One of the things I considered most important when Finley was little was making sure that I claimed at least a part of the evening for my self, and even now when both he and Stevie are taller than me, I still insist on marking a difference between child and adult time to honour my relationship with Stephen and to reclaim some headspace for myself.
For a long time this transition has been marked by the lighting of a candle. Sometimes even a entire gaggle of candles. And it is the most treasured ritual of my day, a golden moment repeated night after night, week after week.
My evening candle is nothing more than a cheap vanilla tea-light I burn in the prettiest little silvered votive on the mantle-piece. I keep many similar tea-lights in a wax paper lined tin in the fridge to prolong their burning time and replace them daily because more often than not they have burned out before I go to bed…

Tonight, whether you have children or not, establish a transitional ritual all of your own. Light a candle or pour a drink, do anything that says “this is my time now” and honour that commitment for every evening you are at home.

Ritual matters, Housekeepers.