Okay.. here is the good news:

I GOT A JOB!!!

now.. I need some advice... so bring it on


1/ Dieting tips while working full time (never done this before)

2/ Tips for getting organized! (ie. do you plan your meals/lunches - do you bring your lunch?) When do you do the laundry etc. I've been staying at home for 5 years!!! - being my family's slave - this is going to be an adjustment.

3/ Tips for getting over the guilts of putting my 3 1/2 year old in school full time. (She goes there now 1 morning a week - so the adjustment not be too dramatic , ie. same teacher)

Dana

Dana,
Can't help you on the kid advice as I have none. But working full time in my area. I usually make something quick and easy for breakfast. Take fruit and low point snacks with me. For lunch I bring a sandwich, salad or a frozen meal like Weight watchers. You will do just fine. And congrats on the job.

1. I think dieting is easier when you work full-time because it's MUCH easier to cheat at home. Remember that your firends at work are usually your diet enemies... they can't help it, don't hate them for it just realize they're going to encourage you to go off track all the time. Have something healthy stashed in your desk for emergencies and always offer to bring in the fruit tray or vegetable tray when you have a food day.

2. I plan my meals because I work for a "no meat" office so I can't just run through a drive thru. I always bring my lunch and sometimes have a couple of frozen ones stored in the freezer for when I forget.

Laundry? What's that? Oh, I thought that was just a rug in my house. I have no time for anything!!! But I do LIVE my the ten minute rule. You always have 10 minutes to spare at some point in your day while you're at home. I can accomplish a bizillion little chores in 10 minutes. Load the dishwasher. Pick up the living room. Vacuum a room. Take out the trash in all the rooms. Pick something and for 10 minutes do it. It won't stress you out and those 10 minutes really add up.

3. My 7-year old and my four year old are housebroken. So, they just stay home all day and I give them several frozen kongs to chew on. I usually run home for lunch to walk them around the block.... OH you mean humans!!! I haven't a clue. Crate training?

First - CONGRATULATIONS!!!

1. dinner planning - every 2 weeks I decide on 10 meals, write down all the ingredients and shop. Then I write doen the 10 meals and post them near the fridge. When it's 10:00 pm. and I need to decide what's for dinner the next day, I look on my list and pick - pull out of the freezer and I'm ready for the next day. Also, if I have leftovers - when they go in the fridge and I write the date next to the meal, so I know how long it's been in there. Crock Pot recipes are great too!!

2. I am most successful when I plan out my food for the next day, start to finish and pack my lunch the night before.

3. Laundry - Hubby does a load on Sunday and the rest on Wednesday night. I do Jacobs on Saturday and one us does the towels on Saturday - Sunday. For us - it's best done on specific times.

Hubby might have to start pitching in.

You might have to do some stuff in the morning as well as at night, just to keep things flowing (since you'll be working a mid-shift)

<groan> dana... i have no kids and no hubby, and i STILL don't have tie to get everything done! sandi is very organized with her meals, and i'm impressed. you can also get some of those storage plates and after dinner, make a lunch out of the leftovers on those plates, seal it up, and you're done.

some of the women i work with, especially those with young children, cook several meals on the weekend and freeze them. theyh also plan for leftovers [the roast chicken on saturday becomes chicken soup later in the week, that kind of thing].

my indispensable aid: an insulated lunch bag with some ice packs. lunch and OP snacks go in there. and a couple of those little bags of tuna, the ones that substitute for a small can. they're so good and so convenient. and they live in my desk.

and congrats on getting a job!!!! sometimes an out-of-the-house routine makes staying OP easier..

Dana - congrats on the job!

1. If you don't have a crock pot, buy one.

2. Make sure you sit down with your husband NOW and discuss the change. If he's used to being waited on hand and foot, he's going to expect it to continue. He needs to understand that he will need to pitch in his fair share. (My hubby is the cook in the house. He gets home 2 -3 hours earlier than me.)

3. Laundry...Try doing one load every night. I don't know if you have this rule already, but make sure that everything that comes out of the dryer is IMMEDIATELY folded and put away, lest you end up with the infamous Unsurmountable Mountain of Clothes.

4. As for Sara(h)....she'll be fine! She will probably cry for a few days, but then she'll be fine. Won't even look back. I do suggest you take her for a tour of her new daycare, though, so she knows sort of what to expect.

Would I be too nosy if I asked what you'll be doing at your new job?

I will be a customer service rep for Humana!

As for Sara - she already goes to this school one morning a week (Children's World) So she is going to have the same teacher with the same kids. I put her in school in December to get her used to something like this. So I think I've pretty much done everything I can. I don't start for another 2 weeks.... so I am going to put her in school mon/wed/fri the week before I start - like a warm up week.

Thanks all for the advice - I just need to get organzined.

Sandi - I like your idea of buying everything you need in advance. I pretty much do that now - but now Jim can pick from the menu (make him feel important by giving him a choice)

I think I will start out by bringing my lunch and lots of op snacks

They do have a gym at work so I am hoping to go in there before I start work (my shift is from 10:30 - 7pm)

I am really excited about a second pay cheque!!!

You've already been given great advice. Bring your own lunch & snacks. You are the captain of the Dana ship.

Hi Dana,
I'm getting ready for work, so I can't write a long note.
I wanted to make sure to tell you congratulations! You will do great at your new job.

I've been full time for almost a year (worked three full days a week and was home with Matthew two days for the first few years-he's now three and a half)

It was hard to make the full time adjustment, but you can do it. Sara will be fine-it's the parents who worry! Matthew loves school, and has way more fun being with other kids all day than just me!

As for housework, I'm still struggling with that. I'm very fortunate to have a wonderful husband who does laundry, grocery shopping and plenty of other things. You may need to just shrug some things off as not as important.

I bring my lunch to work almost every day. I stay on program that way..besides, if you buy lunch, that's a minimum of five dollars a day out the window. You can save money and stay on program by bringing your lunch.

Best of luck, and let us know how it's going.

Hugs,
sherry

Dana -

Didn't you join the Y? If you go to the gym at work - will you quit the Y? I know how much you were loving it.

I don't know... I'm trying to figure out when I will be able to workout.

I don't start work till 10:30 - so I was thinking about dropping her off at school at 9am...
they have a gym at Humana - maybe I can use theirs before work.

when do you all work out? I only have 1/2 hour for lunch.

Curves during lunch or after work. It takes about 45 min.

I walk 15-20 min on lunch, but I get an hour.

Dana, congrats on the job!!! I am very happy for you!

When I was working and taking the kids to daycare, I used to pre-make and freeze my meals. The trick to it not tasting frozen is to do all of the work, except the actual cooking and then freeze. Pull it out and thaw and then just cook as normal.
Also, CROCK POT. I love it, and even though I am now home and make all of our meals, I still LOVE my crock pot and use it about once a week.
It is a good idea to work Sara into the idea of day care. She will probably love it. My Drew loves preschool, and wouldn't be too upset if it were an all-day, everyday event.

Congratulations on the new job!

I agree with Denise and others on pre-preparing food. Also keep some veggies or something in the car so you can snack on the way home. That way you won't be tempted to start eating the minute you get in the door. While you've got the frozen stuff in the oven, play with your daughter or do something away from the kitchen. I also use my crockpost often even now.

If you get breaks, get up and walk up and down stairs or outside for a few minutes. That way you won't be tempted to eat what probably is in the breakroom or whatever area where people sit and talk. Pretty soon other people will join you, or you can join a group that walks. At bigger places there are often people who walk during lunch and at breaks.

You'll feel a lot worse about leaving your daughter than she will about being in daycare, although she may try to convince you otherwise. Usually kids cry until their parent leaves, then it's like they could care less once they realize you're not watching them anymore.