Did I Do That?

Hi!

My name is Janice Ferrante.

I am the Queen of KAOS.

Where ever I go, KAOS seems to follow.

It’s a never ending battle.

Will I ever defeat KAOS and regain CONTROL?

More importantly, will YOU?

If you are to succeed, you need to do one thing.

That is to decide that you will.

  • It will take courage.
  • It will take persistence.
  • It will take guts.
  • Most of all, it will take persistent ACTion in an organized manner.

Can I do that?

Can you do that?

Come a little closer and I’ll tell you a secret.

YOU CAN.

It’s actually easier to be consistent and organized than it is to be in constant KAOS.

I wouldn’t steer you wrong, in fact it was this realization that I most wanted to share with you because it changed my life, and it can change yours too if you are struggling and mired in chaos and futility – with a few cheerios and a bit of peanut butter thrown in – hey, you never know when someone’s going to get hungry.

Seriously, follow the tips and use the resources you will find here, and you will be well on your way.

If you want to know about how to get the housework done, how to get rid of clutter, how to have better health, how to control your spending and start saving your money, how to simplify and organize and how to create a better, less stressful life for yourself and your family – and receive support and motivation to do it – you’re at the right place.

Mom’s and Dad’s like us hold a lot more power than we realize some days, many days it doesn’t feel like it at all! Now is a good time to take yours and use it to create the home you always wanted – it’s in your hands.

THE NITTY GRITTY…

Hey Jan, why should I listen to you? Are you really a mom, working in the trenches?

Absolutely! I’m a mom of 3 kids who rock my world. Literally!

Affectionately known as the 3 Mikey’s, (they collectively don’t like anything. Hmmm, I’m thinking. Nope. They collectively don’t like anything) they have made my life what it is today. It’s only 6 am, so far, so good.

As of March 17, 08, I will be turning 44. They are 17, 15 and 10. I seem to be at a disadvantage. Depending on how you look at it. But I don’t want to go there. I just want to drink green beer tea.

My kids are small, and driving me nuts. Does it get any easier?

NO! In fact, believe it or not, it gets harder. The issues are bigger, the finances are bigger. And they are bigger!  That’s why I spell KAOS with capital letters.

And if you have small kids, that’s why I say enjoy them while you can. Big kids have their own special charm. Little kids are pure magic, put on this earth as a gift. That keeps giving. And giving some more.

The time will fly, even though it doesn’t seem like it, and some day you’ll be wondering where it went. Where they went. Where your car went…

Do scheduling, routines, systems, consistency and repetition – the things you’re always going on about – really work?  How do you know, with all that KAOS and all…

They absolutely work.

Sometimes they will seem like more work than dealing with a little bit of KAOS (always like to have me some KAOS. NOT!) and it will be tempting to go back to your old slothish ways (ok, my slothish ways. You may notice on this site that I use your and my interchangeably according to which makes me look better, I was raised in a blended family with 2 sisters and a brother. When all else fails, I didn’t do it. Our cat took a lot of flack in our family, let me tell you.)

I’ve been a slow learner, but in my experience, without scheduling, routines, systems, consistency and repetition (and a few other things like self discipline and dedication) things simply become unmanageable.

And when that happens, I get grumpy. And it isn’t pretty. (I can deal with the green part, I was born on St. Patricks Day, it’s my favourite colour and goes well with my eyes, but busting out of my clothes like this guy can be a tad bit embarrassing. My kids don’t like to have friends over.)

HOW CAN YOU HELP ME?

My motto here is ACTion. Early on I realized that having a computer is fun and getting better all the time – it’s also a big time suck that can easily take us away from the very things we love the most – our home and family.

But it’s one of the most interesting and valuable tools at our fingertips if USED rather than merely consumed –  so early on I decided to use it for good rather than e-vil and make this a place were practicality and hands on application – waking up and taking back participation in our own lives – is what it’s all about.

You don’t need to do everything – but if you do something it will be better than it was before. That’s a step forward.  And it’s usually easier to take the next one after that – in fact you may find that there is no holding you back!

How can I take full advantage of your website?

  • Don’t miss a thing! Subscribe to receive email notifications or rss notifications of new blog entries on the top side bar of this page.
  • Create your own KAOS Action Planner, printing any articles, worksheets, checklists or downloads that you can USE, and scheduling a block of time through out each week to do them. The ACTion Steps that are listed on the end of many of the articles can be very helpful.

If there are no Action Tips, add your own, and do them.  Of course, always tweak the tips to suit your situation.

  • Subscribe to TAKE 5, it’s free and you will be 5 minutes ahead of the game every day by completing your 5 minute assignment. Actually, you will be farther ahead because they all add up to a cleaner and more organized house, in 5 minutes per day.
  • Leave comments. Ask questions. Help to make this site better, a place that lifts us all up and sets us down softly on our clean, decluttered favourite chair. When you get routines and habits down, you will actually have time to sit in it. Really.Surprised You can start by leaving a comment below.Laughing Let me know what you are thinking. What are your struggles. Your hopes. Your dreams. I’d love to hear from you. Typing to myself at 6:00 am can be a little lonely sometimes. Until 6:01 when someone, or something realizes that I am awake, even when I type quietly and try not to snort when I laugh.
  • Follow me on twitter. Let me know so that I can follow you too. Hopefully we’ll get somewhere!
  • Check out the featured products on the site. Not because I am trying to sell you something. Although the proceeds from this website are what keep it going. Without them, I’ll be flipping burgers, or more likely hocking donuts, or welcoming you at Walmart. And you won’t even know I’m the Queen because I’ll be dressed in my Walmart clothes. But mostly because they are things that I have used or written myself and seen success with, and are worth far more than they cost. And most of all, because they will make a difference to you, and your family, to your life.
  • Come back and visit me often. Take your shoes off. Sit a spell. And then, take a deep breath. Go accomplish something. Hug your kids.

And love being a mom, or a dad. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

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