We have more than some

December 1st, and the Christmas decorations go up, the summer heat has already arrived, and my children know it’s time to sort through their clothes and toys for donations to the local homeless and community service. My children will have the privilege of receiving new toys at Christmas, and they’ve learned others will not.

We don’t have much, as a single parent, each paycheque is prioritised, bills are negotiated, and grocery shopping is done with a calculator and detailed shopping list. School clothes and books are second hand, I’ve done the desperate hidden coin search in the days before payday for milk and bread, and the left side of my mattress has been broken for six months. We have more than some.

The year I lost my job and watched the last of my money leave my account, I knew we needed help. Our local family services centre gave me a $50 voucher for food and a ‘dignity handbag’. The bag contained sanitary items, hygiene products, sunscreen, and tucked in a pocket, a $20 gift card to a toy store. I felt the stress leave my body, knowing my children’s Christmas wouldn’t have to completely be a ‘life lesson’. We still have more than some.

Years later the government would announce free tampons and sanitary pads in the bathrooms of all public schools. Excited, I had said to my daughter, ‘How fantastic, now if you get caught out at school, you can grab one from the bathroom!’ ‘No’, she replied, ‘I’ll leave those for students who really need them’. She remembered, we have more than some.

When organising our home, we begin when we are making decisions on what we need to bring into our home in the first place. Do we need that new pair of shoes? Could the jacket we already have last another winter? If I want a new game, can I trade it for another? Do I need the convenience of a new packet of pens, or can I search the house and put all the pens we already have back in the same place?

Next, we never go to bed without doing the dishes. The morning hustle to get out the door is enough, without waking up and facing a messy kitchen. Furthermore, I now wake an extra thirty minutes earlier each morning, to reduce the stress of making sure myself, children, pets, lunches, and appointments are ready for the day. Sitting with my coffee and a newspaper for ten minutes each morning when the children are still sleeping, sets me up for a relaxed, productive and organised day.

I have dates in the calendar on my phone for when the bills are due, when the sheets need to be washed, the cats need their flea treatment, and sometimes, on a really busy week, an ‘appointment’ for when I’m going to exercise.

For my children who are notoriously fussy eaters, though less now that they’re teenagers, we meal plan together on a Sunday in the form of a white board. They agree to the meals they’re willing to eat, and there’s no longer a chorus of ‘What’s for dinner?’ and ‘I don’t like that!’ The whiteboard reflects what each nights evening meal will be, and who will be responsible for making that meal. When I moved out of home at eighteen, with a newborn baby, I didn’t know how to cook a single thing, and I made it a parenting mission that my children wouldn’t face the same challenge. The whiteboard also has a section for the shopping list, creation of which, is the responsibility of the person who just used the last of something.

I budget every dollar on a spreadsheet, school notices are displayed on a pin board, there’s a jar at the door which looks like a hedgehog for the car keys. All the clothes are washed on Saturday, the ironing is done on Sunday. Grocery shopping is at 7.15pm every second Tuesday, when my wage reaches my bank account.

The biggest organisation trick by far though, is the donation box. The thoughtful, albeit unnecessary, gift from Great Aunt Mildred, the clothes my children are now too tall for, the jigsaw puzzle (and all its pieces) we’ve loved and completed, all find their way to the yellow box which lives at the front door. Anything in good condition, which we no longer have need for, makes it ways to a local homeless and community service. We have more than some.