How To Plan Your Week with FREE Printable

I don’t know about you, but that first week back to school really kicked my booty! Planning my week is so important to stay on track, especially once back to school comes around. So today I’m sharing how to plan your week (with a free printable)!

We’re on to week three after back to school so we are in the groove now, but it was hard to let go of those lazy summer days!  We got a little bit of summer feeling by heading to the pool this weekend though!

I wore my swimsuit from my Amazon fashion haul and two ladies stopped and asked me where it was from while we were there.  I think they were as surprised as I was when I told them it was from Amazon.

Amazon haul swimsuit

amazon haul swimsuit

Amazon haul swimsuit

I hate saying goodbye to the weekend, but I found this tee that I might just wear today to keep that fun weekend vibe going! ha!

Weekend tee

Tee • Jeans • Wedge Sneakers • Sunnies

HOW TO PLAN YOUR WEEK

With the HWH Fitness Challenge launching this weekend!, I wanted to get into the exercise routine now, six days a week.  I know from experience that those workouts don’t just happen unless you plan for them and specifically schedule them into your day.

Sign up for the FREE fitness challenge here!

WHY I CREATE A WEEKLY PLAN

Last Sunday, I sat down to schedule in my workouts and ended up creating an entire schedule for the week. I’m so happy with this framework because now everything has a dedicated time.  I swear it helped my week go so much smoother, knowing what I was supposed to be doing from one moment to the next.

The problem I was running into was that at each moment of the day, I’d be thinking of five other things I needed to do. For example, in the morning while Jordan and I were eating breakfast, I’d be checking my phone or trying to answer an email. I wasn’t being very productive and I would feel guilty for not giving her my undivided attention.  I hate admitting this, but even at 2 years old, she’s told me, “Mommy, put down your phone.”

Jordan is definitely a child that likes a lot of attention and personal interaction. She does play independently sometimes, but she would rather be playing with me or someone else.  If you’re sitting on the couch, she will literally take your hand and pull you up, saying, “C’mon, play with me!”

I can’t be playing with her ALL the time- that’s unrealistic I know, BUT, there definitely could be more time in my day that is focused only on her or what we’re doing, as opposed to trying to be on my phone or computer or watching tv at the same time.

I created the schedule so that I would have on interrupted periods in the day where I was just focused on her or family or blogging.  Whatever I’m supposed to be doing, I want to try to give it my full attention.

COLOR CODING

And because I’m on the Type A side, I color coded my chart:

Me 

Workouts

James

Jordan

Blog

Family

how to plan your week

MY GOAL

My goal now is to have stricter blog hours where I work effectively and efficiently and get lots of things done (from 9-3) so that when I’m not working I can have freedom from my phone and just focus on exercise or the kids and family, or dinner or whatever else needs to be done.  Having Shannon working with me has already made that much, much better.

I have to be done with the majority of blogging by around 3pm because there’s just no other time than late at night to continue.  AND, if I want to get up and have that important “take care of you” time in the morning, I can’t be blogging at midnight- I have to get to sleep by 10.

I had to do make this Weekly Plan for my own sanity, though I do allow for wiggle room and I know things often change.  At least the structure is there.

It helps to look at our day in chunks or blocks of time.  Doing that causes us to be more single-minded and know that whatever is in this time “block” is what I need to focus on and do now.

My blocks currently look like this:

EARLY MORNING ME TIME

Whether it’s an early morning workout, or time to just read, write, pray, meditate, or get a jumpstart on my blog, this time has been crucial for me.  I’m not an early riser by nature, but I like how my day goes so much better when I’m up around 5:30, that I’ve been keeping up with the habit.

morning sky

MORNING FAMILY BLOCK 

From 6:45 to about 8:30 a.m., it’s all about family.  Getting James up and ready for school and spending some time with him before he leaves.  Jordan wakes up around 7:30, so we always have breakfast together.  Then, I make a beloved cup of coffee and sit down with her and play.  This undivided hour of attention focused directly on her without checking my phone has been so good for both of us.  Of course she enjoys it and I love connecting and bonding with her, just the two of us.

I can relax about any emails or things on my phone, because I know I have a plan to get to them at 9am.

how to plan your week

We often read or play “blocks” or color or she serves me ice cream. We keep the tv off at this time.

Toddler book

Toddler ice cream cart

We also like to go outside and get some fresh air, but right now it’s still so hot, so we don’t stay out that long.

toddler girls outfit

Around 8:30, we’ll head upstairs and put on our makeup– Jordan sometimes plays with this pretend makeup set.  Some days, it’s just curling my eyelashes and putting on a coat of mascara.  Other days, I’ll take a good 10 minutes to do more.  I’ve usually already showered before James gets up, so I only have to curl my hair or give it some new life with dry shampoo.

Easy Everyday Makeup tutorial

BLOGGING BLOCK

My Mom usually arrives by 9 (thank God she’s able to do this!!), so we catch up for a bit, and then it’s onto my home office to start blogging for the day.  I could write a whole separate post about what that looks like, but for our purposes here, I blog until about 3pm.

What does a blog assistant do

LUNCH

Always breaking for lunch about 12pm to go downstairs and eat with my Mom and Jordan.

AFTER SCHOOL BLOCK

At 3pm, it switches to the After School block and getting James home from school, talking about his day, unpacking backpack and having an afternoon snack (me too!).  He gets some down time before starting his homework.

We’ve just been experimenting with Jordan napping from 2-4, so if she’s asleep when it’s time to get James, my Mom will pick him up.

DINNER & EVENING BLOCK

Around 5, we start the dinner block, which includes time to play afterwards.  I’ve been meal prepping lately, so I don’t have to cook from scratch every night.  But, even when I don’t, I usually cook enough for two nights. Then, we like to have some play time and I prefer some of it to be outside.

Now, Jordan just enrolled in baby ballet (is there anything cuter?!) and James plays baseball, so we’re factoring in that too.  Quicker dinners on those nights, and I’m gonna try to get 20 minutes of exercise during his Thursday night practices. #twobirds  In fact, I had this idea, but tell me if it’s silly- I was thinking I could ask all the moms if they wanted to do a little bootcamp with me at the field at that time. Is that weird?? I’d still have to be keeping an eye on Jordan, so I’m not sure how practical it would be. 

kids activities

The evenings are bath and bedtime routines, then cleaning the kitchen.  I like to do that while listening to a podcast or YouTube. I usually post an Instagram when I’m done.

MY BEDTIME BLOCK

While I’m tidying up the kitchen, I make my hot peppermint tea and get it steeping so I can take it upstairs.  Y’all know I’m fanatical about creating that peaceful sleeping environment, so the lights are dimmed with HUE lightbulbs and I put on my lavender diffuser.  Our beautiful master bedroom is almost always kept clean and I LOVE heading up to bed each night!

CREATE YOUR OWN WEEKLY PLAN

To make this kind of a schedule, I would start with your wake up time and sleep time, then block out your work time, since that usually takes up most of the day.

Add in any appointments, sports practices/games, etc.

Next, schedule your workouts for the week.

Include what time you are going to eat breakfast lunch and dinner and perhaps a snack or two.

Include whatever things you have going on in your life.

Definitely carve out that time for just you.  Even if it’s only 15 minutes before the house wakes up or right before bed.

You can use this FREE PRINTABLE to customize it for your own schedule.

how to plan your week free planner

I hope you go forth and have a productive, fun week! Let me know in the comments if this post was helpful and taught you how to plan your week!

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Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

25 Comments

  1. Love how you have things blocked out, I may need to try this! And regarding the bootcamp at the field, some may be receptive but is there an area where you all can just walk together near / around the field? I bet more moms would be receptive that and if they had younger siblings to keep an eye on, they can just have them walk / bring a stroller or wagon!

    1. That’s a good idea! I haven’t been to this field before, but will check it out this week for the first time! Thank you for the idea!

      1. I think some kind of exercise is a great suggestion, and maybe the participating moms can rotate weekly on who watches the non-baseball playing children ?

  2. Wonderful and very informative post, Jordan is gorgeous like her mother. James is growing so fast. I am glad you can manage “me time” in your life. I wish I could do that someday as well. But the Medical field doesn’t allow you “me time”…lol Your patients demand all your time and then your kids. I love the full post and thank you for the free printable.
    I also like how you manage to work from home.

    Have a great day,
    Bushra

  3. I love this and your two kids are so cute. I have a two year old little girl and a very type a personality, I also like me time and very much value my sleep I was wondering if u have any suggestions or how you handle split time between hubby and kids. I Feel like I’m always on one or another’s time which leads to very little me time and a very exhausted mommy and wife

    1. Oh man, it’s a hard one! I think the key is communicating and making sure everyone shares responsibilities so one person isn’t getting overwhelmed. I definitely don’t have all the answers there! 😉

  4. I always try to walk with other moms during my kid’s sports practices. Boot camp would be fun too! Depends on if I have my younger kids with me or not. I bet you will find other moms who want to do some sort of exercise pretty easily!

  5. Can you provide some more key words or a link for the bathing suit?
    Thanks for the printable. I always enjoy them.

  6. I love your post! I am wondering what you do on the weekends. As a work out of the house mom, I want to have relaxing time on the weekends, but yet still have to get things done. If I start out relaxing and just hanging/playing with the kids, I tend to not become productive. So, I am thinking if I planned my weekends better, maybe it might help?!?

    Any suggestions to help, would be greatly appreciated! 🙂

    xo, Darcy

  7. Great post. Love the mixture of topics all rolled into one.
    I’ve tried so many things that you’ve posted from clothing to food, organization, beauty and health. I appreciate this blog very much.
    You’ve got such a beautiful heart and I wondered with that and your background if you’d know anyone who could help? Came across this video after a mission trip to Haiti and it broke my heart. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQTvgt0dgPI
    Would appreciate you helping to get the word out.
    Many thanks.

  8. Hi Megan ! This is the first time I write you…I am definitely not a morning person but I would love to be. I find the way that you plan your week very inspiring. I usually get up at 7:00 and leave for work around 8:15 and I take advantage of every single minute of sleep I can get.
    Any tricks for getting up earlier in the morning ?

    Merci,
    Nathalie

  9. This is one of the best blog posts ever!! I love it that you shared so many details and give a glimpse of how you organize your schedule. It helps a lot!! Please keep sharing!

  10. boot camp during practice is a great idea. I know lots of Moms would do that during youth football practice and there were always people walking/running on the track that was there, too.

  11. Hi there! Love the scheduling post it was right up my alley. I need to be more intentional about my hours as well. And about the moms on the baseball field I say go for it, even if its only a walk or maybe try a mommy baby workout?

    I was wondering though when do you sit down and watch tv? 😉 Its a nasty habit of mine that at the end of the day I like to lay on the couch and watch tv and honestly it puts me going to bed too late. So I was wondering if you had a suggestion for leaving the couch and climbing in bed? Another reason it is such a habit is that is my time with my baby (my puppy). After a long day of going going going its her alone time with me and my relax down time.

    Thank you! Love your blog!

    1. I almost mentioned TV in the post Brooke! I usually put the tv on and watch a show in the evening, or catch up on weekend mornings/weekend nights the shows I’ve recorded. What gets me excited about going to bed in my nighttime routine and having a book I want to read or a YouTube video that I’ll watch on my ipad. But if your down time is on the couch, that’s okay, just set a time you want to get in bed and make yourself go at that time. You have to remember WHY you want to do that. Having that purpose will help you accomplish it!

  12. Thank you Thank you Thank you, for sharing your color-coded block schedule with us!! You have always been so giving to us and continue to go the extra mile….THANK YOU!! So loving and caring with your family, friends and your readers!! You help me believe in the possible!

  13. I know this is an old post so I don’t know if you will read this, but my question is when do you do Laundry, Grocery Shopping, Doctor appts, Bill paying, running errands etc. Thanks and always love your posts.

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