Santa’s lil Task Runner - 5 ways to keep sane this festive season

http://eclectiquebutterfly.blogspot.com.au/2010/12/some-christmas-funnies.html

Is it any wonder that Australians greet Christmas with a mix of quiet delight and a sinking sense of misery?

Any of these scenarios sound familiar?

• Mum is in the kitchen slaving over chooks, hams, seafood, salads, roast veggies, trifle and plum pudding.
• Uncle is on guard duty to stop the kids from squeezing and shaking the presents too much before the big reveal.
• Aunty is almost to the point of stapling the baby into her Christmas gown to avoid any more nudie nappy runs.
• Every 3 minutes one of the kids insists on putting the antlers back on the less than impressed family dog.
• Grandpa is in the corner making more and more unwanted advances towards the sherry.
• Nana can’t get over the heat...oh the heat...and what it’s doing to her ankles, knees, hips and ears.  
• Whoever gave the toddler a noise-maker is inches away from being strangled by Dad. 

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. It's not even Christmas day!

So we've put together 5 ways to use TaskRunners to keep some sense of sanity working up to the 25th. 

1) Help with cleaning and fix-it projects

The house has to be super clean in order to pass the fingered glove test the mother-out-law (oops, typo) loves so much. So if scrubbing the house like a crazy person was one less day of hard work you didn’t have to do, post a spring cleaning task. 

Those DIY and fix-it projects from last year better not be hanging around lest Dad gets a lecture from his father and father-in-law. You can get help tackling those as well.

2) Pick up the grocery shopping 

Feeding an army at your party and don't want to break the bank? How about asking a Runner with a Costco membership to pick up your shopping and even have it delivered. It's worth the savings in time and money. 

Trips to the farmers markets. Picking up the 10 cartons of alcohol. Picking up the Christmas ham! Don't lose hairs over it, if it's one less thing on your to-do list, have someone help out. 

3) Put up (or taking down) the decorations 

If you love the idea of entering the best Christmas lights on the street competition you could possibly do with a spare hand. Or even if it's just dragging the tree from the garage and putting up the 500 decorations. That's at least a few hours of your weekend you could be doing something else. 

4) Be your personal shopper

How nice would it be to simply write lists and send off to your personal shopper? Well, you can. Managing your time and priorities is one of the best ways to help handle periods which can become overwhelming. Delegating tasks is not about losing responsibility but about prioritising your time and using it wisely. 

5) Help at the party

Treat yourself to actually enjoying your own party and relax with the help of Runners waiting on your guests and helping set up and clean up. A little box of choccies to say thank you for their help would be a special touch. 

It’s funny. Christmas is such a special occasion but the thrill of actually being able to have Christmas your way somehow diminishes as the workload piles on. Even before you can say “yes, we get to do it our way this year!” you’re surrounded with chores and complaints.

Lighten the load with TaskRunners. Large or small, we can put some of the jolly back into your Christmas this year!

Are you planning to have a stress-free Christmas this year?

Spring cleaning on your to-do list? Top 5 tips to make it pain free

Does Spring Cleaning get chucked into the 'too-hard' basket

Here at TaskRunners HQ we’re getting pretty excited about the warmer months. Sunshine, the birds, beaches, swimmers and BBQs…woo hoo! 

This also means friends and family crawl out of hibernation and decide to get friendly again. This calls for a bit of a spruce up to the place. Ok, a MAJOR spruce up. 

I don’t know about you, but our home seems to be a like a bowerbird’s nest accumulating stuff, dirt and dust over the winter months. As they say, a good clean and major purge is as healthy for your state of mind as it is for your ability to find your paperwork for your tax return (which by the way, that’s due soon too).

I won’t put sprinkles on top of your squeegee and mop over the fact that Spring Cleaning can be down right painful and you'll find every trick in the Procrastinators Bible to get away from it. Alas, that day will arrive when you can't fight it off any longer. 

Time to get it done! 

So we’ve put together 5 tips to make your Spring Cleaning tasks easier:

Task Tip # 1 - Planning is key

Block out a time slot in your week or weekend to get it done. Allocate as much time as you feel you’ll need and get it done within that time. That way, you’re not spending a whole day trying to sort out your sock drawer.

Task Tip # 2 - Round em up!

Round up the troops and delegate, delegate, delegate. We believe that the pleasure (or pain) of cleaning is much better shared with your loved ones. They might think otherwise.

Task Tip # 3 - Game on

TaskRunners fan, Richard's, 'House Adventure Race'

Make it fun for yourself and the family. TaskRunners fan, Richard, who’s a keen adventure racer sent us a photo of his ‘House Adventure Race’. Come up with a similar idea. But remember, it’s about quality so make sure the job gets down well or you’ll be coming back a second time to clean up the mess.

Task Tip # 4 - High to low

Start from the top down, this just keeps everything you’ve already cleaned from getting dirty again. For example, dust before you vacuum, wipe the table before you sweep and clean upper cupboards before lower, etc.

Task Tip # 5 - Shake it 

Put on some funky music to get you in the mood. It really is more fun to clean when you’re shakin’ your booty!

FREEBIE TIME!

Surprise, surprise, we’ve found some free Spring Cleaning printable checklists for you!

1) Here's a cute little checklist put together by Casa Sugar (as seen above): Link

2) Martha Stewart has put together a helpful download which includes spring cleaning tips: Link

3) Make your own spring cleaning check list. You can click items to remove them or add new items: Link

4) The Nest has a fun little checklist that turns spring cleaning into a game (see Task Tip #3): Link

5) Stay at Home Mum has a nice one pager spring cleaning checklist : Link

POST IT

And if all of this is just a little too much, that's what TaskRunners is for. Post up your tasks and get some help from a local Task Runner.  It's that simple.  

So tell us, how are you tackling Spring Cleaning this year and what are some of your tips and tricks? 

x Cheryl