Freeing Up Time

So I think the biggest thing working against me in my goal to get my novel published is my time.

When I attended a workshop about organizing your writing life, I submitted my schedule, and was told that I needed to decide if it really mattered to me or not. The words felt kind of harsh, but at the same time I totally got what she was saying.

So I'm looking for ways to expand my time. Or free it up.

The thing is I'm a stay at home mom of three (two preschoolers) and I freelance. So in a lot of ways people think oh, your home all of the time. It shouldn't be a problem. Not so. I've taken on a new project, that I can't do when my kids are awake. It's a review of kids' websites. I love the job--but I can't write when my four year old is hanging on me--asking to play. It just doesn't work. So I have to find time to work, and time to write.

Plus there's cleaning the house, running the errands, cooking the meals, doing the homework, and on, and on, and on.

If I don't make the time and make it a priority--it won't get done.

So one thing that's helped with this, and my budget is I joined a freezer meal group. I cook six meals for the ladies in my group. And I get six meals (which are divided in half) back, once a month. This means--I just pop the food in the oven twelve nights a week. Then I don't feel guilty about doing easy stuff the other nights--because the meals are good, well-balanced and yummy.

The only downside is the day or two I cook (Sometimes I divide the process in half) is that my back really hurts. But a day or two of pain is worth it. And I generally buy pizza on my cooking day. I love pizza.

What have you done to find the time to write?