Forget the filters and "perfect" posts — TODAY Style is getting real! This week is all about being honest, authentic, transparent and, well, real about everything from wrinkles and body image to dressing room anxiety and aging. Use the hashtag #RealWomenHave _____ to share the topic about which YOU want to get real.
TODAY meteorologist Dylan Dreyer shares how real women have no time! The chores in her house pile up faster than she can make a to-do list. Sound familiar? Luckily, she has a solid philosophy on how to get through each day.
I love a good to-do list. And I do mean an old-school list written down on a piece of paper with a nice pen. But, oh darn, where’s that pad of paper? Where’s that nice pen? Wait, forget that, where’s a pen at all??
There's chaos in our house on a daily basis because, honestly, I’m not a neat person. Mail piles up constantly. I separate it into an “attend to now” pile, a “garbage” pile and a “save for later” pile. All of these piles cover the dining room table until I need the table. Then I stack all the piles on top of one another and throw that whole massive mess onto a shelf somewhere.
RSVPs aren’t sent, that 10 percent off coupon never gets used (why do I even save it?) and bills aren’t paid (luckily, most of my bills are set to auto). I ran into the mailman the other day and he handed me another rubber band-wrapped stack of mail ... which now sits on my dining room table. You get the gist.
My goal in life is to be neat and organized. One day, I’ll go through the file cabinet, shred everything I don’t need and properly organize all those papers. It’ll be nice and neat so that the next time I get the mail, I can attend to it right away. But how am I going to go through an entire file cabinet when there’s laundry to be done? Speaking of laundry ...
As a real woman, I have no time. But I need to remind myself that I can’t do it all all the time.
The act of doing laundry isn’t the problem. Well, it’s part of the problem because, just like my mail, I let the laundry pile up. Once it's washed and dried — and, at some point in the future, folded — putting it away is a nightmare. It’s a nightmare because my closet is a mess! It’s stresses me out squishing another nicely folded piece of clothing into an overstuffed drawer. My thinking is, if I can clean out my closet and make room, then I’ll do the laundry and put it away immediately. Someday.
What about the gym? Well, the gym is a commitment I only have time for when the rest of the house is organized. How can I go to the gym when I should be attending to the mail and the laundry? And how can I attend to the mail and the laundry when I have to go to the grocery store and make dinner for Calvin? But I can’t leave for the grocery store yet because Calvin is napping and I want to play with him when he wakes up.
It makes me feel less frazzled when I think that we’re all hiding the same secret.
But, shoot, (our dog) Bosco has to go for a walk. Oh, I have to pick out my outfit for tomorrow. My dad called and I really should call him back. My friend keeps asking to meet for lunch. I need to pick up my contacts from the eye doctor. I have to call the dentist and make an appointment ...
... but when? Isn't that always the question?
So the mail never gets opened, the laundry never gets done, the bed rarely gets made, but, in my defense, dinner usually gets cooked and Calvin’s playing and having fun. Those are the two things on my priority list. The dinner and the cleanup and the playtime and the cleanup. That’s all I have time for after work.
There are simply not enough hours in the day to get everything done that I want to get done. As a real woman, I have no time. But I need to remind myself that I can’t do it all all the time. We can try, we can fake it, we can show the world that we are totally put together when we're really hanging on by a thread, but that’s what makes us real women. And it makes me feel less frazzled when I think that we’re all hiding the same secret.
I say: Do what you can, but always find time in the day to smile, laugh and be happy with those you love. Find something each day. At the end of the day (yes, I'm referring to the day that needs more than 24 hours), that’s all that matters.
See more from Real Week:
- Savannah Guthrie on aging in the spotlight: 'I'm 46 and I don't mind looking 46'
- Hoda Kotb on becoming a mother in her 50s: ‘Things happen right on time’
- Working mom Sheinelle Jones: I'm giving myself the gift of time (and you should too)
- 71 percent of TODAY viewers say clothing sizes don't make sense