Don't eat the whole banana leaf

My hubby uses this phrase all the time, particularly when I start to feel overwhelmed by the amount of things I need/want to get done. See, I have a habit of trying to "eat the whole banana leaf" all at once. If you've ever seen one, you'll understand what I mean....

(Those leaves can grow almost nine feet long and two feet wide. Talk about a mouthful!!)

At the moment, I'm feeling like we have so much to get done in the next few weeks and months...maybe too much, if I actually step back and look at the big picture. Clean the house, get moving on the nursery, take care of the yard and gardens, get ready for our family's visit (in just over a week), get ready for baby's arrival (in November).... But hubby's right -- as long as I don't dwell on the sheer volume of work (the banana leaf) and choose to instead break it down into smaller tasks (baby steps), we can get a lot done if we work together as a team.

Despite being primarily right-brained, I have to admit that I love lists. I like to prioritize, see things on paper and physically mark off when a task is completed. It makes me feel like I'm accomplishing something. Hubby, on the other hand, prefers to just get moving and plow through whatever he knows needs to get done (one of the few times when he's the impatient one in our relationship). So right now, he's out mowing the lawn, while I'm making lists and organizing what else we need to finish up this weekend.

My downfall with the list-making process happens when I procrastinate. Take cleaning, for example. I don't like doing it, but I know it needs to get done. I also know that once I start, I tend to get more accomplished than I expected. It's the getting-started part that trips me up...and the striving for perfection rather than accepting "good enough" as enough. Right now, I really should be cleaning rather than blogging. But since I didn't finish my blog last night, I figured doing it now would at least knock one thing off my "To Do" list...besides, blogging is much more fun for me than cleaning.

(In case you were wondering, his method generally works far better than mine does...but I'm trying hard to make improvements, and procrastinate less).

So my mantras for this weekend are..."Don't eat the whole banana leaf" and "Take baby steps." What are yours?