I fancy myself as a spur-of-the-moment type of gal.

I like to fly by the seat of my pants. Every day is like one of those “choose your own ending” type days and no two are alike. I am an “arty” type and I am happy painting, picking flowers, singing, dancing (with a glass of wine) and generally being the master of my own destiny. No structure really, just a bit of this, a bit of that and whatever I feel like next.

The trouble with this fairytale is that I just can’t seem to get away with it fully.

I have a busy life and family and sometimes, I really do have to come back down to earth. But, my alter ego is always lurking. “Little Miss Spontaneous” aka “Spontane-ee-Arse.”

You see, as cute as she is, she is making me fat. “Oh go on, have another piece of cake, you deserve it.” “Don’t worry about dinner, get it later.” I have to combat her with some organisation in my life. I do this in various ways and although I try very hard, I do slip occasionally.

These are the questions I ask myself all of the time.

1. Do you like to prepare tasty meals for your family?

No one wants to sit down to the same meal every night. Especially not Little Miss Spontaneous. I try to decide early in the day what the evening meal will be — get meat out of the freezer, etc. Deciding what to eat is often the hardest part, so do it when you have time to think about it and not when people have passed out on the floor of the kitchen from hunger or moaning at you. Little Miss Spontaneous would throw a frozen pizza in the oven (although she probably drew a smiley face on the top with BBQ sauce).

2. Are you always rushing about from here to there?

Yep. Go Go Go. I think Little Miss Spontaneous loves the wind in her hair. However, this behaviour is exhausting. The stress is not good for any of us. You aren’t operating at the most efficient level. You don’t have time to smell the roses and listen to the people you love. So, organise the jobs, so they fit correctly into puzzle that is your day. Don’t back track. Take the time to make accurate lists.

3. Do you look at other people and wonder how they do it all?

First of all, no one does it all, not all of the time anyway. Everyone has their days of chaos. They may have a maid, an ironing lady, a gardener or worse still they probably eat “fast food” every night. Stop worrying about them. Ask yourself this, are you being lazy today? Can you do another job? Always choose the energetic option if you can? It is good for your soul and your arse. Little Miss Spontaneous will get her time when everything is finished.

4. Is your grocery bill going through the roof?

Here is where you can make big changes. By buying fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy, you are ticking so many boxes. These foods are undoubtedly better for you nutritionally. They are less expensive and with the excess grocery money, Little Miss Spontaneous may be able to splurge on something frivolous. There is a trade off. She will have to get off her arse and help with the extra preparations required with these basic items.

5. Are you getting enough “Me” time?

Organise to have a date with yourself at least once a week. You can use this time to treat yourself in any way your budget allows. You may just wish to be alone at home by yourself, meditate in peace or do your nails. Just set the time aside and don’t lock anything in until the last minute. Little Miss Spontaneous is happier with that. No expectations, no tidying to do for it and no pressure to “enjoy” yourself.

6. Are you sick of the complaints from the “Masterchef” kids that live with you?

Everyone is a critic these days, so share the love I say. Little Miss Spontaneous is not only arty, she can be quite “crafty”. She gets her children to cook at least once a week. They can choose what they are going to cook, write a shopping list and prepare the meal and tidy the kitchen. Obviously, you will need to help them out but eventually these skills will be useful to you.

The thing is, there are simple solutions to many of today’s big problems. Bad news is they are deep rooted in our lack of organisation. Yep, I don’t want to believe it either. Little Miss Spontaneous will always struggle with this concept but is seems to me it is either her or the Arse.