To ask what would you do with too much free time?!

[MoiraRoseIsMyQueen]

I’ve been made redundant, and so won’t have a job as of the end of the month, and am on gardening leave currently. Obviously having all the usual panics about money and the seemingly insurmountable task of finding a new job in this market 😫But, my main worry at the moment is having nothing to do! I know this might sound like a nice problem to have, but it’s sending my anxiety through the roof. I have two kids and a lovely husband, so only school hours are free - but the thought of potentially months of this is panicking me, there’s only so much cleaning and baking I can do!

So, what would you do - with potentially a couple of months of free time, and very limited funds?!

Volunteering.

Sort my house out!

I’ve been looking but I can’t find anything locally! I might post on my local facebook page to see if there is anything.

First post nails it.

Get fit

I would fill my time with exercise, bit of gardening (for me that's only planting seeds though!),.meeting up.with friends for coffee and walking their dogs, walking to buy.milk/bread/any top up food, Watching inane crap on TV.

Gardening, either my own, my adult kids, or volunteering at a community garden.

Walking, preferably in hills or near water

Learn a new skill or language, or both

Gym, meal prep, batch cook.

I mean the obvious one is look for a new job.

Do some online courses.

Start an exercise regime like running or even walking and see how far you progress in the time.

Do jobs you’ve been putting off around the house. De cluttering your wardrobe etc.

Order some books and take yourself out for coffee shop dates.

You don’t need to fill every minute and you deserve to take some downtime and relax. It’s ok to binge a few series on Netflix etc.

No advice as in the same boat. I’ve looked on the Volunteer Action Network website and signed up for two very part time volunteer roles.

Otherwise house jobs, gardening and walking. But it’s hard to relax and enjoy the time whilst having the looming threat of not being able to pay the mortgage in a few months. DH also wfh so not very relaxing trying to not disturb him. The various
threads about the awful job market are scaring me so avoiding those..

An unmumsnetty solidarity hug for you.

Padel
Bridge
Walking especially now weather good. Plenty of walking groups around you could join.

Sorry also meant to say there’s an app called Team Kinetic you can download to look for volunteering opportunities near you

Look at local adult ed courses if you have a college nearby. You could learn a craft or a language. I’d work on my health & fitness. Swim, hike, play tennis. Cook healthy meals. Plan days out to different places nearby or short breaks & holidays.

Alot of schools are after people to go in and hour or two and read with the kids your kids school may also be? Id excercise and do all the jobs I'd been meaning to do round the house.

Gym
school reading
declutter the house
batch cook
cross stitch /knit / crochet

I would focus on getting fit (unless you are already) - you can get both cardiovascular fit and build a lot of strength in 12-months. The first 12 months is the hardest I think as it’s all new, lots of thinking and planning, slightly more gruelling, and it can feel hard to fit it in around work and other commitments.

Once you’ve achieved a certain level of fitness you can then just maintain it, it’s easier to fit around your work routine, you’re in the habit and it’s generally needs less day to day motivation. My local authority subsidised gym is less than £25 a month, so a fairly cheap hobby.

General fitness is so fundamental to living a long and happy life. I’d take this as a real opportunity to focus on that. It gives you a sense of achievement at the start of the day and you’ll be happy to just potter about after that.

That sounds like bliss to me.

I'd take the dog out to explore lots of new places, give the house a good sort out and catch up with all the odd jobs I never get round to doing,

Declutter

gym, run, sort out drawers / cupboards etc, decorating and DIY, maybe some online training.....

Gosh, thank you, right back at you! It’s so hard to settle into doing anything ‘nice’ with the doom hanging over you isn’t it. Sending solidarity and crossing fingers for you!

My freezer is full and I’ve only been off a week 😂 Also finding I’m getting a bit obsessive about checking job websites (wit very little joy so far) so I’m very conscious that I need to intersperse job hunting with other things to stop me going insane!

What I would do is put my feet up and enjoy it.

Set yourself schedules for the day.

Take it slow in the mornings and have breakfast and watch something.

Potter about getting house jobs like washing, cleaning done.

Leave the house and get outside for a walk/run.

Set yourself half an hour aside to look for jobs/reply to emails etc.

When I was in gardening leave I redecorated 2 rooms and the stairs/landing plus has a massive sort out of all cupboard. You could also check finances are in order (best rates, best insurance cost etc).

Get up at normal time
go for a walk after breakfast
spend 3 hrs on applications
lunch
exercise
one household job - any room to paint? A coffee table to fix up?