5 Simple Life Hacks Busy Moms Use to Stay Organized

Parents today are taking on a multitude of responsibilities. We are expected to have a career, care for our kids, contribute to the community, and live a healthy, active lifestyle. Life with children can be busy even if you don’t subscribe to cultural norms like these. It is more necessary than ever to be an organized working mom.

When we were expecting our first child, someone should have told us to sharpen our organizational skills. Instead, the advice was to cherish every moment. But, when I’m overwhelmed with task after task, I feel like I’m just surviving instead.

No one told us that running a household is a skill set and must be learned and practiced in order to be an organized working mom.

A parent’s job is to create a safe and peaceful home for their children. When your kids walk out your door and into the world, you can’t always know what life will throw at them. However, within the walls of your home, you can provide them with a feeling of security and safety.

Here are some routines and organizational hacks to make family life less chaotic and more enjoyable. Once you implement these routines and structures into your daily or weekly life, you will find they get easier and easier.

These simple steps to organize your home will create structure and give you more freedom in your day.

~ The Family Calendar:

From the time your children can read, having a family calendar displayed in a central location of your home will be greatly beneficial. This visual will show your children the events of the day, week, or month and enable them to predict what events will come their way. It also teaches them how to plan ahead. My kids love to read the calendar to see what events we have as a family and also to count down to holidays and birthdays.

~ Accessibility/Stations:

Your home may be filled with tiny people, but they are capable of doing independent activities. To assist them in being independent, you may need to make things more accessible to them. For example, I have two drawers in my kitchen that are filled with kid-sized cups, plates, and bowls. The drawers are low enough that my youngest can reach it, and he can serve himself a drink or snack. You can adopt this same mentality with almost anything: brushing teeth, school supplies, homework stations, the possibilities are endless.

You can also make higher counters more accessible safely with child-safe step stools and rails. Kids love to be independent, and with these simple tools, you can make sure they do it safely.

~ Routines:

A few years ago, I learned to use “routine” instead of “rules” when giving my children directions. When I discovered that I was repeating myself every night to my children at bedtime, I decided I didn’t want to feel like a robot barking commands anymore. I sat down with my kids and discussed the steps to our bedtime routine. We made a sign with the routine and posted it in the boys’ bedroom to serve as a visual aid.

Now, when they are fooling around at bedtime, instead of getting ready for bed, I can just point to the sign. Sometimes, it works like magic; sometimes, it just gives me a break from speaking. But it does help and creates an opportunity for them to do something independently. We have routines for using electronics, getting ready for school, and cleaning up after dinner. I try only to use routines for big things because too many lists and routines could be overwhelming and dull the importance.

~ Chores:

I will be the first to admit that I originally slacked on giving my children regular chores around the house. I think I just didn’t want to battle with them over another thing. Now that my children have established chores, I realize I was doing them a disservice by not having them pitch in with the family tasks. Giving them a job in the home makes them a contributing member of the household, no matter how small. It shows that I have confidence in them, and they will also gain confidence in themselves. And the best part is it takes some of the workload off of me!

Click the link if you want to learn How to Get Your Kids to Help Out More at Home.

~ Outsourcing:

My favorite way to make life easier is hiring someone else to do it! Online food shopping services, dinner kits, meal delivery, paid-for-hire cleaners, carpenters, and toy assemblers are all services I have used to take a task off my plate. You need to watch for fees, subscriptions, and service charges, but there are many affordable and time-saving services overall. And I consider it a little treat for me and a reward for all my hard work to be an organized working mom.

Here’s a list of some of my favorite service apps:

Today’s world demands a lot of parents. Using your organizational skills and a few of these hacks, you should be able to reduce some parental stress and save your energy for the best part of parenting: quality time with your kids. Put these tips into action today to become an organized working mom!

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