Organising To Help Sanity

Have you ever walked out the door thinking you had everything you needed for the day? Snacks for bubs, enough nappies, knowing your families schedule and needs by heart (or at least it is embedded in your brain since thats what you dreamt about every night since you became I mum), the laundry done, the bills paid, dinner planned, only to realize that you A) forgot to eat breakfast and B) Haven’t washed your hair since… Can you remember? I wish this didn’t seem so typical for most working or even just busy mums, but it seems to be the trend. How can we be better prepared for days like these? How can we handle them when they do come? What happens when you finally have a day all for yourself and then your baby gets sick and all plans are thrown out for your relaxing day? Here are some things that have helped many mums in organizing life so that it doesn’t get to the point of utter frustration. I hope they help in your journey of motherhood and in providing the best life possible for your family and yourself!

-Transition Time is Key:

Transitions seem to be the time when most of the melt- downs happened. Avoid these by having clear communication with your children. Even at a very young age your child can understand a schedule and thrive on structure and routine. Have a designated place for everything; shoes, backpack, lunch box, clothes to wear for the day, etc. This helps the transition go much smoother so you won’t be running around trying to find that one missing shoe!

SING! There is no happier way than to sing while cleaning or doing other routine things like getting ready for dinner, brushing teeth ect. This cue will help you baby know when things are happening and give them a merry heart in doing it. Finally, make “Goodbyes” short and sweet. Even if you feel like being the one to cry and throw a tantrum, don’t. Be calm and confident and don’t let the negative emotions affect bubs. If you trust your childcare provider, you should feel confident that your child will be well taken care of. Your baby will react and respond to your mood, so be happy and joyful when dropping them off. This helps greatly in the flow of the days organization.

-Lists, Lists, Lists:

Maybe you aren’t a list person. Well, that’s ok. If you want to be more organized you need to have some lists. Mainly of emergency contacts; plumbers for when the toilet breaks, electric company for when all your lights mysteriously stop working, and the list goes on. Having these numbers handy are a great way to not get overwhelmed when things go horribly wrong around the house. This way you will be able to say to hubby when you call him at work, “Today the toilet overflowed and the sinks got so clogged we had to wash our hands next door, but the plumber was there within minutes since I had his number so neatly posted in our important people list.” This is of course all said in a very calm and sweet voice. (Don’t forget you fed a village of starving children after you rescued your children from the flood you used to call home. )

-Family Calendars and Cork Boards: there are many ways to keep up on a schedule by the use of calendars; from paper to virtual. Find the best way for your family and stick to it! The time spent imputing the info will be well worth the time it saves you on trying to fix schedule mishaps.

-PRIORITIZE: this is probably the most important one ever! You can have a great schedule with tons of neatly color-coded items, but unless the schedule is realistic to your life, it’s not gonna happen. Be true to who you are. If you like to be busy, then plan away. If you like a little more down time in your life, plan less. Your kids will be happy if mum is happy. If you count up all the hours in the week and you aren’t doing what is most important to you within those hours, find ways to re-organise it! This may seem impossible but really focus on doing at least a couple things that bring joy to your life and go from there. Each beginning of a new week look ahead and decide which things are absolutely necessary, and the things that if they don’t get done, it will be ok. Learn to let go. There will be crazy times, just breath. There will be weeks where you feel like giving up. Remember that you are only human and you can’t do everything. Take time for yourself. Again, if you are happy, bubs (and the rest of the family for that matter) will be too!

Enjoy finding new ways to better organize your life and your journey of motherhood. There’s nothing else quite like it.