The advice is always out there for parents who are struggling to keep everything above board: be organized! Staying organized is such a vital part of being a parent, but we don’t always abide by the rules. Being an organized parent doesn’t just mean having a calendar or a specific routine, but it’s about everything else that skirts around our daily lives. Let’s show you some practical tips to ensure that every part of your life is organized.
The Calendar
Let’s get this out of the way. The fact is that there are so many events and things to do and not enough time to do them, you’ve got to go beyond the traditional to-do list. There are benefits to doing a to-do list, but for it to truly thrive, you’ve got to put them in some order. A schedule on a week-by-week basis is easily done and here are some tips for creating a weekly schedule template to get you ready. But what you can also do is compartmentalize based on subjects, these would include things like:
- Bank payments.
- Bills.
- Health, like doctor’s visits and check-ups.
- Correspondence.
- Vacation ideas.
Having everything in a sub-compartment may seem overwhelming, but getting into the habit of checking all of these folders, either on your computer or on your phone, can keep you ahead of the game.
Have a Great Morning Routine
Stress in the mornings is one of those things that set you up for the day in the wrong ways! Many children cannot stick to a morning routine but it’s so important to get the children into habits, and you can begin by asking them to tell you everything they need to do from the time they wake up until they leave the house. These would include things like:
- Waking up and having time to come around.
- Using the bathroom and brushing teeth and hair.
- Getting everything together.
- Getting out the door.
These are things that will work with older children; with younger kids, you have more power to get everything organized. With each task, the important thing is to have an idea of how long it takes to do each. Once you know how much time it takes, you can determine a proper wake-up time for the kids and you!
Wake Up Before Everyone Else
One of the biggest secrets to being an organized parent is to wake up before your children. It’s not easy, but when you start to notice the benefits, you will be able to cope better. If you have already started the night before when it comes to preparing your child’s lunches and getting everything ready, you’ve got a bit more time to get yourself in the right frame of mind. Because once mid-morning hits and we’re feeling sluggish and ready to give in, this is partly because we’ve not set ourselves up for the day properly. This is the perfect opportunity for you to do the things that you want, whether it’s as simple as having a hot cup of coffee or you want to delve into meditating or exercising, whatever it takes this will make a massive difference.
Do Your Best to Be Tidy
Some people love the idea of cleaning a house from top to bottom because it’s the only way to get it sparkly, but when there’s no time you’ve got to get into the compartmentalized mindset. You can gradually wipe things down as you go to make life easier, but there are also a couple of things that you could benefit from to keep your home tidy:
- Teaching your children chores. Even them wiping down a surface after they’ve used it is such a little thing that it can help everybody.
- Put things back after you’ve used them. If you’re in a hurry to do things, you can always benefit from putting things back to where they were. For example, putting something like a pair of scissors back in a drawer will make life easier if you need to find them in a hurry. It can take getting used to but we have to remember that habits take at least three months to form.
Asking for Help
The fact is that if you are feeling stressed, help is key to sorting out your health and your sanity. It can be overwhelming at times, especially if you see other parents seemingly in control of everything, but this means you can also get yourself organized so you are winning at parenting and in life!
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