My mom called me today and asked me if I was okay because it’s been a week since I’ve written a post.
I didn’t realize it’s been a week!
I’ve got a lot of plates spinning right now.
I’ve been working on getting the final details for Not Your Average Weekend worked out (March 2-4, 2018 — save the date!!!) and I’m working on a couple of other things.
So I’ve been devoting blogging time to some other stuff.
But really quickly, I want to share something that’s been making my life much more manageable on school days.
You know how there are things you know you could be doing that would make your life way easier, but you just don’t do them?
Two of those for me are cutting myself off from work stuff at 2:30, making sure I’m showered and dressed before the kids get home from school rather than staying in sweaty workout clothes and showering after the older kids get home, and not unpacking lunch boxes immediately after the kids walk in the door.
When I don’t do those three things, my afternoon and the following morning are way more stressful than they need to be.
Last week, on every day except for one, I did all those things.
- I stopped working/whatever by 2:30 in order to be available for the kids when they got home.
- I was showered and in my coaching clothes by 2:00
- As soon as the kids got home from school, we emptied out the lunch boxes and packed them right up for the following day.
Doing this didn’t eliminate other issues like meltdowns over homework and clothes.
But being present and less distracted allows me to give the kids more undivided attention which results in fewer meltdowns and arguments and frantic sprints down the front walkway to the bus.
And when I take care of the lunches right away, (rather than leaving them in the backpacks from Friday afternoon until Sunday night like I did last week) I don’t end up with a lunchbox that, according to Number 7, “smells like wine.”
If your afternoons and/or your mornings suck and are super chaotic, look for the things you are doing that add stress the routine. And them get rid of them.
I think you’ll notice a big difference.
Look cute while you manage the chaos. Click here.
I agree and taking time to think about how things can run more smoothly can have a big impact on stress levels. Another suggestion is to have a healthy snack waiting when the kids get home, a soup that would normally be the first course for dinner, a salad or even some crackers with hommus.