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7 Practical Organization Tips For A New Mom

You might have once been the most organized “got it all together” gal in your group, but that was BC (before children), but now you’ve got your own private group of small people and not a moment to yourself.

Before I begin I just want to remind you that there’s hope at the end of the tunnel. Kids grow up quickly – and before you know if they’ll be old enough to do some of those pesky chores by themselves, they’ll want to spend more time with their friends than with you, and you might even find yourself missing them when you finally get to use the bathroom alone.

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Motherhood can be overwhelming, and even all the more so when you see just how much many of your friends (and all those other masterly organized moms over on Pinterest) have things held together so well.

I get you. I’ve been there too. My home looked like a wreck all the time, I was tired all the time….

It took time, but finally, I became one of those organized moms, and you can too!

1. Be An Early Bird

This is one of the biggest secrets to being an organized mom and having your day run smoothly:

There you go, it’s actually quite simple. Well, maybe not in the beginning, but I promise you’ll get used to it. You have to be consistent but once you start noticing the benefits of doing this it will become easier. Set your alarm for a half an hour before the rest of your family wakes up (or an hour if you can) and use the time to prepare yourself for the day – meditate, exercise, drink a nice warm cup of coffee, take a leisurely shower and get dressed, start preparing lunch or dinner. Try this.

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You won’t believe the difference it makes. Mornings run so much smoother when you’re already up and dressed and have had some time to yourself. Just don’t forget that if you’re waking up earlier you should also go to bed earlier, you need your rest.

2. Start A Morning Routine

One of the most common complaints of busy moms is about chaotic mornings. It takes a little planning but you can conquer the morning monster quite easily. Get the kids into the habit of a specific morning routine.

Sit down with each child separately. All you need is a piece of paper and a pencil and go….

Ask them to tell you everything they need to do in the morning from the time they wake up until the time they leave the house. Write it all down. It might look something like this:

  • Wake up

  • Use the bathroom

  • Have breakfast

  • Wash face and brush teeth

  • Get dressed

  • Brush hair

  • Get my things together

  • Go to the door

Now, ask them how long they need for each task on their list, for example:

  • Wake up (5 mins)

  • Use the bathroom (5 mins)

  • Have breakfast (15 mins)

  • Wash face and brush teeth (10 mins)

  • Get dressed (5 mins)

  • Brush hair (10 mins)

  • Get my things together (5 mins)

  • Wait at the door to leave

In this case, 55 minutes are needed from the time of waking up until leaving the house.

Subtract 55 minutes from the time of leaving the house. If you usually leave at 8am, this child will wake up at 7:05am.

Kids love this idea, they get to decide what time they wake up, and in what order they do their mornings tasks. You are just there to guide them.

Once their morning timetable is ready, type it out for them and hang it somewhere where they will see it in the morning when they wake up. In the beginning, refer them to the schedule but once it becomes a habit they won’t need to look at the chart anymore.

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Another idea for a smoother morning and day is to have a typed out checklist which they can check before going to the door. You can even add “checklist” to their morning list. This is a list of everything they need to take to school with them, these are examples of a few things that would go on this list:

  • Library book

  • Money

  • Sports equipment

  • Change of clothes

  • Homework

Your mornings are about to get better!

3. Keep Tidy And Clean

Teach your kids to do chores, it may take time to get them used to helping out but in the long run it will help them and you.

Be tidy – when you’re in a hurry to get things done it seems that putting away the scissors or washing the dishes will just make things take longer, and that is true for the moment you are in, but in these cases it’s best not to live only for that moment. Think about the next time you’ll need those scissors or tomorrow morning when you have to use the kitchen – do you really want to start washing the dishes when you are on a tight schedule? Is it worth saving those few seconds now by not putting the scissors back, when you’ll be looking for them for ages next time you need to use them? Make a habit of putting things back immediately after you use them and tidying the kitchen as you go along.

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Tell yourself that it is something that you HAVE to do right at that moment. It may take some getting used to but after a while it will become second nature to you and you’ll have saved yourself much time and hassle. This is another one of the most important secrets of organized moms.

If possible keep duplicates of things in different rooms in the house – for example, keep a pair of reading glasses in your bedroom and another in the kitchen.

If your home is always cluttered with your children’s stuff, toys, books, homework everywhere, get a “Last Chance Basket”. At the end of every day put all their things you find over the house into the “Last Chance Basket” and let them know that if the basket is not emptied on a certain day (have two days a week when the basket is emptied) anything in it will be thrown out or given to charity. The rest is up to them….

4. Use A Calendar

Use a specially designated e-calendar for home and family events. Synchronize this calendar with all family members to make your life easier.

Besides adding events, appointments, classes, meetings, etc. it’s also helpful to add things like the date your library books are due to be returned, service dates, dates you started to use new products (which might require being renewed), and more.

5. Plan food

There’s nothing more exasperating and time wasting than not having a meal plan. If you know what each member of the family enjoys eating it can be easy to prepare an organized list. If not, ask them. Sit with each of them and make a list together or give them a list of meal options and ask them to mark the meals they would like to see on your master list. This may take some time but the benefit of having a master list that all family members contributed to outweigh this small inconvenience.

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This a no brainer. The first few weeks home with the baby can be tiring. The last thing you'll have time for is cooking meals.

Pick a weekend before your baby is due and make freezer meals to last at least a couple of weeks after the baby is born. 

6. Lists And Plans

List are great, but they can also overwhelm one. I’ve come to realize that having a conventional to-do list will not make you an organized mom, in fact, it can even be detrimental.

There are many ways to keep your lists together but I won’t go into them because I believe this is purely individual. Check out the different apps available, use a notebook or even scraps of paper, see what works for you and use it.

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Talking of lists, during the day when you’re out and about and you remember something you need for home either send yourself a quick email or a WhatsApp message (these are convenient because you can record yourself talking) and add to your master list when you get home.

Another good way to keep everyone organized is by having a family WhatsApp group. It may be just you and your SO, but if your kids have their own phones add them to the group. This is a good place to send reminders, e.g.: “Don’t forget dentist apt. today”.

7. Be a savvy shopper

  • Shop for holiday and birthday gifts year-round. Whenever you see a great gift for someone you love, buy it and set it aside to give later.

  • Save time and money on routine shopping trips. Buy duplicates of items like toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo, lightbulbs, and batteries when they're on sale.

  • Order diapers and wipes online – no more lugging big boxes home from the store.

  • When you see a great toy on sale, buy several and sock them away for your child to give to friends as birthday gifts throughout the year.

  • Grocery shop on the weekends. Or, if you don't want to waste precious weekend time, go to the store after the kids are in bed. You'll whiz through the store with much less frustration because you're not also feeling the pressure to get dinner on the table and everyone into bed on time

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It can be overwhelming at times, especially when you see how other moms (at school or especially on the internet) are rocking this organized mom thing. The fact that you’re looking for ways to become an organized mom shows that soon you’ll be one too!


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