How to do it right

amother

Mon, Oct 08 2007, 8:57 pm

I'm trying to figure out the best way for my toddler, baby and myself to have happy fulfilling, somewhat stress-free days.
The main thing on my mind is, how do people keep their kids entertained when they need to cook, clean, feed the baby, do other chores and feel like a normal person with a few minutes of relaxation time plus be a good mother?
I've tried a few things: Bringing toys into the kitchen while I cook etc. but my toddler is constantly on the go, always needing supervision and attention. He also acts up whenever I'm holding the baby, unless I'm sitting down and playing with him (which I cannot always do). Activities last about five minutes and then its on to the next thing. Am I supposed to just let things go, meaning allow him to just get into things, let him be a little bit bored while I get things done? Or am I supposed to give him attention all day and then do laundry, shopping, cooking, cleaning and everything else at night??
He does take a nap during the day, but most times the baby is up then, plus he's a light sleeper so I can't get too much done then either.
Also, I take them out a lot, but I cant do that every day, or is that what it takes? Afternoons are the hardest.
Any of my questions you can answer would be great and can anyone with two or more kids give me an idea of their basic schedule.
Sorry for the long post, some days it seems like I've figured out how to juggle it all and then the doubt starts all over again.

gryp

Mon, Oct 08 2007, 9:59 pm

Take one day at a time.

Make dinner while the kids are napping.

For a while I had to make dinner the night before or make double and freeze, because I didn't have a second in my day to cook. I'm more relaxed now, I don't have to be so organized about it, because kids go through stages and then grow up, crazy stressful days come to an end at one point (and then start up again later).

Get your groceries delivered.

Clean one room a day, if you can. Basic sanitary conditions, ie. the kitchen and bathroom, always comes first.
See if you can get your kids to keep the toys all in one room so you don't have to gather them all up scattered around the entire house. Even better if you can teach them to clean up a toy once they're done playing with it before they move on to the next one.