How do people manage?? Tips please!

amother

Wed, Jan 20 2021, 10:56 am

I just had my second (my first is a 2year old) and its so challenging juggling between both of them. In the morning theres feeding them both getting them both dressed preparing their bags and getting them out. In the afternoon theres supper and baths and bedtime.... How do people manage??

How early do you get up in the morning?
How do you get out in the morning more efficiently?
How do you do supper?
How do you keep the house clean if you both work or are out of the house most of the day? A cleaning lady will work for one day but what about the other days of the week?

Please I need tips and ideas!!!
It was so exhausting last night and this morning

amother

Pumpkin

Wed, Jan 20 2021, 11:13 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

1. Sit down with your husband and make a daily schedule.
- what time each of you have to wake up to be out in time. I suggest trying to get dressed, makeup and eating breakfast before the kids wake up if possible
-have the kids clothing and bags prepared the night before so as soon as you wake them you dont waste time trying to decide what they should wear and if your husband is around to help then he can just take the prepared clothing to dress them.
- give breakfast
- take bags prepared night before and get ready to leave
-when you come home- get settled and start preparing dinner. Weekly menus are a lifesaver- saved a lot of time daily in planning and you dont have to make a stop in the grocery on the way home.
- give dinner to the kid(s) earlier than you and hub
- bath time- ask husband if he would help with either bathing or dressing the kids- may not sound very manly but you’d be surprised that he may be ok with it and wants you to manage
- once kids are in bed clean up kitchen, dishes and sweep.
- your husband can help with that too or with straightening up the house and packing away the toys
- at night- prepare clothing for next day, baby bags, snacks, and take out stuff from freezer if necessary
2. Plan a weekly schedule
- make a weekly menu, its good to have all recipes compiled in one place to easily refer to. And menus are great you can reuse them every few weeks
- make a big grocery/butcher order sunday
- cook a big pot of soup sunday to have for the rest of the week/ to put in freezer and alternate between other soups you have. I find soup is already half a supper and its easier to do the rest.
- have a cleaning lady at least once a week, if you can- twice a week is great so you dont feel like the mess is piling up. And you can have a schedule for that which days she changes linen, washes out the fridge...
- plan a laundry day- you dont have to wash and fold same day you can do each one night apart if same night doesnt work for you
-do your shabbos menu/ grocery list Wednesday night so you can get your order done Thursday asap.
Schedule a date night once a month to review your schedule with your husband to see how its going and what needs to be adjusted.
We alternate between a date night and a day date every other month and then run through the list and have a nice time. Its important to spend time together because mom life can burn you out.
Good luck 😘

amother

Amber

Wed, Jan 20 2021, 11:16 am

Whoa!! Not Easy But doable!!
Some say that this stage is the hardest one in life (can't say from experience because haven't experienced all stages in life;)
SO hang in there... just gonna get easier:)

My supper rule is 20 min max prep. Whatever I make I make in huge quantity so that I can freeze. (Think soup, pasta--cook the whole bag and divide in portion, rice, meats, kugels, sauted veggies... you name it)

Going to sleep early and waking up early--works best for me! I have so much more energy like tha tin the morning...

One more thing OP--YOu'll ask when you can squeeze it in but self-care is extremely important during this stage in life! You'll feel like a different person after taking time for yourself. NOthing major and nothing too time time-consuming. A few minutes a day to take a hot shower/bath, do your nails, take a walk with a friend, listen to music...