Mom life is stressful in any circumstances, however, stay-at-home mom life has its own unique challenges. The part of mom life that I struggle with most is scheduling. As any mom knows, kids run on their own agenda and their own time. So trying to schedule the unschedulable life of a baby feels impossible. It’s hard to look at a day in any other capacity than wake windows and nap times when that is the easiest way to navigate your child’s time. My advice? Roll with it. Lean into what works and make it even better. While some things have set times and dates and need to be followed, like a dr. appt. for example, most things in the stay-at-home mom world are flexible. Flexibility can be great as long as the daily requirements are met. The best way I have found to accomplish the most I can and still have fun times with my son is to always finish these FOUR things every night!
- Have 3 clean bottles
- Changing station stocked and ready
- Devices plugged in, if necessary
- List of must do’s and want to do’s
Having these four things finished every night before bed helps me feel not only accomplished for the day, but prepared for the next. I am sure you’re wondering why 3 bottles… like why so specific??? But this is very dependent on your child and their age. I always have at least 3 bottles ready because my son drinks a bottle around 4am and a bottle around 6am. Though this is only two bottles, the third is a lazy mom buffer. Some nights I need an extra to comfort him. Some nights that we get little sleep, I don’t feel like cleaning one before the first nap, so I need a bottle ready for the 9am feed. So, 3 bottles are necessary for us. If I am feeling extra energized, I have more than that, but 3 is the minimum.
Baby changing stations say a lot about the amount of time and energy you have at the moment. Having it stocked every night dismisses a lot of potential issues like not having a wipe, diaper, or diaper cream within reach. These situations become increasingly more challenging as your baby starts to willing and wrestle their way around. Our changing table is pretty standard, but our concrete floor is not very forgiving, so keeping our table stocked is essential in order to avoid the ‘halfway on diaper and run’ situation! It’s absolutely hilarious after it happens, but in the moment it’s total chaos and repeating “please don’t pee on me” until the diaper is finally on… about 10 min later.
Third item on the checklist is plugging in devices. This one is not always a habit for me. I am terrible at remembering to plug things in. Especially if I charge the device in the middle of the day, then I don’t worry about this step. I do try to make a conscious effort to think about whether or not our electronics need a charge overnight or not. Sometimes you just need the iPad to make it through a carride or a not-so-baby-proofed visit.
Last and certainly most important, in my opinion, is to make/think of two lists. The first list is a list of must do’s. These include things like bath time, vacuuming, cooking xyz for dinner, you know the stuff you just have to do. The second list is a list of want to do’s. This list is usually more fun things like walking our dog, going to see grandma, writing a blog post, or not moving during one of our little guy’s naps. LOVE that last one! I don’t usually do this for a whole week at once because stay-at-home life is so variable. Sometimes you have the ambition, but not the energy.
As long as I have done these four things in the same day, I am winning at life! Honestly though, this is just my personal list of minimal efforts. I know at the end of the day I can get these things done and feel accomplished. Checking off a to-do just signals the serotonin! Happy mama, happy home 🙂
Not So Motherly Instincts 