Give me tips on making life easier!

[eldadeedlit]

hi all,

i have a lot on my plate. 3 kids, solely responsible for housework, school and working from home. i am feeling really overwhelmed and have been avoiding my responsibilities. : help me out here. give me some ideas for simplifying and streamlining chores and such--dishes, picking up, making dinner, laundry. i need help with everything. and i'm desperate! my house is perpetually a wreck, i am not getting my hw done or getting the books sent out on time (i sell books online,) and i have a myriad of other things that need to be done (clean the basement, bring stuff to goodwill and the library to donate, get the old cars up on craigslist to sell, etc.)

so pleeeeeeeeeeease! give me tips.

[p.s]

How are you spending your discretionary time?

[Starr]

Maybe just to get you off to start and on track, is it possible to hire someone to come in just this once to clean your house and help out with laundry? I know there are times when I am under so much work that its worth me paying someone else.

Get your kids involved as much as possible. Also for food think quick and easy stuff they can grab and eat like fruit and nuts.

Remember not to get stressed and worried thinking about stuff you can't control.

Get up an hour earlier in the morning. Make a list while the kids are asleep of things you need to get done that day. Also is a good time to do some housework or start laundry.

Remember nothing needs to be perfect.

Turn off the Tv and get off the computer for entertainment, thay can fill hours worth when other stuff could be getting done.

Do you have a work area in your house that you work from? Clear it of all distractions and get it uncluttered and organized. This will help you stay focused on work only.

Can you hire a teenager or babysitter, somone who you could point out areas of things that need to go to goodwill and they can box it up and drop it off for you? Also I know here there are two girls who you can hire to organize any room in your house and they are great.

At night before the kids go to bed set the timer for 15 minutes and have them pick up as much stuff as they can.

If your really strapped for time go and buy paper plates and cups. Get the cheap ones and only use them when you have no time for dishes or are eating in a hurry.

[oldgirl,newtricks]

When I felt this way, I began with Flylady.net. I really don't know how to explain it, but with her system I was finally able to manage my life instead of it managing me. You might find it helpful.

[srain]

a) Get more help from your husband
b) Make a list of seven healthy, easy-to-make dinners and plan one for each day of the week. Keep the same menu for the next week until you're feeling less overwhelmed. I rarely hear little kids complaining about having the same foods too often, and if any adults complain, they can start cooking.
c) Pretend the non-urgent stuff (like cleaning the basement) does not exist until you are less stressed.
d) Your 4-year-old is capable of doing quite a lot, and your 2-year-old can do some things like setting and clearing the table. (Yes, it will take them forever, but you can be working on something else while they do it!)

[aiccerb]

:

[Earthy Mama]

Consolidate all your errands to one weekly trip. Grocery, recycling, post office, library, etc. This will save you time and gas money!

Make sure clothing (for you and kids) down to socks and shoes is picked out the night before. Prepare breakfast the night before. NEVER go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink! I've started doing that and it is so refreshing in the morning to wake up to a clean sink!

[SuperMama]

[crl]

Really minor, but it helps me. Limit yourself and your kids to two kinds of socks. Go through the house and throw out all old socks. Buy two colors for everyone (mine are white and charcoal grey). Buy lots and lots of them. Never actually match socks up in pairs. Just sort the two colors into stacks and throw them in the drawer.

[Rebecca]

Originally Posted by crl

Really minor, but it helps me. Limit yourself and your kids to two kinds of socks. Go through the house and throw out all old socks. Buy two colors for everyone (mine are white and charcoal grey). Buy lots and lots of them. Never actually match socks up in pairs. Just sort the two colors into stacks and throw them in the drawer.

\

I do this too. Brown and navy smartwool for me, black cotton and a different blue for dh, and white athletic socks and tiny blue smartwool for the 2 boys. They wear the same size right now so I just keep one big basket full of unmatched socks for them to help themselves to.

I get most of my housework done during the boys rest time after lunch. They watch a movie on the couch while I clean up. I ask them to pick up their toys (or I threaten to throw them into the garage). I study at night when the kids are in bed. I can't get anything that requires concentration done when they're awake.

Sometimes I have a mother's helper/sitter come play with teh kids so I can run all those errands. Getting them strapped in and out of the car is a huge pain when you have tons of otherwise quick errands.

[velochic]

Originally Posted by crl

Really minor, but it helps me. Limit yourself and your kids to two kinds of socks. Go through the house and throw out all old socks. Buy two colors for everyone (mine are white and charcoal grey). Buy lots and lots of them. Never actually match socks up in pairs. Just sort the two colors into stacks and throw them in the drawer.

If you only have two colors, how do you match you socks to your clothes? Do you just say, "Oh well, I'll wear red socks with my black pants"?

[SonomaMom]

I'd sign up with http://www.flylady.com if I were you. She's helped me keep my house (and life) in relative order for about two years now. Give her a try. She has a lot of great tips to help.

My favorite tip of hers is to set a timer. Say, for instance, your family room is a total wreck, set a timer for 15 minutes and just clean up as much as you can in that time period. Don't get nit-picky about it, just get the big stuff cleaned up. It is really amazing what you can get done in 15 minutes!

She's also really big on routines. Like when you get up in the morning, she advises making the bed, showering, getting dressed down to your shoes, a quick wipe of the toilet and sink, and putting a load of laundry in. I know it's a lot to ask when you have little kids, but if I can get that done everyday by noon, I feel ahead of the game.

[kathymuggle]

Physically tie commonly misplaced itmes to things.
Ex - I have tied the hair brush to the bathroom sink
I have tied a pen to near the phone

Try to work with your naturally alert times. Ex: I now do all the dishes before we eat supper - because if I do them all, plus the dinner plates ect after supper - I become too tired and overwhelmed. The task is much easier for me to do earlier in the day.

The biggest help in the last year or so has been decluttering - less to clean!

Good luck!

[Sugar Magnolia]

One of the things that helps me the most is our front door set up.

We have a coat tree thing with low hooks. The kids can put their coats away and get them when we need to leave the house.
Next to that is a basket with all the mittens, hats, scarfs, and other outerwear. I also keep most of my slings in there. When dd is fussing, I always know where to find a sling.
We also have a bench (it used to be dh's old toy box and I refinished it) that we keep shoes in.

I used to hate getting ready to go anywhere because I could never find hats or shoes. But now everything is together.

Also we have a bowl for keeping our keys, wallets, glasses, cell phones, and change in. It used to be right in our entrance area, but dd gets into it, so we keep it up high for now. I always know where my keys are now. Dh even puts his belt in our bowl (he is always losing it).

I really like the sock idea. I might have to start doing that for us.

[crl]

Originally Posted by velochic

If you only have two colors, how do you match you socks to your clothes? Do you just say, "Oh well, I'll wear red socks with my black pants"?

Well, I have white so that works for all the "althetic" shoes like tennis shoes and hiking shoes and I have charcoal grey so that works for all the black shoes. I do own red shoes but they are sandals (no socks) or dress shoes (hose) so I don't need socks for those. I like socks that go with the shoes more than trying to match the pants.

For my kiddo I did have red socks as one of his colors for a long time as he has had either red keds or red and white checked vans quite often. DH refuses to participate in this scheme and I refuse to match up his socks.

[Demeter9]

I do the same thing socks. My girls have only one type of sock (white). They do have two other pairs that aren't, but that is it.

I have two types of socks (black and white), and maybe two other sets.

My husband has a set of dress socks, and then woolies and regular day socks.

They all just go into one drawer/section of that person's dresser.

[2swangirls]

I don’t fold PJ’s or under wear, no one sees them any way. I also get more done with a radio on.

[2swangirls]

I for got to say Keep your washer going even if you don’t have the time to sit there and fold every thing. I can fold and put away 4 or 5 loads so fast, it’s the washing that takes for ever. It helps me keep going and get more done.