Today, most students in Canada headed back to school (with the exception of Saskatchewan and Quebec who start a week earlier). Stay at home moms and working moms are all breathing a collective sigh of relief. But wait, just when you think that life is going to get a little easier with the kids at school all day, they return with newsletters, forms to fill out, book orders, crafts, oh and that dreaded homework!
The lazy hazy days of summer are gone, moms, and now it’s time to get down to business and start off the year right with an organizational plan for the household. Websites like FlyLady.net are a great resource for all things organizational in the home but I have personally decided the site is for overachievers (and I…am not.) One of the beginner baby steps on the site is to shine your sink daily and I have failed miserably at that one!
Here are my basic tips for keeping an organized home. There’s no extravagant program to follow here (and if your sink has water spots all over it, celebrate how colorful it looks and continue on with your day!)
Prepare As Much As You Can The Night Before
- Sign forms (write cheques!!), read or re-read newsletters to make sure you’re not forgetting to bring 24 cupcakes on Monday, finish up book orders and put completed homework in the backpack before turning in for the night.
- Lay out clothes for the following morning, including socks. If your little fashionista wants to pick out her own clothes, the evening is a much better time to have clothing battles discussions. Obviously this only works up to a certain age, after that point may the force (and not MTV) be with you, moms.
- Prepare lunches the night before, if possible. If you’re like me and get icked out at refrigerated sandwiches, place all non-perishable items in the lunch kit the night before, cut up fruit/veggies and put them in storage containers, etc.
Homework and Artwork
- Countless parenting websites, magazines and authors preach having a designated homework spot in your home (the kitchen table works) and a specific homework time. There’s a reason for this. Yes, it’s good for children to have routine and responsibility but honestly? The truth is that moms need this routine too; some days we can’t remember why we walked into the kitchen in the first place.
- It’s only week 2 and I already have 1 art project on the fridge and several sheets of homework sitting on my dining room table. Having a storage spot for these items is crucial and I need to get on this asap. First, moms, it isn’t essential to keep little Madison’s 18 craft projects from September or her impeccable printing sheet where she demonstrates her mastery of the letter E. Keep pieces that summarize the work being done (for example, one letter sheet and not each alpha sheet) and for crafts keep one a month that summarizes that month (a Halloween project for October, for example)
- There’s various ideas out there for ways to store the school work and crafts that you decide to keep. One new tip I read recently caught my eye – visit your local pizza restaurant and ask for a few new pizza boxes. Have the kids decorate their own box “Elijah’s Grade 1 Box” labeled on the side, for example. They are a perfect square shape (great for scrapbooking items too, I read), close nicely, and stack great too.
Bedtime
- Establish an earlier bedtime in the last week of summer, or Christmas, vacation to get kids adjusted to the new routine. Kids ages 6-9 need on average 10 hours of sleep a night. This amount varies for each child, of course, and as parents we know what our children need.
- I turned to Facebook when debating with my husband when my 6 year old’s bedtime should be (he said 8:00, I said 8:30) and through a very unscientific survey of my mom friends determined that 8:30 seemed pretty average. It feels early, but it’s really not when you consider that some nights it takes them longer to turn off their busy brains and fall asleep. Besides, it takes a lot of energy to master the monkey bars and basic math.
So there you have it. These are all I’ve got! So far, our house isn’t too chaotic and our mornings are going pretty smoothly. Sometimes, I can even slip in a shower before having to run my 6 year old to school! Other days, it’s not until my 2 year old is having a nap. Do what works for you, and if you’re feeling anxious and the house is feeling chaotic, then it’s time to reevaluate your routine and create a new one. Not one of us is a perfect mom, and I’d be willing to bet your house is as messy as mine at this very second. It’s all about creating a routine that works for your family. And seriously, if your sink is shiny and spotless you’ve already beat me.
What about you? If you have an organizational tip to share, please do!
