Calling all moms!
This post is intended to gain wisdom & advice from other moms out there regarding how to take care of a baby while maintaining a clean home, getting sufficient sleep & keeping your husband happy. :-)
So Oaklee's been in the world for 7 weeks now, and I just did my first massive house cleaning over the weekend ONLY because we had company coming. (which is a great motivation to clean, by the way). My problem before the massive house cleaning: piles everywhere, forgetting to pay bills, a perpetually messy kitchen, a never-ending load of laundry, exhaustion, a baby who is depending on me to keep her alive (which is a total joy, not a burden, but just takes a LOT of my time away from doing those other things) & a husband who deserves a good meal when he comes home from work. So, fellow moms..... what is the secret of being a stay-at-home mom? How do you manage your time? What are some simple tips or tricks you've learned to keep you sane & to keep your house clean day to day? I would love to know. Please share the wealth.
So Oaklee's been in the world for 7 weeks now, and I just did my first massive house cleaning over the weekend ONLY because we had company coming. (which is a great motivation to clean, by the way). My problem before the massive house cleaning: piles everywhere, forgetting to pay bills, a perpetually messy kitchen, a never-ending load of laundry, exhaustion, a baby who is depending on me to keep her alive (which is a total joy, not a burden, but just takes a LOT of my time away from doing those other things) & a husband who deserves a good meal when he comes home from work. So, fellow moms..... what is the secret of being a stay-at-home mom? How do you manage your time? What are some simple tips or tricks you've learned to keep you sane & to keep your house clean day to day? I would love to know. Please share the wealth.
posted by Cindy Lofton @ 10:33 AM
16 Comments:
At 11:25 AM,
Lindsey said…
I don't have it figured out, but what works for me is spending 30 minutes-1 hour everyday cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry. I usually spend one hour during his nap time doing these things. I have started preparing dinner (as much as possible) during nap time so that I can just throw it together at dinner time. Doing a little each day helps me to not be overwhelmed (which can still happen from time to time). Patrick and I also do a "sweep" through the house before we go to sleep to put things away (it takes 5 minutes). It's really hard juggling it all. You will get better at it! What is most important is taking care of Jason and Oaklee and you are amazing at that!
At 3:38 PM,
Allison Nelson said…
This is kind of the same as Lindsey's comment. I have a list of a chore or two that needs to be done each day and I do it during their naps or if it is something quick like emptying trash cans I can do that while they are eating or playing. I have a weekly list and a biweekly list, so usually every other week is a little more detailed cleaning than the week prior. I pick easier things to make now too, but I do try to prepare before the crazy part of the day which seems to be around 5:30.
You don't have this problem yet, but we put all the toys back in their place before bedtime.
At 3:51 PM,
Sarah said…
I've had to accept that it's never clean and tidy.
Welcome to motherhood.
At 6:51 PM,
Hillary said…
CINDY!!! Hey!! It's been a long time since I've seen you! I found your blog through Katie's! Oaklee is soooooo adorable! Congrats!!!
At 9:45 PM,
Amy said…
One of the biggest things that helped me when D-Man was young was menu planning for the entire week. That way I knew that if I was going to have 2 chicken dishes that week that required boiled chicken, I would boil for both meals at the same time (just an example). On weekends when Andy was home, I also often made meals and froze them. As for housecleaning, just faced it as it came. I did have someone come and clean the entire house every other week (a total treat for me) and that really helped me keep a handle on things.
At 9:39 AM,
Linds said…
Cindy,
(Obviously) I am not a mom, but i do have a full time job, which takes up most of my day time and prohibits me from cooking meals at night (I guess I could cook at night, but eating at 8pm is not our thing). So I set aside Sundays as my "cooking" days, and make about 3 large pots of soups or stews. It takes about 2.5 hours, but then I have 6 tubs of soup I can freeze, and take out the day before we eat. Then all you have to do is nuke it in the microwave 15 minutes before your man gets home from work, which is much more manageable with a baby (and I don't know about Oaklee, but a lot of the kiddos I sit for LOVE the microwave noise, which would be a bonus).
At 1:02 PM,
Polly said…
i definitely, totally do not have a baby, but my sister does- in fact she now has two! she has cards kinda like someone else said that are labeled with the day of the week and on each card is one or two chores for that day lone. like monday: vacuum the house and clean guest bathroom. tuesday: sweep and mop kitchen. wednesday: dust, 1 load laundry. etc. i also plan my meals for the whole week. i like pretty simple and quick meals- my sister and i have a blog that we post our recipes on. it's linked from my blog site under 'recipes and more'. there are always some simple, healthy, and quick meals on that site that we have made and deemed worthy so if you want some ideas from there you can always check it out. the meals take 30 min or 45 min or1 hr max to make. i usually make double portions so we have lunches or left over for the whole week. i am sure you'll get it figured out!!
At 1:41 PM,
Cindy Lofton said…
thank you, everyone! this is very, very helpful!!if any of you would like to come to de queen and help get me started, that would be even better. :-)
At 2:20 PM,
Anonymous said…
Cindy, I would agree with all these great suggestions. I think life is full of many responsibilities and learning to get each done the best that we are able is a lifelong process. I also want to encourage you that while your desire to get everything accomplished is wonderful, remember that your identity is not based on whether you get it all accomplished or not. No one will love you less if the meal is not hot when your man comes home. Take things one step at a time and enjoy being a mom! Love you girl. -Katrina-
At 3:21 PM,
mbl said…
Cindy-I try to "maintain" by doing one major thing per day. Monday is laundry day. Tuesday is fun day (we go to playgroup). Wednesday is bills/paper work. Thursday is grocery shopping and errands. Friday is cleaning. Saturday is fun if Nate's not on call, or catch up if he is! Melissa and I have both read FlyLady and that helped some what. I've also started to appreciate the choas knowing that oneday it will fade away.
At 6:33 PM,
Sonya said…
Hahahahahahaha... :)
I really have no good advice to give. I still scramble everyday. A couple of things I do that make it a little easier include paying as many bills as I can online through checkfree.com. They send you a notice through e-mail when a bill is due and you simply click to pay. It has cut down a lot on the paper bills. For those that aren't offered on the site, I pay bills one night a week and pay ahead as much as possible. This limits a lot of the forgetting since I just go ahead and pay it before the due date. Also, I try to find meals that could be pre-made and frozen and try to find time to make batches of things. It always helps, too, to have a husband that takes responsibility in cleaning, cooking, or watching the kiddos while you try to catch up around the house. A sweep through the house every night does help prevent the major pile ups, but piles do still manage to accumulate. A more intense weekend cleaning once a month helps as well.
At 4:52 PM,
Anonymous said…
HEY! Wow. What a question. Make me want to open a blog so people can help me with ALL of mine! Maybe I will just submit them to you and you can ask them for me : ) Anyways I would have to agree with lots of your lovely friends...
1) Make a menu every week (helps with grocery trips too!)
2) Defrost AHEAD of time (like puts things in the 'fridge 24 hours in advance)
3) SOUPS, SOUPS, SOUPS
4) Pre-made Rotisserie (sp?) chickens made at the store makes 3 meals! 1) with veggie 2) on salads 3) in soups. Then you can save the carcass to make a broth!
5) If you have any extra time (yeah right) make meals in advance and freeze them
6)Sweep the house to "straighten" before going to bed; "clean" on weekends when you have help.
7) Pray that the Lord gives you peace so that you don't feel overwhelmed with all of the pressure you put on yourself. Give yourself a break!!!
That's it...that's all I got. Love you girl! (I am lovin' oaklee too!)
At 4:53 PM,
Anonymous said…
sorry that last one was from me...i don't know how to attach my name! I am such a loser...
-Leah-
At 10:32 PM,
sillysmiths said…
Great question and it appears that you have some very wise friends!!
A wise woman once told me to give yourself at least 6 months with each child to get the hang of things. Keep your expectations really low during this time and learn one day at a time. That being said, I agree with the meal planning suggestion. Meal planning makes my life tons easier. It seems like my organizational skills are continually being perfected in this role as mom. If I can stay one step ahead of my kids then it makes my day and life easier. When the babe starts sleeping through the night I would recommend getting up a little before her each morning and spending time with the Lord to help you get started on the right foot. I know that is a no brain-er but I thought it worth being said. I would also recommend a book called Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley--The Flylady. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book. It is so worth your time to read. Finally, I will leave you with some advice that my dear husband shared with me when we were first married. I was upset because I didn't feel like I would ever be as good of a wife as one of our friend's moms and he said, "Missy, before she was Mrs. so-and-so, she was Cindy. It has taken her time to become Mrs. so-and-so, and you are seeing her after many years of practice." This encouraged my heart greatly!
At 4:40 PM,
Anonymous said…
We got a Maid.
At 5:12 PM,
Katie said…
Cindy-
As Chris mentioned, we got a maid 2 times a month:). Even the proverbs 31 woman had help! This allows us to have better quality time with each other during the weekends. I try to wake up 30 minutes to an hour before Paige wakes up and put a load of laundry in, set out whatever we will be having for dinner, set out water around the house and snacks:), and get myself ready for the day. Your main job is to love and care for Oaklee so if the other things don't get done, it's not a big deal. I am very proud of you and think you are an amazing wife and mother! I know that when you get to heaven God will say, Well done good and faithful servant!
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