Hello all you beautiful, busy Mamas out there!
And yes, if you are a mama, we know you are busy. Between cooking, cleaning, working, tending to your child’s every need, and trying to maintain any sort of personal identity, a mum's life is a lot of work. It’s the best work - but it’s busy work.
Luckily, there are some things that you can do to take a little craze out of your daily life. And while planning and organising might not seem like it would make a big difference, let us assure you, it does.
Why do you want to be an organised mum?
When you’re organised, life just feels less chaotic. But it’s not just in your head!
Research has actually shown that planning and organisation can drastically reduce your stress by lowering your cortisol levels (your stress hormone).
How?
Have you ever walked into a cluttered room and instantly felt stressed out? Clutter is stressful! And whether that clutter is on your tables and floors, or in your mind - it’s causing you stress that you may not even be aware of.
Planning and organisation provides that stress a relief. It gets all of the clutter out of your mind and onto paper, giving your mind space to relax and do other things.
Of course, once your stress levels are lowered, being organised also leads to many other benefits. Improved sleep, improved productivity, improved relationships, and even healthier diets all come from planning and organisation.
So where do you start?
Here are 7 ways to start organising your life:
WRITE IT DOWN
Have an appointment? Write it down. Have a to do list? Write it down. Grocery list? Write it down. Meal planning? Write it down.
We love lists! Order your personalised list book now for £4.99 here.
Lists help you to put your thoughts on paper so that they aren’t so scattered in your brain.
Start by making a list of everything you need to do, and then prioritising it. Not only will this help you to remember everything, but it will help you to focus on the things that need to be done throughout the day.
We suggest keeping a planner or notebook handy at all times, where you can write down anything that comes to mind as it does.
Order your personalised notebook here
Check it off
Making lists can help you to prioritise but if you don’t have a feeling of accomplishment at the end of the day, you might not be motivated to continue doing it.
Checking it off gives you that feeling of accomplishment. Each time you successfully complete something off your list, check it off. You will be shocked how good it feels to put a simple checkmark beside a task.
Find a Family Calendar that You Like - and use it.
A family calendar is a calendar that you share between all of your family members. Depending on your personal preferences, you can use a physical calendar, or there are plenty of family sharing apps out there that will allow you to share calendars between you.
Your family calendar is a way to share your schedule with other members of the family. It makes it less likely for you to miss appointments, birthday parties, events, or other plans. It also makes scheduling a lot easier among family members. If mom has a dentist appointment on Tuesday at 5pm, everyone else knows that she’s not available to drive them to a friend's house ‘Plan with Poppy’ can help you to organise your plans, and your family organise theirs as well. A family organiser like no other. Complete with a FREE summer holidays pull-out planner poster.
Order you family calendar here.
Delegate Tasks
Feeling overwhelmed with the to-do list you’ve made? You don't have to do it all alone.
Mum's place a huge load on themselves every day. Wash the floors, do the washing, cook, do the dishes - our to-do list goes on and on. But in taking on all of the household duties ourselves, we often forget that our family is a team. And that means we help each other out.
It’s okay to delegate tasks. You don’t have to do it all alone. Create a list of chores that need to be done each week, and then delegate to other members of the family. Create a rule. The internet password only gets given out once chores are complete. You’ll be shocked how motivating this can be to older children and teenagers!
Order your weekly cleaning pad here, complete with a family chores section to be sure the whole family are working together. Order your 'Busy Cleaning' pad here. Don’t hold onto Mum guilt for delegating - you're allowed to strive for “you” time too.
Make the time for Meal Planning
Meal planning may seem like extra work - and perhaps it is. But we promise you, the extra 30 minutes that it takes at the beginning of the week will save you a lot of time and stress throughout the week.
Not only will meal planning save you time, but it can also save you from overspending every time you nip to the shop, this will also reduce the amount of food waste in your home. Research has proven you’re also more likely to make healthier food choices when you meal plan!
Order your family meal planner & weekly organiser here.
Declutter your home
Clutter = Chaos. If you walk into a cluttered home after a long day of work, you will instantly feel stressed out. Even if you’re a stay at home Mum, staying at home in a mess of clutter will wreak havoc on your day.
Plus, the less stuff you have laying around the house, the less stuff there is to tidy up, and the less work there is for a busy mama.
So it’s time to declutter.
Get rid of clothes you haven’t worn in over a year, throw away toys your kids no longer use, use bins to organise your storage spaces.
Declutter your house = declutter your mind.
Download our FREE 30 Day Declutter Challenge here & start planning for a clearer, stress-free home.
Make some time for YOU
Finally, don’t forget to make some time for you. If YOU aren’t happy, if YOU aren’t healthy, if YOU aren’t destressed, then you won’t be able to care for others around you.
It’s normal for us Mums to feel the “Mum guilt” whenever we do something for ourselves, but it’s important that we do. A healthy Mum = a healthy family.
So, schedule some ‘you’ time into your planner too! Busy mums deserve it!
Download our FREE ‘Self Care’ menu here & create your own personal menu, which you can select from each evening. Whether it’s a ten minute meditation or a long soak in the bath, make this a priority Mama.
YOU GOT THIS MAMA
