There never feels like there is enough time in the day, does there? We have members who work full time, juggle multiple children with multiple after-school sports and activities, & other members who run businesses. In general, no matter if any of these apply to you or not, we just about guarantee, life can get overwhelming. The average American in this century is juggling much more in a day than past generations. We are trying to squeeze more into 24 hours than we ever have before. Here’s some tips and tricks to help make the insanity a bit more manageable.
1. Learn to say no. Have you been invited to 3 birthday parties from your children’s class? Also have a baseball game, a church event, and a bake sale you’re supposed to attend? Really take a step back and think, in 5 years, will anyone be upset I didn’t attend this event? How imperative is it I be there to those involved? You cannot do it all. And adding to your families stress level by doing everything will end up making all these events much less enjoyable in general if you’re trying to squeeze them all in. Prioritize. Try to keep it simple. And try to be present at these events instead of staring at the clock trying to decide when to leave to fit in something else.
2. Keep your children involved in activities, but don’t overdo it either. Sports are becoming a year round activity, and that’s okay. Keeping your child active and healthy is great. But also, be cognizant of overworking them. Signing them up for a travel team, a local club league, and their school team all at once can be daunting. Practices for one team in the afternoon, and a game for another team at night can lead to not only premature injury, or a burnt out athlete, but also a student who can’t keep up with their school work too. And again, much more added stress for you and your family.
3. Meal prep can take up a big chunk of one day, but will make the rest of your week so much smoother. Spend a single day attacking meal prep. This will be a double edged sword. Not only will you have food ready to pack for lunch every day and take stress off yourself mid-week, it typically helps you eat better as well. When you have a healthy meal ready in the fridge, you’re a lot less likely to go stop for a Frosty and Baconator.
4. Scheduling apps are a god send. There are multiple free apps like Cozi that allow you to sink schedules with your spouse and kids. You can both view changes in real time, and can share and update your calendar all the time. If you need to write in events your children have to go to, work schedules, and gym times, you can use it to make life a bit less chaotic.
5. Grocery pickup services can save you time and money. Things like ClickList can make your grocery bill smaller, and cut your grocery store time down from 1-2 hours to 5 minutes. Kroger’s app also saves your most purchased items so it’s much quicker to shop. And if you’re like me, if you go to the store when you’re hungry, you’re a lot more likely to grab several items you didn’t even need, and Clicklist will eliminate that.
6. Try to lay out your clothes for the following day, including your gym clothes. Night time tends to be a little less hectic, and having that all ready to go for the following day will save you a bit of stress the following day.
Have anymore tips we missed? Comment on our FB post to help your fellow members out.
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