Busy mums - what is your routine?

skintchick

I don;t want to criticise anyone, and as I have only one toddler and don;t work obviously it's different for me, but it seems a shame that people have their children eat separately from them. I always sit and eat with my DD, and I'm lucky that OH gets home at 6 so he can join us, but even if he is late I eat a little tea with her and then eat a dinner with OH later. I think it's really important for children to eat with their parents, rather than on their own.

as for being organised, I'm a SAHM and I prioritise my DD and we spend all day doing stuff for her and I fit housework in as and when I can, but being at home does mean that's a bit easier (although I can;t use her nap as I have to be on standby to rock her back to sleep every 20 mins or so!! Either that or have to push her round in her pram).

I know we all like a clean and tidy house, but they are only little for a short time, and I know what I'll regret on my deathbed - it won;t be not hoovering every day that's for sure!

fernliebee

I have a 28 month old and a 4 month old, and I don't work but we are out and about a lot. My priorities are kids, fun, housework. So basically essentials such as feeding and nappy changing are top priority, then groups/ games with DD/ days out/ keeping DD happy are my next priority, then housework happens once kids are in bed (and if DD2 doesn't sleep until my bedtime, then things get left tough!)

Things that I do to ensure our house isn't a bombsite ALL of the time are, I keep my living room reasonablyclutter free and everything has a place. If it doesn't, it doesn't stay in the room. This means we have one room where we can keep on top of things easily. It takes me less than 10 minutes to fully clean this room inc putting everything away, sweeping up and giving the laminate a quick wipe over each eve. All DD's toys are organised into separate boxes and she is allowed one out in this room at a time. She does all her own tidying (I help by holding the box and counting items in etc) as she knows she has to put stuff away if she wants anything else out.

As for kitchen I wipe down in the evenings and put a wash on most evenings, then hang it up to dry in the morning. We have a dishwasher but DH won't let me load it as he say's I load it wrong

I'm not a very organised person in some ways, ie I can't stick to a routine or rota, but in other ways I like everything to have it's place and like with DD's toys all sets have to stay together (Mmmmm Trofast! ) I do meal plan, and mostly shop online as it saves money and if I have a plan of what I'm cooking I get round to it earlier and things run more smoothly. I only plan meals for the week though so just decide each day which one I'm going to cook so it is flexible, I can't do structure

cobbingstones

You have all reminded me how hard it is with two little ones! :-)

I would like to say well done for all the work you do, its not the easiest job, but the most rewarding one.

WASHER

I'm a busy working Mum of two (older than the OPs though)

6.45 am I get up,dressed etc
7.00 am Empty Dishwasher, make packups, have plenty of Coffee
7.15 am wake the children, they get dressed whilst i make their breakfast.
7.30 am I get coats, bags etc by the door ready to go, and make beds if time
7.45 am leave for work
6.05 pm Back home, make dinner
7.00 pm Load Dishwasher, tidy kitchen, ensure homework is done, bags are packed for day after
7.30 pm Sit with a glass of wine, if the children need a shower, they get one (every other day)
10.00 pm Bed

I do the housework and washing at the weekends, unless I get up 15 mins earlier to do the hoovering downstairs.

I was a SAHM for 5 years until recently, I didn't realise how lucky I was to have all day to do things with the children and to do the housework. IMO, they have the easier job, talking from experience here. I have been on both sides of the fence, and being a full time working Mum is very demanding.

do_it_today!

donnaessex wrote: »

I have two under 3's too (15 months apart). Monday to Friday its like this:

05.20 Husband leaves for work
06.15 Wake up, get washed and dressed and put the kettle on, empty dishwasher
06.40 Wake the two monsters up and get their clothes out ready
07.00 Breakfast for those two, pack their bags for the day with their food, milk, snacks, comfort blankets, nappies etc
07.30 Get them dressed
08.00 Out the door to the childminders
08.30 Leave for work
17.00 Leave work
17.20 Pick children up, go home and get their dinner ready for 6pm
18.00 Dinner on table, I start preparing dinner for me and my husband and twice a week I batch cook a big meal for the kids - spag bol, chilli, chicken casserole etc
18.30 Husband comes home from work and takes kids for "run around upstairs screaming hysterically time" then bath! I get our dinner on and tidy up the house, put the washing on, hoover etc.
19.00 We all sit and read stories upstairs or play quiet games while they get their pj's on
19.30 Bedtime for them both!
19.45 Both get showered and hopefully dinner is ready by 20.30
20.45 Tidy away dishes into dishwasher and put it on ready for the morning
21.00 Sometimes sit down to watch a bit of TV!
22.30 Bedtime

Saturday and Sunday we have the day separated nicely (husband works on Saturdays too):

08.00 We all get up
09.00 Go to the park or swimming or softplay etc
12.00 Lunch
13.00 Baby naps, I do my weeks ironing (Saturday) or clean the bathroom and kitchen (Sunday)
15.00 Creative play of some sort - making cardboard box cars etc!
17.00 Dinner
19.30 bed

Its hard work having two little'uns! But I love it. I'd love love love to work 3 days a week though instead of full time.

ETA - my big tip is batch cook! I freeze them into kid sized portions and get home from work, grab a bag from the freezer, and you're nearly done. Here's my kids favourite recipes:

Their favourite food starts out with a basic tomato sauce which is as follows but changes sometimes according to what is about to go out of date in the fridge! I make this about once every 6 weeks.

(Makes about 16 toddler portions)

3 x tins of chopped tomatoes
1 x 1 litre passata
2 x finely chopped onions
3 x chopped garlic cloves
8-10 mushrooms, grated
3-4 carrots, grated
6-8 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
various herbs - rosemary, basil and oregano
half teaspoon of mild chilli powder

Use small amount of oil to fry off the onions and garlic until they start to soften. Add in the tomatoes and passata, along with the balsamic vinegar, chilli and herbs. Once bubbling, add the rest of the oil, mushrooms and carrots and cook for another 5-10 mins until everything is soft.

This is then used as the base for many dinners including spaghetti bolognaise, ham and sweetcorn pasta, tuna and tomato pasta (with one spoonful of philadelphia cheese added in at the last minute) and it can also be whizzed down to make a sauce for pizza bases.

It takes around 20-30 minutes to make a massive batch and I then leave to cool and freeze the sauce into freezer bags in individual portions. When I get home, I grab a bag out of the freezer, blitz for 60 seconds in the microwave, then pour the contents into a saucepan and reheat that way while pasta is cooking. Dinner is on the table in about 15 minutes.



Another of their favourites is chicken curry - this one makes about 8 toddler portions

4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 small carrots cut into matchsticks
2 medium apples, peeled and thinly sliced
2 chicken breasts cut into bite sized chunks
2 tbsp korma curry paste
1 tbsp mango chutney
1 tbsp tomato puree
handful of frozen peas
300 ml coconut milk
2 chicken stock cube dissolved in 300 ml boiling water

[FONT=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Verdana, helvetica]Heat the oil in pan and fry the onion and carrot for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for half a minute. Then add the apple and stir fry for 3 minutes. Add the chicken and stir fry for 4 minutes[/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif]Add the korma curry paste, mango chutney, tomato puree, frozen peas, coconut milk and chicken stock and simmer for about 10 minutes.[/FONT][/FONT]

Brilliant post and system I will try this! :T

donnaessex

skintchick wrote: »

I don;t want to criticise anyone, and as I have only one toddler and don;t work obviously it's different for me, but it seems a shame that people have their children eat separately from them. I always sit and eat with my DD, and I'm lucky that OH gets home at 6 so he can join us, but even if he is late I eat a little tea with her and then eat a dinner with OH later. I think it's really important for children to eat with their parents, rather than on their own.

I've been sitting on my hands all morning trying not to reply but I can't leave it.

My children thank you for your pity but they have a mum and dad who both have to through no choice of their own work full time to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies.

Continue to look down from your ivory towers on the poor children who don't get to see their parents through the week but please ensure you understand that what us working parents miss during the week is more than made up for in fun times during our weekends. We do eat together then.

I personally think that when they are at the table eating together that its preferable for mum to be busy too, rather than sitting with them and then rushing off to cook/clean/iron when they have free time and want some entertainment, but thats just me.

Sorry for the rant but you hit a raw nerve here (obviously) and the preachy tone of your post annoyed the hell out of me. *and breathe*

DueMarch11

donnaessex wrote: »

I've been sitting on my hands all morning trying not to reply but I can't leave it.

My children thank you for your pity but they have a mum and dad who both have to through no choice of their own work full time to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies.

Continue to look down from your ivory towers on the poor children who don't get to see their parents through the week but please ensure you understand that what us working parents miss during the week is more than made up for in fun times during our weekends. We do eat together then.

I personally think that when they are at the table eating together that its preferable for mum to be busy too, rather than sitting with them and then rushing off to cook/clean/iron when they have free time and want some entertainment, but thats just me.

Sorry for the rant but you hit a raw nerve here (obviously) and the preachy tone of your post annoyed the hell out of me. *and breathe*

Thankgod someone said something! :T

esoralle

Here Here Donnaessex! I know it's horses for courses and all that, but stay at home mum, single mum, working mum (or even working single mum's like me!!) please don't judge each other. This is not an ideal world. We all do the best we can and we make sacrafices in different ways, I have done both the stay at home mum and the working mum thing, both have their challenges. But we know what suits us and our children!

Littlemiss-lotsofdebt

Brilliant thread as I am currently on maternity leave and will be returning to work in March next year and wondered how I would fit everything in!!

I have to agree with Donnaessex, I am sure you did not mean it to come across 'preachy' Skintchick, but it was all a bit holier than though if I'm honest!! Of course, in an ideal world, we would all be SAHM doing nothing but finger painting all day and sitting down to organic home cooked food as a family, but in reality, most families have two working parents who don't get home until late and this is not possible. My OH works from 7am to 7pm each evening and there is no way I would let my LO wait until his daddy gets in before I give him his tea! I don't think this will cause my LO any harm by us not sitting down to eat every evening together, we will on a weekend when we can all spend more time together. I have to say though, I can't believe you are still having to rock your toddler to sleep when she wakes up!! Maybe you should use the time she is asleep letting her get herself back off if she wakes, and you could then catch up on a few jobs round the house.

Rant over!!

zcrat41

Have to say,

reading this makes me glad I don't have kids (Yet.....would love them soon, hence lurking around these thready)

Hats off to anyone who can cope with looking after more than themselves - working or not! Feeding myself can be a challenge sometimes!