Help organising myself

HOWMUCH

Look in your cupboards and freezer and see what will go together, then before bedtime get out what you will be having tomorrow. Until you've used up some of the stuff in the freezer you may not have space for batch cooking. When you got space cook either 4 portions or 8 portions depending on how much you like it. When I look after my DGS I'm out of the house from 6.45am if I'm on the bus or 7.15 if DH comes with me and were in the car. We don't get back until 6.30 to 7.15pm. The last thing I want to be doing is cooking from scratch I'm type 1 diabetic and would be on the floor if I did (if I know they are going to be late home I will eat at DD). So that were my HM ready meals come in, I normally cook most of the food at the weekend and operate on 8 portions with will last 4 weeks as there's 2 of us. We have lasagna and salad, chilli and rice ( I cook double rice and freeze) cottage pie but I built the veg into it by mince layer of veg then layer of potato, this way it pings better. If we have chicken at the weekend then the roast dinner does Sunday and Tuesday and the left over meat is popped into the freezer and will come out at some point to be either made into chicken lasagna or curry again with frozen rice from double cook. We like cheese n onion pasties with baked beans and oven chips, Cornish pasties and oven chips and mushy peas n granule gravy. I get them from Mr M's 4 cheese n onion and 4 Cornish for £2.50 they cost £1.75 each but they do a deal 2 for £2.50. We also like spag Bol do double sauce and freeze half then boil pasta. We also like gammon and chips with garden peas or replace chips with small new potatoes. I keep pizza in when I buy on special offer with is served with salad and either jacket potato or basic garlic bread.

This way I really can have a meal on the table at the longest 30mins and always know what I'm having before I go to bed. I have a slow cooker, electric pressure cooker and steamer and these make life easier. Today I've done a big batch of casserole/stew in the slow cooker. When the oven was on I used frozen puff pastry and sausage meat and stuffing mixed in and did sausage rolls and a plait for later in the week to have with baked beans. This morning the plan was to have casserole for evening meal, but DH decided he wanted pizza and salad, no problem a pizza came out of the freezer and the casserole will be used during the week portioned off some will go into the freezer for pies or just casserole with potatoes. You see when you've got a freezer you can be flexible. I shuffle my food about but I have an idea what I will be having during the coming days. One you've got your batch cooking rolling you only have to cook a couple per week because you should always have some in the freezer just jot down what you've got in the freezer and how many portions and put ticks at the side when it comes out of the freezer and you can re cook as and when needed. I started off make enough for either 2 weeks or 4 so that they don't all run out together. You could cook at the weekend when there's 2 of you at home.

Hope this helps

YORKSHIRELASS

My tips!

I agree mealplanning is essential and once you get the hang of it it makes such a difference. A lot of things that you probably cook anyway will go in the slowcooker. Chilli, casseroles, curries, meatballs etc.

Declutter your home if it needs it. If your house is tidy then cleaning is a doddle. Reduce the amount of stuff that lives on your kitchen worktops and bathroom surfaces. Try and have places where you can put the toys and baby stuff away as much as you can. Not easy I know!

Try and approach housework as small tasks that you do every day rather than having to spend all day Saturday catching up. This is basically the flylady principle, concentrating on one room each day and just doing what you can.

When you get out of the shower, grab a cleaning wipe and clean all the bathroom surfaces. Grab a duster and swish the living room while you are watching telly. If you go upstairs have a quick check to see if anything needs to go up with you to put away.

Try and finish things that you start. When the tumble drier finishes get the clothes out, fold them and put them away. (Ideally bin the ironing basket). If you wash up put all the pots away.

Get the right tools. I couldnt live without my old fashioned carpet sweeper. It cost about £15 and its amazing what it picks up. I whiz round the house every day and its quiet so you can use it even if baby is asleep. I also love my window vac, if your windows are clean it makes the house look much better.

Having said all that you need to make some time for you, working full time with a baby is hard. Try and do what you can during the week and have weekends as your time off. If your OH needs to have it spelt out what needs doing (mine does) then leave him notes/lists. Good luck with it.

meritaten

I don't hoover - that's OHs job. but, when the kids were little and I had a job and was doing a college course and OH was working all the hours he could.
I found that doing the 'prep' the night before saved time and temper in the morning. takes five minutes to lay out the clothes for the next day (and discover that a sock or top is missing and locate it). put the breakfast ready - even just getting out the bowls spoons and cereal helps. making sure your keys, paperwork and anything you need to take is ready and in a pile waiting to be picked up on the way out, is a boon.
as you have a baby - making sure the 'baby bag' is stocked with nappies bum wipes nappy bags etc. doing all this shouldn't take more than half hour? probably less if you know where everything is! another good reason for 'everything has a place and everything IN its place. I learned that early on - but persuading the rest of the family to PUT things back in their place wasn't easy.

morganlefay

All of the above are good advice, and I agree with everyone BUT don't feel guilty at nipping into asda. After some years I realised that my time iin a supermarket isn;t just for the things I can buy, it's also to cheer me up. It warm and bright in there, they have laid out the shelves to be attractive and they want to seduce you. It's time you are spending on your own (which with a baby and a busy job is sometimes rare) and its often actually enjoyable, Do they have a cafe ? Could you nip in for some lovely fresh veg and nothing else (because you're all organised thanks to the replies earlier) and sit for ten minutes for some time to yourself ? I'd do that but I'm a grandma now and have slightly too much 'me' time these days !

mashedavocado

I could have written your post, OP!

My partner and I are both back at work now and we have an 8.5 month old. I'm out of the house either 7-6:45 or 8-6 depending on the day. He's out 7:30-6ish.

We find that we don't eat until late because baby is difficult to put to bed sometimes. She doesn't really have a proper bedtime and sometimes won't go down until 9. I find myself eating whatever crap I can get my hands on to stave off hunger.

Our house is a tip all the time because it never seems like we have time to sort it out. It needs a declutter and a clean and then I feel like we'll be on an even keel that we can try and maintain. It's just getting round to everything...

Is your partner on board with things? I think you really both need to want things to change for it to happen. I had a massive cry about everything yesterday because I just don't feel like I can cope with things. Letting it out helped and we are going to try and make changes.

Sorry this was a bit long, but I wanted to say you're definitely not on your own.

mashedavocado

Oh - one thing we have done though, which has helped - we bought a big basket thing that all of baby's toys live in. Once she's in bed, we whizz round the living room and chuck all of her stuff in there. Even if it all comes out again the next day, it feels good to reclaim the space and makes it feel a bit tidier.

We have a chest coffee table thing from Ikea too that you can fit loads in. That has also helped.

whiteguineapig

I have decluttered as well
Its not much cleaner to be honest , but it looks so much better with not so much stuff in the house