Example, meal planning. I have 7 weekly menus I rotate. There are tweaks here and there, but it saves me from looking at a blank page thinking, what the hell am I going to feed my family. Or worse, walking into the grocery store with absolutely no plan.
Even though I am on Maternity leave, Jake still goes to the sitter. I had mixed feelings about that when I first found out I was pregnant. BUT it was the right call for several reasons. #1, It would be unreasonable for me to ask the sitter to hold not one, but now two spots while I was out. This is her livelihood, and she probably wouldn’t have anyway. #2, Jake would miss his friends. We got a taste of him not going over for two months at the beginning of covid. He was heart broken and thought his friends were mad at him. #3 It’s good for him to get out and play with other kids. Covid has made this more difficult for friends to mingle, but daycares fell into a different category. #4 This was easier on me when I was adjusting with a new baby, and gave Brock and I the same bonding time as I got with Jake.
Now that I have rambled about all of that, let’s get to my point. The two most annoying and stressful times of day were bedtime, and trying to get him out the door in the morning. Note I said were. I found a way to simplify that recently. I was forgetting to do things, or remembering at the last minute, and I am not a last minute person. What’s more when we were potty training Jake one of the biggest motivators for him was the scoreboard. So what could I do that would motivate him visually, and me to make sure I don’t feel rushed and I get everything done. A list. I live off lists. So I made a checklist sheet for Jake. It gives him 6 tasks in the morning to complete, 6 at bedtime, and 6 questions for Cale and I to answer. When he completes a task he runs to the fridge to check the item off his list. This has saved SO much time and there is little to no stress to me. Now I tailored it for us and our routine, so here are the things I included on the list:moto
Mornings:
Did you have a good breakfast? I emphasized good because far too often I would hear “Mom, I want marshmallow cereal”. Much like their father, my boys love their cereal, but recently, I haven’t bought Lucky charms (marshmallow cereal), I have grabbed the whole grain cereals. A good breakfast means he has cereal, fruit and sometimes Greek yogurt.
Have you brushed your teeth?
Have you washed your face and hands? Side note, pretty sure my 3 year old does a better job washing his hands than I did at 8.
Have you gotten dressed?
Have you brushed your hair? Really doesn’t need to be reminded, he loves brushing his hair
Have you packed your backpack?
Evenings:
Have you picked up your books and toys? This is the hardest one in our house. It can be like pulling teeth and even with the motivation to him. He is getting better though
Have you brushed your teeth?
Have you had a pee? Without fail, every night, we would be told just before we left his room, I need to pee. He’s 3, we can’t not take him to pee. So now he does it before bed, and we can remind him of that.
Have you washed up?
Have you put on your Pj’s?
Have you gotten your water? This fell into the same category as the pee, prolonging bedtime every night
Then we added the questions for us, this is just to show him we see when he’s doing good things
Mom and Dad, Was Jake…
Good going out? Know when a kid who usually wizzes around the house is at his slowest? When you’re trying to get him out the door. Reminding him I will be answering that question later speeds things up
Helpful today? Jake loves to be helpful, so this is really an opportunity for me to show him I recognize it.
A good big brother? Almost always yes. Jake’s favorite way to help is with Brock.
Listening?
Behaving? The last two are completely self serving
Trying something new? This is mostly geared to trying new foods. Jake is an incredibly picky eater, so if he tries a new food, he gets his check. It’s not always food, but at least 50% of the time.
So this is a little something I put together to simplify some of the more stressful moments with little man.
-Mama Bear Out
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